On Sunday Dr. George Tiller, a doctor who provided late-term abortions, was murdered at his church. Abortion is such a controversial topic that I would normally not write about it, but I feel compelled to say a few words given the news of Dr. Tiller’s death.

I must confess that I have been grappling with this very topic myself for quite some time. I am an educated woman, and I enjoy the rights that have been fought for and won by other women before me. I choose to stay home with my children, a right that women did not have in the past. I know what abortion is, and I now how both sides of the fence view it. But this issue is more complicated than just the facts about what abortion is. It is an emotionally charged topic, and politics play into it all. It is not clear cut.

It is a great idea to research and understand a topic before you formulate an opinion. I have found a brief description of what an abortion entails at Daybreak Pregnancy Resource Center. If you are interested in reading about it, please go to their website, http://www.daybreakinc.org. (I’d rather not link to any website related to this topic.) By the way, Daybreak is a non-profit counseling and pregnancy center.

In the end, your opinion of abortion does not really matter. God tells us that murder is a sin. Period. He does not detail who is murdered and why; there are no exceptions.

You shall not murder. Deuteronomy 5:17

We are all sinners. We are not called to judge each other, though.

Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Luke 6:36-38

We are called to love God and each other.

Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ Matthew 22:37-39

I am saddened by this whole situation.

I will pray for others.

I will love others.

Will you?

I have my check-up tomorrow afternoon. This poses a few problems for me.

1. I desperately DO NOT want to step on that scale. I know that I need to lose weight. I know that I need to exercise. I just can’t seem to do everything that I need to do in any given day. The last thing I want is a reminder about those things.
2. I HATE going to the doctor. It is just embarrassing to sit on an examining table in a Johnny while answering personal questions from a person who I almost NEVER see. I don’t even share those things with my closest friends.
3. I am scrambling for child care as per usual. We really have to do something about our lack of back-up babysitting. Again, I just don’t have the time to do it.
4. My day will be rushed and crazy because I have to somehow get the kids off to two different locations and one of those places is yet to be determined. Then there is traffic and parking. It is a hassle for me.
5. Did I mention how much I dislike going to the doctor?

I know I need to go for a check-up, though. I haven’t had a physical for a few years now even though I have seen a whole host of other doctors for various reasons pretty consistently now for two years. It is necessary.

I am praying that I am basically healthy aside from being out of shape. I always panic before a doctor appointment because I am afraid of hearing that there is something terribly wrong with me.

Photo courtesy of Brittany G

Mothering is an art form. Think about what mothers do every day.

1. Mothers nurture their children. For each child that looks different, though. Some children need Mommy to snuggle them often throughout the day. Other children need the freedom to explore independently and know that mom is nearby to ensure that everything is safe. Moms have to learn what each child needs through trial and error.
2. Mothers discipline their children. All children need to be taught right from wrong, but there are multiple ways to teach children those lessons. Each child responds differently. Some children fall to pieces if you raise your voice while other children need the adult in charge to be assertive and firm.
3. Mothers provide for their children’s needs. How many meals does a mother prepare a day? Moms make sure the kids are well dressed. Moms patch up their children’s boo-boos. Mothers hug and kiss their little ones to tell them that everything will be all right.
4. Mothers advocate for their children. Moms tell everyone how wonderful their children are and what great things their children can do. They insist that the pediatrician look into a concern. Moms call the teacher, the principal, and the superintendent if necessary. Moms research to find answers and follow through on that research. Mothers pray for their children.
5. Mothers love their children. Everything that a mother does comes from love, uncontional love, and mothers are blessed.

Happy Mother’s Day. Enjoy your blessings!

Photo courtesy of ~*~Sheyla~*~

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1

Faith is amazing and a mystery to me. I have many questions and doubts, but I believe in God and I love Him. My faith is strong and it is growing every day, but there is a lot for me to learn about faith.

Children’s faith is even more awesome to me. They know so little, yet their faith can be so much stronger than any adult’s. In Nepal I saw children who had nothing but their faith, and they were truly joyful. They sang praise songs. They prayed fervently. They knew Bible verses. They invited me into to their lives, sharing what they had – faith. I was filled with awe. There is a lot I can learn about faith from the children I met in Nepal.

Watching my own children’s faith grow has been truly a blessing to me. They love God and Jesus. They pray and remind me to pray. They beg for me to read Bible stories to them and sing praise songs. They ask big theological questions all day, and I don’t most of the answers to their questions. They also make profound statements about God, Jesus, faith, and the Bible. It is a mystery to me that they are so little, yet they have such BIG faith. Their eyes are open to things that I could never see on my own. It touches my heart. There is a lot I am learning about faith from my children.

I was overjoyed and honored when my four year old daughter prayed with me and asked Jesus to be her best friend forever.

Last night my two year old daughter asked me to read the story of Jesus dying on the cross. We have read this story a few times, especially recently during Holy Week and Easter. At the end of the story, the book leads a child toward accepting Christ. I asked A2 if she wanted Jesus to be her best friend forever. She nodded, and C4 told her that she had to pray. A2 bowed her head and prayed an unintelligible prayer. I think she asked Jesus to be her best friend! Tonight she asked me to read the same story and prayed quietly again. I’m not sure if this means that A2 is saved, but I do know that the Bible tells us that we are to have faith like little children do.

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14

There is a lot I am learning about faith from my children.

Photo courtesy of H_Elise

I’m sure that you have heard all about the “OctoMom”, Nadya Suleman, in California. It truly is a medical achievement to conceive and deliver eight babies who appear to be doing well. Now Suleman has fourteen children to raise – on her own. Ann Curry interviewed Suleman recently.

Say what you will about Nadya Suleman, but she is articulate and seems to love her children. I just wonder how she will do it. Moms everywhere know how difficult it is to raise a couple of children with a spouse. I cannot imagine the challenges Suleman has ahead of her while raising this many children, three of whom she already knows have disabilities and octuplets who could possibly also have disabilities. She will certainly need financial and emotional support.

Will you join me in praying for this family?

It has been an exciting time in our home. Recently C4 accepted Christ! I am honored to be the person she prayed with that day. I have never had the privilege of praying with someone who is accepting Christ.

We have been talking about salvation for a long time, and I had suggested that Jesus could be her best friend if she asked Him to be. She had always said that she wasn’t interested in that just yet. But on this particular day, when I brought it up, C4 said that Jesus was her best friend. I told her that she had to ask Him to be her best friend before He would be. We were sitting at the kitchen table eating lunch when she decided to pray. “Jesus, I want you to be my best friend. Amen.”

At first I wasn’t sure that she knew what she was asking for. I wondered if it made sense to her. After all, she is only 4 years old. I left it alone for a couple of weeks before I brought it up again. When I asked if she wanted Jesus to be her best friend, she reminded me that she already asked Jesus to be her best friend that time in the kitchen when we prayed together! She truly has accepted Christ! God moved my little 4 year old girl to love Him!

It is funny to listen to her when she is with A2. She says,”You need to learn more about Jesus before you ask Him to be your best friend.” A2 just listens to her. I often hear C4 praying when she is in her bed before she falls asleep. She is really in love with Jesus!

We have been doing many Advent activities this year, and I have noticed that both of the girls are playing “Going to Bethlehem” or “Baby Jesus is born”. They are singing the Christmas carols like “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” and “Away in the Manger”. A2 is on her way to accepting Christ in time, too. She talks about Him all of the time and prays a lot, too.

I am amazed by my God. Watching my children’s faith grow has in turn made my faith flourish! I hope that during this wonderful Christmas season you are able to witness this miracle in your life!

It has been a joy to watch my little ones grow in their love for the LORD. With all of the devotions that we have done about Advent, they have started to play “Nativity”. They also talk about Jesus a lot now. It is heart warming to hear A2 tell me, “Jesus lives in my heart.” They have been singing Christmas carols all day long and begging to read Christmas books. I love that their faith is growing so rapidly! It is truly a blessing to watch them as they take their first steps in faith.

I am learning from my little ones, too.

• Pray when you are afraid.
• BELIEVE that Jesus loves you because He does.
• Be joyful in everything that you do.
• Be thankful for your blessings.

Thank you, Lord, for teaching me through my children. I am truly blessed by them every day!

Photo by singsing_sky

This is a revised version of a post that originally appeared in my sister blog, Homeschooling Coach. Please visit that blog for homeschooling tips & curriculum ideas as well as stories about the joys & trials of home education.

This is such a busy time of year. You are doing a lot right now with the holidays upon us. Do you find that it is difficult to find time for your spouse? It is so hard to do it all, and often times something has to give. I encourage you to consider a few ways to stay connected with your spouse even when it seems like there is no time.

Photo by Sammis Co

1. Have dessert or tea together after the children are in bed. This is your time to reconnect and discuss the day. It is a great stress reliever, too. The only rule is that you cannot do anything else like watch TV. It also only needs to take 5-10 minutes of your evening.
2. Leave each other love notes. You can leave a note in your hubby’s brief case telling him how much you love him, or leave a note in his car to tell him that you are thinking about him. Send him an e-mail to say, “I love you.” It means a lot when you take a moment out of your day to remind your hubby that he is special to you.
3. Choose a date night. You don’t have to spend a lot of money or even go anywhere fancy. The only thing that matters is that you are together. You can even have your date at home if you have to.
4. Laugh together. Tickle each other. Tell jokes. Watch a funny TV show. Get silly. Laughter is a great way to deal with stress!
5. Reminisce. Rekindling those memories helps you to feel the same way you did way back when. Look through a photo album or remind each other of stories from when you were dating.
6. Do something unexpected for your spouse. Meet your hubby at the door with a long, passionate kiss. Make a special meal for your husband. Watch the football game with him. Meet him at work for a picnic lunch. It is fun to think of the possibilities!
7. Give your hubby a back rub. It doesn’t take long, but he will feel more relaxed and grateful for the gesture!
8. Dance together in the middle of your living room. Play the song that you danced to on your wedding day or a song that is meaningful to both of you. Turn down the lights and enjoy being close.
9. Listen to a book on cd together. You both can do other things while the book is playing (like laundry and dishes), but you will have a book that you can both talk about. Choose something that is fun and interesting for both of you.
10. Pray together. This can be intimidating if you don’t usually do it. Make it a short time of prayer to start and make the prayer about praises. As you both get more comfortable, you can pray longer and about more intimate requests. You will find it amazing!

What are some ways that you and your spouse connect when you are busy?

As a mother of young children, my quiet time is often hard to squeeze into our busy days. However, I find that it really does refresh me. I have been attending a ladies’ Bible study, and my hubby and I are part of a small group through our church. These groups give me some opportunities to connect with God. I just need to find the time during the day to do it on my own. Here are a couple of things that I have discovered:

• I have to be flexible about when I have my quiet time. I cannot always count on having it at a certain time during the day since ANYTHING can happen in my house at any time. Sometimes I can spend time with God during nap time, but now I usually sleep during that time because I am so exhausted. There are days that I have to wait until right before bed. I have been successful doing it while sitting on the floor as the children play, but not often.
• I have started doing devotions with the kids. They love it, and sometimes it is the only time I am able to spend with God.
• I write verses on sticky notes and post them on the bathroom mirror or on my Bible. That way I at least have some of God’s word bouncing around my head during the day.
• I pray when I have a moment. That could be when I fold the laundry or while I do the dishes. Sometimes I can only say, “Help!” I am also trying to set the example that we pray about everything, so I will pray with the children when they are frightened or when they have a praise.
• I play praise music when I remember to put it on. The songs are soothing to me and the kids. We also sing about positive things more often when we have been listening to praise music.
• I receive e-mails with prayer requests from friends and a couple of groups that I am part of. I pray for those requests when I receive them. I might not have time later, and chances are, I will forget about the requests.
• If a friend mentions a prayer request, I offer to pray in the moment if that seems OK with her. Again, I will forget to pray later.

I hope that this offers you a few ideas to help you maintain a connection with God even when it seems impossible.

This article originally appeared in my sister blog, Homeschooling Coach. Please visit that blog for more information about home education.

Tonight is a monumental event in our house. We have taken down the crib, and everyone is now in a “big kid” bed for the first time. They have been eager to make this move, and my nearly two year old sped up the process by climbing out of the crib. This is an exciting moment for the children, but a sad one for Mommy. Besides the fact that switching sleeping arrangements tends to undo all of our hard work to make bed time go smoothly, now I don’t have a baby in my house. No more swaddling, rocking, and soothing. No one completely adores me just for being me. This is a particularly difficult change for me.

I am watching my babies grow up so fast. Someone told me that motherhood is full of long days and short years. This statement didn’t make sense to me when I was on the cusp of motherhood with a baby growing inside of me, but now that I am on the front lines of motherhood, I find that it is so very true. Things change at lightning speed with children, yet they need constant repetition to learn those important lessons. The mundane things that are so much a part of mothering seem to overwhelm us and prevent us from taking a step back to see the whole picture. We often keep our noses to the grind stone and forget to look up to see what is happening right now.

Then there are moments that make us take notice, like tonight. My little one was nervous about sleeping in a toddler bed, so my four year old said, “Just remember that I am always here. (They share a room.) Mommy is always here. Daddy is always here. And remember this…God is always with you. All you have to do is pray. You are safe and sound.” My heart just melted! Yes, all of that repetition, all of the hard work, all of that prayer is paying off! Someone – my dear God – is listening to me. “Thank you, God, for the encouragement! Tonight I desperately needed it.”

My kids have finally settled down to sleep after much fuss about the new sleeping situation. (It took both of us to settle them down and figure out that the little one only needed a new diaper and not comfort. Go figure!) Now I am going to take a deep breath, take a sip of my cup of memories, and enjoy the fact that my babies are growing up in amazing ways. I will always have the memories of my babies, but now they are blossoming into people who love each other and, most of all, who love God. How incredible is that!