Tuesday, November 8, 2011

He Redeems!


Last night I hosted a dinner/play date for a child and his mother from Benjamin's school. I was so excited and nervous. I cooked three different things and then decided spagetti would be best. Unfortunately she nor her child knew what spagetti was and seemed sceptical =) Whoopsie! Thought it was a universal meal.
The children played very well together and Micah and Ben were awesome listeners and followed directions whenever I needed to ask them to do something. My guest was impressed and asked "How do you get them to do that? You ask them one time and they listen to what you say." Then she started tearing up and I saw the feelings of a defeated parent surfacing. I admitted quickly that the behavior she was witnessing was wonderful but not always consistent and neither was my behavior. I told her how the night before I laid in bed crying because I had yelled at Benjamin two times that day and saw how it crushed him. I told her how Micah listens and is very obidient and so I therefore expect perfection from him and do not exhibit patience when he fails to listen. I told her of the behavior charts we use and how effective consistent time out is. But I failed to tell her that all the behavior charts in the world and all the time outs are not the results she is admiring in my house. What she is seeing is God's love and grace in action. She is seeing a family that prays over their decisions with parenting and children who know that God controls their home. How did I fail to mention this?! How did I dare take away from the amazing family life God has given us and instead give credit to a stupid behavior chart?! I felt so dumb and foolish after she left and prayed God would redeem my mistake.
The next morning when I dropped off Benjamin, she walked through the door. I've seen her less than five times in all the mornings I've taken Benjamin so this was not just a chance meeting. She walked out with me and asked if I would like to ride with her and I said yes. She started telling me about how wonderful last night was and asked if we could meet again next week and I quickly said yes. Then for one hour we sat in her car and talked (I guess being late to work is okay). Every question she asked was like God wrote it out and put it in her mouth and He was exalted! Pray for this relationship and for my speech to always be ready to give account for the joy I have.
"I will praise the Lord at all times, His praise will always be on my lips." Psalm 34:1

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Pray for Micah


Today was a wonderful day for me as a mama but it was also a day of some mixed emotion. This morning Micah was already running late to catch the bus, but he was running around determined to find his green Bible. "Mom, me and my friends are going to start a Bible club today. I have to find my little green Bible!" I tried so hard to help him find it, as I could see in his face how important this was to him. Finally the threat of the bus leaving him was too serious and so I gave him one of our picture Bibles and he took that instead.
Today Micah got off the bus and immediately began to fill me in on the Bible club's first day. He told me that he opened his Bible and would ask other kids if they would like to read it with him. He said "Mom they laughed at me. One kid stuck his tongue out at me and another boy told me the Bible was stupid. Mom they just don't know how cool it is." I told Micah that we could pray for those kids and he gave me their names and we prayed for them tonight. When Cameron and I got home tonight from the Roma community Micah proudly held out his green Bible and said "Found it!" Micah said "Mom do we have any Bibles in Bulgarian so when they want to read it with me they can have a Bible in Bulgarian?" So he has his little stack of Bibles ready to take to school tomorrow.
Today was a very proud moment for me because, Cameron nor I ever encouraged this with Micah, it is simply something he and his two friends decided needed to happen and he was determined to see it happen. I am proud that at the age of five God is encouraging him to do something that I once did. This is where the mixed feelings come into play. When I was in sixth grade I became a Christian. Because my stepdad was a self proclaimed atheist, he challenged my beliefs constantly. I can honestly say I wouldn't be the Christian I am today without his challenges because they forced me to take my decision to follow Christ seriously. I carried my Bible to school with me every day, not necessarily for others to see it but because I wanted to read it every chance I got. This of course was not a popular idea amongst my peers and one day I found my Bible with a pencil sticking out of it. Someone decided to stab my Bible while I was out of the classroom. =) My senior year I had very clear directions from God to tell my graduating class about Him before school ended. I did NOT want to do this and I would spend a good part of my lunch break shaking in fear and praying in the restroom for God to let me off the hook. Every lunch hour I would go from table to table telling peers about God's love for them. Seven of my peers prayed to follow Christ! One day, my darkest day of high school was when I was sharing about God's love and a bread roll hit me in the back of the head. Soon after, mashed potatoes hit my hair and shortly after that water got thrown at me as I walked by the group of girls that did all of this. I see Micah and I am so proud but my stomach actually turns to knots at the thoughts of what following Christ will mean in his life. I know how bad those girls hurt me during my high school years but I also remember how God was closer than ever in my relationship with Him during that time. Today when Micah told me about the kids who laughed at him, stuck out their tongue and told him what he was doing was stupid I had to take a moment to not immediately want to protect Micah. I have to trust God to take care of Micah just like He took care of me. God never calls us to do something without knowing the details of the job in front of us. Just as we follow Christ and trust Him with our life we must also trust Him with the lives of our children. I don't ever want Micah to be hit with food by his peers like I was and to be picked on day in and day out by their malicious gossip, but I also don't want to deprive him of those moments. It was in those moments of trials that I became strengthened to follow God wherever He called and in whatever I was called to do. So please pray for Micah and his Bible club. Pray that he would not be discouraged by those who will call him names or laugh at him but that he and his two friends would do what God has told them to do. Praise God for the little ears that hear His voice and follow without hesitation!