What do you think on?

Our lives are bombarded with stuff...sensory overload you could say. From TV to movies, from magazines to billboards, everyone wants you thinking about something. I am horrified at what is allowed to be printed or recorded not only for me to see but my innocent children. How to we combat this barrage of information that constantly takes our thoughts away from where they need to be? Paul says in Philippians 4 "to think on these things"....things that are:

TRUE

NOBLE

JUST

PURE

LOVELY

GOOD REPORT

VIRTUOUS

PRAISEWORTHY

How can we do that? By taking every thought captive and replacing it with thoughts that are true, lovely, noble, just, pure, virtuous, praiseworthy, good report. It begins with consciously doing it. One way we consciously do it is by not allowing evil to come before our eyes, as David says in the Psalms. As we begin to walk this path, really paying attention to what we see and think about, we make decisions on a moment by moment basis to think about some thing true (go to the word of God) or something Praiseworthy (sing praises to the Father). Then we will find that we begin to walk in a more intimate relationship with the father. Why? Because our minds are continually focused on HIM. I don't know about you, but that is my hearts desire!

Who do you strive to please?

"For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ" ~ Apostle Paul, Galatians 1: 10

This begs the question to ponder, "Who do I strive to please?" So many times every decision and action I make throughout the day comes from the root of who will be pleased. Often it is not a conscious decision but one breed out of habit, the desire to be important to someone, worthy of something or someone. I believe that if I change the motive of my decisions, actions, words to how would Christ have me respond, it would radically change my life. Supernatural living because my flesh is crucified and Christ is living through me, loving through me. I want to be a bondservant of Christ, not a man pleaser. It is not man whose blood covers all my sin. NO, it is Christ who died for me, who took on all my nasty, ugly sin so that I could live intimately with HIM. So again, who do I strive to please?

Oh Father that you would give me a heart that seeks hard after you, after pleasing you. That I would not be concerned with man's thoughts and desires and pleasures, but that you would be my only thought in each and every decision I make. It is the essence of supernatural living; the Holy Spirit indwelling in me.

The Garden in Daily Living

As my family and I are preparing our garden, I found this quite fascinating...

Plant Three Rows of Peas

1. Peace of mind
2. Peace of heart
3. Peace of soul

Plant Four Rows of Squash

1. Squash gossip
2. Squash indifference
3. Squash grumbling
4. Squash selfishness

Plant Four Rows of Lettuce

1. Lettuce be faithful
2. Lettuce be kind
3. Lettuce be patient
4. Lettuce really love one another

No Garden Without Turnips

1. Turnip for meetings
2. Turnip for service
3. Turnip to help one another







And We Must Have Thyme

1. Thyme for each other
2. Thyme for family
3. Thyme for friends

Water freely with patience and cultivate with love.Remember, you will reap what you sow.

Author Unknown.

Belief

God is not a belief to which you give your assent. God becomes a reality whom you know intimately, meet everyday, one whose strength becomes your strength, whose love, your love. Live this life of the presence of God long enough and when someone asks you, “Do you believe there is a God?” you may find yourself answering, “No, I do not believe there is a God. I know there is a God.”

~Ernest Boyer, Jr.

As the school year ends...

I ran across this quote today: It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end. —Ursula K. Le Guin As we are quickly ending our "formal" school year, only 3 weeks left to go, I have been wondering about the journey we took this last year. It was not a good start, but it is ending as the best year yet! Praise the Lord!! We sometimes get so excited to be DONE, and yet the journey was amazing. We have all learned so much this year. My 9 year old who was stuggling to read picture books back in August, just came in and told me he has finished Robin Hood. My 6 year old who was not reading at all, is now devouring the Magic Tree House Books, in one morning, I might add. And of course my oldest, who is 11, wants to read the originals, not the abridged versions any longer. So the question I ask myself is...just how was our journey? Oh we had more valleys than mountains this year, but in the end, the journey was magnificent for the simple reason that my children are loving to learn. They want to be done with math and grammar, what child doesn't, but they want to continue History and Science...we may just not stop!! They are learning to self-educate themselves, like Charlotte Mason talks about. And as mom and teacher, I could not be more happier!!

New Crayons

With the love of coloring in our home, crayons often break while we are coloring... but the broken crayons can still be useful. Here's how we've turned potential trash to treasure by recycling the old crayons into new crayons...great for gifts as well! Here's how you do it:

Preheat your oven to 250 degrees

Separate broken crayons and sort by similar color

Place crayons in a ziploc bag and, using wooden mallet or meat tenderizer, smash pieces into 1/2 inch or so sized pieces. A regular hammer will also work, but tends to smoosh crayons more.

Put crayon pieces into foil cupcake holders so as not to ruin your pans. Silicone works well also and the molds you can find are many... but I would only recommend using them just for this project and not for food.

Bake crayons for about 11 minutes.

When the crayons look melted but the colors are still intact, take pans out of the oven. Do not stir them to keep the colors. Let the pan cool for at least one hour

Remove foil liners from pans and let cool for at least 6 hours to overnight. If using molds, just leave overnight.

Unmold the new crayons and start creating!!

A Merry Heart, A Happy Home

Proverbs 17: 22 "A merry heard does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones."

Our cheerful, merry heart determines much in regard to the way our day goes, how smoothly our home runs. Waking up on the "wrong side of the bed" is reflected in our home and our family throughout the whole day. Have you ever heard that the mother/wife is the thermostat of the home? That is a big responsibility. Praise God that "we can do all things thru Christ who strengthens us" (Phil 4:13). He is the one that can change us, mold us, shape us when we go to Him daily and allow Him to gently remind us that it is all about Christ and the Kingdom. He has called us into this walk as wife, mom, homemaker. He has promised us that he will give us all we need to fulfill this very calling. Let us rest in His arms as we go about our days, allowing His sweet presence and aroma to fill our spirits and our homes with love, peace, and joy!