Judah David is Born

I know I've been gone for awhile but I am back with big news! Our grandson was born at 7:59 this morning, weighing 9lbs and 8.5oz. I hope you enjoy the pictures! I will be back soon!

Heart of Motherhood Enrichment

Motherhood is an opportunity for us to live for God's glory before our children and what better way to do that than use the tool God himself ordained. Marriage is God's picture of Christ and the Church and through this amazing institute we display His love to our children and the world around us. Come join us at the Heart of Motherhood Enrichment Feb 5-7 and hear more about God's plan for motherhood. You can register by contacting Julie Zesch at heartofmotherhood@gmail.com.
Enjoy the video! Grace-Works, Elaine

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Kx9F-YOBfE

Three Big Events!

Much going on these days! I am currently planning three big events!
For those of you who live in West Texas there are some exciting things happening! First things first…The 2010 West Texas Bridal Showcase is Jan 31st from 12noon til 6pm. Be sure to attend and stop by for a visit at Rachel Russo’s Photography booth. Rachel will be offering some amazing specials on wedding packages for those who book a wedding. She is also giving away some really neat stuff. Rachel’s photography business is booming and taking her to places like Canada, South Carolina, and hopefully Hawaii soon! She is an amazing photographer and an amazing woman! You wouldn’t want to miss having her involvement in your special occasions. You can visit her website at RachelRussoPhotography.com
Here are just a few pictures of what we are working on for her booth.


Next on my agenda is the Heart of Motherhood Enrichment, Feb. 5-7. This retreat has been going on annually for about ten years. I am honored to be one of the speakers this year. If you need a bit of rejuvenation along with a dose of inspiration be sure to sign up for this event. The team has been planning and praying for quite some time now and I'm sure that it will be an event you wouldn’t want to miss. It’s for mothers of all ages even grand-mothers are welcome. If you are interested in attending the retreat or for more information contact Julie Zesch at heartofmotherhood@gmail.com.
Here is a taste of some of the projects we are working on to make the weekend enjoyable.


Lastly but not the least by any means… mark your calendar for Friday, February 12th, Valentine weekend, for Rhythm and Romance!

This is going to be an amazing evening of dinner and music that you don’t want to miss! Every year Winning Families hosts an evening of awareness for the organization. It’s a time to let the community know what we do and why we do it as well as raise support for our ongoing work. This year, the director, my husband, Tim Russo, will be putting his musical ability to the test as he presents an enchanting evening of music from several genres. We will hear a little Frank Sinatra, some Temptations, as well a Brad Paisley tune or two. All the songs were hand picked by Tim and will convey a message of inspiration to those in attendance. Believe me, you don’t want to miss this! Oh, and let’s not forget the amazing dinner that will be prepared and served by Sister’s Café! For more information or to purchase your tickets go to McNease Convention Center . You can also purchase tickets at Blair's Western World; Elite Physic; and the Stock Show and Rodeo office. Hurry and get your tickets…space is limited and we are expecting a sell out! What better Valentine gift for your sweetheart than to take them out for a romantic dinner with music and all the while supporting an organization that strengthens and encourages families.

True Woman | Mary Daly Dies

I thought I would share this with you today. I hope you will be inspired to live with passion for a cause that would honor God! Though this woman was passionate, her cause was futile. Do you live your beliefs with conviction? Click on the link below to read the story. Grace-Works!

True Woman | Mary Daly Dies

His Glorious Will

I awoke around 4am and couldn’t go back to sleep. I have been doing quite a bit of thinking the past few days. The beginning of a New Year will do that to me. It sends me on this path of self evaluation. I’m not sure why but I am resisting setting goals for the New Year apart from the goal and desire to glorify God. I’ve been thinking that I have spent a lot of years pursuing good things in the name of doing God’s will, but I am challenged as to how many of those good things were His will or mine. More time will be given to His word, listening to His heart…what does He really want from me? What does He want to do with this life He created from the clay? It is His to do as He pleases, but of course there will be a struggle. My will is way too strong, but I am confident He knows how to shape it in the most gentle of ways. He knows me well! I hope the beginning of this New Year finds you in a state of reflection and anticipation. Not so much so that you will prosper (I hope that too) but so that God’s kingdom would be advanced. Are you in a place where you can hear His voice when He speaks, or is your life crowded with your own pursuits? Do you really want His will to be done on this earth, or is it most important that you have your way? I invite you to join me in a fresh surrender of your heart to His! The beauty of this life can only be found as we see through His eyes. I pray this day will signal a fresh start for you and that you will be found on your face in His glorious presence. John 15:5 "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. (NKJV)
Grace-Works
Just because I needed to put some pictures up:
Me and My very sweet Man!

My Precious Family!

One of Our Sweet Jewels!

Obstacle #3-Spiritual Enemies (The Devil)

John 10:10 - The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

I won’t spend much time on this particular obstacle because it speaks for itself.

Satan’s power is increased through our choices, which is why he tempts us to do things his way. He knows that we must open the door to let him in.

He will use many things to divide and rob us of relationship. Breaking up the family unit is something he must do to gain power on this earth. We give in to him through impatience, anger, deceit, offenses, misunderstanding, unforgiveness, stubbornness, pride, and everything else that is contrary to God.

I can remember a time in my life when I was bound by perfectionism (pride). Because of this I had a need to be in control of my life, which included my husband, children and anyone else that wanted to be a part of it. After years of getting undesirable results, I began to consider that maybe all the difficulty and lack of peace I was experiencing was due to something in me that needed to change. Just maybe the people in my life who didn’t do things to my satisfaction weren’t as wrong as I thought they were. As I began to seek answers, the Lord began to reveal truth to me (it came so slowly). I learned that the love and grace that exudes from Christ was there to cover all of my imperfections and that He wasn’t standing around with a big stick waiting to oust me if I did wrong. I learned how to walk in His grace toward myself. Then I was able to extend it to others. I thought by being in control of my life (which as it turns out I wasn’t) and making sure it was all done right (in my own eyes) that I would gain acceptance from the Lord. Now realize, change didn’t take place over night. It has been a long hard road of being humbled by the Lord and I assume because of my sinfulness it’s not over yet. But when God reveals things in our lives that need to change, He is faithful to give us the strength we need to obey Him. But the choice is ours and every time we make a deliberate choice to not do things His way we welcome the influence of the enemy of our soul into our lives. Now, as it relates to parenting, when I choose as a parent to not obey God’s instruction, I am deciding to open the door for destruction, division, and whatever else comes with the flesh, devil, and world. The consequences of our choices are far reaching, even to the next generation. We may never know until our children are adults, with children of their own, just how much our disobedience has cost.


Be encouraged today to walk closely to Jesus. He is the only one who can truly guide you. Even though we do have an enemy, we have a heavenly Father who is capable of protecting, teaching and leading us. He will keep us as we surrender our will to Him.
Due to my lack of relevant photographs, I continue to take advantage of the opportunity to post some of my favorite photos. Grace-Works

Obstacle #2- Social and Cultural Conditions (The World)

Well for those of you who were following the Parenting Series here is the next Obstacle...if you have lost track of where we were you can go to the last post on June 28 and reread the first obstacle to character training, the flesh. Sorry for the delay but I think I am back on track. Thanks for your patience.

I Corinthians 15:33- Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.”

Many times we are naive as parents as to how impressionable our children really are. In not embracing this truth we often place them in risky environments. I have said on many occasions that parents seem to put their children in environments that they would not put themselves in because of the negative impact it may have. For example: Spending unlimited time with a peer who has negative behavior. We understand as adults how we are influenced by negativity but for some reason we often think our children are immune to it.

Proverbs 22:24-25 – Make no friendship with an angry man, and with a furious man do not go, 25 lest you learn his ways and set a snare for your soul.
One of our children in particular seemed to be easily influenced—very impressionable. It never failed, when she would spend time in social settings she would return with behavioral changes. Don’t get me wrong, I know we are all influenced by one another in some capacity or another but this was dramatic. It was so obvious that her attitude, body language, accent, and words would all take on the appearance of whomever she had been with. It was as though the other child had come home with us instead of our own daughter. I do believe that although all are susceptible to this, some children tend to be more vulnerable than others. This could work out well for you if your child is being influenced in a positive way but not well at all when the influence is contrary to what you are training. This is why it is so important to be involved in our children’s lives. Know who they are with and what that child’s tendencies are so that you will know how to counteract it.

Know the parents of the children your kids are involved with, whether or not they adhere to similar philosophies as you do. If we are going to parent Biblically, we have to accept stewardship over what influences our children. Be willing to accept, no matter the cost, that some influences just aren’t good for your particular child and make the adjustments necessary. For Tim and I adhering to this philosophy was a priority and quite costly but also rewarding later in life as the fruit remained.
John 16:33– In this world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.
A cultural battle is inevitable for those who follow Christ. In this passage Jesus prepared His disciples for what they would face in this world and how they were to deal with it. We must do the same for our children.

Here are a couple of practical ways to address this issue:
 Extended family and friends: Not every family will have the same ideals and standards in every area. You and your spouse are responsible to clarify your standards in specific areas for your extended family and friends. Allow others the freedom to live according to their convictions or preferences without judging them and be free to live your own without worrying about whether you will offend. Others will not be the ones to give account for your stewardship.

 Media: A philosophy struggle takes place in this arena perhaps more than any other. Media has more influence over our children today than at any other time in history (I will do a separate post on the affects of media on our children). Most parents are overwhelmed with trying to keep up with their children and the influence media has on them. Some questions we need to ask ourselves in regard to what our children are exposed to are: How is this activity going to affect his /her attitude toward God? Is this a positive influence on my child? How does it glorify God or promote honor toward Him?A common mistake many parents make is having the philosophy that says “Well, I turned out all right even though I had some bad influences and made mistakes.”
Remember, you are not the standard, God and His Word are.
Proverbs 16:25- There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.

Child training involves absolutes. There must be concrete boundaries in the life of a child. Absolutes bring a sense of security. Limits provide protection and freedom for children. They simply say “I love you more than I love myself and that’s why I will sacrifice whatever necessary to protect you and guide you.”
Hope you enjoyed the pictures!
Grace-Works,

Musing

Strange times they are…
Long drawn out days- short not enough hours, wearisome and depleted- energized, and exuberant, confused- clear thinking, great joy- deep sorrow, no answers- profound insight, accepted- rejected, integrity- lies, here-gone, abundance-need, fun and laughter-anger and misery, sickness-health, life-death, despair-hope…
These are the days of a life. What strange wonder in it all… how does one manage? Dependence-Independence…fight-surrender…Ahhh…SURRENDER…understanding enlightened!
Grace-Works

The Seasons Of Life

View more presentations from Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ Spider 　Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ　 Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ .

I’m back! It's crazy how fast time passes. Some of you may have been following me over at “Maime’s Hospitalitea Cottage” and know what I’ve been up to. If you haven’t, feel free to hop on over and catch up with what’s been keeping me busy.
I have also been enjoying my sweet little granddaughter. We have been reading books, playing with Noah and his arch, playing peek-a-boo with doilies and riding around in the big red wagon. I feel so special! Who ever knew life could be so fun?



Thank all of you who have prayed for my Dad. Considering that he and my Mom’s life has changed drastically they seem to be adjusting well. I think they would both appreciate if you would continue to keep them in your prayers. Everyday life from here on out will be very different for them as Dad continues to move toward a complete recovery.
In case you were wondering I will continue the Parenting Series but I will say, I am eager to finish because I have so many other things I want to share. I am currently working on several posts so please stay tuned for what’s to come… Grace-Works

I'll Be Back

Thank all of you who prayed for my Dad. He is doing better but has a long road of recovery ahead of him. I am in the middle of planning a wedding for my daughter so I am a bit low on time these days. Until I return to Grace-Works you can keep up with the happenings at Maime's Hospitalitea Cottage at hospitaliteacottage.blogspot.com I am looking forward to coming back soon! Please keep watching for my return!
Grace-Works, Elaine

Stroke

For those of you who don't already know, My dad is recovering from a stroke. I appreciate all your prayers and thoughts. I will do my best to be back as soon as possible.

Obstacles To Character Training- Sin Nature (The Flesh)

So far, I covered the importance of parental stewardship and that God is seeking godly offspring. Also, I shared the importance of having a biblical philosophy of parenting. Today, I will talk more about character training and some obstacles you may be facing.
Obstacle #1 – The Sin Nature
I know this is hard for some of us to acknowledge but our little bundle of joy was born with a wretched sinful nature. You will not have to teach him or her how to say “no”, how to not share, say “mine”, or to outright defy you. It all just comes so naturally to this precious little sinner.





Galatians 5:16-1:7 So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.17 For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.

If you are not expecting your child to disobey you and use every bit of his strength to oppose you, you will be a disillusioned parent.

Proverbs 22:15 is clear “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.”

Our primary objective, as parents, is to teach our children to surrender to the Spirit and not to the sinful nature.
One way to accomplish this is to teach them self-control.

When Tim and I were young parents we learned this reality through very difficult circumstances. When our oldest daughter was eighteen months old she was diagnosed as hearing impaired/deaf. She had no form of communication other than screaming with great frustration, flailing her body, or throwing whatever she had in her hand. Sometimes she would bite, pull hair, or push another child down in her attempt to communicate. It was a very difficult time for us as parents because we had lofty ideals about training our child and they just weren’t working. No matter what we tried, nothing seemed to get through to her.



One day someone said to me “The greatest thing you can teach your daughter is self-control. If she can learn to control herself, she can learn anything.” It was an ah-ha moment for us. We started on a long journey of discipline and instruction. After much prayer and deliberation, Tim and I came up with a plan that we were both comfortable with and agreed to follow it consistently. Teaching our daughter to control herself became a priority. For example: If she wanted a snack she would have to use sign language and use her voice in a calm manner rather than screaming uncontrollably. We had many long days of nothing but instruction. For many of those days, I was tempted to give up because of discouragement. But by enduring, we were able to teach her to control herself so that she could learn. So much peace came to her once she realized that there was another way to communicate which was pleasant and got her the desired response. She started using her voice in a more pleasant way and became an all around pleasant little girl.

I don’t want to minimize the work that went into this process. Because it was apparent our little girl would never be able to function in society if we didn’t make the changes necessary, it propelled us to do the hard work. In our case, the consequences of not teaching self-control were obvious. But for many, the results aren’t seen until it’s too late to make a difference.

Many times in our attempt to address a behavior we, as parents, actually react with the same behavior we are correcting in our children. This makes our attempt to correct or instruct meaningless.

We cannot simply allow our children to negatively “express themselves” without correction. We must love them enough to resist their self-destruction.

Galatians 3:24-25 clarifies this process: Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law(boundaries), locked up until faith should be revealed, so the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith.25 Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law. (NIV)

Our goal is not to just have “good” or “well behaved” children. Our goal as parents is to be good stewards over our children directing them to Jesus Christ by the law. In turn, they will grow in relationship with Him through faith and therefore become obedient to His Spirit. This is when they have there own personal AH-HA moment and realize, “This is why Mom and Dad taught me self-control, so that I would avoid self-destruction before I came to Christ.”

Galatians 5:18-23: But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law. 19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy , peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (NIV)

I encourage you to ask yourself, “Am I willing to make whatever sacrifices necessary to build character in my child?” Will you make the adjustments necessary to model the character you are teaching?
Grace-Works, Elaine

Charting The Course

Here are a few passages to ponder as you continue charting your course through the parenting series.

Proverbs 29:18 Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.

You must know where you want to go and how you are going to get there.

Proverbs 4:26-27 Ponder the path of your feet, and let all your ways be established 27 Do not turn to the right or the left; Remove your foot from evil.

Once a course is charted you must consistently stick to it.

Galatians 6:7-9 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. 8 For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. 9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.


Parents plant things into their children daily. The things planted will produce a harvest. A parent cannot plant criticism, sarcasm, and insults into their children and expect them to produce love, encouragement, and kindness.

II Corinthians 9:6 But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

You must make certain commitments to your children and keep them in order to reap the rewards of pleasant children. Two hours of family time a week cannot compete with unending hours of television, computer and other influences. (Remember the Duet. 6:4-7 principle).

II Timothy 1:5 When I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice ,and I am persuaded is in you also.


One of the greatest gifts you can give your children is a genuine faith. Leaving a legacy of spiritual fervor rather than just having a religion is essential to passing on a godly seed.

Proverbs 23:4-5 Do not overwork to be rich; Because of your own understanding, cease! 5 Will you set your eyes on that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away like an eagle toward heaven.

“A child’s birthright is the right to spend time with his family.”
Frank Minirth

Setting time aside at the beginning of each year to pray and seek God’s direction as you chart your course for your family is helpful. Tim and I have done this for many years. We typically get away one weekend in January. The whole purpose for our trip is to reevaluate our goals from the previous year and then to seek God’s direction for the current year. Our charting includes many aspects of our lives. When our children were young we would discuss areas we thought we needed to improve in as parents, as well as areas of difficulty for our children. We would develop a plan as to how we could possibly teach and train them in those areas to help them grow stronger. We would typically focus on particular character traits as well as certain behaviors. For example, one year our goal was to focus on being a servant to others. We felt that some of our children were struggling with selfishness and ungratefulness. In order to combat this attitude, we spent time volunteering and doing acts of service as a family. We reinforced the concept of being a servant by memorizing scripture pertaining to serving others, reading books about those who serve, as well as consistently addressing attitudes that were opposite from that of a servant. Behavior problems were a bit different. We would define the problem and then decide as a couple what we thought were appropriate consequences. After informing our child of our decision, we would work together at being consistent with discipline. Though working together as a couple makes it so much easier, I am aware that you don’t all have that luxury. I encourage you that if you don’t have an involved partner, consider seeking the Lord for guidance and begin to implement a plan as an individual. Parenting is a difficult stewardship and without the support of your partner it can be quite challenging. When you get discouraged and want to quit always remember that Grace-Works.

 

Just a few pictures of Julia from our recent camping trip!

Eight Facts about Your Parenting Philosophy

1. Successful parenting requires teamwork –unity is essential.

2. No matter what your philosophy has been, it can change.

3. Most couples never discuss their parenting philosophy prior to marriage.

4. Differing parenting philosophies is one of the major causes of marital conflict.

5. You may not agree on every single decision, but you must agree on your overall approach.

6. Each parent has a specific role to play in the life of their child.

7.As Parents you must decide if you are going to parent according to your own philosophy or the Bible.

8.Read Colossians 2:8 and beware lest you be cheated by following the wrong philosophy.

 

I'll Be Back!

I'm still here! Life has been very busy for me and posting in my blog has taken a back seat. I find that I don't multitask as well as I did when I was younger. In the past month I have started planning my daughters wedding; planned and presented a premarried seminar; made a trip to LA to visit family and friends; spoke at a "Spring Tea" for our local home school association and planned a rehearsal dinner for a friends son. Even though May is looking even busier than April, I am going to try to finish the parenting series because I have so many other things I want to share with you. Please be patient with me, I'll be back soon!

Parenting Is A Stewardship

There is so much chatter about being a good steward over your body, your finances, and your possessions. But rarely do we hear about one of our greatest calls to stewardship. (Please read Malachi 2:14-16.) As we continue our discussion about parenting, we will look at another reason we are parents: God seeks a godly seed. Not just any seed but a godly seed. We can conclude from this passage in Malachi and the passage in Psalm 127 in my previous post that parenting is a stewardship. A steward is one who manages another’s property, finances or affairs. Though being the steward over our children may be the most difficult challenge we face as parents, we are well suited for it. We have not only been given our children as gifts but we have also been given a prescription and an objective as to how they are to be cared for. (Please read Proverbs 22:6.) Parental stewardship involves discipleship. Biblical parenting has to be intentional. With this in mind, we can surmise that parenting is no less than discipleship in the home. Unless we see the gravity of our responsibility in this matter, we will fail to put forth the effort necessary to train up a godly seed. (Please stop and read I Corinthians 11:1.) In this passage the word follow means to imitate. When we are discipling others, whether they are our children or not, it is important that we are careful to use the “do as I do and not just as I say” approach. Tim and I decided that speaking kindly and with respect to one another was something we wanted to be the norm in our home. We were diligent to hold one another accountable for this. When our children came along, we found it to be much more of a challenge to maintain our desired end. In order to eliminate the possibility of a set back, we allowed our daughters to speak to us any way that we spoke to them. Because we were committed to this, it worked really well for us. For example, if I spoke to one of the girls with a raised voice, she had the liberty to speak back to me in a raised voice. Fortunately, to the best of my memory, it never happened that way. I do recall on occasions having one of them remind me of the rules and say “do you want me to talk to you that way?” I would say that our children grew up in a home where there was a minimal amount of unkind words or disrespect for one another. If this behavior did occur it would be addressed promptly with an apology, no matter who the offender was. So often we want to be examples in word only. God calls us to something much greater in our parenting. Your children know when your words are sincere. Even at a young age they are able to perceive if your words match your actions. This poem by Guy Dowd says it well:

I’d rather see a sermon than hear one any day
I’d rather you walk with me than merely point the way
The eye is more a pupil than ever was the ear
Good advice is often confusing
But example is always clear

Discipleship or training requires deliberate intentional effort and a well thought-out strategy. Discipling our children is a process that doesn’t give immediate results. My next post will be titled “Parenting is a Process.” Grace-Works

Gifts From God

I told my daughter Mary that I can’t wait until Julia starts asking all the “but why Mommy?” questions. Those were the ones that always tripped me up. The good thing is that they sent me looking for answers. Parenting requires humility and a teachable attitude. There is no room for pride and selfishness. Tim and I have always said that the most beneficial preparation we had for ministry was parenting. As parents, we learned about depending on the Lord; serving even when we were exhausted; the importance of having right attitudes; admitting our short comings and weaknesses; continuing to learn so that we could teach others; and the list goes on. It is important for us to ask ourselves why we are parents. One reason would be because God desired to give us a gift, a reward, or an inheritance (Read Psalm 127:3). Children are valuable gifts that God has given us. When we begin to view them the way the Bible speaks of them, we take our role in their lives more seriously. This concept hit home for me late into the night when my daughter Bethany was about four years old. She had been suffering with an ear ache earlier in the day. We prayed for her, gave her medication and tucked her into bed. Tim and I had been asleep for quite a while when we were awakened by her crying at his side of our bed. My back was to them and as I awoke and turned toward her, there standing behind her was a tall man or woman (I couldn’t tell which). It appeared that he was watching Bethany’s interaction with her Dad and writing in a notepad as though he was taking notes. I immediately reacted by yelling, “Who are you, what are you doing here?” He looked at me with a surprised look as though I wasn't supposed to see him. As I continued to yell the question, he began to back out of the room and faded away. At that point, Tim jumped out of bed and frantically searched the house for an intruder. When he came back to the room to tell me no one was there, I couldn’t believe it! It was just so real! Whether it was a dream or a real encounter with Bethany’s guardian angel, I may never know for sure. I choose to believe the later. Nevertheless, the purpose of it was served. I was convinced more than ever that every interaction with my children was being observed by someone who cared very deeply for them and was keeping a record. Needless to say, I became a much more conscientious parent after that night. Children are valuable little people that God has given to us for a reason. As a society, we are guilty of not valuing our children and believing them to be gifts. They are every generation’s most valuable resource. In the next post, I will talk about our responsibility for this gift. Grace-works!

Introduction to Priority Parenting

It’s heart warming for me to play a supportive role in the lives of our daughter and son-in-law as they parent our granddaughter. Benj and Mary are a unique team! They work together very well, which brings a lot of security to Julia’s life. Their preparation for parenting started long before Julia was born. I would venture to say even before she was conceived. The thing that I admire about them is that they have prepared with purpose. They are submitted to the Lord and His purposes. They continue to look for resources to help them be the very best parents they can be. Some of us fail to plan at all for the most important aspects of our lives. I remember when Tim and I were young (wait a minute, we are still young!) and newly married. We wanted children right away. We both wanted a large family and had agreed on having twelve children. It took me a long eleven months to conceive, but finally Rebekah, our first bundle arrived. Eighteen months later, Rachel came along; twenty two months after Rachel, Bethany; and lastly, nineteen months after Bethany, Mary, our youngest, was born. Due to health complications, I was only able to carry four children. Our reproduction endeavor turned out to be a sprint rather than a marathon. We had an overall plan back then, but had never really thought about the purpose in it, except that we knew we believed in procreation. Needless to say, we chose the crash course in parenting unlike Benj and Mary.
We all have days when we feel like we are good parents, and others when we feel that we have failed miserably and are convinced that we are the worst parent in the world. This is normal! There are no perfect parents! The hard days in our roles as parents can be like surfing a wave “we can let it overwhelm us or let it lift us and carry us. It’s important to allow ourselves to be challenged to become better parents. It’s never beneficial to give in to self-defeating thoughts that tend to cripple and discourage.
Due to some of the questions that have come up lately in conversations with parents of younger children, I’m going to spend the next few posts sharing some parenting philosophies that Tim and I have learned through the years. In introducing these articles, want to note that there are several approaches to parenting. There is the “how to” approach and the “why” approach. I will focus on the “why” approach because, if parents understands the goals of parenting, they will be better prepared to apply the information that is available to them. There are also the psychological approach and the biblical approach. I will focus primarily on God’s design for the family and the biblical philosophy regarding children and their make up. Whether you are a Christian or not, the principles we will cover will be beneficial to you as you consider your overall approach to parenting your child. Keep in mind that these posts are only overviews. They will only address the high points. If there is any particular concept you would like further information about, you may email me. To be continued…Grace-Works

Happy Generation!

I have been meeting with a group of young married women in my home for the past few weeks. All of them have been married under seven years, which makes me feel very old. We are reading and discussing a book together. I must tell you that it is so refreshing to be around these women and their children. They have so much life and energy. I am also very blessed by their desire to know the truth in God’s Word. The book that we are reading and discussing has been challenging to all of us! It has been great to have an opportunity to share some of the mistakes I’ve made through the years. Hopefully they can avoid making the same ones I’ve made. The last couple of discussions have included the concepts found in Titus 2:3-5, where Paul is telling the older woman to teach the younger and then he gives a list of what to teach (read it when you get a chance). In our discussion, I surmised that in our culture there aren’t many environments where we spend quality time with people who are older or younger. How can the young women learn from the older if they are seldom around them? In many environments, age segregation starts at the cradle and ends at the grave. We have robbed ourselves of so many rich experiences by not pursuing opportunities to be with all age groups. I have some really strong opinions about this particular concept and have to remind myself to observe the instruction in Titus 2—to be discreet, which means modest in my opinions and passions. Nothing warms my heart like the scene I observe on Sunday mornings as I look out across the congregation of our Church. There are entire families sitting together worshiping as a family unit. And what makes it even more special is when I see the Pops and Maimes (grandfathers and grandmothers) sitting there with their families as well. This is just one sweet picture of age desegregation. I have often wondered why children are perceived as such a nuisance that, on one of the most significant days of the week, for one of the most important things a family can do together, we would send them away to be cared for or ministered to at an age appropriate level. Okay, okay… Now I’m abandoning my discretion. All I really want to say is, you might begin to think about how you and your family can be less age-segregated in your everyday life. What opportunities can you make for you and your children to be around someone from a different generation? If foolishness begets foolishness then what does wisdom beget? Are you and your children walking among the wise? It’s much easier to think about this as it pertains to our children but we must ask ourselves as adults, am I gleaning enough from those who are older and wiser to sustain me in the future? Am I seeking instruction from those who are a bit further down the road than me? Be encouraged today to think outside the box. Ask yourself these hard questions. A Hebrew proverb reads “Happy the generation where the great listen to the small, for it follows that in such a generation the small will listen to the great.” I’m so glad Grace-Works!

Enjoying Another Generation