The Bribe to Quit

Breaking news: Madison has decided to quit sucking her fingers!

I have often hoped she would outgrow this habit, but still worried she would be ten and still have two fingers in her mouth and one in her nose. I imagined the teasing she would receive from friends, and how she would be scarred for life if I didn't exert some motherly power over her, or at least bribe her so she would quit.

So, I did bribe her a few months ago. Then, as the conversation progressed, I felt the need to clarify that she would not qualify for the bribe unless she quit for at least a month. At that point, she said she would rather keep her fingers in her mouth.

I can only guess at what has made her change her mind. Last weekend she did have a weird bout of swollen fingers, almost as if she was bitten by something- and on those exact two fingers. She cried and cried and said they felt funny and hurt and were fat. But for the life of me I couldn't figure out what had happened to her favorite fingers.  It's still too cold here for any biting bugs to be out. I think perhaps they got cold on our maple syrup tour and were tingly as they warmed up. But that doesn't account for the swelling. Hmmmmm.

That night she told me she was done. And as much as I watch her, I can't catch her with those fingers in her mouth.

Thank goodness.

And the bribe? Remember that one thing I swore I would never buy for my girls? I did not promise her that. Nope. Not gonna admit it.

OK. Fine. I did. I broke my own rule for real this time. It's a small price to pay to avoid my daughter being scarred for life.

Purposed Prayer and Filed Under Grace

This month I spent a lovely bit of time with ladies from church at our annual retreat. We ate plenty, worshiped, prayed, quieted ourselves, learned and listened.

We practiced what I will call purposed and intentional prayer. The process I learned (in my own words) is as follows:

• Identify an area that needs prayer. I began by listing things that have burdened me recently. Ask God to lead you to the thing He wants you to focus on.

1. kids fighting, disrespect
2. negativity in our home
3. overcoming despair, feelings of failure

• Simplify the current area. A word jumped out to me as an answer to my list: JOY.

1. I desire joy, in my own personal walk with Christ, in my family, in our home
2. My Bible study homework this week highlighted joy, and I felt that confirmed this to be God's leading to pray for joy.
3. My middle name is Joy! How appropriate!
4. If I am seeking Joy in Christ in all things, that above list should just take care of itself

• Gather thoughts and words pertaining to the area for prayer.

1. I looked up joy in Scripture
2. I studied books (in this case my weekly Bible study homework on the subject)
3. I listened to what the Holy Spirit made "pop out" at me as I researched.

• Write out a prayer, using the research, words, truth you have found. Make it personal and powerful, claiming promises God has given you.
• Pray knowing and understanding that God will do things in His own time and way, but continue to pray with confidence in what God has led you to pray, until resolution comes. 

I love this! I took the time given during the retreat, resisting the pull to discuss and visit, and quietly listened and dug into my study. Praying like this, with purpose, yet letting God lead, helped me be more specific in my prayer time.

And I am now joyfully watching as He answers. It seems no matter what I read lately, I keep stumbling onto this topic of joy. I'm listening and He is increasing my joy.

This process is derived from the teaching of Graham Cooke. 

This month: Filed Under Grace
Our hearts have been with some new friends who have been experiencing a financial squeeze since the husband lost his job a while back. He was able to find some temporary work, and we hired him to do some work for our company, but it was just not enough, especially considering they are expecting their first child. As is God's way (Never Late, but Rarely Early) our friend just landed an awesome job in his field of choice!

 As far as our family goes in this area, being self-employed and all, I consider every month we can pay our bills an answer to prayer! More than a year ago, the company we do business for was letting droves of its people go, and we were unsure what that meant for us. As whole floors of their cubicles emptied, we braced for the worst. A month went by, then another, then another. And here we are today, debt free and just fine. Worry profits nothing. Faith, everything I really ever needed. It's all grace.


 Matthew 6
²⁵"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
    ²⁸"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

How has our Lord been answering your prayers? Have you even been asking and watching for his answers? Do you have a story of His grace to share? For all the details of how to participate, read this, then come back here and link up! 

If you  have an answer to prayer you'd love to share, but don't have a blog, post your story in a comment. I'd love to hear it!

Sheep are We

During our daily Bible reading this morning we continued our Journey to the Cross. We've been learning about Passover and how Jesus was the Lamb of God. Today, Jesus was presented as the Good Shepherd.

Mitchell was concerned. "Wait, Mom. Which is it? Is Jesus the Lamb or the Shepherd?"

"Well, actually, he's both." I responded. "He is the Good Shepherd, watching over and loving all us silly sheep. But then He became a sheep just like us, and he died as the perfect Passsover lamb, sacrificed for our sin. He is the Shepherd and the Lamb. He is God and man. He is both. He's just what we stray sheep need."

Mitchell's response?

"Baaa-aaa."

I linked this post to Conversations with my Kid hosted by Moms Without Blogs. Thanks Lee!

A Gift of Moments Past

Many years ago, more than ten, at least, a grandmother lovingly wrapped yarn 'round needle, 

tenderly tucking bonnets and sweaters away for great-grandbabies she would never know.

Those quiet moments of needlework give way to these, 

the few moments of her little life, when Victoria will don tiny bonnet and sweater 

and be wrapped in her great-grandmother's love.

Today's You Capture theme is A Moment, hosted by I Should Be Folding Laundry.

And....if you have an answered prayer you'd like to share, 

Filed Under Grace: Documenting Answered Prayer returns this weekend. 

Come back and link up on Saturday, alrighty?

Reflection on the First Walk of Spring

Winter clings, yet cannot maintain it's grip on a world succumbing to the power of the Son.

The old and dead, those things we wish weren't, but were, 

give nutrients, richness, insight, maturity to a fresh start. 

When given to Christ, they become useful.

They grow faith.

The love of this Son compels us to reach, reach, upward, 

toward Light and growth. New life. The old is gone. The new has come. 

He promised.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

2 Corinthians 5:17

This post has been shared at Chatting at the Sky for Tuesdays Unwrapped

Today, I am also buzzing over to A Soft Place to Land and sharing my post from last week when I shared my Easter Tree with you all. To see other DIY projects visit her every Tuesday.

Organizational Quirk

I like to think I'm a pretty clean person. I know "clean" is a relative term. Everyone has their own clean threshold. When I complain about my house being messy, my friends laugh. Well, the dirty ones do, anyway. Yes, most main areas are kept pretty well picked up, and I try to stay about an hour of work away from being company presentable, not counting bedrooms, of course. But like most people I have my organizational quirks. The other day I noticed a peculiar habit I've developed:

Does anyone use windowsills as shelves for things found on the floor while vacuuming or for general purpose storage? 'Cause I certainly don't. Yeah, not me.

This has been another episode of  Not Me Monday. For more click here:

Resurrection Eggs

I discovered one more thing in my small stash of Easter paraphernalia: a treasure I found at a garage sale last year, new in the box. I love that!

These eggs each have a small item inside which help tell the story leading to Easter. A small devotional book comes with the eggs, explaining the significance of each trinket. This morning my kids loved passing the egg between them, guessing what was in it.

They are available at Family Life.

Or you can make your own. 

My Easter Tree

I did it! And I love it!

I printed off Ann Voskamp's Trail to the Nail Tree pictures and devotions,

one for me, and one for a friend, 

and while our kids played outside in the glorious weather today, 

we cut and pasted and chatted. 

And then we took our girls to dance,

and took a walk, enjoying the weather for ourselves, 

and then I cut these branches off her bush 

and came home and tied ribbon and hung pictures and eggs.

And now I'll go to bed,

happy to have something new and pretty,

that I made with my own hands.

But especially grateful for friends

and spring,

LOVE,

forgiveness,

and the 

cross.

For more DIY projects, visit A Soft Place to Land for DIY Day every Tuesday.

Easter Preparation

Things I am doing to prepare my heart and ponder this season:

• Reading Journey to the Cross each morning with my children.
•  Reading for myself: The Passion of Jesus Christ: 50 Reasons Why He Came to Die  by John Piper.
• And I love this: A Trail to the Nail Tree by Ann Voskamp. I hope to gather branches, print pictures and further read the story leading to Christ's resurrection with my family.

Are you doing anything about Jesus? Do share!

Photo credit: Ann's Easter Tree, www.aholyexperience.com

A Note