Broken Arm ~ Broken Self-Dependence

As I explained in a previous post, I fell and broke my arm a couple of weeks ago. Since then, God has been teaching me alot of things. For those of you who know me, you are aware that I am always on the go. I work several jobs around each other and around my family's needs to allow me to be not only be a SAHM but also to homeschool our son. It's impossible to be this active, crazy busy person without being extremely dependant on yourself, or so I thought. I have spent the last several years building this lifestyle in which I thought I was the only person I could count on to keep going. In recent day however, I have had to start depending on everyone BUT myself. Its amazing how quickly one can go from "doing it all", to not being able to do anything.

So what has this taught me?

Well it has taught me a couple of things... The first and most important is something I already knew but at some point pushed under the rug and chose not to accept. Then late last night in the middle of a "poor little me" melt down my ten year old son reminded me all to quickly that I was in God's hands. That everything was controlled by Him and He would not let me down.

Here I've spent the last 10 days throwing myself the LARGEST pity party known to man and the whole time my God was just sitting back waiting for me to need HIM. Waiting for me to realize that this life of self-dependency will never be a fulfilling one and I will always be hanging onto it with my one good arm. I needed that small reminder from the most precious boy in my life to put me back on track. To help me get my priorities in order once more.

The second thing I have learned is just how lucky I am to have husband and son that I do. I'm also very lucky to have terrific friends who have cooked for us and offered to do anything I need, but my two boys have really had to step up to the plate lately and I could not be more grateful!! While Braydon is at my side for anything I need throughout the day, Randy is working BOTH of our jobs, keeping up the house and the laundry, paying the bills and doing the shopping. I could not have asked for a better helpmate! We all take the same vows when we marry, but so many time I see friends of mine and other women being let down by a spouse that can't see how those vows relate to the needs of his family later in life. I thank God for my husband and the example he has set for our son! Braydon his growing up to be such a strong young man in the Lord and one who is willing to help anyone anytime!

Be sure to stop and tell your family how much they mean to you! I know I haven't done it often enough but that's about to change! Take a minute to thank God for the amazing gifts you DO have and take a break from asking for those you don't.

Alot Can Happen In A Month!

Wow, I knew I was busy, but a whole month since my last post? Sheesh! I gotta get on the ball here!! Well here's a recap of all the great things God has done in my life in the last 31 days... and boy has He been busy! 

We have completed the Ultimate Back To School Blast and are gearing up for the Ultimate Special Needs Blast. I got all of this years curriculum lined out and even got a couple of weeks planned (which is good since we start in 10 minus SIX DAYS!!!). We kicked off the new school year for the youth group and Randy and I serving as Lifeguards (youth coaches)! We are both so excited to be working with the amazing group of kids!!! Plus Kay is in the youth so that's going to be a pretty neat experience for us!! Randy has started work on the Permian Basin Fair and we'll probably only see him in passing for the next couple of weeks. And we're about to embark on an awesome experience through our church called The Tabernacle Experience. 

This is a life-size interactive Tabernacle of The Wilderness. I am so excited to be a part of this! If you are within driving distance, I urge you to make a trip to visit this exhibit. It will be open Friday, September 30th through Sunday, October 9th from 9 am to 8 pm everyday. And if you're a homeschooling mom I think this would be a great opportunity for your kids! We don't have many "field trip" destinations around here and this is a an excellent chance for them to witness something they can't see anywhere else!! 

“When the cloud lifted from over the sacred tent, the people of Israel followed it. And where the cloud settled, the people of Israel camped. In this way, they traveled at the Lord’s command and stopped wherever he told them to. So they camped or traveled at the Lord’s command, and they did whatever the Lord told them.” Numbers 10

How many of us follow God's lead the way the people of Israel did? Do you seek the Lord's guidance in everything? I'm afraid for some of us this is all too rare a concept! I encourage you to grab your Bible and LISTEN to what the Father is asking of you! LISTEN to what he wants to reveal! And LISTEN to where he wants you to go!! 

And remember to teach your child how to hear Him too!

I am so excited to get to travel through this intimate experience with my own child!

  "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.  Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates" Deuteronomy 6:4-7

Well, that about wraps up the month of August! 

I hope you are all having a great start to your school year!!

The praise of a lifetime!!!

"I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit." - John 3:5

Yesterday was an amazing day for me! I got to see my little boy accept Jesus into his heart and have his sins washed away in baptism. Making this day even more special was being able to see my daddy baptize him just as he had done for myself, my brother and my niece in years past.
As we stood before the entire congregation of Antioch Christian Church where I have attended since I was his age, my little boy told the church members and his peers in no uncertain terms that he wanted to be baptized to "Have his sins washed away, receive eternal salvation and the gift of the Holy Spirit". Sound coached to you? Well if you know my Braydon you know it wasn't. He has studied his little baptism book, asked his daddy and I questions and looked through the Bible with me to find the answers for several weeks now. I was so proud to stand in front of other moms and dads and know that my little boy GOT IT!!
Don't get me wrong, I'm not being boastful at all! As parents we know how hard it is to get our children to listen to most, if any of what we say. With all of the "worldly" things that we encounter and sadly let creep into our daily lives, our faith is sometimes not the most discussed topic at the dinner table. It's often a little easier when they're smaller because we can point Jesus out in the most simple activities and things around us. But as they grow they begin to lose interest really quick in the stuff that worked before like "Thank God for the flowers and the sky and the air we breathe and the rain that helps the plants grow for food..."
These days I find myself in the car with my now 9yr. old little boy replacing those comments with silent prayers asking for teaching opportunities and new ways to relate to him with out being a mushy mom! The truth is I'm not good at the mushy mom thing either so I'm kinda stuck!!! I stumble through everyday hanging on for the times when he hears a song on Air 1 and asks for and explanation or when he remarks about why I didn't react a certain way to someone elses ungodly behavior so I can use that time to explain why I am trying to lead by example and show God's love through my own behavior. So WOW, to stand beside him and listen to him speak so boldly for his Lord knowing all the while that I always feel like I'm just one moment away from total failure and losing my son to the proverbial "dark side" was a moment I will never forget as long as I live!!
I only hope that you moms out there barely hanging on like I am will take comfort in this little piece of my life and know that even though you may not feel like you are moving mountains, as long as you are praying for your child and doing everything you can to let him/her see God in your life I believe that Jesus will stand in the gap for you and lend a helping hand whether you see Him do it or not. Beside, it's not for US to move those mountains anyway!!! There's someone BIGGER for that.

Candie