Back to School! January 4, 2008

Whew! The first week back in the swing of school…did I say in the swing of school? Well, that’s hardly how it looked. We juggled appointments and Christmas clutter, a trip to Portland, late nights, early mornings and a reorganizing project (my brilliant idea). All the while we attempted to throw ourselves back into the books without much success. Monday I was frustrated. Tuesday was a glorious day. Wednesday I was tired. Thursday I was distracted…and Friday is just barely here…

I looked back over my week and prayed. Asking God to make every day like Tuesday. Wouldn’t it be nice if every day were like Tuesday? He gently reminded me that each day holds its own challenges, and it’s own victories. However, He is the same….yesterday, today and forever. I feel comforted somehow, by being reminded that He is the one constant in my life. No matter how much the world spins around me, no matter if the school work is complete, or if I took a field trip, baked bread, finished the laundry, journaled each day, spent quality time with each of my children individually, encouraged my husband, and spoke only kind words….the Lord is never changing. He is a part of my homeschool experience and the rest of my life. Whether the day is successful in my mind, or a total flop… He is the same.

Thank you Lord that you love me. Thank you Lord that you gave me this life. That you have so much in store for me. Help me to be the woman you have called me to be. Always remembering that you are here and you never change.

Worship, Seek, Know and Love… January 4, 2008

One of my greatest desires in educating my children at home is to encourage a love for the Word and a deep love, and reverence for God. I want my children to see and understand that God is actively working in their lives. That He loves them and cares about the details of their thoughts, hopes and dreams. My prayer is that they will grow and learn as they worship Him. That they will see worship well beyond the songs we sing to honor God, and that they will recognize worship as a lifestyle and committemnt to continuously pour their hearts out to the God of the Universe. My prayer is that they will seek Him in everything they do and that they will learn what it means to live out the passions that God has laid on their hearts. They are uniquely created by a God who adores them. He knows their inner-most desires, knows their strengths and their fears. He wants them to pursue Him with everything they are – right now! That their love for God would be so contagious, when they walk into a room the atmosphere would change.

Lord, use me to encourage their creativity, their passions, their hopes and dreams – that they would see me as a living example of one who pursues you and loves You with great fervor. Let me see them as You see them. Cause me to encourage them as You would.