I LOVE the way Paul greets the Corinthian believers in 1 Corinthians 1 and I thought it would be a fun and fitting way of greeting you all this morning:
...to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be His saints together with all those who IN EVERY PLACE call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours...
Wasn't that beautiful?!!! What a treasure it is to be united,in the Lord Jesus Christ, through little ol' blogs like this one (and in so many other ways) though we be scattered throughout the USA!
Okay...on to my morning. It has been a good morning! I got up at a decent hour, exercised and spent time in the Word. My multi-tasking is going beautiful! As I sit here typing, the washing machine is going and so is the dishwasher and the kids are nicely playing with their buddies while I drink a Starbucks drink so kindly given as a thank you from my friend who's kids I am watching! :) I really am not trying to brag... but to share with you a trap I often fall into. When things are going well, I am so quick to pull my hand out of the Lord's. To start running ahead of Him jumping and laughing with glee at how well life is going. With lip service, I praise the Lord for His good gifts and sweet blessings, but in my heart an attitude of self-sufficiency creeps up quickly and I boast with the pagan kings in the OT, "Look what my hands have done!"
I inevitably trip and fall, since His strength is not being perfected in my weak life, and end up feeling like EVERYTHING in life is not as it should be. Which is actually true because, in the words of John Piper, "The sun of God's glory was made to shine at the center of the solar system of our soul. And when it does, all the planets of our life are held in their proper orbit. But when the sun is displaced, everything flies apart."
The beauty of it all is that Christ nail pierced hand reaches out to me through His Word, picks me up again and leads me to green pastures and quiet waters of trust and dependence upon HIM and not walking in my own "strength".
What I just shared is not some neat thought from a year ago...but just YESTERDAY! The battle against our flesh is a constant one and we need to be fully armed at all times! We need to live out the "Art of Multi-Tasking" and everything else in life recognizing that WE no longer live, but CHRIST lives in us! The life we now live must be lived by faith in the Son of God who loved us and gave Himself for us (Galatians 2:20)! And if we, in faith, truly recognize our "death in Christ" it frees us up in beautiful ways to LIVE in Him!
-We no longer have concerns for our own rights (I'm dead!:))
-We don't expect to have our "needs" met (they are already all met in Christ!)
-We don't care if things go our own way or not (remember..we are dead!)
-We don't worry or stress about anything (we know God is working out His best for us)
-And we recognize that ALL our rights,our reputation, desires and future plans, the time we have and our possessions and relationships are ALREADY HIS!
The "Art of Multi-Tasking" (and every other thing we do in life!) truly begins with the death of self, having the heart of a servant and ALWAYS seeking to do these three things in addition to the other tasks God gives us: "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks!" 1 Thess. 5:16-17
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There are many quotes that my mother used as we grew up in our home..."Be sure your sins will find you out", "Your friend hath a friend, beware of what you say." and MANY more! But it wasn't till I was in college (or older as I studied the scriptures more) that I realized they were actual quotes from the Bible! My mom was an awesome, Godly women, mother and example to me of Christ and His love for us. As I raised my family, my prayer was also that I could be used by God to instill a love for God and obedience to Him in my children.
What a joy it is to see my grown children have that love for Christ! I CAN'T take the credit, of course, but am grateful to God for using me as the vessel in which to teach them. AND I also am thankful for the Grandparents that they had! All but 1 has passed on to their Heavenly Father...but the PRAYERS of theirs on behalf of my children was so comforting and needed, important and phenomenal that even I feel the absence of them. But I am reassured to know that THE SON continues to pray on all of our behalf's to THE FATHER. (And you want to talk about "multi-tasking" --this is unfathomable! :) )
I also know you have heard the saying, "enjoy your children now, because they grow up so fast!" Well, I can speak from experience to how true that is!! I gave my children many "in a minute" and all too soon those "minutes" were gone! You have a wonderful way to deal with the inappropriate interruptions...but continue to listen to the real needs of your children...those "minutes" have a way of disappearing.
My daughter reminded me this week of all the "fun" they had has children in our home. She said that she wants to raise her family the same way and has even talked about it to her future husband (no she'd not engaged yet...but they are getting married in 2010...she just didn't want a LONG engagement??!!?) So be encouraged...we as MOMS make many mistakes...but if our heart is to please God, somehow our children "forget" those mistakes and only see the good! PTL :)
Keep up the awesome job Kristin ! I love you and so does your family!!!