Moms...we are not invisible!

Moms...we are not invisible!
By Nicole Johnson

It started to happen gradually …

One day I was walking my son Jake to school. I was holding his hand and we were about to cross the street when the crossing guard said to him, "Who is that with you, young fella?"

"Nobody," he shrugged.

Nobody? The crossing guard and I laughed. My son is only 5, but as we crossed the street I thought, "Oh my goodness, nobody?"

I would walk into a room and no one would notice. I would say something to my family - like "Turn the TV down, please" - and nothing would happen. Nobody would get up, or even make a move for the remote. I would stand there for a minute, and then I would say again, a little louder, "Would someone turn the TV down?" Nothing.

Just the other night my husband and I were out at a party. We'd been there for about three hours and I was ready to leave. I noticed he was talking to a friend from work. So I walked over, and when there was a break in the conversation, I whispered, "I'm ready to go when you are." He just kept right on talking.

That's when I started to put all the pieces together. I don't think he can see me. I don't think anyone can see me.

I'm invisible.

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, "Can't you see I'm on the phone?" Obviously not. No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all.

I'm invisible.

Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, "What time is it?" I'm a satellite guide to answer, "What number is the Disney Channel?" I'm a car to order, "Right around 5:30, please."

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again.

She's going … she's going … she's gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was clean. My unwashed hair was pulled up in a banana clip and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, "I brought you this."

It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: "To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees."

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work:

No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names.
These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished.
They made great sacrifices and expected no credit.
The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.
A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, "Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it."

And the workman replied, "Because God sees."

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, "I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become."

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.

I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, "My mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table." That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, "You're gonna love it there."

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Blessed by God!

My family was immensely blessed by God on New Year's Eve! Hava Helen Johanna was born at 7:16 pm on New Year's Eve. She was 8 lbs 4 oz and 21" long.

Satan the Woodpecker

Satan works against us by using schemes, plans, and other ways that will separate us from the Lord. He is like a woodpecker searching for a bug on a tree. The woodpecker does not hammer away at the tough area of bark, but rather he pecks away until he finds a weak area and then drills it, because he knows there is bug underneath. So too, Satan does not waste time on our strong points, but finds our weaknesses because he wants to devour us.--Kelly J. Townsend.

I love this illustration! It helps me understand why I struggle with the same thing over and over even though I pray about it almost every day (if not every day). Satan knows that if he can wear me down in the couple of areas that I already struggle with, that I will let my guard down in my stronger areas and then he can attack there before I know what is going on.

It is because of this that I need to make sure to put on my FULL armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18) and be ready to battle Satan no matter where he attacks. I need to enroll other prayer warriors to help me pray for my weaknesses. This must be why God's Word tells us to share our burdens with one another--to confess to one another. How can someone else pray for us if they don't know we are struggling.

As hard as it is to humble ourselves and admit our weaknesses to others, that is exactly what we need to do. It is through this humbling of ourselves that we truly encounter the opportunity to be strengthened.

Take some time to talk to a prayer warrior (or two) in your life. Humble yourself not only before God, but before them and ask for prayers for His strength to battle Satan. Contact your friends and see if you can be a prayer warrior for them. It is by banding together that we can fight the attacks of Satan. Read Nehemiah 4 to see how the Israelites defended themselves against the attacks of their enemies. It is a great picture of how we need to live.

Links to Share

I often come across good posts by other people and want to share them. Here are some recent ones.

30 Day Husband Encouragement Challenge for Wives

Love Covers it All

Petitions with Thanksgiving

The Most Important Thing

ABC'S OF BEING A HELP MEET

ABC'S OF BEING A HELP MEET
http://www.heart4home.net/blessings/alphabet_help_meet.htm

And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. Genesis 2:18

Admit when you are wrong
Be positive
Cuddle
Do it his way
Encourage him
Fix his breakfast
Give back rubs
Hug often
"I love you" should be said many times daily
Joke around in a playful manner
Know his needs
Listen to him
Manage your home well
Never hold grudges
Open your eyes in the morning and smile
Pray for him
Quit nagging him
Reminisce about good times
Show respect and honor
Trust, and earn his trust
Understand his need for reverence
Vulnerability is a feminine trait; cultivate it
Wink at him!
X is for private times
Yearn to please him
Zealously guard him with your love

The Ten Commandments and Living in the Grace of Christ

Romans 7:7-12

⁷What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.

⁸But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead.

⁹For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.

¹⁰And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death.

¹¹For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me.

¹²Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.

I have heard many people say that they no longer have to abide by the Old Testament because Christ fulfilled the law and it is no longer relevant. My first question to them was always, "What about the 10 Commandments?" I was surprised to find that some people said they didn't need to follow the 10 Commandments anymore. Some said that those are now just "guidelines" not law. And others agreed that we should live by them, but just because they were good enough for God's people once and they are still good ideas.

I always knew in my heart that we are to still follow the 10 Commandments. I had heard that the law is a "mirror" of the heart. But I never knew where in scripture to point people when we had this "debate". God led me to what I needed to know this morning!

We do not know sin until we know the law. I'm not saying that before we know the 10 Commandments that it isn't sin to commit adultery, murder, etc., but that without the standards to know what is right or what is wrong, there can be no judgment. Knowing the law shed light on our actions (and the actions of others).

Some people are put off by preachers who talk of hell. They think we should only witness to people telling them about God's love and grace. While those are both very important aspects of who Christ is, we also need to warn them about the danger of living eternity in hell.

What is the best way to do that? Why teaching them the "law". The law will open their eyes to why they need a savior; it points to life-eternal life. Without knowing why they need saved, they will not seek Him. Without knowing that what they are doing is wrong, they will keep on doing it. Without realizing what their eternity could be, they will keep living in ignorant bliss.

It is our job to reveal Christ to them. What better way to reveal Christ than to reveal why Christ came--to save us from our sins!

The Way of the Master is a great program that teaches you how to bypass debate on Christ and who He is and get right to the logical mind. You will speak to a person's conscious and heart instead of debating the intellectual.

Don't throw away the Old Testament. God gave it to us for a reason (actually many reasons). The law is still relevant today. Study it. Know it. Live by it. Share it. The law leads to the Life Giver--Jesus Christ!

Chosen or Allowed?

Read this and wanted to share!

So now that I am pregnant many simply say that God "allowed" me to become pregnant and didn't chose to bless us as I believe it is His plan and not my own that we become pregnant. So I thought we should explore the subject deeper. Both biblically and scientifically which as you will se points right back to God as our creator of all human life.

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations" Jeremiah 1:5

So first do you have any idea the pure miracle of how one conceives a child? Do you know how there are SOOO many things that have to go perfectly in order to just become pregnant? First the man must have good seed that will be healthy enough to make the journey. And some don't. Next the woman must be able to ovulate a healthy egg, have no blocks or scaring in her tubes, have a healthy uterus and a healthy environment for the "seed" to travel through. Again many different problems that many women have. Next the sperm must swim the distance equivalent to swimming from LA to Seattle!! Sometimes in a day!!! Once it has swam all that way then the really hard part starts, penetrating the shell of the woman's egg. If that happens then the baby has begun its life but we aren't done there. Now the baby must move through the tubes and burrow into the lining of the uterus (if it is a healthy uterus). Now you would test positive on a test. So let's stop there for a second. How do you expect all of that to happen without God's hand in things? There is just so much that can go wrong and has for years for us and many others.

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. Psalms 139:13-16

Now we come to the forming of a child. The tiny human begins to form. He or she must grow all its organs. The brain, lungs, liver, heart, arms and legs and every other part of the human body from just a few cells. Have you ever watched one of those videos that goes through that step by step? It is AWESOME!! Who else but God can perform such a miracle or masterful work of art? I certainly can't!
Then the birth. There is no time in my life that I feel closer to God as when I give birth. He designed our bodies to perform just as He has planned. They don't need to read a book on how to birth the baby it doesn't need a class. We might think we need to but if we were stuck somewhere with no medical attention or "qualified" Dr available to deliver the baby it will still come. Our bodies have been designed this way. This is why even women in a coma can still deliver a baby because the body doesn't need a manual on how to do it. God built it in.

So looking at what a tiny human must go through to get here how can you deny that God placed that child there to begin with? That God CHOOSE to form this human being instead of "allowing" it to be formed. Maybe it is just an easy way to disconnect with all life being God's design and God being the creator of ALL human life. That we could ever think that a child isn't God's will is beyond me. So if you are still thinking that I am just a crazy nut lets look at the scripture a little closer.
We have already seen Jeremiah 1:5 where God said "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart" so looking here God clearly had a plan for this child BEFORE he was even conceived!! He was chosen (as was his mother to carry and raise him) before he was born or as my husband would say before he was a twinkle in his father's eye!! And we already saw Psalms 139:13-16 where it shows how God is the one who "knit me together in my mother's womb" and "All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." So not only are we formed by God but again He has all our days written before they came to be! How much more do we need to explore!! God has CHOSEN us!! Before we were even formed!! So why wouldn't a new life that He is still forming be simply allowed and not wonderfully and purposely made? It can't!! Let's continue shall we?
Psalm 135:6 tells us:
"The LORD does whatever pleases him, in the heavens and on the earth," So don't you think that it pleases Him to form new lives that He already has a plan for? If it didn't please Him do you think He would do it?

Here we find verses that show that we are chosen to enter the world not allowed:

In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, Ephesians 1:11

The LORD called Me from the womb; From the body of My mother He named Me. Isaiah 49:1

And now says the LORD, who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant, Isaiah 49:5

Here we see that we are crafted by God:

and He said to me, 'Behold, I will make you fruitful and numerous, Genesis 48:4

"He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will also bless the fruit of your womb Deuteronomy 7:13

He has made everything appropriate in its time. Ecclesiastes 3:11

Just as you do not know the path of the wind and how bones are formed in the womb of the pregnant woman, so you do not know the activity of God who makes all things. Ecclesiastes 11:5

Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb, "I, the LORD, am the maker of all things, Stretching out the heavens by Myself And spreading out the earth all alone, Isaiah 44:24

Here we see that children are a gift and blessing from the Lord:

"Blessed shall be the offspring of your body Deuteronomy 28:4

He lifted his eyes and saw the women and the children, and said, "Who are these with you?" So he said, "The children whom God has graciously given your servant." Genesis 33:5

Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him. Psalm 127:3

So perhaps you may find yourself with a surprise pregnancy. But remember it is only a surprise to you!! God has a plan better then ours. There are no surprises to our Lord!!
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11
And the next time you see large families with 5, 8, 12 or more children don't think that they are so irresponsible for having so many. On the contrary I think they are more responsible since they have taken what the Lord has given them and accepted the responsibility to raise them and teach them. "He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground, Deuteronomy 7:13
Don't think that any child is a mistake cause how can they be when the Lord made it so clear that every child is from Him and not simply something He allowed to happen but something He formed and designed. "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations" Jeremiah 1:5
No child or pregnancy is too much for you to handle when you know that the Lord is the one who chose you to have and raise the child. All life comes from the Lord and it is no accident! God is in control!!

Written by Shawnicy Barnhart

Shoestrings

A friend wrote the following on his blog and it was a good analogy to life. He said I could share it here.

She tried hard as she could to get the knot out of her shoestrings. She pulled harder and harder but the knot only got tighter. At last she brought the knot to me and in a matter of seconds the knot was gone. Just like us isn't it? We try so hard to fix our problems only to make the knot tighter. Why is our Father the last option? Why not bring your knot to Him now?! TTK!

--Billy Short

In Christ Alone

I was convicted of whether or not I was satisfied "in Christ alone" by reading a blog post made by another Christian woman. Am I living as Paul talks about in Philippians 4:11-13? Are you?

I pray you check out the post and examine your own life. You may find you are, or you may (like me) find that you need to learn to be content in ALL things.

In Christ Alone

Prospering

"Thus Hezekiah did throughout all Judah, and he did what was good and right and true before the Lord his God. And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, in the law and in the commandment, to see his God, he did it with all his heart. So he prospered."--2 Chronicles 31:20-21

If we do what is "good and right and true before the Lord", then we can't go wrong. If we do what we can for God with all our heart, we can't go wrong. The Lord will prosper us and what we are doing as long as we are doing it for His glory, in His way, and for Him with all our heart.

What are you doing right now? Is it "good and right and true before the Lord"? Are you doing it with all your heart? Take a moment and contemplate if you are doing what the Lord has truly called you to do. Think about how your life matches up with the commands of the Bible--God's Word. If you are living how God is calling you to live, then He will prosper you!

I'm not saying that you still won't face trials and hardships, but He will bless you beyond your wildest imaginations if you do all for His glory and you do it with all your heart. Start examining your life today. You may find that you are prospering because you are living the way He called or you may find that you need to make some changes. In either case, commune with Him and ask Him to either keep you on the right path or to show you the right path.