Encouraging Quotes

God has not promised to rescue us according to our time schedule. If it appears that your prayers are unanswered, do not dishonor The Lord with unbelief. Waiting in faith is a high form of worship. ~ Spurgeon

"We accept and thank God for what is given, not allowing the not given to spoil it." - Elisabeth Elliott

"Whenever your heart starts to be anxious about the future, preach to your heart and say, "Heart, who do you think you are to be afraid of the future and nullify the promise of God? No, heart, I will not exalt myself with anxiety. I will humble myself in peace and joy as I trust this precious and great promise of God—he cares for me."

Valentine's Day Traditions

I love love love Valentine's Day! Always have. My family makes things special by exchanging Valentines (my sisters make the most lovely handmade ones) & little treats. My dad usually gets us flowers & we have a family dinner. One year my dad even dressed up in his diamond dust tux and we got dolled up in our finest dresses. It's still one of my favorite memories. :)

One of my favorite Valentine traditions is praying with my mom for my future husband. I love supporting him in prayer already & hope one day we'll spend time on Valentine's Day praying as husband & wife.  :)

The Perfect Man

The Perfect Man: 

  post by Colleen Chao

I originally posted this two years ago, but continue to see the beauty of 
these truths unfold as Eddie and I grow and learn in our marriage 
together. So here's a little update and reposting, with the prayer that
 it will be a sweet reminder for you too.

It absolutely amazes me that our husbands bear up under the weight
of our girlish expectations. I mean, think about it: they’re supposed to
surprise us with flowers, be ever tender and thoughtful, anticipate our needs,
glory in how mesmerizing and sexy we are, communicate intimately with us,
listen tenderly to our hearts (or at the very least, read our minds), work hard,
 share our interests, split the housework, be witty and entertaining, plan
wildly romantic dates, be a godly leader everyone looks up to, worship our
 beauty (including never finding any other girl even remotely attractive),
make an exceedingly good income, and most importantly... have life all
figured out and under control.

What?! What are we thinking, girls?! Don’t you get the feeling that we’ve
watched a few too many chick flicks?

For years I’ve loved the mantra, “Let man be man and God be God.”
(In other words, let the guy off the hook, for cryin’ out loud!) But the
moment I feel like I’ve settled this issue in my heart and am able to
laugh with condescension at the ridiculous list above, a sneaky new
little want or demand finds a home in my heart. Suddenly my man must
 play God in order for me to be happy.

In her book A Man Worth Waiting For, Jackie Kendall boasts that her
husband is a wonderful man but admits he makes a horrible God.
Elisabeth Elliot elaborates on this in Love Has a Price Tag:

A wife, if she is very generous, may allow that her husband lives up to 
perhaps eighty percent of her expectations. There is always the other
 twenty percent that she would like to change, and she may chip away at
 it for the whole of their married life without reducing it by very much. 
She may, on the other hand, simply decide to enjoy the eighty percent, 
and both of them will be happy.

Now here’s where I get to boast in my own husband: he’s truly and absolutely
 amazing. He’s a “ninety-five percent” kinda guy (not just eighty), and I definitely
 got the better end of the deal when we married. But he’s not perfect. Praise
the Lord, he’s not perfect! (Otherwise I’d be intimidated and insecure.) No,
as imperfect man and wife, Eddie and I get to journey together, learning and
growing and messing up together. Eddie gets to see Colleen: The Uncut Version,
 and I get to see Eddie Unedited. What a privilege! No one else will ever know us
 in the intimate way we know each other—the good, the bad, and the ugly...
day in, day out.

On April 27, 2010, Eddie got down on one knee, held out a sparkly diamond ring,
 and said, “Will you marry a sinner like me?” Don't you love how he said that?
He understood, even before we were married, that we were each choosing
 someone who "fell short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). He endearingly
called us “struggle buddies,” knowing full well that we both would struggle—but
together, within a lifelong covenant love.

Girls, do we really think we’ll be the exception and marry another God incarnate?
If we were honest with ourselves, would we admit our expectations are
just a little outrageous? Truly, we get our perfect match: a sinner like us,
redeemed by Jesus.

I have long loved Psalm 118:8: “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than
to trust in man; it is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.”

Do I trust my husband? Oh, yes. In fact, I proved my trust in him when I said,
 “I do” on August 28, 2010 and committed my life to him. But my ultimate trust
 and hope is in the Lord. For us girls, this is easier said than done: by default,
 we like to trust in a man we can see and hear and touch. Trusting in the Lord is
 an exercise of faith, but boy, is it worth it! It takes the pressure off our men while
 freeing us from our unrealistic expectations (which in turn makes us happier).

As a newlywed, I have years of learning ahead of me. I obviously don’t know
much just two-and-a-half years into marriage. But what I do know is that Eddie
 and I are both works-in-progress, covenant companions on this journey home
 into Abba's presence. Along the way, we get to lavish each other with mercy and
 grace (oh, if I could only tell you how much grace Eddie gives me), overlook a
 multitude of offenses (see Proverbs 10:12, 17:9, 1 Peter 4:8), and delight in the way
 God perfectly designed us for each other—two sinners in the hands of
a great Redeemer.

Orphans Lead the World

I'm reading another amazing book (Where is God When it Hurts? by Phillip Yancy) and this concept of being transformed through hardships and how our circumstances don't stand in the way of God using them for our good and His glory can apply to any phase in life. Read and be encouraged! :)

Ch 11: Other Witnesses Excerpt

“It is by those who have suffered that the world has been advanced.” Leo Tolstoy

In his book Creative Suffering the Swiss physician and counselor Paul Tournier recalls his surprise upon reading an article entitled “Orphans Lead the World.” The article, which appeared in a respected medical journal, surveyed the lives of 300 leaders who had had a great impact on world history. After searching for some common thread, the author discovered that all these leaders had grown up as orphans - either actually, through the death of or separation from parents, or emotionally, as a result of severe childhood deprivation. His list included such names as Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Robespierre, George Washington, Napoleon, Queen Victoria....”

“So, there we are,” writes Tournier, “giving lectures on how important it is for a child’s development to have a father and a mother performing harmoniously together their respective roles towards him. And all at once we find that this is the very thing that those who have been most influential in world history have not had!” 

“...the role of the doctor, nurse, social worker, minister, or loving friend is simply this: to keep the nutcracker of circumstances from destroying, and to help the sufferer see that even the worst hardships open up the potential for growth and development.” 

Post by Grace Full Mama

The new year begins as it always does; crisp and new, free from mistakes, full of possibility. Imaginations run wild. Will this be the year? Will we finally make that change? Will we stick with our goals and finally do that thing we have always wanted to do?

As the swirl of lists circulate and goals are set and promises made, I want to encourage you to stop.

Stop and breathe. 

Take a moment all for yourself. Find a spot that speaks to your soul. Grab a cup of something delicious and hot. Light a candle. Do whatever you need to carve a bit of space for yourself, anything from waking up a few minutes early or letting the dishes sit in the sink.

 Simply allow yourself to stop.

“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.” Psalm 23:1-2

Like wrapping up in a warm quilt on a chilly day, allow God, the Almighty, to wrap you in His arms and encourage your heart with His Word.

 Allow Him to speak about His plans for you this year through His Word.

“He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.” Psalm 23:3

Instead of adding a bunch of goals to your list- things you must do, want to do, wish to do, will never do, how about letting something go?

 

As I read wisdom from older mentors, all the things they encourage us to do as mothers require time. And quite frankly, a lot of it. To be fully present with our families and with God, we have to choose to be intentional.

Breathe out deeply. Let go of those things that are wearing you out and eating up your time {mindlessly, I might add!}, so that you may breathe in the rich life that God has created for you.

Only you know what things you can let go. As you sit with God and His Word, pray over all of your activiites and see what is helping you live deliberately, and what is just sucking the life out of you. 

My cup overflows. Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Psalm 23:5b-6

As Sally says, we want to be WHOLE hearted mothers, and do that takes intention.

Western culture praises busyness, fast-paced days, frenetic speed, and being an inch deep and a mile wide. Our culture says being busy or looking busy is cool.

I want to offer something counter-cultural.

Choose to become intentional. 

 

It takes time to think, ponder, and build. The Lord works in our hearts slowly, quietly.

Choose to live slow so you can live fully alive where He has you. Beginning new habits of rest, sleep, quiet, reading, making beautiful meals will fill your soul and give you a feeling of satisfaction at the end of the day. On the other hand, checking Facebook one more time, reading all the blog posts in your feed, or tuning out in front of the television for hours  feels good in the moment, but leaves you with an empty feeling.

 So what is it you need to let go of this year? And what habit to do you need to begin to grow, slowly?

So, go! Sit and take a little break. Ponder your life. And, when you get up, choose to be intentional.

Excerpt from Ann Voskamp

My Kids

As much as I love other people's kids, I dream about having my own sometimes. Lately, I've been thinking how I want my kids (if God has that role of mom in my future someday!) to be worshippers of Jesus - to delight in singing His praises. Nothing fills my heart like hearing little voices singing to Jesus! I know they will model what I do (as well as the kids who look up to me now - my nephews & students), so one of my goals for this year is to take every opportunity to worship & cultivate a thankful heart. Meditating on the truth of who God is & all He has done makes worship comes so easily.

"The lasting value of our public service for God is measured by the depth of the intimacy of our private times of fellowship and oneness with Him. Rushing in and out of worship is wrong every time - there is always plenty of time to worship God. " ~ My Utmost for His Highest