Missionary Mom Musings

Today, I have piles of laundry on my couch......... so much that it takes up my ENTIRE COUCH! I started washing laundry at 8:00 this morning and it's just after 12 noon and I still have a load in the wash and dryer and two more loads that need to be dried...... I fear that pretty soon my couch will start sagging..... Am I thankful for laundry? Not most days. Most days, I look at laundry as a mundane task that is repeated numerous times throughout the week...... day in and day out, just like washing the dishes or planning the meals and feeding the millions of hungry people who live in my house.... (okay, so there are only four of us but with the amount of food my children consume, sometimes it feels like I'm feeding a HUGE group that showed up unannounced)! What does laundry really mean? It means that my Mom (Nana) came and stayed with the kids for a week. It means that she washed our clothes and folded them while we were gone. It means that Rodney and I went to a prayer c...

Dear Self: Today did not happen the way that I envisioned it would when I opened my eyes and stared at the ceiling this morning. Maybe that's because I turned off my 6:00am alarm and let myself sleep until 6:45........ so in my estimation, I got started 'behind'. The kids were up when I got up....... I made breakfast....... I exercised......I took a shower......I changed the sheets on the beds and started a load of laundry.......I put dinner in the crockpot........ and then I looked at the clock........ it was 10am...... the kids had been playing happily (without arguing) so I let them play. Perhaps that wasn't what I thought of when my day started 'behind' but maybe that was what was needed today. We read the Bible, in 1 Samuel 26 and talked about David not killing King Saul, even though David was close enough to do it and Saul wanted to kill him..... we talked about David recognizing that God is the one who brings Justice....... we continued our read aloud c...

Today, I am tired. I look around and wonder what I have accomplished....... I guess I could start with 'keeping two small humans alive and fed and clothed and schooled'. And then there's the laundry that is washed and dried (and sitting next to me waiting to be folded) :-) I made the bed, spend some time with the Lord, made breakfast, exercised, took a shower, taught school, made lunch, read with the kids and now they're watching a show before it's quiet time.......... then I'll do the dishes, make dinner and get ready to go to my home school Mom's support group where we enjoy  HOT coffee (sans children) and share about our lives and our home schooling joys and frustrations. I try to remind myself that someday my children will be grown and gone and I won't be as tired...... but I also won't have as many opportunities for snuggles and craft projects gone awry (GLITTER, GLITTER EVERYWHERE!) and sweet times in God's Word during family devotions. T...

I love to serve; I love to practice hospitality. I love to help others who have needs. I don't say this to brag....... these are the gifts that God has given me and I enjoy using them to advance His Kingdom. When we lived overseas, I enjoyed hosting people in our home for meals and for overnight stays and we do the same in our home here in the US. But sometimes, there are so many needs........ they are all legitimate and I want to help in any way I can...... but sometimes, I have to say, "No"....... and that's hard for me. Recently, there have been several big needs that I have been made aware of and I'm trying to figure out how to help and care for all of them. Then, my wise husband gently reminded me that "I am not God's answer for everything." That was a very profound statement for me........ was I being selfish in wanting to meet every need? Perhaps. Was I bringing each of the needs before the Lord and asking Him which one (or two) He wa...

 America........ how I pray for Her...........in recent days there have been displays of violence, unrest, hatred.......... our country needs Jesus. As a parent, what can I do? I look at the faces of my children and realize that they are growing up in an America that is different from the one I grew up in. Much has changed in 34 years and more will change as my children continue to grow....... but what can I do to help those 'changes' be for the better? I can pray...... I can pray for my country, I can pray for our leaders in local government and for those in Washington........ I can pray for my pastor as he takes a stand and preaches THE ENTIRE WORD OF GOD, not just what will make people happy or is 'politically correct'. I can pray for those who choose to express their viewpoints in ways that bring harm and fear and pain to others....... I can teach...... I can teach my children.....in Deuteronomy 6:6-7 I am reminded, "And these words which I command ...

I started out the weekend by straining my back (not the best way to start the weekend!).... but our chiropractor isn't open on Saturdays so I limped through the weekend and called first thing this morning (Monday) to see if there were any openings available. I called as soon as the office opened at 8:00 and was told that the first available appointment was 10:00. So I made breakfast for the kids, made sure everyone was at least dressed in something presentable and managed to make it to the chiropractor a few minutes early :-) I have discovered that when I'm in pain, I tend to not care so much about what I look like or if I have make-up on or if my hair is done..... I just want to feel better! After the chiropractor worked on me for a good 30 minutes, I could finally stand up straight and not feel like I was walking around like a goose with my tail stuck out..... (if you've seen Disney's Aristocats, the term 'think goose' applied to my walking stance this weeke...

In Replenish: Leading From A Healthy Soul , author Lance Witt asks a question that goes something like this: 'When do you feel most fulfilled?' After pondering that question for myself, I came up with a few different answers...... when my kids finally 'get' a concept in school that I've been teaching them for MONTHS , then I feel fulfilled. When I come to the end of a long to-do list, when it's complete, then I feel fulfilled. I also feel fulfilled when I use my gift of hospitality to host people in our home for a weekly Bible Study or a meal or for an overnight stay. But even though we host a Bible Study group in our home every Monday night, it doesn't always mean that my house is ready. I try hard to have the house vacuumed, the bathroom cleaned, the kitchen floor swept (I won't even talk about mopping.....), snacks ready, dishes washed and put away.... but not all of those things happen every time (and I'm not flying solo trying to get these ...

"Part of the reward of work is stopping long enough to see what's been accomplished."~Lance Witt I love this quote from Lance Witt, in his book Replenish:Leading From A Healthy Soul . This book has been a great reminder for me to stop, rest and rejoice in all that God has done. I am very much a 'it all has to be done RIGHT NOW!' kind of person and as such, taking time to stop and smell the roses is not a natural response. It's my personality; I like to have things done in a timely manner and if I have a deadline coming up, I'll stay up late to get the newsletter done or the thank you notes written..... and many times, this is detrimental to my family and myself. I end up grouchy, snapping at my husband and kids, flying off the handle at the slightest thing because I have not taken the time to give myself the rest that I need. We are in the midst of planning our annual ministry trip to visit friends, family, supporters and churches, which means there ...

For those who know me, truer words were never spoken. I am quite possibly the most directionally challenged (did I just make up a new word?) person you will ever meet!  I don't do North, South, East and West. My language is 'turn left at the Wal-Mart' and 'look for the purple house on the corner'. And if I were a pilot, this would be my story, flying 3,728 miles IN THE WRONG DIRECTION !!  http://jalopnik.com/comically-bad-pilot-flies-3-728-miles-in-wrong-directio-1786325555 . Fortunately for me, I'm not the pilot in the family; that would be my amazing husband who is MUCH better with directions than I am :-) For example, I tried to give someone directions yesterday, and after I got off the phone, I told hubby that he should call back to make sure my directions were correct (which they weren't!). Thank goodness one of us in the family knows how to get places without getting lost....... did I mention that my GPS and I are best friends? Anyway, th...

After reflecting the last few days on the previous blog post and re-reading the quote from Thomas Keller, I must honestly confess one of my struggles that I believe is a HUGE contributor to my feeling tired and overwhelmed much of the time........ and it doesn't have anything to do with how many activities are planned in my week........ are you ready? I lack a consistent time in the Word and in prayer with my Heavenly Father.   It's something that I've struggled with since becoming a Mom... throughout high school and college, early on in marriage, I enjoyed a wonderful routine of time with God in the mornings, time praying and writing in my journal, time being quiet before Him and listening to His words. As a wife, a mother and a missionary, this is something that I am not proud of at all. I'm certainly not blaming my kids or my schedule..... I am the one who needs to make this a priority and I haven't been doing that. Imagine if I spent as much time with...

Well, summer is officially upon us. During the school year, I home school, we host a Bible Study Group in our home on Monday evening, the kids have AWANA on Tuesday evening, I attend a Ladies Bible Study Group every other Wednesday evening, our Princess has gymnastics on Thursday evening and our Buddy Boy has karate on Friday evening. Saturday is for grocery shopping, mowing the lawn, etc. and Sunday we go to church and spend the afternoon together as a family. Whew! That made me tired just typing it all out! As I sit here and see all of these wonderful activities that we get to participate in, I see friends, I see fun but I also see busyness. Summer isn't any different..... we have our annual homeschool convention, Family Conference, two weeks of swimming lessons, church camp, family camp, Vacation Bible School....... and then before we know it, it's time to begin our school year again and plan a ministry road trip to Texas for 3 weeks. And I wonder why I feel so tir...

I want to be successful...... as a daughter, wife, mother, friend, teacher, missionary. I often look for accolades from the world rather than God. The question is why? Why does this matter to me? I think it's partly human nature to desire success.... I always try to work hard to please people or impress people or to leave a good impression; that's part of my personality. But what does God want from me? Does He look at my success or my faithfulness? In the Bible, we read in Matthew 25 the story of a man who was leaving on a trip. He called his servants together and gave them different 'talents' or coinage and when he returned from the trip, he called the servants together again to give an account of what they had done with the talents that he had entrusted to them while he was away. To the one who been wise with the talents, the man said, "Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter in...

Our family enjoyed participating in a homeschool convention this weekend; it's a great time of refreshment for my husband and me (especially at the end of the school year) and our kids LOVE the children's program that is offered. It's always a blessing to know that the kids are well taken care of, allowing the two of us time to be refreshed, browse curriculum and spend some time together thinking (and praying) about the next school year. I was going to be ahead of the game this year, so I planned out all the curriculum that I wanted to use and looked in the Exhibit Hall for those vendors since they offer special pricing, discounts, free shipping, etc. at most conventions. We also had a great list of speakers to choose from, most (if not all) are/were homeschool parents and they offered a great deal of encouragement and insight as they have traveled this journey before us. We decided to attend one particular workshop on the first day, because we were intrigued by the t...

Yesterday, I took something over to a friend's house and she invited me to stay for a bit, after apologizing for the house being messy..... (have you seen MY house lately?!)  The kids played together and she sat down to nurse her baby. As we talked, I saw baskets of laundry sitting on her couch and since I was just sitting there talking to her, I pulled a basket of laundry over and started to fold the clothes. Rather than stopping me with a comment like "Oh, it's okay. You don't have to do that" (which is how I would have responded), she said, "Thank you so much for folding my laundry!" and continued the conversation.  I learned a great lesson in that moment; I need to be more like her. I have a very difficult time accepting help, especially when I NEED the help! It's a pride issue, one that I have found hard to overcome, one that I constantly need to bring before the Lord. I love to give, I love to do things for others...... but I need to be g...

In the book "Different" by Sally Clarkson and her son, Nathan, Sally makes this statement near the end of Chapter 11. " ...all of us need to feel that ultimately our lives matter and that the desires of our hearts are placed there by God in order to lead us to the Kingdom work He would have us fulfill." As a Mom, I often wonder what Kingdom work God will ask my children to fulfill...... and then I wonder how I can prepare them for that work. Well, it isn't up to me entirely, it's up to God to work in their hearts and prepare them for the Kingdom work that He wants them to do. But my role as a Mom is to pray for them each day, that they will listen to the leading of the Holy Spirit and that they will be sensitive to His leading in their lives. This is an area where I need to be more consistent.... I need to pray every single day for my kids! First, that they will be sensitive to the Lord's leading and second, that I will be sensitive to the things that ...

As I shared in my previous post, I sometimes find myself feeling that I should be doing more..... Sometimes I wonder what I am accomplishing with my life by being a stay-at-home wife and Mom, a homeschooling Mom, a missionary wife and Mom....... I do lots of little tasks throughout the day, and sometimes, it feels like the day doesn't amount to much. If I'm not careful, I can find myself lying in bed at the end of the day wondering what I did with the last 14 hours of my life..... some days, I feel like I accomplished more than on other days, but what if feeding and clothing and teaching and cleaning really  IS  a big accomplishment in the grand scheme of things? In his book 'Mastering Life Before It's Too Late', Robert J. Morgan writes in Chapter 23, "I'm convinced we're too enamored of the dramatically big when most of life is blessedly small. Sometimes we mistakenly equate smallness with insignificance, but that's an indictment against God...

As a mom, I wear lots of hats. I make food for my family, keep the house clean, wash laundry and dishes, write newsletters and thank-you notes, plan ministry trips, attend Bible Study, host Bible Study, attend church, take the kids to gymnastics and karate....... you get the idea :-) My family are wonderful helpers and we all serve and work together and that is a great joy and blessing. But sometimes, I find myself *feeling* like I should be doing more...... like I need another job, something I can do from home. Why? Because I get jealous and become discontent...... I spend too much time on Facebook looking at what other people have or where people are going on vacation or....... Do I need any of those things? No! Our lives are so incredibly blessed; we have a beautiful home, working vehicles, plenty of food to eat (and friends to share our table with), clothing, wonderful times of vacation with family, etc. Before Rodney and I ever got married, we knew that when we had kids, we w...

Forgiveness lies at the heart of the Christian faith, with our Savior extending forgiveness even when He was dying on the cross. Jesus loved those who had nailed Him there, uttering a prayer asking His Father to forgive them. He didn’t hang on to bitterness or anger, but showed grace and love to those who had wronged Him. This is a fitting time to consider before the Lord any people we might need to forgive as we follow Jesus’s example in extending His love to those who hurt us. When we ask God through His Spirit to help us forgive, He will come to our aid—even if we take what we think is a long time to forgive. When we do, we are freed from the prison of unforgiveness. ~Amy Boucher Pye Today was a hard day; I was tired, I was hungry, I was expecting my kids to act much older than they are. I got angry, I raised my voice  yelled, I acted in a way that showed I was living according to the flesh rather than the Spirit.  After a Mommy Time Out (yes, mommy's ...

As missionaries, we have the privilege of raising up a support team, a group of people who will partner with us in prayer and through financial giving while we are on the mission field. Before we left for Africa in 2011, we were focused on gaining financial supporters so that we could be at 100% of our support while on the field. But during that time, we also started an e-mail prayer team that we would e-mail prayer requests and praises to once a week or once a month or whenever we needed prayer. It was amazing to see how my perspective shifted from finances to prayer after we arrived on the field. The challenges of navigating a new culture, learning and speaking a new language, cooking new foods, all while caring for a house and my family (our son was 2 years old at the time and I was 4 months pregnant with our daughter when we moved to Africa) meant that we relied heavily on our team of prayer supporters to uplift us before the Throne of God on a daily basis. It was (and is) beca...

I am a missionary wife and homeschooling mom, so many of the posts on this blog will fit into these categories. This is a space for me to share life's hardships and joys in the hopes that others will be encouraged. Sometimes, as a mom, I can have doubts and feel that my abilities are 'not up to par'. I often question myself and my decisions, asking and wondering if I am doing enough, wondering if I am teaching my children enough, if I am teaching them the 'right' things that they will need in order to lead successful, productive lives. And other times, I wonder why I doubt my own abilities. God has uniquely gifted me with the right tools to teach and train and equip my children, to manage my household, to support and love my husband as he works on airplanes (which he loves!). God has also blessed me with the gift of hospitality, which I seek to use for His Glory every chance I get! Right now, I am reading two great books! One is called "Mastering Lif...