Just checking in to see how everyone is doing this week. I miss connecting with you girls! Other than Nancy's link to Ashlee's blog, Beth and I are the only people who have posted or commented. I want to hear from the rest of you, too! (No offense to Beth, because she knows how much I value her friendship. But I talk to her all the time already!)
How are the lessons coming? What key things is God bringing to the surface for you? How has your week been since we last met? What big (or small) things are going on in your world--either externally in your relationships, work, and home, or internally in your heart and mind? The 2 hours we have on Tuesday night just aren't long enough for everyone to share deeply, so now's your chance....
I'll be waiting!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
6 comments:
Well, sure, I'll comment. So far, there are two things that have jumped out of the page at me. The first thing is on day 2 page 150 where she stated "Looking back, the thing that bothers me most about my Christian upbringing was the emphasis on behavior and outward appearence." She goes on later to say "by the middle of high school I was crumbling under the strain of a Christian standard I couldn't maintain."
So I can't relate to that personally, but I get fearful that it is easy to do that as a parent. How easy to be concerned that your kids are "acting" like Christians." I was mortified when our daughter shared the "f" word with our Pastor's daughter in Carroll. Was I worried about her knowing it or was I upset because of who she shared it with? To give myself a break, I was disappointed that she didn't have better judgement but I would be kidding myself if I didn't realize I was concerned with the "who" part of it too.
I do have to share a victory too though. Camille was in Carroll all last week and called me on the fourth night to tell me she was going to stay at Kelsea's house again instead of Riley's house. She's spent Monday with Kelsea and Tues/Wed with another friend and spent Thursday during the day at Riley's. She felt uncomfortable with the discussions at Riley's house (found out later it was bad language and arguing both) so she called Kelsea's mom and asked if she could spend the night there because she was homesick and felt more comfortable there. WOW! I didn't know she'd be assertive enough to do that on her own but what an opportunity to talk to her about what an awesome choice that was and how the "voice" making her feel uncomfortable was the Holy Spirit. Now I just have the mommy guilt to deal with because I always felt like something wasn't right with the home life at Riley's and I still let her go. And honestly, if Camille had called me I would have been worried about being rude to Riley's parent's asking if they could take her back out to her other friends house. Good thing she called herself. It feels horrible even putting that in writing....
So the second thing that struck me was on day three page 154. It was the quote by Matthew Henry "This thorn in the flesh is said to be a messenger of Satan which he sent for evil; but God designed it, and overruled it for good."
Can you just see Satan devising some plan and hearing him with his evil laugh "HA HA HA." And then God tweaking it for good and overpowering Satan's laugh with the school yard "na na na na na na. Gotcha again!" And Satan is busy stamping his foot in frustration like a toddler who can't have more candy. Love the word picture on that one.
This is such a basic concept about God being good but it's just so hard for my little head to get around sometimes.
That's enough from me for now. (and I haven't done day 4 & 5 yet)Anyone else out there? I blog check several times a day!
More mental hugs sent your way.
That is a great word picture, Nancy. Thanks for sharing - while Ethan isn't old enough for those situations, I know I will definitely struggle with how not to be legalistic, but yet still have boundaries/rules, etc. I think we talked about this last week. We are "the authority figure" as our kids grow. How do we teach them the rights and wrongs but also make it a heart focus?
As for where I am ... I'm not even sure where to start. I have been highly distracted the last few weeks. I am only on day 3, and that is only because I just read the intro, days 1-2 over lunch today.
Is it the Olympics?
Is it that Ethan was sick?
Is it that I was sick this weekend?
Is it work that has been highly stressful?
Is it something deeper?
I was so "gung ho" in the early weeks, so eager to share, and then somewhere I started to feel insecure or naked and I decided to take a back seat. Am I the only one who gets this way? Am I too worried about people liking me, or being entertaining, or having the answers? Am I too much for people?
I guess that is where I am. And battling against those feelings because they cause me to lose focus and to worry too much about other's opinions. And all I really want these days is to retreat somewhere calm and peaceful and just hear from God. To just listen and learn the truth about Him, about myself, and about my circumstances.
Oh, Nancy, I am so with you on this one. (We are the old ladies of the group with the oldest kids, you know.) How do you train a child's heart rather than just control their behavior? (Actually, I can't seem to do that, either, but that's at least easier to attempt.) It's kind of like the whole relationship with God concept... It sounds so simple and sweet, but it is so vague and difficult to know how to actually do it. Then there's the fact that the struggle to be transformed internally as much as we'd like to pretend or attempt to be on the surface is still so present in our adult lives, so how do we teach our children not to live that same way!?
I am continually convicted that my best parenting technique is PRAYER, but I so seldom take advantage of that opportunity before I attempt to figure this parenting stuff out on my own... I somehow believe that the next book or system or idea has to be the solution to getting my kids under control, right?!? But I will say I am very impressed with how Camille handled herself in Carroll... You certainly must be doing something right!
Rochelle... Wow. Thanks for your honestly and vulnerability. I'm certain I can answer for our entire group when I say that you are NOT too much for us. There was a line in last week's lesson about how Kelly had discovered not that her group was particularly "normal," but rather that they had many of the same quirks and struggles, and that was what was so great about it. I underlined that part! I have loved hearing your thoughts and perspectives (and amazing vocabulary. You are entertaining without even trying to be!) You are so real and honest and refreshing. I know, having been there about a gajillion times myself, that words like that can sound pretty empty when you're struggling with the questions and feelings you listed. But I really mean it, so I'm saying it anyway in the hopes that your heart can really receive it and be encouraged. I'll be praying that in some quiet moments squeezed in here and there you'll receive just what your heart needs from the Lord.
So now I will admit that I started strong, and then I stalled out half way through day 3. So I have 2 1/2 lessons to do tomorrow. No problem. (Positive self-talk, you know.) The material will certainly be fresh in my mind for our discussion!
As for a deeper look at where I am... my kids start back to school tomorrow, so the realization of my personal Plan A for my life(personal freedom once my 3 kids were all in school full-time after 11 years of being home with them) being trumped by God's Plan B (at the mercy of the schedule of a 3-month old, which creates the perfect conditions for some major spiritual pruning) continues to bombard me. I'm not sure what to expect from this year, either in the physical sense of what I will be able to do with my time, or the emotional and spiritual sense of where God is taking me.
Honestly, I don't feel much in the mood for being pruned most of the time. A very ugly truth about me is that I could totally settle for just a few puny blooms over a full, lush harvest if I wouldn't have to hurt from things being cut away. (Doesn't seem like God is giving me much choice in the matter however, and obviously that's a good thing since I just admitted what I would likely choose.) Part of that process is that Steve and I are fleshing out some (more) of the ugliness in ourselves as we attempt to deal with what this new reailty means for us as a family and how we are each going to handle that. I'm not sure about your marriages, but we don't always come at things from the same perspective, so often the ugly parts get thrown at each other before they get dealt with. :)
Okay, by now you all probably are thinking of the expression, "A picture is worth a thousand words," and wishing I would just post a picture instead. :) Alright, already. I will stop. I have to get up to get kids off to school in the morning so I can finish my Bible study lessons, anyway!
Can't wait to see you all tomorrow night. I know what Beth and Stacey are bringing for dinner, and you don't want to miss it! :)
Real good stuff, Tiff. Thanks for sharing. I think my marriage isn't much different than yours. You have a great way of really just stating the reality of life. I love that. Because it sends me into a major head nod that turns into some serious non-hard-rock related head banging. So, here's me, shaking like crazy ... And thanks for the encouragement ... I tend to share, share, share and then later think, oh, should I have thought before I said that!? Or maybe I should shut up so others can talk? So, I appreciate being in a group that just loves on each other and shares. Thanks for extending that to me. Love you all.
This has to be a record week for me personally for fewest number of times on the blog. Of course, that pretty much sums up my week. I haven't had a moment to blog...until now when I'm just choosing to take one. I'm feeling basically exhausted, and I just finished the last four days of our study about an hour ago, so I really feel great about the time and energy I've put into it this week. It was good stuff, but I honestly just don't have the mental energy to write more about it. Hopefully I'll feel more like talking about it in a few hours!
Rochelle, I completely relate to your comment and have felt the same way so many times. I know exactly where you're coming from in your thoughts about where we are at in the study. It's so easy to start out so excited and then somehow let those doubts creep in as we go along. I feel like I've lost some steam, too. But with Tiff, I say, you are not too much for us, and I love having you as part of the group. It seems that we are all battling many of the same lies, so we've got to just keep helping each other see and believe the truth. Looking forward to seeing everyone tonight! It sounds so good to sit down and chat with you all!
I don't know who will be checking the blog yet today, but here's what I'm thinking based on where many of us seem to be right now: I think we should take the first 1/2 hour (or whatever we need) to just share personally and pray for each other. So many of us have big stuff to deal with in our lives or little stuff piling up and overwhelming us or just the weight of daily life to carry....
The material is good, too, so we may not want to skip it entirely, but it feels like many of us could just some Godly encouragement--meaning the kind our hearts can truly only receive from God through seeking Him. And what's even more powerful is seeking Him together.
So if you read this before tonight, spend some time praying about praying for each other! :) Maybe it won't feel like the right thing when we get there, so let's all (if anyone else is reading this!) be trying to discern what His plan is for our time tonight.
And I'm not taking time to proof this, so sorry for any typos. :)
Post a Comment