I had a wonderful Mother's Day this year. The celebration began on Saturday morning when at 8:15 a.m. a florist delivered me a beautiful hanging basket of bright peach geraniums! I was curious as I opened the card, and to be truthful, Nevin has always been the one that has sent a rose to plant or flowers as a gift so I half-expected them to be from him. I was already chiding whichever child did it in my head for "spending extra money they didn't have" but yet thrilled that I was that important! When I opened the card it said, "I love you. Alicia" I had had a rough night physically but it was all forgotten in a second as that warm feeling of being special and loved went through me. She couldn't have picked a better gift at a better time. Thank you, my dear Alicia. (and family)
Then the mail arrived and John knocked on the bedroom door with it behind his back. He said, "You got this" and handed me an envelope, "and you got this!" and handed me a package! They were both from Niki. The envelope held new pictures of our precious grandbabies and the package was a coffee mug with pictures from the last year of the Lott family! The pictures are on my dresser and the cup has the perfect place in my Hoosier cabinet!
My next blessing was a visit from my mother-in-law which I thoroughly enjoyed. We had asked her to spend the weekend with us as this was her first Mother's Day without Charles. I love her as if she were my own mother and am so thankful for her. We all went "flower shopping" for a while and found beautiful hostas at K Mart. She and I both benefited from that trip because Gary went back later than evening and got us each two of them for Mother's Day.
We bought the food for a simple Mother's Day lunch of hoagies, oven fries and fruit and cheese. Cierra made brownie bites and Gary bought chocolate ice cream and low calorie/low fat chocolate syrup so we could have sundaes I was thrilled that we found the exact things on sale at UGO for my Mother's Day lunch I had asked for. (They even had chicken and turkey submarine [a.k.a. long strips of deli meat] for $1.59 a lb.! All we had to do was load the sandwiches!)
John bought me the clothesline I had requested so I could freshen my drapes this summer and hang out my sheets weekly. Cierra bought me the can opener that was on my "wish list" and Gary bought me two hanging baskets of ferns and two hostas. I'm a blessed mother, with or without gifts--but it sure is nice to have them express their love by showering you with gifts!
I talked to all my children on Mother's Day and the crowning glory of a present was a personal letter written to me from my son Nathan. It arrived by e-mail and when Gary came to see why I hadn't come to bed at 11:37 p.m. I was sitting there crying for joy at the sweet letter of gratitude from my son. It was the perfect gift.
His letter made me think about the choices I'd made as a mother. Most of my choices were made from watching the example of my own precious mother and from believing the Bible is true and if we do what it says we will reap good fruit in our lives. My choices were also a conscious decision on the part of my husband and myself being very serious about raising our children for the Lord. I remember both of us being very nervous about the huge responsibility we had taken on when we had our first little baby girl!
I remember our discussions about the seriousness of being responsible for living souls and us making a definite choice for me to be a stay-at-home mother even if we had to "sell the furniture out from under us" for me to do so. I also remember when Niki became school age many conversations about her education and once again we made the decision to see to it she got a Christian education and together "counting the cost" of this and deciding that whatever the cost our children would have a godly Christian education not a Christless one that challenged all we believed to be true.
The Lord always sent the right sermon, the right book, the right person into our lives when we were "paying the price". I remember reading the book Growing Up God's Way by John Stormer and reading about Susanna Wesley saying that the reason she hesitated to give advice to other mother's about child-rearing was that "so few mothers would take the center of their life and dedicate it to rearing godly children". (not a direct quote but how I remember it!) I decided then that I would take the best part of my life and dedicate it to raising children for the Lord.
I remember another friend handing me the book, What the Bible Says About Child Training by Richard Fugate. After reading it I had an even deeper sense of responsibility to obey the word of God above all else in rearing children because God Himself held me responsible for it. It changed my thinking and my life as a mother in a positive way.
The last few days I've pondered all of this in my heart and yearned for the Lord to continue to use me as a godly woman, wife and mother till the day I die. Today I was checking e-mails and a blog entitled "What's Been Easy About Losing 25 Pounds" caught my eye. http://www.dailyspark.com/blog.asp?post=how_to_pay_the_price_for_weight_loss_and_win. In this article he talked about "paying the price" to lose weight and get fit. I had been thinking about "paying the price" but in the spiritual realm for two days now! Every thing he said fit hand-and-glove with what I'd been thinking about concerning my role as a godly woman. He talked about making a daily decision to "pay the price" and the long-term benefits you would reap. He asked you to join his Spark group and list as a comment how you paid the price that day. It inspired me and made me want to become a part of "paying the price" in the area of health, nutrition and fitness. But it also inspired me to renew my commitments to "pay the price" in my spiritual life, and to think about it on a daily basis.
An hour or so later it was time to exercise. I don't hate exercise, I hate the time it takes out of my busy day. Each day the man that wrote the book 8 Minutes in the Morning (by Jorge Cruise) has a little self-talk he wants you to do before you exercise. Today's was about "Loser Zones". In his book he had the quote, "You will never find time for anything. If you want time, you must make it." -Charles Buxton, American writer. That went right along with my philosophy that you will find the time and the money for anything you truly love and want. He asked the question, "What are your Loser Zones, and how many hours per day do you spend Loser Zone activity?" The number one loser zone he listed was television viewing--up to 30 hours a week for the average American! He also mentioned aimless phone conversations, surfing the internet, etc.
Once again my mind ran to the spiritual realm. Where were my Loser Zones that kept me from spending more time with the Lord in His word and in prayer? I could name a couple right off the bat. Was I willing to "pay the price" so I could reap the benefits? Who might I see saved this year or rescued spiritually if I was willing to "pay the price"? What might happen in my own life and that of my family if I was willing to "pay the price" and move forward with the Lord to a higher plane than I've been on?
Today I was motivated in the spiritual area and in the physical realm to be a better mother this year than I was last year. To yield what I wanted to see stronger bonds, sweeter relationships and spiritual fruit in my life and the life of my family.
Because I'm a mother of older children and younger children I am already reaping some precious fruit from my children that lets me know it was worth every ounce of "paying the price". My son's heartfelt thank you letter left me knowing it was worth every sacrifice I'd ever made as a mother. Knowing your children are safely in His flock and fold givs you a good night's rest.
I thank the Lord for giving us a guide book and for His faithfulness in sending instructions when we are yearning for them. I thank Him for letting me have the privilege and responsibility of being a mother, and I thank Him for entrusting those precious little souls into my care for a few years.
I pray that you too will count the cost and decide that it's worth every precious sacrifice you make to see your children "spiritually" healthy and satisfied. May the Lord use this to encourage you to not be "weary in well doing" but to keep on keeping on as a wife and mother separated "from the world unto the Lord". May God strengthen and encourage each one of you as you raise your family for Him.
Love,
Mom
Then the mail arrived and John knocked on the bedroom door with it behind his back. He said, "You got this" and handed me an envelope, "and you got this!" and handed me a package! They were both from Niki. The envelope held new pictures of our precious grandbabies and the package was a coffee mug with pictures from the last year of the Lott family! The pictures are on my dresser and the cup has the perfect place in my Hoosier cabinet!
My next blessing was a visit from my mother-in-law which I thoroughly enjoyed. We had asked her to spend the weekend with us as this was her first Mother's Day without Charles. I love her as if she were my own mother and am so thankful for her. We all went "flower shopping" for a while and found beautiful hostas at K Mart. She and I both benefited from that trip because Gary went back later than evening and got us each two of them for Mother's Day.
We bought the food for a simple Mother's Day lunch of hoagies, oven fries and fruit and cheese. Cierra made brownie bites and Gary bought chocolate ice cream and low calorie/low fat chocolate syrup so we could have sundaes I was thrilled that we found the exact things on sale at UGO for my Mother's Day lunch I had asked for. (They even had chicken and turkey submarine [a.k.a. long strips of deli meat] for $1.59 a lb.! All we had to do was load the sandwiches!)
John bought me the clothesline I had requested so I could freshen my drapes this summer and hang out my sheets weekly. Cierra bought me the can opener that was on my "wish list" and Gary bought me two hanging baskets of ferns and two hostas. I'm a blessed mother, with or without gifts--but it sure is nice to have them express their love by showering you with gifts!
I talked to all my children on Mother's Day and the crowning glory of a present was a personal letter written to me from my son Nathan. It arrived by e-mail and when Gary came to see why I hadn't come to bed at 11:37 p.m. I was sitting there crying for joy at the sweet letter of gratitude from my son. It was the perfect gift.
His letter made me think about the choices I'd made as a mother. Most of my choices were made from watching the example of my own precious mother and from believing the Bible is true and if we do what it says we will reap good fruit in our lives. My choices were also a conscious decision on the part of my husband and myself being very serious about raising our children for the Lord. I remember both of us being very nervous about the huge responsibility we had taken on when we had our first little baby girl!
I remember our discussions about the seriousness of being responsible for living souls and us making a definite choice for me to be a stay-at-home mother even if we had to "sell the furniture out from under us" for me to do so. I also remember when Niki became school age many conversations about her education and once again we made the decision to see to it she got a Christian education and together "counting the cost" of this and deciding that whatever the cost our children would have a godly Christian education not a Christless one that challenged all we believed to be true.
The Lord always sent the right sermon, the right book, the right person into our lives when we were "paying the price". I remember reading the book Growing Up God's Way by John Stormer and reading about Susanna Wesley saying that the reason she hesitated to give advice to other mother's about child-rearing was that "so few mothers would take the center of their life and dedicate it to rearing godly children". (not a direct quote but how I remember it!) I decided then that I would take the best part of my life and dedicate it to raising children for the Lord.
I remember another friend handing me the book, What the Bible Says About Child Training by Richard Fugate. After reading it I had an even deeper sense of responsibility to obey the word of God above all else in rearing children because God Himself held me responsible for it. It changed my thinking and my life as a mother in a positive way.
The last few days I've pondered all of this in my heart and yearned for the Lord to continue to use me as a godly woman, wife and mother till the day I die. Today I was checking e-mails and a blog entitled "What's Been Easy About Losing 25 Pounds" caught my eye. http://www.dailyspark.com/blog.asp?post=how_to_pay_the_price_for_weight_loss_and_win. In this article he talked about "paying the price" to lose weight and get fit. I had been thinking about "paying the price" but in the spiritual realm for two days now! Every thing he said fit hand-and-glove with what I'd been thinking about concerning my role as a godly woman. He talked about making a daily decision to "pay the price" and the long-term benefits you would reap. He asked you to join his Spark group and list as a comment how you paid the price that day. It inspired me and made me want to become a part of "paying the price" in the area of health, nutrition and fitness. But it also inspired me to renew my commitments to "pay the price" in my spiritual life, and to think about it on a daily basis.
An hour or so later it was time to exercise. I don't hate exercise, I hate the time it takes out of my busy day. Each day the man that wrote the book 8 Minutes in the Morning (by Jorge Cruise) has a little self-talk he wants you to do before you exercise. Today's was about "Loser Zones". In his book he had the quote, "You will never find time for anything. If you want time, you must make it." -Charles Buxton, American writer. That went right along with my philosophy that you will find the time and the money for anything you truly love and want. He asked the question, "What are your Loser Zones, and how many hours per day do you spend Loser Zone activity?" The number one loser zone he listed was television viewing--up to 30 hours a week for the average American! He also mentioned aimless phone conversations, surfing the internet, etc.
Once again my mind ran to the spiritual realm. Where were my Loser Zones that kept me from spending more time with the Lord in His word and in prayer? I could name a couple right off the bat. Was I willing to "pay the price" so I could reap the benefits? Who might I see saved this year or rescued spiritually if I was willing to "pay the price"? What might happen in my own life and that of my family if I was willing to "pay the price" and move forward with the Lord to a higher plane than I've been on?
Today I was motivated in the spiritual area and in the physical realm to be a better mother this year than I was last year. To yield what I wanted to see stronger bonds, sweeter relationships and spiritual fruit in my life and the life of my family.
Because I'm a mother of older children and younger children I am already reaping some precious fruit from my children that lets me know it was worth every ounce of "paying the price". My son's heartfelt thank you letter left me knowing it was worth every sacrifice I'd ever made as a mother. Knowing your children are safely in His flock and fold givs you a good night's rest.
I thank the Lord for giving us a guide book and for His faithfulness in sending instructions when we are yearning for them. I thank Him for letting me have the privilege and responsibility of being a mother, and I thank Him for entrusting those precious little souls into my care for a few years.
I pray that you too will count the cost and decide that it's worth every precious sacrifice you make to see your children "spiritually" healthy and satisfied. May the Lord use this to encourage you to not be "weary in well doing" but to keep on keeping on as a wife and mother separated "from the world unto the Lord". May God strengthen and encourage each one of you as you raise your family for Him.
Love,
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