I Did It!

If you are like me, and I know some of you are, you doubt your ability to school your children effectively. I struggle with the idea that they are missing out on something, be it organized sports, socialization (ha), more friends (ugh), proper instruction (as if), etc.

I have crossed a bridge. One that gives me great joy.

My son, very smart in his own right so it probably had less to do with me than it did with him, has been accepted to a local university. In the mail, he received notice from school that his scholarship was upgraded because of his score on his latest ACT test. He will be receiving full tuition, plus funds to help cover "academic fees." I am ecstatic.

It's vindication and affirmation. Despite naysayers, I can teach my children SOMETHING. It may not be everything that can be taught in a public or private school, but I'm fine with that. My kids don't need to learn how to curse, do drugs, have sex (before marriage), run from bullies, or fear for their lives if someone gets angry. They also don't need to know how to raise their hand, eat lunch in 20 minutes, wear the "right" clothes, or sit in a hard chair for 50 minutes (well, maybe that one).  :)

I want to encourage all of you, especially the moms with younger children. You can do it. You are giving your children the best education you can. Teach and train them according to their strengths. Don't ignore their weaknesses, those need to be worked on too, but focus on what they're good at or what they enjoy most. And don't forget to round it out with lots of love and a little fun.  :)

If you've crossed a bridge to the other side of understanding lately, please share it with us.

Blessings,
Ginger

what is your legacy?

According to Webster’s Concise Dictionary, the word “legacy” means anything handed down from the past, as from an ancestor.

Last summer at my grandpa Papa’s, funeral, I was asked to write a lifesketch and speech in memory of him. As I began to work on the speech, I was convicted once again of the importance of the legacy we, as parents, leave behind for our children.

Papa had so many people who loved him. In writing my speech, I gave a lot of thought to legacies and what they mean.

Remembering the legacy Papa left...

According to an article by Dr. Greg Bourgond “at the end of a life-there are four possible legacies we can leave:

(1) No legacy, (2) a bad legacy, (3) a perishable legacy, or (4) a lasting Godly legacy in the lives in the others.”

Why is leaving a lasting Godly legacy important? What is a Godly legacy?

I once heard a quote from Austin L. Sorensen that went like this: “A child is not likely to find a father in God unless he finds something of God in his father.”

Wow, that’s a powerful thought and something we, as parents, should take very seriously.

How can a child find something of God in his or her father? For example, are daddy’s arms always open whenever there is a problem? Is daddy a refuge in times of trouble? Is he a shield from the bad day at school or the fight with a best friend? Is daddy loving, caring, and full of grace? Is he forgiving? Does he put the needs of others first? Is daddy someone his child can trust? Is he an encourager, is he patient, and kind? God is all of these things and these are just a few of the glimpses of God a child can see in her father. To see such things in her daddy helps her to see that God is all of those things and more, only to perfection.

Woodrow Kroll from Back to the Bible has compiled a great listing of some characteristics of a Godly man: He says that Godly Men are the leaders, protectors, and teachers in their homes. Godly men are worship leaders, disciplinarians, counselors, and encouragers in their homes.

Parents don’t realize how important they are in their children’s lives and this is just another testament to this fact. I can testify as Papa’s granddaughter that I saw him exhibit traits such as being a pillar of strength, protective, loving, and caring. He was a hard worker, provided for his family, and desired justice, yet not revenge.

When I consider Papa’s legacy, I am inspired to consider my own legacy that I am building in my children.

In the song “Legacy” by Nichole Nordeman, she sings:

“I want to leave a legacy
How will they remember me?
Did I choose to love? Did I point to You enough
To make a mark on things?
I want to leave an offering
A child of mercy and grace who
blessed Your name unapologetically
And leave that kind of legacy…”

When you reach the end of your life, will you have accepted the grace offered by the Lord Jesus Christ? Will God be saying to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant?”

Whether we are moms or dads, aunts, uncles, sisters, brothers, cousins, or grandparents, may we all leave behind a legacy that speaks of Christ and His saving grace that lives within us. As Dr. Greg Bourgond says, “live your life for an audience of One!”

Will you join me in prayer? Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for the blessing of Papa. Thank You for the many years You gave him to us and thank You for allowing us to see glimpses of You in him. Lord, I pray today that we would all exhibit glimpses of You within us, whether to our children or to the stranger in the grocery store. Help us to be that salt and light that You have called us to be. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Sources: http://acomplete180.wordpress.com/2007/07/03/what-are-the-characteristics-of-a-godly-man/

http://www.christianedwarehouse.com/cep/webpage.cfm?&DID=6&WebPage_ID=100

http://www.christianlyricsonline.com/artists/nichole-nordeman/legacy.html

Review: God, Girls, and Getting Connected

Title: GOD, GIRLS, AND GETTING CONNECTED
Authors: Robin Marsh and Lauren Nelson
Publisher: Harvest House Publishers
February 20112
ISBN: 978-0736945219
Genre: Inspirational/devotional/teen girls

Girls today are convinced that their social life would end without their cell phone. Most credit their phone with improving their life. And studies have shown that the fashion magazines that girls look at lower their self-esteem by 80%. By the age of thirteen more American girls are unhappy with their bodies and this makes a huge jump by the age of seventeen. The trends show that today’s Cell phone generation of girls is surrounded by images that cause negative thoughts. When you add gossip, guys, and growing up, with the social media culture, it creates an unstable foundation on which to build self-confidence.

GOD, GIRLS AND GETTING CONNECTED is a devotional written especially for teen girls. With the kind of media that girls are constantly surrounded by, girls need encouraging things to read, and GOD, GIRLS, AND GETTING CONNECTED is a positive, straight-talk, devotional to help guide girls through every day battles.

The devotionals start with a question in “teen lingo”, then God’s “text response” from the Bible, insightful reflections, and a daily spiritual app to help girls relate biblical wisdom to everyday needs.

Some of the topics discussed include:

 how to deal with the drama of other girls
 decisions about boys and sexual purity
 do’s and don’ts of social media
 the fun of living out a bold faith
 their identity and uniqueness in Christ

When I first saw the lead-in for this book, I thought there would be those funny-looking bar code things for girls to scan into their phones for their daily readings. For girls too connected to their phones to pick up a book, that would be a plus, but there aren’t any of those included. Instead, this is a real book, that you sit down and read, to spend time with God.

If you are looking for a positive devotional for your teen girl, then pick up a copy of GOD, GIRLS, AND GETTING CONNECTED. It is a book that my sixteen year old daughter loves for her devotions and I’m sure your daughter will too. $11.99. 169 pages.

Responsibility

I've tried to instill in my children the need to be responsible. If we take on a project, we should make our best effort to do it well and in a timely manner.

Dictionary.com defines responsible as 1) answerable or accountable, as for something within one's power, control, or management; 2) involving accountability or responsibility; 3) chargeable with being author, cause, or occasion of something; 4) having a capacity for moral decisions and therefore accountable; capable of rational thought or action; and 5) able to discharge obligations or pay debts.

I try to be responsible, to be capable of rational thought or action, but I'm not always successful. I could give tons of excuses as to why I fail, but as a former pastor of mine use to say, "Excuses are nothing but excuses."

An example of my irresponsibility: Once, many years ago, we were at our "school away from home." I was rounding up my children (five of them at the time, I think). As I started our van, I asked if everyone was there and they said yes. I drove away. Five or so minutes down the road, I glanced in the rear-view mirror and, to my horror, realized I didn't have all my children. One had been left behind. It was MY responsibility to "count heads," but I had failed. It's funny now, but at the time I was so upset.

At times responsibility is a balancing act and at other times it's a juggling act. If our priorities get skewed, we drop something, intentionally or unintentionally.

We have to make tough decisions because we are incapable of doing all we WANT to do. In truth, it feels like we are incapable of doing all we NEED to do in certain seasons of our lives.

But, thanks be to God, He NEVER gives us more than we can handle with HIS help. I want to encourage you today--if you're "dropping the ball" too often lately--to take a look at your priorities, re-evaluate your responsibilities, and balance your life according to what God, the Father, has called you to do, not all that you think you should do.

Blessings,
Ginger

Review: The Money $aving Mom's Budget

Title: THE MONEY $AVING MOM’S BUDGET
Author: Crystal Paine
Publisher: Gallert Books (Simon and Schuster)
January 2012
ISBN: 978-1451646207
Genre: Inspirational/financial

THE MONEY $AVING MOM’S BUDGET is a book that will help turn your family’s finances around. Based on sound wisdom, this book will help you put together a budget, encourage you to pay cash (and not use credit), to pay down your debts as quickly as possible, and to take control of your life.

Each chapter includes stories by real people, like one couple who lived in a run-down trailer until they saved enough to buy a house, and then a second car, debt free. It also includes dozens of ways to save money, stretch your dollars further and bring in extra income.

Worksheets are included at the end of this book that you can either use, in the book, or use as a guide to work on their own notebook paper if the don’t want to deface a book.

I enjoyed reading through THE MONEY $AVING MOM’S BUDGET and look forward to implementing some of the suggestions in my own life. There are rules broken down into twelve months so you can introduce yourself to a new financial habit, one month at a time. Like for instance, you could dedicate one month to learning how to use coupons, shop by sales flyers, and save money on groceries. You can learn another month on how to put a little bit of money away in a fund for Christmas so you don’t go in debt for the holidays.

Excellent resource for moms, dads, couples, and even singles. $14.00. 207 pages.

When Do We Get There?

Ann Cooper McCauley

When do we get there? Who hasn’t heard this question circulating from back seat to driver’s seat when traveling with kids?  Aren’t we just like our children, begging to know when we will arrive?  Is there a road map designed for us with singular routes?  Are there blinking neon signs saying? Wrong way. Turn around.

One year we took an Easter trip to visit my husband’s relatives four hours away.  We decided on a twisty route through the hills of East Texas. Not only would we save time going this way, but we’d enjoy the scenery.

You guessed it.  Not five minutes into our journey our six-year-old questioned, “When do we get there?” 

I didn’t have to say a word—not one—because the teenagers cried, “Don’t start, Caleb!  It’s a long, long way.”  But Caleb remained undaunted.  Every five minutes, he impatiently sighed before repeating, “When—”

And the teens would pounce, “Shhhh, it’s a long way!”

When we returned home, my husband and I attended a church gathering.  The youth minister learned of our travel when our six-year-old announced we had been on a looooong trip.

 “Really, Caleb? Where did you go?”

            “Gunter, Texas, and you don’t want to go there!  It takes a long, long time.”

The man smiled and said, “Oh, my grandparents live near Gunter.  I’m going there this weekend.”  Scaling from son to father he asked, “Which route did you take?”

            Men and boys. What makes them tick?  My husband loved that the youth pastor asked.  Shifting, an all important I read the map air washed his face, and he replied, “We departed from the interstate and took a highway northwest through Greenville.”

           The youth pastor scratched his head.  “I’ve never gone that way.  I always take highway…”I rolled my eyes thinking, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.  And then I paused, observing these two men, soaking in their next words.

“I thought about going that way.”  My husband reflected, head nodding.

            Then the youth leader asked, “What time did you leave, and when did you get there?”

            My husband’s confident expression changed as he did mental calculations. “Well, both ways take about the same amount of time, I suppose.”

            And that’s when it hit me. Most people get hung up when we think we’ve missed God’s will. We’re demobilized when we think we’ve missed our way, and it can hurl us into paralyzing self-doubt. When in fact, there are many choices of roads we can take in our lives with the same destination in mind—the destination of loving and pleasing our Heavenly Father.

I ponder. Moms, is there a wrong method or just right curriculum?  Is there a perfect way or outcome?  We’re on a road with our children.  On one hand, we find ourselves in a hurry to get where we’re going, questioning the point of arrival, pleading to know when do we get there.  On the other, we want to relish each precious day with our beloved children.  We certainly don’t have a moment to waste in self reflection and condemnation because we took a wrong path.  In the end, we all get where we’re going, and I am convinced in the same amount of time.  God is all about loving people.  They’re His priority—not tools or ideologies.  Every turn we take on the roadmap of our homeschooling journey, He is there. Have you learned to relax and enjoy the ride?  Why not take the scenic route?

Review: The NIV Boys Bible

Title: THE NIV BOYS BIBLE
Publisher: Zonderkidz
March 2012
ISBN: 9780310723080
Genre: NIV Bible

THE NIV BOYS BIBLE is a bible designed specifically for boys ages nine through twelve. It has a boyish tire-track design on it’s hardcover, and includes special features to help boys dig deep into the Word and learn about God, the people, facts and stories in the Bible.

Some of the special features include:

 Introductions to each book of the Bible
 Hundreds of highlighted verses worth memorizing
 Need-to-know biblical stories and people
 Interesting and fun facts about Bible times and characters
 Gross and gory stuff they never knew was in the Bible
 Help in applying the Bible stories to everyday life

This is a Bible that is sure to appeal to your tweener boy, one that he’ll be proud to carry to church, and even to read at home. The special features will grab his attention and draw his attention into the word.

If you are looking for a Bible for your tween boy, then pick up a copy of THE NIV BOYS BIBLE. It is sure to appeal. Recommended. $27.99 hardcover.