It's In the Brokenness

This life is busy. I watch my days blur into nights. I often think about time and how we seem to exist only to watch the minutes race by into years. Oh but this mama knows we exist for so much more than mere minutes.

As a Mama, I often have mixed emotions about pressing the pause button  and skipping to fast forward. And God? He must sit up there in all His glory just shaking His head with a big ole' grin, saying "Some day that girl of mine, she'll get it right."

I come before Him all messy inside, stripped of my pride because more often than not I have failed at the very thing I have been called to do.

And every morning I wake up, I should be thanking God for the very breath that's with in me. I should be on my knees thanking The God who gives Gracious second chances abundantly. And how do you go about giving Him everything you have when you feel like you have nothing left to give?

When your fresh out of smiles and your meek and gentle spirit  seems to be M.I.A.......

You give Him what you have left.....

Your fuzzy mind and aching feet. Hand over the raw fleshy moments......The "oh what about me?" attitude "Who will wait on me?" kind of days.  Give Him your messy lil' self and let Him know you've come broken.

It's in the brokenness....His grace is in the broken shattered pieces of your jumbled up days. And as He is piecing together your one of a kind mosaic take care to notice where and how He places each piece......

Because there will be days that you will want to look back just to see how far He has brought you. You will want to pull from the colors and watch them shimmer in His light.

And Mama, don't ever think for a moment that He won't use all those broken moments to help heal another Messy Mama. They will notice your prism colored glass and they will have to ask because they are desperately seeking to shine in a way that pleases their Father.

It's in those moments, the ones that are full of loud reality, screaming for grace that others  so desperately need to see.....They need to see that they are not alone in this. They need to hear how life isn't always Face Book perfect.

They need to see a Perfect God bring all the broken pieces together to make their mess Beautiful.

Mama He hears you. He knows your heart and how much you want to get this Mama thing right. It will never seem right unless you let Him take charge of all that's messy...All that's broken....Give Him every last broken piece of glass and watch what He does..........

Mama your not alone.

The Hand That Rocks The Cradle

It's after supper and our oldest walks out the door, had some loose ends that needed tying up....Not 30 seconds out the door and my phone rings. His name lights up my phone like he lights up my life. And I can't sit still too long because then my mind races back to that little boy....Little boy all wrapped up in his mama's arms. I swore I'd never let go....

I answer and he tells me this: "You better come out here with your camera if you want to catch what I'm seeing!" I ask him what it is....He says "There is no time for that it's almost gone."

I grab my camera and run outside to capture what I almost missed......

 Mama friend shoots me a message says this is their second day in and she's already feeling overwhelmed. Her little boy has little boy things on his mind. He would much rather be outside working the fields with his Daddy.....much rather be pushing tonka trucks through the mud.....I bet he'd rather catch a frog and investigate what makes that thing jump the way it do.......

 She says he has no interest, he's not trying his best.........And she asks if I could pray.

You see she has other Mama friends that already gave up the call, sent their children to school so their day could be free. So there would be a lot less stress and more things to get done. And don't we all get tempted to just call it quits, to throw in the convenience towel? Life can be too hard, too crazy. We pile too much on our plate, but some how it's not ever the right things that are being piled up.

And being a Mama isn't easy........It's one of those thankless jobs.... you know the kind where you get no recognition for wiping noses or 2 a.m. feedings. No one sees you changing diapers for the umpteenth time today. No one sees all the behind the scene things that get done because you were there doing them......No one, but God.....And truly He is why you are a Mama in the first place. If He has blessed us with children...Shouldn't we then live and act like they are the BLESSING. I've often said when you become a Mama, this life is no longer revolving around you....And Beloved I hear you! I know how hard your days can be....I'm living them now....But when we learn to focus on the Lord, our days have more meaning and you begin to see clearly why You. Were. Chosen. To. Be. Their. Mama!

It's easy to lose sight of your purpose........It's hard to hang on to your calling when the world keeps tugging away.

So I shoot her back this humble message:

Just relax.....I know it's easier said than done.....But I will tell you a little story about our little boy when we first started homeschooling...

All he wanted to do was go out to the shop and be with Daddy. He hated school work and I thought he would never learn how to read! but as time went on something just clicked.....And he sailed through reading. He never was a strong speller but eventually he got a lot better.

I was on my knees in tears and I just knew I was messing up his life! But I will always remember a veteran homeschool Mama coming up to me and telling me that he would turn out just fine....And that I needed to calm down and let him learn at his own pace. And that I should stop comparing and reading those "What your child needs to know by grade ____." books.

I must tell you that I have never been more proud of the young man he has turned out to be! A good strong, gentle, kind, polite, hard working, sweet spirit kind of man....And if I ever had the chance to do it all again I would do everything the same except one thing.....I would loosen up and not worry so much about academics. Although they are important, they are not nearly as important as his character and his soul.

Know that your children are right where they need to be, along side you and your man. They are watching you live, love, work hard and handle everyday life situations. You are their Teacher....In everything you do they learn from you!

And today looking at my 6'1" little boy I can tell you this...I have no problem sending him out in to the world, because his Daddy and I have been preparing him for it for 18 years now and I know with out a doubt he will stand strong in Christ! And YES IT WAS SO WORTH ALL THE HEARTACHE AND CRAZY DAYS!

I promise it will all be worth every ounce of energy you put in!

Praying for you.....

You see this boy and I, we have a special bond as I do with all of my children. Each relationship is unique.......

He knows I love sunsets...He knows that I have often grabbed my camera and ran out the back door just to capture what I almost missed. He's my sweet sensitive one.....Although I believe I'm the only one he let's see that side of him.....Oh the girl that gets him one day will be so blessed! I've been praying for her all along....And some day I hope she cherishes him every bit as much as I do!

And Mama friend if your in that same weak spot.....the one where you think you are not ever making a difference in their lives, I'm here to tell you how wrong you are.....All the time that you invest into your little one will someday be worth every struggle, every tear cried and every knee falling prayer......You don't want to miss this. You are the Hand that Rocks the Cradle...

THE HAND THAT ROCKS THE CRADLE IS
    THE HAND THAT RULES THE WORLD.

      BLESSINGS on the hand of women!
        Angels guard its strength and grace.
      In the palace, cottage, hovel,
          Oh, no matter where the place;
      Would that never storms assailed it,
          Rainbows ever gently curled,
      For the hand that rocks the cradle
          Is the hand that rules the world.

      Infancy's the tender fountain,
          Power may with beauty flow,
      Mothers first to guide the streamlets ,
          From them souls unresting grow—
      Grow on for the good or evil,
          Sunshine streamed or evil hurled,
      For the hand that rocks the cradle
          Is the hand that rules the world.

      Woman, how divine your mission,
          Here upon our natal sod;
      Keep—oh, keep the young heart open
          Always to the breath of God!
      All true trophies of the ages
          Are from mother-love impearled,
      For the hand that rocks the cradle
          Is the hand that rules the world.

      Blessings on the hand of women!
          Fathers, sons, and daughters cry,
      And the sacred song is mingled
          With the worship in the sky—
      Mingles where no tempest darkens,
          Rainbows evermore are hurled;
      For the hand that rocks the cradle
          Is the hand that rules the world.