Job, career or calling?

I've been pondering how I view being a stay-at-home mom and housewife for the past view days.  Then I read about it in the John Ortberg book I'm (still) reading - The me I want to be: becoming God's best version of you.

He says there are 3 orientations people take toward their work.  (Paraphrased from the book.)

• The first is a job.  You focus on a way to make money and pay the bills.  
• The second is a career.  Here your motivation is slightly different.  You focus on advancement and prestige.  Your feelings are based on how much success it is creating for you. 
• The third is to view your work as a calling.  Any work that has meaning, that can be a blessing to people and to the earth, can be a calling.  A garbage collector may see what he does as part of making the world a cleaner and safer place and therefore has a calling.

There are days when taking care of the girls can be challenging.  The weather isn't nice enough for them to go outside, making them crabby and bouncing off the walls.  I didn't sleep well the night before leaving me crabby and cranky.  And on top of those two things nothing seems to go the way I think they ought to.

After I read how people view their work it caused me to stop and really take it in.  Now instead of seeing motherhood and cleaning life as a job I see it as a calling.  I remind myself that God has called me, yes me, to be the mother of my 3 precious girls and wife of my amazing husband.   It's no longer my "job" to take care of them, do the laundry, clean the house and make the meals.  It's my calling.

How do you view your work?  Job, career or calling?

Until next time~

God's in the room

My mom is lending me her copy of the latest book they finished in her Life Group.  It's The Me I Want to Be, becoming God's best version of you By John Ortberg.  In it I recently read this sentence from page 134 "The goal of prayer is to live all of my life and speak all of my words in the joyful awareness of the presence of God."

There are a lot of days where I pray as if I'm just talking to myself.  I'll say "Lord, please keep me calm with the girls today."  But really I'm just talking to myself.  I forget that God is always here with us.  I need to remember that He's in the room with me, watching my every move and hearing every word.  I have to remember that He's present with us always.  He's the best friend that never goes away.  I can tell Him anything.

Until next time~

Thankful

I am feeling very thankful today. Yesterday was Mackenzie's last field trip of her Kindergarten year. (Her last day is Friday.) My mom and Marvin arrived very early in the morning to watch Kennedy and Lexi so I could help chaperon the trip to the zoo.  I am so thankful that they were able to help us out.  Not only was I able to enjoy the morning at the zoo watching my little girl with her friends.  My girls were able to spend some quality time with their grandparents.  Thank you Mom and Marvin!!

I am also very thankful that Mackenzie had such a wonderful teacher.  Ms. Mackman is very kind, caring, patient, smart, firm etc..  All the qualities that make for a great Kindergarten teacher.  I love watching her interact with the kids.  As parents we couldn't of asked for a better teacher.  Mackenzie adores Ms. Mackman and I know she is going to miss seeing her everyday.  Thank you Ms. Mackman!!

I would also like to say thank you to the principal at Olson Elementary.  Mrs. Emmerich is so amazing.  Every time I see her she always has a smile on her face.  She is such a positive person.  She is a constant presence in the school and all the students look up to her as well.  Thank you Mrs. Emmerich!!

Until next time~

I miss my sisters

Last Friday the 20th was the last Friday morning group until fall.  I already miss my sisters.  They are some of the best women I know.  I feel better about myself and life just by being around them.  I hope they know how much they mean to me.  I never thought that I could develop such meaningful friendships.  Ones where I can bear my insecurities and doubts and instead of them judging me they turn to me with encouragement and love.  I hope that I have been able to provide them the same love they have given me.

I can't wait until group starts again in the fall.  I'm really hoping that Lorie will have us all out to her place.  She tells us there are some nice fish in her pond.  :)

Until next time ~

The glow of a pickle

I am, no joke, currently reading 5 books.  One for Life Group, 2 on parenting, one on craving God and one on having a relationship with God.  The one that inspires this post today is called God is Closer Than You Think by John Ortberg.  In Chapter 8 he talks about how God can flow through you.  You are either a resistor or a conductor.  Here is the paragraph that really resonated with me:

“I did an electrical experiment in church one time.  I brought in a scientist with a Ph. D. so that if someone got electrocuted, it wouldn’t be me.  We turned off the lights, hooked up an ordinary pickle to some wires, then passed an electrical current through it.  The pickle glowed.  It gave light to a room with thousands of people.  It was not a huge amount of light – not enough to read by.  But there was light.

            If God can make a pickle glow, what can he do through you?”

I read that last sentence about a dozen times.  Think about it for a bit, if God can make a simple, crunchy, delicious pickle glow, what can he do through you?

I know what I would like God to do through me.  I would like Him to transform me into the woman he wants and needs me to be.  I would like Him to use me to bring peace and happiness to those in my world.  I would love for God to use me to show his love through my words and actions.

Until next time ~

One baby, 5 stitches and the love of God

Last night as our youngest daughter was taking a bath I sat on the floor next to her reading one of the 4 books I'm reading at the moment.  It was rather peaceful.  As I sat enjoying the few minutes of uninterrupted reading time Lexi happily played and splashed in the water.  I glanced at the clock and decided I would get her out in 5 minutes, 6:45 p.m.

About two minutes after my decision something horrible happened.  Lexi stood up to reach for a toy and before I could even open my mouth to tell her to sit back down she slipped and smacked her chin on the side of the tub.  She stood back up crying and just as I got to the tub to comfort her, blood started running out of her now gapping cut on her chin down her chest.  I quickly swooped her up and wrapped her in the first bath towel I could get my hands on.

I carried her, craddled in my arms, to the kitchen and yelled for Scott to come help me.  We examined her chin and decided she needed to go the Emergency Room to see if she needed stitches.  We bandaged her up and dressed her in some warm comfy pjs for her trip to the doctor.

As Lexi and I sat in the waiting room waiting for the nurse to call us back my stomach was in knots.  I was pretty sure she needed stitches but was hoping she didn't. I prayed for God to bring me some peace and calm my nerves.  How was I going to hold her still while they stitched her up?  What would they give her so it didn't hurt?  How much would she cry?

All I can say is the nurses at St. Mary's Hospital are awesome.  The first nurse quickly came in with some numbing stuff for Lexi's chin after deciding she would in fact need stitches.  Then she came back with the cutest little stuffed toys for Lexi to have and take home.  The gentleness and warmth they showed both Lexi and myself was very comforting.  I know that the nurses are trained to deal with frightened children and distraught mothers.  But this was exceptional care.  You could tell that they truly love what they do.  When it came time to stitch up Lexi's chin a second nurse joined us who was just as wonderful as the first.  They quickly swaddled Lexi up in a sheet to keep her still and her arms down.  One nurse held her shoulders down and the other held her head still.  Leaving me free to just comfort and talk to Lexi, all the while trying to not Lexi see me crying for her. (I just wanted to take her place as she was so scared.)  The doctor was as gentle as the nurses.  Taking great care to go slow and be precise.

When we were all done and Lexi was discharged we left knowing that God had worked through the wonderful people at St. Mary's.  He showed us His love and comfort with the caring staff He sent into our ER room last night.  It's important to remember that God shows us His love through the people He puts in our lives.  Whether it's our long time friends or wonderful nurses and doctor in an Emergency Room.

Until next time~

Humbling myself before God and the result.

The beginning of this week started with me writing in my prayer journal.  I was humbling myself before God.  I know that the only way anything is going to happen in my life is if I rely on God to do it.  I’ve thought it in my head before.  But there is something powerful about putting it on paper.  For some reason it made it seem more real, more authentic.  Here is the result…   

Some people will tell you that it is impossible to feel God’s love.  And until recently I would of agreed with them.  I’ve always known that God loves us, that He loves me.  But I have never experienced it.  I thought that it would come as a form of feeling coming over me at random or a thought in my head.  Oh, who am I kidding, I had no idea how I was going to experience it.

If you ask my husband he will tell you that I would rather be serving then to be served and he would be right.  This week I didn’t know that God’s love was going to come in the form of “Jesus with skin on” (AKA someone serving us).  Let me explain; God showed me just how much He cares about my family and I through the acts of complete strangers.  I never knew that God could fill a building with such love and joy before. Without going into detail just know this- it is possible to feel God’s love and comforting arms around you.


Until next time ~