Sally Clarkson's Blog, page 136

The Art of Loving Well At Your Table: Communication Skills for Mentoring & a Giveaway!

PODCAST: DOWNLOADITUNES: SUBSCRIBE

Your table can be the most influential place in our home for nurturing faith, building convictions, inspiring dreams, and crafting a foundation for morality.

But interestingly, the people at your table will not be able to hear or understand your messages if you are not skillful at communicating love, acceptance and an openness to receive them with grace through your basic communication skills.

We can have all the knowledge, the best intentions and even the perfect plan for how to welcome our family to the table, into our hearts and into discussions, but we can ruin it all if we don't know how to create an atmosphere that expresses love and belonging.

In this episode, Sally and Kristen give you skills to communicate effectively with your children, friends and husband by sharing the principles of Interpersonal communication, that will help you to develop the Art of Loving Well At Your Table. If you have the desire to communicate with love but never learned about friendship in your own home as a child, or perhaps feel caught in a swirl of chaos in your own family relationships, this podcast will encourage you, equip you and help you to establish patterns that will change your mealtimes and the lives of you and your children.

WHAT WE TALK ABOUT:

-The Four Principles of Interpersonal Communication

-Why what we don't say is sometimes more important than the words we speak

-Learning how to listen to the cues and non verbal communication of your children

-How to set boundaries on our speech and a guard upon our lips

-What it means to have our conversations seasoned with Salt

-The danger of guilt statements

-How to grow in maturity and become a leader of conversation

-The way love initiates and reaches out to others

-How to pursue peace 

-The necessity of understanding motives vs. behavior in our children at all ages

-How to consistently move in the direction of your ideals but not be burdened by perfection

LINKS:

1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 "Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."

OUR 24 FAMILY WAYS- A FAMILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE BY CLAY CLARKSON

This book was written as a way to help families teach their children about 24 ways of walking through life together and with God. It is a great place to begin to understand how to live, serve, speak and love one another. We are giving away a copy of this for your leaving a comment of how you shared this post.

 























 

PLAY EPISODE #97

FUN GIVEAWAYS THIS MONTH! 

The Lifegiving Table: Nurturing Faith through Feasting, One Meal at a Time

By Sally Clarkson





















The Lifegiving Table Experience: A Guided Journey of Feasting through Scripture

By Sally Clarkson

Order your books now so that you can join Kristen and me for a 6 week study on discipleship principles found in each chapter of the book.

So many wonderful friends of our blog and podcast have entered into the spirit of celebration with me in launching my new book, The Lifegiving Table. This week, 

Kara Helton with Fourteen18 Designs, an artist from North Carolina, has created us some special gifts that were made just for your table and for our book launch. Today, if you share this podcast/blog post anywhere or if you share about my book, leave us a comment and you will be entered in to win either a set of magnets for your fridge, or a chalk board to use at your own table to write a verse to read and review each week. We will be having fun giveaways each week before October 3 when we will have our online party with lots of fun gifts. Hope you win! You can find her website and more charming gifts @www.fourteen18designs.com. Thanks so much, Kara, for your generosity!

Fun Magnets for your fridge!

 

A charming chalkboard to write verses each week to discuss at your table!

Enter to win by sharing this post. Tell us anywhere that you shared. Or just leave a comment and tell us what you thought of the podcast. 

 

Inspiration for our Children that Begins Right at our Table

Most all children have dreams in their hearts of what they might become when they grow up, or the prat they might play in the story of life. Yet, often we forget that we are to be the ones who fan the flames of their imagination, to give them confidence to learn to have faith in how God will use them in this world. We are dream-coaches to provide a foundation from which they might launch well into their adult worlds. And it all begins when they are young and innocent and can dream big without fears or doubts.

Yet, as mothers and fathers, it is so easy to get distracted by the details of our lives. We have so much to do! We must feed our children well and take care of their health. We must oversee their education and their training to make sure they will be able to take care of themselves and live in a civilized society. We train them in righteousness so they may understand how God wants them to live. We try to relate to them in mature ways and help them learn to have healthy relationships.

Yet often, I think, we get lost in these multitudinous tasks that rule our lives, and we lose sight of the underlying purpose behind all these tasks, which is to prepare our children to go into the world and bring light, love and beauty to a fallen world. Each of us is to play a part in God's kingdom work. Right in our homes we have the potential to raise future leaders who are moral, filled with faith and ready to take hold of their arenas for Christ.

What each child longs for is to be loved and cherished, to be understood, to be listened to, to feel like they belong. to feel that they have something of importance to live for and something unique to give to the world. All children and adults long to know that their lives have meaning.

One of the most important ways our children felt these values deeply and the way we passed on this kind of security as well as ability to take risks to live by faith, was at our family table because we were together there hundreds, thousands of times over their lifetimes. Our children have all become authors of published books, we have a composer, a movie maker, a future professor doing a phd and a scholar writing to influence theological thinking. Yet, all of these dreams were formed over many times of discussing, building convictions and dreams, talking about the needs of the world, praying together over issues.

I knew that everyone's adrenalin was down at night, Clay would be tired from a day at the office, and I would be worn down from giving so much of myself. 

Yet, when I learned to see our time together at dinner as a time when we could all breathe in grace, comfort, inspiration and a place where everyone could find welcome and love, I purposed to design such a space. I came to understand that I was the conductor of such dreams, soul treasures, and it gave me direction in how I planned to be intentional each night to pass on the encouragement their hearts needed in these areas. 

When children hear the words verbalized night after night, "Thank you, Lord, so much for the sweet children you have given us. We are so grateful that you always love us and want us to be with you. We are thankful for this meal and all the ways we see your faithfulness in our lives today. Be with us as we spend time together tonight. Help us to know how we might serve you and others through all the days of our lives."

When they feel you have prepared for them by buying or making something tasty. When the table is a place where everyone can share their feelings and be accepted and tell the details of their day, when no dreams are considered too big to verbalize, these rhythms will begin to touch deep places in their heart that they long to have filled.

To have a place to belong and be cherished every day is a gift that few people feel in their lifetimes.

Each of our children has been given a specific personality and a particular set of circumstances that will give shape to God's purpose for his or her life. Even our "different" children and all of our children who are a challenge for us to raise, have a place in their lives to serve the purposes of God. It is our privilege and responsibility as parents to help our children understand their particular fit in God's plan.

Sometimes, often,  this inspiration starts at the family table. This means pointing out special skills and talents. It also means giving them encouraging messages that helps children realize that God has a story of beauty and light to tell through them in their lifetime. I means they can be the tool thorough which others will feel His love, His encouragement, His truth. In other words, we are to help them see themselves and their potential and then to inspire them for God's purposes by hearing these personal messages repeated often in our times together:

"Joel, you are so musical. I loved hearing you play today. Maybe you will write great music that will encourage others to worship God and to want to know him!"

"Nathan, you are so friendly and outgoing, and such a great story teller. I know God will use your personality and skills to reach out to many and to make a bridge for them to understand the truth."

"Sarah, what an excellent writer you are. I loved your story today. You are also so artistic. I'm eager to see how God can use your work to encourage others to understand him better or to appreciate the beauty and design of his creation!"

"Joy, you are so compassionate. I love the sweet cards you make! I can see the Lord using you to comfort and encourage many lonely or hurting people. You have such a heart for people."

As mothers, we have the hearts and the trust of our children from the earliest moments of their lives, and they need us for so many reasons. They naturally look to us for physical sustenance, protection, affection.

Deep in their hearts, however, they also long for a special place to belong, a place to feel their worth, and they need us to help them find it. They also look to us as those who believe in their potential. Our family table is the natural place to share these profound messages over and over again. These words and the pleasure of eating together will be what builds the foundations of their confidence and sense of calling as they hear them repeated through years of the rhythms of sharing meals together in an atmosphere of acceptance.

These precious children were designed to fulfill a purpose for God by bringing his glory to bear through their lives. They were designed to be his hands, his voice, his heart and mind through the various kinds of work they undertake in his world. And you will be the one who draws this out of them and gives them an imagination of how they will move forward into their own story they will someday live with their lives.

This kind of legacy takes place over years, through ups and downs, great conversations and arguments. It is not about serving gourmet food or even a home cooked meal. It is about the life that takes place in relationships and in conversation and time spent personally together over meals that builds the legacy. Yet, the life of a family who talks about life as a habit while sharing time regularly together builds a heritage that will fuel lives with faith.

You will find many more stories and lots of inspiration in my new book, The LIfegiving Table. For more about this book, go HERE: http://sallyclarkson.com/lifegiving-table-launch-page/

Enjoy your family table this weekend and slowly build a place where the life of love, encouragement and acceptance becomes the air everyone breathes when you are together. Sometimes this takes a while to build, but little by little, the rhythm of practicing gathering to feel the sweet life of growing together will build a community that will not easily be broken.

The Lifegiving Table: Nurturing Faith through Feasting, One Meal at a Time

By Sally Clarkson

Cheaper by the Dozen - A Book Review

“Dad himself used to tell a story about one time when Mother went off to fill a lecture engagement and left him in charge at home. When Mother returned, she asked him if everything had run smoothly. ‘Didn't have any trouble except with that one over there,' he replied. 'But a spanking brought him into line.'  Mother could handle any crisis without losing her composure. ‘That's not one of ours, dear,' she said. 'He belongs next door.’” 

I grew up in an average sized family. I had a sister who was three years my junior and then, when I was fourteen, I gained an even younger stepsister. Although we had our share of sibling spats, our house of three girls was generally quiet, orderly, and…well, average. I didn’t know anyone with a particularly large family and had no experience with the nuances of large family dynamics.  As a result, when I picked up the book Cheaper By The Dozen by Frank Gilbreth, Jr and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey, I was particularly eager to take a peek at their account of large family life. What I did not expect, however, was to find a hilarious and beautiful tribute to a unique father and husband, and a nostalgic picture of typical turn-of-the-century life for an atypical American family.

Frank Gilbreth and his wife Lillie were world-famous efficiency experts in pre-WWI America--who also happened to have a dozen children.  They were an unusual family, not just because of their size, but because of the career and vibrant personality of their patriarch. In this delightful memoir, two of the twelve children recount in various tales the ways in which their father worked out his theories and practices regarding motion study and education in their bustling home. A fascinating and fun read, Cheaper By The Dozen paints a picture of what it was like to grow up with Frank Gilbreth as a father.

Click HERE to read more.

 

So Excited to Introduce Cultivating Life with Sally + Podcast!

Today I am so deeply grateful to be able to introduce a project that has been dear to my heart for years. I actually feel like I am having twins. Launching a book and a course all at once is a lot to bear and birth. Thanks for following me in this journey.

Many years ago, I dreamed of having a place where I could encourage women in a beautiful way in the many aspects of life that cultivate all the potential she was created to access. For just about 6 weeks, I had a sort of magazine that Clay and I published that had articles about education, leadership, ministry, home, parenting, and all that we thought made for a rich life. But, it grew so quickly, I had to give it up because we could not meet all the demands of the growth while raising our children.

I have always thought women should be able be strong and capable in many areas and I wanted them to know that their lives mattered.  Ultimately, I  wanted to be a voice that helped them live into their potential. Now, a team of women have come together who have similar vision to help develop a place where many of these areas will begin shaping up. I wanted to share with you some of what you can expect in the months ahead as we build the resources for this course. Let me explain some of the areas you can expect to find in the membership site.

Discipleship

Have you wished for a mentor?  Have you gone so far as to search within your church, your neighborhood, even your friends’ mothers to find one and still been unsuccessful?  Cultivating Life with Sally has been created with you in mind.  I have always loved mentoring women through all stages of life and faith and now I can walk alongside you, too.  Each month in my new membership site, there will be audio and/or video presentations to encourage you in specific ways.  I will provide reflection questions to challenge you to grow in your faith and to take steps forward into maturity.  For our very first month of September 2017, I am launching a brand new Bible study from the book of Hebrews called Cultivating Faith and Faithfulness Even When You Don’t Feel Like it.  Does that resonate with you?  I want to give you inspiration as well as practical tools to live this life of faith well. 

Motherhood

Are you lonely in your mothering?  We have all felt that way at different seasons of life and parenting.  We all want to do a good job at this treasured and precious role that God has gifted us with, but most of us have never had anyone teach us how.  I had to learn almost all that I know by myself. At my new membership site, you will have the opportunity to learn directly from me some of the the whys and hows to do motherhood well.  Coming later in 2017, I will be sharing an audio presentation entitled “Cultivating Hope in the Story You’ll Live.”  I will share HOPE to continue in this marathon of motherhood and remind us why ideals are so important even in the daily hardships. 

Home

Do you want your home to be more than just a place to sleep? A place that breathes life and faith to all who enter?  I will inspire you to cultivate hospitality, faith and discipleship in and through your home.  I will have special presentations that will add to my newest book, The Lifegiving Table. It will be in addition to the inspiration you read in my new book. Coming in October will be a video that goes along with The Lifegiving Table, to help bring you inspiration in your meal and family time around the table.  You can expect conversation starters and other practical home helps in this category over the coming year.  What about inspiration for your kitchen?  My friends and I have recipes to share with you!  In the Recipe section, there will be a new recipe each and every month that you can serve your family. 

Education

The education of our children is such an important part of mothering.  Whether you choose public, private, or home school, we all want to be involved in our children’s educational experience and to enrich the basics along the way.  September’s session on Strengthening Your Child’s Heart to Learn for God will help you enliven your children’s education. This inspiring talk has helped literally thousands of women all over the world to sharpen their focus and refine their vision of how to give their children a love for learning and the means of developing strong intellectual thought processes as a foundation for the rest of their lives. 

What if you could have experts in music and art in your home to teach your children in an inspirational way?  In Cultivating Life with Sally, I have invited experts to assist you in these areas!  The first series in Education will be about the great composers.  Why were they great?  What about their families?  What is noble and worth imitating about their character?  These audio presentations were recorded with you in mind.  Gather your family, snuggle on the couch, and learn a bit about a composer.  Then hit the library with the book suggestions and continue that learning in a fun and engaging way.  We will have other experts to help you teach your children over the months and years ahead. 

Leadership

Have you ever been afraid of being a leader?  Do leadership skills seem way too far outside your natural personality?  Would you like to help your children know what it looks like to become a leader in their generation, learning to stand strong for biblical convictions like Daniel did in Babylon? You are capable of growing in leadership whether or not that comes easily to you.  When God gave you children, He made you a leader!  I am so excited to share my leadership experience and expertise with us.  The leadership training and inspiration that I have been giving to women at the Intensives inside my home will now be available to you at Cultivating Life with Sally.  These sessions will give you confidence to lead inside and outside your home. 

Storyformed

Do you ever wonder what you should be reading to your children?  Are you at a loss as to what to hand them to read?  Then this section is for you.  As part of your membership, you will receive bonus content from the lovely ladies of Storyformed each and every month.  Whether a podcast or a carefully curated book list, you will love these extras that will help you discover the best children’s books, celebrate the soul-forming power of imagination and story, and help you and your children live a story worth telling.

There will be more that we hope to add to the membership site as we go. We hope to develop a community of women who can interact with one another over the next few months. We are still working on this. I also plan on hosting an evening several times a year where you can have a cup of tea or coffee and interact with me in your own home over a live internet mini-chat just for our members. We even hope to host a live tea just for members when I speak in different areas of the country and world. Look for information about a possible gathering of members at Wild and Free in Nashville. More to come with each month.

We have an introductory price of just $9.99 a month--the price of one lunch out with friends! Or you can pay $99 up front and save. For less than the cost of attending a conference, you can have mentoring in many areas for an entire year. Don't wait to enroll as the price will be going up in the months ahead. Looking so forward to connecting with you. 

Registration for Cultivating Life with Sally opens on September 5. When you register, you will immediately receive an email with the direct links to all our September content as well as access to the full membership site. You can register HERE. ( https://cultivatinglifewithsally.com/) on September 5. Looking forward to sharing this with you and we hope you will be very encouraged. 

Today, we have a surprise as a preview to the course. It is an Extra Podcast to give you an idea of some of what is ahead: Prelude to Composers Series with Sally and Terri What we talk about:

-Why it is important to expose children to classical music.

-How music impacts our brains and hearts.

-Ideas to listen to classical music in your home.

-Details about our upcoming Composers series within Cultivating Life with Sally.

We have also created a printable for you to remind your family of the importance of music in your homes.  

Printable PDF: The Gift of Music
Suggested Reading for Young Children














Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin (Aladdin Picture Books)

By Lloyd Moss

A Caldecott Honor Book which would be fun for the young child. This counting book introduces all the instruments of the orchestra with fun rhymes and playful illustrations. It might end up being a family favorite. 

Story of the Orchestra : Listen While You Learn About the Instruments, the Music and the Composers Who Wrote the Music!

By Robert Levine

 

An educational introduction to the world of classical music - from composers and music history, to the instruments of the orchestra. 

 Suggested Reading for Older Children & Adults














Young People's Guide to Classical Music (Amadeus)

By Helen Bauer





















Spiritual Lives of the Great Composers

By Patrick Kavanaugh

Good introduction to classical music, including composers and the times in which they lived, with a lot of interesting information.

The author has devoted one chapter to each of the composers, giving a thoughtful analysis of how his faith and worldview influenced the music he wrote. Each chapter includes recommended music to listen to which will enhance your study. 

 














The Gift of Music (Expanded and Revised, 3rd Edition): Great Composers and Their Influence

By Jane Stuart Smith, Betty Carlson






 

This book, with a foreword by Francis Schaeffer, was written by women who shared many talks about great music while they lived at L’Abri. Their great insight will teach you even more about the music you are exploring. 

 

 

The Secrets of Bringing Your Table to Life! A New Book, A new podcast!

 

The LORD of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain; A banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow, And refined, aged wine.

Isaiah 25:6

I am bubbling over with excitement to share with you the release of my newest book, The Lifegiving Table, coming out October 3. For the next month, I will be sharing with you about table discipleship, building an atmosphere where relationships can flourish and convictions are shaped and heart strings are tied together through the thousands of meals that will take place in your home. In a world where people experience deep lonliness and isolation, we all feel a longing to connect, to have a place where we belong, to find solace from the demands of every day life. 

It is my hope that many of you will feel deeply encouraged and inspired as you read the journey of our family as we shared table together over these thirty-six years. I believe that more than anything else, our table is where faith, moral strength and convictions were shaped in the lives of our children. It was the place we shared our lives and won people to our faith, not through arguing with them, but by sharing in the pleasure of being together around delicious, comforting food and a beautiful atmosphere.

Food, feasting, gathering around celebrations is one of the most Biblical and life-giving ways to share in the goodness and reality of God. If you can invite someone to your table, in an atmosphere of love and welcome, you can influence them for life. 

In one week, the last of my children will fly home from London to join our family in one more time of celebrating who we are, this crazy Clarkson clan, what we stand for, what messages we want to leave as legacy. And all of this will be celebrated through feasts shared together, tea times, strong coffee on our front porch while watching the sun set and just being together in our cool Colorado mountain air.

This reminiscent of other times. but it all happens around feasting, celebrating life together and entering into the close fellowship that has built over years of gathering together over meals. 

Today, I hope you will share this blog post with your friends. If you share it in any place and on social media and I will choose two winners to receive a signed hardback copy of my book.

Also, be sure to look at my Lifegiving Table launch page where you will find out about many wonderful gifts I will be giving away on October 3 at our fun facebook live launch party, including two people winning a trip to my home, a hotel stay and a day with me in my home and at my table, for mentoring and fun. The details are listed HERE.

It will be such a fun month sharing about my stories and recipes. I hope you will enjoy my podcast this week, too, where I share about the why your table is so very important for influencing and shaping the next generation right in your home through simple meal times. 

 















































  

























Play episode #96
 

Family Devotions, Anyone?

Doesn't this photo look idealic? Somehow magically everyone seems to be engaged peacefully in the page that Dad has open. But if you are like my family, Bible time is rarely a time of perfect quiet, or cooperation or engagement.

All of us come together with differing personalities, moods, questions and have to be brought into the life of God through interest, friendship, love, beauty and creativity.  So family devotions take time to develop in such a way that all who are participating can find interest in this space together.

 Family devotions are the rhythms that speak to our children's hearts and minds to help them remember to make a habit of going to God every day, to enjoy being His children to walk every day of life with Him. So we learn to understand that Bible times not only teach the text of the Bible but also the importance of spending time with God on a regular basis. This instructional tool, however, like all the others, needs to be introduced gradually and in a way that is appropriate to the ages of the children involved.

I remember a time many years ago when Clay and I decided to start having daily family devotions. We first attempted to do this at mealtimes and quickly learned that teaching toddlers can be very frustrating if we expect them to behave like adults. Just when we would begin, one child would spill his milk or another would interrupt or another would have a reason to cry. I remember thinking, Why do I even try? They aren't getting anything out of this!

Over a period of time, though, I began to find other ways of establishing devotional times that really got through to our children. They loved it when I sang them songs in the rocking chair before we put them to bed at night and shared with them a dramatic story beginning with their names: "Sarah, imagine what you would do if a giant came to attack our country and you were the only one who could rescue us! Well, that happened to a little boy named David many years ago!" If I cuddled up my children on our couch and had grapes or cheese and crackers to eat, they would pay rapt attention while I read Bible stories and showed them picture books. Often I would give them markers and paper and let them draw while I read. Sometimes we would act out a story. 

Little by little we accustomed our children to sitting still and listening and even participating in family devotions. This became a familiar time to them because we did it day after day; it was simply a part of their lives, a habit that we all observed together. And habits take time to develop into routines.

One important thing that Clay and I learned as we struggled to instruct our children in spiritual matters was that our attitude makes a huge difference. If we want our children to enjoy participating in devotions and to learn God's Word joyfully, then they must sense that these are important to us personally. They must feel that we love our Lord and are excited to share him with them. Even as we give instruction, we must also model what we are teaching. When it comes to reaching hearts for Christ, we cannot just tell our children what to do. We have to lead the way by the way we love them, speak to them, cherish creation and beauty all around us, how we respect others, how we obey the truths of God's word in front of them. Really passing on a deep love for God is more about how we live all the moments of our lives celebrating His reality than what kind of book we use or when we do it. It is a whole life devotion on our part that makes the focused times of our Bible study seem real.

Does your family have a devotional time together? What ways have you found to make it special, or work better for your family?

Storyformed Podcast Episode #13 - Favorite Chapter Books For 9 - 12 Year Olds

In this episode, Holly Packiam and her daughter Sophia Packiam, discuss their favorite chapter books for 9-12 year olds. This is a perfect episode for parents and children to listen to together! The next time you're all in the car together, on maybe even during an evening at home, be inspired together.

Topics include:

The characteristics of a good bookBooks that include characters worth emulating or ones that lead a child to explore the tensions and complexities lying in the human heart.Favorite Chapter Book Titles for 9-12 year olds

CLICK HERE to listen to the podcast and to view the show notes! 

Try Not to Be So Hard On Yourself

..If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit." -Galatians 5:25

Summer is rushing to a close and I find myself with three adult children gathering here on a short reprieve and Sarah and Thomas will soon be here to celebrate Family Day. I would like to say that now that my family is older, we are always mature and all of our issues have gone away. I am still an imperfect mama, personality differences still exist and cause occasional clashes, my different child still has different issues, and our strengths are still our strengths and our weakness still attend to our moments each day. I still want harmony all the time as one of my highest values is for everyone to love each other. And yet, still my home has a tension between my ideals and my reality. 

I realized long ago that if I didn't cultivate happiness through each day, I would never be happy. If I waited until all of my family were more mature, I might be waiting until Jesus comes back. The reality of living in a fallen world means that I must adjust my expectations to a fallen world or I will always be disappointed.

As godly mothers, we strive to make the best possible decisions, set the perfect boundaries, and have the correct rules that we believe will somehow cultivate "spiritual" children. However, we can't buy sheer force or the right rules or the right devotional curriculum make our children spiritual.

That being said, there is a mysterious process by which the Holy Spirit leads our children to see their need for Christ as we seek to cultivate their hearts. But it is entirely led by grace, informed by love, and carried out by the help of the Holy Spirit.

We are putting so much pressure on ourselves as mothers that God would never expect. Each time we find ourselves too busy to cook (so we opt for fast food), too exhausted to clean, so we leave dishes till tomorrow, or we have such a  hectic schedule that we didn't do a devotional with our children one week, we feel absolutely defeated and believe that we somehow failed our children.

Often, I receive comments or letters from mamas who say, "How did you seek joy? How did you manage to live by faith?" And then they will tell me the very difficult circumstances or exhaustion or loss of job or marriage problem.....

The grace of God is given in spite of our circumstances, his peace comes when our difficulties would suggest otherwise.

 When we cast our burdens on God because we cannot handle them or when we choose to exercise joy because we know,"in His presence is fullness of joy," or when with our inadequacies in all areas are filled in by the invisible grace of His own doing, we always have hope and reason to be at peace.

While it is incredibly wonderful to set our standards high and live within these great ideals, we must hold ourselves to a standard of grace, not perfection. We won't be able to have grace for our children if we do not have grace ourselves. Galatians 5:1 tells us that, "It was for freedom that Christ set us free, therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery." Are there any ways in your life as a mom that you are trying to live up to the false expectations of others?

In my home, we did our best, but our best was certainly not perfection. We just had committed hearts toward our kids and the desire to shape their souls to respond passionately to their Creator. He came with grace and truth to bring life and wholeness into our hearts. We strive to follow His example in front of our children. We are not guided by culture, or what other moms feel is the "right way", but we are led by God. We walk in the power of the Holy Spirit and rest in His grace. This is the secret of seeing God's grace each day--living within our limitations with a heart joy knowing we are accepted by God and expecting Him to fill in the cracks and make our faith work enough to raise healthy children.

And now, I am committing the days when all of my adult kids will be home into God's hands. I am asking Him to give them a foundational love and graciousness towards one another in spite of the differing opinions, the offenses that will take place, the imperfections they will witness in their parents. :)

God is my hope when I am out of control. He is my prayer-answerer when I am beyond my own strength. I live practicing joy because He is my audience and I want to rest in Him because He wants to be my adequacy.

And that is ultimately what I want my children to see--not my perfection, but my running to Him, living In His grace, loving Him in the midst of the muddles of life, so that they will know how to live when they are seeking to raise a family amidst the fallenness of their own lives and their own world. . 

Remembering To Care for You

Play episode #95
Episode #95 Remember to Care for YouPODCAST: DOWNLOADSUBSCRIBE: ITUNES

The summer Podcast series on the 10 Gifts of Heart has come to a close and you might be wondering...what next? With all the issues springing up in our world that cultivate fear, separation from others, how do we maintain a strong spiritual and emotional life? How do we cultivate in ourselves what we want our children to learn and draw from? 

We've spent the last couple of months discovering how to pour the truth and principles of God's word into our children's hearts, but we wanted to take a moment to let you know how very important it is to Remember to Care for You! In this episode, Sally and Kristen discuss why they believe that now, more than ever, it is of vital importance for mothers to understand their value and their worth in our culture and to care for their own souls as they continue to pour out to those they love.

As the school year begins, they remind us that it is not the curriculum you buy, or the activities you are involved in that will matter most- but that you are the conductor of life in your own home.

Who you are is what you will pass on.

The first of a two part series, Sally and Kristen will encourage you to understand your identity in light of God's view of you, which is a stability that will serve your children through their whole lives. 

WHAT WE TALK ABOUT:

-How surprising circumstances in our own lives caused us to re-imagine our roles and personal convictions this summer.

-How being faced with difficult tasks can become a blessing

-The glory and beauty of womanhood and the gifts given to women as cultivators and civilizers

-New research about what gives women a sense of contentment and fulfillment

-How God has called us to be mothers because He intends for us to be a part of His kingdom work. Building souls, enriching minds, giving a sense of confident morality, inspiring a heart to believe in the story God has for them to tell is the way that healthy souls are shaped.

-Why a sense of cohesive belonging is significant to your child.

-Why you can’t become someone of eternal significance if you don’t know who you are and where you are going. 

LINKS:

Here is the work for this week as we seek to understand God's Heart and plan for our own lives. As Sally and Kristen said in the podcast, if you believe God is a loving God who came to rescue us, to guide us, to strengthen us, to fight our battles, to care for us, to show His love to us, then you will live by faith and freedom every day, teaching your children to expect to see His graciousness and provision.

But, if you fear of Him is the primary feeling accompanying your heart; If you feel He is disappointed with you or sees you with all of your flaws; if you feel He doesn’t really care that much about your life, then you will not be reflecting a proper view of God to your children and from you they will live to perform and measure themselves by works, they will learn to fear God’s rejection. Consider the following questions this week. Take some time to pull out your journal and pen and ask God to accompany you in this process. 

Answer these questions:

1.     Write a short definition of who you are as a person and what attributes you would like to define your life.

2.     What areas would you like to grow in this year? What specific goals can you make to see this happen?

 























 

Play episode #95

Prioritizing God's Word

I have come to believe that the success or failure of every woman who hopes to build her children into a godly legacy depends to a great degree on whether or not she is spending time in the presence of the Lord and filling her mind with His Word. In this fallen world of Satan's domain, where we are constantly bombarded with worldly ideals and cultural ideas, we cannot hope to be guided into all truth unless we are daily instructed by the Giver of truth. To my mind, it is pretty certain that whether or not a woman invests time with the Lord will ultimately determine what she has to give to her children, husband, and others.

Through the Word of God, we are able to become skillful builders of our children's souls. May we come often to be enriched by the priceless treasures and jewels in God's Word so that our hearts will overflow with life to fill the treasure chests of our children. May our walk be step-by-step with Him, with His wisdom, and with His assurance. Because of our faithfulness to His Word, may our children be rich with His love, wisdom, and guidance for the rest of their lives.

God of Truth, Logic, Wisdom, and direction,

Make me sensitive and responsive to Your Word and to Your voice. Help me to establish my life on the foundation of Your Word so that when the storms of life come my way, I may stand fast and secure. Help me to develop deep convictions in my children's souls that are based on the principles of the Bible, so that my children will have a wealth of truth to help them in making decisions.

Give me fresh insight and new understanding of how to apply Your Word to the everyday issues of my life. Help me to establish a lifelong habit of spending time with You. Thank You for making Yourself always available to me.

I so appreciate having Your presence in my life. Amen.

"How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night" (Psalm 1:1-2, emphasis added).

According to these verses, what distinguishes those who are influenced by culture and the standards of the world and those who are led by God? Are there any changes you need to make in your life to ensure that you have time to study God's Word?

Your Mom Walk with God: Staying Faithful on the Path of Motherhood

By Sally Clarkson