Lisa Jacobson's Blog, page 25
March 7, 2016
Who Works Harder in Your Marriage?
In every marriage there are certain tasks and jobs that are done by either the husband or wife.
In our marriage, for example, my husband works outside of the home as a pastor, counselor, and author. I work inside the home as a homemaker, homeschool teacher, and writer. Both of us do things around the house as necessary, and of course we work together to raise the kids.
We each have our jobs that God has prepared specifically for each of us and we also have jobs that we do together. This should make for a very harmonious and productive marriage. Well, that is until comparison creeps in.
I am going to guess that if you are married, you have played the comparison game in your marriage at least a few times. I know I have.
“Oh, it must be nice to be able to take a nap on Sunday afternoons while I have to watch the kids and clean up the kitchen.”
“You think your job is harder? You got to spend the day with adults.”
“How tired are you? Well, I’m 10 times more tired because I had to get up in the middle of the night.”
Some of us may not say these things out loud, but we think them.
Continue reading Who Works Harder in Your Marriage? at Club31Women.com
March 6, 2016
5 Creative Ways A Family Can Keep the Focus on Christ This Easter
Have you ever tried to solve a mystery?
Some of the most fascinating detective stories are full of twists and turns that leave you surprised and hungry for more. Did you know that God’s story in the Bible is actually a series of clues? It’s true! And the clues reveal one of the most mind-boggling mysteries of all time.
You see, with God nothing is random. Every detail is ordered with purpose. So His clues aren’t haphazard or left behind accidentally. They are purposeful and perfectly orchestrated.
How can we be sure, though, when the details unfolding in our lives, in the world around us, in our children don’t always feel good?
The Messiah is why we can know, why we can believe, why we can hope.
Does your family know about this mysterious Messiah?
Always working, always weaving, always acting to fulfill the promises He’s made to us, even unto death on a cross for our salvation.
It’s time to learn more about who this great Messiah is.
It’s time to teach your children about His wonderful, unfathomable love and sacrifice.
Ready for Easter: 5 Creative Ways for Your Family to Celebrate the Risen Savior
Have you ever tried to solve a mystery?
Some of the most fascinating detective stories are full of twists and turns that leave you surprised and hungry for more. Did you know that God’s story in the Bible is actually a series of clues? It’s true! And the clues reveal one of the most mind-boggling mysteries of all time.
You see, with God nothing is random. Every detail is ordered with purpose. So His clues aren’t haphazard or left behind accidentally. They are purposeful and perfectly orchestrated.
How can we be sure, though, when the details unfolding in our lives, in the world around us, in our children don’t always feel good?
The Messiah is why we can know, why we can believe, why we can hope.
Does your family know about this mysterious Messiah?
Always working, always weaving, always acting to fulfill the promises He’s made to us, even unto death on a cross for our salvation.
It’s time to learn more about who this great Messiah is.
It’s time to teach your children about His wonderful, unfathomable love and sacrifice.
March 3, 2016
Minty Brownie Espresso Cupcakes
Not long after our son was born, which was about three years ago, my husband picked up a new hobby.
Actually, he picked up several hobbies soon after Christian was born (as if we weren’t busy already with a newborn!), one of which was tracking down the family’s ancestral heritage.
Whenever he got a few moments, he would hop online and start plugging in more information, checking a bunch of random websites and historical archives for research on our family’s histories (his and mine).
Let me tell you, he dug up a lot of stuff!
Luckily for him, his side of the family is quite well documented and goes back like a million years (he’s very, very…very…distantly related to Shakespeare, lucky bum). He was also pretty happy that he found an old castle in Ireland that some distant cousin lived in which, of course, gives him that Irish blood he so badly wanted.
I can’t say there is as much information on my side as his, which is a bummer. We get to a certain point and then we’re stuck and can’t go anywhere else.
Continue reading Minty Brownie Espresso Cupcakes at Club31Women.com
March 2, 2016
Can Prayer Be A Discipline And A Joy? {Something I Found That Really Helps}
First you have to laugh with me, over the anguish I experience because of my personality.
On one hand, I am an extremely driven, organized person who values accomplishing tasks. On the other hand, I have an artistic temperament, and I hate being boxed in by routine. I like to be creative and to have freedom for expression.
So what do people like me do with prayer?
I’ve experimented with rigid extremism and prayer journals that MUST be accomplished for fear God won’t love me if I fail. (Ridiculous untruth.)
And I’ve experimented with free-range prayer, like free-range chickens roaming about in blissful, unencumbered joy. Happier chickens –happier eggs? Happier praying woman –happier prayers?
The problem with rigid prayer journals is that God is a person, so prayer is not a project. We communicate in relationship, not for accomplishment.
But the problem with no structure is that we often forget to pray about stuff, and our people deserve better than that. If you’re like me, you have a ton of directions you’re trying to pray, and you don’t want to drop the ball.
I’ve finally found some middle ground that I want to share with you.
February 29, 2016
How to Love Each Other More Than You Ever Thought Possible
Have you ever wanted to quit trying in your marriage?
Recently we had another one of those conversations that we’ve had hundreds of times in our marriage and I felt that familiar feeling…can’t believe we are here again…this is just too hard.
I’ve wanted to quit many times. Not quit as in divorce, but quit trying to understand, to be patient, to try harder, to keep growing and changing. I wanted us to resolve this once and for all even if it meant we called a truce and agreed that this was how it had to be.
The conversation that day was about sex.
In the baby and kid season of our marriage my overwhelming need was for sleep. The demands of pregnancy, nursing, sick kids, potty training, allergies, and injuries kept me on the go from the moment my eyes fluttered open till the last little one was finally asleep. And then I still had the kitchen to clean or the laundry to fold or some task that always called to my growing sense of adult responsibility. Much depended on me and it was exhausting.
Continue reading How to Love Each Other More Than You Ever Thought Possible at Club31Women.com
February 27, 2016
How to Build Up Your Marriage, Child, and Home . . . One Word at a Time {with 3 Free Printables}
You wouldn’t think a word could make such a difference.
But it does.
On some days, all the difference in the world.
The difference between tears or a smile.
Between slumped shoulders or a hug.
Between healing or hurt.
Between building up or tearing down.
Funny, how only a few words can turn around an entire day. Even turn around an entire heart.
I know. Because I’ve seen it happen right before my eyes.
I’ve heard my husband say to our youngest son, “I like the way God made you!” and watch that boy stand that much taller.
Then not too long ago, I told that same Man, “You are such a good daddy to our boys!” Something I figured he knew. But he almost seemed surprised to hear it. Like it was a new revelation. I guess it’s one of those things I’ve thought for a long time, but never got around to saying. Until last week.
And you could tell it meant the world for him to hear it.
How to Build Up Your Marriage, Child, and Home . . . One Word at a Time {3 Free Printables}
You wouldn’t think a word could make such a difference.
But it does.
On some days, all the difference in the world.
The difference between tears or a smile.
Between slumped shoulders or a hug.
Between healing or hurt.
Between building up or tearing down.
Funny, how only a few words can turn around an entire day. Even turn around an entire heart.
I know. Because I’ve seen it happen right before my eyes.
I’ve heard my husband say to our youngest son, “I like the way God made you!” and watch that boy stand that much taller.
Then not too long ago, I told that same Man, “You are such a good daddy to our boys!” Something I figured he knew. But he almost seemed surprised to hear it. Like it was a new revelation. I guess it’s one of those things I’ve thought for a long time, but never got around to saying. Until last week.
And you could tell it meant the world for him to hear it.
February 25, 2016
Oh, how much I want to be like her
Her long white hair was usually tied up in a bun.
A twinkle in her deep blue eyes revealed a well of joy and perhaps mischievousness.
Even though she was already 96, she still met weekly with twelve young mothers she had been mentoring for nearly a dozen years. Widowed at 62 she had poured her life into caring for others and teaching the Bible.
She’s one of my heroes.
She was my mother-in-law.
When I think of her I think of her in two postures.
One is talking on the phone. Faithfully she called her four children, their spouses and her 15 grandchildren.
“What’s happening in your life? How can I pray for you?” or “Are you in love with that boy yet?” She had a way of getting right to the point.
The other posture that is cemented in my brain is that of her on her knees. This was her nightly habit. Tiptoeing past her room one night I marveled to see her kneeling on the bare floor beside her walker, her frail hands folded as she prayed for those she loved.
Continue reading Oh, how much I want to be like her at Club31Women.com
February 24, 2016
3 Practical Ways to Help Your Child Connect with God’s Word
I cannot remember a time in my life when I did not have knowledge of God. But there were definitely seasons of not knowing him.
You know… there is a difference.
I was fortunate to grow up in a Christian home. I am grateful for grandparents who laid a Christ-centered foundation and a mother who led by example. However, no matter how many Bible verses they taught me, prayers they prayed over me or worship songs we sang together, there is one thing they just couldn’t give me…
A relationship with Jesus.
I now know that knowledge of God and knowing God can lead to two very different life experiences. I often wonder if my children are learning how to move from knowledge about God to a relationship with Him.
I didn’t.
I knew Biblical principles and many stories from the Bible. However,
I really just didn’t get how they applied to my life as a 10-year-old little girl.
I knew that the Bible was God’s Word. I did not know how it applied to my life.
Continue reading 3 Practical Ways to Help Your Child Connect with God’s Word at Club31Women.com
