Lisa Jacobson's Blog, page 6
January 22, 2017
How to See Beauty Amidst the Messes of Life
Gathered around the dinner table, the 6-year-old plops her elbow right into the small pool of chicken broth that had just escaped her bowl. She doesn’t even notice. How do they not notice? As a mom, I seem to have radar for this kind of thing.
She was bathed and pajama-clad before dinner tonight. And she’s already dirty. It’s like the straw that wants to break this mama’s back because it’s the end of the day. And I’m tired. And why can’t anything, anyone, stay clean for 5 whole minutes around here? Five minutes. It’s not too much to ask. But I hold my tongue even when I can’t hold my heart.
I don’t always keep a leash on my expectations but at least occasionally, occasionally, I have the restraint to keep my mouth shut.
Power in the Telling
And the 6-year-old pipes up. “I have an idea! How about we all say something we love about Daddy.”
We have a history of dinnertime games in our home. “Packing for Paris, or Disneyland or wherever (we pack for lots of things)” or “I’m thankful for…”, but this one is new.
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January 18, 2017
7 Encouraging Books for When Life is Hard
Sometimes life it just plain hard. There are sorrows, loss, brokenness, hurts.
It’s the way of this world we live in, where everything simply does not go as planned.
Yet, even here, God’s faithfulness is astounding. He is good, even through sorrow. He is gracious, even through brokenness. He is gentle, even through hurts.
You don’t have to just take just my word for it though. These truths are being stirred up in the Body of Christ. I know, because I’ve watched book after book by fellow Believers hit the shelves. Books that tell stories of incredible brokenness, incredible loss, incredible sorrow—and God’s ever-present grace and compassion and comfort.
If you are struggling through a difficult season, this list is for you.
The Path of Loneliness by Elisabeth Elliot
When I was struggling through infertility, a friend sent me this book. I read it slowly, underlining passages that spoke right through my sorrows and into my heart. If you are feeling the loneliness that comes with hard seasons of life, The Path of Loneliness is the perfect book for you.
Continue reading 7 Encouraging Books for When Life is Hard at Club31Women.com
January 16, 2017
What If His Way of Loving You Isn’t At All the Way You Pictured It?
Have you ever had a week where it’s been just one thing after another?
You know the kind of week I’m talking about.
Ours started with an unusually rugged winter storm. It’s not that we don’t get any snow in the Pacific Northwest, but this winter was like nothing we’d seen in years.
Snow, more snow, a little ice, and then some more snow.
And, wouldn’t you know it, this also happened to be the week that my husband was out-of-town. Writing. A book on marriage.
(Can you already guess where this is going…?)
Now I’m not exactly known as the Pioneer Woman around here, but I was determined to be tough in this near-arctic situation. “I can do this,” I told him. And he believed me.
Until the pump on the well froze up.
Which means no water.
But don’t worry, that didn’t get me down! I’ve read Little House on the Prairie, so I knew just what to do.
Melt snow over the stove and ta-da!
Continue reading What If His Way of Loving You Isn’t At All the Way You Pictured It? at Club31Women.com
January 15, 2017
An Orderly Home Begins with This Great Proverb
When I read the Little House on the Prairie books out loud to my daughter years ago, I noticed how often Ma and Pa spoke proverbs to their kids and how absent that tool is in our culture.
Proverbs are bite-sized truths that we can use to prod ourselves to be self-disciplined. (There’s a whole book of them in the Bible!)
One of my favorite proverbs is something I have used purposefully at home and in my classroom as a teacher, and maybe it would be super helpful for you to tuck in your pocket for this new year:
A place for everything and everything in its place.
I first felt the need for this proverb early in my homemaking life. We were in our first purchased home, and I had a cute little closet in my kitchen where I set up my “desk”. I had a problem, though, with a mound of paperwork that kept piling up in there -bills and things that needed to be returned somewhere and important forms to fill out and mail places.
That pile on my desk was a good six inches deep at all times, and I often thought, “I bet I’m going to go to jail someday because there’s something important in this pile I should have tended to a long time ago.”
The problem was that I lacked a place for all those things.
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January 12, 2017
For the Love of Discipline: 5 Books That Will Get You There!
As a child, I hated the word “discipline”. But as an adult halfway through my thirties, I have come to appreciate the word and the action it represents. ��If it was not for discipline, my house would be a complete mess, I would eat every carton of ice cream I could get my hands on, my checkbook would never get balanced, and I would be a wimpy Christian.
Spiritual Discipline
While there are mornings when I can���t wait for the alarm to ring, waking me for the time when I cozy up in my smooth leather chair to read the Bible and pray, that���s not usually how I feel. ��It���s not that I don���t want to spend time with God; it���s just that I listen to the distractions of life more than my desire for God. In those moments, I have to train myself to do what I know is best: to discipline my wandering heart in choosing God over my to-do list.
Learning how to exercise my spiritual muscles isn’t a solitary sport. Through the years, I’ve met some friends who��have encouraged me and taught me how to develop my spiritual discipline.
Continue reading For the Love of Discipline: 5 Books That Will Get You There! at Club31Women.com
January 11, 2017
God Hears the Prayers of Your Children
The prayers of your children are precious to God and He uses them to reveal Himself to them.
A few��years ago my son asked if we could go to Disney World. His cousin had gone and some of the children we played with had been several times. We had been to the local Busch Gardens a few times and my boys had a blast getting to meet their favorite Sesame Street Characters, it was only natural for them to want to meet Mickey and his friends. There was just one problem: I couldn’t afford it.
The Faith of a Child
A few days later when my little one climbed in my lap and said “Mama, I go see Mickey Mouse?” I started to cry. ��I wanted to take my boys to Disney World. I wanted to have those childhood memories of family vacations in magical places. Sometimes, wanting and getting aren’t the same thing. One thing that I struggle with as a single mom is not being able to do the “fun things” the way that other people do.
I realize that this kind of thinking is irrational. I know in my mind that there are many families (two parent and single) who cannot afford trips to Disney.
Continue reading God Hears the Prayers of Your Children at Club31Women.com
January 9, 2017
How to Draw Close to Your Husband During Hard Times
Every marriage will face hard seasons. Some are happy even when a certain amount of stress surrounds them. Some are tragic and very difficult. The time to be intentional about drawing close to your husband is during these times.
It’s easy to feel close when everything is going well and no major life events are taking place. But when large amounts of stress creep in (whether we want it to or not), it’s important to recognize our husband isn’t the enemy.
My husband and I are uprooting our family and moving to a new city. God is calling us to the community where our church is located and we are excited! But it’s also a little scary. Okay, a lot scary. Currently, we have a signed purchase agreement on our home with a contingency attached to it — that we sell once we find a home in a certain amount of days.
So far, we have exhausted the list of houses that would work for our family. We have not yet found our home. Whether we want it or not, there is stress involved in this big decision and all the details that surround it.
Continue reading How to Draw Close to Your Husband During Hard Times at Club31Women.com
January 8, 2017
A Resolution to Feed Your Soul
Welcome to 2017! I know that nothing much changes from one day to the next, but the idea of a new beginning brings with it renewed hope and motivation. This is why many of us make resolutions. We hope to better ourselves and our lives.
This year I���ve decided to have only one goal. I want to read more. I want to read more of the Bible, more commentaries to help me understand what I read in the Bible, and some books that help me know God more clearly.
I failed in this area last year. ��But praise Jesus that our salvation and His love towards us does not depend on our performance.
No matter what your resolutions are, make sure that the care of your soul is on that list.
We care for our souls by knowing God through His word. We love Jesus by loving His word. We are empowered to love others more joyfully by better understanding His word. We are saved through the truth found in His word.
2017 should be a year, for all of us, where God���s word is treasured in our hearts transforming our lives.
Continue reading A Resolution to Feed Your Soul at Club31Women.com
January 5, 2017
Ready for Something New in the New Year? (& A Fresh Start Giveaway}
I can’t remember the last time I stayed up until midnight on New Year’s Eve.
But I managed it somehow this year.
One of our daughters miraculously – and rather persuasively – talked us into “hitting the town” with her and our other two young adult daughters. Which is something of a joke since our town tends to shut down by 8 pm on most nights.
But we happily went out for hors d’oeuvres and caught a late movie. Walked out on the icy parking lot long after midnight and shouted “Happy New Year!” before he kissed me.
Ridiculously late for a couple like us, but memorable.
And I could hardly wait until we could crawl into our own warm bed.
Waking up the next morning and ready for a New Year!
New Things in the New Year
The truth is that we’ve had a lot of “new” around here lately.
New challenges. New joys.
New hurdles. New blessings.
A surprise trip to London with my husband.
Started this video series.
Continue reading Ready for Something New in the New Year? (& A Fresh Start Giveaway} at Club31Women.com
January 4, 2017
One Pan Salmon, Asparagus, and Sweet Potato Dinner
So, it’s a new year and a new you, right? A marker in life where you can start over or improve. Maybe you made a goal of making a new habit or trying to change an old one. Or perhaps you’ve created a word or mantra that you can repeat over and over again in your head as you move through the year… (though that might get annoying!)
I find the idea of a resolution challenging (the same way I feel about reading lists), because if the end of the year comes and I haven’t made my goal, then does that mean I failed? Don’t get me wrong…I like to conquer my goals! But then I always set another goal…and then maybe another one after that, and then another…
That can be the road to getting things done, but it can also begin to feel like I’m never satisfied or content!
In the bible, John the Baptist says, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30)
Can I really stay content and satisfied (but not complacent!) if I’m constantly putting myself first? This is something I really, personally struggle with.
Continue reading One Pan Salmon, Asparagus, and Sweet Potato Dinner at Club31Women.com
