Proverbs 31 Woman

Archive for the ‘Family’ Category

What an exciting time in my life! I’m an Oma again; the next grandchild will be born, Lord-willing, early next May ’08. What a blessing and joy to my heart! I tell my family, “I’m growing old gracefully.” It drives my 12 year old (almost 13) nuts when I say that, but I’m just trying to accept change and my changing roles. I look forward to visiting my grandson this Fall and holding him, talking to him, telling him about Jesus. He’s 6 months now and soaking things up like a sponge.

This Fall I am homeschooling my almost 13 year old and ministering to my family: 3 young ladies commuting to college and hubby who takes a bus to work in the computer field downtown. I also teach English as a Second Language as a volunteer for one class period of an hour and 20 minutes per week.

Today, my almost 13 yr. old and I tilled the garden boxes that never got planted this past Spring; by the time we went to the greenhouse for our plants they were sold out. We bought a few tomato plants and did enjoy a small harvest of those. What we found, though, in the unused garden boxes that they were infiltrated with weeds galore. We talked about our hearts how we need to guard them “for out of the hearts come the springs of life”. When we let our guard down and don’t care what we watch, read, talk about, think about, etc., we open up the gate to all kinds of junk to seep into our hearts……like the untilled garden beds.

Summer is coming to a gentle close and this time of year brings many changes. The children are a year older from last Fall, some have completed k-12 schooling and are onto other endeavors. Perhaps there’s been a wedding in the past year. Or, maybe a grandchild has been born.

Like January, there seems some folks also like to start new habits in the Fall. With the family a year older maybe an older child can help with more food preparation, or food shopping, gardening, lawn care, baby care, housework, family projects.

Do the parents in the home need a little more exercise? If there isn’t farm-work, how about taking a few walks together each week? Perhaps some folks are finding themselves in a whole new phase of life….empty-nesters looking for service or ministry opportunities or almost empty-nesters taking a little more time to connect with adult children who may need some emotional support, encouragement or advice.

As far as service opportunities, they are aplenty. Someone in the immediate family may need help, or a relative or someone from church. A phone call may help, running an errand, an impromptu visit or helping weekly at a newer ministry in the area, reaching out to immigrants from other countries.

Wherever you find yourself at this Fall, give thanks for the great Lord who is the Maker and Sustainer. If you have several younger children in the home, enjoy each day….the baby/toddler/young child days do pass by quickly. As the honeybee fills the honeycomb with honey, savor each moment the Lord gives you. Look at the day’s happenings as opportunities to serve the Lord, to see His hand. Do not grow weary in well-doing.

On the right side-bar of this page under Business you will see Hearts for Family.  That is the website of the Crawford Family.  In this short entry I will review the E-Book offered at their site.  The E-Book is called “How I Make Money Sellling Homemade Skin Products (And how you can too!)”.

The E-Book begins with a description of the Crawford Family, a single income large family, and a project they had of making more homemade gifts.  This soon became their home-business.  There are many helpful tips on starting up, about how much money you need to start up, helpful websites, where to find recipes and such.  Also, Mrs. Crawford also gives suggestions on pricing, keeping financial records, and marketing.

I would recommend the E-book for anyone wanting to start a small business, especially a skin-care business.

Well, the wonders of computer technology, ha! Yesterday I spent a good bit of time reviewing 3 books from Above Rubies and when I pressed the publish button, they seemed to have disappeared into cyberspace. So, I will try again but will give a more simple description this time.

Above Rubies is a ministry that reaches out to the moms/families of the world. They also offer an array of helpful resources. I would like to briefly mention a few and would encourage you to check out the website (Above Rubies).

1. Rejuvenate Your Life – Recipes for Energy is a no-cook book chock full of recipes that have been tried, information about the benefits of eating fresh foods, living on a tight budget and eating well, and more. This is written by Serene Allison.

2. Be Fruitful & Multiply – What the Bible Says About Having Children is a very forthright book about the blessing of children. On the back cover we read, “There is no escaping the fact that the Bible is dogmatically pro-child. In fact, it declares unapologetically that the birth of many children is a source of blessing, that a key reason for marriage is to bring forth many children for the glory of God, and that parents should actively seek such blessings.” Some chapter headings are as follows: Gifts from God, Trust and Obey, God’s Provision, The Vision, What Do Children Say? and many others.

3. The Power of Motherhood – What the Bible Says about Mothers is a wonderful volume that talks about the most influential career in the nation. Loaded with Scripture, this volume is a great springboard into a lifelong study of motherhood and what God has to say about it. If you are wondering if the role of mothering is worth it, this volume would be helpful. There are 24 chapters and more!

So, check out the Above Rubies website and consider reading one of the books recommended.

Stay tuned for a brief review of a family and the natural soap business they started a while back.

Celebrations, celebrations, celebrations…….that is what May and June typically consist of.  We celebrate the end of the school year.  We celebrate Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.  There may be some bridal or baby showers, graduation parties, weddings, birthdays, etc.  The book of Ecclesiastes reminds us, there is a time for everything under heaven.  God is sovereign and He reigns on high.  As we live in His fear, that is – wanting His stamp of approval on everything we do, we begin to grow in wisdom.  As we celebrate and rejoice with those around us in their milestones,  let us be ever mindful of His utter goodness, His mercy and kindness towards us.

My life is changing.  I am seeing loved ones and elderly neighbors leave this earth.  I am seeing new babies being born.  I am, by God’s grace alone, learning to accept all of these events, to embrace the moment, to enjoy even more living in His presence.

There’s a new baby in the family, or in a young family you know.

What can you do to assist?  Visit, bring a meal, cook some food for them and put leftovers in little containers to refrigerate or freeze for future meals.  Help the new dad check the fluids in the car(s).  Help do a small home/apartment repair that’s been needing to get done.  Pray with them.  Sing with them.  Hug them.  Encourage them. Rejoice with them. Talk with them.

Take a walk with them.  If they are going to be moving, help pack boxes.  Or, go get a bunch of boxes for them so when the time comes to pack, the boxes will be there.  Buy some packing tape to close the boxes.  Sweep the floors, wash the counters, do the dishes, hold the baby.  “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.”

Serving others takes many shapes……..if we keep our eyes open we will begin to see many ways we can serve the family with the new baby…….even if it means taking out the garbage for them, or changing a diaper, or calming the baby.

Well, Opa and I, along with 2 of our daughters (now Aunties), took a long weekend trip to the South to see our first grandchild.  A good friend emailed me and asked what that was like.  I would have to say that it’s truly indescribable.  Seeing the tiny fragile features of this little grandson up close, holding him in my arms, is just tremendous!  Words are inadequate.  God is so good, and His handiwork of creating a tiny new life in the womb, then being able to meet the little one that was formed in the secret place is truly only something a loving, Mighty, Powerful God could do.  As I leave the keyboard to shed a few quiet tears of utter joy, rejoice with our family in this birth.  Truly, God is good!

Our church denomination’s magazine, called New Horizons, recently had an uplifting article called “Family Devotions: Passing Down a Tradition.” The article gives many examples of families forming the habit of reading Scripture together,memorizing it, praying, singing hymns/songs to the Lord, and discussing the Lord’s work in their lives. What struck me was the evidence of God working in a covenantal way in families, from generation to generation to generation.

That could be a whole study in itself, and entire books have been written about covenant theology. What is important in this brief column today is the importance of family devotions. Deuteronomy 11:18-19 says, “You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul…You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house.”

Having family devotions does take discipline. It means keeping children at the table in order to open up the Word. It means saying no to the doorbell ringing, phone ringing, the computer clamoring for attention, a host of activities that could usurp some time to read and pray. Forming the habit takes effort and time. But we need to take advantage of these family eating times to feast also upon our Lord, too.

What a wonderful thing bearing children is!! Now, becoming a Grandma is a reality! Our grandson was born after 2 days of labor. The water broke early Monday morning and by 3:13am Wed. the little boy was born. Children are a gift, a blessing, a joy!

Although my grandson lives out of state, I’m determined that I can still be a caring Grandma – even if it’s long-distance. With email, internet, phones, I am able to bridge the communication gap. Plus, I love old-fashioned road trips to Virginia, even done in a long weekend.

God has placed another person in my family to nurture and to reach out to. I can tell this little one about Jesus who came to earth as a babe and died the painful and shameful death on the cross that my sins may be covered over. I can, by His grace and mercy, impact yet another generation for the Gospel of Christ.

I can and do say with the Psalmist, “The Lord has done great things for me and I am filled with joy!”