Retreat

I just got back from a Women's Retreat our church had this past weekend. I am so fortunate that Tad really pushed me to go; not that I didn't want to go, but the thought of spending the money and finding someone to watch the kids is a little stressful. But he really thought I should go, and his sister came from out of town to watch the kids while Tad was at work. The Lord has been doing such amazing things in my life. Which is so comforting because it reminds me that He hasn't given up on me, despite all my faults. Things have been tough lately, I'm not gonna lie, but God has a way of reminding us of Himself, reminding us that it's not all about us, and directing us back to Him.
The retreat was such a time of refreshment, relaxation, a time to get away from the normal distractions of 3 little ones that always need my attention, and a house and a slew of other things that need my attention, and to just breath. And think. And pray. And to be with other like-minded Christian women to laugh with and talk about spiritual things with. It's not like retreat can happen all the time, but when the Lord blesses us with it, we can appreciate it all the more.
The theme of the retreat was "You are His Treasure" and the messages were powerful. The speaker was this amazing missionary who spends most of the year living in Sudan, where there is no electricity or running water. Her messages were vibrant with her passion for the Lord spilling over. I wanted to catch her passion! She talked about so many amazing things. She said that we are so resistant to change that we settle for less, and we are getting jipped. She said the more broken we are, the more eligible we are for service, and the more love can leak out. I was pretty broken on retreat, and I think that I needed to hear that so that I didn't go away thinking I was a failure, or ineligible. That is what Satan wants us to think. But when we feel like we are nothing, when we have nothing left to give, when we feel like we couldn't possibly do anything for Jesus, that's when we are in the perfect place for Him to use us because it needs to be Him working His amazing power in us. When we are prideful, and feel like "we got this" and that we have "arrived" in our spiritual walks, then we have all kinds of walls built up around us, and it is hard for God to use that. I have to keep remembering this. How often do we think that we have to just try harder, do better, memorize some more Scripture, get up a little earlier, attend one more church service, and then God will be more pleased with me? That's the way the world works, so that's how our mind assumes that God works. But God is bigger. He is bigger than our stuff, and our best efforts. And He is here to radically change our lives. Now!! Not just in heaven, not just for eternity, but He is offering us new life, that we would be a new creation, and I am begging you all to take hold of what He has for you! Even if you are already a believer, He has more for you! More of His power, more of His Spirit, more opportunities, and each day is a new day of grace, opportunities, forgiveness, growth, evangelism, and surrender. We must surrender our all to Him, so He can work with all of us. Don't hold anything back. And you will not be disappointed.
She also talked about our sword, the Word of God, and knowing it well. And how the stronger the Spirit gets, the weaker our flesh gets. And one big thing that stuck in my mind is that, "our life's hurts are temporal-they will pass away." Such perspective. What are we going through right now that is menial compared to the greatness of our God and the things that matter for eternity? And how many of those things are we letting into our hearts to sabotage the work of the Lord? Are we quenching the Spirit in our lives by roots of bitterness? She also said, "The more I realize that I am the Lord's treasure, the more He will become my treasure." It reminds me of 1 John 4:19 which says, "We love because he first loved us."
The speaker also said, "we don't have to be able, we just have to be willing." Are we really able to do anything without the Lord? "His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness." 2 Peter 1:3
"Each time we die to ourselves, a little bit of us dies and a little more of Jesus takes over." Humility. Such a tough thing for us prideful human beings who always want to be right, have the last word, not let anyone speak out against us. We can be ruthless. But what does God want us to do? What did Jesus model for us? To be servants. To be humble. To not return evil for evil, but to overcome evil with good. To love our enemies. To do good to those who hurt us. Easier said than done, but when we let go of ourselves, and let God work in and through us, we will start to see more of Him, and less of us.
So, really, I could go on and on, but those were just some of the highlights from retreat. And if you are a momma who just can't get away on a retreat, then see if you can go on a mini-retreat! One blogger goes on a prayer/planning retreat every week! On Sundays, she gets away for a couple of hours while her husband keeps the kids, and she gets her week planned out and spends time alone with God, getting refreshed and renewed. I think we need to be recharged and rest every once in awhile so we can be the best mommies we can be to our kids. We need that daily time with God, our daily bread, but we also need some extended time every now and then, however we can get it, to rest and reflect, and to really hear what God would have for us at that time. I hope all of you are encouraged and excited about what God has for your life. Don't get stagnant! Ask for God to fill you to overflowing with love, passion, surrender, willingness, and humility! Don't waste your life on anything less than Him!!

 

Berry Coconut Steel Cut Oats

image credit

I am a huge fan of steel cut oats. They are so much better (and healthier!) than regular oats. And so far, we have been giving Madelynn oats and such and they don't seem to bother her. A lot of gluten-free people stay away from oats altogether; they are not considered a gluten-free food, but hopefully they aren't doing any harm to Maddy's system since they don't seem to be making her sick! This recipe comes from a great website, that I've used before, called Super Healthy Kids, and they have so many great recipes for kids to have for snacks, meals, to help make in the kitchen, to sneak in fruits and veggies into their diets, and things that are good for the whole family to eat! So check them out!

Berry Coconut Steel Cut Oats
superhealthykids.com

2 cups water
1 cup coconut milk
dash of salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup steel cut oats
1 cup frozen mixed berries


1. To make this, bring the first 4 ingredients to a boil in your saucepan.
2. Add the steel cut oats. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes, uncovered.
3. Add the mixed berries, bring to a slight boil, and simmer for an additional 10 minutes, covered.

Super easy, right? It was yummy! If you need some added sweetness, you could add some raw sugar or other sweetener like honey, and we also added some coconut flakes to the top of ours! It makes about 4 servings, and you could make a double batch and have breakfast ready to warm up each morning! The possibilities really are endless with oatmeal! Just add whatever ingredients you like into your oatmeal! Peanut butter is amazing, let me just say! Here's to brisk, fall mornings and warm bowls of oatmeal!!

It's Been Awhile!!

My friends! It has been so long since I have put out a blog post! Our computer died, and so we spent the summer without a computer, but since we have gotten one, we have been so busy with school (and Judah is doing preschool at home this year!), Classical Conversations, swim lessons, church, and life with 3 kids! I'm sure some of you wondered if I fell off the planet or something! I have missed putting up my favorite recipes, blogging about homemaking, tips I have learned, life, and stuff that makes my life interesting! I have so many things to share as I get back to blogging. In April, I got into a weight loss group on Facebook and have lost about 15 pounds (give or take what day it is!) I would love to share about that! Also, I am in my second year of tutoring (teaching) Maddy's class at Classical Conversations. So I have the children that are mostly in 2nd grade. This year is going great!

Another cool thing is that God has been doing some awesome things in my heart, and I have finished a book that I want to share about that was really awesome! There were 2 things that I realized at the beginning of this school year that have really helped me in my everyday life. The first thing is that I realized I needed to get up earlier than my kids in the morning. I used to do this before I got pregnant with Ruth, inspired by the blog "Inspired to Action" where there is a whole "movement" to Maximize Your Mornings (link on the right hand side of the blog). When you are not in the habit of getting up early, it may seem like an impossible feat. But once you start, and you realize the amazing quiet before the kids get up, and that quiet time you can spend with God, you will get addicted to it! The other thing I realized, with my quiet times seeming boring and not drawing me closer to God, was that I really needed to spend quiet time with God. Not just time before my kids got up, but time where I wasn't doing anything else. Where I could just listen to worship music. Or just sit in the quiet. Or where I could "be still, and know that He is God." (Psalm 46:1) And then, randomnly, I picked a book off our bookshelf (I don't know where we got it, or how long we have had it), and decided to use it during my devotion time. It is an oldie, by A.W. Tozer, called "The Pursuit of God." And boy did God drop that in my lap at the right time. It was about the very thing I had been missing in my walk with God. That sweet fellowship and intimacy that comes from pursuing God and seeking that quiet time of drawing near to God that we all too often miss out on. And when we just read the Bible (check), pray (check), and do all our church duties (check, check), it can start to feel dull. And we can start to get resentful. And feel like we are wasting our time. But when we can turn off the distractions, and actually let God do the talking, when we can just listen, and be thankful, and draw near to Him, He will change our hearst. And it starts to feel different. And new. And amazing. And you will be fed. And as mommies of little children who need us for a million different things all day long, we need to be fed or we will burn out. And we can just feel overwhelmed with a million different to-do lists that seem like they have no purpose. Things that get undone 10 minutes after we do them. And the other reason I felt like it was so important to get up before the kids, was so I could also plan my day right after my time with God. Know what I want to accomplish for the day, check the account and be on top of the finances daily (something I was slacking on), know what we are having for dinner and how much prep time I will need, look at the calendar, and just be prepared for the day.

Before I got up early, I would wake up with kids who needed something, I would be groggy as my husband left for work with minimal breakfast, I had no idea what was for dinner, how much was in the account, or what I was doing that day. And that's when my life was feeling overwhelming and I felt like it was out of control. But with my new plan in place, I was getting fed by God first thing in the morning, having relaxing, quiet time with God to start off my day, and knew what my chores were for the day, and what the plan for the day would be. These 2 things have really helped me a lot during this crazy, hectic season of homeschooling 2 kids, preparing for CC each week, and a load of other responsibilities.

I hope everyone is well. I hope to hear from some of my regular readers from before, and hope to encourage some new moms as well who are in the thick of it, busy but satisfied staying home with little ones. Maybe we have homeschooling in common, our relationship with God, Classical Conversations, being a stay-at-home mom, or a love for cooking, but whatever it may be, I hope this blog will encourage you and give you some new ideas for how to make your life easier, more fun, or at least make your house smell yummy with some new recipes to try! Happy Fall!!

A Broken Arm, a New Job, and Field Trips

The kids outside Tanganyika Wildlife Park, Uncle Joel hijacked the picture!!

 It's been a busy, crazy, and exciting couple of weeks. I know I have been totally MIA from my blog lately. We are trying to get school done before our trip to Ohio in June, we finished CC for the year, we had 2 field trips last week alone, and have exciting news to share. Tad got a new job with the post office! He starts May 18 and we are so excited! It will be a pay increase, better benefits, and unfortunately, more hours. But God is providing for us, and we are so thankful!

In his splint before he got his hard cast

About to get his hard cast on!

The glow-in-the-dark cast is fun!!

About a week and a half ago our little Judah broke his arm, poor thing! We went to watch his Aunt Naomi and Aunt Charity (who are 10 and 12) do their gymnastics show. When we came home Judah was trying to do gymnastics moves and said "watch, Mom, this is what the gymnastics people do" and proceeded to do a cartwheel type of thing. All he did was run and do a little hop-hop thing that was close to the ground and he must have landed wrong and was instantly crying like he was in a lot of pain. After about 30-40 minutes of nonstop crying, we finally took him to the ER where they confirmed that he fractured his humerus bone right above the elbow. And because it is around 6 growth plates, they usually have to rush right in and do surgery, but he was so lucky (no, it was God!!) that his bones were in alignment when he went in for x-rays 5 days later. So no surgery! They just put a hard cast on it and will x-ray it weekly until he gets his cast off. He picked a glow-in-the-dark cast!!

He is figuring out how to do things even with his arm in a cast! Good thing he is right-handed!!

 We also went on 2 field trips, one to see a bunch of different insects. It was very hands on, and they could hold some, touch some, and just look at others. Not my favorite thing but the kids loved it! Of course Judah was walking around with a little glass jar filled with ticks (in a solution) and dropped it and broke it. Of course!!
 

 
 



Later that same week we went with our homeschool group to a Wildlife Park in Kansas called Tanganyika Wildlife Park that was very hands-on! The kids got to feed birds, giraffes, lemurs, goats, and alpacas!! They loved it! It was such a fun day!

 

Well I can't believe we finished up our first year of CC and it was such a blessing! It was very challenging at times, I'm not gonna lie, but it was also so rewarding! And the things that Maddy learned and experienced this year were totally worth the stress and time commitment!
We are trying to wrap up our school year since we have been out of town so much! The weather is getting so nice, so it's hard to have all this schoolwork! I have realized that Oklahoma's spring is like the summers I am used to up north. Green grass, beautiful temperatures, sunshine everyday. The summers here are the pits! Too hot to do anything but stay inside a lot of the time! So we are trying to get out and enjoy this weather! We went on a compass walk last night as part of our school. We attempted to look at clouds too, but there wasn't really a cloud in the sky!!

Happy Spring Everyone!! 

Classical Conversations Cycle 1 Weeks 20-21

Well, I have gotten quite behind in my CC blog posts. We have been out of town so much in the last 2 months, so I have gotten all my prep and teaching done, but I haven't been on here to update the blog for each week! I like to add each week so my parents can see what we did for that week, other tutors can get fresh ideas from what I prepared (let's face it, we can all use some new ideas!!), so I can document this year so I can look back on it for next year, and for when Cycle 1 comes around again! So, even though most campuses have already covered these weeks, I will get these two weeks in, and finish up blogging for this CC year! Again, I'm sorry I haven't been up to date!

Week 20

Timeline: learned new hand motions and sang song
History Sentence: Hand motions (CC connected) and sang the song
Geography: Used dry erase maps to color in/circle the areas, passports with passport stamps
Latin: Used the mix and match game with the grid (love this!!)
Math: Circumference of a circle: Used the song to the tune of the Wheels on the Bus off of CC connected
Science: Printed off a Parts of the Atmosphere Mix and Match where they practiced labelling the parts and saw if they got them right (CC connected)
English: Played Duck, Duck Goose with the 3 Helping Verbs

Grammar Review:
The games I had planned were:
Burst: Tutor asks a question and the kids squat on the ground. If they know the answer they burst up and the first one gets to try to answer the question.
Tutor May I: We didn't play this one, but you can have the kids line up and ask to go a certain distance or whatever, and then they have to answer a question.

We also had some great Mexican coloring pages for them to do at the end!!

Week 21

Timeline: learned new hand motions and sang song
History Sentence: Hand motions (CC connected) and sang the song
Geography: Used dry erase maps to color in/circle the areas, passports with passport stamps
Latin: Used the mix and match grid game! Boys vs. Girls for fastest time!
Math: Associative Laws: printed out some puzzles for the kids to put together
Science: Major Circles of Latitude: Cut and glue worksheet (Kept them busy!)
English: Made up a sing-songy way to remember the definition of a linking verb, like I have for all the English definitions: A linking verb (pinkies locked together) makes an assertion (both hands firm down by sides) (pause) by joining (one fist to the side) two (other fist to the other side) words (two fists join together.) Trust me, these little things make a huge difference! They always remember the definitions!!

Grammar Review:
 Event Obstacle Course (I will be presenting this in Week 24. I was going to play this game, but we ran out of time since the Mineral Identification went so long, so I decided to play this awesome game as the last end-of-year review game.

They can also mix up the timeline cards and 2 teams (or more) can put them in order the fastest.

Every other week they get to pick out of the treasure box if they were obedient and they also have sticker books that I made with their names on it. They always get to pick a sticker during snack time and sometimes I hide something on the board and the first one to find it gets an extra sticker.

At the end, they are assigned clean-up chores and they all run around getting the room cleaned up!!

The Ultra-Marathon Adventure

Ruthie living it up and being fed breakfast in the big hotel chair!!

 Well, we had quite the adventurous trip to Arizona for Tad's first ultra marathon, which was a 50 mile trail race in the mountains! He was going to go by himself since he was running it with some good friends from college, but then we decided to make it into a family vacation! And it was a crazy one at that! In the last 2 months, we have been on 4 trips! They all happened kind of randomly, but each one was fun in its own way! So, the kids have really learned to be more flexible and sleep in different places. Which is a far cry from Maddy when she was little who could hardly sleep anywhere but her own crib!!

The kids having fun in their hotel bed!

 This trip in particular was a little hard for the kids, because we were in the car everyday, almost all day for about 5 days. I thought the day of the race we would watch Tad start, and then go back to the hotel or hang out in town. But our plans quickly changed when I realized we didn't have the official race map with checkpoints written out. We had friends who had the map and we could follow them to the next spots. We were 45 minutes away from the hotel and I didn't want to get lost and not be able to find Tad on the mountain when we returned! So the kids spent that day mostly in the car as we raced around trying to see Tad at different checkpoints!!

 We took 2 days to drive to Arizona, staying the first night in the infamous Roswell, New Mexico. Alien town!! It was pretty comical. Tad said he didn't want to tell Maddy anything about it because he wanted everyone to be able to sleep that night! But they got a kick out of the aliens that were around!!

 Fast forward to the race. We left the hotel about 4:30 am. The kids were not happy to be up that early, especially Ruth. I felt horrible! We ended up running a little late, and Tad had to book it to the starting line to get his things there by 5:30. The race started at 6 and the parking was about a quarter mile from the starting line, so I hoisted Ruth on my back into the hiking backpack and started down the trail in the dark. The beginning to an absolutely crazy day I will never forget! The crazy ultra-racers started with their headlamps since it was still dark!

 Mind you, this race was in the mountains! Not just an average marathon, or ultra marathon! Hiking! Elevation! Craziness!

 Our dear friends from college were there, Ian and Ruthie. Ian ran the race with Tad and Ruthie and Ian's brother hung out with us for a little bit. It was so good to see them!

 It was freezing in the morning, but it quickly warmed up to crazy warm temperatures for the day!!

 Tad at mile 7. Feelin' good!!

 Coming down the path to the first checkpoint where we could see them!

 Still feeling really good! So good to see them together!

 The narrow mountain drive to the next checkpoint where we could see them! Beautiful views! The next checkpoint is mile 25. We waited awhile there to see them! 

 And it started to get hot! We went from our winter apparel to rolling up our pants and taking off our coats, and I got sunburned really bad!!

 But the kids had fun playing in the dirt!! At least that! Had a little lunch on the side of the road!

 Finally, we went for a walk hoping to see Tad on the trail! Judah, at this point, and it was not a long walk, said "I just can't do this!" Poor guy!

 Ian had to drop out at mile 22 because of his knee and Ruthie and Eric had to go rescue him by car. Tad had to keep going by himself but he was still feeling good at this point! We saw him at the checkpoint, he ate and drank, and changed his shoes, and he was off! And this is where the story starts to get interesting.

We saw him 4 miles later at mile 29. Since Ian and Ruthie had other friends running the race, they drove ahead and watched them. So me and the 3 kids were on our own. I asked some workers at mile 29 how to get to the next checkpoint, since we had no map or directions. He gave me some sketchy directions and said it was mile 33. I said, "I don't think we are suppose to go to mile 33." He said, "I'm not gonna tell you you can't go." So, I thought to myself, "Tad would be really happy if he saw us at an extra checkpoint. We could encourage him. And I already have the directions."

So we started off. But once we made a turn and ended up on a super narrow mountain road, I started getting nervous. The roads ended up being pretty rough, and there was no way I could turn around. We finally got to mile 33, and waited for awhile to see Tad.

 One of the workers gave the kids a book to read. It was pretty warm. I was getting worried about Tad, as he was alone and it was almost time for the checkpoint to close. We hiked up the hill a little and waited for him. Finally, we saw him. He was close to the cutoff point for the checkpoint, so he needed to get through fast. He ate some and was on his way. We got directions to the next checkpoint, mile 40. 7 miles that way. That sounded easy enough. Oh my word. The 7 miles weren't marked well. And the mountain terrain was not meant for my Pacifica. It was treacherous. Judah and Ruth fell asleep. And I'm surprised they didn't get whiplash. I made a couple of wrong turns. I didn't think the car was gonna make it through these rough roads that had deep spots, high ridges, super narrow paths with a cliff on the other side. I was lost. I had no service on my phone. I was responsible for 3 small children by myself. And I was scared to death. I was shaking while driving. I couldn't just stop the car and get out. There was no one around. There were a few people at the checkpoint a few miles away. A motorbike passed me and did a double take. That was before I realized how dangerous the path was. The second motorbike I saw I tried to flag down, and he didn't stop. I was about in tears and I was telling Maddy she had to pray.
We finally made it back to the familiar checkpoint we had been at and just kept backtracking until we were off the mountain.
By this point I just wanted to go somewhere familiar and to find the people I knew. I tried to remember what the camp was called that we had started at that morning. I remembered, "Kentucky Camp" and started seeing signs for it. Phew! Time for the next adventure. There were flashing lights at the entrance. When I stopped, the policeman told me that there had been an accident (of course, right at the entrance to the camp) and that the camp was closed. No one could go in or out. I told him my husband was doing a race and that it was on that mountain. He said I could go hang out in the town up ahead. So we hung out at a gas station where I called my parents and tried to figure out what to do. I passed by the accident several times and they finally opened up the camp. There had been some motorcyle road rage and a truck had creamed someone on a motorcycle. We passed by the mangled motorcycle, the body wrapped up and a pool of blood, and the cop car. I just wanted to know Tad was okay.
We finally hiked down to the camp, we hadn't had dinner. The car was a disaster from things flying all over the place while we were driving through the treacherous mountain. This mommy was spent.
We got down to the camp, and by God's grace, they were serving dinner, frying up hamburgers individually on the back grill, and there were picnic tables to sit at. For free. And our friends were there. What a relief. They said that all the racers had passed mile 46 and it was getting dark. I got the kids their dinner as we all waited for the racers to finish. At one point, as we were waiting, Tad walked up behind us, not where the racers were finishing.
His knee had given out. He couldn't make it past mile 40. He tore his ACL and knew that he couldn't safely finish. He waited over an hour to get a ride back. He was okay. He was exhausted. He was worried about us. But we were all safe and sound and back together. And ready for our beds!! We drove back to the hotel and told stories of the day. And we were thankful that we were all safe!!!

 So, that was kind of the long version. But I am documenting that adventure so I can go back and read about it in the future!! I hope to never have such an "adventure" again!! I am so proud that Tad completed 40 miles! He was bummed that he couldn't finish, but it was 14 more miles than he had ever done! And he is a winner in my heart!!!!!

Book Review: One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp

I just finished reading one of the most amazing books. I had heard people talking about One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp for awhile, and this summer my aunt asked me if I had read it. She then sent it to me, which was so nice! I picked it up and started it, but it was a slow start to get into the habit of reading again, and finding the time to really get into a book. I'm so glad I decided to bring my book with me on our recent trip. Since there were so many hours in the car, and I happened to not get too carsick to read, I had plenty of time to finish my book! I have to say, I haven't read too many books since having kids! In fact, I have never been a huge reader, so the ones I have read are all big accomplishments! Ha!
So, the book. Oh my, where to start. It's about a dare that the author received to start recording 1,000 gifts, or blessings, or things she was thankful for. She did it because it was a dare. I love how she starts the book in being completely raw and honest about her doubts in her relationship with God. Doubting His goodness. Doubting His plan for her life. Her pain. His choices. Other people's pain. I totally relate to people when they expose themselves and their true feelings and hurts and even their ugly thoughts and feelings. It makes people seem more real. Like they are like me. And it was the very thing that has been between me and God lately, I think. That doubting His goodness in the face of pain. Or other people's pain. The pain around the world. The fear of pain. The fear of loss.
But as she starts to record these blessings, these little ounces of gratitude for things so small and usually unnoticed, her heart starts to change, and the depth of her love and understand of God go to unmeasured depths as it opens up so many theological levels in her relationship with God. She goes beyond 1,000 gifts because the fruit of it is so rewarding and she sees God in a way she hasn't before.

"The act of sacrificing thank offerings to God - even for the bread and cup of cost, for cancer and crucifixion - this prepares the way for God to show us His fullest salvation from bitter, angry, resentful lives and from all sin that estranges us from Him."

I love that it's written by a stay-at-home mother of six who wants to find the deep things of God among the mundane, everyday life of laundry, cooking, cleaning, raising kids, and even the rough patches of breaking up fights, fearing for their farm, and hard things that come their way. She is real. She is honest. She is human and her realness along with her deep passion and thirst for her relationship with God is inspiring.

"I make soup and I bake bread and I know my supreme need is joy in God and I know I can't experience deep joy in God until I deep trust in God. I shine sinks and polish through to the realization that trusting God is my most urgent need. If I deep trusted God in all the facets of my life, wouldn't that deep heal my anxiety, my self-condemnation, my soul holes?"

I can find God among the little things. I can still trust Him in the "ugly-beautiful" things in life. Those things that Ann describes that are painful and hard but God uses them to shape us and continue to mold us and draw us closer to Himself. She even labels some of her "blessings" under "ugly-beautiful." That we would be thankful for all things.

"I walk in our back door to candlelight still flickering, hang the keys on the hook, and look around at the steep mountain of laundry there in the mudroom, the shoes scattered, a coat dropped. The mudroom sink is grime ringed. Fingerprints smear across the mirror. I laugh the happiest wonder. In the afternoon's drizzle, I give happy thanks for the daily mess with a smile a mile wide, because this is again my chance to wholeheartedly serve God, to do full-bodied eucharisteo with the hands and the heart and the lips. I can count each task a gift, pure eucharisteo. Grace! This work-the thousand endless jobs-they each give the opportunity for one to become the gift, a thousand times over!Because with every one of the thousand, endless jobs, I become the gift to God and to others because this work is the public God serving, the daily liturgy of thanks, the completing of the Communion service with my service."

(I know that was such a long quote, but it is one of the ones I want to remember. I live my days in the mundane. I get so frustrated by the endless messes and my list that never ends. And when it might seem to be nearing the end, it is the same list on repeat the next day. It is tiring and overwhelming. I so needed this encouragement to be the blessing to others and to let it create joy in me in God. And I try to remember when I wasn't well enough to take care of my home when I was pregnant and extremely sick. If I didn't have my health, I would be wishing for the ability to do those one thousand endless tasks!!!)
 
I was also challenged in her naming the smallest of things to be thankful for. When I think of gratitude, I think of my husband's job, our house, our 3 beautiful, healthy children, our health, food to eat, a warm home. But she goes beyond those things and finds beauty in the smallest of things in her life, and it causes her to see the depth of God's love for us and how He blesses us constantly with all things to enjoy. We just have to stop and slow down enough to notice.
And then, as she learns to be grateful constantly, without ceasing, she also realizes that we are to bless others and be the blessing that God has been to us. To serve without limits. To pour out, to empty, to be filled again beyond measure. It really is such a beautiful book. And completely the opposite of how the world tells us to live. 

"Spend the whole of your one wild and beautiful life investing in many lives, and God simply will not be outdone. God extravagantly pays back everything we give away and exactly in the currency that is not of this world but the one we yearn for: Joy in Him."

So, if you haven't read this book, it's time you picked it up! I will shortly be passing it onto another lady in our church, and encouraging other people to read it. It will change your perspective, and it has already begun to soften my heart and change me. I have started my 1,000 gift list, and I hope to be changed and softened and brought to deep joy in the God who loves me so much more than I can imagine. He is the reason we live. To Him be the glory.

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