This weekend we are reminded of the vital role a mother has in the life of the generations to come. She molds and mends hearts with gentle whispers of love that echo in her children’s minds. She challenges her children to be the best they can be and she teaches them that failure is never final. She sees in them what they can’t see in themselves and speaks life into their dreams. She encourages their giftedness and not only challenges them to follow their dreams, but gives them the courage to try. She cries when they cry and laughs when …
Breath of Life
Set guard, O LORD, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips. Psalm 141:3 If you know that hurtful words spoken to your husband, child(ren), friends, family…or anyone, for that matter, negatively affect them… Guess what… YOUR OWN HURTFUL, NEGATIVE WORDS TO/ABOUT YOURSELF AFFECT YOU TOO! I hear too many of my sisters talk down about themselves. Speaking too lightly about God’s anointing on their lives. Thinking that what they do on a daily basis is too small for anyone to notice. God has placed so much value on your life. He wants you to value what …
Mommy Guilt
I am not the perfect mom. I love my husband and my kids, but I mess-up–often. Some days I make lots of mistakes–other days I do better. However I will never be perfect–not this side of heaven. Sometimes I pick-up every mistake I make, but my burden is heavy. It whispers to my heart. You will never do this right. You are messing up your children. You are a bad mother. You will never be enough. My heart convulses as I lose myself in the lies my burden feeds me. I lose my joy in fear. My strength evaporates in …
How Parents Support (and Sabotage) Student Success (Part I)
As parents, we want to help our children succeed in school. In my twenty-two years as a classroom teacher (twenty-one as a parent), I’ve seen parent strategies that pay big dividends. I’ve also seen well-intentioned efforts that actually cost the kids. Today, I’m going to start a series in which we explore one support strategy and one form of sabotage. Support 1: Help your child learn their multiplication tables. Through the 20s. As soon as possible. I’m not suggesting “super baby” tactics. But do take advantage of edutainment software programs that will drill your child over and over again. Make …
10 Ways to Win the Whining War
It has a way of grating on your nerves. Whining can drive a momma up the proverbial wall. How do you stop a two year old from whining when it’s time for bed, when you take her favorite toy away or when she doesn’t get her way? What do you do when your 5 year old whines about what you feed him for lunch, when you make him play outside or when you make him take a nap? Somehow, whining is a universal language for children between 1 and 18… and if it’s not dealt with before they become adults, …
Making Mentoring Personal
Mentoring only makes a difference if it gets personal. The way most of us live life today insulates us from getting very personal. In fact, there are more ways than ever to create the profile that we want the world around us to see. A status update and profile picture present the “me” we choose to show our family and girlfriends. If all else fails, we can add highlights, polish, Spanx, or Photoshop to carefully craft our avatar (That’s the little picture that represents “you” online). But a mentor gets past all that. A mentor gets personal. The arrival of …
Is it Autism?
“She does not like to be held or rocked at all. She won’t look at what I am pointing at, and never points at things herself. The softest touch sends her wailing, but being bitten by ants at the playground did not cause a stir. She still is not talking, but all my friends have had late talkers. She seems to look everywhere but in my eyes. So many things don’t seem right. Could this be autism?” Autism. Just the sound of the word makes the strongest of moms weak in the knees. So what is autism? According to the …
The Pursuit of Proverbs 31
Featured Guest: Amy Bayliss Often we go through our day to day lives making decisions that could have been better if we had just included God in them. He knows all and is best suited to give us direction. All we have to do is ask and listen. We must stop solely relying on our human intellect to guide us. I like a list. I like plans. I like specific instructions. I keep them all in my cus- tom household notebook. I like to not have to have faith to know that what I am doing is right. There, I …
Breaking Out Of The Mundane
Shivering through goosebumps as I laid in my window seat–God had gotten my attention. The flashback to when Wade & Bea had prayed over me was suddenly loud and audible, instead of staying in the past. It sept forth into the present and mixed with the word, Eucharisteo— jarring another memory from reading the book 1000 gifts. “Heather, I can barely put it into words, but God wants you to know he is here; he is always there for you. It’s like that feeling of being watched and when you look over your shoulder, you won’t see anyone, but trust …
I Am A Controlling Woman
By Special Guest: Gina Smith We’ve all heard the phrase, “SHE wears the PANTS in THAT family!” We shake our heads and think about how controlling other women can be. But did you know that every time I complain or am discontent with my husband, correct or criticize him, tell him what to do, or interrupt him…I am controlling!? I see it so clearly in others but the truth of the matter is that I am a controller. I wear the pants in my family. It’s a part of who I am. It’s a part of EVERY woman. The Word …