Tools for Seeking God

Psalm 5:3 “In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice; In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch.” Motherhood is not for the faint of heart! When young and inexperienced it is natural to have glorious dreams and plans of holding a precious baby to your breast, breathing in the sweet smell of soft skin, and teaching and raising your little cherub to be a good citizen and follower of God. It isn’t until you are in the midst of the experience that feelings of inadequacy start to slip into your dreams. So …

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Helping a Child who Struggles to Fit In

  It’s enough to break a mother’s heart. Your child comes home and declares that no one likes him. Or worse, you witness him being rejected by those he’s trying to befriend. Maybe it’s a maturity thing. Maybe your child is one of a kind. Or maybe their choices set them apart. But, for whatever reason, they don’t seem to fit in with the kids in their peer group. Because we are made for community, feeling like we don’t fit in can be very disheartening. It’s instinctual to be part of a group, and being able to fit in gives …

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kid's summer reading

5 Easy Ways To Encourage Summer Reading

Summer. Just the smell of sunblock can bring all the images of summer rushing in. Thoughts of swimming, grilling, snow cones, watermelon, late nights and lazy mornings come flooding in. And, of course, the joy of freedom from government tyranny, errr, I mean school. And for our family, there is one more really important part of summer – books. We are readers all year long, but summer kicks it up a notch. My ten-year-old daughter has been scouring Pinterest for fifth grade summer reading lists for weeks. She’s compiling her own this year (which means I won’t have to fight her …

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Tell Us About Your Women’s Ministry – A Survey for Women Ministry Leaders

We want to hear from you – the women’s ministry leader, the teacher and the mentor – the woman on the front lines fighting for the women in your church, in your ministry or in your community. As a ministry that partners with ministry leaders to provide resources, support, training, and partnership with plans to develop solid, true Titus 2 ministries, The MOM Initiative would like your help. Would you take a few minutes to answer the survey below? (We couldn’t get the online survey to work, so would you copy the questions and paste them into the comment section and …

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Praying for Your Child’s Every Step

Have your worried about whether your children will follow God when they grow up? Do you have a teen or twenty-something who has wandered far from God? Your children may make some bad decisions, they may choose to walk away from the faith, but you can trust that the Lord has heard every prayer you’ve prayed, every silent cry of your heart, and He knows your deepest desire is that they will know Him, serve Him and love Him with all of their heart, soul, mind and strength. Whether your children are faithfully following the Lord, have walked away from …

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50+ Things to Do with Bored Kids in Summer

Running out of things to do with the kids yet? I found a bazillion things to do on the internet. Narrowing them down to fit here was difficult. Some of these make great science projects. I won’t jabber on, so I can leave space for all the links and suggestions. So, here we go: * Instructions for things to make. 1) Make your own lava lamps http://slsmithphotography.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/06/lava-lamps-summer-fun.html 2) Make a city using masking tape * Let the kids go wild with a roll of masking tape. They can tape over the carpet, the furniture, wherever you allow, to make roads …

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Hope for the Hard Days

I spotted it the moment I stepped out of the bathroom-a smudgy blue footprint in the middle of the walkway. Instantly, my stomach twisted at the sight. Because every mom knows where there is one footprint, there is more. I’d been alone behind that bathroom door for less than five minutes- just enough time to speed-wash my hair and slap on deodorant. But after a decade of motherhood, I knew that a few moments was ample time for a three-year-old to ignite a disaster. I wrapped a towel around my dripping hair and followed the path of blue blotches out …

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How Children Can Hear God

When hormone-crazed emotions mix with future-impacting decisions, quick answers such as ask “Just ask God” can leave our children feeling frustrated, fearful and filled with more questions than before! We can help teach them how to hear from God. Anxious to be independent as fast as I could, learning to drive was so exciting for me! When my mom compared a streetlight with hearing from God, I listened. Try this explanation with your child as well. You can open the door for a great conversation on your next road trip or errand to the store: Heading somewhere new, your eyes …

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5 areas to untangle guilt as a mom – by Carey Scott

Few things can send me spiraling into the guilt-pit like parenting. ~ The look on my daughter’s face tells me I’ve just crushed her spirit by saying “no” to another sleepover. ~ The tears that spill out of my kid’s eyes say I’m heartless for asking them to clean their room after a long day at school. ~ The demonstrative “sigh” from my son sends a clear signal that the rule of homework before television is unfathomable… and unfair. And even though I know it’s silly, I start to second guess myself. Do I expect more than I should of …

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A little taller, a little older, a little stronger…

The front door opened and closed with a bang. “Hi, Mom,” my ten-year-old called. He was home early because it was a minimum day. I went into the entry hall and gave him a hug. “How was school?” “Good.” He peeled away from me and grabbed his soccer bag from the closet. He pulled his cleats out and started putting them on. “What are you doing?” “I decided I’m reaching my juggling goal today,” he said, matter-of-fact. At the beginning of the soccer season, he set three goals for himself. Juggling the ball twenty times in a row with his feet only (no …

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