Calling all leaders! Go see Dolphin Tale screenings!

My sweet friends,

I can't wait to tell you the whole story about this movie! I will be writing more about it soon. The short part of the story is that I have been praying for 2 years that God would lead Nathan, who is in Hollywood, to a place where he could work with Christians in the media and entertainment industry.

Well, I am here to tell you that He answers prayers! By an amazing story of God's direction, Nathan is now working with a wonderful group of people, (including a great new friend of mine, Syd Forest Taylor, a mom of young children, like you), whose  main intent is to get great films out that promote our family values and give us inspiring stories to show to our children.

Dolphin Tale is such a story! This movie even has 2 homeschool kids who play the main role! (The casting agents went to a local support group in California and found them!)

It is a family movie that will inspire, instruct, and bring you to tears because of the great story line.

This weekend, you will have the opportunity to go to a movie screening, so that you can see it for yourself, in order to promote it to your friends, your group, and your blogs.

The bottom line is that the marketing group behind this movie wants to show Warner Brothers and other companies that the those of us with Christian and strong family values are a big enough market to support other great movies with traditional, conservative family values. I am hoping you will be a part of this great opportunity with me!

I will be writing more next week, but right now, you must take advantage of a timely offer. If you are a coordinator of a mom's group, a blogger, a leader of a support group or a homeschooling leader, you can attend a special screening in your city to see this great movie for free, with the understanding that if you like it, you can encourage those in your arena to attend on opening day, September 23.

Here are two fantastic opportunities to share with you! This weekend, Warner Bros. is sponsoring free advanced screenings of Dolphin Tale for Mom's Groups, Bloggers, Support Group leaders and Homeschool leaders across the nation. Nathan has already seen it and loved it! You can check out the trailer for yourself on my side bar or at http://dolphintalemovie.warnerbros.com/ The screenings will take place this Sunday in the following markets:

Atlanta	Cleveland	Detroit	Los Angeles	Philadelphia	Sacramento	Washington DC
Baltimore	Colorado Springs	Grand Rapids, MI	Los Angeles/OC	Phoenix	San Diego	Salt Lake City
Boston	Dallas	Houston	Miami	Pittsburgh	San Francisco
Chicago	Denver	Kansas City	Minneapolis	Portland	St. Louis

If you’re interested, don't hesitate to take advantage of this, and please RSVP to hmcrsvp@gmail.com for the time and theater details.

They need all RSVPs by this Thursday, August 18. So hurry--first come first serve!

I am also super excited about the second opportunity! Warner Bros. is giving a separate set of screenings just for homeschoolers. Warner Brothers is curious to see if homeschooling really is a big enough market to target, and that is why they also included some homeschooling kids in this movie. Consequently,  they are offering special screenings for homeschoolers and their groups. Homeschoolers will have the opportunity to see the film before anyone else! This is fantastic news to share with your readers and other homeschooling families you may know.  Make sure they register at http://www.homeschoolmovieclub.com/join_us for a chance to attend the screening.

Help me to help my wonderful son Nathan, by helping us get the word out. Please put it on your facebook, twitter and any place else you can imagine. I will write more soon about this wonderful movie and what it represents for us to have an impact on Hollywood as those who have the value of affirming and validating our family values. Thanks so much for your help--and enjoy the movie!

***Update***  Thank you so much for the overwhelming response to this film and for your support! Dolphin Tales Media has now filled their capacity for all screenings and  the link listed will no longer be effective.

Your failures do not define you

William Holman Hunt

We are all broken and this world we live in is the broken place, where death of heart, death of relationships, and love is prevalent. Often we mask our deep, dark regrets of failure. Moral failure before marriage, failure to create an intimate marriage or fostering anger and resentment in marriage and feeling like a failure for never being able to become close or get rid of the pettiness.

Failure with our children, having shown anger or neglect to them, not really liking them; or doing everything we could to reach their hearts--doing our best and ending up with a prodigal who breaks our heart.

Failure with friends, petty quarrels, difficulty forgiving and forgetting.

Living with habits of eating disorders, cherishing idols that we know consume our soul or reading dark novels or more darkness than we can admit with sexual habits.

We are all broken people. Yet, if we indeed understand that He does not define us by our failures. He is "mindful that we are but dust." Psalm 103. "He was wounded for our transgressions." Isaiah

It is an illusion that anyone you know is perfect or can live by their works. No one can. All we like sheep have gone astray. We simply cannot hold to our ideals by effort, we are in total need of His mercy and grace, every day, all the time.

We want to serve Him. We want to be holy. We intend on being gracious, loving and patient.

But we fail and fall short, again and again and again--everyone you know, in some way.

But, there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, for the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set us free from the law of sin and death. romans 8:1

It was for freedom that Christ set us free, therefore keep standing firm, that you do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery."Gal 5:1

You cannot control the actions of behavior of others who are in your life. You cannot make others respond to God, to follow Him, to love and serve Him.

But you are responsible for your own actions. If you love Him and worship Him for His amazing grace, you do not have to be subject to the burden you carry deep in your heart.

You, as you are, are beloved by Him, forgiven, cherished. He understands what you carry. Go to Him, receive His love.

And then in humility, (because those who have seen the darkness of their hearts, and have yet received His amazing love, are humble), generously offer grace and forgiveness to those who are wounded deep within, by the feeling that their own failures or background define them. And tell them they are now defined by His love, His adoption, His family history.

Do not judge, but love hilariously, deeply, compassionately, like He, gentle in spirit, has loved you.

And in consequence, we will see love: deep, grateful, healing love, abound, flowing out all over, because of Him.

"For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little." Luke 7:47

May we always, always love much, because He daily, and always, forgives and restores.

The Urgency of Rest

Henry Maynell Rheam

Sometimes, when we have piles of responsibility on our plate, we start to place a lot of energy, worry and fear into the issues of our lives and fret. The last thing that seems productive when life is busy is to rest. Yet, rest may very well be the most strategic thing to do if we have a busy, full and demanding life.

If we do not practice a habit of a restful life, we will end up with serious illness, exhaustion, bad attitudes and fist shaking faith aimed heavenly.

As I have said before, "Fretting leads only to evil doing."

God put Sabbath Rest into the weeks of our lives with a purpose. I have found that when I believe and engage my heart in the goodness of God's character, and put out of my mind, after praying, all that I am carrying and just seek to be still and find joy, I see the miracles bubbling up slowly, surely, as He, my Father, delights to provide.

However, a Martha heart is want to see the miracles, as she is so busy living in the whirlwind of her own meek provisions, she loses all hope and becomes a wretched nag.

The more exhausted I am with life, the more tense, grumpy and tight I become and it spills all over everyone else.

Finding myself at a juncture of exhaustion from giving all that I had last weekend (Thursday-Sunday) to the sweet, wonderful  women in my home, I find that somehow when I try to figure out all of the responsibilities of the next few months, which are huge, I am tempted to be overwhelmed.

Yet, from so many times like this in the past, I have learned a secret. My Prince Jesus comes to me at just the right time, but like the story of Sleeping Beauty, the prince comes, not when she is searching the horizon, pounding her fists, running the floor, but when she is doing nothing but resting.

Resting in Him, choosing peace and putting off responsibilities and recreating is sometimes such grand medicine for my soul, that after choosing to rest and to invest in fun and love and ease of life, my strength is renewed and all issues are able to be faced with grace. I know September is coming, but I will face it with courage if I rest today.

And so today, my plan is to go back to bed, to pace leisurely through the pathway of Monday, to sip and really taste my coffee, to just sit and listen to my sweet girls, and focus on the beauty of their light filled eyes, to stay in comfy clothes all day, to read and pray, and then maybe to rest again, because I know that while I am resting, my Prince is already coming to my rescue.

Peace, be still, the Lord is near.

Where two or more are gathered..........

When like-minded women make the time to gather together, to seek God, to discuss His word, to love and encourage each other, there will always be hope for the future ideals of their lives.

Jesus said, "Where two or more are gathered, there I will be in their midst."

We invite, prepare beauty to enjoy, extend the opportunity and He shows up.

Two are better than one, woe to the one who has no one to lift him up but a chord of three strands is not easily broken.

We are honored to be in His presence, to watch hearts being strengthened, to see ties being formed that will keep women faithful to ideals, hopefully forever.

Who is in your life that you can gather, and watch His life grow in your midst?

The pinnacle of one's life is.......

The Joy of my life

34 ladies in my home last night for dinner

discussions, teaching, chattering, praying

Joy, Sarah, Christie, Jack, Reesie, Jackson, the kids serving, helping, speaking

This morning, I made a favorite breakfast for my sweet girls who are exhausted from helping. The conversations are flowing and their sweet hearts are open. Discipleship is an every moment, all the time, looking for the opportunity to pass on truth.

So, have you made any observations about the women here and what we are learning?

This leads to divine appointements.

Mom, I think the pinnacle of a person's life is not the early years when they are a teenager and life seems all about them. It seems that probably every generation feels immortal.Like my generation who says "we will be eternally young." But the pinnacle of one's life is constantly growing towards that point when a women gets older and can look back and say, "I have left a legacy of a family who holds the life of God, I have raised godly children, I have taught women the righteous path, I have loved my God. It is the work of a lifetime that makes a woman have a grand legacy."

wisdom from Joy

Oh to see them "get it" amidst ministry, conversation, and loving real live people.

What do you want to be when you grow up?

August Macke Women Reading The Spirit of God living, working, breathing in and through the life of a women will always be producing new fruit.

I see so many women planning the school year for their children--what they will study, what they will read or what lessons they will take or activities they will engage in.

But as women who walk with God, we are all teachers and leaders. What is deep within our soul is what others will draw out when they are around us.

A wise woman will always be growing, learning, stretching. Now there are seasons when just surviving seems to be the way of life. Yet, I have seen, that I must be responsible for my own life and that means planning and incorporating wisdom as a part of my every day--reading books, articles that stretch me in the direction of excellence. Feeding my soul on scripture, on writers who stimulate me to love God, to serve others, biographies that inspire me is what gives me ideas to discuss, thoughts to lead my heart and wisdom to share. It does not come from a vacuum--we must invest in what we hope to become. What we sow we will reap.

Joy and I were at one of my conferences, (as I mentioned much earlier in a blog), and we were lying under the stars on some lounge chairs.

I had a lovely conversation with her about cultivating her soul and me wanting always to be cultivating the garden of my own soul--what I would plant there, and what I needed to pluck out, (sin, bad attitudes) in order to be sure that my heart was always growing more into the person I wanted to be--when  I grow up into His likeness.

So each of us came up with 5 attributes that we both wanted to be and grow into. The list was different for each of us. So I will pose this question to you. What five attributes do you want to characterize your life? In the days ahead, I will share with you more about mine and how the study of each of these areas and writing them down and looking up verses and stating my commitment to them has been changing my life.

Mine are:

1. I want to be a person who is characterized by Biblical, generous love--to all people in all situations as much as possible.

2. I want to always lean in the direction of faith at every curve in my path--to believe in Him, always, and honor him with a heart of faith.

3. I want to leave a legacy of truth, wisdom, righteousness through teaching and writing and speaking, that others may know and love Him more because I was intentional in their lives.

4. I want to be humble, gentle, and gracious--redeeming the lost, healing the broken hearted--and bring this spirit into my relationships.

5.Taking initiative to serve and reach out to others and being faithful to be a servant leader is an aspiration of mine--to be as Jesus was--while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us--He sought us.

So, what do you want to be when you grow up? Whatever grid you establish in your mind is how you will live and how you will invest. I am praying that each of you will be inspired to live in the excellencies of His Spirit who is stirring inside of you.

Grace and peace to each of you today.

Please pray for me as I host 29 women from all over the world in my home the next 3 days to encourage, teach and serve them in their own walks with the Lord. Pray that lives would be changed and receptive to Him.

And if you would pray for my sweet mama--she is on her deathbed and I would love for her to sweetly know Jesus' mercy and grace deep inside where we cannot penetrate and it would mean so much to me if she would wait until the weekend is over to go see Him, but I am ready for her to be with Him whenever He chooses. Onward.

Just didn't want to let the day go without saying.....

I couldn't sleep last night. The wind outside was fierce and wild and kept me awake. I crept downstairs and got a little bowl of cereal, the kind with almonds and cranberries and I put blueberries and pecans on top, and crawled onto the old, soft comfy couch. I was trying to figure out all that I had to do in the next few days--finishing the notebook for the Mom's Intensive at our house, this weekend. Praying that sweet mama will not die this week as it would lay heavy on my heart during the conference. Wondering about the medical issues that are immediately ahead with one so dear. Knowing I have a book proposal due this Friday. And the list grew.

But, in the midst of the darkness and wind and milk, I had a peace and deep joy in my heart that seemed to carry me above all of the stresses that seem to be piled on my soul plate.

Jesus reminded me that most of all, He matters. Loving Him, resting in Him, seeking His glory, straining to hear His voice.

Then He whispered, I gave you gifts-Sarah, Joel, Nathan and Joy. So, my sweet ones, you really are my treasures. You matter most of all, you are still my priority--every day, my thoughts are filled with you, my whisper prayers fill heaven, because you are never far from my heart thoughts, even in this busy-ness. You are all so very dear to me. I love who you are--you are vibrant, alive, passionate, idealistic, and the miracle is you love Jesus so very much and you still love Daddy and me, too. And so you are my priority today and I have prayed for you.

And then there is Clay-Daddy--partner through it all, strong, dependable, sitting in his leather chair and guiding us all with endless intuitive thoughts, ideas; our resident acoustic music man, chasing us all through the details of life and keeping us organized, passing on thoughts of God at Sunday morning feasts--my best friend.

Yes, I do have so very much on my life plate this week, and always more to do, but in this moment, this dark summer night, my heart is filled because of the blessing He has given, and I am so very, very grateful to have had the privilege of loving and caring for you. I love you.

mama

Now, my mind is more at rest, my heart is deeply grateful, my soul at peace again, and I think I will be able to go back to sleep.

Investing your life or frittering away the coins of time

"Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you."— Carl Sandburg

Every year, I pull away with the Lord to spend a day asking, "What is your will for my life right now? How should I invest my time, what commitments should I make? What do I need to cut? How am I living for your kingdom? How should I be investing for your kingdom--in the lives of my children, my marriage, other women, the community of women through my writing?

I have met very few women who are intentional about their lives--those women who challenge me to live my life by faith and devotion and expecting the Lord to do great things, as I live it every day in rhythm for Him.

I can tell you this, though, if you do not plan how to live your life, how you need to grow, what you need to commit to, and what God has on His mind and heart for you to do- (His design of your life, personality, and circumstances), then other people will take up your time, or you will just go with the flow and waste the coins of your life in vain.

And so, as you plan your year ahead, with your children, you husband, your home, what are your goals? What do you want to become? How are you growing? What will you study in the word this year?

And so, now you know some of the messages I will be sharing at our Mom's Intensive this year, and the very things I am committing my heart unto during this wonderful season in which I find myself.

My encouragement: go for excellence--don't compromise, work a little harder, be a little less selfish, love more deeply and more generously, read more, study more, celebrate the days.

More intentionality in the next few articles--it is inspiring my soul to ponder it all.

A Movement of God to change the world--a call to mothers!

Emil Österman Mother and Child

In every culture and in every generation, a mother and child reflects the beauty of God's design of womanhood. God intentionally crafted babies so that they would be fragile, dependent creatures that would need the love, songs, touch and nurture of a mother. When a woman understands that one of the greatest gifts she will ever receive from her creator is to have the opportunity to touch eternity through artfully nurturing the mind, heart and soul of a child, whose life will have implications for all of eternity, her life joins in kingdom purposes with God.

Motherhood is one of the most strategic Biblical callings for women at this time in history. When a mother understands God's design for her to raise a godly generation in her home, who can love and serve God and pass on righteousness to their own generation, there will be hope for that nation. Moral excellence, faith, emotional health, intellectual excellence and great works of mankind all stem from the home that wisdom builds as women embrace God's call on their lives.

A Call for Older, Wiser, more experienced women to Train Young Mothers

Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children,  to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.

Titus 2:3-5  reminds us that the skills of motherhood must be taught. Learning to love husbands and to cultivate a strong marriage, to love and train children and to make the home a foundational place of life-giving ministry is at the core of building a legacy of righteousness in each generation.

Yet, at this time in history, the imagination of motherhood in the minds and hearts of women has been lost in a sea on worldly philosophy that pulls women in many directions. Our culture wrongly tells us that all choices of women are equal, and so many women have been trained and feel competent to work at a career, but inadequate to do the eternal work of motherhood.

Children thrown to the wind of culture will not flourish in life any more than throwing seeds over a balcony will become a beautiful garden. However, choices do have consequences, and so for women who have believed the lie that children are resilient, and that there are no consequences for dividing their heart and time between their demanding careers and their children, we see devastating results. Thankfully, there are many ways and endless scenarios in which a mother can cultivate and nurture the hearts of their child, but we know that a child must not just receive the leftovers of his mother's time. All children want to be loved and to be called to a purpose, so if this love and devotion and purpose is not passed on in the home, the child will seek for it his whole life from the place he spends the most time.

As Clay and I committed our lives to ministering to families: to teach and train them in Biblical ways of discipline their children, to stay faithful in marriage, to establish their homes as foundations of love for God, love for each other and centers of His life, we realized that mothers were a key factor at this time in our culture, to establishing family as a foundational place for ministry.

Mothers have been created by God to be gardeners of the soul of children. Consequently, Clay and I have spent many years developing a ministry to help train, equip and encourage mothers in this significan role.

We have written numerous books, hold motherhood conferences, speak at events all over the world, and host intensive leadership trainings for women to learn how to train other mothers in this great task, and more. We are also dreaming with others about how we can reach this whole world of mothers with the vision God created them to fulfill..

Mom Heart Ministries is our attempt to train and reach out to a whole generation of women to watch God use them in their homes to raise a godly generation for his glory. Even this blog is focussed at equipping, encouraging and providing an environment where moms can meet over Biblical ideals.

Our ministry has many goals and projects ahead to continue expanding our reach to families all over the world.

Perhaps you would like to join with us by becoming on of our family of financial supporters, prayer warriors or workers at our conferences and in our ministry, or leading a Bible study for moms. We so appreciate the team of people God is raising up all over the world to be a part of His great work.

If the Lord has put it on your heart to donate to our ministry, please use the "Donate" button in the sidebar, or call the Whole Heart Ministries office at 888-488-4466.

If you would like to be placed on our mailing list to hear about all of our conferences and trainings in the future, please go here.

If you would like to pray for us and for our ministry, please sign up for our prayer letter here.

We cannot do this work alone, and are so privileged to have working alongside of us many people all over the  world. We thank each of you for your generosity in helping us to watch God take this great work all over the world. Thank you so very much for becoming a part of Mom Heart Ministries.

My sweet friend, Sarah Mae, a young mom and blogger, has recently visited me in my home and has come away with vision and excitement in her own heart from the deep needs she has felt as a young mom in the midst of three precious children under 5. Her own life and needs have focussed her mind to understand how much she needs encouragement and she writes from a heart engaged in this journey of motherhood.You will also enjoy her perspective. (go here to see her article today! )

Courtney and Angela at Good Morning Girls also did such an incredible job this summer studying Ministry of Motherhood with over 1500 women all over the world. They are also be used by God in such an amazing way to encourage women in their own walk with the Lord. They meet online to encourage moms as they study the word together. Thanks to them for encouraging so many.

There are more women on our "team" gathering to help reach moms with these inspiring Biblical messages. Won't you join us, as an army of women, to pray, encourage, train, and love moms to reach their children with the wonderful messages of our Lord?

Wholeheart.org

PS It just happens that I have written a guest post that also came out today on our newest version of Educating the Whole Hearted Child. Go to Raising Homemakers to see that post!

Find the happy, look for joy around every corner

Wonderful Jeremy! At La Baguettes downtown Co. Springs

Always, bright, gracious, encouraging and friendly every time I go in for coffee and treats, and on my birthday treated me to coffee and free breakfast! Go Jeremy!

Pondering today, "Only the wise can dance to the rhythm of life."

I want to dance,.......,

Joel, bounding up the stairs from his basement bedroom, and always bringing cheer--wrestling on the floor with Kelsey. Fun, fun memory before he drove off in his new second hand maroon car on his way to California to work in film scoring.

Joel, pounding away on my childhood piano whenever I am in the kitchen, and hearing grand music of his making coming out and invading my brain--ahhh, to have a composer living in your home. A happy memory I will visit. Joel has always made me happy.

Remembering how fun it was to have Sarah Mae in my home and scheming with her for new projects that will change the world!

And so, I regularly look for the fingerprints of fun, the love, the laughter, the good, the beautiful--and then I take a photograph of it in my mind.

So what is your happy this week?

Wishing you the best weekend.