Surprise! Discipleship & Discipline e-Course (Plus Giveaway)!

Surprise!

Remember last week when I told you I would have a surprise for my blog? Sarah Mae and I have received so many letters and emails about our book, Desperate, that we thought we would try to put together a short e-course to inspire you as you kick off a new school year with your children. Because we are so very busy trying to center our own lives, we are working with a company that does everything for us! This is an experiment to see if there is any interest in this kind of a course.

And what about that wild child? The one who is unpredictable, who has trouble doing it "your" way, the one who wears you out? I shall speak to the realities of my own, who had me on my knees so often. And yet, God's wisdom met me where I needed to learn about different personalities, and how to trust him during the difficult days.

Amidst all of the busyness, mamas struggle with keeping centered on their priorities. Life can overwhelm so that purpose seems to become hidden. So, I will be speaking about how to establish foundations in your mind, to give you a grid for loving your children well and reaching their hearts. Then, in the spirit of Mentoring Mondays, I will be speaking about Childhood Discipline, how to think about it, and how to implement wise training and responses in the midst of your every day lives.

Sarah Mae will share her journey from desperate days to delightful days with her own children, and the principles that helped her to see change in her family. She identifies so much with all the young mamas who are barely swimming above the water, and yet she has learned to apply wisdom so that she enjoys each day with her little ones.

I am planning lots more for your encouragement in the months ahead, so stay tuned and let us know what you think. I have you in my heart. Your wonderful letters, comments, messages are so very precious to me. Since I cannot begin to answer them all, I hope this course will be of great encouragement to you!

For more information and to sign up for the course, click HERE.

Happy New School Year to each of you!

GIVEAWAY!

Please leave enter below if you'd like to be entered to win the course for FREE! There will be two winners.The giveaway ends at 10:30am EST on Wednesday, 9/4! We will also have two scholarships available and will give that information tomorrow! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Patience: Waiting for the reward. Mentoring Monday

Rembrandt, one of my favorite artists

Abraham sacrificing Isaac

 We choose to be patient, even when we feel like getting our own way.

Way 19

In a culture that has fast food, speed of lightening responses on computer, instant gratification, the value of patience has become lost. Yet, patience is a virtue that will cause us to grow spiritually like no other. Patience in having our prayers answered forces us to look to God, to humble ourselves before Him, to acknowledge our dependence on him. Yet, how often we hurry the process of His answers and diminish our own ability to grow.

Abraham did not wait on God long enough and his hasty actions to "help" God answer his promise resulted in Hagar, his wife's maid, having Ishmael. The line of Ishmael lived in conflict with the Jewish people through all of history. When we take things into our own hands, we create havoc of every sort.

We read in Isaiah, "Yet those who wait on the Lord will gain new strength, " Is. 40: 31

God has wisdom and He has plan. His ways are to build spiritual muscle slowly because His focus in on building character and the likeness of Christ in our lives. Holiness does not come from a quick fix.

The raging battle against righteousness is also an issue of why we must learn to be patient. Satan prowls the earth to see whom he may devour. The earth is in rebellion to God. If we are to resist evil and overcome it with good, we must learn the secret value of waiting patiently in the midst of life storms. Darkness is but for the night, but joy comes in the morning, we read in the psalms.

And so, all of life in a fallen world will require us to be patient, to rule over our impatient spirits, to rule our spirit. We do not walk by emotions, or desires, but we learn to walk in obedience to the path God has given. Then, His reward will be sure and generous.

Many times, as a mom, I felt that my mother-labor was in vain. The constancy of correcting, teaching, serving children who pushed against me, questioned me, seemed unconcerned. Yet, now, after all of these years, I am so grateful that God helped me to live for the ideals He had given me one day at a time. The heart satisfaction of seeing my children walk with God, pursue His kingdom purposes, is deep and peaceful. Yet, it was a long walk of faith, faithfulness and waiting.

And so, as adults, we see the value of training and teaching our children to put off self-gratification. Gently helping them to choose patience, to will to be strong, to wait on God, is to prepare them to understand how to live their lives for God and not for themselves. Marriage requires patience. Work requires patience. All relationships require patience. And yet exercising patience builds strong internal spiritual muscle over time.

When seeds are planted, patience is required to see them grow and bloom to full fruition. Yet the fruit brings great reward.

"He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city."

Proverbs 16: 32

Ruling over ones spirit is such an amazing concept. To take charge, to subdue, to control one's spirit is the foundation for all sorts of spiritual prowess. When you help your child to learn to control his spirit and to rule over his emotions, you are giving him a gift that will serve him the rest of his life. Since I had never been trained, I had to learn it along with my little ones, yet now, it has served me better than I could have imagined.

Patience is wrought in our children little by little. Not by lecturing them only, but by guiding them in attitudes, in habits, to practice patience in order to become strong inside. Yet, patience brings great strength and great reward to those who submit to the wait. And the humility of not always getting ones own way immediately builds spiritual prowess like no other. When a child learns to wait on his mama and on circumstances, he is practicing learning to wait on God--and that is just the person God uses--the one who looks to God and waits expectantly on Him.

Just remember today, the Lord is with you and loves you and He will show you His ways as you patiently wait for Him.

Nurturing God-sized Dreams in the Hearts of your children Part 3

512px-Monet_-_Seine-Arm_bei_Giverny

Claude Monet

a pioneer of a new style of painting.

Part 3

So often, when I talk to women, they live as though they have no hope. Often, they have lost all vision of their purpose as moms--they have quit dreaming with their children. When we are limited in our hearts to the tasks of life, to the responsibilities and bills and duties we have, we can become very discouraged.

But when we realize that the Holy Spirit, Himself, dwells in us and wants to bring glory through our lives and create supernatural life and love right where we are, it gives us a whole different way to live. As a trainer of children who could learn to dream and take on the task of bringing God's kingdom to bear on this world, I always looked for ways to expand their faith, to listen to their talents and delights, to speak of how God might use them in this world.

I told them they had only a few years to bring about miracles of love in His name, to banish sadness and darkness and to bring about light and His life through all that they did. It gave us an excitement about every day, every lesson God was teaching, every story that we heard. The way it played out in my children's lives was different for each one. Sarah was an incredible reader from the time she was very small. I would read volumes of books to her, and enter her into every reading program, contest and give her lots of opportunity to write. She would fill dozens of journals with her writing. I encouraged her as a message maker who would bring light to many minds. I truly believe that she will become one of the great writers of our times. Her insight and creativity and wisdom for one her age has been blessed by God. She has had to work hard, but I believe her many years of input is beginning to pay off.

Joel, had the same input in soul, with the reading and devotionals, but I noticed that he sang in perfect tune from the time he was 15 months and could do perfect harmony by the time he was three--it came naturally to him. Consequently, we encouraged him to play guitar like his dad, exposed him to lots of different music, took him to concerts, and gave him all the software and instruments we could afford when he wanted to try to produce a small album. Now he is composing music and working in Los Angeles with a well-known composer, and has produced 3 albums.

Nathan, our very extroverted child, loved people, activity and performance. Clay took him to Christian magician conferences to stretch his own skills as a stage illusionist. Sending him to the New York Film academy when he was 19 was a faith risk, but just this week, he is producing his own movie that he wrote. We provided training in discipleship as he followed all of these areas in hopes of having a ministry to his generation through the arts.

Joy literally came out of the womb loving a stage. She has grown up at our conferences and never flinched when she stood up in front of hundreds of people--in plays, musicals, conferences or anywhere else. When Joy performs, I feel God's gift and pleasure in a marked way! We allowed her to have one semester of competitive speech and debate, because she is such a natural. (The other years, we had our conferences and could not do speech and debate.) Now, she is an RA working with new students, has a debate scholarship and is speaking at her college. We just pray for our children and support their efforts because we want to encourage them to live by faith and to invest their lives, and to own the gifts God gave to them.

I see so many moms, whether in Classical school, homeschool, public school and private school, become bogged down with the work load and curricular demands. But I meet few, who have invested much time in Kingdom dreams with and for their children. David became king of the slingshot--was that according to His mother's hopes and dreams? He also came to court because of his great music. Gideon was a grape stomper. Esther was a pretty orphan. Peter was a working class man. Paul was an academic. But the thing they all have in common, is that they used who and what they were for God's glory--to make a difference in the world for His kingdom.

Proverbs tells us the from the heart flow the springs of life. Jesus wanted us to live from the wells of life springing up in and through our hearts from His Spirit. If we are to take the world by God's force and light, we must learn to be dreamers, empowered and inspired by God, to bring His light to the darkness. We do this by cultivating the dreams and passions of our children's hearts.

Often, dreams are costly--we went 5 years without a regular salary to start Whole Heart Ministries, but we believed there needed to be a ministry specifically focussed on giving the kinds of specific messages that God had place on our hearts to give to families in this generation. Bills and difficult tasks all had to be attended to, but prayer and scripture would always light the fire of our dreams. Faith in "things hoped for but not seen" was what energized each project. We rented our first hotel by faith when we believed moms needed refreshment, we sent out some emails, and the rest is history!

One of the reasons I wrote The Mom Walk was because I felt so many women were trying so hard to get the training of their children and the living of their lives right by following the right formula or doing the right things. I found that someone's box did not ever exactly fit our family or our lives. I saw much more over the years, that God intended me to walk by faith, to learn to listen to Him as he spoke to me through scripture and gave me ideas of how to obey Him and honor Him through my times of prayer.  I found that on my journey with Him, throughout motherhood, that learning to walk in freedom and peace with Him, and living by His design freed me up to watch Him work, to live by grace instead of someone else's expectations of me.

Your and your children and husband may all have unique purposes through a story for God's kingdom. You may not always understand it in the midst of God preparing your heart and character for the work He has for you to do, but He uses those whose eyes are turned toward eternity, toward Him, toward His glory and work.

A good question to ask is, "Am I living by what I can hope to accomplish by my hard work only?" or "Am I living in the realm of possibility of what God can accomplish, beyond my own skills and effort, because I am trusting Him to be accomplishing through me what He is able to do, even beyond my efforts, but according to His abilities?"

Am I speaking life-giving encouragement to my children in the midst of their ideas and dreams, or do I throw water on them by asking them to be "realistic"? There is so much to be said about the work side of dreams, the bills to be paid, but today is a day to focus on the dreaming part of our lives. My vision for raising my children must be bigger than grades, SAT's, getting a job. It must be a call to bow their knee before God and ask, what is your work for me? For my child? For our family? How can I bring you pleasure? How can I live in your power? May our sweet Father fuel our hearts with what is on His heart and use us and our children as He dreamed when He made us!

May you dream big for Him, and may all your dreams come true!

Encouraging Our Children with Dayspring

By this time of the year most of our children have returned to routines and sharpened pencils, lunch boxes and math books.  As they adjust to the newness, we can be extra thoughtful to pour on the encouragement.  The little ones need to hear of our confidence in them, our grace toward them, and how much dear Jesus adores them.  

Our friends at Dayspring have created some beautiful Vinyl Scripture Art that we can utilize to encourage those brave little hearts.

What child wouldn't love to wake up and see this singing away at them?

I also thought these smaller Vinyl Art Pieces would encourage the hearts of mothers and fathers as we all push through the daily work and suffering in order to draw those in our home closer to Jesus.

As the older children go off to school or work on their lessons at home, sometimes the youngest children can be engaged by bringing in a fun new item.  This coloring book of Bible Stories teaches while it provides "work" for a younger one to do alongside their older siblings.

May the Lord bless you as you launch your little ones into a new year of learning.

Nurturing God-sized dreams in the hearts of your children Part 2

Gustav Corbett

Mamas are made to dream for God, as well. God has work for us to do!

Part 2

Excitement bubbled up in my own heart again yesterday, when I heard one of our pastors speak. His message was about not settling for life, but becoming an overcomer. There was this little familiar flurry of excitement stirring in my heart. It melded with some of what I have been thinking about lately.

 All of us were made by God to do a work in this world that would bring Him great glory and that would point to His light and beauty. We were created in His image, in His spiritual likeness, but with our own personality, skills, messages and drives. Each of us has the opportunity to live out a great story--one in which His power, His love, His light can touch everything we do. But only if we are dreamers--dreamers for His glory.

To live by faith, means to live as though the Holy Spirit is truly living through me--If the Holy Spirit looked at my marriage, my children, my friends, my skills, what would He be planning for my life? How would He be living it differently than I am living? What would He be planning according to His power and resources? How would He be bringing glory to His Father through the ways He would have me step out in faith, the ways I would be generous extending His love, the ways I expressed compassion and redemption to a lost world, as He would?

As I see the huge needs in our culture for Christianity to come alive--a need for teachers who love children and want to inspire them to have a great moral character and to learn how to read (as our test scores as a nation have gone down every year for almost 20 years.) When I hear of all the latch key children, I want to find a way to train more mothers to find ways to stay at home, or to spend more time with their wee ones,  in order to fill the emotional, spiritual and moral cups of their children. When I see the immorality, violence, emptiness and lies in media and in movies, I long to see passionate, artistic, insightful and skillful Christians rise up to reclaim the arts for the Lord.

And on and on. Christ has a passion for bringing God's glory in every arena of life and He seeks to raise up those who would boldly redeem back areas of darkness in His power and in His name. Yet, he has designed that there would be specific trainers of the next generation that would be able to train up godly, inspired leaders---mothers!

How Did Dreaming express itself through my life?

I remember in the movie, The Chariots of Fire, when the olympic gold medalist Eric Liddel was talking to his sister about his running, He said, "When I run, I feel His pleasure--God made me to run!"

I feel that same thing about speaking. When I stand up to speak to a crowd of 10 or a crowd of countless women, I feel His pleasure--I feel that there is a blessing and power that I was created to walk in. I understood what Eric meant!

I remember that when I was a young woman, I dreamed about speaking and writing--I was driven toward it. When we nurture the Spirit of God in our lives, we will find pleasure and passion in those areas that God has created us to do. Of course, it may take hard work and most of our lives is about faithfulness and growing, but each of us was designed by God to accomplish His work through our lives.

One of my friends was having coffee with me in Vienna many years ago, once and she said, "You know, Sally, lots of people want to write books, but very few get to really be published.

"Do you really think you will ever get a book published? Is that realistic?"

Of course her words troubled me for a while, but as I prayed, I gave my skills to the Lord and told HIm that I would be faithful in all areas of my life, but that I would also try to be faithful to practice writing and speaking--to use it to encourage my friends in letters, that I would speak to children, adults, whoever and wherever He took me, for His glory.

And if He wanted me to get published, fine, but meanwhile, I pledged to be as faithful as I knew how. Many of those years, I was speaking to my children in our own home, passionately sharing from what He had given to me in my quiet time. This is where I found my joy--sharing passionately with those I loved the most! It was from this small arena, that God caused my ministry to blossom, from practicing being faithful in small things.

Part 3 tomorrow--What are your gifts? Dreams? How are you defining them and acting on them?

Nurturing God-sized dreams in the hearts of your children--part 1

John George Brown

Heroes of every kind are needed in our culture today. Those who would be courageous to bring God's kingdom principles to bare in all realms of life: government, medicine, education, the arts, business. Leaders who own integrity every day in their lives, but whose vision causes them to serve others to bear in bringing righteous into their arenas.

Yet, heroes are shaped by the input they receive into their souls. Mamas are so busy with chores, school, feeding and clothing children, that often this powerful influence is lost in her home. Yet, Davids, Daniels, Abrahams, Josephs, Eshters, Marys  are common folk that God used to bring His miracles of salvation and provision into their lifetimes.

At my age, I can see how many ways God drew Clay and me to become world changers. And as we risked in order to start a publishing house, to start mom's conferences, to write books and to homeschool and train our children to become leaders in their life times, it came from dreaming for God's Kingdom to live through our lives.

Mamas have great ability to shape their children into world changers. But it starts with capturing the hearts of children who were made to see the miracles of God in and through their own lives.

Dare to Dream and Nurture other Dreamers

Ten years old marked a time of dramatic change in my life. Living in the same town, going to the same church, swimming in the summers at the same pool and going to the same school had provided a kind of sweet stability for my young life. I had a sense that we knew a lot of people and that my mom and dad, and all of us were well-liked.

We had a "place" in our community that gave rhythm to life. But, in the Spring time of that year, my father, who was an executive with IBM, was asked to move to Houston. This was my first experience of moving and having to start life and reputation and friendships all over again. Yet, for me, Houston provided another dramatic change.

It was the beginning of an onslaught of pneumonia-- which would attack my body four times in the next year. I had been born about two months premature and respiratory problems and asthma had followed me most of my life, but this pneumonia thing, with hospitalizations and oxygen tents, was all new. I am sure, looking back, that it must have been a time in my parents lives, that was quite stressful. After just four months in Houston, they requested a transfer to Albuquerque, New Mexico, where the air would be drier and they thought I would be healthier.

The funny thing is, though, I remember my illness with pleasure. Perhaps since everyone thought I was going to die, I got more attention. I received presents and cards. Yet, one of my favorite memories, as I might have mentioned before, was lying in my four poster bed, looking out the bay window at a forest of trees and reading, reading, reading.

It was the first time I discovered, "The Childhood of Famous Americans." I read book after book of people who, in some way, became a hero. There were men and women who disciplined themselves to become great athletes, doctors and nurses, war heroes,--it didn't really matter what their story entailed, but each one brought to my heart a sense of accomplishment--of people who lived a purposeful life and made an impact on their world. These stories excited me and brought me great pleasure--I wanted to do make something of myself. I began, then, to dream about what I could accomplish. I didn't want to just let life drive me through the routines, I wanted to mount up in my life and contribute something big, somehow, someway.

The next time I remember feeling this burning excitement in my heart, was when I was in college. I had committed my life to Christ and was in a leadership group and was being personally discipled by a sweet young woman named Hope. She would meet with me and talk about scripture and pray with me.

She would often say, "Sally, I wonder what great things God has in store for you. You have such a gift of communication and encouragement and such a grasp on scripture. I know God is going to use you to change the world. Dream big!"

Perhaps these words were what led me to choosing a path where I would be privileged to be a part of a ministry through which the Lord would use me in the lives of others. I am not sure, but I know that when she said these life-giving words, it stirred in my heart and made me want to live up to her expectations. It excited me to be a part of God's miraculous work. I look back now on passages like the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11, and I, too, wanted to be one of those who sought and knew God and loved Him in such a way that my life would make a difference in this world.

Part 2 Tomorrow--how are you shaping God-sized dreams in the hearts of your children?

What has given you a vision for yourself--living God-sized dreams?

Pork Roast a la Sally--Discipleship a la feasting

Strange to see how a good dinner and feasting reconciles everybody!

This is one of our favorite fall dishes and I am getting ready for fall!

"It was the food that made me love you!" said an anonymous boy.

Feasting is one of our favorite pastimes. And it was the most often entertainment we enjoyed in our family--3 X a day, plus teatimes makes thousands and thousands of meals where we talked, laughed, and rested together with food as the final reward.

What a great invention Jesus made when he created us to eat.

Warm smells of onions, apples, thyme and roast fill our home with delectable temptation as my sweet children come through the front door. Usually bread is rising and the yeasty aromas mixed with the lovely herbs of roasting pork is enough to calm frayed nerves, soothe exhaustion from a day spent in busyness. And all of this speaks to my children and their friends of a sanctuary where all will find life and peace.

When people ask me how I influenced my children to love God and to love home, I often try to come up with something deep, spiritual, insightful and wise and hopefully I have learned some principles of wisdom that have influence my children's hearts.

Yet, often, I have realized that it is the times shared over meals, the time filling our hunger with wonderful tastes and smells and delight that has wrought as much pleasure and comfort--all of this, that has reached the depths of their hearts for Christ and His ways.

The colors God made, the pleasures he wanted his children to enjoy, the tastes and smells and sounds and life itself stirs a heart alive, inspires a soul to hope in the beauty of the life shared moment to moment each day. This week we have had a celebration of an engagement, two birthdays, mother's day a week late and lots of eating. But the fellowship and laughter and conversation around the table has set memories for years to come.

The food was the frame that set up the picture of our days shared. I thought I would share with you my own roast pork concoction--so very easy and so very satisfying and impressive.

Pork Roast a la Sally

Two pork loins

1-2 cups apple juice (depending on how big the loins are--I usually just pour it in to the top of the meat.)

1 tablespoon of minced garlic

1 package onion soup mix

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

4 apples sliced thinly

2 onions sliced thinly

1/2 -3/4  cup dried cherries according to preference (optional--some don't like this--but most of my family loves it)

Sea salt and pepper to taste

Stir the apple juice, garlic, soup mix and worcestershire sauce together in a crock pot. Place the pork loins in the sauce. Cover the meat with apples and onions. Sprinkle the dried cherries over the top. Put lid on and cook slowly all day. Salt and pepper to taste. The meat is so luscious and literally falls apart. Always a hit for crowds or for my kids and so very easy to do. I make an easy gravy out of the juice that is left over. I have a great source for natural, organic pork, so though we don't have it often, it is a real treat.

Mashed potatoes

I almost always use red potatoes lately as they have less of a sugar base when cooked. I also use a pressure cooker and do them in four minutes. Add 1-2 teaspoons of condensed chicken bouillon (natural, no msg) when you drain the water from the potatoes and then you don't have to use as much butter. The bouillon gives it a rich taste. Salt and pepper to taste and a little butter and milk and whip away.

Steamed green beans

I love the green beans this time of year. Fresh is best, but there are frozen, thin beans that you can get at the grocery store. Steam over boiling water until just tender. While steaming, I sprinkle the beans with French herbs. When finished, I sprinkle lightly with sea salt and toss them in 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. They taste fresh and melt in your mouth.

Since the children were little, we have often used the sparkling white or red grape juice with this meal.

Celebrate, enjoy and make a great tradition of a favorite meal.

Off to cook yet again!

Any fall favorites you are dreaming of making?

And tomorrow, I will tell you about something fun I am working on to mentor more mamas. Just wish I could have you all in my home. I love having friends over.......

Blessed are the Peacemakers Mentoring Monday

"

William-Adolophe Bouguereau

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God."

"He touched my side of the couch."

"She got a bigger piece of cake."

"It wasn't my fault. He started it."

Ad infinitum.

Daily, mamas are trying to accomplish big tasks, inspiring their children to love and serve God. Momently, children seem waiting to thwart her best efforts with a fuss, a quarrel, a complaint.

Today's Way may be the most important way to your children and their relationships the rest of their lives.

Way 18 We choose to be peacemakers, even when we feel like arguing.

The cancer of sin is that all of us are selfish and self-centered. We see things from our perspective, we want the biggest piece of cake for ourselves! So, quarreling and selfishness are natural to our sinful personalities.

I always said to my children, "It is natural to be selfish. It is supernatural to be loving and forgiving."

All of us need to understand that peacemaking comes from God. Peacemaking flows out of allowing the Holy Spirit control the moment.

Peacemaking is more than just saying words of, "Well, I forgive you," but holding a grudge in your heart. Peacemaking is giving it up all together. Reaching out to the unlovely one in his or her moment of grumpiness. It is extending grace to one who has hurt you. Leaving the hurt, the injustice in the file drawer of heaven and choosing to act and live in your heart in a loving way.

Feelings usually follow faith. In other words, you don't have to feel peaceful to sow peace. Usually once I have sown peace and humbly chosen not to argue back, then the feelings of love and gratefulness to live in peace after I have made the decision to obey.

Our children need to know that peace-making is a form of spiritual muscle, the strength to lay our lives down is quite honorable and something to aspire to--but that it is not dependent on feelings, but on practicing being a peacemaker. Doing what is right produces the "fruit of righteousness."

Being a peacemaker brings great foundations of influence to you and your children, as ministry requires all sorts of peacemaking. It seems there are a lot of immature and sinful people in the world of ministry. But our responsibility is to become peacemakers, so that the unity of the body of Christ can be a reflection of the supernatural love of Christ amongst us.

As a young married woman, I would fight for my ways, my rights, my point, because I thought it was important. Yet, over the years, laying down my life and my point has become a way of life. Who cares who is right? Most of what we argue about is petty, not world changing.

But to truly understand Christ and his unselfish life we must understand His humility. Peacemaking comes from a humble heart. God's will for us to to conform to the image of Christ--we must be peacemakers and rid ourselves of selfish, self-serving anger and petty aggravation if our children are to learn the humility of laying down their own rights.

"Although he existed in the form of God, he did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bondservant." Philippians 2:6-7

"Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends." John 15: 13

We cannot love the unlovely on our own. We must depend on the Holy Spirit to show us how, to fill us with His own love.

Memory verse:  But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits,unwavering, without hypocrisy.  And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

I love this verse. It gives us an action point--we sow peace! We make it our intention to plant it as a fundamental part of our lives, our conversations, our marriage, our parenting, our friendship.

How did God make peace with us? By laying down His life, even to death.

If you want your children to have friends, to work well with others, to have a good marriage, they must learn this important concept. It is the peacemakers who are blessed. Not those who can argue the best, or those who are always right, or the powerful--but the peacemakers shall be called sons of God.

When my children were harsh to one another or arguing, I would of course stop them right at that point, and work out their argument and make them apologize and pray and ask for forgiveness.

However, one of my friends added a practical application to this concept. She called it the peacemaking couch. She required her quarreling children to sit on a couch together. They were not allowed to get up from the couch until they had reached peace, talked it through, asked for forgiveness and prayed together. What a great pattern to learn for all relationships.

Just remember, even in your marriage, it is natural to argue, to demand your way, to foster criticism in your heart and thoughts. It is supernatural to make peace, to forgive, to take the initiative to end the separation. We cannot  say we love Christ and practice anger.

Justice is such a strong part of my personality and so often, I feel deeply, "It's not fair!" in my heart. Yet, it is only in laying down our rights, becoming humble, that we reflect the heart of Jesus. And in obeying Him, His sacrifice becomes of greater value to us.

Peace be with you today! The Lord is near!

And stay tuned tomorrow! I have a surprise in light of the concept of mentoring--a fun announcement!

Stalking Jonathan Edwards, one book leads to Another

Books, books, books--how they have held the life of our family together with inspiration, solace, humor, adventure and wisdom. I asked one of my favorite book friends, Brenda Nuland,  to share some of her book story, as I always know i can trust her to give me another good book to read when I need something to satisfy! Meanwhile, I am off, driving Sarah to Wheaton, and listening to a book on tape as we go. (The Help is our chosen one for the trip!)

The occasion was the evening before my son’s wedding last May as we enjoyed the rehearsal dinner with family and friends.  The young man seated next to me had been one of my son’s best friends since they were both very young and now he had flown in from Houston where he worked as a chemical engineer.

 Moments after being seated, he looked over at me and asked, “So, what have you been reading?”  The very question which causes my eyes to light up and this normally introverted mother to enter into a conversation lasting quite awhile.  This young man knew me well.  :)

I told him, “I’ve been stalking Jonathan Edwards”!   Seeing the quizzical look on his face, I new an explanation was in order.

For you see, I read often and many kinds of books but my favorite reading is when I start one book by and about a particular author and continue on until at least four or five books have been read.  If it is about a particular person, I say I’m “stalking him or her” in books.

In this case, it was one chapter in Noel Piper’s book Faithful Women and their Extraordinary God, which led to a biography of the Edward’s marriage, called Marriage to a Difficult Man, and then to a book about Edwards by John Piper, and then another biography called A Short Life of Jonathan Edwards by George Marsden.

As I told my young friend, I was setting aside my reading about Edwards for awhile but I planned to return eventually as I found him most interesting.  He had only heard of Jonathan Edwards through the sermon Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, which he had to read in high school.  So it was enjoyable to tell him more about the man I had been stalking through books for the previous year or so.

By the way, the young friend is Hindu and his family was originally from India.  His parents are associated with the University I live near.  I’ve never sat down and spelled out the Gospel but I have shared with him… books… our mutual love.

He now lives in Japan but has taken with him my copy of the autobiography of Ravi Zacharias called Walking from East to West, which we both enjoyed… and perhaps my Francis Schaeffer Trilogy that I gave him.

The historian, David McCullough, tells us in his book Brave Companions that he rarely knows who or what his next book will be about but the subject usually comes from the book he currently is working on.  A “jumping off” point so to speak that keeps his interests fresh from one research to another.

The same has happened with my reading quite often, just as it did with my interest in Jonathan Edwards.  For instance, I read the Jan Karon Mitford books years ago and through her recommendation, I learned about the Miss Read books.  That led to an interest in English novelists from somewhat the same era and friends recommended the delightful Elizabeth Goudge and D. E. Stevenson novels.  All of which began with the very first At Home in Mitford book.

When we were homechooling, my son (who has now graduated from college) decided to read books by Alexandre Dumas.  At first I was skeptical, this rather dyslexic son of mine who preferred easy books now wanted to read French Literature?

It wasn’t easy at first but as he read further in The Count of Monte Cristo, he became more familiar with the way Dumas wrote and went on to read many of his other books.  He knew I enjoyed reading multiple books by the same author at once and found in this case, it helped him read more difficult literature than he had been used to before.

I do encourage you to try this way of reading, even if you must read a favorite author’s books in between others, as I had to do before we finished our homeschooling years.  It’s a great way to get to know an author’s works very well.

Have I stalked anyone recently?

As far as fiction… I just finished re-reading four books by D. E. Stevenson, the series which begins with Vittoria Cottage (no, that is not a typo).  This summer I plan to re-read all the “Time” books by Madeleine L’Engle, beginning with A Wrinkle in Time.  They make for light summer reading, especially as I’ve read them already a couple times before.

As for reading about specific people, I have been able to acquire all five of Anne Morrow Lindbergh’s diaries through used bookstores online and library sales, beginning with Bring Me a Unicorn and ending with War Without and Within.  Most people know her best from Gift from the Sea but I read her diaries during my high school and college years and I’ve always wanted to read them again.

Someday I’d like to return to reading about the American Revolution.  I spent years reading books about that period of history and I have never lost my fascination with it.  It was that passion which first made me interested in stalking Jonathan Edwards.

 In between such reading there are numerous lighter novels, biographies, books about growing as a Christian, books about crafts and cooking and gardening, and more than one memoir written by cooks.

Now you understand why my young friend asked what I was reading…

Brenda Nuland, friend, mentor, inspirer and reader!

Coffeeteabooksandme

Thanks, sweet Brenda. Now I would like to know, what is your favorite book you have read for yourself this year? I am in need of some new books.

Comfort Food--the source of winning hearts for God!

"Mom, I think you won our hearts more by your cooking than anything else! You bribed us into loving God by giving us feasts when you wanted to teach us something important!"

This from my boys when they were home. God must have had lots of pleasure in mind when He created so many varieties of food with tastes, color and so much delight to be enjoyed. This summer, my close friend, Brandee and I have been working on an ebook together about all of the ways we used meals and snacks and tea times to have rousing discussions, inspired devotions and teachable moments--all around food! So I asked Brandee to share what some of her favorite memories came to her over food!

Growing up in California didn’t give way to many cold and rainy days. Although, some of my fondest days as a child revolved around the classic grilled cheese and Campbell’s tomato soup served up for lunch on a drizzly cold Saturday afternoon. All I ever remember is Kraft American cheese melting over the sides of my toasted wheat lunch bread after being carefully cut into two perfect triangles of warm happiness! A mug of tomato soup placed right beside for a pleasant sandwich dipping experience.

Since those days of Kraft and Campbell’s, my taste for a good old grilled cheese has not faded. But my taste has! Here is a few ways to give your grilled cheese and tomato soup a make over. Get creative! Who says you can’t mix it up?

Ingredients

1 roll of Ciabatta bread (or any variety of bread you enjoy)

2 Tbsp of pesto

1 - 2 slices of havarti cheese (or any variety of cheeses you enjoy)

2 slices ofturkey breast deli meat (Boar’s Head sun dried tomato or chipotle is amazing!)

2 slices of salami

Optional add ins:

sweet peppers, spinach, avocado, tomato, bacon, etc.

Directions

Using a Panini pan or press, cook your grilled cheese sandwiches with all your favorite fixings until the cheese is melted and you have those pretty grill lines on your bread!

For Tomato Soup you can still get pre-made soup from the store (I like Pacific Organic Creamy Tomato Soup in a box) or you can go for your favorite homemade variety and triple the recipe so that you can store single servings in the freezer for later!

What is your family's favorite meal or treat? Maybe we will include it in our book!