Free Will and Our Children

 

Free will.

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a 100% guarantee that our children will all love and serve Jesus? We spend our entire lives pouring into them. We pray for them and with them, we read God’s Word in family devotions, we talk about His goodness and mercy, we teach them how to serve others, we warn them of the consequences of our choices and the devastating results of willful sin.

And so we automatically expect them to follow in our footsteps.

Until they don’t.

We look around and often see other parents who were not devoted to the Lord or the ways of God and somehow their children grow up and live victorious, overcoming lives in Christ and we are dumbfounded,

possibly bitter at God because we believe God promised that if we bring our children up in the Lord that they will not depart from it, not knowing that this would take away man’s free will if this was an absolute.

“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6

And then sometimes our children “turn out” and we inwardly pat ourselves on the back and congratulate ourselves for a job well done, forgetting that we only planted the seeds, others may have watered, but the LORD gave the increase.

We might even look down upon other parents who have a wayward child or maybe all their children have forsaken the narrow path for the broad road that leads to destruction.

We wonder what those parents did wrong to have children who choose the lust of the flesh and the pride of life and we secretly label the parents as failures or possibly hypocrites in their private lives, until it’s us who has the wayward child and we’ve done all we can to turn their hearts back to the Savior.

We plead,

we preach,

we warn,

we cry,

we pray,

we wait.

And as we wait we often blame ourselves. We look back and see all of our inconsistencies and would give just about anything to go back in time and do more, so much more.

More scripture

More time

More prayers

More consistency

More service

If only…..

The truth is, good parents or not, our children’s salvation does not hinge on us being good enough parents. And this is actually great news!

Yes, what we do as parents often makes a HUGE impact, but ultimately it is up to the Spirit of God to do the calling and your child making the ultimate choice on who they are going to spend the rest of their lives serving- self or God.

So let’s stop patting ourselves on the back for great kids or shaking our heads in disbelief at so-and-so’s kids, but folding our hands in prayer pleading for not only our children, but for those children around us who desperately need Jesus, remembering that our Father in heaven had the perfect environment and His children still chose sin and that even when we don’t see Him working, we can know He is!

He is a faithful Father and loves our children way more than we ever could and He still delivers!!

Christianity Begins In the Home

"Christianity begins in the home. If not there, it is nowhere. We may attend meetings, and sing hymns, and join devoutly in prayer. We may give money to the poor, and send missionaries and Bibles to the heathen. We may organize societies of every description for doing good. We may get up church fairs, and tea-parties and tableaux and picnics. We may, in short, devote all our time and all our means to doing good, and yet not be the true and earnest Christians we ought to be, after all.
If they cannot say of us in the family at home; “He, or she, is a Christian, we know it, we feel it,” –if home is not a better and happier place for our living in it, if there is not an influence going out from us, day by day, silently drawing those about us in the right direction, then it is time for us to stop where we are, and begin to examine our profession to the name of Christian.
Christianity. Christ-likeness. Is that ours? Are we possessed of that? Are we patient, kind, long-suffering, forbearing, seeking with all our hearts to do good, dreading with all our hearts to do evil? For if we are Christ’s we shall be like Him; and the first fruits, and the best fruits of our daily living will be in the better and happier lives of those who are about us day by day."
~ John Angell James in Golden Thoughts of Mother, Home and Heaven, edited by Gene Fedele.

Where are the Mothers?

Where are the mothers who work hard with their hands,
Building their homes, obeying God’s commands?

Where are the mothers who sing to their child,
Who brightens the day with only their smile?

Where are the mothers who pray for the nation,
Who lead all their children to the God of creation?

Where are the mothers who rock their babes to sleep,
Tending young hearts as our Shepherd does His sheep?

Where are the mothers who make home-cooked meals,
Who kisses the boo-boos, on bedsides she kneels?

Where are the mothers who raise Kingdom shakers,
Receiving each child as a gift from the Maker?

They are hidden in homes that the world doesn’t see,
Their worth- more than gold and rare as rubies.

By: Kristin Eason

Children are Blessings

Children are a blessing, or so we Christians claim,
But when others are expecting we give them looks of great disdain.

“Don’t you know what causes babies?”
“Don’t you know how much they cost?”
“Think of all your talents that will now be lost.”

Children are a blessing, yet we end fertility,
Fear and selfishness leads to our sterility.

We would rather have our freedoms and not give up our “rights“,
Instead of children being treasures, they are seen as parasites.

We lift our voice against abortion with self-righteous attitudes,
But refuse to bear more children, with no sense of their value.

We do everything we can to prevent another blessing,
While we are judging others, it is us who needs confessing.

Maybe if we valued children as a gift from our good Lord,
We wouldn’t see an inconvenience, but from Him a great reward.

The Lord we serve is mighty, He is God of all creation.
Mothers, we are called to raise up godly generations.

By: Kristin Eason

A Letter To My Unborn Son

                                                              
Dear Precious Child,

In about 1 more month I will finally have the opportunity to behold the face of a miracle that I was told by doctors I shouldn’t have due to medical conditions, but God… (notice those 2 small words- because they change everything) … but God… had other plans. God loves to show how strong and mighty He is and how man’s wisdom really isn’t wisdom at all. God healed me completely of my medical condition within the first month of pregnancy! The arrival of your birth humbles me, knowing that God has entrusted yet another child to my care- the responsibility to raise you to be a warrior for Jesus Christ in a world that is hostile to even the name of Jesus. Right now you are snuggled safely in my womb unaware of the cruel world just outside. A world that views children as disposable and burdens. Oh how I treasure feeling your tiny feet kicking around in my tummy, your tiny hiccups in the wee hours of the night- feelings I wouldn’t even be feeling if God in His providence had not intervened. During the birth of your sister Ellie your daddy and I had signed papers to give the doctor’s permission to tie off my only fallopian tube to prevent another pregnancy due to the warnings from the doctor’s that it would be life threatening to proceed with another caesarean, but to our surprise the surgeon was unable to perform the surgery. I knew at that very moment that I had just witnessed God’s hand intervene and that my womb would possibly hold another miracle from God. I’m telling you all of this because I want you to know that you were created for a purpose larger than anything you could ever imagine. Before a single cell of yours was in existence, before your heart began it’s first beat, before your lungs inhale it’s first breath- God had your days numbered and He takes great delight in you- His special creation created to bring Him honor and glory. You, my son are wanted and already loved beyond measure. In this world you will be hated, mocked, slandered, misunderstood, and taken for granted- but don’t ever forget that you, my son are a child of the God who created the heavens and the earth… you are royalty if you remain in Christ and be faithful to the end. Please remember that your identity isn’t found in your college degrees, your career, or what other‘s think of you, but is found only in Christ. I pray the chubby little feet that I get to kiss in about a month will walk the narrow path, the tiny hands that will soon wrap around my fingers will be hands of a prayer warrior, and the heart that will beat against my chest as I sing to you sweet lullabies will be a heart that is fully devoted to Christ with sincere love and devotion. While you have been entrusted in my care to love, nurture, and protect- I am fully aware that you belong to the Lord and that I am unable to succeed in this calling without the indwelling Spirit of Christ living through me to guide and instruct me.

　

Anxiously awaiting your arrival,
your mother, Kristin


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Led Astray- Are We Really Pro-Life

But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. 2 Corinthians 11:3 NASB


It saddens me to think about the views that christian women have that are down right unbiblical.  Just a few years ago I was one of those women who had been deceived in many areas of my life. 
One of the areas that we have been led astray is in the area of childbearing.  Even though I didn't say it, I believed that I was in charge of my body.  I decided when and if I would get pregnant by the use of birth control pills.  I considered tying my fallopian tubes in hopes of preventing future pregnancies.  I gladly signed the papers, but for some reason (God's hand), the surgeon was unable to tie my tubes due to an excess of scar tissue.  At the exact moment I heard the doctor inform me that he was unable to tie my tube, I knew that God had other plans.  Just last year I joined a ladies Bible study from Nancy Leigh DeMoss titled "Lies Women Believe and the Truth that Sets Us Free".  I don't remember her exact words, but she stated that God should be Lord over ALL of us- including our womb.  She also mentioned that it was God who opens and closes the womb.  It really got me thinking. I went straight to the Word of God (something I should have done in the first place) and I studied and found the following verses:


God blessed them; and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth." Genesis 1:28 NASB


How great it is for christian families that are devoted to Christ to embrace the blessing of children and to train them up in righteousness and in the ways of the Lord! Think of the impact we could make as christians if every christian woman allowed God to be Lord over their womb. For example- my parents were only supposed to have one child. I grew up and am on my 4th child.  If my kids grow up and have 4 kids that will be 16 great grandkids. If those 16 children grow up and have 4 children each that would  be 64 great, great grandkids for my parents.  That would be a total of 84 people that are alive within 100 years just because a couple decided to have 1 child. This total can greatly be affected because not all children will have 4 children. Some may have none, one, or 10.  This example shows the impact that christians can have on a society if we embraced motherhood as a blessing and each family raised their children up in the fear and wisdom of the Lord. 


Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate. Psalm 127:3-5


Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine Within your house, Your children like olive plants Around your table. Psalm 128:3


Even though we as christians are against abortion does NOT mean we are Pro-Life.  In fact, most christian women are pro-life just as long as they are not responsible for raising them.


We have more than a handful of reasons why we don't want any more children which include:


1. We can't afford another child. (Can you afford a new car, a cell phone plan, a manicure, to get your hair done, Sonic happy hour?)
This isn't meant to condemn, but to challenge you to think.  We need to think about the "why" behind our beliefs.  Does our beliefs come from the views of a heathen and feminist society or from the Word of God? 


2. I can't handle anymore... the kids I have already drives me crazy.
I hear this one all the time.  Most of the time, the kids are driving us crazy  because we see them as burdens instead of blessings.  We don't want the inconvience. We are selfish and want to spend our time on what we think is important. We haven't taken the time to discipline and instruct them in the ways of the Lord.  We will always reap what we sow. 


3.  I have one boy and one girl so I'm done.
Have you asked the Lord if you're family is complete? Most of the time we don't even think about asking Him. 


4.  I want to go back to my job and get the kids in school.
Is this what we base our life around? Our career?  The kids being in school so we don't have to be "burdened" with their company?  Again, I'm not doing this to condemn you. Several years ago I had this same reason for not wanting anymore children. I wanted to be done. I had my boy and my girl. Friends and family told me that it was the perfect time to stop having children.  I wanted to finish college and get the kids in school so I'd have time to do other "important " things.  I thought anyone who homeschooled had lost their mind.  Then one day God called ME to homeschool.  I've always thought God has a sense of humor, but this had gone a little to far. I only had one baby in the house and was on my way to an empty house during the day and some "me time".  But you know what, I obeyed and God changed my heart. He gave me the DESIRE to homeschool and He gave me the love for my children that I was lacking and revealed my selfish motives. 


God doesn't call all women to be mothers.  He may call you to have one, two, three, ten, or 19 like the Duggars. 
Some of you may have already had your tubes tied and made choices that you cannot take back.  God forgives.  All you have to do is repent and admit the choices you made in ignorance.  I could have easily been in your shoes.  Believe me, I tried to have my tubes tied. 


I look at my 3rd child and know that I'm looking at a miracle.  I already had a boy and a girl.  Why would I want anymore? She could have never been born and I would have never known what I was missing.  Her fine blonde hair, saucer blue eyes,  and a sweet little voice calling me "mama" I might have never known. Eliana (Ellie) Faith is my miracle baby.  The doctor told me after one child, "no more children", "protect your health", but God had other plans.  God has preserved my health. 
Today I am almost 12 weeks pregnant with my 4th child.  I am due in December. 
This child is also a miracle baby.  I signed the papers at my last c-section in hopes of tying my tubes. I couldn't handle anymore children. We couldn't afford anymore.  We were done.  I had always said I wanted all my kids before the age of 30.  I just turned 32.


Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21


Are we devoted to Christ in all areas?  Do we base our beliefs on the Word of God or do we let society determine our actions?  Let's be faithful to spend time studying His Word and seeking His will for our lives so we can be sure we're not led astray from Christ.

Linked up at Far Above Rubies

Top 15 Reasons Why My Kids Love Homeschool

Today I asked my kids why they love homeschool. I was pleased to hear their response! When we first began homeschool my daughter was against it, but has had a change of heart.  She even plans to homeschool her children if that is what God calls her to do! That makes this mama's heart happy.

                                                  Emma-10

                           
                                        Rylan- 8 , Ellie- 3

1. I don’t have as much homework.

2. I don’t have to sit at a desk all day.

3. I get to practice life skills such as cooking, etc.

4. I actually have time to practice my piano and guitar.

5. I get to work at my own pace in Math.

6. I don’t have as many distractions while I’m trying to do my work.

7. Sometimes we get to sleep in.

8. I get to be home with my family and enjoy spending time with them.

9. We get to do fun stuff!

10. I get to enjoy the outdoors more.

11. I can get up and get a drink when I want to.

12. I get to work ahead on my assignments for the week.

13. I have time to read more books.

14. We sometimes get to stay up late.

15. We get to read our Bibles every morning.

Keep Running

Exhausted, I stare down into the sink. It’s clogged. Has been for several weeks. When it does slowly drain it leaves a dark grimy film, and no matter how many times I scour it, the grime returns each time it’s clogged.
(Which is daily.)
I stare at the water; it isn’t going anywhere. I look up into the mirror, my face red from exertion, hair soaked with sweat. I just got off the treadmill.
The absurdity of it strikes me: I’m exhausted from running nowhere.
In so many ways.
Tears sting my eyes as my reflection blurs sideways. I had thought about it while running, had thought about how ridiculous it was to run, all alone, for forty minutes and not get anywhere.
Why God?
Why am I getting nowhere?
Everyday I get up. You do too. Everyday we obey God in the mundane details of life behind the scenes. We wipe counters, noses, and bottoms. We listen, labor, love–often alone. We wash, work, worship. And then we wake up the next morning and do it all again.

Read the entire article called, "When You Feel Like You Live On A Treadmill" HERE. So encouraging!
When you're exhausted and feel like you're going no where- Keep Running, beloved sister in Christ!

What Makes a Home Beautiful

Sometimes I forget and get caught up in the serving, cleaning, decorating, cooking, and homeschooling, that I need reminded of what really makes a home.
 I believe my family wants their mother over perfectly ordered cupboards or clean floors.  I am reminded daily that this home that I'm living in is temporary, it will never be perfect, nor does it supposed to be.  It makes me long for my heavenly home where beauty is found in the Presence of Jesus Christ, not  in lavish furniture or Martha Stewart decorating.  If we want our temporary dwellings to be beautiful, Jesus has to be found at the center of our homes.  I think the greatest compliment I have ever received was last year when a lady come over to my house.  As she walked around our home, tears filled her eyes.  She said, "Wow, you can just feel the presence of God in your home." She didn't compliment how clean my floors were  or how well I decorated, but that she felt God's presence.  It really caught me off guard. Never had I heard a reaction like that before.  What a great reminder to me of what really makes my home beautiful!
Over the years I've learned and hope to remember that:

The size of a house doesn't make a home.
A new living room set doesn't make a home.
Having a spotless house doesn't make a home.
Having a "new" house does not make a home.
Having beautiful decorations that look just like the glossy pages found in the House Beautiful magazine does not make a home.

"Home" happens when memories are made:
Playing board games around the kitchen table, sharing meals and holidays, bringing home a new baby, learning how to ride a bike, planting a garden as a family, backyard picnics, counting stars on the back deck, daddy's bedtime devotions, canning summer's bounty...

"Home" happens when first steps are taken, first words are spoken, bellies are filled with laughter.
"Home" happens when crumbs are left for tomorrow, fingerprints are a work of art, and blankets are made into castles.

But what makes your home truly beautiful is Jesus Himself.
His presence when hands are folded in prayer, voices  proclaiming God's goodness, mercy, forgiveness, and faithfulness.

Allowing Christ to be at the very center of your home.

Acknowledging that all our labor is in vain without Christ as the foundation.  Laying aside "important" things to choose the better by being still, seeking God, reading His Word, and crying out to Him in prayer. 

Realizing that we can do nothing whatsoever without Him.

Refusing to seek perfection in our earthly homes.

Seeking our heavenly home and keeping our eyes on the Prize- Jesus Himself!

Do you have a beautiful home?

Psalm 127:1
Unless the LORD builds the house,its builders labor in vain.

Proverbs 24:3-4
By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.

When Motherhood Feels to Hard

Kelly, from Generation Cedar has written an ebook called "When Motherhood Feels to Hard". Today ONLY the ebook is only $1.00! I got my copy and can't wait to start reading it! Kelly is such an encouragement to mothers and I know that you will be blessed by what she has to say in her book.



“Being a mom isn’t easy. Sure, the blessings of motherhood are incredible and miraculous, but motherhood can often be a lonely, exhausting, thankless, confusing, guilt-ridden journey. Kelly comes alongside mothers with her amazing ability to relate, and shares truths, quotes, stories, and LOVE to help make the journey a little less lonely. Need an injection of hope and vision for your heart? You’ll find it in this little treasure.” -Natalie Klejwa, Visionary Womanhood


Devotions, Advice & Renewal for When Motherhood Feels Too Hard is your daily shot in the arm. Keep it close!


The best part…for TODAY only, get it for $1! (offer ends Tuesday at 8 am, CST)

Also available in the KINDLE edition! ($1 offer does not apply)

$1 Today~$1 Today~$1 Today~$1 Today~$1 Today~$1 Today~$1

“This eBook is Kelly’s “cup of cold water” to mothers. We all need refreshment and encouragement when the hard days come, and Kelly has provided bite-sized (but meaty and thought-provoking) daily devotionals that urge us to take our calling as mothers seriously but remember at the same time that we are vessels of clay in need of God’s filling. These words are true whether you are the mother of one or the mother of ten! Thank you, Kelly, for sharing your beautiful insights into the calling of motherhood “from the trenches!” -Jennie Chancey, Ladies Against Feminism

Simplify

This article posted over at Raising Homemakers.
Simplify.
We've all heard the phrase "less is more", and I'm learning how true that phrase really is the more I simplify our home. Over the past year we have downgraded our cable to the most basic package (just for the news and weather), sold the Wii, and have cleaned out everything we don't use, have outgrown, and dont really need. Our children now have more books than toys and are much more happier. I have found that my children are less overwhelmed and alot more creative than ever since we've simplified. My daughter has been writing songs, poems, drawing more pictures, and even reading books (she's always hated reading). My son has been spending more time outside exploring and learning the different types of birds by observing their feathers. I no longer hear the phrase "I'm bored", now that we got rid of all the video games and most of the toys. My daughter actually works on her homeschooling for FUN! Simplifying our home has also made it alot easier to keep up with the house. Less stuff= less cleaning. I truly believe that God blesses us so we can be a blessing to others. There is no greater feeling than to be able to give our over abundance of things to someone who needs it. I think of the following verses when I think of simplifying-

Luke 12:15-21
15 And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.” 16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’
21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

Notice verse 18, I will build BIGGER barns....
Isn't that what we do? We build BIGGER houses so we can store all of our stuff. Our treasure is not here, but in Heaven.

In America we work 2 jobs, longer hours, just so we can have more things. We sacrifice our health, our families, our time, our very life for things. We dont even have the time to be able to even enjoy the stuff we're working for! What if we could be satisfied with what we already have? What if we chose to have grateful hearts instead of greedy hearts?

I challenge you to think of all the ways you can simplify. A less busy schedule, less stuff, less t.v. time, less computer time, and then spend more time with God and your family.
Let's learn to be content with what we have. (Hebrews 13:5)

I'll end with a few good quotes I found on simplifying-

Frugality is one of the most beautiful and joyful words in the English language, and yet one that we are culturally cut off from understanding and enjoying. The consumption society has made us feel that happiness lies in having things, and has failed to teach us the happiness of not having things. ~Elise Boulding

Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful. ~William Morris

The best things in life are nearest: Breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of right just before you. Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life's plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life.
~Robert Louis Stevenson

Cultivating Relationships

This post is shared over at A Wise Woman Builds Her Home.
If someone asked us what's most important to us we would probably answer RELATIONSHIPS- our relationship with the Lord, our children, our husband, friends, and family. If we truly believed relationships are so important to us then why is it that we spend so little time cultivating them? It's not hard for us to spend time on the internet, keeping an orderly home, watching t.v, playing sports, or serving our family in the mundane tasks of motherhood, but when it comes to spending QUALITY time with those we love best we usually fall short. Most families never have time to develop relationships because they are over-commited to sports, music lessons, ministry opportunities, entertainment,and every other activity that comes their way. We need to simplify our schedules and weed out anything that hinders us from spending quality time with the Lord and our families. Even good things can be bad for us in particular seasons of our life. We need to be intentional with our time and use our time to invest in what matters most- relationships.

Ways to Cultivate Relationships Within the Family:

1. Eat at least one meal together as a family.
2. Make time to really LISTEN to your children.
How often do you sit and actually make eye contact with your children- laying aside all other distractions? Your children will not share their hearts with you if they feel they dont have your undivided attention.
3. Make family devotions a priority.
Start small. Set aside a few days a week for family devotions until you work up to everyday. Spending even 15-20 minutes a day reading scripture, praying as a family, singing hymns will change your family. When we first started doing family devotions it feel awkward, but over time it feels awkward if we miss a night of devotions. Most people do devotions over the supper table or before bedtime. Do what works best for your own family. There are days that life is crazy and we skip our devotions. We are still a work in progress in this.
4. Turn off the t.v., cell phones, and internet.
Trust me, you can do it! *wink*
5. Make "date" nights.
Not only with your spouse, but with each child. Once a month write a day on the calendar to spend a few hours individually with each child doing something they choose to do. Go out for icecream, take a walk, play a game, be CREATIVE!

Cultivating relationships is hard work, but always worth it!

Those Who Have Young

He tends his flock like a shepherd:

He gathers the lambs in his arms

and carries them close to his heart;

he gently leads those that have young.

Isaiah 40:11

Most Important Goal in Motherhood

Each year we as mothers consider a list of goals we would like to accomplish during the course of the new year. Mine include spending more time in prayer, more time in the Word, more quality time with my children, and less time on the internet. The days of childhood is only but a season and we need to remember what the most important goal of motherhood really is- the salvation of our children's souls! A quote in a book called Feminine Appeal by Carolyn Mahaney puts it well:

What is the ultimate purpose of a phileo kind of love? It is nothing less than the salvation of our children's souls. This is the chief end of mothering. Our goal is not that our children be happy, fulfilled, and successful. Granted, we may desire these things for them. But our hightest objective should be that our children would repent from their sins, put their trust in Jesus Christ, and reflect the gospel to the world around them.

J.C. Ryle offered the following admonition:

This is the thought that should be uppermost on your mind in all you do for your children. In every step you take about them, in every plan, and scheme, and arrangement that concerns them, do not leave out that mighty question, "How will this affect their souls?"..... the chief end of their lives is the salvations of their souls.

While the salvation of our children is our highest aim, our tender love is not sufficient for this task. Only the Holy Spirit is able to reveal the truth of the gospel. However, our tender love can be an instrument in God's hands. I am convinced that no one has more potential to influence our children to receive and reflect the gospel than we do as mothers.

John Angell James in Female Piety illustrated this very point:

At a pastoral conference, held not long since, at which about one hundred and twenty American clergymen, united in the bonds of a common faith, were assembled, each was invited to state the human instrumentality to which, under the Divine blessing, he attributed a change of heart. How many of these, think you, gave honour of it to their mother? Of one hundred and twenty, about one hundred! Here then are facts, which are only selected from myriads of others, to prove a mother's power, and to demonstrate at the same time her responsibility.

What greater privilege could we possibly have in all the world than to lead our children to the Lord? Let us not for one moment underestimate the power of a tender love.

One woman expresses the enormous responsibility this way:

I seldom feel lilke much of an adventurer- standing in the kitchen, pouring cereal into bowls, refilling them, handing out paper towels when the inevitable cry comes: "Uh oh. I spilled." But sometimes at night the though will strike me: There are three small people here, breathing sweetly in their beds, whose lives are for the moment in our hands. I might as well be at the controls of a moon shot, the mission is so grave and vast.

God Give Us Homes

Homes where the Bible is honored and taught;

Homes with the Spirit of Christ in their thought;

Homes that a likeness to heaven have caught.

God give us homes!

God give us homes!

Homes with the father in preist-like employ;

Homes that are bright with a far-reaching joy;

Homes where no world-stain shall come to annoy.

God give us homes!

God give us homes!

Homes where the mother is queen-like in love;

Ruled in the fear of the Savior above;

Homes that to youth most inspiring shall prove.

God give us homes!

God give us homes!

Homes with the children to brighten the hours;

Budding and blooming like beautiful flowers;

Places of sunshine-sweet, sanctified bowers.

God give us homes!

By J.R. Clements

Childrearing is Soulwinning . . . Or Not

Posted By Tiffany on October 7, 2010

Modern-day Christian parents can’t figure out why their children are turning away from God in droves and rejecting the faith they were raised with, and it’s not uncommon to hear older couples in churches speak with regret about their children “who aren’t following the Lord.” Bewilderment and confusion surrounds their thinking as they try to grasp how their children could have walked away when they had tried so hard to “raise them right.”

It’s undeniable at this point that Christianity is losing its youth. Although many fall away from faith during high school, the college-aged population is where Christianity is being hit the hardest.

When Christian couples set out to raise a family today, they are well aware of these statistics, but they begin their journey with the best of intentions of raising their one to two children up as godly Christians, hopeful that their children will be an exception. They may even consciously intend on making choices that they believe will help their children remain faithful and moral–taking them to church, restricting what movies they can see, and heavily monitoring and overseeing their interaction with other “worldly” children. Every Sunday morning, they faithfully bring their child to Sunday school, and every Wednesday night, their child is in attendance at Awanas or the other church children’s program. For years, they are involved in every possible church activity, but as the child grows older, the parents wonder why their child isn’t making the faith his own or doing things of his own initiative. By the end of high school or college, the parent is tired of the battles. They don’t want to fight and drag their children to the youth group; they are tired of arguing about modest clothing choices, CDs, movies, boyfriends, and everything else. They look around at the other children in the church and shrug their shoulders. It’s just hard to raise kids in this culture, and they did their best. Apparently, they were just given a child that would not be a Christian. They are saddened and downcast, thinking that they were helpless victims and couldn’t have done anything better.



So said the older mother across from me, a year ago, as we sat in the church nursery rocking babies. She told me her story: how her son had walked away from the Lord, was living with his girlfriend, and was about to have a baby. She talked about how she had always brought him to church and youth group, but she ended with a shrug of her shoulders, saying, “But we tried to raise him right, he just wouldn’t listen. I don’t know what else we could have done.”



I continued to rock the baby asleep in my arms, as she went on, “But your parents, they’re so lucky to have children like you two. Such good examples, ministering and going to a Bible college. Your parents must be so happy!”



I smiled and replied something along the lines of, “Yes, my parents did an excellent job of raising us. The tireless effort my mom put into homeschooling us has really shaped us into who we are today.”



The mother’s tone changed slightly and she replied, “I don’t know how she did it! I would have killed my two kids, I tell you that! Your mother was so lucky to have such good, patient, and quiet kids.”



She continued, “You don’t intend on doing that with your children, do you?”



“Absolutely.” I replied. “It is one of the things I look forward to the most!”



At this, shock and slight repulsion started to show on her face, and she went on to try to convince me why I should work and put my children into public school. Although I tried to present my reasoning, she was incapable of understanding where I was coming from, and she ended our conversation by saying, “Well, you’re young. You might change your mind once you have kids and have to put up with it every day!”



When I walked away from the nursery that day, my mind was just completely boggled by this interaction. Though this woman had admired the results of the training we had received at home from our parents, she failed to see the role that it played in shaping children into mature and God-loving individuals. You see, she may have thought my parents were “lucky,” as in “You must have hit the lottery jackpot and gotten two great kids!” but the truth of the matter was that my parents had put in tireless effort into shaping us into who we were. They were not “lucky,” they were obedient to God’s call to train up your child in the way they should go.



My parents did not simply take us to church and hope that Sunday school and sermons would bring us to the Father. They read us the Word, had nightly devotions, prayed and conversed with us about all of life from a Biblical viewpoint. They also led by example, and showed us what it meant to minister, love, forgive, and put God before all else.



Christian parents who trust in church ministry programs will be disappointed. There is only so much that a church can do for a child, and in the end, it was never the church who had responsibility for the child in the first place. God’s Word calls parents to train up their children, and God gives the responsibility for shaping the child’s worldview squarely into a parent’s hands.



“These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.” ~Deuteronomy 6:6-9



Notice that this verse speaks of the home having an atmosphere of godly instruction. It is all good and well to have Scripture training at church, but if the home is not the foundation of the child’s Scripture learning, results are doubtful, and the parent is not fulfilling his God-given responsibility.

In a culture where getting a “Christian” child out of the child-rearing experience appears to be “hit or miss,” it is understandable why people react even more harshly to me when I say anything about wanting a big family. To them, this is merely my way of trying to be more spiritual or a “supermom,” while increasing the chance that I will bring up children who walk away from the Lord.



But, let me tell you, I am not setting my mind on this because I think there is anything about having babies that is holy or righteous in and of itself, or because I hope to one day be viewed as “supermom.” Having children for the wrong reasons can be done with any family size in mind. Even Christian parents who have two kids because it’s “the next life step” can be wrongly going about the idea of child-rearing.



Any parent who brings a child into this world ought to do so with fear and trembling and prayer and supplication before the Lord, because a new soul–one that will live eternally–has irrevocably been created, and that soul will end up one of two places. If Christian parents truly believe what they claim to about eternity and Heaven and Hell, than I urge them to think more carefully about what choices they will make in raising their children.



It may not mean homeschooling–though I think public schooling your child will only increase those exhausting battles, and is comparable to swimming upstream–but it most certainly will mean providing a foundation of truth and Gospel learning at home, and not merely Sunday school or church camps.



May God help us to bring up godly children who will glorify Him with their lives, whether we are parents now or will be in the future!

This article orignally appeared on Tiffany’s blog, True Femininity

Making Time For What Really Matters

I find that it’s hard for me to sit and enjoy life with my children when my housework isn’t done. I’m learning  that housework is never done and how important it is for me to spend quality time with each of my children. I don’t know why I struggle so much with the desire to keep busy. I need to learn that it’s o.k. if there are sticky fingerprints all over our front door and cheerios on the floor. Last night my 9 year old daughter asked if me and her could have our “girls night”. (Girls night is when me and my daughter spend an hour or so just talking or doing something fun, just the two of us.)I told her I had to much to do and that I didn’t have time. What I was really telling her was that my housework was more important than spending time with her. I realize how quickly my children are growing up, but still find myself saying “not right now”, “maybe tomorrow”, “I don’t have the time”. Starting now with God’s help I am going to:

take that walk with my family in the cool of the evening,

play that scrabble game my daughter has been wanting me to play,

Read that book to my children,

Decorate those fall cookies with my kids and not worry about the mess.

I’m going to spend my time on things that really matter- building memories with my children and enjoying God’s many blessings. Housework can wait because... I don't have the time, I'm busy making memories.

Children Keeping You Out of the Ministry?

Are you a mother who often feels like you're not serving God unless you are always busy serving in the church? Do you ever wish that you were involved in "true" ministry?  Do you feel guilty for not "doing enough" for God? This was me and is still me at times. I love Jesus and want more than anything to serve Him in everything I do.  I am so thankful I found the blog post below to help remind me of the fact that raising my children IS ministry.


If this sounds like you or someone you know, head over to Walking with Sarah and read Rhonda Devine's post titled, "Children Keeping You Out of the Ministry?" I pray that it will bless you as it did me.

Women are called to manage their homes (1 Tim. 5:14) ; this pleases God and keeps the adversary from speaking reproachfully. Women who make homes keep God’s word from being blasphemed (Titus 2:4). The way I understand this is that a home that is well managed is a positive glory; a home in shambles is a poor testimony. But this is not to lay a guilt trip on women; rather, it should inspire us to view our seemingly mundane tasks as a truly worthy calling that God uses to transform the world. We often think of homekeeping as drudgery. But God says it silences our enemies. That is something potent. God always does things backwards from what we think. This requires wisdom.

Nancy Wilson of Femina

Your good works ought to first be done at home--ministering to the needs of your family. Then if God gives you time, opportunity, available resources or in a different season of life--to take those gifts and those abilities and expand them, as we'll see the Proverbs 31 woman does, outside of your own home.

Nancy DeMoss

We have experienced substantial joys in professional ministry, but nothing is quite so fulfilling as the personal joy of seeing family friends come to faith… The family is at the very heart of authentic ministry and evangelism. As ministry professionals, we hold the firm conviction that family is ministry and that the most effective spread of the gospel occurs through family. We are also convinced that we were never more effective in evangelism than when we had children at home.

Kent and Barbara Hughes
Disciplines of a Godly Family, Crossway, 2004, p. 86- 87

Biblical Motherhood

Christian motherhood means dedicating your entire life in service of others. It means standing beside your husband, following him, and investing in the lives of children whom you hope will both survive you and surpass you. It means forgoing present satisfaction for eternal rewards. It means investing in the lives of others who may never fully appreciate your sacrifice or comprehend the depth of your love. And it means doing all these things, not because you will receive the praise of man — for you will not — but because God made you to be a woman and a mother, and there is great contentment in that biblical calling.

In 1950, the great Scottish American preacher Peter Marshall stood before the United States Senate and he explained it this way:

The modern challenge to motherhood is the eternal challenge — that of being a godly woman. The very phrase sounds strange in our ears. We never hear it now. We hear about every other kind of women — beautiful women, smart women, sophisticated women, career woman, talented women, divorced women, but so seldom do we hear of a godly woman — or of a godly man either, for that matter.
I believe women come nearer fulfilling their God-given function in the home than anywhere else. It is a much nobler thing to be a good wife than to be Miss America. It is a greater achievement to establish a Christian home than it is to produce a second-rate novel filled with filth. It is a far, far better thing in the realm of morals to be old-fashioned than to be ultramodern. The world has enough women who know how to hold their cocktails, who have lost all their illusions and their faith. The world has enough women who know how to be smart. It needs women who are willing to be simple. The world has enough women who know how to be brilliant. It needs some who will be brave. The world has enough women who are popular. It needs more who are pure. We need women, and men, too, who would rather be morally right that socially correct.

These quotes were found in a wonderful article called The Rise and Fall of Motherhood in America.

Characteristics of a Meek and Quiet Spirit

Zephaniah 2:3
Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD'S anger.

Colossians 3:12
Therefore, as God's chosen ones, holy and loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.

1 Timothy 6:11
But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

We are to seek meekness, put on meekness, and pursue meekness.  This is a wonderful article below that lists some of the characteristics of a meek and quiet spirit.  I fall so short of having this type of a spirit and realize that I can't develop these characteristics on my own.  Only through abiding in Christ and His grace can I ever manifest any of these characteristics mentioned below.  Meekness isn't a word we use very often in our society.  Society teaches that we are to be bold, loud, outspoken, opinionated,and to stand up for our "rights" as women.  Being submissive, having a meek and quiet spirit is looked down upon by society, but is highly valued by God. 




The meek will be at rest in the storms of life …

(Matthew 11:28–30; Psalm 37:7; Hebrews 4:1–11)

The fretful will be fearful in the storms of life …

(Mark 4:35–41; Jeremiah 50:6)



The meek will react to circumstances with peaceful trust …

(Isaiah 26:3–4)

The fretful will attempt to manipulate individuals or circumstances …

(James 4:1–3; Proverbs 7:21)



The meek will make life choices based on Scriptural principles …

(Psalm 119:105)

The fretful will make life choices based on emotions or fleeting passions of the moment …

(James 3:13–18; Proverbs 19:16)



The meek woman’s confidence is in the security of the truths of Scripture and the faithfulness of God …

(Proverbs 3:26, 14:26; Psalm 119:165; Jeremiah 17:7–8)

The fretful woman’s trust is in her own abilities and power to control others and details …

(Proverbs 12:15, 14:12, 16:25; Jeremiah 18:12)







“Meekness is the silent submission of the soul to the 'providence' of God concerning us.”

—Matthew Henry



The meek woman finds her worth and value in knowing who she is in Christ …

(Ephesians 1:3–8)

The fretful woman finds her worth and value in her own accomplishments and what others think of her …

(Psalm 49:11–20; Proverbs 11:28, 16:18–19, 29:25)




The meek woman finds her strength of character in Christ …

(Ephesians 5:8–11)

The fretful woman finds her strength of character in her own personality traits …

(Proverbs 28:26)


Meekness restrains the stormy tempest of our emotions and passions by commanding them“peace be still” …

(Proverbs 16:32)

Fretting fuels the stormy tempest by venting passions and emotions …

(Psalm 37:8; Proverbs 14:29–30, 29:11, 22)



Meekness is the strength and courage to battle and overcome our own sinful anger and passions, by holding fast to peace—through trusting in the providence of Almighty God …

(Romans 12:18–19; Colossians 3:1–17; 1 Peter 4:19)

The fretful woman is too fearful and weak to trust God,but allows her sinful emotions and passions to rule …

(Proverbs 28:25)


“The work and office of meekness is to enable us to govern our own anger when at anytime we are provoked, and patiently bear out the anger of others that it may not be a provocation to us.”

—Matthew Henry



Meekness is constancy and steady composure in spirit and frame of mind, reflecting the consistent stability of our Lord, who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

(Psalm 102:25–27; Ephesians 4:13–15; 1 Peter 3:13–16; Hebrews 13:8)

The fretful woman is always on a roller-coaster ride of emotions, continually up and down …the only thing consistent about her is that you never know what mood to expect.

(Proverbs 21:9, 19, 25:24)



Meekness does not allow the mind to run away with vain imaginations and to dwell on thoughts which inflame volatile emotions and passions …

(2 Corinthians 10:3–5; Philippians 4:8–9)

The rash woman is filled with suspicions, doubts, and assumptions based entirely on emotion, and allows these imaginations to determine the course of action …
(3 John 9–10)



The meek woman does not avoid or run from controversy, but walks through necessary confrontations under the control of the Holy Spirit …

(Galatians 6:1–2; Proverbs 27:5)

The rash woman enters controversy hastily and recklessly …

(Proverbs 10:19, 13:3, 14:16–17, 29:20)




The meek woman is at peace because she is master over her passions …

(Proverbs 17:27, 25:28, 29:11)

The rash woman is fretful because she is mastered by her passions …

(Psalm 37:1–8; Romans 6:16; James 1:14–17)




“It is better by silence to yield to our brother, who is, or has been, or may be, our friend, than by angry speaking to yield to the devil, who has been, and is, and ever will be , our sworn enemy.”

—Matthew Henry




The meek woman speaks truth in love, the law of kindness is on her lips …

(Proverbs 31:26, 16:24; Ephesians 4:1–2, 29)

The rash woman speaks harshly, and is not truly concerned for the listener’s feelings …

(Proverbs 12:18, 16:27; James 3:6–12)




The meek woman patiently waits to hear the whole matter before reacting …

(Proverbs 15:28)

The rash woman reacts emotionally before giving time to pause and consider …

(Proverbs 15:18, 18:13)



The meek woman is not unemotional, but her emotions are ruled by the Spirit of God …

(Proverbs 14:30, 31:25; Galatians 5:22–26; Philippians 4:4–7)

The fretful woman is ruled by circumstances, emotions, and passions …

(Proverbs 29:22; Psalm 37:1–8)


“To study the art of quietness is to take pains with ourselves, to work upon our own hearts the principles, rules, and laws of meekness; and to furnish ourselves with such considerations as tend to the quieting of the spirit in the midst of the greatest provocations.”

—Matthew Henry


The meek woman does not entertain suspicions or assume the worst concerning others—but reacts based on first-hand knowledge …

(Proverbs 18:13, 17)

The rash woman imagines and assumes the worst, then she reacts accordingly …

(1 Timothy 4:7, 5:13)


The meek woman is not easily offended …

(Proverbs 19:11; Romans 14:19, 1 Corinthians 13:4–7)

The fretful woman is easily offended …

(Romans 12:3, 16)


The meek woman forgives quickly …

(Matthew 5:23–25; Ephesians 4:26–27, 31–32)

The fretful woman holds onto offenses and hurts, becoming bitter …

(Hebrews 12:14–15)


Meekness demonstrates gracious restraint. It responds to accusations or criticism with restraint rooted in humility, by recognizing that without God’s grace, I am capable of far worse than what I am being accused.

(1 Peter 3:8–9)



Rashness seeks vengeance. It responds to accusations or criticism with the wrath of a haughty heart.

(Romans 12:14–19)




“If God should be as angry with me for every provocation as I am with those about me, what would become of me?”

—Matthew Henry


The meek woman is still and knows that He is God; therefore she trusts in Him and is at peace …

(Psalm 46:10; Proverbs 18:10, 30:5)

The fretful woman runs through life at a frantic pace, not stopping long enough to sit still and listen to the Master’s voice …

(Luke 10:38–42)

“It is 'in the sight of God of great price.' It is really a precious grace, for it is so in the sight of God … Herein we should every one labor and this we should be ambitious of, as of the greatest honor … it is a thing attainable through the Mediator from whom we have received instruction how to walk so as to please him. We must walk with meekness and quietness of spirit, for this is 'in the sight of God of great price.' Therefore this mark of honor is, in a special measure, put upon the grace of meekness, because it is commonly despised and looked upon with contempt by the children of the world … meekness and quietness of spirit is a very excellent grace which we should every one of us put on and be adorned with.”

— Matthew Henry



© Revive Our Hearts. Written by Kimberly Wagner. Used with permission. www.ReviveOurHearts.com Info@ReviveOurHearts.com

Meekness is not to be confused with weakness: the meek are not simply submissive because they lack the resources to be anything else. Meekness is quite compatible with great strength and ability as humans measure strength, but whatever strength or weakness the meek person has is accompanied by humility and a genuine dependence on God. True meekness may be a quality of the strong, those who could assert themselves but choose not to do so.

Leon Morris
Matthew, Eerdmans, 1992, p. 98.

Article shared on the Raising Homemakers Link Up.