coffee

New Beginnings and God's reminder

It's been a while, so long that blogger has changed a lot lol, and I'm going to have to spend some time digging around figuring things out.  So long that I've started a new online business, we started homeschooling our children and we've added another darling baby to our family. So long that Ari is walking....yes!  walking!  

I forgot how nice it is to have a place where I can come and just write.  To write my words and thoughts and what God shares with me.  I have been lacking lately in my spiritual walk, and it's no ones fault but my own.  Caught up in so many unimportant things as well as just the craziness of life with littles.  It's so easy to put off time with God, or just say well, my time praying while I drive is good enough, not making it a point to spend time in his word or communicating with him other than when it's convenient for me.  hmmm.  yeah, that hasn't been working too well for me lately.  Makes me short tempered, impatient and sort of screamy.....not good when you have 6 littles under 12, a business to run, house to care for and hubby.... oh the poor hubby

so, yesterday, I got out a new coffee cup that I bought myself this week and made myself some coffee and dug out my trusty bible and turned to Philippians.  I had just made my munchkins their eggs for breakfast before we started homeschooling for the day and Ela, our 3 month old, was still sleeping.  I went out back after telling the kids I needed a few minutes and imploring the bigs to be nice to the litles etc, and prayed that God would show me what He had for me.  I had had one of "those" mornings with my babies where nothing was going right and I was having anxiety about the busy weekend we had planned.  I opened my eyes and found the wind had turned my pages to Ephesians 6....so I started reading....10-20 seemed especially fitting for the day, and really just the time in my life lately and I got one of those silly grins on my face....one of those where you know God has you pegged and is ready to roll when you are.  5 minutes is all I had before Ela woke and needed to eat and the kids needed me, but 5 minutes was all it took for God to adjust my perspective to where it needed to be and give me the reminder that He is there waiting for me to jump back into the game so to speak.  To help me not be screamy and trying to control every moment of my life, to not be quite as nervous with the unknown and things I can't change and the reminder to take joy in the little things.  It's amazing how quickly I can forget that part....

Ephesians 6:10-20

New International Version (NIV)

The Armor of God

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. ¹⁹ Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰ for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

do I trust...

Do I trust when Him when He says that He has the whole thing under control...

That He loves my children more than I do and knows whats best for them,

or that He is helping my husband become who he was always meant to be from the inside out so I don't need to be in control of every situation.... that when everything feels like it's spinning out of control that I truly can grab for dear life to the One that created me..... unique and individual and only one of me.

Do I truly believe it when I tell everyone that He can do anything.....that I trust whatever He has in store for me is better than anything I could ever aspire to dream?  

He is slowly teaching me that I can trust Him and the only way to find true rest is in Him.  

There's nothing that comes even close, even though I try to find other ways to rest, it's empty.... never fills the hole that I need to fill up so I can love others the way He says we all can. 

You can't love others if you don't have a well to draw from....if you let the well run dry then you start spitting dust and muck and then you're in trouble.  Let Him fill you up, Trust that He knows you best, knows exactly what you need, and can truly provide that for you if you only ask and are willing....

I'm writing along with the Gypsy Mama over at her place for Five Minute Fridays, won't you come check it out and perhaps even join us?

We write because we want to, not because we have to. We write for fun, for joy, for discovery.

On Fridays we just write without worrying if it’s just right or not.

Wonderings

I woke feeling that artistic pull mixed with the urge to delve into things I haven't made time for much lately...  it doesn't quite mesh well with the needs of my kiddo's and what we have planned for the day though.  I know God made me just the way I am with the pull towards playing in clay and painting and creating and wandering, but sometimes it's hard to not be selfish. 

My melancholy mood today tends toward the selfish while God asks me to find ways to nourish that part while caring for the blessings he's given me in my children and my husband. 

To be patient and wait for him, to know that He knows the yearning of my heart and soul and knows what is best.  To rest in Him.

That maybe what I need isn't to hole up somewhere and indulge my feeling of wanting to be alone as it may leave me hungry and empty still.  Maybe I need to bring out the messy stuff and create alongside my kiddos, or sing and the top of my lungs in the car driving to Him that created me.  Perhaps it's moving and talking with other people, getting to know them on a more personal basis, admiring the work He did in creating them and all their nuances. 

Taking a moment to slow down and truly appreciate what someone is saying to me instead of thinking about what I could be doing if I just had some "me" time. 

We made it to church this morning, late, but still.  One of the points was that "me" time is over-rated...your soul and mind are fed more by doing something for someone else, reaching outside of your comfort zone to touch someone's life, sacrificing for someone that you may not even know, taking the focus off of yourself.  I have to agree. 

There is a time and place for quiet communion, for enjoying the gifts He has given you, but you must dig deep to see what the motivation is.....

Color

Linking up with the Gypsy Mama, won't you join us?

Each week she has a five minute friday, gives a topic and then you just write whatever comes to mind, no editing, no worries about whether it sounds right...just write.

Here we go:

Color is what I love, from the brightest of blues to the warmest of yellows, the earthy browns to reds that span the spectrum of fire, cool greens to funky purples, from the light of white to the dark of black.

There is a color for every mood you have, no matter if your sad or happy, joyous or angry, or bubbling with excitement.  There's always a color that fits just perfectly.

I'm always amazed at how He created everything and that to study the colors he used can boggle anyone, as within each tone of color there are so many different shades and tonal differences.  Crazy to think that with the exception of black and white that every other color can be created from 3...red yellow and blue.  

Can you imagine life in black and white, I can't, I'm so grateful that He created such a wonderfully beautiful color palette and used them all in His creation.

Awesome Idea for Making Your own Fabric!

This is so fun, you have to go check it out Here!

pattern for herringbone knitting, a cowl in particular

I was moseying around in blogland and found this awesome blog you have to come check out...

it has all sorts of patterns for making wonderful knit things, Here's the one I like!

Need to make fabric flowers?

Here's a fantastic list of links for 40 different kinds!  

Happy Sewing!