Thursday Thoughts with Theresa: How to Train our Boys to be Men at Four

"Don't follow me!" is the phrase my four­year­old boy is uttering toward his nearly three­year­old sister, over the past few days and I want him to see differently.

We don't always know why our children determine to be unkind or even cruel to one another. Who knows where they pick up such thoughts and actions and then mimic them. Or more essential the question, what is at the heart of the behavior?

As parents, what we know is that we are all selfish by nature and the training of a child is constant in re­framing that mindset and molding their heart toward kindness, consideration and compassion.

Out of mere helplessness or frustration, we might send our child to a "time­out" for speaking unkind. And although it might stop the behavior, it doesn't get to the heart of our goal for our child to display kindness, consideration and compassion for others. These traits come from the overflow of the heart.

And so it takes thought, prayer, investment and plain ole' creativity
to get to the heart of a child.

This morning, I give my boy a little pep­talk on being kind to his sister and he seems to understand. However, as the morning settles into routine, he starts in on telling his sister not to follow him or play with him again.

So I walk over to him and remind him, "Remember our talk this morning?" 

A little grimace and a humph. I continue.

"I need you to treat your sister like she is a gift from God to our family because, do you know what? When you let her follow you, sit with you and play with you, you practice what it takes to be a good man, a good husband and a good daddy when you grow up."

His little head makes the slightest tilt, like his inner­ear instantly perks up. 

And then they play.

And they play all day without any further correction.

I can't tell you exactly why, but I have a hunch that in spite of our selfishness, there is this innate longing to be all that we were created to be. This is the heart of the child that we have the great responsibility and privilege to invest in, till and water, as parents.

It's a lot of these little moments that show our boys what we expect of them and what we believe for them. It may not be the same words or circumstances for every child. There is no formula.

It's just finding ways to give them a vision for their future. 

- Theresa Miller, MOPS Mom

Theresa is a wife and mother of four children (3, 5, 7, and 9), who are embarking on their first year of homeschooling. Theresa has been involved in Sheridan MOPS for the last 9 ½ years, serving in multiple leadership positions, including Day MOPS Coordinator in 2007-2008. She took one year off, then started the Sheridan Evening MOPS group in September 2009. Theresa has published an article with MOPS International MOMSnext Ezine, in addition to other on-line publications. You can find Theresa encouraging mothers on her blog, Heavenly Glimpses.

Hope for a Global Mess

Hey ladies -

We had a great time today listening to Emily Betzler's testimony regarding her family's journey into global awareness and consumer impact. 

Here's the link for Emily's blog: Bought Beautifully, if you're interested in doing further reading and/or needing some more great inspiration and ideas.

Bought.Beautifully is also on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/BoughtBeautifully

I'll leave you with this great scripture Becky Rosty reminded us of this morning:

Philippians 4:11b-13 (ESV)

I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. 12 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

God has blessed us all with gifts, concerns and life. May you all find the perfect balance of gratefulness, concern, compassion and love in your lives. This looks different from person to person and day to day. May the God of the Universe bless you today where you are so that someday, some way, you may also turn and bless.

Thanks again, Emily, for your time and testimony!

Meeting Today!

Get yourselves and your little ones ready to meet us for another great gathering. We're looking forward to seeing you and getting to know you a little bit better! See y'all around 9.

Tuesday Treasure

1 Samuel 2:8

He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap, to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s, and on them he has set the world.

Christa Tietjen Photography

Meeting This Wednesday

We have a MOPS meeting this week!

Please join us for breakfast, fellowship & a little food-for-thought regarding small things we can do to make a difference in the world.

Mom, you matter! We can't wait to see you again and help you feel nourished, connected and inspired.

Wednesday, February 26th 9:00 - 11:00 AM

"Hope for a Global Mess: Awareness Day"

Breakfast, Speakers, Sharing

Beauty Regardless

Hey y'all -

Some of you may check your email and look weekly at mops.org. Or perhaps you make it a habit to check their blog periodically… I find I forget often. But, I did read an excellent article there this week about choosing beauty regardless of circumstance. It's amazing. I'm going to let it speak for itself & be our inspiration today. Please check it out!

http://www.mops.org/how-to-be-beautiful-no-matter-the-day

Bethany

The Art of Giving and Gleaning (Part 2)

This post is part 2 in a 4 part series on Giving and Gleaning. Today we will focus on practical ways to give our “extra” cash:

Probably the most recognizable way to give-as-you-go is to give financially.

This is not to be confused with tithing. God established tithing as a way to give specifically to God’s purposes through an ordained ministry (the temple/tabernacle in the Old Testament; the Church in the New Testament).

Giving so others can glean is simply an act of cheerful generosity. This requires a hard working spirit, like the woman of Proverbs 31:

“She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.” Proverbs 31:17, 20

Hint: carry dollar bills and coins with you so you can do the following more effectively.

         ▪        Put your change in the “donate” box at the grocery store or restaurant. (I personally get excited about Wendy’s donation box for adoption for children in Foster care).

         ▪        Tip your coffee barista or waitress well.

         ▪        Teach your kids the Give-as-you-go concept by packing an extra “goody” in their lunch box. Encourage your kids to discretely give it to someone who might not always have the best lunches.

         ▪        Pay for the groceries or coffee for the person in line behind you.

         ▪        Get the whole family involved! Put your change in a “change-the-world-jar” at home. Then send to a struggling missionary or orphanage in your area.

         ▪        Pay for somebody’s washer/dryer at the laundromat.

         ▪        Give away some of your clothes. (At the MOPs clothing exchange, for instance!) Luke 3:11 says “And he would answer and say to them, ‘The man who has two tunics is to share with him who has none; and he who has food is to do likewise.’”

Return soon for tips on giving our time throughout the day.

Do you have a suggestion on how to give as you go? Comment below!

- Becky Rosty, MOPS Mom

originally posted at http://beckyrosty.wordpress.com/2013/10/29/give-as-you-go-cash/ used by permission

Becky Rosty leads a college ministry with her husband in the shadow of the Big Horn mountains of Wyoming. She loves sunshine and s'mores and feels a personal responsibility to bring both to the people in her life.

Becky is also the future-mama to 3: twins due in July 2014, and a precious gift from South Africa, to arrive in 2015. For now she enjoys playing with her mini-golden doodle, Mr. Darcy.

She delights in her identity as a failure saved by Jesus' grace. She is also a singer/songwriter, hiker, home-maker, trip-taker, and scone-baker.

Becky has written several original Bible-studies and is passionate about speaking truth in love to young women. To book Becky for speaking engagements, contact via email: beckyrosty@gmail.com.

Thursday Thoughts With Theresa: 15 Minutes of Sight

Days before, family had come to town to visit him–to say their good­byes, as he laid there dying. His long lanky shriveled body lay under the blankets of his twin electronic bed. He refused food, water or an I.V. for nourishment. He said he was ready. That seemed to give others a sense of peace, but not me. Ready? What does that mean for a man of little faith?

I tried to ignore it and to accept that this was the cycle of life and it was just his time. I told myself that his own sons knew better than I–the hormonal granddaughter­in­law, growing a baby in her womb, who had only met this man a few years before. I hadn't been very comfortable around the man either, the man who grumbled over matters rather than offering his wisdom and blessing.

I tried but days later, one Saturday morning, I felt overwhelmingly compelled to go. I gave every excuse under the sun not to. Why would I go without my husband and small child? What would I say? It was a completely foreign thought and well out of my comfort zone.
 And so I decided to go exercise instead–to try to rationalize those thoughts away.

Yet when I got to the gym, I could not so much as run in place without feeling the need to get somewhere. I was antsy. I was driven. I was compelled to go.

Within five minutes of arriving at the gym, I was on my way out the door again and driving to the nursing home that housed my grandfather­in­law.

I walked in. He look surprised. He could not speak well anymore, dying of dehydration. I can't remember my words exactly, but I remember asking how he was and if he was ready. He nodded his head, yes.

I felt a flood coming and so I quickly asked if he believed. He said, just above a whisper, "Sort of."

I remember that wasn't enough for me and he attempted to change the subject with the little he could utter and asked if his son, my father­in­law, made it off okay, back home...but the rain poured just then and I said I was sorry and I brought the topic right back to where I had left off–that I needed him to believe because I wanted to see him again in heaven. I sniffled and caught my breath.

And I felt an overwhelming amount of love for the man laying there. I wiped my tears and said I wanted to hold his hand, but I was fighting a cold that I didn't want to give him.

He held his hand out anyway, so I took his warm hand in mine and I didn't know what to say next so I didn't say anything. I just held his hand. And then I said I should probably go.

He looked me in the eye and whispered, "Thank you."

I smiled and I didn't want to leave, but I knew it was time. And so I released his hand and he whispered again, "Thank you."

I left his room and went straight to the nurses station and asked for some hand sanitizer because I was fighting a cold. Then I walked right back to his room. He looked surprised.

I took his hand, the hand I had held, and rubbed the sanitizer over it. Then he lifted his other hand and so I rubbed sanitizer on that hand, too. I looked at him again and said good­bye.

He looked me in the eye and most sincerely whispered for the third time, "Thank you."
 I walked away, then stopped at the door, turned and waved. He lifted a hand and waved back. Then I went home, walked straight into my husband's arms and wept.
 I told him where I had been and I wept because I didn't feel like I had done enough. 
He said I did more than I knew.

I had prayed on my way to the nursing home that I would see my husband's grandfather through Jesus' eyes and not my own. And what I saw had little to do with physical eyes at all. When I left, I felt inseparable. Our family was heading out of town the next day and I didn't want to go. I didn't want to miss a day to be there with him.

That was the last day I saw him and I am told, the last day he had been able to utter any words.

He died the following Tuesday night and I don't know what happened between Saturday and Tuesday, but I have a hunch that the man I saw in those fifteen minutes saw for the first time, a glimmer of light.

I'll never know for sure this side of heaven if my offering was enough, but it wasn't up to me to do or be enough. It was up to me to simply show up. And the rest, up to Jesus.

It's Jesus who makes the blind see and the lost found. 
And it's Jesus who makes our small offerings–even fifteen minutes worth–enough.

- Theresa Miller, MOPS Mom

Theresa is a wife and mother of four children (3, 5, 7, and 9), who are embarking on their first year of homeschooling. Theresa has been involved in Sheridan MOPS for the last 9 ½ years, serving in multiple leadership positions, including Day MOPS Coordinator in 2007-2008. She took one year off, then started the Sheridan Evening MOPS group in September 2009. Theresa has published an article with MOPS International MOMSnext Ezine, in addition to other on-line publications. You can find Theresa encouraging mothers on her blog, Heavenly Glimpses.

The Art of Giving and Gleaning

Spring is upon us… or at least it is coming soon. With the change in weather, we are all itching to get some cleaning, purging, and organizing done. 

On Wednesday morning, February 26th, MOPS will help us do just that with a clothing exchange! Bring your gently used children’s clothes to share and exchange for “new to you” clothes for your growing kids!

This exchange reminds me of the Biblical concept of gleaning.

According to Merriam-Webster, to glean is:

to gather grain or other material that is left after the main crop has been gathered.

In Leviticus, God gave His people special instructions to care for the needy in their communities:

“When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the Lord your God.” Leviticus 19:9-10

We can find an excellent example of this in the book of Ruth. Ruth takes advantage of this provision (gleaning) to provide for herself and her mother-in-law. Boaz, who allowed Ruth to glean in his field, greatly blessed Ruth and Naomi by obeying God’s command. (Read Ruth 2 for deeper study).

It got me thinking:

How can we honor this concept in our culture today?

We live in a get-as-much-as-you-can society. Even our poor are richer than the average poor worldwide. Aside from the political or sometimes justified misgivings about providing for the poor, we are still commanded to do so (Isaiah 10:1-3)

I fully support taking time off for missions trips and serving inner-city soup kitchens. I think Christ-followers should be eager to do these ministries as well.

Unfortunately, I think many of us give in a “big” way, then check it off our lists. I believe God wants us to incorporate giving, which is part of our worship of him, into our daily lives.

We need to recognize the art of giving as you go. There is a time and place for grand gestures. However, the practice of giving-so-others-can-glean places an emphasis on the simple letting-go of our cash, time, or space.

Join us here throughout the week to explore some practical ways to “leave” our cash, time, and space, so others can glean from them. (Check out Part 2 on Friday!)

- Becky Rosty, MOPS Mom

www.beckyrosty.wordpress.com

Becky Rosty leads a college ministry with her husband in the shadow of the Big Horn mountains of Wyoming. She loves sunshine and s'mores and feels a personal responsibility to bring both to the people in her life.

Becky is also the future-mama to 3: twins due in July 2014, and a precious gift from South Africa, to arrive in 2015. For now she enjoys playing with her mini-golden doodle, Mr. Darcy.

She delights in her identity as a failure saved by Jesus' grace. She is also a singer/songwriter, hiker, home-maker, trip-taker, and scone-baker.

Becky has written several original Bible-studies and is passionate about speaking truth in love to young women. To book Becky for speaking engagements, contact via email: beckyrosty@gmail.com.