Giving thanks...

I wonder what it means to be thankful.  I wonder what would really happen if I lived out the verse in 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18 -- "Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

The "one really big thing" at my church this year is "intergenerational worship".  While I'm not sure how that works at church our tree of thanks at Thanksgiving was the best realization of it I have experienced this year in our family. 

My kids and I got out the paint and roll of paper a few days before Thanksgiving and we now have a floor to ceiling tree on our dining room wall.  Thanksgiving day they worked to add leaves with their cousins with some adult involvement (I say "some" as I now have purple marker on my Thanksgiving table cloth -- so apparently our intergenerational involvement could have been more -- but perhaps that is just the "messy" part of being intergenerational that my church keeps talking about). Each leaf has drawings and/or words for things we are thankful for. 

As I sat and listened to the discussion of what could be put on the leaves (overseen mostly by my 8 year old niece) I was shocked to hear how "trained" our children are even when it comes to being thankful. 

Whether it is the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade or one of the many football commentators there are certain things we as Americans believe we should be thankful for at Thanksgiving -- family, friends, health -- those are fairly socially acceptable across the board.  Another one that get thrown in for those that feel like pushing the envelope of comfort -- freedom.

Then there are the basic needs -- food, shelter, clothing -- good ones to add to the list -- as we started our Thanksgiving at Father Joe's 5K which raises money to help support the 20 million meals that he has served to those in need here in San Diego and we talked with our kids about how everyone doesn't have a house and food (a very hard concept for them to grasp).

Then there are our more "religious" items -- Bibles, Jesus, creation...

And then the list starts to get interesting -- because now you can see my kids drawing from their own interests, you see the adults adding the things that "ought" to be on there and obviously were just overlooked.

I wonder whether I should step in and limit my niece's coaching that things can only be on the wall once even though a couple of them snuck by her and got up there twice.  I wonder where the line between free expression and expectations meet...what areas do I coach my children to be thankful in and which areas do I need to listen to them more so that I can regain the wonder of thankfulness and celebration -- so that I can regain the wonder of all we have to be thankful for and the many things I take for granted and forget to recognize as blessings.

I wonder what didn't make our list...

I Wonder...

A little over a year ago my worshipping community started a partnership with the David C Cook Tru curriculum. As I have journeyed with my children through their lessons the one thing that has really been a sticking point is what they call "Wonder Questions" -- I wonder...
As we approach the advent season this year and I dream about how to mold and shape that for my family, it has brought to mind the Christmas Carol "I wonder as I wander out under the sky..."
Sure I have wondered with my children as we have explored the Scriptures with the Tru curriculum this last year but how often do I truly wonder? As a mother of a 2, 4 and 6 year old who coordinates my MOPS group in my spare time where would I find time to "wander" anywhere? It seems like my life is more focused, more frenzied than would allow for wonder to drift in. What would it mean to live a life of wondering? Am I creating enough space in my children's lives for them to wonder? And what do I want to encourage them to wonder about?
What would it be like to have them wonder at the Christmas Story this year? What would it be like to take the time to wonder with them? What might God do in our family if we wonder together about what He is doing in our world? What might happen in our worshipping community if we wonder together about God and what it means to follow Him?
I wonder...

Easter At Our House: Today I discovered...

Today I discovered...

..others on my journey...

I came across an article in homelife magazine entitled "Fun Discipleship: A Creative Way to Grow Authentic Faith." Since that has been a big discussion around my church, Solana Beach Presbyterian, as we have adopted David C Cook's Tru curriculum this last year which has a home component it was fun to learn how others are spicing up their home discipleship. For more details on how the Stewart family is making a spiritual impact in their home check out familymuscle.com - I feel they understand the realities of carving out family time and making it worth it - something both kids and parents look forward to.

Easter At Our House: So if the wave hit Japan why are we sending money to Africa?

So if the wave hit Japan why are we sending money to Africa?

 ..Have to love the questions of a 5 year old...and then he continued to explain to me that the nomadic group in Africa could easily fix their houses because they are made of sticks but in Japan there are boats on top of houses -- that's not as easy to fix...

What does it mean to meet the needs of the world around us?

Easter At Our House: Turn around or try again?

Turn around or try again?

This morning after dropping my son off at school I commented that "I'm in the wrong lane.". My daughter in her 3 year old wisdom was quick to ask "Are you going to turn around or try again?"She understands that mommy makes mistakes and needs to change things - it was a great chance for us to talk about sin and repentance (that oh so big word for turning around or trying again) as we went to school this morning. 

Easter At Our House: Gold and God's Promises

This morning as we sat at breakfast William saw a rainbow out the window. In light of the recent celebration of St. Patrick's Day after pointing it out he continued by sharing that given it's location we should go find the pot of gold in the park.
I grabbed the moment to ask what else the rainbow tells us and we discussed God's promise to Noah after the flood that he would never again flood the whole earth.
I long that my children will see God's blessing as of greater value than a pot of gold --- He is the God that owns the cattle on a thousand hills, the wealth of every mine...and he cares for ME! May that truth be rooted in my children's lives today.

Easter At Our House: ASH WEDNESDAY IS TODAY!

ASH WEDNESDAY IS TODAY!

WOW!
Hard to believe today marks the official start of the Easter Season! (Especially since I still have a few Christmas items that didn't get fully put away yet...)

For Lent (the time of preparation for Easter) this year I will be following the Lenten Guide by Solana Beach Presbyterian Church (www.solanapres.org/news/2011-lent-daily-reading ). I am quite excited that they put it online this year (saves my having to keep track of the booklet and it comes directly to my email box each morning - YEAH!) So the focus this year is Leading Like Jesus and today we reflected on what it means to follow Jesus. My kids and I read Mark 1:14-20 about Jesus calling the disciples and talked about Jesus calling us to be his followers too.

One thing I am trying to be more faithful about this Lenten season is praying for my children. I was encouraged by a friend the other day who had stumbled upon a mention I had made of a daily prayer email for my kids -- you can subscribe atwww.realworldparents.com/pray -- and I have been trying lately to be more faithful in actually opening the email and reading it and praying it personally for each one of my children. But I was also encouraged in this further by a more recent reference atmomandlovingit.org/PDFs/PrayingDaily_new150.pdf which is a new resource I found this morning (thanks to a referral to the Mom and Loving It conference by another friend) -- it provides a monthly calendar with a different scripture for each day of the month. For the 9th, today, it was "respect (for self, others, authority) Father, grant that my children may 'show proper respect to everyone' as Your Word commands," based on 1 Peter 2:17

May this Lenten season be a season of preparation where God makes me more aware of the work He is doing in my children's lives. May He increase my awareness of how I can partner with Him where He is already at work in their hearts, helping them become fully devoted followers of Him. May I walk faithfully and humbly with Him in loving my children and family.