Do you live near your family? I've really been missing mine lately. These last couple of months have been hard, especially, and I'm not quite sure why. I'll have good days, but then in the evenings it hits home that the closest immediate family we have is a couple states away so then I feel sad.
When I dwell on this, I let it bring me down to a level of despair that I think gets dangerously close to somewhere I don't need to be. The other morning, in my Jesus Calling
book, I was reminded that this gaping hole in my life can only be filled with God's presence. Even though I have wonderful healthy kids, a loving and hard-working husband, a beautiful home, and a great work-from-home job, I still feel the emptiness because I have pushed my time with God aside.
I guess I've solved the mystery of why I've had a hard last couple of months.
A couple weeks ago, the Mom2Mom Bible Study I attend during the school year started back up again. This group is seriously my saving grace. I love it. I'm already encouraged to set aside precious quiet time again to read and study my Bible, and pray! It's so easy to get caught up in my busyness and skip it. But, I've learned, quiet time is necessary.
I've witnessed time and again, Christian friends who give priority to other things in life before their time with God and this usually leads to some sort of destruction, big or small. It's a test of faith, and I am so relieved that God pulled me back. As my family embarks on change and learns to be content not having our loved ones near, I believe my faith has been tested and proven.
"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith ... may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed." -1 Peter 1:6-7
My trials seem so small when I think of friends who have been through divorce or death, job loss and other sufferings. But, we are all shaped and made according to His purpose for our own unique story. What's your story? Are you finding time with God? Do you have a Bible study group you love? Let's challenge each other!
Some favorite things lately:
Adi: The Stay-Put Plate - When Judah was young, I bought him a suction bowl for meal times so he wouldn't throw it and all of his food across the room. It worked for about three days, then the suction wore off and he figured out how to release it. Since then, I gave up on the whole suction plate thing because of this bad experience. Fast forward to today when we're at that stage again with Simon. I don't even give him a bowl or plate because I know he will just toss it. Last week, a mom of 3 launched a Kickstarter campaign for a new stay-put plate where the suction is hidden from curious toddlers and doesn't allow for small hands to reach it. Brilliant! Visit their Kickstarter page for more information and consider helping to support the launch of this product. I really want to buy one!
The Reluctant Entertainer (Sandy Coughlin) - It's been a while since I've featured one of my favorite blogs on Saturday Seeds. I enjoy sharing them with you because I know these bloggers work hard to bring you great content and some of my favorites I'm friends with in real life, too. Sandy and I met last year for the first time, and reconnected in Miami this year. We share the same faith and also have husbands who would probably be best friends if they ever met each other. Actually, they would probably sit in a room together and write books. haha! On her blog, Reluctant Entertainer, Sandy gives great tips on hospitality (my passion!), raising kids, marriage, all while sharing gorgeous recipes! If you haven't already, check out her blog!
Messy Beautiful Love: Hope and Redemption for Real-Life Marriages
- I receive a review copy of this book, and happy to recommend it to any woman who desires to be a better wife. The author, Darlene Schacht, is the creator of the Time-Warp Wife blog, focusing on putting Christ at the center of marriage. She writes honestly about how she became broken by giving in to an affair, but then strengthened her marriage through repentance and her husband's grace of forgiveness. Schacht reminds us that marriage is messy, and that's okay. She teaches us how to use the messy to reveal the beautiful. Through the chapters, women are encouraged to be the wives that God made us to be instead of how society claims we should be as individuals. It's a great, fast read!
Do you have any favorite books or blogs you'd like to recommend to me? I'm all for checking out new ones!! Have a great weekend!
