musings for moms
You know, after almost 6 years, there are not many things my kids say that surprise me. I’ve heard just about everything.
“Mama, when I grow up, I’m going to be a snakeologist!”
“Mommy, the next time we hit a deer, can I put it on my wall?”
“Look, mommy! I can lay down and play the piano with my feet!”
“Hey mom! I got bronchitis! Ain’t nobody got time for that!”
Continue Reading…
Getting back to my good friend, John, and his account of things. Now, we left off with the beautiful encounter with Jesus and the Samaritan woman. Remember how crazy that was! Jesus, a man, a Jew, talking to this woman, a Samaritan. None of that mattered to Jesus. He knew what she needed despite all the social barriers involved. And He provided her with that Living water.
Our tale today comes from John 4:46-54. Notice the social barriers again, only this time it’s not Jesus coming to someone, but an unlikely character coming to Jesus.
It says a certain royal official found out that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, and he WENT TO HIM! This was a high-ranking official seeking the help of a humble carpenter. Why? Continue Reading…
Growing up in church I sat through many, many children’s specials, musicals, cantatas…you name it, I watched it. It was always the same. The kids were brought out on stage in some kind of robed ensemble. If you weren’t the parent lucky enough to get there early and set up your tripod, you raced to the front, heaving the 20 pound VHS camcorder atop your shoulder. Peering into the cushioned lens of the camera, you searched for your angel and began recording.
I never really could understand what all the hubbub was about. I mean, most of the time, they just stood up there picking their noses and waving. Why would anybody film this to watch later?
And then I became a parent. Continue Reading…
As mommies, we remember everything, don’t we? When my son was born, I can remember them putting him on my chest, seconds after he was born, and feeling that weight hit me.(my “little” nearly 10 lb bundle!) When my daughter was born, I can remember going to get her from the nursery and when they wheeled her out she was just screaming. I felt like an awful mother, thinking she’d been crying the whole time she’d been in there!Of course, there are so many more things I remember, but isn’t that what we mommies do? It’s our job to remember. Not only those important times like births, birthdays, and milestones. But also everyday things, right? Does this sound familiar to anyone else out there?
Mommy, where’s my shoes? Mommy, did I leave my lunchbox at school? Mommy, how old is the dog? Mommy, what time does Doc McStuffins come on?
So many things we have to remember. But for the sake of this post, I want you to think back to one year ago today. Just one year. If you are a mother of preschoolers, a lot has happened, right? Continue Reading…
Yes, I know. I’ve skipped some words in red. I am aware, but I actually read this story the other day in my time alone with the Lord and I just had to skip to it in our series here.
We’re still in the book of John, chapter 4 now. Here we find Jesus leaving Judea traveling to Galilee. And He has to go through Samaria to get there. He passes through a town called Sychar. There he finds Jacob’s well, so He sits down to rest. Verse 6 says, “It was about six in the evening.” This time is very significant as we will see here in just a minute.
Now, we do not know this woman’s name. One commentary says that by John leaving her unnamed, “perhaps the apostle was attempting to give his audience a deeper impression of her perceived unworthiness or to focus more on the woman’s unacceptable lifestyle.” (Women’s Evangelical Commentary) Continue Reading…
So, as you can tell I am already side-tracking from our little unit on Jesus and His words in red. But, the Lord hit me with this jewel today, I just have to share.
I’ve been attending a wonderful Bible study this fall where we are going through the book Calm My Anxious Heart by Linda Dillow. Oh, ladies, can I just tell you in one word about this book: CONVICTING. If you don’t have this book, get it. Read it. Pass it to a girlfriend. Then, ask for it back and read it again. Continue Reading…
W
e are jumping right in this week, the book of John, chapter 2. By the way, at this rate, we won’t finish this series until 2014! Stick with me, mommies! We can do this.
So chapter 2 of John, we witness another one of Jesus’ firsts. Last week we studied His first words (in red), and this week we are looking at His first miracle.
This is probably a very familiar story to you. The setting is Cana, about nine miles north of Nazareth. A big wedding is taking place. The end of verse 1 says, “Jesus’ mother was there,” but I love what it says after that, almost like a side-note: “and Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding as well.” Continue Reading…
As mommies, we get to experience a lot of firsts with our kiddos. First bike ride, first trip to the zoo, first trip to Pappasitos. (ok, maybe that was just my family. No seriously. We took a picture with my oldest under the sign.) But one particular first stands out among the rest. It’s the one that has a line in the baby book for you to fill in. It’s the one that everyone always asks around the 6 month mark.
“So, what was his first word?”
Taking a look back into John at the end of Chapter 1, if you’re following with me in a red-letter Bible, you will find Jesus’s first words in red. Of course, these surely weren’t Jesus’s actual first words since he was 30 years old when He was baptized (see John 1:29-34). But these are the first words John records that Jesus says to us. Continue Reading…
As mothers, I believe we can all recall quite vividly the birth of our children. Not just because it is usually the most excruciating pain of our lives, but also because it is the most rewarding time of our lives. The newness. The freshness. The beginning.
Before we get into those precious words in red, we have to understand from whom those words are spoken.
John begins with “in the beginning”. That sounds kinda familiar, doesn’t it? Go way back to Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning, God…” John 1:1 parallels that with, “In the beginning was the Word.” Isn’t that beautiful?
I want to focus on 1:1b though. Look what it says: “and the Word was God”. That word is described to us in John 1:14, “The Word became flesh and took up residence among us.” So that word that became flesh was God. Let that sink in a minute. Continue Reading…
About a month ago, the Lord sent me out on an adventure through the book of John. Now, I’m not sure if you’ve ever read John, or studied this incredible book, but the richness it contains will change your life. Literally. And I’m not sure that it’s biblical to pick a favorite but, of all the gospels, this one is mine.
Rewind with me about a year ago. I went through a book by Jill Savage called Real Moms…Real Jesus. Jill does such a great job of applying God’s word to our everyday lives. In this book, she describes how Jesus understands what we, as mothers, go through day in and day out. Think about it. He never got a minute’s peace. There were always people around Him. And when did Jesus sleep? Someone was always waking Him up, right? Sounds familiar. Her book is what got me thinking about Jesus and how He speaks to us right in the middle of our crazy lives. Continue Reading…
