M.O.B. Society Boy Mom Blog Hop

Welcome! I’m participating in the Boy Mom Blog Hop today at M.O.B. Society. What a fun way to connect with other boy moms!

I enjoy cooking & decorating cakes & cupcakes, scrapbooking (although I don’t have much time do to that anymore), taking pictures, & traveling.

I have been married to my best friend, Eric, for 16 years. He is a Music Minister at FBC Center, TX, and God has truly blessed him with a beautiful voice & a talent for anything musical. We met teaching high school…he was a band director & I was a math teacher. We met in August & got married 2 days after school was out in May. Needless to say, we were teased by our students all year long!

Our two miracle sons are Evan (12…a definite TWEEN) and Ethan (4…almost 5). Evan is a miracle because we were actually able to have him, and Ethan is a miracle because God created him just for our family through adoption!

It’s funny how God’s plans are not always our plans! Life has not turned out exactly how I dreamed about it growing up, but I know His plans are so much better than I could ever dream or imagine! And I always claim Jeremiah 29:11—“I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord, “plans for good & not for evil, to give you a future & a hope!”

I like to say that I didn’t marry a minister…I married a band director! But God changed that just a few years after we were married when Eric was called into the ministry.

I also always dreamed of HAVING four children…I loved being pregnant! But that is not how God chose to grow our family. Eric & I used to both dream of having 4 children…until we had ONE & realize how much work it is to raise them. But I still sometimes wonder if God will continue to grow our family through adoption again…

We built our “dream house” in 2000 & thought we’d live right down the road from my parents forever…but then God called us to a “crisis of belief that required faith and action” (Blackaby’s Experiencing God principle). We have served at 2 other churches 2-3 hours away from my parents since then…

I thought I would teach high school math until I retired & then God changed that last year, too! Through a series of circumstances, God showed us that homeschooling would be the best choice for our older son who struggles with dyslexia. We just finished our first year and it has been a great fit for our family! We’re still learning, but we definitely see the benefits! You can read more about that here.

Evan enjoys building with Legos, loves anything to do with technology, and enjoys science. He recently joined Boy Scouts & spent a week this summer at Boy Scout camp in A TENT! I don’t know how he did it, but he loved. (Can you tell I am NOT an outdoorsy person? Just another way God has a sense of humor by giving me BOYS that LOVE the OUT OF DOORS!) Some of the books he enjoys are Narnia & Harry Potter (I just started letting him read/listen to these because he’s 12 now).

Ethan enjoys learning anything about Geography & loves to look at books. He has a love for learning & I’m praying that will never be squelched! He has the cutest personality & the funniest sense of humor! Ethan enjoys reading ANY book but especially LOVES two stories from the Bible—Joseph & the coat of many colors & Jonah. If we have any sort of Bible story book, these are the 2 that he wants us to read EVERY night OVER & OVER. That’s ok though. They do teach wonderful lessons!

Come to think of it, all three of my boys are pretty witty (husband included). I’m so blessed!

Thank you for stopping by! I’d love to hear from you & have you follow me! I look forward to meeting some of you at the Boy Mom Blog Hop!

Memory Verse #14

The verse I chose this time is really for our family. My boys tend to argue with each other or with us (talking back but think they aren't talking back). I know my boys are probably the only children in the world that do this (wink), so maybe God wrote these 2 verses just for my family. :) When I was reading my Bible the other day, searching for my next memory verse, these just jumped out at me! So here they are:

2 Timothy 2:23-24 (NIV)

Don't have anything to do with foolish & stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be KIND to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.

I can't wait to join Beth Moore & the rest of the Siestas for the Scripture Memory Celebration in January! Will you be joining us?

Jenna's Coming to Sing at our Church!

A dear friend of mine is coming to visit us next Sunday evening to sing a benefit concert for their upcoming international adoption. Because we know first hand how expensive adoption is, we are trying to get the word out in every way possible to encourage people to attend this concert. You won't be disappointed...she has a beautiful talent that she is using to glorify God! Here’s a link to Jenna’s blog so you can learn more about her story.

And here’s what Shelby County Today has posted about the Concert of the Ages.

First Baptist Church of Center will kick off its “Concerts of the Ages” concert series with Jenna Lorick on Sunday, July 17th at 6 P.M. Jenna has a phenomenal voice and a heart for worship. Lorick has a new CD project entitled “Chosen Love” which will be available after the concert. She is asking for a minimum donation of $15. A love offering will also be given. 100 percent of the proceeds from the CD and love offering will go toward their international adoption and orphan care around the world. Jenna Lorick is the wife of Nathan Lorick, pastor of First Baptist Church, Malakoff, Texas. Don’t miss this event!

Upcoming “Concerts of the Ages”:
August 7: Trey Wilson
October 9: David’s Song
January 8 (2012): Zambian Vocal Group

Memory Verse #13

Happy 4th of July!

I'm a little behind on posting because I haven't had time to get on the computer. I hope you have a wonderful Independence Day! Let's remember to say a prayer for the service men and women that are sacrificing for our freedoms!

I have two verses that seem to really go together for this time. One was part of the Warrior Prayers challenge that I thought would be very helpful for my "tweenager's" attitude. :)

Proverbs 27:19 (NIV)

As water reflects a face,

so a man's heart reflects the man.

Luke 6:45 (NIV)

The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.

Educating the Wholehearted Child

Sally Clarkson at itakejoy.com is giving away 3 copies of their newly updated book, Educating the Wholehearted Child. This sounds like an excellent resource! I can't wait to read it!

Warrior Prayers -- Day 21

21 Days of Prayer for our Sons…

Congratulations!! What an accomplishment!! This has not been an easy task, if you’re like me, the devil has put roadblocks along your way. Just think of all the work that has been done on behalf of your children! I’m proud of you, MOM!

Today’s Prayer in on HUMILITY…

Brooke McGlothlin states in the Warrior Prayers Leader Guide:

“I chose humility as our last day’s topic because it is such an amazing posture of the heart. Scripture just seems to scream God’s favor over those who are humble in heart.

James 4:10 says that if we’re humble before the Lord, He will lift us up.

1 Peter 5:6 says that if we humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God, He will exalt us.

Most importantly, in Psalm 149:4 we find that it is the humble who are adorned with salvation.

A humble heart is required for salvation! Just as Jesus humbled Himself unto the cross, we must admit that we’re sinners, admit that our OWN way is NOT the right way, and HUMBLY ask for forgiveness before salvation comes.

Do you show humility before your sons? Do you always have to be right? Always have to win? Pray an ask the Lord for specific ways you can show humility today so that when the time comes, your sons will know how to show it too.

“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” - Ephesians 4:2

Today’s verses are:

James 4:10

1 Peter 5:6

James 4:6

2 Chronicles 7:14

Psalm 25:9

1 Peter 3:8

Matthew 11:29

Psalm 149:4

Ephesians 4:2

1 Peter 5:5

As we finish this 21 Day Challenge, will you please share in the comments a specific way this challenge has been meaningful to you?

Also, will you consider praying and asking God to give you 3 specific things that you can pray for your children each day? It could be 3 of the topics or 3 certain verses or something else God has revealed to you through this challenge.

Congratulations again on completing this 21-day challenge to pray! Let’s keep praying for our children!

Praying for humility,

Kim

Warrior Prayers - Day 20

21 Days of Prayer for our Sons…

We’re almost there!

Today’s Prayer in on HEART CHANGE…

“The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.”

-Luke 6:45

The most foundational thing we can ask God for in the lives of our children is HEART CHANGE. The Bible says that what is in the heart eventually comes out. If we have bad stuff in our heart, then bad stuff comes out! And if we have good stuff in our heart, then good will come out.

I’ve heard this illustration twice within the last week, so I think God might be trying to tell me something. I hope it’s meaningful to you as well.

I’m going through Priscilla Shirer’s JONAH Bible study this summer with a group of ladies from our Sunday School class. On the video last week, she had a girl hold a glass of water. Then, Priscilla started shaking the girl’s arm, and the water started spilling out everywhere.

Then she asked, “why do you think the water came out of the glass?”

We could say that the water came out of the glass because Priscilla shook her arm. But then she said, could it be that the water came out of the glass because there was water IN the glass? If the glass were empty, then nothing would come out of it when shaken!

So it is with our hearts! Life has a funny way of ramming up against us & shaking us up! People pull out in front of you & go slow when you are in a hurry. Your child spills milk all over the table right before you need to leave for work. Your little one wakes you up in the middle of the night because he had an accident all over his bed. (This has happened too many times lately!) Your children decide to annoy each other in front of everyone at church. (Need I go on???)

We get “shaken” up every day…probably many times every day! But our response to the “shakes” comes from what is in our glass…or our hearts! If we have bad stuff in our heart, then bad stuff comes out! And if we have good stuff in our heart, then good will come out.

So…what comes out of your heart when you are “shaken?” Our response matters to God and it matters to the people watching and learning from us along the way.

Today’s verses are:

Matthew 23:26

Ezekiel 36:26

Isaiah 29:13

Luke 6:45

Luke 22:42

James 4:8

Psalm 51:10

Ecclesiastes 10:2

Ezekiel 14:3

Acts 2:37

Praying for heart change,

Kim

(Adapted from Brooke McGlothlin’s Warrior Prayers Leader Guide:)