He is Greater when I am less because it has never really been about me....all to the glory of Jesus.
Take Heart....
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John 16:33New International Version (NIV)
33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Take heart. I heard this whisper in my spirit this morning, as I was driving to work, admiring the white fields, covered with snow. I was thinking about the people I know who love winter and snow.....and conversely, the people who cannot stand winter and are miserable until it is over. I like winter. I like it when winter is over. Take heart. Take heart, my beloved, because this is a season and it will pass.....and when the season of winter is finished, springtime comes. The snow melts. The rains start in the Midwest. Little green buds pop out of the Earth and hang from tree branches, promising to bloom into leaves and flowers and plants.......take heart. He tells us, in John 16 that he tells us these things (he gives us the seasons that we can expect and predict and understand) so that we can have peace. This world has trouble. We have trouble. We get coughs and colds in winter. We slip on the ice. We sometimes have a blizzard with 2 snow days in the middle of the week and the children take over the house.....and make me crazy.....and then they don't sleep well.....and I'm exhausted, frustrated, anxious about the workload piling up, the laundry, the messy bedrooms, toys everywhere........oh wait. I digress. Take heart. Take heart my beloved, in this world we will have trouble but He.......He has overcome the world. All of it. Blizzards, rainy seasons, summer fun, autumn beauty.......One Man who was equally human and God......overcame THE WORLD. Take heart, my sweet people who are aching to grow your families through birth or adoption....I am praying for you. The road seems impassible and impossible.....but take heart. He has this. Take heart, my friends who are struggling with marriage, finances, contentment, pride vs. humility. You are not alone. Take heart. He has overcome the world. Next week is Valentine's Day with lots of hearts and love and sweetness.....I like this verse from John 16. Have peace. Take Heart. He's got this.
Yesterday we celebrated an epic day for our family. Isaac graduated from Dordt U in the morning with a buisness/construction management Bachelor's degree. His was the class that graduated in the pandemic and did not get a real senior year or graduation. We were pleased and surprised when he actually went to college buecause everything was so hard that year in 2020. He did all 4 years and got his diploma and we are so proud! Claire also walked the stage at Dordt U having finished her masters of social work degree....something neither Roger or I ever did. She works in Des Moines as a mental health professional and God uses her to heal and love the hurting and the lost. I'm so so proud of them both! Jeremiah took off work to attend the events, as did our extra Kredit son Uriel, who loves to join in all of our family holidays and special events. He and Jeremiah both did a year of college and then said it was enough and entere...
Years ago, my oldest kiddo was struggling with some of her relationships. Friends she thought were good and faithful fell short. She felt unsafe and unprepared socially and so she and I sat down together after she had vented and cried and talked through all the things. I drew a circle, then a bigger one around it and a third bigger circle around that one. Together we came up with a list of people she could put in the most inner circle, defined as who she could trust no matter what. It is a small circle for a reason. Who can you say with certainty that you know will always put you first, care for you and come through for you? Because she wasn't sure we talked about options and why they could be reliable.....God, mom, dad (and maybe nana Barb but I don't really remember.) The second circle includes people we care about deeply who we know care for us...and why. We discuss who they are and what qualities they posess to put them in ...
I've had a rough couple of weeks. Nothing serious or tragic happened, it just felt like an uphill climb every day and a few days in there where I stumbled, lost my footing and it was just exhausting having to gear up to climb some more. It's friday night and I have come to a flat landing on this mountain and I"m ready to rest a bit and take in my surroundings for a couple of days. We don't have to travel out of town, we don't have an intense schedule for the weekend and it's time to prepare and consume some sensory sustenance.....and to find a way to self-regulate now that there is time to catch my breath. I have had an ah-ha moment. When children are not regulated, and no one is co-regulating with them, and they are aware of this, there are impulse control issues. "Why is he doing that?" Lets see how regulated vs. how dysregulated he is.....how long does it take him to get to calm and make smart decisions vs being impulsive, d...
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