S Club Mama

Prayer is something I've been working on for years. I didn't grow up praying so it's been difficult to know what to say and when to do it. I find this is not exclusive to me because my children pray just fine at meal times but struggle when they need to confess or ask for God's help.  I thought Prayers for Every Occasion by Ellen Banks Elwell would be nice to open and read through to find an already written prayer for some occasions.  The books itself is separated into four parts: prayers for specific occasions, prayers from the Bible, hymns that can be prayers, and traditional prayers.  image via Amazon.com The prayers for specific occasions are written by the author. You can tell she wrote them for individuals in her own life rather than specifically for this book. An example is the prayer for an expectant mother. In this prayer, Elwell mentions that the mother has been struggling it's getting pregnant. That's a very specific prayer but would...

I have seen my fair share of horror movies...but not for several years. They give me the creeps and nightmares. I am already a worst-case-scenario kind of a thinker so that just makes things worse, so I try to avoid them. I have been intrigued by a few the last several years, including Annabelle: Creation, which releases August 11, 2017. The synopsis, without giving too much away (nothing you can't get from the trailer , which I couldn't even watch all of), is about parents who lose their little girl in a horrible tragedy. In their grief, they try to bring her back. This movie portrays possession of a doll and that's about all I can tell you because the trailer creeped me out. As Christians I think we tend to stay away from horror movies, but in doing so, sometimes we stay away from their messages. Messages such as -evil is real! There is a spiritual battle going on all around us! I don't pretend to understand it completely but I know it's real. I've felt ...

What I was expecting this week during Moose's stay at the EMU (epilepsy monitoring unit): - several seizures right away (big ones) - Moose sleeping a LOT - me sitting by him and petting his head as he slept - going home before Friday evening (as would happen if things happened that quickly) - strength to get through the hard seizures What I got during this week: - a few small seizures the first two days and nothing on Friday - patience waiting for the seizures - so.much.tv (I expected him to be exhausted and sleepy a lot) - Big A having to stay Friday night through Sunday - Big A experiencing his first of Moose's grand mal seizures (big, convulsing) - and his second - a completed embroidery piece (haha) - hardly sleeping This week was very different from what I had in mind. But I learned to trust in God's strength and not my own and that I cannot go into these things with expectations or very little sleep. I think Moose had the time of his life these pas...

I did not grow up praying. I still feel very awkward when I pray. I have read a lot about prayer because that's how I learn best. I still feel awkward. However, I have learned that God doesn't heard our awkwardness but our hearts.  My desire for better prayers (if there really is such a thing) lead me to read " Prayers that Changed History" by Tricia Goyer. I thought this author was familiar to me and I believe she has written articles for the MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) magazine.  "Prayers that Changed History" is written for older elementary students, I think. I really like how it's written and arranged, though. You read a story about an historical character, then a question is posed based upon this story, a bit on how his or her story changed history, a Biblical account that is similar to this story, and finally how this can show in your life. Just a great explanation to really explain the relevance of this story in history and to the Bible...

When I was pregnant with Moose in 2006, I was taking education classes and we discussed autism. I remember thinking, "oh Lord, anything but that." My husband remembers me praying about it, too. It wasn't until 2010 his autism was diagnosed. It was hard and full of emotional questions: was this my fault for past transgressions, was this my fault physically, why, now what. In those 5 years since, I've learned SO much about being a mom, a wife, a human being, a Christian that I otherwise would not have learned if I'd had a "normal" kid my firstborn (Squirt does not have autism). I have learned to pray that God be glorified in these really hard moments (when our firstborn had his first seizure this year and subsequent epilepsy diagnosis). Whether He is glorified in how we handle the situations presented, in our parenting, in our struggles, in our lives. We want Him glorified and so I say "anything" as we await this third child this summer. ...

I have read several books on how to pray Scripture over your children, your husband, even yourself (I have five of these prayer books sitting on my bedside table right now). However Kathi Lipp's new book, Praying God's Word For Your Life, has been the most down-to-earth. I have so often read that God doesn't need fancy prayers (he even says he doesn't want our sacrifices and Christ scolded the Pharisees for their lengthy prayers because they were trying to be fancy more than heartfelt), but too often books on prayer include fancy prayers. Prayer is a spiritual discipline that's difficult for me. I'm not sure if it's because I wasn't raised to pray or what but I have a hard time remembering. I'm growing in this area but I still have a long way to grow. I believe this book has already helped me learn to pray Scripture in a real way, not a scripted way. To really use Scripture to back up my petitions or my praises rather than just rote praying. God...

If you've read God Gave Us You, you've heard of Lisa T. Bergren. Wonderful children's book! Bergren's new book, Upside-Down Prayers for Parents, will be released February 19, 2013. It's a 31-day devotional that helps parents help their children - and themselves - to trust God. I like that this devotional doesn't take me very long to read but I get a lot out of it. It's challenging to me at a Christian and a mother. It's called Upside-Down Prayers because you will be praying for things for your children that sound like stuff you wouldn't want to happen to your children. For instance: I pray you'll know what it is to be lonely. Wow. I don't want my kids to be lonely! But if you finish the prayer, "and find intimacy with the One who is always beside you" then it makes sense. I don't want my kids to be lonely, but if their loneliness leads them to the Lord, then be lonely children! A few other prayers you'll be praying ...

Sunday school has always been rough with Moose. We had him in services with us for a few years, but that always resulted in one of us leaving the service. So we tried Sunday school for children or children's church. We've been at our current church for about 2 years now, so Moose would have been 3 when we began (wow!). It was great when he could be in the 2-year-old room (we had him in there for a year or more?). They really just play the whole time and maybe have a craft or lesson (maybe they do every time?), but it's just less structured. And then we moved him up and it just has seemed hard. Not in the sense that he cries when we leave him; no. He's fine with that. He just likes things his own way so when it doesn't go his way - when another kid "messes up" the trains or he doesn't want to go sing or sit for the story - Moose acts out. It used to be fits. Crying and boo-hooing. And we have a wonderful woman who heads up our children's depar...

 I think about my prayer life often. Am I praying enough? Am I praying the right way? Is God listening? So much prayer (of my own and in general) seems to be out of want. "Lord bless Person A," "Lord, grant me patience," "Lord, please help me with XYZ," etc. If prayer is also a form a worship, shouldn't there be praise in there, too? Not saying that there isn't, but how much is enough? I've read a few other books on prayer; nothing spectacular. In one book, they suggested to pray for specific things on specific days: presidents and world leaders on Monday, schools and churches on Tuesday, or something to that extent. I like the idea of this but I often forget today's date. I also like to write my prayers in a journal, but too often I just don't feel like writing them down. So I pray to God out loud or in my head. Sometimes in the morning, sometimes in the evening, sometimes whenever I can fit them in. I often talk out loud to the Lo...

My mom had a CT scan about an hour ago. Of course, we won't know the results for awhile but please be in prayer for her. Over Easter we thought she had shingles but never broke out in the sores. At the doctor's yesterday I guess her abdomen or thigh {I know it's awful I can't remember which but she was telling me this over the phone at a track meet} hurt when the doctor pressed on it. He didn't know if it was her kidney or liver but there's also the possibility of her ovaries. She had a partial hysterectomy done when I was in junior high. Her mom actually had ovarian cancer so there's always a chance of that. Kind of scares me that something could be wrong with my mom. She's pretty young {42} so I hope it's something fix-able. But be praying. Also be praying for our best friends. I haven't been given the go-ahead to share information but just know that it seems if one thing hasn't gone wrong for them, it's another. Please be praying for...

Moose napped from 5 until 8 when I laid him in his crib. Then around 10 or 11 he woke up, just angry. I couldn't figure out what was wrong and he just repeated whatever I asked him. I thought he wanted a bath but when I put him in there, he just screamed. I asked if he pooped and he just screamed "poopie" but nothing when I looked in his diaper or set him on the potty. He just was angry. I hollered for Big A. He sat there perplexed for awhile until he realized the kid was probably hungry. Moose ate about 5 crackers and drank about 1/2 a sippy of juice. I was holding him in a towel after his "bath." He peed on me. I was thankful for the towel and that he'd peed. I was afraid he was dehydrated. Big A went back to bed. I tried laying Moose in with us, laying in his chair with him, laying him in his crib. We went to the living room and watched the Late Late Show (whose beginning was disappointing, Craig!). Moose colored, laid with me, played a bit. I keep remind...