Holla if You Hear Me!

Just a thought for my fellow "Yelling Mommas" - I looked over my morning yesterday and played it all back in my head.  Although my yelling moments don't happen often they do happen and it always makes me more stressed than I was in the first place.  I realized that I was tense before my son approached me because I was not fully prepared for my day which also left me feeling drained.  I also neglected to spend time with God prior to the start of my day which always gets me on the right foot and I neglected to plan out my day leaving room for flexibility of course which helps me see what I can and can't realistically do.  

So I began to multitask and was trying to fit way too much stuff into 2 hrs because I had so much left over from the previous day that still needed to be done.  I had a chance to breathe during our homeschool group and afterwards I did something I should have done at the start of my day,  I acknowledged Him. Proverbs 3:6 says, "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and he will make straight your paths".  

When I stopped and asked God what should I do with the remainder of my day and all that was on my task list He directed me and I followed His lead.  I know this but often times I don't do this.  I was still feeling a little drained as my day went on but because God had mapped it out for me I was not stressed.  His plan was perfect.  I still didn't do everything I wanted to do but I did what was needed.

Today is a new day and I have not yelled yet.  I am taking my day moment by moment and instead of trying to do it all I am doing what matters and seeking Him for direction.  How is your day going?

Sheryll

Quiet Noise

I don't know about you but when I prepare to have my "quiet" time, you know time alone with God, I like to actually do it in quiet.  That is hard to come by since I am a homeschooling mom of three boys in a home with birds and a dog and the noise of home life.



So to accomplish this I wake around 5am and have my quiet time.  I cover the bird cage so they will be "quiet", I take the dog out and give him a chew stick so he will be "quiet" and the rest of the house is asleep so all is "quiet".

Yesterday morning I chose to sleep in.  I decided that I wanted to sleep longer after going to bed so late.  I got up around 8:30am and decided that there was no way I would have a "quiet" time this morning.  I had laundry to do that I procrastinated on so even if the birds, the dog and the kids cooperated there would still be the noise of the washer.

Upon taking the dog out a bird caught my eye, he or she was eating a worm.  I was honestly amazed because I had never witnessed this before.  I didn't want to disturb the bird by going to get my camera so I just watched and held the dog close so he wouldn't disturb her either.  That of course did not last long but it lasted long enough for my eyes to be opened and look at the wonders around me and hear God's noise.

Before marriage and kids I would enjoy time with God in my yard tuning out the cars and all the distractions of the world and instead tuning in on God.  It has become hard to do that now because I feel like I am surrounded by so much "noise" daily.  In that brief moment outside in my yard God reminded me that I could still meet with Him and He could still meet with me in the midst of all that goes on around me.

My goal is still to awaken at 5am to enjoy the stillness of my home and the day, but if I miss my window of "quiet" it doesn't mean I have to miss time with God.


Sheryll

In Boiling Waters

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze."  Isaiah 43:2

It amazes me how God speaks to you through the simplest of things.  I was preparing stuffed eggs one morning for breakfast and as I cracked the shell of the egg I thought about how fragile it is before it gets to this state.

It lies there under the protection of the shell, guarded from danger and harm, keeping all threats at bay.  Once placed into water and the temperatures rise, the shell allows the egg to become firm and solid in the midst of all that is going on around it. Without the level of heat required to shape it, the egg would never be able to serve its purpose.  The shell allows the egg to feel the heat just enough to develop it but not enough so that it becomes damaged.

In life we are faced with all kinds of situations and circumstances that cause us to feel as if we are not able to withstand the heat of it all.  But when we are covered and protected by God, what is going on outside only affects us enough to make us better.  Don't fear going into boiling waters if that is where God is placing you.  It may be within those waters that your purpose is revealed.

Be blessed!

Sheryll

The Mediator

As I mentioned in my post last week, I write once a month for my church blog.  Below is a portion of my post for this month:

It was her third offense.  She had already been in front of this judge before and he told her that the next time the outcome would not be in her favor.  As she walked into the courtroom her head hung low.  You could see the shame and the guilt that weighed upon her.  She lifted her head as she got close to her seat and you could see the tears that were welling up in her eyes.  

Click here to continue reading.

Sheryll

Peace, Passion and Perspective

There is only so much you can do before burnout is inevitable.  That is pretty much where I was the last time I posted here.  The break was much needed but much longer than I anticipated as well.  Although it was hard to completely remove myself I knew that I need to focus more on my first ministry, my family, and that was something I would not regret.  We feel that we can do it all but when we try nothing gets our full focus.

Taking a Break, Obviously

Between all the many hats I have tossed into the air, blogging has seemed to take a backseat.  Although I enjoy writing and sharing with you, my focus has been re-directed.  I have been pulled away to focus more on my family, taking care of our home and homeschooling my three boys.  In the past, I have struggled to give these things my full focus and when school started I didn't want that to happen again.








I spoke with a friend of mine the other day, Hyacynth of undercovermother.net, and she encouraged me that we go through seasons.  Later on I read on http://sarahmae.com/ that she was doing some refocusing as well.  I decided to follow Sarah on her 31 Day journey to a fresh start.  I am praying that God will show me how to make blogging routinely a part of my life without it pulling me away from what matters most, my family.


Sheryll

Good Old Fashioned Values Shouldn't be Old

I went to Wal-mart this morning and as I walked around I would say "Good Morning" to the people that I would see, very few spoke back; but this didn't bother me or strike me as odd.  As a matter of fact, had everyone that I spoke to spoken back, I would have been quite surprised.

What I have come to find is that people aren't as polite as I recall them being years ago.  I am from the south and maybe that makes a difference, at least that is what I have been told.  When I was growing up you spoke when you crossed someone's path.  Acknowledging and greeting someone was the norm and was in fact considered an insult if you did other wise.  Even when walking down the street, if I passed in front of someone's home and they were outside I was expected to say something.

It is a little sad to me that people don't do those things.  Even if they don't reply, a smile or a kind nod would be fine.  I am raising my boys to have the same attitude as I did when I was younger and still have today.  I challenge you to do the same.  Imagine how much more pleasant this world would be if we acknowledged and greeted everyone that we would see.

I will continue to greet those I see and offer them a smile as I go through my day.  My hope is that it will start a small change that will encourage all the "old" things to become new.

I hope that your morning is a good one and that you can spread "good" as you go about your day.  Good morning, good afternoon, good evening and good night.

Sheryll