The love of God is like being sprayed by a skunk. Well, kind of.

Driving home from church this week I flattened an already-dead-or-so-I-think skunk. I'm a good driver but admittedly I'm not cut out for the wild closed-circuit obstacle course driving... which explains why I couldn't avoid that dead black and white fur ball in the road.  

Clunk.  I heard it when my tire rolled over.  I felt the speed bump.  And then I smelled it.  It seeped through my vents and took root in the carpet fibers of my floor mats.  My nose burned and my eyes watered.  I had been skunked.  The pungent odor obviously affected my logic because I drove right into the garage and closed the door, as if I would somehow suffocate the stench rather than invite it closer to home!

Ahem, Heinecke.  Dumb move.

Eventually I wised up and moved the car outside. But it was too late. The aroma had penetrated the door and crept into my house.  It was inescapable.  And it lingered. (And it was downright gross.)

Waking up the next morning I detected only a hint of skunk in the house.  My car?  A different story.  (Just how many of those suckers did I hit?!) I believe it will be a rancid ride for a while.

And because I cannot stand to pass up an impromptu Bible lesson for my kids, I started thinking...

The love of God is like being sprayed by a skunk.

Too often we 'toy' with the idea of being fully surrendered to the will of God.  We keep our distance, satisfied to just get a 'look' but never moving too closely so our hearts remain unchanged.  What happens when we go all the way and unapologetically follow Him, no matter what He asks of us?  What happens if we go after Him and pursue holiness and extreme obedience and unnatural faith?  What happens if we 'poke a skunk' and say yes to the Father?

Well, we might just get completely covered in the love of God.  It's possible the effects would be so intense, so evident, so recognizable that those people around us wouldn't second guess what happened.  It's possible we couldn't just easily 'wash it off' and go on with life because we would be altered, changed, identifiable.  It's possible  people wouldn't even have to be too close to us to know what has happened.  The evidence would linger and influence others around us.  It's possible. But we'd first have to get 'skunked.'

With God, all things are possible.

When I ride around in my skunkmobile this week, I'm asking the Father to pour out his love on me and let it get all over me like oily skunk gunk. (a pretty-smelling kind of gunk, okay Lord?)  I want to get close enough to the heart of God that it leaves no doubt what I've been up to.  I want to have His love penetrate every part of my life -- even my garage and my car.

14But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. 15For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 16To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?   2 Corinthians 2:14-16 

If It's Not One Thing, It's A Mother

If it’s not one thing, it’s a mother – my sister and I jokingly whisper this phrase to one another – with maybe a hint of sarcasm in our voice but always with a genuine affection for the mom we ADORE.  We’re too old to roll our eyes at mom so we’ve invented clever things to say that have the same effect.  I’m kidding.  My mom is great.  In fact, she is the reason I believe I can do this things called 'motherhood!' 

If there's one thing my mom taught me, it's that we CAN train our children in the Word without them thinking everyday is a Sunday School!  

Our efforts must be MODELED.

Quite simply, if we want our childrent to fall in love with the word of God, WE must be in love with it.  If we want our children to be selfless and serve people, WE must do so first.  The first step in leading our children to a deeper faith is to let them see it in us.  We cannot lead our kids to a place we've never been...

Our efforts must be BIBLICAL.

I always use the example of moms who say things like, "God doesn't like little boys who lie..." Ugh.  That couldn't be further from the truth yet as moms, we say things like that all the time when we're trying to teach our kids how to act.  God hates SIN and lying (or whatever else) is a sin.  God loves US.  When we teach our kids about spiritual things we must be careful to use the Bible accurately rather than twist it to say what we want our kids to hear.  Trust me, the Word of God will stand on its own.  You don't need to manipulate it or 'dumb it down.'

Our efforts must be PRACTICAL.

Make the use of scripture common and familiar to your kids.  And make it an everyday thing in your world.  Eating pretzels?  Ask your kids what makes the pretzel good... they'll say salt.  Talk about what the Bible says about the Believer being 'salt of the earth' (Mt. 5) -- Use examples, colorful examples!  Make sure they are relevant to your child's world.  Talk about the Bible often but make sure life experiences help them connect the dots

Our efforts must be REINFORCED.

This is my favorite step.  Don't assume our kids see the goodness of God.  Did you pray for a buyer for the house? When it happens, remind your children of your prayer and of God's provision.  Even the Father did this with his own people.  Remember the references to "I am the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob?...I brought you out of Egypt...I did this...and that...and rescued you...and delivered you..."  Make sure they see it.  Teach them to look for it.  Moms, we find what we're looking for!

Training your kids in the Word of God is not hard.  It does require you to be intentional.  And a bit creative.  Is it worth it?  I say yes.  There are thousands of messages in this world fighting for the attention of my kids.  Let's commit to do whatever it takes to put the Word in front of them -- closer and louder and more often than any of those other negative things!

If it's not one thing, it's a MOTHER.

Blessings to the moms.  Let's do this!

My Mother Did It Right.

This is an interview I did at the Survive 'N' Thrive single mothers' conference in Oklahoma City, June 2011. 

If you're a mom, be blessed to hear what my mother did right.
If you're my mom, be blessed to know it wasn't in vain.  I was watching you.

We Don't Do That Here.

My son's 6th grade leadership teacher uses that phrase with her students.  I found this out when I stuck my spoon (uninvited) into the bowl of ice cream Kid Two was scooping out for himself.

He shot me a look and recited with confidence (or was it sarcasm?), "Um, we don't do that here."  I apologized (but I wasn't entirely sorry. Come on, it was chocolate chip ice cream!)  It was a simple statement that let me know his position without question.  His mind had already been made up.  His 'matter of fact' response confirmed he wasn't putting up with any shenanigans. Apparently 'we' don't take ice cream from another family member without asking. who knew.

This morning when I was wrestling in prayer about a thing or two, the enemy started in on me.  Familiar lies that I so easily believe, making me feel less than God says I am, and trying to convince me I'm never going to live up to what God has called me to do -- I was letting him take my ice cream without asking.

I interrupted his condemnation.  "Um, excuse me, we don't do that here." I told him with confidence. I stopped the voice that was trying to weaken me because the facts say I belong to the Father.  And the voice that condemns me belongs to the enemy. 

I refused to listen any longer. He has no audience here.
We won't sheepishly believe we won't measure up. 
We won't walk in guilt because we fall short from time to time.
We won't give up the pursuit because it's work.
Sorry, we don't do that here.

An Open Letter to My Dryer

Dear Dryer,

I think it's time we had a talk.  You've been hanging around my laundry room for quite a while, getting all warm and cozy with the washer every Friday night. Lately I've noticed things I don't like. And since I try not to complain about what I tolerate, it's time I confront you.

Let me put it this way...You're in trouble.  I'm thinking of letting you go. 

You used to be so available to me, you were hot and efficient.  Now, you're lazy and bi-polar.  Oh sure, you start right up without a fuss but half the time you don't even get warm, just tumbling my clothes around for 37 minutes without changing anything.  You're like the kid who runs the bathwater but never gets in and then promises his mother he is clean.  You're tricky.  I turned the heat up, thinking you might just be cold.  I know, it's winter and all.  But seriously, you showed me, didn't you?!  Burning your marks on the side of my favorite stretchy pants?  You've caused me to take my weekend grungy/comfortable clothes to a whole new level of tacky.

Dryer, you're wasting space in my utility room.  You look good but you're not effective. You're not consistent and quite frankly, you are doing more harm than good.  That's not why I bought you.  Today I had to load up 5 loads of wet laundry and go the local laundromat. And.that.was.not.fun.with.two.small.kids. 

There is work to be done and I chose you to do it. But if you won't dry for me, I'll find one that will.  You're not bringing honor to your name, Dryer.

Sincerely,
The House Management

Father, may I not be like my fickle dryer!  Lead me to be more effective for your kingdom.  You have given all of us a part in bringing glory to your name.  May I not take that lightly but strive to see Your purpose fulfilled in my life. Amen.

And Lord, if you could heal that dryer that would be just dandy...

People from the past

I'm not nostalic by nature.  I don't have a single high school year book left in my possession or any pictures from the prom or gradutation.  I don't regularly get hung up on the past.  I do, however, find myself thinking of people who were important to me throughout life -- like my grandpa or my favorite elementary school teacher.  Precious memories of people are tucked away in my heart.

This weekend I was blessed to see several people who significantly impacted my life when I was growing up.  They probably don't even know the extent to which I looked up to them.  My parents celebrated their 25th anniversary with friends from all seasons of their life and it was a joy to honor them among family and friends.

Four ladies in particular were in attendance.  They were the "moms" when I was a teenager.  They were everything from my Sunday School teachers to my friends' moms to the mother of the boy I once chased in youth group. 

My sister and I reminisced about our memories with those ladies and how they had touched our lives in one way or another, probably without knowing it.  And I'll admit, it was a little humbling to realize I am probably older now than they were during those times!  Yikes! 

Driving home I was a little quiet.  "What are you thinking about?" someone asked in the car. 

"I'm remembering all those people from years ago when I was a kid."  But inside my brain it was more than that.  I was thinking about my own children and their friends.  I was planning to be intentional about making an impact on their friends.  They probably won't remember what a fabulous snack maker  I was (and I am) or how you could often grow a garden from the dirt on my kitchen floor (this is true)!  But I hope someday when they are grown up, they remember they had a friend who's mother loved the things of God and her sons were different kids because of it.  Maybe, just maybe, it will make a difference to them 25 years later.

Ladies, you know who you are, thank you for the influence you had.

30 Days of Family...Are you still with us?! (Day 10-12)

Day 1-3   |   Day 4-6   |   Day 7-9

Day 10:  My Kids Are So Cool, I Shared Them...

Okay, I  know this is 30 Days of Family...and just as I suspected, we fell behind a little and had to change plans.  The Foxy Mr and I left town for a day before the sun came up and didn't come home until late.  I can't tell you what we were up to because it involves a family Christmas gift and I intend to keep it a secret until the right time.  SO, I "shared" my kids with their aunt and uncle.  :)  Sharing is Biblical, right?  I did call them a time or two so technically, no family interaction was lost.  #human.

Day 11: Birthdays Everywhere!

There are 4 family birthdays within one week. Three of us live in town. We'll host a family birthday get together and enjoy the company of our family.  No TV, no ipods, no video games.  Just all of us gathered around the table to eat, laugh, eat, exchange gifts, and eat.



Day 12: Christmas Carol Charades

Kid 2 is in a vocal music program tonight.  We will all go together and then come home to a late dinner.  After dinner, our family activity will be Christmas Carol Charades to keep the musical spirit going.  Put 10-12 song titles in a bowl.  The "actor" has 2 minutes to act out the song title.  If it is guessed accurately, the "guessor" gets 3 points and the "actor" gets 5.  We'll play 2-3 rounds as long as the attitudes are still good...

Spiritual application: Think about acting... It's pretending to be someone you're not.  Can you think of a situation in which you 'act' like a follower of Christ but on the inside you know it's just a game you're playing?  How can we be real so that others see the light of Christ in us instead of a facade?

30 Days of Family (Day 7-9)

Days 1-3  |   Days 4-6

Our month of intentional family time continues.  See the last two posts for other ideas...

Day 7:  Show and Tell

Ask each family member to bring an object to the table that represents something for which they are thankful.  So help me, if one of my kids brings the XBox downstairs they won't see the light of day until January!  (Can you guess that I'm over the video game thing?!)  Let others guess what the object represents.  Then each person tells.  It's better than everyone just 'saying' it.  This requires more thought.  I'm going to leave pictures of me conveniently scattered around the house in hopes that someone will bring my pic to the table...  :)

Spiritual Application / Discussion: What are the good things for which we are thankful?  Are there any things that are not so good to be thankful for? (problems, trials, etc.)  How can we be thankful IN all things?

Day 8:  Kid Pick: Grab Bag!

One of my boys is in charge of tonight's activity.  He has a $20 budget.  The only rule is that he must provide some short spiritual application or discussion question and it must involve all family members. (No leaving a brother home because he is annoying!)  I have no idea what he is planning...

Day 9:  Special Breakfast

If we are still tracking according to plan, my husband and I will be going out of town on this day.  Our event will have to be an early one before the guys go to school.  We'll enjoy a big family breakfast - something we don't do during the weekday since everyone gets up at different times and leaves early!  I'm thinking French Toast Casserole might be on the menu that day. 

Spiritual Application / Discussion: I'm just going to ask the boys how I can pray for them on this day.  :)

Our fun will continue.

I wonder if by the time this post is published if I will still think this whole 30 Day thing was a good idea?...