Adoration

Currently I'm whizzing through the Bible at breakneck speed. I'm going through a study of the whole Bible in seven weeks at Change of Pace South .  The study is called Seamless by Angie Smith. To be totally honest, I chose the study because I'm at a very busy season in life right now. I have read through the Bible chronologically twice now (it's a 1-year walk through the Bible I used). I don't say this to sound pompous, I say it to humble myself. I already had a very good overview of what the Bible looks like in chronological order which is the purpose of Seamless. Do you see what I'm saying? I took the easy way out. The other study being offered was a Beth Moore study and I knew realistically I wasn't going to be able to invest the time to fully appreciate a Beth Moore study.

Yet God is so faithful (despite my selfish reasoning) to meet me where I'm at right now. Going through the Bible with a group of women who are a wide age range is truly a treat. The women all have beautiful testimonies of how God has worked in their lives and how they continue to see Him move. We just wrapped up the Old Testament which is full of foreshadowing. As a woman who loves books, this one is the most beautifully written. I've gained a new appreciation for the Levitical laws. And sheep. Sheep are often part of the story of Jesus my Savior, and now I have convinced myself that we ought to have a little sheep farm. I'm still working on the hubby's approval. ;)

As previously mentioned, this is a very busy time of the year for me. With painting signs, many people are thinking ahead to Christmas. Last year I had an idea of a sign I wanted to paint but never got around to it since I was taking other people's orders. As I have intentionally taken fewer orders I have been able to paint some of my own ideas. Like this:

 Find this in my shop here: Oh Come let us Adore him

I had seen a similar idea, but always the wise men are the ones seeking the baby Jesus in the manger. But those of you who know the Bible well understand that it took the wise men a very long time and Jesus was probably two years old before they reached him. I wanted more than anything to show the immediate response of the shepherds to come adore the baby Jesus.

And how are we like these shepherds? Some of us recognize and come to Christ seemingly easily. And when we reach him, how do we respond? Do we fall to our knees as the first shepherd? Do we point and look ready to run to Him like the second? Or are we like the last two? We are still a ways off, but we are seeking. And not pictured but always in mind when it comes time to read the story of Christ's birth is, of course, the wise men. It takes them a long time to get to Jesus. Just like some of us. We have heard about Him. But it takes us a long, long time to reach Him.

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And when we reach him all of us in our own special way will adore Him. Yes.

Come friends, let us adore Him.

Raising Homemakers

It doesn't escape me that I've been given the tremendous task of raising up a generation of Little Women. Soon five girls will call me Mama. But trust me, I'm just like the rest of you. Sometimes I feel like I'm doing great, other times I think I'm failing. We have beautiful days where everyone is getting along and we have horrible days where the girls are bickering and arguing and throwing fits.

This week I have had a terrible head cold. You know, the works. Sneezing. Coughing. Headaches. For sure, not the worst head cold I've ever had, but enough to make the dog bark when I talk and sound like a man. You know what I mean.

Regardless of whether I am out of sorts, the show must go on. And surprisingly, it has been a beautiful week for me. Despite the ever growing mound of tissues, my little women have risen to the occasion.

As we home school there is still work to be done whether teacher is sick or not. I did a very limited amount of teaching. Just enough to squeak by. Anne and Abbey have read more material on their own than ever before. Anne has helped Abbey work through a math challenge as well as help Maggie read through her sight words. Abbey has taken charge of Caroline and helped her to the bathroom and read her books. Maggie has also stepped up and taken a crying Caroline upstairs to play and distract her while my head was pounding. Anne made lunch on my worst day this week.

As truly grateful as I am to be feeling better in some ways I'm glad I had this little brush of illness. It gave me the opportunity to see my daughters rise up. They were able to complete tasks that I don't normally assign but that they have learned through watching their mama. I never sat down and showed them how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but all three of the older girls are capable (with varying degrees of messes) to make a sandwich.

Friends with little toddlers. Take heart. Your day will come. It's hard to comprehend that my eldest daughter will be nine years old next month. It's humbling that the Lord saw fit to give me all these future homemakers to raise. But that's what I'm doing, to the best of my ability.

And maybe in another month I'll feign illness just to see how much they have honed their homemaking skills.