Swirling

I am warning you now that this post is going to be very long and very disjointed. My head is swirling... let's see if you can make it to the end. :) I have no idea how to organize my thoughts.

* This weekend was truly tiring, but I'm still in awe of how God even cares about the less important details of our lives. So humbled by how he uses situations to draw His people to Him. So thankful that He shows His love for us.  "How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!" 1 John 3:1


And really, the weekend circumstances were all about trusting Him. Do I trust Him with everything? Do I trust Him to take care of my family and me? Do I trust Him only when things are good or do I also trust Him when things are hard? When I trust Him, then I will find strength.  "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust are your strength." Isaiah 30:15


* I recently read an interview with Ann Voskamp on the blog Preschooler's and Peace. It really got my brain thinking and pondering. The question was "How do you grasp the idea of living a 'spiritual life' as opposed to having a 'Bible Time' as part of school?" I loved her answer so I'm going to copy portions of it below. You can read more here.

~This, for me, is at the heart of what kind of life I am praying to live. I
don't want to box up God into a "quiet time," as if that is the only place I
can meet Him. I want Him to flood all of the messiness and craziness and
beauty of every moment of my day. I think everyone wants that. But what does
that look like? What does that really mean? 


To live a spiritually holistic life, one can't simply have "Bible time" and expect to nourish an intimate relationship with Jesus. It is about keeping company with Jesus for the other 23 hours of the day, speaking with Him, singing to Him, praying to Him, calling out to Him, resting in Him--living in Him. -Ann Voskamp

* School this week has been different, but good. I like routine and I know that the boys benefit from routine, but our routine this week has been off. 
     On Monday, we were all still recovering from our weekend and we didn't start school until 10:30am! (gasp!) This is very unlike normal and it was VERY hard to rein the boys back in after they had a couple hours to get involved in play. However, we did finally work on our lessons and after some coaxing were able to focus and finish up strong. None of us wanted to do school, but we did and I'm thankful for the freedom that home schooling allows. Especially the freedom to stay in jammies!!
     I was wiser on Tuesday, so we started on time. Somehow though it felt more relaxed. A lot of time was spent reading and cuddling and that made me thankful for home schooling again. Thankful for those moments with the boys. We did not go to art class mid-day on Tuesday due to some cold germs and that eliminated the rush out the door -- and allowed the boys to stay in jammies again. 
     Today, Ethan had a low fever so we stayed home from Community Bible Study... another break in our routine. I decided we would do things a little differently for school and it worked. I put Luke and Ethan's name into a box and had them draw out one name. Whatever name I pulled out was the boy I worked with independently while the others played cooperatively upstairs. Then we swapped.  And again...another day in jammies for the boys. Of course I don't like when they're not feeling 100%, but they sure are mellow. :)

* We're continuing to fill in our thankful journal at meal times, but not as often as I would like. 
     I am thankful for:
     203. Christian music! I love singing along to songs with good words.
     204. Little voices singing boldly along with the Christian music
     205. dinner in the crockpot
     206. warm days in January
     207. good books
     208. jammies


* This was a verse we memorized with Luke's curriculum and I love it. 

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9

For those of you who made it to the end of this crazy post... ** SURPRISE** leave a comment here or send me an email (djlsmith@verizon.net) by January 27th and I'll put your name into a drawing for a free copy of "One Thousand Gifts" by Ann Voskamp. Make sure you include a way for me to contact you. :) I've always wanted to have a give away.