Category Archives: Biblical lessons through children

May 1, 2013

Sanctifying Second Chances

By altarofheaven
Pursue peace with all men

“Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.”       1 Peter 4:8

I was giddy to have time alone with God, and was on my way out the door when my seven year old son asks if he could join me. I politely tell him, “Not this time.”

He pleads with me and I shamefully redirect his attention from investing time in our relationship to his inanimate toys.

I leave him. And I began to swat away convicting thoughts replacing them with a justifying one:

“I’m home all day with the kids and they see me all the time. I deserve this time…”

I was five minutes out, and I could no longer ignore or numb the conviction of the Holy Spirit speaking to my heart gently showing me I did not choose what was best.  I repented of my selfishness and turned the car around to swoop up the son of my vow.

I felt as though I couldn’t get to my son fast enough and I was full of gratitude, thankful it wasn’t too late to undo my poor decision.

I ran to his room and see him tacking a note to the door.  I got on my knees to look into his hurt eyes and speak to his rejected heart:

“I came back for you! God showed me I wasn’t choosing what was best…”

As I say these words I read the note he tacked to the door, which confirmed the urgency of my conviction and his bruised heart:

“I hate Mommy!”

My heart sinks and aches of this revelation and I see his embarrassed look of regret as he tries to tear off the note and I ‘cover‘ the note with one hand and gently place my other hand on his, and say:

“Oh this. Yes. I understand my son, Mommy is not perfect, and I did not choose wisely, do you forgive me?”

He nods, and hugs me tightly.

I shove the note into my pocket as a stone of remembrance to remind me not to miss out on future opportunities to sow God’s unfailing love. Holding hands we race to the car as giddy children of God, excited for the opportunity for our reconciled hearts to communicate over coffee, milk and cookies. 

***
I tell my children about God every day. I tell them about His great love and how Jesus Christ laid down His life for the world, so that we can be reconciled to have an intimate relationship with God the Father.  I tell them about the conviction of the Holy Spirit, how He will guide us into all Truth helping us to trust and obey God’s Word. I tell them how Jesus Christ is alive in me.

Yes I SPEAK of God’s love often and God gives me ample opportunities to SHOW my children this type of love…of laying down of my own selfish desires to listen to their hearts.  If you could see more than a snapshot of my life you would see I have missed many opportunities.

For our flesh, to love is easier said than shown–but not for God, God IS love! The same Holy Spirit dwelling in Jesus Christ dwells in me so the Truth is I have what it takes to love the way God has called me to love.

I’m thankful for God’s grace and forgiveness and for His Holy Spirit guiding me into all Truth, and I’m thankful we ‘get to’ show the Lord Jesus Christ to others:

“Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.” Hebrews 12:14

Mother's Prayer Card April 2013 - Page 001

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October 10, 2012

Prideless Parenting

By altarofheaven

“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8

We were having an enjoyable time at the beach when my daughter became frustrated because the waves kept washing away her artwork on “God’s chalkboard” {the sand}.  She was tired, hungry and her patience was slim, therefore she did the only thing she could do to express her irritation: she cried. And cried, and cried.  I discovered the quickest way to clear a beach is having a child cry for ten minutes straight. Now was the test…

What was I going to do?

My flesh wanted to satisfy the captive audience around me, and discipline her in public, my flesh wanted to scream. Actually, my flesh did scream {inside}.  Then I held her close to me and I prayed.  I prayed for God’s Holy Spirit to help us both in this witnessing opportunity.  I prayed we would both look only at Jesus Christ and not at each other or our sins.  I prayed we would be still and remain in Jesus Christ remembering God is already pleased with us because of what Jesus Christ has done, not anything we have or haven’t done.  I prayed we would take full advantage of this opportunity to give thanks to God even in this sanctifying moment.  I rocked her in my arms and felt as though everything and everyone else melted away.  I sang softly to her, and I remember I can act the same way inside when something I’ve worked hard on is destroyed or taken.

“Know that the LORD Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.” Psalm 100:3

I am on a journey of letting go. God is teaching me to let go of pride and perfection.  God is teaching me to deal gently with others, and to be compassionate as our High Priest Jesus Christ is able to sympathize with our weaknesses.  When these sanctifying moments occur I am learning to silently pray and look to God to comfort my children while restraining any temptation to use worldly things to threaten or console them.  I am learning to wait, be still…I’m learning to hide and abide in my Rock Jesus Christ. At one point my daughter disrespected me during her sorrow and I told her:

“you are not allowed to disrespect me, God says children must obey their parents for this is well-pleasing to Him.  I understand being upset for lost work but now you are crossing over to disobedience and that’s not the path you want to be on.”

She nodded her head. She understood.  Another five minutes of praying and allowing God to comfort her through me and the Hulk {in both of us} was gone.  I now had a calm lamb in my arms remembering the words of Jesus, ‘feed my sheep‘ and ‘tend to my lambs‘, reminding me we are all His sheep in His pasture and He is the one that restores our souls. When my children bicker, cry, fight instead of hearing a whining noise I am choosing to hear little lambs ‘baaaing’ because they are turned over and need help to be restored.  Before God can work in and through me I need to be abiding and hiding in Him so His Spirit can work in and through me for His purpose.

I am letting go of ‘striving’ to be a perfect parent and resting in His grace which is sufficient in all things, even a fit at the beach.  To God be the glory…again, His giving, His glory!

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June 23, 2012

Incredible Hulk or Incredible Walk?

By altarofheaven

“…walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh” Galatians 5:16

One day as I watched my son play with the Incredible Hulk action figure, I asked myself:

“Are my kids seeing the incredible hulk or an incredible walk?”

When I was a little girl I was nicknamed ‘little hulk’ because anytime I would get angry I would get a stiff neck, clench my fists, shake and growl.  Instead of turning green I would turn red. My sisters would give a warning to those around, “watch out here comes the incredible hulk!”  My sisters and I look back and laugh at those days…the days I was a strong willed child and did not submit easily.

Today I am not that child, and behavior like that is inexcusable because I have been reborn and I am spiritually alive! The day I submitted to God He gave me a new heart and put His Holy Spirit in me and tells me the way to walk.  I want to be a witness for God and pray my children remember an incredible walk with God, not the ‘incredible hulk’ in me.

This is easier said than done because I still struggle with my flesh…my pride and own selfish desires and expectations, but the more I seek God the more He equips me to identify the signs of when the ‘hulk’ in me is coming out. When my neck is stiff, heart races, hands begin to clench and my voice changes I know it’s time for me to step away and be alone with my Heavenly Father.  I fall on my face and cry out to my Abba for help, asking Him for the grace to walk by His Spirit and to obey Him.  He ALWAYS helps when I am not stiff necked and humble myself–ALWAYS. It’s up to me whether I unclench my hands to receive His grace or not.

God’s Word washes over my heart and reminds me I have already been set free:

“…you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you.  But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.  If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness.  But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.  So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.  For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” Romans 8:9-14

I am a daughter of God.  I am made holy by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. I am not in the flesh because the Spirit of God dwells in me.  I am to walk by the Holy Spirit because He lives in me! This is a disciplined life, a life of a disciple of Jesus Christ, one who walks with Him.

Today my children are learning through me what it means to walk by the Spirit.  They are learning the Spirit must come before the “fruit.” We are learning together the ‘incredible walk’ is not a perfect walk but a walk of humility, discipline and faith.  I tell them, “Mommy feels the hulk coming on, I’m going to go pray and be alone with God, I’ll be right back.”  They understand.  I pray one day they will be blessed with the spiritual understanding and knowledge only God can provide.

I am praying for you reader.  If you are still in full bondage of being a hulk I pray God shows you His power and love of what He has done by sending Jesus Christ as an offering for sin, condemning sin in the flesh.

For those that are already children of God, my brethren I pray these Scriptures for us:

“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh” Galatians 5:16

“If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” Galatians 5:25

“If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. “1 John 1:8-9

*More Bread to feast on: Romans 7 Romans 8; Galatians 5:16-25; 1 Corinthians 13:11

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June 5, 2012

His Giving, His Glory

By altarofheaven

I was in the car handing money to my children to give for a Church offering when my daughter objected, “Mommy, that’s MY money! I don’t want to give that to anyone!” I gently asked her, “Who owns everything?” She responded, “God, but that’s mine and I don’t want to share it! I love my money.”

I could feel my pride as a Mother and tension rise up within me.  I had to remember, this is not about me.  I humbled myself and God brought to my remembrance His Word:

“The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.”2 Timothy 2:24-26

I said a prayer and asked for God’s wisdom and grace for this moment and to help me not to be quarrelsome with her but to correct her with gentleness.  He reminded me how difficult it is for me to let go of things I call ‘mine.’  Empowered by His Holy Spirit I was able to speak to her with compassion:

Praying I can wait on God to prepare her heart for His glory

“Baby girl, it’s not always easy for Mommy to give away things she wants to keep but we can pray and ask God for His help and He will help us. You said correctly ‘everything IS God’s’ and God gave you that money through Grandma and you can do what you want with it and I am not going to force you to do something you don’t want to do.  However, I am going to pray for you, that God will soften your heart and give you the grace to give cheerfully.”

She just held onto the money tighter.  That was the end of the conversation.

Five minutes later she bounced up to me and with a huge smile and whispered, “Guess what Mommy? I want to give my money to the orphans.”  My soul sings out: To God be the glory!

Oh one more thing…immediately after my prayer for her heart was answered we walked into the sanctuary and the message was:  “When you need help, God is with you” and the key verse:

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Psalm 46:1

How kind of God to allow my daughter and I to walk out that truth together…

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February 3, 2012

Shine, even when there’s spilled milk.

By altarofheaven

Today my son spilled his cereal and milk all over the dining room floor. I had just finished praying the Lord would give me wisdom to raise my children and the grace to do it in love and now, I saw I had an opportunity…

I told him to clean it up while his sister and I got ready for school.  Immediately he began to whine and complain–my flesh gets frustrated and cannot stand to hear whining and I begin to feel anger rise and I say another quick prayer…Lord help me please.  I know my son is to obey You because it pleases You, it’s not about me. Our faithful God hears my prayer and responds…

I gently ask my son to go to his room and I pray again to prepare my heart.  The verse that came to mind when I saw my son complaining was, ‘Do all things without grumbling and disputing…” I stop, pray once again and open the Bible to Philippians 2:14-18 and read the entire passage:

“Do all things without grumbling or disputing; so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain. But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all.  You too, I urge you, rejoice in the same way and share your joy with me. “

"Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." Matthew 5:16

After I pray and read God’s Word, I’m ready for the Lord to use me to restore my son. I open the door and immediately I see the stars in his room and I ask him:

“How do the stars in your room light up?”

“The light needs to be on, and it needs to shine on them.”

“What happens when we turn the lights off?”

“They shine. The longer they are in the light, the brighter they shine.”

“Yes, who made the stars in the sky?”

“God“

“Who made you?”

“God“

Do you know you were made to shine for God?  Let me read to you from God’s word…I read Philippians 2:13-18 to him and I ask him questions to see his understanding:

“According to what I just read why should we not grumble or dispute (complain)?

“Because I am a child of God and I should be a light.”

Yes. My son, sometimes it’s hard for mommy to obey without grumbling too but mommy stops and prays and asks God to help her, through the power of His Holy Spirit that lives in me.  He will give you the grace to pick up one cheerio at a time. Do you want to pray and ask God for the grace to obey without complaining?”

“Yes“

We get on our knees and I take my firstborn to the throne of grace, and he is transformed by the renewing of his mind through the word of God…he is restored, smiling and eager to obey. Just. like. that.

Do you realize the more time we spend with God and our minds are fixed on Him, the brighter we will shine in the darkness? I pray you spend your time with Him seizing every opportunity to know Him more intimately, so you can shine…even when the milk spills.

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December 23, 2011

Teachable moment on God’s Love

By altarofheaven
My journal entry dated Summer 2010
 
 
The other day we were at a friend’s house when my 3-year-old little girl tried to play with two other older girls, but they closed the door and didn’t let her in.  My daughter came running to me with tears in her eyes saying, “Mommy they won’t share and they don’t want to play with me…” I must admit I am ashamed of my immediate reaction which was of my natural flesh fueled by hurt and sadness for my daughter.  I know what it’s like to see cliques of people enjoying each others’ company and not welcoming you to join them.  Unfortunately I have plenty of journal entries crying out to God about this hurt and rejection…it is from this hurt I initially responded:
 

I whispered in her ear, “Its OK we will go to the pool later and play with two other little girls.”

 
 

Instead of giving my daughter the ‘Bread of Life’ I gave her the dust of the world leaving her heart empty of God’s Word and thirsty for His Holy Spirit.  I took an easy road, giving her an opportunity to put her hope and happiness in a person or circumstance and not in Jesus Christ.  My daughter then said to the two girls, in a very bragging (unloving) tone, “We’re going to the pool and you can’t come!”  Only then was I convicted and repented and sought God’s forgiveness for not ‘diligently teaching’ her His Word.  After this confession and cleansing, I allowed myself to listen and obey the voice of the Holy Spirit…“He who conceals a transgression seeks love, but he who repeats a matter separates intimate friends.” Proverbs 17:9

 
 

The brown eyes I must diligently teach about Him

I bent down on my knees, looked into her big brown eyes and told her, “God loves you, and God loves those little girls who hurt your feelings.” I asked her a question.  “What are the two greatest commandments?” And her little voice replied with hand gestures to go with each word, “love God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.”  Yes! My next step as her mother was to teach her ‘How’?  How can you love someone when they hurt you? How Mommy?

 

 I told her we can pray right now and ask God to give us the grace to forgive them and to love them.  We prayed right there, we prayed for the little girls that hurt her, and we prayed for ourselves…we prayed Matthew 22:37-39 and we asked for God’s grace to forgive and love the Way He commanded us to love. After prayer, my daughter immediately changed her behavior and invited them to the pool.  Before we left, one of the little girls asked me, “You’re already teaching her Scripture?  But she’s so little…”  I smiled and told her,

“Even infants in their Mommy’s tummy are at the perfect age to learn about God’s love!  Yes, my daughter like you IS little and Jesus says, in Matthew 19:14 ‘let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.’

 Mothers, Grandmothers, Aunts, anyone around children meditate on this:

“…the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

Wow! God gave us an example through children to show us what heirs of the kingdom of heaven can look like!  Also, what a responsibility not to hinder them from coming to Jesus! Those little eyes are watching us.  They are watching to see if we ‘do’ what we teach them.  Consider our Great Teacher, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ–what did He do?  He humbled Himself…He even washed the feet of the disciples….all 12 of them!  Yes, even Judas Iscariot, the one He knew that was going to betray Him.  When Jesus had finished washing their feet He asked:

 

“Do you understand what I have done for you?”

You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am.  Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.  I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.  Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.  Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.”

John 13:12-17

 

Jesus washes His Disciples' feet...so should we

If my Lord and Savior, the Son of God can humble Himself and wash the feet of someone He knew was going to betray Him (Judas) and those that would deny Him (the rest of the disciples), who am I to not humble myself to love those who hurt me? My actions will show whether or not I truly ‘understand’ what Jesus has done for me.  My little children are His lambs.  I’ve been entrusted to teach them His Word diligently by reading the Bible to them and showing them how to walk His truth out.  I am thankful His Holy Spirit helps me to teach my children by bringing to remembrance His Word every teachable moment opportunity! I’m so thankful that I listened and obeyed….this time.

Father, help us to seize each moment to teach children diligently about Your commandments and the Way (Jesus) to obey Your commandments through the power of Your Holy Spirit.  Thank you for this opportunity to teach and relearn about love and forgiveness.

 
 

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.  The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.  By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.  In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.  Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

1 John 4:7-11

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October 22, 2011

Biblical lessons from my children…

By altarofheaven

When I am still, listen and watch I notice God teaches me through my children…

One day when my son was 4 he told me he didn’t want to go downstairs alone because he was scared.  Somewhat frustrated because we had gone through this several times I was about to tell him ‘God is with you’ but before I could, he said, “Mama God is not with me He’s with you.”  Surprised at his response I asked him, “Ok, well do you want God to be with you?” He thought about it looked up and said, “No, He might take away my cereal!” I smiled acknowledging the truth of what He said–that He did not want God because He was afraid of what he might have to give up.  I smiled because I remembered, I remember that fear of letting go of control and being afraid of giving up what I wanted.  But what my son and I didn’t know in the past that we both know now is what Jesus said “…if anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24).  We must deny ourselves! God the Father showed us His great love by sending Jesus to die for our sins so we CAN have a relationship with Him, but that’s not all…
I hope you’re still reading because this is the part I think a lot of people miss: When we deny ourselves, when we fully surrender every area to Him He helps us through His Holy Spirit.  Less of us means more of Him.  Oh I pray God continues to help me deny the “cereal” in my life I’m still holding on to.

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