God uses sinners- there is no one else to use.

-Elisabeth Elliot

Let us beware of rebellion against the Lord. Circumstances are of His choosing, because He wants to bless us, to lead us (even through the wilderness) out of Egypt, that is, out of ourselves.
Settle the complaint with God; and it will settle other things.

Elisabeth Elliot
A Lamp Unto My Feet

If you're like me and could use a little renewal of motivation towards your schooling at home right now, here's a few links that might do the trick:

Education is a Discipline: Four Habits that have Made a Difference

How to Simply Homeschool: The Four Simple Cornerstones

Seven Daily Rungs…

How to Feed Brains Everyday

The important thing is not so much that every child should be taught,
as that every child should be given the wish to learn.
-John Lubbock

I've been waiting since October for the new and final album release from the David Crowder Band.

Well, it's here, and I love it and I think you would to! I have to admit there was an extra-special thrill when I saw the album title. Because of course I have a soft spot for the beauty of rest.

**Disclosure: This is just me sharing something I love. No paid advertising here.

I am thanking God that unto us a Child was born. I am thanking Him also that there was a pure-hearted woman prepared to receive that Child with all that motherhood would mean of daily trust, daily dependence, daily obedience. I thank Him for her silence. That spirit is not in me at all , not naturally. I want to learn what she had learned so early: the deep guarding in her heart of each event, mulling over its meaning from God, waiting in silence for His word to her.

I want to learn, too, that it is not an extraordinary spirituality that makes one refuse to do ordinary work, but a wish to prove that one is not ordinary — which is a dead giveaway of spiritual conceit. I want to respond in unhesitating obedience as she did: Anything You say, Lord.

 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

-Elisabeth Elliot

Why in the world make blessings into burdens? Why choose fear instead of joy? When I surrender to stress; don't I advertise the unreliability of God?

Choose fear –or completely trust Him. 

One cannot exist if the other is true.

Ann Voskamp

If we have completely entrusted something to God, we must keep our hands off it. He can guard it better than we can, and He does not need our help.  …Often there is nothing as godly as inactivity on our part, or nothing as harmful as restless working, for God has promised to work His sovereign will.

-A.B. Simpson

I saw a delicate flower had grown up two feet high, between the horses' path and the wheeltrack.
  An inch more to right or left had sealed its fate, or an inch higher; and yet it lived to flourish as much as if it had a thousand acres of untrodden space around it , and never knew the danger it incurred. 

It did not borrow trouble, nor invite an evil fate by apprehending it.

-Henry D. Thoreau

For further reading, see Luke 12:22-30.

Don't take the pressure of your provision upon yourself.
It is not only wrong to worry, it is unbelief; worrying means we do not believe that God can look after the practical details of our lives, and it is never anything but those details that worry us.
-Oswald Chambers

This past weekend I was able to spend the day at a “mini-retreat” for the ladies at our church.

There were several workshops to choose from. This is always a dilemma for me. I go back and forth between choosing based on the speaker I would like to hear, or the topic that I’m more interested in. Very holy reasoning, I know.

I ended up opting for one that I thought would be “good” for me. It was based on Proverbs 31:26…

She opens her mouth with wisdom,
And on her tongue is the law of kindness.

I don’t know about you, but I find that the majority of my words often lack both wisdom and kindness.

It ended up being a really good workshop, and I just thought I’d share with you a few things that really stood out to me.

One of the verses brought up was Proverbs 10:21…

The lips of the righteous feed many…

The woman leading the workshop emphasized the point that our words can bring nourishment to people. Or not.

This was a very helpful mental image for me. Do my words nourish and strengthen those whom I share them with? Or do I leave them starving, or with an “upset stomach”?

Something very powerful to consider.

Another verse, Proverbs 12:18…

…the tongue of the wise brings healing.

Do I bring healing to those I speak to? Or do I further wound them?

Something else she really emphasized was being slow to speak. Considering what you say before you say it. She referenced Proverbs 15:28 and 16:20. I’m not giving you those; you’ll have to look them up!

A couple of practical tips she shared:

*Your words should be something you wouldn’t be ashamed for anyone to know. You shouldn’t say anything that you wouldn’t want to be remembered for.

*Something to consider before you say something: Is it kind? Is it true? Is it necessary?

Another verse I really loved was Song of Solomon 2:14…

O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the crannies of the cliff, let me see your face, let me hear your voice, for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely.

Her point with this verse:  a sweet voice and a lovely face go together.

This was another illustration that really stuck in my mind. She demonstrated the facial expressions most mothers tend to have when scolding their children, and pointed out that you can’t speak sweetly and make an awful face at the same time. I think this is going to really be a good reminder for me; check my voice, check my face.  Personally I would really love for my children to remember their mother having a sweet voice and a lovely face. Not real confident that’s the mark I’ve made thus far.

The workshop wrapped up with several verses reminding us of how we can have words of wisdom and kindness. They can only come from God. Seek the Lord and He will pour out His wisdom and kindness through you.

I’m so thankful to be surrounded by godly women who are faithful to share the wisdom they’ve been given over the years.