Intricacies

Have you ever noticed the veins in a leaf that fell many months ago?  Orange and crumbly, it nearly disintegrates as you pick it up to examine its intricacy.  I'm amazed at the strength of those veins.  Though not unbreakable, they hold firm until deliberate action is taken for their breakage.  Like the rotating blade of a mower.  Or the fast-moving shoe on a child playing hide-and-seek.  Or the curious hands of an intricacy-admirer.

Someone once told me about an experience they had in Nairobi, Kenya.  There were thousands upon thousands of people in view.  Overwhelmed, he realized that each will spend eternity somewhere.  Each pair of those beautifully dark eyes that have no doubt seen what no man or woman should have to see.  Each and every. single. one. has a soul and a heart and a mind.  Each was woven separately.  Intricately. 

"For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother's womb."

~Psalm 139:13~

One of the cats who live in the barn next door had kittens.  What is it about baby anythings that elicits such heart-skipping adoration?  Why do my children's voices immediately jump into that high-pitched, squeal of delight at the sight of anything baby?  Like the baby elephant at the zoo.  Or a friend's newborn.  The miracle of life for sure.  But, even more, is the mere fact that anything in miniature seems to magnify the intricacies of its larger version.  Like a baby elephant's ears.  And the kittens' adorable little paws.  And a newborn baby's teeny tiny toenails. 

I am inspired to wonder.  And to unwrap this gift that is simply not wrappable.  Because Creator-God constructed such elaborate design, how incomprehensibly amazing He Himself must be.

 

"Have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God, this deep, deep wisdom? It's way over our heads. We'll never figure it out.

Is there anyone around who can explain God?

Anyone smart enough to tell him what to do?

Anyone who has done him such a huge favor

that God has to ask his advice?

Everything comes from him;

Everything happens through him;

Everything ends up in him.

Always glory! Always praise!

Yes. Yes. Yes."  ~Romans 11:33-36

Words for Vigilance

I've been thinking lately about the power of words.

I love words.  Words are why I write.  How I write.  I love playing with words.  But their power is not to be taken lightly.  They have the power to build up and encourage.  They have the power to tear down and destroy.

I wish I had the energy to write more words about words.  It would be fun, I think.  But for now, I will commit to use my words for only good in my marriage.  As I speak to my children about him, I will use only words that will build him up in front of them.  When I disagree with him or get annoyed with him, I will choose my words carefully and filter them through truth with love and grace and mercy.  And when I speak, I will speak words that build up my husband.

"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen."

Ephesians 4:29

It's my commitment to vigilance as a wife this week.  What's yours?  I hope you'll share it here...

**If this is your first time linking up, please read this first.**

If you have a blog, get your permalink for the post you'd like to share then paste it into the cool little McLinky thingy right here so other people can read and be encouraged by your vigilance. Don't forget to link back here. (A permalink is the URL to a specific blog post. To get it, publish your post, then click on the title. Then copy the entire url from the address line at the top of your browser.)

Don't have a blog? Awesome. Just post a comment here at the end of this post telling us about your commitment to be vigilant in your marriage this week.

Of Weeds and Vigilance

"I think I know why the weeds came back," she declared from the backseat as we drove along the country roads that lead us into town.  "Because the sign got crooked from the wind, and the rain made it so you can't see the words."  I didn't want to squelch her thoughtful invention or her belief that weeds would not only read her handmade "No Weeds Allowed" sign, but that they would also heed it.  So I agreed. 

She made the sign a few weeks ago after helping me rid the flower bed of the unwanted intruders that had tried to lay claim to the flower bed in front of our house.  And although she enjoyed our time together, my five-year-old does not enjoy repeating a task which has already been completed.  Thus, the sign.  It was all she could think of to do in order to ensure that our work had not been in vain.

Oh, if only it were that easy.  If only we could post a sign for our marriages that reads, "No weeds allowed," and leave it at that.

But, a sign will not do the trick.  And, just as a sign won't keep the weeds out of my flower beds, neither will it keep them from infringing on my marriage.  In fact, it takes vigilance to keep the weeds out of both flower beds and marriages alike.

Weeds like selfishness.  And pride.  Resentment.  Impatience.  Harsh words.  Prayerlessness.

That's why I'm committed to being vigilant as a wife.  Because, even though weeds can sometimes be pretty at first, if left alone, they take over and leave no nutrients for the real flowers.  The ones that display true beauty.   And just like I want a healthy and beautiful flower bed, I also want a healthy and beautiful marriage, where God's glory is displayed through and through.

And just as some weeds are more difficult to pull than others, some of my marriage weeds are really hard to get to the root of.  Especially selfishness.  The soil of my heart seems to really attract that one.  So I must stay vigilant.  By looking for ways to serve my husband.  By surrendering daily to God's plan and His ways so that the soil of my heart stays soft and doesn't get hard and crusty.

That, my friends, is what Mondays are all about here at andthensomore.  Vigilance.

You in?

**If this is your first time linking up, please read this first.**

If you have a blog, get your permalink for the post you'd like to share then paste it into the cool little McLinky thingy right here so other people can read and be encouraged by your vigilance. Don't forget to link back here.  (A permalink is the URL to a specific blog post.  To get it, publish your post, then click on the title. Then copy the entire url from the address line at the top of your browser.)

Don't have a blog?  Awesome.  Just post a comment here at the end of this post telling us about your commitment to be vigilant in your marriage this week.

Her Eyes

"Where did she get her beautiful blue eyes?"

People ask this about my daughters all of the time. I usually look at them (with MY OWN blue eyes) and say, "My mother-in-law has beautiful blue eyes too." Then I smile and walk away. Sometimes laughing at myself. Sometimes laughing at the stupidity of the question. But always laughing. I have to admit it would be really fun to mess with someone the next time I hear that. Like, "Oh my gosh!!! How the HECK did that happen?!?" I mean, ask a stupid question...get a stupid answer.

Because eye-color is something you can't get on your own. It's inherited. And, even though I don't understand genetics at all, I know that two brown-eyed parents don't (usually) bear a blue-eyed child.

I didn't get the color of my eyes from my mom. She's got brown ones. But there are other things about her eyes that she gave to me.

Like her eye for finding a way to help others in times of need. While I was growing up, my mom was always making food for people who were in some kind of need. Whether it was having a new baby or a death in the family or someone recovering from surgery. She has always had a knack for finding a way to help. And she passed that on to me.

And, although I certainly did not inherit physical eye-characteristics from my mother-in-law, there are things in her eyes that I long to acquire.

Like the way she sees life. Differently. As if looking through the eyes of a child, she is always able to make up a fun new game to play. Or make special crafts out of recycled trash.

That's why moms matter. Because not only do they (sometimes) give us our eye-color, they give us the tools we need in order to look through those eyes and see what we need to see. Life as they see it. By using their eyes, they teach us to use them too.

And now it's my turn. To teach my two blue-eyed wonders how to look through the blue and see life.

Lord, help me to teach them to see as You see. Give me eyes to see what You do and the wisdom to show it to them.

Join me today in linking up with my awesome friend, Lisa-Jo at The Gypsy Mama.  She always has such beautiful thoughts on life and motherhood.  She's asking the question "Why do moms matter?"  And, well, you guessed it.  I think one of the reasons moms matter is that they teach us how to see.

Now What?

My daughter graduated from preschool today.  Well, the equivalent of preschool graduation, anyway.  Her last day of school is actually Friday, but today was the celebration part of the end of school.  I imagine that last day will be the reality part.

She and I were both quiet on the drive home.  Odd for her, since lately her favorite phrase is, "So what should we talk about?"  I think we were both a little contemplative.

It's strange how change does that to a person.  Or the anticipation of change, anyway.  I mean, in three very short months, both of our lives are going to change drastically.  She will join her older sister at school all day while I stay home and figure out how to do life as a stay home mom who no longer has any children to stay home with.  And, although neither one of us knows exactly what that will look like, we each look forward to it in our own unique way.  Trepidation and excitement all mixed up together into a great big ball of mixed emotion.

You know that part at the very end of Finding Nemo where all the fish have escaped the dentist's office in plastic sandwich bags, having crossed the busy road, and end up in the ocean and Bloat says, "Now what?"  Yeah, that's kind of how I feel.

I wonder if Moses felt like this at all after the Israelites finally escaped Pharaoh's clutches and crossed the Red Sea.  "Now what?"  Because everything he'd done up until that point was for the freedom of his people.  He did as God said because he was God's chosen man for the job.  "Now what?"  Because the other side of that Red Sea represented an entirely new season of life.  For him.  For his family.  For the entire nation of Israel.  And, after they sang songs of praise to the Lord, they traveled in the desert for three days before they even found water (Exodus 15:22).  I wonder if during those three days, Moses' heart rang out the question, "Now what?"  Surely it did to some extent.  Because all he knew to do was to take the next step.  The one that God told him to take.

And that's all I know to do.  Take this step.  It's how marathons get finished.  It's how life gets lived.  It's how God leads His people.  But my nature wants to know... "Now what?"

For now, though, I will take this step.  The step that eases my youngest into kindergarten and enjoys summer vacation with my kids.  And I will do it wholeheartedly.  With gusto.  Because I don't want to get to the other side of this road and realize that I've missed the scenery along the way.  The beautiful scenery of my girls growing up and being little girls.

Want to join me and a bunch of other women in a purpose-filled summer of making memories with our kids?  You should check out http://www.inspiredtoaction.com/.  It's full of really great inspiration and very, very practical advice on fulfilling our purpose as moms.

The Great Divide

I think I'm addicted to intentions.

I mean, I love calendars and planning and maps. I love websites and books that tell me how to improve my home and raise my children and write better blog posts. I love the thrill of potential. Of what could be.

But the follow-through, well, that's a different story. See, I have this sort of glitch in my personality that loves ideas and planning, and hopeful possibility, but struggles with implementation. It's like a great divide between what could be and what really is.

I've been thinking a lot about this great divide lately, and have realized that I feel the same way about who I am. Who I want to be is different than who I actually am. From the size of my pants to the kind of mother I am to the way I react when I'm in a pinch and stress takes over.

But if I compare this thought to the God-breath, His very Word on paper, I am faced with the truth that who I actually am is who God made me.  Who He is making me.  And I must deal with the fact that with Him, in Him, there is no gap. No great divide. Because He is working me, molding me into His beautiful creation, whom He created for His very purpose.

"The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me;

your love, O LORD, endures forever --

do not abandon the works of your hands."

Psalm 138:8

Even when I screw up, He works it in. Because His clay creations always turn out exactly as He plans.  Because He is the Perfect Designer. The Amazing Potter. Always. And I am so glad.

Vigilant Wife

It's Monday.  That means we're spending some time in serious consideration of our commitment to our husbands.  It means Vigilant Wives Club day.  The day we have a little McLinky party to remind each other of our vigilant commitments to our husbands.  And I am so glad you're here.

That word, vigilance, seems so . . . extreme.  Yes.  Extreme.

And when it comes to my marriage, that's exactly what I am. 

Because I am extremely married.  Extremely committed to my husband.  Extremely in love with him.  Extremely vigilant about keeping it that way.

And extremely aware that I must be.  Because I am a vigilant wife.

If this is your first Monday here, you might want to start with this link.  And then I hope you'll link up with us.

**If this is your first time linking up, please read this first.**



If you have a blog, get your permalink for the post you'd like to share. A permalink is the URL to a specific blog post. To get it, publish your post, then click on the title. Then copy the entire url from the address line at the top of your browser. Now you can paste it into the nice little McKlinky thingy right here so other people can read and be encouraged by your vigilance.