Laughter Lives Tuesday

This post is part of "Laughter Lives! Tuesday" on the Riggs Family Blog. Check our their blog to read everyone else's "Laughter Lives!" posts.

Wolverine

Lately, my 5 year old has been asking a lot of questions during our Bible time every night before bed concerning the topic of Jesus dying on the cross. He is very analytical in his thinking, and sometimes he asks questions that I get stumped on to know how to answer. My husband and I have been praying that God would give us the words to say that he would be able to understand. So, one night a couple of weeks ago, he was asking why Jesus had to die on the cross? I started explaining to him about our sin and because we sin, we deserve to be punished. But because God loves us SO much he sent Jesus to die on the cross to take our place. I share more and more details of the story based on the questions that follow each statement. Then, towards the end of the discussion, he decides to recap.. he says, "So, Jesus died on the cross for our sins, and (holding up his hands like claws) Wolverine has claws to protect us." I about lost it...I told him that Jesus is a true story and Wolverine is just make believe. I had been talking to him for about 15 minutes so I am not sure how much he grasped...but I will faithfully answer questions as he asks them and pray that one day, he will truly understand what it means to be a Christ follower.

The Tongue

My community group at CC is studying the book of James right now. We have only finished chapters 1 and 2, but we are getting ready to study ch. 3. For those of you who don't know, the first part of James 3 talks about "Taming the Tongue". Lately, I have been finding the subject of our "tongues" coming up quite a bit in events around me, i.e. sermons, devotionals, Bible study, friends, radio etc. As a mother, I have been really convicted on how I use my tongue when it comes to my children. Timmy is going through a stage right now where he is asking "why?" on EVERYTHING it seems. And I am not talking about the "why?" questions that 2 or 3 yr olds ask, I am talking about things that I don't know the answer for or if there is even an answer. It's very hard to have patience and speak in love when you are being asked questions that you don't know the answer.

For example, on Tuesday, I had to go to the Atlanta airport to pick up Ed, and we hit downtown Atlanta around 6:00pm. Traffic was bumper to bumper, cars and trucks were weaving in and out of lanes in spaces smaller than my van, so I had to stay focused on my driving. Well, Timmy decided this was a good time to start asking me some of those "why?" questions. Here are just a few of them, "Mommy, why are those roads signs green?" and "Mommy, why are the lights on the back of those cars red?", and "Mommy, why can't we just pick up our car and fly to the airport?" And on and on it went. Finally I had to say, "Timmy, can you please not ask Mommy any questions right now, I have to concentrate on my driving?" I was proud of myself because I didn't raise my voice (for once...I know...I'm bad) and I remained calm. Then he says this, "Well, then can I ask these questions to myself?" I said, "Yes, if you say them to yourself." I was thinking he would just "think" them...nope...about 30 seconds later I hear, "Timmy, why are those road signs green?" I about hit the car in front of me I was laughing so hard. He then proceeded to answer himself..."those signs are green because they are road signs". He is too funny.

Anyway...back to the topic...James 3: 7-10 says, (7) For every kind of beast and bird, reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, (8)but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. (9) With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. (10) From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. There is so much I could go on about this passage alone, but I will pull out this.

The words that come out of our mouth...are we blessing others? OR are we cursing others? (I don't believe this is referring to "curse" words - I believe it's talking about using our words to hurt someone, not building up each other). There is a verse in Psalms that I LOVE to pray over my day and it's this: Psalms 19:14 "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer." I love this verse because I think words and our heart go hand in hand. Because what is in the heart, what we think about, what we dwell on inside, is what comes out on our tongue. I want my heart to be pleasing to the Lord, so that my words will be pleasing to the Lord.

When it comes to my children, I have to make sure that my heart is where it needs to be so that I when I speak to them it is pleasing to the Lord AS WELL AS uplifting to my children. I share this today because it is something that the Lord has been dealing with me about...how I speak to my children when I am frustrated, when I am disciplining them, when I am just speaking in general. As parents, it's OUR responsibility to raise our children in a godly home. What kind of home is it when our words are not blessing our children?

My challenge to you...take 1 day and ask God to help you think before you speak. I DID this last week, and let me tell you, I was convicted about speaking some words before I spoke them, and was able to change my heart, which changed the words from my tongue. Because, once words are spoken, you can't take them back.

On My Knees in Prayer

Last fall, I came upon MckMama's blog through Angie Smith's blog "Bring The Rain". MckMama was pregnant with Baby Stellan, and at 20 weeks he was diagnosed with heart failure. At 24 weeks, the doctors told MckMama and PC that their baby boy would die. They gave Stellan completely to the Lord and trusted HIM for the outcome, whether good or bad. All of us who were praying for Stellan, prayed that God would be glorified in whatever the outcome. Well, Stellan was born FULL TERM and completely HEALED of the heart problems he was diagnosed with in the womb. Immediately we all shouted PTL and enjoyed watching him grow and amazed at the goodness of the Lord.

On Sunday, he was having a little trouble breathing, so MckMama took him into the ER. Long story short, the problems that he was having in the womb, he is having now. His heart is in SVT which means that his heart rate is dangerously high. This came as a shock to MckMama, because Stellan has shown no signs of heart problems since he was born.

I have never met this family, but having prayed for them for 8 months, and after getting to know MckMama, they feel like family to me. On Monday night, when I was praying, I felt led to read Psalm 139. This Psalm became very comforting to me during my miscarriage, and I want to share a couple of verses that I am praying over Stellan.

(13) For YOU formed Stellan's inward parts; you knitted him together in his mother's womb. (14)I praise you, for Stellan is fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are YOUR works, my soul knows it very well. (15) Stellan's frame was not hidden from YOU, when he was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. (16) YOUR eyes saw Stellan's unformed substance; in YOUR book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for Stellan, when as yet there was none of them.

Please join me in prayer for this precious little baby. Be sure to click on the picture above and read updates about Stellan's condition.

To God Be the Glory!

Not Me! Monday!

**Please pray for MckMama's little baby...he needs serious prayer!**



Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I did NOT ask my older sister who is not married and doesn't have children how her "morning sickness" was going. I know the difference between "morning sickness" and "walking pneumonia". I would never have made this mistake. No, not me!

My DH and I did NOT look around our 3 bedroom apartment for 2 hours for an unopened box of baby wipes that our toddler was carrying around earlier this week, we did NOT go in every room 3 times each, we did NOT open EVERY drawer in EVERY room a million times, we did NOT even go through the trash to look for these wipes. I did NOT find them the next day in the clothes basket underneath all the clean clothes AFTER I went out and bought another box. I always know where my toddler puts things. I would never get frustrated that I looked in that clothes basket at least 3 times and didn't see them. No, not me!

I did NOT leave my 5 year old and sleeping 1 year old locked in the car, while it was still running so my 5 year old's movie wouldn't turn off, in a parking lot while I went to use the restroom on my way to NC for the weekend. I would NEVER leave my children in the car alone, and I did NOT think of all the bad scenarios of what could happen. I DID check around the area before leaving said children in car. (I will say that was the FASTEST I have EVER used the bathroom) My boys were both safe and my sleeping 1 year old did NOT wake up..thank goodness! (FYI: I WILL NEVER do this again.)

That was my week...how was yours?