I woke up feeling very down and discouraged this morning (which seems sad since it’s the Lord’s Day and should be filled with rejoicing). I went to bed at a decent hour so it wasn’t a sleep-deprivation reaction. I think I was disappointed at how little I had accomplished on Saturday, weary with thoughts of a busy day, and overwhelmed that Monday was rapidly approaching and with it, a week full of homeschooling and life’s activities.
After a hot shower (which, alone, practically makes life bearable) I was pleased to see Tim in the bedroom, reading his book. I walked over to him, sat down, and probably looked as lifeless as I felt. Without me saying anything, Tim took my hand and said, “Shall we pray for the day?” I tried to ask him later how he knew that was just what I needed and he didn’t have a concrete answer. It was an action, I think, that comes out of a sensitivity to his role as spiritual leader of our family. He knows how to cheer me up with words – I’ve often asked for a ‘Tim Pep Talk’ – and he is a great listener but the thing that had real power to change my attitude and situation was not words or a listening ear but PRAYER! Tim recognized that and met my unspoken request with authority and leadership.
What a blessing!
Did I immediately feel cheerful and bouncy? No. Did my “To Do” list magically disappear? No. Did my heart tune in to God’s purpose for the day? Yes. Did the Lord renew my spirit and give me a peace about the day? Absolutely.
We went on to have a great Sunday. It was full of people and Bible study and little ones. Sunday School was excellent. Tim led us through the second half of I Corinthians 6. I worked in the preschool room during the church service. Daniel came in and helped me – another blessing. Having him there brings an extra energy to the hour. He plays with the children, separates trouble makers, passes out snacks, and is just all around a tremendous helper. I am always glad to have him assist me in the class.
Sarah had a blast in her class.
After church, Tim and the children did all the lunch preparation so I could tackle the Christmas decorations. The Lord answered my prayers for a joyful spirit and I cheerfully (and speedily) got everything put away. Joshua hauled all the bins out the garage, helped me move the couch away from the wall, and then loaded Christmas containers into place. He also put away the folding table that was cluttering up the living room. Tim found spots for the smaller ornament boxes. The work on the garage continues.
We watched Savannah Smiles during lunch – an old movie, made in the early 1980′s. It’s a sweet story with a poignant ending that had us all in tears.
What caught us all completely off guard was Sarah. After the movie was over and we were cleaning up, I saw Sarah on Cream Puff crying. Thinking she had pinched her finger or hurt herself, I went over to find out what was wrong. Finally she told me, in strangled words, “The movie!” What a sweetie pie! She was sad about the ending when the men have to say goodbye to the little girl and end up going back to prison. Personally, I wasn’t aware that she was cognizant enough of the movie’s plot to have such a tender reaction. Tim hugged her tight and gave her his “happy ending” version which cheered us all up.
Tim managed to get a smile out of Sarah.
Tim and I decided to preview the Love and Respect dvd for the evening’s Bible study. It worked out perfectly – I cleaned the kitchen and made pizza dough while Tim took notes on this week’s marriage session. We’ve been rather unsatisfied with the discussion questions in the workbook (although it does have some great supplemental scripture passages which I think are worth reading) so we thought we would write some of our own. Tim was planning to work in the nursery during the video time so it was an opportunity for him to watch the DVD and keep up with the material.
We had a potluck and ‘business’ meeting before Small Group. I made 6 full size pizzas (if I was Emily in FL I would have pictures of all of this – I really need to be better about grabbing my camera) and the rest of the group brought desserts and side dishes. Unfortunately several members of our group were unable to attend so we had a smaller group. Not so unfortunately, that meant we ended up lots of leftover pizza. Hooray! I was even able to send a whole unbaked pizza home with Holly. My family is ALWAYS thrilled with leftover pizza. Of course, with a 13 year old boy in the house, leftovers don’t survive quite as long as they used to. Ha!
Give this starving boy some pizza!
I continue to be convicted in the area of respecting my husband. Tonight we discussed the idea of men needing unconditional respect just as women need unconditional love. You would never tell your wife, “I will love you as soon as you are worthy of it.” And yet do we tell men, “I will respect you once you show yourself worthy.”??
Ephesians 5:33
However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
It has been fascinating going through the series with other couples. After viewing the DVD, we split up into groups (men in one room and women in the other) and talk about what we watched and what we are learning. I think all of the wives are truly surprised to hear how important respect is to our husbands and how much they crave and need it. Tonight we made a list of 5 ways our husband/wife could show respect/love to us. The whole series is certainly creating a lot of discussion in our home. So far the men have all heartily agreed with the points Dr. Eggerich makes. Now to put what we are learning into practice and get off the Crazy Cycle!
I have to share one last set of pictures (that are completely unrelated to today’s blog). I think each of the children have, at one point or another, fallen asleep while reading/holding a book. I don’t know how many I have captured on film (would take some serious searching to find them). It always brings a rush of tender feelings to see the children as it reminds me so much of my father. He is, literally, never without a book so there have been many times when we’ve caught him holding his book upright with his eyes shut. I would love for my children to be like my father and to enjoy reading as much as he does so it tickles me to catch moments like this.
Sarah was asleep but Rachel read on. Time for bed, girlie!
Kathy
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