Having Faith ~ Ministry of Motherhood Week 7

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“…eternal truth must always be the foundation of their understanding. If they can keep eternity before their eyes, they will be able to live in hope no matter what happens to them in this life.”

~ Sally Clarkson, Ministry of Motherhood, p. 105

 

This past week we focused on reading chapters nine and ten of Ministry of Motherhood along with the daily Scripture readings {SOAP}. We’ve started talking about modeling faith for our children and giving them an eternal perspective ~ laying a foundation based on God’s truth.

Rick and I are open with the kids about things that have been difficult for us and shared with them our beliefs and trust in God. There have been times in our lives when although I didn’t understand why something was happening, all I could do was trust that God would carry us through.

In the late miscarriage of our first son.

When Zachary nearly died from meningitis so many years ago.

And in so many other instances.

He has been and will be faithful to us.

 

“…childhood is the perfect time for us to take {our children} by the hand and show them how they can walk through these difficulties with the Lord. Trusting him will become a natural, first response of children if they are raised from earliest childhood to pray to God and to walk with Him each day of their lives.”

~ Sally Clarkson, Ministry of Motherhood, p. 115

 

My question for you all this week:  How have you modeled faith for your children?

 

A few links…

~ My Blog Frog forums ~ several threads are going where we’re talking about the daily S.O.A.P. and our thoughts on the part of the book we’re reading.

~ Good Morning Girls Ministry of Motherhood posts

~ If you haven’t already, please be sure to fill out this quick survey and answer a few questions for me. I’m trying to create an email list to keep better in touch with all of you ladies, and this will help me out a bunch!

With all that said ~ start linking up and sharing what God showed you this week!

A Vision of Lucy ~ Book Review

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Lucy is determined to become a photographer for her local newspaper. Photography in the news is something new in the early 1880’s and a woman photographer even more so. In an attempt to get a much-coveted photo of a wild stallion, Lucy literally falls into trouble when she plummets out of a tree in the middle of a robbery.

She is rescued by David Wolf,  a man determined to remain elusive to the nearby town. He is haunted by things that happened to him many years ago from people in that town and determined to seek vengeance for the wrongs done to him.

Their lives become more closely tied and the secrets in David’s past threaten to ruin the budding relationship between the two. Will they be able to overcome the threats and follow the vision that God is giving them?

My Thoughts

One of the things that I loved most about A Vision of Lucy by Margaret Brownley were the little photography ‘tips’ that started off each book chapter. Often they just made me laugh, but gave an even deeper glimpse into society at that time in history. I

A Vision of Lucy is the third book in the Rocky Creek romance series and one that can be read as a stand-alone book. I loved Brownley’s writing style and will definitely be looking for more of her books, including the ones in this series to see what I’ve missed!

Find Out More

~ Visit Margaret Brownley’s website

~ Join Margaret Brownley’s Facebook page

~ Buy A Vision of Lucy from Amazon

This book was provided for review by Thomas Nelson via Net Galley.  All opinions expressed in this review are solely my own.

Fill in the Blank

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The kids and I have been working on a new homeschool vocabulary curriculum this summer and getting into the groove of it before the school year starts up. We’ve been talking about and creating compound words.

The kids need to use the base word that they are given and then add a new word to it. For example, ‘fire’ plus ‘man’ equals ‘fireman’.

Zachary has a little more trouble coming up with words at times so I would try to give him some hints. He came up with two words to go along with the word ‘head’, headband and headlight, but then got stuck.

I sat in front of him and pointed to my head and said, “I have a word for you! Mommy gets these quite a bit!”

Zachary looked at me and the light dawned in his eyes.

“Oooooo! I know!! Headlice.” And he furiously began to write the word down.

Yeah. Not so much.

I was going more for HEADACHE, but it’s good to know where my hygiene stands with my kids.

 

Head on over to Mary's at Not Before 7 for some more Tiny Talk Tuesday!!

 

Quiet Time Hiding Spot{s}

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Sometimes having a true quiet time in the morning is a bit difficult. Maybe because my bed feels a whole lot more comfy to me at the moment and a few extra minutes of sleep seem more enticing.

Or my children have woken up early {again} and are causing a ruckus that just makes the term ‘quiet time’ laughable because it is FAR from that.

Just keeping it real.

Over the last few months since moving, I’ve floated from here to there in our house depending on my mood, the weather, and even how far I want to stumble when I wake up in the morning.

Should I not feel the need to venture too far, the rocker right next to my side of the bed makes a lovely place for an early morning devotional time. With the early morning light coming in through the door and a nice breeze, this is a wonderful spot for a bit of quiet and time focusing on some Scripture.

Or maybe in the chair right off our kitchen {and close to the Keurig, a.k.a. coffee}.

Lately though, my preferred place to sit and ponder is one of our patio chairs. With a little end table next to me, it’s the perfect place to sit, relax, be surrounded by the wonderful sounds of nature in the morning and have a spot to keep my coffee nearby. Very nearby.

I have a basket that is full of the books and studies that I am currently using during my study time so I can just grab it and go when I am ready.  Here’s a peek at what has recently been in my basket…

~ Ministry of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson

~ My Bible

~ Faithful. Abundant. True. {a Bible study I did with a group of ladies at church}

~ Our 24 Family Ways by Clay Clarkson {learning the layout before we start}

~ Ministry of Motherhood binder to keep all of my SOAP {verse studies} in one place

~ 31 Days to Clean

A typical morning involves me making a cup of coffee {unless my hubby is home and has already put one together for me}. A most important first step ~ grins. I’ve been reading through Ministry of Motherhood and doing the daily Scripture reading for the last 6 weeks, so I pull out my binder and Bible and focus on the verse for the day using the S.O.A.P. method {writing our the Scripture, writing down a few observations, applying it to my life, and writing out a prayer}. I have LOVED this method and hope to continue using it long after this study is completed. Some mornings I’ll read in the go-along book or do a devotional from one of my other books too ~ just depends largely in part to my mood. 

Mornings are really the best time for me because it helps bring focus to my day and I can definitely tell when I have missed out on my quiet time and need a little break to reevaluate things. :)

What does your quiet time place look like? Do you have a set place to sit down and focus, or will any spot do? See what other moms are saying over at Granola Mom for God.

 

Marveling at God’s Wonders ~ Week 6 Ministry of Motherhood

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“A child who does not have the opportunity to marvel at the bigness of God, the wonders of His creation, and the reality of His supernatural work will tend to measure the questions about ‘who God is’ according to his or her finite, limited perspective.”

~ Sally Clarkson, Ministry of Motherhood, p. 85

This past week we read chapters 7 and 8 of Ministry of Motherhood along with the daily Scripture readings {SOAP}. The topic continued on with giving our children the gift of inspiration and helping them understand God’s purpose for their lives.

I’ll be honest and tell you that I’m not the greatest in calling the kids over to say “Look!” and take the time to marvel at all that’s around us. The reality of it looks a little more like this…

I’m perched in a deck chair with the camera after getting the hummingbird feeder set up and anxiously waiting for the hummingbirds to show up so I can watch and get some great pic. One of the kids slams open the screen door and the hummingbird that was just getting ready to eat from the feeder flies off in terror. I’m frustrated and ask the kids to please sit still, watch and BE QUIET.

Child #2 comes out following the same sequence while Child #1 continues to rattle on talking while I get frustrated again that neither of them can be quiet and watch.

Repeat until I hit the point of frustration realizing that no hummingbird is returning for us to watch, so I just want to go off quietly by myself the next time to marvel at God’s creation and shoo my kids off somewhere else. The End.

I’d rather hog the beauty most times that deal with the noise and endless questions produced by my children. Gracious, no?

So…..I’ve really been focusing much this week on pointing out the little things throughout the day. Listening to the woodpecker in the woods behind our house and trying to spot him. Going blackberry picking with Kaleb and stopping to look at each and every Daddy Long Leg and be amazed at the many different spiders God created. Examine each and every bug brought to me. Marvel at the tiny bird’s eggs in the fern on our front porch. Look at amazement in the variety of colors that our silly chickens have on their feathers.

And contemplating the wonders of God’s creations through their eyes {and it’s been good}. :)

“…as they learn to treasure God’s presence in what is seen – the lilies and the sunsets and the embrace of those they love – they also learn to live by the conviction of things that are unseen {Hebrews 11:1} – to walk joyfully in the light of God’s powerful and supernatural presence.”

~ ~ Sally Clarkson, Ministry of Motherhood, p. 86

 

This week I have a question for you all:  What is YOUR favorite way to share the bigness of God with your children?

A few links…

~ My Blog Frog forums ~ several threads are going where we’re talking about the daily S.O.A.P. and our thoughts on the part of the book we’re reading.

~ Good Morning Girls Ministry of Motherhood posts

~ If you haven’t already, please be sure to fill out this quick survey and answer a few questions for me. I’m trying to create an email list to keep better in touch with all of you ladies, and this will help me out a bunch!

With all that said ~ start linking up and sharing what God showed you this week!

An Unlikely Suitor {Book Review & Giveaway}

This post may contain affiliate or advertiser links. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Forced to quickly find a new place for herself, her sister and mother to live, Lucy Scarpelli happens upon a dress shop that has an apartment for rent and room for help in the dress shop. Lucy quickly proves that she has an eye for design and she befriends one of the young socialites, Rowena, that is a customer of the shop.

The unusual friendship results in Lucy traveling to help with some design work at the family’s home in Newport, Rhode Island where she meets an intriguing man while out for her daily walk. Their meetings become more frequent, but a relationship seems out of the question due to their social standings.

Rowena is expected to marry the son of her father’s business partner and is trying desperately to love him and be loved in return. She sees little chance for marriage otherwise because of a childhood accident that left her crippled.

Each person holds secrets that they are unwilling to share with others, but all are entwined in ways they have yet to discover. Will they be able to open their hearts and discover true love and honesty with each other or return home broken-hearted?

My Thoughts

I have to admit that I’m a sucker for book covers, and An Unlikely Suitor was one that caught my eye. While the book cover was what first drew me to the book, the story line kept me awake for hours reading at night. Nancy Moser pulls together the stories of three young girls: Lucy, Rowena and Lucy’s younger sister, Sofia, and weaves a wonderful story set during the Gilded Age {last third of the 19th century} ~ from the tenements of NYC to the mansions of Rhode Island.

It wasn’t until the end of the story that I realized that the characters in this story were actually introduced in another one of Moser’s books, Masquerade, as the family that helped provide shelter to Lottie when she arrived in America {I love it when books tie together like that!}.

About the Author

Nancy Moser is the author of over twenty novels, including Mozart's Sister, Just Jane, and Christy Award finalist Washington's Lady. She's earned a degree in architecture, traveled extensively in Europe, and has performed in numerous theaters, symphonies, and choirs. She paints canes, kills all her houseplants, and is a fan of anything antique--humans included.

~ Visit Nancy Moser’s website

~ Follow Nancy on Facebook

~ Buy An Unlikely Suitor from Amazon

The Giveaway

Would you like to win a copy of An Unlikely Suitor by Nancy Moser? I have one copy to mail to one of my readers! Leave a comment on this post ~ be sure there is a way for me to contact you. The giveaway will be open until Wednesday, June 29th, 2011.

This book was provided for review by Bethany House. All opinions expressed in this review are solely my own.