Seeing His faithfulness and purpose even in the small things..

Sometimes we expect God to always do something BIG, some great ministry opportunity, or some position of importance.  A year and seven months ago, we moved to KC from FL.  It all started out with a dream Moises had.  In the dream, Grace was just a baby, and he was sitting down with his parents telling them that God was sending us back to KC for just a season,  this was even before Grace was born and we were happily active in our House of Prayer back home.  Well, when the time was right for us to come live in KC again, Moes heart started to really long to be here....I on the other hand was hesitant, I didnt want to take Grace away from her family and I also didnt want to hurt our families either.   So we start to pray about it, and Moe secretly begins to pray for my heart and before we both know it we are planning our move and back in KC.

This is what we thought things would look like.....God would open a door to go full time at the house of prayer, Moe would take classes, as would I, we would be fully in ministry raising support, learning as much as we could  to then come back home and plug into our OHOP family.....Well.....That isn't quite the story almost 2yrs later....This is how things have gone....We had another baby, I have stayed home everyday without an extra car raising my kids, Moises has embraced being in the market place and working to partner with God in being our provider, we have bought a house, we don't get much time in the prayer room, we don't get to take classes,  we are together almost ALL the time, and the most I have been able to is join a wonderful moms group.....

But guess what??? We are starting to understand God's purpose in us being here.   I personally have grown to love being a mom, to embracing my call, of not just nurturing and loving my babies but molding them and daily teaching them about Jesus.  I have learned alot about being a homemaker and serving my family, I embraced the life of a servant wife, and serving my husband fully.  We have learned how to be a family, and have built a strong foundation for our babies, and for future kids.  My husband now knows, that his acceptance by God doesn't not come from how plugged in he is in the prayer room, or how many sets her can fulfill but God enjoys him for him, and it is ok to be a working man, providing for his family.  I am OK if this is why we left all the people we love thousand of miles away,  I have loved this journey, because it has made me a better person, wife and mother.  AND, we know, it was only for a season.......and He only knows when the season is going to end.......

Gods purposes are always big even if we are expecting something grand, His grand to us may look so simple and so small...I am so grateful for the perfect leadership of my Shepard! Your lines have fallen to me in pleasant places.

Home management

Piles of landry, clutter everywhere, overwhelming feeling of having tons to do and so little time...yeap that was me, and I'm no perfect momma or wife, it's still is a work in progress...After having my second baby, and really embracing the stay at home mom, homemaking lifestyle, I came to realize that I needed some order in my life.  I was to be in charge of how I wanted my home to run on a daily basis.  How could I balance my life out so that I could better serve my husband and my kids?

Well, once again my amazing friend Nicole over at Historic Homemaking introduced me to this awesome little e-book called Time management 101.  The woman who wrote it showed me how to make my very own management binder, in this binder is all I need to do to help me better manage my home.  What I love about this book is that it allows me to just be me, to run my house in a way that works for my family.  The author does an awesome job at making sure moms know that we are all different and do things differently.

What I really want to do is share with you guys things I have in my binder ;) I am working on revising some things right now but I'm about finished.   This little tool has helped me become more productive, encouraged to set daily goals, and has better helped me serve my family! I know you can benefit from it too.

Here is the link where you can get the book...have a look ;) It's goood stuff! Money Saving Mom

Oh, It's tricky having a toddler!

Discipline! oh Discipline...It has been one tricky week for us.  Our little girl, who we have always known has quit the spicy personality, has definitely been expressing her desires daily.  BUT, there is a problem, this week, little lady thought she was the boss of the house....it has been pretty stressful, and it is a hard thing to discipline out of complete love and not anger sometimes.  In the end, we do discipline her because we love her, and our desire is that our kids become more and more like Jesus, and love others well, but sometimes patience has really run low, and anger is released through my yells....:/

I think we all face the same fear.  The fear of our little ones not loving us or liking us because we discipline.  Sometimes I get sad after I discipline Grace, no matter how nicely I do it, I feel guilt that I made her sad, and fear that she wont love me anymore.  That is also where I believe parents fail, or at least " modern day parents", they don't want their kids to be upset, OR they don't want to deal with the stresses of discipline, letting them get away with it seems much easier......sigh....  I have fallen into the trap many times.  The only thing that keeps me firm is that as a parent, as a christian parent, I am called to discpline my children. It is my job and my responsibility. Here are some scriptures I always keep in my heart and mind.

Proverbs 13:24
Whoever spares the rod hates their children, but the one who loves their children is careful to discipline them.

Proverbs 19:18
Discipline your children, for in that there is hope; do not be a willing party to their death.

Proverbs 22:15
Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far away.

Proverbs 23:13
Saying 13 Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish them with the rod, they will not die.

So, with all that said, it's Monday, and I am so ready to start this week, to show Grace who's boss.  I refuse to have a disrespectful, disobedient child, if she is rude at home, she will be to others as well.  Through the wisdom and direction the Lord gives Moises and I, I feel confident we will discipline and raise out kids rightly.   This truly is one of the trickiest, hardest parts of raising a toddler, a child in general for that matter.

Nicole and I are going to be reading the book The Happiest Toddler on the Block, this book can't get here fast enough.  Once I start reading it, I will post all of my successful moments with my toddler! Breakthrough is coming people hehe lol

PLEASE, share your thoughts and ideas on how you discipline your child!

Loving my husband...

That they may admonish the young women to love their husbands.

                                                                      Titus 2:4

 

This past week I was given the opportunity to really walk out this verse.  My husband was sick, not feeling well, he had a fever, the shakes, and terrible throat pain.   Although externally I was trying to care for him, internally I was more worried about my kids catching what he had or even me catching it...I mean after all, who would care for me if I were to be sick..These were all things that were crossing my mind and heart.  I felt the Lord really tugging at my heart, and asking me to examine it very well.  " You need to love your husband Melany, do it by caring for him to the fullest".   I have a wonderful husband bless his heart, and he was appreciative of me just allowing him to lay in bed for a couple days and rest.  BUT I know that doing something just because you have to and doing something out of PURE LOVE is very different. 

I talked to one of my best momma friends *Nicole* ;) and as I was telling her " well I made him stay in the room all day, I just dont want my kids to get sick", she quickly stopped me in my tracks and said, "girl, before the ministry of your kids is the ministry of your husband, and you need to serve him" ouch! lol I love Nicole for that because she was right.   I found myself more worried about my kids, or not being able to make it to my free hair cut appointment, or moms group, or having to do everything around the house everyday then worried about making my husband feel as loved and taken care of as possible.  

Once I realized my ugly fallen heart, I asked for forgiveness and was determined to care for Moises in the best way I could.  Soon after, he was feeling much better! I learned something great this past week, and its that I not only LOVE my husband by just showing him the affection he is due, but by showing that love is the lowest time, and by giving him that AGAPE love....The love that doesnt require anything back....the love that gives without expection...the selfless love...

Thank you Moises, for being a godly, selfless husband, for being thankful for what I do, even when I know I can do better. And for loving me rightly.....

What are some ways you live this scripture out?

Toddler Devotional part 2

I had shared before about toddler devotional time and how I find it works for me and my little girl.  Well, as I look through all that we have done, I felt kind of proud ;) I really am trying to teach my little ones about God and seeing everything we have learned layed out, I felt  Jesus smiling at me! I really wanna share with you some of the things we have done during our devotional time here in the Reyes home ;)  and I also want to share a couple tips that I find make our devotional time better. Here it goes....;)

I feel coloring and doing hands on things will help a toddler learn faster and make it fun and entertaining.  The problem I ran into, was that Grace wanted to skip the praying and worship and praise time and go straight to painting.  Its nice she is eager to learn, but first and foremost, its important to teach our kiddies how to cultivate a life of prayer and intimacy with Jesus.  So with that said here is Tip number 1: Always begin with prayer and worship..even if it means your toddler gets upset, show them and teach them that prayer and worship come first.  Grace is back to wanting to dance and pray before we paint. ;) 

Another thing that I loved having was a toddler bible.  Grace loves her toddler bible, it has pictures and bright colors.   Tip number 2:  Have a toddler bible.  Its great to show your little ones what it is your are talking about.  The last set of pictures below shows how sweet it is to have one. ;)   Here are some cool things Grace and I have worked on...I hope you feel inspired and motivated!  Please share with me all that you do during devotional time with your toddler!

These are some painting we did while going through  Creation and the Story of Noah!

 

Paintings of Psalm

Learning about the birth of Jesus 

Cultivating a life of worship and praise in the hearts of our little ones......

To love their children.....

We all know the popular chapter in Titus 2 where Paul lays out the qualities of young woman, He exhorts us to love our husbands, to love our children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, and obedient to their husband.  Two of these qualities have been tugging at my heart, but today, I want to share my heart on one.....To Love Their Children....

Some days, I end my days in guilt, laying in bed with all types of worries and questions running through my mind....Was I a good momma today?  I shouldn't of responded the way I did....Did I love on Grace and Joshua enough?  My patience stunk today! I have been asking the Lord these few days, how can I be a better mom?  How can I love my children better? and what all falls under the category of loving my children.  I do confess, that I fail, many times I fail to love my babies rightly, it may be the way I speak to them, or the way I react to the unimportant situations, or even when I discipline. 

So, as I asked Jesus, to show me His ways of love, and things I can do to LOVE my Children better, here are somethings that come to mind and heart.....create a joyful environment full of laughter and happiness, show much affections hugs and kisses galore!,  take designated time out of the busy homemaking schedule to play and give my full attention to them, discipline in love (always being aware that an affirming tone is always better then yelling), take care of their physical, spiritual and emotional needs....ooo and let me not forget my current lack.... patience!

Help me Jesus, to be the best momma I can be.....


Please do tell, what are some ways and somethings you do that help fulfill the calling to love your children??

 

Life...precious life...

My heart hurts so bad, as we contend for the life of one of my friends baby boy.  Avery is holding on to life, by the grace and strength of Jesus.  He has been such a little fighter, I haven't even been able to meet this sweet, precious little baby boy, but he truly has my heart.  Avery stopped breathing last night and is on life support.  From the reports of his momma, he is not doing well, the machine is doing all the breathing for him, his eyes are swollen shut from an infection and at this point he is lifeless.

I cant help but think of my little babies, especially Joshua, being that Avery is a baby boy.  Life is so delicate, and we should never take any moment for granted.  Every second that we have with our babies should be spent loving them as hard as we can, some moments we just never get back.  There are mommas out there, such as Jennifer, with aching heart as they have to watch their babies fight to live. Some don't even get the chance to snuggle, kiss and hold their babies.....

Jenny is my hero...she has placed her trust in God, and has still managed to have a smile on her face.  She is so strong, and so brave!!! Jenny, my heart is with you 100%, as I and many others contend for a miracle in the life of little Avery!

This is baby Avery, 2wks old. Please pray with me for Avery to be made whole!

To hear more on Avery's Journey visit heartonapilgrimage.wordpress.com.