A Positive Perspective on Work

One day this week I was writing out a list of the basic jobs I needed to do that morning. My daughter saw it and said, “I feel so sorry for you having to do jobs all the time! Do you enjoy doing them?”

Then she went out the door to school—to go and do her own work!

I had to smile at her perspective. But it is relatable. Do you ever feel sorry for yourself for all you have to do? The never-ending housework, yard work, meals etc.

But what about a positive perspective?

Cleaning means a home to live in

Washing/laundry means a washing machine and clothes to wear

Dishes mean food to eat

Bedrooms to clean mean comfortable beds to sleep in and space of our own

Vacuuming means appliances that make life easier, and nice floors

Meals to make means a kitchen to enjoy working in, and food to eat

And if we have the health and energy to do these things, it is an extra thing to be thankful for!

And best of all, we have a God who is always listening, ready to give wisdom and help, who promises to provide and who is faithful to all His promises.

When God made Adam and Eve, He gave them work to do. And that was before the fall. Work is a blessing!

A Parcel from the Courier

This week I realized that Lydia needed some new clothes. It's getting warmer and I realized she only has one t-shirt. But as she has also been sick this week, I couldn't go shopping. So, I ordered her some clothes online.

Today a courier delivered a package to our door. It was some of the new clothes for Lydia. She tried a t-shirt and a pair of shorts on and wore them for the rest of the day. When I was getting her ready for bed tonight, we were looking at her outfit aswell as the other new pair of shorts.

"Thank you, Mum," I said to her. Then I thought, I wonder if she actually realizes that I brought these for her. To her it probably just looked like they came from the courier. Not from me.

Then I thought, I wonder how often I don't think to thank God for a blessing because I don't think of it as coming from God. I just thank the person who delivered it.

God is my Heavenly Father (and Mother). The blessings, gifts and encouragement that come to us through people are really gifts from God. While we need to thank the "delivery person" we most of all need to thank God because that's who they're really from.

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.--James 1:17

God gives us what we need through "delivery people" or circumstances. Both the happy things but also the painful things. The painful and hard things are the gifts wrapped in black wrapping paper. Blessings in disguise. We can also thank God for those hard blessings too. Because of the gift that is underneath. The gift of Himself.

And may it be our daily desire and prayer that we would be used by God to deliver His blessings to others. What a great joy to be used by God to give God's children what they need. When we stay in touch with Him throughout the day, He'll give us blessings to deliver. Encouragement, prayers, love, a hug, a listening ear, a meal, a message, a gift or some practical help. The list goes on. And may we always keep in mind that we are just the courier delivering God's good gifts. 

Take my lips and let them be

Filled with messages from thee.

~Frances Ridley Havergal~

Why Would God Make a Laughing Bird?

 Why would God design and create a bird that laughs? Maybe it's to remind us that the fruit of the Spirit is joy, a joyful heart is good medicine, and the joy of the Lord is our strength. Although we need to take God and His Word very seriously and we don't need to be silly people who laugh too much, it's true that being joyful is very healthy! 

Even when we go through hard times, we can be joyful because God is still in control. He is always good and kind. He always hears our prayers, and He is always faithful to His promises.

We can stay joyful by counting our blessings every day, staying close to God, trusting His promises, and being thankful.

Lighter than Air

A few days ago, a beautiful yellow air balloon randomly floated over our house.

Hot air balloons fly because they are lighter than air. They are filled with a light gas that rises above the heavier air around it. When you have enough light gas, the air balloon is lifted up and floats in the air.

Sadness, discouragement, complaining and grumpiness are like the heavy air. They make us feel down. Heavy air doesn’t rise.

The light gas is like prayer, praise and thankfulness. When we pray to God and pour out all that makes us feel sad and troubled, our load is lightened. He carries it for us and fills us with peace.

When we praise God and thank Him for His goodness, our spirits are lifted. Our hearts feel lighter, and we feel much happier. It is as if we are rising up in a beautiful hot air balloon.

When the burners are turned on inside the balloon, the balloon rises up. When the burners are off, the balloon gradually goes back down as the air inside it cools. To make the balloon fall more quickly, the pilot opens a hole and lets out some of the hot air.

To keep our spirits up, in a sad and sin-filled world, we need to stay close to God and pray every day. We need to continually thank and praise God, other wise to keep our spirits up. That’s exactly what these three verses tell us to do.

Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.—1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

The Things We Can't Change

 This morning we were eating breakfast before school.

"Mum, is there any way to take away Down Syndrome?" asked one of my children.

"No," I answered.

"Would you if you could?" was her next question.

I had to stop and think about that question. Would I "remove" Lydia's Down Syndrome if I could?

My conclusion was that there are some things I would definitely like to change about Lydia's Down Syndrome if I could. There are some things that I find difficult and very patience testing. But on the other hand, there are certain aspects I would not change about Lydia. Her sweetness, friendliness and the way she brings joy wherever she goes. I also wouldn't change all I've learned through having her, my growth in knowing God and the relationships that have been built.

So, removing Lydia's Down Syndrome would also remove a lot of blessing!

I share this, because although you most likely don't have a child with Down Syndrome, you have your own hard things. The things you can't change. Maybe a health problem, the sins or choices of others that have affected you, the death of a loved one, or any other thing that challenges you. Would you change it if you could? What would you miss out on if you changed it?

I love op shopping! Getting good things for a low price--bargains! But, in life, getting God's blessings doesn't come cheap. There is a price.  Knowing God and being a blessing to others will have a cost.

Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: Philippians 3:8

or in another words...

Everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.

Fear, a Thankful Heart, Cuteness & Movie Recommendations

 Today I talk about fears and also about being thankful. I share some cute videos of Jo and Lydia and some movie recommendations.

A Burden or a Privilege?

I heard this somebody say this recently "It's a privilege not a burden." She was talking about all she did for her children and family. What a great perspective! I'm sure it was also a burden, but it's about how you look at it.

We all have our own burdens in life. But are we able to see them as privileges?

A privilege is 

...a special right, advantage, or immunity granted or available only to a particular person or group.

...an advantage that only one person or group of people has.

...a special benefit that is available only to a particular person or group.

Whatever burdens you have are also privileges that only you have. A privilege that has been given to you for some reason. A privilege that gives you the advantage of life experience, empathy and more usefulness.

The Bible says to cast our burdens on Him because He cares for us. That is what we should do when we feel overwhelmed and burdened. But when you've done that, thank Him for the privilege!

 

Thankful for all things

 Yesterday I had to pick Lydia up from school as it appeared that she was unwell. When I picked her up, she was crying and looking extremely sad (For Lydia that is very unusual unless there is a good reason). I took her home and checked for a fever, but she didn't have one. She has no cough or cold, so I didn't know what the problem was. For a moment I panicked and thought that maybe her heart was playing up (she has three different heart problems)! But I told myself to relax and wait. As she couldn't explain to me how she was feeling or why, it was very hard to know. I realized how much I would miss her if something ever happened to her! I gave her some pamol in case she was sick. And half an hour later she was talking and smiling again. For the rest of the day she was her normal cheerful self. I have no idea what the problem was.

But it reminded me how fragile life is and how much we often take it for granted. Especially when we're busy! Sometimes it does us good to get a scare, as it helps us to see how easily things can change and how much we have to be thankful for.

The day before, Joseph had stayed home as he had been bitten or stung by something as he was playing outside. His hand was very swollen and sore. I already had treatment for it, but it took a day or two for it to come right.

Yesterday afternoon, my children were looking at the box of books I had gotten in the mail. The book I wrote about Lydia. We all ended up sitting on my bed sharing memories and funny stories from when Lydia used to be in hospital.

Then last night, right before bed, my dad sent me a video of a church service where a man with Down Syndrome preached a short sermon and sung a song. His message was a little hard to understand because of the way he talked, but the points he got across were very simple and touching. He talked about being thankful. It is God's will to be thankful. Thankfulness pleases God. We should be thankful for all things, at all times, in all places etc. When he started singing "Give thanks with a grateful heart" the tears came to my eyes. Coming from a man with Down Syndrome, it was very touching!

In my quiet time this morning, I was listening to a testimony that I had been sent of a lady whose husband was killed on the mission field. Once again, I was reminded of how fragile life is and how much I have to be thankful for. We are often unaware of how many things don't happen to us that could happen. We are kept from so many dangers and sicknesses.

But not only that, it somehow made me very thankful for all the trials that I have had. Because it is through the trials that my faith has grown and my relationship with God has gotten stronger. It is through our trials, that we experience the nearness of God as we see answers to prayer and the help and strength that He gives.

So thank God for all your blessings and all the dangers you have been kept from. But also, thank God for the trials you haven't been kept from. Because if you never had a problem, you wouldn't know that Christ could solve them! 

And knowing God is the most important thing in life.

Mice and Things not Nice

 (Below Pack-A-Snack Bars Recipe)

In this video I show some things I've been doing with the children during lockdown, a new muesli bar recipe, a way I used up leftovers, a Christian movie I enjoyed and some thoughts from some creatures that have been in our house!

Pack-a-Snack Bars
Base:

1 cup flour
1 cup wholemeal flour
1 cup rolled oats

200g chilled butter

1 cup brown sugar

Topping:

4 large eggs

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups almonds

1 cup dates, chopped

1 cup dried apricots, chopped

1 cup chocolate melts

1 cup coconut

    Heat oven to 180C (170C fanbake), with the rack just below the middle of the oven. Line the sides and bottom or a 23cm square pan (I used rectangular) with baking paper.

    For base, chop the flours, oats and cubed butter together in a food processor, or grate the butter into the oats and flours in a bowl. Mix in the brown sugar and press the mixture into the prepared pan. (For a thinner base use half the base ingredients.)

    For topping, put eggs, brown sugar and vanilla in a large bowl and beat with a fork just until whites and yolks are evenly mixed. Add all the remaining ingredients and mix together with a stirrer or spatula.     Spread over the uncooked base and press down fairly evenly.

    Bake for 45 minutes, covering the top if it browns too quickly. Cool in the baking pan, preferably overnight. When completely cold, cut into four large pieces using a sharp serrated knife. Trip off the outer edges if necessary. 

    Store pieces in the refrigerator up to a week, or freeze for up to six weeks in plastic bags or covered containers. Cut each piece into bars or fingers as required, just before serving.

Cultivating Patience, Sowing Seeds etc. Vlog

This week I felt very uninspired and I prayed about skipping a video this week. But after praying about it, I realized I did have a few things to share. I also remembered Ecclesiastes 11:6 which I talk about and explain. I share some ways to cultivate patience, some thoughts about staying close to God and about gratitude, some frugal living tips and some good Christian movie recommendations.

 

Pumpkin Recipes, Learning Contentment etc.

(Pumpkin Bran Muffins and Fluffy Pumpkin Pancakes Recipes below)

 

In this video I share a simple inexpensive meal that my children love, three ways to use pumpkin that hides the taste of pumpkin (I don't like pumpkin! Recipes below), two tips for when you don't have enough space, some thoughts on contentment and a look at what's happening in our house at the moment.

Pumpkin Bran Muffins
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
11/2 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

2 cups mashed cooked pumpkin

3 cups bran

2 cups flour

Preaheat oven to 350F or 180C. In large bowl, beat eggs; add sugar, oil, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin. Beat  well. Add bran, flour, and raisins. Stir until well blended. Spoon into greased muffin tins and bake for 20 minutes. Yields 21/2 dozen.

(My husband reckons these taste a bit like speculaas! This makes a lot, so the first time I halved the recipe to make sure we liked them.)

Fluffy Pumpkin Pancakes

2 cups flour

4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

2 tblsp sugar

2 cups milk

1tblsp butter, melted

1 cup mashed pumpkin

2 eggs, separated

In large bowl, sift dry ingredients. In blender, mix milk, butter, pumpkin, and egg yolks. (You can do it without a blender, but a blender does get out any lumps of pumpkin!). Stir into dry ingredients. Beat egg whites until stiff and fold in at last. Ladle into hot greased skillet. When bubbly around edges, flip over. Cook until done.

Three Thoughts From My Hard Morning

 Thismorning was one of those mornings when you either scream or cry. I chose to cry!
Lydia was home for the day today. I like it that she can be home from school one day, but she has an annoying habit that really gets on my nerves. If she doesn't do it, I really enjoy her being home. But thismorning she was doing it! She was calling "mum" loudly over and over again. Answering doesn't help because she does it again a minute later. Ignoring it doesn't help. Nothing helps. (I'm not complaining, just being real) How do you punish a child for calling their mum?! So my nerves were bad and I had a slight headache! 

She also likes to help with everything I do, which can make doing some jobs hard. So since she needed a bath today, I thought I would put her in there while I did a few jobs. (We only have a baby bath, so there's no danger there.) I put a swim nappy on, so I thought there was nothing that could go wrong. She played happily and I checked on her a few times putting more warm water in. Then I came in and found she had been happily tipping nearly all her bathwater over the bathroom floor. It took four dry towels to clean it up. The bath mat was also sopping wet. This wouldn't have bothered me quite so much if I wasn't already catching up on washing from Johan and the kids being away. I had just emptied a suitcase and found more dirty washing! I had also brought a few second hand clothes the day before, so I was washing them, too. We airdry our clothes, and it was a wet morning.

So that was my situation... here are three thoughts that helped me. I hope they may help you in your situation.

1. Count what's not wrong instead of what is.

It was only water--nothing dirty. And it was clean water. There has been flooding in NZ lately, and I can't imagine having dirty water in my house. The fire was going--to dry the washing. I also have a washing machine to wring out the water. The floor got clean while I was drying it! A few of many things to be thankful for.

2. Count what you got done not what you didn't.

At the end of the morning, the things I had written on my list to do today were still there. Because I hadn't gotten these things done yet, it felt like I hadn't done anything. But then I counted all the things I had done and was surprised. 

I had done the breakfast dishes, tidied up, vacuumed the whole house, folded and put a large load of washing away, wrapped a present, unpacked a suitcase and put the rest of the suitcases back in their place, walked the children to school instead of driving, bathed Lydia (and mopped the floor!), read Lydia a story and played a memory game with her, planned two weeks worth of meals and cleaned the space where the children put their shoes.

3. Cast all your burdens on the Lord.

There were a few things on my mind that was adding to my hard morning. Burdens I didn't need to be carrying. So I prayed and told the Lord everything that was troubling me.

There are so many things that can burden us. Things we read on social media, things on the news, things that are happening around us...just to name a few. If we care about people, it's so easy to get burdened and depressed! We tend to carry these burdens around with us, instead of giving them all to the One who can actually help. He wants to carry those burdens for us. What a difference it makes when we give them all to Him!

Pain and Busyness...

I was going to skip making a video this week, because it's been a very busy week and I didn't feel well on a few days. Instead I decided to talk about those things and what we can learn from them. And I added a few frugal living tips, a time management tip, a muesli bar recipe, and some Christian movie recommendations.

Grumbling Tommy---Character Building Story for Kids

This has to be one of my favourite stories for children! We all need regular reminders to be thankful and realize how much we have.

 

Choose When You Don't Feel

 Some times it's easy to be loving, cheerful, content, happy, thankful, prayerful, confident, patient, kind, hardworking, generous, unselfish, faithful in Bible reading etc. It's easy to be those things when we feel like being them.

But other times it's plain difficult. We feel discontent, lazy, miserable, scared, frustrated, greedy, unkind, grumpy. We don't feel like reading the Bible or praying. What do we do then?
I have found that I can't change or choose my feelings. But I can choose my actions. I can choose to act cheerful, to pray, to read the Bible, to trust God, to give, to speak kindly, to do some work etc. And when I do those things, often feeling follows. Not always--sometimes we just have to wait it out, have a rest, get a good nights sleep or deal with whatever is causing those feelings.
 But often when I choose to be cheerful, I start to feel more happyl. When I choose to be kind, I start to feel more loving. When I choose to pray, I feel like praying more. When I choose to get busy with jobs, I start to feel more motivated. When I choose to count my blessings, I start to feel more thankful.

Too Hard

This morning I was praying about something. But it was one of those things that I didn't know quite how to pray about. It  was something from my too hard basket. Some things seem too overwhelming, too big or too impossible. Sometimes I don't even pray about these things because I don't know what to pray. But thismorning I thought, 'Nothing is in the too hard basket for God. Wait a minute! God doesn't even have a too hard basket.'

Jeremiah 32:17 says "There is nothing too hard for thee."

Verse 27 says "Is there anything too hard for me?"

Then the next chapter says "Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not." Jeremiah 33:3

Although our unconfessed sin or  unbelief may hinder God from answering us, there is no prayer request that is too hard for Him. Even when we don't know the words to pray, we can still give God the situation and pray that His will would be done. Even when our prayer request seems impossible, we can remember that the One we are praying to is the One who created the whole world from nothing! We can ask in faith, believing that He will do what's best. Although it's too hard for us, it's never too hard for God. That is reason to rejoice!

Loving and Using

How easy it is to get things mixed up! Instead of loving people and using things, we love our things and use people. 

This is my prayer.

Hearing Aids and Hidden Blessings!

Yesterday I got a package in the mail. It was Lydia's hearing aids. About ten days ago, they broke and I had to send them away to get fixed. But when I opened up the package, there was way more than I had sent away. I had sent away a little tub with the hearing aids inside. Now I had back three boxes. One box had a new headband that the aids click on to. The other two boxes had the two hearing aids. They were both in a special little case. I thought they were put in the case to keep them safe in the mail. But my husband thinks they are brand new hearing aids. I'm still not sure which, Anyway, there was a pile of boxes on our desk, so I decided to tidy it up and throw away the boxes. But for some reason I looked in the boxes again, under where the hearing aid cases had sat. I was surprised to find a small thin box underneath. I opened it up and it was little kit of extra things for the aid. A packet of batteries, a little tool to lock the aid so the batteries don't fall out, stickers to decorate the aid, and a few other things.
 There was a kit in both of the hearing aid boxes. I shuddered to think I had nearly thrown it all away! 
I didn't expect anything extra, so I nearly didn't find it. I didn't see it at first, because I didn't know it was there.

In life, we usually find what we're looking for. We can often miss the things we're not looking for. If we look for faults in people, we easily find them. If we look for faults in our husband, we're always going to find them. But there are hidden blessings, we often miss because we're not looking for them. If we make an effort to look for the good, we will find things we missed before.
It's like a garden. If you look for the weeds, you'll find them. Weeds keep coming up. But if you're focused on the weeds, you'll never enjoy the beauty of the flowers. Instead we should focus on the flowers and work on the weeds. 
We need to look a little deeper and ask God to open our eyes for the blessings we're missing. And then focus on the blessings and pray about the problems!

Lessons From Lockdown

What have you learned during this lock down time?
I have been thinking about these things...

1) Life can change very quickly
A few months back I never would have guessed that I would have to homeschool. Although it's not a permanent change, it's a reminder of how quick things can change. Even things we thought would never happen can suddenly happen. We need to appreciate what we have and not take things for granted.

2)Don't count on the future
The Bible says, Don't boast about tomorrow because we don't know what will happen. We need to keep in mind that none of our plans are definite and everything we have on this earth is only temporary. We can't trust in money, jobs, possessions, people or our health etc. They can be gone in an instant. We need to trust in God, because He knows what's around the corner. And He can't be taken away from us.

3)We don't need to worry about the future
There is nothing that can happen to us that God doesn't already know about. And whatever does happen, God will be right there helping us through. Often the things we fear never happen. And if they do, God will give us grace and help at the time.

4)Always be ready for death
Hearing about the virus is scary when you know that it can be fatal. And yet there are many people who have died during this time who didn't have the virus. They might have thought they were safe because they didn't have the virus. We can die at any moment, so we need to be prepared all the time.

5) Without change, we would never learn or do some things
My sister sent me a song and it had words with this idea "God isn't trying to make us cry. He's teaching us how to fly." It had the example of a mother bird teaching her babies how to fly. There are things I've done over lockdown that I wouldn't have done if life had been normal. We all have our own trials, but without those trials, we would miss out on so much learning and growing. Change can force us to learn new skills and lessons.

6) What matters is what God thinks of us
(This is not related to lockdown, but it is a lesson I am learning.) I like to please people, but it's not always possible to please people and God. We need to value what God thinks of us more highly than what others think of us.

7) Have courage to do what God wants you to do
We have an enemy who wants to keep us inactive and of no use to anyone. He has different strategies to try to stop us. For me it's usually discouragement and self doubt. We need to find our encouragement in God and keep going in spite of the challenges. 

Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. Joshua 1:9

Choose Contentment

Comparison is the thief of joy. It's so easy to get discontented when we compare something of ours to something 'better'. For example, our kitchen is very old, and has broken drawers and an unfinished floor. Most of the time I don't even notice it. It is just my kitchen and I love to cook and be at home. I am usually content. But every now and again, I notice newer kitchens that other people have and in an instant I can become very discontent. But it doesn't change my kitchen, it only takes away my joy. So why not be content? It's not something I can change right now, so why not think of all the women in the world who would LOVE to have my kitchen?

Is there something in your life that makes you discontent? Can you change it? If you can't, why not be thankful and content? Why not count the good things and compare yourself to those with less rather than those with more?

But sometimes there are things we CAN change. I can't change my kitchen, but I CAN learn to keep it clean, tidy, organized and a pleasant place to be. That makes a huge difference.

If you have a small house, you may not be able to change it, but you CAN make the most of the space you have by decluttering and being creative.

If your budget is tight, you may not be able to change it, but you CAN make the most of what you do have by being thrifty, creative and thankful.

You may not be able to change your husband, but you can pray for him and change yourself. You can learn to be more thankful for his good qualities, have a good attitude and work on your own faults. That will keep you busy for the rest of your life!

You may not be able to change something, but do what you CAN do and choose contentment and joy.