Tag-Archive for » parenting «

09
Jun
Are You Living With Flat People?

Three Musicians by Picasso

A story is told of Pablo Picasso riding on a train when a man approached him and asked him why, as a famous painter, he did not paint people “the way they really are.” Picasso asked the man what he meant by that expression.

The man opened his wallet and took out a snapshot of his wife, saying, “That’s my wife.”

Picasso responded, “Isn’t she rather small and flat?”

Most of us live and work with flat people and fail to realize that our limited perception misses the realms of possibility and wonder hidden within. Seeing people the way they really are is impossible, but we can see them as more than flat.

Usually we form a quick opinion of a person gleaned from a few interactions with him or her. That information is then filtered through what others have told us about the individual. As time goes on, we view this person through the stories we ingrain within—stories based on what we continue to hear and experience of his or her actions and life events.

Some of these stories are good, and some are not, but all stories are limited, since we cannot know a person’s thoughts, motives, hopes, dreams, or the details of the past that have shaped his personality.

Without realizing it, we trap ourselves into certain patterns and ways of thinking concerning the people around us. We see only what we are inclined to see derived from our interpretation of the stories we’ve collected about them in our mental file cabinet.

Finding the Holy in the daily often means looking at people through new glasses—seeing the wonder that God has placed within them, finding the unexpected sparkle behind their story, and assuming the best about them.

Are the people around you flat? Are there aspects to their stories you are missing? How can you change the way you interpret these people?

In Him together, Susan Gaddis

Be Sociable, Share!
2 Comments
Category: At work, Brain overhaul, Relationships  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
04
Jun
The Secret to Having God Hang Out at Your House

Does your house seem like the kind of place where God hangs out? Do you want your kids to have God encounters? Would you like to experience more of his presence?

Setting an atmosphere for God to walk among us in our homes requires that we wear the mantle of a servant. Since most of us already feel we do the chores of a servant, wearing the mantle shouldn’t be too big of an adjustment. It’s the heart attitude that separates a servant from a slave.

It was Jesus who stated that the greatest among us would be the servants, and that we would find Him hanging out with those who serve. Washing feet was the job of a servant, yet Jesus washed the feet of his disciples and asked that we do the same (John 13:12-17).

When we work in the yard, clean the house, or set a nice dinner table, we are creating a physical atmosphere of comfort for our families, and welcome for our guests. When we do so with the heart of a servant, a spiritual atmosphere is created for the presence of God to move among us.

Chore lists are important tools in teaching your kids responsibility, but do you also talk with your kids about a right heart attitude in doing those chores? A servant’s heart isn’t something you can dictate—it must be cultivated through relationship, prayer, and the Spirit Holy. If you want God to encounter your kids at home—even in the midst of their chores—you have to first set the spiritual atmosphere by serving your family with a right heart.

What are you doing to set an atmosphere for God to hang out at your house? Do you model a servant’s heart for your family?

In Him together, Susan Gaddis

Be Sociable, Share!
4 Comments
Category: Daily chores, Personal growth  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
28
May
God Sneaks In When Moms Aren’t Looking

Lynn Ayers and the 3 grandgirls we share with her and Ron

I thought when my first child was born that there wouldn’t be much “God time” in my life until I was quite old. However, God sneaks in when moms aren’t looking.

Our first son arrived when I was 25 years young and number six was born 16 years later. That youngest child graduates from high school in a few weeks. Children have been a part of my life for the last 34 years and daily devotions weren’t always possible during those years. However, the raising of the kids has been more of “the raising of Mom” than Mom ever realized it would be when she and Dad started this adventure.

Birthing babies taught me the awesomeness of Creator God and that I can endure extreme, physical pain.

Labor and birth educated me in the proper place to leave my fashion sense—outside the door. Few things are as beautiful in God’s eyes as a mother in labor.

New babies let me know I could live without a shower for many days and God didn’t care.

I soon realized that I could have my “quiet time” while nursing a baby at 2:00 in the morning.

Changing diapers required humility where little had been before.

Living with toddlers taught me that eating dirt provided needed minerals and that I needed to relax in the moment.

Homeschooling allowed my impatience to rise to the surface where God could deal with it.

My children taught me that a cluttered home is godly—God’s people live there and are enjoying life.

Cooking countless meals developed my culinary skills beyond cold cereal and, along with that, the realization that God enjoyed cooking with me.

Hospital trips developed my faith in the Great Physician.

Organizing a home, managing six kids, and homeschooling provided the confidence needed to tackle anything God asked me to do in the wider world.

Raising teenagers sent me to the prayer closet more often than I care to remember.

Watching my kids leave home has taught me that they are not mine to hold onto anymore—God is perfectly capable of taking care of them and I need to stay out of his way.

I never knew that laughter was the language of heaven until I had children.

God sneaks in when moms aren’t looking. How would you finish this statement? “Through raising kids, God is teaching me _________.”

In Him together, Susan Gaddis

Be Sociable, Share!
4 Comments
Category: Daily, Humor, Personal growth  Tags: , , , , ,
05
Feb
How to Pray Your Child “Home”

394279_home_keyI believe in praying for my kids. I’m in the trenches of finishing raising child number six now, and prayer, as with the other five kids, continues to be my best bet for his survival and my sanity.

Titus 2:11–12 is the mainstay of my Scripture praying for my children. Although I use many, this one passage remains my favorite when I approach God’s throne discouraged and needing my Father to do another “kid intervention.” Basically, my Titus 2 prayer sounds like the following:

“For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. That’s a lot of grace, Lord—enough to show your salvation to everyone who has ever lived. So I know there is as much grace as is necessary for (name of child) to come home to you in his heart, decisions, and actions.

I ask that your grace continue to teach (name of child) to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions. You know, Lord, how much temptation my child faces on a daily basis. May your grace instruct (him/her) in how to live a self-controlled, upright and godly life in this present age—here and now—not just someday in the future. Lord, self-control, upright, and godly are hard things to walk in, even for an adult. I ask that you do what no one else can do in my child’s life—teach (him/her) to be a Christ follower.”

So far God’s track record in the Gaddis Department of Child Raising has been spotless. Parenting is messy at times, but God, for His part, has been faithful. All of the older kids love and serve the Lord, and I have every confidence that this last one will continue to be mentored by Grace in how to say “Yes” to self-control, an upright heart, and godly actions. I’m expecting Grace to teach him how to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions.

Am I the only parent who needs the God of Grace to mentor my children? What do you pray when you seek the Lord for the welfare of your kids? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

In Him together, Susan

Related Posts with Thumbnails
Be Sociable, Share!
7 Comments
Category: Prayer, praying for your kids, Relationships  Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,