Drivers

It was beautiful outside, the sun was shining and we were cruising on the way to football practice. The windows were down because the AC was acting up, but even that didn't bother us. My oldest was in the front seat dozing in the sun and we were bustling along I71 north of Columbus.  Out of the corner of my eye I catch a flash of red sports car as it buzzes past us in the right lane. The sporty drop top coupe appears, racing stripes and all, and then quickly disappears.

As we approach the next exit something has slowed traffic ahead and I see the sporty red car on my left, this time stopped in the traffic.  I notice that they have their turn signal on and just a moment before it's too late - they whip in front of my van with the purpose of advancing another 50 feet.  I slam on the breaks and dozing teenager sits up and says "HUH??!!" before drifting back to sleep.   Luckily, our exit is just ahead on the right so I get over into the exit lane and then realize that somehow, now they are right behind me.... how did that even happen?  The exit lane is jammed with cars escaping the freeway and at the end of the ramp there is a right and left hand turn lane.  I will be turning right so I make sure I am in the right half of the lane when suddenly in my side mirror I see the little sports coupe's nose beside me on the right, in the gravel, just as I am coming to a stop behind the car in the right turn lane.  The coupe skids a few feet and then the man in the front seat begins yelling curses in my window.  Screaming in frustration because I am also turning right  and he can't just create his own lane and do things his own way.  Large, football playing teen wakes up, sits up, has a oddest look on his face and just sticks his head out the window to stare at the rudest man on earth.... who, once he realizes he has a large football player staring at him, promptly shuts up.  We finish our turn, and in about 10 minutes we wind up at our destination.  My oldest still hasn't said anything but just before he is about to hop out of the car he says "What was wrong with that guy, mom?" and I just shrug.  "I don't know kid, maybe he was having a bad day?" and he shakes his head and trots away.

I heard someone speak once about how drivers look....

There's the envious driver that follows too close.  They are looking everywhere but at the road.  We might call them the distracted driver.  There's the driver of that's "living their own truth" they drive like a drunk, all over the road and if they are lucky they wind up in a ditch. There's the angry driver who speeds, they tear around other drivers throwing gravel, they have about a million hit and run accidents. There's the grieved driver who needs to go slow, they pull over to rest frequently, like driving in a sudden storm, one minute you're fine and the next you're in a downpour, waves of rain so hard you can't see to drive through it.

There's the new driver whose passionate and purposeful, but they don't have the discernment yet to see some of these other drivers coming. There's the bitter driver who will run people over because they deserve it, and then they back up and do it again. There's the driver that goes about handing out tickets, telling everyone how they should improve their driving. There are the destination drivers, they are just trying to get from point A to point B, they aren't really paying attention to other drivers, road conditions or anything else. And there are even some stranded drivers. There are those with a flat tire or who ran out of gas and doesn't really know how to get where they are going.

Some of these drivers drive poorly because of their attitude, some because of their life circumstances.  Sometimes it's not really a choice to be a bad driver, it's just the only way a person knows to drive.
So how is a driver supposed to keep it between the lines?

There are a few ways to determine the lines on the highway of life...

One way is the culture.  

We are living in a culture at the moment that has defined and re-defined itself bringing us into a post modern, some might say post truth, world.  Don't like the speed limit? Change it.  Don't like the outcome of what's happening? Claim it never happened.  Don't like the facts? Deny them, create your own facts, identify however you will.

The speed and depth of this change is frightening, but even more frightening is the churches willingness, and sometimes even approval, of a post modern, no absolute truth, no right and wrong, culture.  A big part of this is the idea that truth is personal.  What is right for me, may not be right for you....  God is however you define him/her/them.....  I can "have it my way" with my religion - custom ordered, tailored to what I like.  And while this false religiosity attempts to dissasociate "personal truth" from objective, Biblical, even logical truth, some church leaders praise these ideas as inclusive.

I heard someone say "Live your truth" the other day.   In our current culture truth isn't objective or logical - it's all relative to you.  It's all personal.  The driver becomes the most important thing, the only thing, in their world.  Don't like something? Tell people it never happened.  Do what ever you want - or in the word's of Alister Crowley "Do what thou wilt"

Within this growing cultural belief is that people are their own arbitrators of truth, that they can interpret and decide for themselves what is right and wrong.  When the church becomes it's own arbiter of truth, when a person becomes their own arbiter of truth, they have moved beyond any accountability.  They are not accountable to a body of believers, or anyone... not even to God.  Not surprisingly, when people live like this, there is never a need for confession because they are never wrong.

Apply this same logic to people who are in leadership.  Those who lead us are in higher positions, positions of trust.  The Bible, the absolute truth, says those people are held to a higher standard, they are more accountable to God for their actions.   Anyone can start a Facebook page, or a blog, and attract followers.  It's easy to surround ourselves with agreeing voices, but living out accountability is harder.

One of my favorite quotes is "Leaders who live with accountability rarely need it" but the opposite is true too - leaders who live outside accountability - within their community, with their peers, with their mentors (if they have them) - are often abusive, design their own convenient truths and desperately need an accountability which breaks the hold of moral relativity.

The other way to drive - is by God's word.

Truth says we are not the arbitrators of our covenant, we don't set the terms, we follow them.  We are not the author of what is right or wrong, we are subject to the Author.   Truth leads us to see that we are sinners in need of repentance and a Savior.  Truth leads us to confession and confession to faith. Without that truth, there is no hope for us. 

The most simplistic form of this is in Luke 10:28

He answered, "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"

How do we love God?

"If you love me, keep my commandments." John 14:15

Today there is a move to try to redefine what God says.  What are His commandments? Only the New Testament? Only the 10 commandments? Modern churches can't agree on this, many avoid the subject of sin altogether because it disrupts their congregants cultural beliefs.
I firmly believe that the only way people will learn God's word is to study it.  Study it all the time, sit under good teachers, read it, write it down, share it, post it, blog it, and keep it in the front of your mind.  There is no other hope apart from God's word, His absolute truth.  And if you're looking for a place to start - start basic - start with the 10 commandments if you must.  Don't put anything before God, Don't have idols, Don't take the Lord's name in vain, Don't murder, Don't defraud someone (steal), Don't envy your neighbors wife or stuff, Don't bear false witness (gossip/lie), Honor your father and mother, Keep the sabbath, and Don't commit adultery. That's how you love God, you keep His commandments, and you study to keep learning those commandments.

How do we love our neighbor?
It's hard to teach this in a post truth world - because before you might give a practical example, but now someone's "truth" might be "Well, if I were (insert accusation), I think I would want someone to (insert hateful thing here) towards me"

But when you step beyond this relativistic argument we see that Biblical truth says loving your neighbor is well defined in:

"Love is patient, Love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud, it is not rude or self seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love takes no pleasure in evil but rejoices in truth it bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things, Love never fails...." 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

So in the middle of a culture that is torn between relativism(define your own truth) and Biblical truth, what can we do?

"He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8

1. Love God - put Him first even if other people think you're crazy
2. Speak truth - even when it's unpopular
3. Confess sin - own your part
4. Tie yourself to love, which is truth, in order to love your neighbor.  

Blessings,
Amanda

Remember

My life has a theme... (I think sometimes it has a theme song... and I might be humming it...but I digress)

My life has a theme - year to year it seems God is showing me things that I didn't understand.  And I have a choice, I can reject those things as hard, new, strange, weird - or I can dive into the difficult and figure it out together with Him.  I have chosen the later.

So last year (and it really does tend to run fall to fall!) the theme was "I AM doing new thing" - The I AM being God himself and his message to me that He was doing something new and to HOLD ON because I will miss it, I will barely perceive it.

Isaiah 43:19-21 Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. The wild beasts will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches, for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people, the people whom I formed for myself that they might declare my praise.

This was very true- one year and our family looks entirely different, one year and our jobs look entirely different, one year and our lives look ENTIRELY different.  He wasn't kidding - He was doing a NEW THING.  New things can be hard things.  I can choose the new thing, but sometimes that means I have to let the old thing break, be shattered into a million pieces so that the new thing can come out of it.  New things can sound so good - until you realize that means leaving the old things behind.

This year my theme has been changed - still in the midst of the new things being born, still in the midst of a LOT of personal change - my theme has become REMEMBER.

Remember - and there isn't just a single verse, but the entire book of Deuteronomy, and Ruth, and Job.  So remembering has a bigger vision - it's like: Remember who I AM, and Remember who you were, and who you are now, Remember what I have brought you through, Remember what I have commanded you to do....

Remembering is a whole lot like Faith.  It is the personal testimony of each of us, it is the Faith-evidence that we each hold, not a wishy washy feeling of "I have faith" but the concrete, the proven, the tried and true, the assurance that remembering God's goodness towards us, God's pursuit of us, God's faithfulness, God's forgiveness and even God's displeasure towards us - helps us to better run the race that is before us.

Hebrews 11:1-3
Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see. 2 Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation.3 By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.

So I plan to write a series of blogs remembering some of the great things that God has done in my life, and even some of the not so great things that happened, in order to properly remember and there by re-member, reassemble the pieces that can seem broken but are really just part of the new thing.

A favorite quote of mine is "Sometimes when things are falling apart, they are really falling together for your good." and this is so important and part of that soul amnesia that we all suffer from - that we have to, have to, HAVE TO! keep remembering the goodness, faithfulness, righteousness, and awe-inspiringness of God.

Sometimes, when you go through a thing you just survive it.  You look back and wonder how that happened, life seems like a blur - it is only later that you see the pieces of it - how it fell together, and how the Lord blessed.

My first remember moment, although there are a few before this - times when I heard the Lord speak and really wanted to follow Him and do right but had no idea how to do that - comes when I was 27 years old.

Working as a counselor, married, three kids in school - we had purchased a home in Heath and we blessed by every worldly standard there was.  Our neighbors were lovely, our house was fantastic, our kids did well in school, we had a great church, a great group of friends, nice cars - life was good - all the way around - life was good.

And then - I heard God speak to me one day at church - I was under heavy conviction to quit my job....  Quit my JOB!!?? what?  That can't be right!  I have a great job, they love me here - I worked HARD to get here - they are sooo happy with me and I looove it! NO! I can't quit my job - how foolish, I must have misheard that one...

And then another week  - "Quit your job!"  So I talked to Drason about it - no way we could make it if I quit my job, that is foolishness for sure - nope! I can't quit my job!

And then again - "Quit your job" and again - week after week for about 6 months, I could not escape the fact that I was constantly bombarded with the conviction that I needed to quit my job and I consistently said "no way!"

It was fall, there was a special speaker at our church that day and the fire alarms started to go off.  Drason got up to go help turn them off (of course he was the one with the knowledge of how to do that) and comes back to sit down... about 20 minutes later they go off again - again, Drason gets up and handles it.... and about 15 more minutes they go off again.... I still to this day can not tell you what that message was about, but it was the one I needed to hear that day.  It is time for the invitation, Drason takes his seat beside me, and I hear the Lord speak to me again, but this time it is different, this time it is like a huge download of information in just a few words - "This is the last time"  This is the last time I'm going to ask you to follow me, to quit your job.  Either you decide today that you will follow me, or not.  I won't ask again....

I was crying, Drason who had literally just sat down takes my arm and helps me to the alter, I just sob and in that moment I give God my "Yes" forever, whatever He wants, for as long as I live, it is His - even quitting my job.

Every day before this day, I had doubts about my salvation - and every day since I never have.  My life changed drastically that Fall day, I turned in my 2 weeks notice the next day and they offered me a raise and a better schedule (which I still refused).

It occurred to me for the first time the other day that God pursued me.  It was a shocking revelation for me.  Wonderful and too good to be true - but completely true.  For 6 months God - creator of the universe - pursued me.  That is scandalous love, love that is beyond my reasoning.

Remembering makes us whole human beings.  I needed to know, to remember, that I was pursued by the creator of the universe.

Thank you Heavenly Father!
Amanda

Ripples

Ten years ago I joined a homeschool co-op.  I had just come off a year of being a homeschooling failure (you can read about it here) and was excited to join a group of like minded ladies.  So I enrolled my kids in some classes, I taught a couple of science classes and things were going well.

One day when we arrived at co-op, late as usual, a lady from the group met me in the parking lot. "Your son has really been acting up in Lauren's Spanish class, you really need to have a talk with him!"

This was news to me so after sending my other two to class I pulled the third one aside, gave him the mom eyebrows and told him he better settle down in Lauren's class.  He had a lisp at the time so with his sad little lisp he said "Sowweey Mom"  and went to class.   Whew - crisis averted.  

A few hours later someone else came up to me "Excuse me, Amanda? I really think you should know that your son is being very disruptive in Lauren's class!"  

I was a little surprised to hear this from a second person, especially considering he had not even been to the class yet today.  I managed to stammer out that I had spoken to him and didn't think it would be a problem any more.   

Lunchtime came and we were all sitting together eating our sandwiches.  Kids were happily munching away when yet another mom asked to speak to me.  She pulled me aside and said "You really need to do something about your son in the Spanish class."  By this time I was boiling.  I mean - did everyone around here know that my son had misbehaved in a class?!?!  What did they expect me to do, publicly flog the child? 

Later in the day, after the Spanish class, the teacher approached me and asked to speak with me.  She started by saying that my son had done better today, but the last few weeks he had been disrupting the class.  She said she thought it was possible that he had ADHD and maybe he needed to see a doctor.  

That is the last thing I remember hearing her say... although she did talk for a little bit longer.  When I replied I told her that I had already been spoken to three times about this by other women, I had corrected him,  and  her class was just a "fluff class" anyways, so I really didn't care if he didn't learn Spanish (I mean the kid could barely speak English and was 7 years old, he really didn't need a Spanish class) 

Lauren looked puzzled, but she was calm.  She apologized.  I don't remember if I apologized, I would like to think that I did, but we moved on. 

For the past several years, I have stood in front of many women and told that story.  Right beside me was my friend, Lauren.   She picks up where I stop and says "I decided in my heart that I was going to be her friend."  

Her decision, 10 years ago, has had a lasting impact on our lives, but not just our own lives - the lives of hundreds of families.  Her decision had a ripple effect in our community. We co-lead a ministry together.  You see, if Lauren and I had not made the choice to forgive, we would not have a ministry to lead.  In 2011 when the ministry needed a leader - there would have been none, and the ministry would have stopped.  But because of our friendship, we were able to lead a ministry together.  Over the 8 years we have been doing this we have seen countless families get the support they needed to homeschool.  We have had literally hundreds if not thousands of people contact us for help and support, we have seen families come together and have seen people accept Christ as their savior - all through this ministry.  

The thing is that sometimes when we make a decision, we have no idea, NO IDEA, how far reaching or lasting that decision will be.  We can not even fathom the depth of the good that God has planned for us.  We can not grasp that this little decision - sometimes big decision - sometimes every day decision - is going to be the decision that makes or breaks the next 10 years of our lives.  

So what do you do with that kind of knowledge?  

Psalm 119:9-16
How can a young man keep his way pure?    By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you;    let me not wander from your commandments!
I have stored up your word in my heart,    that I might not sin against you. Blessed are you, O Lord;    teach me your statutes!   

With my lips I declare    all the rules of your mouth.
In the way of your testimonies I delight    as much as in all riches. I will meditate on your precepts    and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes;    I will not forget your word.

As much is there is good from the good - there is also bad from the bad.

What if she hadn't been kind? What if we had just ripped each other up with our words, hurt each other, or held onto a grudge towards one another?  At the end of the day, we would have missed out on some of the best blessings, a wonderful friendship, and serving the Lord together, we would have missed a major calling in our lives.  But more than that - hundreds of families would have missed blessings, friendships, guidance, and so. much. more.  So much that we can't even see or imagine all that would have been missed.  If we had made one different decision. 

How far reaching are bad decisions? Decisions to judge harshly, decisions to be cruel, decisions to break up friendships to harbor anger or resentment towards a brother or sister? Now imagine that not only was the opportunity for good lost, but then the opportunity for evil increased.  Evil decisions also have a ripple.  How much damage is done with foolish, prideful decisions? I believe the answer is the same - we can not even fathom the damage.  We can not even imagine the hurt caused, the far reaching pain and agony we cause with what seems like one bad decision.

1Peter 5:5-11
Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud,But gives grace to the humble.” Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,  casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.  But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.  To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. (emphasis added)

Live purposefully, intentionally try to do what is pleasing to the Lord in all things, and then to Him be the Glory!

Goodnight,
Amanda

Fire

I re-blog this post every so often, and I review it when I find out that yet again I have been the topic of, or surrounded by, gossip...

I try to share this post again because I really believe that as much a there is a plague upon men who struggle to control themselves and are slaves to pornography and the sin caused by their eyes... there is a plague upon women who are slaves to gossip, slander, backbiting, jealousy and arrogance who make excuses for their secret sin, committed mainly with other women who struggle to control their tongues. I am reminded of 2Timothy 3:1-6

1 But understand this: In the last days terrible times will come. 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, without love of good, 4 traitorous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Turn away from such as these! 6 They are the kind who worm their way into households and captivate vulnerable women who are weighed down with sins and led astray by various passions...

In the forests there are tall towers constructed to be hundreds of feet tall. The wind causes them to sway just a little but if you can climb them, the view is amazing. You can see for miles. 

Imagine being on the Eiffel tower or the Empire State building and ripping open a feather pillow, shaking all the feathers out. Of course a few would fall at your feet, but the wind would blow most of the feathers far and wide.  Even if you tried, even if your very life depended on it, you could not recapture all of those feathers. Most would travel to places unseen, unknown. 

Now imagine that all of those feathers, were fire. 

Proverbs 16:27-28

27 Scoundrels create trouble;

their words are a destructive blaze.

28 A troublemaker plants seeds of strife;

gossip separates the best of friends.

Gossip will burn through life like a wildfire, untamed, uncontrollable.  Who can re-gather fire? It can never be re-gathered, it can never be taken back, just like you can never get back the spill of gossip. You could work tirelessly to undo gossip, you could spend hours, days, weeks, even years trying to battle... and it is like a single man trying to put out a forest fire.  

James 3:5-6…5So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire!6And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.

I am pretty sure everyone has experienced gossip coming back to them about themselves. When that happens, it is always tempting to correct the gossip, to identify the originator and to put them in their place.

But if I try to run it down I will never find rest or peace, it would be just as impossible as chasing down feathers dropped from the tower spire.  It would be just as dangerous as a person who tried to fight a forest fire with a garden hose.

   I have grappled with this and realized that...

...when I  accept God's estimation of me, 
I stop worrying about what people say about me.

When I know I have been the topic of gossip, I often pray that God will recapture all those feathers for me, that he will extinguish the fires that have been set around me.

There is no way that I will ever be able to address it, no way that I could  convince others of the untruthfulness of the words spoken against me or my family. And in trying to undo the tangle of someone else's web - I too would strike a match and light dry kindling - I too would be guilty - I too would cause harm.

Psalm 62:5-6 NLT

Let all that I am wait quietly before God,

    for my hope is in him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will not be shaken.

Goodnight,

Amanda

God is FOR YOU, the same as yesterday!

We go to look at a truck. We have been looking at trucks, everywhere we go we are disappointed. Too old, rusty, overpriced, broke down - we aren't finding any good trucks, and when we do - they are soooo expensive that we can't even consider them. This truck is so nice, much nicer than others we have seen. We are certain we can not afford this truck, that there is no way anyone would sell us this truck. We LOVE the truck, and need a truck. Yet, we ask. "Father, if this is your will - throw the door WIDE OPEN, don't let us miss it. But if this is NOT your will, slam that door so hard and so fast that we won't miss that either!"

We test drive said truck, talk to dealer, spend maybe 45 minutes or so at the dealership and then leave with the understanding that if the lady there can work it out on the terms we could afford she will call us and let us know, and if not that is OK too. About 20 minutes later she calls, they will take our malfunctioning car in trade, they will reduce the price of the truck, they have financing on our terms, come back and sign the papers and we are good to go. (AKA - Door wide open)

Fast Forward 12 days - 

Discovering water on your finished basement floor is not a great way to start the week!

Our hot water heater, which is only a few years old, sprung a leak not only removing hot water from our faucets but leaving said water on the floor of the finished basement.... We realized this on a Sunday evening at about 8pm. Off to the Walmart to purchase a carpet cleaner to try to suck out the water we could.

Monday, I am not even fully awake yet, and I get a call from the middle child, The new truck is broken down on the side of the highway, the NEW TRUCK that we have had for only 12 days! 

I call the dealer, call the insurance agent because the truck is so new to us we don't have the official paperwork yet for the insurance coverage. Roadside assistance will tow the truck, but not the trailer. Kid starts calling to get help with trailer. I take 5 minutes to post on Facebook that we need prayers.  

Dealer calls back and says have it towed to them they will look it over. Kid calls, says another friend will tow his trailer and bring him home.  

Then I make it downstairs and realize that this water mess is much larger than I thought. I call the other insurance to ask about coverage, they say no coverage for this. I call a plumber and they can be out by about 4pm, which is amazing considering it's almost noon.  

Husband comes home -his engine in his truck (the old truck) is misfiring. I can hear it from far down the road.

So when the truck breaks down 12 days later I have a choice - I can say 

"Darn truck! I knew that deal was too good to be true! Lousy rotten sales people!" When the heater goes out I can throw a fit and complain, cry and be angry, especially at the insurance company and when even the old truck is misfiring I can be angry at God. "Why did you let all this happen to me!"

or I can say 

"Lord, you led us to that new truck, you threw that door wide open, there is no way that I asked you for a fish and you gave me a snake. I will call the dealer and be kind and calm, this will be ok." and I can look at bigger things, other things and I can say "The Lord is good to me, He always takes care of me, this time is no different." and rather than scream and yell and curse the sky, I can pray for wisdom and peace and the graciousness to handle whatever is thrown at me today.

I heard someone recently teach that God's people in the Old Testament times were "physically blessed" and that people now are just "Spiritually Blessed"...

I have to wonder if God just shakes His head at such comments... this persons assertion is that God doesn't physically bless people in the modern age... look around!

Did you have to weave your clothing? Did you have to hunt your food? Did you have to fight a Philistine? You are physically blessed beyond measure, beyond what anyone thousands of years ago could have even imagined. Beyond the general blessings that most of the modern world gets to enjoy, I am also personally blessed, cared for, and provided for beyond what I can ask or imagine.

God DOES bless his people, miraculously, even today.

My water heater was replaced the next day, at no cost.

The new truck was repaired the same day, within hours, at no cost.

The old truck was repaired the same day, within hours, at no cost.

Not only that - but God uses HIS PEOPLE to pour out his blessings.

Christina and Coleen listened and helped just by listening =) They were kind and calm and encouraging.

Jon came and picked up my son from the side of the road and brought him and his trailer home.

Coleen came and brought me two shop vacs so I could get my basement in order.

Dave came out and consulted on the water heater, gave Drason some basic instruction on installing a new one, and even helped with the company so that it was replaced under warranty.

Andrew diagnosed and repaired the old truck with parts from the old engine.

Marshal took the old water heater back and picked up the new one and delivered it home.

These may seem like small things, it may seem less than miraculous but consider how much these things could have cost. The new truck could have cost thousands to repair (it's a diesel) or even to diagnose. Most diesel mechanics charge at least $70-$100 per hour - it took 4 hours to diagnose and repair. A water heater is about $500, installation of a new one and removal of the old one are about the same - so another $500. Diagnosing and repairing an engine misfire - at least a few hundred dollars, not including parts!

God is the same yesterday, today and forever. He isn't there to trick us, there isn't one God of the Old Testament and one God of the New Testament - He is the SAME GOD! No, things don't always look the same, but He is the same. He does bless us, He uses his anointed ones to pour out the blessings.

There is so much here that I want to unpack for you but it would take more time and writing that I could spare today - so instead I will bullet point it out for you....

1. Prayer before big decisions gives peace and keeps you from shipwrecked faith - imagine moving forward without prayer and assurance on that large purchase - it puts you on shaky ground.

2. You choose who you serve today - will you serve the Lord? If so, then TRUST him. He says over and over that He has good planned for you, He is worthy of your trust!

3. You have the power to build up your home or to destroy it with your words and actions (which stem from your thoughts and feelings) Take captive every thought and don't let them run wild. Did the thought that the truck was sold to me was a lemon cross my mind - for a second the devil whispered that thought - which was immediately captured and dismissed - NO- God is for me, this will be OK!

4. Your kids are watching, they will see - do you trust God or do you freak out? I just had a conversation with the Middle child THE DAY BEFORE THIS HAPPENED about trusting that God has good planned for you - worry is from the enemy.

5. YOU can be the blessing that makes someone else's day more bearable -YOU are the hands and feet of Christ - USE THEM!

Thank you God for turning my bad day into a blessing! Thank you for strengthening and equipping me to combat the fiery darts of the devil and to stand, thank you for making me stand and sending your people to help me stand.

Homeschooling in not abuse

There is a terrible story in the news.  Two parents in California abused, shackled, tormented, and neglected their 13 children, who seem to have been forgotten by society.  This is one of the most disturbing cases of child abuse I have ever heard of, it is sickening, it is evil. 

The news media has classified this family as a "homeschooling" family.  Lets be very clear - this is not a homeschooling family.  The father in this family registered his home as a private school - he lied, these kids were not in a private school. They received no education, there was no private school. Just because they were kept home, does not mean they were homeschooling - they were truant.  This abuser found a loophole in a law so that he could continue to abuse.  Just to be very clear, I completely condemn the actions of this man and woman and hope they receive the full penalty for their heinous crimes against their own children.

This post isn't actually about abuse, because abuse is always wrong and that is the end of the story. This post is about a media narrative and a growing suspicion of loving and kind homeschooling families.

In 2016 California passed a law that all students in public schools had to be 100% compliant with vaccines, and this would be checked in Kindergarten and 7th grade.  Medical exemptions tripled. So they added that any doctor giving a medical exemption could have their practice investigated and if a third party found that exemption in error, they would no longer be eligible for insurance payments (basically their practice would be ruined)  Medical waivers became so very rare that even children that maybe should have them were denied because doctors didn't want to bet their livelihood on the third party decision. As a result, 15,000 students withdrew from the public schools in order to home educate.

Multiply that 15,000 by the average $10,600 that schools receive per student (some based on property taxes, some state delegated funds, some federal aid) And that is a whopping 159 Million dollars out of the system. While public schools still get some of those funds, 10% is federal aid - that is gone.  The mix of local and state aid varies so much it can literally change district to district, between 40% and 80% of those funds (depending on district) are also gone - the state won't fund a child who isn't there. This puts local districts in more of a pinch, because they were counting on those students, now the students aren't there, so the funds aren't there, so they literally have to look at laying off staff. 

This is a long rabbit trail away from abuse, but it might help you understand why this story has been in the news every day for two weeks, especially in California, and why so many politicians are proposing additional rules for homeschooling families.

In the past two weeks I have received multiple messages from homeschooling families who have been contacted by relatives or friends and pressured to place their children back in public school because they believe homeschooling is "educational neglect" or "abusive" or "creates an environment for abuse and isolation" and frankly, this is offensive.

Legally homeschooled students are 40% less likely to die by child abuse or neglect than the average student nationally.

1 in 10 public school students are abused AT public school, often by the very people charged to protect and educate them.

But don't take my word for it - check out the National Home Education Research Institute's article here 

I think this quote from the article easily sums up my personal feelings about these types of suggestions -

"Wexler, the executive director of the National Coalition for Child Protection Reform and a self-identified liberal, in his article “Protect homeschooled children from child savers,” put it this way: “Why are homeschoolers a special target of 21st century child savers?  Because we liberals tend to stereotype them …” 

“Further, Wexler explained many of the unintended damages that mandatory homeschool home visits and interviews of children would inflict on children. For example, children react, even to temporary infringement of parental autonomy, with changes such as “… anxiety, diminishing trust, loosening of emotional ties, or an increasing tendency to be out of control.”

But this doesn't stop the well-meaning friend or family member from expressing their disapproval of your educational choice.  A simple google search could  yield everything they would ever desire to know about homeschooling, abuse rates among homeschooling families, and much more.

On an article posted in the Newark Advocate regarding the California abuse case (posted 1/25/18) several comments disparaged homeschooling families as abusive, secluded weirdos.  One woman stated that she planned to call CPS on her homeschooling neighbors because she didn't like that the children were playing outside during the day and that the family used a wood burner and electric heaters to heat their home, and had their gas turned off at the meter. 

No one wants to be Chicken Little here, but there are some rumblings of possible change and a time of possible backlash towards families who choose alternative means to educate their children.  Just this week the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) hosted a Facebook Live video discussing the closure of an online school and the actions of the Ohio Dept. of Ed. (here)  For those familiar with HSLDA, you understand that they do not consider online public schools to be homeschooling. I have never seen them engage in a conversation about the closure of an online public school, but I understand why they would in this case seeing as the Dept. of Ed. essentially made up rules and applied them retroactively to all online schools.  Another key similarity is the school funding issue, where the state of Ohio is seeking 60 million in reimbursement based on their retroactive attendance tracking rules.  Untangling the media "facts" on this closure is difficult, but everyone can agree this is a case of public schools trying to reclaim funding.

So what can I, the average homeschooling mom, do to protect my children, to educate my friends and neighbors, and to ensure that homeschooling is still an accepted method of education?

1 - Join the HSLDA - They are there if trouble ever comes knocking.  I can call and get immediate representation, I can also know that my membership pays for lobbyist at the state and federal level who continuously promote and represent my desire to homeschool my children.

2 - Get to know my neighbors and be open with my friends and family.  The fact is as a homeschooling mom I have NOTHING to hide.  No, it isn't their business, but raising a wall and cutting off friends and family only raises suspicions.

3 - Know what to do if a social worker shows up at the door.  The fact is that no matter how open and loving I am with my friends and neighbors, that won't stop a nosy old lady at the grocery from writing down my licences plate and calling the police because my kids aren't in school on a Tuesday morning.

4. Find local, in real life, support.  Yes, the internet is a wonderful invention but having a number of families who know you and your children through the library or your church or even a local homeschool group will benefit you greatly if there ever are false accusations made about your home.

5.Trust God. This is last because it is the most important thing, and I want you to remember it.  Many homeschooling families fully believe that the Lord called them to home educate.  God doesn't call us to impossible tasks, but rather He equips those He calls. Trust that His call to homeschooling isn't swayed by popular opinion or your less than supportive mother in law.

Wishing you many blessing on your homeschooling journey!
Amanda

Happy New...

 "New Year New You"  all the slogans in advertisements to join a gym, or read more books, save more money.... all slogans that say "Improve yourself" and imply that you maybe aren't quite good enough the way that you are... 

I asked a friend what she thought of "New Years Resolutions" and she said she thought that it implied that she knew there was something that needed fixing but that she had just been waiting around not working on it, and I agreed and we talked about our mothers and how their new years resolutions turned out.  It got me thinking about how my own children would one day look at me, and how we are slowly becoming our mothers, and how that really isn't a bad thing at all, but it scares us.  

I thought I would be better at this by now.  That there was some wonderful age where I would have more answers than questions, when the everyday trials would cease and everything would just "work out" and that isn't something a new years resolution, or even 30 years worth of new years resolutions can fix.  It's like we're waiting for that imaginary finish line where someone says "You made it!" 

"......you know what? some nights we want someone to kick the shins of the dark for us, Lord, to punch fear in the face for us, someone to throw down a finish line and say "Look! You Win!"And yeah, You nod, because You get it, because You've got us, and You punch fear in the face with one line, with all Your love: 'Perfect love casts out all fear.'And You kick back the dark with one brilliant turn: 'The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.' And You throw down a finish line for us -- your own bleeding heart -- and say those three words: 'It is Finished' " Ann Voskamp

There isn't a resolution out there that can top all that has already been done for me!

Your perfect love casts out all fear, and you have not given me a spirit of fear, but one of power and love and sound judgement.

You have overcome the darkness and I get to be more than a conqueror through Him who loved me ,

It is Finished - making Jesus the first born among many brethren - and I get to be His little sister.

Though the world may say I need a better resolution - but I have been given better promises and every spiritual blessing. So that when is seems like things should be better by now, I can trust that ALL things are working, just now, together for good and things that seem to be falling apart are really just falling together for His Glory.

And the best resolution isn't made when the 'new year' rolls around and we all wake up feeling a little bit older and like we need to work a little bit harder (because that way lies the yoke of slavery again to the old) but the best resolution is the promise that is made...

Isaiah 43:19-21 Behold, I will do something new, Now it will spring forth; Will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, Rivers in the desert. "The beasts of the field will glorify Me, The jackals and the ostriches, Because I have given waters in the wilderness And rivers in the desert, To give drink to My chosen people. "The people whom I formed for Myself Will declare My praise."

Yes! These words I heard echoing in my spirit last fall as we celebrated His feasts.
 "I am doing something new...." 

May my only resolution be, that His Praise is on my lips, and His Glory is revealed.  Because I am convinced that even now, He is doing something new in me, and may it be so in all of us. 

-Amanda-