Posted on this category page: Spiritual Revelations from Our Awesome God

I love the music group Downhere. As I was listening to the song "Remember Me" I was struck with the revelation of the significance of a simple Christian practice.

Remember Me, remember Me

Every time you drink, Every time you eat

Remember Me, remember Me

So the song goes. As Christians, we participate in the Lord's supper at church. Some congregations practice this every week, some only once a year on Easter. But we understand this practice is done in remembrance of our Lord's sacrifice, death, and resurrection on the cross. Jesus set the example and gave very specific instructions for this ritual recorded in scripture:

And he took the bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you. ~ Luke 22:19-20 KJV

We also have a practice in Christian circles of saying "grace" before we eat a meal as a means of recognizing the Lord as our provider and asking Him to bless our food.

The connection I never made before was how our mealtime "grace" could be a remembrance of the Lord's sacrifice every day, every time we eat and drink. I love when I have these simple revelations. It means the Lord's still teaching me and I'm still listening.

Blessings on this day of rest,

Posted on this category page: Family Life in Our Blessed Home

Some of my readers know me in the real-world, not just the cyber-world. So they know my name is not actually Layla. Liam, Luke, Lucy, etc., are all also aliases. Obviously, these fake names are chosen to protect our identities, mostly our children's identities, from the 'bad guys' who lurk on the internet.

Just for the fun of it, I thought I would write about why I chose these names. First, I chose Layla as my alias because it is a name that my parents almost named me. I like the name so I thought it was an appropriate A.K.A. When it came to choosing names for my children, Luke was a natural choice for my Star Wars-fanatic first-born. Lucy was also pleasing to my daughter who enjoyed the character from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. We had an instant theme of "L" names! I chose Liam for my hubby because it is a name I've always liked. When I realized they were all (except mine) 4-letter L names, we followed suit in choosing names for each of the children as they were born. It's been fun naming each of my children twice! So there you have it.

Lots of love from Liam, Layla, Luke, Lucy, Leif, Levi, Lily, and Leah. Logging off now for a leisurely lap around the lush lawn . Don't laugh at my languishing alliteration. I'm no linguist, just a lady up too late with a lexicon.  This is likely becoming lousy so I will leave you with this last thought: Is it logical to linger in the library with a lunch of lemonade and loganberries?

Later,

Posted on this category page: Lessons from Our Humble Homeschool

As much as I LOVE homeschooling, I've never been more ready for summer break than this year. Whoa, what a year we've had! Half-way through we moved to another state with new homeschooling requirements. While I was initially a little worried that we wouldn't be ready in time, I am now thankful for the fact that this state (Alabama) has a shorter school year than the state we moved from (Michigan). Normally we school most of the year anyway, taking off only a month for the summer; but this year we are breaking with the public school children and I am glad! Although I intend to return to our lessons in early August (earlier than the folks here), I'm excited about a 2-month vacation this summer. Here's to relaxed mornings and keeping up with my laundry! Maybe

Blessings,

Posted on this category page: Books That I Barely Have Time to Read

I'm reading a book that has excellent health information. I would like to recommend it to you with one caveat: The author is not a Christian and speaks of "our evolution." If you can set aside her secular perspective, I believe you can glean some useful information. I initially borrowed a copy of the this book from our local library but ended up buying it used on Amazon.

The Ultimate pH Solution: Balance Your Body Chemistry to Prevent Disease and Lose Weight by Michelle Schoffro Cook, DNM, DAc. Collins, c2008. ISBN 978-0-06-133643-0

Here's to your health,

Posted on this category page: This is Where I Stand

Who are you competing with? Whether they know it or not, is there someone in your life whom you measure yourself against? Does she have a cleaner house, better-behaved children, or a happier marriage? Or are you competing with ideals you have set up in your own mind? Unrealistic, unreachable ideals?

Please stop being so hard on yourself. Eliminate the competition in your own mind. Who cares what your neighbor's house looks like or what you think the ideal homeschool family should be. Our measuring stick is the Word of God. Follow after the Lord's will for YOUR life and leave the competition behind.

Blessings,

Posted on this category page: Confessions of an Imperfect Momma

Before I get into this topic, I would like to emphasize the importance of properly training our children. When an adult begins a new job, he enters a training period in which he learns how to do his job correctly. His boss or another proficient employee explains what he is required to do, shows him how to use the tools of the trade (from hammers to computers), and walks him through the tasks he will complete on a regular basis. We cannot expect our children to be thorough or effective at any task unless we first take the time to patiently teach them how to perform it.

Our role as parents is to train our children for life. This is a huge job. There is a lot to be learned. Many things can be taught as principles, however, that can be applied to many facets of life. One principle is that of thoroughness.

How is thoroughness taught? First we train our children how to do simple chores around the house, like making a bed. We show them how to do the task when they are reasonably old enough to complete it. Then we give them lots of grace while they practice this job every morning, not fussing over the lumps in the blanket or the off-centered pillow, but praising their efforts. In time they should get better and better at this job until they are able to do it nearly perfect.

There are times that a child will show a tendency toward laziness or rebelliousness when doing this task. After having been properly trained and given sufficient practice, a child may continually have a poorly made bed. This is an opportunity to teach an important life principle -- that of thoroughness -- and correct a character flaw before it costs him dearly as an adult.

If you go in to check that the job was done and you find it done poorly, the logical consequence is to have the child do it again -- correctly. If the poorly made bed has become a chronic issue, then a creative consequence must follow. In this case, the child may be given "bed duty" in which he/she has the job of making ALL the beds in the house for a week or until he/she is able to make the bed correctly, whichever comes later. This repitition not only gives practice in getting the task done, but drives home the point that a job is to be done -- and done well -- in a way that no other punishment or consequence can.

Another creative consequence to help children do a thorough job is to assign a "foreman." When one of my children was required to sweep under the dining room table after meals, I found her missing a lot of food on a continual basis, even after having her come back and do the job again. So I assigned her older brother to be her "foreman." He followed her around as she swept and told her "You missed a spot" every time she missed a chunk of food on the floor. This drove her crazy. :-) I've never had to ask her to come back and re-sweep since! Of course, when the tables were turned, she was thrilled. When that same brother did a poor job wiping off the table and chairs after a meal, she was assigned foreman over him. He is now a very thorough wiper-upper!

Occasionally explaining to the children how important thoroughness is in real-life situations may help them understand why you expect so much out of their chores. It's not about lumps in the blankets or crumbs on the floor. It's about a job well-done. It's about being a person that your boss or spouse and children can depend on. It's about representing the character of Christ to a lost and dying world. And it's about pleasing our Lord.

"His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!' " Matthew 25:21 NIV