Learning from My Children: To Dance Like David

28 Tuesday Feb 2017

Posted by Lauren Scott in Christian Encouragement, Motherhood, Stories

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boys, children, dancing before the Lord, dancing for joy, dancing like David, Joy, Learning from my Children, meditations, motherhood, Music, parenting, Reflections, worship

https://i1.wp.com/www.jesuswalk.com/david/images/tissot-david-dancing-before-the-ark-640x444.jpg

“David Dancing before the Ark” by James Tissot. The ephod might have been a simple robe like this, or it might have been a loincloth.

Last night as I was making dinner I put on a Fernando Ortega CD.

My seven-year-old began moving to the music, something reminiscent of interpretive dance and ballet, though he has had no instruction and has seriously no chance at all of picking up such graceful moves from his parents.

At the end of “All Creatures of our God and King” my son announced that he wanted to dance to that song for next year’s talent show.

My initial reaction was less than enthusiastic. I’m a rather reserved person. I’d be somewhat embarrassed for him if he did something like that, something so…so…contrary to our culture’s gender stereotypes. I wouldn’t want him to be labeled or made fun of.

And then it hit me: I was responding in my mind like Michal did to David.

Are you familiar with the story?

And David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, and David was wearing a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouting and the sound of the trumpet.

Then it happened as the ark of the Lord came into the city of David that Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord; and she despised him in her heart.

My precious boy was dancing before the Lord, in jeans and no shirt, joyfully moving his feet and lifting his hands to heaven, rejoicing in a song of praise that he has long loved. Not unlike David danced before the Lord to celebrate the return of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem.

And I was thinking about what other people would think of it if they saw it. Not unlike Michal, who despised David for his exuberant worship and criticized him with biting sarcasm.

My son wasn’t the one missing something–I was.

“I will celebrate before the Lord,” David responded. “I will be more lightly esteemed than this!”

Oh for the freedom to express our love for the Lord, giving Him the worship that He is due without allowing the fear of man to hinder us.

Am I willing to be undignified in the views of the world? Am I willing to come to God as a joyful child? Without reserve? Without concern?

Am I willing to give my children the freedom to do so?

My boy may not remember this idea by the time the talent show comes around next year, but I at least am taking his example to heart.

Has the Lord ever taught you a lesson through the simple, unreserved faith of your children? Please share in the comments below!

Of Children and Angels: A Thought Experiment

14 Tuesday Jun 2016

Posted by Lauren Scott in Christian Encouragement, Motherhood

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children, children and angels, do not despise, love, meditations, motherhood, parenting, thought experiment

Ditto by Raffael, public domain

Imagine with me, if you will, that your children are little cherubs instead of mere humans. (I know, I know, this is an inaccurate view of both children and of angels, but bear with the thought experiment.)

Suppose your little cherubs, instead of being in your care every day and every night, were instead entrusted to your care only during the day, and you were to return them to their heavenly Father every evening. What would they report to Him?

Would they climb up on His lap, throw their arms around Him and say, “Oh, Father, I had the most wonderful day! This ‘mother’ you have given me is so kind! She is so much like You!”

Or would the child perhaps say through a sniffle, “Oh, Father! She yelled and yelled and yelled! I wanted her to see my picture, but she was too busy. I wanted her to play with me, but she had ‘work’ to do. And when I cried, she yelled and scolded me even more. Oh, I wish I could just be with You.”

Or perhaps, “Oh, Father, today was rough. I disobeyed ‘mother’ and she spanked me. She told me to talk to You about it, too. I’m sorry. She said she would talk to You, too, since she yelled when she didn’t want to. I guess we both need You. Will You help ‘mother’ and me to be more like You?”

Or perhaps, “Umm… Hi. Do You really love me? This woman who You gave me to isn’t very nice. She says she loves you and that I should, too, but she ignores me, and when she doesn’t ignore me, she hits me. And I don’t even know what I did wrong. Are You even there?”

Point being: If we could imagine the report our children would give to God each day were they to literally go and sit on His lap, how would that change the way we treat them? And besides a report that could be given, how does our behavior coupled with our claims to follow Christ add up in their little heads? Do we put a stumbling block in front of them? Do we upset their faith by our lack of self-control?

Or do we, by both consistent love and consistent training (and confessing humility when it is–so often–needed), demonstrate the heart of the God who gave His own Son so that these precious little ones could someday call Him Father?

Now, the Bible is clear—children are not angels—angels are more like bright, shining, terrifying mighty-men than like the silly little cherub images that humanity has conjured up. But Jesus does say in Matthew 18:10,

See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father who is in heaven.

Directly preceding this verse is the exhortation to pluck out our eye or cut off our hand if it causes us to sin. Do we take Jesus’ command to “not despise” our children this seriously? What gets in the way of loving our children the way we ought? Are we willing to part with whatever it is? For their sake? For the sake of the glory and gospel of Christ? In the very fear of God?

My Calling (and the Problem with the World)

16 Monday Nov 2015

Posted by Lauren Scott in Christian Encouragement

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Downhere, Internet, Music, My Calling, parenting, purpose

Sometimes we struggle to know what our calling is in life. Lately, God has been making it abundantly clear to me, first by showing me what it’s not.

God is not calling me to be a Facebook Crusader, as tempting as it may be sometimes when that politically-charged status or glaringly-wrong article pops up in my newsfeed and everything within me at that very moment is screaming “This! This is important! This is urgent! I must respond! I must set the record straight!” It’s hard to pry my anxious fingers away from the keyboard, but I must. God isn’t calling me to be a debater. He’s called me to be His. A servant and an encourager. A wife and a mother. So it naturally follows that the people that need my service and encouragement the most are the people who live with me—not the people sharing pixels with me on my computer screen.

Many times I have finally walked away from the screen at the end of a day in which I’ve wasted so much time and mental energy on things that aren’t any of my business, only to find that I have greater anxiety and insecurity (What if they misunderstood me? Did I say that in just the right way?), guilt and shame (Oh boy, look at those dishes piled up—I forgot about those.), and utter emptiness because I’ve been investing in ideas rather than in people (or at times I’ve confused the two). Lately, this emptiness has led me to see that I want Jesus more than I want more information, and to be pleasing Him more than to be understood by others. The story of Mary and Martha comes to mind. In all of Martha’s distraction, she had missed the most important part—sitting at the feet of Jesus, listening to Him, enjoying His presence. I’m thankful for the changes God is making in my heart, but still that sudden urge comes up sometimes as quickly as my newsfeed refreshes. With another post. Another article.

I love the free exchange of information. I love to share things I have found thought-provoking and interesting. And I’m not afraid of controversial subjects. But these things are not what I live for, they are not my calling, and the longer I live the more I realize that my time here is short, my opportunities to do what really matters are limited by my indulgence in the things that don’t.

At times these thoughts have led me to take a Facebook hiatus. I’m a bit of an all-or-nothing girl, so radical amputation has often been my modus operandi. But Facebook isn’t the problem. My “friends” on Facebook and their posts or the articles that come across the web aren’t the problem. My heart is.

On my most recent episode of “Someone is wrong on the internet”, I found myself at last pried away from the computer and finally unloading the dishwasher while grumbling, “There’s just so much wrong with the world!” Within a few minutes a song came to mind. It’s a good reminder that the problem I must pay the most attention to is…me.

Books Read from July 2014 to July 2015

07 Wednesday Oct 2015

Posted by Lauren Scott in Book Reviews

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Book Reviews, cookbooks, Jesus Calling, micro book reviews, parenting, Reading List

It’s my goal each year to read at least twelve books. I’ve met this goal for the past several years, logging twenty this go-round, and I want to track and briefly review the books I’ve read for each year. Some books are great, some are not so great, but still were worth a read for me personally. I hope you’ll benefit from these micro-reviews.
Choosing Gratitude by Nancy Leigh DeMoss Many friends of mine had read One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp over the past couple years. I can’t speak for or against that book, as I have not read it for myself, but it seemed to me that Choosing Gratitude was an attempt to produce a “more solid” alternative to Voskamp’s book on thankfulness. Nancy Leigh DeMoss’s book was encouraging and scripture-based to be sure, but I did not find it to be mind-blowingly challenging. There’s nothing wrong with that, and if you’re looking for an easy-to-read study on thankfulness this is a great book for you. However, having just read Knowing God by JI Packer before picking this book up, I might have had my taste buds trained for more meat.
The Abolition of Man by C S Lewis This was an incredible read (or listen, rather—we have the audiobook). Lewis examines a concept of universal morality and then reasons from it to the existence of God, while also examining the effect on humanity when we reject these things and analyze and deconstruct everything in our view. Highly, highly recommended.
The Great Divorce by C S Lewis Packaged together in the same audiobook was this work of allegory. It’s a bit strange, and its setting is not intended to be taken as theological truth, though by use of its setting it certainly dabbles in it. This is an imaginative examination of people’s rejection of Christ and all that heaven offers. As with The Screwtape Letters, this book is a gem more for its insight into human nature than for its apparent theology—much license is taken in that regard.
Winnie the Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner by A. A. Milne These two books come together in our Complete Collection of Winnie the Pooh, along with the collections of poems: When We Were Young and Now We Are Six. I’ve read these stories and poems to my children three times already, and we’ve actually just started through it all once more. Milne captures the wonder, imagination, and reasoning of a child beautifully on every page. Our family pretty much adores these stories.
Jesus Calling by Sarah Young Some will be surprised to see this on my list, but it was recommended to me by a friend during a very low point of struggle with chronic illness and depression. So at the time, it provided some needed encouragement, and I can see how many claim to have benefited from it. We need loving, encouraging words, and exhortations to trust in the Lord through our trials, but there is, sadly, great danger in the format. Putting words in Jesus’ mouth is nothing new, of course—even hymns have done this, even the Jesus Storybook Bible does this to some extent. But this is an entire book penned in Divine First Person. It may indeed provide some level of encouragement, but as far as being recommendable, I’d say no. You’d do much better with Keep a Quiet Heart by Elizabeth Elliott. (For a more thorough review of Jesus Calling, check out this one at Challies.com.)
The Paleo Approach by Sarah Ballentyne And here I must now admit to my little paleo food detour. Having an autoimmune disease, I was excited to read this tome (seriously, all 400-or-so textbook-sized pages of it), because it dealt directly with the problem of autoimmunity, providing both understanding and suggestions for improving the condition with diet and lifestyle changes (The Autoimmune Protocol, or AIP). The elimination diet it proposes is extremely strict and limiting, and I know this by experience…
The Paleo Approach Cookbook by Sarah Ballentyne This is the cookbook that accompanies the more science-y text listed above. I’ve found it interesting, and I’ve certainly gained some new recipes from this book, but I would recommend steering clear of the “Hidden Liver Meatloaf”—yeah, the liver isn’t so hidden after all.
The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook by Mickey Trescott This is another recipe book that falls in line with the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) outlined in The Paleo Approach. I think I actually use this cookbook more than the other. Each of them provide decent recipes with the very limited selection of foods that are on plan. I still use a handful of these recipes despite having thrown the AIP to the roadside because they are, indeed, very healthy, whole food recipes.
*Just a quick summary of my experience: The AIP didn’t reveal anything for me that a Whole30 hadn’t previously. I lost weight, some skin issues cleared up. But this time my bowels were in pain, far worse than before I did the AIP. I found things got way better after I reintroduced things like beans, and even grains. Being that my disease is in remission, it was difficult to say that the diet had any real effect on it specifically, so if you’re not currently facing the onslaught of your autoimmune disease, this may not be for you. If you do deal with daily debilitating pain or other continuous complications due to your autoimmune disease, it may be much more worth your while (maybe). My takeaway is that variety is a good thing. I may have some sensitivities, and I’ll watch for those as I move forward, but for now I’m enjoying all the food God has given me without major issues. I’d say the lifestyle factors of the AIP are more important for me than the dietary guidelines (though junk food is still clearly not helpful!).
Don’t Make Me Count to Three by Ginger Hubbard This is a wonderful book that makes a biblical case for both discipline and instruction. I love that it encourages using scriptural language as we correct our children, helping them to think biblically about their sin. Great read for Christian parents.
Diet Recovery by Matt Stone This was me rebounding from The Paleo Approach. This was a free e-book, and an interesting read. The main function in view here is restoring your metabolism after wrecking it on restrictive diets (especially calorie- and carb-restricted ones). I don’t think I wrecked my metabolism on the AIP, but I was looking for ammo against it as it had made my life pretty miserable (restricting a foodie is like taunting a pack of lions with fresh, raw meat—you will make them angry–strike that–hangry). The basic premise: EAT THE FOOD! Oh, and get LOTS of sleep.
A Faith to Grow On by John MacArthur I read this with my boys. It’s a good overview of the faith for youngsters, organized by theological topics. There are activity suggestions, but we didn’t do those as my kiddos are quite young. This is probably aimed more at kids from age seven to about twelve, so I will likely have my boys go through it independently when they are more established independent readers.
The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien Can I just bask for a moment in the thought of this book? I remember my dad reading The Hobbit to me as a child of probably eight years. Riddles in the Dark was my favorite chapter then, as I loved the clever riddles exchanged between Bilbo and Gollum. I can’t believe I had never read this classic tale for myself until this year!
Shopping for Time (How to Do It All and Not be Overwhelmed) by Carolyn Mahaney, Nicole Whitacre, Kristin Chesemore, and Janelle Bradshaw This was a decent book on time management. The title still makes me laugh, though—in part because I am not a “shopper” and in part because the promise of not being overwhelmed is a bit audacious! All in all, this was a good, short read, though I found that it didn’t have much new content in it for me, just a reminder to do what I already know to do (that is the hardest part, now isn’t it?).
Hope in God: A Bible Study on Depression by Kristie Gant If you struggle with depression or anxiety, or someone you love does, ignore everything else on this list and get this study!!! It is formatted to be used independently, or in counseling or a group setting, with options for a “quick study” through each section’s content or going deep and hitting all of the material in each lesson, whichever you are currently capable of doing. Each section covers what the scripture has to say on a particular topic, such as depression, anxiety, bitterness, and suffering loss, as well as one of the names of God, highlighting who He is and how we can hope in Him despite our circumstances. There is also plenty of soul-searching, in which God’s word was made to apply to the particular wrestlings of my heart. In my own struggle with depression, this has been one of the best tools for helping me to think biblically and rest my hope in the right place.
The Enemy Within by Kris Lundgaard This book was recommended to me along with the Hope in God study. It is an adaptation of two of John Owen’s works, Indwelling Sin and The Mortification of Sin. Indeed, thinking rightly about the sin in our own hearts is important to aligning our hearts with God’s word and finding the peace we long for in Christ our Savior. I found this a very helpful book, though most of its examples applied more readily to men than to me as a stay-at-home mom. I don’t fault the author for writing what he knows, and I still found it an incredibly useful book, making me want to read Owen for myself, but it has also sparked an idea in me of someday writing something in the same vein that applies more directly to the sins women struggle with most.
Educating the WholeHearted Child by Clay and Sally Clarkson This homeschooling resource has been around for something like 25 years. I have the updated version and have found it to be a huge help in fleshing out what homeschooling will look like in our home. I have read it through for myself and have been reading it through with my husband so that we can discuss it. Since Nathaniel was homeschooled with a very similar philosophy as what is presented in this book (discipleship focused, living books, etc), most of it gets a “Yeah, of course” response out of him, as if to say, “Why do we even need this book?” He probably doesn’t need it! But I do. And he sees that. Since I am coming at homeschooling without any experience with it, this book has been an invaluable inspiration and guide, and a great tool for discussing with my husband the holes in my understanding that I didn’t know existed!
The Happy Housewife’s Guide to Dealing with Picky Eaters by Toni Anderson I came across this ebook in one of those big bundles I purchased a while back. I found it a short, helpful read given our own experience with picky eaters.
Expert Lifemanship by Warren Wiersbe This was given to me by a friend who has struggled with disease and depression much like I have. She found it to be encouraging, and so have I. A lot of scriptural imagery is used both in the written encouragement and in the beautiful, full-page photographs. It seems a bit like a professional inspirational or self-help book of some sort, or at least like it is being sold as such, and then, surprise! It’s actually full of Bible.
The Heart of Anger by Lou Priolo This was a much-needed book on parenting. The primary focus is on biblically dealing with anger in children, but it of course rightly identifies common parenting mistakes that can lead to anger in children, and this is where I found its application so personally applicable. Praise God I have pretty normal little sinners, and nothing too out-of-control as of yet, but I can see my own sins and shortcomings could cause problems in the future. Thus, The Heart of Anger is good whether you’re in the thick of it with an angry child, or as a preemptive consideration for young parents like me. I imagine this is one I will be revisiting for its clear application of biblical truth to the hearts of parents and children alike.
Loving the Little Years by Rachel Jankovic This has to be the most frequently revisited parenting book I own. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read it! The chapters are short, so it makes for a great bathroom book (you know, for when mommy needs to escape for just a few minutes). And each chapter, while humorous and encouraging, also works like a scalpel on my heart, helping me make sure I am doing rightly, loving fully, and seeing my children for who they are. LOVE this book!

How about you? Have you read any of these titles? What books have you found interesting in the past year? Any that you’d like to recommend to me?

Books Read from July 2012 to June 2013

13 Saturday Dec 2014

Posted by Lauren Scott in Book Reviews

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children, devotional, Homemaking, Jesus, motherhood, parenting, Reading List

I have, for quite some time now, wanted to keep a record of the books I’ve read each year. What better place than on a blog? I started keeping track of this in 2012 in my day planner, but now here it is making its debut on the interwebs.

Shepherding a Child’s Heart by Tedd Tripp Excellent overview of parenting and child-training according to biblical commands and principles. At the time I had a one- and three-year-old, so it was a good time to take a first pass at this book.

The Autobiography of George Mueller Incredible testimony to God’s grace and provision, not to mention a great example of faith and prayer. Must read.

The Hand of God by Alistair Begg This book was given to me by my youth pastor when I graduated high school. It’s a look at the life of Joseph, eleventh out of the twelve sons of Jacob (Israel), sold into slavery in Egypt, raised up from the dungeon by God to save his people and declare God’s good purposes in it all. It’s a Romans 8:28 kind of story. And one that I’ve read through twice now.

Managing God’s Money by Randy Alcorn Very thorough look at the Christian view of stewardship. Challenging our usual perspectives, freeing us to give generously and manage our money well so that we can use it wisely for God’s purposes (because, as the title suggests, it’s all God’s anyway). I only slightly disagree with the handling of the subject of debt, being that my husband and I have a conviction to never go into debt–even for a house.

Loving the Little Years by Rachel Jankovic I read this little gem of a parenting book twice that year. Encouraging. Hilarious. Spiritual heart-surgery for moms.

Lose Your Mummy Tummy by Julie Tupler Having a one-year-old at the time and recently discovering that my stomach muscles were not quite where they used to be, I picked up this book and have been doing the exercises (when I think of it) and have indeed significantly improved my condition.

Keep a Quiet Heart by Elisabeth Elliot One year after giving birth to my second son, I had just gotten off of prednisone, and the darkest year of my life was finally giving way to somewhat brighter days, but the struggle for joy, vision, and stability continued. Elisabeth Elliot’s words in this devotional pointed me to tough, trusting stability in Christ and in Him alone, helping me to crawl out of my pit of depression. God bless Elisabeth Elliot.

The Ministry of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson Dealing with depression you can hardly see straight enough to motivate yourself to do anything, much less inspire your children as you care for and train them. This book by Sally Clarkson gives fresh perspective on motherhood, encouraging moms to give grace to their children, looking to the life of Jesus as our example.

Eat Fat, Lose Fat by Mary Enig and Sally Fallon This would be a follow-up to Nourishing Traditions which I must have read the previous year. They promote properly prepared grains and legumes, whole foods, low sugar, and healthy fats (particularly coconut oil and cod liver oil) to aid weight loss and alleviate health problems. Good read, but many of the recipes are far fetched for my lifestyle.

Preschoolwise by Gary Ezzo Love ’em or hate ’em, I have read most of the Babywise books. I don’t necessarily endorse them, but have found them helpful in establishing order (generally more so with toddlers and older) and especially for the tools I can add to my child training toolbox (blanket time, anyone?).

The Pilgrim’s Regress by C S Lewis Listened to this as an audiobook. Fascinating exploration of ideologies that compete with a biblical worldview. The “regress” section of the book, however, is quite disappointingly short, but that is understandable since Lewis penned this book shortly after becoming a Christian himself. He couldn’t write what he didn’t yet know. 🙂

Oh, For Real! by Heavenly Homemakers’ Laura Coppinger This is a cookbook. And it is a wonderfully practical whole-foods cook book. Yes, I do read cookbooks. This one has a great bunch of introductory information and tips.

Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst As you may have noticed, there are a couple of cook books on this list. So you might safely assume I have a thing for food. And that explains the need for this book.

Large Family Logistics by Kim Brenneman I revisit this book regularly. It’s a great read every time, and a great resource when I need to refocus on one particular area of my life as wife, mom, homemaker–so much is covered in this book. It is a manual for life. I believe this was the second time I read it.

Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry The follow-up distopian novel to Lowry’s The Giver. Nathaniel and I read this together on a road trip. I still need to find a copy of The Messenger to complete the series…

The Jesus StoryBook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones I have read this through I don’t know how many times with my boys. What a joy to cover the stories of the Bible from beginning to end, all with an eye to the main story of redemption through Jesus Christ. It is beautifully and whimsically illustrated. While I enjoy this book with my children, I do feel that at times it does a bit more interpretation than I would have liked, especially in the way it puts words into Jesus’ mouth that are not even real paraphrases of things He actually said. Creative license? Yes. Main message remains unchanged? True. But it is still an area in which I think we ought to exercise a bit more caution. That is all.