Category Archives: Moms in Progress

Very Present Help

Psalm 46 has been a real source of encouragement for me lately. It starts out, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Boy, are we in troubling, stormy days! My grocery order is never available as soon as I seem to need it, all our activities have been cancelled, and I’m suddenly homeschooling my 6th and 3rd graders, all the while trying to keep my 3-year-old quiet while my husband works in the basement! Can I get an amen, anyone!? 

But what about God being our refuge? I can hide “in Him” amidst the storm. I can rest in knowing that He is good, He loves me, there is hope for the future and I am safe. Like a father draws his child into his lap to hold and shelter them, God calls me into His presence to hold and comfort me. This was beautifully illustrated at our house last night during a massive thunderstorm.  As the lightning flashed and thunder crashed, and rain beat against the house, our three-year-old, who normally sleeps soundly through an amazing amount of noise, woke up crying and literally shaking. And she was calling for daddy. Daddy was more than happy to scoop her up, hold her close, help her feel safe from the storm, and rock her back to sleep. Even when I don’t understand the storm, I know God is there with me in the midst of it and I don’t have to be afraid. 

He is also my strength. I can do all things through Christ Who gives me strength. He enables me to work and accomplish the tasks I have with His strength in me. Without Him, I would have no ability to do what I need to do, much less be who I ought to be. Every morning when I wake up, I try to remember to ask for His strength for the day. Sometimes I forget and blow it. Usually it manifests itself in being impatient with my kids and irritable with my husband. I’m so thankful that He is merciful and good when I mess up! 

Are you feeling the storm of life pouring down on you? Are you frightened and afraid? Your good Father is there, ready to hold and comfort you. Crawl into His lap and let Him be your shelter from the storm. 

Are you overwhelmed and weary with all the things you have to do? He wants to empower you to accomplish your work with joy. Ask Him for His strength to be and do. I’d really like to be able to look back on this crazy time in history and thank Him for teaching me to walk through the storm with Him rather than trying to do it all myself. 

Love from Janelle 

 

 

 

Hosanna in the Highest

 

“They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the king of Israel!’” John 12:13, NIV 

In our Lenten Bible Study He is Alive from Becky Kiser, she says, “Take a moment to pray that the Lord would help you experience the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus with fresh eyes and open heart this week.” Lord, help us. 

I have been thinking about this. And here’s my question: How can people praise in such difficult times?  How can we hold grief and joy in the same moment? Well, we know God says “No” sometimes. But, Mamas, let’s proclaim Grace over our circumstances.  He is still God and there is still a good ending no matter what this present darkness holds.  

I am sure you’ve experienced God saying “No” to you even before the Coronavirus.  I believe one of the most amazing things about a pandemic is that everyone is affected — we are all in this together, Mamas.  Not everyone has had trauma, been poor, or not gotten what they wished for…but everyone on Earth is having to deal with this virus.  Jesus understands what we have been through here on Earth. 

Just as we all relate together with the pandemic, Jesus can extend Grace to us because he felt the entire spectrum of human emotion during his life and pain on the Cross. What a gift this Easter.  No matter what life is like at your home this Easter, Mama, Jesus has Grace for you. He knows how you are feeling, and no feeling is insignificant to him. 

As moms, we all have fears right now, but this week we get to cling to the stronghold of our lives (Psalm 27:1). God sometimes tells us “No,” but because He goes before us, He knows what is best and will work the “Nos” and the fears for His good, even in the midst of our chaos and anxiety. 

For Becky Kiser God said “No” when she was fired and unable to go back to her comfort zone. That was her “personal Egypt.”  For me, it is food and weight gain. My age old issue is weight, but because of my gracious God, this pandemic will not get the best of me.  I am eating weird stuff, but I am not binging, praise God! Hosanna in the Highest. 

As Kiser writes, “her personal Egypt” had to be a slammed door so she would never be able to go back there. For me, I can no longer hide behind my fat (my external insecurity and old insulation). I had to face my own shortcomings beneath the surface and deal with the true anxiety. 

Has that happened to you? Has God torn through your comfort zone for your own good? Has He been working like this even during the pandemic quarantine? We want you to know that you are not alone this Easter, although we are all cloistered.  We may be afraid, but we are together. We may be unsure, much like Jesus and his followers on the first Easter, but we do have hope that we know this will all end eventually, if we are faithful and obedient.  

Palm Sunday signifies the humble entrance into Jerusalem on a donkey, where people laid palms at his feet to symbolize peace but also triumph and royalty.  His humility caused praise.  

My prayer this Easter week is that even though God has said “No” to several things right now, I want to still see where He’s working. I am praying I can be like Jesus this Easter, where I obey His voice and stay humble. Practically this means instead of being the tyrant in my home, keeping everyone on task, I want to live with gentleness like Jesus did. 

We want to share a few resources about Easter with you.  We’d love to hear how you are celebrating Holy Week with your family too!    

#sacredholidays @sacredholidays @hillsongunited #lent2020 #coronavirus #palmsunday #quarantinelife #coronacrazy #coronavirus #palmsunday #holyweek #holyweekideas #easterideas #hosanna #textingthetruth #realmomsrealgrace

Air Hugs,

Jo

 

Resources to Come Alongside You: 

Colette Eaton Stay Holy, Stay Home 

Palm Frond Free Printable from Illustrated Ministry 

Unscrambling Easter Here is a past post to encourage you as we encounter the Holy Week. 

Easter Box Tradition We could actually do this during quarantine with household items! 

COVID 19 Time Capsule Worksheets 

 

Truth to Inhale: 

Stand in Your Love by Josh Baldwin (Bethel)

Hosanna by Hillsong United 

Lion and the Lamb by Leeland 

I Look to You by Selah 

 

Soaking in the Truth: 

And I will give this people favour in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty. Exodus 3:21 KJV  

Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5 NLT 

They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the king of Israel!’ John 12:13, NIV 

The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1, NIV