Have you ever had a friend pull you off to the side and say, “Watch out for Emmaline. She’ll be telling you what to do if you aren’t careful.”?
No one likes a woman who has to run every event herself, and our kids really hate it once they are grown. At that point, they are ready to choose for themselves.
A couple years ago, my husband and I started ballroom dancing. We love it. However, I have learned things about myself. The man leads while dancing. His job is to move forward and make his way around the room, avoiding other dancers. When I am facing him, I can’t see where we are going. I am so accustomed to getting things done that relaxing so he can lead is a real challenge. It takes real effort, but these dance lessons taught me how much I needed to be in control.
What a great spiritual lesson for all of us. Look at what the Psalmist says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight. When you trust God, you must rest in him, knowing he can do what you cannot.
Today Shannon Popkin is my guest. She has just written the book, Control Girl.
Shannon’s bio;
I’m Shannon Popkin. I’m a wife and mom, a writer and speaker, a small group leader and Bible teacher. I’m so excited about my new book, Control Girl: Lessons on Surrendering Your Burden of Control from Seven Women in the Bible., which released in January 2017).With God’s help, I’m on a path that leads from Control Girl to Jesus Girl.
As a speaker, I love combining my love for humor and storytelling and with my passion for Jesus. I speak for ladies’ events, retreats, and moms groups. On my blog, I share stories from my life, which I hope will make you smile, and will encourage you to follow Jesus more closely. I also share posts from the other sites that I contribute to, including True Women.
Mother’s Day: Mother and Daughter Duo: Rhonda and Kaley C0-Authors
As a little girl, I looked up to my mother. I can recall sitting on the couch beside her, her admiring her. She was pretty, smart, and was … a mother. I wanted to be like her. As I grew older and got into my teens, I began to feel like we didn’t communicate. We didn’t have a lot in common, or at least I thought so. There was a communication barrier there I failed to understand.
Now that she is gone, I understand her better because she wrote a lot, and I was able to get a peek inside her mind. And I know I’m a lot like her.
Mother’s Day receives mixed reviews. Some of you may have had great mothers, and you enjoy honoring her. Others had a difficult childhood and may try not to repeat the mistakes your mother made. I remember Mother’s day as painful after I lost my mother. Plus those of you with difficult children may find this season painful.
My heart goes out to all of you who might be hurting.
Today I’d like to give young mothers some guidance on doing well, overcoming obstacles and feeling confident in this important job.
I’m reminded of what Paul said to I Timothy: He obviously believed Timothy’s mother and grandmother impacted his life. “For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother, Lois, and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well.”
My guests are Rhonda Rhea and her daughter Kaley. They are the authors of Turtles in the Road, an inspirational humorous romance that’s just releasing. They are both TV personalities for Christian Television Network’s KNLJ in mid-Missouri. Rhonda is also a nationally-known speaker, humor columnist and author of 11 other books, including Fix-Her-Upper, a soon-releasing nonfiction project coauthored with Beth Duewel. Rhonda is married to her pastor/husband, Richie Rhea, and they have five grown children. Kaley works at Missouri Baptist University and she and Rhonda both live in the St. Louis area.
Why Easter is the Most Important Christian Holiday
Rabbits don’t lay eggs, they bear live young. Someone told me the story of a pagan holiday combined with Christianity. Something about a fertility celebration? It wasn’t Christian, but it got mixed in. However, I found family movies of my first Easter. My brother and I had Easter baskets, chocolate eggs, and fancy outfits. Watching my parents follow me around while I wore my pretty dress almost makes tears come to my eyes. (They are both in heaven.) In later years, I do remember picking out my fancy clothes and dying eggs for Easter egg hunts. We always went to church to sing and praise God for the resurrection. However, despite the fact what we celebrated every year, I didn’t”t realize how important Easter was until I got older. It may have been my fault for not listening, but I didn’t get it. Now I do.
My guest is my husband, Ray Simmons. He’s a Bible teacher and elder at Grace Community Church. We chose a different tradition raising our children, and he will explain why Easter is so important.
Ray Simmons leading Passover
1:00 Why is Easter so important?
2:10 What evidence do we have that Christ rose?
[tweetthis]He is risen. He is risen indeed![/tweetthis]
[tweetthis]Because Jesus lives, we have eternal life[/tweetthis]
Learn more about doing a Messianic Passover here or here.
We’ve often covered topics relating to our responsibilities as parents, and we’ve discussed this passage in Deuteronomy. “…you shall teach them [God’s Laws} diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.” That’s pretty intense because you will be teaching all the time.
Teaching the Bible to your children can be challenging since you have developmental issues mixing with doctrinal issues. And I am going to tell a couple stories about myself.
When I was young, I attended a church that was very missions oriented. They had mission conferences often and people would come forward saying God called them. Lots of them talked about how they didn’t want to be on the mission field, but they were miserable not following God. I assumed if you didn’t want to do missions, then God had called you. That was the last thing I wanted, which meant I had to do it. So I said God called me to be a missionary.
The other story is about my family. Mom and Dad had a name for each grandparent. For instance, my grandmother on Dad’s side was Granddad Thomas. On mother’s side, it was Granddad Cofer. My uncle was Eugene. I never saw his name, so as a child, I envisioned his name to be U.Gene because he was my uncle. It made sense to me that the U was a shortened form of Uncle. Once I grew up and heard the name Eugene, I realized my mistake.
Both of these stories show that children think differently when they are young. Realizing their developmental stage helps to understand how our children might get confused. My guest is Jann Martin, who holds a degree in Elementary Education.
Dr. James Dobson wrote a book called, Parenting isn’t for Cowards. What a true statement. What an incredible feeling to hold your first baby in your arms. It’s a miracle! You examine all the fingers and fingernails. And the sweet little feet. I was a registered nurse and I checked all their reflexes. Such an experience. I had five children and I found it overwhelming each time. But I also felt the weight of reasonability. You know that your choices will profoundly impact the baby’s future.
I took psychology classes as part of my nursing, and it was impossible not to notice how many things get blamed on parents. There’s so much to think about.
I can recall wanting the very best for each baby, but I was taken aback by how different each child was. With my first two children, I said I had opposites, and then as I kept having children, they were different too. How many opposites are there? They have different needs and respond differently to every situation. I was intensely aware that I needed godly guidance. I had a disabled child, and after all the experience I had, I needed the Lord’s help.
Deuteronomy 6:7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.
What a command! That verse is enough to make you nervous.
Melissa Spoelstra wrote a book called T0tal Family Makeover, and she’s here to share with us.
God make mothers to be nurturers. He wove that desire into our design. In fact, I still want to mother even though my kids are grown, so I use my mothering instincts on my cats.
There’s a story in 2 Kings four about the Shunammite woman. She noticed the prophet Elisha walking past her house, and she chose to help him. Her husband built a room for the prophet so he’d have a place to stay when he passed through town. Elisha was grateful, so he asked what he could do for her. She didn’t give him ideas, but Elisha’s servant pointed out that she had no children. So Elisha prayed for her to have a child.
After the boy’s birth, he went out into the fields where his father was working and became ill. He fell to the ground screaming, “Oh, my head!”
The father immediately ordered his servants to take the child to his mother. His mother held him until noon that day, and then he died. The mom went to find the prophet who raised him from the dead.
Let’s focus on that one phrase, the father said the moment he knew his son was ill “Take him to his mother.” That describes us. (of course, there are exceptions). We care for our children and will move all sorts of obstacles to make life work for them. However, we must learn to let our children go and face life on their own. It’s a tough assignment for us.
Today, my guest is Edie Melson. She had a son who became a soldier and went on active duty to fight. How scary. She wrote the book, While My Child is Away. She will give some tips on mothering that child who is leaving the nest.
2:10 What is the Headless Horseman of Faith?
3:30 How can we as mothers listen to our emotions and yet use them appropriately?
5:24 What about those times we fear failing as a parent?
6:45 Tell us the frog story? What does it teach us?
9:00 Share about loving the people your kids are with.
10:30 You had a son in the military, and you know about the ‘what ifs.’ How can we handle those?
13:00 Leaving the child with the Lord:
14:05 How can you avoid the trap of allowing your kid’s choices to define you?
16:10 What about the stuff that hurts?
Edie Melson
[tweetthis]Prayer is the most important thing you can do for your child[/tweetthis]
