Discipline Builds Faithfulness

Do you recognize this book illustration?  It is from one of my favorite beginner books for children. The title is "Christmas In The Big Woods".  This book is from the collection, My First Little House Books.  The stories are adapted from The Little House Books by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  I "asked" for the whole collection for myself last Christmas. I began drawing the cover as a healing project over my bout with viral meningitis. I love children's book illustration and would love to pursue this discipline down the road when the kids are grown a bit.  
The word discipline doesn't seem to stir up the inspiration one expects when talking about art, but without discipline all you have is a dream.  The Bible says something very similar, "Without works, your faith is dead."  God gives us desires, but these desires need to be fleshed out, worked out through discipline.  Through all the definitions Webster gives, self-control seems most fitting.  Many of us first associate discipline with rules and punishments, yet God desires us to gain self-control so we can master the gifts He has given us and be a blessing to this fallen world.  Discipline purifies our heart in so many ways, because we will have to deal with every fancy that passes our way.  If you are not sure what I mean, hop on Pinterest for a hour and you may find yourself clicking away at all the fall projects you want to do yet never gets done, because the discipline to go to the store for the supplies never meets the fleeting desire the eyes saw in that moment you clicked "Saved to Wreaths" board. 
Here's an idea: Don't click on another board until you complete one project.  Nothing robs us of discipline than wasted time dreaming more and more dreams.  Pick one. Start small. Make it easy to finish and accomplish.  Your dreams aren't the problem.  It's your inconsistency.  It is hard to do anything well when you overbook yourself, too.  A simplified life means a life focused well on a few things and not trying to accomplish all things.  It is also a good time to ask yourself why you have so much on the schedule anyway.  If it's better health you want to gain, then start with a 20 minute exercise program a day until it becomes a habit.  If it's to become a better artist, put a sketchbook in your purse and sketch 5 minutes a day (this encouragement is for me). If it's a college degree you are trying to finish, limit outside activities so you can do your studies well as unto the Lord.  You will never regret hard work if you don't crowd your life with what isn't helping meeting that goal.  As a mother of four, I have had the pleasure of learning time management for 13 years now and the best thing God has taught me is that life comes in seasons and to do them well without exhaustion and regret is to incorporate discipline.  Discipline starts with meeting with Him every morning.  Discipline goes hand in hand with faithfulness.  Pray for wisdom and ask for a heart that will remain faithful.  

It's been a few years since I last blogged, so I thought today would be a good day to begin again.  So much of life in the past year has been a bunch of "begin agains".  
Though we put goals down on paper and down on our minds, God has a way of still steering the ship, if you know what I mean.  Most of the time, our hearts seem to be in the right place, but God tests our hearts with a fiery trial now and again to expose our motives.  When our resources are abruptly changed, we have to reexamine our goals to see if we can complete our tasks properly.  I experienced this abruptness last October.
Call it the week from hell or a Job-like week, it was one of the fieriest trials of my life.  A false accusation from a sister-in-Christ and a physical blow to my system as I spent a few days in the hospital with viral meningitis crushed my earthly strength and broke my heart.  Both took months to heal, but the lessons on the way are irreplaceable.  Even as I type this blog entry, I still find myself struggling to remember how to spell simple words, but the spiritual tradeoff is well worth it. Since there are too many lessons to recall in one entry, I will save them for future entries.  For now, here are the litlins' growing up...

Early Mornings and Coffee with Christ

Being a mother of four little ones, time to myself comes in small moments throughout the day, unless I wake up before the sound of pitter patter, more like thump thump.  Children usually wake up with full energy and so their morning greetings can be a bit too much for either parent who hasn't had their morning cup of coffee and ample time to wake up the brain. Wisdom has taught me that getting up a half hour before them allows me not only time to wake up, but more importantly, uninterrupted time with the Lord. 
Time in the Word each morning is time with Him.  (1 John 1)  Pursuing Christ first thing before the house wakes up, allows my heart to find peace and security before the unexpected things of the day try to steer my emotions.  All other pursuits cannot give me the stability that Christ does.  When I run to anything else to bring what only God can bring, I have made an idol.  Reading the book of Jeremiah speaks of idol worship and how God's people left Him for idolatry.  It has reminded me to ask God to search my heart and show me if I have begun to create idols in my own heart.  In the Old Testament, idols were usually carved images made out of wood or stone.  During the time it took one to carve the image, the heart was beginning to look for another way of satisfaction.  The worship came after the image was carved.  God is faithful to show me that the idol I am molding in my hand needs to be thrown down and not to be worshipped, always reminding me that the idol will never fully satisfy.  Though we may not carve stone images as they did in the past, the heart behind it still needs to be examined. 
In today's American culture, we have taken God's blessings and tried to remove Him as provider, leaving us as provider and leaving us exhausted and empty.  I see so much of God's warning in 1 John 2:15-16.  We have come to love the world, it's lust, and it's pride.  It is masked as success.  Yet God hates and opposes this way of living.  It is opposite of Heaven.  How can one tell if this way of thinking has crept in one's heart?  I think of the verse, "Where your treasure is, there will be your heart also."  What is your heart pursuing above all else?  What sacrifices are you making for this treasure?  How are you treating others that get in the way of this treasure hunt?  Are you neglecting your time with God and His people?  Are you fulfilling the Great Commission? Are you sitting on the sidelines spiritually and not producing spiritual fruit?  For me impatience and unkindness are my first marks of a wandering heart.  They are the first evidences that I am not filled with His Spirit. 

There is nothing like the sweet love of a baby.  How can our nation be so blind to these precious gifts from our Heavenly Father?  I know it is not always easy to raise a child.  For some, they are doing it alone. Having four children under the age of eight can be trying,  but my love for them grows deeper and deeper each day. I am blessed to hear them rise up in the morning.  I find myself throughout the day, standing in awe of God's love for me just by looking at their sweet faces.  It happens when I watch them reading quietly on the couch or being silly in the yard.  The joy they get over the smallest surprises and the random, "You're the best mommy!" are gifts that can not be bought.  They are God's gifts of grace to us.  My prayer for our country is for revival in the heart and in the home.   "Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people." ~Proverbs 14:34

My Grandmothers

Both of my grandmothers were classy women.  They both were wonderful mothers, loving wives, and true homemakers.  They both had the talent to knit or crochet.  They both gardened.  They loved opening up their homes for their loved ones and strangers alike.  Much stands out in my mind about them, but because I have been meditating lately on modesty, especially as I am growing older,  I am noticing that both of my grandmothers liked to look nice and ladylike, but sexy was never their goal.  I never even heard them say the word "sexy."  They were admired for being attractive women, but not because they were sexy.  They were admired for their modesty.  Modesty in behavior.  Modesty is words.  Modesty in choices.  They did not seek attention, but enjoyed living for others, nurturing others, giving themselves to others.  When our hearts are focused on others and not ourselves, modesty naturally happens.
Immodesty has become a serious problem in our American culture, because women have given up their honored place in the home, because they want attention.  Attention to be the prettiest, the richest, the highest on the corporate ladder.  Even in homemaking, if it is not done for the glory of God and to bless others, we can even use our honored places and create a "kingdom" to serve our selfish needs.  Expensive furnishings, designer baby clothes, creating a magazine-looking mother with a perfect home and perfect highlights are idols I see young families bowing down to.  Not only do I see it, I wrestle with it. 
The Holy Spirit has been dealing with me lately about the idol of exercising.  Trying to get that 20s body back is the familiar idol I see with moms.  I can always tell an idol because I feel less when I don't have it.  The Bible says I have all things in Christ.  If there is an area God wants me to pursue, it is to bring forth fruit.  Not so with idols.  They create slavery.
Idols appear when we compare.  If you find yourself wishing you had "her" house and "her" body, then you can bet it is an idol.  I never heard either of my grandmothers wishing for another woman's life.  They loved their life.  They didn't have to say it...I simple saw it.  They found joy in loving others.  I felt it.  Others felt it.  And this became their beauty for all to see.  No one felt less around them, but quite the opposite.  They entered into the same joy when they entered their homes.  I am thankful I have such wonderful examples.  I just hope I can be the same.

What Inspires You?

What is your source of inspiration?  What inspires you to move towards your goals?  Even though I have not personally blogged in a long while, I am constantly reading other women's blogs because for one reason or another, they inspire me.  I love looking up the meaning of words, so I looked up the word "inspire."  Here is the definition: "to stimulate energies, ideals, or reverence." 
Reading a blog on personal health and fitness stimulates my energies to exercise and eat cleaner.  My favorite blogspots are from everyday homemakers.  Their christian ideals stimulate my energies to want to live for my King, serve my family, friends, and community, and live simply.  Those who inspire me are also those I want to be like, so I naturally reverence them in my heart and attitude.  I appreciate their gifts and study them, so that I may glean from them.  Here are some that I have visited recently:

http://peak313.com/
http://www.etsy.com/
http://www.oneplace.com/
http://frugallysustainable.com/
http://thenourishinghome.com/

Post your favorite blog.  I'd love to see what inspires you.

Introducing...

Asher Samuel Cartwright.