My child was accepted into pre-school, but we are homeschooling. And here's why...

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I have heard that this certain elementary school was a highly sought after school for preschoolers. So other moms would be ecstatic right now, but not me.  I want to homeschool my children. And unless it just does not work for us, I am going to homeschool. I do not want my children to be exposed to all that goes on in public school. You may be sitting there, sighing, thinking that public schools aren't that bad, but if I remember learning about sex in second grade from other kids 18 years ago, then I can only imagine what they are talking about now. Sure, we could enroll Little Bear in a Christian school, but right now, financially, that is not possible. (And for the sake of argument, I know that a Christian school will still have bullies, and talk that shouldn't be in any school.) I am really not trying to start a debate between public schooling and homeschooling. I know some awesome teachers. One of whom is in my family. If all the teachers were like her, a beautiful Christian woman who is caring, observant, and very detail oriented, then I would send them off on the big yellow bus without a worry. But unfortunately, that's not the case. 

I want my children to have a much better education experience than I ever had. I disliked school. I did not want to go, most days, especially in high school, I didn't. (Which got my parents and I a meeting with the truancy board.) I was highly interested in certain classes and activities but wouldn't dare participate if my friends were not participating. I joined the band in 6th grade. For many months I held the first chair in the clarinet section. I was good. But my friends made fun of me, and I was bullied by one of the flute players, so I quit. I know that what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger, but I don't want my children to base their decisions in school on what others think. My parents were very supportive and pushed me to be the best. My dad often encouraged me to, "walk to the beat of a different drum." But when a child is surrounded by their peers, they are likely to follow the crowd, unless they are the leader. I was not a leader, I was very much a follower. I regret so badly not staying in band. I regret not staying in trade school where I might've graduated with a trade that could have been useful to my family today. I know, it's not good to dwell on the past, and to have regrets, but these are things that I feel, no, that I know would have been different if not for the peer pressure, and lack of direction, or support from teachers.

So now I bet you are thinking, "just because these things happened to her, it doesn't mean it will happen to her children." No, they probably will not experience the same things I experienced in school. So that brings me to the biggest reason I want to homeschool. We are Christians. Prayer is a big part of my life. And prayer is already gone from school. I will not have my children getting in trouble if they decide to bow their head and give thanks to God during lunch. I will not have my children being taught that homosexuality is genetic, or that a person was born gay and they can't help their feelings, so it's okay. I will not have my children being taught that sex before marriage is okay as long as they use protection. I will not have my children being exposed to drugs and alcohol in school. I will not have a teacher mock my child for our beliefs. (Yes, people, it happens.) 

I hate that I feel I have to defend our choice to homeschool. So may people around me have already commented that our child will miss out on so much if we homeschool, or they will not be properly socialized, or they will be a wimp because they won't have the events at school to help them learn how to cope with bullies or hard situations. I know that I am not going to be able to guard my children from all of the bad things in this world. But I believe that by keeping them initially at home, then eventually (possibly) in a Christian school I can shield them from a good percentage of it.

Now, I am getting down off of my soap box. Feel free to comment, but please do not bash my decision or my beliefs.

My new weight loss weapon

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How many diets have you tried?? I have tried more than I care to list here. I figure I have spent at least $2500 in gimmicks, materials, videos, etc., to try to lose weight. All this time I was doing the WRONG things! A great twitter friend of mine, @AprilLooWho suggested an online resource at Setting Captives Free called The Lord's Table. (And the best thing is, it's completely FREE!)

"The Lord's Table is not behavior modification with prayer assistance. It is not a 60-day diet plan, pills that guarantee weight loss, programs that focus on food, or methods that require us to count calories, fat grams, carbohydrates or sugar. We are about setting forth Christ as our soul's satisfaction, about calling ourselves to repentance from habits of overeating, and about maintaining accountability. This results in our developing habits of eating in a disciplined manner which produces weight loss and long term lifestyle changes."

It wasn't until just recently that I realized the my overeating was an addiction, an actual eating disorder. I just thought that I was a person that really enjoyed food, but that was so wrong, I was addicted to food. When I got stressed out, I ate. When the kids were being particularly ornery, I ate. When I was bored, I ate.  Many of you read my post on Thursday the 27th about my struggles. Like I posted, I was not including God in my daily struggles. Instead of turning to him when I was overwhelmed or depressed, I turned to food. And that has gotten me nowhere but extremely overweight. This course at Setting Captives Free has helped me tremendously over the last week! I never realized how much "diet" advice was in the Bible. Now when I feel the urge to binge, I have been feasting at The Lord's Table instead of stuffing my face, crouched in front of the refrigerator door.

"Feasting at the Lord's table" is a bit difficult to wrap words around, but let's try! Feasting at the Lord's Table is more than just reading our Bibles, it is a term to express the fattening of our souls in Jesus Christ. It means that we are sitting at the feet of Jesus, hearing His Word and believing, for the purpose of implementing the truths into our lives. It means we are receiving spiritual nourishment and that we are delighting our souls in His grace and truth. This can be done reading our Bibles, hearing God's Word preached, interacting with others, studying through this course...etc. This definition is at least a start, more is explained in the course."

I have learned that I was trying to lose weight for all the wrong reasons. Sure, it is great to want to buy smaller clothes, or "look good," but those things really do not glorify God. The first day of this course helps us to realize what the right reasons are for losing weight.

Another thing about this program that I love is that you are assigned your own Christian mentor who emails you after each course to comment on your progress and provide extra personal support if needed. My mentor, Liz, has been a blessing to me. She constantly lifts me up in prayer, and encourages me daily. 

I encourage you to browse around the Setting Captives Free website. They have courses for many different addictions/struggles. They also have a simple Bible Study program if you feel you need a little more of His word in your life!

Would Jesus follow your social page?

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I just had a funny moment. A notification was sent to my email that I had a new Twitter follower. The user name of this new follower had something about Jesus in it, and as I quickly read the subject line I read, "Jesus is now following you on Twitter!" I did a double take and then giggled. How silly of me! 

But then I got to thinking. Would Jesus follow me on Twitter? Or even here on my blog? Sure, it seems silly to think of Jesus being linked up to all the social networking sites, and maybe even checking in on an iPhone. But if He were here, on Earth today, don't you think that would be the case? And if so, how would you feel about Jesus reading your blog? I was recently disappointed in the number of so-called Christian blogs and twitter accounts I chose to "unfollow" because of vulgar, or un-christian content. Another Christian friend of mine commented that she too was doing the same thing, and was sad because some of these users were "Christians".

So, take a look around your blog or twitterverse today and see how you would feel if Jesus was a follower...
Even though He is not in your followers list, He is keeping up with the latest news! ;)

Bible Verse of the Week - Fear Not

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Isaiah 41:10 NKJV

'Fear not, for I am with you; 

Be not dismayed, for I am your God. 

I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, 

I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.'

It is so easy to let fear slip into our life. The thing about fear is, it's not natural. God did not create us to have fear. Fear is negative faith, it works against what God wants to do for us. When we are afraid of something, we lose our faith over that situation becoming resolved, or getting better. We should try to wake up every morning with the thought that fear is not going to help us, only hinder what God can do for us. Remember that all things work together for the good of those who love God. Love God and remember that HE is our God and he will uphold us with His righteous right hand!

Seeds of Faith for the Christian Mom

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As most of you know I have not been blogging for very long at all. It took me about a week into it to figure out how to find other blogs (gotta give credit to Friday Follow!). Whenever I saw the title of the Seeds of Faith blog, I knew I had to follow. As a Christian mom I crave interaction with other Christian moms. Sadly, in my real life, there aren't many Christian moms who delight in God the way I do. I was excited to see a blog dedicated to us Christian moms, and I hope to establish new relationships there! Meghan and Sue have done a great job with the setup and idea of this blog. I will soon be joining them in their daily posts about our Almighty God!

Please take the time to visit and follow the Seeds of Faith blog. Big things are going to happen there! And even if you are not a Christian, I encourage you to visit, and grab their button to spread the word!

God Bless you all!

Bible Verse of the Week - Pursue Peace

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I am cheating this week... In weeks past I have written about verses that were near and dear to my heart that day, but this evening, I found a very good piece on peace. (ha, ha!) I have had a rather unpeaceful day today. My 17 month old was very cranky last night, and I had a persistent backache all night long. Needless to say, I didn't get much sleep. To go along with the sleepless night, both of my boys were very rambunctious today. Then there was the usual monthly drama on Facebook. One family member posting something about another family member instead of confronting them about it. Oh boy. Don't you just LOVE social networking? When the drama on Facebook started, I was close to taking my spiritual armor off and putting on my "Oh-no-you-didn't-just-say-that" armor. But I didn't. I tried to be neutral, and helpful, but it wasn't coming across that way, so I stopped it there.  I said a quick prayer, and decided to step out. My favorite part about the featured verse this week is, "Let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it". So, my choice to "do good" in this situation, is to say nothing at all. Both parties are now in contact with each other, and hopefully they get everything worked out.


http://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/Answers/
Pursue Peace 
By Bayless Conley
"In 1 Peter 3:10-11, Peter provides an important command in our relationships with other people, For "  He who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit.  Let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it." 

I want to focus your attention on the last part of verse 11, "Seek peace and pursue it."  This means we are to pursue peace with people. This command is reinforced by the writer of Hebrews in Hebrews 12:14, Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord. I want you to take note of the first part of that verse,  Pursue peace with….  How many people are we to pursue peace with?  All people.  Does that include your neighbor?  How about your mom?  How about your dad?  How about your kids?  Your boss?  Your relatives?  How about that individual who seems to have a gift for getting on your nerves?  What about those who are rude and obnoxious? We are told that we are to pursue peace with all people. That is not a suggestion.  That is a command.  And that command is clarified further in Romans 14:19, which says, Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. 

Things that edify (or build up) create peace.  Things that tear down shatter peace.  Keep that in mind next time you are having a heated discussion with your husband or wife.  Ask yourself, "Are the things that I am sharing at this moment building up my partner?  Or, are they tearing them down?" Pursue peace with all people by choosing words and deeds that will build them up."  

I am praying for God to help me bite my tongue, especially in family situations, where it can get sticky quick. This blog is titled "Christ-Like Mommy" and Christ was a peacekeeper, so shouldn't I be as well?

(Did you notice that I posted this as an actual post this instead of on the page? I didn't realize when I made the page that comments were not an option, so from now on, the Bible Verse of the Week will be an actual post, feel free to comment!)

" Jesus love me, Jesus love us... "

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This was the song I heard coming from my 4 year old's room this morning. As I listened to him I had to smile. Many times in the morning I wake up less than joyful. What a thought to have first thing in the morning. Jesus loves me. He really does. When everyone else is less than loving, Jesus loves me.

Then he continued his song...
"Jesus love the world, Jesus love race car..."

I love that kid. :)

Worry

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Philippians 4:6-7 (New King James Version)

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

I worry too much. Most of the time the worry is about things that I cannot change. I worry about things that are far off in the future, I worry about things that are in the past. (Right now, I am worried that nobody will read this post when I really want it to be read!)
Recently, I have been worrying about family members of mine who seem to be back on the path of destruction. The path they follow no longer leads to God, but to their own wants and pleasures.

My awesome husband pointed out to me, a commentary on the scripture from Matthew Chapter 6 from his Dake's Annotated Reference Bible (A commentary KJV Bible by Finnis Drake).

Here is a short excerpt of the commentary:

"Quit worrying, because it is:

1. Sinful and produces fear
2. A disease causing other ills
3. Borrowing trouble that canot be paid back
4. Brooding over what may not happen
5. Creating trouble, misery, death
6. A burden borrowed from tomorrow and others who should carry it
7. Weight that kills prematurely
8. Mental and Physical Suicide
9. A grave-digger that has no sympathy
10. Needless and wastes time"
    

and the last one...
"20. Worry is foolish, for whatever is going to happen cannot be stopped by worry;and if it doesn't happen there is nothing to worry about, should adversities actually come, one may still be victorious by trusting in GOD."


So, after reading that (and praying) I have decided not to worry, but pray. I am putting my trust in God, and believing that these family members will realize what they are doing is wrong, and turn back to the path of righteousness.

Proverbs 12:28 (NKJV)

²⁸ In the way of righteousness is life,
And in its pathway there is no death.

Girl Enters World of Blogging...

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So, this is a blog. I am excited/nervous/scared/lost. You remember in the weird sci-fi movies where the lead character walks into some weird room where everything is white, no doors, or windows, just, blank... That is how I feel right now. I am not sure what to do, or where to go...

If you are reading this, thanks for following me on my journey to become more like Christ. Let my life (blog) be an example to someone, anyone, everyone who reads it!