The Definition of Me

That title does sound very self-centred, but my intent is to be introspective and not tell YOU what the definition of 'you' is. That's for you to decide for yourself.

Life here at Joyful Mornings has had some ups and downs. During the 'downs' I got to feeling pretty sorry for myself (OK, let's make that A LOT sorry for myself). Since many of those downs have been due to circumstances beyond my control, my unhappiness was, of course, Someone Else's fault.

More recently, things have been more up, but I have found myself continuing to be unhappy. This was the beginning of the Great Revelation. I should already have understood from the scriptures such as the Apostle Paul's statement that he had learned "in whatever state, to be content" (and that was after some pretty harrowing experiences, to put it mildly). What I should have understood already is that I choose peace and contentment... or not.

It's not the bed less-than-perfectly made (not by me, of course!), or the toys still on the floor after they were meant to have been put away that rob me of my joy. Nor is it the far bigger hurts. It is me. (Yes, I know I should say 'I', but I'm not gonna). Me who robs me of contentment. I am the definition of me. Not Someone Else, not Unavoidable Circumstances.

Hang on, though, I'm not done. This process of contentment needs God. Without Him guiding me through, there can be no peace. With Him, there can. Joy is a fruit of the spirit, therefore it is impossible without God, but possible in ALL circumstances with God - yes, ALL. God's power is not limited by our pathetic human perceptions of joy, fear, pain, loss and contentment.

One other thing - joy and contentment don't require an absence of pain. Some of the most peaceful times in my inner life have been the most outwardly tumultuous and painful. Even in the midst of sobs that seem to tear the body from top to bottom, there can be joy and contentment... with God. Jesus Christ epitomized this in His crucifixion and death. Joy is a fruit of the spirit. Christ had a full measure of the spirit at all times. Therefore Christ was joyful even while in utter agony of mind, body and spirit. QED.

So, today I choose joy. God grant me the wisdom, strength and maturity to choose it tomorrow and ever after.

The Price You Pay

I'm only "allowed" to have some precious alone time if I write in this blog, so, to keep The Raamonster happy, here I am - writing...

I'm undergoing a crisis again. It's just one of those cycles. Sometimes it's the garden that's overwhelming, sometimes the laundry. A lot of the time it's controlling my temper. Right now I'm feeling overwhelmed by children. I just need to look at those priorities again. Remind myself where I'm going. Getting lost is to be expected when you forget your destination!

Well, I've done my bit - written something down. Now I'm going to enjoy my time!

Stand Up For The TRUTH, Otherwise, Stand Down

Being a mother is a very emotional journey. In my experience, it is made even more emotional and tumultuous by the many highly-charged opinions fired from all directions regarding pretty much every aspect of parenting. We mamas have tremendous power to hurt each other when we fling our emotional baggage at each other.

Don't get me wrong, I believe absolutely in standing up for the truth. What I'm coming to realise is how careful I need to be in defining something as right. Do my beliefs stand up to being tested against the Word of God? Am I giving unsolicited advice from my own overactive brain, or is it grounded in Truth? Yeah, that's right, truth with a capital 'T'.

Let me give an example: I am against immunisation. Why? I believe that trusting the inadequate (immunisations are not guaranteed 100% effective) defenses against disease, manufactured by inadequate human beings, is expressing a lack of faith in God and His supreme design. Hang on, what does the bible say? "Thou shalt not immunise thy children"? Nope. "Thou shalt completely trust in God to heal or prevent every illness or injury without outside intervention"? Nope. I'm still against immunisation, so what's my conclusion?

My conclusion is this: if someone wants my opinion on immunisation, I will give it - VERY carefully and gently (at least, I'll try - after all, I'm not going to get it right every time). If it comes to disagreement, I may challenge other people's views if it is appropriate. If it gets emotional, that's where I'll stand down. That seems like a pretty simple formula, it's the implementation that will be the challenge.

I could give lots of other examples, but I won't. It's so easy for me to hop up on my soapbox and expound on, well, just about anything really, but I really think it's important to stop and think. Oftentimes I'm fuelled by pride. I want to prove without any shadow of a doubt that what I'M doing with MY children is right. Well, here's a wake-up call - it is a 100% guarantee that I'm doing a whole bunch of things WRONG because I'm human, not God!

So here's my plan: before I launch into lecture #3856 on The Correct Method of Parenting, I'm going to ask myself, "Is this God's Truth, or is it my truth?" And then, I'm either going to stand up for the Truth, or I'm going to stand down.