A Quick Laugh

Caedmon was rifling through Nana's generous pantry looking for a juice box. "Mom, where's the good juice?". He meant the juicy juice fruit punch, not the fruitables I got this last time.

No answer.  I was deep in conversation with my sister, who graduated from The Ohio State University this past weekend.  (Don't ask why they use the pretensious "The." It is actually the legal beginning  of their name.)

Back to Caed.  "Mom, where's the juice box?"

"I don't know Caed.  Check the fridge."

Then this is what I heard muttered under his breath:  "I feel like the only man around here."

Hmmmm.

Silence.  Stephanie and I stifle giggles for what seemed like an insanely long five minutes until Caed left and went to the bathroom. 

Where did my five year old get that?

The only Man. 

Our Cottages, His Kingdom: How and Why We Usher Him In

The Kingdom of God (the power of Christ in and through people) was never meant to be static.  You are filled with the Kingdom of God if you are a Christian and surrendering daily to Christ.(Luke 17:21) Christ's rule has come over your life (though we are pretty good and coming out from under it often) and the Kingdom of God is within you. 

As Christians we are meant to be praying on a daily basis:
Our Father
Hallowed be Thy name
Thy Kingdom Come
Thy Will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.

This is THE prayer that Christ taught his disciples.  It might be short, but it is not simple.

What is the kingdom of God? The Kingdom of God is where Christ is on the throne where He is always meant to be, where all things are worshiping, and there is NOTHING placed before Him! The Kingdom of God is where we are WHOLE-hearted, Peter-stepping-out-of-the-boat focused on Jesus. The Kingdom of God is where every sin has been covered by the blood, where every disease and broken heart has been healed. Isaiah 61

In the Kingdom of God there is appropriate order.  Injustice is no more.  Every crooked thing (bad theology, sin) is made straight.  In the Kingdom of God fruit bursts out big and beautiful as we dwell in Jesus. 

The Kingdom of God is Eden before the fall where God walked with people in the cool of the evening.  The Kingdom of God is Heaven established on our soil.



So, here's the next working image:  The Kingdom of God wants to go out from you (Luminous One) through the Holy Spirit into every domain that you walk in.  The dark rooms will not/should not stay dark when we have walked into them because we are carrying the light of Christ with us. 

We can pray the Kingdom of God (God's true and powerful reign on earth) as we clean the dust bunnies from every corner of our homes, as we stroller through our neighborhoods, blessing our neighbors and praying that the Father would draw them to Himself. 

John 6:44 "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him and I will raise him up on the last day."

We can pray the Kingdom of God as we walk to get coffee at work and then back to our cubicle, as we process the cross in our churches.  We can pray the Kingdom into all places where we have influence so that like ripples on the water going outward, the Lord can come on earth as it is in heaven.  This is our role, our joy as Christ-followers. 

When you walk around your home today, pray that this square footage would be Kingdom land, that Christ would reign there in every inch.  As you clean, pray, "Jesus, your Kingdom come here...in my heart...and here in this home.  Clean out our hearts as we clean out this room.  Lord, I pray that this home and the people in it would please you in every way.  Lord, heal us of every disease physical and spiritual that is keeping us from serving You.  Heal us of every broken heart that is keeping us from serving, loving, sharing You with our neighbors. 

We need to be healed so that we can stop the pity party, the utter self-focus, and LOVE others into the Kingdom.  Lord, we want to live in Your Presence...we want our food that we prepare to be kingdom food, our joys to be kingdom joys.  We want to dwell with You under Your tent."

When Jesus walked into a room and people began to believe in Him, this is what happened: healings occured.  Sins were forgiven.  Demons left.  Truth was told.  People were invited deeper.  The truth is that NOTHING HAS CHANGED!  He desires to do the same thing now, but here's the difference:

He wants to bring the Kingdom through you. 

Homeschooling...and shocking, I know... it's fun!

The summer is nearly over and I can definitely say that I am back...in more ways than one. 

We're homeschooling...a decision that I agonized over for the last few years.  My mothering stress level was crazy high and neither Andrew or I could have anticipated what has just occurred. 

I LOVE HOMESCHOOLING!  Who knew?  We've been "practicing" for the last month so that I could make an informed decision and have settled into a blend of Charlotte Mason and Classical for now.  Caedmon is an older Kindergartener and loves learning and Madeline has a mind that memorizes everything around her.  She soaks up knowledge without trying.  Caedmon and I were doing a few flashcards on question  sight words and Madeline was barely paying attention though every once in a while she would look up, barely emotionally engaged and in a monotone, say the right word (which had been shuffled, I promise.)

Right now our curriculum is using Living Books Charlotte Mason style and doing our other learning activities surrounding them.  Caedmon told his friend yesterday that he wasn't interested in going to school where you had to sit behind a desk and do worksheets all day.  "Yup," his friend said, "that's pretty much what we do."  You should see the tee pee in our backyard. 

I love my job.  No longer do I watch Andrew go out the door and secretly wish I had a "day off" to be a priest.  Passionate mothering is no longer a catch word to aspire to, but  (major prayer answered!) a reality.  I have always adored my children, but for the first time, I have major amounts of joy surrounding the work God has called me to.  I even started getting all domestic, baking and stuff.  No more Little Ceasar's crappy pizza.  Hello Barefoot Contessa's honey and kosher salt infused pizza dough. 

Homeschooling seems to order our day and builds quality time right into our schedule.  The bonding the kids and I are doing is deeper (Madeline even started wanting cuddle time in the morning) and even Andrew is getting involved reading "The Sign of the Beaver," before bed.  (We're doing all things American Indians from the late 1800's right now because that's where Caed's interest was already.) 

Personally, I love the creativity involved.  I've always been a learner and a researcher and spending time figuring out how to form feast-laying curriculum is fascinating.  The other night, I spent an hour of my after-bedtime free time figuring out how to make Madeline Sacajawea paper dolls!  Mothering has become my new guilty pleasure.  

I am rejoicing right now as this all has been extremely surprising and frankly, I am drinking insane amounts of orange green tea which steeps in the fridge at all times and is probably adding to the happy buzz.   Thank you, God and thank you, Lipton.