New Year Reflections: Serving Others

Last year at this time my head was spinning. We were a new family of four navigating the world of Down syndrome. It had been less than six months out from my month-long hospital stay. I was adjusting to being a stay-at-home mom and learning how to budget on one income.

Y'all, I was tired. Just thinking about those final days of 2014 makes my eyes cross.

Around this time, I was inspired by a blog post to choose a verse to pray over my family for the upcoming year. I ended up choosing Isaiah 26:3 - "You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you." I wrote about my choice here. All I could think about was how our home was in need of peace... that all four of us would benefit from a completely boring, utterly uneventful year while using that time to grow in our own walks with God.

Oh my stars. God is so good!

Can I tell you how boring 2015 was? It was incredibly ordinary. Sure, we had our ups and downs, but it was blissfully dull. God gave me the year of cuddles, health and HGTV-watching I dreamed of. Justin and I even had a much-needed getaway for just the two of us. I was able to get into a rhythm being home with the kids, carve out minutes for daily quiet times and figure out this whole budget thing (Pro Tips: you can live without going to Target twice a week and the HEB-brand stuff tastes just as good if not better.)

Now that the year is coming to a close, I felt it was time to look for a verse for 2016. Over the course of a few months God has been stirring in me. I've been asking him what he wants from me and our family this year. As lovely as my answered prayer for peace is, I know that as a follower of Christ, I cannot simply check off honoring God with daily quiet times for the rest of my life.

While I wholeheartedly believe we needed the humdrum year we were given, it's now time to think outside of the four people in this home. God has been working on my heart this year through his word and my prayer times. The verse I have been particularly drawn to and will be praying over my family is Galatians 5:13.

This year, I want us to be thankful for the restful year behind us and look forward to a year of serving so that our family can truly be a light in the darkness. I have few ideas of what this might look like for us.

1. Justin and I feel so blessed to be members of the church God brought us to. Every August our church asks members to choose a place of service. I've never been a part of a church where nearly 100% of members volunteer in some capacity. It's truly a blessing for everyone. Because of this, Justin and I got a jump start on 2016's verse. I've been volunteering with the middle school girls' lifegroup and the children's choir. Justin's been helping with the greeting team and men's ministry.

2. One of the biggest areas God has put on my service radar the last couple of months is hospitality. For whatever reason I have felt VERY convicted recently that we should be opening our home more. I feel like God has put every single Bible verse on the subject right in my face this past year. Seriously. I admit that I am guilty of being selfish with my time... the few moments of alone time I can get, my time with my kids, my time with husband... all of it. That's no way to live. Sharing a meal or dessert, playing board games or hosting a Bible study enriches your life and those around you as well. I know this and I have a goal of opening our home once a month for whatever God puts in our path.

3. I want my kids to get in on the fun. I want to be sure they know that serving others is a Gospel priority. While Elliot is still too little to grasp the concept, Adele is the perfect age to start learning about what service looks like. My hope is that I can start with having intentional conversations with her. On the Sundays we have to get to church early for daddy to serve, we need to explain that to her. When we have middle school girls over for dinner, we need to tell her why. I'm also going to commit to giving her one act of service a month in some area... baking cookies for the police station, helping me clean when she has little friends coming to play, etc. Having a servant's heart is a big deal in the Kingdom and I want to make sure I'm teaching my littles how to offer up their time and talents.

Can I let you in on a little secret, readers? Serving is addicting. When I signed up to help in the youth group on Sunday mornings, I couldn't wait to offer our house for youth gatherings. When they needed another adult to help with children's choir, I jumped. I also have a few other ideas for the year I didn't mention in the above list. It's a rabbit hole for sure. I know there is a time and place to say no, and that you should most definitely say no if you are drowning in commitments. However, I'm at a time in my life where God is telling me to say yes. And, I'm excited about it! "Do not grow weary of doing good." 2 Thessalonians 3:13 - that verse was a close second.

God, thank you for a restful 2015. You are ever faithful. I am constantly in awe of your provision in my life. I pray that your love pours out of my family this year as we step out of our comfort zone and serve those around us in whatever way you lead us. I pray that we build upon what we are already doing and that our kids learn how to serve by watching us. I hope that we honor you in our efforts because whatever we do is not about us... it's about you and your never-ending love for us. Amen.

I encourage you to find a verse too. Pray over it. Read it daily. God is faithful. Happy new year, friends!

Silent Night Thoughts

Friends, it does not take much to turn me into a weepy mess. Singing an old hymn on Sunday mornings. A proposal on a Bachelor finale. Noticing how big my three-year-old's feet are getting.

Game over. Tears will flow abundantly. It's pretty embarrassing.

That video circulating right now of the kids picking gifts for their families over themselves? I straight up ugly cried. Twice.

Today at a stoplight, the Sidewalk Prophets’ version of Silent Night sent me into a tailspin of sobs. Yes. A Christmas carol that I have heard 2,446,761 times in my life hit me right in the feels.

Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright.
Round yon virgin Mother and Child,

Holy infant so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace,
Sleep in heavenly peace.

The lyrics got me thinking about Mary and, truthfully, all mothers.

There she was… a young, new mom with this precious baby in her arms. Hearing that song today, I could almost feel her heart swell as she looked at her newborn boy for the first time.

Moms, you know what I'm talking about. You carried that baby in your belly for nine months. Your back ached. You battled insomnia. You peed every ten minutes for the better part of a year. After all of that (and much more), you pushed out what surely felt like a boulder or endured an oh-so-fun c-section.

Then the nurse put that tiny human in your arms.

Magic.

Suddenly, the room was silent, calm, bright as you gazed down at this new life filled with so many possibilities. Suddenly, you didn't care that you possibly pooped during the delivery or that your husband will never unsee what he just witnessed your lady parts do. All you care about in that moment is this little baby.

I think about Mary as the shepherds came to greet Jesus. They told Mary the angels said to them that her baby lying in a manger is Christ the Lord. In Luke 2:19, Mary "treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart."

Now, I beam with pride when my toddler gains an AWANA patch. Can you imagine the pride you would have over angels calling your child the savior? And despite that pride, how overwhelmed you might be at the same time?

Motherhood is a blessing. No amount of questions your toddler asks in the span of an hour can change that. No amount of blow-outs in a day can change that. No amount of eyerolls from your teenager can change that. Motherhood is a gift whether you are Mary, Angelina Jolie or a single mom in the inner city.

So, back to Silent Night.

I’m not sure how I got all of this out of a Christmas song today, but moms, I know we are all knee-deep in wrapping paper and tinsel right now. Can I pray for silent nights for you this week? I pray that no matter how many tantrums our preschoolers throw or how much sass our middle-schoolers spew, that we can still see God chose us for these kids. Though sometimes I struggle to believe it for myself, He has equipped and trusted us to raise these kids. When Mary first learned of her pregnancy, she only replied with "I am a servant of the Lord." I pray that we can serve God with an attitude like that. I hope that we can trust God fully with not only our lives, but our kids’ as well.

I leave you with this. It really is a beautiful song. Thank you God for the precious gift of motherhood. Thank you so much for the gift of your son.