Ice Days are Bittersweet

I cheered just as loudly as my girls when we got the word last night that school was cancelled today due to the ice.  I had been secretly hoping it would be when I went to the store earlier in the day and bought stuff for my daughters to bake--just in case.

But, as I woke this morning, I couldn't help but think of the 60 kids that Lovepacs helps to feed in Aubrey.  And I began to worry.  Their parents probably weren't able to go to the store and buy chocolate chips and butter.  They may not have extra food at home--just in case there's no school.  They were probably depending on school today so they could have breakfast and lunch.

I don't want to suck the joy out of an unexpected holiday, but my heart is heavy every time I think of them at home without enough food.  Would you join me in praying for them?  Since we don't know who they are, I just picture my daughters' faces as I pray.    I'm praying for full bellies and warm beds and most of all, for them to feel loved and known and not forgotten.

Unnoticed and Forgotten

Do you ever feel unnoticed?  Like what you do, doesn't matter.  That you are invisible unless someone (usually a child in your house) needs something right away?  I call it the George Bailey/Its a Wonderful Life syndrome and I find myself suffering from it more than I like to admit.

I'm gonna be really honest in this post--not that I'm not usually "real," but there are things I say in a joking manner that are truly things that I struggle with...things that hit me in my core.

I can tell you that if you struggle with this, then you haven't embraced your identity in Christ.  And I would be right, but for those of us who have head knowledge and not heart knowledge, this may just further frustrate you.  Why is it so hard to believe the TRUTH that God says about us?  My only answer is 1 Peter 5:8:  

Be alert and of sober mind.

Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion

looking for someone to devour. 

I know that sounds like a "church" answer, but friends, if Satan can get ahold of our minds and distort our perception of our identity, then he wins.  At least for now.  He is pacing back and forth, just waiting for an opening on which to pounce. 

I don't know what you are dealing with right now.  Maybe it's a husband who doesn't look at you any more.  Maybe its a child who never notices the small touches you put in her lunchbox each day.  Maybe it's a friend whom you love, but always have to be the one to call/email/text first.  A boss who doesn't realize all the time you spent on that project he just pushed aside.

Here's what I DO know--reading Scripture helps.  I don't memorize as well as I used to, but even just having a go-to list of verses when I'm feeling low, changes me.  It's not always immediate, but sometimes it takes TRUTH a while to sink in through the many layers of lies and defensiveness that have been built in us--many of which we've contributed to since we were young children.

Here are some of my go-to verses:

I am not forgotten:

"Though the mountains be shaken and the hills removed,

yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken

nor my covenant of peace be removed,' says the Lord,

who has compassion on you."

Isaiah 54:10

God wants me to cry to Him:

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

Matthew 11:28

God is on my side:

"The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.  Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."

Deuteronomy 31:8

I am not alone:

"Where can I go from your Spirit?  Where can I flee from Your presence? 

If I go up to the heavens, You are there;

if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 

 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,

even there Your hand will guide me, Your right hand will hold me fast. 

If I say, 'surely darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,"

even the darkness will bot be dark to You;

the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you."

Psalm 139:7-12

"The Lord replied, 'My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."

Exodus 33:14

I am seen:

"Your eyes saw my unformed body;

all the days ordained for me were written in Your book

before one of them came to be."

Psalm 139:16

He can turn my worry/anxiety into peace:

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation,

by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,

will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."

Philippians 4:6-8

When I feel unworthy:

"...being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might

so that you may have great endurance and patience,

and giving joyful thanks toe the Father,

who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of His holy people in the kingdom of light."

Colossians 1:11-12

When I feel stuck in a rut:

"Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. 

See, I am doing a new thing! 

Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?"

Isaiah 43:18-19a

What verses speak to you when you are feeling small, unworthy, unlovable, or just forgotten?

 

 

How to spot a Seasoned Soccer Mom

• You have granola bars, water bottles, Gatorade, and other assorted snacks in your car--not for your athlete, but for yourself...when you find yourself sitting in the car at soccer practice
• You know where the closest restroom and parking lot is at every field you play on
• You never leave home without a blanket, chair, jacket and extra water bottle
• You've stopped "checking in" at the fields on Facebook bc it would blow up your friends' newsfeed by the number of times you are there
• You always have a book with you but you seldom read it because you're too busy watching your athlete...or talking to other parents
• You and your daughter have mastered the art of eating in the car
• You know someone on almost every team you play and refer to other coaches in the same way you do your neighbors down the street
• The "saved locations" part of your weather app is full of the cities in which your daughter plays soccer