First Day of Our New Life

Wow. It's 8:45 and I am pooped. But I don't think I am quite as tired as my little children who started their very first day of school today. You might think, since they aren't Kindergartners, that this first day of school would be a piece of cake by now, but seeing how we have home schooled for the last several years, this was a whole new ballgame for us. Waking up extra early, being away from each other ALL day, coming home to cook dinner, fix lunches, take baths and do my homework :), will hopefully become a little more routine instead of ever-so-tiring and emotionally draining.

Here are a few pictures from this morning. (And they insisted on sitting down for some reason!)

They both had to make silly faces, of course, and pose with their new backpacks and lunch boxes. They looked so cute in their new school clothes. Thanks to everyone who made this morning work for us! :)

I was very lucky to have Chad with me this morning...he was off of work today and was there right beside me as we dropped our kids off at school for the first time. It was so wonderful to have him there and then he treated me to Ihop, where we could "drown ourselves in pancakes and syrup." :) He teased me when I got sad over the "kids eat free" sign, but it actually cheered me up and we laughed together and had a nice, quiet, adult breakfast. The first in a long time and hopefully not the last. I might be able to get use to this school thing. HA!

We got really lucky with their teachers. They are both wonderful! What an answer to prayer. Thank you God for such a great first day. Thank you for allowing H & J to have fun today, make new friends, make it home safely to us, and wear themselves out so they will sleep peacefully tonight. :) I pray tomorrow and the next and the next is just as good! Now, good night! :)

Complacency

This word has been rolling around in my head the last couple of days and although I was pretty sure of the definition, I wanted to make sure.

Complacent: Contented to a fault; self-satisfied and unconcerned.

Ouch! That's what I was afraid of. Was God whispering in my ear that I, (gulp) have had a bit of a problem with complacency in my life? Or was He merely pointing out that all His children unfortunately have succumbed to the complacent ways of living and that we are no longer concerned with His level of contentment or following Him the way He wishes?

I'm sure that it was quite a combination of the two, but either way, I am included in both scenarios.

So, my next thought is "Where have I (we) been complacent?" Does God mean that we have only become slugglish in being a child of God: studying His word, praying without ceasing, taking the time to reach out to others in need, devoting our life to Him? Or is He also hinting to us that maybe we have become contented with giving less than our best in other areas as well??

“Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, - this is true worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will. ..do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.” (Romans 12)

With this verse in mind, I started looking deeply into my life and the way I've been handling it. Yes, I have been extremely busy with work lately, but does this give me any excuse to slack off in other areas of my life?

Have I been spending enough time with God each day? Have I been spending too much time in front of the TV or other mindless entertainment choices? Have I slacked off in taking care of my home and taken the easy route as a homemaker by cooking less and spending money eating out? Have I exhausted myself by serving others that I have not reserved any of my energy for my husband and my children?

Is it time for you to examine your own life and make sure you haven't fallen into the complacent ways that the devil hopes? Isn't that exactly what the devil wants?? For us to become contented and self-satisfied with the ways we are living and caring for our loved ones? Does he not wish for us to be unconcerned with our relationship with our Heavenly Father??

If you feel your heart has turned to a complacent way of living, join me as I seek God for His forgiveness, His guidance, and His strength to start offering my whole body, my whole life as a living sacrifice.

Father, we pray for your hand to be the conductor of our lives, leading us to be the children that you desire. We ask for your direction as we strive to be the living sacrifices you call us to be. Please keep us safe from satan, as he covets our time and self-satisfaction which reflects him. We pray that complacency becomes a thing of the past and that we see the joy in serving, satisfying and worshipping You. In Your Holy Name we pray, Amen.