Speak Lord for your servant is listening

1 Samuel 3: The Lord calls Samuel The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions. One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called Samuel, Samuel answered, "here I am." And he ran to Eli and said, "here I am you called me." But Eli said, "I did not call; go back and lie down." So he went and lay down. Again the Lord called, "Samuel!" And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, "Here I am; you called me." "My son," Eli said, "I did not call; go back and lie down." Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord: the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. A third time the Lord called, "Samuel!" And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, "Here I am; you called me." Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, "go and lie down, and if he calls you say, 'speak Lord, for your servant is listening.'" So Samuel went and lay down in his place. The Lord came and stood there, calling as other times, "Samuel! Samuel!" Then Samuel said, "speak, for your servant is listening." It is so difficult to remember to say, "speak Lord for your servant is listening." I have been waking up every night feeling "called" but by whom? I have been called to read the Bible, to pray, to devote the quiet time to still my heart and mind and be still. I say, here I am Lord, but it is difficult to remember to say, "speak Lord for your servant is listening" I pray that I soon remember to say that quickly and without hesitation. All powerful God, You always show mercy towards those who love you and you are never far away for those who seek you, give us hearts to seek you now in this present moment in this time for Nick and Sonya. Help us strive together to do your will; heal the divisions among us; and give us the wisdom and courage to seek you above all else as our one God, as the meaning and destiny of our life's work. Unite us to yourself and to one another in the bond of love and keep us faithful to all that is true. Guide the members of this family given the responisibility of Your covenant and sharing in the treausre of your children. Give us the wisdom and insight in our discovery and a deep concern for the good of the family. May all our decisions be pleasing to you and guided by the gentle and insistent impulse of your Spirit. Amen.

Mother's day

2 Timothy 1:14

"Guard the good treasure entrusted to you, with the help of the Holy Spirit living in us."

Paul wrote to his friend from prison to guard the good treasure. Good treasure, he meant to pass along the teachings of Christ, share the blessings and miracles, to keep it safe and alive. As I reflect today on being a mom, I strongly heard this verse deep in my heart. The good treasure of being a mom is such a blessing. A blessing which I am to share the teachings of Christ in action and word daily, sometimes second by second depending on Nate's mood :/, a teenage girl and moms hormones, my mood for that matter. Yet I'm not the only one teaching, I have learned so much from Sasha and Nate. The blessing and miracle of their life. The blessing and miracle of their smiles, tears, hurts, anger, joys, accomplishments ... so much each day. To treasure - to hold or cherish - all I can hold is the memories and the love, every day is for God. Each day brings a new adventure, yes adventure, if I think of it any other way it becomes overwhelming.

Sasha - my dearest precious daughter whom is such a treasure in so many ways. Born at 2lbs she is grown healthy, thank God, grown up with me, taught me so much, loved me so much, brought me so much joy in all her accomplishments. Little did I know the days of writing her name, matching clothes and shoes, praying before meals "DON'T EAT YOU HAVEN'T SAID GRACE" thanks Sash for keeping me straight, adding, her absolute fav multiplication facts (haha) and hours on end of fighting to take the flashlight away so she would GO TO SLEEP and stop reading, that we have now transformed to the CONFIDENT, BEAUTIFUL young lady preparing for her next step in her young adult life, as she begins to transition to college, start pursuing her dream of nursing and amaze me more each day with her determination, love for GOd and others, compassionate heart, and how much love overflows from my heart each day for her. Thank you God for my treasure, Sasha.

Nathaniel - my dearest Natie, God's gift, God's miracle of miracles, believe in miracles - oh my do I. If I don't you will remind me because you like to talk, like to be heard, like to be the center of attention, probably because you are. You entertain us so much. Your life started with such a sad and depressed mom, more overwhelmed of having a 14 year old and a newborn - WHOA! But such a LOVING, TENDER HEART you have. My Natie is such the life of the house, even the days you feel like you just need to exist, Nate is ALIVE and ACTIVE. As we learn to write Nate, and then move along to Nathaniel, you love to play, not so much to do homework, and only homework if someone else works with you. Do something alone, not you, you like TEAMWORK! Absolutely love team work. You are a cheerleader to those around you, you tell everyone good job, have great manners and I absolutely love how you say 'Oh bummer-O-ni I have to try again' ... You amaze me and inspire me to keep trying, keep working, you are so dedicated such a hardworking little guy, thank you God for my treasure, Nathaniel.

Mother's Day is not only to make moms feel special, because I only feel special because of the treasure entrusted to me, my children.

I love you Sasha and Nathaniel with such an overwhelming love that my heart overflows for you, IXOLUL!