happy father's day

I love you, honey! Praise our Father in heaven that He saved you and gave you the desire to be a family man. You make the gospel look great!

"Family Man" from Trevor Little on Vimeo.

the mission field of mothers

"At the very heart of the gospel is sacrifice, and there is perhaps no occupation in the world so intrinsically sacrificial as motherhood. Motherhood is a wonderful opportunity to live the gospel. Jim Elliot famously said, “He is no fool who gives up that which he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” Motherhood provides you with an opportunity to lay down the things that you cannot keep on behalf of the people that you cannot lose. They are eternal souls, they are your children, they are your mission field."

Another excerpt:

"Giving up what you cannot keep does not mean giving up your home, or your job so you can go serve somewhere else. It is giving up yourself. Lay yourself down. Sacrifice yourself here, now. Cheerfully wipe the nose for the fiftieth time today. Make dinner again for the people who don’t like the green beans. Laugh when your plans are thwarted by a vomiting child. Lay yourself down for the people here with you, the people who annoy you, the people who get in your way, the people who take up so much of your time that you can’t read anymore. Rejoice in them. Sacrifice for them."

You can read the entire article by Rachel Jankovic here.

sneak peak

Another sweet newborn! I just fell in love with this little guy. He was adorable and so sleepy (a photographer's dream)!

Give Them Grace .. the book is out!

You can look inside the book here.

This interview is well worth your time to watch. Ask God to help you use parenting opportunities to dazzle your children with the gospel. You can be sure that He will!

charge to parents

Click on the photo to enlarge it. Parents, we have been given no small task. How are you doing?

remember the infertile on mother's day

"Mother’s Day is a particularly sensitive time in many congregations, and pastors and church leaders often don’t even know it. This is true even in congregations that don’t focus the entire service around the event as if it were a feast day on the church’s liturgical calendar. Infertile women, and often their husbands, are still often grieving in the shadows.

It is good and right to honor mothers. The Bible calls us to do so. Jesus does so with his own mother. We must recognize though that many infertile women find this day almost unbearable. This is not because these women are (necessarily) bitter or covetous or envious. The day is simply a reminder of unfulfilled longings, longings that are good.

Some pastors, commendably, mention in their sermons and prayers on this day those who want to be mothers but who have not had their prayers answered. Some recognize those who are mothers not to children, but to the rest of the congregation as they disciple spiritual daughters in the faith. This is more than a “shout-out” to those who don’t have children. It is a call to the congregation to rejoice in those who “mother” the church with wisdom, and it’s a call to the church to remember those who long desperately to hear “Mama” directed at them."

...excerpt by Russell Moore


To read the full article, please go to Russell Moore's blog.

mother's day prayer

Justin Taylor has this beautiful prayer posted on his blog today.

"Heavenly Father, on a day like Mother’s Day there are so many different emotions that we bring to you.

Some of us bring emotions of deep gratitude and joy for the mothers you have blessed us with, mothers who have

loved us,

cared for us,

walked with us

and taught us how to live well.

We praise you for such love shown to us through our moms and we pray for all those who are moms, that you would give them:

strength where they are weak,

wisdom where they are unsure,

patience with the many demands placed upon them,

faith in your care for them and their families,

and love—deep love—for those whom you have given them to nurture.

Others of us bring emotions of sadness and pain. Some of us are saddened because our relationship with our mom is not easy, or was not easy, or perhaps never existed at all.

Please

meet us in our pain,

heal our hearts where they are wounded,

soften our hearts where they are hardened,

and enable us to forgive and to love even those who have hurt us.

Others of us are saddened because we long to be moms, long to have children, and yet are not able to do so.

Father of mercies,

give us comfort in our sadness,

trust in you despite unfulfilled longings,

and joy in knowing that you never stop loving us or having our best in mind.

We pray these things to you as our Father, who loved us before the world began, and will love us forevermore.

In Jesus’ name, amen!"