A $3150 ripple effect

Last week I got a front row seat to a HUGE answer to prayer, thanks to a Facebook post by a friend. I just delight when God answers a prayer with a resounding, "Yes. I've got this," and last week there was encouragement when an answer like that was shared on social media.

I have two friends from my college days. Let's call them Eric and Jen (not their real names since I'm going rouge and didn't ask permission to write about this event. Ha!). Eric and Jen met in college and married one another. They have both always had a heart for teenage students and helping them cultivate a personal relationship with Jesus. Eric was a youth pastor for many years. He moved from being a youth pastor within the church to working with a ministry that reached teenagers. Through all those years, Jen was by his side, being a part of the ministry with him. Now, Eric works in a ministry that does not include students, but adult athletes. (And Jen is still by his side, as a part of the ministry.) However, Eric and Jen still have a passion for reaching students for Christ.

Eric and Jen have two teenage children. So currently, they host what they call "Breakfast Club." Once a week Jen makes breakfast and a pile of teenagers cram into their house before school to eat and have a Bible study led by Eric. Jen has the gift of hospitality - seriously, she will welcome anyone in her home. And she will feed them. And she's one of those rare gems who can rock it, cooking for the masses. It does not phase her when multitudes of people stream through her door and into her kitchen. So Eric and Jen always say that Breakfast Club is "feeding their tummies and feeding their souls." She cooks, he teaches. Kingdom teamwork!

They often post photos on Facebook of how this Bible Study is growing. I have seen photos of their basement FILLED with teenagers. Seriously, they are piled on the furniture, there are folding chairs everywhere, and every space on the floor is occupied. Jen used to post photos of the giant pile of shoes by their front door, in the entryway. Until the shoe pile became too big for the space! Now the shoe pile is out in the garage. The group has grown to over 50 kids showing up in the early morning to eat and hear from God's Word.

Now, feeding 50+ teenagers a few times a month isn't a cheap endeavor. And I would imagine that as the group has grown, the cost has grown. So, Eric and Jen began to pray to ask God if they should continue Breakfast Club or finish out this school year and end the Bible Study. They asked God to make it very clear what He wanted them to do. No ambiguity, please.

About a week after praying about continuing Breakfast Club, Eric had someone ask him about the "pile of shoes" pictures he had been seeing on social media and what that was all about. Eric told him what it was all about and he asked how much it cost each month to make all that food for that many students. Eric told him and that was the end of that.

A few days later, Jen gets an envelope in the mail addressed to her and she opens it and finds this.

A check for $3150, which is enough to cover the cost of Breakfast Club for the entire school year next year. Like Eric said, in his post, "Who does this?" This money is from a couple who live several states away from where these students live. They will never meet these kids. But my guess is that they were being obedient to God and what He asked them to do!

The answer to Eric and Jen's prayer about continuing Breakfast Club was met with a resounding, "Yes!" from God. Wow. What a miracle. What a testimony this will be to those students about the power of prayer. Obviously God has plans for those students and He wants to continue to use the Bible Study to rock their world and create ripple effects for years to come. That personally is one of my favorite aspects of ministering to teenagers - the ripple effects. You know how you toss a rock into the water and the ripples just get farther and farther away from where the rock landed? That happens in ministry too. The way that kids can spiritually grow when taught through God's Word can shape them for years to come. And then sometimes, in their adult years, they turn around and minister to teenagers and the ripples of God's Love just keep reaching out throughout the generations. It's amazing to think about how God is going to multiply this $3150 many times over because of the Truth students will learn though another year of Bible study because someone obeyed and gave.

This world pulls at teenagers in a million different ways and there's a lot of "noise" out there, demanding their attention. This is just one small way God is using a couple to cut through the noise to teach these kids that they matter, they are loved, and they need Jesus.

This one's for the moms!

Happy Monday, everyone!

This photo of my baby is a fairly accurate representation of how our Monday was going before we even got out of the house this morning. The baby was very much out of sorts as soon as he finished his bottle upon waking up. If he wasn't being held by me, he was crying. Which is very unlike him. He is rarely fussy or needy. But today he was both and this was not conducive to our morning routine to get out of the house.

The sun was barely up and I already had a toddler that wasn't obeying, the baby spit up all over my bare foot (being a parent is so gross sometimes), there was laundry to dry, a diaper pail to empty and reload with the bag for it, a full kitchen garbage bag to take out, the baby had a nasty dirty diaper and I had a dreaded sink full of dishes to tackle - in addition to getting myself ready for work and the toddler ready to go to daycare. (How can it be that I get up at 5:00 every day and barely make my 7:30 deadline of getting out of the house?)

We are on day twelve of my husband being gone - I haven't even seen him yet this month and we're ten days into the month. So last night, when I looked at the dishes and bottles that were dirty, I didn't have the gumption to deal with it. I was just too tired to hand wash bottles AGAIN. It's a never-ending chore right now. But that meant that I had to wash them this morning so there were enough to get the baby through the day. The baby sat at my feet and cried the whole time I stood at the sink. Nothing could console him except being held. Which makes washing bottles fairly difficult!

As I was washing a bottle for about the 5,000 time in my life, I could feel the frustration rising and my attitude was about to go south pretty dang quick. I didn't WANT to wash another bottle - why does this baby drink so many bottles? I didn't WANT to pack my lunch for the day - why do I have to take leftovers to be heated in a gross microwave in our office break room? I didn't WANT to brush my toddler's hair - what did she get in her hair that was so sticky and impossible to brush? I didn't WANT to deal with a crying baby - what was his deal today? But as the pity party was taking root and I was scrubbing that darn bottle, suddenly this came to mind: Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord. Colossians 3:23. Attitude check! I know that I know that I know that in everything I do, I should do it as working for the Lord - especially the mundane everyday things that need to be done. Especially the everyday things that get no accolades. Especially the everyday things that can grind down your joy in the moment. Especially the every day work that no one sees. And most days, I FAIL at working with all my heart, as working for the Lord. It's usually all about poor 'ol me.

Moms, we have a lot of those thankless, mundane moments, don't we? And yes, you are doing it for your kids. Because it's what you signed up for, because they can't wipe their own runny noses, because they can't pour themselves a bowl of cereal, because they can't zip their own jacket, because they can't buy themselves shoes for their never-stopping-growing-feet, because they can't do that science project all by themselves, because they can't drive themselves to soccer practice, because they can't put money in their lunch account, because they can't wrap that friend's birthday present, and on and on. For years and years. But all of those things you're doing? You're working for the One who sees. Who knows there are hard days. Who has asked you to be a steward of these kids and knows you're trying so hard. The Lord has given you these joyful, challenging, giggling, hot-mess little ones. And when you serve the children, you're serving the Lord as well. So, feel encouraged. There are a lot of moms who know what you're going through. There's lots of moms who know how you feel in the thankless moments. And if they could give you a high five, or a hug, or a gold star, or whatever you need, those fellow "moms in the trenches" would.

Keep working. With all your heart. Because your kids will never thank you for washing their bottles over and over and over. Or for any of the other millions of chores you will do just to keep them safe, healthy, and alive! But they will thank you for being their mom.

Do the unnoticed things for the Lord. Because He sees. He notices - because you are taking care of His kids. The gifts that He has entrusted to you for a short time. Take heart, momma. You can do it!

Being an "old" mom

It has been over a year since I lasted posted anything to my blog. What have I been doing in that time? Well, you know - working a full-time job, I worked a part-time job for most of that chunk of time, running my Mary Kay business, raising a toddler, and oh yeah, growing another child inside of me, giving birth, and adjusting as a mom of two kids. Just a couple of things going on. It's that last little part that I've been mulling over and wanting to write about for some time now.

I am an old mom. I got a late start in life when it came to my own family, as that was God's plan for me. I didn't put kids "on hold" for the sake of a career. That's just how it worked out for me. I know there are many women who have children toward the end of their child-bearing years, so I'm certainly not the exception. But I am in the minority. Although, it sounds like maybe it's a growing minority. I saw a news story a couple weeks ago about having babies at 50. And according to the interwebs, one in five women in the US are having their first child at age 35 or older.

Did you know that any woman over 35 is considered a "geriatric pregnancy?" Worst. Medical. Term. Ever. I guess it's more common to hear "advanced maternal age," but I personally heard geriatric pregnancy in my experience. I can't help but think of some old granny with a white bun on top of her head while she has a bun in the oven. For some reason, I picture the old lady from Looney Tunes. Um, so not me. Or any woman who is expecting, no matter her age.

A lot of my friends that are my same age got married in their mid twenties and were having babies while they were in their late twenties or early thirties. I have friends my same age that have children getting their driver's license. I have friends my same age that have children graduating from high school. I have friends my same age who already have kids in college. And here's the real kicker - I have friends my same age that are becoming grandparents. Grandparents! I am a whole generation behind some of my friends. Or they are a generation ahead of me - however you want to look at it.

Being a first time mom at 39, I sometimes wonder about my daughter's future school friends and their parents. More than likely, my husband and I will be two of the oldest parents of the kids in the class of 2032; although, maybe not, since more women are having kids after 35. My daughter will graduate 40 years after I did. My husband and I are both pretty "young at heart" so I have no doubt we won't have any trouble making friends with our kids' friends' parents. It's just strange to think about it - the MOTHER of my daughter's future best friend could've been born when I was in high school.

My grandma was a young mother. She was 20 when she gave birth to my mom. My mom was a young mother. She was 22 when she gave birth to me. I am the oldest grandchild, so that means that my grandma was 42 when I was born, making her a grandma. Guess how old I was when I had my second child - 42. The same age my grandma was when I was born! It's kind of crazy to think about.

This is my grandma and me. She is 42, I am 7 days old.

This is my son and me. I am 42, he is five days old.

This is my grandma and my son. She is 84, double the age when I was born. I may have been her first grandchild, but he is not her first great-grandchild. He's number 23, I believe.

The other day I was changing my daughter's diaper and a thought occurred to me. It is very well possible, and most likely, that our son will be about three-years-old or so when he is potty trained. This means I will be changing my son's diapers when I'm 45. Changing diapers at 45 is something some of my friends my age can't even imagine - their kids will be teenagers or out of the house when we hit 45. Several will probably be changing diapers, but it will be their grand kids. Not their own babies.

I'll be honest - being a mom of babies in your forties is hard. I'm tired and often wish I had the energy I had 10 of 15 years ago. There's a reason most people have babies in their twenties and thirties. You're up in the night a lot, you're on the floor a lot, you're lugging around babies in bucket car seats, you're lifting kids into high chairs, car seats, and cribs. It can be exhausting, physically. But it can be empowering too. There are times I honestly think, "A lesser woman couldn't do it. But I can! Thank you God for giving me health to do this. Even if my back is sore. And my knee hurts. And I just want to sleep for more than three hours at a time." You just do what you have to do! Those babies don't care how old you are. All they know is that they need their mama to take care of them.

I have a friend who has a few kids and her youngest is about nine-years-old. When she found out I was having my second child at 42, she said, "I can't imagine." I'm sure there are plenty of people who have thought, "Glad it isn't me. I'm glad I had my kids when I was young." But you know what, I am glad it's me. If I were in charge of my life, I would've been married 10 years earlier and started my family before I was 30. But I'm not in charge. God is. I told Him a long time ago (in high school) that I desired what He had planned for me and He was driving - I'm just along for the ride. Why did I have to wait to become a wife and a mom? I'll never know on this side of heaven. But I'm so happy that it was God's plan for me to become a wife and a mom. The fulfillment of my heart's desires was never a guarantee. It's not a guarantee for anyone. So I'm just so glad that even though I'm an old mom, I am a mom. Even if it doesn't "look" like I thought it would look when I was in my twenties. If you would have told me at twenty-two, "Well, you have to wait fourteen more years before you meet the man you'll marry, and fifteen years from now you'll be the bride, then about the time your friends are entering the teenage years of parenting you will just be getting started. Oh, and when you send your first kid to kindergarten, the majority of your friends will have a kid in college," I would have said, "Shut. Up. That cannot be for real."

If you are at a place in life where you thought, in your younger years, would "look" different than it does, please take heart. When you have an expectation of how you think things should be, it can lead to disappointment. Be patient, be grateful, be willing to obey God's leading. There have been times in my life when I have questioned God's plan for me and so I have repeated, out loud, over and over, "I trust You. I trust You. I trust You." Sometimes that's all the prayer you need to say.