Living for the Spirit and not the Ways of the World.

Material World

It is clear that our world dictates success by how high you climb the corporate ladder, how big your home is, what car you drive, which prestigious school your children go to……and the list goes on… It is easy for our children to learn at a very early age from their greatest teachers, their parents, what is “most important”….materialism. Having to have the name brand clothes, the I phone, a colorful ipod, a sassy laptop computer and the list goes on….. It is a vicious cycle. Our Lord warns about it in scripture..”Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind. Then you will be able to know the will of God-what is good and is pleasing to him and is perfect.” Romans 12:2-3

We are doing our children an injustice by giving them so much. The more we give to them the more they expect. In turn, they will become selfish, spoiled, unhappy children. The Lord calls us to live a life of simplicity and teach our children the greatest path to happiness….to love and follow Him. Jesus is humble, gentle, selfless, and simple. Our king was born in a barn to a poor mother and father. We have such a humble example in Christ and why does our world continue to be so prideful and materialistic?

We are all on the journey together trying to find the key to happiness. We are all told money and materialism will bring us contentment but any wealthy person will tell you that once they finally reached the top of the ladder and had everything they worked so hard for, they yearned for the simple times again. They say the happiest years of their lives were the “hard times” of barely having enough money to pay bills and having a small home where love blossomed and their family began. The only thing they had was faith and LOVE and that was enough. Scripture says. ”Command those who are rich in the things of this life not to be proud but to place their hope, not in such an uncertain thing as riches, but in God who generously gives us everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share with others. In this way they will store up for themselves a treasure which will be a solid foundation for the future. And then they will be able to win the life which is true life. Timothy 6:17-20

When you free yourself from trying to keep up with the Jones’ and stop worrying so much about having to have a living room straight out of Pottery Barn or trying to keep up with the absolute latest fashions, your heart and mind become free. It is a freedom that comes from no where else then Heaven. When you begin to live for the Spirit as Christ tells us to do and stop living for the ways of the world, your heart becomes joyful and

unbelievably peaceful. “So then, we must always aim at those things that bring peace and that help strengthen one another.” Romans 14:19

It is a war out there…..Satan is trying to constantly clutter your mind and heart with the ways of the world telling you “you have to get a bigger home….” Or “what are your friends going to say if you buy the car that is more affordable but NOT cool” or “are you really going to wear that skirt AGAIN…you need to go shopping and get a new wardrobe…just put it on the credit card and pay it off later….” And on the other side is a sweet whisper from Jesus telling us “you look so beautiful today my sweet daughter” or “your family loves your little cozy home….how beautiful your children’s spirits are growing in such a loving environment” or “you don’t need a new couch, yours is just fine…especially through these potty training years” or “two presents are more than enough for your children…they will be filled with joy!” This is a constant battle going on in our minds and the media and our surroundings does not help one bit with trying to live for the spirit. But if you turn away from the world and all of the things Satan is saying to you and turn to Jesus, you will be energized and excited to see the world around you in a whole different way.

These next four weeks, let’s focus on our blessings and be content in the things that we already have. “Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be satisfied with what you have.” Hebrews 13:5-6 Clear out the clutter of your home…things you really don’t NEED and give it away. It is the best therapy! Embrace Jesus this Christmas Season and be at Peace in your hearts and minds. Buy simple sweet gifts for the ones you have to buy gifts for but don’t break the bank. LESS IS MORE……I just love that saying! Most importantly, love on your children and your husband and be together as a family as much as possible….that is the greatest gift we can give our children this holiday season.

The Forgotten Sacrifices of Mary

As we are stressed out in the next four weeks about all of the gifts we have to buy and thinking we have to have the PERFECT Christmas for our children, let’s reflect back to Mary being in her last month of pregnancy.. We all know how unbelievably hard that last month is. You can barely move, walk, and sleep. To think of what Mary endured will sure make us count our blessings and realize how silly we can be with the little things we get so worked up over!

When Mary was nine months pregnant she……

• Slept on a dirt floor
• Rode a donkey from Jerusalem to Bethlehem
• She and Joseph camped outside every night while on their journey in the freezing cold
• And when scripture says “she delivered her firstborn..” I can’t help but think of how hard and LONG the delivery of your firstborn is, and all the while in a barn with no epidural
• How big did she tear & who stitched her up?
• Did her nipples hurt like he_ _ when she nursed Jesus?
• When the angel appeared to Joseph and told him they had to flee, how in tar nation did she ride a donkey just a few hours after giving birth?

We “modern day Mary’s” can’t imagine! All of this was a complete sacrifice to bring Christ to save us. When you reflect on the true meaning of Christmas and the sacrifices Mary and Joseph went through for us, it is disgusting to think of what the world has turned Christmas into…..a stressful, shop- till- you drop fiasco! And if shopping the entire Christmas season is not enough…..what do we do? We go shopping the day AFTER Christmas! For sales, returns, exchanges….. Enough is never enough.

The Modern Day Martha & Mary

I am sure all of you are familiar with the bible story about Martha and Mary. “As Jesus and his disciples went on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha welcomed him in her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat down at the feet of the Lord and listened to his teaching. Martha was upset over all the work she had to do, so she came and said, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her to come and help me! The Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha! You are worried and troubled over so many things, but just one is needed. Mary has chosen the right thing, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:38-41

The story of Mary and Martha I thought was most appropriate for our topic today. Before we depart today and go into the busyness of the season, I wanted everyone to have a visual in their minds on the kind of person we DON’T want to be this holiday season. As the world tells us we need to be a Martha, Jesus tells us true happiness and eternal rewards lies in the character of Mary. As we are all rushing around this Christmas season, buying gifts and marking off our long, stressful check list, I hope each one of us can stop and take a deep breathe and ask ourselves, “Am I being a Martha?” Let’s now check out the different “To Do Lists” between the modern day Martha and the modern day Mary.

So as you leave today, promise me one thing. You will look up at the sky, take a deep breathe and hand this Christmas season over to Jesus. Hand over the stress of your Christmas cards you have to get out. Hand over the worries of how you will afford to buy everyone Christmas presents. Hand over your frustrations of your in-laws coming to visit. Listen closely and you might here a sweet voice whispering …. “Be Still and Know that I AM GOD.”

Now go on with your busy self and chill out, have a glass of wine and enjoy the reason for the season!

Balancing Marriage & Children

Rooted & Grounded

“…that you, rooted and grounded in love, may know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all of the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:17

Let’s compare a big, old tree to marriage. The tree has wide deep roots and is tall and strong. Not many storms can take it down, no strong wind can blow it very hard and after it is all said and done it bears much fruit.

Now regarding marriage, it takes hard times to grow deep roots and once you have deep roots you are grounded in faith. Once you are grounded in faith, you bear much fruit.

A tree doesn’t keep score on which side took the brunt end of the storm last time so it is the other side’s turn to brave the storm this time around. Or it doesn’t say “I really worked hard on my side to shed leaves last fall, now it is your turn to work hard and do most of the shedding. A tree grows together, moves together and sheds leaves together “as a team”. When it has deep roots and strong branches, it bears much fruit together.

I consider having babies and toddlers a form of growing branches on our tree of marriage. Although they are God’s greatest gifts, it is a very hard job. While they are the greatest blessing, they require constant care and attention to make sure they don’t “break, fall, or freeze off”. So while we are attending to the branches of our tree, it is very easy to put the “base of the tree”, your husband, on the back burner…..”his needs can wait”. But in all actuality, his needs can’t wait, neither can yours. You and your husband were together and a team before any of these little “branches” were born. It is vital for spouses to make time for each other every day….to “feed” and nurture your marriage. Just as branches can not rule a tree, you can not let children rule the home, you and your husband are the foundation….you rule! NO IF, ANDS, or BUTS! Your marriage needs babying too during these hard times where your roots are growing deep. While we all have different hobbies and interest, it is important to be together as a family as much as possible as well as go on dates with your husband. The full Saturday of golf, guys trips, hunting, girls trips to Vegas, is just going to have to be put on hold for the time being! Until these little ones are raised, you have to be there for each other and work as a team or major resentment will start to brew. The wise saying “everything in moderation” reigns true for just about everything in life. Keep recreation outside the family extremely moderate until your babies are raised. Think of the hard times you have experienced with your husband and see them as growing deep root.. Remember what Christ tells us, “when going through hard times, rejoice, for the Holy Spirit is at work in you!” What are some different examples of what the world says is “terrible” that might actually be helping the roots in your marriage deepen? What are some different ways we can nurture our marriage?

Helping each other get to heaven

A dear friend who is a priest once told me that through marriage, God gives each one of us a sacred trust; to prepare our mate to spend eternity in heaven with him. “On your wedding day, you accepted a huge task until the day you die. God has made you responsible, second only to the saving work of Jesus Christ and your partner’s free will, to see that your husband becomes the person God created him to be. And, you accepted that you sincerely believe you have a better chance, with your partner than without him, of becoming all God intends you to be” states Dr. Popcak. You are a team to help cheer on one another to use your God given talents, go for your dreams all the while growing in faith and love for Christ and each other.

Just like we discussed about our children, we are to be Christ for our husbands and they are to be Christ for us. In being Christ for each other, we are to constantly give of ourselves to one another. Jesus says, “In giving of yourself, you shall receive.” We are to make sacrifices for one another. There is NOTHING selfish about a marriage….it is giving of complete self. As hard as it is, it is as simple as that! The world has become so self absorbed and centered on the almighty dollar that the simplicity of marriage and the beauty of love and self sacrifice has become lost in the war of “what is in it for me? What are you going to do for me?” “Love is a selfless surrender of everything one has and is for the sake of another.” R. Hogan Companion of love

We can not not talk about one of the most important aspects of giving of yourself to your spouse…..that is sex of course. J When Clint and I were talking to our priest about getting married he told us that making love is a form of prayer. Too often as wives, we are so tired of “meeting the needs” of our children that when it comes time to fall into bed from sheer exhaustion, the last thing we want to do is “meet the needs” of our husband! But again, this goes back to giving of ourselves. Dr. Popcak says “whenever you hold back in your married life, you prevent God from loving your mate the way He wants to love him- the way your mate needs to be loved.” Thinking of love making as a prayer and a spiritual connection with God and becoming one with your husband is truly giving of yourself. I am no expert on this subject but there are great books out there that will help you look at love making the way God created it to be, not in the sick and twisted way the world has put its stamp on it. Holy Sex by Dr. Greg Popcak (the same author I am basing this lesson on) is suppose to be great.

How can you and your husband help each other become all that God created you to be? If your husband passed away tomorrow, would you be able to say you did everything you could, as his wife and best friend, to help him get to heaven?

The Dangerous Game of Keeping Score

We are all guilty of it….the ongoing game of keeping score. Who changed the baby’s diaper last, who gave the kids a bath last, I cooked dinner so you better do the dishes, and I did laundry last…. and the game goes on and on. The driving force behind this dangerous game is no other than Satan himself and the virtue of selfishness. Where do you think Satan is going to begin his work in breaking up a family, which is his greatest vice? The marriage of course. And what better way then to create resentment, bitterness and selfishness between husband and wife, than keeping score? “We are constantly being tempted to play manipulative games with our mates, valuing our own convenience and comfort above all else. When we do this, husbands and wives slowly turn each other into shriveled up, bitter, emotional score keepers.” Dr. Popcak Let’s read that powerful line again and discuss.

This game can drive a good marriage to bad fast. A way to overcome keeping score is once again a thing called “team work”….. having the attitude that no job is too great or too little for either spouse. Husbands can change diapers and put a dish in the dishwasher and wives, we can take out the trash if our husband is stressed from work and forgot. No one wants to do these mundane, every day tasks that makes the world go round but you do them for each other out of LOVE AND SELFLESSNESS.

As wives, we strive to Be All and Do All with a smile. But sometimes whether we are sick or just have had a bad day, we need the help of our best friend, our husband. Working together is better than working alone. And by working together, being SELFLESS, and stop keeping score, there will be harmony and peace in our marriage and in our homes.

Does anyone want to share what score keeping games are eating at your marriage? We live in a very 50/50 society. How can we overcome this mentality that only hurts a marriage and be living examples of positive self sacrificing women of God?

HOMEWORK: Read Daniel Beene’s excerpt about her take on keeping score.

A Spiritual Life Amongst the Chaos!

Morning Offering

“The key to a mother’s inner peace is to find that marvelous balance between a prayerful life and her family life. A faithful mother soon learns that, in order to survive, her life should really become a prayer.” The Heart of Motherhood

By God’s grace, a mother makes her life a prayer. We should start our day, when we open our eyes, offering the day to the Lord with either our own conversation with Him or with a morning offering prayer such as:

“Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for this new day, a new opportunity to serve you in my family. Help me, please to be open to your love and grace for me today. Help me to find the joy in my vocation even when I am feeling tired and challenged, so I will have peace in my heart and may radiate that joy and peace to others. Amen” Then the day starts off with the proper disposition. When we pray like this, each of our prayers, works, joys and sufferings throughout the day are thus offered to the Lord.

If it is physically possibly, a wonderful remedy that is a proven model, is to rise early before your children. In the bible, Jesus would go and pray to God before sunrise. This is usually the quietest and freshest part of the day. While you sip your caffeine, read scripture or inspirational material, offer your day to the Lord, sit quietly and open your heart for the Holy Spirit to speak to you. You will be amazed at how excited and energized you will be to start your day with your children and the unexplainable peace and joy that will fill your heart. When your children rise, you will greet them with a smile and a full pitcher of life giving water that you can in turn pour into your children so they can be filled with Christ’s love. I hold my hands up to the Lord every morning and say the following prayer “Lord Jesus, I offer you these hands today. Please transform them into your hands to help love and discipline my children as you would. Please guard me from the evil one and help me to be the mother and wife you want me to be. Please give me your grace and peace. Mother Mary please cover me in prayer and give me your grace and peace. I love you, Lord, and thank you for this day. Amen”

Whether you are able to rise early before your children or you need that extra rest, know that the Lord understands you and knows your heart. If you can physically only make the sign of the cross that is OKAY and that is a prayer as well. Just acknowledging that you need and love the Lord is enough for Him. What are some different ideas on finding time to pray in silence that best fits your personality being a morning person or night owl?

Children’s Morning Offering:

Everyone’s morning routine is different, but something that works for us is when my children rise in the morning and want to watch a cartoon, I put in a Max Lucado video and they love them (not every morning)! Or if you don’t watch TV in the morning, when you get into the car to take your children to school, you can listen to Christian radio. Anything you can do to fill their morning with Christ is a great way to teach them to start their day off in prayer. What are some other ideas on teaching your children to turn to Christ with a morning offering?

Creating a Sacred Space:

Creating a sacred space in your home helps motivate and inspire you to come before the Lord whether it is morning, afternoon or evening. The following are ideas on how to create a sacred space in your home:

• Create a place in your home that is your “special corner” where you go to pray.
• Have a comfy chair to sit in.
• A side table for your coffee and a lamp.
• Spiritual reading material
• Candle
• Focal point-the focal point can be a crucifix, a statue, an antique picture of the holy family. Even a picture or two of your “communion of saints”, your loved ones who are in heaven.

Your prayer corner will also be a place for your children to turn to if they want to pray for someone or having a hard time at that moment in their life. They can go before the Lord in your home and light a candle for their prayer. As a family, you can gather in the prayer corner to say prayers. It will be a constant reminder to turn to the Lord throughout the day and that He is present at all times. It will also help teach your children how to pray and become closer to Christ. Just a reminder that your prayer corner can be chic and design savvy to help go in your home without being too overbearing for non Catholics! What are some fun ideas for designing your prayer corner?

A Mother’s Daily Routine is a Prayer:

St. Frances of Rome, a wife and mother, said, “It is most laudable in a married woman to be devout, but she must never forget that sometimes she must leave God at the altar to find him in housekeeping.” Saying a decade of the rosary while folding laundry or praying for God’s grace and strength to help you get through the day while changing ANOTHER poopy diaper helps us mothers become closer to Christ. Praying throughout the day helps us to find holiness in our vocation of motherhood. By praying throughout the day in the hum drum tasks of keeping a home and being a mother, we will find contentment and an unexplainable happiness in our challenging self-giving vocation. Place a cross at your kitchen window to remind you to say a prayer as you wash dishes or a crucifix in sight of the rocking chair to remind you to prayer as you rock your precious baby. We need to realize that we can achieve holiness in the midst of serving our family. Although we might yearn to be at the altar begging the Lord to help us through this challenging time in our lives of taking care of little ones day in and day out, holiness and prayer can be found and practiced in our homes, our “domestic churches”. How can we master the task of praying throughout the day so we can grow in holiness and love for our lord?

Praying the Prayer of Action

Saint Catherine of Sienna said, “You must pray the prayer of action, which is the fragrant flower of the soul. A good man (woman) is a prayer.” The best example of Christ we can be to our children is to LIVE our faith. By living our faith, our children will come to know and love the lord and hopefully never choose to go on the wide path but continue on the straight and narrow. How can we teach our children to LIVE their faith?

Other Forms of Prayers for Mothers

Fasting- I believe our life as mothers is a form of fasting because it is a completely selfless job. We can offer up different circumstances for fasting, such as sleep deprivation, difficult days with cranky children, mothering alone whether you are single or husband works long hours or travels. Offer the difficult situation up to the Lord with fasting in prayer for a certain prayer request.

Rosary- The rosary is one of the most powerful prayer b/c you not only pray the gospel but the blessed mother helps you become closer to her son. Very powerful things have happened to people who always pray the rosary.

Homework J

Read Danielle Bean “Making More Time for God” and do the priority assessment.

Read Danielle Bean” Screening Our Influences”

Find a great devotional book for your prayer time in your prayer corner.

Some ideas for spiritual books:

• Medjugorje Day By Day- blessed mother apparitions and messages
• The Cup of Our Life- Joyce Rupp (catholic author)
• The Heart of Motherhood workbook – Donna Marie Cooper Oboyle
• Our Domestic Church- Donna Marie Cooper Oboyle
• Any Danielle Bean book is great

The Ordinary Yet Quite Extraordinary Vocation

Inspired by Chapter two The Heart Of Motherhood by Donna Marie Cooper O’Boyle

The Child is the beauty of God present in the world, the greatest gift to the family. –Blessed Teresa of Calcutta

How amazing that our lord entrusts us mothers with the greatest gift of this life…..next to his body and blood! Our vocation is a ministry. A faithful mother, by her loving, diligent example will turn heads and hearts. She will edify others through her strong faith in God and her unfailing dedication to her family. Her selflessness and self giving will be apparent to the individuals around her whom she is influencing and inspiring by her life of love. She may never be aware of this, but our Lord will know. How can we minister to others on the vocation of motherhood and how children are truly God’s greatest gift on earth?

Love and peace begins at home.

Households can seem vary chaotic and stressful at times. Hardly the appearance of holiness, it would seem. Throughout these hectic and sometimes crazy times, a mother often needs to re evaluate what is most important and what task/activity/situation needs to be eliminated to help keep peace in the home. When the home, the vital cell of the family, is in chaos and turmoil, the family will in turn be chaotic. When things seem constantly unpeaceful, chances are there is some part of your life that is not coinciding with the Lord’s Will. We are to do all we can as mother’s to keep life for our children peaceful and surrounded by Love. What situations currently are possibly causing your home life to be unpeaceful and hectic?

Being Servants of Christ

There are many saintly mothers in our midst today, sometimes humbly hidden within our families. Mothers do what comes naturally to them: they love their children; they make their home a strong, warm, secure haven for their families. They set a caring example. A mother’s day, whether a working mother or full time at home mother, we all have the same duties to fulfill as mothers and nurturing our home. Our day is filled to capacity with many ordinary tasks, not important, but rather works of love that may be overlooked or unnoticed. Changing diapers, doing laundry, schedule keeping, house cleaning, planning and cooking nutritious meals are just some of the ordinary tasks in a mom’s repertoire. Although these tasks may seem mundane or even monotonous, they are the nitty-gritty details that keep the family going and together. Mothers perform never-ending labors of love throughout the day, precisely because of the love they possess for their husband and children. A mother’s deep inner faith affirms that a day’s sacrifices and seemingly ordinary tasks please our Lord because they are done with extraordinary love. We are to have a servant’s heart in serving our family. How can we focus more on seeing the beauty of being servants of Christ by humbly serving our family in every day tasks that the world tends to perceive as a “going crazy, mind numbing” job?

Seeing The Face Of Christ In Our Children

“I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me to drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited to me. All these things you did, you did for me” Mathew 25:34-46. When we put a band aid on our child’s knee, look and you will see the face of Jesus. When you are holding your child at night, look deep within and feel the presence of Jesus. When you are giving your child a sippy cup of water, look and you will see you are giving our Lord something to drink. When you are fixing dinner and setting the table tired and worn out after a long day, look around and see you are feeding Jesus and his flock. All of things we do, we are doing for our Lord Jesus. We are His servants performing humble tasks all the while receiving eternal rewards.

Mothers encounter Jesus within our families every day in the sublime mission our Lord has entrusted to them in the heart of the home. He has put the mother in the midst of her family where she, by her word, love, life and example raises up soldiers for Jesus Christ. The next time you are washing your child’s dirty feet in the bathtub and they are splashing water all over the floor, take a deep breath and remember you are washing Christ’s feet just as He did to the apostles the night before he was crucified. And who knows…..the water that is being splashed just might be the Lord blessing you with holy water! So instead of screaming STOP SPLASHING WATER, just make the sign of the cross and say “thank you, Lord”.

Family Is Society’s Primary Vital Cell

“The mission of being the primary vital cell of society has been given to the family by God Himself” (Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity, Vatican Council II, no.11).

What has happened to society is much to blame on the family. We are all to blame in complicating life. What happen to the simplicity and beauty of family life? We think we NEED all of these material goods to make us happy when reality is all that our children truly need is a loving environment at home. Families are not at HOME near as much as they use to be. The home is our children’s safe haven, shelter from the world. The home is where children receive their confidence, their spirit, their love for themselves and others. Whatever we can do as mothers, one of our main purpose is to provide that security in our homes by eating dinner together as a family, tucking our children in bed at night, chasing each other around the house, tickling our children on their bedroom floors, cuddling together and watching movies on a rainy Saturday afternoon, eating popsicles on the front porch, planting flowers in the garden. The home is where the family blossoms.

By remaining simple and focused, dedicated to following God’s will through the vocation of motherhood, mothers can be a radiant example to others and a model for the family in our world today. A genuine assessment is necessary to determine a household’s real needs, without heeding to what the materialistic world dictates. Simplicity is a very good thing. Additionally, less material clutter can help tremendously to focus the heart.

It doesn’t take much to truly create a loving and peaceful home for our husband and children. How can we simplify our lives and focus more on our family?

Love Can Be Tiring

Who said motherhood was easy? When we are pregnant with our first, we are all into the nursery and baby showers and think motherhood is going to be this glamorous lifestyle we see on the movies. Our generation today tends to want to take the easy rode. We want things handed to us and we want to by pass the hard times and immediately get to the good. Great sacrifices and hard times bring great reward. Hopefully eternal reward in our vocation! St. Vincent de Paul said. “let us love God, but with the strength of our arms, in the sweat of our brow.” A mother’s vocation is one of service. Women today think we need to be pampered. What happen to the strong, pioneer women of old? They were truly serving their families by working hard in the fields, keeping their home, bearing several children! And we think we have it hard today? Our lord Jesus, who truly was a King, lived a very humble, modest life. He worked hard as a carpenter and prophet everyday of his life and was tired. Do you think he or his mother Mary were off at the Spas getting pedicures while sipping on wine? Don’t get me wrong, pampering yourself every once in a while is a great thing, but I think women today have gone over board! As you fall into bed tonight rejoice in an honest day’s work that made our Lord so proud. Remember: the work we do is eternal; everything else will turn to dust.

The Vocation of Motherhood

My name is Kim Venneman Cooper and I am a mother of three children three and under. I have recently started Archangel Mother's Ministry at Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Colleyville, TX. All of the writings below are to inspire all mothers to become refreshed and rejuvenated in the vocation of motherhood. Everything else will turn to dust, but the work we mothers do on earth have eteral rewards.

May God Bless you in your work as a mother. You only have one chance to raise your chilren and to love them as Jesus loves us. Be good to yourself and to your family and remember to always call on the Lord for help and grace. Our job as mothers is the MOST important job on earth. No degree, no job, no house, no car, no travel experience, no perfect wardrobe will ever measure up to the calling we have in motherhood. WE are servants to our families and how honored and blessed we are for God to have given His greatest gift to us...His children.