Daddies. Powerful men, when they are doing what God designed them to do. I am so thankful for my husband. He is diligent in his work and diligent in his care for this family. There are few things more calming than the knowledge that he is doing exactly what God had called him to do. Doing it lovingly and with gusto.
One of those other calming things happened today when he came home from work. Late last night, Matthew dug out an old Construx set that was his as a boy. Today he introduced the children to the world of Construx. The girls were fascinated, the boys eager to get their hands onto the cars and rockets and cranes Matthew was teaching them to make.
(Just an aside: I have to ask myself, "Why do we not do this more often?!" The blessings are so amazing! What is our deal?!
But God is a good, faithful, and patient (very very patient) Teacher. )
~ ~ ~
Part Two: Folded Hands.
Today's goal: To turn to prayer when I was on the brink of idleness.
The apostle Paul said in his first letter to Timothy, "I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or dispute." {1 Timothy 2:8]
Today I found to be a busy one. Not a whole lot of "down time" to speak of. There were, however, a few moments when I found myself just sort of wandering, looking for something that needed to be done (strange, there is ALWAYS something to be done in a house full of busy kids, homeschool, chores, etc).
In these moments I tried to pray some scripture out loud, along with prayers for my hubby, my children, my neighbors, family, friends... However, it felt a little - what? Mechanical?
I read a short article (actually a chapter from a book called Touch the World Through Prayer) about using praise excessively when we pray. The very first statement the author put forth said, "There are many times when it is more important to praise God than to continue in petition. Praise lifts your eyes from the battle to the victory, for Christ is already Victor, and you have Victor in your heart that you might have His victory in your life and in your prayer."
What a great thing! We have victory already, so why not praise God for it? Not only do we have victory, but we have answers to our petitions. Sometimes it is hard to begin with praise because the pressures and needs seem to be so heavy and urgent. We live so often in the "tyranny of the urgent" that it's almost impossible to get our from under it. But, it can be dismounted and, I believe, ultimately shaken off if we begin with praise.
Not just a little bit of praise, but abundant praise. Praise of our Savior to the point of forgetting the grocery list we had ready to present to Him. In the chapter I mentioned a moment ago, the author makes a terrific point. "You will be far stronger spiritually if you build praise into your daily walk with the Lord...As you praise the Lord, worry flees. Praise drives away frustration, tension, and depression. Praise drives out the darkness and turns on God's light. Praise cleanses the atmosphere of Satan's suggestions of doubt, criticism, and irritation. Praise gives you a heavenly transfusion."
So we did our best, in our time of prayer, to have our hands folded and praising with more of our might. Maybe not all of our might, like it says in Ecclesiastes 9:10, but we are still learning, being made more like Him with each moment of each day.
"Praise the LORD, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits-
who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed
like the eagle's."
~Psalm 103:1-5
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