Our Fortress

                               

“Our LORD and our God, you are my mighty rock, my fortress, my deliverer.” 2 SAMUEL 22:2

Rare indeed is the adult who can’t look back and remember building a fort. It’s a classic childhood pastime. In the mind of a child, blankets and cushions draped across the furniture might be seen as protection from a sibling’s attack, a place to hide from imaginary enemies, or even an indoor camping spot.

As adults, we outgrow the blanket-and-cushion version of a protective fortress, but we find the same needed security for ourselves and our families in other types of forts. A bigger paycheck can mean a larger home in a nicer neighborhood. Money in the bank or a higher number of stock shares can cover our children’s college education or fund our retirement. Sending our children to particular schools can expose them to a better environment or opportunities they might not have otherwise.

Whether by a real-life reality check or increased wisdom as we age, we usually figure out something about these newer forts. In the long run they don’t protect us any better than our children’s blankets over the dining room table did. They slide and fall, leaving us vulnerable and in search of answers. God is our fortress and protector. He is our most secure foundation and the best defense against any attack from our enemy Satan. We can’t keep an eye on our children twenty-four hours a day, but God can. We can’t guarantee there will always be money in the bank, but God can meet all our needs. God is the only one who can keep us truly safe in this unpredictable world.

 Rather than relying on a mom-made fort for protection, let’s ask God to help us trust Him to do the job and teach our children to do the same.

Prayer: Dear God, the world tries to convince me that material things can keep my family safe, but I know that’s not true. You are the real protector and the only one I can trust. Thank You for being my fortress. Amen.

 

The Small Jobs

 

                  

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” COLOSSIANS 3:17 NIV  

Sweeping cereal from every corner of the kitchen. Changing race car sheets at 3 a.m. Searching through every drugstore in town for a certain type of hairbrush. Checking the minutes left on our family’s cellular account. Scheduling dentist appointments …

They aren’t big jobs, and many times we handle them without rating a “thank you” from family members. But these jobs are the makings of normal life for us moms and can accumulate until some days we feel that all our time is spent on “little” stuff. It’s time for us to remember that God doesn’t look at it like that. When we are taking care of our families, we are literally doing God’s work. Each task is important, even though it may seem at times to be menial in nature. You might also be able to enhance the work by adding a spiritual element. One mother keeps photos of her children clipped to her car visor and prays for each of them while she’s running errands. Another thanks God for a different blessing every time she picks up something and moves it to the right spot in her home. And yet another mom cranks up her favorite praise music while she vacuums or dusts.

Those mundane jobs take on new meaning when we see every load of laundry, sink of dirty dishes, trip to the market, dental appointment, vacuumed floor, and dinner casserole as a way to serve God by serving our families. What ministry wields more influence and produces more obvious results? God holds every facet of motherhood in high esteem, and our days will take on renewed meaning when we see it that way as well.

Prayer: Lord, it can be easy to look down on the little jobs of motherhood and think they don’t really matter. But everything I do as a mom is important to You and to my family. Help me remember that, no matter what I spend my time doing. Amen .

The Courage Keys

 

This year at MOPS, your membership will include a key in the 2014-15 MOPS Membership welcome kit. It's called a Courage Key. It's a symbol we can daily put on to remind us to live the bravest version of ourselves. It's a token we can reach up and touch in those moments we need a reminder to be brave. And, with solidarity, we'll be wearing our keys together. 

MOPS Membership is our way of saying we belong together because we know we mother better when we mother together. 

 

 

 

 

 

"You seem alive right now. It's like I'm seeing the real you."

Those words sunk deep.

I'd had one of those moments that made my soul come alive, like the moment was created just for me. I was contributing to the world in that way that made me feel like I was doing exactly what I was built to do. The world was at peace; everything was right. I was giving of my self in a deep and exerting way, but I walked away with my heart full as though I was the one who had been the recipient.

"It's like I'm seeing the real you."

It's because she was seeing the real me. 

Bob Goff makes this profound statement, he says, "People need to be spoken into who they are." It's powerful to have someone affirm who they see in us.

As we journey this year on our quest to Be you, Bravely, let's be courageous enough to see the greatness in others, and tell them what we see.

2014/2015 KICKOFF TOMORROW!

Ladies- Don't forget! We will be meeting tomorrow morning at 9:30AM to kickoff our 2014/2015 MOPS year. Come register and catch up from Summer, while the kids enjoy inflatables, snow cones, and fun! This event is RAIN or SHINE-We can't wait to see you all tomorrow!

 We will be praying for you Mommies with little ones starting school tomorrow morning :)

Be You, Bravely

                    

Hey ladies! I hope you've all had a great Summer! My babies are excited for school to start back, but I'm sure going to miss them.  This is my first "official post" as publicity coordinator this year!!!! I have lots I plan to write about, but I'm so excited about this year, I had to open with our 2014/2015 theme...so without any further rambling...here it is!!! Much love to you all, Katie

 

Theme Verse: 

Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.  Isaiah 43:18-19   (NIV)
At any given moment in our lives each of us has...

• Conversations we've been putting off.
• Reasonable risks we've been avoiding.
• Goals we want to achieve.

Yet often times the more significant an action feels the easier it is to put it off.  We get distracted from the big decisions by the immediate needs of the day. What all of us seem to have in common is that we need a nudge, a nudge to help us get out of our ruts and routines so that we can begin risking bravely.
At MOPS we believe that you were meant to live deeply and so we have created this year’s theme to inspire you to choose the extraordinary.
Be you, Bravely is designed to help us focus on making the choices that could create the most good in our lives, help us to step into healthy risk and to do it in the context of community where we can cheer one another on.
Sometimes, good people wait patiently for God to intervene when what he is wanting is for us to act bravely and do something. Being a follower of Jesus calls for courage. The journey feels unexpected and unconventional. It requires bravely playing hide and seek in the dark, confronting the fears that scare us and holding the hand of a redeemer-guide who calls us to courageous acts of risk and trust. It means coloring outside of the lines. Dreaming bigger than we ever have before and getting swept up into the plans of a God who leaves us breathless with wonder.
It takes courage to ask brave questions and even more courage to search for the answers. We are so excited to journey alongside you this year as we ask one another what it means to  “Be you, Bravely”.

  

KICKOFF- August 8th

Fall Semester Dates:
8/22,  9/12, 9/26, 10/17,  10/24,  11/7, 11/21, 12/5

Spring Semester Dates:
1/9,  1/23,  2/6,  2/20,  3/6,  3/20,  4/17,  5/1

 

E-Mail habershammops@gmail.com for more information!

*Registration will be availabe NOW!

Giving Back

Thanksgiving is a holiday that I wish we spent more time acknowledging. I love Christmas, very much actually. I love decorating and singing carols and Santa and remembering that God came to Earth as a baby. I think everyone loves Christmas and that is why we are so quick to jump right over Thanksgiving without giving it too much thought. But when we do that we miss out on an opportunity to really notice just how blessed we are. As I type this I am sitting in a warm home on a comfortable couch. My husband is home because he is a teacher and has wonderful hours. My three children who I get to stay home with are all healthy. And I am so very thankful. But my thankfulnesses can't end there. It can't end with saying a quick "Thank you, Lord", even though I'm sure He would appreciate that. When we realize just how blessed we are it should spark us to think about those who have so much less. At our November 22nd MOPS meeting we are doing just that. Doing something to make life a little easier for someone else. Come join us as we make blessing bags. Bags filled with toiletries, snacks, etc. for the women and children of the Circle of Hope. We will also each be taking a blessing bag home with us to keep in our cars to give to a stranger in need. I hope you'll join us for this time of fellowship and giving. If it is possible for you to do, please bring $4 to help with the cost of materials. 

Happy Saturday!

Leslie

Girls, a miracle has taken place. I finished a book from start to finish! Guess which book it was? That's right! Our book study for this year, Desperate. When my daughter, Myla, was born two and a half years ago, I had some vision loss and have lost the desire to read much because, quite frankly, it requires a lot more concentration than it used to. I've become more of a skimmer than a reader. But this book, y'all, it is something else. Never had God spoken to me through a book other than the Bible quite like He did through this book. It was like each word on every page was written just for this girl. Sarah Mae and Sally Clarkson cover everything from setting unrealistic expectations for yourself as a mom, to housework, to motherhood being a high calling. If you haven't started it yet, you are in for a treat. As you read the Introduction and Chapter 1 in preparation for the meeting this Friday, I pray that you will be encouraged by the honesty of the moms who wrote it and that God will use it to remind you that, as Sarah Mae explains it, "...'good' motherliness has nothing to do with how God sees me. Nothing. I am pleasing to Him on my good days and my bad days. His love for me never wavers...and never will. Because I'm His". Looking forward to seeing you all THIS FRIDAY, September 20 at 9:30 a.m. for a time of discussion about what we've read, a fun craft and a really great video about comparing ourselves to each other.
I hope you've all enjoyed your weekends with your sweet kiddos.
Leslie