So, this blog is for Christian parents. I am a christian parent and I have to admit that I am struggling right now with our 11 1/2 year old son. He has a pretty low self esteem and has said some things recently that have concerned me. Part of me thinks that maybe this is normal behavior for this age group for boys. Then the other part of me says that I should seek out professional help. My husband and I really try to acknowledge the positive things that he does and we've even started a new reward system, but it's honestly been very difficult to find positive things. I'm just not sure how to handle negative behavior for a child who already has a low self esteem. Every time I point out something bad he did, I feel like I'm just making him hate himself even more. :0( 

 Be faithful with your tithes and offerings and the Lord will work things out on your behalf. I have always been a faithful tither and faithful with my offerings. My husband and I always try to stretch our faith in this area and give more than we think we can. My faith was tested like never before this past Sunday. We realized that we didn't have enough money to pay the mortgage. I turned to my husband when they started talking about tithes and I said, "What do we do?". He said, "We have to.". Tears instantly started pouring down my face. I knew that giving our tithes and offerings would put us farther away from being able to pay our mortgage, but I wrote out the information for our bank card anyway. I gave it to my husband to put in the amount. The Lord has provided a way for us to pay our mortgage this month. It wasn't a way I prefer, but it worked out. He has also dropped small blessings (that mean SO much to us) in our hands at this time. A friend who I have been helping out gave us some money and has taken us out to eat a couple of times. She keeps telling me what a blessing I am to her, but honestly, she has touched my life just the same. We also won a $100 gift card to Kroger and today I found out that we have some unclaimed money that we knew nothing about. I'm not sure how long it will take to figure out just how much is there, or when we'll be able to get it, but I know, just like with everything else God does, it will be right on time! Thank you Jesus for your faithfulness!

TRYING AGAIN TO GET MY TIME ALONE WITH GOD

Yesterday I posted about my time with the Lord. Well, today I thought I'd try something different. Instead of shutting myself in the bedroom and trying to read and possibly dozing off again, I decided to watch Joyce Meyer on the computer. I thought it was a great idea because it's a beautiful day and the kids were playing outside and my husband was in the shower so no interruptions. Wrong again! 2 minutes and 24 seconds into the broadcast, the front door opens and I hear whining. I go take care of the matter and tell them that I'm trying to watch something important. I come back to the computer. What a great word Joyce had for me today. It was all about suffering. I have definitely had my share of trials and suffering lately. I get cozy and hit the play button again. I'm really getting into what she says and can't believe how much it relates to my life right now. Then suddenly I hear crying. I run back out there and complain that I'm not even able to watch a 20 minute video. Then I feel bad for complaining. Isn't that a huge reason the Israelites took so long to reach the promise land? So the next 4 or 5 times I was interrupted I tried to be a nicer mommy, just being grateful that I have children. Maybe tomorrow I'll just get my some ear phones to drown out all the noise around me so I can focus on Him for 20 minutes or so! ;0) 

If you would like to learn more about Joyce Meyer, you can visit her website by clicking HERE. Have a blessed day everyone!

MY DAILY TIME WITH THE LORD

I try to read my Bible most mornings. My oldest son watches the youngest. I usually put on a cartoon so he'll be content. I go to my room and turn on my fan to try and drown out background noise. I lean up against my pillow on the bed with all my materials around me; my prayer journals, pens, highlighter, notebook, Bible and of course my glass of chocolate milk. I get really comfortable and ask the Holy Spirit to minister to me and ask Jesus to please keep my children quiet and content so that I can spend this quality time with Him. I begin my reading and of course I'm interrupted by a loud AAAAAHHHHHH and some other noises. This is the way it goes most days. Sometimes I just continue to pray for God to calm them down and sometimes I run out to the room they are in and whine about not being able to get my time in with the Lord. 

Lately my children have become a little better at keeping down the noise, but I've ran into another problem. I can't seem to stay awake! I get so comfortable and reading makes me just want to fall asleep. So again I pray to God to help me stay awake and stay focused on Him. Most days I end up nodding off and asking the oldest to watch the youngest just a little longer so I can take a short nap. What's this mom to do? I've thought about trying to get my reading in at night, but I really enjoy starting my day off with the Lord. If you have any tips for me, feel free to leave me a note in the comments.