The Porch

Posted on September 3, 2010 by stacey

Penny is a Pastor’s wife and Women’s Minister who is currently serving on staff and alongside her husband at Journey Christian Church in New Orleans, La.  She is the mother of a beautiful 6 year-old girl and very active 3 year-old boy.  She adores her family and considers them her most important ministry!  She has a heart for women to truly know the love of Christ.  She mentors and disciples women in cities dotted across the country and currently writes devotionals that are sent to both men & women coast to coast. I am honored that Penny has said yes to my invitation to spend some time here with us today on the 29lincolnavenue porch.

Want to REALLY know your God?  Learn His many names!

I recently completed a Bible study with the ladies of our church, and it truly transformed the way I pray and even approach my God.

Kay Arthur’s book, Lord I Want To Know You, covers the many Old Testament names of God.  I was truly amazed at how many different names my Lord has!!  We learned that the better we know His names, the better we will know how to communicate and relate to Him.

Think about it… how many names do you have?!

My friends call me Penny, but my closest friends call me Pen.  My children call me Mommy, and my husband calls me Babe.  Kids in the church call me Mrs. Penny and my daughter’s teacher calls me Mrs. Franklin.  I know how to respond, often times by the name that I am called.  Our God is much the same way!

Proverbs 18:10 tells us that, “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe.”  The NAME of the Lord.  How in the world can we run to something that we don’t even know!  I think often times we don’t run to God, because we don’t really know Him!!

In this study, I spent time, really getting to know my God!  At the end of the study I asked all the ladies to take a small note card and write the names we studied with a small “take home phrase” that reminds them of that specific name.

Here’s what I wrote on my card:

Elohim – my Creator who made me fearfully & wonderfully
El Elyon – my sovereign God who handles the whys of life when I can’t
El Roi – You see me, even in my laundry room and care that I’m there
El Shaddai – You nourish me from who You are – You are All-Sufficient
Adonai – You are my Master and therefore I don’t get to say, “God, I can’t or I won’t.”
Yahweh – You are so holy that only to breathe Your name doesn’t live up to Your worthiness.  You are the Self-Existent One and I can exist in You.
Jehovah-jireh – You provided for my eternity, You’ll provide for my life!
Jehovah-rapha – You heal bitterness and turn it into something sweet
Jehovah-nissi – You are my rallying point when I get lost
Jehovah-mekoddishkem – You refresh me and sanctify me all at the same time. I don’t have to live defeated.
Jehovah-shalom – when my life seems unsettled I can have peace in You
Jehovah-sabaoth – You are my mighty Warrior and You win my battles for me
Jehovah-raah – You call me by name and lead me to beautiful places
Jehovah-tsidkenu – You give me the opportunity to make things right with You
Jehovah-shammah – You are here.  When I feel alone – You’re here!  What a view this is no matter where I am.

Thank you so much Penny for this powerful reminder!  My favorite name of God is, “El Roi” the God who sees! I love that He sees me and looks for me each moment of the day.  If you want to read more about Penny and her passion for God’s Word visit her heartfelt blog at Living Above Ministries by clicking the button below.  Please let her know how glad you are that she came by the 29lincolnavenue porch!

Looking Forward,
Posted in The Porch, Uncategorized | 6 Comments

A Life Long Journey

Posted on September 1, 2010 by stacey

Have you ever noticed that when God calls you to do something, very often you can look back and see how He has been preparing your whole life for that one thing?  This has certainly been the case for me.  Today, I am sharing about a work He began in me many years ago.

There has not  been one single thing that led me to homeschooling.  God, truly has had me on a life- long journey. I guess, He knew it would take me that long to prepare my heart for this role.   Looking back I can see snapshots of life that He used to lead me where I am today.  Here are just a couple and what I learned along the way:

Snapshot 1:  I am five years old waiting for the neighborhood girls to come home so we can “play school” in their garage.  They had one pupil, me.  And I was an eager student.  One day, I ran home with my math paper to show my mom my work, and she said, “Did Karol Sue do this for you?”  “No mommy, I did it.  She taught me how.”

Snapshot 2:  In college I was involved with Campus Crusade for Christ and I met a family who had a sweet little boy named Daniel.  I asked Daniel, age 6, “Where do you go to school?” And he pointed to the desk in the corner of their dining room, “I go to school right there.”  Over the course of the next few years, I watched this family homeschool and was amazed at the strong family bond they shared and the character of their children.

Snapshot 3:  As mom of a preschooler, I had the chance to hear author Glenn Shultz  (A Kingdom Education) speak at our church.  He shared passionately about education.  He said, “As a parent you are responsible for the education of your children.  If you choose to put them in a more traditional school situation, you are turning over the ‘teaching’ of your children for that time during the day, but you are still responsible for them.”

Last month I started my 6th year of home school. I  now juggle  a 5th grader, 2nd grader, preschooler and 10 month old.  Life is full. I am completely poured out most days. But, I am grateful to have the opportunity to be their teacher.  The truth is, most days I learn more than they do.  And that has been the biggest surprise so far.  I wonder if I teach enough, train enough, or have enough fun with them.  But a wise friend told me, “You do your best with what you have.  And God will fill in the gaps.  When you are finished they will not lack anything.”  That gives me great hope for the future as the journey really has only just begun!

What about you?  Is there something God has called you to that you can see He has been preparing you for your whole life?  I am so grateful you stopped by today!  Tomorrow, I am looking forward to hearing from a faithful 29lincolnavenue friend who will be guest posting for The Porch!

Today I am linking up with the Homeschool Village!

Looking Forward,
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Parenting On Purpose

Posted on September 1, 2010 by stacey

I don’t know about you, but lately I have found myself in constant motion.  I move from one thing to another – one need to another – until I collapse into bed each night.  Life is moving dreadfully fast. Wasn’t it yesterday that my oldest was sitting in the shopping cart gazing into my eyes?  Now she stands toe to toe with me and meets me eye to eye.  So how in the world do we stop even for just a minute or two and be moms of purpose?  Join me at the MODsquad blog today as I share my heart about praying we will be moms of purpose!

Looking Forward,
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Puberty, Purity, and Being Brave

Posted on August 31, 2010 by stacey

Hello.  My name is Stacey and I am a seasoned indirect communicator.  I say things like this to my kids:

“It would be really great if you would clean your room.”

I hear myself saying this and know that they hear “suggestion” not “instruction.”  It is not hard to understand that 9 times out of 10 they don’t follow through.  As much as I try, my daily speak is very indirect.  Unless, I get angry.  And well, that is for another confession post.

So, when I realized that time was marching onward and my (then) almost 9 year old daughter needed some instructions on puberty, purity and life in general I did what every mom does: I completely freaked out.

After my meltdown, I did the next thing every mom like me does.  I grabbed my dear friend and made her promise to go with me to hear a speaker named Julie Hiramine, of Generations of Virtue.  She actually had a seminar prepared just for me. There were hundreds of other moms there, but make no mistake, it was just for me.  She promised in this one hour seminar to tell you exactly what to say and when to say it to your daughter about the above said subjects.  She even had books that you could buy and use when you were talking at just the right time to your daughter about said subjects.  She has 5 girls.  And I love her.

Since that day, I have for the most part followed Julie’s advice.  And I have to tell you, it has not been nearly as hard as I thought it would be.  She really makes it easy for you to be brave. I think my daughter is not really aware that I am still freaking out on the inside as I’m telling her about the coming wave of womanhood.  That, for sure has been the grace of the Lord.  My hope and prayer is that I can be her go to person for all her questions.  I know, that it is possible and probable that she will go to her friends for advice someday.   But I want to always be her first source.  I am so blessed to be able to do that for her.

Now, go visit Julie and check out her amazing website.  Go be brave.  I’ll be cheering you on!

And be sure to join other MODsquad moms over at the blog today as they link up and share how they are being brave!

Looking Forward,
Posted in Blogs I Love, MODsquad, Parenting | 9 Comments

Multitude Monday

Posted on August 29, 2010 by stacey

Counting 1,000 Gifts….

Fairy School

#444 The chance to be their teacher.

#445 God’s grace to make it through long days filled with lots of questions.

#446 Building on a foundation that is The Rock.

#447 Doing something that takes everything out of me.

#448 Reading aloud great books during lunch.

#449 Sisters who cheer eachother on.

#450 Fairy School.

Do you want to join others who are counting their gifts one by one?  Find out about the Gratitude Community by clicking here.

holy experience

Looking Forward,
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