Just call me Fred

I like it that my kids enjoy the same sort of music I do and are happy to listen to Christian CDs in the car. I wasnt sure what Josh (4) was requesting when he asked for the "Fred" song. Until he sang to me these lines off a WOW Worship CD, that particular version by Phillips, Craig & Dean.

"I am a friend of God
I am a friend of God
I am a friend of God
He calls me Fred"

Well at least we have a conversation topic!- starting with, "Do you think if God is your friend he would know your name?"

By the way, thanks to Grandpa for the occasional use of "Fred" as a term of endearment.

White Rose

On Saturday I went with a couple of friends to Coral Coast Christian Church for their 10th Annual Mothers Day Dinner. It was awesome, especially due to their guest presenter and our table companion, Aliki Flodine. I so appreciate people who can share truths about God in real and relevant ways and make people want to go deeper in their relationship with Jesus. Its what I want to do by sharing stories from everyday life (though my 'everyday' seems to come more under the category of random and crazy), and its what Aliki does amazingly well.

As a gift from the evening, and to fit in with the black and white theme of the night, we all received a white rose. It was beautiful and had a lovely scent. When I got home I put it gently on the bench and the next morning Bryce put it in a nice vase so we could enjoy it. It continued to open over the next few days and is still a lovely centrepiece on our dining table.

I was at a friends place tonight who joined me on Saturday and saw her rose blending in very nicely with her black and white theme, but looking a tad tired as it had been out of water for 4 days. We both received the same rose, but its impact and beauty changed because of what we did with it.

I think the same can be said about what we take away from special events such as the Mothers Day Evening. Everybody receives the same encouragement, inspiration and challenge, and many will speak highly of the event in the same way, but unless you nurture what you have received, it will lose its beauty and impact very quickly.

Our meals this week are flavoured with the scent of the rose, and I pray that not only will my year be flavoured by the characteristics of God that were put in a new light, but that my life will be flavoured by my daily meeting with Him so that it brings beauty into the lives of others, and maybe even makes an impact for eternity.

What are you doing with your rose?

Pass It On

We pass on lots of things as mothers. Genetic material, mannerisms, attitudes and values and also our attitude towards God – our faith. Some of what we pass on is unintentional but passing on our faith needs to be one of the most intentional things we do as mothers.

I asked Hannah what a mother was for and she said

For taking us to school

Making food

Looking after us when we are sick

Praying

Doing my hair up

(when I asked is there anything else she said, "yeah, making breakfast, making lunch, making morning tea")

With a little bit more prompting she added

Loving us

Teaching us stuff

Helping us to be good

God has given us, through His Holy Spirit working in us

The ability to influence others

The ability to love unconditionally and

The ability to be self disciplined.

As Hannah put it - “to teach us stuff, to love us, and to help us be good”

And that is not just for us, it is for us to pass on to others. Wanna know how to do that? With Relationship, Relevance and Reality.

RELATIONSHIP - Eagerly seek to discover, embrace and pursue a deepening intimacy with God

RELEVANCE - Have an active visible connection between belief and everyday living

REALITY - Use your gifts to serve God, the church and the wider community

There is so much more to say there, but Ill leave you with that for the moment. Its 5am and I have already been up for 3 hours. I guess thats the 'looking after us when we are sick' part. Today Josh has his second ear operation. Not major, but major for us, you know? He has had an ear infection behind his ear drum since January. This is the next step in trying to help it to heal. And all we can do is leave it in the hands of the One who thought to use the tiniest bone in the body to give one of the greatest gifts of all - hearing.

And Speaking of gifts... you should definitely go visit these two blogging sisters who are giving US presents for THEIR blogaversaries!