grace
So for over 2 weeks our family has had to re-adjust to lice occupation '12. every day we are doing laundrey, cleaning, and going through hair.
there have been a few low points. moments where you want to just roll your eyes. that you really do not want to pick through each other's hair one more minute. where you look and see that Sophia has pulled out every Kleenex because you were not watching, as you focused on finishing Claire's hair. lots of sighs.
and starting at the beginning, my thoughts at first were- "Ok, God i can do this. but please can this be a one-time-deal...like remember when we had lice? please don't let this be an every year thing". as things really had to be pushed aside in order to compensate for the time vacuum this ordeal is/was...i was trying to be cheerful and positive and not overwhelmed.
then one day it all collided and i felt it. the stress peaking, the feeling of o-my-goodness how can i do this...of feeling more snappy than loving and full of grace...i was not even 1/4 of the way with Claire's hair and i was 1 1/2 hours in. too many knits.
and naturally i started thinking of ways to prevent this again. of how this will never happen again. but i felt the kind loving gentle push of the Father to actually thank Him for our lives. and ask for grace in that very moment. in the knit-picking, neck sore, eyes-seeing-double moment.
what was i to thank Him for?
for living lives that could get lice. for being around people that were doing ministry with street gypsy kids. refugees. for sending Layla to school so she can make friends and be more exposed to Arabic.
lice is a bummer. and psychologically somewhat disturbing. pulling little critters off your head is not the thing you wake up wanting to do. but we love our lives here. and we want to give away the Kingdom all the time to everyone we can..and that means bugs and lice and viruses, colds and missing nap times.
in that moment, i sank deeper into thankfulness. thankful for being able to actually minister and help refugees. to encourage their spirits and to meet practical needs.
thankful for my daughters growing up in such a diverse city and exposed to so many languages ( arabic, french, english and dutch!)
thankful for our family and how much fun we have, even if it is sitting over one another and picking knits out. ( drew's comment : it is kind of just like cuddling. ha!)
thankful for the amazing lebanese food that makes our lives more healthy.
thankful for friendship. for commitment and challenge and speaking truth to one another. and helping each other out.
thankful that we have an beautiful treasure-of-a-park nearby. gift from God.
thankful for 2 year old brains that pick out their own clothes. and shoes. and dress "all by myself"and the delight it brings me.
thankful for a music class that i can take my littles to, so fun to watch creativity and song fill them with wonder.
thankful that i am able to stay at home with my girls, but in the same time, live a life full of purpose and vision. of having lebanese over to just bless them and love them.
Sophia joining in on a DBS
Thankful for fiery lebanese friends who want to share Jesus with others. who inspire me with their boldness.
Thankful for lebanese friends. for real-deal hilarious, fun, wild, silly friends. they speak to a need deep in my heart. i have always loved having friends. and let's be honest, i have always loved having lots of friends. and man, i love having some of these go-to gals that make me laugh, want to hang, want to talk deep, want to process and debrief. it is such a gift.
Thankful for girls and all that they bring. dress up and tea parties and dolls and make believe.
Thankful for friends who will be spontaneous with us! we piled in the car and went down town for lebanese appetizers! it was the best choice ever. and Claire rode a bike all around. it was a very lebanese evening. =)
(The whole time she was asking , as a princess, when she could go to the castle. this was the castle. i told her that all the princesses were sleeping and that it was late. but she really and i mean really wanted to find her prince in the castle. )
(upset that we were not going in.)
Thankful for retreat's to the mountain. they breathe fresh life into our blood!!
Thankful for exposure. thankful that my girls are being exposed to a totally different culture and way of life. thankful for they way that i get to guide and shepherd them in this life of ours.
so yeah...this overwhelmed mama is learning how to sink deep into grace in the moments that are time consuming and frustrating but there is no other choice!
there have been a few low points. moments where you want to just roll your eyes. that you really do not want to pick through each other's hair one more minute. where you look and see that Sophia has pulled out every Kleenex because you were not watching, as you focused on finishing Claire's hair. lots of sighs.
and starting at the beginning, my thoughts at first were- "Ok, God i can do this. but please can this be a one-time-deal...like remember when we had lice? please don't let this be an every year thing". as things really had to be pushed aside in order to compensate for the time vacuum this ordeal is/was...i was trying to be cheerful and positive and not overwhelmed.
then one day it all collided and i felt it. the stress peaking, the feeling of o-my-goodness how can i do this...of feeling more snappy than loving and full of grace...i was not even 1/4 of the way with Claire's hair and i was 1 1/2 hours in. too many knits.
and naturally i started thinking of ways to prevent this again. of how this will never happen again. but i felt the kind loving gentle push of the Father to actually thank Him for our lives. and ask for grace in that very moment. in the knit-picking, neck sore, eyes-seeing-double moment.
what was i to thank Him for?
for living lives that could get lice. for being around people that were doing ministry with street gypsy kids. refugees. for sending Layla to school so she can make friends and be more exposed to Arabic.
lice is a bummer. and psychologically somewhat disturbing. pulling little critters off your head is not the thing you wake up wanting to do. but we love our lives here. and we want to give away the Kingdom all the time to everyone we can..and that means bugs and lice and viruses, colds and missing nap times.
in that moment, i sank deeper into thankfulness. thankful for being able to actually minister and help refugees. to encourage their spirits and to meet practical needs.
thankful for my daughters growing up in such a diverse city and exposed to so many languages ( arabic, french, english and dutch!)
thankful for our family and how much fun we have, even if it is sitting over one another and picking knits out. ( drew's comment : it is kind of just like cuddling. ha!)
thankful for the amazing lebanese food that makes our lives more healthy.
thankful for friendship. for commitment and challenge and speaking truth to one another. and helping each other out.
thankful that we have an beautiful treasure-of-a-park nearby. gift from God.
thankful for 2 year old brains that pick out their own clothes. and shoes. and dress "all by myself"and the delight it brings me.
thankful for a music class that i can take my littles to, so fun to watch creativity and song fill them with wonder.
thankful that i am able to stay at home with my girls, but in the same time, live a life full of purpose and vision. of having lebanese over to just bless them and love them.
Sophia joining in on a DBS
Thankful for fiery lebanese friends who want to share Jesus with others. who inspire me with their boldness.
Thankful for lebanese friends. for real-deal hilarious, fun, wild, silly friends. they speak to a need deep in my heart. i have always loved having friends. and let's be honest, i have always loved having lots of friends. and man, i love having some of these go-to gals that make me laugh, want to hang, want to talk deep, want to process and debrief. it is such a gift.
(The whole time she was asking , as a princess, when she could go to the castle. this was the castle. i told her that all the princesses were sleeping and that it was late. but she really and i mean really wanted to find her prince in the castle. )
Thankful for retreat's to the mountain. they breathe fresh life into our blood!!
so yeah...this overwhelmed mama is learning how to sink deep into grace in the moments that are time consuming and frustrating but there is no other choice!
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