I am back in the Motherhood book this
week. It has been very beneficial for me to switch back and forth
between the two books. The information in each seems to blend well
with the information in the other- which is very interesting as the
two books are not written to go together, in fact they are not even
by the same author. I guess they just each meet me where I am at
right now.
I am also reading the book of Romans
for the first time. Sure I have read parts of it in the past, but I
have never sat down to read it over as a whole. So each morning I
wake up and read a short little devotional, then I dive into my
chapter of Romans for the day. After I have done both of those I
journal on what I read and what it means to me. After my journaling I
shower and pray while I am in there. It makes for a longer relaxing
shower each morning, but I am finding that it starts my day off on
the right foot. If I am calmer and have clearer boundaries my
children seem to naturally be calmer as well. It
is just like Henry Cloud was saying in my reading from last week-
Kids NEED parents with boundaries. They also need parents who are not
hypocritical. If I am expecting them to acting in a certain way then
I darn well better be modeling that for them.
So
this week I read two chapters in the Motherhood
book. I do not try to read everyday because of 2 reasons: 1) I am
super busy but more importantly 2) I want to give myself time to
process through what I read and be able to have it have an impact on
my life, not just a check mark on a list. The two chapters are
entitled: The Mountain Range in Your Backyard and A Base-Camp
Confession. Both chapters were amazing. How wonderful to hear that
other mothers experience the same frustrations, guilt, doubts, and
regret that I do. Julieann Barnhill, the author of this book, calls
this phenomenon Mt. Guiltmore National Park. She assures us that we
are normal but that when we “learn to scale the peaks of Mt
Guiltmore the view is terrific” (p. 19). That rather than stay at
the bottom and allow this mountain to “dominate our landscape, we
can rise above and live where God intended us to- on the plains of
grace and confidence” (P.19). In the second chapter she talks about
the things she has done in her past as a mother that have caused her
to be overwhelmed with guilt. Some of them I have done as well so it
is a comfort to know that the person I am choosing to try to glean
information from has her feet firmly on the ground when it comes to
“I have been there” statements. It is always disheartening to
find out that someone you turned to for help has no knowledge of the
subject and is just spouting of what sounds good.
I am
anxious to get into the rest of the book, but I know that if I try to
rush into the next part that I will overlook something that is
important for me to take in. I want to do this God's way, in God's
time.
It's really interesting to me, Florence, that the tone of this entry seems to be quite different than earlier ones. It appears that what you write about is actually happening! That's nice, huh? Glad you are finding so much help; Romans is a powerful and complicated letter. Good luck with that! :)
ReplyDeleteMy goal is to be the best Florence Annette Wood I can be. I am the only one the world will ever have. While books are a help I always remember that they will never replace the reality of applying what God is teaching me. Those lessons come from a variety of sources and I want to be aware of them regardless of where they come from. Part of becoming the Godly woman He wants me to be is to face the negatives head-on, own them and deal with them. What I blog is where I am at that very moment so it is happening to me in the moment.
ReplyDeleteFiguring out how to live the life that wants to live in me while at the time dealing with children who do not know how to let their lives live in them is daunting. I pray I am up to the challenge!