Promotion Day

Well, today we are celebrating my baby girl's 8th grade promotion. We survived the dreaded middle school years! Thank you, Jesus! These last three years were filled with new friendships, lost friendships, lots of laughs, a few tears, and definitely some life lessons learned...and that was just me. I'm hoping she learned some lessons too.

Now, we are embarking on high school. For my daughter, it’s a brand new exciting adventure. For me, it’s a new set of worries. I’ve always kept her in small Christian schools or sheltered charter schools. At her current school, she wears a very conservative uniform and there are moms present on campus 24-7. But, unfortunately for me, my daughter has never been one who likes small and confined. She wants the big high school experience with more friends, a great sports team, and unknown territories to explore. 

Even as a baby, she refused to be confined. I’d swaddle her like they showed me in the hospital but after a few seconds she’d break one arm free. Two days out of the hospital, I had her swaddled on the couch while I warmed her bottle, the next thing I know I hear crying because she’s rolled right onto the floor. I should have known then that while I enjoy traveling the safe road, my daughter seeks the road less traveled. And all I can do is pray she remembers to invite Jesus on her travels.

One thing I’ve learned about my daughter is that she is very independent and stubborn. My husband and I first saw these qualities displayed when she was two years old. We had taken her to a town festival with inflatable jumpers. She started climbing a jumper with a rope ladder that would take her to the top of a slide. The attendant had advised us to keep her socks on but as soon as she’d make it half way, her feet would slip and she’d come sliding down. Every time it happened, she’d get madder and madder and my husband and I would laugh harder and harder. Terrible, I know. It’s just that she was so stubborn that she would not quit. We kept telling her we could take her to another jumper but she refused. I remember her climbing almost to the top, her little arms shaking as she held on to the rope with all her might, tears rolling down her face, and she’s yelling, “I CAN’T DO IT!” But, she would not let go.  Finally, a smarter mom recommended that we take her socks off so that her feet would stick to jumper. Luckily, that smart mom kept the fact that we were the stupidest and meanest parents in the world to her self. As soon as we took her socks off, she climbed triumphantly to the top. You should have seen the joy and pride on her little face. As she came sailing down the slide into our waiting arms, we cheered and clapped. And then like all good parents, we stood by for the next 15 minutes while she did it over and over again.

These last three years, I’ve watched her learn some tough climbing lessons. Sometimes, I’ve wanted to keep her socks on so she would stay at the bottom with me where it’s safe. But she longs to see the view from the top. She wants the adventure of sliding down, arms held out, and wind in her hair. So, I guess it's time to take her socks off.

At 3 years old, I got a glimpse of her independent spirit. I had taken her to a birthday party for a 4-year old friend. It was a princess party and the children were lining up to receive princess costumes. Because she was youngest, the other children kept cutting in front of her. Well, this did not sit well with Mama Bear so I got in line with her to make sure she got her costume. She looks up at me, points to the sidelines, and in her very serious 3-year old voice says, “You, over there!”

Ouch, talk about an arrow right to the heart. Of course, I stayed right where I was and said, “No. I’m staying here and making sure you get your princess dress.” I guess I know where she gets her stubborn nature from.

Over the years, I’ve seen that same look in her eye, “You, over there.” And originally, when I started writing this blog post I thought that was the direction that God was leading me; that it was time to stand on the sidelines, praying and cheering her on. God reminded me recently, through a little teen crisis involving sobbing and tears, that she still needs me in line with her. She may think at times that she wants me on the sidelines, out of reach, but she still needs me to shoulder some of the weight of the world. What I'm trying to show her is that I'm weak by myself. Most of the time when a crisis hits, I want to curl up into a fetal position. However, through prayer and reading God's Word, I remind myself that my strength comes from the LORD who holds me in the palm of His hand. I want my daughter to see that her strength must come from Him also. 

One of the parents from her sports team told me recently, “I noticed that your daughter always looks for you or her dad after she scores or makes a hit. She wants to make sure that you are watching.” During her little crisis, she told me, “Mom, I was trying to make eye contact with you but you weren’t watching me.”  Oops! My bad.

So, for the next four years my main job is to be alert and watching. Going to all her sports games, attentive and cheering. Keeping watch over her selection of friends. Ensuring she is staying on track with her school work. Keeping her plugged into church, youth group, and praying for her every day. Most importantly, I have to continue to point her to God's Road Map for her life because He is the one who created her. He is the One who numbers every hair on her head (Matthew 10:30), who captures all her tears in His bottle (Psalm 56:8), who hears the secret desires of her heart (Psalm 37:4). He is the One who has gifted her with talents and has the perfect plan for her life (James 1:17; Jeremiah 29:11). He is the One who will keep her safe (Psalm 32:7). Like Hannah turned over Samuel into God's hands, I am turning over my daughter into His hands. (1 Samuel 1:26-28) 

So, LORD, hear my prayer for her: 

Daughter, "you’re blessed when you stay on course, walking steadily on the road revealed by God. You’re blessed when you follow His directions, doing your best to find Him. That’s right—you don’t go off on your own; you walk straight along the road He set. God, prescribes the right way to live; now He expect us (you and me) to live it.

Oh, daughter that your steps might be steady, keeping to the course God set; then you’d never have any regrets in comparing your life with His counsel.
I thank you, LORD, for speaking straight from Your heart; help her to learn the pattern of Your righteous ways.
Help her to do what You tell her to do; don’t ever walk off and leave her.

Daughter, how can a young person live a clean life?
By carefully reading the map of God’s Word.
Be single-minded in your pursuit of God; don’t miss the road signs He’s posted.
Bank God’s promises in the vault of my heart so you won’t sin yourself bankrupt.
Oh blessed, God; train my daughter in Your ways of wise living.
Help her to transfer to her lips all the counsel that comes from Your mouth; 
Help her delight far more in what You tell her about living than in gathering a pile of riches.
Help her to ponder every morsel of wisdom from You.
Help her attentively watch how You’ve done it.
Help her to relish everything You’ve told us of life, so that she will never forget a word of it." (taken from Psalm 119:1-16 MSG)

Daughter, I love you more than words can write. In this new exciting adventure, keep your eyes focused on Jesus and keep climbing closer and closer into His loving arms.

Love, 
Your Mom

Rend Your Hearts - National Day of Prayer 2016

So, I woke up at 3:11 am again. It’s always the same time. Always the same divine appointment with God. Sometimes the appointment is to pray for a particular person, sometimes for those being persecuted for their faith, but today for my nation. Today is the National Day of Prayer, and if there was ever a year that my country needed prayer, it’s this year.

The economy is a mess. Don’t bother listening to the media and “powers that be” read you a fairy-tale that it’s all good. Talk to your friends and neighbors who are out of work. Drive down your street and see all the retail stores closing. See the increase in homelessness in your town. Be attentive to the increased crime rate in your neighborhood. So yeah, the economy is in trouble.

Our nation is divided - family, friends, and neighbors fighting one another.

Our moral compass has been shattered. East is now west. North is now south.

The political correctness vigilantes are marching down the streets doing their best to silence the masses.

The world is at war with an enemy we won’t name for fear of offending.

And some of our "best and brightest", well they can quote you the latest celebrity gossip statistics, but they can’t tell you who the current Vice President is, who won the Civil War, and what date America got her independence. When they are questioned about why socialism is better than capitalism, they yell curse words and turn over police cars to show the rest of us ignorant people what "tolerance" and "open-mindedness" look like. 

So yeah, I’ve been up since 3:11 am and I probably shouldn’t be writing about politics and religion in my sleep-deprived condition. But, I will.

Here is the scripture verse that kept running through my head while I prayed.

 “Rend your heart and not your garments…” Joel 2:13

Rend is defined as to tear as a sign of anger, grief, or despair.

God doesn’t want us to do outward displays, like tearing our clothes in a big pity party or tantrum because things seem to be spiraling faster and faster downward into the abyss of evil. Even though sometimes, I want to tell my Heavenly Dad, “Dad, do I have to adult today? Can’t I just stay under the covers and You can wake me up when it’s all over. Set my alarm clock to the exact time that Jesus is going to return to establish His kingdom. I don’t want to miss that.”

Nope. God was reminding me that He wants my heart torn over the state of our nation, praying for those who are perishing and lost, for those who have rejected Him. He wants my heart torn so that I will remember to pray. In the past, I have prayed that God will give me His heart for the lost, so sometimes at 3:11 am, He'll wake me up to tell me, ""Here's a little taste of my heart today." 

So the first thing I did after I crawled out of bed like the walking dead and got my coffee, was to look up the complete scripture verse Joel 2:13 in the Message Bible. Here is what God wants me to pray today for myself and for the nation I love:

Joel 2:13-14 (MSG)

[Yolanda] Change your life, not just your clothes.
[America] Come back to God, your God.
And here’s why: God is kind and merciful.
He takes a deep breath, puts up with a lot,
This most patient God, extravagant in love,
always ready to cancel catastrophe.
Who knows? Maybe he’ll do it now,
maybe he’ll turn around and show pity.
Maybe, when all’s said and done,
there’ll be blessings full and robust for your God!

So God, thank you for waking me up. Really, thank you! Thank you for reminding me that it’s not over until it’s over. We keep praying. When times seem darkest, we pray in Your light. When times seem hopeless, we pray in Your hope. When Your people are struggling, we pray for Holy Spirit revival.  Because You are kind and merciful, extravagant in love, ready to cancel national catastrophe, and replace it with Your blessing. Forgive us that in our time of prosperity and abundance, we forgot who gave us our blessings. We replaced our worship of the One True God with made-made idols. Bring us to repentance. Rend our hearts. Wake up our Nation today in Jesus Name. Amen!

Love,

Yolanda