My current “it” song. It really ministers to me.
For the lyrics click here.
And according to her website Tammy Trent (the singer) will be heading here (Singapore) end of October, this year! Scroll down at her Tour Dates for more details.
Serendipity!
ser·en·dip·i·ty 1. The faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident. 2. The fact or occurrence of such discoveries. 3. An instance of making such a discovery.
We found ourselves at Bras Basah this afternoon and being there I just had to visit the Children’s Bookstore. While the range of books was not as exciting as before I was so, SO thrilled to find Guji Guji on one of its shelves. We (kids and I) absolutely LOVE this story we found over at Storyline Online.
Guji Guji is a story about a crocodile who was brought up as a duck. One day Guji Guji is confronted with the question of his identity and where he belongs - is it with a group of mean crocodiles he just met or with the ducks he grew up with? A very lovely engaging story that will make you smile, warm your heart and teach you about identity, loyalty, and what it really means to be a family.
And guess what? It was selling at only SGD5.60 (SGD8.00 less 30%) per copy! A hardcover copy mind you! I grabbed a few copies as they’d make excellent gifts. I suggest you’d better hurry over there and grab a few too before they run out of stock! (Screams kiasu doesn’t it?)
More serendipity…
While I was at the Children’s Bookstore with the kids Hubby had to pay his pilgrimage to Tecman (a Christian bookshop). Not long later he scurried back to tell me that Tecman was having a 40% storewide sale for members (you can sign up on the spot for only SGD6.00). So we headed that way, kids and Guji Guji books in tow.
Guess what I found at Tecman?!
The Jesus Storybook Bible: Every Story Whispers His Name. It is the bible storybook. If you’re looking for bible stories for your kids, look no further, get this one. If you already have countless different bible story books for children, you have to get just one more, this one. After reading about it over here I bought one copy via Amazon.com (I couldn’t find it at several bookstores then). I can tell you this, it really is as good as is described. Hubby and I LOVE it because… (this is what is written at the back of the book)
The Jesus Storybook Bible tells the Story beneath all the stories in the Bible. It takes the whole Bible to tell this Story. And at the center of the Story, there is a baby, the Child upon whom everything would depend. From Noah to Moses to King David, every story whispers his name. Jesus is like the missing piece in a puzzle - the piece that makes all the other pieces fit together.
Beautifully written and illustrated. The Jesus Storybook Bible invites children to discover for themselves that Jesus is at the center of God’s great story of salvation - and at the center of their story too.
The sale ends 30 June 2008. So if you’re living in Singapore and you’re reading this before 30 June, stop reading, get dressed and hurry over to Tecman NOW!! Go! Go!! Go!!! Well if you’re reading this after 30 June, take your time but still get over there to get a copy of that book. It is WORTH it. In my opinion ALL Christian families with kids should have a copy. Seriously.
So there you have it, my wonderful unexpected fortunate discoveries of the day. Serendipities!
This song moved me to tears.
As a mother I want my children’s world to be perfect. If not, the closer to perfection the better. I realise in part this is because unconsciously I’ve been subscribing to some degree to the notion that a “successful” life is a “fulfilled” life. Yes I’ve unknowingly believed that if my children are successful in this world they’d be fulfilled. By success here I mean doing well in school, socially, etc.
It is not something I’m proud of as a Christian mom but the truth hit me recently.
Why else would I catch myself at times so saddened by my son’s speech delay? He’s otherwise a healthy, cheerful and well rounded boy. And what if he wasn’t?
“I’m just afraid he may have a hard time adjusting to school or society…” is the usual argument I give myself.
So what? I now realise that a fulfilled life has nothing to do with a “normal life” or a “successful life”. It has to do with how we feel about ourselves. Do we feel valued? Do we know we were intrinsicly made? Our Maker didn’t go “oops, oh dear…” We were beautifully crafted (blemish and all) for a purpose. Our lives are valued and meaningful.
Psalm 139: 13, 14
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
John 10:10
(Jesus said) I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
With this wonderful renewed realisation, whatever unnecessary anxiety I had over my son has gone away. With faith he can lead a fulfilled life and that’s all that really matters.
P/S: This is the link to the song, God’s Will by Martina McBride. Click (More info) on the right hand side of the youtube page for the lyrics to the song.
I will be pondering a lot about forgiveness for days to come thanks to this post. Amazing.
Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?”
Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.–Matthew 18:21, 22
The chicken pox saga in our home is finally over. Phew! We could finally attend church together on Easter Sunday.
Just a quick recap, first Hubby-jr caught it. Two weeks later I caught it despite taking a vaccination jab. Three days later Little Missy was struck. It turned out to be quite an ordeal for Little Missy and me. Chicken pox hit us harder than it did my son as I was (ahem) too far from young and Little Missy on the other spectrum was too young. But in the midst of the ordeal, an unexpected beacon came from my son, Hubby-jr.
When I was stricken with chicken pox…
Hubby-jr: Mommy has chicken pox.
Me: Yes.
Hubby-jr: It’s ok mommy (gently stroking my chicken pox filled face). Mommy will get better. Jesus will heal mommy.
Me: Do you believe so?
Hubby-jr: Yes.
Me: Did you pray for mommy?
Hubby-jr: Yes. (And he decides to pray for me again) Jesus please heal mommy, amen.
Me: Thank you darling.
We had slight variations of this conversation over the next few days. And when my chicken pox starting subsiding, he exclaimed, “mommy is getting better!”
Then when we finally stepped out of the house as a family marking the end of mommy’s quarantine…
Hubby-jr: Mommy has no more chicken pox. Jesus healed mommy.
And without my prompting whatsoever he says, “Thank you Jesus for healing mommy, amen.” It almost brought tears to my eyes.
Me: Did you learn to pray like that in school?
Hubby-jr: No, not yet (he’s expecting them to?), not in school. From mommy.
Me: You learnt to pray from mommy?!
Hubby-jr: Yes!
That left me totally speechless but in an absolutely good way…
… (sorry, I can’t think of how to end this post, just thinking about it still leaves me speechless)…
Luke 2:8-14 (King James Version)
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were so afraid. And the angel said unto them,
Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
Ten more days… and just in case I don’t get a chance to post till then… here’s wishing you a very MERRY (and Blessed) CHRISTMAS!
A number of Sundays ago, I stood in church silently as everyone around me was singing worship songs. I was silent because my heart was stricken with fear. No one else knew, no one but God. My unspoken fears sought the Lord on my behalf.
It was the Sunday of the week I was told my son had to be sedated for a CT Scan. It was the Sunday, a day before the scheduled CT Scan thingy. It wasn’t a risky procedure. But somehow the night before (Saturday night) I remembered stories of people not waking up from anesthesia and suddenly I was gripped with fear. The thought that there was even a remote possibility I might lose my son (at least on earth) really, really scared me.
I told hubby Saturday night itself. He said, “Just trust God.” So I prayed. Still I went to church on Sunday with a quiet heavy burden.
So there I stood silent in church. Then while everyone was singing God spoke to my heart. HE said ”I know how it feels to lose a son, I lost Mine.”
That was all He said and that was all I needed to hear. That simple sentence reminded me that He knows what it’s like to be a parent and He experienced the pain of losing His only son even if it was for just a short while. He KNEW what its like to see His son suffer. He knows my heart as a mother. More than that He loved me and I am His child and so is my son. I can trust our heavenly Father.
My fears dissolved as I drew silent tears. How could I have forgotten that God is a Father? How could I have not realized He understood? And at the same time I was SO grateful. Grateful that He didn’t think my fears were too silly for Him. He took the trouble and made His way to minister to my heart.
Isn’t my God just marvelous? How could I but trust such a God?
I may never know what this life will bring but I know I can always trust the One who gave His only Son for me.
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
I found this simple but very lovely worship song at my friend’s blog. Truly, where would I be if not for HIS grace. HIS amazing, amazing grace.
You can get details and lyrics of the song here.
Have a blessed Sunday.
This is a mime performed by my hubby (yes, my very own other half!) to the song - So You Would Come
The song can be found on the CD - All Things Are Possible: Live Worship From Hillsongs Australia.
Click here for more Wordless Wednesday.
Motherhood started like boot camp for me and when things got better after a year, I thought I could finally cruise through parenting. Boy! Was I wrong?! I’ve had to revise my expectations again and again and AGAIN!
You see I have a quirky son. Most times he is “normal” but certain other times, not so. If you have the time you can read about it here, here and here.
Most recently we discovered that he could possibly be suffering some hearing loss in his left ear which may require a hearing aid. While 70 percent of me has come to terms with this, 30 percent of me is still struggling. It’s hard news to hear. My dream of a “perfect” boy is no longer intact. Part of me is grieving for that loss.
Trust me, I know there are people who are worse off than I am. Trust me, I am thankful that he can still lead a “normal” life. I KNOW. Yet the fact remains that I am only human. I am a normal mommy. I need to grieve my “loss”. Then and only then can I move on, accept it fully and bring up my son as best as I can (with lots of grace from God of course!).
Katherine from Raising Five wrote a very, very beautiful post today on how we should let go of our dreams and embrace our children (and parenting and our husbands) for who they are. If you’ve not been to her blog, you have to TODAY! Like NOW!
These thoughts ministered to me this week as I struggle… God didn’t make a mistake creating my special son. HE not only chose Hubby-jr to be my son, HE chose ME to be his mother. HE will not lead me where HIS grace will not keep me.
And I found this verse that spoke to me of HIS love for little children and their mommies.
Isaiah 40:11 (NKJV) He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, And carry them in His bosom, And gently lead those who are with young.Motherhood is extremely tough (as I’m finding out and am sure will continue to find out) but as Katherine puts it, we will get through it.
