The Greater Benefit of No Rescue

My daughter has a fear of bees that prevented her from going outside a lot this summer.  I tried to help her with it by having her pray, "face her fear" but to no avail.  She now loves going outside because the bees are supposed to be gone and dead.  Imagine our surprise when a hornet was on our door today.  She was outside coming in and I heard screams and then hollering for me.  As I went to see what was wrong, she had this horrified look on her face and was looking at the top of the door and said "BEEEEEEEE!!!"  I opened the door a bit and saw the bee was right on top and I tried to knock it down but without luck, without the possibility of it coming in the house.  I was going to "rescue" her and have her go around to the other door in back but the thought occurred to me that this was a great opportunity for her to face this fear on her own.

I told her to kill the bee.  She looked at me like I had lost my mind.  She looked at me with those scared eyes that were seemingly saying, "Mommy, surely won't make me do this."  I will admit, it was HARD for me to do this but I knew that the outcome would benefit her more than me coming to save the day.  She stood out there shaking with fear and refusing to do it but she realized I wasn't coming and I wasn't budging - she was going to do this!

I had her get the broom to knock the bee down in front of her and then told her to quickly stomp it.  Well, she knocked it down and it landed in front of her and she screamed and jumped back.  I kept telling her to step on it but she wouldn't and begged me to come out and do it.  Finally.......she stomped it, all the while screaming and shaking and I told her to do it again....and again.  She then ran inside, crying and continuing to be in a state of fear.  I told her to stop and realize what she had just done!  She faced her fear and killed the bee all by herself.  She kept crying lol.......I told her to stop and that she should be jumping up and down, and then it hit her - she started jumping up and down saying "Thank you Jesus!!"

She was so full of joy, she had to call daddy and then of course grandma to tell them how she was so brave and killed a bee!  It became a time of rejoicing and it was a hurdle that I felt she needed to cross on her own.

It didn't occur to me until later as I retold the story to my husband, how that it must be hard for God sometimes to let us suffer and cry, all the while calling out to Him to help us or deliver us out of a situation.  However, He sees the greater good that will come from letting us stay in the situation and conquer it without rescue.  When we do finally get the victory, He is rejoicing with us; His children.

Think of that next time you wonder why God makes you stay in a certain battle or situation until you conquer it yourself.  He can see the outcome and greater benefit of those times of 'no rescue' - joy comes in the morning!!

Breakfast Casserole

We made this casserole this past weekend and it was VERY good!  The leftovers even tasted good the next day.  The original recipe came from Bob Evans, but I used Jimmy Dean sausage instead.  We give this a 5-star rating!

8 oz tube of crescent rolls
1 lb. sausage
2c shredded mozzarella cheese
4 eggs
3/4c milk
1/4t salt
1/8t pepper

Preheat oven to 425.

Cook sausage into crumbles until done; drain.
Grease 9x13 pan and spread out crescent rolls to cover bottom.  
Sprinkle sausage crumbles and shredded cheese on crescent rolls.
Whisk eggs, milk, salt and pepper together and pour over above mixture.

Bake 15-20 minutes or until eggs are 'set.'  Let sit to cool for a few minutes, then cut and serve.

*You can use 1 cup of thawed frozen hash-browns instead of the crescent rolls.  You can also use bacon or Canadian bacon instead of sausage.

Handmade Baby Gifts

My mom made her first quilt ever for her first grandson.  She thought she did a terrible job, but I don't think so, I love it!  I got it in the mail today and it smelled just like home and I got all emotional and cried.  Tears of missing my childhood home and family and tears that my mom did something so special.



Then, my neighbor from back home hand-knitted some baby items for Zach and they are so precious!


Things My Daughter Says....

Upon stepping out of the car the other night when we got home, my daughter exclaimed:

"Momma! Every time you get out of the car, it goes WAY up!"

Anyone else looking forward to losing weight after having a baby? LOL!  =0  Yes, when I get out of the car, it goes way up and says "ahhh thank you" that it has been relieved of the weight that was bearing it down lol.

What's a Stay-At-Home-Wife To Do All Day?

I had two friends who both have no children and both would echo the same thing, "I'm bored.  There is nothing to do all day at home."  Both have quit God altogether from what I understand.  One is now working on a job that she was doing before she said God called her to be at home.  Her explanation was that all she did at home all day was idle things like being on Facebook and that is what other women do too at home.  I told her I didn't but she said I was self-motivated and "different."  Sorry, but it has nothing to do with me, but rather being motivated by our love for God or else you can be motivated by Satan and the flesh and sit around moaning about how bad it is to be a homemaker.

The question has been asked many times: "What is a stay-at-home-wife supposed to do all day?"  I'm here to answer that. Before I had a child, I had 3 years of just being a wife and homemaker.  It didn't take long to clean my house and make meals because it was just my husband and I.  You want to know what I started to do with my time?  I started to READ!  I read my Bible and many other books on various topics.  I studied for one year on nutrition and continued it later on to advance towards a personal training course, just so that I could know for myself how to lose weight and be healthy.  I read about being a wife, a homemaker and I did some crafting.  I would sometimes read 8 hours a day and it was to the betterment of myself as a wife, woman and homemaker.

A woman who has no children can do a lot!  She can learn all the homemaking skills - canning, sewing, quilting, crafting, etc.  She can read a LOT!  She can write online and share her skills and knowledge with other women to help them.  She can help those in need by cooking or cleaning for them.  She can give to volunteering in the children's program at her church.  She can learn piano or another instrument or teach others how to if she already has this skill.  There are SO many things that she can do, there just isn't time for idleness!

A woman with children has her plate full, especially if she homeschools.  Her job is to her husband AND her children and then her house and there isn't much time left after that.  One of Paul's admonitions for younger women to prevent idleness was having children but sometimes this isn't possible for some women and therefore they must find ways to prevent the idleness that the bible warns about.  This idleness leads to gossip and going from wall to wall in lives full of Facebook or what other outlet you have that leads to being a busybody.  How about a little less talk and a lot more action?

1 Timothy 5:13-14
And withal they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house; and not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which they ought not.  I will therefore that the younger women marry, bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully. 

The excuse was that everyone else is idle and they all just sit on their rump all day at home.  Just because there are some that do that and bring a bad name to homemakers, doesn't mean we all are like that.  We are supposed to all be learning and growing together, not concentrating on those that aren't doing right.  If you do that, you will find the "excuse" you were looking for easily because we are all imperfect.  What the real, bottom-line, reason was for my friend, was that she wanted to work.  She desired the life that God called her out of when she first got saved.  You can't blame it on others,  it is ultimately YOU that has to answer to God.

God has called women to be at home, to love their husband and children, and to guide the house and we should give every ounce of our being to that calling!  Does your life help another keep on going for God or does it encourage them to be slack as well?  Remember, others are watching our lives and we must encourage one another to continue on with good works and edify them with our words and daily lives.  Become the example that could help another keep the faith.