Heart Reflections Live

Labels: Books, Christmas, Faith, family

What life-altering news we received today! I had my very first ultra-sound for my current pregnancy today, fully expecting that because of my size, our baby would be coming in November instead of December. My earlier blood test indictated higher levels than normal, and the doctor said that usually meant an earlier due date. She was wrong.

The lady working the ultrasound, said "You're due around the 27th December, the reason you're so big is because there's 2 in there!"

I started laughing almost in disbelief. WE ARE HAVING TWINS!!!!!!- Probably a bit earlier, as I'll need a ceaserean.

God is so amazing!! My Prince Charming didn't come along till I was into my 30's, and we always said we'd like 4 children. To cut a long story short, I didn't know when I conceived Talitha my first child, that my uterus was riddled with giant fibroids, neither did I know that they can make conception very difficult. Unfortunately, my fibroids were the rare kind that could grow along with the baby and also degenerate during pregnancy causing severe pain, and frequent hospitalization over 9 months for pain relief. Talitha ended up stuck in a breech surrounded by these lumps, and was ceasered at 38 weeks- she was perfect.

After much prayer, my hubby and I decided to take the risk of having them cut out a year later (I had 10) , so we could have more children without any complications. I fell pregnant immediately (another miracle), and had Zara less than a year later. Unfortunately, she didn't wait for the surgery date, and was born via a very rapid totally dry birth(mind you, the labour was easy!), leaving me with terrible birth injuries and about 50 stitches inside and out. I nearly died from massive blood loss, but the good news was that my uterus scars remained intact. Unfortunately, it meant that any future births would have to be ceasers. Many people thought I wouldn't try again, but I felt that God wasn't finished with our family, and while I didn't want to wait 4 years, I had to wait for the dizzy spells to stop, which were a result of the haemmorrage leaving me with very low blood pressure.

Eventually without medication, my blood pressure started to come up again, and it is now just below normal.

I am now 40 and expecting twins- another miracle- I've never been on IVF and my surgical history deems this close to an impossibility. My husband decided that this pregnancy would be my last, as our hospitals over here don't like to perform any more than 3 cuts. (Of course if God intervened and I fell pregnant again, then we would refuse a termination, and accept the risk of another cut.) I thought I would only be having 3 children- now God is granting us the 4 we desired.

I just want to encourage you, if you've had to take the surgical route, or if you've had problems with your uterus- don't underestimate God, who knows the desires of your heart, and can still work miracles today.

Glory to His Name!!!!!

Labels: Faith, family

Anyone who knows me personally, or has been reading this blog for any length of time, will know I'm definately an old-fashioned girl at heart. Old days and old ways appeal to me, not just for asthetic reasons, but for the lessons time reveals through long treasured objects, and the family stories of faith, love and sacrifice that often accompany them.

So what is a "Living" Heirloom? By my own definition, a living heirloom is a useful one- an object that was loved, admired and used and is still loved, admired and well used.

In days gone by, most homes were furnished with living heirlooms. Many homes were furnished far more sparsely than many today, and the objects therein were useful and greatly treasured. How different from today's throw-away society, with people chasing after the latest this 'n' that...Heritage is thrown to the wind...

Milestone gifts were also greatly treasured- the baby cup, the glory box (or Hope Chest -U.S readers), the 21st birthday gifts and engagement and wedding presents, which almost always included the Family Bible, used for family devotions and also to record births, deaths and marriages- important information to pass down the family line.

My mother now possesses the family bible given to her parents upon their marriage. My Grandfather faithfully read a chapter and prayed and wrote in his diary most nights. The underlined verses are a testament to his faith. Births, deaths and marriages were faithfully recorded and still are- when the sad news reaches of the passing of another Great Aunt or Uncle from that side of the family.

We have recently acquired our own family bible- of course we've always had our own personal well-worn copies- but now we have a special one for recording family events for our descendants. I also hope to use it for family times around the Word. It's white with gold embossing on the cover( KJV of course!), contains excellent cross-references and paintings by some of the great masters of art. It also has extra reference info in the back. This we hope will be a future living heirloom...

So what other items could be classified as living heirlooms? Picture a home from times past... near the Family Bible sits the sewing box- a piece of beauty, not just used daily for sewing and mending, but greatly admired, not simply of itself, but for the love of the owner whose hard-working hands produced each stitch, often by candle or lamplight...

In the corner stands the Glory Box or Hope Chest, still full of baby clothes till the end of the child bearing years. It came into the marriage with the Bride herself, full of the beautiful hand-worked linens, prepared for her new home and new life...

I must digress a minute to tell of my Maternal Grandmother's Glory Box... It was walnut brown, with a soft floral cushioned seat upon it. After the last baby, it became the keeping place for the family photographs, certificates and other important documents.When their farmhouse dwelling caught fire in the late 1950's, the glory box was the first thing grabbed and carried to safety (after the people were safe that is!). It moved twice more with my Grandparents and was one of the few things taken with them when they moved in with my Greatgrandparents to become their carers. The box, still full of photos and documents, became my seat at their dinner table, when I stayed with them on holidays as a teen. How I loved going through the photos with them on my vacations there! Those same photos are now mine and a precious legacy to share with our children. And the glory box? Well... the glory box that kept the family treasures so practically was , very practically sold to an antique dealer, in accordance with my grandmother's wishes to help keep her in her old-age as she moved into a hostel for the final chapter of a life well lived... That book is now closed, but I still remember her glory box when I look at mine ( very different in appearance, but the same in purpose) given to me by my Dad on my 19th birthday. It's still in the baby clothes phase. When our daughters are older(maybe between 12 and 16) we hope to give them glory boxes as a tangible symbol of waiting on the Lord for His best as we teach them Courtship (Our childen will not "date"!). A scripture comes to mind as I gaze at my glory box, Teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom" Psalm 90:12.

In our home, a clock, a sewing box, an antique tablecloth and lace runners, a hand-held mirror, bone handled knife sharpener and various other items are all living heirlooms that are loved and used. As my hands touch them I am constantly reminded of lives well lived, the faith of the former owners, and the constant ticking of time that compels me to number my days, live for the Lord, and to live in the moment no matter what I am doing.Time and life are precious. I don't want to waste a moment wallowing in self pity or fear of the future. God holds our future in His hands...

This is the way, walk ye in it...

Labels: Christian Heritage, Faith, family history, family life

Oh my, what wonderful lessons I'm learning as a full-time wife and Mama, and now a homeschooling one as well.

Life is wonderful, though often challenging and not always easy. Homeschooling is a dream come true for me (though we are still trialling it) and I'm seriously loving it, even with a very strong-willed but intelligent 6 year old student. She can be so incredibly passionate- worshipping the Lord with all her little being, working hard to learn her hymns and memory verses one minute, learning to read simple books in 3 weeks, and then falling prey to her sin-nature (flesh) the next and struggling with basic obedience the next in a more mundane task... But she is so precious and loving and she's OURS for now to train up and be disciplined in the ways of the Lord- what a priveledge!!! It's our hope and prayer that her passionate nature will be used for the glory of God.

Homeschooling is a wonderful lifestyle, but it's Mama training and character training for me too. (STOP PRESS: Our children have a friend from church over, and they are happily banging pots and pans, marching around the living room VERY LOUDLY- Praise the Lord!!!)Those pressure cooker moments are the perfect place for me to be and for the sweet Lord to bring me face to face with my own short-comings and sinfulness.

I consider it sinful if I lose my temper with my children, when bringing correction. There is nothing so ugly as a Mum yelling at her children. I believe this firmly, and yet I still lose it at times and am so aware of my sin, my bad example and my need of Grace. I desire my children to see less of me and more of Christ. And yet these moments are perfect for demonstrating in lack of a perfect example, an honest repentant heart, and what person on the face of the earth doesn't need to learn this.

Just yesterday I was about to do a cooking lesson with Miss 6, when Miss 4 woke up from her nap. I agreed to let her help, but I was stressing inwardly about the time, as we were expecting people over after dinner, and I was really pushed for time. Miss 6 was doing well and I decided to let Miss 4 help measure the ingredients, as she is good at this, quite tidy and loves to help. Miss 4 had just completed a lovely neat job with the flour, and then triumphantly flicked the scoop into the air, along with a heap of flour onto the already cleaned carpet. The volcano erupted!! (Now I know why Psalm 37 says fretting leads to evil...) I apologized for my outburst feeling ashamed and asked for forgiveness- and our little treasures are soooo forgiving. Happy she had finished her job, Miss 4 went off to play. Still disappointed by my outburst, I said to Miss 6, "I feel awful having snapped at Zara like that..." "Never mind, Mummy", she said. God will forgive you!".

Thank God for grace and for the precious gift of His Son. I thank Him for the pressure cooker moments as much as the peaceful and easy days. They all keep me close to Him. And GRACE is the seasoning that brings perfect peace even in the pressure cooker!

Labels: Faith, family life, homeschooling, keeper at home

What a weekend we have just lived through! It started off nice and peacefully. I was enjoying my weekly sewing lesson with our neighbour, Pat, and listening to the joyful sounds of our children helping their Daddy in the garden. I came back home through our back door, delighted by the sight of 2 of our home-grown roses arranged beautifully in our crystal vase on the dining table.

Hubby had indeed been very busy in the garden for a couple of days. The weather had been lovely and fine, but not too hot, after extended periods of much rain. I began to prepare lunch, the children came up, and then I heard my darling hubby scream in pain and he came running inside for an ice pack. He'd been pruning bushes and had totally forgotten about a large hornet or wasp nest that had been hidden on the inside of it.

The ice took the swelling down somewhat straight away, and the pain eased after about 5 minutes. He'd been badly stung 3 or 4 times. Saturday night/Sunday morning, he awoke between 4 and 5 am with tachecardia, he checked himself with his stethascope, and as he did so his heart slipped into A.F.: time for the ambulance... and to pray up for his 23rd cardio-inversion. I sat with him as we waited for the ambulance, and not considering the stings, I said, "I hope it wasn't the spaghetti and meatballs I cooked for tea!" Sounds weird, I know, but food poisoning can set this off in Max's body too- his heart conditions are extremely rare and unusual...

Just the week before, I had asked him, "What do we do about church on Sunday, if you fall ill on a Saturday night?" "Carry on as normal" he said, "And call Michael to be on standby to preach if the hospital won't discharge me in time." Well, now I was living the scenario I hoped would never happen! I stayed up praying for hubby and for wisdom, contacted Micheal and arranged for him to pick up most of equipment and the hall keys to set up while we went to the hospital. Thankfully hubby was "fixed" heartwise- (again)- no-one at the hospital believed that the stings could have played any part in it and they didn't pay much attention to it. After a quick drive home for a change of clothes and a last minute job on the laptop, we arrived just in time for communion and for hubby to preach- still with his circles stuck on him from the hospital!!! That's dedication!!

He still wasn't feeling too well that afternoon, and the hand began to swell badly again. After praying he managed a restful night's sleep but went to our local GP to get the swelling looked at. She removed a sting and sent him home with some antihistamine tablets and cream AND the firm opinion that the poison caused his heart emergency, as he had no other warning signs this time...

This afternoon I drove him passed the wasp nest, and he took dominion over it with a can of spray- from the car for safety- then I drove around the house so we could enter safely in the back door. We hope that's the last of the wasps or hornets we see around here for a long time.

HORNETS BEWARE- YOU CAN'T STOP MY HUBBY FROM PREACHING!!!

Labels: Faith, family life, testing times

Labels: Faith, family, food for thought

Labels: Christian Witness, Faith, Quote

Labels: Faith, Poetry, Quote

Little Zara, aged 3, had gone outside to play and since she was being especially quiet, I thought I had better check on her.

I opened our front door, saw her shoes and socks on the steps, and there was Zara sitting very quietly, barefoot, knees to chest, peacefully gazing around.

"What are you doing, Dear-one?," I asked.

• Zara replied, "I'm looking at the ants, flowers, clouds, birds and all the beautiful things God made. And I am having my quiet time."

I left her gazing reverently around, my heart full and thankful.

For those who know us personally, doesn't this sweet print look so much like our Zara Hope.

Labels: everyday life lessons, Faith, family, Zara

In July, we began, with the Lord's leading, a small Church in the town where we live. (And God is blessing us mightily!).

The week after we began, our little girls built.... A CATHEDRAL!!!

Out of Duplo! And they played "Church" with it for a couple of weeks.

It is my earnest prayer, that our family's Faith in Christ would truly enlarge and deepen with every generation...

Labels: church, Faith, family, family fun, family life, generations, Talitha, Zara

For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,

Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

-King James Bible

Labels: admonition, Bible, Christian Witness, Faith, God's standards, holiness, Quote

I've spent the last couple of days conquering Mt Everest, which had slowly been transferring its location from the laundry to the bedroom-sheets, towels, & clothes & underwear for a family of 4. You see, despite the drought, it's been raining heavily & near constantly for about a week & a half up where we live & no we don't have a dryer.

Despite the rain, I kept up with as much laundry as I could, using my Mum's dryer once, putting non-urgent stuff outside (some of it got REALLY clean!), making a clothes line in the laundry & putting some items on our enamel rack in the sunroom, or in front of the fan. When we finally got a day & a half of sunshine, I dried about 3 loads-hence the growing pile in our bedroom.
I've never been fond of the look of a laundry pile in one's home, so I usually try to keep up on it-If I can't it "hides" in a bucket in a corner of our room. So I had a very busy day, washing & folding & putting things to be ironed in a basket. (Lest anyone be tempted to think I'm a perfect housewife, I rarely see the bottom of this, as we tend to wear dress up type clothes most of the time & the girls & I prefer wearing dresses & skirts most of the time- if you catch us in tracksuit pants or the like-it's been a bad week!)

But believe it or not I was so greatful to God for this sorting job on our bed! To me it represented His goodness in that He was gracious enough to fill our tank to overflowing repeatedly-we are on tank water alone-& that He provided sufficient sunshine when needed for me to get nearly all the remaining washing done. I think if I had a constant supply of town water & a clothes dryer these aspects of His providence would probably be taken for granted. I can really see why in the old days peoples faith in God was so active & strong- it had to be! Times of need can be very good for us Spiritually.

Just as our clothes can smell from being stored damp in the laundry pile, without the washing of water & warm sunshine to dry them, so too we can smell spiritually & become stale in our Christian life without the washing of water by the Word, Jesus forgiving our sins & us just loving Him as we bathe in His Sonshine & enjoy His presence. I often think how "happy" a line of washing looks, dancing in the wind & sunshine & how lovely & fresh it smells when you bring it in.

Sometimes I have days when I feel I learn more about God, just by reading His Word & being a Mum, than the 4 years part-time that I put into Bible college before I married.God is always welcome to teach me lessons as I work for Him in our home- it makes each little labour so much more exciting!!

Labels: Faith, God's Providence, housework