February Evaluation

Spiritual

• Spend at least 10 minutes praying daily- Yes, this has been done most days
• Spend at least 10 minutes reading and reflecting on the Bible daily- This too has been done most days, though I know not every one
• Memorize verses with the kids - Yes! 
• Memorize Proverbs 31:10-31 and Romans 1 (I hope to add more to it, but this is where I want to start)- I read over Proverbs 31:10-31 and have 10-13 down, still working on getting this in my daily routine

Marriage

• Go out for a date once a month- Yes
• Go on a night away once this year- No, need to figure out when this might be possible
• Read 3 books together this year- We have not started any yet
• Discuss plan weekly on Sunday afternoon- Yes

Kids

• Spend 30 minutes of one on one time with each child every week- I'm still trying to figure out the best way to do this. I know it happened here and there, but still need to plan this better
• Go to playgroup each Tuesday- We have had some crazy weather so we missed at least 1
• Take kids to Science Center or Zoo at least once a month- We made it to the Science Center
• Write in individual journals at least 3 times this year- Wrote in Jamey's for his 5th Birthday
• Finish Jamey's 1st year Scrapbook- Worked on getting my scrap stuff organized so I can do this

Homemaking

• Keep up with cleaning schedule- I'm changing my definition of what this means, so I did this about half the month
• Keep up with my calendar- Did fairly well with this overall, still room for improvement
• Being fully present when with my family- I did not do this as well as I would have liked, but by God's grace I've seen some improvement

Ministry

• Continue to host Women's Prayer once a month- Yes!
• Have at least 4 Childbirth Conversation classes this year- Had my first of the year last Saturday, snow and all. It was a great time of fellowship and encouragement
• Start Childbirth Conversation blog- Yes! It is finally launched. You can check it out here

Personal

• Read a book a month aside from Class material- Yes! I read "Shopping for Time" and "Deadly Disclosures". I also finished "Creative Counterpart" for SWI
• Journal 5 days a week- I think I did this about 2 weeks. This month has been a little rough 
• Write (books) 3 days a week- Nope
• Edit novel to prepare for publishing and research publishing options- I barely touched editing this month. Hoping to get back on it next month
• Complete Childbirth Conversation book- I barely touched this either. Working more on getting the blog going.
• Plan for next novel and write in November- I have done some initial planning!
• Finish Rosetta Stone Russian level 1 and begin Level 2- Rosetta Stone has been giving me some issues so I did not work on this much this month
• Continue to meet once a month with writing group- Yes! 
• Blog 3 days a week- I have definitely averaged that this month and then some!

Health

• Go to water aerobics once a week- Yes!
• Maintain weight until birth- Struggling with this, though not gaining as fast as I usually do
• Lose weight after giving birth

As wonderful and productive as January was, February was difficult. I'm not really sure what happened or where, but this month was tiring and seemed to be more filled with other activities, not allowing me the time I had in January to work on some of my projects. It was not bad at all, most definitely good things, but I need to re-evaluate and see how I can get back on track for March, by God's grace.

Creative Counterpart by Linda Dillow

This book was required for my current SWI class, Marriage and Family. I was pleasantly surprised by this book as it was very straightforward and practical. I cannot say it is the best marriage book I have read, but I have enjoyed hearing from her on how to be a Godly woman, wife and mother. Scripture was the focus, but it included practical application of the Scripture. I wish I could remember better what all I read, but I know that generally speaking I agreed with most of it.

I would give it 4.5 stars out of 5.

Growing Together Spiritually

As Christians in a Christian marriage it is important to grow spiritually, not only as individuals but together. Our faith in Christ is what holds us together and we need to seek Him together. How can we do this?

• Pray together- Prayer connects us to God and to each other. Last week I talked about praying for your husband, and it is just as important to pray with your husband. Praying the Scriptures together, praying for each other and for others together grow us together. Keep track of specific requests that God answers and praise Him together. 
• Encourage each other with the Word- This can take different forms such as reading the Bible together, telling each other Scripture, speaking the Gospel to each other, etc. The Bible is God's Word, which we know is true. Seek to know the Word together. 
• Go to church together- Be united in where you are going to church and seek where God wants to use you. Be committed to going to church every week to worship and serve together. 
• Be in fellowship with other believers- Aside from gathering with the Body to worship, we need to be around other believers regularly. This takes different forms, but seek to be in fellowship times other than Sunday morning and Wednesday night (or whatever night your church has activities). And remember to have fun with them. Sometimes I forget this one! We are living life together so enjoy being with other believers.
• Seek to share the Gospel together- This will look different in different seasons. As parents we should always be sharing the Gospel with our kids. We should also be seeking to share the Gospel with those around us whether it is friends or co-workers. Have people in your home and be intentional about sharing and showing the love of Christ.
• Serve together- This will also look different, but find out where your gifts are best suited and serve in ministry together with your local church. This is being the Body.

These are just a few ways you can seek to grow spiritually together. God desires for spouses to be one completely, including spiritually. Have good conversations and seek how to grow regularly in this area.

The World Will Hate Us

"If the world hates you, keep in mind it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not  belong to the world but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me. If I had not come and spoken to them they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin. He who hates me hates my Father as well. If I had not done among them that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. But now they have seen these miracles, and yet they have hated both Me and My Father. But this is to fulfill what is written in their Law: 'They hated me without reason.'

When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, He will testify about Me. And you also must testify, for you have been with Me from the beginning."

John 15:18-27

This is such an important passage for believers to know and understand. When God calls us to His Kingdom, we are no longer of the world; we are of God. Because we are of God's Kingdom, the world hates us because it hates God. If we are living the way that God calls us to live in Christ, then we will be hated by the world. 

This means that we will suffer in this world because of the hatred. Because we belong to Jesus, who suffered far more than we can even begin to understand, we can embrace suffering and use it to point people to Jesus. 

Cling to the cross and the eternal Kingdom to come. 

Also, make sure that the world hates you because of Jesus and not because of you. Seek first God's Kingdom.

Jamey Is 5!

It's hard to believe that 5 years ago today I gave birth to my first born, my handsome boy James Marshall Jr. Our family has been so blessed by his life. It is amazing to watch him grow and learn and discover who he is as well as who he is becoming.

Jamey loves to learn. Bible, history, reading, writing, math, spelling, geography you name it he wants to know it. His favorite time of the day is school. When we have a short day he makes sure he tells us what we missed. He loves to sing his Bible verse songs and dance to them.


Jamey loves to laugh and finds any opportunity to be silly. He loves his Daddy. He often thinks he is in charge and will "parent" his siblings. He loves to play "the dance game" and is beginning to get really good at it. He loves to wrestle with Jim and Reuben and is beginning to teach Gabriel how to wrestle. (The word gentle is still a little foreign.) This past week Jamey has learned how to whistle and is enjoying practicing and improving this skill. He is beginning to develop his sense of style and figuring out who he is. With that he is quite opinionated.

Jamey is just fun! Seriously. Some days he drives us crazy since he has strong genes, is the first born and is too smart for his own good, but generally speaking he is so much fun to be around. It is such a pleasure being able to teach him, raise him, and do our best to show him Godliness. We are constantly reminded that he is only in our home, under our care for a short time and will all too quickly be out in the world. We realize how much we still need to teach him and praying that God will show Jamey His goodness and grace through us every day.

Father, God, Thank You so much for Jamey's life. Thank You for giving us 5 years with him. We pray you will continue to work in his life, teaching him Your truth, convicting him of sin and saving him by Your grace. Help us to be the parents we need to be, to teach him everything we know about You and a love and trust for you. Draw Jamey to Your side and show him Your unfailing love.

Deadly Disclosures by Julie Cave

I was pleasantly surprised by this piece of Christian fiction. Sometimes you do not know what you will get. It is very well written and clean but still has the thrill of the chase and personal struggle. I would not call it excellent, but it is a good and interesting read. It shows the corruptness of the world in a tasteful yet realistic way. I also enjoyed seeing two extreme sides battle as the facts of the case came to light. I was even able to learn a few things. I appreciate the clear Gospel message that is present throughout. As a writer there were a few things I personally would have tweaked, but those things are personal preference.

I would give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Pray For Your Husband

I am reminded over and over again how important this is, and today I want to share a little about this with you. 

Praying for your husband is the most important thing you can do for him. Why? Because men are designed by God to be the head of their home and Satan desires to attack him. Satan desires to destroy men and keep them from doing their job. Our husbands are always in a battle and we help them to fight by praying for them.

What should you pray for your husband?

• His walk with the Lord, growing closer to Him everyday
• Strength to stand firm in his faith and conviction
• For the Holy Spirit to fill him every moment
• To be the man that God desires for him to be
• Become more Christlike
• To fight sin

I could go on, but you get the idea. With this ask your husband how you can pray for him. What is he struggling with? Where does he need extra support? You have to talk to your husband to know what he needs. Look for Scripture and pray over your husband. 

Make sure you are praying for him and not just about him! I was reminded of this recently and I think this is important as well. We can absolutely talk to God about what is going on with our husband and relationship, but we need to also pray for him. There is a difference. 

Be fervent in prayer for your husband. When we pray we are helping him in the battle. When we pray things happen!

How can you begin praying for your husband today?