We have a choice.
It certainly doesn’t feel like it at times, as so many decisions are being made for us during this pandemic.
But we do have a choice.
We can choose our response, our attitude, our perspective.
Will we bow down to fear and doubt, or will we stand firm in our Heavenly Father’s love, by grace through faith?
A few passages come to mind as I wrestle through the choices I have to make.
“Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him. This is the key to your life. And if you love and obey the Lord, you will live long in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” – Deuteronomy 30:19-20 NLT
“Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” – Joshua 24:14-15 NIV
“So be content with who you are, and don’t put on airs. God’s strong hand is on you; he’ll promote you at the right time. Live carefree before God; he is most careful with you. Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You’re not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It’s the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.” – 1 Peter 5:6-11 MSG
“We have come into an intimate experience with God’s love, and we trust in the love he has for us. God is love! Those who are living in love are living in God, and God lives through them. By living in God, love has been brought to its full expression in us so that we may fearlessly face the day of judgment, because all that Jesus now is, so are we in this world. Love never brings fear, for fear is always related to punishment. But love’s perfection drives the fear of punishment far from our hearts. Whoever walks constantly afraid of punishment has not reached love’s perfection. Our love for others is our grateful response to the love God first demonstrated to us.” – 1 John 4:16-19 TPT
We can choose life. We can choose to serve the Lord. We can choose to stay alert and aware of the enemy’s schemes. We can choose to focus on love.
As always, it is my hope and prayer that you are encouraged today wherever you’re at, physically and spiritually. God is with you, and He is turning to good what the enemy intended for harm.
We were off to a rough start this week, but Day 3 was a turning point for us. A schedule helped us immensely. My kids are older (ranging in age from 6-15) and one has special needs, so this school closure was not the most exciting moment. We are used to our routine. But we have a choice to make.
Time is a gift and I don’t want to waste it.
We’re not aiming for perfection, but we are moving toward growth and love. For us, a schedule helps. It’s a guideline, not a law, and we’re keeping it simple and flexible.
Here’s a sample of ours, and I share it to inspire not compare. You do you! You have a choice to make, to do what’s best for your family in this season.
Kids’ Daily Schedule
7-8am Breakfast, Dressed, Chores
8-9am Reading Hour (Bibles, books, read-aloud)
9-10am Board Games (Educational, together)
10-11am Academic Time (Independent Writing, Math)
11am-12pm Lunch Break, Chores
12-1pm Creative Time (Legos, drawing, music)
1-2pm Research Project/Educational Websites
2-3pm Snack, Outdoors/Walk/Exercise
3-4pm Virtual Zoo, FaceTime Family
4-5pm Independent Screen Time
5-6pm Dinner, Chores
6-7pm Family Time
7-8pm Showers, Bedtime
A few clarifications… my kids have chores that they get paid commission for, but it doesn’t take 3 hours everyday. Some of that chore time is for tidying up, and some of it is spent disinfecting. 🙂
Some of our time is individual, and some of it is spent together. Some of it is broken up more, like two kids write while two kids do math for 30 minutes, and then they switch. We also try to alternate fun activities with academic ones.
Another life-giving tip has been having instrumental worship music playing in the background. It’s calming and peaceful. Here’s one of our favorite playlists on Spotify!
We have our Young Living diffusers going! Laci’s go-to recipe is “No Drama Llama” – 3 drops each of Eucalyptus, Tangerine and Bergamot, plus some Thieves and Tea Tree!
A key for me is sticking with Five To Thrive… I will admit, it’s been hard to get up at 6am, but the days I have it’s been worth it! My family needs me to take care of myself!
There are so many great educational websites out there it’s overwhelming. Here are a few of the ones we’re using…
Getting outside has also been a game changer! I’m not the best at getting my kids outside (praying for a new house with a great yard!), but the fresh air is so important for all of us.
Regardless of how yesterday went, or even the last 5 minutes, there is new mercy available.
“The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!'”- Lamentations 3:22-24 NLT
We don’t have to wait until tomorrow to start over. This moment we can pause and pray, we can turn around and fix our eyes on Him, we can choose to act justly and love mercy and walk humbly with our God.
I wrote the bulk of this blog at 6:30am while on my exercise bike. I’m finishing it up during our Academic Time, but I have to share these two quotes I read in my daily devotionals during our Reading Hour…
“Sometimes in the moments of the most searing pain, we think we don’t have a choice. But we do. It’s in those moments that we make the most important choice: grow or give up. It’s easy to want to give up under the weight of what we’re carrying. It seems sometimes like the only possible choice. But there’s always, always, always another choice, and transformation is waiting for us beyond that choice.” – Shauna Niequist, Savor
“‘He maketh my feet like hinds’ feet.’ Feet that can stand steadily in difficult places, feet that can walk in paths that are like a thread thrown on a precipice, feet that can spring from point to point, not afraid of suddenly having to change direction…” – Amy Carmichael, Edges of His Ways
We always have a choice. We can choose to worry or worship. We can choose to stress or savor.
Let’s choose growth today, trusting that God is with us and He makes a way for us. He helps us stand secure in hard places.
❤
P.S. Emily Ley has put together some amazing blogs for this season as well!
Here are my song suggestions for this week!
- Never Lost by Elevation, covered by Jon Wright
- Desert Song by Hillsong
- I’ll Give Thanks by Housefires
We would love to have you join us online this Sunday via Facebook for Church! 9am and 11:15am EST.
Finally, verses from my kids to bring you comfort and strength!
- “I find rest in God; only He can save me. He is my rock and my salvation. He is my defender; I will not be defeated.” – Psalms 62:1-2 NCV (from Ava)
- “May the God who gives hope fill you with great joy. May you have perfect peace as you trust in him. May the power of the Holy Spirit fill you with hope.” – Romans 15:13 NIRV (from Jackson)
- “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” – Romans 8:38-39 NIV (from Laci)
- “Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” – Psalm 23:6 NIV (from Elijah)
My Race to Run 