amos turns 2 today!!!

oh that face! happy birthday to our amos benjamin!!! he turns 2 today & we are sooooooo grateful to the Lord for putting him in our family! we adore this crazy/silly/funny/goofy/loud/feisty/sweet/loving/compassionate little boy & we are soooo happy to celebrate your first birthday in the barker family (although we're pretty sure you turned 2 a few months ago, because you're already bigger than your 2 1/2 year old brother. ;) ) a year ago the barker family only had 4 members & we were preparing to fly to uganda to get our amos. praise the Lord for His goodness & faithfulness to our family!

al 

pampering

i get soooooo weary some days. to the point that i kinda shut down & loose sight of my ministry to 3 little hearts & what's of value. then i start thinking... "if i could only get a few hours by myself. if i could only get a pedicure. if i could only lay in bed & watch a chick flick with some coconut milk ice cream. if i could only go out on a long date with my guy & get away from these crazy boys."

but are those sorts of pampering feeding our souls & giving us what we need to carry on in whatever role the Lord has us in? & don't get me wrong... i'm not AT ALL saying we should NEVER have "fun" pampering, because i'm all about it. but when the "fun" becomes all we do in our free time how will our souls be fed & refreshed & ready to face the next day or moments when we will again be longing for time alone/away? 

His Word & grace keeps us unwavering in our love for Him & our remembrance that He has placed us in this role & He will sustain us! let us cling to Him first & always in our weaknesses & weariness. He is faithful!

"but he said to me, 'my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' therefore i will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me." 2 corinthians 12:9

al

"the gospel in her home" (the gospel revealed)

i grew up in a Christian home. i've known the Lord since i was about 9. i know i've known the Lord all these years, i know i'm chosen, but most of my walk with the Lord has been based on people pleasing/fear of man/works righteousness. most of my serving the Lord was because i wanted to please Him & do things well. i know these 20 years have been a journey & praise the Lord He is not through with me! but there is something about raising & instructing little ones that makes you understand the gospel more! pretty much all day long we talk about the gospel with these 3 cute ones... when we wakeup we read a Bible story together. when they're disciplined we tell them about sin & redemption & forgiveness & we tell them how much they need Jesus. we memorize scripture & catechisms with them. & before bed we read a Bible story again. & in our teaching their hearts... my heart is seeing the story unfold. it's becoming clearer & i'm finding delight in what He's done for us!!!! & i'm wanting to read His Word because i desire it & the story of His good good gospel is making sense. for YEARS i felt awful if i "failed" at my quiet times & felt like i was failing God & failing as a believer. oh but He's not angry, He just wants us to know Him! praise the Lord He doesn't give up on us! He never will! & i'm learning SOOOO much by being a mommy & teacher of our little ones & i want them to know i'm not at all perfect... just a fellow sojourn on this walk (with maybe a little more wisdom) that fails & needs His grace.

thank You gracious & good Lord for revelation through the simple & everyday tasks of being "mommy". may we faithfully raise our boys to know that they NEED You & You are pleased with them & love them regardless of "how well" they do. You are not disappointed, You just want them! keep us from teaching them works righteousness. be honored in our humble, imperfect parenting & home. we need You desperately!

read brit's post & tiff's post.

al

just calm down

i've realized lately that our whole relationship has been waiting for the next thing to happen. let me explain... we've been through numerous trials. my mom was diagnosed with brain cancer the month before we got engaged, we got pregnant a month after we got married, we had our little Caroline Eloise & she was stillborn, we wanted to get pregnant again right away, we bought a house that needed too much work done on it, my mom passed away, we were ever working/living in our home/construction site, we had jude & we had a scare with the size of his head (the Dr. was concerned that it was too big, but it ended up being nothing), we got pregnant again, we had sammy & a few months later felt led to adopt (which was & is an endless journey), mike lost his job & the Lord provided through our parents, there was much uncertainty about where the Lord was leading us next, all 4 of us went to africa for 6 weeks, we got home with amos & we packed our house up & said "goodbye" to our friends & memphis (our home for 8 years) & moved to michigan, we were without a church body & close friends for 6 months while bonding with amos, then we moved to louisville. 

ok... i don't say all of that to throw a pity party or to say "look at how amazing & strong we are" because we have actually been quite weak through all of this. & it is SOOOOOO good for all of us to look back on our "stories" thus far & see the goodness of the Lord & how He's sustained us. 

now after going through so many trials & just now feeling like our family is coming to a place of resting & being fed & built up & a season of "circling the wagons" my tendency is to want to keep myself busy & looking toward the next big thing. but as i posted the other day i'm just learning to delight in my boys. i'm so type A & watched my mom (who was also this way) be soooooo "busy"! but is all of this busyness good or is it draining us & actually making us less effective to the glory of our Lord? 

if you find yourself in this place...

"come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, andyou will find rest for your souls. for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” matthew 11:28-30

al

ps

i'd love to hear where the Lord has you!

resources

we know & are reminded how important & necessary time in the Word is. & goodness i've "known" this my whole life, but i have had a very "works righteousness" relationship with the Lord. i read the Word because i was "supposed to" not because i genuinely desired His very words. & so at age 29 His Word is coming alive. the story of His gospel truth is changing me & i'm desiring change because He is good & i know it! 

here's what my times in the Word look like currently...

i'm using this reading plan, which i really really like!!! most reading plans can be a little overwhelming with how much you actually have to read everyday. this plan is about 3 chapters a day (easy for tired mommies with little ones), 2 from the old testament & 1 from the new testament. the reason they can keep the reading short for each day is that they have you sit & read through a whole book about one a month. & my goal with this reading plan is not actually to read through the Bible in a year, but just to read through it period. ;)

then i'll read through the gospel in a gospel primer. sooooo good for my soul!!!!! we NEED to hear the gospel everyday, if not multiple times a day.

then i'll journal some. 

then in my free time, usually in the evenings, i'll read another book that is usually topical. i really enjoy books on parenting, but i decided to read something a little different with risk is right. i think it's basically an abbreviated version of don't waste your life... super good!

& i'm learning to make prayer part of my daily times & throughout my days to be casting my cares on Him.

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here are a few resources that are so gospel centered & so rich to inform us often as mommies, wives & homemakers!

books:

shepherding a child's heart

give them grace

loving the little years

fit to burst

blogs:

girl talk

femina

Graced to Find Him (guest post)

my goodness i've been so blessed to meet women along the way who have challenged & inspired me in my walk with the Lord. jessica is one of those ladies. the way she loves the Lord & gives herself humbly & freely for her family & others is a blessing to see... even from afar. thank you for sharing with us jessica! enjoy her beautiful writing ladies & be encouraged!

al

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Motherhood dawned on me four years ago today, bringing with it a tidal wave of responsibility and demand. It rearranged my identity and priorities, stole my sleep and all my attention. I remember those first few days after an unexpectedly complicated delivery, leaning over my son’s bed in NICU, his tiny fingers wrapped tightly around mine and tears falling fast and free from my eyes, dripping one by one on his skin so soft and fresh from the womb. The weight of responsibility I felt in those hours took my breath and peaked my senses. I thought if my eyes left him for a moment he would surely die. He needed me, more desperately than any human ever had, and I was in crisis (trying not to show it), wondering if I really had what it took to nurture him well and sustain his fragile life.

The fog and fear that plagued me in those days jolted my spirit like few things have and I was sure in my soul that I was in need of God. I fell hard into him with more tears than words and he was tender and receptive, reminding me that he is constant, never changing, always present, and that He is the giver and sustainer of life, NOT ME.

Right away, I was distinctly aware that all my preconceived notions of what it meant to “meet with God” were being redefined. I often felt I had lost Him in the dizzying and all-consuming task of nurturing new life, but he was as active as ever in and around me. I just needed my eyes and ears to turn toward Him. My most fervent breath-prayer became, “God give me eyes to see and ears to hear (Proverbs 20:12) in the ordinary, outside the sanctuary.” I knew that my sanity and survival in this season was intimately connected to my ability to receive what He was imparting amidst the noise and chaos.

4 pregnancies, a loss and 3 babies later, motherhood has multiplied its volume and demand of my attention. I waiver between soaking in the beauty of my babies, delighting deeply in the touch and scent and sounds of them and their ever-evolving, always-new state of being to feeling suffocated, on edge in the juggle, weary from sleepless nights, and selfishly aching for solitude and time alone. It’s easy to loose sight of God in it all. The chaos often numbs my spirit to His whisper, but when I cry out for sensitivity enough to find Him here, He graces me with the ability to do so.

When I become fixated on His kindness and beauty woven through my day instead of the mountains of laundry, sink full of dishes or endlessly hungry babies with two minute attention spans, I am empowered and filled with joy and zest for life and love. I’m energized to meet the demands of motherhood and nurture my babies well. My anxiety falls at the feet of gratitude. Suddenly, the patter of toddler feet on a hardwood floor, the heavy breath of a slumbering infant on my neck, the calm of country air and chimes dancing to the rhythm of the wind in the distance reaches deeper in me than the cries and screams echoing off my walls. My heart steadily softens as God woos me through the ordinary. I’m rearranged through a profound awareness of my union with Him. I am filled with a sense of being surrounded and inhabited by a power far greater than my own. With Him, in Him and through Him I have all I need and my role of Mom becomes weighty with the agenda of heaven.

My prayer for you and for me today is that our eyes will be lifted to hills and that our ears will be wide-open and receptive to the whisper of the Divine. That we will sense His desire to captivate us and shower us with affection even as we mop filthy floors, mediate fights and fold mounds of laundry. He sees and hears and is attentive to every longing and need we carry.

Count the graces; name them. They are endless.

“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—His eternal power and Divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made.” –Romans 1:20
Jessica

Jessica Willis and her husband, Allen, reside in Hendersonville, TN with their three children: Jonah (4), Eve (21mo) and Sofia (6mo). Jessica holds a Master’s Degree in Professional Counseling from Liberty University and burns with passion for family and women’s issues. She is currently a stay-at-home mom and part-time Alpha Childbirth Instructor, seeking to educate and empower women and their husbands as they intimately engage with God in the Divine dance of creation.

"the gospel in her home" (He delights in us)

oh my tendency is to see my children as "an inconvenience" or "a hassle" or just "part of my to do list". i've heard so many parents complain & treat their children like they wish they didn't have them. like they wish they could live their lives the way it was before they had children. from the moment our children are born we've tried to figure out ways to fit them into OUR routine & how to send them off to someone else to teach & raise them. we're lazy. we don't see how urgent it is that we put our phones/computers/books/sleep/parties/conveniences aside, & disciple & train them. we want to be comfortable & we're selfish. (all of this said, i know there are single moms & working moms that would give much to be with their children more to love on them & train them. i know the Father will show grace to you & your children.)

i know what i'm supposed to do... "slow down" & love on them & delight in them. & i know up until now i've had sweet moments & maybe a few seasons of really delighting in them. even in my moments of sheer delight somewhere in the back of my head i'm thinking, "ok, i have to get back to ______ so i can mark it off my list of things i need to get done today".

just this past week the Father has been solidifying in me how much value there is to deeply loving my boys. this truth is becoming real to me & it's changing my heart! being in every moment WITH them, not just in the same room, but really present! to delight in them!!!! to find joy in just the fact that they exist. they're little humans. they have thoughts & opinions & they will grow into men & husbands & daddies (if the Lord wills) & what i'm doing RIGHT NOW, everyday will affect who they become. oh what joy they are! to just love them! not to look at them like... "ok, i have you & i have to take care of your physical needs & that's cool, but also pretty exhausting & maybe annoying." but loving them because He first loved us! 

our Father... oh He loved us first! & we love out of His love for us. He adores us! He delights in us! He always has, He always will. before the universe was, before we were formed in our mother's womb, He delighted in us. He doesn't love us for anything we can "do" for Him. He doesn't love us because of all we've gone through together.  He didn't think about us & suddenly become annoyed because our sin would send Him to the cross. talk about inconvenient... HE SENT HIS SON TO DIE FOR US! for the sin that we committed when we were in perfect union with Him. He knew we'd sin against Him & He knew He'd have to go to the cross to rescue us from our sin & separation from Him. & yet He delights in US! He loved & loves us just because we exist. He created us & He loves us. we are His people & hallelujah He delights in us! we need Your grace to love them well!!!

"the Lord your God is in your midst 
a mighty one who will save;
He will rejoice over you with gladness;
He will quiet you by His love;
He will exult over you with loud singing." zephaniah 3:17

"for the Lord takes pleasure in his people;

    He adorns the humble with salvation." psalm 149:4

read brit's post & tiff's post.
al

ps
a great article about God's delight in us from desiringgod.org.

fruit

a few things jude has said lately...

we were visiting with friends & he looked at his friend hannah & said, "you know Jesus? He's really good."

he was talking to his aunt shan & said, "aunt shan, Jesus died on the cross for our sins."

last night during family worship he said, "when i be a daddy i will be a Christian & love Jesus."

after he said that mike asked him if he loved Jesus & jude said he did. then mike asked him why he loved Him & he said, "because i love him really much." mike asked him again why he loved Him & jude said, "because he died on the cross for my sins."

HE'S UNDERSTANDING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HE'S SEEING & LOVING OUR LORD!!!!!!!!!!!

jude was saying all that & it made me cry! we are seeing the fruit of our faithfulness & labor! i don't at all want to push him into a relationship with the Lord. i want him to understand what he is choosing & make sure he's putting all the pieces together. we complicate the gospel, but honestly... it is so simple.

we were lost in our sin, Christ came as a baby & lived a life on this earth, He then paid the debt for our sins by dying on the cross & then defeated death by rising from the grave showing that His death was completely sufficient to pay for our sins. & we may now claim Him as our Lord & accept His forgiveness & grace, & know & love Him for eternity!

"and because of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, 'let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.' " 1 Corinthians 1:30-31

He's so so good!

al

lately grams

um wow it's been a few weeks... so enjoy a lot of pictures.

follow me on instagram... @albark

(my account is private so please request to follow).

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1) tower building. he's super into building stuff now! & he's super good at it! 2) my 3 littles are loving crafts lately... watercolors, crayons, markers, stickers, etc. 3) grandmom came for a visit!!! 4) i got to go on a date with my guy! 5) chalk & bikes on a cold day... we're dying to get outside more! 6) old navy shopping by myself one night! yes! 7) dinner. 8) daddy & sammy cuddling after nap time. 9) crazy faces. amos was on "guy night" with daddy. 10) STOP IT!!!! STOP GROWING & STOP BEING SO CUTE!!! 11) rainy day. 12) waffles with our sweet sweet friends the smiths. 13) jude's buddy cecily. 14) i got to see my dad & his wife robin this week. :) 15) finished their tumbling classes & they all got ribbons. that is sammy's embarrassed face. 16) & this is his "cheeeeessseeee" face.

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funny/favorite/current things...

*my soul/spirit feels soooo refreshed from time with dear friends in memphis! we miss those faces!

*MY SISTER LIVES IN MY HOUSE!!!!!!!!! it's like vacation all day long because i get to see her multiple times a day. ;)

*I'M GOING TO NYC TO BE WITH MY SIBLINGS!!!!!!!!!

*jude... "that's a good idea mommy!" when i give him maybe a different idea than the one he had, or i'm just telling him what we're about to do. ;)

*so jude went poo in the potty & then while he was pulling his pants up he said, "that smells horr-ble!" LOL!!!

*sammy's vocabulary is EXPLODING! who is this little boy?! he's growing up way too fast!!! he'll run up to me & hug me & say, "love you too mommy!"

*when i'm trying to help sammy with something & he wants to do it on his own he'll pull away & say, "no, me big boy."

*amos says things the way sammy does... we know who he learns from the most. ;) when he can't figure something out he'll say, "know how to!!!" like he doesn't know how to. ;)

*SOOOOOOOO BLESSED!!!

al

ps

got some lately grams to share?? share your link below!

fit to burst

every mommy &/or soon to be mommy needs to read this book! the chapters are short & simple, which makes it easy for me to read (i don't have a lot of time to read these days). ;) such rich truths in the pages of this book. & such a refreshing/humorous look at being a mommy to little ones & honestly our days are sooooooo funny aren't they?! go buy it right now for yourself or for any mommy of little ones. rachel blogs here. you also need to read rachel's first book.

what books are your reading?

what are some of your favorite parenting/mommy books?

al

adoption & the gospel pt 10

"but Zion said, 'the Lord has forsaken me;

    my Lord has forgotten me.'

'can a woman forget her nursing child,

that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?

even these may forget,

yet I will not forget you.

behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;

your walls are continually before me.' "

isaiah 49:14-16

how could one leave their child? the one that was formed in them & they carried in their womb for months? to abandon a sweet innocent one. one that has done nothing to deserve to be left alone with no one to meet their needs & call mommy & daddy.

but we have sinned & we deserve death. we were separated from our Creator. we had no hope. 

& oh our Father came! He came to a sinful, lost, not at all deserving people to rescue us. we didn't want to be rescued. we didn't know we needed to be rescued. we were abandoned & alone, we were orphans & we were in desperate need of our Father's great love.

He's never abandoned us & He never will! at times it may seem like He's left us alone to suffer & wander on our own, but He hasn't, oh friends, He hasn't! He is near! He is closer than we can see & "feel" at times. He has come to us! He came to dwell with us! He came to save us from death & sin & separation! & He will come again! hallelujah! He has never forgotten us!

(pt 1, pt 2, pt 3, pt 4, pt 5, pt 6, pt 7, pt 8 & pt 9)
al

"the gospel in her home" (He doesn't grow weary)

when the ones i love the most are being testy, whiney, sinning or just annoying me... my first thought is usually, "ah, i'm so tired of their sin. i need 'a break'. i need time for myself. why do they keep committing this same sin over & over. it's wearing me out." very selfish & sinful thoughts. i'm just the same as them. i'm taking it personally that they're sinning. when someone i love is sinning i should be thinking about how i can love them, show them their sin, show them Christ's love & reconcile them to the Lord. loving them graciously is what points them to genuine repentance, not condemnation.

oh my Father does not grow weary of us & our sin. He is grieved by our sins because when we sin we are not experiencing the fullness of His love. when we're in the middle of our sin toward Him, He has already forgiven us. & He embraces us in our repentance immediately. He does not belittle us or even grow weary of us. He is constant. He is steady. He is unchanging. His love for us is great!

oh thank You Lord! thank You for loving this sinful, impatient, unloving, selfish mommy! thank You for having grace on me that i might show that love to the sweet little faces you've placed in our home & the man i adore most on this earth! may i be grieved by their sin toward you, but forgive them by Your grace! oh Your love is sooooo good!

thank you for joining us today friends! read britt's post here.
i'd love to hear your thoughts on all of this!
how can we show our households Christ's love when they sin?
how can we practically not be offended by their sin?
al

those days

oh those days that feel like they'll never end! we're just doing well to get food in hungry bellies & clothes on little naked bodies. yesterday i felt like i accomplished absolutely nothing! i felt like i lacked very much in caring for my little ones' souls, let alone mine. at the end of the day dinner was super late, the house was a mess, laundry was halfway done & i had napped while they napped. i felt like the day was wasted. my husband reminded me of the good good gracious mercy of our Father that is new every morning! & i was reminded that He gives us enough mercy for one day at a time... just enough to handle those 24 hours, not mercy for the whole year. and we look at a "bad day" like our lives will always be miserable & failing. but when i awoke this morning... yesterday was yesterday & today had new mercies from my loving Lord! 

thank You Father! oh You're good to us!

His love is rich & full of forgiveness & grace!

let us have grace for ourselves!

al

family worship

hi friends! i pray your thursday is blessed! i wanted to share what our family worship times look like. above are the books we use each morning/night. 1. truth & grace memory book 2. thoughts that make your heart sing 3. foundation verses 4. operation world 5. the big picture story Bible 6. Jesus storybook Bible

now listen... we are not by any means pros at this. it has taken 4+ years to get where we are & i rejoice that the Lord has graciously taught us & i'm sure it will be ever changing as our kids grow. but for now here's what our times look like...

am:

*while the boys are eating breakfast i read through a story in the big picture story bible (daddy is usually already at school or on his way out the door). the boys REALLY like this Bible because the stories are shorter & there's less text on each page so the pictures are always changing. 

*then we read through a short story about our character or God's character in a book like thoughts that make your heart sing. i LOVE the way sally lloyd jones writes! this book really is more appropriate for older kids, so jude doesn't always get it, but they are learning a lot more than we realize... even if we "think" they're not getting it. 

*then we go through jude's catechism in the truth & grace memory book. we've worked on these with him since he was 2 1/2-3 so he has about 16 of the questions/answers memorized. praise the Lord! a note about catechism... many may think, "aren't we just teaching them words?" "don't we want them to really learn these truths on their own when they are old enough instead of just teaching them words to memorize?" (i actually thought all this before we started. ;) ) i believe it is the same as teaching them how to eat their food or ride a bike or tie their shoes... we are teaching them foundational truths that will stick with them for THE REST OF THEIR LIVES! we take time to teach them what these things mean & we will do so for the rest of our lives, but when they are 12, 14, 16 years old & maybe questioning our world & our God, they will have these truths hidden in their hearts. & just because they know these truths does not mean that we are somehow guaranteeing their salvation... by no means!

*then we go through our memory verses using foundation verses. there's a simple picture that represents the verse on the front of the card & the verse is on the back of the card. again, we have been working on these with jude since he was about 2 1/2-3 & he knows about 13 verses... more than his mommy ever knew at that age. this is a great way for mommies & daddies to memorize scripture as we're teaching our children! ;) 

i have always wanted to be consistent with morning family worship times & i always felt so overwhelmed like i didn't know where to start or how to stay consistent. so i've figured out... if i get the boys settled with their breakfast & i've already eaten something before hand & i keep all the books close by... there's really no reason not to. :)

pm:

*we get the boys all ready for bed & get in bed with them & daddy reads through a story in the big picture story Bible. we love love LOVE the Jesus storybook Bible & believe that every Christian home should own it! ;) but we had been reading through it since jude was born & we decided we needed a change. ;) 

*then daddy tells us about a country or 2 using operation world. the boys have a huge world map on their wall so we point out the countries & show them pictures of what the children that live there look like. then we pray for the people in those countries. 

*then we turn out the lights & lay in bed & sing 2-3 songs together. lately jude's picks have been "Jesus loves me", "there's something about that name" & "we are changed" & he ends up picking those every night... haha. so sometimes we'll say we need to sing some other songs. we think it's so important to teach them the rich truths of hymns so we regularly sing some hymns.

*then mommy gives them kisses & hugs & cleans up the house & daddy tells them a story, prays with them & blesses them, "may the Lord bless you & keep you. may the Lord make His face to shine upon you & be gracious unto you. may the Lord lift up His countenance upon you &..." (the boys chime in) "give you peace".

please don't read all this & be overwhelmed or discouraged. please see this as a resource & i'd love to hear what your family does! 

al

"the gospel in her home" (He doesn't give up)

as jude & i work on learning his letters (& really anything i teach the boys) if he isn't learning it right away or as fast as i'd like. he's struggling with it & he forgets what he's learned & i get frustrated & i want him to learn it the first time, but it doesn't work like that. we have to work at it over & over & over & over again! children learn by repetition & by someone sitting with them & showing them "how". 

so it is with us... our Father GRACIOUSLY teaches us of our sin, our desperate need for Him & His goodness over & over & over & over again. He is never angry or impatient with us. He simply picks us back up & shows us His gospel again. we need Him & can do no good apart from Him. it is His sustaining grace that allows us to not sin & pursue righteousness. 

learning the alphabet is... learning the letters & what they looks like, what sounds they make & then we start putting words together & then eventually we can read books. 

everything we learn is built on something else the Lord has taught us & He stays with us through every step. teaching us & perfecting us. how kind of our God to not just leave us to ourselves. He knows us & never leaves us! He sits with us & works with us until we can move on to the next step. He doesn't sit huffing & puffing & rolling His eyes that we can't get this right. 

our God is gracious!!!!

i rely on the grace of my Father to be patient & steadfast with the boys... & when i'm not i'm simply showing them that mommy needs a Savior too!

read brit's post.

al

informed by the gospel

our lives should always, in everything, be informed by the gospel. 

there are so many things in our lives that pull us away from our Father's good good gospel & push us deeper into this world of worshipping ourselves & our sin. we NEED HIM! we HAVE to rely on Him & desire Him above all else! He is worth far more than anything other than Him! so many people we set in front of ourselves as "informers & teachers of what is of value" are living lives that are a complete contradiction to the gospel. they value comfort & "fitting in" & looking like the world. 

how should we look different? how do we apply the gospel & let it inform us in EVERYTHING?! every situation, every moment of everyday... how do we teach our kids this? how do we teach them the gospel all day, all week long, their whole lives? 

how does the gospel change us & become THE MOST important thing to us?! so much that we're willing to put aside other "teachers" that don't teach us this beautiful truth?? 

who is informing us? is it our instagram feed, our twitter, our facebook, the blogs we read?

i challenge us to "clean up" our list of "informers". delete feeds/tweets/statues/blogs that aren't teaching us the gospel. & let's not become legalistic about it... because there are things that can still teach us the gospel. simply by seeing the beauty of His creation in photography, hearing melodies that He designed or being in awe of the gifts & talents He's given so many. 

what are your thoughts on all this?? how do we let the gospel inform us always?

(some of these thoughts are from our pastor's sermon on sunday. you can listen to it or watch it here.) 

al

ps

stop back by tomorrow for "the gospel in her home".