What can I possibly write about??

Ah, yes, the affliction of writer's block has struck me. It's not necessarily that I can't write as much as it is I can't get all the thoughts out into one clear and well written post that anyone might find worth the time to read (this is assuming, of course, that anything else I wrote might have been found interesting by anyone other than me). So, here I sit past 10 o'clock in the evening thinking that if I write about writer's block, perhaps it will help all those other thoughts swirling about in my head to collide together and create some kind of sense. So, this is my writer's block post, which may or may not be about writer's block at all. Readers, beware!!!

Side note for the male readers out there: it IS possible for the thoughts in a woman's mind to come out and make complete and total sense. God DID provide you with a companion's manual... it's called the Bible. My suggestion - read it!!

In offering some encouragement to a friend today I read through the first three chapters in the book of Ecclesiastes, speaking of that manual (okay, in keeping up with being ME, I just paused to read another 6 chapters of that book). Many of you may relate this book to the popular song "Turn, Turn, Turn" by the Byrds - "To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under heaven." What caught my attention as I read today was how the writer is clearly at a pausing point in his life. He was at a point in his life where he was asking the big "Why" questions. Why do we work so hard? What is the point? He is struck by the fact that all the hard work and toil done by people is meaningless. "A chasing after the wind." The writer concludes that it is better for man to simply decide to be happy with his work. The writer finds that tranquility is so much better than to toil day after day, and that God can and will place that happiness in our hearts if we allow it.

Ecclesiastes 5:18-20 states, "¹⁸ This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them—for this is their lot. ¹⁹ Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God. ²⁰ They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart."

Have we as a nation of believer's forgotten to sit back, be happy with the food and drink we are provided and simply enjoy life with gladness in our hearts? Do we even allow God the ability to place gladness in our hearts? I admit I am guilty of preventing the Father from placing gladness in my heart. "How?" you might ask. By simply not looking at the treasures He has placed before my very eyes. The treasures that are in my life every day, who may bicker and fight from time to time (okay, it's a lot more than that), but who can also look at me on a morning when I am feeling down and tell me that I am beautiful on the inside because she was just reading that in her Bible the other day. <3 That wisdom came from my 6-year old daughter and it really did come at a time when I was feeling the "toilsomeness" of life.

I am going to end this post here by simply asking you a question: Do you appreciate the work, food and rest God provides for you, or do you find it a burden? Do you allow God to place happiness in your heart? Perhaps it's time for you to TURN TURN TURN to God's word for the encouragement He gave me today.

On the Topic of Marriage

It does seem amazing that at the ages of 7 and 5 my kids would have any interest in marriage. I cannot explain where this interest comes from. Is it movies they watch? Friends they hear talking about it? I have no clue because I certainly don't sit around talking about marriage. I don't even talk to them about the idea of having a steady "boy-friend" (dating?), for lack of a better term. I don't date so the only men my kids ever see me interacting with are either family members, my friends' husbands when they come to visit us, or various brothers at church. How and where the topic of marriage entered their heads is a complete and total mystery to me. Of course, about half of the conversations my kids want to have with me remain a mystery as to how the topics got into their little heads to begin with.

Being 5, my daughter enjoys all the Disney movies that feature "Princess This or That" who, amazingly enough, always seems to be in a single parent family. I don't think that ever really sank in for me until just now as I am writing this and I haven't decided if that is a good thing for us single parents, or a bad one. Perhaps with a little more thought it can have a page all its own. At the moment, however, that is off topic. Have you ever noticed that "Princess This or That" is always trying to find a way to leave her current "reality show" and find her "Prince So and So" to run off an live "happily ever after" with? If I were to read in to that, I would think there was some kind of subliminal statement Disney was making however as you may know by now, I am a tired single mom and I don't have time to entertain that thought at the moment. So, now we have "Single-Parent King or Queen", "Princess This or That" and "Prince So-and-So" on the scene after an imaginary wedding that we never see, and my kids questioning me about whom they can marry.

It was one of those very innocent statements that you hear your child make that is completely off any topic you have been discussing as you are driving down the road. My daughter stated, rather matter of factly that she loved her brother and "When I grow up and become a Mommy I will marry you Stephen!" The Single-Parent Queen of this household quickly let her know that first of all, she needed to get married before she became a Mommy, and secondly she could not marry her own brother. "Why not, Mom?" (insert a bewildered look here) Isn't it amazing how a simple answer from a parent always results in another question from an inquisitive little mind? "Well, because he is your brother and you can't marry your brother." Lucky for me, she accepted the answer that time. She then told me she wanted to marry Daddy and her brother could marry me. Once again, I explained she could not marry Daddy because he was Daddy. I then proceeded to lay down the "marriage rules":

1) You can't marry your brother or Daddy (or sister or Mommy) because they are family;
2) You have to be married before you become a mommy or daddy;
3) You should marry someone who loves Jesus and treats you right; and
4) Make sure the person you marry is honest and does not tell lies.

Thank goodness neither one of them questioned me on what treating them right meant. I am sure in their mind it would be a person who bought them an ice cream cone and in that case, any of you reading this would be able to marry my kids if you met the qualifications as set forth above..

So, now that we have the "marriage rules" established there is a little quiet in the back of the car, I can see the wheels turning on my daughter's face. A minute goes by and she asks, "Mommy, does Randy know Jesus?" If she could see my face, she would see that I am rolling my eyes as Randy is an adult friend of mine from church who is already married and I know where the conversation is headed. "Honey, you can't marry Randy. Randy is already married. You can't marry someone who is already married." I know… more rules!!!! I didn't even approach the age difference at this time.

So, that is how we have established some rules around marriage in our home. The topic comes up from time to time as to whom they think they will marry. It generally comes up out of the blue. I find myself wondering if they do this on purpose trying to catch me off guard and see if I will lax on the rules because my daughter has commented on several ocassions since that she wants to marry Randy. Every time she does, I remind her that he is already married and you can't marry someone who is already married (Rule #5). Thankfully, Randy has backed me up on this and has had a discussion with her as well about how they can be friends, but she should marry someone her own age. HAHA

So, this brings us up to the most recent conversation on marriage which occurred this morning over breakfast. Out of the blue my son asks me, "Mommy, do Uncle Todd, Auntie and the cousins in Sacramento all know Jesus?" I am assuming his stating where they live was important because I MUST have another brother somewhere whom he has never met and therefore there would be other cousins he does not know. He needed to make sure I was aware of which set of cousins he was referring to so I did not confuse it with the cousins that don't exist. I replied to his question, "Yes, they do know Jesus." "Oh good, " he replies. Mommy, I want to marry my Melissa." If you haven't figured it out already, Meliss is his cousin.

I can see we need to add to the marriage rules again. Father in Heaven, help me!!!

"Train up a child in the way he should go and in the end he will not depart from it." - Proverbs 22:

"Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord." - Ephesians 6:4