Being a Mom (or Dad) definitely is hard sometimes. We are stretched to capacity most of the time. We're trying to provide, protect, encourage, teach, and love these little ones with all of ourselves. It is only normal that we sometimes choose the wrong words, the wrong actions when we are feeling tired. After a particularly difficult morning this week, involving lost pens and a reading book that we couldn't find before school, I was feeling a bit discouraged. God gently reminded me in these moments that His rest is for me too, His mercies and grace keep us on this journey as we walk with Him. Yes, I do fail sometimes and let my emotions guide my choices. Yes, I'm not the Pinterest mom, the all-my-ducks-in-a-row kind of mom. I get frustrated and I get overwhelmed. In these moments rather than feeling like a failure, go to the tree of Life. Go into His rest. Spend a little while in the presence of our Father. Take communion and remember what Jesus did for us. It is life-giving. This is the place from where we can operate, this is how we run and renew our strength. I pray for each of you, for streams of living water to flow from you. For our children to see that we are human, that we as parents do make mistakes. That there is a place for forgiveness, and a place for us as parents - to ask for it. I pray that in our transparency our children will see that Jesus is the One that never fails, always loves, the One that did all for us completely.
The following was taken from excellent teaching by Gavin Porter. You are welcome to find the complete teaching by following this link: Dust and Stars
Mount Sinai a picture of the Two Trees
Scripture Reference:
Deuteronomy 30:19
I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live.
When the Israelites rejected the Relationship that God offered at Mount Sinai, they received the Law. It was added because of transgression. You are welcome to read more about this in Lesson 14.
The Israelites wanted the Letter, the legal document but not the relationship. They didn't want to hear God's Voice.
The Spirit gives life but the Letter kills:
2 Cor 3:6
who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
This is the same picture that we see in Genesis:
Right in the beginning, there were the Two Trees: The Tree of Life and the Tree of Death.
The Tree of Life was the tree of Relationship, of hearing His Voice, His Spirit.
The Tree of Death was the tree of Knowledge of good and evil. People could compare things with each other and judge. This becomes law and rules. The Law leads to death.
God set these two trees before Adam and Eve: Life and Death. He said don't eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil because then you will die. In other words: there are life and death, don't choose death.
Years later we come to Mount Sinai in the Wilderness and we see the same picture:
There God offers them Relationship, He offers them Marriage - to hear His Voice. You are welcome to read more about this here. God gives them a choice between life and death.
Deuteronomy 30:19
I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live.
God again says: I set before you life and death. He says: Choose life.
In the Garden of Eden, the serpent said to Eve: If you eat of the tree of Death you won't die.
In the Wilderness the serpent says to them: If you hear His Voice you will die.
It is exactly the same picture all the way through history.
When we come to the cross: God came to give us abundant life!
But Man has taken the cross and the gospel and made it into dead religion.
So today we have a choice: life or death: which one will we choose? The relationship or religion?
In choosing relationship with God, our lives become His dwelling place. We become His dwelling place. Our children experience His Holy Spirit as we walk together - this is something no discipleship program can teach. Love covers all our mistakes, our failures. Don't judge yourself, Mama, let grace flow. Our children will live if we choose life. Because they will see it and taste of His Holy Spirit - and when storms of Life come, they will remember. We can only point them to the Only One that is Worthy: Jesus Christ! So that when the time comes, they will be able to choose Life also.
Kettle Prayer suggestions:
Lord Jesus thank You for Your rest, for Your grace and forgiveness. Thank you for the finished work of the Cross. Thank you for making it possible for us to boldly enter into the Holy of Holies. Amen
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