Living to Live humbly...

Proverbs 16: 17-18 says:
Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall.


Although I love this verse, I think pride is linked to yet another fall...the fall of mankind.
In Adam and Eve's scenario, pride came before AND after a fall.
In some cases, I think that one of our biggest ''marks'' of being sinners is that of pride.
Pride CONSUMES our every day lives.


We take pride in our material possessions---even the ones we don't actually OWN!
We take pride in what we do for a profession and how much money we make doing it.
We take pride in the decisions we made that resulted in 'our' successes and we even get, as the verse says, 'haughty' about what we did right to get there.
We take pride in our actions and how those choices make other people view us...as if other people's opinions are the most important thing to strive for in this life.
We take pride in our families and our children--when our children behave and make us 'look good,' we tend to gloat in what we did to make them that way.


PRIDE. Ick!


What is it though, really?! When we are reeeeeally being honest with ourselves, God and all those around us...
is it what psychology claims it to be? Is it our lack of self-confidence/self-worth leading us to feel sooooo inferior that we must blow all that we are and all that we have out of realistic proportion to prove something to ourselves and others?
I agree that it absolutely is partly that, yes!
But I don't think it stops there.


I think pride is where we exist as fallen creations. I think we not only know, but FEEL how broken and imperfect we are that we cling to anything we can that may be able to give us definition.


Yesterday morning at church, our pastor spurred this very question...How do we 'define' ourselves? 
He didn't mean this in the worldly sense, but instead in what our relationship with Christ is now and what we WANT it to be before the next life.


I spent this past weekend being absolutely and utterly surrounded by the result of pride...
not just pride of my own but also many of those in my life. 
I started the weekend on my own proud note when I found out how little time I was going to get with my husband after a long work-week without him. :P Of course, my response--being that of pride---was to sulk, mope, sigh (loudly), grunt and throw a 10-yr-old's tantrum about the whole scenario.
Leave it to my patient, albeit imperfect, but wife-experienced hubby to sit quiet and compliant, tediously working on his pile of tax-papers for two straight days while I made clear through my pride-damaged actions how I felt.


By the time I put my own pride into major 'check,' Saturday continued on the note of others around me being driven by pride and even, unknowingly, using it hurtfully. 
That's the thing with pride...it's SNEAKY. 
It rears it's ugly, monstrous head, using you as it's puppet all while muttering excuses and justifications for itself.


Sunday ended on the note of hearing of damaged-relationships and relationships, consciously, UNTENDED TO because of...yep, you guessed it...
pride. 
I can't say exactly what 'causes' our pride or how it manages to be soooo clever (though I do very much believe that it is one of the devil's greatest tools and maybe why it comes in such a cunning disguise)...
but I can say these things about it:


It's consuming.
It's ugly.
It's unfair.
It's unruly.
It's destructive.
It's UnGodly.
....
and it's, perhaps, one of the most powerful diseases of our fallen-selves.


So, is that it? Is that all? Do we just lay down, defeated by our own selves...using our 'sin' as the excuse?
I'm SURE that Satan would be doing a big ol' happy-dance if we did.......
and that is surely why that isn't the answer.


As I get older (and I'd like to HUMBLY think, a little bit wiser, too), I am confirmed of my pride's very best friend which is, unfortunately, ALSO part of my body...
my mouth.


Pride hurts us in our relationship with Christ, there is no doubt about that. 
It keeps us at a distance in all sorts of ways and must be stripped away by HIS Blood.


But it is true that one of the most cutting ways that our pride seems to hurt other's is through our words.
Sure, our thoughts are filled with pride (if we're being honest)...
but it's when our proudest thoughts take a spoken-form that we really become an assassin of hearts.
Even in the form of simple advice, pride can rear it's ugly head.


The bibles says many things about the tongue and the mouth.

Proverbs 21:23

Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble.

Ephesians 4:29

Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.

Proverbs 12:18

There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

Proverbs 15:1

A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

Psalm 34:13

Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit.

Proverbs 17:28

Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.

Proverbs 18:21

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.

James 3:2-10

For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell...

Want more examples?

Go here: http://www.openbible.info/topics/taming_your_tongue

This week, on a fresh Monday-start, I challenge you, while I challenge myself.......Seek Him.

Seek his example and Seek Life. Use your tongue in Wisdom, even if it makes you feel or look foolish.

HOLD your tongue in things that are destructive. 

ASK YOURSELF...am I saying this and doing this out of my own pride or out of Christ's abounding Love?

Humble your thoughts, humble your prayers, humble your words and actions...ask God to overcome you with His humbleness and cover your deep sin with His Son's precious blood.

Be proud in and through NOTHING, remembering that ALL that you are and ALL that you have is from and through His Grace, alone!!!

Love Day continues...for just one more day! ;)

Since Gray only attends school twice a week (on Mondays and Wednesdays)...
he had some 'belated' cards and candies to hand out today, and in typical Lincoln-fashion,
Lincy-bear was in on that delivery-process, too!

Here are a handful of quick pics I snapped while 'tagging along' with them:

Delivering the lute. ;)

Giving Mrs. True her 'Roca.'

In line with one of his little classmates. 

Simple joy.

Excited to deliver goodies to his other teacher.

Mrs. Schreiner finally arrives!

So happy she likes her chocolates. ;) 

Perhaps one of the single-most greatest gifts of being a parent is teaching your children to not only SERVE and do good & kind things for others, but to find the ENJOYMENT in doing so and receive the BLESSING from doing so.

Special deliveries to Nana M.

I was tickled to a giddy point today, watching that very concept unfold in both of my boys.

As I told Gray tonight during bible-study...God was smiling with this proud mama, I'm sure of that!

PURE. AWESOMENESS.

It's called "Love Day" in our house...

Firstly, let me set one thing VERY clear...
other than the universal holiday merchandise that enters our house in humble amounts on 'Valentine's' Day...our children really aren't familiar with that word.
No...it's not because they are too young, but because we've already explained it's true origin (in the same fashion we did with the Christmas-tree-tradition explanation last year), to both boys.
Not sure what 'Valentines' is really about? Here's a brief synopsis if you're now so curious... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentine's_Day
So why then do WE still 'observe' it, you ask? The short and sweet *no pun intended* of it is really just another question. Why NOT?!
We've already explained to our kids where it was originally derived...
so why not enjoy what much of the rest of the world does in the 'modern day' view of it just being a day to celebrate those we LOVE!!! Frankly, I'm a fan of replacing it's darker origin with something much more beautiful like...the plain, simple, wonderful LOVE that surrounds each of us. Whether in the form of spouses, significant others, children, parents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, friends, neighbors...I could go on and on. ;)

So one thing you really won't ever see ME saying (in lieu of aformentioned holiday-meaning) is
Happy 'Valentines' Day. I myself (along with MY family choose to remove 'St. Valentine' the martyr from today's meaning and sort of 'recreate', with the rest of the world, just a day to show a little special appreciation for those that we love, dearest. ;)

What did WE do for 'Love Day?'
Well, I spent it with the two LITTLE loves-of-my-life...playing, coloring, baking, movie-watching, eating, and cleaning...and then when the BIG love-of-my-life returned home from a hard-day's work, we spent it dining on a special Love-Day family dinner and just SOAKING UP every precious minute of our evening together.

Whether or not (and I'm pretty sure, not) Pope Gelasius I had THAT in mind for his 'St. Valentines holiday'...I'm glad the world made it into something else.

Lord knows I wouldn't mind eating like THIS:

Every. Night.

LOL~









PS: Here are a few more pics from today/tonight. ;)

My eldest, Gray, writing his cards ALL BY HIMSELF! :)

Lincy-bear, excited for dinner!

Love Day dinner is served. ;)

Getting the hang of this lobster-dipping gig. ;P

               

Lovin' his dinner...expensive taste, ha!

Proud of his heart cupcake-topper, lol~

  

Copying his big bro. ;)

Mother/Son Dance & Date-night

This is not so much a 'post' as much as it is just a chance for me to 'show off' my precious little dates from last night...

couldn't of been accompanied by two more handsome, grateful and polite little people.

Goodness, I love them.

THEY ARE OUR WORLD and I thank God for gifting Aaron and I with the responsibility of bringing them up to Know and Love Him during this short, earthly-life so they can someday THRIVE under His guidance in their heavenly-life. What a hefty order...

...but with these little faces staring back at us and Christ behind us, we gratefully and humbly accept that challenge.

Dancing the evening away...

I think sometimes (especially this time of the year), it's easy for everyone to focus on the relationship between fathers & daughters and the emotional-fragility of that scenario...the family princesses and the daddy's who set the example for their future-knight's qualities.
However, in having only sons thus far, I am experiencing more and more, every day, that same impact that I have on my two sons and how important it is that I model what I want them to someday find in their wives.

A few nights ago, my sweet hubby was playing songs from our iPad through our living room speakers.
While on shuffle, the Bryan Adam's song 'Please Forgive Me' came on.
Leave it to my soft/sensitive guy to feel driven to dance with me. ;)
...and for the record, his draw to romance is one of the things I love best about him.

While we were dancing jr.-high-style (you know... hugging and swaying back and forth),
Lincy-bear who was sitting at the dining-table with his 'Bo-Bo' quickly became enamored by the sight of his mom & dad freely loving one-another and grabbing the moment to dance together.

As we turned in our teen-style circles, I snuck the occasional peek (as did hubby) at our littlest's twinkle-eyed, cheshire-cat-sized smile that seemed to keep growing with each turn.
He was utterly smitten. ;)

When the song came to an end, I couldn't help myself from running over, scooping him up and smothering him with love & kisses---realizing how quickly the day will come when he'll be doing that with some lucky little teenage girl at his middle-school dance.

As I was snuggling him tight, trying desperately not to focus my thoughts too intensely on that tear-inducing image, he exclaimed, out of nowhere, 'Dance wiff me, Mommy!'

Talk about tear-inducing!!!


Man, this kid knows the heart-strings and just which ones to pull!
Yep. I'm in T-R-O-U-B-L-E.

As I suspect any lucky woman will do at the foot of this guy's mercy the rest of his life,
I eagerly accepted.

Finding myself dancing same way as before but this time carrying my precious little dance-partner who's little arms hugged me tighter than any, and big, round head nestled perfectly on my shoulder, I found it absolutely impossible to control the waterworks!
Without even knowing it, Lincy had given ME that 'lucky little teenage girl's' persona...he gave her MY face and made ME his 'princess' and, in just that moment, became MY little knight in shining armor.

Now, believe me... I have a healthy thought-process with this.
I know I will not ALWAYS be 'his girl,' but I also know that being so right now will make it that much easier for me to give him away, someday, to the girl who deserves him as a husband. It will be ME passing the torch, after she passes the test, of course...
and for that position, I couldn't feel more blessed.

So to all you moms of precious little knights out there... remember your role, cherish your role and

DANCE

with your little sons while you still can. ;)

Happy Love-week to you all~

Just a quick bit, inspired by a five-year-old's wisdom...

Tonight, while doing the nightly bible-study the boys and I do together before bedtime, the subject was flowers and how God 'dresses' them. The point was to get us to think about how if He promises to clothe and water and provide all other needs that wildflowers have to survive, we need not worry, fret or stew about His providing US those necessities, either.

Our book went on to question what our own worries are. Upon being asked, my five-year old thought for a moment and then exclaimed 'light.' Puzzled by his response, I asked him to explain what he meant. 'The sunlight,' he added. 'What about the sunlight worries you, son?' Responding with worry in his face, 'When I look up, it gets in my eyes and it hurts my eyes. I really worry about that.'
*Thinking to myself...gee, to be a kid again and have THAT be the largest of my worries, lol.*
'I see,' I replied.

In reading more, we were reminded that we need not worry and to think of the wildflowers and then think of OURSELVES as His beautiful flowers. As I read this, Gray said...'Oh! I get it!' Giving another puzzled look, 'You get what, honey?' That you need to be one of the wildflowers when you get worried? Gray responses, 'No, mama...I need to LOOK AT the wildflowers when I want to keep the sun out of my eyes.'

Lightbulb turns on and a big smile comes over my face...'Because they are on the ground and the sun is up high, so keeping your head down will keep the sun out of your eyes? Is that what you mean?!!'
'EXACTLY!', Gray exclaims. Letting out a big, long and refreshed sigh 'Thank you, son, for the beautiful message and metaphor you just painted...it made my day and I will cherish it's advice, always.' *kissing his head*

Gray grows the same puzzled look I'd worn earlier and pauses.
'Mama...what's a me-tah-for?'
*Giggling* 'A topic for another night, son.'