Good Monday to you!

I am thinking that I need to share a bit of personal information with you this morning.

My family…isn’t perfect! In fact, as deep of Truths that God gives me – you would think that most times we would all be walking around with halo’s attached to our heads that are shining beyond belief.

Let me interrupt that thought and say… We are NOT ALL THAT! I strive to teach my girls those same Truths that I share with you weekly but sometimes the message gets lost between the sisterly arguments, dog barking, and most of all the whining and complaining.

This sign, I recently bought and posted in my kitchen. My children looked at it when I brought it home and hung it with anticipation of “heart change” and they giggled. I told them the message was serious to me because I was “sick and tired” of their complaining!

A couple of hours later, my youngest (age 6) decided that she really didn’t want to take a bath and get cleaned up before dinner. She whined about ten times about doing what I had asked her to do. “Do I have to wash my hair AND my body tonight?” is always her question. I always reply, “only the parts that you don’t want to stink!”

Children’s whining and complaining can sometimes get the best of me. This is probably one of my biggest pet peeves as a Mom. That is why I liked my new sign.

After my daughter had taken her bath, she came into the kitchen and brought me a $5 bill. 🙂 She had taken my initiative to heart. Bless her sweet little thing!

This morning – our Monday Morning miseries had cropped up in full force with the whining and complaining component. You see, it has rained for the last 24 hours here in South Georgia and at 6am there was one big bodacious thunderstorm going on. No one wanted to go to school much less get dressed with a smile on their face.

I kept praying, “Lord, get me to 7:50 with grace and mercy!”

Part of our every morning routine in the car on the way to school, we read from the Jesus Calling by Sharon Young devotional. (Side note…my children are old enough to read while I drive! )

Well, today message was geared toward how the faith of a child is a powerful thing.

Mark 10:15 ” I tell you the truth. You must accept the kingdom of God as a little child accepts things, or you will never enter it.”

Here is a quote from the book (of course, it is written from the perspective of Jesus talking):

“I have so much that I want to give you. I poured out My Life on the cross so that I could give you forgiveness and a home in heaven. And all I ask is that you trust me – like a child.”

Children understand faith without any strings attached. Just trust Jesus. He will show you the way!

One of my daughters had left her Bible in the car from church yesterday (how appropriate! *smile*) and I asked her to look up the corresponding verses at the end of the devotional.

Lord, Have Mercy! It was sent from Heaven above! It was one of the TRUTHS that I had been wanting all morning to shine through!

Philippians 2:12-17
“Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.

Do everything without complaining and arguing, 15 so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ’s return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless. But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God, just like your faithful service is an offering to God. And I want all of you to share that joy. 18 Yes, you should rejoice, and I will share your joy.”

My youngest, that had that day given her $5 offering, and also spent her morning today whining about everything was now slumped down into her car seat. She said, “Well, I guess that was God speaking to us CLEARLY today!”

I continued our long conversation with this topic this morning and asked the girls to focused on the second part of that scripture. WHY are we not to complain and whine? It says in the Word to “Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people.”

We are not to grumble and complain just because God said not to do it but there is a greater purpose. It is because we are to instead live clean and holy innocent lives so that His Light can shine like bright lights in a world that is full of dishonest, crooked and bad people.

Our lives are full of messages that someone in the world is craving to hear. God messages. Our circumstances or sometimes “messes” we live in can either DEFINE WHO WE ARE or REFINE WHO WE ARE! (more later this week on this!)

Yep, I would say God reached down and met us in our deepest need this morning. And to conclude our ride to school – my precious six-year-old asked God Almighty to forgive our grumbling (whining) and complaining and help us to shine before other’s His light.

May you quit your whining so that you can be a LIGHT for Jesus in the world around you.