31 Virtues for Our Kids ~ A Servant"s Heart

A Servant's Heart

Over the next few months we will be praying for 31 Virtues for our Kids maybe even for ourselves too!

Ephesians 6:7 (New International Version) Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men,

There are many times in life we may not want to help a certain person for any number of reasons.....
Maybe they hurt us
Maybe they annoy us
Maybe they are mean
Maybe they make us mad
Maybe they stink
Maybe they make us sad
Maybe they are just plain idiots....yeah I said it, hahahah! (You know there are some out there)

In Eph. 6:7 we see that even in the worst of situations, being a servant/slave, we must DO good will. Why? Because our actions are as unto the Lord not to men, it is our act of love to God. God always takes it to the next level. He doesn't want mediocre.....He wants our best!

When I was a sweet, loveable, Jr. High kid my dad decided to do the craziest thing one Christmas day. Well, it was crazy in my book anyway. On Christmas morning instead of feverishly unwrapping gifts, eating until we pass out and trying out all our new stuff my mom and dad took us to downtown Detroit. It was very early in the morning for this teenage girl. (Sympathy please) My dad signed us up to work in the kitchen and serve homeless people Christmas dinner at the Salvation Army.

I wasn't real happy about the idea at first; this was definitely not one of our regular Christmas traditions. Once we got there it became about serving others...I am pretty sure that is what my dad wanted us to learn. : ) Serving others is really about serving our good God. Over the rest of my teenage years God really began to teach me how to have a servant's heart....my parent's prayer all along.
Now it is the prayer for my kids....

*"God, please help my children develope a servants heart that they may serve you whole heartedly as if they were serving the Lord, not men"

*by Bob Hostetler, it is excerpted from Pray! magazine issue #4, 31 Biblical Virtues to Pray for Your Kids

31 Virtues for Our Kids ~ Generosity

Generosity

Over the next few months we will be praying for 31 Virtues for our Kids maybe even for ourselves too!

1 Timothy 6:18-19 (New International Version)
18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.
19 In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

Wow, I love it when I reread a scripture and it suddenly speaks to me in a new way. This is an awesome verse and is now added to one of my favorites. I love the very last part of 19....soooo gooood!

John has a fantastic story that really reflects this idea of generosity and this verse in a remarkable way....

John was a senior in High School. We both went to a Christian school, Fairlane Christian. He was sitting in his Bible class when his teacher, Mr. Molnar, shared a story of trusting in the Lord even with your finances.

Mr. Molnar said he was praying at the altar of his church one day. He was seeking God's direction. He felt that God was calling him into the ministry and that he needed to go to Bible College. He did not have the money to go and he didn't know what to do. When he was done praying, he got up and saw a man coming toward him. That man told him that God want him to help Mr. Molnar pay for his college.

John remembers getting very emotional during the telling of this story because that man who was generous with his finances to help our bible teacher was John's Grandpa. His grandpa had passed away when John was a kid. Here years later, because of his grandpa's generosity and his faithfulness....he was still able to speak into his grandson's life even after his death through our bible teacher. What an amazing story...I cry every time I hear it, I am crying now.

How far reaching will my generosity go long after I leave this earth, if I am found faithful? God only knows; but I do know that I never want to be selfish. I want to be generous with all that I have.

*"Grant that my children may be generous and willing to share, and so lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age."



*by Bob Hostetler, it is excerpted from Pray! magazine issue #4, 31 Biblical Virtues to Pray for Your Kids

I borowed this picture from John's cousin Dawn...Thanks Dawn!

AAAAHHHH So Excited!

Today, we had a fundraiser to raise money for Convoy of Hope that is feeding people in Haiti. A couple weeks ago we started getting sponsors to sponsor us sledding down the hill at our church. Our goal was 500 runs down in one hour. We did it (507)and 21 children from our church raised $1,457.72! So Cool! Convoy of Hope can feed 50 people with just 10 dollars, so with the money we raised we are able to feed just over 7,2oo people. How cool is that?! I am so excited can't you tell?

YEAH!