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Articles 4. Being Little 5. To Trust
STAY OUT OF WAL-MART | By Leah Lanier Gates
Okay, while most of the things that I write are pretty deep, I have been pricked in the heart by the Spirit to write, what I would call, something a bit more practical for everyday life!
Being a wife, homemaker, mom/home school mom…well, need I say more? My heart goes out to every woman that has experienced, in some shape or form, the previous mentioned! Ever experience overload? And no, I don’t mean overloading the washing machine, which I do constantly! Being the wife of a farmer, believe me, we go through the laundry! I am talking about emotional overload. I had an overload just this evening.
But seriously, God has called me to be a stay at home wife and mother, a home school mom, and round the clock, 24 hours a day, support for my family. I am here to encourage you, because I believe that God does give us all we need to accomplish what He has called us to. Philippians 4:13, I can do all things through Him who strengthens me, still rings true today as it did for Paul when he sat in prison. Where I am right now, is by no means a prison, but it does feel as though the walls can close in around me. It does feel, at times, that I am alone. But I am not…My comforter and friend, the Spirit of God, is with me.
God has been teaching me, for the past few years, about being wise with all He has given me. And of course, we all know that when God begins to teach us something it is going to take change and discipline on our part to put what He is teaching us into action. I am here to encourage every mom, and dad for that matter, to strive to make your home (through His power) all God intends it to be. If you are struggling financially, there are some practical things you can do to help your family. If you are struggling in your relationships, God will bless even the smallest effort on your part, and He will begin to heal your family. If you are simply trying to find your spot, tell God the desires of your heart, and listen. In some very practical ways, He will show you.
Okay, I know, I said that this wasn’t going to be “deep”, and it’s not…That part is over! Here are some of the things God is using in my life, and I have seen some great results. The key to walking in all that God has for you is very simple. Focus your heart on Him, love Him above all in this life, and you will begin to see the hand of God moving in the life of your family.
Some Practical Tips From My Heart To Yours
When working diligently to run a household, and trying to stretch every dollar, here are some things that have really worked for me…And, might I add, the reason to stretch the dollar? To build the Kingdom of God by being wise with all that He has entrusted to you.
This first one is a doozy! The Spirit pricked my heart about this just recently, and it’s not the first time He has done this in my life. So, here goes. Are you ready? Brace yourself! Number ONE...
1) STAY OUT OF WAL-MART! Okay, are you still there? I pray you don’t click to another website!
I know for some of you, this will be like stopping some kind of major addiction. It was, and still is, for me. I have just found that when I go into Wal-Mart, or stores like Wal-Mart, I spend way too much money. I have committed to go only to my local discount store. I will repeat…Discount grocery store, as much as possible for all of my needs. When I go to Wal-Mart, I am tempted, and my money flies right out of my billfold. It is amazing what you can find at a discount grocery store, that is in Wal-Mart as well, but the other temptations are gone. So, I challenge you, stay out. If you can’t, and have to cross the Wal-Mart line, make a list and buy only what is on your list!
2) DON’T BUY WHAT YOU DON’T NEED! Okay, really, all of these are super hard for me. Most of the time, my purchases have been just as much a want, as a need. That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t have little rewards here and there, but we have to discipline that flesh. Take inventory, look in your medicine cabinets, your makeup bag, your pantry, and make a list of only what you need!
3) COOK, COOK, COOK! I know, I know, exhaustion, exhaustion, exhaustion! But, a reward will come for the price that is paid. I have found that when I slack off of my cooking my family suffers, not only in health, but in pocket book. Find some things that are quick for those really difficult days, but do your best to stay home and avoid fast food. You will feel better about your dollar that was NOT spent, and you will also feel and be healthier.
4) FAMILY DEVOTIONS! When life gets hectic, it is very easy to just say goodnight and skip the devotions. If nighttime doesn’t work for your bunch, try to find just 10 minutes during the day that works. God will bless your unity in heart. This is where God is able to strengthen relationships, and your foundation will be stronger, even when you don’t realize it. I have seen it in my own family. In the beginning of establishing something new it takes work, and again, discipline. But then it will become part of a lifestyle and a comfort. We look forward to our family devotion time every night. Even though I am half dead, and look like an overworked woman when I sit down for them! They are very refreshing.
5) FIND YOUR PEACE! Okay, I know that the peace of God is living within us at all times…but find that place in your home where you can experience it! For me, since I am here all the time, and since I am virtually never alone, (except when Terry takes Anna to see her horses) I have to set aside some time every night for myself. If I don’t I will flip! Hey, I am only human! So, every night, my husband prepares a bubble bath for me, lit with candles. Here is where I am able to regroup! Find your spot. This isn’t just for women…Men, find your spot! Everyone needs their quiet time with God.
I have so much more to share, but I will save it. I think I have probably overloaded everyone, as I do my washing machine daily. I pray what I have shared will be an encouragement to you. I believe that’s why we go through some of the things we go through in life…So we can learn, share, and encourage one another. Encouragement is so important. But, it is also important to share encouragement. So may He bless you in all that you do…And remember, you can do all things through Him who gives you strength…Even stay out of Wal-Mart!
©Copyright 2008 by Leah Lanier Gates. All rights reserved. MY BEAUTIFUL MOM | By Leah Lanier Gates
I am 35 years old as I write this. As I was framing some recent pictures, I realized something very precious...
I framed a picture of my mother and my daughter - Mom, age 61 and Anna, age 11 - And my mom still looks as if she could be Anna's mom. Beautiful...My mother is the most beautiful woman I know. I believe God knew exactly what He was doing when He created my mom. Well, of course He did, He is God!
The outside of my mother is absolutely gorgeous - Tall, slender, beautiful thick black hair, dark eyes, perfect movie star mouth, oval face, high cheek bones - you name it, mom has it! But what makes her even more beautiful, is that her outside, as unbelievable as it is, pales in comparison to the beauty that radiates from within. You know in Proverbs 31 where it talks about the virtuous woman? That is my mother.
When I was a little girl, I grew up as a princess. My mom made everything around me beautiful, my room, every little nook, in every little corner. It was like living in a decor' magazine like Traditional Home or Southern Living! As I got older, we changed up my room, as my interests and tastes changed, from Winnie The Pooh, to rainbows, to rich Victorian with lots of greens and burgundy's. She could take an inexpensive little trinket and turn it into a queen's royal jewelry. I was always the best dressed kid with the best hair (and yes, mom did my hair as well, at home!!!) I wore the latest trends. All of my friends wanted to hang out at my house. They called my mom, their mom! Why? Because she made life beautiful, and still does, to this very day.
As I got older, I saw even more how incredible of a feat this was...We were in full time ministry most of my growing up years and we didn't have much. I never even knew it. I never felt as though I wore second hand clothes, and still to this day, some of my favorite clothes are some that mom bought me at the local resale shop!
I think the greatest thing
that my mom could have ever done for me, is to just be the example of true
beauty, the beauty that is simply her. She always made any circumstance or
situation we were in okay, because she could always find the purpose and
beauty in it, no matter how difficult it was. This is what she has given
me, and now she is giving
Thank you mom, I love you.
©Copyright 2008 by Leah Lanier Gates. All rights reserved. THE PUFFY TAIL DAY | By Leah Lanier Gates
Well, I am writing this, of course, from a home-school mom perspective! So, those of you who aren't home-school parents, just bear with me, I pray you will get something out of this. Little thoughts go on all the time in my, let's say unusual brain!
Let me guess, you have never had one of those! Well, I have them all the time. Just the other night, I lay awake with about 10 school workbooks in my bed, my Charlotte Mason book, my book on child training, my Bible, and several other "Help The Home School Mom" books! What was I so puffy about? Teaching the deeper concepts of Fractions and the Decimal System. I thought, "Oh my word, I have to teach this, and I have to teach it now!" My tail was getting puffier and puffier by the second! I woke my husband up and asked him to pray for me...explaining that I had to teach this tomorrow, or everything was going to just be a mess! I of course called and whined to my mom about it. Both my husband and my mom were very consoling. Both reassured me, both prayed for me, and both were unbelievable calm. I was amazed...”Why weren't their tails puffing like mine? Didn't they understand that my daughter’s entire educated life depended on me?” (Did I mention we also have a lot of over-reactors in our home as well? Me being on of the biggest)!
I began to pray, and to think about the creative way I was going to teach my huge lesson, and God said, "Leah, go to sleep!" So, I got up the next morning, took a deep breath and asked God to help me impart what I needed, to teach my Anna that day. And no, I didn't have this big lesson plan figured out, nor did I have a clue how I was going to start! Over breakfast we explored the world of Fractions deeper, and all was well and life went on. The concept was grasped, it wasn't that big of a deal, and tails were smooth again. I know, sounds simple - that's because it was, and it is.
The Word of God says to trust Him with all of our hearts, and not to lean on our own understanding, and in all our ways to acknowledge Him and He will be faithful to direct our paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6) Yes, that means every path of every Mathematical equation that I am to teach my child. That means the paths of our work, our homes, and our relationships.
The key is to stop looking with our own wisdom, and look with His. His ways are not like ours...His are so much better. Trust me, this will avoid many of those Puffy Tail Days! God is the only one who can truly smooth the puffy tail. It doesn't mean we won't have moments of puff here and there, but we know who to run to for the calm and the peace.
So in your life, may God bless and touch you in such a way that you feel His peace that passes your own human understanding, and when He does, look for ways to pass it on to others. There are so many Puffy Tails that need His peace, His love and His grace. And if you are a home-school mom, try to calm down a little. We will be fine, because it isn't our responsibility to teach all...it is God's. We are simply His vehicle. If we will only listen and obey, He will be faithful to all He has promised for us and our children!
©Copyright 2008 by Leah Lanier Gates. All rights reserved. BEING LITTLE | By Leah Lanier Gates
When will she stop being little? I look at her hands and still see the baby in her.
I couldn't sleep last night, because my husband was snoring. That happens every now and then! So, fate took me to my daughter's room.
I crawled in bed beside her and she intertwined her legs in mine, something she has always done, from the time she was an infant. It’s like she is trying to get as close to me as possible. When she was just months old, I remember thinking to myself... "How precious, she is trying to get back to where she came from, my womb, the place where she felt the safest."
I asked myself, deep within my heart, “When will she stop being little?”. When will the “baby” leave her hands? I rubbed her back and felt the skin, still of a baby. I rubbed my arm, and wondered when my baby skin left? Did my mom know the exact day when the baby turned into a little girl, and the little girl turned into a young lady, and the young lady turned into a woman?
I thought about the events of the day...The watercolor painted by my Anna, how proud she and I both were of it, and how excited we were to display it on the wall... How she came running into the house, after riding the four wheeler through mud puddles... How she left treats for the wolf only she has seen in our woods... Her precious heart, and voice, that always tells me that I am not only the best mommy, but the prettiest, and the best singer of anyone she knows.
Lord, I pray that I will treasure the fact that she can't reach everything, and that she can't wash clothes yet, and that there is always toothpaste in the sink. Help me to treasure the fact that she doesn't want to brush her hair right now, and that she doesn't match all of the time! That she runs into things, and that things spill almost on a daily basis...
Because all of these little things, no matter how frustrating they may be at times, it means one and only one thing... That my Anna is still little, and for now, I don't have to answer, “When will she stop being little?”.
As far as I am concerned, there will always be a place for my Anna to remain little! Do you know how I know such things? Because I am my mother and father's daughter, and I am still little!
©Copyright 2008 by Leah Lanier Gates. All rights reserved. TO TRUST | By Leah Lanier Gates
To trust means to give of yourself; when you feel as though you will fall off of a very tall cliff. To trust means to do something that doesn't seem natural; when you are afraid of the hurt. To trust means to live life to the fullest; without the thought of an end in sight. To trust means to love unconditionally; with no strings attached, no hidden motives, no thought of reward. To trust means to believe in the unseen; and to live as though you could reach out and touch it. To trust means to hold out your hand to help, to hold out your hand to hold, to hold out your hand to be reprimanded; whatever the circumstance may be. To trust means to see yourself for who you are, nothing more, and nothing less, and to be accepting just the same. To trust means to continually reach for your dream; when human doubt creeps in To trust means to be courageous; no, I didn't say without fear, I said courageous - which is trust in spite of fear. To trust means to embrace the new; even when it feels completely foreign. To trust means to step out and do that thing which drives you; no matter if it is understood. To trust means to place your hands in the life of someone else. To trust means to love. To trust means to have hope. To trust means to have faith. To trust means to live life.
There is no way to completely trust in this life apart from the one true, unconditional, unwavering lover of all mankind.
In Him we have life; and death is abolished. In Him we have hope; and lies are demolished. In Him we have acceptance; and rejection is cancelled out. In Him we have faith; and doubt is destroyed. In Him we have courage; and fear is abolished. In Him we have sight; and the unseen is seen. In Him we are whole; and the pieces are mended. In Him we have life; and forever will be.
There is no other way to learn to trust, until we learn to trust in Jesus, as our own personal Savior, our Friend, our Redeemer. It is then, and only then, that we will be able to freely experience the joys of trusting.
©Copyright 2008 by Leah Lanier Gates. All rights reserved. BROKEN CRAYONS | By Leah Lanier Gates
Just like broken crayons, so are our lives sometimes. We start out fresh, new and beautiful...flawless, so we think. Then, the years of our lives, bring about situations and circumstances that break us, and sometimes make us feel as though we can no longer bring forth beautiful color. Just like the broken crayons, the ones that have been used day after day, and have been broken time after time, they still produce beautiful, vibrant color!!!
Have you ever experienced getting a new box of crayons? My daughter Anna loves nothing more than to have a new box of crayons. You open the box, and there they sit....beautiful, flawless, all lined up in all their glory. As you begin to use them, the tip gets dull...you tear the paper back, so you can continue with your creativity...then because of pressure, and hours of work with them, it happens, broken!!! You look at your crayon, a bit sad in your heart, because it doesn't look like it used to. You aren't even sure if you want to use it. Will it even color the same? You doubt it. Then you remember, that there is a way. There is a sharpener on the back of the box. You eagerly turn the box over, and begin to restore the crayon, to be used again. You use it over and over, until it is so small, you are fearful that it's days are over.
This is exactly how our lives are. We start out new, fresh, vibrant. And during this thing called life, we experience ups and downs...Victories and disappointments. Sometimes the downs seem to outweigh the ups, and we feel broken, and even may appear to be broken. But God takes these broken pieces and creates a new beautiful piece. A life full of wisdom, and compassion and love to share with others, because we understand what it means to be broken. He melts us and molds us into beautiful, vibrant color, to give to the world around us.
If you have ever been broken, or are broken now, know that the God of creation can put you back together, and make a masterpiece from the pieces of your heart. Know that He loves you unconditionally, and has created you to be full of color, full of life, and joy in this world. So the next time you see a broken crayon, smile and know that it is a miracle in waiting...in disguise. May you be blessed in all that you do.
©Copyright 2007 by Leah Lanier Gates. All rights reserved.
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You know, you
have just finished cleaning up the kitchen after everyone has been served,
you are unloading the dishwasher, so you can just turn around and fill it
up again, you have made coffee so that it will come on the next morning,
you have checked your child’s humidifier to get it ready for the night,
you have just run their bath and gathered more dirty clothes, you have
unloaded and folded clothes for the millionth time in one day, so you can
empty the washer to prepare for the next morning, and let’s see, you have
fed all the cats, cleaned out litter boxes, fed the hamster, fed the fish,
and now, after you have combed and blow dried your child’s hair after
their bath, you are ready to sit down for a peaceful, much needed family
devotional time! Oh, wait a minute…was I talking about your evening?
Oops…that is amazing, I thought that sounded just like mine! I won’t even
begin to go over the previous two-thirds of the day! You would click onto
another website, because of sheer exhaustion! 
My precious daughter,
Anna, has a kitten named Emily Marie - actually, her full name is "Emily
Marie Cocoa Macaroon". On this particular "normal" home-school day, (which
is by no means normal, in any sense of the word, and I wouldn't have it
any other way) Anna came running from one end of the house, and Emily from
the other end. Of course, the two most ungraceful ones in our household,
met in the middle, neither one expecting it. Emily's tail puffed up at
least 5 times her normal size, quite bothered by the unexpected event. Now
we have a phrase around our home...If we are having a day that is not
going quite as we expected, or “stuff” has taken the place of peace, we
call it a "Puffy Tail Day." 
Well, there I lay, beside my
baby who is now 10 years old. And I began to cry. She didn't know it, but
I lay there, with bittersweet tears of a mommy. Bitter tears, because I
knew that the years of being little were slowly fading, right before my
eyes.
But
wait, there is another way...A crayon maker. You take all of the little
bitty pieces laying around you, gather them in your hands, and you begin
to join them together and put them in this wonderful new gadget!!! It
heats and melts them into beautiful new molds...Some are tigers, some are
cars, some are alligators, but all are incredible. You create new vibrant
colors out of the broken pieces, and a life of creativity and art begins
in a way you never had imagined before. Never in a million years could you
have dreamed of these possibilities when you sat just moments ago, looking
at the broken pieces.