Last night, I had one of those fabulous moments with my boys, where they decided they needed a group hug with Mom. Those are truly fabulous moments, but one must understand that my boys are bigger than me these days; so, I have to brace myself for the onslaught to prevent injury. But ... they are my greatest moments, because they are full of laughter and joy, and, when they happen, my mind races back to when they were just little buggers bouncing around the house all full of fun and games ..... I miss those moments sometimes, but I am loving seeing the young men Malcolm and Mackenzie are becoming. I'd like to think I have more to do with that than I actually do, knowing that God has those reins, but I often gauge my parenting skills through their words and actions. I thought a lot about that today ....... how am I doing as a Mom?
I'm doing ok, I think .... keeping my head enough above the water to keep from drowning out right; but, I know I'm flailing a lot of the time ..... it's like that with kids. No handbook or directions, which calls for a ton a prayer because everyday brings a different question or concern. I'm doing the best I know to do, praying I'm not screwing them up too badly, doing permanent damage that will lead to years of therapy ..... but ..... one thing that is solid truth that will never change is ..... I AM HERE FOR THEM!!!! And, hey ..... if my kids are going to get screwed up .... it will be by their Mom who loves them unconditionally and eternally!!!! It will NOT be by some SACC instructor, YMCA leader, Daycare Provider or babysitter!!!
God gave these wonderful boys to ME and Mark!!!! It is our God given responsibility to raise them, and we WILL be accountable to God for how we do it. That is Bible Basics!!! And, I talk to them a lot about how seriously I take that responsibility.
Lately around here, the boys have asked me about going back to college .... joking about getting a PhD, so they can call me Dr. Mom, or going back to work or pursuing some of the other things they know I want to accomplish in my life, and, believe me, there is a list ..... a long list. I have dreams and goals and things I aspire to, and I think about them regularly ....... HOWEVER ........ I know in my heart that there is nothing that I can ever accomplish from that list that will ever be as important to me or as meaningful as the things I can encourage and help them accomplish, and, as a Christian parent ....... that starts with raising these two young men to grow to up to be God fearing, God honoring, God following men of valor!!!! And, if I don't take this responsibility seriously ..... I will have failed God, failed my boys and failed myself.
My dreams, goals and hopes will be there for me when the timing comes right, and, in that moment, they will manifest with all the grace of God in John 10:10 abundance that even I can't currently envision. Malcolm is my hero for reasons that only I can understand, and Mackenzie makes my heart smile in ways that come from no other place ....... and, right now, they are learning and growing at Youth Group, where I know they are learning and growing with the Godly principles I stand on daily, being reinforced by our Christian family who genuinely love and care for them.
In the Full of 101,
Kalena Parenting
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Monday, September 5, 2011
But he also made me fast ...... Part 2
Okay ..... so moving forward to today (and tomorrow) ......
Again yesterday, Pastor Jay was doing Sunday Services, and, just in case what he had said last year escaped Malcolm's memory, Chariots of Fire and that awesome line ...... God made me with a purpose, but He also made me fast ...... was used in our latest teaching series.
With Malcolm starting his Freshman year of High School, soooo many thoughts flood my mind. More than anything else, I am so excited for him. He has such a solid plan and is rock solid in his goals in how to accomplish them. I know there may be bumps and hurdles along the way, but I believe that using all of those glitches as teaching moments will help him grow and progress even further along the way to achieving what he has set before him. He constantly amazes me!
The great thing about where he is right now, and where he's trying to get is that as awesome as that line from that movie is, yesterday they showed the clip in church, and what the actor actually says is this:
God made me for a purpose, but He also made me fast; and, when I run, I FEEL HIS PLEASURE!!!!!!
How stinkin awesome is that????? And what a revelation?????
From a year ago, Malcolm being afraid that if he played football, he wouldn't be able to act ...... he is now in a place where he understands that not only is God okay with him doing multiple things ...... HE ENCOURAGES IT!!!!!!!!
Yes Mal!!!! You can play in the NFL if you choose!!!!!
Yes Mal!!!! You can be an actor!!!!!
Yes Mal!!!! You can be a collegiate wrestler at UVA!!!
Yes Mal!!!! You can be a State Science Fair Champion!!!
How awesome it was for me to be able to look my son in the face and tell him, that the hopes, dreams and goals that fill his heart were put there by God, and, as long as Mal continues to honor Him and do his part, God will absolutely bless him with the manifestation of those hopes, dreams and goals!!!!!
Feeling His pleasure,
Kalena Believing
Again yesterday, Pastor Jay was doing Sunday Services, and, just in case what he had said last year escaped Malcolm's memory, Chariots of Fire and that awesome line ...... God made me with a purpose, but He also made me fast ...... was used in our latest teaching series.
With Malcolm starting his Freshman year of High School, soooo many thoughts flood my mind. More than anything else, I am so excited for him. He has such a solid plan and is rock solid in his goals in how to accomplish them. I know there may be bumps and hurdles along the way, but I believe that using all of those glitches as teaching moments will help him grow and progress even further along the way to achieving what he has set before him. He constantly amazes me!
The great thing about where he is right now, and where he's trying to get is that as awesome as that line from that movie is, yesterday they showed the clip in church, and what the actor actually says is this:
God made me for a purpose, but He also made me fast; and, when I run, I FEEL HIS PLEASURE!!!!!!
How stinkin awesome is that????? And what a revelation?????
From a year ago, Malcolm being afraid that if he played football, he wouldn't be able to act ...... he is now in a place where he understands that not only is God okay with him doing multiple things ...... HE ENCOURAGES IT!!!!!!!!
Yes Mal!!!! You can play in the NFL if you choose!!!!!
Yes Mal!!!! You can be an actor!!!!!
Yes Mal!!!! You can be a collegiate wrestler at UVA!!!
Yes Mal!!!! You can be a State Science Fair Champion!!!
How awesome it was for me to be able to look my son in the face and tell him, that the hopes, dreams and goals that fill his heart were put there by God, and, as long as Mal continues to honor Him and do his part, God will absolutely bless him with the manifestation of those hopes, dreams and goals!!!!!
Feeling His pleasure,
Kalena Believing
But He also made me fast ..... Part 1
This year, our Mal is playing Freshman Football, and he is good at it! Actually, he is great at it and shows hints of NFL caliber greatness. He hopes to play NCAA football at UVA, and I believe he is in the right school, in the right program, with the right coaches to see that come into manifestation. We only hear great things about him from the coaches. He's playing on Special Teams, and is on the scout team as a Defensive End/Linebacker. Scout team is the nice way of saying third string. The fabulous news is, the coaches love his initiative and heart and see daily improvement ........ UVA on the horizon ...... and things look really promising .....
However, this hasn't always been the case.
Two years ago, Mal played in the county league, and, for an entire season Dad and I spent nearly every practice and game pulling our hair out from the side lines. Half speed, half hearted, ba doo pa doop .... blah blah blah effort at every practice and temper temper when he wasn't in every play on game day ..... this went on ALL SEASON LONG!!!!! We were so frustrated it was unbelievable!!!!
Soooooo, last year, Dad decided to Coach .... the thinking was maybe we weren't involved enough ...... maybe Mal would pick up the pace if Dad was there with him in a leadership/coaching role, as opposed to just being there as Dad.
Hmmmmmmmmm ............
Big excitement when he found out dad was coaching ....... Big excitement when the gear was issued ....... Big excitement when practices started ...... but then ...... when the season started, I noticed that same ho hum look on his face ....... not good! So, I had a heart to heart with him on the way to school the morning after the first game. To my amazement, he was afraid that if he played football, he couldn't be an actor. And EVERYONE knows without doubt that God sent this boy down here to be an actor. We have known it as long as he has been able to speak.
So, from the hip, I blurt through a laundry list of professional football players who have also had careers as actors ..... The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Brian Bosworth, Terry Bradshaw, Brett Favre and the clincher ..... Michael Strahan, who he knows personally ..... and that seemed to ease his hesitation a bit. That, plus, I explained to him that Dad and I have never told him he could only do one thing. That we would never limit his abilities or opportunities.
BUT THEN ........... thank God for Pastor Jay, the Holy Bible, Elijah and his Chariot of Fire!!!!!
The way to successfully walk and talk in Malcolm's world is through the silver screen. He is Mr. Movie Man! And, very casually in a teaching series during last season, Pastor Jay made a reference to Chariots of Fire being one of his favorite movies, and how he believes one of the greatest lines in any movie .... ever .... is when the leading man, who was running track in the 1924 Olympics to the dismay of his missionary family, says ..... "God made me with a purpose, but He also made me fast".
With one line in a Sunday Service, one line from an Academy Award Winning Movie ...... Malcolm heard God speak to him clearly and without question for the first time ....... and played IRON MAN football for the Ravens for the entire season. The only player to do so, and he was awesome in it!!!!!!
From The Sidelines,
Kalena Watching
However, this hasn't always been the case.
Two years ago, Mal played in the county league, and, for an entire season Dad and I spent nearly every practice and game pulling our hair out from the side lines. Half speed, half hearted, ba doo pa doop .... blah blah blah effort at every practice and temper temper when he wasn't in every play on game day ..... this went on ALL SEASON LONG!!!!! We were so frustrated it was unbelievable!!!!
Soooooo, last year, Dad decided to Coach .... the thinking was maybe we weren't involved enough ...... maybe Mal would pick up the pace if Dad was there with him in a leadership/coaching role, as opposed to just being there as Dad.
Hmmmmmmmmm ............
Big excitement when he found out dad was coaching ....... Big excitement when the gear was issued ....... Big excitement when practices started ...... but then ...... when the season started, I noticed that same ho hum look on his face ....... not good! So, I had a heart to heart with him on the way to school the morning after the first game. To my amazement, he was afraid that if he played football, he couldn't be an actor. And EVERYONE knows without doubt that God sent this boy down here to be an actor. We have known it as long as he has been able to speak.
So, from the hip, I blurt through a laundry list of professional football players who have also had careers as actors ..... The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Brian Bosworth, Terry Bradshaw, Brett Favre and the clincher ..... Michael Strahan, who he knows personally ..... and that seemed to ease his hesitation a bit. That, plus, I explained to him that Dad and I have never told him he could only do one thing. That we would never limit his abilities or opportunities.
BUT THEN ........... thank God for Pastor Jay, the Holy Bible, Elijah and his Chariot of Fire!!!!!
The way to successfully walk and talk in Malcolm's world is through the silver screen. He is Mr. Movie Man! And, very casually in a teaching series during last season, Pastor Jay made a reference to Chariots of Fire being one of his favorite movies, and how he believes one of the greatest lines in any movie .... ever .... is when the leading man, who was running track in the 1924 Olympics to the dismay of his missionary family, says ..... "God made me with a purpose, but He also made me fast".
With one line in a Sunday Service, one line from an Academy Award Winning Movie ...... Malcolm heard God speak to him clearly and without question for the first time ....... and played IRON MAN football for the Ravens for the entire season. The only player to do so, and he was awesome in it!!!!!!
From The Sidelines,
Kalena Watching
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
How do you know?
I've been in a quiet season, which is highly unusual for me, and I don't have much to say at the moment. I'm wondering though .....
How do people who spend no time reading their Bibles, no time attending services or participating in any Godly fellowship say God is in charge of their lives?
In seriousness, how do they know it's God (Big G) who is actually the spirit controlling them or their lives? The bible tells us that satan and his demons can appear as angels of light ..... so how can they be so sure?
Kalena Wondering
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