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What’s your legacy?

What’s your legacy?

by | May 20, 2024 | Melinda, One Blessed Momma

The end of a life always makes me reflect on my life and the legacy I may be leaving with my children. I was recently blessed to be in town for my great uncle’s funeral. The things my cousins shared about their dad/grandpa were such an inspiration to me that I want to share them with you.

As parents I think we all question if we’re good enough, if we’ve messed up too big, if our children will ever overcome their childhood. I know I do. I know moms I look up to question what they’re doing or what they did.

My weakness, His strength

No matter what I do, no matter how hard I try, I feel as though I’m falling short of what God has for me to do. I fall short of what my children need from me. So what are we to do as mommas? My answer for this is to rely on the all-knowing creator (and I may be feeling the need for this reminder pretty strong this morning). 

Lord God in Heaven, thank you for the blessing of my children. Thank you for the examples you have surrounded me with of Christian mothers, those who have led the way, and those who are in the trenches with me. Please help me to see the ways I can better parent each of my children. When I fall short, as I’m sure my stubborn self will, please fill in the gaps for my children. Please forgive me for my shortcomings and continue to refine me until you can see your reflection in me. In Jesus’ name I pray.”

The legacy I hope to leave

The legacy I hope to leave with my children is to make sure that God is the most important part of my life and that everything we do is, at the very least, not taking us away from Him. At best, everything we do is drawing us closer to Him.

We can not live our children’s lives for them. No matter how much we want to save them from mistakes and hurts, they must live their own lives. They have to make their own choices and decisions. As momma’s we are called to guide and direct them from the time they are born in both word and deed. There is no end to this, as long as we are both living, we should be ready to guide them to their Heavenly Father.

Sidenote: This is a “mom” blog and primarily focused on that aspect of life. However, I feel a nudge to call each of us out. If you have a childhood scar that dictates how you parent, the type of boss you are, the spouse, sister, friend you are, please take the time to work on that scar. Take responsibility for who you are and any changes you need to make. 

Dear Father in Heaven, thank you for the love, grace, and mercy you offer to each of us. For anyone allowing their childhood to dictate who they are today in a negative way, please heal their pain and show them how to soothe and correct the pain they’ve caused others. Lord, please help us each to make amends for the ways we hurt those around us, and see the changes we need to make to bring glory to you. Thank you for your forgiveness. Please help each of us to see the forgiveness we need to offer to others and then have the strength to do so. In Jesus’ name I pray.

At the funeral, a sign the family had in their home was shared. (I’ve probably butchered the wording, but I hope the sentiment encourages you all the same.) We are family and that may get messy, but the only failure is if we fail to keep working it out. I’m sure each of us has at least a little mess in our family. At the core, we need to keep loving God first, family second, and praying God fills in the gaps.

Hebrews 12:14  Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.

I can only control me

I’m constantly telling my children (and myself), “You can only control you, you can only change you. I can only control me, I can only change me.” Make sure the choices you are making are right. Do the right thing, the kind thing no matter what those around you are doing. We each are responsible for ourselves. 

Dear Lord, please help us each take responsibility for our own actions and have the wisdom and courage to do what we need to do to live in peace with those around us. In Jesus’ name.

Don’t separate yourself from your savior

This next thought I’d like to share may have come from church service and not the funeral service, my memory gets a bit jumbled. Wherever it came from, it is definitely something on my heart and something I want to make sure my children know deep in their souls, a part of my legacy if you will. 

Don’t ever do anything that separates you from your savior. I’ve already shared that my big goal in life is to live so that God is in the center and nothing I do pulls me away from Him. The Bible tells us, all (yes even you and me) have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

Romans 3:23 For all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God.

Unfortunately, we all are part of a fallen world. Sin is a part of this mortal life, and what made us mortal. How do you handle it? Are you living in denial? Are you trying to hide it? I hate to burst your bubble, but you need to know, you can’t hide it. Don’t ever allow your sin, or your feelings (which can be big fat liars) to cause you to feel distant from God. I’ve been there, living in sin, not wanting to give it up, not wanting to make the necessary changes and, as a result, feeling like God is so far away. But it was just feelings. It was my trying to hide away. I am thankful to God that he tells us in His word that NOTHING can separate us from Him. 

Romans 8:38-39 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

I want my kids to know that although I am a faulty human, I love them. Even more, God the creator, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords loves them and wants the absolute best for them. 

Momma, I want you to know. God loves you, despite your faults, and will never, NEVER leave you. If you aren’t living this life in Him, you can. If you’ve never committed your life to Him, he’s waiting for you. If you have made the commitment and then broken it, he’s still lovingly waiting for your return. Go to Him!

I am one blessed momma of 6 children. I love each and every one of them and want nothing more than for them to each live for God and have a personal relationship with Him, that is the legacy I hope to leave behind.  

What do you want your legacy to be? Please tell us in the comments.

Meet Melinda!

Melinda is a Christian, a wife, and a mom of 6. She has a blended family and has spent much time trying to learn how to "mom". She's still not perfect, but it makes her that much more grateful for God's grace and mercy in her life.

Learn more about Melinda and her family

Celebrating Easter

Celebrating Easter

by | Mar 11, 2024 | Melinda, One Blessed Momma

What do you celebrate on Easter Sunday? Or do you celebrate at all? Celebrating Easter and Christmas as Christians can be controversial. Even if you polled the three of us on this blog, I’m guessing you would get three different answers.

Do you celebrate the bunny that brings a basket full of goodies? Or a savior who came to earth, lived a perfect life and then allowed himself to be our perfect sacrifice?

From 2015 through 2019 we were attending a children’s Christian leadership conference (L2L) on Thursday through Sunday of Easter weekend.

This meant I didn’t worry about Easter celebrations at all. Our kids were 1, 10, 11, and 14 years old; they were either too young to care or old enough to not really care. We may not have been focused on Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, but we were definitely focused on our Christian walk.

In 2020, as the world came to a halt, L2L was canceled for the year. We now had children who were 2, 4, 6, 14, 15, and 18 (who was already in the AirForce). So we had to start thinking about Easter again, at the last minute. My husband ran to the store to find baskets and goodies the night before. 

After 2020 I wanted to be more intentional with what we were doing. Here are a few things to do with them over the week leading up to Easter to make sure they understand the resurrection of Jesus, and why we need Him.

I have attempted to sort the activities to correspond with the activities in the last week before Jesus’ crucifixion. However, I am a firm believer in doing things in a way that works for your family. Don’t feel like you have to do everything on the list or nothing at all. And if Sunday’s activity doesn’t get done until Friday it doesn’t make it any less valuable to your children.

Any time we can maintain their focus on our savior and what he has done for us is the perfect time to do the activity.

A plan

Sunday Jesus arrives in Jerusalem on a donkey
Matthew 21:1-11

Monday Cleansing the temple
Mark 11:15-19

Tuesday Judas speaks to chief priests
Matthew 26:14-16

Wednesday Easter Eggs

Thursday Jesus washes his disciples’ feet
John 13:1-20

Friday Jesus’ trials begin
John 18:19-24

Saturday Jesus is in the tomb
Matthew 27:27-66

Sunday Jesus has risen!
Matthew 28

Supplies needed:

Sunday

(a week prior to Easter)

Jesus arrives in Jerusalem on a donkey.

Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying,

“Say to the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”

The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”

Matthew 21:1-11 ESV

View full directions here

Supplies needed:

Monday

Jesus cleanses the temple.

And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”

Matthew 21:12-13 ESV

Read the account of Jesus cleansing the temple with your children.

Then have them build and destroy a temple from blocks, or cardboard, or couch cushions.

Just before they knock their building over, review why Jesus was upset.

Supplies needed:

  • Child(ren)
  • Something to build with, cardboard, couch cushions, pillows, blocks, dominos, etc. Let your kids use their imaginations, if they’re anything like mine they’ll figure it out!

Tuesday

Judas speaks to the chief priests.

Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.

Matthew 26:14-16 ESV

Discuss betrayal with your kids.

  • What is betrayal?
  • Have you ever experienced a friend turning their back on you?
  • Have you ever betrayed someone’s trust?
  • How does betrayal make the person feel?

I found this great felt bag and coins craft, I wish I would have found it earlier on. They suggest having your kids return a silver coin for each good act they do (over lent), with the goal of returning all 30 coins of betrayal before Easter.

Click here for full instructions.

Supplies needed:

Wednesday

The Bible doesn’t tell us what happened on this day. So I am planning an Easter egg activity. Bonus, my kids loved creating these with me and have declared them dinosaur and dragon eggs, so they will be happy to use them far past easter.

Anybody else have tons of cardboard boxes at their house waiting to be recycled or reinvented?

I follow @miami_skye on Instagram. I attempted to create her egg craft, but I have a history of ignoring instructions. Sshhhh, don’t tell 🙂 so mine are a little different.

Because my kids declared them dinosaur and dragon eggs, I made a printable with 3 options, chicks, dinos, or dragons. I have three kids who are working on numbers in some capacity, so I printed all 3 and then “laminated” them with packaging tape.

My kids have loved matching their dinos, dragons, and chicks to their eggs.

 

Supplies needed:

Click the image to watch her video. Her Instagram is full of great ideas for reusing cardboard with your children.

Thursday

Jesus washes his disciples feet
John 13:1-20

Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.” Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.” Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” Jesus said to him, “The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you.” For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, “Not all of you are clean.”

When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’ I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.”

John 13:1-20 ESV

Discuss servant attitude with your children.

  • What does it mean to be a servant?
  • How does it make you feel when someone serves you?
  • How would it feel to serve someone you know has betrayed you?
  • Who can we serve in our lives?

As the days get warmer, my children are running around with no shoes. I feel like this is the perfect time to teach them this story, along with it being the week before Easter. Jesus showed his servant attitude by washing the stinky, dirty feet of men who traveled by foot over dirt roads in sandals. Not to mention the fact that he also washed the dirty stinky feet of the man, the friend, who betrayed him.

Have your children take turns being the servant and the served. My children definitely need a little encouragement to wash each other’s feet.

Supplies needed:

  • Plastic wash bin or other suitable container
  • soap
  • water
  • towel(s) or washcloth(s)
  • dirty feet
  • children with a developing servant attitude

Friday

Friday Jesus’ trials begin

So the band of soldiers and their captain and the officers of the Jews arrested Jesus and bound him. First they led him to Annas, for he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year. It was Caiaphas who had advised the Jews that it would be expedient that one man should die for the people.

Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. Since that disciple was known to the high priest, he entered with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest, but Peter stood outside at the door. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the servant girl who kept watch at the door, and brought Peter in. The servant girl at the door said to Peter, “You also are not one of this man’s disciples, are you?” He said, “I am not.” Now the servants and officers had made a charcoal fire, because it was cold, and they were standing and warming themselves. Peter also was with them, standing and warming himself.

The high priest then questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. Jesus answered him, “I have spoken openly to the world. I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all Jews come together. I have said nothing in secret. Why do you ask me? Ask those who have heard me what I said to them; they know what I said.” When he had said these things, one of the officers standing by struck Jesus with his hand, saying, “Is that how you answer the high priest?” Jesus answered him, “If what I said is wrong, bear witness about the wrong; but if what I said is right, why do you strike me?” Annas then sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.

Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. So they said to him, “You also are not one of his disciples, are you?” He denied it and said, “I am not.” One of the servants of the high priest, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, “Did I not see you in the garden with him?” Peter again denied it, and at once a rooster crowed.

Then they led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the governor’s headquarters. It was early morning. They themselves did not enter the governor’s headquarters, so that they would not be defiled, but could eat the Passover. So Pilate went outside to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?” They answered him, “If this man were not doing evil, we would not have delivered him over to you.” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” The Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.” 32 This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death he was going to die.

So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?” Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”

After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, “I find no guilt in him. But you have a custom that I should release one man for you at the Passover. So do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?” They cried out again, “Not this man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.

John 18:12-24 ESV

I would challenge you to read the entire chapter of John 18. There is so much to unpack here and only you know where your kids are in maturity.

I am declaring Friday night movie night at our house. There are so many movies out there that depict the life and death of Christ.

You will need to pick one that suits your children’s maturity and age. Here are a couple choices, I would love to hear your favorites.

Read and Share Bible – Easter My children were very attentive to this 30 minute depiction of Jesus’ last week before his crucifixion.

Passion of the Christ this is obviously one for the parents and possibly older children.

Saturday

Saturday Jesus is in the tomb
Matthew 27:27-66

When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who also was a disciple of Jesus. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut in the rock. And he rolled a great stone to the entrance of the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.

The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.

Jesus has died on the cross for my sins and yours. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23

Jesus was sent here so that no one should perish but all can have everlasting life. John 3:16

Through repentance and baptism, all of our sins can be washed away, and we can spend eternal life with our heavenly Father and our Savior. Acts 2:38

I found this great object lesson to teach baptism washes our sins away.

Supplies needed:

  • Plastic wash bin or other suitable container (you could use the same bin from Thursday)
  • Paper towel (one for a demonstration or 1 per child participating, I like to let my kids be hands-on I know I learn more if I am personally participating.)
  • 1 black permanent marker
  • Washable markers
  • Water

Sunday

Jesus has risen!
Matthew 28

Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. nd for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. ut the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”

While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Give your child an egg that is empty except a piece of gauze. Make sure it has something in it so they don’t think you just messed up 🙂 Remind them that when Jesus’ friends went to the tomb Sunday morning, he was not there, only the linens remained.

I plan to use a special egg, by size or color or both, for their empty egg and we will set aside a time to open it up so that it is special. 

Supplies needed:

  • 1 egg per child
  • 1 piece of gauze per child

The best news ever…

Jesus was born, sacrificed for us on a cross, and then rose from the dead. If you have not read and obeyed the gospels I can’t encourage you enough to do just that. 

The book of Mark is the shortest gospel and may be a great place to start. There are Bible apps that you can read and that you can listen to. Please get to know Jesus my Lord.

Here is a quick resource about God’s plan of salvation. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us here.

The World Bible School is a great resource for studying the Bible. You can study at your own pace and are assigned a teacher. 

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Download your free printable

Cardboard eggs craft templates and inserts. 

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Meet Melinda!

Melinda is a Christian, a wife, and a mom of 6. She has a blended family and has spent much time trying to learn how to "mom". She's still not perfect, but it makes her that much more grateful for God's grace and mercy in her life.

Learn more about Melinda and her family

GPS

GPS

by | Jun 5, 2023 | Melinda, One Blessed Momma

Recently I was blessed to go on a road trip with my youngest daughter. Just the two of us. For those who are new here, I have 6 kids. Any 1 on 1 time is challenging to find, much less 2 whole days of 1 on 1 time. It was so fun to drive down the highway, top-down, radio blasting. I learned a few things on this trip and I want to share them with you.

1. Stay Focused

2. Block out your worries

3. Show some love

Stay Focused


As I watched my GPS on the dash of my car I was reminded of Matthew 7:13-14.

Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

Now, please don’t take this analogy too deep. I know it has some flaws 🙂

The GPS just showed me a short distance at a time highlighting the way. I had my GPS to tell me each next move to make so that I made it to my destination, a place I had never driven to. We have our Bibles to direct us through this life. Psalm 119:105

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

His word will show us the way. And if we spend time in prayer and listening for His answers we will hear the Holy Spirit direct us as we move forward. We also need to make sure we are listening to the right voice. Compare what you’re “hearing” to the word of God. Paul, an apostle, said in Galatians 1:8

But even if we or an angel from Heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you let him be accursed.

I’ve had to look at my GPS before because I thought I heard Siri say “Turn right.”, but I had already looked at the GPS and was pretty sure that it showed “turn left.” So I turn left because that is what the GPS shows. Make sure what you’re hearing lines up with God’s word – the God Positioning System. Have you ever gone somewhere, but you’re still using GPS because you aren’t super confident in your memory? Do you do that with your Bible? God’s Positioning System is a great resource, when you think you know what God would say about a situation make sure you check your GPS. Even if you quit listening and decide to do what you think is best, God is still there. He is ready to show you the U-turn to make. Ready to help you get back on the path. Don’t worry, he doesn’t just tell you “proceed to route, proceed to route” over and over until you find His path again.

As you drive down the highway there are all kinds of signs. Signs that direct you on how to go down the highway – speed limit signs, merge signs, etc. Signs that show you places to see, foods to eat, and favorite restaurants coming up, all enticing you to stop along the way. Just a short detour along your trip. However, on this particular road trip I had not only a destination but a specific time. We were to be in Massachusetts by 4:00 pm for a celebration of life. So I had set goals for when and how long we would stop. The GPS showed an arrival time so every time I saw a sign for something enticing I would look over and remind myself we don’t have time for that. We have a destination and a deadline. In life, we have so many distractions from God. Maybe even some of the same ones. Places to go, people to see, restaurants to eat at. I’m not saying you can’t do any of those things. But we need to check our GPS destination and deadline and make sure it is helping us get there, or at the very least not hindering our final destination.

Block it out

As we go through life, some distractions are not as easy to block out. Sometimes it is the huge bug that splattered right in your line of sight.

I kept going back and forth about whether I should go on this trip. Was I going for my benefit or the family of the one who had passed from this life way too soon? Would I be able to encourage the family? If so, it was well worth the trip!

The worries about if I was making the right decision and if I was spending my resources in the wisest of ways followed me onto the road. I also have a history of falling asleep while driving. I don’t let it get that far anymore, I pull over and make someone else drive. But this time I had no back up. It was just me and a 5-yr-old.

We had two options for our mode of transportation. A 13 passenger van, or a 2004 VW bug that has a check engine light on and a couple of other dash lights on. It had cut out on me a few days earlier and I had to let it sit before I could restart it. Oh, and it has 284,740 miles on it. And the roof leaks so if it was gonna rain I had to take that into consideration as well. So which one did I take?

VW Bug! With the information above you may think I’m crazy, and you may be right. However, I knew it would get better gas mileage and most importantly I knew that with the top down and the wind in my face, I would be much less likely to fall asleep. A risk I was happy to minimize. So we put on our jackets, tied our hair back, put the top down, and hit the road. With the wind in our faces and the radio blasting songs of praise, it was easy to just focus on the trip ahead of us. It’s hard to worry and stress and second guess everything in my life, if I’m listening and singing along to praise songs. 

Just as this worked on my road trip, it works in life. I guarantee your day will be easier to handle if you play and sing worship songs. I have a station on my Pandora that is acapella, now it’s not foolproof, there are other songs that come up too. For the most part, though it’s good clean songs that help me block out the distractions. I also have discovered a few playlists on YouTube. Just remember, easier to handle doesn’t mean easy. It doesn’t mean God will block all the bugs from hitting your windshield, but he is there to help you clean them up.

Show some love

On my road trip I only had one buddy. We sat side by side. With the wind noise, there wasn’t a lot of opportunity for talking. But we sat side by side and sang together. She held my hand if not my whole arm for most of the seven hours there and back. Now this girl claims to have huge love tanks and she freely walks around loving on everyone. It was a joy to be on this trip with her and get to fill her love tanks a little bit while she filled mine to overflowing.

Don’t forget that we are called to build up, edify, and encourage our brothers and sisters in Christ. Hebrews 10:24-25

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

Love on those around you. We all know that this path is hard. It is hard to keep going at times. Reach out to encourage and love on those around you. It is easier to stay on the path if you have others to walk with. When you grow weary they can cheer you on. Maybe sometimes we even need to be willing to carry those on this path with us until they have the energy to go on. 

I am one blessed momma! This time with my daughter was such a blessing in my life. Not only was I able to bond with my girl, but I was also able to soak up some encouragement from God as I sang His praises and listened to His nudgings on my heart and mind. 

How are you intentional in listening to God? Do you have a time God reached you even if you weren’t searching?

Meet Melinda!

Melinda is a Christian, a wife, and a mom of 6. She has a blended family and has spent much time trying to learn how to "mom". She's still not perfect, but it makes her that much more grateful for God's grace and mercy in her life.

Learn more about Melinda and her family

Connect through cooking with your kids

Connect through cooking with your kids

by | Apr 3, 2023 | Melinda, One Blessed Momma

Each night the same question arises, “What’s for dinner?” Now, I love cooking, mostly baking, but the never-ending need to provide a meal each night for 6-8 people was starting to feel like too much. The need to make sure it’s nourishing. Making sure none of the people eating it hated any aspect. It’s a lot of pressure. I’ve also began trying to eliminate some things from my diet for health reasons. It all added up to me being sick of meal planning each week. I was talking to a mom who shared that when her kids were growing up they each had a night to make a meal. 

I have 5 kids at home, so I decided they would each have a night to plan and prepare a meal. That leaves 2 nights where I’m in charge of figuring things out. That’s a lot less overwhelm 🙂

Goals:

I had some goals when I initiated this plan:

  1. No more planning 7 dinners a week
  2. Less complaining from my children about what’s for dinner.

I received a few unexpected bonuses and I am so grateful I have added this to our weekly routine.

  1. 1 on 1 time with each child
  2. My children are learning a great life skill.
  3. Each child feels important & special when it’s their turn (okay maybe more so for the younger than the older).

1. Less Planning

I help the kids decide what they want to make for the family each week. I have had to encourage them to pick something different than last week, we’ve eaten a lot of Chicken Alfredo. I’ve also had to help them choose to add veggies and know we can’t just eat treats, there are boundaries. One kid declared we should have filet mignon every week. That sounds great but it isn’t realistic for us.

2. Less Complaining

The complaining hasn’t decreased as much as I would have hoped. They still find things to complain about. They are still complaining about each other’s choices as much as they did mine. So we’re having lots of conversations about being grateful. I recently heard about a mom that declared if any one child complained about a meal the next day would be a “Grateful Day”. They would have only water and rice for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I have considered implementing this for our family to squash the entitlement in my children.

Added Bonuses

1 on 1 time

I get to spend time with my children one on one. Having 6 children makes this difficult, so I am very grateful for this bonus. I am sharing one of my favorite things, cooking, with my favorite people. This gives us time to chat and I get a deeper glimpse of who they are. This is probably my favorite benefit.
 

Great Life Skills

My children are learning a great life skill. We all need to eat multiple times a day. I am happy to know they will have basic cooking skills and recipes to make their favorite meals. We cook for a (relatively) large family; therefore, they are, by default, learning to cook large enough amounts for friends too. (Bonus within a bonus 🙂 )
 

Feeling Special

Each child feels special & important as they take their turn planning and preparing. This may be more true for my younger children than my older children. I really enjoy getting to know their favorites and seeing their hearts as they learn to think about what other people like and don’t like.

Our family has evolved quite a bit on this journey over the last thirteen years. When our older kids were younger we would do “make your own stinking” dinner night. Each person made their own meal, a lot of it was reinventing or reheating leftovers. The boys loved this creative outlet, the girl didn’t like it as much. The boys had lots of interesting food, mostly quesadillas. The older girl has told me that she does enjoy learning to make some of her favorite meals as we do the weekly planning. 

I have spent lots of time cooking with the second boy. It was just the two of us for almost six years. He loved to help me cook and bake. He has always been Mr. Independent. At 3, I couldn’t keep him away from the knives, no matter what I tried. So I taught him how to properly use a knife. I figured if he was going to get into them, he was going to know how to safely use them. 

As I became pregnant with his younger siblings, I was able to have him help me with cooking the raw meat. Handling raw meat made me nauseous, he was willing and able to step in and take care of it for me. I was and am so grateful!

The weekly making of dinner with my children has been a huge blessing! Food also happens to be my love language 😉

What’s your love language? How can you share it with your children?

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Meet Melinda!

Melinda is a Christian, a wife, and a mom of 6. She has a blended family and has spent much time trying to learn how to "mom". She's still not perfect, but it makes her that much more grateful for God's grace and mercy in her life.

Learn more about Melinda and her family

Stop the Non-Stop Reel in Your Head

Stop the Non-Stop Reel in Your Head

by | Mar 6, 2023 | Melinda, One Blessed Momma

Do you ever have those thoughts that run through your head? On repeat? I don’t know about you, but my thoughts on repeat are never positive. “You’re an idiot.” “You’re terrible.” “Is there anything you can do right?” You get the idea. Yesterday afternoon as I was supposed to be writing this week’s blog I was having one of those days. I couldn’t find the stop button. My husband told me that’s what I should write the blog on – stopping the reel in my head of lies.

I couldn’t even begin to write about that as I couldn’t stop the reel. So as I sat down to write something else. My husband wrote the following for me. I want to share it with you, because he did good 🙂

Slaying Demons

By Chad Ashley

A seldom thought of part of being a blessed momma is slaying demons. Yes, you heard that right, slaying demons!

Talking about spiritual warfare here. As mommas are constantly looking after their family’s needs of day-to-day life, school, household, and everything that comes with it they tend to overlook their needs and well-being. Leaving the back door open. Mommas get so focused on taking care of other people’s needs that their own needs are put on the back burner and create a weakness for satan and his minions to attack. 

It’s ok to be the servant that God calls us to be but if you don’t take care of yourself you can’t be your full potential for the loved ones in your life. Just like the analogy of the air masks on an airplane, you must make sure you can breathe first before you can care for your little one. 

It’s come to my attention that one of the vilest demons we will face is ourselves. Yes, you heard that right. That voice that sometimes creeps up in your head and does nothing but question your worth or abilities. That evil voice that always beats you down and tells you you’re not good. That voice that always rubs your nose in your mistakes and makes you question who you are to help others when you always fall short yourself. Maybe it tells you you’re fat and ugly and nobody could love you? 

The Answer

The answer here is that voice is not you! That voice is a demon slithering its way into your mind and draining light from your life. It’s at these times it’s imperative that we cling to our faith and firmly rely on God’s word to focus our attention on what he calls us to. You see, Jesus himself calls us to walk in the light. (John 8:12) When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.

So with that said, what exactly can we do to fight this demon? What practical remedy is there to slay this demon? What I do when I hear that garbage in my head is verbally cry out,

“Satan! You are not welcome here. Get out of my mind and go back to where you came from! I am a warrior of God and you have no place here! I am a child of the Most High God and the light of Christ Jesus himself dwells in me and in that there is no room for you or any of your minions.”

Just verbally saying this really inspires me. I have been really vamping up my prayers lately to pray for all those around me and for their physical and spiritual health.

How often do you pray for your spouse’s spiritual strength? Do you pray daily or even multiple times a day for each of your children’s spiritual growth and protection? How about our church family’s children? Do you fill your day with these activities of light or do you allow too much idle time to fill your mind with shadows and let that door open? 

Slothfulness casts into a deep sleep,
and an idle person will suffer hunger.

Proverbs 19:15

We are truly blessed to be parents. Really stewards of little ones, “God’s children”. Let me ask you this. If God himself asked you to babysit baby Jesus would you fall asleep on a public park bench while you were to look after baby Jesus? NO! NO! NO! And so I challenge you, don’t fall asleep on the job. Don’t let that voice even speak to you! God created you and blessed you with these children and in doing so instilled in you everything you need to persevere.

In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

God made you powerful

I will leave you with this one more thought. How powerful did God make you? He allows the Holy Spirit to work in each one of us, right? And who is the church? As one of God’s children, a true follower of God, are you not part of the body of Christ? The Church?

I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Matthew 16:18

So tomorrow when you rise with the light do so full of the spirit and strength God gives you. Go into battle confident and armed with the full armor of God.

I am One Blessed Momma! I am so grateful for a man who will support me and interrupt the reel when I can’t. I hope I can use these tips he’s provided to interrupt my negative reel. I pray it helps you too. 

Meet Melinda!

Melinda is a Christian, a wife, and a mom of 6. She has a blended family and has spent much time trying to learn how to "mom". She's still not perfect, but it makes her that much more grateful for God's grace and mercy in her life.

Learn more about Melinda and her family