THIS Tuesday is MOPS Tuesday! =)

Hello Again Friends! 

How did Valentine's Day go? I hope our intimacy panel last time was helpful, I know I always love hearing from our wonderful mentor moms!

As I was thinking about last MOPs Tuesday and the mentor panel and just marriage in general, I started to realize how the process really is like a roller coaster...now stay with me here...

Yes yes it has its ups and downs and fast times and slow times and unexpected curves and stomach turning drops but that's actually not the metaphor I am going for...

Marriage is a roller coaster. First, we spend time standing in the line watching others go on the ride before us, (parents, grandparents, friends, siblings, etc...) and as we watch we have moments of feeling excited and moments of feeling scared, for it to be our turn. There are many that decide to turn back and never ride the roller coaster, there are others that jump on to it without adequate planning or even get on board with someone they barely know. And there is a good chunk of us who thought we knew who we were gonna get on board with only to discover they didn't fit in line with us so well.

When we did find our perfect seat mate, we boarded the coaster (some of us elegantly and prepared, some of us skipped to the coaster happy it was finally our turn, and some of us just kinda tripped on edge and fell on to the ride) but regardless how, once we got on, we eventually (some of us faster than others) realized that being on the coaster wasn't exactly what it looked like from the line...This may not be the perfect ride we paid for...wait a minute!

Fortunately, the advantage to this roller coaster is that the entire time you are on it, you can see the people in the cars in front of you (the ones who know what kinds of drops and turns are coming) and you can even communicate with them about what to expect. You can also see the cars behind you, the new couples excited to start their journey but unsure what to expect.

We are all heading to the end of the ride but no one on the track knows when or how we will get there, and sadly some get off the ride before they get to see how it will end... I have moments of wanting to get off the roller coaster....I also have a lot more often moments of wishing I could just stop the ride and soak in the goodness of it all! In the short (nearly 5 years) my husband and I have been married we have had some crazy drops and unexpected turns but that is when I look up from my seat and look ahead to the couples who have been there and experienced this part of the ride.

At MOPs we have such a wonderful resources of mentor moms at our tables and as you saw last week they are so full of good practical wisdom because they have been in our shoes, fought to stay on the ride, and know how to hold on! I want to extend an extra special thank you to our mentor moms for being so brave last week and sharing a bit of their wisdom with us! I also want to encourage any of you who are struggling on your ride right now or need some extra guidance or want some extra prayer, to reach out. Reach out to your mentor mom, reach out to your table/DGL for support, and if you want even reach out to the group by filling out one of our prayer request cards so those on steering can pray for you!

We have mommas in all stages of the ride in our community and there is so much we can learn from each other and support each other through. Lets strive to be Proverbs 31 women and wives, and help each other through the process so that none of us get sick on the ride =D

ANNOUNCEMENTS: 

Please join us tomorrow as we discuss safety with our kids and hear from one of our very own Mops Mommas.

Guest Blogger: Christie Dee

Happy Valentine's Day MOPs Mommas!!

 I hope you all had a day filled with fun and quality time with the one you love =) 

I am going to try to be posting more blogs on here for us with recaps from the meetings, resources, and guest speakers. I am super excited to announce that we have Mentor Moms willing to do some guest blogs for us! Our mentor moms have been there in the trenches we are in and are full of wisdom for how to survive the journey. So without further ado, Christie Dee has written this week's guest blog and it is an awesome reminder of Christ's love for us, appropriate for Valentine's Day right? ;-)

A Piece of My Blankie

By Christie Dee, MOPS Mentor Mom

Note:  I wrote this story 11 years ago when I was still a mother of a preschooler.  It’s still one of my favorite memories of my kids’ younger years.  It’s so beautiful how God speaks to us through our children’s actions.  I know we are working on training our children in the Lord but God also uses our children to speak to us.  Keep your eyes open to what He is saying to you through your kiddos. 

Recently, there was a happening in our household that I find worthy of sharing.  Four-year-old Emily, the youngest of our four, was quite distraught because her “blankie” was missing.  It had been gone for several days.  She had survived without it because she was still sleeping in her own bed, with her own pillow – all the other comforts of home were still there.  Her increased level of concern this day came because our family of six was going two separate ways for the weekend.  She would be joining her dad and brother for a ski trip in the mountains, while her two older sisters would be with me at a Bible Quizzing competition.  The whole family searched high and low for the treasure – a small, faded-yellow cotton rectangle with plaid trim, holes and stains.

Emily’s nine-year-old sister Hannah, also a “blankie lover,” joined in the hunt.  Over the course of her childhood she too had had missing blankies, destroyed blankies, and other blankie traumas.  In short, she could identify with her sister’s affliction.  As it became clear that Emily would have to spend the weekend (and maybe the rest of her life) without her yellow friend, Hannah did something that will forever remain in my memory.  She began rummaging through her already-packed suitcase, pulled out her beloved blankie – a larger rectangle made out of a similar cotton fabric, this one white with animals covering it.  She then grabbed a pair of scissors and began cutting of a piece of her cherished blankie and handed it to her little sister.  “I’m giving you a piece of my blankie,” she said matter of factly.  Emily cuddled the scrap of fabric to her cheek, said her obligatory “thank you” and off she went as if nothing had ever been wrong. 

To my two daughters, this happening was just one of many in the fabric of their lives.  But as for me, it touched my heart so deeply that I have pondering it and its significance for days.  We all have things in our lives that provide us comfort and security.  Tangible or intangible, they are precious to us – a part of who we are.  At times in our lives, others need what we have just as much as we do.  Our job is to be willing to give – whether it’s a word of encouragement because we’ve been through something similar, a sum of money, our time, our house, our talents and even our “blankie.”  Hannah saw a need that she could identify with.  She had the resources to fill that need, so she did.  It is simple, yet profound – an example of sacrificial giving at its best.  Hannah probably noticed the “smallness” of her three-quarter blankie for a few days, but pretty soon it was sufficient. 

Sometimes other peoples’ needs are an inconvenience for us.   Hannah didn’t wake up that morning desiring to cut off a piece of her beloved blankie.  But when the situation presented itself, she was there. Emily’s need provided an opportunity for Hannah to do a beautiful act of kindness.  It was someone else’s’ need that brought out something good in her. 

God of course has set the ultimate example of sacrificial giving.  He literally gave a piece of himself to us through his son Jesus so that we might have life, comfort, and security.  We can never repay this gift.  But through our “pieces” of giving, we honor the Lord and show ourselves to be becoming more like Him.  Emily’s yellow faded blanket was found a week later, hiding in the kitchen candy drawer.  Its reappearance paled in comparison to the precious act of giving that had taken place a few days earlier.  Now Emily has a yellow faded blanket and a piece of her sister’s white animal blankie to cuddle.  And I have a precious example of how I should live my life.

                 

Thank you Christie!!!

Reminders: 

THIS Tuesday 2/17/16- MOPs Movie Playdate  9:30-11:30 @ Calvary Bible Church Erie

THIS Thursday 2/18/16- Freezer meal workshop 7pm @ Allie's house

Tuesday 2/23/26- MOPs Tuesday!! **We will be talking about keeping our kids safe. This may be a hard topic for some so please be praying over this meeting**