Last Meeting!!

Alisha, Monessa and I have been so blessed by this Moms' Group. We've enjoyed learning new things from our book, The Power of a Positive Mom by Karol Ladd, getting to know new friends, and most importantly coming together to grow as daughters of Christ. Thank you all for participating and making this community group such a great experience for us and many others. We had a small get-together planned on the calendar for December 19th, but have decided to cancel it. That means this Friday, December 5th, will be our last meeting during this book. Please join us for the last time this year. We are hoping to start meeting again in sometime after the new year and will let you know as soon as plans are finalized. The three of us will be talking about our next book options, so if you have suggestions, please post them online, email us at flatlandmomsgroup@gmail.com, or come to our last meeting this Friday. Hope to see you there! God Bless, Katie

Omaha Children's Museum

We will be going to the Omaha Children's Museum this Friday, November 7th instead of having our regular meeting. Please join us at 10:00 am and bring a lunch. Hope to see you then!

Katie

Principle #3 - The Power of a Good Attitude

No, the Power of a Good Attitude is not about plastering a fake smile on your face and acting like everything's ok. It's about having a heart filled with love and contentment. It's about living a life filled with God's joy. It's easy to get frustrated and overwhelmed when things aren't going how you'd like: Kayla won't obey you when you tell her to brush her teeth, Ross is doing poorly in math, as a mom you lose your temper and have your very own set of insecurities... Maybe your family is facing a divorce or a death. Have you ever asked why God allows these struggles to happen? If not, you've surely heard someone else ask it. Have you found the answer?

James 1:2-4 Consider it pure joy...whenever you face trials...testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

2 Cor 1:6-7 So when you are weighed down with troubles, it is for your benefit and salvation! For when God comforts us, it is so that we, in turn, can be an encouragement to you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer. We are confident that as you share in suffering, you will also share God's comfort.

If we think of our struggles as being "first filtered though his loving hands" doesn't it make it seem more bearable? God is allowing us to be tested so we can help others, grow stronger in our faith and in our relationship and reliance on Him!

Here are some other verses that you can turn to as needed.

2 Cor 1:9 In fact, we expected to die. But as a result, we learned not to rely on ourselves, but on God who can raise the dead.

Psalm 61:1-4 O God, Listen to my cry! Hear my prayer! From the ends of the earth, I will cry to you for help, for my heart is overwhelmed. Lead me to the towering rock of safety, for you are my safe refuge, a fortress where my enemies cannot reach me. Let me live forever in your sanctuary, safe beneath the shelter of your wings!

Psalm 42:5, 42:11 & 43:5 Why am I discouraged? Why so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again - my Savior and my God!

Hebrews 12:2 ...He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy he knew would be his afterward...

"Putting your good attitude hat on" as my daughter says and "keeping your 'tudes on" as my dad said when I was a kid, is a conscious, daily effort. But, if we turn to Christ, it will become a more natural part of us. Remember that God is with us through our struggles.

Psalm 37:23-24 The steps of the godly are directed by the LORD. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will not fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand.

God Bless!

Katie Watterson

PS Our next meeting is on Friday, October 17th. Hope you come!

Last Friday!

Hello ladies! I hope you all have had a refreshing holiday weekend! :) I am so sorry this post is a few days late! I really had a great time with you all on Friday! I thought our discussion was really good and I appreciated all of you that opended up and shared your thoughts! I have been really trying to apply all of the principals we learned about being encouraging and smile, smile, smile! I hope and pray that you all are having success applying these in your lives as well! I look forward to seeing you all next Friday at the zoo. We will get an e-mail out to you next week reminding you of the time and who has zoo passes so we can coordinate and hopefully no one needs to pay! Well, have a great week and enjoy this cooler weather. I am so glad it is fall! :)

In Christ!

Alisha

The Power of Encouragement

Good morning fellow Flatland Moms! I hope and pray that you are all doing well and have had a great week! Have you been putting into practice some of the things we talked about last week? I certainly haven't taken my husbands shoes off for him ;), but I am becoming more aware of my God given role in the home and am trying to slow down and enjoy my family more. I am even prayerfully trying to eliminate one or two things from my list of commitments to create more family time! I hope you have all been challenged to do the same! :)

I am really excited about meeting this next week! We are going to be touching on three different topics all related to Encouragement! Ch. 3 is dealing with the impact of a good word. As mom's we all want to say positive things to our children, but do we make it a priority and really think about what we are saying and the impact of what we say has on our children's lives? Ch. 4 talks about helping our children discover their potential. We will talk about specifically looking for and encouraging each of our kid's special abilities and talents. We are our kids cheerleaders! I know that something I have been dealing with lately is thinking about who or what my children will be when they are older. Sometimes I get so caught up in worrying if they will be smart and popular and althletic and good boys and a productive member of society that I forget to pray about it! God has really been showing me lately that I need to give them over to Him. He has a plan for their lives and if I am the best mom that I can be and raise them through prayer and teaching them His principals then He will be faithful and I know they will turn out to be amazing men of God! What an amazing promise! In ch. 5 we will talk about the beauty of a smile! Are you ever having a bad day and someone smiles at you and has a good attitue and it slowly starts to change your mood? I think sometimes we forget the impact of a positive attitude. " When mama aint happy, aint nobody happy!" Have you ever heard that one? I know that when I am in a bad mood my little boy and husband can definately sense it and they too start to become crabby! Start to practice spreading smiles!

Well, I am looking forward to this next week. I am excited to see what you all have to say about these topics! Please commit to prayerfully reading the chapters, asking God to show you what he would have you learn, and doing the activities at the end. They are a practical way to bring the chapter together and help to focus what we have just read about. I know they have really helped me! :) I will be asking you to share so have something ready! :) For those of you mom's who aren't able to join us in class please share your assignments on the blog. We would love to see what God is showing you and hear your stories as well!

Have a great week - see you soon!

Alisha

"Therefore encourage one another and build each other up." - 1 Thessalonians 5:11

First Meeting

Thank you to those of you who attended the first meeting since our initial kick-off/introduction meeting in July. I enjoyed hearing different perspectives today and hope you will also use this blog to share anything valuable you learned from our book, to ask questions of other moms, or to share fun stories.

Many of us mentioned today that we sent little ones off to school. Well today, only the third day of school, I was late picking up my preschooler! It was only 5 minutes, but she was the last one waiting with the teacher, who was very gracious, by the way. Maddie asked why I was late and I apologized and explained I was held up at Moms Group. I asked if she was worried, but she said she wasn't because she knew I'd come. I was worried that, on top of the embarrassment with her teacher, I had traumatized my daughter for life. However, I think she enjoyed a little 1:1 time with her teacher. It worked out (it always seems to), but wow, is that embarrassing! Has this ever happened to you? Please share your stories, so I don't feel so bad...

Katie

(Continue to check out our blog on Fridays for updated information.)

Employed by God

Colossians 3:23-24 says, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” We’ve probably all heard these verses, but have we truly applied them to our own lives? When I sat down to write my job description, I admit, I thought it seemed a little goofy. But, since I wanted to apply these verses, I did it. First, I thought about the qualities I believe I, as a mom, should possess, as well as the duties I think I should perform. Then I put it all together. It came out more like a classified advertisement, but it works for what I wanted to convey. Here it is:

Patient, Christian wanted to care for children 24/7. Duties:
· provide general care (i.e. change diapers, bathe, prepare nutritious meals) as well as special care when children are hurt, ill, and/or emotionally vulnerable
· in charge of running the household: maintaining calendar, budget, menu, maintaining cleanliness, and organizing quality family time
· responsible for each family member’s participation in activities, including transporting and cheering them on
· must work on having a good relationship with her husband, which should be evident to children
· must love her children enough to provide consistent discipline, guidance and boundaries in a firm, but loving way
· must be a good role model in attitude, behavior and acts of service
· must model a genuine, strong relationship with Jesus Christ, continually seeking his will and modeling obedience
· must be willing to snuggle, cheer, sing, dance, skip and be silly, all in the name of love
Endless supply of tissues and hugs a must. Vacation allowed during occasional “date nights.” No experience needed – on the job training provided.

It’s easy to look at this list and be overwhelmed. I ask myself, “Do I really do all of that??” The answer is a resounding, NO! Yes, I strive for these things and feel God is calling me to them, but I know I fall short. I am humbled to know that God has chosen me for my children and my children for me. We are a perfect fit! Even when I fall short of the job description I have for myself, God can lift me up and push me to achieve even more. Only with him can I achieve all of these things. Are there days when I’d rather be anywhere but home with my kids? Sure. But the true love of a mother is that most days there’s nowhere I’d rather be.

Now back to Colossians, are you doing your job as if you’re working for the Lord - wiping noses and breaking up sibling fights with patience and a good attitude? It helps to imagine God sitting there beside your children, watching you mother them. If he was there, would you do things differently? Surprise, ladies, he IS there.

Please take some time to write your own job description and share them on the blog. I look forward to hearing from you. I hope you will be able to come to our meeting next Friday, August 15th @ 9:30 am. We’ll be talking about some myths of motherhood and our purpose as moms. Please read chapters 1 & 2 and complete the “Read, Pray, Choose & Do” at the end of each chapter. See you next Friday!

Katie Watterson

And whatever you do or say, let it be as a representative of the Lord Jesus, all the while giving thanks through him to God the Father. Colossians 3:17

I want to thank everyone who attended the mom's group on Friday. What a great turn out! Thank you for participating in the conversations and getting to know each other a little better. Sometimes it can be hard to open up to people you may only know casually or not at all, but the more we share, the easier it is to get to know each other.

Have you moms read your next lesson, chapter's 1 and 2? If you haven't, get to it!! They are great! I can't wait to hear what some of you guys come up with for your homework. It's so encouraging to be able to go through this journey as a mom with a group of women who come from different backgrounds and to be able to share, listen, and get great feedback on different issues in life. Continue to move forward in your relationship with Jesus. He is the best friend and example we as mom's can have in modeling for our children.

Please feel free to blog responses to the book and also what is going on in your lives. If you have a funny story, just need a sounding board, or would like prayer and support for something going on in your life, write away!!

If anyone has any questions about the mom's group, please feel free to e-mail Alisha Boyll, Katie Watterson, and myself at Flatlandmomsgroup@gmail.com. If you have any suggestions about a name for our group, lets hear them! Talk to you soon!
Monessa Allerheiligen

Welcome!

I am so excited about starting our new group and getting to know all of you better! I hope you can all make it to our first session, this Friday at 9:30 am at Flatland Church. We will be having brunch for our kick off session, so come hungry! (snack will be provided each week for the kids) If you are taking advantage of the childcare please come a few min. early to check them in. The cost is $2/child up to $6. This week we will be going over the Introduction and doing some fun activities to get to know eachother better! It is going to be a great time so please try and make it. You can also purchase your book at $15 if you have not already done so and we will get it to you by the next session. If you have any questions please let us know by posting a comment to the blog or e-mailing us...

Alisha - luv.being.mommy@hotmail.com

Katie - kt_213@yahoo.com

Monessa - monessaa@cox.net

I look forward to seeing you soon!

Alisha Boyll