Reality TV - A Christian Perspective

For years we've seen the reality tv phenomena happening. People all over are loving reality tv shows. From Dance Moms to the Duggars, people are watching. 

Why? 

Why are we so interested in reality tv? 

Could it be that we're sick and tired of fake tv? Romantic shows? Phony Sit-coms? 

The question, "Does art imitate life or does life imitate art?" has been answered. 

Neither!! 

Today shows are being used to try to influence us politically. People are walking away from Cable television. With Youtube, people have become their own stars. Hollywood isn't needed. People are choosing what they want to watch and are no longer relying solely on Hollywood to tell us what to watch. 

This has me really thinking. Why do we love reality tv? 

I was taken back to the beginning of my walk with the Lord and I can remember wanting women to mentor me. It was hard. I was a young mom, new to homeschooling, new to the Lord. 

In time some women did come into my life but I always seemed to have trouble opening up and really sharing my intimate struggles with them. I had always assumed it was my issue because I was distrusting.  As I got older and my walk with the Lord became stronger, I began to see an issue. 

It wasn't that I wasn't willing to open up, it was that my mentors weren't really opening up to me. I found myself longing for some real intimate friendships and couldn't really find any. 

Don't get me wrong, these were women who knew God's word. When I did discuss anything with them, their responses were solid and biblical...there was just phoniness to it. A lack of real intimacy in our relationship as women. While they would nod and seem to understand my struggle, they wouldn't share with me their struggle in that area. Instead, they would cite scripture and their wisdom was good but again.. nothing really of themselves were they telling me. 

" So affectionately longing for you, we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives because you had become dear to us." 

1 Thessalonians 2:8

One day an older woman and I were talking and I was sharing my heartache with what I was going through with my older daughter. She shared with me, " I can't tell you what to do, but I can share with you what NOT to do. " I looked at her and said, "I'll take it.". She went on to share with me her own experiences....her mistakes and for the first time, I felt like someone was really mentoring me and sharing her life with me. Not her perfection, Not just scripture, but herself and her heart!! 

Oh what a treasure when you find someone willing to do this!! 

This began to open my eyes up to what was really lacking in the church. 

REAL WOMEN!! 

Our church is filled with real women, with real problems, but again and again, I'd see women hugging and saying, "I'll pray for you.". 

Inside my heart would die over and over every time I heard those words. I wanted to yell, "No!! She knows that you'll pray for her. What she wants to know is that she isn't alone!! That she's not the only one who feels like a BAD MOM!!" 

Stop being fake and Open up!!! 

(Thank the Lord for some self-control) 

It wasn't in our perfection that we were saved by our Savior!! No!! It was in our imperfection. After all, we are saved because we KNOW that we are less than Perfect! WE are awful sinners, saved by the Lord's amazing, Perfect, Grace. 

So why is it that once we're saved, we don't want to open up and be real?? 

I had a friend send me a link to a woman who was doing bible studies online. I thought, "Oh this is great." .. I got my coffee early that morning, sat down in front of my computer, clicked "play" and was startled by the OVERLY happy, too excited woman sitting in front of me. 

She was SOOOOOO Excited to be reading the book of Leviticus. What?? No one is EVER excited to be reading through the book of Leviticus. I immediately clicked it off and never went back. I looked up at the Lord and said, "Please send me some real women.". In head in my mind, "Well, I have you.". 

What?? No way!!! Not me. 

I realized that if I wanted "Real" women, then I'd have to become that "real" woman. A woman who was willing to be transparent about her imperfections, her life and her amazing Savior who loves her anyway!! 

That is scary! 

Just recently a woman from my church called me "transparent", which always shocks me. I looked right at her and said, "That is not something I'm good at.". 

So if you see me as being "Real" and "Transparent", that is ALL THE LORD. 

One of my imperfections is keeping track of all we have to do in a week. I love these 11 x 14 posters that I've been printing out. I put them in a frame and use a sharpie to write down what is going on that week. Including dinner!! This is a great way for everyone in the house to see what is going on that day and week. 

I have them printed at Walmart. 11x14 on matte paper. I put them in an 11 x 14 frame. I use a sharpie to write all our weekly events happening. 

Here is a picture of our January Poster in use. 

If you'd like to download January's Poster. Just click ---> Here

I

This is in a frame. I used Sharpie to add in the dates and events that we need to remember.
I also added our dinners.

Click Here to download

Here is to a happy and blessed New Year!! 

Laura,

Imperfect wife, mother, and follower of Christ 

Clean Your Home - Free Zone Cleaning Cards!

"Clean your home and keep it clean!" 

We've all heard and read this advertising ploy. Isn't that what we're all looking for? We clean our homes every day. We're always looking for a faster, better & more efficient way to clean out homes, but the reality is that we're all looking for a way to keep our homes clean. 

Go to any store today and you'll see a large array of storage. In fact, the storage sections of most stores today are usually one of the largest. only surpassed by the cold cereal aisle. 

Kitchen storage, laundry storage, bathroom storage. Why?? Could it be we have too much stuff?? 

I think we do. Sometimes less is more!! Look at all the books (Please do not look at my book hoard.. Errr.. I mean collection.) about "Simplifying" and Marie Kondo's book. These all talk about getting rid of excess *stuff* and only keeping what you LOVE and what is really NEEDED!! 

What's at the root of this? Sure, I could say it's the American way, I could say it's that we *Need* all this, but that's not really true. We live in a world where much of what we use to *Need* can be done on the computer. Pictures, documents, phone numbers... all of the things we need are on our computers. Even my recipes!! All my recipes are in a "Notebook" binder on my OneNote. I can share, retrieve and even email a recipe faster than I ever could. 

So why all the stuff?? Why the need for more things and more efficient cleaning?? 

Could it be that we're trying to fill a void that can't be filled?? I see that as our country moves further away from the Lord, we seem to be gathering and hoarding more "Things". 

I use to get so aggravated when I had to clean over & over again. It would ruin my day. It made me a horrible mother, filled with resentment. Then the Lord showed me something that forever changed my heart. I'm hoping that I can bless you with this. 

The analogy He showed me was that dirt, dust, and cleaning Is very much like sin. 

We clean every day, we dust, mop and put away our "Stuff" over and over. We never really get rid of all the dirt. Even if we think we've cleaned EVERYTHING and there isn't anything left to clean, there is!!! 

Sin is very much like this. Every morning, I pray, I ask the Lord to help me, to give me strength and to forgive my sin. This is very much like dusting. I'm lightly rubbing the surface of my sin...picking up the small pieces to make it look good. The real cleaning comes as I read God's word which mops up the dirt in my thinking. We always think that if we "look" good, then we're good, but in truth, my thoughts alone are enough to send me to hell. Many times I'll get a thought that I KNOW I shouldn't have and will immediately ask the Lord to forgive me and to show me His ways. Scrubbing our hearts is a daily task!! 

Proverbs 4:23 tells us the "Guard our Hearts"... this is a daily job. We must take up our cross daily to protect our hearts. I can't do this alone. Philippians 4:7 tells us, "And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

The Lord gives me a daily renewing of my mind and peace ONLY in Christ Jesus! If you know the Lord, you can KNOW PEACE!!!  If you haven't fully given your heart over to the Lord, To HIS peace and LOVE, then you're missing out on the ONLY way to truly "Clean your home.".. Our hearts are the homes that need to be cleaned. Daily!! Over and Over again!! Take time to clean your heart. 

The LAST Thing the Lord showed me, is that He repeats himself to me daily!! He has forgiven me daily, He Reminds me daily, He loves me daily!! 

So the next time you find yourself yelling at your children, "I'm tired of repeating myself..." Remember that we serve a Merciful Lord who repeats Himself Daily as we pick up our cross and try to keep the sin under control in our lives. 

As for our children, I do repeat myself. Daily I repeat myself over and over. One thing that drove me nuts was making sure they did everything they were supposed to each room. I found myself sounding like a nag...."did you look under your bed?" , "Did you empty the bathroom garbage?"...the list goes on. 

Then I saw something called "Zone Cleaning." I understood the concept but thought what they were selling was expensive and wasn't simple enough. All the charts and lists in the world don't mean a thing if they're too complicated to keep up with. 

I created zone cleaning cards for my children. I would have a card for each room and I would list the individual things I wanted to make sure they did in each room. This worked well because they would mark off the list as they worked and when they turned the card into me, if something wasn't done but was checked off on the list, then consequences would follow. This helped me to be more consistent and to give THEM the responsibility while not having to be a nag. 

Now, these lists are great for children who absolutely KNOW how to do what is on the list. I wouldn't use these with a child under the age of 7. Why?? Because most children are still learning the proper way to clean areas of the home. Working side-by-side is best until they're old enough to take over. You will know because as you work together you'll see your child's progress. 

Another issue that moms have is that you'll send your child to do a chore and then you lose track of them. Oh, it's just me?? Just my children do that?? Here is how I solved my problem. I give them a chore card and then I tell them, "Come and give it back to me when you're done." This does two things. 

#1. They KNOW they have to come back to me. 

#2. They know that they will be held responsible for the chores on that card. 

This makes cleaning easier. Does my home remain cleaner?? No. Does this mean I have less to clean every day?? No. It just makes my life easier while doing the cleaning. 

I print these out and then laminate them. I used the Happy Planner mini discs to keep them together, but that's not necessary. These are 5 x 8. Print them out and laminate them. I have 4 different colors with many room cards and 5 blank cards for each color to customize the rooms/areas of your home to clean. I've included all the rooms I could think of. Even the garage, yard, shed and basement!!  I have these in both PNG and PDF files. It's one download. 

I hope these bless you. 

Please do NOT share these files directly with anyone. I don't sell them but I do make money on the number of downloads and visitors to my blog via advertising. Please send your friends and family here to download. 

If you would like to be notified of my posts, subscribe to my blog here. You can also follow me on Instagram and Pinterest - Mother4Jesus

Click Here to Download

Have a happy and Blessed Christmas!! 

Laura

Imperfect Wife, Mother and Follower of Christ

My Blog is Awful! Free January Weekly Poster

I was trying to edit my blog and decorate it for the holidays. Please put on some sunglasses and continue reading. I will be fixing it, but this month has gotten away from me. 💁

Where did this month go? Seriously? It seems like just yesterday I was making a huge turkey? 

This month has been a whirlwind of parties, homeschooling,  shopping and of course, the start of Sarah's new season of competitions. We've tossed in David's Taekwondo too!! 

For January, I think of winter. I actually had a hard time coming up with something for this month's calendar. I'm not sure why? I guess I had a creative block. 

This month's background is again, from Janelle at Chantahlia's Design. This is a recent addition to her many backgrounds available on her website. If you click her name, the link will take you there. 

I love these. This is a weekly planner that is really working out for us. I print this out at our local Walmart. You can get this done in one day!!! It's about $6.00 for the 11x14. 

This is December's calendar.  I use a permanent marker and simply wipe off with alcohol. 

Everyone in the family can see what we are doing this week. Even my neighbor's son will look the calendar to see if my son will be available to play. Smart kid!! At the bottom, I have a place to put our dinners for the week. Breakfast and lunch is easy, but by dinner time, I'm done. So having a meal plan for dinner is what helps me. Here is December's poster link. 

This 11x14 Poster is free! I love creating documents!! I don't always use everything I create. Sharing is a great way for me to be creative! Please do NOT share these files directly with anyone. If they want, send them here. This month I have both a JPG and PNG file. You can adjust the size as long as you keep the ratio the same without affecting the design. If you do change the size, please post a picture, I'd love to see how you're using it! 

For notifications of the new poster, please subscribe to my blog here, OR you can follow me on Pinterest, Mother4Jesus and on Instagram. Mother4Jesus!! 

I've recently gotten into digital planning and am loving it. I really like it for school planning. 

please excuse my blog colors. I'm proficient in creating documents. web design?? Not so much. I was playing around with some colors and well, It's very bright. 

If you've been able to stand the bright, holiday spectacle that is my blog this long, then you more than deserve a free poster!! 

Click the link below for a direct download from my Google drive. 

** A few people have shown interest in these as an 8-1/2 x 11 landscape. If you think I should offer these in other sizes, please drop me a note here on the blog, or on Instagram. Mother4Jesus

Click here to download. 

Merry Christmas, 

Laura

Imperfect wife, mother, and follower of Jesus