I always feel like I am running ahead.  No matter how hard I strive to catch up and reach the goal I always seem to miss it.  This has me feeling so very tired  and worn out.

The phrase "Nothing changes if nothing changes" continues to run through my mind.  As I have been working through the "My Journey" Journal I have learned that it is my mind that needs to change.  I don't need to work harder or try to achieve more in life (that's a relief!)  Most of the goals that I have set for my life are unrealistic goals that I will never attain.  This mindset was stopping me from enjoying my everyday life.   Life is too short, I don't have any more time to waste.

My everyday life is my legacy.  What are those closest to me going to remember about me?  It's not the big accomplishments - it's the little things that I do for my family, it's the way that I treat those around me with respect and encouraging words.  It's the time I commit to praying with our daughters each night and sharing about their day.  It's the example that I set as I open my Bible to study and invite my family into that space to learn together.  It's sitting in the same room with my daughter drinking tea and reading a book.  

It is starting my day with prayer, asking that the Lord's will be done and seeking His will alone.

Join me this week to seek His will in our lives.  I'll warn you that it is easier said than done.  For me it is a constant battle in my mind to seek His will and not my own.  As I have been journaling about this over the past few weeks, I have discovered that I am living more intentionally and finding joy in my everyday life.  The time spent with my family has more purpose, opportunities that I never expected are presenting themselves to me and I feel a connectedness with the Lord that I have been longing for.

If you are joining me in this, give this post a "like" below.  I would be honored to pray with you and for you, just leave a comment or send me a private message and let me know.  We can do this together, life is never a journey that we have to travel alone.

I tend to worry more than I should.  It's not a good quality - as in I even lose sleep because I play the worst case scenario repeatedly in my mind.  Control freak (maybe?)  I worry about a variety of things in my life but mostly our daughters.

With each stage of life there are new experiences, trials and changes.  Ah change!!!!!  Change and I are not good friends, we do not get along.  Give me my structure, schedule and lists and it's all good. 

Our family loves after church visiting.  Generally we are one of the last families to leave.  It was like that when my husband was the Youth Pastor and now that he plays on the majority of the music teams we can generally be found at the front of the church cleaning up music equipment and visiting.

One particular Sunday I was visiting with someone and I was sharing about our oldest daughter going to work at camp this summer and that she would be gone for four weeks!  I don't know how I am going to handle it!!!!!  She goes away to a youth retreat weekend, or a sleepover and I miss her terribly and have trouble sleeping.  You know what my friend said to me:

Sometimes you need a friend to give you a kick in the butt.  At first I was like, "Wow, harsh!"  Then I slowly began to realize how true her words are.

​Two weeks later I had an opportunity to exercise this new found wisdom.  Our daughter left for a youth retreat at a Christian College that is a couple of hours away from our home.  I dropped her off at the meeting spot - went back to my vehicle, paused for a moment and prayed for her weekend.

As she came to mind that weekend and worry began to settle in - I would stop and pray.  

And you know what happened?  I found peace and I felt freedom.  It was AWESOME!!!

Whenever I would quiet my heart to pray for her, I would listen to what my heart was telling me to pray for.  So instead of worrying I began praying that she would meet a mentor - someone that would be a positive influence in her life, that would be a good listener for when she needed someone other than her Mom and someone that she could connect with occasionally.  

On Sunday I was excited to pick her up to hear about the weekend.  I got to the church early and wrote in my journal while I was waiting anxiously for her return.  Eventually my very sleep deprived daughter arrived and had enough energy left to share about the weekend.  She had an amazing time - lots of fun activities, found a new love of lattes and she met an amazing girl that is a student at the college and just happens to be dating a guy from our church.

I could feel the smile in my heart, as I was so very thankful for a Father who listens, and cares and protects what we hold so very dear.  This girl, this answer to prayer has attended our church a few times with her boyfriend's family and she always makes time for our daughter and the other teens she connected with that weekend.

There is freedom in giving our cares & worries to the One that holds us in His hand - that knows the number of hairs on our heads.  

The next time worry sets in and steals peace and freedom from you, quiet your heart and place your worries at the foot of the cross.  He's got this.

The relationship between a Mother and daughter is a unique experience.

We have two teen daughters - but honestly I feel like I have had teen daughters for years.  As a Youth Pastor's wife and an educational assistant in a junior high school, I have spent years being surrouned by teenagers.  

When my husband and I served as Youth Pastors in our church, we had many parents coming to us for help and advice.  Which was comical because we weren't even parents ourselves at that time.  I spent a lot of time reading articles and books about parenting teenagers so that we could sound a bit knowledgable.  I look back on that time now that we have teenagers ourselves and I know without a doubt that the success of that youth program had nothing to do with my husband and I.  We relied solely on where God was moving and we followed His lead.

One of the biggest lessons I learned during that time, is that the issues from what looked as a teen problem, was actually a parenting issue.  I am thankful that I had so many parents teaching me indirectly how to parent teenagers.

I am a lifelong learner and I am still reading and learning how to be a better parent and build into our daughters.  They are awesome, they have unique personalities and they encounter the same issues and choices as most teenagers.

In my quest for knowledge I searched for books about the Mother/teen daughter relationship and was stunned with what I found.  I found books about the Father/daughter relationship and tons of books about how to heal from your relationship with your Mother.  As I scrolled through the selection on Amazon my heart sank and my eyes welled with tears.  What message is this sending me, that I am doomed to have a heathy relationship with my daughters?  

Instead of being defeated, it became a challenge.  Why are these my only options?  Instead of searching through Amazon and becoming more depressed - I opened my Bible.  I found such encouragement for my journey in building my relationship with our daughters and who I can be as their Mother.

It wasn't surprising that weeks into this journey of study I received a phone call to speak at a Mother/Daughter retreat.  I love watching God's hand work in and through my life.

My studying is not yet done, I am working on an eBook to give others the option of learning to flourish as a Mother of teen girls, instead of your daughters eventually purchasing a book of how to heal from your relationship!  YIKES!  

So, could I have a few moments of your time to fill out a few anonymous questions?  Just click on the button below and I want to thank you in advance for your help and support and please share this with others so that I can have as much participation as possible.

Have a beautiful day!

This is my new lock screen on my phone. 

I need this reminder.

I spoke with a group of Mom's this past week.  As I was preparing I had this special message drop on my heart.  We as Mom's are going to fail.  We are going to say and do things that we regret.  Whether it is toward our husbands or our children - some days we are going to go to bed with a heavy heart after a long, hard day.

But as the sun sets and as the sun rises on a new day we are given this gift found in Lamentations.:

​It's hard to believe that my new favorite verse, that gives me so much hope and strength comes from a book about lamenting.  About the destruction of Jerusalem, about poor choices.  Lamentations is a hymn of sorrow and regret.  How many nights do I crawl into bed thinking those exact things about myself, my day, my choices.

But the book goes on to show us that God's faithfulness and mercy is the key to a restored relationship with Him.

I live in Saskatchewan and we are known as the Land of Living Skies, which comes in part from the dancing Northern Lights in our night skies, but we also have the most amazing sunsets and sunrises.  I have sat on my porch swing many nights enjoying the view of the setting sun.  

When I meditate on the words in Lamentations, it gives that sunset new meaning.  As the sun closes on the day that is now behind me, I have made many choices that day.  Some amazing and maybe some not so amazing.  But as the sun will rise the next morning I have the opportunity to wake up and be amazing.  Why? 

Because my Heavenly Father's faithful, loyal, constant and trusted love, combined with His patient and compassionate mercy restores my soul every morning.  How overwhelmingly beautiful is that!  Oh my word!  Do you understand the magnitude of that!  Dear Mama's - every sunset and sunrise presents another opportunity for us to experience God's grace.

What hope that gives this Mama's heart, as I passionately desire to be a godly example to my family, as I pray for wisdom and discernment in the parenting of our daughters, as I faithfully come alongside and do life with my husband - May my attitude become one of "I get to" instead of "I have to".  

As you journey through life today I want to leave you with this promise found in Romans 15:13 - have a beautiful day.

Almost every summer that I can remember I spent at least one week at camp.  I loved the feeling of acceptance at camp.  My absolute favorite part of camp - either as a camper or a counsellor was bedtime.  Not for the reason that you are probably thinking.  

At the end of a busy day, as quiet comes over the campground and the lights are turned off for the night - that was when the most honest and real conversations would happen.  As I camper I loved this sharing time, as a counsellor I looked forward for the opportunity to speak truth and encouragement into the girls lives.  Those are the moments that I continue to cherish today.

​It is those camp experiences that inspired the bedtime moments with our daughters.  Every night I make time to spend time praying with and listening to our daughters.  It has become a part of our daily routine, they give their Dad a hug goodnight and I get to spend time with them individually.  As we sit on their bed it becomes our sacred time and place.  

Some nights it's just prayer time and tuck in, some nights it's sharing a burden or situation.  They know that this is their time with Mom and that it happens everyday.  They don't have to make a special time to talk with me, that may be awkward or uncomfortable.

I am so thankful that even now that they are teenagers they look forward to this time, and they miss it when they are away at a sleepover or camp.  

I wish I would have kept a journal of all the prayer requests through the years.  We have had the privilege to pray for so many friends and family.  So many moments that have encouraged and shaped us.  Admittedly, some nights I use this time as an opportunity to talk to them about some choices that they have made that may have not been the best use of their gifts and talents.  But mostly this is our time to pray and be thankful for our day.

My oldest went through a difficult time in school and many nights she would cry herself to sleep.  This Mama's heart broke repeatedly and I felt so helpless.  I read as many books and articles that I could to find a way to help her hurt.  Somewhere along the way I read that in order to wake up and start your day with a positive attitude you need to fall asleep with a positive attitude.  So each night I would ask her what her favorite part of the day was.  She would usually start telling me about something negative that happened that day, but I would encourage her to find something good.  After a few weeks it was easier to start finding the good in her day and it even got to the point where the list would get so long that we would be chatting a long time.  Maybe it was a ploy to stay up later, but the changes I began to see in her was such an answer to prayer.

Bedtime is my sacred time and place with my daughters.  Is this something that you can create with your daughter(s)?  Your daughter(s) need this space and time with you.

**Another little secret of mine is that I go in their rooms when they are not there and I pray over their room and for them.  I  remember how much time I spent in my room as a teen and I know that my thoughts were not always positive.   I lay my hands on their pillows and ask for protection over their thoughts, I pray for guidance on their path of life and for their future career, husband and family.  As I see the beautiful young ladies they are becoming I am so thankful for answered prayers and may the Lord grant me wisdom in this journey of motherhood.