Author: Barb

Journal Your Prayers

Days get hectic with little ones running around. It can be easy for prayer gets squeezed out in the midst of meal planning, naps, baths, and all the other things that need to be done. A Busy Mom’s Prayer Journal by Christina Joy Spaeth breaks daily prayer time into bite-sized chunks that can fit into a few minutes.

Although I was unable to complete each section of a given journal prompt into the suggested seven minutes per day, I discovered another benefit to this book. On one day I might read the prayer and write me thoughts for the first prompt. The next day I might review and add to the Gratitude or Mom Wins lists. If needed, on the third day I might concentrate on the Worship and Reflections portion of the entry. Doing so allowed me to ponder the love Jesus has for me and the discipleship role of busy moms at a far deeper level of understanding and connection with the Lord. I especially appreciate the section in the back to record prayers and when God answers them.

As someone who has provided day care for the child of working parents, I believe this book could also enhance the prayer life of grandparents or others in similar situations.

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It’s a Good Day to Be a Teacher – a book review

Are you a teacher, or do you have a favorite teacher? This book is a pocket-size reminder that teachers have a ministry in the army of God. The 52 devotions are divided into four seasons with stories, scripture passages to pray aloud, lessons to ponder during each week, and suggested Bible readings for extra credit. I suggest using it in conjunction with a journal to record your daily thoughts and prayers. The book would be a great gift for your favorite teacher, or for yourself.

Refresh and Refocus Your Teaching Heart

Today’s educators face unprecedented challenges in and out of the classroom. Teachers, paraprofessionals, administrators, and special education teams need more than a few words of encouragement and a pat on the back.

Divided into four terms—fall, winter, spring, and summer—It’s a Good Day to Be a Teacher targets the trials and joys educators encounter year-round. The weekly devotions provide:

  • Spiritual insights and inspiration
  • Courage to continue the calling
  • Practical steps for application
  • Additional suggestions for deeper study

Teachers who use the tools of God’s Word and prayer will be encouraged and empowered as they witness God at work in their students, classrooms, and schools. This book helps educators teach from a place of purpose and peace and provides hope and strength to teach another day.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Gretchen Huesmann comes from a long line of educators, including both parents and grandparents. Her three-decade teaching career, in private and public schools, spanned seven states. Today, Gretchen enjoys mentoring and encouraging educators, ministry workers, and women’s groups. She is also a tutor and substitute teacher. An award-winning author, Gretchen is a member of Word Weavers International and serves as president of the Pensacola chapter. Her e-book, Teachers’ Prayer Companion: Prayer Guides for Education Teams, can be found at GretchenHuesmann.com. Gretchen and her pastor husband have raised four children, three of whom are teachers. Their empty nest sits near the gulf shores of north-west Florida.

Being Content God’s Way – a book review

Being Content God’s Way by author Scott LaPierre blends Scripture verses with everyday life examples to examine the root causes of today’s discontentment. This 13-week Bible study guides readers to true and lasting contentment, which comes when we fully embrace what God’s Word offers to us all. The accompanying workbook poses questions to examine areas of our personal lives where envy, conflict, and covetousness enslave us with a spirit of anxiety. I found that pairing the book and workbook to complete side by side as the author suggests brings maximum benefit. I am recommending Being Content God’s Way to several of my friends for individual or group study.

Learn more about the book and author here:

God’s Faithfulness on Display

She stepped forward, pausing momentarily to set aside the music stand before flawlessly performing her entire flute solo from memory. With the air of a seasoned professional, she brought the mouthpiece to her lips. The audience watched silently, eyes glued on the teen whose body flowed in harmony with the melody she performed. Few among them knew her backstory, which is a profound testimony of God’s faithfulness.

More than a decade ago, her grandmother adopted her from parents who were heavily addicted to drugs. Taking custody cost every financial resource her single, working grandmother could muster, including her retirement savings. Moreover, with health issues stemming from prenatal exposure to drugs, this girl endured years of physical and emotional disorders. At times, it seemed an impossible task. Her grandmother consistently demonstrated that trusting in the Lord is the answer to overcoming every obstacle.

This pair have faced more than the average share of trials. Her grandmother had to find a way to work full time while managing her granddaughter’s homeschool education. They took on side jobs that allowed them to work together as a way to make ends meet. True, many friends came alongside them throughout the years to provide childcare, help with occasional meals, and run errands. But, as the grandmother attests, it is the prayers that God has faithfully answered with outcomes that awed and thrilled all who have participated in this journey. 

There is much to learn here about God’s faithfulness:

  • Pray – Make prayer a priority. Often, people call on the Lord as a last resort. This story is an example of what can happen when we call on God first, and trust him to provide the best, if not always the easiest, answer to our requests. It serves as a reminder to make your needs known to the Father, who gives generously to all who ask.
  • Persevere – I doubt anyone would have faulted this grandmother had she held back on providing the best possible education and musical instruction for her granddaughter. Her choices required countless personal sacrifices that she willingly made. This is a reminder that whatever is happening in life right now, “don’t quit” doing what is right. 
  • Participate – It takes a lot of humility to admit a need in a culture that praises successful individuals. But, God calls Christians to live in community and to share our ongoing needs with trustworthy friends. We all need help at some time along life’s journey. Your willingness to run an errand, bring a meal, or babysit for a few hours might seem insignificant. In reality, you may be doing the exact thing that is needed in the moment. Better yet, step up and offer to help before a request is made. 

Many friends who stood by this young lady and her grandmother through the years were present to watch her recital, blessed to experience the joy that resulted from God’s answer to their prayers and support. It’s a reminder to this writer that our Father rewards those who persevere under trials and to be thankful for all he has given. Gratitude is the word. 

When we pray, remember to begin with worship to God for who he is and thank him for all he has done for us. Trust that he understands our needs better than we do ourselves. The Lord will reveal his plans for our lives at the perfect time. That’s when we see his faithfulness on display.

“Let us not become weary in doing good,

for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

Galatians 6:9

It Says In Romans …

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:20).

One of the first knee-jerk responses to being wronged is a desire to take revenge. When someone attacks us, either physically or emotionally, the human urge is to settle the score, to redeem our reputation, or to literally throw a punch. By contrast, God admonishes us to take a different approach. 

Rather than strike back, we are told to stand down and allow the Lord to handle the situation. Why would God command us to respond in this way? The answer is right there in Romans 12, plain as day. In a military context, to stand down is to stop the action and allow a rapidly escalating situation to cool down. Taking a confrontive approach only fuels an already volatile situation, sometimes to a point that causes irreparable harm.

One of the most famous examples of interpersonal relations gone wrong is a feud between the Hatfields and McCoys. What began as bickering escalated to murder and continued for some 30 years until so many lives were lost that the U. S. Supreme Court became involved. To this day, there is still uncertainty about how the feud even began.

There are great lessons to be learned from the Hatfields and McCoys about the way we respond to wrongdoings. If we repay evil for evil, we not only damage our reputation, we prolong the downward spiral of destruction. As Christians, we dishonor our Heavenly Father. But when we repay evil with good, we display the same kind of compassion that was shown to us by our Lord Jesus. That’s enough reason to bite your tongue and unclench your fist.

When Christ sacrificed his life for us as the sinless Lamb of God, he did what none other could do: He offered salvation to everyone who would put their faith in Him. Our job as believers is to act in a way that draws others to the same saving grace of God. It’s akin to helping a lost soul find safe passage out of a burning inferno.

Speaking of burning, those coals mentioned in Romans are about humility. It’s a necessary part of the saving grace that Christ offers: acknowledging that he is God and we are not, that we are powerless on our own to save ourselves from the wrath of God. So the next time you find yourself confronted with any kind of evil, stand down and call out to Jesus. He’s got this.

Romans 12:20 plays a pivotal role in Stormy Encounters, my teen/YA fiction book scheduled to release March 14, 2023. It’s the kind of message parents and grandparents want younger generations to read. Watch for it on Amazon.

One Good Thing about 9/11

Prayer Focus

The entire nation was shocked when two planes piloted by Islamic Jihadists demolished the Twin Towers in New York City on September 11, 2001. Our collective sense of security was shattered. Repercussions rippled across our nation and around the world as the horror of the attack sank in. The act of terrorism did, however, serve to unite American citizens under the principles of freedom that are the foundation of our government. 

American flags appeared on homes throughout neighborhoods, non-church goers attended worship services, and the airwaves were bombarded with stories of near misses, survivors, and heroes who experienced the atrocity first hand. That unity crossed the boundaries of religion, ethnicity, and political ideology. Patriotism soared. “Never Forget” became the rallying cry. 

Sadly, within weeks people began to retreat from their united front. Flags flew less frequently and churches were no longer filled as the impact of 9/11 waned. Freedoms previously experienced by travelers were forfeited in the name of safety. Many of our grandchildren who  were infants or not yet born in 2001 have no recollections of airports without security screening or schools without metal detectors. 

Now, 21 years after that horrific act, some school systems are altering references to the event of that day from their curriculums. We are told it is to counter prejudice against people of certain ethnic and religious groups. With a spirit of love for all mankind, we are instructed to teach accurate historical truths to the generations that follow.

Do we need another foreign assault to bring us together? Hopefully not. The next assault against Christians is likely to come from within a nation that has forgotten the laws set down by our Creator God. The battles we face are in our homes, schools, and communities. As members of the army of God, our duty is to pass along God’s Truth to our children’s children.

“ And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws
as this body of laws I am setting before you today?

Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely
so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen
or let them fade from your heart as long as you live.
Teach them to your children and to their children after them.”
(Deuteronomy 4:8-9)

As it relates to God’s Word, “never forget” is the cry every Christian grandparent needs to exclaim. Our grandchildren are depending on us. If there is any good lesson to learn from 9/11, it is the call for Christians to stand in unison and profess the Word of God to all nations.

Photo by Jonathan Meyer on Unsplash.

A Gem of an Idea

Creative Pursuits

It started with a broken bracelet. Then came the YouTube video tutorials followed by an in-person class, where I made my first pair of earrings. Jewelry making has turned into one of my favorite hobbies. I turned out many gifts and custom-made items for special outfits of my own. It also provided a natural opportunity to have conversations with grandkids and others, both boys and girls, while teaching them how to create their own gifts and personal accessories.

Girls adore the necklaces and bracelets they make themselves; more is better seems to be the rule. I think it’s the freedom to choose the exact components they put in it. Even my grandson occasionally accent his camouflage tee shirt with the masculine bracelet he made from black and silver beads with charcoal gray stones. He also has made necklaces for his mother and sister using their favorite colors and charms. These reportedly get lots of hugs when he presents them to their recipients.

It might be because I started this hobby from a repair perspective that I often hunt through yard sales and flea markets for broken or out of fashion jewelry with interesting beads. I like to pair these finds with store-bought beads, stones, and leaded crystals in one-of-a-kind patterns. For me, the most enjoyable part of the process is seeing how individual components work together in different combinations to create something that is better than the sum of its parts. It’s a lot like observing how we, as uniquely created people, can work together and end our time feeling more upbeat than when we began. 

Making jewelry together, or for that matter, sharing any hobby together, opens the doors to talk about deeper concerns of life. At times, children who are working on a jewelry item with me will drift into a conversation about something that is troubling them or one of their future hopes. It’s an organic way to drill down to the crux of the matter without pressure or pretense. We may end up sharing a prayer of thanks or a petition for intervention to God.

Give it a try. We all need time to refresh our minds and renew our souls. Allow yourself the simple pleasure of engaging in a favorite activity or hobby. It could be anything from fishing with a grandchild or teaching kids how to make bracelets to, well, you fill in the blank. Relax, enjoy the time, and ask the Holy Spirit to guide your thoughts and conversations.

Then drop me a note and tell me about your hobby.

Music to My Ears

Get with the beat. Music has the power to lift spirits when the blues set in, add excitement to an otherwise dull day, and prompt anyone within hearing range to get up and dance (sometimes while they’re sitting in a chair). I am blessed to be married to a man who is a music aficionado. It means my days are filled with happy sounds.

Our grandson caught the vibe, learning to play enough guitar chords to strum the opening chords of Smoke on the Water before he opted for drums. With his Dad’s approval, we encouraged our grandson’s musical choice by financing lessons through his school’s music department. Lessons were done on a single drum pad, so we dangled the carrot of earning a new drum set once he completed every lesson in the beginner’s drumming book he was using. 

He began prompting us about the promise when he was nearing completion of lessons in the workbook. It was difficult to judge his proficiency, however, my husband and I decided to honor our promise. We prayed for God’s guidance in the selection. A few consultations with musical friends and product reviews later, we landed on a beginner’s electronic drum set. Our grandson accompanied us to the music store and practiced on a store model before we purchased a set. At our home where we set up the drums (because our grandson lives in an apartment), he took charge of figuring out how to manage the electronics and portable amp.

Our first opportunity to hear him play on a full electronic set was an answer to prayer. The following week, some friends brought guitars to jam at our house. Our grandson rewarded us by showcasing his strong, consistent drumming and flexibility to tackle new rhythm patterns. 

Through this experience, we learned to let our grandson show us where his interests lie instead of directing him to do what we think is interesting to him. Isn’t that what we all want anyway? The Lord has gifted us all with different talents and abilities. Embrace them in your grandchildren, no matter where they go. It’s all part of a beautiful, diverse symphony of talents.

Fatherhood on Display

During the course of one week, I had the opportunity to twice witness father-and-son interactions that give me hope for future generations. 

The first encounter took place at a retail establishment. While I was waiting in line for the cashier, a father and son entered the store with packaged goods and delivered them to the store office. When I finalized my purchase and stepped toward the exit, this father and his son approached the door at the same time. We all stopped. I gestured for the son to follow his father out of the store, but the father told his son, “Let the lady go first.” The son stood still, respectfully looked at his father, then at me. It struck me that here was a father teaching his son, by example, how to serve the community and how to be a gentleman. “Thank you,” I said, before exiting the store. I pondered, “How many of today’s problems would be averted if every father made the effort to train his child in this way?”

Within a week, while leaving a movie theater, a similar situation occurred. As I walked toward the exit, I came across a man who was holding the door open; a young boy was standing inside. The two exchanged glances and the man motioned for me to exit. The boy stood still until I passed through the doorway before he too left. Once outside, they chatted about the movie and what they would do next. This time, my sense of hope were piqued.

It is important to mention that these father-son family units were of different ethnic backgrounds. In a cultural climate where much rhetoric is expressed against one or another’s ethnicity, what I witnessed is the powerful, positive influence of lovingly engaged fathers in action. Today’s children need committed fathers who are intentional in the way they discipline and train them. 

These are the things I learned from my encounters:

  • Fathers deserve our respect. For too many years, our culture has relegated men to the unnecessary heap in regard to families. That is not God’s plan, and as we can see in our culture, the idea that fathers are not needed to raise children simply does not work. Also, please ignore any preconceived notions that exist about ethnicities.
  • Many good fathers are giving their all to raise their children to be respectable gentlemen and ladies. In the future, when I am in a situation where it is appropriate, I will thank the father for the good work he is doing in the presence of his child. Children need to see their fathers being respected for fulfilling their role in a godly manner.
  • Families matter. I believe it is time to encourage young men and women to marry, and stay committed to each other in the Lord, before they have children. That means I must be willing to share my life experiences with them, including how God helped me and my husband through the tough times by relying on God. Transparency counts.

I am now intentionally observing how fathers interact with their children wherever I go in public. It is heartening to see fathers of young boys or girls patiently listening to them, giving their child a gentle hug, or carefully explaining something to them. Raising sons and daughters is a challenge, but the best of men are out there giving it everything they have. I appreciate them, and I hope you do too.

Superpower Grandparents

I posed a question to a panel of theologians at a family camp designed for Christians. It went: “How would you counsel Christian grandparents to leave their faith legacy for their grandchildren when their parents are unwilling or unable to do so?” A large, collective groan from the attendees confirmed that I am not alone in this need. The panel members, all of whom were in the midst of raising young children, gave tenderhearted answers. Thankfully, they confirmed much of what I already am doing. They also offered added insights.

Their first bit of advice was to pray; pray for our grandchildren and for our children. (Note: It’s never too late to pray for your children.) There is never a time when prayer is not needed. There is never a time when we know better than God what our families need. There is nothing we are experiencing that God cannot change in an instant. I am reminded to lay my burden on God and then step aside and get out of His way. 

Secondly, one pastor reminded us that we are Superpower Grandparents. As the Farmers’ Insurance commercial tagline says: “We know a thing or two, because we’ve seen a thing or two,” grandparents have experienced what our adult children are now going through. It’s not that we swoop to the rescue wearing flowing capes, it’s that we care enough about our family members to prioritize their eternal salvation. We hold a powerful influence over the lives of our grandchildren, demonstrated in the way we speak and interact with them, and the example we demonstrate through our conduct. Second to their parents, we are the most powerful influences in their lives. I encourage you to use this influence wisely.

Finally, we exert a powerful influence over our grandchildren in the messages we speak to them. You have probably heard the saying that children live up to the expectations people assign to them. As influential grandparents, let’s remember to speak positive words into the lives of our grandchildren. When children grow up hearing things like, “You’re never going to amount to anything,” or “Why would anyone want to be your friend?” they believe it. When they hear us say things like, “God has a wonderful plan and a purpose for your life,” or “I thank God for allowing me to be your grandma,” our grandchildren internalize those positive affirmations. 

At the end of the Q&A at camp, one of the panelists strongly suggested that grandparents write blessings that grandchildren can read throughout their lives. It doesn’t matter if your words are profound. It does matter if they come from the heart; that’s what makes you a superpower grandparent. Ask the Lord to give you the words to reinforce your grandchildren’s walk with God.

“Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” Ephesians 6:10-11

You can stand up against evil. I have learned to rely on God when…