Our second MOPS meeting was last Wednesday. Once again, I left the meeting feeling so FULL and blessed. Nancy Markham, CCUM's Discipleship Minister, spoke to us about the many demands we have as Mothers. The title of the lesson was "Is there a Kitchen in a 3-Ring Circus?". We discussed common barriers/frustrations when it comes to preparing meals. Not surprisingly, TIME was a huge barrier. Nancy suggested that we should have a plan. (A plan not only for dinner time, but for the day. Nancy gave us many resources to use when it comes to meal preparation and time-saving tips.Nancy also discussed other areas in the "3-Ring Circus". These areas were things such as...our relationship with our Husbands, Spiritual undergirding of your Children, and the importance of Anchoring your life in Christ. She encouraged us to fill our tank up with things we enjoy. She also urged us to get in a small group/ bible study. Lastly, Nancy gave the supportive statement "God is able to do exceedingly abuntly more than we can imagine"Nancy weaved scripture in throughout her talk. This was especially comforting to know that we have a heavenly Father that supports our efforts as Mothers.
Here are a few of the scripture references Nancy made...
Genesis 2:18 And the Lord God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a companion who will help him."
Deuteronomy 6: 6-9 And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are away on a journey, when you are lying down and when you are getting up again. Tie them to your hands as a reminder, and wear them on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
Ephesians 3: 16-19 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit. And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God's marvelous love. And may you have the power to understand as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high and how deep his love really is. May you experience the love of Christ , though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.
Phillipians 4: 11-13 Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to get along happily whether I have much or little. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything with the help of Christ who gives me the strength I need. But even so, you have done well to share with me in my present difficulty.
Ephesians 3:20 Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope.
My brief overview of our time together will never do it justice. I can see that God is doing great things in my heart through this ministry. His love truly is amazing. I hope to see each of you back next month.
Listed below are a few of the resources Nancy utilized and listed for us...
http://www.savingdinner.com/
http://www.e-mealz.com/
Superfast Suppers by Cooking Light (Cookbook)
Homemade Meals in Minutes Family-Friendly Menus Made Easy by Linda Spivy & Cinda Coon
Once-A-Month Cooking by Mary Beth Lagerborg & Mimi Wilson
http://www.youreveningmeal.com/
http://www.cafeiz.com/
www.blog.al.com/frugalmom/
Focus on the Family, http://www.family.org-adventures/ in Odyssey
This is the apron we made to go along with our theme....
And this is the keychain from last time (each bead represents the different size breast lumps that are found at different stages of screening)
I will leave you with the title of this post. So far, my expectations of God's work through MOPS have been consistently exceeded.
We also made some keychains that serve as a reminder to take care of ourselves as women--through self-breast exams and routine MD exams and testing. This also can serve as a reminder to pray for Laura Black. (i will post pictures of the keychain later...my husband has the camera right now)