Serving vs. Enjoying Our Families

I was reading the story of Mary & Martha the other day, when I struck by the fact that Martha was caught up in serving and preparing the evening meal, whereas Mary was simply enjoying the fellowship of Jesus and the other disciples who may have been there. Martha was doing an important task, and likewise we as wives and mothers have the important role of managing our households and serving our families, three meals a day, washing laundry, cleaning house, taking care of needs, etc.

But have we ever considered how we can so easily get too consumed with the serving aspects and lose out on the enjoying side? How often do I think of simply sitting down and enjoying my Boys for a moment…more frequently I have another thing that needs to be done. How often do I take the time to enjoy my husband in the evening after work instead of getting consumed with making sure my kitchen is perfectly cleaned after dinner?

Look at the Titus 2 order of priorities- love your husbands, love your children, then be workers at home! Carolyn Mahoney says: “The word for love used in Titus 2 is phileo. This word describes the love between very close friends. It is a tender, affectionate, passionate kind of love. It emphasizes enjoyment and respect in a relationship.” Often times we get so busy serving our husbands and children that we overlook enjoying them! This layout of priorities also emphasizes the importance that our husbands be our first priority! That means my boys are second to the needs of my husband. I am so thankful that God has been opening my eyes to the importance of enjoying my husband and kids. The Boys are growing fast, and this season will be short!

That is what I am thankful for this week! Thankful that God provides the grace necessary to let some things go in order to invest in the most important relationships.

March Madness

Today is the end of the Month, and the first day of the Baseball season. (Go Yankee's) Having three teenage boys along with their Dad, Sports is the MAIN point of conversation in our house. Nothing else...oh sometimes it might change if THEY WANT or NEED something.

Here is an example of a typical conversation with my Son Ryan (middle child)


Mom: How was your day today, tell me three exciting things that happened to you during your day.


Ryan: Mom, Are you crazy? I mean why do I have to answer that, my day was fine.


Mom: Because I love to hear you talk, I need to hear ALL about the choices you made today.


Ryan: Puzzled Look.

Sam: (youngest child) Ohhhh Ryan, do tell us about the choicest you made. Now Sam's face has changed like something out of a Pyco movie. Makes us all start to laugh...

Ryan: What the heck, why is everyone picking on me...

Josh: (oldest, bossiest child) Ryan just answer Mom so you can be done with it....

Mom: Done with WHAT? I am trying to ACT like I care....laughing...

Ryan: Hurry Mom, The first game is about to start and I want to watch some of it before I go to practice...

Mom: Just answer the question....I want to know.

Ryan: You really have to be kidding me, what is the question again?

Repeat this 10 times

This is just a small GLIMPSE into my daily life raising Three Boys. The title of a Chapter in my upcoming book will be...March Madness!

You Got Egged...

Egg a house this Easter season, your friends will love it! Instead of using real eggs - use plastic candy filled eggs.Go to your neighbors house and dump a bunch of candy-filled eggs on their porch and around their front lawn. Quickly put some eggs in their plants, trees, and on their patio furniture.When you're done leave them this note that says "You've been egged! Now egg someone else!" Knock hard on the front door and run!We were egged a couple days a go and the Boys LOVED it! We had so much fun last night "egging" two of our friends houses. It's a great way to start the Easter season.

House Hunting....

After a long, long, LOOOOOOOONG weekend of exhaustive/ing day of house hunting/style perusing/measuring/rethinking/and picture taking, we FOUND the house . . . the PERFECT house for us. I was even able to get a photo to show you.

As you will see, it has all the rooms we need. It is also not just your ordinary box on a lot. It has character which I found WOEFULLY lacking in some of the other homes we saw.

This one just seemed to fit the bill.

One of the things I cannot WAIT to do it decorate, and I hope you will all feel free to lend me a cyber hand as I tackle the task. As we looked at empty speck homes and decorated designer model homes today, I was truly convinced the more ideas you have the better. I would LOVE for you to leave comments regarding the types of decor you think might work in this home.

Thank you for your comments in advance. I know they will come in very handy as we now tackle the likes of Home Depot, Lowe’s, The Great Indoors, Bed Bath and Beyond and the like.

Take a look and then let me know where to start.

Our Sweet Baby Bernadette

Bernadette Keick Byers

6.5lbs 17inches

Born: 3.7.08 4:00p.m

Parents: Ron & Barbara Byers

NJ

Ron & Barbara are Roman Catholic so they named the baby after a Saint. The funeral is sometime this week, still not sure on all the details. My husband will be going home on Monday to be with his family during this very sad time.

Barbara you are my HERO. I personally can not imagine having a C-Section, then have to return your sweet baby back to Jesus so soon.

Please Pray....

It is with sad news to share with everyone. My sister-in law today delivered a baby girl (Bernadette) Unfortunately, she was born is major health issues, and is home with the Lord.

I am asking all my friends to lift my Husband's Brother (Ron) and wife (Barbara) and 4 girls during this unexpected time.

Happy Birthday To My Husband-Steve

45 things that I LOVE about my Husband, Steve:

1. He Loves me more each day.

2. He is the BEST father to Our Boys.

3. He is a great friend

4. He is Loyal.

5. He is Faithful.

6. He is Honest.

7. He is Helpful

8. He is always thinking of others.

9.He is the Best enabler.

10. He loves music

11. He makes me coffee each morning.

12. He does all the Laundry.

13. He is smart.

14. He makes dinner w/o me having to ask him.

15. He takes the garbage out.

16. He cleans the House.

17. He does yard work.

18. He buys me CHOCOLATE all the time!

19. He laughs at me when I throw fits.

20. He makes sure Gas is always in my car.

21. He vacuums.

22. He makes me feel beautiful.

23. He is my best friend.

24. He likes the same Home Decor that I do.

25. He Loves my cooking.

26. He believes in me.

27. He is very passionate about Politics.

28. He is a born-again christian.

29. He will help ANYONE, at ANYTIME with ANYTHING.

30. He Loves me.

31. He sings silly songs.

32. He Serves With A Purpose.

33. He adores me.

34. He is thoughtful.

35. He loves to WIN.

36. He loves Sports.

37. He LOVES spades on the computer.

38. He rubs my feet when i get home from work, brings me tea, and talks to me about my day.

40. He Loves me.

41. He Loves His parents.

42. He Loves his brothers and sister.

43. He is a good Uncle.

44. He loves to pamper our dog, Yankee

45. He LOVES LIFE!

Wow, I am so spoiled! Happy 45 Birthday My Dear Husband! I love you!

Will It Be The Giants Or The Patriot's???

NY Giant Aaron Ross is a great young talent at the corner back position. Ross will need to slow down Patriot wide receiver Randy Moss if the Giants are to win the Super Bowl.

The NY Giants is Our Family Pick.......Stay Tune!

Merry Christmas to Our Family & Friends

December, 2007

Dear Family & Friends,

Merry Christmas from our house to yours! We hope & pray that God’s presence is active in your homes as you and your family continue to seek Him. As we look back at the year 2007, we are thankful for all of the precious gifts both big and small Our Lord & Savior has bestowed upon us. There are 12 specific gifts that we would like to share with you. These “gifts” are based upon a fabulous movie called, “The Ultimate Gift.” As we take you through these “gifts” we hope you & your family are inspired to look at life and all that it brings as a gift from Our Lord.

THE GIFT OF WORK
Steve is still working at Martelle Mobil. This will be his 5th year! He enjoys it, however, is looking for a change, and new challenge. As of Oct. 10, I have ‘retired’ from Dream Dinners. I wasn’t retired for more then 48 days, when I started to work for Willow’s Retirement Living as the Marketing/Community Relations Director. The positives are: No Ferry, I dress up everyday, and I LOVE WHAT I AM DOING!!!!!!! The boys haven’t started a ‘real’ job yet; they work around the house for us, and help neighbors with odds & ends.

THE GIFT OF MONEY
We are not in the top million of the Forbes list; we do not own flashy jewelry or fancy cars: But Jesus has indeed blessed us with more then enough to supply our needs and to give plenty away.

THE GIFT OF LAUGHTER
With three teenage boys and tons of their friends hanging out at our house, we choose to laugh! Our boys keep us laughing while they are playing basketball, telling jokes & silly sayings. What a JOY that fills our hearts, to hear our Boy’s laughter as it fills the house.

THE GIFT OF GIVING
What JOY it is to see our boys walk in the truth. It is wonderful to see them giving their time to help each other with weightlifting, schoolwork, and chores.

THE GIFT OF FAMILY & FRIENDS
We are so blessed to have so much family and our church family near by. We truly love spending precious time with our dear family and friends. Sharing laughter, fears, tears, & prayers, with all of you near and far brings Joy & lasting memories upon our hearts. Please take the time to share with your loved ones the JOY that they bring into your life.

THE GIFT OF LEARNING
When we stop learning, we stop growing. When we stop growing we can become complacent & boring. We therefore are Thankful for the gift of learning. First of all we are learning how to build another home... (May we say that this is a very long and arduous process?)

THE GIFT OF FORGIVENESS
Ephesians 4:32 be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ Jesus forgave you. Need I say more? Forgiveness and unconditional love work together. Thank you Jesus for showing us the way.

THE GIFT OF PROBLEMS
Have you ever tried to teach teenage boys something...when they THINK they already know it all? Have you ever had to trust in the Lord when a spouse is suffering from Kidney failure? Have you ever.....???? WE could ask a thousand questions and know that where there is life there is also struggles of various degrees. However, we have held onto and still holding....Ephesians 6 “...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 powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms...”

THE GIFT OF GRATITUDE
How can we say thanks? We indeed are thankful to all of you for all your prayers, cards, letter, phone calls, and emails this past year. Again, Thank you for lifting Our family in prayer.

THE GIFT OF LOVE
How much more can parents love their children? We feel blessed to have three healthy teenage boys. What Joy it brings us to hear them share their thoughts when they pray. What deep compassion the boys have for their family and friends.

THE GIFT OF A DAY
How about a gift of 5 days in Seattle for Joshua & Ryan at a Biblical Worldview Camp? My parents blessed Ryan for his birthday, a full tuition. This was a great experience for both of the boys and they are eager to attend camp next summer.
Our family went to Florida in June to meet up with some friends we have not seen in 14 years. It was a great family time, we were all relaxed, played hard and most importantly no one got sick!

THE GIFT OF DREAMS
Our dreams this year have been filled.

THE ULTIMATE GIFT
We hope & pray that you and yours will experience each new day as a gift from the Lord. Our precious Lord is always trying to teach us and stretch us, as He desires to bless us. Please take time to enjoy the gifts that God has given you, and remember His Ultimate Gift to you was ...”wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger....”

Blessing to each of you...........The Byers Family!

It is Snowing in Kingston!

This doesn't happen very often and it is a major event for Washington State. Here is a picture of my husband, Steve and middle son, Ryan. Making a fort....and enjoying the snow!

It’s all in the Character By Michelle Weber

“Be imitators of God, therefore as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us.” Ephesians 5:2

Devotion:

“I’ll race you to the top”, my 6 year old daughter Emily shouted to her four year old little sister Amanda. Emily was already at the top and headed into her room before Amanda was barely half way up the steps. I waited for Amanda as she carefully climbed the stairs, pulling herself up with her arms to compensate for the weakness in her legs.

As I tucked Emily into bed that night I asked her to please stop turning everything into a race. “You’re asking Amanda to play a game that she just can’t win and it’s making her very sad”. With a heavy heart Emily replied, “Mommy why did God give ME all the gifts?” Searching for the right words I told her that God didn’t give her All the gifts, just different ones. I reminded her that God has given Amanda a bunch of gifts too, but hers just weren’t as easy to see right now.

The following year my little Amanda was diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy. The world as I had planned it with my beautiful healthy children came crashing down around me. “How could this be? We are an active family. We are going to take ski vacations, ride bikes and horses together.” Everyday I found myself crying uncontrollably and thinking about how incredibly unfair life was. It just had to change, it just had to.

First thing was to kick myself out of my personal pity party and get serious about helping Amanda. I wasn’t the victim here and I wasn’t going to sign Amanda up to be one either. In addition to talking to other doctors I examined my role and became very intentional about focusing on the one thing that made both of my girls special and valuable in her own way. We began celebrating the gift God gave them both which made them each unique. We turned our focus to their character; who they are, not what they can or cannot do.

Now preteens, my husband and I celebrate our daughters’ character and the choices they’ve made which have led to many different kinds of accomplishments, whether they are simple or monumental. Simple acts of kindness never go unnoticed. Perseverance and a good attitude are always cause to celebrate someone, their character and the choices they’ve made.

The perfect resource and teacher for me is Christ. Because I am a believer, I have chosen to be guided by His virtues, which mold my life and influence my choices as well. Before I could hope to see His virtues in my children I needed to first model them myself. Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self Control became my personal mantra and daily cheat sheet. Galatians 5:23 states “against such things there is no law.” My children are learning about Christ through me and my daily dealings in the circumstances of life. His virtues are also plainly displayed in our kitchen as a daily reminder to all of us.

We’ve had our share of accomplishments and struggles over the past several years, each providing invaluable lessons and glimpses into each one’s character. Accomplishments and successes as well as struggles and failures in this life are temporary but necessary for developing the soul, which is eternal. My hope is that no matter what God’s plan is for Emily and Amanda, regardless of what he gives them or takes away, that they know they are special, equally valuable and amazingly unique.

My Prayer for today:
Dear Lord, thank you for the sacrifices you’ve made so we can be so blessed. Thank you for the blessings you’ve provided me, especially for Emily and Amanda. Give me the strength and wisdom to honor you as I raise and encourage my children to be virtuous and honorable adults who glorify you. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.


Applications Steps:
When was the last time you gave your child a compliment that highlighted their character? So often life gets in the way of all those little details and robs us of invaluable opportunities to encourage and intrinsically motivate our children to repeat their good choices and character. Idea for tonight: Take a recent accomplishment and think about the character shown and choices your child made which resulted in that particular success. Bring up that occasion and focus your conversation on the character traits they showed and choices they made. Help them understand and feel good about the many variables which truly led to that particular success.

Additional Resources:
www.FamilyEnrichmentToolkit.com, created by Michelle Weber




Power Verses:

Ephesians 6:4, “Fathers do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged.”

1 Corinthians 11:1, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ”

Deuteronomy 6:7, “Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and whey you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

Easy Turkey Cookies---YUM-O!

These Cookie Turkeys Are SO Easy to make!

Simple way to let your kids help in the kitchen an take part in the Turkey Festivities.

We will be using them for part of the place setting name tags.


All you need is:

1 package of Oreo Cookies
3 cups. Rice Krispies
2 cups. Marshmallows
1/4 C. Butter
2 cups. Chocolate Frosting
1 package of Candy Corns

Melt the butter, add the rice krispies & marshmallows. Roll into balls. Frost the Oreo's with chocolate frosting. See above as to decorate, & make into Turkeys.

Enjoy- Gobble, Gobble!

A Boys Vision Of A Touchdown

Hooray! Today is my birthday. I am 39- and I've decided this will be my age for the rest of my life!

A day earlier, I picked up my middle son, Ryan, from school. He informed me that his football teams final game would be the next day and he would get much playing time. He then asked if I would be there. I said of course. Ryan remembered that this day was special for another reason. It was going to be my birthday.

He then said "I am going to score a touchdown for you mom". Personally I did not think much of his statement other then he was sweet to say this. Since Ryan had not scored a touchdown all year and he played mostly defense in his previous games.

I leaned over and said, "Do your best, that is all that matters". Ryan then said, "I am going to make it happen."

Well game night came along with the cold night air. Can you say freezing? I sat with my body bundled from head to toe and still could not get warm.

After three quarters of play the score was Mason 21 and Kingston 0. On the final Kingston drive Ryan caught two passing playing as a tight end.

Now don't be impressed with my commentary, my husband had to tell me these things so I could follow along. It was fourth down and 17 yards away from the end zone. Our quarterback took the snap and dropped back and quickly found an open player who happened to be my son.

Ryan caught the ball in front of a defender at the twelve yard line and preceded to run the rest of the way for a touchdown.

I was FREEZING, so I am not sure on all the plays, but He did great. I was proud of him but still FREEZING!

Everyone in the stands started to scream, RYAN BYERS GOT THE TOUCH DOWN! To my amazement "He Did It!!!" He Did what He put His Mind To- A Touchdown for me!

I have always believed in the Power of Having A Vision. Both personal and in business. This is the map of your success.

Ryan is a great example.

He had a vision for what he wanted to achieve on the field. Some might say it just worked out that way. I disagree, I believe He set His sights high enough and worked hard throughout the game and this produced the chance for which he took took and made the most of. (OK, a Touchdown, worth 6pts!) The end result is HE had a Vision, Set out to accomplish it, and achieved it.

This is just one story, but a daily reminder to me of the power we have when setting our sights on achieving goals. "A Vision is merely a road map to your success."

Finding the True Source of Strength

What do you do when you realize you have used the last ounce of your personal strength, resources and do not know how to replenish them? In discussing this with a good friend, she said, "Have you tried praying? To get help, you must ask for it."

In thinking about this, I saw that I had always taken great pride in the fact that I could "do it myself." I have always been so self-sufficient that I have never asked anyone for help, even when I needed it. Certainly, I had never thought of asking God for help for He was surely too busy with the important things of the world to be concerned about my little problems.

One night, however, unable to sleep because of all my cares and worries, I got down my knees and started to pray. I said, "Lord, I really need some help here!" Then I told Him in detail what was bothering me and asked Him to give me strength, courage and guidance.

My prayer was answered the next night in a way that to me was both miraculous and glorious: my whole life began to change in exciting ways as soon as I plugged myself into God's power. I will share in detail in a few blogs from now.

It is now clear to me that we can go a long way under our own steam and much farther when others are behind us offering motivational support and encouragement. But sooner or later, with or without emotional and motivational support, we're all going to run out of ourselves someday. The problem today is that there are so many books and so many humanists out there saying, "You can do it! All you have to do is believe in yourself." As many before me have learned, that is not enough.

There is a limit to the number of times you can pull yourself up by the bootstraps. Unless you plug into a source of power greater than yourself, one day you may discover as I did that, without God, you're as dead and useless as a light bulb without electricity.

So remember to thank God for the special skills, talents and abilities He has given you, and don't hesitate to lean on the LORD when you need help or encouragement in either your personal or business life. From experience, I have learned that if we will simply put our faith in God and give Him an opportunity to work in our lives, He will lead us in surprising new directions and reveal wondrous things we never could have discovered on our own. As the Bible confirms:

"Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed." (Proverbs 16.3)