Closer to God...

Today was one of those days...I was up most of the night and out of bed at 4:45am with pain....pain so intense, that it made me cry....and cry out to God. I found myself, while waiting for pain meds to kick in....crying out to my Father...but continuously, my mind was drawn to pray for others....a friend going thru a divorce, my mom who was having tests at the hospital all day....for my great-aunt who is very ill and in the hospital, for a dear friend who's mom just passed away yesterday...and for my husband, who only has 4 more weeks of working 3 jobs...but for now, is exhausted and stressed.

I wasn't much good to my children this morning...couldn't concentrate thru the pain...the meds didn't help, and yesterday, my little ones had way too many "goodies" at a birthday party...so they were tired and couldn't concentrate either. In spite of my pain and fatigue....in spite of my little ones withdrawing from the sugar and food coloring they ingested yesterday...somehow, learning still occured for them (thanks in part to my wonderful daughter, Meghan)....and I was drawn ever closer to my Father.

I was led to choose a book off of my shelf entitled " The Journey" by Billy Graham. I've had this book for years...always meaning to read it, but today...I opened up to the chapter on pain. Friends...my Father knows exactly what I need when I need it!

After he describes his wife, Ruth's chronic, debilitating pain....he leads us back to the comfort of God's word....His love letter to us. Psalm 31:15 says "My times are in your hands"..... "Though He brings grief, He will show compassion, so great is His unfailing love." Lamentations 3:32 He goes on to suggest 2 ways that will help us thru chronic pain: #1 Be on guard against pain's dangers...focusing on self (on the pain) and ignoring others around them...falling into the trap of self-pity or bitterness. He goes on to suggest one way to counter-act these feelings is to pray for OTHERS and their needs... and to count your blessings....LOOK for reasons to praise Him...and always be thankful.

#2 Ask God to help you learn the lessons inherent with chronic pain. God can use it for our good....it causes us to depend on Him for everything...minute by minute. As I write this...my little ones are bathed and ready for bed, my older daughters cleaned up the dinner that I managed to prepare for my family...and I realize the day is almost over...when I wondered how I would ever get thru this day at 5am this morning....and looking back....oh, how He helped me! He brought a dear friend to me this afternoon....a hot shower helped....and once I focused on serving my family and just trying to "do the next thing"....He helped me...and I am so grateful!

"The Lord is near to all who call on Him...to all who call on Him in truth." Psalm 145:18 and "The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms" Deuteronomy 33:27

To quote Mr. Billy Graham "Earth's troubles fade in light of heaven's hope." So...as my day ends, may I encourage those of you who are in pain....who suffer...draw closer to God...He loves you so much and will carry you thru your pain and suffering. May I end with a verse that has uplifted me and comforted me for many years.

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness" 2Corinthians 12:9

~Sue~

When learning occurs...in spite of illness...

We've had a week of sickness here....the flu hit both of my little ones pretty hard and not much of our typical homeschooling occured...certainly not much of what I had planned for our lessons this week. I've also had to accept the fact that sometimes, it is MY illness that prevents our homeschooling days to go exactly how I've planned....I have fibromyalgia, and I've learned over the past 12 years of homeschooling (and living with my own illness) that learning will occur everyday...and that you have to be adaptable. Along with lots of reading out loud, of course, below are some things that have helped us this week and over the years with my older children as well.Math war card games have been wonderful tools to help with memorizing the math facts. Right now, my son is memorizing his multiplication/division facts.
School House Rock! I LOVE this! I remember them from when I was a little girl...and I can only recite the preamble to the constitution by singing it! LOL This has helped all of my children memorize multiplication facts as well many history, grammar and science as well. Now, they even have a section on government and of course, who doesn't remember "Bill"...and how a bill becomes a law?!

And of course....Conjunction Junction!

The time period we are studying in American history is the Colonial/Revolutionary War period right now and all of my children love Liberty's Kids! I was so grateful that we were able to borrow the series from our library.

Also...these Nest videos are wonderful resources! As my children were laid low with fevers and headaches this week...they were entertained by watching some of these history dvd's about people and events that we had studied....there have been a lot of "Mom...did you know...?" questions around here, since they alway seemed to learn some little bit that they didn't know.

Forgot to find an image for the LeapFrog dvd's. My 5 year old has watched the phonics and reading dvd's and they have really helped cement her reading skills in a fun and memorable way. I've found that all 4 of my children are "kinesthetic" learners....they learn best by hearing (which is why songs stick in our heads), seeing and doing/reading for themselves.

I've had moments over the years of dealing with my illness where I've questioned, can I really do this? Can I really effectively teach my children at home? And the answer is a resounding yes! With some adaptability and creativity....and a lot of prayer...homeschooling can be the perfect fit when there is an illness in the family. ~Sue~