Thursday, May 28, 2015

Inviting Your Kids to Pray

When was the last time you prayed with a child?

For me its on a daily basis. We pray with our kids a handful of times a day on a regular basis and then a few more times at random times. Let me tell you some of the regular times and share some of the fun things they pray for with child-like faith.

When We Read the Bible
One of the first things we do in the morning is read the Bible together. I used to just open up the Bible and read it but lately I've been modeling the need to pray before we read their Bible and after we read it. This has been a great way for us to teach our kids about some of the heroes in the Bible. The other day Leah moved the bookmark and said "Daddy, this is my favorite story. Please read it." Its great to teach your kids how to pray before reading God's word.

Breakfast
The next regular time we pray in our home is pretty quickly after we read the Bible. Our morning prayer is generally quick for the food and then we pray for our Compassion kids. I love hearing our kids grab what we've prayed. They pray for their kids to have food, to know Jesus, to be safe and to be healthy. I don't have to worry about my kids having food or being abducted but for our sponsor kids its a real issue and I believe God hears the prayers my 6 and 5 year old pray.

Walking to School
In the book of Deuteronomy, Moses encouraged the people to pray with their kids when they are walking. When we leave the house and get to the sidewalk I grab Sophie's hand and we pray. We pray for her day, for her to have wisdom, for her friend, her teacher and her principle. This is a time when I do the majority of the praying.

Dinner
After I drop Sophie off I normally don't see her until I come home. When we all sit at the table as a family we pray. Our girls have started praying for each item on our plate. Its great to hear them thank God for: macaroni, beans, water, forks, chicken, potatoes and bread. They make me smile when they pray for each item on the table.

Before Bed
The last time we pray together is right before bed. I used to pray or Charity would but lately I've invited the girls to start out our prayer time. Leah might pray for her brother to eat good to sleep well and its precious. Sophie has been generally praying for a cat. I wrap up our prayer time and then we kiss before bed.

These aren't the only times we pray.
We pray for fire trucks when we see them.
We pray when a tummy hurts.
We pray when someone gets a cut.

I'm convinced that my kids are going to learn about prayer from how I pray. We pray big prayers. We don't only just pray for food but we pray for God to move in big ways for others and I'm thankful to be able to do that.

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Munchery

With recently having a baby we have been overwhelmed with how many people have brought us food! Many times people have texted to see if they can bring lunch, our church set us up on the meal ministry and others have brought over a warm cup of coffee in the morning.

Something a little different was an email I received from some friends. It was a gift card to "Munchery". To be honest I didn't know what Munchery was before getting the email but it sounded like had to do with food so I was in!

One afternoon Charity and I were ready to use the gift card so we jumped on munchery.com to see what was on the menu for the day. After registering for an account we started grazing and salivating over the dinner options. There was a problem; we were too late! We had to order by 2pm and it was 3pm. We had a few more days of the meal ministry taking care of us so we decided to wait until later.

While waiting I received an email letting me know that my first meal would be free! You heard me right, free! I thought maybe and entree and salad. Earlier this week we jumped online, at lunchtime, to order dinner. We both chose and entree, added a salad, got some sushi and dessert. When I went to check out the entire order was free. I was shocked! Even delivery was free. We checked out and waited for dinner to arrive.

When it arrived I have to confess that it was good! The food arrived promptly when it was scheduled to. It was great to heat up the oven and pop the meals in while eating some sushi and salad. The portions were just the right size for us (we don't eat a huge dinner).

The part that won me over was the special touch. In our bag was a handwritten note to our family along with an extra cookie. It was a small thought that made a huge impact. I began thinking about how we've lost the touch of  a handwritten card.

Overall I would recommend Munchery and we will be ordering from them soon!

Sunday, May 10, 2015

Spending Time with My Kids; Gardening

When I was kid I used to help my dad with the backyard garden. I'm sure I wasn't really a huge help but enjoyed the time we spent together outside. In fact, I just love being outside and have since I was a little kid!

When we moved in to our house, last year, one of my dreams was to have a raised planter bed. I hadn't done outdoor gardening in decades and was a super rookie. I was able to take some of my skills from what I learned, and with the help of watching youtube, we started a pretty cool little garden.

Our first year we bought most of what we planted. We purchased: zucchini, watermelon and green bell peppers from Home Depot. We also had beets and carrot seed we planted. The zucchini went crazy, the squirrels ate the watermelon, the carrots tasted... interesting and the beets were awesome!

We took what we learned and started earlier this year to get our garden ready.
(Planter Bed) 
(Sophie Planing) 
(Our germinated seeds) 
(Add Water)
After starting: beets, radish and zucchini we have added: tomatoes, cucumbers, corn and today watermelon!

(Zucchini going great)
(The bed has sprouted)
(Baby Persian cucumbers sprouting)
(Tomato plant)
(Leah watering)
I share all the pictures to give you a glimpse of the progress we're having. 

It is so much fun to teach my girls about germinating, planting and caring for our garden. Its fun to see seeds crack open and then turn into plants! We have great conversations outside and sometimes we just act silly, but the best part is I'm spending time with my kids and making memories! 

15 Years of being sober

April 20, 2015 was a big day for me. It was a day I never imagined would happen.

Today marks 15 years of being sober in my life.

Just over 15 years ago I walked out of a jail cell for the last time. I really thought that I would stay. I was on probation and had violated probation, I thought I was going to serve a year for that violation. When I got to jail that night I looked around and noticed the homeless drunks sitting in their stupor. I thought: "I'm not one of these guys..." but I was. Then it hit me: "I don't want to be like them when I grow up."

When I was a boy I wanted to be a fireman so I could save people but as a 20 year old I couldn't even get my life in order to help my self. I needed a change. That night I cried out to Jesus in the wee hours of the morning. I prayed a simple prayer, if you can it that. I made a request of God: "God, if you get me out of here I will do anything you want." Little did I know how much that request would change my life.

I was released 5 hours after praying that prayer.

A few days later I found myself attending my court mandated DUI school where I met a man named Brett Wheeler. Brett reached out to me at the end of class and invited me to attend church with him. Brett invested into me. He shared with me what he knew about God and helped me to find a solid relationship with Christ.

There isn't enough time to write what has changed in the last 15 years but for me its obvious when I look in the mirror; I am not the same man. God has changed my life and its only because of His mercy I have been able to stay sober for the last 15 years.
"Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit..." Ephesians 5:18

Sunday, May 03, 2015

Spending time with my kids: gas station trips

When I was a kid I used to love going to the corner store with my mom. I loved riding my bike there after we ate dinner. It seemed so big. It was like the biggest store in the whole world to the little six year old boy. The ceiling seemed like it was fifty feet high. I would meander up and down the candy isle looking for exactly the right bar to rot my teeth that night.

As our kids have grown we have taken more and more adventures with them. One of their favorites is heading to the local gas station for a treat. The store is a lot smaller to me now and the candy less appealing but the joy I see on my kids face is worth every cent of what I consider to be an overpriced candy bar.

As I think about the progression of these trips today was a big day for us. At first the trip was done with me pushing a double stroller. Charity and I would talk while the kids lounged in their toddler sized lazy boy chair on wheels. We would roll them up to the store where their grubby little hands would grab the treat of their choice.

After the stroller came the scooters. We would scooter to the store to find the hidden treats. Sometimes the ride home consisted of a kid on my shoulders and holding the scooter in my left hand.

Later our kids got balance bikes to help them prepare for bikes with no training wheels. They loved riding those bikes to the gas station. Generally I was walking, casually, behind them as the glided through the big world.

Today we all rode to the gas station…

Yep, we all jumped on our bikes and rode to the gas station. Leah is still rocking her balance bike and boy is she quick! She does need to keep both eyes on the road though! Sophie is pedaling away and she cruises down the street with her hair blowing in the wind. I’m not walking behind them anymore, today I was chasing them on my bike. We all rode to the gas station for a treat.

Now the point isn’t riding bikes, or wind blowing in your hair. The point is to spend time with my kids. The last thing my kids need is another five minutes on their iPad, or to watch another movie. They need to be outside and seeing the great big world. We are making memories as a family. We are preparing for a larger adventure that will take place one day (who knows what it will be, but its waiting for us). We are enjoying each other and smiling as a family. I hope they look back on these memories and enjoy them as much as I do.

Friday, May 01, 2015

One Week Later

I can't believe its been a week already...

I'm sitting here watching my son sleep and realized it was time to finally write about the last week.

Last Friday, April 24, was like any other Friday. I walked to Sophie to school. I dropped Leah off at school. Charity and I even went on a date. While we were on our date I realized she was carrying our baby low, I mean real low!

After the girls were back from school Charity went out with her sister to get a massage. Around 4pm she sent me a text message that said something to the effect of: "Grab my bag. Pack my toiletries in it. Pack your bag and let's meet at In-n-Out for dinner and then go to the hospital." I was obviously taken back by it but knew my wife knows her body.

We went to dinner at In-n-Out for dinner around 5:30pm and then headed across the street to the hospital where we were admitted relatively quickly. Charity was checked and dilated to a 3 and 90% effaced. We were staying and getting ready for our son. Around 10pm we met with our midwife and talked about our birth plan. At the end of our conversation she asked me: "Daddy, would you like to help deliver your son?" I was in good shock and immediately replied: "You bet! This is a dream come true."

At about 10:45pm it was time to start pushing, gently. Charity did a great job. I was gloved up and ready to help catch our son. His head came out and next his body. I reached in, grabbed him and gently lifted him up on Charity's chest. It was surreal. At 11:13pm we had our third child.

Isaiah Justus Benson was 8 pounds 10 ounces and 21 inches long.

(Charity holding Isaiah for the first time) 
(Me holding Isaiah for the first time)
(Our first family shot)