This post was written by Wendy Woerner of Your One Tree
As I entered the new year in January, I felt the Lord tugging on my heart. I needed to surrender some things. I even chose a word for the year, for the first time ever: surrender.
Mid-month, through a baptism service at my church, He revealed to me the exact reasons I needed to surrender. Amazingly, things that I had been holding onto for years were suddenly very clear.
My disobedience in those things was also very clear.
One area where I struggled had to do with homeschooling. My children began taking classes at a local co-op last September. We enjoy doing this in general, but I knew it was especially important for them to get involved quickly since we had just moved to the area the previous July. They were enjoying their classes, meeting new friends, and I was also beginning to meet some ladies and giving some needed peer play time to my littlest two girls.
However, we soon learned that my oldest son’s class would begin meeting half an hour earlier in the new year. Ugghh! That would mean gathering my chicks all together by 8 a.m. on Friday mornings in order to leave the house and make it to his class on time. It may seem silly for some, but it was a real sacrifice for me to get up early from January to April, and I swore I would not do that this fall!
Funny how God can make us change our minds, isn’t it?
On the evening of our last co-op day for the school year, I received a very sweet email from the art instructor of my two oldest children. She was thrilled with their progress and talent, and extended the invitation to both of them to take part in her Advanced Art Class next fall, which meets at 8:30 a.m. There are also once-a-month meet-ups in the area over the summer where they can get to know the other students and draw various pieces, structures, and scenery, as well as work with other mediums.
It only took me until the end of the email to know that God was speaking to me. The entire second semester had been all about me and what I wasn’t going to do. But with art having been such a major part of my children’s lives since we first began homeschooling, there was no way that I could continue to insist it be about me. They will be attending the meetups this summer, as well as the class in the fall.
This mama is once again humbled by a God who knows His children, my children, and who also knows exactly what I need to surrender.
A second and even more recent area of surrender is actually something that was never even mine to take on in the first place. Do you ever do that? I seem to constantly need to re-learn my “place.”
My husband had been informed at work that there were going to be layoffs. We prayed about it, had asked others to pray about it, and had both come to the conclusion that God would take care of us, no matter if he lost his job or kept it. We have watched Him time and again care for us, providing for our needs at exactly the right moment, and He has never failed us. We felt confident that He would not forsake us now.
Looking back, I was not behaving in a way that would indicate I believed that. I was trying to take on more work, even though I have more than one full time job going on with homeschooling and running our home. After several weeks of this, and an odd turn of events that had me questioning my abilities, my heart, and the sincerity of others, God finally helped me to see what I was doing.
The very next week we found out that my husband did indeed keep his job. I am now in the process of completing commitments, and making new ones, to myself and to my family that I will say yes to them more. I have had to learn that often my “yes” to someone else means “no” to my family.
That is not my calling.
God has called me to the job of mothering, loving my husband, and homeschooling my children. He brings me back to the verses that He gave me when we first began this homeschooling journey: Deuteronomy 6: 4-9
And it is my job, as He leads me, to follow His example and in His footsteps, to show my children the way to Him.
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I have had times like that, too. Thank you for taking the time to encourage other women to seek God and fully surrender to Him. He really does know best. 🙂
I really needed this right now! My husband is in talks for a new job, I work in direct sales on the side and have 5 boys, 3 of them are under 3 years old and are developmentally delayed. I know God is speaking to me about how I spend my time, I just haven’t wanted to listen. Thank you for posting this, I really needed it right now!
Thanks for your encouragement, Vicki! Glad you took the time to read. 🙂
Nicole, I’m so glad you stopped by and left your comment here! It’s the listening that IS so important, I’ve found. I understand the pull, the need to lose yourself in something sometimes. (I have one that is dev. delayed as well) But losing ourselves in Him, and surrendering ourselves to Him even when it is hard, that is so key. I’m glad that my words were something you needed today. God knew just what you would need and when. It was Him!
I really need this too 🙂 I’ve been struggling lately with lots of things, really, the needs/health/habits kids, extended family, the coming homeschool year, and just decisions that need to be made in general. As I read your article, I realize that surrender is exactly what I need to do…I just can’t seem to figure out exactly how to go about it… exactly how do I go about immersing myself in God, with everything else going on in my hectic life? I have 4 young children (including one un-ruly 2 year old and lots of sports), homeschool, and run my own small graphic design business from home. I don’t have a whole lot of help, but I definitely feel called to “lose myself in him” as you put it. I can’t seem to find enough time to make that happen though. I pray, often, but the listening seems to be a problem for me…either I’m’ just not hearing him properly, or I’m just not listening, even though I think I am….LOTS of distractions! Any advice as to how I can lose myself in him and find that peace and surrender that is so necessary?
Thank you for sharing. I am struggling in all these three areas. I really need to learn that when I say YES to others, I am saying NO to my family.
Oh, Lisa, I’m so glad my experiences helped you to see a need in your life, too! How do you immerse yourself in God and find the peace and surrender that is necessary? I have found that it is a daily giving up. Sometimes, no many times, I don’t do it. I get to the end of a day and I will realize that I was not living surrendered that day. So, I’m trying to take each moment that I can and give it to Him, ask Him to lead me in the direction for my day. You’re right there ARE so many distractions! I want to make sure that you aren’t feeling condemned by my words here. As mamas, we all go through seasons. Right now, with your really young ones, you may not be able to spend as much time in the word as someone whose children are grown, and that’s okay. Reading the bible is one way, but if all you can read is one verse each morning as you are putting on your makeup, do it. Someone suggested recently in a talk I was listening to online that we tape a verse to our mirror or on the fridge, anywhere that we will see it throughout the day. Keep some praise music on while working around the house and in the car. Have you tried doing any children’s devotional books with your children or even simply reading bible story books with them? I have heard God speak to me even through my times of reading over stories about Abraham and Sarah, Noah, Joseph and Mary with my little girls while at the same time helping them hide His word in their hearts. And then when you can, be still before Him. This can even be when you are rocking your little one at night, whatever you are ding, pray, ask Him to take your day, your moments, and fill them with Him. He will do it!
Zulin, thank you for stopping by to visit with us! I think it is a struggle for all of us at sometime or another. We all need to learn how and when to say yes or no. The listening to God’s leading BEFORE making a commitment to something is so important. And, sometimes, He will prompt you to say “yes”, too. 🙂