Life;Elevated

Laundry. Dishes. Homeschooling. Serving at church. Cleaning your 8 year old hoarder’s room. 👀⁣
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LET MY LIFE BE WORSHIP!⁣
All of it. My whole life. Every moment. Every day.⁣
Surrendered to God, alone. Drawing strength from God, alone. 🫶🏻⁣
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“𝘉𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴, 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘎𝘰𝘥’𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘴? 𝘛𝘰 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘢𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘥, 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘢𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘦𝘴. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴, 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵. 𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘶𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱. 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘚𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘢 𝘵𝘰𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘯 𝘎𝘰𝘥’𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦, 𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘧𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴.”⁣
‭‭Romans‬ ‭12‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭TPT‬‬

Oh taste and see that the Lord is good. 🍓

𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳, 𝘐’𝘷𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢 𝘉𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝟸 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴… ⁣
☝🏻 Wisdom⁣
✌🏻 The fear of the Lord⁣
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Proverbs 9:10 says that the fear of the Lord IS the beginning of wisdom.⁣
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“Fear of the Lord” is not fear as we know it. It’s a reverence and awe; a revelation of His power and goodness. It only makes sense that a healthy reverence for who God is & how our lives can honor Him will lead us to wise choices & ways of thinking. ⁣
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So each day in June & July you can join me as we read a Proverb each day + venture through Isaiah, Revelation, and Ephesians. ⁣EVEN YOUR KIDS can follow along with Proverbs. It’s a great place for them to start developing a habit of reading the Bible.
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I’m officially calling this the “Summer of Wisdom & Fear of the Lord” ☀️
PLUS I’ve made fun daily coloring sheets to track your Bible reading TOGETHER with your kiddos- there’s a Proverbs log for kids & Mom’s Bible Reading log for the mamas. Both of those are linked in my bio and my stories, as well as the Bible Reading highlight! 🫶🏻

The topic of surrender came up during worship this morning at Life Gate. It’s been a recurring theme in my life this past year- laying down & letting go of my plans, expectations, relationships, business, control… and allowing that space to be fully consumed by God. Let me tell you, I’ve been DAILY surrendering this year, as my oldest two inched closer to graduation. 😆⁣
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This song has been floating around in my head all afternoon, after Michael read the lyrics out loud during service. 𝗜 𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝘁 & 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗮 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗛𝗶𝗺 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲. 𝗜𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗻’𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝘁 𝗴𝗼 𝗼𝗳, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗛𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂?⁣
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𝘐 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘭,⁣
𝘐 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘭;⁣
𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘦, 𝘮𝘺 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘚𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘳,⁣
𝘐 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘭. ⁣
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All to Jesus I surrender,⁣
All to Him I freely give;⁣
I will ever love and trust Him,⁣
In His presence daily live.⁣
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All to Jesus I surrender,⁣
Humbly at His feet I bow;⁣
Worldly pleasures all forsaken,⁣
Take me, Jesus, take me now.⁣
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All to Jesus I surrender,⁣
Make me, Savior, wholly Thine;⁣
Let me feel the Holy Spirit,⁣
Truly know that Thou art mine.⁣
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All to Jesus I surrender,⁣
Lord, I give myself to Thee;⁣
Fill me with Thy love and power,⁣
Let Thy blessing fall on me.⁣
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All to Jesus I surrender,⁣
Now I feel the sacred flame;⁣
Oh, the joy of full salvation!⁣
Glory, glory, to His Name!

Homeschool mamas, we have not chosen the easy road. The days are long, the children are always there, and there’s no one else to make the decisions. As I sat in a graduation rehearsal with 69 homeschoolers (including 2 of my own) and their parents yesterday, this season of homeschooling about to be behind us all… I couldn’t help but think of how FAITHFUL these parents had all been. Day in & day out, raising disciples of Jesus. Every morning, making the choice to keep going, even though they felt inadequate. Year after year, seeking God & doing their best to lead and guide their children. I know for myself this is all true. It’s not always been easy, and every child is so different. It’s been constant pivoting & learning & adjusting for over 10 years. But this morning, as I spent time with the Lord, I just heard a quiet whisper say, “Well done.” 👩🏼‍🎓👨🏻‍🎓
PS. In case you’re keeping track, after that little moment out on my patio, I did in fact cry today. 😂🥹
He sees all the little moments, mamas. Keep going. Continue to be faithful. 🫶🏻

Graduation rehearsal today! We now know how to sit in the right places, walk at the right pace, stand in line properly, do things in a large group, follow instructions from the person on stage, hand each other things, and smile when told. Things you have to teach homeschoolers. 🤷🏻‍♀️😂
Also… It’s the first day that I haven’t cried this week- either tears of “I’m so freaking proud!” or tears of “how did time go so fast?!” >> Does that mean I’m storing it all up for Saturday?! Jesus, help me.
2 more days! 👩🏼‍🎓👨🏻‍🎓

We’ve all been there. Or we will be. Life is hectic and busy, then it’s like one thing after another starts to fall apart, and somebody gets mad at you, and you feel like you just can’t win. Or maybe, you’re walking through a major life transition, and all of your plans for exiting one season and entering the next, somehow start to crumble.⁣
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In these moments, we actually can get a really good picture of our spiritual health. There are two things in these situations that I have found in my own life, and in others, that point to whether or not we are in a healthy place spiritually…⁣
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𝟭- 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁⁣
When the last straw broke… what was your response? When you found out what that person did/said… what did you say? When you found out that everything was changing… again… what rose up in your heart?⁣
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Take a look at the scripture from Galatians, above. 👆🏻 Was your response a reflection of a self-life (anger, jealousy, selfishness, etc) or was it a response that was full of the FRUIT of the Spirit? If the fruit isn’t a reflection of the Holy Spirit, then that a sign that we aren’t abiding in the True Vine enough for His Spirit to be what comes out of us when we are pressed.⁣
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𝟮- 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱⁣
After your response, when it was time to make a choice… what did you choose? HOW did you choose? Did you talk to Jesus before you talked to other people? Did you listen to wisdom that wasn’t what you wanted to hear? Did you go to the Word of God instead of social media for confirmation? Did you pivot away from the red flags, and toward things that draw you closer to God?⁣
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These aren’t always comfortable questions to ask… or to look at the answers. No one is perfect and we all have areas we need to grow in. Things to prune. There is no end goal, except for to be more like Jesus. Little by little, every day, we take more steps to abide in Him better & rely on Him more. ⁣
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“Be imitators of God in everything you do, for then you will represent your Father as his beloved sons and daughters.”⁣
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭5‬:‭1‬ ‭TPT‬‬

856. That’s the number of “official” community service hours that Eliza served in her junior and senior year.
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The majority of those hours were spent teaching children, which is something she began doing unofficially the moment her first younger sibling was born. Sometimes that was literal, as she would “play school” and boss them all around. But mostly, for her entire life Eliza has been someone who naturally teaches, guides, responds, and protects little ones. Her youngest 3 siblings, in particular, know her as someone who will take care of them no matter what. Not because we put her in that role, but because it’s just in her heart. ⁣
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It then became a form of worship to her- to care for the children in the house of God, so their parents could be in service. She has taught so many little ones how to worship, how to love God’s word, and how to treat others. It’s one of my favorite things if I’m able to pop in during worship on weeks when she teaches. She turns on the livestream, and actually demonstrates worship with those kids. There’s no junior Holy Spirit happening in that room. It’s the real deal. 🥹 ⁣
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She even taught our 4-6 class at our Co-op for 2.5 years: phonics, numbers, crafts, songs, games, stations, story time… she did it all! She even taught them Spanish! ⁣
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We are so proud of her service, her heart, and the way she has been “Mama Liza” to not just our babies, but any little ones that God places in her care.⁣
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“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.”⁣
‭‭Galatians‬ ‭6‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭NIV‬‬

There is something to be said for not quitting. There is something to be said for finishing well. We ended an era this weekend. After 14 years of playing baseball, Efton had his final games. I have never been more proud of his faithfulness, persistence, dedication, and hard work. He may not be going into the MLB like he said he was going to do when he was 4 years old, watching The Rookie on repeat… but he has been faithful & lived this season of his life 100% to the glory of God.
“Whether you eat or drink, live your life in a way that glorifies and honors God.”
‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭10‬:‭31‬ ‭TPT‬‬
6 days til graduation! Let’s GOOOOOO! ❤️⚾️

Don’t blink, mamas. 🫶🏻
Soak up every moment. Play outside a little longer. Watch that movie… again. Tuck them in as long as they want you to. Go to every drama production, gymnastics meet, and baseball game. Be their biggest fan.
Then… mix that in with a healthy dose of reality. Knowing their strengths comes easy to us as mamas, but we have to know their weaknesses as well. The goal isn’t raising precious snowflakes, but good humans who reflect Jesus. They aren’t perfect. Neither are we. That’s why we ALL need Jesus.
But seriously… the blinking is problematic. 😉