Word of the day: Competent

     Our kids are really into Lego's right now.  So much so that Paul and decide to do a Lego Christmas.  Everything Lego's. I was so excited about the idea until I was on a blanket with Abi "building" with her.  Paul is usually the one to sit on the floor with the kids and build.  He is great at it and each of our kids love it. I love Lego's in our lives too!  I love that it occupies the kids for hours and its not TV.  I love that they are colorful and require all kinds of skills the kids will use later in life.  I don't however personally love Lego's.  I like it when they get a new set and all the pieces are in little bags and you have the nice instruction manual.  The like the moment my younger two get a little board with so much structure and they move on to something and I get to keep building with the neat and tidy instruction manual all by my self.  I can be creative with paint but you give me building blocks and I am lost. The other day it took me 20 minutes to build a very average house for Abi.

I kept building a house that was structurally unsound and it would crumble in my hands.  Each time it crumbled as silly as it seams I would hear in my mind "your not enough for them." "Not only are you terrible at the thing they enjoy most, you have to MAKE yourself sit down and play with them, you don't enjoy it." I love spending time with my kids. There are some activities that we don't enjoy and do them anyways...we don't want them to grow up and remember Mom and Dad were fun as long as it was what they wanted to do. 

     Competent would not be a word I would ever in my life use to describe myself.  I have always struggled in the area of learning in general, have major processing challenges that affect everything I do, and there are not many things that feel come naturally to me. Aside from balloon animals of course.  
     This post is just about depressing enough. Here is the good part.  All this that I have shared while yes its venerable and how I have truly viewed myself...ITS NOT THE TRUTH. I am not incompetent and neither are you. 
      Lately Bear has been on this kick of telling how he "FEELS" in the midst of a disciple or consequence. It usually goes like this, "I feel like you don't love and you don't want me to have any fun ever for the rest of my life." At first this concerned me and I thought I had majorly screwed up as a parent.  Then I realized he does feel that way and his feelings are down right wrong.  I do love him with all my heart and I genuinely want him to have fun everyday of his life.  I love him and I love fun!  I have been gently telling him, I understand that you feel that way but it isn't the truth, I love you.  Bear your are letting your feeling be the boss of you and they aren't your boss Jesus is. 
     Sooooooooooo, the same goes for me.  So what if you feel terrible at Lego's and you don't enjoy playing with them.  You are enough for you kids because when it comes to GOOD WORKS,  these kids are the greatest work you are ever going to get to do this side of heaven! 
  What God wants to give me and you if we will receive it: 
 And God is able to make all GRACE abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. 2 Cor. 9:8 
    I looked up that word sufficiency in the Greek, it totally means competent!  So regardless of how we feel about ourselves in the good work that God has given us to do the truth of the matter is that we are not just surviving our calling but have grace abounding toward us and are completely competent for the task at hand. SWEET! 
  The rest of the story on the blanket outside forcing myself to build a terribly unsound Lego house with my girl is this...She doesn't care most about the product of our time but the time it self.  That girl doesn't care much what we do together its the together that she longs for.  And just to put me in my place regardless of my feelings God has her casually say, "Oh Mom, I lob (love) that house you made me." 
    Thank you Jesus that Your grace makes us competent for the good work you have fashioned for us. I lob You!