Category: Mom’s Goals

Are You Prepared?

March 3, 2021

God’s faithfulness is proven in difficulty, not ease.

It was a huge blow. “It’s a brain tumour.” It’s been 5 years today since that first 10 hour brain surgery.

My parents had just flown out to visit my sister in Edmonton, excited for a visit with a pile of grandbabies. But dad could tell as the hours wore on something was terribly wrong and by the time he was getting ready for the day that first morning in Alberta it was obvious a trip was needed to the hospital. Hours later it was confirmed, a huge brain tumour needed to be dealt with right away but dad chose to fly home immediately and have the surgery here in NS. Enter a massive life change. That year was tough (read a bit about it HERE & HERE ) and it’s turned into 5 years of tough that God just keeps sanding away some rough edges I had no idea were there.

Many of you know the feeling. Life is normal, life is good, then in an instant everything changes and will never be the same. How can one be prepared for such change? How can a person be prepped for hardship and anguish? I’ve got an answer.

God moves in such mysterious ways. Again and again He has shown me over the years that I’m in control of squat-diddly. And He has shown me He is merciful and gracious to me though I am but dust (Psalm 103:14). For months leading up to that night when I received the call about dad I had been thrust, and I mean thrust, into Scripture. Without realizing it God was preparing me for some heavy duty lessons. For years I had been up before my kids to do Bible reading but in the late spring before that tumour was found my oldest son had a job that required him to leave the house at 5:30am, and I got up with him. I stayed up and pretty much every morning had about 3 hours of Bible time all to myself in which the theme again and again kept popping out of Scripture of SACRIFICE. What sacrifice looks like. Why we sacrifice. Willingness to sacrifice…. I made copious notes and prayed hard thinking I was learning a deep lesson but not a clue that an exam was coming up.

It was all that I had studied and written that was then played out day by day that intense first year of surgeries, paralysis for a bit, infection, cancer later, and deep mental suffering… It was hard. But the Truth had already been embedded into my soul. What I had read and meditated on for hours each day became my strength and joy in pain. Reading my Bible was the answer to being ready. I had hidden so much of God’s Word in my heart that the tremendous life-saving essentials I’d found there in easier times couldn’t be ignored and the Spirit would give quiet confidence in the most unlikely of times. Where would I be without that? It terrifies me to think about it. God knew how much prep work I needed.

I want that preparedness for you. I want everyone to be ready for the difficulties that will surely come. It’s one of the reasons why I shout from the roof tops to ‘READ YOUR BIBLE!’.

Since those trials of tumours and seizures more trials have come. Some I dare to say have been harder than the medical emergencies of those days. God has to deal deeply sometimes and cleansing can be extremely painful. I have thought often that I would not survive… and yet His Word will not let me alone. He keeps rushing His Spirit upon me through the darker times and reminds me of His tremendous faithfulness…. something learned only in the valleys???

Jesus is the answer. He always is. I have found Him again and again, deeper and fuller, every time I open my Bible.

Join us in the Bible Challenge and build your strength for battles yet to come!

~Shannon

New Around Here???

February 15, 2021

Hello! I’m Shannon and I’m a lover of Scripture. My friends and I enjoy reading our Bibles in a way that allows us to always be on the same page and able to discuss what we are learning together and ask each other questions to help dig deeper.

📖In a time when I was desperate for hope & stability almost 20 years ago my Bible became my best friend. It changed my life. And because of the power I witnessed in my life through daily choosing to read larger portions of Scripture I started sharing this simple method with others.

📖I know beyond the shadow of any doubt this is the answer you need, no matter what your life is like….
Bold statement? Yup!
True? Definitely!

📖 Our Bible Challenge has created quite a community and life will never be the same. We would love for you to join in as we read our Bibles whole books at a time, the way that I believe it was meant to be read. It changes EVERYTHING.

📖I double-dog dare you to try it for yourself! … Give yourself to the reading of Scripture this way and I guarantee you will notice a huge difference in your life. Hold your hat, it’s quite a ride!

More information on the Bible Challenge HERE. 😉

~Shannon

Don’t Quit!

February 9, 2021

Getting tired? Feel like it’s more of a chore some of those February days to flip that Bible open and get fed?
Take heart and purpose to read it no matter what! You reap huge benefits when you dare to keep opening those pages… even though your body & circumstances are screaming that you don’t feel like it and don’t have time!

Pull up your chair and just look at how much we have already dug into at the table this year!… and we’re just getting started!!!

If you are new to the Bible Challenge it’s important to know that you NEVER fall behind and you are NEVER too late to join in. Check out the link in the bio and pick up with wherever we are. There’s a bunch of us ladies who are getting to know Scripture in an oh-so-simple but life-changing way.

Join us???

~ Shannon

You Become What You Behold

January 30, 2021

My biggest regret is not purposing to put my relationship with God first at a younger age. The habits you form in your teens…or early twenties, or late twenties… carry you through the tough times that are sure to come.

Think of the godly woman you want to be when you get married, or when you have kids, or when your kids are teens or adults that need massive amounts of wisdom from you… that wisdom doesn’t come automatically.

You become what you behold. ❤️

I think of the Bible as a feast… I meet so many people that complain of spiritual hunger that is veiled as depression, anxiety, fear, bitterness… they think they need these unpleasant feelings and emotions taken out of their life by a change in circumstances. They don’t realize they are hungry and need to eat!

I point out a massive table in a King’s castle, laden with sumptuous delights of every kind, and say “Eat! It’s free to all who are willing! Anytime, just sit down and feast.”

And they say, “I don’t have time…”, or, “I prefer candy and chips…”, or, “I can’t unless it’s totally silent and a candle is burning and I feel wide awake and joyful…”, or, “I’m just too tired.” And they continue on in starvation. Or maybe they see other people stuffing their faces, so they crawl under the table and try to find crumbs that may fall.

I say, “Get up, you can come sit by me! You don’t have to scrounge for my leftover crumbs! You can have your own plate and fill it up. No matter how much you eat you will never be too full, but you will always be satisfied. And the table just keeps filling back up.”

This is what God’s Word is to us! Sometimes we need to acquire a taste for it, especially if we are used to junk food. But the more we eat it, the better it tastes.

The beautiful thing is that you’re never actually behind, you just left the table. Sit back down and pick up your fork- enjoy! This is mercy and grace. All is well! 🍞🍷

O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. ~Psalm 34:8~

~Anne

D&P Episode 7

January 25, 2021

A new chat is up on the Doctrine & Pancakes page. Want yo hear us chat about everything from opposition & pinched babies to seasons & drawing boundaries in relationships?? Check it out HERE.

Old Lady Prep Work

January 18, 2021

A question to ponder this week. 👇🏻
If you continue on your present course….

👉🏻if you as a woman; as a mom or daughter, married or widowed, friend, church attendee, worker etc….

👉🏻if you carry on as you do with your attitudes, thoughts, words, and treatment of others that are your habit from moment to moment NOW…

👉🏻…What kind of old lady will you be? Will others look back at your years and see Christ’s work, or that it was all about you, you, you?

If you’re a gossip now you’ll be a gossip-y old lady. Actually MORE gossip-y.
If you’re a discontent young mom now you’ll be a discontent old lady. Actually MORE discontent.
If you’re a lazy young woman now you’ll be a MORE lazy old lady.
If you’re a selfish middle aged woman now you’ll be a selfish and demanding old lady.

👉🏻👉🏻👉🏻Remember this: You reap WHAT you sow, MORE than you sow, AFTER you sow.

👉🏻Submit your thoughts, attitudes, and actions to what you see instructed in the Word of God. Ask God to start molding you into an old lady that could be described by 1 Timothy 5:9,10. He is able to correct our present course and encourage us moment by moment with necessary changes to our present norm.

~Shannon

Choose a Word for 2021

December 17, 2020

It’s that time of year again… time to start thinking of New Year’s Resolutions a WORD for the new year coming up!

Each year I pray about one word to focus on. I display my word where I’m reminded of it often, learning and growing in that area all year long.

I explain the why & how on a previous blog post. You can find it HERE. I hope you are intrigued and join in along with me!

~Shannon

Bringing Children to Jesus

December 11, 2020

I wonder what happened to each of those children?
What was the rest of their life like after being blessed and prayed for by Jesus in the flesh?

I bring my children to Jesus all day long, every single day, and fall asleep ushering them forward to His presence every single night with intense prayer. I can imagine the compulsion those parents felt all those years ago, that if they could just get them to Jesus they’d be okay.

I don’t believe for one minute that life was all roses for those kids after Jesus went away. The same monotonous routines of the day and squabbles with siblings continued on. They would have experienced aches & pains, loss & hunger, many also falling into persecution for their association with the Christ…. But that blessing from ‘God with us’ never diminished from their lives, ever.

I continue to bring my kids to Jesus day after day even though they’re almost all grown up. I’ve experienced things in my home that only God Himself could accomplish, showing the futility of my own attempts at righteous parenting and also grace bestowed on a sinner like me, and them.

At the end of the day these people who took the time to bring their children to wherever Jesus was and just be prayed for by their Messiah, are heroes of the faith. They didn’t trust that their own faith in this Man could be enough, they knew these little people needed a personal experience with the Christ themselves.

I want to talk with a few of those children when I’m in glory. I’m looking forward to praising God for what He’s done in my family alongside their parents who will be praising God for the blessing He was willing to give them.

Keep bringing your kids to Jesus.

~Shannon