Want a New Start in 2015? Join Me

December 29, 2014 By Heather

Good morning chica mamas, in case you hadn’t notice, the online world is a buzz of the New Year, New Plans, and Prayer Challenges. But what if you feel like me at the moment? 2014 was full of mountain top moments like Disney World, a missions trip to the Philippines, renewing my wedding vows, the release of my mini e-book with Julie Sanders. It also included many dark moments — nights wide awake, staring at the ceiling asking God if there was a way to have a do over from disappointment, broken promises and even financial ruin.

But what if you and I could shed the old ways of 2014 and face 2015 with a fresh start, a chance to lean in so closely to God, we can hear his whispers, we can pray and commit to being his daughter? We can!!! Kathy Howard and Julie Sanders, along with fellow bloggers are calling women around the nation to join New Start 15 – a chance to recommit your mind, body, soul and the new year to God.

Today Kathy is guest posting on my blog and will tell you a bit more! Are you ready??

Introducing Kathy Howard

I love the “undo” button on my laptop. You know the one – that little arrow that curves to the left. When you click it, the last thing you did magically disappears.

Sometimes I wish life had an “undo” button. I could click it to magically erase the unkind words I blurted. Or wipe out my selfish behavior. Or eliminate that wrong decision. To “undo” all those things that brought unwanted consequences or now weigh heavy on my conscience.

Yep. In fact, sometimes it would be great to start over all together. To get a clean slate. To get a complete do-over.

Guess what? If you’re a Christian, that’s exactly what you got when you entered into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. And sister, if things have gotten a bit off track since then, it’s not too late to undo and start new. In fact, now is a great time for a NEW START.

If you’d like to “undo” a few things or even start new on a bigger scale, consider joining me for “New Start 15.” During January, a few friends and I will be leading a month-long journey into holiness. Together we’ll explore what it looks like to become a “new creation in Christ,” to practically live out the set-apart, holy life to which God calls us.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 2:17, NIV

The “old” life looks like the world around us. And it’s burdened with the weight and consequences of worldly living. But the “new” life is radically different from the world, holy and set apart to God.

There is glorious freedom and joy in living a life of holiness. Freedom from the weight and consequences of sin. And joy in a deeper intimacy with our holy God.

Do you like the sound of freedom and joy? The chance for a New Start? Our God is the God of second chances, clean slates, and do-overs.

Participation in New Start 15 is simple. Here are a few ways you can get involved:

Use the New Start 15 Bible Reading Plan in your personal quite time January 5 – 23. (Free PDF download, version A or version B)
Like the New Start 15 Facebook page to keep up with daily devotional blog posts, get words of encouragement, and share thoughts from your own journey. (You can also download the New Start 15 bloggers list and schedule.)
Follow the New Start 15 “blog hop” January 5-23 (weekdays only) as the New Start 15 team blogs about living the new, holy life in Christ. (List of New Start 15 contributors)
Check out the New Start 15 Resources List for books, Bible studies, blog posts, printables and more to help you on your journey. (Free Download)
Invite your friends to join you in the New Start 15 journey by sending them the link to this post.

Do you long for deep intimacy with God? Do you desire for your life to please and glorify Him? Do you want your life to point others to Jesus? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then New Start 15 is for you! Join us in January as we dig into God’s Word to find out what He says about living the new, holy life in Christ.

Are you ready for a New Start? I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments. Or simply let me know you’re in! Happy New Year!

About Kathy

Christian author and Speaker, Kathy Howard, has been teaching the Bible for over 20 years to a varied audience. She has a Masters in Christian Education from the Canadian Southern Baptist Seminary.Kathy and her husband live in the Houston, TX area and have three children, two son-in-laws, and one precious grandbaby.

http://www.kathyhoward.org/want-new-start-2015

6 Truths I Want to Teach My Kids About Faith

October 1, 2014 By Heather

Being 30 something and surrounded by young college people not only makes me feel old and but makes me realize how critical it is we give our kids a foundation of faith built on God and his Word. As I sat in class, references to faith and Christianity popped up, what shocked me were the references and comments that individuals like myself who base their beliefs on one text like the Bible are, “…closed minded and futile in their thinking.”

WOW.

This generation’s prevalent worldview of postmodern thought includes postmodern values on spiritually, community, experience, and betterment of the world. In order words, this generation is highly skeptical of authority and won’t believe or do something simply because of tradition and they believe faith to be warm, fuzzy and subjective.

A quick web searching on “Teaching Kids About Faith” will pull articles like Parenting Magazine where faith, spirituality, and post modernism are combined to give parents ideas on how to send good thoughts in terms of faith.

Sadness crept into my heart for my classmates because they didn’t know what it meant to be in a relationship with God. They haven’t been introduced to grace or the promises of being imperfectly perfect, yet—radically loved by God. They don’t know the wild, passionate, deep love Jesus has for us—nor have they ever tasted freedom in the form of bread and wine in those precious bittersweet moments of communion. And sadly enough, they’ve never encountered God whispering answers or direction to prayer. Instead, they’ve encountered unchristian behavior and know everything we stand against.

It’s time to change that with my children’s generation.

It made me consider what I really want my kids to know about Faith and here six things I want to teach my kids:

1.The Bible is the Inspired Word of God

According to Barna, less than nine percent of adults believe the Word of God is infallible—meaning God’s word is contains no errors, is completely true and applies to our lives today. I want my kids to know God’s word to be true because God wouldn’t lie, because he is sovereign and wouldn’t put something in His Word unless we needed it. I want my kids to know His Word is living and active, it judges the hearts of men, and acts as a compass. And I want them to understand there is something inappropriate about using secular science to judge the claims of the Bible when we must believe it to be true simply because it is God’s Word.

And I also want them to know it is not to be used as weapon against things they don’t understand, nor is it used to condemn or judge but it is to be used as a living, breathing, active compass of Christ centered living. A way to love others through relationship with Jesus.

2. Faith will Help You in the Real World

When the world is pushing messages like, do what feels good, sleep your way to the top, you don’t need to be married to be a couple. I don’t want my kids to think faith is just a part of the latest trend in thought. I want them to God’s message is true today like it was 2000 years ago and like it will be tomorrow or on the other side of the world. The foundation of faith I’m teaching my kids is relevant and will still be applicable when they navigate the real world through personal choices, work, career, and relationships. Whenever they question what to do, I want them to get on their knees in prayer and/or dive into God’s Word.

3. Faith is more than just rules—it’s a relationship

With many doctrines, belief systems, and symbolic traditions encompassed under the word, “Christianity, it paints God to be an unrelenting task master full with a list of legalistic rules. I want my kids to know faith isn’t about rules, I want them to experience God’s love and what it’s like to have a relationship with Jesus. Being loved by Christ motivates me to want to do what God asks through his Word, to live life for Christ and it’s what will motivate them to pursue God’s heart.

4. Faith is an action

Faith isn’t just a warm, fuzzy feeling—faith means being Christ’s hands and feet in action. I don’t want my children to become disillusioned with the church or the years Jesus spent in ministry by feeding and clothing the poor. Jesus spent more time in relationship with society’s rejects than he did with his fellow peers at the synagogue.
I to teach my kids about “feeding his lambs,” I want my kids to be other’s centered instead of self-centered.

5. Faith means there is a future and a purpose for you

In a world where parents teach their kids to be anything they want—I want my children to know the true meaning of Jeremiah 29:11-13 and Psalm 139. I want my children to know they were created for a purpose, born with unique talents and destined to fulfill a purpose no one else can do. I want them to seek God’s face to establish their future. I want them to intimately understand Ephesians 2:10 of being God’s masterpiece.

6. Faith is keeping your eyes on Jesus

Today’s fad will be swept up in yesterday’s news but God is the same as he was yesterday as he will be tomorrow. I want my kids to keep their eyes on Jesus no matter how crazy and anti-Jesus this world becomes. This means I have to lead by example, putting my faith and relationship with Jesus in action. When something bad happens, I say, “Jesus, please help whoever’s been hurt in that accident,” or share how radically he loves me at the dinner table with a wildly far fetched—yet answered prayer. I want them to keep their eyes on him, no matter what.

Fighting for your child’s faith can be a tough and sometimes daunting battle, it’s easy to fear they will get lost or question our ability to lead or teach. But if you love Jesus and teach them to love Him, you and your children will one day meet Him face to face and hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

Advent Calendar Printable Cards & Ideas (Part 2)

December 2, 2013 By Heather

There are several ways to make Christmas more meaningful this year, this includes Advent. Even though it started a few days ago, you can start Advent anytime. Here is a quick computer snapshot of the Advent Card I made. You can download them, print them out and use them with your kids. Click here to download the Advent Cards for Kids: Advent for kids

One way we are doing this year is LISTENING to the passages with the Audio Bible at Bible Gateway.

I love this because we can all hear the scripture and visualize what is being read. I often use it on our way to school on my Iphone. Click here for the Audio feature at Bible Gateway. In the mean time, here are a few more tips for Advent!

Beginning the celebration: On the first day begin with either a prayer or a Christmas carol. Read the Advent Scripture of the day. Conclude by singing or praying but if you’re on the way to school–keep your eyes open and have your child pray.

Advent activities for Christmas Eve: Have a birthday party for Jesus complete with cake, the Happy Birthday song, candles and presents of nonmaterial gifts such as singing, readings, a play and prayers that each family member brings to share with others. Consider doing a nativity play with simple costumes. As you prepare to open gifts explain how we give gifts as a reminder of how much God gave us in Jesus.

Other ideas could include:

A stocking for Jesus and each day you read the passages from Advent, your children can fill the stocking with thankfuls on slips of paper. If your child cannot write, you can help her or have her color a small picture.
Make the Nativity Set the center piece of your home.
Allow your kids to play with the manger pieces, consider leaving it up all year long.
Play Hide and Seek with baby Jesus on Christmas day after the last Advent is read.
Watch the
For 43 Tips & Ideas to Make Christmas more Meaningful for your family, visit The Mom Initiative today!

Long after the new toys are banished to the back of the closet and the decorations stored away for another year, the memories of the four weeks of Advent will remain. Don’t be surprised if it turns out to be your favorite tradition! Last year, my mother in law made the perfect Advent quilt which I tucked in readings and candies for each child.

Other Advent Activities

Part of Advent is trying to be aware of the meaning of Christ’s birth and why he came.

As Christmas cards arrive, save them with the Advent wreath and use your Advent prayer time to pray for the senders.
Do an Advent service project for the needy. Collect money or goods and use a portion of the Advent time to decide whom to help and how to do it. Some possibilities are to join a church’s gift-giving project, call the Salvation Army for names of families who are needy, send a special food or gift package to a missionary or give anonymously to those you know in need.
Use your nativity set with as many animals as possible to enact the story. (Great for younger kids!) Some families set up the manger scene and each day move the people and animals in a little closer.
Make cookies or candies to share at the conclusion of your Advent time, or make special Advent cookies different from Christmas ones..

Advent for kids

Interrupted by the Invisible

November 13, 2013 By Heather

I blame it on Jeff…no I blame it on Jen (Jen Hatmaker!)….and Jesus for that matter. At this point anyone whose name starts with a J may be in the cross fire. It all started with the dryness in my soul. I would lay awake at night and truly wonder—is this all there is? Meaning, I had a great life but it felt so empty.

Little things started to work on edges of my sanity like my kids not eating their supper and how they cringed back from their plates and claimed upset stomachs because there were carrots in the dish.

And then other things started to happen like being annoyed with others, I was floored by the über amounts friends were spending on garage doors while other friends were irritated that God forbid, the man serving their tea touched the inside of the cups or how I couldn’t really enjoy my first Husker Football Game. I sat among 91,000 people–all chanting for the Huskers and all talking about the amount of cash they dropped for the game..

Something wasn’t right….. Something was SO wrong with this picture and I couldn’t quite put my finger on it until Jen, Jeff and Jesus got a hold of me (actually—they’ve had their claws in my for awhile but all the pieces fell neatly together).

Life turned upside down when I heard Jeff speak about the Invisible Poor and then it took a side-winding curve when I read Jen’s book, Interrupted but then I found myself flat on my back when Jesus slapped John 21:15 in my face (Jesus is gentle but I tend to be thickheaded).

Jesus said to feed his lambs (John 21:15) and yet 9,700 kids here in Nebraska (beef country where cows and corn outnumber people) don’t know where their next meal is coming from. Here I was thinking I was doing all God had called me to do: be a mother, a wife, a speaker and writer and yet he is telling me again, “Feed my lambs,” when I learned of the Invisible Poor.

I learned that while I lived on a modest income here in the US, half of the world population lives on less than $2.50 day while 13,700 children will die today from hunger….

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Matthew 25:34-40 ~Bible Gateway

Here I was waiting for God to put his plans into motion for me—my plans, the kind of plans where I ministered to moms, sang and danced and maybe gave a hug or two. Waiting for the next big house or the next nice car or even the next nice vacation isn’t what I wanted anymore. Instead, I yearn to be the hands and feet of Jesus, my heart is moved not only to minister to a mother’s heart but to feed those who are hungry, to warm those who are cold, to love those who are unlovable. The thought of standing before God one day and to hear him ask, “Heather, did you feed my lambs?” causes me to tremble. I don’t know about you but I’m ready to take God’s word literally and feed his sheep. What about YOU? What about involving your kids and teaching them to be Kingdom Builders this way?

And there are ways you and I both can feed his sheep:

Volunteer at a soup kitchen

This is the perfect way to involve your family. They will see the poor and needy and will literally be able to see the passage of Matthew come to life in front of their eyes. They will learn compassion and how to serve the poor with respect and passion.

Volunteer at a food pantry and take food to homes

Volunteer to either take food to homes of those who cannot make it to the food pantry or help organize the pantry.

Visit shut ins and senior homes

Often those in need are the loneliest. Take the time to hear their stories and to show their life–their voice has value.

Volunteer to do yard work for a single mom

Single moms are busy being both mom and dad to their children. Take time to mow her grass and do other yard work.

Donate your old and gently used belongings

Each child has a box in their rooms where gently used items of clothing, games, books and toys go. This box is either donated to a church or another charity who works with serving the poor.

Create a Casserole Drive

Often churches, soup kitchens, and shelters are in need of providing nutritious meals to persons who are hungry and/or homeless in the community. Gather your family or friends and cook several casseroles and take them to the appropriate place.

Stay Aware

Don’t become like those we are surrounded by. Stay awake and stay aware of the growing problem of poverty in your community as well as world-wide.

4 Nascar Truths Every Mom Needs

October 6, 2013 By Heather

It’s often said that motherhood is a marathon not a sprint. Yet I wonder if it’s something else entirely; like Nascar where God is the coach of your pit crew and you hear him whisper directions as you round the bend for another lap. Recently, our church went through a series about needing a pit crew and it ended with a night at the races.

Moments volleyed back and forth between snuggling with my son and begging him to calm down as dirt flew up from the track while drivers either lost control of their car or hit another racer in an attempt to make it to the finish line.

As I watched the race, I was struck how those who finished had listened to the instructions from their pit crew and went into the pit as needed for tune ups, blown tires and more. As I watched the race unfold– I saw the connection to being a mom in need of a pit crew while tuning into to God’s Word.

You see little mama, the most powerful tool a driver has is his car — but his car wouldn’t survive even one race without the care it gets from the crew. Pit crews are sometimes called the unsung heroes of the sport. That’s because they keep the car (and the driver) going, but they often get very little credit. This includes the Pit Boss, in real life–God!

God is like that pit crew, he sees when we are in need of refueling or knows when our engine is about to blow from the pressures of motherhood and that is why it is so important to keep in communication with your Pit Crew. Most often when I make the biggest mistakes as mom, it’s because I haven’t stayed in direction communication with him.

1. Refuel Yourself

Kari Jobe recently came to Kearney, Nebraska and she commented that if she didn’t do her personal worship of reading God’s wording, singing or doing devotions then her performance on the stage became routine. It became meaningless instead of being a beautiful lifeline of helping her audience worship God.

If we don’t take the time to connect with God, suddenly mothering become routine and we lose the sight of the blessings our children are. Instead they become a chore. Whether you have time for one passage or time to reach a whole chapter, take the time everyday to open the lines of communication between your spirit and God.

2. Lose It.

So often our lives fill up with obligations and wants on top of the expectations we create for ourself. At one of the lowest points in mothering, I realized theaspirations of being a homeschooling mom–cooking perfect organic vegan meals while ensuring each child’s homework was complete was my expectation. On top of having two other of my completed manuscripts published by now. I won’t even get into all the things I had signed up for as I thought, “I’m the mom–hear me roar!”

In reality–these expectations and my mile long to-do list set me up for failure. I may have planned life that way but God sure didn’t. As I sat in my Pastor’s office, my eyes were opened to the things preventing me from walking closely with God.

If you know something you’re doing is dragging you down in the race or its interfering with your prayers with God —lose it. Make a pit stop and ask God to show you what it is that is holding you back. Is it your sleeping meds, a poor diet, or that toxic friend or maybe your calendar filled with activities?

3. Praise Him at the break of day

Before you open your eyes, thank God for the breath you breathe and begin thanking him for each blessing he’s given to you. Those who think postive stay postive–it may be a rule of thumb, yet when we focus our attention on Jesus, it changes our hearts towards praising him…suddenly the overwhelming bill pile and cranky kids seems not so bad. It also tunes our spirit towards his and we can hear his voice.

4. Talk to your soul

So often in the race, competitiors like Loneliness, Comparision, High Expectations, and Independence box us in…rendering us unable to break free to hear God’s truth. King David could often be heard talking to his soul, “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”

Instead of allowing our failures or the dried cereal on the plastered to the floor and walls speak to us of our worth, tell your soul to “be still for my hope is in God,” When we focus on soul’s attention on God, we’re able to break free from the walls boxing us in.

What tools do you have for your race?

« Previous Page

Want a New Start in 2015? Join Me

Introducing Kathy Howard

About Kathy