While I was driving into work one morning, the radio deejays were discussing a new study that piqued my interest. The study reported that one of the biggest stressors for moms today is striving to create the “perfect life” for their children. Moms aim to get their kids involved in several activities to help them excel and truly “shine” among their peers – at the average cost of $1400 per year per child for activity fees. This puts many families into financial stress, some even into debt. Being a mom of three, I understand the desire to see my children succeed in academics, sports, music, etc. We either want our kids to be the absolute best at something or to be well-rounded individuals with a high level of exposure to multiple activities. This may easily lead to stress as a parent, and we ask ourselves questions such as: At what age is it appropriate to start pushing my kids to be involved in structured weekly extracurricular activities? When do I let them quit a sport or instrument because they’re sick of it, but I’ve already put hundreds of dollars into it? How many activities should I enroll them in to find THE ONE that they will really “shine” in? As I considered this, I realized that there is no dollar figure you can put on raising your kids to have an everlasting “shine.” Psalm 100:3 reminds us: “It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.” As children belonging to our heavenly Father, our kids already possess all that they need to succeed – the promise of eternal life in heaven. What a comfort it is to know this! The most beneficial things we can do as parents to create a “perfect life” for our children are to teach them about God’s Word, lead by example how to love others, and serve God and others before ourselves. That doesn’t cost a penny! Through our nightly Bible stories and devotions at New Beginnings, we are trying to equip our resident moms for doing just this. After they leave our program, our prayer is that they share the love of God that they learned about here with their child(ren) and teach them to grow in God’s grace, letting their light as His children shine to all people. Beth Shiels is the Assistant Home Manager at New Beginnings. She has been married to her husband, Zach, for seven years and they have three charismatic daughters, with a fourth baby arriving in December. Beth splits her time between staying at home with her children, working at New Beginnings, and assisting in Zach's chiropractic clinic. She loves this crazy busy life God has blessed her with and is thankful to have the opportunity to share His love with the moms and babies at New Beginnings.
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“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”
Life is BUSY! I often hear the phrase, “I am busy as a bee!” at New Beginnings. Staff busily prepares for an upcoming devotion, the next group event, or activities for our moms; sometimes we do all of these things at once! New Beginnings is filled with multi-taskers; our residents, too, have a busy schedule. Our mothers work hard to establish a routine in the program, make the study of God’s Word a priority every day, and care for their child. Although the hustle and bustle feels arduous at times, we need to remember that God invites us to come to him when we are tired and weak: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:28-29 Isn’t it encouraging to know that when we are fatigued physically and mentally, God never tires and gives us strength when we need it? I remember being “released from the nest” when I left for college. My life felt so busy, and sometimes I found it difficult to stay on track. Mom and Dad were no longer around to remind me to schedule my dentist appointment or insist that I study for my Statistics exam. In my early college years, I found difficulty in maintaining structure to facilitate my own personal progress, but I looked to God for guidance and called on him for help when I was exhausted from life’s fast-moving pace. I constantly reminded myself in Psalm 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” New Beginnings provides a unique opportunity to instruct generationally-poor individuals of the value of routine, as planning ahead and staying on track prove vital in achieving self-sufficiency. Our program takes this opportunity one step further by providing spiritual guidance along the way. At first, the structure of the New Beginnings’ program often seems difficult for our residents; after all, many of our moms have never experienced set schedules, the requirement to arrive on time, or even the concept of accountability. Over time, however, the moms begin to appreciate the value of routines and apply structure to their own lives independently. In addition, our mothers begin to turn to God in times of exhaustion and difficulty; after all, God reminds us that we can do all this through him who gives us strength (Philippians 4:13).
The mood at New Beginnings has been changing as we await the arrival of two babies into the home. We imagine what our group dinners and devotions will be like with a total of four babies instead of two, and how much longer it will take to get ready in the morning for church. We sit in almost dead silence trying to hear the cries and laughter of a full house of babies. Yet in all of these things we see God's guiding hand in everything we do. "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 NIV This passage gives so much comfort to not only our residents as they prepare for a whole new life being a mother, but also for staff members as we prepare in our own way. Each time a baby is born or brought into the New Beginnings Family, we are able to provide the baby and mother with virtually everything they would need, thanks to the very generous amount and variety of donations we have received. With the pack n play's all set up, the diapers, wipes and newborn cloths in order, the only thing left for any of us to do is pray. Pray that within these last few days of pregnancy, these young women are able to find peace and serenity from God. We pray that when the time comes for these precious children to be born that God guides the labor and delivery. We pray that the new mothers make a fast recovery and put all their trust in their Savoir to help raise their little children. And most of all, we pray that the Holy Spirit will guide these new mothers to bring their children into the family of God through baptism. Even though the mood will be changing as drastically as our seasons, we look forward to the new seasons in these women's lives and gaining two precious New Beginnings Family members.
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