My Delightful Journal

  This should be talked about. Based on a recent Instagram poll I did, I think it’s safe to assume that many moms heading to church feel drained after a busy Sunday morning. Or maybe some even pass on church regularity because it’s been too overwhelming. Most of these tired moms probably have little ones, but I really don’t think the age of kids matters. Whether it’s a two year old running around or a fourteen year old who’s embarrassed by you, parenting can be physically and mentally exhausting.   I think I could easily insert the importance of nursery, giving moms a break, and volunteering in children’s ministry. I could probably stop there and call it good, get some likes, and chalk it up to a nice Facebook post.  However, I find it deeper than that.  We feel pressure to give our kids the perfect Sunday outfits, expect them to sit still (dreading inside because we know they won’t), and smile on the outside like the Holy Spirit has worked and we don’t even know the chapter and verse

 How often is your reply "No thank you" to the question, "Do you want your receipt?" when you're at the grocery store or fast food. You need to STOP! You're throwing away money! I've had multiple people ask me about which websites and apps I use to earn money back on receipts. Some I use, you can also do small tasks like take a survey or watch an ad. All these little things really add up! For the majority of them, you'll need some type of smart phone.  Take a look down below! 1. Swagbucks I'm starting with this one first because capturing receipts is only one of its many features! You can take surveys, watch ads, answer questions, play games, and make purchases through Swagbucks for money back! This is easily used on the desktop, and there's an app to upload receipts as well.  Head HERE   to sign up! Earn an extra 300 SB (Swagbucks) when you earn 300 points within your first 30 days. 300 SB = $3 gift card. You can easily get that within the f

This post contains affiliate links, in which I earn a small commission at no cost to you. So thank you for looking, shopping, and sharing! <3  I've followed Crystal Paine ( The Money Saving Mom ) since Aaron and I have been married. She has great tips for living on a low budget, and we needed that when we were first married. So she always intrigued me.  Her oldest kids are only teenagers, so she never claims to know everything about parenting. I appreciate her fresh approach to parenting and coming strictly from the heart. She shares some of the background of her legalist mindset as a new mom and equates that into how it affected her parenting style.  I find that fascinating because it's a temptation for anyone to want to hear, "Hey, you raised some good kids" or "Congrats on your son's/daughter's accomplishments." But is   that the goal of parenting? Is raising "good kids" to be "good adults" the pinpointed accomplishment? It&

This post contains affiliate links, in  which I earn a small commission at no cost to you. So thank you for reading & shopping!  Human trafficking is not a problem "somewhere else." It's happening right where you are. You might see someone who is trafficked when you head to the grocery store or go to a local baseball game and never realize it.  Jasmine Grace found herself in desperate need for love and acceptance. She thought she found that through her "boyfriend," who ended up selling her for money. After years of prostituting herself, she covered the pain she never realized she had with drug abuse.  Thankfully, like many human trafficked victims, her story doesn't end with a gun shot or a drug overdose. Her story still continues in the saving grace of Jesus Christ. She recollects her different diary entries during her trafficking years from a fresh perspective as now a believer. She spends her life helping other women who are in the same situation.  I

 How many emotions have you felt today? Anger, guilt, joy, love... Maybe you felt multiple at one time or maybe you've felt too many to count.  "Ugh, she spilled her cereal again." "Aw, that picture is so cute!" "Why does he always degrade me in our weekly office meetings?" "This coffee is my favorite, yum!" We, as humans, are made up of many parts. We can honor and glorify God with our bodies. He gives us the ability to think and reason through situations. And He also gives us inward feelings and emotions to use as another guide source.  I have always viewed my emotions as intrusions. They were either causing me to worry and fret about something unnecessary or pushing me to love something of this world that I really should let go. I had never once viewed my feelings and emotions as a help in a decision making process or an indicator to slow down. And if I couldn't control my emotions, I at least needed to shove them out of the way.  But

My five year old Chloe is starting to get interested in board games. She's starting to play them enough that she can tell when she's losing and can become quite frustrated in this realization. Suddenly, she remembers! The rules that we'd somehow forgotten. She devises these rules that aren't actually "new," but we just forgot that's how to play. Of course, these new rules help her to get ahead in the game.  What would a game be without rules? Complete chaos!  Eek, what would a road be like without stop signs, speed limits, or traffic lights? I'd start riding a bike.. but probably still wouldn't be very safe.  Rules protect us and others from getting hurt.  Even the Bible has a list that could be classified as "rules." Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments were given to Moses at Mt. Sinai. You can read more about them in  Exodus 20 . Israel also received other laws and commandments.  1. Moral laws - God has already instilled inside each pe

  This post contains affiliate links in which I earn  a small commission at no cost to you.  Thank you for looking and shopping.  Why does that quote make so much sense yet is so hard to believe? We've all struggled with this. Whether it's been a loved one we've lost or has suffered, whether it's been a broken relationship because of political arguments, whether it's been fear of the unknown, or whether it's been annoyance of the inconvenience - everyone has been touched through this pandemic.  John Piper doesn't waste his time (see what I did there... Piper's  Don't Waste Your Life ... He didn't waste his time... anyways...) in this little book. He skips past the ever changing number of cases, moves on from the political drama, and takes a step away from the medical implications or lack thereof.  I don't desire to mislead you. There are plenty of facts  in this book. Facts from the Bible. There's no exaggeration that he uses 184 Scriptur