Foster Care Closet Clothing Drive

The Mom-to-Mom Ministry is hosting a clothing drive for the Foster Care Closet in November as part of the National Adoption Awareness Month. We’ll be collecting clothing for children, from infant sizes to anything that might fit a 17 year old. If you have donations (gently used or new clothing/shoes), you can bring them to Zion Church on November 4 at 9:30am or you can make arrangements to deliver them to me any time.

The Foster Care Closet is an amazing organization that serves wards of the state in Nebraska. If you ever want to learn more about what they do, contact Leigh Esau, a foster mom who knows from personal experience the needs of kids in the system. She runs the FCC and would love to give you a tour of the facility (24th & Randolph).

Once-a-Month Opportunity

I can remember walking into my first Mom to Mom meetings and being wowed by the table decor. Here I was, a new mama of an infant, and I was absolutely loving the concepts of Mom to Mom. I needed the encouragement of mentor moms, I was refreshed by the speakers and topics of each meeting, and I adored the quality childcare that was provided. But it was the fun table decorations that made me feel really special.

As moms, we’re used to wiping up messes constantly. There’s crumbs from breakfast, spilled milk, dirty hands and don’t get me started on dirty bottoms. But at Mom to Mom, you aren’t asked to pick up messes, rather you’re welcomed to sit down at a pretty table while you eat delicious food and listen to adult conversation. It’s heavenly really!

I say all this to preface the request for women to decorate tables for the 2010-2011 Mom to Mom calendar. Would you be interested in organizing and executing a table design for one month? We have a small amount of money allocated to decor, but you are also welcome to use items from your own home. Get creative! Set a beautiful table (well, five in fact) to bless the other women of Mom to Mom. If interested, leave a comment here and someone on the Leadership Team will contact you soon. Thank you!

- Rebecca Tredway

Fall Kickoff for M2M!

Hey Moms, join us for the fall kickoff of Mom to Mom! We can’t wait for our September 9th meeting where we’ll celebrate going “Back to School” and get to hear encouragement from several speakers: Tanya Bydalek, Joan Texel and Marsha Howlett.

With the exception of our first meeting in September, all Mom to Mom brunches are held the first Thursday of the month, 9:30-11:30am at Zion Church (5511 S. 27th). You can register for the entire year at our first meeting. Cost for the entire year of nine meetings is $50, or you can pay $7 at the door each time. First timers are always free! So bring your fellow moms and enjoy a relaxing morning of food, godly encouragement and small groups.

We’re so excited about this new year of Mom to Mom. See you soon!

Need ideas for your kids for summer?

I came across this great post on Penelope Loves Lists about ideas to keep kids busy (but not too busy) during the summer.

Some great ideas.  Check it out!

Weep with those who weep

Note: this is a post that I originally put on my regular blog, but thought it might be good to post here as well.–Kerri

At a recent women’s gathering, the focus and the topic was on grief.  The speaker was one who was well acquainted with grief, and he spoke honestly and tenderly, from his heart.

Our hearts were grieved with him and for him.

We thanked him for his willingness to help us understand how to minister to those who are weeping.

And we pondered his thoughts.

In our small group discussions, we wondered:  how do we “handle” grief?  How do we serve/love/come alongside those who are suffering and grieving?  What exactly do we do?

Not any easy questions, and certainly not any easy answers.

However, one main point that came from our discussion was that in order to truly, deeply help someone who is going through suffering or grief, or anything they are going through, you have to know them.  You have to get in there, get in their lives, know what’s going on.  Build a relationship.

At one point, I think I said, “Ministry is proximity.”

Kind of simplistic, but I think there’s some simple truth to it.  To know what’s going on in someone’s life, to be able to come alongside and be a comfort to them, you have to actually invest the time and effort into them; getting to know them, talking to them, hanging out with them, helping them.

It takes time.  It takes effort.  It’s not easy, usually, because it involves being a little less selfish than we usually like to be.

We tend to talk a lot lately about “community” and its importance.  It’s true.  It is important.  But it is more than just “how ya doin’?” at a Sunday service or coffee time afterwards.  It takes some intentionality.  It is going to cost you something.

This is not the easiest thing for modern day American Christians, because, although we are hard-wired for community, we are educated and encultured for individuality.  Boot strap mentality, good-old American can-do, the lone Ranger–all of these ideas and ideals have been stamped deeply upon us; not to mention the pervasive consumer mentality.  Andrew Root in his article “The Attack of the Zombies: Why Community and Belonging are Hard to Construct” has some thoughts about this:

I can’t choose community like I choose my favorite coffee shop. I choose my favorite coffee shop because I like the atmosphere, the people seem interesting, and the coffee is good.  I don’t feel obligated. If the décor changes or I switch from coffee to smoothies, I’m under no obligation to remain loyal. Our communities may feel like places where we really belong, but they are very easy to move on from, because they are based in our preference and taste, not in obligation. I like that I can easily choose in or out. But what happens if the monster of death gets me? What happens if I become so maimed that I become a burden to the community? What happens if those ravaged by seeing the monster face-to-face, those suffering from schizoid episodes, fill our communities? Will we stay? Will the community still exist? Or in other words, can a group of people face death even in the pits of hell and remain together? What will keep them together? Preference, taste, and style are no match for the monster of death.

Romans 7:24:  “Wretched man that I am!  Who will deliver me from this body of death?  Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

Isaiah 25:8: “He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken.”

Revelation 21: 3-4:  “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man.  He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.  He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

“The monster of death” is pretty scary.  But it helps us to see that the glue that will hold our community together is not can-do spirit or a strong will.  The power to get involved in others’ lives, to truly love and serve unselfishly, to pour out without keeping a mental ledger of what is “owed”–that comes from the One who overcame the monster of death, over whom death has no victory and has lost its sting.  In that power and grace, we can move forward boldly into each other’s lives, knowing that anything that we pour out into each other will be returned to us one hundred times over and more, when we rush into the arms of Jesus, who poured out his everything– for us.

Are you task-oriented, or people-oriented?

I ran across this on Simple Mom, and thought it was another helpful facet to the discussion we had at our December meeting with Justin Smith.  The important point that I came away with was that neither task-orientation or people-orientation are superior tendencies; they just are.  And as such, we need to be aware of them, both their strengths, and their limitations, and how to deal with both.

To take personalities and tendencies a step further, however, it’s also good to remember that God is at work in each of us to develop our gifts and strengths and to help us in our weaknesses; he wants to make us into the glorious person he has in mind–unique, beautiful, and like him.  How is he going to accomplish all this?  Through his gospel.

Tim Keller, in his sermon “A Bruised Reed He Will Not Break”:

“If you, by temperament, are bold, confident, brash, outgoing–is the gospel developing, right alongside of it, a kind of graciousness and meekness and humility that your friends have never seen before in you?  Or, if you tend to be, by temperament, the kind of meek and mild–you don’t like to make waves, you don’t like conflict and all that– if you’re that way, is the gospel bringing about in you a boldness and humility and directness that your friends have never seen in you?

Are the bold being made tender because of the gospel–they know they’re sinners saved by grace?  Are the tender being made bold because they’re sinners saved by grace?

If you know this Jesus Christ, then that kind of character, that supernatural, humanly impossible juxtaposition of seemingly contradictory virtues should be growing in you.”

By God’s grace, let us be bold and tender and humble mothers, sisters, friends, wives, daughters, employees, bosses, people of Jesus.

(p.s.  the last two posts on Simple Mom, “Grace…Heap it on Yourself” and “Relinquish Your Power on the Things that Don’t Matter“ are must-reads, too!)

Thoughts on yesterday’s Mom to Mom

Hi, moms.  This is Kerri.

More thoughts regarding Matt Swanson’s talk at Mom to Mom yesterday on worldliness:

It is a mistake (as Matt pointed out) to associate worldliness with just materialism, or the media, or culture at large.  God is the Creator of this world, and, as He himself pronounced, “it is good”.  It is fallen, but is being redeemed from the Fall, and one day all things will be brought to full restoration and redemption under his hand.  It’s already happening, as Jesus said:  ”The kingdom of God is at hand.” We are His instruments in redeeming His world.

Worldliness, instead, could be looked at as idolatry–what am I looking to, what “dazzles and sparkles in my eyes”, what makes me think, “If I could just have/be that, I would be happy and satisfied”?   What is it that is taking God’s rightful place in my life as the source of my joy?

Idols can be obvious or subtle.  They quite often are good things, blessings that God has given us, that are twisted into idols (a strong marriage, well-behaved kids, a nice standard of living, a talent for living frugally….).  We are made to be worshippers, and we are going to worship something.  The question then becomes what.

The answer to worldliness is not to simply attempt to knock the idol down, but also to replace it with something else, something that, as Tim Keller wrote in his book Counterfeit Gods, absorbs your heart and your imagination.  The answer is Jesus.

Hebrews 12:1-2:  ”Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the founder [he is the one who gave you your faith!] and perfecter [he is the one who will see you through to the finish!] of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”

The great thing is that this is not accomplished by a steely will, or a rigid determination (“I will NOT be worldly!”), but rather a confession of helplessness and hopelessness to our Savior, and a confidence that He is able to change our hearts, to make us long for him, to see him in his beauty, and to daily see the luster of the things that are passing away grow dull.

Come to him messy.  Come to him undone.  Come to him helpless.

“Lord Jesus, son of the living God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

Let us confess to him, and to each other, our weakness, and our utter dependence on him and his mercy, which is full and strong and mighty to save.

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,

Look full in his wonderful face;

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,

In the light of his glory and grace.

Upcoming Meeting: March 4

You are invited to attend Mom to Mom this Thursday, 9:30-11:30am, at Zion Church (5511 S. 27th).

As a quick recap for those new to this page: Mom to Mom is a joint ministry of Redeemer, Zion Church and Grace Chapel. The first Thursday of every month, moms get together to enjoy brunch, a speaker and small group fellowship while our kids are playing and doing activities in childcare. First time visitors are free (!) and everyone else pays $7 (which is a deal considering how many childcare workers are busy caring for our little ones for two hours!).

Our speaker is Matt Swanson, former youth pastor at Faith Bible, speaking on worldliness. We look forward to seeing you Thursday morning!

Mom to Mom planning meeting info for new volunteers

Hello ladies!

We are having some difficulty in scheduling our usual planning meeting. A brunch has been planned for the Zion moms during our usual time. Another brunch has been planned for the following Saturday morning for the Redeemer moms (tis the month for brunches!). All that to say, we are not sure when we can meet. It may be that we cancel our “in person” planning meeting and do our planning over e-mail for this month. If you were wanting to join us, perhaps plan on coming next month in March – the second Saturday morning – unless you hear otherwise.

Mom to Mom coming up this Thursday!

Moms, don’t forget that our long-awaited first Mom to Mom meeting of 2010 is almost here! Join us this Thursday as Shirley Moore from Grace Chapel speaks to us: “To Whom Shall We Go?” We all enjoyed hearing from Shirley last year and I know many of you are looking forward to hearing her again.

We’ll also have an opportunity in our small groups to discuss volunteering on the Mom to Mom team. Would you come thinking about how you might be involved?

Come for a great brunch and a time to connect while your kids have fun in their childcare! Don’t forget – first time visitors are free. Looking forward to seeing you there.

9:30-11:30, Thursday, February 4, Zion