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Faith

A Mother’s Question

My fingers rose and fell as she drew breath.  As I ran my fingers over her Dalmatian covered shirt, I could feel her ribs poking me as she giggled at her Daddy.  Her long brown hair tickled my nose as she rocked back and forth smiling at how silly Fancy Nancy was.

What if it had been her?

She asked me to carry her to bed and I said ok.  I felt her legs dangle against mine as she laid her head on my shoulder.  When I tried to put her down in her room she wouldn’t let go and I sat down with her in my arms and rocked back and forth.  As she started repeating her favorite line from her current favorite book I started to cry.  All I heard was “I love my Mommy” and all I thought was,

What if it had been her?

What if I had dropped her off at school today for show and tell on the letter of the week or in her jammies for Polar Express day?  What if she had been slow to get ready and I was frustrated with her and ready to make use of my “me-time”?  What if she hadn’t wanted to go to school but I walked her in anyway and told her I’d get her after school?  What if I dropped her off while she excitedly talked about visiting Santa or baking cookies or Rudolph or books or sparkly cheerleaders or anything else that makes her happy and I just smiled and told her to have a good day?

What if it had been her?

I am thankful that it wasn’t.  And I’m heartbroken for the Mom’s who can’t say that tonight.

The last I heard there were twenty children killed today in Connecticut.  Twenty five and six year olds in Kindergarten whose lives were taken away by a young man.  Twenty sets of Mom’s and Dad’s who don’t get to go back and re-do this day.  They don’t get to tuck their child in bed tonight and listen to their prayers.  They don’t get to feel their tiny arms around their neck as they whisper “I love my Mommy.”

As I sat rocking our little boy tonight and praying, I had a hard time finding words.  There is no reason behind tragedies like this and there is no way to make sense of them.  I found it hard to know what to pray and so I just started repeating truths that I know.

God is good.
God is still on his throne.
God is always in control.
God has already won the battle over death.

God forgives.
God’s peace is for all who ask for it.
Jesus’ blood covers all of our sins.
Only God knows what’s in each of our hearts.

And later, as I sat snuggled on my bed, with my arm around my little girl and my head on Jason’s shoulder, I cried out to God, “What if it had been her?”

And I heard in my heart,

“She would be with me.”

Books, Faith, Mommy Advice

Book Review – Hope For the Weary Mom

I don’t know about you, but this Mom job is a lot harder than I anticipated it would be.  I envisioned time snuggled up reading books.  And pushing joyful kids on swings.  Tucking little ones into bed before going to a restful, full night of sleep.  And making nutritious breakfasts, lunches, and dinners from scratch every day.

While I wouldn’t trade this job for the world, it’s infinitely more difficult than I had imagined.  Instead of long, restful nights of sleep you’re up at least once a week because someone’s scared or had an accident or just needed their Momma.  Some days it’s terrifying to realize that I’m in charge of keeping two little people safe and healthy and teach them everything they need to know.  And my grand plans of doing all these things for myself during nap times and after bedtimes and in all my — insert sarcastic laugh here — free time — turned out to be a negative amount of time to do things I want to do.
A few weeks ago on Twitter I saw a tweet about a book that was free that day (October 23, 2012) on Amazon.  It was called Hope for the Weary Mom
 and it sounded like just what I needed to be reading.  Written by two Mom bloggers, I figured that I was definitely weary and, since it was free, it was worth giving it a shot.  Even if it had cost so much more money, what I learned from this book would be worth every penny.
A few days later I started reading it while I waited in carpool line to pick up Charlotte.  Almost as soon as I started reading it, I started making notes and highlighting on my phone.  The premise that we are all weary Mom’s and the ones who look like they have it all together are as much in a mess as I am, made me feel so much better.  I don’t want to be that person where everyone else has to be miserable (or in this case, overwhelmed) in order to feel better, but knowing that there were other Mom’s out there who were desperate and living messy lives like I am was such a relief.
I AM NOT ALONE! 
No one else has it all together all the time!  
No matter what kind of impression they give off!
And I kind of laughed at myself because I would bet that I give off that impression too.  I am an organized, perfectionist who likes to have everything in a structured format and know what’s going to happen at all times.  And I possibly look from the outside that I have everything under control more than I would like (unless you saw me at pre-school drop off, then you would never feel like I had it all together!).  I never want anyone else to feel like I think that I have it more together than them, because I definitely don’t.  But I also can’t go around waving my problems like a banner for every stranger I’ve never met to look at and judge.  So I walk a fine line and probably err on the side of closing myself off to avoid rejection.
This book taught me that maybe by closing myself off and trying to protect my tender heart from ridicule and judgment and non-acceptance, that maybe other Mom’s feel like I have it all together and am looking down on them.  By acting like my life is going just fine and I’m on top of everything that’s going on, maybe I’m closing myself off to letting God work in my life to help me handle it better.
Brooke and Stacey said, “So boast, mom.  Boast in the fact that you’re not good enough, not strong enough, not smart enough.  NOT ENOUGH to be a good mom.  And watch what God does.  Boast.  Be honest about where you are, who you are, and who you’re not.  Wiggle out of that straight jacket as Jesus turns the key with HIS mighty right hand and let Him be strong for you.”
Am I trusting in myself too much? Am I trying to rely on my own merits to raise my children and win their hearts for Jesus that I’m forgetting that, while I will play an important part in their story, I am not the one who will draw them to Christ, only He will do that?  Am I getting discouraged and overwhelmed because I’m not relying on God to meet my needs and am, instead, feeling forgotten by Him because I feel so overwhelmed and alone?
I loved the way Brooke and Stacey put it when they said, “If God never answered another prayer for me, if He never met another need, would His gift of Jesus and my salvation be enough?”
Well, yes, yes it would.  And I would do well to remember that instead of dwelling on my perceived needs that I feel like God isn’t meeting.  
Brooke and Stacey say, “[Jesus] says [in John 6:26], “Why are you following me? Is it because of what I can do for you, how I can meet your needs, or provide what you want? Or do you really love me for who I AM?” …… I follow Jesus not because of what He can do for me, but because of what He’s already done for me on the cross.”
Oh Lord, forgive me.  Forgive my self-centeredness and discontent in just being your daughter.  Father, help me remember that you have done more for me than I could ever repay and infinitely more than I could ever deserve.  You love me so much and you want me to succeed at being a mom.  You see me on those days when I feel like no one is listening to me and that I’m failing to teach them what they need to know.
I could continue to quote passages that I loved from this book for days.  I highlighted a ridiculous amount of it and can’t wait to re-read it learn even more from it the second time.  This book rocked my world and, I pray, that it changes the way that I mother and the way that I relate to the other mother’s in my life.
We are in this together.  We are all doing the best we can.  None of us are perfect and God doesn’t expect us to be so we don’t need to expect us to be.  Mothering will be easier if we’re transparent with each other in our struggles and encourage one another instead of portraying that we’ve got it all together and don’t need any help.
Mothering (at least for me) is full of fear that you’re going to mess up your kids.  Fear that you’re the only one who doesn’t know what she’s doing.  Fear that something will happen to you, your spouse, or your kids.  Fear that God won’t love your child as much as you do.  
I loved the way that Brooke and Stacey started wrapping the book up.  This passage especially spoke to me: “But in the same way that He loves you, the same way He’ll move all of heaven to chase your heart and make it His, He also loves your children.  When they break your heart, they break His.  When they run away from you, they run away from Him.  When they reject your love, they reject His.  When they refuse to walk in obedience to you, they refuse to walk in obedience to Him.  He hurts with you.  But His plans for you, and your children, are good.”
Brooke and Stacey ask their readers to make “a covenant with the Lord that we will never give up on His ability to move in the hearts of our children, in spite of us (emphasis mine).”  I’m making that covenant today.  A covenant to trust God to fill me up and meet my children’s needs when I fail.  Because I will, daily.  A covenant to trust that God wants things even better for my children than I do, even though that thought is pretty unfathomable.  A covenant to let God move in our family to lead us where He wants us to go and direct our steps and our paths.
If you’re a weary Mom like me, I’d love to hear from you.  And I’d especially encourage you to go out and get a copy of Hope for the Weary Mom
.  It will change your life and help you increase your stamina and energy towards the most important job that we will ever have, being a mother.
*Note: I got the book for free on Amazon like anyone who downloaded it that day and wasn’t asked to write a review.  All thought and opinions are my own.
Faith, Mommy Advice

dotMom – Jen Hatmaker

I’m going to start this out with being honest.  I haven’t read 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess. To be even more honest, I’m scared to read it.  Although I would guess that purging a house for a move would be as good a time as any to read it.  I had also only read a handful of Jen’s blog posts ever before.  So I had no idea what I was getting into when I saw that Jen Hatmaker was going to be speaking for the first session on Friday at dotMom.  NO IDEA.  But I’m so glad that I got to hear her speak.

Jen taught me a lot in the 30-45 minutes that she spoke.  It was like God gave her the message just for me.  And from reading what others wrote about her talk it’s obvious that I’m not the only Momma dealing with fear and control issues in regards to my kids which is such a relief.  So often it seems like everyone but me has it all together and that might be what I love the most about blogs.  That you get to share your experiences and read about others’ and say, “I’m not the only one.  This must be normal.  At least someone else out there is dealing with this same thing.  Let me see how she’s handling it and maybe I can figure something out for me.”

I’m going to try and paraphrase and also direct quote some of the things that she said.  But, I’ll be honest, sometimes I was so caught up in listening that my notes don’t always flow cohesively.  And if you’re looking for a non-wordy summary of her talk this is not going to be the place to get it.  🙂

Jen started out making us laugh out loud with her stories about her family.  She told us that one of the things that she asks her kids when they say something they shouldn’t is, “Was it necessary? Was it kind? Was it true?”  She told us about one of her daughters who called her son an ugly name and answered no to the first two questions but vehemently agreed that the third was a yes!  I can see that happening in my house but I’m planning on implementing these three questions immediately!

She then started speaking about relaxing.  About parenting the way prior generations parented and not entertaining our children.  She talked about not taking chances with their safety (there will be no running down the freeway) but realizing that God is in control and I AM NOT so I need to stop agonizing over every little decision that I make because one wrong choice IS NOT GOING TO WRECK THEIR LIFE!

I loved her quote that “Fear makes an already hard job, motherhood, even harder.”  I’m not really sure what it is to mother without fear lingering in the back of my mind but I want to try it.  I’m guessing that it’s freeing and allows you to enjoy the short time that you have with your kids even more.  That it allows you to be spontaneous and chalk mistakes up for what they are, mistakes, without dwelling on all the possible –very unlikely– repercussions down the line.

Jen talked about that we’re trying to give our kids a “safe life” by removing all risk and pain and possible hurt from their life.  We don’t want them to be excluded on the playground.  Or make a bad grade.  Or get cut from the team.  We want their life to be perfect with none of the hardship, rejection, and negative emotions that we experienced.  But “a safe life has never been the mark of a true disciple. Conforming to the image of Christ, like Romans 8:29 tells us, is messy and hard and involves loss and struggle and failure.”  Jen said that “our job isn’t to shield them [from hardship] but to parent them through it.”  And I think at that point every Mom in the room started saying “Amen!”

She brought out a point that I’ve been struggling with recently and that is that our kids are smarter than we think and see more than we think.  I can say all that I want that I don’t want Charlotte to be like me in my fear or anxiety or anything else, but unless I’m not showing her those things, she’s going to see them and, to some degree, emulate them.  And just like Jen said, I don’t want to be the reason that my kids choose safety over courage.  She asked us to parent with diligence but to parent without fear.

That’s a hard task to aspire to but I think, with God’s help, we can get closer than we ever have before.  I might need to make a sign that says the following and put it on my mirror so that I can remember this every day, but this that Jen said was RIGHT ON.
“Scared Mom’s raise scared kids.  Brave Mom’s raise brave kids.  True disciples raise true disciples.”

Jen encouraged us to rest in God’s goodness in order to allow us to parent without fear.  She mentioned that the first day that was blessed in the history of time was the Sabbath, the day of rest.  God spent six days creating the world and then, He rested.  I’m pretty sure that if God rests then I need to rest also!

Jen used the story in Exodus 16 of the manna and the quail to remind us that God provides all that we need.  He provides just enough and that what he provides is only good for one day.  She reminded us that spiritual food is perishable just like physical food and that God will provide us just enough but it is only good for one day.  We must replenish our spiritual needs and our motherhood needs in advance or it won’t be good when we need it.

Jen told us about their family and their commitment to keep the Sabbath and make it Holy.  After worshipping with their church body (they have a church in Texas), they choose an activity that they can do as a family and spend that time using God’s gift of the Sabbath, that he has commanded us to take, as a sacred day.  She reminded us that our work (laundry, dishes, etc) will never be done but that we need to plan for a day of rest.  That taking a day to recharge and honor God is NOT being lazy and that those chores that we have will still be there the next day.

I left Jen’s message with a peace in my soul that I am enough for my kids and that God is enough for me.  I pray that I can hold on to that peace over the next days, and weeks, and months, and years and remember to relax and parent true disciples.

Faith, Mommy Advice

dotMom

Last weekend I got to head down to Birmingham for dotMom and I was so thankful for the opportunity!  It took a little bit of finagling schedules and locations to pull it off but my parents and Jason stepped in and allowed me the time off to rest and recharge and I am so grateful for that!

Being a Momma is HARD WORK and I think we all need some time off where we can relax and focus on ourselves and making ourselves the best Mom’s and Wife’s that we can be!  I was blessed all weekend by the fantastic speakers like Jen Hatmaker, Sissy Goff and David Thomas, and Angela Cottrell.  I want to recap my weekend in pictures and then start recapping some of my notes because MY WORD did I learn a lot this weekend and I want to share it with anyone who will listen!

I ended up going to Tuscaloosa with the kids and Mom and Dad on Thursday and then heading back to Birmingham first thing Friday morning.  Lifeway had a meet and greet for those who had registered for the event and said that they were bloggers so I right away got to meet some new friends like Stacy and Amy.  I also saw some big names like BigMama and BooMama in the breakfast but was too scared of looking too stalkerish to go introduce myself.  I did work up the courage to say hello to Kelly Stamps and Amanda Jones though!

Even though I felt like a complete stalker talking to them they were both so kind and sweet.  Kelly had some great things to say about being fearful for our children when we blog and trusting that God has given her this platform and so He will take care of her family’s security.  I didn’t know yet how that would tie into the afternoon’s message but it did and was very timely!

I then went and checked into my room at the Sheraton and was pleasantly surprised with the niceness of it but a little dismayed at the fact that the wireless internet WOULD NOT WORK at all!  Adding to my anxiety about that was the fact that our friend Erin had posted our sneak peek’s from James’ one year pictures and I couldn’t get them to pull up on my phone!  Thankfully Jason texted me the pictures and I was able to relax (again, a timely reminder!).

I did get to spend a few minutes catching up with a fellow pledge sister who works at the Sheraton.  I was very glad to get to catch up on life with Donna Carol and hear about how she is doing.  It’s funny to think that I met my pledge sisters TEN years ago!  It’s crazy that it’s been that long!

I then headed over to the first session with Jen Hatmaker and was so excited with my good friend Leigh met me.  It was such a blessing that Leigh and I got to spend the weekend together since we haven’t had any girl time without kids in I don’t know how long!  We’ve been friends since we were, I think three, and it’s always wonderful to get to spend some quality time with friends who have known you your whole life and already know your back story.  I loved getting to catch up with her and talk about how we can pray for each other and just relax!

After Jen Hatmaker’s amazing first session we headed to breakouts and I chose one called “One Hot Mama” by Branda Polk and “Teaching Your Children God’s Word” by Angela Cottrell.  Jason told me that I couldn’t only go to “Mommy” sessions and needed to go to one “me” session and I was glad that God directed me towards Branda’s.  I learned a lot!  And I’ve loved Travis Cottrell since I heard him at Deeper Still and was so blessed to get to sneak a peek into Angela’s heart and family and get some ideas on how to teach our kids to cherish God’s word.

We grabbed dinner at the packed Subway that was nearby and then headed back for another session with Sissy Goff and David Thomas.  I didn’t know what to expect with theirs but once they started I was floored.  They are counselors at Daystar Counseling in Tennessee and hearing them talk about the children and families that they work with every day made a huge impression on me.  I have also had their books on my “Books to Read” Pinterest board for ages and was so excited to get to pick them up and get them signed by Sissy and David after the session.

Leigh and I headed to our room to chat after the session and then enjoyed sleeping LATE (for Momma’s that is) until 8 am the next morning.  We barely made it through the Subway breakfast line before it was time for the morning session with Vicki Courtney and even though we both left just a tad before it was over to get back to our babies, what I learned was wonderful.

I highly recommend dotMom for any Mom’s out there.  It’s a conference that focuses on God but also on equipping Mom’s to live out their day to day life and isn’t full of lofty goals that are next to impossible to play out in real life.  They’re headed to Frisco, Texas in February and Chattanooga next September and I’m planning on being there!

To read some other recaps check out some that I’ve seen:
Lil Light ‘O Mine, dotMom part 1
Kelly’s Korner, Changing my Prayers
Sullins’ Spot, dotMom 2012
BooMama
Lil Light ‘O Mine, dotMom – main stage

*I know I got link happy on this post (sorry!) but I want to share all of the awesomeness! I’m also hoping to go back and add links to my posts from my notes once those go up too!

Charlotte, Faith, Family

God’s Child

As a couple, Jason and I have always felt that denomination of a church should be second to the actual relationship with God.  After all, Jason’s family includes a Methodist minister and I grew up in a Methodist church.  And yet, we met and fell in love in a Baptist church.  So when we moved to the area after getting married we visited a number of denominations and found ourselves with a Baptist church home.

In the Baptist church they “dedicate” babies and do not “Christen” them.  So when Charlotte was six months old she was dedicated to God and we vowed to honor God and instruct her in following him all the days of our lives.  In the time between then and now we have found a new church home in the Methodist church.  And so a few weeks ago we came before our new church family to have James Christened and to promise the same things.  That we will bring him up in the Lord and direct him to Jesus all the days of our lives.

Instead of a Christening gown like the one Memma made for Charlotte, we chose to go with a handsome blue outfit.  James looked so handsome with his white shoes and socks and his blue outfit.  Such a beautiful child of God!

Before the service started we tried to get some pictures as a family outside.  They didn’t work as well as I hoped but I still love the pictures of our little family.

We also placed James on the stone bench (with Jason just out of the picture in case he fell) and took some sweet ones of the special boy by himself.

We were a little alarmed when we saw how far down in the service the actual Christening was but James was a pretty good champ during the wait.  He even got quite a few laughs when he appropriately squealed when our Pastor was praying about him and the other children.  James did great during the Christening and, although the water confused him, he didn’t seem really concerned.  He got more laughs when he started trying to pull the Pastor’s glasses off of his face!

It was so nice to be able to stand in front of our family and church and commit to raising James and Charlotte in a Christ-centered home.  If we do nothing else with our lives we pray that we will let God work through us to draw our children to him.  Their relationship with Christ is the most important relationship of their lives and we want to help them on their journey as much as we can by modeling examples of people who search for him daily.

After the Christening James and I slipped out of the service and ran home so that he could grab a quick nap before our family joined us.  James went straight to sleep in the car and slept for a good amount before it was time to get him up and get ready for lunch.  We were so blessed to have so many family members join us for this special day.  I wasn’t as mindful to get pictures as I was at Charlotte’s event but we got some so I guess that will have to do.

James was getting sleepy by the end of the party but still didn’t hesitate to show Granddaddy how he can stick out his tongue.  Of course, that was right before he tried to fall asleep on his shoulder!

We are thankful that we live in a country where we get the opportunity to profess loudly our faith in Christ as our Savior and Lord.  This is a freedom that we don’t take lightly and we are so thankful for those who have fought to allow us to have that right.  Our prayer today and every day is that if you don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ that you might search for him.  We know that he will answer you if you ask because he says in Jeremiah 29:13, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

Faith

Scripture as a lifeline

If you know me (or have read much of my blog) you probably know that I’m a type A personality.  I like things to be organized.  I’m a rule follower and like things to have a result that is consistent with the effort put in.  I like a schedule and for things to be controlled.  I like knowing what’s going to happen and not being surprised.  In other words, I like to be the one in control running my life and for things to not get in my way.

It’s hard for me to cut myself slack and hard for me to cut others slack also.  It’s hard for me to adjust when things don’t turn out the way I should.  And it’s very hard for me to see things happen when I don’t feel like there was a just reason behind it.  Case in point, my grandfather getting lung cancer and dying when he’s never smoked a cigarette in his life.

As I’m sure you can see, this is a big hurdle in my walk with Christ.  Giving up control is HARD for me to do.  It’s even harder the more things mean to me.  It’s hard to see a plan when all I see is pain and heartache.  It’s hard for me to adjust my expectations and reality based on decisions that other people make.  It’s hard to sit back and watch those you love suffer.  And it’s especially difficult to let those that I love most out of my death grip to offer them to God and let him work his plan in their (and my) lives.

This year was hard for me.  In a million little ways that shouldn’t have added up to much but did.  In big things and little things that tipped me over the edge.  Ways that I know shouldn’t have added up to an end result that did.  I had a great support system in place.  I have a wonderful husband who has been there for it all and I have awesome parents and in-laws to help me when I need it.  I am truly blessed.  But maybe the one thing that got me through it the most was Beth Moore’s Siesta Scripture Memory Team.

Growing up I knew that memorizing scripture was important and something that I was supposed to do, but I rarely did it.  I would occasionally memorize passages but nothing consistently.  I knew all the biggies of course (Phil 4:13, Rom 8:28, Jeremiah 29:11, etc) but more nuanced verses passed me by.  I was a Christian and I had a relationship with God but I didn’t do a lot of memorization.  There wasn’t a lot of arming myself with God’s word to fight off the enemy’s attack when I needed it.

I started reading Beth Moore’s blog about halfway through the Siesta Scripture Memory event in 2009. I saw what was going on but didn’t really understand since I jumped in in the middle.  So in December of 2010 when I read that they were going to do it again I knew I wanted to jump on board.  I had decided that I wanted to be able to rely on verses without pulling my Bible out and thought that this would be a good way to do it.  As a bonus, if I completed it there would be a free weekend with Beth and Travis Cottrell that I knew would be fantastic.

So I started picking verses on the 1st and 15th of the month.  I would write them in my spiral but I also put them in her app on my phone and that is where I referenced them the most.  For the first few months it was smooth sailing.  I would pick a verse and within a day or two I had it memorized.  And then as the verses started getting longer and my life started getting crazier and I felt much worse physically it started getting harder and harder to memorize.

I’d like to be able to type now that I eventually memorized all 24 verses that I chose but I can’t say that. I tried and I can probably repeat half of them but not all 24.  The amazing thing that I found though was that even though I can’t repeat them word for word I know what the verses are about.  So if I am in a situation where I need a verse about, say, strength I know I have one and can pull it up quickly or can paraphrase even if I can’t get the book and verse.

One of the neatest things that I experienced doing this was how living the Word of God is.  I would feel led to a verse one time and then a month or two or six later I would be in a situation where that verse applied perfectly.  God led me to verses before I even needed them, knowing that in the future they would be my lifeline.  Repeating these verses helped me stay calm when I was stressed out — I actually repeated all that I could think of in the OR waiting James to be born.  They calmed me.  They encouraged me.  They comforted me.  But mostly they assured me that God loves me.

I want to remember my verses so I’m going to list them all here.  I started the beginning of 2011 saying that I was going to blog them each time but it got too personal and I didn’t want to share what I was going through each time.  Don’t read too much in to them, scripture has a way of speaking to one person in a totally different way than it speaks to another person.  But I really encourage everyone to start being diligent about learning scripture and hiding it away in their hearts.  I probably won’t try to memorize two verses a month in 2012 but I want to work for one a month and if I find more in the month I’ll add them on.

I’m not going to get to go to the celebration in January with Beth Moore and Travis Cottrell.  It’s a little sad but life just gets in the way and I don’t want to be gone for two trips in one month.  And while initially that was a big prize at the end of the journey, I’ll gladly take a closer relationship with Jesus instead.

Your hand made me and formed me, give me understanding to learn your commands. – Ps 119:73
Therefore, since we have received a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful and so worship God with reverence and awe. – Hebrews 12:28
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. – Ephesians 4:32
You are my refuge and my shield; I have put my hope in your word. – Ps 119:114
(She) will have no fear of bad news; (her) heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. – Ps 112:7
How great is the love the father has lavished on us, that we may be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. – 1 John 3:1
And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. – Phil 4:19
Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; He rises to show you compassion.  For the Lord is a God of justice.  Blessed are all who wait for Him! – Isaiah 30:18
Rely on the Lord! Be strong and confident! Rely on the Lord! – Ps 27:14, The NET Bible
The Lord is near the brokenhearted; He delivers those who are discouraged. – Ps 34:18, The NET Bible
On the day I called to you, you answered me. You made me strong and brave. – Ps 138:3, New Century Version
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. – Romans 15:13
This is the day the LORD has made.  We will rejoice and be glad in it. – Ps 118:24, New Living Version
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
She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future. – Proverbs 31:25, New Living Version
Yet those who wait for the LORD will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary. – Isaiah 40:31
*This was during the last weeks of my pregnancy, I needed all the help I could get! (:
From the fullness of his grace we have received one blessing after another. – John 1:16, NIV-UK
He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. – Isaiah 40:29
The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing. – Zephaniah 3:17
I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. – 3 John 1:4
Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. – 2 Corinthians 9:7
I have created you and cared for you since you were born.  I will be your God through all your lifetime, yes, even when your hair is white with age.  I made you and I will care of you.  I will carry you along and be your Savior. – Isaiah 46:3 and 4
*Papa’s verse and I can’t find the translation
Let us approach God’s throne of grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. – Hebrews 4:16
But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. – Luke 2:19
*Note: all verses are from the NIV translation unless otherwise noted