Worry??

Matt 6: 25
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

Why do we worry? Because we are not trusting God? Because we are not letting God lead our lives? I was just thinking about this tonight. God is the one who gave each of us lives and he is also the one who planned our lives even before we were born. God knows when we were born and he knows when we will go to see him.

I struggle with worry a lot and I think there are many women like me who worry about tomorrow and other things. I just want to encourage you not to worry, and instead put your trust in God. God knows what we will have and what we won’t have. It doesn’t matter what we do or not do. We can’t gain favor in God’s eyes by doing good and we don’t lose favor from God because we didn’t do something. God loves us and he cares about us. His plan for each of our lives is the best for us. I complain about not having more and more money all the time. It’s totally wrong because this is what God wants me to have. It might be dangerous for me to have more money. I don’t know, but God knows.

I worry about not only money but also my family. My husband went on a trip recently and a week before he had to leave, I started having nightmares. I dreamed about watching a plane crash right in front of our house. I was really scared, so I started worry and thinking all the negative things. I realize now that is not from God because he doesn’t want me to worry. He wants me to trust in him. My nightmares are from Satan who wants to shift my heart. I am sure many of you experienced that, so let me encourage you to not let Satan take your trust away from God. God is a lovely God and he has the best plan for you.

Stay At Home Mom

As I was putting my baby to bed tonight, this thought came to my mind. Have I really been a stay at home mom for almost a year and I really love it? My answer was yes. I can not believe that!

My dad is a businessman in China, so I had always wanted to be a business woman growing up. I love to dress up in suits and sometimes I put on my suit for Sundays since I really don’t have any other occasion to wear it. I got my first suit when I was about 13 year old. I love seeing young ladies dress up in a nice suit because I think they look so sharp. It was my dream to be a business woman and wear a nice suit. I was one of those people who thought that stay at home moms are wasting their lives, and I had never imagined myself being a stay at home mom until about a year ago. I can not believe how God has changed my heart so much. He changed my heart from being totally against staying at home to love staying at home, and I believe that is one of the best things I can do for my children and my family.

I struggled about staying at home at the beginning of the year because financial issues and my heart issues. I thought it was a big hit for our income, but my husband and I discussed it and figured out with tax, child care, transportation, and other things, we are not missing much from my income. I was struggling with what I am going to say to my dad since he was the one who sent me to America and paid out of state tuition and everything for my college. His dream was for me to be successful. My heart feels guilty to my Dad, but I understand this is God’s will for me and my family. I know my Dad is not going to understand this, but I hope he can one day and I will keep praying for that. I don’t want to send my kids somewhere under others people care. I want to know how they do each day; I want to know what they are learning; I want to know if they have been eating well; I want to know if they have met new friends; I want to know everything about their lives. God gives this opportunity and I have to use it wisely.

After having conversations with my cousin in China about her baby girl, I see the confirmation that this is what God wants me to do, and I love it! My cousin sends her daughter to be with the grandparents, so she sees her daughter about every one to two weeks. I can not even imagine not seeing my children for a day. I enjoy waking up with my children each day; I enjoy doing devotions with them and hearing them discuss their thoughts on the verses; I enjoy having every meal with them and talking with them; I enjoy learning with them; I enjoy knowing my baby’s every step she takes; I enjoy going on field trips with them; etc. People who have kids in day care or other care or school are missing so much of their children’s lives. I am so happy that I quit my job, so I can be with my children.

I understand for a lot of moms it’s impossible to quit their job and stay home, but I want to encourage you to keep praying about it especially if God puts that on your heart. Your children will grow up fast and you can not have those memories back.

Contentment

I have been dealing with being discontent for a long time. God brought this to my attention again recently. I was going through depression plus being discontent, but God graciously opened my heart with a wonderful message from Pastor Nguyen.

Pastor Nguyen is from our sister church in St. Petersburg. He was talking about how people like us don’t appreciate what we have, and blame God for not giving us what we would love to have. He used Job as an example to show us how Job was trusting God even he was in the worst situation people can ever imagine.

This is the verse I kept repeating to myself:

Job 1:21 And he said, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD."

How faithful was Job! The more I meditate about it the more I can understand. I came to this world without anything, God is the one who blessed me with everything I have, and surely he didn’t have to do it. My sinful heart is what causes me to be discontent. The more God gives to me, the more I want. I thought about when I was little, it was my dream to come to America, but I am here now, why am I still not content? I remember how many times I prayed for things I wanted, and how many time I asked God why he didn’t give me those things. Thinking about it now, I feel very foolish.

I am very thankful God focused my attention on this topic because my life is definitely happier after hearing this message. I remind myself when I see things I don’t have how God has been so kind to me by giving me everything I don’t deserve. It really changed my perspective. I look at the things I have to thank God for, instead of seeking for things I don’t have. It’s hard to think properly, but with God’s grace, he will help me do it, and he will help you too if you are seeking for his help.

My first post!

A little bit about me

Hi, my name is Miao. Yep, it is pronounced the same as meow, so don’t be afraid to say it. I had so many people asked me that question before, and my answer is always YES with a big smile.

I came to the United State in 1999 from China, and earned a Bachelors Degree in Management Information Systems from the University of South Florida. One thing I never ever pictured myself was a stay home mom, but now I am one. I always say that God is very hilarious to change a person like me from wanting to be a successful business woman to a joyful stay home mom. You just never know what God has for you.

My husband and I have 5 lovely children age from 18 to 1. My two step sons Mark and Kevin attend local public high school, and they are both involved in the band. My 12 year old son Jonathan and my 10 year old daughter Kaitlyn were adopted from China. In 2006, God blessed our family with a baby girl Alison, so that makes our family a soccer team with 2 coaches. I home school the 3 younger children, so my days are always very exciting. I am a mom who loves to shop and especially shop for deals, and my goal is to spend the least amount money but get the most goods.

There are so many things happening in my life each day, I always want to share these things with other moms, or even singles who will be moms one day. Things are like: where to shop for deals, what I have learned about home school, quick tips for taking care of babies, etc. I am very thankful that I can use a blog like this to share my life with many.

I have been so blessed throughout the years even when things are not going the way I planned. I have learned and truly believe that God has a plan for each one of us, and we may not understand his plan now, but it’s the best plan for us.