Happy Mother's Day, Dear Mama Friends!

A mother's love is patient and forgiving when all others are forsaking.

It never fails or falters, even though the heart is breaking. - Helen Rice

This brought me back to an earlier reading with Grace, our 13 year old, this week from Beautiful Girlhood, a book that came out in the early 1900's revised by Karen Andreola, the chapter was titled "Ideals." So I am writing away my ideals and put up a huge disclaimer that I have failed and been impatient. (And for those who know me, there is a huge lost and failed love story in my life 3 years ago this month.)

As a perfectionist with very high ideals, it feels as if my love fails & falters time and time again. My actions are all but loving. But that's the beauty of love. It is not based on what I feel. As Dan and I are going through The Love Dare we are brought to continual reminders of scripture and thinking of the phileo and eros type loves. But God wants us to have agape love. God doesn't love us because we're so lovable but "He loved us while we were sinners!" That's when Christ died for us!

I can say: be true, be noble, aim high and God willl give strength to us as moms, wives, friends, & followers of Christ! I stand on the Word of God and say that He wants me to "do it ALL for the glory of God!" I therefore, will ever be trying to live my life by His Word - AIMING HIGH! I want to strive to reach God's goals & purposes for my life for His glory!

When our children let us down by their behaviors, choices, and even their own personality differences that challenge our standards - 'loving' is an action. American psychiatris M. Scott Peck says “Love is not a feeling. Love is an action, an activity. . .Genuine love implies commitment and the exercise of wisdom. . . . love as the will to extend oneself for the purpose of nurturing one's own or another's spiritual growth.....true love is an act of will that often transcends ephemeral feelings of love or cathexis, it is correct to say, 'Love is as love does'.”

Times when love is challenged and at 48 with 2 adult married children and 3 children left at home plus 4 beautiful grand-daughters, shaking in the love happens. I have been goverened by hormornes or not enough sleep or severe life issues - our ideals can spiral just because we are overcome by life struggles. But as I am aging and filled with the knowledge of the Word when I am weak - He IS strong!

Ideals shape our lives and what a sad state of affairs our U.S.A. is today because parents, employers, pastors, teachers - haven't kept the 'bar' raised. Ideals take effort and we will have to work to be patient and forgiving. We will aspire to not give up when there are the challenges and trials that will shake our love.

"...the truly ideal life is one lived for God. A life that does not in word and deed reflect the life and teachings of Christ fails that much in being ideal." Beautiful Girlhood