Direction

This morning I was getting ready to go to the Anti-Drug Coalition of Tipton County monthly meeting and remembered that our meeting location had changed. I was sitting there putting my makeup on and thought “I have NO idea where I am going!” which made me laugh at myself.  The verse that I have pinned to my bathroom mirror is Hebrews 11:8 which tells about Abraham leaving out not knowing where he was going.  This is the verse I have clung to for the past couple of years because I want to be like him and do whatever God leads me to.

This was especially meaningful to me this morning because yesterday, we found out that the young lady that we wanted to bring into our home and adopt into our family would not be coming here after all.  As I was sitting there thinking that I didn’t know where I was going for the meeting, I also don’t know where I am going in this adoption journey.  I know God didn’t put us through the classes and everything else for nothing.

So, here I was putting on my makeup, thinking about direction and I noticed my notifications light blinking so I picked up my phone to see what it was.  It was an email from my pastor in response to me emailing him an update on our adoption and in it he said “I have heard it said, It’s not rejection…but direction.” That made me laugh!  During our classes, one thing that I said I struggled with is rejection and before I got the phone call yesterday, I had started feeling that maybe the girl didn’t want us but if that was true, I needed to know.  I didn’t feel hurt, I just wanted to find out what direction we were headed. So that quote meant a lot.  Nope, I wasn’t rejected, just redirected!  I DO feel like God has been guiding us in the right direction for these past few months and now that we have been told NO for this girl, we are now moving toward the one He really has picked out for us.

Before I left for my meeting, I told my husband that I was leaving but had no idea where it was.  I said “I am not sure if it is a good thing or a bad thing that I am clueless as to where the Sheriff’s Department is.”  He gave me a funny look and reminded me where it was.  If only all directions were that simple 🙂

Still praying daily for God’s direction in my life.

Book Review: Love No Matter What

I chose to review Love No Matter What: When Your Kids Make Decisions You Don’t Agree With
because I am a mom of teens. Simple as that. Ok, not so simple… one of my teens is 18 and I spent the 6 months before she reached the age of adulthood wondering if I had done a “good job”.  The more I thought about it, the more I remembered that no matter what I did or didn’t do, my daughter would have to make her own choices…just like I did at that age. So, when I saw this book in my list of choices to review a few months after my daughter’s birthday, I thought it would be a good one to read to see if my opinions were the same as the authors.

The topics covered in the book range from the types of decisions our children make that we don’t agree with, common mistakes parents make (and yes, I was guilty of a few of these!), how to really be “cool” parents, who to share your parental struggles with, and more. The topics were good and gave a lot of insight BUT sometimes it was confusing to read about the particular families involved.  The author would name mom, dad and child and tell about their struggle in one chapter and then bring them back up again a few chapters later…it made my mind jumbled!  Maybe if she had included a chart with each family and their main struggle or even just said “Jessica’s parents handled this problem this way…” I might have been able to handle it better.

I did like the fact that she included her adult daughter’s perspective on some of the issues.  The author is clear that she was not the perfect mom.  She had some struggles with her daughter Katie and in this book, they discuss some of those and how they worked through them or are still working on.

As for those opinions…were they similar to mine?  Yes, mostly.  There were a couple of things that I don’t totally agree with but that is ok.  It may be because I have not faced some of the issues mentioned and so my opinion is irrelevant.  You always hear people say “if that were my kid, I would…”  well, you really don’t know WHAT you would do in that situation and neither do I.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through theBookSneeze®.combook review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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