How exciting – a new year to live for the Lord! I’m not sure if it’s the older I get, or the way I can see the world changing – but more and more I desire to honor and please the Lord in all that I do. I see that in the end as I stand before His Great Throne, how I’ve lived my life with and for Him will overshadow ‘things’.

This is something I as an adult think about often, but ALSO share with my children. Did you realize that by living out your faith/ your life WITH your children, you are presenting a relationship with the One True, Living God? I speak this from my own parents living out their faith before me when I was a child. I saw prayers answered, needs brought before the Lord – I saw that GOD was the focus in big and little things.

Now I am the parent, and I want my own children to see our Living God. This past year, we faced many things – some good, some bad, and in between. We praised the Lord together as He answered prayers, we prayed together during tough times. We had opportunities to share how we should act as Christians, even when treatly wrongly. Our children had first hand experiences with life!

I was taught a lot myself – how to depend more on my Father rather than my own dreams and plans. HE changed ‘my’ plans, and I had to keep prying my fearful hands away to let HIM guide us. I am grateful that I had the opportunity to share Him with my children through all this. I am even more excited that I can begin our new year w/ our children, committing it to Him and His will.

One thing that I aim to do this year is create a blessing journal. God blesses us in so many ways, many of which we never even acknowledge. I can’t wait to sit down daily with my children and discuss how God has blessed us each day, then be able to write this down as a future testimony of God’s goodness to us.

A friend on my Facebook page wrote something to this effect – “If you want to feel rich, count that which can’t be bought with money”. In doing this with your child, you will show them what a great God of blessings we have.

If you haven’t guessed it yet, this is the vision God has given me for this year. This coming year, 2010, is the year of blessings for our family. God might not choose to bless us with great financial blessings, but I can be sure there will be blessings that can’t be bought. I can also rest in knowing that He will meet our daily needs. The song He gave me today for this year is the Doxology:

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow, Praise Him all creatures here below;

Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts, Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.

ALL blessings flow from Him – and this year I resolve to focus on this, praising and thanking Him all the way with my children! I began singing this for them today, and hopefully it be be deeply engrained in their hearts by the end of the year. I know this song goes back to my childhood, as it was a part of our church service each Sunday.

I encourage you to live a life of faith with your child this year too. Have a Happy and Blessed New Year!!

*YOU can now share a part of living a year of blessings and realizing that ALL blessings come from Him! For every purchase made this year here on Sonbeams products, customers will have the opportunity to share their church or choice of mission, and they will receive 20% of the total via PayPal.

Mrs. Candace

Candace @ Sonbeams.com