Teaching the true meaning of Christmas

In Matthew 24:40, Jesus said, "'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."

At Legacy Moms, we believe that one of the best ways we can leave a Godly legacy is by serving others and putting our faith into action, and by doing so, teaching our children to follow our example. That's why this year, Legacy Moms is partnering with Beautiful Feet Ministries in Fort Worth to provide Christmas presents, coats, and other items for needy families who otherwise would not be having much of a Christmas. This is a hands-on opportunity for your family to serve a family in need and actually deliver the gifts yourself, and meet and minister to the family you are helping. If you are not available to that, you can still adopt a family and purchase and wrap the gifts, and someone else will deliver them to the family. If you are not familiar with Beautiful Feet, it is a place where the homeless and needy people in the inner city can get food, clothing, shelter and be taught the word of God. My family has served there and fed the homeless the past couple of years, and it is a wonderful organization. You can check out their website at www.thefeet.org . We will be meeting at Beautiful Feet on Friday, Dec. 18 where they will give you a map to the home you have selected, and a they will give you a box of food items for that family's Christmas dinner...you just bring the gifts! We have already gotten 17 families adopted by Legacy Moms just like you, but there are many, many more that need gifts. Please contact me at kym@legacymoms.org and let me know if you would like to join us, and I will work with you to select a family for you adopt and get you more detailed information!

Many blessings to you and your sweet family,

Kym

Journal Questions for Gratitude

At our last meeting, we talked about how you can begin to harvest gratitude in the heart of your family, even in the midst of difficult times. One of our points was that we need to remember (literally, make a "memorial") of the stories that inspire us to feel gratitude to God. We all have those "God" moments; times when we feel so blessed by something small but meaningful to us, or that answered prayer, or that time that God intervened in our life in a miraculous way, yet many times we forget those moments quickly and can become just like the Israelites wandering around and complaining in our daily life. We need to write those "gratitude" stories down, go back to them when our faith is shaky, and share those stories with our children.
For our journaling time, I gave a list of questions to help you remember some of your own stories, and I promised to post them to here. So here they are:


What “little moment” happened today with your kids that you need to remember forever?
When do you feel the most complete and secure?
What childhood memory still makes you smile today?
When did you experience so much love and joy that you thought your heart would burst?
What did God provide for you that you thought was impossible?
What “thing” did you mistakenly believe would bring you happiness, and how did God give you more than you knew to ask for?
What lesson did you learn the hard way – but glad you did?
What heartache turned out to be a blessing in disguise?

“You thrill me, Lord, with all you have done for me!
I will sing for joy because of what you have done.” Psalm 92:4

Encouraging Good Character in a Meaningful Way

Do you consider yourself to be a "good-finder?" You know, a "good-finder" is the kind of mom who looks for the things that her kids are doing well and offers praise and a word of encouragement. Well, that can be easier said than done (especially if you have toddlers or teens!) Many times, we as moms spend much of our time noticing the wrong things our kids are doing, figuring out how to fix the problem, or at the very least to suppress the negative behavior and attitudes. Of course, one of our duties as moms is to correct and train our children when they are wrong, but how often we forget that one of the best ways to do that is by ENCOURAGING the right behavior and attitudes! And when we find creative and meaningful ways to encourage good character, that's when we really make impact and touch our child's heart.

Here is a story from one of our team members, Jenny Hickl, that I think you'll enjoy:

For several years my family raised chickens in the backyard. Their antics were a great source of entertainment as they learned to catch bugs, established their pecking order and spread their wings to try and fly (the longest recorded flight of a chicken is 10 ft). We always named the chicks. There was Speedy who wasn’t all that fast, Robin who turned out to be a rooster and, much to our chagrin, learned how to crow a 5 weeks, Star, Sparkle, Chick – you get the idea.
Our job was to watch over the young chickens for a couple of months until they were old enough to go to a friend’s farm. Of all of the chickens that passed through our hands, none of them captured our affections quite like Buttercup. Buttercup was a dark golden hen with black laced feathers. She followed us around the yard and my youngest daughter even taught her to sit on our shoulders like a parrot. When it was time for that batch of chicks to go to the farm, we were all a little down.
A few months later, I came across a ceramic chicken that resembled Buttercup. Thinking to amuse my children, I brought it home. They loved it. Now, when one of the kids shows remarkable character, “Buttercup” turns up in their room with a note of congratulations. It is the highest award anyone in our home can earn and is highly coveted.

There are several aspects of the Hickls' "Buttercup Award" that has made it successful for their family:
1. It is personal – Born out of an experience unique to their family. This particular award means something to only the people in their family; so there is a fun "insiders" quality to it. It builds a "team mentality" in your family.
2. It is meaningful – Not overused so when someone receives it, it is a big deal!
3. It is specific – The award is given for a specific action or attitude with a note explaining and congratulating them for what they have done.
4. It was inexpensive – The ceramic chicken only cost Jenny a mere $6.88, but the meaning behind it is priceless!

So how about a character award in your family? I would encourage you to be creative and think of your own "unique" award that you can use to recognize and celebrate your children when they go above-and-beyond. Let us know what you come up with!

Thanks Hickl family, for letting us "in" on your special family tradition! I have a feeling your example will inspire many families to be "good-finders" more often! ; ) You all deserve a "Buttercup!"

God Bless,

Kym