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PARENTING FREEDOM | This website and its contents are copyright and intended for educational purposes only. The information, research, experiences, and links contained herein have not been compiled by a physician and should not be considered as medical advice. Opinions expressed in the reference books and links may not in all cases reflect the beliefs of carol@parentingfreedom.com.
In my anguish I cried to the LORD, and he answered by setting me free.
Psalm 118:5
I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free.
Psalm 119:32
I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts.
Psalm 119:45
The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.
Luke 4:18-19
Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.
John 8:32
So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
John 8:36
Into the glorious freedom of the children of God.
Romans 8:21
Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
2 Corinthians 3:17
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
Galatians 5:1
You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.
Galatians 5:13
Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak.
1 Corinthians 8:9
In him [Christ] and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.
Ephesians 3:12
But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.
James 1:25
Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom.
James 2:12
Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.
1 Peter 2:16
They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him.
2 Peter 2:19
"Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves."
Abraham Lincoln
"I freed thousands of slaves. I could have freed thousands more, if they had known they were slaves."
Harriet Tubman
"No one is free when others are oppressed."
Author Unknown
"Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!"
Patrick Henry
"A Christian man is the most free lord of all, and subject to none, a Christian man is the most dutiful servant of all, and subject to every one."
Martin Luther
Freedom of a Christian
"Freedom is the sure possession of those alone who have the courage to defend it."
Pericles
"None are so hopelessly enslaved as those who falsely believe they are free."
Goethe
"So long as the people do not care to exercise their freedom, those who wish to tyrannize will do so; for tyrants are active and ardent, and will devote themselves in the name of any number of gods, religious and otherwise, to put shackles upon sleeping men."
Voltaire
"The secret of happiness is freedom. The secret of freedom is courage."
Thucydides
"Freedom is the right to tell people what they do not want to hear."
George Orwell
"O, Lord, I want to be free, want to be free, Rainbow round my shoulder, wings on my feet."
Traditional spiritual
Free from the law, O happy condition,
Jesus has bled and there is remission,
Cursed by the law and bruised by the fall, Grace hath redeemed us once for all.
Once for all, O sinner, receive it,
Once for all, O brother, believe it;
Cling to the cross, the burden will fall, Christ hath redeemed us once for all.
Now we are free, there’s no condemnation,
Jesus provides a perfect salvation.
“Come unto Me,” O hear His sweet call,
Come, and He saves us once for all.
“Children of God,” O glorious calling, Surely His grace will keep us from falling;
Passing from death to life at His call;
Blessèd salvation once for all.
My soul is filled with joy and gladness
Since Jesus came to me.
His love has banished all my sadness, From sin I am set free.
He set me free, He set me free,
I was blind, but hallelujah, now I see!
I shall ne’er forget the day When He washed my sins away,
And He set, He set me free.
The Comforter divine is dwelling
Within my soul today;
His love to others I am telling
Since Jesus came to stay.
The grace of Jesus hath abounded
For all my sins I see,
Salvation walls have me surrounded, From sin I am set free.
Once I was bound by sin’s galling fetters;
Chained like a slave, I struggled in vain. But I received a glorious freedom,
When Jesus broke my fetters in twain.
Glorious freedom! Wonderful freedom!
No more in chains of sin I repine!
Jesus the glorious Emancipator—
Now and forever He shall be mine.
Freedom from all the carnal affections;
Freedom from envy, hatred and strife;
Freedom from vain and worldly ambitions;
Freedom from all that saddened my life!
Freedom from pride and all sinful follies;
Freedom from love and glitter of gold;
Freedom from evil temper and anger;
Glorious freedom, rapture untold!
Freedom from fear with all of its torments;
Freedom from care with all of its pain;
Freedom in Christ, my blessèd Redeemer—
He Who has rent my fetters in twain.
Why should I feel discouraged, why should the shadows come,
Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heaven and home,
When Jesus is my portion? My constant friend is He:
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
I sing because I’m happy,
I sing because I’m free,
For His eye is on the sparrow,
And I know He watches me.
“Let not your heart be troubled,” His tender word I hear,
And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubts and fears;
Though by the path He leadeth, but one step I may see;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
Whenever I am tempted, whenever clouds arise,
When songs give place to sighing, when hope within me dies,
I draw the closer to Him, from care He sets me free;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
Ontario: “Among teens aged 15-19 there were 152 abortions for every 100 live births… Almost one fifth of teens aged 15-19 said they had already had at least one abortion…doesn’t include medical abortions or deaths from abortifacients like the morning-after pill.”
“‘It was not a political gesture. It was first of all a maternal gesture – that I wanted to stay with my daughter as much as possible, and to remind people that there are women who do not have this opportunity [to bring their children to work], that we should do something to talk about this.’”
I have often read Ann Voskamp’s lovely articles on her blog. She is a homeschooling mother of six. She also takes beautiful photographs and has recently become a New York Times bestselling author.
For the past couple years, I noticed she kept an ongoing list of things for which she was thankful. I found when I started writing my own lists,it just seemed like a lot of bragging to me. Also, I found that when I thought of things just for the sake of it, there wasn’t much feeling in it, so I didn’t always feel the gratefulness. Sometimes, when I think “thankful”, it is out of a sense of duty instead of deep appreciation. I figured if I shared my lists on my blog or Facebook, people would think I was bragging and that things in my life were sickeningly perfect. I felt that such a list would be unbalanced because I was ignoring all the hardships and pain that I experience in my life. I naturally gravitate toward writing about only the good things in my life, so I thought a list would just draw even more attention to them. I tend to think that people would rather read that your life is just as hard as theirs. And, I think people prefer to hear bad news. It makes better gossip and better ratings on the news.
Then, I watched Ann Voskamp’s interview in these clips from 100 Huntley Street.
Having An Attitude Of Gratitude — Ann Voskamp — 1/2
Having An Attitude Of Gratitude — Ann Voskamp — 2/2
Ann explained it differently than I had understood. She said she began by thinking of things she loved. That made me realize I could collect my list in a different way. Instead of just sitting down and trying to make an artificial list of things that I SHOULD be grateful for, but may actually be annoyed by at that moment in time, I could live my life everyday and write down the things that made me happy as they came along. Things that made me smile or laugh or feel joy. I don’t have to get hung up on words like thankful, gratitude, or gifts.
I am going to give it a try. I will write as the things happen to me. I am not going to search for them. I will not commit to writing every day because that would turn into a burden, but I will write when I have the time.
I have not read Ann Voskamp’s book yet. I decided I want to read it AFTER I make my own list. I want to write what comes into my own head, and then I will enjoy reading her lists.
I will look for the following as they happen:
Things/times/people that…
make me happy
I love
give me joy
make me smile
make me laugh
and even, make me truly thankful
March 4, 2011
1. Silence… The jabbering going on right now makes me remember that wonderful thing.
2. Baby GC (6 months) crawling behind my la-z-boy chair and lifting the heat register out of the floor leaving a gaping hole next to her.
3. Baby GC lifting both arms high in the air for me to pick her up.
4. Baby GC slurping on my cheek/chin with one tiny sliver of a tooth.
5. N17 doing lunch dishes, vacuuming, and cleaning the counter and table.
6. B12 reading a StarWars book to L6 and they are both babysitting GC at the same time – hilarious because she is crawling and likes to eat books.
7. B12 muscle testing me and Baby GC. He is really great at it. I am very excited about this and look forward to blogging about it. It is a health tool that EVERY mother should know.
8. C9 talking on the phone to her friends for hours.
9. I wore my new Tough Traveler backpack yesterday for the first time. Baby GC loved it while I did the supper dishes. It is the best carrier for ages 6 months to 4 years. My first backpack made it through four children, but I needed a new one for this baby. My sister will get it next. I know she will love it because it is for tall people.
10. I am thankful for my height.
11. I am thankful for a sunny day.
12. I look back fondly on the Fridays we spent at the local Christian school over a period of about three years. I miss Mrs. M., but I am thankful for those times, even if most my children don’t remember those days.
13. I love McDonald’s fries.
14. I am so thankful we can afford groceries unlike the single mother interviewed on the radio who is struggling now that the cost of food has gone up.
15. A sales lady at a store asked if I had a new baby. (GC was peeking out of the sling.) I said, “She’s not new, but is now six months old.” She said she was behind the times, and, “So this makes two boys and two girls?” I said, “Three boys and two girls.” She said, “Five children!” And I braced for the negative comments… but instead, “You’re so lucky!” I said, “THANK YOU! Most people don’t have that reaction!” She said she was one of six children so she knows…
16. Baby GC was in the sling at a store when we became trapped by an old couple. The raggedy old man was so happy to see the baby. He came right up and rubbed her cheek with his own wrinkled fingers. He couldn’t stop grinning and pointing out her blue eyes, etc. to his wife. He said with a big smile, “I love babies.” I felt like I wanted to protect my baby, but I was polite and talked to the strangers. It was only afterward that I realized that I was very thankful for that experience. I was thankful there are people in the world like that old man. People that love babies and little children. People who are drawn to little ones. They are a rare breed. I could tell that his wife was just like most folks who like babies but do not have that gift. The way this old man felt about GC was just like my Uncle David felt about children. And I think I have a streak of it as well.
17. I am so relieved and thankful that my credit card is not really lost, but when I called the store, they said it was there. The teller just forgot to give it back to me, and I forgot to ask for it. I have gotten into the habit of not giving it to the teller because it has a chip, and they always say to do it myself, so I rarely have to ask for it back anymore. Baby GC is a distraction for the tellers and the people in line, so no wonder we forgot. I am relieved I don’t have to deal with the problems that would have resulted from a lost card.
18. The way Baby GC gives me such huge smiles and arches are back and reaches her arms when I take her out of her carseat to go into each store.
19. C9 making a small braid in her hair.
20. The looks on the kids’ faces when I gave them six new Nerf swords/axes (on sale) and hearing a huge battle in the basement.
21. PVR
22. The Middle
23. Chocolate chips
24. The way Baby GC makes big sighs and coos when she sleeps.
March 5, 2011
25. Listening to Mark Levin’s sarcasm and Happy Days are Here Again…
26. Right Scoop gave me a big smile of shared excitement when he wrote about a Sarah Palin interview, “Oh man I feel like the election campaigns have already started! That was awesome!”
27. Being reminded of Glenn, Stu, and Pat singing Happy Days are Here Again after the 2010 election. Listened to it again and smiled and enjoyed seeing N17 smile about it, too.
28. Freshly bathed baby in a pink sleeper lying on the floor with a pink toy in her mouth cooing on a Saturday morning. Then, picking up and rocking said baby and having her eyes close immediately upon latching on. And knowing I can just sit and hold her while she nurses and/or sleeps as long as she wants.
29. Purring kitty
30. Fox News Channel
31. The smile on L6′s face when I changed the channel from the news to a Scooby-Doo movie.
32. Not having to make lunch.
33. I laid Baby GC on the floor and arranged four of her things around her in a semi-circle. She crawled toward the book.
34. Holding sleeping baby during another nap.
35. Not having to make supper.
36. Holding both my little niece A2 and Baby GC in my lap at the same time while they enjoy each other.
37. Baby GC fussing in her carseat so we turn on the radio and she starts dancing in her car seat.
There. That’s a start. I don’t know if my list is normal or if it is even close to what would make other people happy, but I have always known I was different. I guess it doesn’t matter.
