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Blessings Overflowing

Faith~Family~Creativity

August 25, 2016 By Jackie Leave a Comment

About Those Closed Doors and Open Windows

This morning I had a moment of clarity that allowed me to understand why my plans weren’t God’s plans for me this year. I realized that the proverbial “closed doors” I had faced recently were actually blessings in disguise.

Before I get too far, I guess I should back up just a bit. For those of you who may not know, I have 5 kids and I have been at home raising them for the past 14 years. Earlier this month all 5 of my kids started school, and I found myself alone for the first time in my 17 years as a mom.

First Day of School 2016

And, by “alone for the first time” I mean just that. I have always had at least one child with me pretty much at all times, especially at home. I guess you could say I have taken my job as mom pretty seriously.

The Closed Doors

This past winter I had thought that if I was able to get a teaching job I wouldn’t have to face being by myself during the day, or to feel as though I wasn’t needed as much anymore.

However, the more I worked toward that goal the more it seemed to be just out of my reach. While I realized I wasn’t letting God be in control, I still had trouble dealing with the impending changes in my life.

Quite frankly I was scared.

God’s Ways Are Always Higher

Earlier this week Janna, my five year old, was sick and missed two days of school. If I had been working I would have either had to miss work, send her to school not feeling 100%, or see if my parents could watch her. Instead, because I didn’t get a job, I was able to spend those two days taking care of her.

I was beginning to understand God’s plan for me.

Yesterday morning my brother texted me and said that my sister-in-law was very sick. He asked if I could take my niece to school. It really was no problem because I already had to drop Julia off at the school my brother works at, so I could easily just pick my niece up and head to the her school since I had to take Joseph and Janna there anyway.

God seemed to be revealing a little more of His plan to me.

Then, this morning, after doing a repeat of yesterday morning, Julia called me from school, right after I had dropped of the little ones, and said that she forgot her iPad. She sounded pretty panicky, and I understood why. Her school iPad has her textbooks and assignments on it. This responsible girl of mine is a Senior this year and has never forgotten her iPad in all four years of high school.

What did I do? I hurried home, grabbed her iPad, and got it to her at school before she had to take a quiz. The relief I saw in her face and the thanks she expressed were worth the effort.

After that I stopped by my husband’s school and helped him by running a couple of errands.

When I was finally headed home, an hour after I had started that way the first time, I was struck by something.

God had revealed His plan for me.

Jeremiah 29-11

His Plans Are Always Good

By nature, I am a helper, and I love to be needed.

I realized that, even though my kids are at school, I am still needed. I have a purpose.

From doing laundry to cooking meals to chauffeuring kids to and from practice to being there for my family when they need me, God has allowed me to be in the place I am needed most at just the right time.

This being only the third week of school I have a feeling that I have just begun to see what God’s plan for me is this school year.

So, while the old saying “When the Lord closes a door, somewhere He opens a window.” isn’t actually in the Bible but from The Sound of Music, here is my take on it.

The closed doors we sometimes face are opportunities to trust God more, to let Him lead us on the path He has chosen, instead of us telling God what we want and expecting Him to give it to us.

The open windows are the times when He reveals a little of His plan to us. When we recognize the blessings of unanswered prayers and closed doors. When we trust in Him.

Today I am thankful for the closed doors.

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Filed Under: Encouragement

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jackiesblessings

I have mixed emotions when I reflect on all that h I have mixed emotions when I reflect on all that has happened in 2020. There have been so many negatives for so many people. I can’t say it has all been positive for me either. However, there are some things that have happened in 2020 for which I am so grateful. 
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The main thing I am grateful for is the extra time I was able to spend with my kids. We had so much fun during quarantine and this summer. I know this wasn’t the case for everyone, but I do not regret the days when we had nothing planned and could just have fun together. Whether it was walking in the woods, playing games, watching a movie together, or even doing chores, I never once heard an “I’m bored.” 🙂 
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In addition to the gift of more time together, I am also grateful for all of the milestones we have celebrated this year. In June, my parents celebrated their 50th anniversary, and then we had four milestone birthdays. Julia turned 21, James turned 18, Joshua turned 16, and Joseph turned 13. (Janna felt left out, so we told her that her birthday was special because it was her last birthday in single digits.) Also, today marks 25 years that JT and I have been married. 
.
While I won’t be sorry to see 2020 go, and I hope
and pray 2021 is better for so many people who are hurting right now, I don’t ever want to forget the good times we had this year. 
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P.S. I took all of these pictures over fall break.
The girls and I recorded our parts for our virtual The girls and I recorded our parts for our virtual church service yesterday, and I couldn’t resist getting a picture with them in front of this beautiful Christmas tree. ❤️
James has been playing school basketball since he James has been playing school basketball since he was in the fourth grade. Tonight he and his fellow Seniors  were recognized at their game, and I just can’t believe James is this old. 
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Normally, Senior Night is the last game of the season. However,  because everything in the world seems so uncertain right now, we wanted to make sure the boys got a chance to be recognized. We wanted something “normal” for them. I am thankful James and his teammates not only got recognized but also won their game. 
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P.S. We had our masks on at all times other than when we took pictures.
We have another teenager in the house! Joseph is t We have another teenager in the house! Joseph is turning 13 today, and it just doesn’t seem possible. The beautiful baby boy who was placed in my arms on a cold and foggy day in December is still my “little” guy. However, after looking at this picture of the two of us, I don’t think he will be shorter than me for long. Joseph is still my shy guy, but he is also sweet, loving, kind, and just an all around good kid. We also lovingly refer to him as the cat whisperer because the kittens and cats follow him around like puppies. 🙂 It has been so much fun to have Joseph at school with me this year now that he is in junior high, and I am so thankful that I get to be his mama. Happy birthday, Joseph! ❤️
2020 has been challenging in so many ways. One of 2020 has been challenging in so many ways. One of those challenges was self-inflicted. 🙂 I just finished my fourth master’s level course of 2020 through Ball State, and I passed the high ability licensure exam last Thursday. This means that I will soon have high ability added to my teaching license. 
.
When I signed up to take my first class in January, I had no idea what 2020 was going to entail. Teaching in a pandemic isn’t for the faint of heart. Taking classes and caring for five kids while teaching in a pandemic has allowed me to see what I am really made of. I don’t mean to brag, but I am pretty happy that I received straight A’s. Beyond that, I learned so much, and I am grateful for this opportunity even though I felt stretched to my limits some days. 
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Yes, 2020 has been challenging, but I have been blessed with more time with my family, knowledge gained, and challenges met and overcome.
I almost forgot to post this here. 🎂 Joshua is I almost forgot to post this here. 
🎂
Joshua is 16 years old today. It doesn’t seem possible that my little pip squeak of a baby boy is now about 6’4”. Joshua is now the tallest of the family, and I’m not sure he is done growing. There hasn’t been a dull moment since Joshua arrived, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. He is a fun-loving, hard-working, kind-hearted, and intelligent young man. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for him. I am so thankful God thought I was up to the task of being Joshua’s mama. ❤️
My little 7 pound 20 inch baby boy, who didn’t c My little 7 pound 20 inch baby boy, who didn’t cry as soon as he was born but first looked around to see what was going on in the world, is now a 6’2” handsome man. I truly never thought the years would go by so quickly, but here we are. James is 18 today. 

There are so many words I could use to describe James: hardworking, dedicated, persevering, intelligent, funny, curious, kindhearted, dependable, respectful, and helpful. I could also expound upon his accomplishments, and I could tell you how great he is. However, I don’t love James for what he has accomplished but simply because he is my son.

I have been so blessed to be James’s mom, and I thank God every day for entrusting him into my care. I don’t know what the future will hold for him, but I know he will do great things. 

For anyone reading this who is struggling with a tantrum throwing toddler, a strong-willed child, and/or a child who questions everything, I would like to encourage you. Look for the positive qualities your child possesses such as perseverance, dedication, and curiosity and build upon that. I will never regret the hard days of parenting because my prayers and hard work have paid off. Helping James reach his full potential and keep those qualities without breaking his spirit has been worth the effort.

Happy Birthday, James!
I’m not going to sugar coat it. Today seemed sur I’m not going to sugar coat it. Today seemed surreal. It felt chaotic. Nothing was normal. We are all exhausted. However, it was wonderful to be with my students again after five months, and my own kids enjoyed seeing their friends. I don’t know how this school year will play out, but I am ready to go back tomorrow and try to make teaching virtually and in person work to the best of my ability. My students are worth the effort. 
.
James is a senior, and this was his last first day of school. Joshua is a sophomore, and Joseph is in 7th grade which means I have all three of my boys in the same building with me. Janna is in fourth grade, and she was very excited to be back at school. Julia will be a senior in college when she starts back next week. 
.
I am praying we all have a safe and healthy school year. I plan to try not to think about the unknowns and what-ifs and take it one day at a time.
This morning I told four of my kids we were going This morning I told four of my kids we were going to go on an adventure. (No, I didn’t leave one out of the fun. James played in a golf tournament with his dad. 🙂) Anyway, it was quite an adventure. It started with my vehicle telling me one of the tires needed air, but it must be a bad sensor because it was fine. Then I almost ran out of gas. I drove us on all sorts of country roads we had never been on, and I even thought I was going south when I was actually going north for like 10 miles. 🤷🏻‍♀️ It was very obvious I have not been many places since March. 
.
Anyway, Julia, Joshua, Joseph, Janna, and I went to @maxandhoneys where we took some pictures and picked a beautiful bouquet. It was really fun. After that, we went to Greencastle and then to Lieber State Recreation Area. We finished by stopping to do a few things in my classroom, and we made it home before it started raining.
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I am so thankful for a day of doing something fun and “normal” but out of the ordinary. I don’t know if that makes sense, but that’s the best way to describe it. Yes, we had to wear masks sometimes and practice social distancing, but it was still a good day. 
.
Here are some pictures from our day. The last picture is of James before he went to play golf. How is he old enough to be a senior? 😢 I am so thankful for my family. 💕 Also, kudos to Joshua and Joseph for being good sports about picking flowers. Their future wives will thank me. 😀

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