I was really looking forward to this topic. But, I had no idea how much I'd LOVE our speaker! Sometimes talks on these topics can be overwhelming for a messy like me. Oh, I WANT to be clean and organized, but it isn't second nature to me like it is to 'cleanies'. And oftentimes it's cleanies who are giving the talks and they really can't relate to a messy.
First of all our speaker was a self proclaimed messy who had to learn the ways of organizing. So, she spoke my language. Bonni, our speaker, was funny, smart, real, and quirky - my kind of gal. (It also turns out she's one of the women from my church who I'd only met briefly one Sunday at the information desk.) But, even more exciting to me was her story.
She told us a bit about her testimony. She came from a Jewish family in a city here in PA. At college, she met the man who was to become her husband. But, before they were even dating he was witnessing to her over and over about Jesus. She eventually accepted the Lord and married the guy who led her to Him. Then they moved to small town PA to become hog farmers. It was a huge change for her!
She went on to say that when she became a Christian she really didn't know anything about church. Her only experience with church was one visit she had made with a Catholic friend to a Catholic church. She also had never read the Bible other than the first 4 books in the old testament. She said that once she started reading the rest of the OT and the New testament she just kept reading them over and over.
She also talked to us about her early years with her children. Bonnie is a mother to 8 children. Her first 4 were all boys born within a 5 year span. She said that during those years she was constantly overwhelmed, and unhappy. Life and her home were chaotic. When people told her to enjoy these years with her children....that they were the best years of her life, it put her into even deeper despair.
She wanted to take joy in her life, but she didn't know how to do it. I could tell you more of her story, but let me encourage you to check out her website....Mom By Example.com. You can read more about Bonni there. She explained how getting organized helped her to set a different tone in her home - one of peace and order.
Here comes the recommendation part. Bonni just published an e-book. It's available for $4.99 ($1 from every purchase goes to Mercy House in Kenya). I bought mine yesterday and have really been enjoying it. It's called Recapturing the Joy of Motherhood.
It's one of those topics that I have to focus on over and over, because it really is hard to miss out on the joy. It's usually lost amidst the noise. Bonni has a little youtube clip where she talks about her book. Check out what she has to say....
May God bless you!
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