Every Sunday my family and I gather around the kitchen table to read God’s word and discuss Christian living and I have the pleasure of empowering my children and husband through the Holy Spirit. My husband recently had a stroke so I lead mostly the discussions for now as the stroke affected his speech. He does his best to chime in and I encourage the children to give their thoughts and opinions. In this hard time in our life as a family we are learning everyday how much God’s hand is on our lives and how He provides for us. My children are begging to exhibit great gifts and talents at a rate I have never seen before and God is leading us to everything He has for us.
It’s a constant cycle of giving and receiving.
We read in Isaiah 49 today how God formed him for His purposes, to bless him, for Isaiah to know Him but also for Isaiah to be a light to others. Did you know that God does that with you as well? That the moment that he made Adam and Eve He not only made them to have a relationship with Him but He made them that they may live life abundantly and then turn around in that abundance and give back to others. It’s a constant cycle of giving and receiving. What a massive blessing! But unfortunately we live in a world that wants to constantly take. People create and do so they can get something from someone else and I think we are all realizing that more and more. But I want you to know that God’s people give as much as they receive because that is who God made us to be and if anyone knows that clearly it should be us. Despite what the world is doing we should be following after our savior Jesus Christ and His Father; our Father. Living a life like this is where we can began to live a life of abundance. That circle of receiving and giving shouldn’t feel like a chore but should feel as good as a flowing river of life springing forth nourishing the seeds of faith and love within us. Be bold in the gifts that God has given you when you create. Make sure you do it not only for God’s glory but give to others while your doing what He’s called you to do. And you will begin to see the blessing of God on those around you and in your own home.
The Lord has been speaking to me so much in gardening these days. If you garden this may resonate with you. When you begin to grow a plant the plant has already done all the work that God created it to do to give you the seed. So then you take that seed and prepare it for sleep so that you can save it for sowing season. When it’s time to wake the seed up you do what needs to be done by rehydrating the seed then planting it. It’s up to you to nourish, water and make sure the seed is given plenty of sunlight. The seed begins to do what God created that seed to do. And eventually because of you giving your time and abelites that seed gives back to you ten fold. Now you have fruit to eat and to live off of. The world wants us to believe we live in a dead world but in fact we have life all around us. This world is overflowing with life! But in order for God to give the increase you must give as you have be given to. May God be with you Kingdom family!
The days of just surviving after having a baby is over! A new trend called “Getting your Pink Back” is in. As a mother of 6 children I can tell you this is something I have struggled with maintaining and have tried many different ways to getting myself back after each child. Here’s my advice!
Wait.. what does getting your pink back even mean?
Many influencing mom have their own takes on it including one of the first referencing flamingo’s and their offspring. Look that up later! But here’s my take on things. As mother’s when our babies are first born our instincts are to nurture our new life in the world. It can take a lot out of us as we focus on our baby’s needs and in some areas we do the bare minimum for ourselves just to get through the day or even years. This isn’t a bad thing but after a certain period there comes a time where we gain a little more sleep and get small bits of time back in our day. The problem is the latter part when we tend to find ways to fill up the new recovered time with everything else but ourselves. We go back to work, we give our kids more of us as they grow and if we have them, our spouses and partners more time as well. That’s when we find there’s little time for ourselves and so the neglect continues when it doesn’t necessarily need to.
I’m always going to advocate for both mom health and baby health. But one doesn’t have to be without the other. You can nourish your body even in the “healing” phase of motherhood which is postpartum and beyond to get your pink back so to speak. Here’s a few ways to do that from my own experiences.
Begin the Healing
Yoga may not be your thing but some form of stretching works wonders. You can take 15 to 20 minutes everyday and become stronger with little effort by doing stretch exercises. I call them my lazy workouts though there’s nothing lazy about them. They really do work if your goal is focused on healing instead of immediate weight loss. Focus on abdominal repair work outs and check if you have diastasis recti .This is a common condition post pregnancy but also can be healed naturally. Wear your belly support bands ladies during pregnancy and get ones for postpartum too they really work!
Clean eating can be as easy as switching from fast food hamburgers to nutrient dense soups and casseroles. WHAT I can eat a healthy casserole? Absolutely! Change your basic cheap macaroni full of preservatives to ones with better whole ingredients and Voila! Carbs are not always your enemy. It’s what the carb is made of that is!
Start A Natural Beauty Routine
Your skin needs you babe! Our hormones are fluctuating during the first few weeks to even years after having a baby and it’s not the time to experiment with chemical ridden cosmetics. Get to know your skin by investing in natural products or go the DIY route. A face mask daily refreshes the skin and gives you a little treat. My favorite masks are mud and charcoal. Begin a morning and night routine and do your best to stick with it!. My favorite two cleansers are raw unfiltered honey and castle soap. Moisturizers I live by is aloe vera leaf (from the plant) and olive oil. If these natural products don’t work switch up and find ones that work. Natural soaps like goat milk soap is great to cleanse the skin with. Coconut oil and caster oil are great oils for moisturizing to try as well. Don’t sleep on the ice! It really does work! Use ice cubes or ice rollers to shrink pores and improve circulation. It’s not just a beauty routine but a self discovery journey as well!
The Mama Clothes May Have To Go!
From maternity clothes to the clothes you bought just to exist in during the 4th trimester, it’s time to let them go! It’s okay to freshen up your closet to match your current season. You don’t have to throw them away but you can save them for future pregnancies or donate them. Find clothing that flatter your body and make you feel good instead of going by trends. Trends can be exciting but also very disheartening if what’s on trend doesn’t look as good on you as it does on everyone on social media. Have a friend, spouse or family member go with you shopping to help with the baby while you try on new clothes. Or browse the Internet during nap time and shop from your own style board you made on Pinterest. This is one of my favorite things to do after having one of the kids to get my “pink” back!
Mom Hair But We Do Care
We are at that point, in society that we just don’t give a you know what. We’re doing our best and it’s become very popular to just accept others as they are and ourselves. Which I love! But at one point we have to rise up out of the “it is what it is” survival pit. It has it’s place but we are moving on. Rather we want to admit it or not there’s something powerful about our hair. It can change everything about how we feel about ourselves and in fact sometimes one of the first things we do when going through a big change is we change our hair! I was notorious for big chops when I was younger. And if you’re ready for it girl do you! But you can also go in for a refresh hair cut to clip your ends or try a new layering style. It doesn’t even have to be a hair cut. When I was pregnant with my last munchkin, my goal was to grow my hair after she was born. I’ve been trying new routines to see which one worked with less effort as having 6 kids ain’t no joke! But I am determined to find time to give to this goal. I wash my hair once a week, deep condonation with one leave in product after washing, style my hair once, do an oil treatment before shampooing and repeat. This protected my hair from shedding too much during the dreaded postpartum shed and my hair is healing and growing! Getting a fresh start with our hair feels like letting a load off and it’s very refreshing.
Girl YOU MATTER So Act Like It!
You gave life to someone else now you must give life back to yourself. You don’t have to go to the gym, take a bunch of supplements or spend a bunch of money to get your pink back. The natural ways are always cost effective and the most effective from experience. But remember don’t be so quick to jump on this trend right after birth because at the end of the day you and your baby’s bond is what matters the most. Enjoy the newborn phase because it’s the quickest of them all!
For while now I have always talked about how we celebrate Christmas and why. One of the things I’ve been adamant about is never lying to my children about Santa Clause. All of these years I have been honest with my children. I basically tell them Santa is a cartoon character that has many origins, he is a legend but not a real person. I let them know that It’s okay as Americans for us to enjoy our traditional media as it’s tied to our culture. We even had a Santa come to our retail store to spread much Christmas cheer in a time of an increasing negativity about Christmas in general. But my kids have always known the truth.
On the way home from my daughter’s piano lesson one of my youngest girls was with us both. We were just discussing our favorite things about the Christmas season. My youngest was asking if we were going to finish watching the Michael Jackson concert we started but never finished the night before. I told her no we have other things to do that night. She got upset and told us she didn’t want to talk anymore because she was thinking about Michael Jackson. I honestly didn’t know she liked MJ that much until that moment! So she sat there quietly as my eldest and I continued to chat. That was until Santa came up. My youngest daughter enthusiastically jumped in and began to talk about how he was coming to the house and putting his sleigh on the roof. I said gently “Now you know Santa is not real right? So he won’t actually be there.” Her eldest sister said “Yeah! He’s not real remember?” My youngest said with a low mumble “I don’t want to talk anymore.” I asked her why and she said “I’m thinking about Santa.” I said “Okay. Well it’s okay to think about Santa. It’s not wrong to imagine about the reindeer and the sleigh on the roof.” And she excitedly said “OKAY!” I told my eldest to not be so stern with her. It’s up to her to come to realization that Santa is not real. She has to work that out on her own but to be honest if she asked but don’t push it in her face.
This moment warmed my heart two fold. Not only was my sweet little girl growing up, expressing her feelings and drawing boundaries but I was for the first time learning how to navigate a situation I never had to before. All of my kids before her showed no interest in Santa. But she was the first and it was an opportunity to not only teach her but to learn how to support her without being false in any way. It can be hard as a parent to choose to tell your children the truth because you think if you do you’ll crush their spirit. Some parents choose to not engage at all and ignore it. Some choose to add on lie after lie to supposedly shield their child’s innocence. Telling your kids the truth about Santa is not going to steal their innocence. Coming from someone who has endured great trauma as a child, I am telling you what I endured is in fact a stealing of innocence not being honest with your child about a made up character. What you can’t do is be belligerent and harsh about it. Your kids don’t need to be reminded every time they bring up Santa that he isn’t real. Every once in a while I gently remind her but for the most part I tell her siblings to be quiet and let her imagination run free. Constantly telling your child something they believe in is not real at such a young age can hurt their self esteem and create a division between the two of you.
My daughter knows I love her and I believe in her. There is no doub there and even though she got annyoed with me that one time telling her something, she has since not cared if I remind her that he is a cartoon character. She just smiles at me and said “I know!” and then we tell made up Santa stories about him falling off the roof and everyone has a good time joking. The point is with everything give grace and mercy but always tell the truth. Truth and love will always over power any fears you may have and even any mistakes you may make as a parent. But deception bring chaos and pain that could lead to loss and division. It’s never worth it not even for once a year fun.
Pitter patter pat. I look up from my work on my queen sized bed and notice little black hairs escaping a head full of long silk curls. Someone’s coming to give me a kiss goodnight and to tell me something funny her baby sister just did. She climbs onto the bed and I open my arms for a tight hug. I then bring my hands to her face, cupping her sweet golden brown cheeks. Two kisses for each! As she climbs down to tell me something, I listen and respond but also take a moment to worship the Lord. I’m in awe that such a beautiful being could ever come from my husband and I. In silence, I’m thanking the Lord for it and committing myself deeper to His plan. Because this little one was born out of a promise between Him and I. And I’ll never forget it.
The power of in the moment worship
In the last few months, I have had a really rough time. My husband just went through a medical emergency and that has made me the primary caregiver of everyone in the house. He’s gaining his strength back but It’s going to take time. Sometimes I don’t realize just how tired and stressed I am. But in that moment I stopped and worshipped the Lord. Doing that took a tired and worn out mama and spread peace throughout my being. It was just what I needed after the se last few months of hardship. Many people view worship as a way to spend time with the Lord. But in reality there are many things worship is for and actually does. Worship also is a way the Holy Spirit rises up in us and gives us what we need in that moment. Do you need strength? Peace? Rest? Wisdom? Answers. Take a moment to Worship. Worship is a place of surrender so that the Lord can have space to give you exactly what you need in that season of your life. What around you can you give God praise for? What in your life can you give thanksgiving? Is there something that just happened that you can be humbled in gratitude about? Take e beat, and worship at His feet! People tell you to pray often but I’m telling you mama, to worship. Worship as often as you pray! There’s healing in that small moment of praise.
No matter what life throws at you, God can breathe life back into you again. And He does it a lot of the time in the smallest ways. Will you give Him just a moment so He can fill you back up again?
It’s been a long time since I’ve written on My Father’s Symphony. I’ve welcomed a new daughter, opened a brick and mortar store and I’m continuing preaching the gospel while being a homeschooling mom and homemaker!
There are many things still yet to come for me as I continue to let God pour into all the vessels He has given me. But now in one area of my life I’m coming back full circle and that’s writing. I have a beautiful teenage daughter that is an amazing artist and becoming a writer herself. We have decided to work on a few projects in the coming year. One of them is a children’s book for me and hers may be a tween novel from what she’s been sharing with me.
Writing and music have always been a part of who I am as an artist. While away from this blog, I longed to be back doing this very thing. Stay tuned, there is much more to come. Catch up with me on living woman ministry channel on Rumble, where I discussed two doctrines every Christian should be careful with. Write you soon!
This Monday instead of sharing my next episode for Christ & Culture I am sharing a video that I just made giving real facts about what the pregnancy center I volunteer for actually does. From my research, this is what a lot of pregnancy centers do around the country. Many people are not fully informed on what it is that we do and therefore there is a lot of misinformation that create confusion and fear in women and men. Unfortunately many who need what these centers offer don’t reach out it because of being told false information about how we operate. The good news is the community that my center is in is starting to understand what it is that we actually do because of us reaching out to the community and educating people on what we do. The growing interest to get involved is inspirational and now more referrals being made to our center. Knowledge is truly power so please share it with others. You never know who it may come by that really needs to hear it! Click the image to watch below!
The Culture & Christ Series will return next Monday!
Well I have some exciting news to share! I have began to work with an organization called CareNet Pregnancy Services here in Kentucky. When I was pregnant with Victoria I had this growing hunger to get more involved with the pro life movement. That was God sowing in my heart desires I never thought I would want. After all, It was only a few years ago I was pro choice myself even while being Christian because of not knowing the fullness of what abortion was. I have been mentoring women in crises pregnancies for almost two months now! This was something I went fuller into detail on my channel on Rumble. I was honored to attend their banquet earlier this month for their ultrasound machine fundraising and I got to all about their efforts and future plans for the organization. God is truly doing amazing work through them.
Today I spoke for the first time at a church who humbly invited volunteers of CareNet to speak for their baby bottle campaign they are doing here in Northern Kentucky. I want to share with you my speech so you can see a small bit of the work CareNet does and also my heart concerning these things. Often I have say this will be the work of my time and the war I will happily fight. We are living in an historical moment no matter where your stance is on abortion and I hope that WordPress does not hinder me from continuing to speak freely on this issue. I say that because I have been censored and targeted by certain social media companies. I aim to only share my work and not to harass anyone. I hope this speech blesses you!
Me Attending CareNet’s Ultrasound Banquet
Good morning! I wanted to first say thank you for having me! I’m so very grateful for the opportunity to speak to you on behalf of CareNet Pregnancy Centers of Northern Kentucky
My name is Johnnatta Giles, I’m a mom of 5 and I’ve been married to my husband James Giles for almost 10 years now. I serve as a volunteer mentor to women in crisis pregnancies at CareNet Pregnancy Services in Williamstown Kentucky. I want to tell you a little about me. My mother was an addict. Yet she gave me life. When I was 3, I was put into foster care because of her neglect due to her illnesses and later adopted out of the foster care system.
I am grateful everyday that she let me go so I could one day grow up and make a life for myself. Many women face hopelessness like my mother and what I do is carry my story and give them what my mother never had. Not only do we encourage women to choose life, but we help them live abundantly. It is a humbling honor to serve them.
The lives of more than 2,300 precious babies hang in the balance every day because women and men facing an unintended pregnancy think abortion is their best option. The pro-abortion culture denies the sanctity of life and works hard to normalize abortion. They promise abortion is “safe and easy.” But in reality there is no such thing as a safe abortion. The method they push the hardest is also the easiest to get—the abortion pill.
In 2020, the abortion pill accounted for nearly 54% of all abortions. The FDA allows abortion pills to be shipped straight to home addresses in states where it’s legal. They don’t even require a physical exam, let alone that a doctor be present during the abortion. That puts women at risk.
Not long ago, a young woman who thought she was only a few weeks pregnant came to Care Net. The abortion pill is aggressively targeted to women like her—those thinking about abortion and no more than 10 weeks’ pregnant.
We thank God that she came to Care Net for an ultrasound—she was actually almost four months along.
Women and their partners need to know the truth about the humanity of their babies. They deserve to know the truth about abortion. Our greatest tool to change the mind of a mother or father at risk for abortion is the ultrasound.
Ultrasounds not only date the gestational age of the pregnancy; it also confirms the unmistakable proof of human life. Since we began offering ultrasounds in 2006, more than 1,351 babies have been saved—208 last year alone. We’re able to offer more than 100 ultrasound appointments every month. Calls to our helpline are answered live by our staff 24 hours a day.
All three of our locations—in Florence, Cold Spring and Williamstown—offer pregnancy tests, ultrasounds and education on all of their options. We follow up with material help and mentoring by trained volunteers in 21 educational programs. Last year moms and dads who desired to become great parents attended more than 2,000 parenting and education classes. Some of them break generations of poor parenting and lead their young families in entirely new, healthy directions. Glory to God!
All these life-changing services are free because people like you support pro-life efforts like the baby bottle campaign your church is participating in now.
To fight the abortion industry head-on in the marketplace, we have begun buying online advertising. Our ads are reaching more abortion-minded clients than ever, and still over 87% who see their babies by ultrasound choose life. We thank God for this success and are expanding our medical staff so more babies can be saved.
The Supreme Court could very soon rule on Roe v. Wade. This ruling could give the states back their authority to regulate abortion. Right now there are already states that can abort a child up to 9 months. The fight to save these babies’ lives and give their mothers and fathers hope will only increase.
Pregnancy centers are being targeted and vandalized ever since the supreme court draft leak. We need the support of Christian communities and churches as we continue the work that God has called us to. Saving lives. Women could potentially run from state to state to access abortion but also order the abortion pill online putting them in even more danger than ever before. We must be ready to help these women and we ask you to help us be ready!
Please pick up a baby bottle today and fill it with coins, bills or checks. Use it to start pro-life discussions with your children, too. Then return your bottles to church on your collection day. You can also give online at carenetnky.org.
As more clients come, we also need more volunteer advocates and mentors. In each bottle is a card you can return to let us know if you’d like to volunteer. If you own a business and want to stand for life by sponsoring an event, please let us know!
On behalf of Care Net’s board, staff and volunteers, and especially on behalf of those we serve, thank you for participating in this Baby Bottle Campaign. We are deeply grateful for your support. Thank you, and God bless you!
Not too long ago I turned 33. WHOO HOO! I spent my time reflecting, breathing and being alone with my family in my favorite place, Gatlinburg Tennessee. Today I found this draft that I started a year ago but it never was finished. But sometimes it’s just not the right time. Today I finished it and I want to share it with you.
Loving All Of Me
The night has ended and as I go about my routine getting ready for bed and doing last minute chores the silence of the night has got me thinking. In the middle of a conversation with the Lord while hanging up my clothes, in my thoughts a truth has surfaced that I never really realized until that night. I have only been on this self love journey for two weeks now but man is the Lord doing a great work in me. Sometimes the discovery of these truth inside of me bring joy and more acceptance of who I really am and other times they reveal confusing sad realities.
When I was younger I struggled with anxiety and depression because of the constant abuse. Sometimes the way I would get through those episodes I would say “I am Beautiful.” I thought if I believed I was beautiful I could love myself even though no one else did. I learned at an earlier age that words were powerful. This was my way of attempting to instill something better in myself than I was getting from those in my household. But sometimes words are just words. Without the right heart they float out empty and void. Blowing to the wind and never giving life nor darkness. For how I can believe I am beautiful but not love myself? How is it that a women can undeniable believe that she is beautiful, inside and out, but hate herself at the same time?
I stop for a second. Not sure I even know this answer as I am writing it but trusting that the Holy Spirit will give me the wisdom to my sad reality. The answers points back to the why that explains the how. Why do we believe that beauty brings self acceptance and love? Because the world tells us it does from the moment we are young. How many of us dive for the new make up trends, the new way to dress, the new way to act or carry ourselves to make us believe “I love me.”. Oh yes girl I believe it! Look at how much I love me! How many of us buy the clothes that gives pieces of our bodies away in an attempt to outwardly say I am proud of my body so I am going to show it. If you got, flaunt it!
When we have done all we can to convince ourselves that we are beautiful and those things become to us what self love is, it’s just another way of hiding the fact that both inwardly and outwardly when we truly look at ourselves we do not love what we see.
Let’s stop trying to love ourselves and start doing it. Ready set break it. Break the lies, break the masks, break through the mold that you have created and let yourself stand before God, naked and true. All that you are. And He will come by and see you there, cover you with cloth, feed you with truth and then one day, you will be able to stand and to be clothed in splendor. I’m ready for that, are you?
And when I passed by you and saw you struggling in your own blood, I said to you, ‘Live!” Yes, I said to you in your blood, “Live!” I made you thrive like a plant in the field; and you grew, matured and became very beautiful. Your breast were formed and bare. When I passed by you again and looked upon you, indeed your time was the time of love, so I spread my wings over you and covered your nakedness. Yes I swore an oath to you and entered into a covenant with you and you became Mine says The Lord God. Then I washed you in water, yes, I thoroughly washed off your blood and I anointed you with oil. I clothed you in embroidered cloth and gave you sandals of badger skin. I clothed you in fine linen and covered you in silk. I adorned you with ornaments, put bracelets on your wrists, and a chain on your neck. And I put a jewel in your nose, earrings in your ears and a beautiful crown on your head. Thus you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was of fine linen, silk, and embordered cloth. You ate pastry of fine flour, honey and oil. You were exceedingly beautiful and succeeded to royalty.
Ezekiel 16:6-13
Our self love journey starts with self acceptance not self worship. When we really face all that we are He will be there to build is back up again. From the inside out. This is my current reality. Something I am now facing but not sure when I will be able to truly say “I love me.” This is my season. To accept all of me so one day I can become the best in me.
“Read the words, pray and allow God to pour himself into all the vessels you’ve laid out before him.”
-Lisa Bevere “Lioness Arising”
This year I started new journeys with so much uncertainty. I can imagine what the widow thought when Elijah told her to go and collect all the jars she could get from her neighbors. She must have thought to herself “Doesn’t make sense but okay.” That’s how I felt when I set off to create my You Tube channel and began making changes to my photography business . I did not understand the whys and I was only told to do with no further instruction.
Throughout the process, revelations came with each obedient act. And in me the purpose of God began expand and create in ways I never knew was on the inside of me. And now the Lord has been calling me to pour my time into these vessels so He may provide for me in powerful ways.
But I miss My Father’s Symphony every moment I am away from it. But I am learning to let God fill the vessels He wants to fill and not hinder the spirit. I have a work to complete and only the Holy Spirit can help me do that. Only He knows the vessels that need to be poured into greatly in this season, so that I can receive all that He has for me.
I just want you to know that when I am away it is because of the Lord leading me away. But I will always come back when He leads me back. I will be sharing more often my videos here so you can come on the journey with me. And in everything may I inspire you to follow God with your full heart wherever He leads you. Rather that be in the form of a video or a written post, that is always my aim.
I am hoping to take some time to rest before the new year is here, sitting before the Lord and allowing Him to fill me up. So that everything I do is for His glory and His praise. May God bless you in this holiday season and I pray that the new year brings you closer to Him with everything you do.
I am excited to share my first ever ministry video forLivingWoman+ The Real On Womanhood. It took a lot of courage to study these coming subjects and challenge modern Christian doctrine in order to bring us back to original will of God for womanhood. I hope it inspires you to seek the truth in your own walk with the Lord and as always never take my word for it! Get out your Bible, be led by the Holy Spirit and do your research! May God bless you!
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