fbpx
Changed By Love

Changed By Love

Following the Lamb wherever he goes… Revelation 14:4

Welcome to This Journey of Love

1980076_10203650397324356_1522164528_o

  • Welcome to my world!

    I hope you’ll stay.

    Since Father’s love changed me

    I have something to say.

  • The One who loves me,

    See, He also loves you

    The things He’s done for me

    He will do for you, too.

  • So come with me

    As I follow the Lamb

    Wherever He goes.

    My life’s in His hand.

  • I trust Him and follow Him

    No matter the cost.

    Without His great love for me

    I would be lost.

  • The words that you find here

    I hope will breathe life.

    In each day and moment

    You’ll find His delight.

  • For surely His love for you

    Is greater than you know.

    Come with me now

    To His presence we’ll go.

    P.M.D.

    • Changed By Love and Still Changing

    York, Pennsylvania 2011

    SONY DSC

    Katy, Texas 2012

    Mary Jo Peckham Park

    1488144_10202879788299612_1190907287_n

    Katy, TX 2013 Mary Jo Peckham Park

    DSC01581[1]

    dsc01681

    Katy, TX Honey Farm, 2014

    DSC02549

    Katy, TX Honey Farm, 2015

    Katy, TX – MKT Railroad Park Caboose and Depot, 2017

    Katy, TX – Heritage Park, 2020

    Hi, I’m Penney Douglas. I have been married to my precious husband for 32 years. We have been exceedingly and abundantly blessed with 10 children. They all belong to me and my husband. And to think that I was afraid I would never get married! I got a late start (married at 25 and first child at 27), but I guess late bloomers can blossom profusely once they get started.

    I blog for several reasons. I like to keep a record of what we’re doing in our homeschooling and share ideas for other homeschoolers or moms who like to work and play with their kids. I try to encourage families to keep Christ first in their homes so they can be all that they were made to be. I want to help others to draw closer to God. I hope to glorify God and give Him praise for all that He does for us.

    I am constantly learning, changing and growing. Sometimes I feel like a beginner even though I’ve been a Christian since I was 4 years old and I’ve been homeschooling for about 24 years. And I’ve been living for __ years (long enough!).

    But the Lord has been faithful to keep me and my family on an upward climb drawing nearer to Him in spite of our weaknesses and mistakes.

    He has led us on a crooked path across the United States and back and then some. (From Ohio to Kansas City to Arizona to Colorado, back to Kansas City to Illinois to Pennsylvania and now to Texas!) We are still looking for that place to call home. We hope to find it before the oldest chicks are ready to fly from the nest! But our desire is that they land somewhere near us even when that time comes.

    We are believing God for miracles of provision. We have already seen many. We suffered the loss of our home 13 years ago. Now we live in a different state, and my husband is making more money than ever before. But the money is beside the point. What God did in each of our hearts, convincing us of His reality and His love for us, is worth more than all of the houses or money in the world. But now He has enabled us to help others in need, and we are grateful for the opportunity to bless others.

    Our children are truly gifts from God. They learn from us and teach us so much. I would never have known even a fraction of how much God loves me if I had never had the opportunity to be a mother to my precious children. They are teaching me even more as they grow in wisdom and understanding and we share together what the Lord is teaching us.

    Family was God’s idea. Marriage was His idea. God has good ideas. His ideas work.

    He wants our families to be training grounds for children (and adults) to learn His ways and right ways of relating to God and to people. We learn how to die to ourselves when others are dependent on us, and when we have to learn to get along with the people around us in order to experience peace and harmony. The rough edges are rubbed off as we care enough to be honest with each other and humble ourselves to receive correction even from those younger than ourselves.

    God created us because He wanted a family. That’s more than a trite saying. He created us in His image so that He could have sons and daughters that would look like Him, act like Him and love Him. He wanted to be a father.

    He created you so He could love you. Receive His love for you. Let Him be your Daddy.

    Don’t Do School at Home!

    Starting Out Doing School at Home

    As a homeschooler, I have changed many things along the way. I started out doing things the way I saw them being done at school. I had been a first grade teacher in public school. The only way I knew to teach was the way they did in school. I had a book for phonics. I thought I should make my son do a page each day. I had a math book (which he hated). I had flash cards (which he hated). I tried to make him do the Pledge of Allegiance and sit at the table with me and work in his workbooks (all of which he hated!).

    My Son Hated School at Home!

    We both got tired of the struggle and contention, so I knew I needed to do something different. After a few years of struggling to make him conform to my way of doing school, I started to learn about the Charlotte Mason homeschool method. I read a book called “For the Children’s Sake” by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay, which I highly recommend to every homeschooler, and I got a new vision for how to homeschool. I started to realize that the main thing I needed to do was to read good living books to my children. I found good booklists of living books and started checking those out of the library. I read them aloud to my children and had them narrate them. I found ways to get good art and music into our home. I started using copywork. All of these are main elements to the Charlotte Mason approach.

    I began to let my children learn more from real life. I didn’t try to get them to sit down with workbooks every day. I read aloud to them more than anything else. They narrated the stories and committed many details to memory. We did lots of nature study. We studied our Bible. We studied topics together in unit studies.

    One Way You Can Move Away from School at Home

    I recommend that you lighten the burden for your child and for yourself as the mom. Consider following a routine instead of a schedule. If you try to follow a time schedule, you’re sure to meet obstacles that will keep you from starting at the exact time you planned. You will deal with life happening and kids’ attitudes, tiredness, unexpected events, your own tiredness, and different paces that you all move at. These things can cause frustration for everyone. Consider using a framework and routines instead of a minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour schedule.

    You have freedom at home to be more relaxed and not rigid. You can follow your own rhythms and preferences. If your family tends to be night owls, you can sleep in later. If you have one child that is a night owl and one that is an early bird, you can allow them to do what works best for each of them. The hours of “school” time do not have to be within the “regular” school hours. Some families start at 8 or 9 AM, while others may not start until 10 or 11 Some may not have a regular starting time.

    I will be writing more in the future about how to move away from doing school at home. Stay tuned for more.

    If you have any questions about how to get started, please leave a comment and I will be happy to answer your questions.

    I have graduated 6 children from homeschooling, and I’m still homeschooling 4 of my children. I have advised many beginning homeschoolers over the last 24 years. I would love to help anyone who is starting out and needs some advice and encouragement!

    Free Ebook! My Latest Book is Free on Amazon until Aug. 17

    https://amzn.to/313fkT6

    This is the second book I’ve written.

    In this book for women who want to live the best life they can – body, soul, and spirit – we see the importance of taking care of the whole person. We learn the fullness of what it means when Jesus says our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. We find life and health in the Word of God. In this day when people are so concerned about improving their health and fitness, we can lose sight of how important our spiritual health is. And we can actually train our soul!
    If you are longing for a closer walk with the Lord, and you are not sure where to start, this is the book for you. Knowing that you are God’s house on Earth gives you a whole new understanding of what this life is all about. You are here to house His Spirit and to carry out His will. You are important in the Kingdom. You are necessary. Your life and your whole being are uniquely fashioned by God.

    Get it now for free!

    And the companion journal is available on Amazon for $7.00 so you can journal your thoughts and feelings about the content and also journal about whatever God is speaking to you on the extra journal pages that are provided.

    https://amzn.to/2CBom0s

    My Life as an Author

    I never thought I would be an author. I didn’t consider myself a very good writer. My kids are wonderful writers. But I didn’t think I had the gift. Our family has such an unusual story that I was constantly being told, “You need to write a book!” I kept thinking I could get one of my kids to write it or we could write it together as a family. But that has not happened yet. So I started thinking maybe I could just write a condensed version of the story just to get it out there. I have a few friends, especially my friend Christine Hornback, who kept encouraging me to write a book and publish it on Amazon.

    So I finally got up my nerve to try. I started working on Chapter titles. Then I wrote a little bit for each chapter a little at a time. Then I wrote more to flesh out each chapter. I had about half of the story written when Christine had a Facebook challenge to teach people how to publish a book on Amazon. I joined the challenge and saw how easy it is to publish a book that way. So I got busy finishing my book and now it’s published on Amazon.

    I’m so excited to present it here!

    I hope you will get the ebook or the paperback and leave a review.

    https://amzn.to/33Sza5s
    Happy Reading!!!

    Summer Health Reset Challenge

    Is the quarantine/shutdown making it impossible for you to do your normal health routines? Are you having trouble staying motivated to keep exercising since you can’t go to the gym? Do you feel like you need an attitude adjustment and a boost to your spiritual life? This challenge will help you with all of those needs. This will be an accountability group for women. We will commit to exercise every day for 7 days, eat healthy, drink enough water, get enough rest, and feed ourselves spiritually. If this sounds like just what the doctor ordered, then consider yourself invited to join this challenge. There will be bonuses and prizes for participation. Join us as we reset our health!

    https://mailchi.mp/3384dc6e0618/summer-reset-challenge-2

    Re-open America

    America MUST get back to work. Time is a luxury we do not have.

    “The greatest tragedy left in the aftermath of this crisis may prove to be the the death of the American small business. MSNBC is projecting that 7.5 million small businesses are at risk of closing, right now. Market Watch reports that 43% of small businesses say they will be forced to close in the aftermath of this crisis. A full 90% of the American workforce are employed by the small businesses! These are companies with less than 25 employees, most often just 4 employees, that make up the local economy of your community.”

    Sign the petition, and let President Trump know that you agree with him that America needs to get back to work.

    https://patriotbusinessalliance.com/