There’s a saying about the little things in life. It’s the little things, so the saying goes that can end up being the big things. This can be true in relationships, careers, and attitudes. A teensy mouse can terrify a huge elephant, and so the story goes, one young man with the proper vision took down a giant who had defied armies. The unnoticed dripping faucet by day rings out like a maddening racket in the quietness of night, when one longs for quiet and sleep. It’s the little things we are thankful for, we rejoice in and the little things heaped upon us that can undo us in one moment.
Category Archives: Dawn P
Salty or Salt-Free?
“Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? Luke 14:34
Most health conscious adults today acknowledge that excessive salt in the diet is not optimal for good health. As a matter of fact too much salt in the diet increases health related risks and in the extreme can be associated with life threatening conditions. Some health conditions require minimal salt intake with the aim of a “salt-free” diet.
How completely contrary to the Christian’s call to be Salty. As far as your spiritual life goes, you can consider saltiness to be an excellent measure of your effectiveness in the Kingdom.
A Post Valentine’s Day Look at Love
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us… 1 John 3:16
I had finally poured myself into the welcoming comfort of my bed and was drifting off to sleep, satisfied after a long and tiring day of chores, to do’s and errands when he finally arrived.
He crouches low, to my level, seeing if I am awake. He’s got his hands behind his back and that gleam in his eyes I know well, and adore. I peek back at him with heavy lids, grateful he is home as we are being pelted by one in a series of snowstorms this winter season.
Imperfect Prayers to a Perfect God
For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. Hebrews 10:14
How often have we felt our prayers inadequate? How many times have we held back our heart’s cry in a group for fear of being misunderstood? What is our response to the scriptures that remind us repeatedly to pray always?
I remember my earliest exposure to prayer. It was formal, stiff, ethereal. In a word impersonal.
I never witnessed nor experienced prayer in my formative years in a personal and up close way. Prayer was for the pious, and quite honestly, I didn’t know any truly pious people.
Christ in YOU!
Jesus replied, “With all the earnestness I possess I tell you this: Unless you are born again, you can never get into the Kingdom of God.”
-From The Gospel of John Chapter 3
The birth of Jesus is the focus of Christmas to we who believe. At least in theory. But, the beauty of Christmas is that this tiny mysterious bundle of wisdom swaddled in hay, laying in manger one Holy Night has birthed an undeniable kingdom as prophesied from the beginning.
The beauty of Christmas is not in this one freeze frame, iconic, Christmas card image but in the powerful truth behind the picture.
Quietude as Worship
“O LORD, my heart is not lifted up;
my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things
too great and too marvelous for me.” ~ Psalm 131:1
Here we are, approaching fast the end of another year. The days that spread out from September through December are like scattered stones thrown out numerous, until the crisp air beckons scarves for our necks, and the falling leaves remind us that another year is almost past. The pace of our routines and return to order, after Summer, make way for new beginnings and sometimes endings. Between the school, sports and activities schedules we find ourselves carried through noisy, boisterous, busy days, and these too are gifts.
Praying and Living with JOY!
“Because prayer happens while we are immersed in the particulars of life, there is no single formula to follow.” Winn Collier
I sat with journal open, seeking to pray but finding that the words were not forthcoming. Praying with my pen has always helped me focus my prayers, clarifying my thoughts and words. But on this morning, I could only sit, quietly staring out the window at the Red Maples in all of their splendor. My thoughts were focused, and on God’s beauty- the wonder of it all. I felt swept up to a heavenly seat, with my Father by my side, but I had no words.
The Me I Long To Be (Ironing Not Required)
I have a confession I would like to share with you today. I have a hard time with the domestic side of life my life. OK, I’ll just say it. I really Stink, with a capital S at the whole domestic side of life. I am convinced my mother has a gene that just did not get passed down to me. It’s the one that rejoices in ironing. I am not joking. The woman finds ironing therapeutic. Meanwhile my husband knows that asking me to iron would require us both to be in therapy. OK, that is a bit dramatic but you get the point.