Change. Some people thrive on it. They live for adventure. They get bored when things stay the same. Others just about lose their lunch from the motion sickness caused by even the tiniest of changes. I’m definitely more of the latter. If I’m all comfortable, then really, must we upset things?
My mom is always moving her furniture around. I never know from one visit to the next where things are going to be in her house. I remember going home during college and being frustrated as I tried to discover which drawer now held her silverware. Me? Once my furniture is in place, I’m pretty good – like forever.
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He wants to go play with those best-ever-friends, again. It’s only been a day. “Can we please go play with them again, Mom? Please?”
And I heard myself saying something about ‘too much of a good thing’ and ‘not wearing out our welcome’ and maybe even something like ‘we’ll get tired of each other if we hang out too often’.
Seriously?
I should have retraced my steps, balancing out my words with just a bit of optimism, but I didn’t. The negative words hung in the air — suspended for a moment in time — then evaporated as the kids ran off to find something else to do.
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I walked in with an attitude every day. Every. Single. Day. I hated the class. None of my friends were in it. Not one person from my circle of comrades. The class next door had Kim and Cassie. Why wasn’t I placed in there? 
I dreaded my 11th grade first period class so much I drug my feet each morning, often being tardy to school. My grandmother would always write me an excuse saying I wasn’t feeling well. She’d follow it up with, “Well, you weren’t feeling well when you realized you were going to be late for school, were you?”
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“Be joyful always.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16
It was early in the morning, right after I woke up, and I heard my kids laughing down the hall.
I tip-toed toward their rooms, wondering what was so funny.
Halfway there, I stopped.
(I didn’t want to interrupt because I didn’t want their laughter to end.)
A smile spread across my face as I stood there, hiding, listening. I lingered, soaking in the moment.
Hearing my kids laugh made me laugh.
I was filled with joy at their joy.
(I found out later they were laughing at their pet fish.)
But I’m the first to admit, my attitude isn’t always like that… filled with joy from being a mom.
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Rev and I are celebrating our 40th Wedding Anniversary today. It’s hard for me to believe. I can still relive the moment we met, our first date, our first kiss, and each and every milestone since.
We have a few do’s and don’ts that we’ve used over the years. We believe they have been helpful in not only having a marriage that lasts, but one that is happy and fun, too.
Our Top Ten Marriage Tips:
1. Laugh – We both love to laugh and we love to make each other laugh. Humor has gotten us through many of life’s difficult moments.
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You are altogether beautiful, my darling;
there is no flaw in you. (Song of Songs 4:7 NIV)
I was recently part of an online discussion on MODsquad regarding this Scripture verse. It was a discussion, I might add, that had me pondering Scripture all day long, as well as the days following.
What do you think when you read this verse? I wonder if it’s anything like my first reaction was.
“You are altogether beautiful, my darling…”
As I read this first line, I felt comforted to hear God’s sincere opinion of me.
“There is no flaw in you.”
Instantly the comfort was gone as I thought, “yeah, right.”
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It’s thrilling to get a love letter . . . to know that someone took the time to write down words of love just for you.
I was privileged to speak at a Women’s Retreat earlier this month where we focused on the gift of God’s love. We let His words of grace and mercy wash over us.
One of my favorite stories from the weekend was shared by Pastor Adrian Rogers on his radio broadcast, Love Worth Finding. This is my rendition since I wasn’t able to write it word for word while driving:
One day while her car was getting worked on at the dealership, Ann needed to borrow her husband’s new car to run some errands.
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Pages flipped behind me as I tried to listen to the preacher.
Flip. Flip. Flip.
It was rhythmic. My concentration paused as I waited for it to stop. A second of silence and then –
flip, flip, flip.
I glanced at the middle schoolers behind me willing them to give it a rest.
Bibles have the loudest pages, I thought and began to wonder about how the people at Tyndale and Zondervan dipped the edges of the pages in gold and silver. Who even published my Bible? I turned to the front pages to find out. Tyndale and Zondervan. I never knew two publishers worked together to publish something.
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