Our neighbors on both sides of our home have trampolines in their backyards. This proves to be a great attraction to many of the kids in our cul-de-sac including my daughter. I don’t mind her jumping, but there is only one problem. One neighbor has a net around her trampoline and the other does not. So the rule is, you can jump on the one with the net, but not on the other. After all, I have to do as much as I can to keep her safe, right?
Recently I walked out the front door to see a little pink bow bouncing up and down above the fence in the neighbor’s yard – the yard that has a trampoline without a net.
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Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
How do you feel when you read those verses? I usually feel a little guilty. It’s hard to be joyful and thankful in the midst of worry and anxiety. Unless you are living alone in a cave, there are usually plenty of things to be worried and anxious about.
Maybe that it why right between joy and thanksgiving, the Lord reminds us to never stop praying!
I moderate the prayer requests for Prayer Ministries Int.
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I’ve been thinking recently about my impact and about how I do or don’t touch those around me. I want to be more aware of the needs around me. I want God to use me to help those He puts in my path. Sometimes I am deterred by the thought that I don’t have anything to offer.
I am not rich. I can’t give much money. I don’t have a lot of creative talents. I don’t sew or cook well. I’m not a very good party planner. As a busy, homeschooling mom, I don’t even have a lot of time.
And I wonder: What can I give to those needy people around me?
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For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” II Timothy 1:7
When I think about some of the women who have made the largest impact on my life, I find that these women quite often had a gentleness about them. A gentleness that I desperately would want to emulate. I can’t say the number of times that I would try to do just that, only to have my own personality rise to the surface again and again…and again.
I finally realized that I needed to embrace the ME that God created me to be.
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Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ” Matthew 4:4 NIV
I confess. I’ve never read through the entire Bible. Of course, for years when January finally arrives I commit to read through the Bible, but midway through February, I fizzle out.
I’m sure no one can relate!
Well, this time it’s different. I’ve been working through The Message Bible//Remix for a while now. It’s a daily Bible reading program that can be accomplished in a year or longer. I’m going for the longer plan.
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I visited IKEA for the first time on Saturday. If you are fortunate enough to live near one of these colossal stores, you’ll know what I’m talking about today. If you don’t have an IKEA close by, or if you (like I was) are unaware of the magnificence, let me explain. IKEA is a HUGE home organization, home decor, and furniture sales place. Our IKEA covers two enormous stories and houses hundreds of showrooms, a restaurant, a kids play place, a furniture warehouse, and a Swedish bistro. (IKEA is Swedish in origin.)
As we wandered the store (everything is arranged in a semi-circular manner so you can’t walk the aisle; you have to circle around and see everything), I began to lust.
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Studies show that children lose the equivalent of 2 months education over summer break when they put aside the cheap textbooks. Educators use this to make the argument for year-round school or summer homework assignments.
Now that the boys have been back in school for a week or three, I’m seeing that they aren’t the only ones who’ve suffered from the “summer slide.”
I had great intentions of doing a Bible study of my own during the summer. I chose a topic, got a chain reference Bible to help me out, I even blogged about my plan. But with the boys home all day and various summertime activities going on, it didn’t happen.
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A couple of weeks ago, my husband and I enjoyed a media free night–a night without television, telephone, smart phone, computer, etc. We sat outside on our patio with a fire in the fire pit, relaxing and talking for hours. At one point after dark, I looked up at the sky and commented on our cloudless cover and the host of twinkling stars above.
Have you ever wondered how many stars there are in the heavens? I did a Google search and the first paragraph of an article titled, Number of Stars, at ChristianAnswers.net read as follows:
On a clear, moonless night about 3,000 stars are visible with the unaided eye.
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