Month: February 2017

Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. Psalm 51:2

When the boys rinse out their dishes in the sink, they tend to forget to finish the job, which is rinsing out the sink. A few hours after their breakfast I was met with a dried, hard to scrub, mess in the sink. The job that could’ve been done in seconds took minutes to deal with. Partly doing a task is not really doing the task at all. They’re still young and maturity will help teach the importance of being thorough in jobs. As they get older, they won’t be so rushed to move on to the next thing.

The opposite of my boys is my dad. When he has a job to do, he wants to make sure he works at it to the best of his ability. Whatever he’s doing is done the right way…my dad’s way. He’s systematic and very detail oriented. He taught me to measure twice and cut once. When building his deck he made every whole exactly so far from the one before it and made sure to countersink his screws. It looked beautiful and it still looks like new because of the thoroughness of the job and how he still takes care of it.

The character trait for today is Thoroughness-knowing what factors will diminish the effectiveness of my work or words, if neglected (definition from characterfirst.com).

Another project that my dad worked on was with concrete. Concrete is the perfect example for showing the importance of thoroughness. The ingredients are pretty simple with a bag of concrete mix and water, but the effectiveness of the concrete will be compromised if you neglect to thoroughly mix the right amount of water. When there isn’t enough water, the particles won’t stick together. When there’s too much water, you’ll have soupy concrete which makes for easier pouring, but will weaken the concrete and it will be more likely to crack. Then, a bigger problem will show up later that will take longer and require much more work and money than to have done it right the first time.

I was looking at our word for today and noticed something…thoroughness. When we don’t complete tasks with thoroughness, life becomes rough for ourselves or for someone else somewhere down the line. We’re left without having the satisfaction of a job well done. Would we want God to treat His tasks the way we do ours? What would it mean if God washed away only part of our sin? That’s too scary to contemplate, so we definitely want Him to do a thorough job and wash away ALL our sin!

I challenge you to slow down and focus on your tasks today. Be thorough so you don’t deal with the roughness ahead!

 

Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart. Proverbs 21:2

My pup has a new hobby. It’s something he’s just picked up in the last month and enjoys spending lots of time doing. He doesn’t realize that it won’t be nearly as fun in another month or two. Who knows, maybe he thinks he’s an ornithologist in the midst of some amazing scientific discovery because he’s now a birdwatcher.

We’ve been enjoying the birds that have been visiting us on a daily basis. Our birdfeeder went up last month and will be down again before we know it because of bears in the area. In the meantime, there are so many beautiful cardinals, blue jays, woodpeckers, and chickadees that have been enjoying the buffet provided free of charge. We noticed the other day that a hawk was getting ideas on a meal too, but it wasn’t necessarily from the birdseed.

The dog sits in front of the window at full attention taking it all in. Apparently, he only studies birds because the plump little squirrel that decided to get a snack didn’t impress him too much. This got him a wee bit excited causing him to try to get a closer look while leaving all kinds of nose smudges on the window.

I thought my windows were pretty clear and clean until we finally got some of that elusive sunshine. Wow! The true picture showed then. The bottom half was covered in doggie nose prints! You could barely see out it at all.

The lack of transparency with my window makes me think of today’s word. The character trait for today is Sincerity-eagerly doing what is right with transparent motives (definition from characterfirst.com).

We all want to believe that everyone’s words and actions are full of sincerity, but we sometimes know that just isn’t the case. Let’s take my boys for example. I want to believe they’re going to eagerly clean out their pockets for me to wash their clothes just because that’s the right thing to do, but get real! After cleaning out more dirty tissues and rocks than I could count, I knew something I was doing had to change since they weren’t changing. Those apologies after hearing me yelp lacked way too much sincerity.

The pocket police needed to take action…by the way, that’s me. A light bulb came on after finding allowance left in one of the pockets. Hmm, they must not have wanted that money we were dishing out. Alrighty then! It was mine again. Whoa, did that get their attention, and I had something to work with now. The creativity was coming out! I told them that every morning they had to put a dollar into their pocket. If I find it there when I go to do laundry, it’s mine. Needless to say, pockets have been emptied every night since. It’s amazing how they just couldn’t remember until their money was at stake!

How about you? Are you showing sincerity in your words and actions? Are there smudges on your “windows” that make your motives less than clear?

Let’s practice sincerity in all we do and remember that “eagerly” is also part of the definition!

 

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 1 John 4:1

Lately, my sniffer has been working overtime. I’ve been so sensitive to all kinds of smells! It just might drive my hubby a little nuts. I’m often asking him, “Do you smell that?” Those words seem to float around in the air as his sigh is heard the whole way across the house. Granted, I do live with three males (make it four when you count the dog), so the odor that tends to permeate the very air that I breathe can be rather strong. You’d think that I would’ve lost all sense of smell simply for self-preservation, but my nose is working better than ever.

The “Do you smell that?” question tends to be right up there with “Do you hear that?” Usually, when that’s asked, the response is another one of those sighs followed by, “If you can barely hear it, how can I when I’m sleeping.” At which time he proceeds to get up to figure out my mystery noise. Hey, sensitivity!

Here’s another one! I’m snuggling so close that the hubby feels a bit claustrophobic and “acts” like he doesn’t have any room in the bed. I’m just trying to help him by keeping him cool with my feet. I know he sleeps better when he isn’t hot, and just maybe I’m trying to warm up too. See, I’m sensitive with touch too. I prefer his warmth to my cold.

Maybe I’m a little sensitive to taste also. I’m great with spicy…besides my nose running, but don’t even try to give me those nasty, sour candies. Who would eat those anyway? Ok, my family, but WHY?

I also really need my sunglasses on those bright days because my eyes get all squinty when the sun is shining. Prescription sunglasses just might be one of the best inventions!

The character trait for today is Sensitivity-using my senses to perceive the true attitudes and emotions of others (definition from characterfirst.com).

Those five basic senses we’re usually born with, and thank the Lord for that. However, when we use the definition we see today for sensitivity, that sense needs developed. We develop it through discernment. That’s basically the ability to understand something that isn’t completely obvious. It’s seeing the truth!

We need God’s help to have spiritual discernment, so we ask Him. Let’s not stop there though, and work on maturing in discernment. We need to understand how to develop it, and I found a great example I wanted to share with you:

“When a bank hires an employee, he is trained to recognize counterfeit bills. One would think that the best way to recognize a counterfeit would be to study various counterfeits. The problem is that new counterfeits are being created every day. The best way to recognize a counterfeit bill is to have an intimate knowledge of the real thing. Having studied authentic bills, bank cashiers are not fooled when a counterfeit comes along. A knowledge of the true helps them identify the false.”  -gotquestions.org

There ya have it! Start praying for it and get into His Word. Get knowledge of the real thing! I challenge you to start your sensitivity training today.

Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs. Proverbs 10:12

Today is Valentine’s Day! I day when I think back to a sixteen-year-old girl in high school getting a valentine from a special guy asking her out. That was the beginning of my love story.

After being together for more than twenty years, I feel more love and respect for my husband than I did when we were first married. He loves, protects, and guides. He’s kind, hard working, complimentary, helpful, understanding, loyal, and tender. He doesn’t shy away during rough times and listens for the Lord. He’s an outstanding father and husband. I see strength when I see my hubby; someone I look up to.

Ok, I’m not usually that sappy. The boys would be totally rolling their eyes right now, even though I’m positive they secretly like me talking about their dad in that way. They don’t know that I have a few love letters for them to find someday just to gross them out about how beautiful their mom was in their dad’s eyes!

Was it always flowers and sunshine? Absolutely not! Was it worth it? For sure, but there were some things we needed to learn in order to have the hearts and rainbows. The biggest thing…self-control. I don’t know how many times we’d put other people’s feelings and thoughts before one another’s. We’d have a bad day and be short tempered with the one that we should be showing the most respect to. We’d see faults instead of focusing on the great things the other did. Sometimes, it was much easier being nice with strangers! How wrong was that? We had to get passed that with self-control.

The character trait for today is Self-Control-rejecting wrong desires and doing what is right (definition from characterfirst.com).

We had to learn to control our tongue, but not only that, our thoughts! We needed to start seeing the amazing attributes of each other. Self-control isn’t just stopping you from doing something wrong, it can actually allow us to reject negative feelings and thoughts. Then, replace them with positive ones. It’s amazing what nurturing words come out when the good is already rolling around on the inside.

Use that self-control to make great things happen in your relationships! I was challenged to keep a gratitude journal and I’m challenging you. Every day come up with at least three things you are grateful for. Look specifically at what people do and jot down those nice things. You start seeing people in a whole new way. Critical thoughts start leaving because instead of seeing wrong actions and words, you see the good. You’ll be surprised how fast you can fill up whole pages!

Reject being critical and stirring up conflict, but instead show love (a verb…an action word…a choice) through self-control.

 

For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; Psalm 91:11

I remember the day it was time for me to leave the hospital after having my oldest. My hubby was coming to pick us up that morning, and I was excited, but nervous, to get home. I got back into regular clothes, ate breakfast, got the baby ready, made out thank you cards, and waited. Then, I waited some more. Where could he have gone? The past few days he wanted to spend every minute with us.

It all became clear when he got to the hospital. I believe he was to pick up something for the nurses, but ended up buying for his new son. He was shopping! He pulled out a teddy bear…how cute. Next, came a fishing pole. “A what?” you might ask. Yes, a fishing pole, and I can’t even remember what else…for a brand new baby.

It was finally time to get the show on the road once we got all those gifts figured out. It only took a few minutes to break the news to him that it might be a couple years yet before the fishing pole gets used.

Our new little peanut was put into his brand new car seat with its five-point harness that was to keep him safe. It had to be approved by someone at the hospital, and then the hard part came. We had to try to remember how to put it back on the base. We wanted to make sure it was very secure to protect our precious cargo!

The character trait for today is Security-structuring my life around that which cannot be destroyed or taken away (definition from characterfirst.com).

In this life, we can’t guarantee that nothing bad will ever happen to us. We do whatever we can to keep our children safe and secure, but we’d worry ourselves sick if we thought about everything that we don’t have control of. There is only one way for true security, and that’s to find it in God. We simply do what we can, then allow him to command His angels to guard and protect us and our families.

The one guaranteed security in this life is God the Father, Jesus our Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit who lives inside us. Three in One…our great God can’t be destroyed or taken away! Rely on the true Security we all have been blessed with.

Desire without knowledge is not good– how much more will hasty feet miss the way! Proverbs 19:2

When we go places on vacation, it’s our responsibility to know the rules and laws of the area we’re visiting. One that’s an ongoing question has to do with traffic laws. When we’re travelling through different states, I’m always asking if it’s legal to make a right on red, pass on the right, or make a U-turn.

And oh, I can’t forget the tolls. I guess if they’re covered with a flap, that’s normal, and doesn’t mean they’re out of order. The toll that was less than $1.00 turned out to be over $20.00 because yes, it was still working! If I was to do the wrong thing, ignorance wouldn’t keep me from getting a ticket. These are things I must find out before driving in that state. It’s my responsibility.

The character trait for today is Responsibility-knowing and doing what is expected of me (definition from characterfirst.com).

Travelling with a dog requires much responsibility. Thoughtfulness and manners will get you far, but we still must find out the rules. Dogs aren’t permitted in certain national parks, and it’s our job to research ahead of time. They aren’t permitted on certain beaches or hotels either.

If a hotel is kind enough to allow pets, it’s my responsibility to make sure they’re pleased with my dog’s behavior so the privilege can continue for others. I always have dog bags on me to clean up after him, but it’s good to ask where they prefer the dog do its business at. Plus, it’s my responsibility to know what my dog is doing at all times. If we’re renting a house, it’s important to know if the animal is allowed on furniture. My rule is “no” at all places to protect the furniture, but if it wasn’t, I’d need to find out.

I remember one time when the oldest got a little metal detector and couldn’t wait to use it on the beach. He’d just pulled it out when someone was kind enough to let us know they weren’t allowed on the beach there. We were completely ignorant about metal detecting, but again, it was our responsibility to look into.

Beaches have all kinds of rules that we’re learning. I look them up before going, but I’m always surprised when we don’t know a few. We find out about what kind of drink containers are allowed, if we’re able to build fires on the beach (that comes with a whole set of rules on its own), how many shells we’re allowed to collect, or if we’re allowed lights on the beach due to turtles. If there are horses or turtles, how close are we permitted?

Even after finding out all the rules for the beach where we went last time, we didn’t realize that there’s rules on picking up fossils. Thank God for a good guide! The new knowledge is worth it because we grow and don’t get into trouble!

The important thing is to never stop asking questions and always get educated. There are things we’ve done wrong because we didn’t know, and we try not to beat ourselves up over them if it never crossed our minds that there might be a rule for it in order to find out. We also know, that we need to take responsibility for doing wrong. Most importantly, we learn from it. Then, we know one more thing to be aware of.

I challenge you to expand your knowledge and be a responsible person when doing something new. Be aware that laws and rules aren’t the same everywhere, and do your best to learn them.

The best way to be responsible is with the Bible. It’s amazing how many things we’re told in there that will keep us from getting into trouble. It not only tells us what not to do, but what to do.

First, know what God expects from you in all areas. This includes your words, your thoughts, and your actions. Second, act according to those expectations. Remember that you might be able to give a reason for wrongdoing, but not an excuse.

 

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5

We went through a phase where perfectly good bananas weren’t being eaten in my house except by me. I wasn’t eating them as fast as they were turning brown. It used to be that I couldn’t keep enough of them in my house, but all of a sudden it was as if the boys were on a banana strike! I’d remind them they were there, they’d thank me, and still not eat any. After they were too brown to eat, I made banana bread. The boys sure had that gone quicker than I could blink!

I was determined to get bananas again because they’re healthy and could be used as a snack, on cereal, on a peanut butter sandwich, or even in a smoothie. Again, the week passed and the boys weren’t touching the bananas. They were starting to get brown again! I was getting pretty irritated by this time because I don’t believe in wasting food. It was time for a little chat with the boys. I told them how the bananas were getting bad again, and how we couldn’t do that. If they weren’t going to eat them, I wasn’t going to buy as many. I reminded them how I had to get resourceful and make the last ones into banana bread. They looked at me and said, “Exactly.”

The character trait for today is Resourcefulness-making wise use of what others might overlook or discard (definition from characterfirst.com).

Tony Robbins said, “It’s not resources but resourcefulness that ultimately makes the difference.”

You know what? We need to get back to having eyes of children, seeing how they see. If we have a cardboard box, we see something that needs disposed of. If a child sees a cardboard box, they see a racecar, a playhouse, a train, a rocket ship, or any number of things. It’s time to get a new perspective and look at what we really do have. Then, we simply need to figure out how to use what we already have to reach our goals and change our world.

Here’s an example. When the boys were little they wanted to sleep out in a tent and we didn’t have an air mattress. Now, some of you would say, “Sleep on the ground.” That wasn’t my thoughts though. We needed an air mattress, but that wasn’t exactly in the budget. If we didn’t have the money (the resources), we couldn’t fix the dilemma, right? Well, we did have a few extra dollars and it was summertime, so we could find some cheap water rafts to do the trick! Do you know how many times I’ve also made a bed out of pillows to sleep on the floor? Be content always! We don’t necessarily need more resources, just more resourcefulness.

Take Theodore Roosevelt’s advice when he said, “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” I challenge you to have the imagination of a child today, but with the maturity of an adult. There’s no telling what you’ll accomplish through that kind of resourcefulness!

When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” John 6:12

I don’t like to see waste in my home. Teaching the boys how to be good to our environment is a step in the right direction. When they outgrow clothes or toys, they can donate them and pass them on. If they’re done using something, can it be utilized for a different purpose? I also believe in not buying items that we’re not going to touch after a couple of weeks, since they’ll end up in a landfill.

We never have as much waste as when we’re on vacation. It drives me nuts! We always end up with lots of water bottles when we’re away; at least we can recycle those. We end up with leftover food still unopened in the box, although we can take those to a food cupboard. Let’s not forget all the oyster shells too. I just found out there’s even a place for those to be reused! Hmm…I guess most of the waste can be recycled if only we find out where and how. It might take a few extra minutes of our time, but it’s worth it.

The boys are learning about being good stewards of the earth, but they’re also learning about being good stewards of the gifts God has given them. Everything we “own” really belonged to God. All the toys, money, and even our bodies are really His. Yes, that means our talents and how we spend our time too. So even though we could recycle quite a bit of our wastes, there is one thing that can’t be recycled. lTaiichi Ohno said, “One thing you can’t recycle is wasted time.”

We can’t recycle our wasted time. How true! What’s worse is knowing that we belong to God, so essentially we’re wasting His time. We’re spending His time watching someone else live their life on television or reading about a fictional character live their life in a book. There isn’t anything wrong with relaxing and entertainment, but when we’re not seeing our potential…scary…a waste of all those talents, gifts, and dreams God put in us.

How do we feel if someone is late and keeps us waiting? It seems like they perceive their time as being more important than ours. That can really irritate us!

The character trait for today is Punctuality-showing esteem for others by doing the right thing at the right time (definition from characterfirst.com).

Now, think about how much time was wasted when you had to wait for someone. Was it the length of commercials in a television show? I bet you thought about all the things you could’ve been doing instead of waiting. The next time that you’re in front of the television, review all the things you thought about doing while waiting for that person who was late.  Who’s wasting your time?

Do you happen to be the one who makes people wait? Are you stealing their time? Jesus said to let nothing be wasted. Let that include your time and other people’s time. Punctuality shows politeness and respect. It’s a quality of a leader. Be a leader today!

Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. Romans 4:20-21

I used to volunteer at a barn with horses where therapeutic riding was one of the main activities. Once some of the horses were out in their pastures, they were quite content and didn’t want to be brought back in. There was one particular pony that took all kinds of persuading to get her to return after being left out by mistake. You could say she had a bit of a mental roadblock that we needed to work around.

She fit in perfectly with many of those being helped there. There were some with physical disabilities, but even more that had been through some very difficult situations, leading to behavioral and/or emotional problems.

When a new rider arrived, we could feel the distrust, fear, low self-esteem, and insecurity. Sometimes it showed itself in anger, loudness, timidity, or being in complete shut-down mode. It was the horses’ jobs to break through those negative emotions, letting the rider know how strong and capable they were. We could’ve never told them in words; they needed to see the vital truth by leading those horses themselves. It was a beautiful thing to watch those horses teaching to trust again. They taught the children how to act in order to get the right reactions.

The character trait for today is Persuasiveness-guiding vital truths around another’s mental roadblocks (definition from characterfirst.com).

Something that each one of us struggles with is mental roadblocks. Maybe we’ve been told we weren’t good enough, we weren’t attractive enough, or we weren’t smart enough. Do we have any negative thoughts from how we were raised that are stopping us from moving forward?

There are so many untruths that could be stuck in our brains preventing us from knowing the greatness that’s inside us. We need a horse in our lives! Our horse is faith. There are an unbelievable amount of promises God has given us that are vital truths which could change our way of thinking.

I challenge you to Google “God’s promises in the Bible” to help you realize the untruths that have become your roadblock, while replacing them with good, awesome, and life changing vital truths He provides. Let Him persuade you to right beliefs and thinking today!

But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. Romans 8:25

“I have patience, I have patience, I have patience.” This is what I should’ve been repeating when it came time for me to make supper. I’m not terrible at it. I’m not great either, and I’ve been known to do some things that may have created a little smoke. It’s a little terrifying when the smoke detector goes off and nobody moves. The dog is even immune to it!

Why is it that there’s no passion in me to cook? I know people who’d do anything to get in a kitchen! I even know someone that just wanted to get in the kitchen and cook dinner on her roughest day when her husband offered to take her out to eat. What? That’s not normal…for me.

I know God made us all different and that’s what makes each one of us special, but my family still needs to eat! Couldn’t I have been born with at least more of a tolerance for it? I had an amazing person in my life that taught me quite a bit about cooking. She was so patient and kind teaching me how to make some delicious food. The thing is, my family usually likes what I cook, but I’d rather be doing something else!

Too often I can be heard grumbling and moaning, and all too often burning myself. Doesn’t this tell you it’s dangerous for my physical well being? Well, God hasn’t found it necessary to provide me with a chef YET, so I guess I’ll just have to find the positive in it and pray for my safety. I’ll start practicing my patience in the kitchen because like they say, “Use it before you lose it!”

The character trait for today is Patience-accepting a difficult situation without giving a deadline to remove it (definition from characterfirst.com).

What area in your life do you need to practice patience? I challenge you to give it to God and wait for His timing. I suggest you practice saying, “I have patience, I have patience, I have patience.” You might actually get patience! I hear that it’s like a muscle, it doesn’t get stronger unless you use it.

Set a goal that will keep your patience in check. My pup picks up on every little bit of energy that comes from me. As soon as my voice raises even the slightest bit, he’s taking off for his crate. My goal is to not have the pup run into his crate because my lack of patience 5 out of 7 days a week. He’s sensitive, but I’m succeeding! He hasn’t very often felt the need to get out of Dodge. The couple times he started heading that way, I had to immediately get my patience back. That goofy pup knows and will turn right around! If you don’t want to run out and buy a sensitive pup to keep you on track, find something that works so you can measure your progress. You can do it!