I wrote on the Actor's facebook page that I was very proud of him for his heavy lifting.
Remember the grades that were abysmally low about 5 weeks ago? He brought everything up to A's and B's by the time the report cards came out.
I'd say that was some major elevation.
Certainly worthy of an 'attaboy!'...and more than a few 'Hallelujah!'s ;)
Monday, October 26, 2009
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Taking my own medicine...
Ok, last week I posted the devo for the girls' ministry sleepover...which emphasized having a good attitude and not complaining.
Set myself up, I did.
Had a situation arise during the week that gave me lots and lots of opportunity to grumble and complain and generally not be my most gracious self. And I fear I succumbed to a little grumbling and complaining...carefully worded, of course, but grumbling and complaining just the same.
Even though I repeated 'Do all things without complaining or arguing' to myself till I was blue in the face.
The Princess even asked me, 'So, are you trying to make up for it by quoting the verse?'
No...just owning up to the struggle. The flesh was pitching a fit, and the spirit had to fight. And took a couple of punches.
But the task was finished,I repented of the grumbles in the process, and we move on.
Keep pressin' towards the goal of doing ALL things without complaining or arguing...not there yet, but headed in that direction.
Set myself up, I did.
Had a situation arise during the week that gave me lots and lots of opportunity to grumble and complain and generally not be my most gracious self. And I fear I succumbed to a little grumbling and complaining...carefully worded, of course, but grumbling and complaining just the same.
Even though I repeated 'Do all things without complaining or arguing' to myself till I was blue in the face.
The Princess even asked me, 'So, are you trying to make up for it by quoting the verse?'
No...just owning up to the struggle. The flesh was pitching a fit, and the spirit had to fight. And took a couple of punches.
But the task was finished,I repented of the grumbles in the process, and we move on.
Keep pressin' towards the goal of doing ALL things without complaining or arguing...not there yet, but headed in that direction.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Fall Break
Seems kinda silly to take my regularly scheduled blogging break when I've been blogging just a couple of times a week, but since the break includes all internet activity except email and weather checking (and necessary purchases) I'm gonna stick to the plan. Lord knows I need the time to catch stuff up.
I'll be back next week!
I'll be back next week!
Friday, October 16, 2009
Shine Like Stars
Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi.
Tonight is the annual MPact Sleepover. The theme, sent from the national office, is 'Shine Like Stars'. So, we planned a sleepover themed around stars, galaxies, the vastness of space, the awesomeness of God...then got the planning packet, which focuses on American Idol. 'Disappointed' is a huge understatement. We ditched the recommended materials, and are sticking with our theme. I've got the devotional and decided to share it here...because I don't *think* any of our girls will check here! ;) Of course, I had something entirely different planned in my head, but when I looked up the theme verse for the event, Phil. 2:15, I found the devotional going in another direction entirely...
Where are the stars in the daytime? Do they clock out and go home when the sun comes up?
No, the stars are still where they always are. We can’t see them because the light of the sun is brighter than the stars.
Are the stars upset about that?
If you were a star, would you be upset because the sun was brighter than you?
You shouldn’t be…because the sun is *supposed* to be brighter than the stars.
What makes it possible for us to see the stars?
We only see the stars when the sky is dark; we see them in contrast to the sky around them.
In Philippians chapter 2, the apostle Paul compares Christians living in a world that doesn’t honor God to stars in the night sky…showing for miles and miles and miles because of the contrast.
But, in order to see what makes Christians shine like stars, we have to look at the whole paragraph.
‘Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life’ - Phil 2:14 – 16a
What is the first instruction Paul gives us? (do everything w/o complaining or arguing).
How many of you have complained about something you had to do today? Maybe it was getting out of bed on time! Did you complain about doing your chores, or an assignment a teacher gave you in class? Did you argue with you mom about whether or not you should do something she asked…maybe even saying you didn’t have time to do it because you had to get ready for tonight?
Or maybe there are circumstances that make you unhappy…maybe you didn’t get the teacher you wanted for one of your classes at school, or maybe you don’t have a cell phone yet and all your friends do…do you complain about those things?
But look at what Paul says about complaining and arguing…it’s when you do the things you must do withOUT complaining or arguing that you will be blameless and pure, shining like stars.
In our children’s ministry, kids are taught that they should do what they’re asked to do ‘Right away, all the way, in a cheerful way’…that would be immediately and completely, with a good attitude.
Think about kids you know. How many of them ‘do everything without arguing or complaining?’ Do you think someone who did everything without complaining or arguing about it would stand out in the crowd? Maybe…shine like a star?
And you know why it’s important to shine like a star? Look at the last part of that passage…”As you hold out the word of life”
If you are shining like a star in a dark sky, the message you hold out will be noticed. People will hear the good news about Jesus.
And sharing the good news about Jesus is what we are here for.
So…if we want people to listen to that message, how should we react when someone asks us to do something, or we find ourselves in circumstances that don’t please us?
Do everything without complaining or arguing…so that you may shine like stars.
Tonight is the annual MPact Sleepover. The theme, sent from the national office, is 'Shine Like Stars'. So, we planned a sleepover themed around stars, galaxies, the vastness of space, the awesomeness of God...then got the planning packet, which focuses on American Idol. 'Disappointed' is a huge understatement. We ditched the recommended materials, and are sticking with our theme. I've got the devotional and decided to share it here...because I don't *think* any of our girls will check here! ;) Of course, I had something entirely different planned in my head, but when I looked up the theme verse for the event, Phil. 2:15, I found the devotional going in another direction entirely...
Where are the stars in the daytime? Do they clock out and go home when the sun comes up?
No, the stars are still where they always are. We can’t see them because the light of the sun is brighter than the stars.
Are the stars upset about that?
If you were a star, would you be upset because the sun was brighter than you?
You shouldn’t be…because the sun is *supposed* to be brighter than the stars.
What makes it possible for us to see the stars?
We only see the stars when the sky is dark; we see them in contrast to the sky around them.
In Philippians chapter 2, the apostle Paul compares Christians living in a world that doesn’t honor God to stars in the night sky…showing for miles and miles and miles because of the contrast.
But, in order to see what makes Christians shine like stars, we have to look at the whole paragraph.
‘Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life’ - Phil 2:14 – 16a
What is the first instruction Paul gives us? (do everything w/o complaining or arguing).
How many of you have complained about something you had to do today? Maybe it was getting out of bed on time! Did you complain about doing your chores, or an assignment a teacher gave you in class? Did you argue with you mom about whether or not you should do something she asked…maybe even saying you didn’t have time to do it because you had to get ready for tonight?
Or maybe there are circumstances that make you unhappy…maybe you didn’t get the teacher you wanted for one of your classes at school, or maybe you don’t have a cell phone yet and all your friends do…do you complain about those things?
But look at what Paul says about complaining and arguing…it’s when you do the things you must do withOUT complaining or arguing that you will be blameless and pure, shining like stars.
In our children’s ministry, kids are taught that they should do what they’re asked to do ‘Right away, all the way, in a cheerful way’…that would be immediately and completely, with a good attitude.
Think about kids you know. How many of them ‘do everything without arguing or complaining?’ Do you think someone who did everything without complaining or arguing about it would stand out in the crowd? Maybe…shine like a star?
And you know why it’s important to shine like a star? Look at the last part of that passage…”As you hold out the word of life”
If you are shining like a star in a dark sky, the message you hold out will be noticed. People will hear the good news about Jesus.
And sharing the good news about Jesus is what we are here for.
So…if we want people to listen to that message, how should we react when someone asks us to do something, or we find ourselves in circumstances that don’t please us?
Do everything without complaining or arguing…so that you may shine like stars.
Friday, October 9, 2009
The Big 'J'
Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi
(yeah, I'm blogging at midnight...crazy...please forgive the inevitable lack of proper editing. Gotta grab the opportunities when they come.)
Jealousy is an ugly, ugly thing. I really believed for a long time that I didn't...wouldn't...indulge in jealousy.
However, the time has come to be honest.
I'm way jealous. Of way too many folks.
I think I have been all along, and just didn't own up to it.
I could go into Big Ugly Details, but there really isn't much point in that. And, actually, there hasn't been any crisis or confrontation to provoke the revelation. In other words, if I kept my mouth shut, no one would know. But that 'ehn' feeling in my gut is keeping me from being real. It's keeping me behind my self-inflicted walls. I'm finally recognizing the 'ehn' feeling as jealousy.
Ok, doctor, we have a diagnosis. What is the treatment?
How can I get past this thing? Get RID of this thing? It's the heart of Cain's problem, you know. I sure don't want to go there.
The thing about a sin like jealousy is that it's not something you just don't *do*. Stealing is an action that has a particular point of temptation. Resist that point, and you won't go home with something that's not yours. Jealousy is always there, always whispering sinister accusations. Ready when I wake up at 2 AM with a scenario from the past...could be from the previous day, or it could be from years ago...to keep the notion that I'm lacking something someone else has, and has easily, alive. Jealousy keeps...me...from walking in love.
That sin is crouching at the door...constantly.
My decisions, such as they are, don't result in actions. Something has gone wrong deep within me and gets the better of me every time....I've tried everything and nothing helps. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn't that the real question?
The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different. (Romans 7:23 - 25, The Message)
Thank God for His endless reservoirs of grace. That's the only way to get past jealousy and live on the other side...
(yeah, I'm blogging at midnight...crazy...please forgive the inevitable lack of proper editing. Gotta grab the opportunities when they come.)
Jealousy is an ugly, ugly thing. I really believed for a long time that I didn't...wouldn't...indulge in jealousy.
However, the time has come to be honest.
I'm way jealous. Of way too many folks.
I think I have been all along, and just didn't own up to it.
I could go into Big Ugly Details, but there really isn't much point in that. And, actually, there hasn't been any crisis or confrontation to provoke the revelation. In other words, if I kept my mouth shut, no one would know. But that 'ehn' feeling in my gut is keeping me from being real. It's keeping me behind my self-inflicted walls. I'm finally recognizing the 'ehn' feeling as jealousy.
Ok, doctor, we have a diagnosis. What is the treatment?
How can I get past this thing? Get RID of this thing? It's the heart of Cain's problem, you know. I sure don't want to go there.
The thing about a sin like jealousy is that it's not something you just don't *do*. Stealing is an action that has a particular point of temptation. Resist that point, and you won't go home with something that's not yours. Jealousy is always there, always whispering sinister accusations. Ready when I wake up at 2 AM with a scenario from the past...could be from the previous day, or it could be from years ago...to keep the notion that I'm lacking something someone else has, and has easily, alive. Jealousy keeps...me...from walking in love.
That sin is crouching at the door...constantly.
My decisions, such as they are, don't result in actions. Something has gone wrong deep within me and gets the better of me every time....I've tried everything and nothing helps. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn't that the real question?
The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different. (Romans 7:23 - 25, The Message)
Thank God for His endless reservoirs of grace. That's the only way to get past jealousy and live on the other side...
Monday, October 5, 2009
Textin' the Ten Commandments (A Smile for your Monday)
Our children's pastor posted this on her facebook page...she said it came from mikeysfunnies.com, but I couldn't find it to give specific credit. I thought it was really cute and just *had* to share it!
Anyway, if God had used text messaging to send the 10 commandments, it might've looked like this...
1. no1 b4 me. srsly.
2. dnt wrshp pix/idols
3. no omg’s
4. no wrk on w/end (sat 4 now; sun l8r)
5. pos ok – ur m&d r cool
6. dnt kill ppl
7. :-X only w/ m8
8. dnt steal
9. dnt lie re: bf
10. dnt ogle ur bf’s m8. or ox. or dnkey. myob.
ttyl, JHWH.
ps. wwjd?
Anyway, if God had used text messaging to send the 10 commandments, it might've looked like this...
1. no1 b4 me. srsly.
2. dnt wrshp pix/idols
3. no omg’s
4. no wrk on w/end (sat 4 now; sun l8r)
5. pos ok – ur m&d r cool
6. dnt kill ppl
7. :-X only w/ m8
8. dnt steal
9. dnt lie re: bf
10. dnt ogle ur bf’s m8. or ox. or dnkey. myob.
ttyl, JHWH.
ps. wwjd?
Friday, October 2, 2009
...She Ain't What She Used to Be...
It's a shock, isn't it? I thought I knew what to expect...hot flashes, emotional moments, weight gain, gray hair. Mammograms and bone marrow scans.
But there's a lot more to it than that, I'm learning.
Started off with the routine blood work. Granted, I hadn't had all the numbers run for about three years, but I didn't expect any shocks.
Got one; my cholesterol, they said, was two points into the red zone. They wanted to put me on statin drugs.
Hold on, I said. The last time my cholesterol was checked the doctor commented on how excellent my numbers were. Can I do some diet-and-exercise first?
Sure, the nurse said. But we want to recheck in six weeks. (It doesn't help that our family doctor moved and his replacement doesn't...as of last notice...take our insurance yet. So we're between doctors at the moment).
So I watched...really watched what I ate. We walked five or six times a week. Consumed oatmeal and omega-3 seafood.
I didn't expect a dramatic change, but I figured I'd knock it down a couple of points so I wasn't in the 'high risk' zone anymore. Besides, I remembered eating bacon sandwiches the night before the first test.
So, two days into a church fast (I was doing juice, water, and protein shakes!) I went back for the next blood test.
The shock was three days later when they called to inform me that both my LDL and total cholesterol numbers had gone up!
I was flabbergasted. Doing everything right...and it still went up.
On a whim, I googled 'correlation between menopause and high cholesterol'.
Boom. First page. Found out that there is a definite change in blood chemistry that results in elevated cholesterol and high blood pressure.
And was reminded again that heart disease is the leading cause of death in women over the age of 50.
Humble Pie time. I've heard that forever, it seems, but it didn't really register. I thought that was because women just kind of lost the motivation to maintain good eating/exercise habits as they got older...and I considered coronary problems as just part of growing older; things wearing out. Now, I see myself having to deal with the 'old people' problems of high cholesterol and such, even though I've tried at least some to keep moving and eat reasonably.
So I'm taking the medicine, even though I don't like all the side effects it warns me to be concerned about (how on earth do I know the difference between medicine induced 'muscle pain' and the run-of-the-mill-I'm-50-for-crying-out-loud 'muscle pain'?), because...what other options are there? If diet and exercise did less than nothing to control it, what's left?
At least there's a silver lining...between avoiding foods that aggravate acid reflux AND are fatty, I've lost five pounds. ;)
But there's a lot more to it than that, I'm learning.
Started off with the routine blood work. Granted, I hadn't had all the numbers run for about three years, but I didn't expect any shocks.
Got one; my cholesterol, they said, was two points into the red zone. They wanted to put me on statin drugs.
Hold on, I said. The last time my cholesterol was checked the doctor commented on how excellent my numbers were. Can I do some diet-and-exercise first?
Sure, the nurse said. But we want to recheck in six weeks. (It doesn't help that our family doctor moved and his replacement doesn't...as of last notice...take our insurance yet. So we're between doctors at the moment).
So I watched...really watched what I ate. We walked five or six times a week. Consumed oatmeal and omega-3 seafood.
I didn't expect a dramatic change, but I figured I'd knock it down a couple of points so I wasn't in the 'high risk' zone anymore. Besides, I remembered eating bacon sandwiches the night before the first test.
So, two days into a church fast (I was doing juice, water, and protein shakes!) I went back for the next blood test.
The shock was three days later when they called to inform me that both my LDL and total cholesterol numbers had gone up!
I was flabbergasted. Doing everything right...and it still went up.
On a whim, I googled 'correlation between menopause and high cholesterol'.
Boom. First page. Found out that there is a definite change in blood chemistry that results in elevated cholesterol and high blood pressure.
And was reminded again that heart disease is the leading cause of death in women over the age of 50.
Humble Pie time. I've heard that forever, it seems, but it didn't really register. I thought that was because women just kind of lost the motivation to maintain good eating/exercise habits as they got older...and I considered coronary problems as just part of growing older; things wearing out. Now, I see myself having to deal with the 'old people' problems of high cholesterol and such, even though I've tried at least some to keep moving and eat reasonably.
So I'm taking the medicine, even though I don't like all the side effects it warns me to be concerned about (how on earth do I know the difference between medicine induced 'muscle pain' and the run-of-the-mill-I'm-50-for-crying-out-loud 'muscle pain'?), because...what other options are there? If diet and exercise did less than nothing to control it, what's left?
At least there's a silver lining...between avoiding foods that aggravate acid reflux AND are fatty, I've lost five pounds. ;)
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