In the meantime

Whether they're big or small, we all have expectations:     We expect the mail to come every day of the work-week.      We expect our children to obey us.     We expect our fridges to be filled with food and our houses to be warm during the cold winter months.     We expect others to treat us with respect.      We expect exercise and healthy eating habits to help us keep our weight down.      We expect those around us to be there for us when we need them.      We expect life to be filled with joy and happiness.  And when our expectations aren't met, then what?   Sometimes the sting, disappointment, and pain of unmet expectations go deep, way deeper than we ever thought they would. We realize how much importance we were putting on the fulfillment of those particular expectations to bring us joy in life.  We also discover (whether we want to or not) t...

Awhile back, I mentioned using Journibles.   Have I mentioned how much I like them?!? I've recently finished my Galatians-2 Thessalonians  Journible. This is the first time that I've used a Journible for more than a few days and haven't gotten side-tracked. The more I journible , the more I love it and appreciate the simplicity of the concept of copying down Scripture.  I don't know about you, but no matter how many times I've been instructed in the steps of Bible study--Observe, Interpret, Apply--it is still a complicated and confusing process, and one that quickly overwhelms me. Maybe I'm dense, maybe it is my personality, or maybe it is just my learning style. Whatever it is, I need help in simplifying these steps in my mind, and I think Journibles  have helped to do just that Here's why I love the concept behind  J ournible-ing :  1. It slows me down  Because the idea is to copy down every single word of the passage, I not only ...

The Swans are not Silent  is a series of biographies by John Piper, written with the purpose of reminding us of faithful heroes of the faith who have gone before us so that we might learn from them.  Each book is a compilation of three biographical sketches; each book also has a specific theme that is highlighted throughout the individual biographies.  As Piper shares in the Preface to Contending for Our All, "I am deeply thankful to God that the swans are not silent, and that the list of faith-inspiring heroes in Hebrews 11 did not end with the New Testament. God has worked through the lives of countless saints of whom we should say, 'Though they died, they still speak' (cf. Hebrews 11:4)." (page 9) I recently read three books from this series: The Legacy of Sovereign Joy,   Contending for Our All, and Filling Up the Afflictions of Christ (books one, four, and five, respectively.) The undeniably devotional-like quality of these books was an incredib...

Happy Birthday! Thank you for teaching me more about politics. Thank you for teaching me about finances and frugal living.  Thank you for joining me in conversations about analyzing obituaries.  Thank you for wading through all those inheritance borders in the book of Joshua during our evening Bible reading. Thank you for going to work each day without complaining.  Thank you for loving our Little Girl.  Thank you for how your enthusiasm in reading is slowly rubbing off on me.  Thank you for being a shoulder to cry on.  Thank you for never even questioning whether or not we should go to church on Sunday. Thank you for loving the Body of Christ and for being committed to the local church.  Thank you for loving God and helping me learn to love Him more.  Thank you for being my incredibly quirky and goofy husband.  Thank you for encouraging me to keep studying God's Word.  Thank you for not beating around the bus...

Without warning, the painful memories flooded my mind. I thought this was all taken care of. Haven’t I already taken this to the Lord and laid it at His feet? Why does it have to hurt like it just happened yesterday?  As I lay in bed, my throat constricted and tears welled up in my eyes as my mind re-lived the hurt of days past. As the painful thoughts swirled around in my mind, other thoughts struggled to remind me of truth: Yes, I believe I have genuinely forgiven. But it still hurts...oh so much.  But Christ has called me to forgive. My pain is justified: I was wronged.  Christ has called me to forgive as He has forgiven. Lord, what does that even mean--“Forgive as Christ has forgiven me?” I may have forgiven in the past, but I need to forgive…again. But does that mean I just “let go” of the pain? I need to forgive again…and again…and again. I have to obey.  Forgiveness: It is so hard to do. Oh so incredibly hard. We’ve all struggled with it in ...

Unify : "to make things into one: to bring people or things together to form a single unit or entity". (1) Is that not exactly what Christ has done to every single individual who has placed their trust in Him? Think about it: if it weren't for the bond of Christ that we have a believers, would we naturally hang out with that person sitting across the aisle from us in church?  Probably not. Chances are that a lot of us would not naturally interact with many of the people we call brothers and sisters in Christ because outside of Christ, we wouldn't have much in common. We have different interests, lifestyles, backgrounds, careers, and so on. However, because we are in Christ, we have the most important thing about us in common!   It doesn't matter if I am a stay-at-home mom and you are the CEO of the company you built from the ground up: if we are both sinners washed in His blood, standing righteous before Him, that  is the most important fact...

I am surprising myself with how much I've been enjoying reading lately! (I'm blaming Mark Twain and his hilarious account of one particular boy's adventures that all started with whitewashing a fence for my renewed interest in reading. If I hadn't picked up that book earlier this summer, my life would continue to be as unaffected by books as it used to be! Haha!) Anyway...just finished the popular parenting book,  Shepherding a Child's Heart , by Tedd Tripp. I remember hearing my parents mention this book way back when I was a child, but I obviously never had an interest in reading it until now! This book is an outstanding resource for all parents who desire to "train up a child in the way he should go"!  Following are some quotes that stood out to me:  "...the heart attitudes direct behavior. This is always true. All behavior is linked to attitudes of the heart. Therefore, discipline must address attitudes of the heart. This understand...