Real Life is Better Than Fiction

Listening If you don't know me very well, you may not know I'm in opinionated person. I like things done a certain way… My way. The only good thing I can say about it is that I realize it's a problem and I'm training myself to listen more. Other people can have good ideas too. In realizing my listening issues I sometimes have to force myself to listen to other people's ideas… All the way through… Without commenting… And then take those views and thoughts into consideration. Believe it or not, I've even had the audacity to tell God how I think certain things should be done. He didn't answer the prayers (demands?) the way I told Him He should. I can't imagine why. Later on, after the fact, I see how I should have been seeking His will and not mine. He always wants what is best. I can see that in His answers to my requests (again, demands?). I have a tendency to spew out of the mouth for my brain has a chance to process. The words that end up coming ou...

I am proud to be a part of a new devotional coming soon. Each devotion is written by a different author, but they all have a common theme: Perseverance.   https://devotableapp.com/ perseverance/ I wanted to introduce you to some of the other authors that contributed to the book. This devotional is all about persevering through life and the difficulties that come up on a daily basis. My first guest is Lauren Sparks. Lauren Sparks is a wife and mom to two daughters – one with special needs – and one bonus son.  She lives, worships Jesus, and teaches yoga in the Dallas, Texas area. She shares her adventures, victories and flub-ups from her laptop at laurensparks.net .    "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."  James 1:2-4 My daughter Shelby is curren...

Mend This is another one of my favorite words this year. My friend, Maureen, who suggested it, also gave some definition ides, and I plan on hitting every single one of them. I grew up around a sewing machine. My mom had a home based sewing business where she created Civil War clothes, from soldier's uniforms to beautiful ball gowns. I helped her whenever I could. My parents in clothes my mom made. My brother and me in CW clothes of our own. My mom's talent never ceased to amaze me. She would sew clothes for us girls. She would fix the holes my brother would get in his clothes. Her talents at mending could make things seem almost new, or, one of the things she taught me well was to give a worn out item a brand new purpose. One year while making costumes for a Christmas play at our church, she took an old, holey tablecloth and made it into a perfect head covering for Mary. To say the least, I know a bit about mending with a needle and thread. There a...

Love Ahhhh…. Love. This is the week we all have love (or lack of love) on our hearts and minds. First Corinthians 13 is known as the love chapter. If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where...

Joyful What do you think of when you hear the world "joyful"? The giggling of children? A smiling face? A happy surprise? These things can all bring joy, but I have found that being joyful is a choice, a state of mind. When my father passed away a couple years ago, I posted this on my Facebook page: Today I choose to rejoice, in spite of my sadness. I rejoice in the fact that my father is no longer sick or suffering. I rejoice in the fact that I was born to parents who loved me enough to show me The Way, The Truth, and The Life. I rejoice in the fact that my parents are together again after many years of being apart. I rejoice in the fact that I will see them both again someday. I rejoice that when I do see them, they will both be whole and healthy. I know "rejoice" shows up a lot there, but you'll also notice the word "choose." That's part of being joyful in difficult times. We can be sad and still be joyful. We can be dis...