A Mid-Week Question to Consider~November 30

Can any of us, by worrying, add a single hour to our life?

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The Soil of His Grace

Quote by Os Hillman

Monday Words for the Soul~Determination

Other Words for the Soul

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A Word from the Sponsor~November 27

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Saturday Digest~November 26

~There are a good many things in life that I simply can’t believe my way out of.
Faith is believing that God is good even when my life is anything but.

~The more present I become and clearer I get with what I love…
It’s hilarious how often we’re led to believe we should do something just because ten other people believe it’s a desirable goal. ~Belle Pirri in this encouraging post in Creative Spiritual Women

~I know this—the labyrinth of life has the ability to lock us up and throw away the key. It attempts this through varying degrees of heartache, dependency, tragedy and an endless array of distractions. I also know this—Christ is the key to topple this house of cards and expose the illusions this maze presents. by Michael Cartwright in The Inner Doors of Faith

…Anyone who remains in the teaching of Christ has a relationship with both the Father and the Son. 2 John 9

~~~Revolving back to Enoikeo…Remaining…Abiding…Standing

Video of the Week: Stand, by Rascal Flatts

The Day After Thanksgiving

I hope Thanksgiving gave you big bear-hugs and  pleasant memories.

And if there are a few bitter memories, my wish is that you will toss them out along with the turkey carcass.

And I wonder, this Day After,  What if  we embrace gratefulness beyond tokens of thanksgiving, dutiful gratitude journals, and a few hastily written thank you notes?

What if we Remain Thankful?

What if gratitude became as natural as speaking?

Gratitude is a language you speak with your hands, the way you form the vowels and spaces of your life and we could all learn it together. ~Ann Voskamp

How to I begin to speak the language of gratitude?

For me, perhaps it is by allowing myself to Remain. By easing up pace just a bit so I can mindfully notice the miracles, and loiter, and dwell in them. And then sharing those miracles in community.

The key to a thankful heart is focusing more on what God HAS DONE for you rather than on what you need. ~Rick Warren.

I want to Remain Thankful and continue the process of Thanksgiving so the language of gratitude becomes my default setting.

Write items you are grateful for on tags or leaves, then add to tree.

This Weekend: Easy Weekend Activity: Let God Clean

God is determined to continue to clean, polish, and shape me until I reflect the brilliance of His image.

Psalms 41:4; Jeremiah 14:7; Ezekiel 16:1-6; Daniel 9:4-19; Micah 7:9; Matthew 9:10-13;Luke 18:9-14; Romans 5:6-8; 1 Timothy 1:15-16; James 4:7-10

Other Weekend Activities

the True Thanksgiving…

A Mid-Week Question to Consider~November 23

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A Thanksgiving Prayer

From the book Every Thought Captive by Jerusha Clark, page 64

When there is Grief during the holidays

“Hurry is the death of loving others,” writes Rick Warren

May I gently suggest that hurry is also the death of loving yourself, especially if you are grieving during this holiday.

Please go slowly through this holiday week. Consider recognizing your vulnerabilities. And please accept them. Vulnerabilities are not always permanent. Like a favorite teams’ winning season, they may only last for a short time.

Grieving may take many forms. Like steroid-fueled linebackers in a dog pile on the quarterback, you and I may be grieving over many people, places, and things. What begins as missing someone can dog-pile into mourning a loss of a job, an opportunity, a dream, a hope, or an identity. Best to take it slowly. The enticements of Distraction and Busy-ness perhaps are best avoided. Choosing them in the past may be a reason this time feels so intense.

Some of the grieving we do is not for people but for the masks we wear, the coping strategies we adopted that did not work. ~Emily Freeman

This may be the year that you choose to relax or reassert. To ramp up or idle. To be vague or cautious in what you accept and allow. To dwell in the protection of His grace.

Perhaps shorter visits are less vulnerable or arranging for short breaks. Perhaps groups or partners or being alone is nurturing. Or comfort yourself by recreating traditions, recipes, and activities. It does not have to be perfect this year.

Is this the year to set a goal to do something brand new? The focus on what is new can be a welcome vacation from the pain. My head hosts neighborhoods where I do not need to cruise in very long. Certainly new things do not have to be elaborate or excessive. Just listen to the whispers of your soul.

For too long, we’ve stood in the background, attending to the needs of others and claiming we have no needs of our own. We’ve shut off, for too long, the part of us that longs to be nurtured. It is time now to claim those needs, to identify them, and to understand that we deserve to have them met. Melody Beattie, The Language of Letting Go  

Perhaps this is the year to nurture yourself and allow yourself to be nurtured by others, especially if you have been the caregiver of another. Let people be there for you. Because of Grace, God, alone is perfect. You and I do not have to be. “It” does not have to be perfect either.

Monday Words for the Soul~Acceptance

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Other Words for the Soul

A Word From The Sponsor~November 20

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She knew that many were the plans in her heart but that God’s purpose would Prevail. ~Proverbs 19:21

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Saturday Digest~November 19

Seems as though a theme has emerged this week~~

From Bonnie Gray~~~God may be calling you to say “Yes” to:

• a new relationship
• a new job
• an in-between time
• seek out an opportunity
• walk through a valley
• make small or big changes
• a new way of being
• a new season of life…

… I have learned to listen and follow a softer, quieter voice: God’s.

His voice is always gentle, encouraging, eternity’s-worth-of-chances, loving, kind, strengthening, seeing the best in me, delighted with me.

Source

~Saying “Yes” to Walking in the Way of Love
The Holy Spirit presses us toward the realm of grace, where we are transformed into seeing opportunities to love where others see wasteful sacrifice. Instead of the odor of waste, we learn to breathe deeply within God’s bouquet of grace…

~~And…during your second cup of cider (really, cider is best for today), consider building trust muscles.

The whole concept of “Yes, and…” boils down to one word: trust. ~Brian Kessler

Video(s) of the Week: Trading My Sorrows, Say YES, Lord!

and, be sure to listen for the bass solo toward this end of this video:

The Most Efficient To Do List

From Things Wtih Wings

Thanksgiving Day of Prayer

Another Mid-Week Question to Consider~November 16

What if your fear itself is just a point of view?

What if you walked around to the other side of it and imagined what someone with more hope than you currently have might see? Or someone who isn’t religious or spiritual. Or who totally is. Someone who’s been through the fire and lived to tell the tale. Someone who’s been around the block of your particular fear and found a way to another route?

What would they say? What stories could they tell about you?

(No, really. Coming up with an actual answer to this can knock your socks right off.) Click here to receive the rest of this message from Kristen Noelle.

Bible Verses When Fearful

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A Mid-Week Question to Consider~November 16

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Having a Rough Morning?

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Monday Words for the Soul~Brave Girl

Dear Incredible, Beautiful, Courageous Girl, You have been through a lot, and you have always pulled through. You are a champ at pulling through! Sure, there were some things you may have done differently given the chance, but all in all you made it through every storm, every fire, and up every mountain. When is the last time you sat down to REALLY think about how far you have come? When is the last time you listed all the things you have learned, all of the weaknesses you have overcome, and all of the times you chose to see the good stuff even though the bad stuff seemed to outweigh it? Sometimes you just need to tally it all up. We all forget how far we have come and we only focus on how far we still have to go. Imagine having to run a marathon and never knowing how many miles you have run. You would probably feel like it would never end! You are so much further along than you think you are. You are so much stronger than you think you are. You have done so much more in the world than you think you have done. Sit down today and really think about the long path that has brought you to now, and pat yourself on the back a little. You did a great job! And you will continue to do a great job. Thanks for being so brave. You inspire more people than you will ever know! xoxo 

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Other Words for the Soul