a word from The Sponsor~March 29

 Those who live right are good guides to those who follow,
    but wrongdoers will steer their friends down the wrong path.
~Proverbs 12:26

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This Weekend~March 27~This Weekend Don’t Listen

This is my first weekend post in awhile. The last weekend post was just two days before my mom passed to Heaven, although I did not know it at the time.

Perhaps that is why this collage from Brave Girls Club means so much today…

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Additional Weekend Posts

words from The Sponsor~March 15

For this verse I am especially grateful for today as I return from Japan/Singapore/Hong Kong.

 

 

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Image Source: created by Helen

Monday Words for the Soul ~ February 2

“Hope is like a path in the countryside. Originally, there is nothing – but as people walk this way again and again, a path appears.” ~Lu Xun

 

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words from The Sponsor ~ February 1~ How to Defeat Busyness

but really, only one thing matters. ~Luke 10:42

February 1st.

And only one thing is necessary.

 

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This Weekend ~ Please Be There

From the standpoint of daily life, however, there is one thing we do know: that we are here for the sake of each other – above all for those upon whose smile and well-being our own happiness depends, and also for the countless unknown souls with whose fate we are connected by a bond of sympathy. Many times a day I realize how much my own outer and inner life is built upon the labors of my fellow men, both living and dead, and how earnestly I must exert myself in order to give in return as much as I have received.        ~Albert Einstein

 

Perhaps, just be there, this weekend

Just. Be. There.

…not to do (not a “do” there)

but just be there.

It is a challenge for me, in the Martha-ness of incidents.

Yet Mary’s way was correct too.

 

“Jesus is not asking something more from us;
He is asking for less so that He an give us
more of Himself.” ~John Ferguson

 

…but really, only one thing matters. Mary has chosen that one thing, and I won’t take it away from her. Luke 10:42

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Additional Weekend Thoughts

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a word from The Sponsor ~ January 25

But whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God, the Creator of all light, and he shines forever without change or shadow. ~James 1:17

 

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Tough Times Tuition

The tough times are tuition we pay for what we need to know to succeed.

Today I am typing this while sitting at an airport club. I am waiting for my flight and, for the past hour, two men have been sitting in the cubicle next to me. They have been talking about an interview they had with a woman. They have papers containing their questions to her and her answers. From my glances, it seems that the applicant’s responses have been neatly typed and tabulated. They are reviewing their interview and rating the applicant’s answers. I know the applicant is a woman because of their use of the female pronoun.

And… I am pretty sure the woman is not going to get the job. Her answers, one of the men says, “reflect a relatively shallow pool.” There are too many “1’s” and not enough “4s” assigned to the tabulation.  The whole experience is causing my tension to rise. I am going to move to a calmer locale.

But, if she were here, nervously waiting for their decision…I would  want her to know she was brilliantly courageous to go so far in the application process to be the subject of such scrutiny. And I want her to know that “The tough times are tuition we pay for what we need to know to succeed.” And, that there are Blessings contained in every question with a “no” answer. 

I would show her this sentiment posted elsewhere by Jean W.

Because “she” could be me. “She” has been me. “She” might be you, or a past memory of you.

And Because of Grace, there are amazing promises that will outlast the temporal interviews and points-of-view that occupy our days.

Success beyond numbers, data, and ratings.

Monday Words for the Soul ~ January 19

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More Monday Words for the Soul

a word from The Sponsor~January 18

Keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you. ~1 Peter 4:19

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a word from The Sponsor~January 11

There you saw how the LORD your God carried you…~Deuteronomy 1:31

my verse for this semester…

 

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This Enough~Seek the Enough

My focus word for right now is “Enough.”

Not in the “I’ve had enough!” sense of the word, which reflects frustration and lack of peace.

And not, in the “Enough is Enough” punitive determinism of push-back.

No, my lens for “Enough” is the bastante in Spanish and the abbastanza in Italian:

Peacefully Sufficient

 Here’s the truest of truths….
You are absolutely enough today….right now. You don’t need to do more, be more, or have more to be ok.
You are beautiful and kind and funny and smart, and the world is so much brighter because you shine your light on it….
Don’t ever ever ever let anything blow your light out….you are just way too important. Thank you for being you.
You are beloved. You always have been, and you always will be. ~Brave Girls Club

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More Weekend Ideas

Mid Week Question~ January 7~Strength

Do you see how strong you are?

Please, on this first day of the new year, please twirl in honor of you!

Do not let negativity wear off on you

Sometimes very smart people have the ability to debate and negate almost any point of view.

Including the one that nurtures their own soul and their own efforts.

This is not because of grace… remind yourself today how strong you are, because of His Grace and Love.

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Previous Questions

(First) Monday Word for the Soul~January 5

 Make Laughter Your Chocolate…

I read this phrase in Ann Voskamp’s devotion

Take a break-today-right now-to laugh at something,

even a chuckle will do…

 

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a word from The Sponsor~January 4

      “God did it!” David exclaimed. “He used me to burst through my enemies like a raging flood!” So they named that place Baal-perazim (which means “the Lord who bursts through”) ~1 Chronicles 14:11 

My resolution is for us to find our individual and collective Baal-perazim in 2015!!

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Mid Week Question~December 31~Resolutely Because of Grace

The last post of the year is written in the form of a question.

As you consider resolutions, what about Bible verses?

What is your focus verse for 2015?

“He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” Ephesians 2:10

Resolve in 2015 not to lose your new-ness and your joy.

The easiest thing of all to lose is your joy. You can lose it with one phone call or email, a letter or conversation. You can watch a commercial on TV and lose your joy. It’s the easiest thing in the world to lose. And a lot of people in a lot of circumstances are conspiring to rob it from you. ~Rick Warren

My mother used to say that JOY means “Jesus Occupies You.”

When “Jesus Occupies You” then other gremlins have no room to wreak havoc.

 

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Previous Questions

Last Monday Word for the Soul for 2014~December 29

A concluding word for the soul for 2014 is one that you know and need to always remember…Because of Grace

Please do not forget…or, (worse) let anyone else contradict God on this point.

You Are Beautiful…Renee Swope writes eloquently on  your beauty

 “You are precious and honored in my sight …. and I love you.”
    Isaiah 43:4

 

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More words for the Soul

a word from The Sponsor~December 28~Resolution Verse

Open my eyes, so that I may see the wonderful truths in Your Law. ~Psalm 119:18

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Because of Grace-Wishing You

“When the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy”
~Job 38:7

 For God did not send his Son into the world to be its judge, but to be its savior. ~John 3:17

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Christmas Peace