a word from The Sponsor~December 21

Psalm 37:7

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More words from The Sponsor

This Weekend~ December 19~Carve it

Today marks an anniversary of one of my favorite stories of love.

On December 19, 1972, the last Apollo crew landed safely back on Earth. Apollo 17’s crew of three included the last two men, Harrison Schmitt and Gene Cernan, who would walk on the moon. It is the final act of astronaut Gene Cernan that contains the favorite gem for me.

As he walked toward the lunar module, Cernan knelt and scratched his daughter’s initials in the lunar surface.

It is possible that his daughter’s initials, TC, still remain on the moon’s barren surface. His act of fatherly love certainly remains in memory and…in practice for me, and maybe you too, today. Because of Grace, we have received such love.

 

 

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. ~John 15:13-14

 

Today, might you consider, some act of “initial impression?” I know you won’t deface anything, but might you be on the lookout for, and notice any opportunity to impress the initials of a loved one (doesn’t have to be a daughter) in the snow, the garden soil, the playground sand, even a Styrofoam cup (this is where you’ll find me scratching out my daughter’s initials).

Do it in honor of Gene and love that literally can be to the moon and back!

 

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Sources:
The Writer’s Almanac
Gene Cernan
Picture 1
Picture 2

 

Additional Weekend Activities

 

Mid-Week Question: December 17

After a short hiatus, due to my sojourn in the land of statistics which gave me too many questions to ponder and resolve, my “mid-week question” returns!

Today’s question:

How good are you at asking for help?

Out of 20 questions describe in a post on emotional intelligence interview questions, this question (interestingly labeled #13) stood out to me.

Why is it difficult to ask for help? Perhaps it is fear of rejection from those we ask. Perhaps, it is the rise of the “What If” gremlin:

• What if they say “no” to me?
• What if they ignore me?
• What if they see me as a waste of time?**

Asking questions, questions of help, is a venue to invite people into your moment. Into your present moment. Of course, timing and courtesy are paramount (I would not ask a librarian during story hour to stop reading and point me to the Tolstoy section.)

But rising past my ego and self-involvement points the awareness on the collective process of help. (hint, hint: my ego often tells me that I have to do everything myself, or if I want it done correctly, I need to do it myself….bad juju from my ego in these statements to myself.)

Of course some answers are “no” but as my wise friend, V., says “if you don’t ask, the answer already is ‘no’.”

 “We’re all imperfect and we all have needs. The weak usually do not ask for help, so they stay weak. If we recognize that we are imperfect, we will ask for help and we will pray for the guidance necessary to bring positive results to whatever we are doing.” ~John Wooden

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Previous weekly questions

I learned from these sources:

* Emotional Intelligence Interview Questions

**How to Ask For Help From People You Respect

a word from The Sponsor~December 14

We have courage in God’s presence, because we are sure that he hears us if we ask him for anything that is according to his will. He hears us whenever we ask him; and since we know this is true, we know also that he gives us what we ask from him. ~1 John 5:14-15 GNT

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More words from The Sponsor

Monday Picture for the Soul~December 8

Today’s Words for the Soul arrive in the form of a picture.

In December’s issue of Wired, my favorite section is “10 Rules for Making Great Stuff.” The 1st Rule is “Unite the Digital and The Physical” (p. 106).

So how great is this? The Motions of Kayaking and Canoeing Recorded through Light Painting on Canadian Waterways by photographer Christopher Jobson.

Jobson uses programmable LED light sticks attached to kayak paddles to record motion of the reflections on the water’s surface. He then translates the movement into photographic light paintings. See more super cool photos at this link: http://www.motionexposure.com/Galleries/Kayak/

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More Words for the Soul

 

a word from The Sponsor~December 7

I know…your perseverance.
Revelation 2:2

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Image Source

additional words from The Sponsor

Mid-week Question~ Have you seen the beautiful thaw of Grace?

Saw this beautiful picture of a snowy sunset over at Knitting With Heart and it caused me to be so grateful for the beauty in what is frozen. And the beautiful thaw of Grace.

That’s how God’s Word vaults across the skies
    from sunrise to sunset,
Melting ice, scorching deserts,
    warming hearts to faith. ~Psalm 19:6, msg

From Knitting With Heart

 

 

Your Soul– Because of Grace

That luminous part of you that exists beyond personality–your soul–is as bright and shining as any that has ever been….Clear away everything that keeps you separate from this secret luminous place. Believe it exists, come to know it better, nurture it, share its fruits tirelessly. ~George Saunders

 

Also, Soul-based Grocery List

 

a word from The Sponsor~November 30

as the month closes, it is necessary to remember…

Keep your roots deep in him, build your lives on him, and become stronger in your faith, as you were taught. And be filled with thanksgiving. ~Colossians 2:7

Picture Source

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other posts featuring Colossians 2:7

more words from The Sponsor

Happy Thanksgiving

Happiest Thanksgiving…

Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving. ~W.T. Purkiser

Thanksgiving Bible Verses

Previous posts on Thanksgiving

Mid-week Question~November 26~Might you change your name

What is it like to take on an angry group? What is it like when that angry group is a nation?

“But because My servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows Me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it,” Numbers 14:24.

Caleb was one of the 12 spies sent into the Promised Land to observe and see if it could be won in battle, as God had promised. The other ten spies gave bad and fear-inducing news to the Israelites, who chose to believe these ten men rather that Caleb and Joshua.  That fear and disbelief of God’s promise, resulted in an entire generation dying in the desert.

Joshua and Caleb were the only two who were led by the Spirit of God, versus the spirit of fear. They were the only ones to enter the Promised Land from their generation.

Today’s question: Would you (symbolically) change your name to Caleb? Or Joshua? Would you signify your intent to swat fear away and life by God’s promises?

What does this have to do with Thanksgiving tomorrow? Well, sometimes holidays don’t fit our expectations. They do not have the Waltons’ family soundtrack and the Hallmark set design. It can be fear-inducing to attend family events, or welcome family to our home. But perhaps, if I remember my symbolic name of Caleb or Joshua, perhaps, just perhaps, this could be the year where I stand on God’s promises and reflections of me and swat aside any other points of view.

 

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Additional Questions

a word from The Sponsor~November 23

The Lord is my protector; He is my strong fortress. My God is my protection, and with Him I am safe. He protects me like a shield; He defends me and keeps me safe. ~Psalm 18:2 

Picture Source

 

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more words from The Sponsor

 

Mid-week Question of the Week~November 19

How do you find The Silence?

Been thinking a lot about Sunday’s verse from Lamentations 3:28     … with Thanksgiving just next week, I want to pursue some silence. Some Reflection.

Would you share with me how you find the silence for worship and praise?

And nurture that silence?

 

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Additional Questions

a Word from The Sponsor~November 16

When life is heavy and hard to take, go off by yourself. Enter the silence. Bow in prayer. Don’t ask questions: Wait for hope to appear. Don’t run from trouble. Take it full-face. The ‘worst’ is never the worst. ~Lamentations 3:28

 

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more words from The Sponsor

This Weekend~Explore the Silence

This weekend…Explore the Silences…the silence you seek, the silence from noise, the silence from your voice (your self-imposed silences…and…(gently) the things that cause you to appease and be or remain silent. Did you remember on Tuesday, in honor of veterans world-wide, to pause at 11:11 for a moment of silence? Today is a good day for that.

We spend so much time listening to the things people are saying that we rarely pay attention to the things they don’t…there is no time to pick your battles when the battles have picked you. ~Clint Smith

 

a word from The Sponsor~November 9

Come, let us praise the Lord ! Let us sing for joy to God, who protects us! Let us come before him with thanksgiving

Psalm 95:1-2

The Best Sticker for Today

a word from The Sponsor~November 2

I have always loved you, so I continue to show you my constant love. ~Jeremiah 31:3

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More words from The Sponsor

a word from The Sponsor~October 26

“We went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.” Psalm 66:12b

The “rest of the Story” appears first, in verses 10-12. It is in these verses that the route to abundance is described.

For you, O God, tested us; You refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but You brought us to a place of abundance. ~Psalm 66:10-12.

Link Source: http://www.brittonchurch.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/refining.jpg

 

What needs refining in our lives today?

 

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More words from The Sponsor

This Weekend~October 24

This Weekend…find your sighted solitude….

Then it was springtime in the cloudy Himalayas. Nine hundred feet below my cave rhododendrons blossomed. I climbed barren mountain-tops. Long tramps led me to desolate valleys studded with translucent lakes … Solitude, solitude! … Mind and senses develop their sensibility in this contemplative life made up of continual observations and reflections. Does one become a visionary or, rather, is it not that one has been blind until then… Writer Alexandra David-Néel, who lived until age 101