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A New Year…And?
I just reflected on where my thoughts and heart were this time last year. Here was my new years post then, What’s Ahead. Now I’m looking into 2022 and wondering again what this year will bring. We cannot predict this new year anymore than we could 2021. We aren’t allowed perfect predictions of the future. We have no idea the wonderful experiences we will have, nor the pains and losses. We can make plans, we can dream and pray, but only the Lord sees every day of 2022 completely. So, what do we do? Simply put, yet so profound, is that we trust the sovereignty of The One who does…
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Christmas Blessings!
My prayer for each of you is that you end 2021 with joy in your heart, no matter the circumstances you are in this Christmas, knowing our Sovereign Christ understands and has purpose. And I pray you anticipate growing deeper in your walk with the Lord in 2022. May you truly experience His peace over your life this Christmas. Banner photo by Toni Cuenca on Unsplash
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Unfilter Your Faith: Lessons From a Social Media Fast #5
This is the final post in this Social Media Fast series. Feel free to go back and read the first 4. I wonder if any of you who have chosen to read this blog series are struggling in your spiritual journey? Looking at events around you in fear and doubt? Are you struggling to hear from God? Perhaps, like my daughter, you need to “unfilter” something in your life so you can hear more clearly. By the way, she has held true to her keeping notifications off and limiting time on social media for this week! I asked her how it as going, and it has been something she has…
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Things of Heaven: Lessons From a Social Media Fast #1
No, not my fast, but my daughter’s. Although I don’t turn my phone sounds on till after my time with the Lord each morning, I’ve not ever done a week’s fast from social media or the internet in general. Well, except back in the pre-cell phone day and I was away from the house. Actually most of my years on earth were pre-internet! I asked my daughter if I could share some of her journals from a social media fast she went through recently. Perhaps you can identify with some of her feelings, as I did. Maybe you will choose to take a similar fast as well. She began her…
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His Love Rushes In: Fall Beach Lesson 2021
Can you handle just (maybe) one more beach lesson from our trip in September? If not, just shut this post down! So, the last couple of days we were at the beach, it was misty some days, and socked in at times with clouds. But we decided even without perfect beach weather, we really enjoyed just being by the water, hearing the waves, and reading. So we got on the beach for at least for part of those days. I interrupted my reading at times just to watch the waves continue to hit the shore time after time after time. I’ve shared previously about the constant wave action reminding me…
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3 Blogs Posts for Living in 2021
1 Social media today is all over the map: truth, fake news, encouraging, degrading, spiritual, business related, hopeful and concerning. How ever you use social media, Social Media: 7 Tips for Christians from SBC Voices is a great read as you consider your next update. 2 Whether Jesus comes back tomorrow or 50 years for now, we must be ready. Read 4 Ways to Live During End Times by LifeWay Research. This also relates well to the previous post! 3 This last post I will share today is written by a friend and colleague of mine, Christina Zimmerman. Read What Are Spiritual Disciplines to be reminded of how we continue…
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When It Just Won’t End!
What else? How long? Have you asked that once or twice in the last couple of years, the last couple of weeks, as I have? Jut about the time things seem to be healing or changing, a variant COVID pops up. Then world events just take our breath away. Add to that personal crises, several friends who are in a health fight for their lives, on and on. Seriously? What’s next?…I guess the same thing that I wrote about so recently in He Speaks, before the last couple of “issues” mentioned above popped up. So this is how that morning a couple of days ago played out as I did…
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Beach Lesson #2
As I shared my beach lesson on mentoring with Amanda (please read that post first, Beach Lesson on Mentoring) , she told me she got something totally different from that experience of finding shells. So this is her take on it. Amanda’s thoughts are in italics and my comments follow. 1 Our lives are like shells. How many come to the shore completely shattered. Only a few come whole. Most have broken pieces. Perhaps you are a broken shell yourself. Can you trust God for your healing? Maybe you know broken people, can you be a source of encouragement and healing for them? 2 Corinthians 1:3-7 Blessed be the God…
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Lessons From Birds
I want to share a post my animal rehabber daughter Alycia Neighbours shared on Facebook recently. Today at work I was giving our aviary birds their food and water. One of the items is some fresh berries and I usually cut most to bite-sized pieces. Some of the blueberries were pretty small, so I left them whole. In the aviary are four grackles who recently graduated to flying free in the aviary to prepare them for outside life when it comes time for release. As I put the food down, they all four each grabbed a whole blueberry as if it was the biggest prize of their lives. They chased…
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Hard Family Convos
Recently I was asked to write a post for LifeWay on a subject that I don’t think I’ve really done very well with: Navigating Theological Differences With Your Adult Children. I’ve needed more grace at times for sure, and maybe even more truth at others. So, I polled a group of moms, friends and colleagues to get their insight as well. This post is the result. I pray you will read Navigating Theological Differences With Your Adult Children prayerfully asking God how you are to approach your adult loved ones in a way that draws them to the Truth of Jesus! Thank you for all who submitted ideas to help…
