Valued Competency and Adulthood
I’m learning that one of the marks of enjoyable adulthood is knowing you have a competency that a community values. In other words, you’ve developed a skill or an area of expertise that can serve others. One reason I love teaching college students is that I can watch their growth into their adult competencies. It […]
A Cool Definition of Friendship
I’m writing on the theme of friendship for some devotional material, and I remember a special verse in Romans 1:11-12 where Paul writes something precious to his friends. He writes, “I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong–that is, that you and I may […]
The Pace You Keep Is Yours Alone
As I continue to live in a family and larger community, I realize the various pacing of my family members and friends. The energy levels, speed, capacity, and focus of all of us differ greatly. We must accommodate and plan for our differences. For example, the youngest in our family is up at 5:30 AM […]
Try This for 5 Minutes Each Morning
This morning I recalled the wisdom of Elizabeth George and others who taught me some basic housekeeping principles early on in my adult life. Normally, I rush out the door to work, but this morning, I give myself five minutes (I actually set a timer to see if it’s possible), to get the home ready […]
My New Favorite Verb in Scripture: Endure
If you study the number of times Christians are reminded to endure, you’ll find great hope today. The Greek translation of the verb means to remain under whatever challenges the Lord allows–because He allows them. Endurance is the power to remain under difficult circumstances without giving way, without faltering, and without giving up. When I […]
The Best $3.00 to Spend on a Child
On Sunday, my husband brings home two Jiffy Greenhouses from Lowes. They cost about $2.00, so you can spend some change on all kinds of seeds. We plant our seeds into the provided pellets of growing soil, and then we put the greenhouses on the sunny window ledge. Each daughter chose her own favorite vegetable […]
The Tale Told ‘Round the Fire
My youngest daughter asks the family if we know how ancient people passed the time long ago. “What did they do when they were bored? Can you guess? Instead of toys and entertainment, guess what they did?” She tells us that they told stories. We learn that from the beginning, storytelling was both entertainment and […]
Why We Write Essays
I love teaching Ander Monson’s “Essay as Hack” essay. He inspires us to continue to write essays for various reasons, but my favorite reason is because the essay represents a “simulated mind.” He explains: Each essay we read is as close as we can get to another mind. It is a simulation of the mind working […]
Set Your Mind Right: Reading 2 Peter 1
Sometimes, I just feel so out of sorts. I forget who I am, what I’m made for, why I’m here, and how I’m supposed to live. This morning, I read Peter’s precious letter written to guide growing Christians. He jumps right in with what I need to know most this morning: “His divine power has […]
Barely Warm Enough to Grill: Saturday Kabobs
Right this very moment, in a huge bowl, I have chunks of fresh pineapple, chicken, red pepper, onion, and mushroom marinating in Italian dressing. Later, we’ll thread beautiful patterns of these items onto our kabob skewers. Once grilled (for about ten minutes), we serve our kabobs over brown rice. It’s our favorite meal on summer […]