About 23 years ago, I heard of a study that was done of 50 people between the ages of 90-95. It had such an impact on me, that I’ve never forgotten it. The researchers asked them this: If you had life to live over again, what would you do differently? There were three main responses:
1. I would reflect more. Continue reading
“Would You Praise Him on a Cactus?” is the title of one of my favorite children’s poems. You may ask, “What does a cactus have to do with my spiritual wardrobe?” Yeh, I know, my mind takes some strange turns. You may want to check out the last post, and then stay with me here. We’ll see what happens. Continue reading
“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything – to stand” (Ephesians 6:13). Hmm. Note that word, “when.” Bad weather is coming – those evil days. Well, really, those days are here, so we need to be dressed for this weather. Continue reading
Who can’t remember times when you were afraid, insecure, questioning, feeling inadequate, wishing you could just disappear off the planet for a while? Everyone experiences these times. It’s a part of being finite: you don’t have all the cards in your hand. Add to this our fallen nature, and it is only reasonable that we would be insecure.
I could describe a bundle of my life stories to illustrate. On my first day of Continue reading
This stream is about to take us to a view of Mount Confidence and Boldness Butte, and it may take some courage to get there. We have to pass through the rapids and then hike away before we do some mountain climbing. Time for a rest stop. Spread your blanket on the ground, lie down, and stare up at the evening sky. The stars are about to peak through. Continue reading
Sarah is no longer in the cookie business (note last post), but from those skills and others she learned at home and in school, Sarah was able to launch her own web design company while she was still in college. It helped to support her for a number of years, and then Continue reading
Sarah grew up in a home where her parents did not provide allowances for their children. If she wanted her own money, she had to earn it. She could not earn money by completing basic or required chores. Her parents saw participation in the home as a part of belonging to the family. She was taught Continue reading
If character is the expression of who we really are, then character is “heart work.”
Character formation is an inside job with an outside exposure.
One of our teachers expressed to me that many of our children choose to disobey school and class rules because “their own will is more important than the consequence.” This demonstrates Continue reading
What do you need in order to obey? In my last post, I suggested that sometimes courage is needed. Obeying always involves thinking, choosing, and following through. As a child, I loved my parents and teachers and did not question authority. Pleasing them was important to me. As a compliant child, maybe I didn’t need as much courage in order to obey as a stronger willed child might need. I have noted Continue reading
What character qualities are riding along on the obedience train, singing in harmony? I’m rather embarrassed to tell you how many, in my opinion, of our 57 character qualities fit on this train. I went down the list and checked off 19! I must lack discernment or judgment! But then, maybe there is something to this! In our last post, I said that love is the entire enchilada – all 57 qualities rolled into one, describing the perfections of Christ. Obedience as a subset of love also has its entourage. Remember Continue reading
Journey North Character 