Titus Twosdays: Work, work, work, work.....

I don't know about you, but I'm prone to put tasks before people. Cooking before coloring.  Scrubbing before story time.  Paying bills before paying attention.  We touched on that subject last week at Bible study, and I heard once again that what matters most to God is people.  People first.  I do know that, it's just that I have a hard time doing it!  I'm apt to put off spending time with the people I love until my chores are finished.  It's just how I'm wired.  If you're a mother of young children, you may struggle with this, too.  If you stay home during the day, you spend your time making bottles, changing diapers, washing little faces, doing dishes, folding laundry, making beds, cooking dinner, mopping floors....a marathon of tasks that is never finished!  If you work outside of home, add the pressures of work to that list. And it will be exactly the same tomorrow, just like the movie "Groundhog Day", where Bill Murray constantly re-lives exactly the same day, over and over and over.... Right??

 So how do we keep a good attitude in the midst of it all?  How do we keep from being overwhelmed by the monotony and drudgery of it all?  By putting our focus where God says it needs to be:  on people.    By remembering as I match that basket of clean white socks, the healthy family members who'll wear them.  By thanking God for His provision as I pay this month's power bill.  By focusing on the wonderful husband I get to share my life with, as I hang up his clothes in our closet.  By choosing to focus on the why of our daily chores, instead of the chores themselves, we find meaning and purpose in everything we do. 

I better sign off now.  Time to make dinner for that awesome family of mine!

Today's Verse:  She carefully watches everything in her household and suffers nothing from laziness.  Proverbs 31:27  NLT

Prayer for Today:  Father, I'm so thankful for all you've provided: my husband and children, food, clothing, and shelter.  Help me to focus on the people in my life, rather than the tasks I must do every day.  Help me find purpose and joy in all that I do.  In Jesus name, Amen. 

Road Map

I can't wait for 1/1/11. Cannot wait! I don't ever remember being so anxious to tear the December page off my calendar, revealing a fresh January page beneath! Why am I so excited for the arrival of 2011? I like to think it's because the year ahead is filled with possibility....with trails waiting to be blazed, surprises to be unwrapped, and new pages of my life's story begging to be written. But it's just as likely that I'm bidding good riddance to the hurts and failures of the waning year. Maybe in a way, I see 2011 as some cosmic do-over, an opportunity to get right in the new year what I got wrong in the old one.

The reality is that every year stretches out before us like a road, fraught with perils, curves and switchbacks. And we do a much better job of navigating if we pause and ask for directions before we begin a journey. That's one reason I love today's verse. I'm apt to rush off into the new thing I'm excited about without much forethought. But this verse tells me I need knowledge to go along with my desire, or I might miss the way! So this year, I'm going to pause before I dive into the new year. Long enough to celebrate God's goodness in 2010. Long enough to ask for directions for 2011. Because I don't want to miss anything on the Way.

Desire without knowledge is not good—how much more will hasty feet miss the way! Proverbs 19:2 NIV (2010)

Prayer for Today: Father, I want to follow You in this New Year. I want to walk in Your Way, in Your plans for me. Thank You for Your love, mercy and grace this year, and next. Please guide my steps as I seek You. In Jesus Name, Amen.

THANKFUL

Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!               2 Corinthians 9:15 NIV

My husband blogged today (www.geneoden@blogspot.com) about the top 10 things he's grateful for, and invited his readers to weigh in.  Here's my two cents:

1.The grace, mercy, and salvation of my beautiful Savior.

2. A husband who loves me, leads me, nurtures me, and blesses me beyond anything I deserve.

3. My children.  I watch in wonder as they become who they will be: Christ followers.  Heart followers.

4. The staff and attenders of Crossroads Community Church....you inspire me! I can't wait to see what happens next!

5. Our extended families for their love, support, and powerful examples.

6. God's word.  Sharp, bright, wise, fresh.  What else is like that???

7. I get to live in America. 

8. Good health.

9. Books.  I aspire to be a lifelong learner.

10. Redbull, Starbucks, and other legal, addictive stimulants.  For staying awake to enjoy all of the above!

On this Thanksgiving Day, I hope you find a few minutes in your pie baking, turkey basting, table setting day to thank the God of Everything for everything.

Prayer for today:  Father, everything I have came from You, and I am so thankful.  You bless me beyond all I can ask or imagine.  Thank You most of all for the Gift of Your Son, Jesus.   In His Name I pray, Amen.

CHRISTMAS PUMPKINS

Always give thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.    Ephesians 5:20 NCV

I love everything about Christmas time.  The sparkle of holiday lights, the smiles on people’s faces, even the cold weather seems festive to me.   But not on the day after Halloween!  On November 1^st, I walked into my local Stuff Mart, and right in the front of the store was a giant Christmas tree next to carts overflowing with marked-down candy corn and costumes.  When did we start going from retail holiday to retail holiday without ever stopping to give thanks?   I distinctly remember a time when displays of ghosts and goblins were replaced by cornucopias and turkey basters.  What happened to Thanksgiving?

I understand the reasons.  Thanksgiving doesn’t generate revenue like Halloween or Christmas.  We buy a turkey and a pumpkin pie, and we’re pretty much done with our Turkey Time spending.  So fearful retailers, desperate for their portion of our discretionary dollar, try to convince us Christmas is here, hoping we’ll fall under their yuletide spell and start spending.  Sorry, guys.  It was 80 degrees here on November 1^st, and no Musak renditions of “Joy to the World” could convince me Christmas had arrived!

As I write this, Thanksgiving is still a week away.  We have a tradition in our house I want to pass on to you.  When we all sit down to our Thanksgiving feast, we go around the table, asking every person to share something they’re thankful for.   By the time we finish, not only are we reminded of all God has done for us in the previous year, but we’re also thankful for His bounty in the lives of others.  Why not try it at your holiday table?  Stuff Mart might skip Thanksgiving, but that doesn’t mean we must.

Prayer for today:  Father, in every season, You are God, and worthy of our praise and thanks.  Let this year be different for those who are called by Your Name.  Let us keep the “thanks” in Thanksgiving, mindful of our many blessings, and joyfully sharing with those in need.   Amen.