Every Day Life: Life Goes On...

By Beth

Here we are, at the end of the road, the path we've been walking down is splitting into two. This will be my last post for MAD21 as the next few paragraphs will explain. I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience I was given and this will not be the end of my writing, I don't think I'll ever stop writing. This is not a result of an argument or difference of opinion, simply my life is heading in a much more complicated direction and I would not be able to keep up with getting my posts in, let alone getting them in on time. I wish everyone here the best and hope to actually meet some of you someday. Good luck!!

My life has taken a significant turn over the last several months. Last summer I started a new full time job, my first full time job since my son was born. He's 10. I chose to stay home and work part time while my kids were little because I thought that was best for them. I wanted to be the one raising them, not a daycare or a babysitter. My plan had always been that when Ben started middle school I would find a full time job. Things just kind of got rolling a year earlier than I had planned.

Click to read more ...

One Word At A Time: Renewal

By Ginny (MAD21)

When I heard our word for the carnival this week was Renewal, the first things I thought of were library books and subscriptions. When I asked my friends what the first thing they thought of when they heard the word, I got: another opportunity; freshness; auto insurance; vows; Oil of Olay; and spiritual. If this were one of those psychological analysis tests, I'm not sure what this survey would say about each of us, but I suppose it at least gives a little insight to where each of our minds were at the time.

"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:21)

A few weeks ago we got a letter in the mail from a missionary couple we help support. They are friends we love dearly who are life-long missionaries. At one point they lived in Kenya providing medical support for the Masai and have made several trips back since then. More recently they took a trip to India. We also get newsletters from ministries like Samaritan's Purse, World Vision and Compassion. The best part of receiving these support letters and newsletters is that we get to hear updates on all the things people have been doing for the year.  The many ways that Jesus is showing his love through the service of his people.

But these letters also provide something else. Because we want more than to just know what other people are doing in the name of Jesus. We want to know what our family can do to help support these ministries. These letters provide an opportunity to recommit. To reinvest. To renew our family's vision to help those who need it and share the love of God to our neighbors whether they are next door or across an ocean.

This post is a participant in a blog carnival over at Peter Pollock's place.
Be sure to go and check out what everyone else wrote on: Renewal.

The Enemy

By Pat

I have been an avid bird watcher for many years, and love watching them at my various feeders. I always marvel at their beauty and resilience and the loveliness of their songs. It gives me great joy. Today I learned a lesson from one.

A small Carolina wren was on my deck railing, but instead of going after the food, he sat still, hunkered down and not moving a muscle. He remained that way for quite some time, and I knew without a doubt there had to be a hawk in the area. I looked around, and sure enough I saw a hawk right there in the woods by my yard. The wren knew he was there, and that if he moved he could possibly become lunch for the crafty hawk, so he did the smart thing. He stayed still and quiet and waited for the enemy to leave (which didn't take very long because I chased the hawk away!)

Click to read more ...

God Is... Eternal

By Jason, M.Ed., M.A.R., Headmaster

We Were Made for an Eternal God

"He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end." (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

"You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you." - Augustine

Do you think fish ever wonder why water is so wet?  Probably not.  As an old Chinese proverb says, "If you want to know what water like, don't ask the fish."  Why not?  Because the fish has no basis for making a comparison!  All the fish knows is water.  Water is not unusual to a fish; it probably doesn't even notice it, unless it gets removed from it.

So what do fish have to do with eternity?  Simply this: Our experience of time should be like the fish's experience of water.  Time should be rather unremarkable and uninteresting to us because we are born in and live all of our days in time.  Yet we remark about time in ways that show that we have a strange relationship with it.  We say things like "How time flies!" and "Where has the time gone?" We celebrate birthdays and milestones with a mixture of celebration and bewilderment.  As we grow older, we wonder why we're getting so old so quickly.  Clearly, we are not really comfortable with time, are we?

Click to read more ...

Organize This! Why Are We So Attached To Our Stuff and What Can We Do About It

By Stephanie Calahan (Calahan Solutions, Inc)

Stuff!  Stuff!  We have a lot of stuff!  I have clients tell me all of the time that if they just bought a bigger place, things would be better.  Of course, the flip side of that coin are the clients I have that did buy a bigger place and now tell me that they regret it because they have equally filled up the newer bigger space.

It is not about the size of our homes and offices.  It is about how we view our stuff! 

Ask Yourself: Does my home look like I could entertain Our Lord?

“For God is not a God of disorder but of peace. As in all the congregations of the saints.”
(1 Corinthians 14:33)

We Like to Buy and Consume

Clothing – When life gives you the blues, just shop, shop, shop for shoes!  Americans spend an average of six hours per week shopping.  Only 25% seek a specific item; 75% are looking to buy something without knowing exactly what that is.  What exactly are we searching for?

Click to read more ...