One Word At A Time: Winter

By Ginny (MAD21)

So I know I'm a few days late with my Winter post for the carnival this week. But I have been taking care of the little people in my house who have both been sick all week. In all fairness, though, I did have a great outline wrote for what I wanted to share, but it will have to wait for another day. Just to show you how wonderfully faithful God is, He provided me with the most perfect material for a winter post: SNOW. And a lot of it (though not as much as the blizzards of 2010).

We've had two snow days this week. Best birthday present my oldest could have ever asked for (she turned seven yesterday!!). But last night was the biggest part of the storm. We woke up to at least 11 inches of snow this morning. Everything was absolutely gorgeous. I thought I would share.

Our family LOVES snow. The more the merrier. One the agenda for this afternoon: Snowmen; Sledding; and hot chocolate... and NAPS.

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: Winter.

Every Day Life: Winter Wonderland

By Beth

I was planning on doing an article this week about the changes happening in my life right now, there's a lot going on. But as I sit here getting ready to email my article, I am staring out my window into pure beauty and I just have to write about it.

Every winter all I do is complain. I don't like being cold, or wet, or especially cold and wet at the same time. I don't like shoveling snow (because I get cold and wet doing it, and it hurts my back). I don't like driving in snow, not because I am afraid to, it's all the other people out there acting like idiots! Of course, doing a 180 on my way to work this morning was not exactly the highlight of my day! I haven't been able to go sledding in years, the last time I did I hurt my knee. So what do I do all winter? Complain. It's too cold, it's too wet, people are crazy, when can I move south, what happened to global warming, get me another heating blanket.

As I sit here looking at this winter storm, listening to the thundersnow and seeing the way the ice and snow lay on the trees and bushes, all those complaints just disappear. This is truly beautiful. God made this and it is breathtaking. Yes I'll have to shovel my long driveway at 4:00 tomorrow morning and brave the roads to get to work (unless they are closed, everyone cross your fingers!) and I still won't like being cold and wet but for tonight I can sit in my warm house watching the beauty of God's nature unfold around me.

Beth is a gorgeous, size 6 blonde married happily these 20 years to Sean Bean, dreamy British actor. Their perfect children attend a boarding school in Scotland that they take the scarlet train out of King's Cross Station to each term. In her spare time, Beth likes to perform interpretive dance in local parks and raise awareness for S.P.E.W. Sean and Beth also own a German Shepherd named Chauncy who likes to nap. Beth M. and Lara were the brains behind our fun series on the Year of the Birthday. We are thankful they have decided to continue the fun with the Bucket List and Every Day Life.

Free Will

By Pat

One of the greatest gifts God has given us is that of free will, the ability to make our own choices and decisions. Of course, for those of us who desire to serve God fully, it would be easier if God told us every move to make, every word to speak and to whom, and every morsel to eat, but God is too smart for that. He knows we will never grow spiritually as effectively as possible if He directs every single detail of our lives, just as we who are parents realize we must let our children grow and learn from the decisions they make and the behavior they choose. Like God, we give the right example and make wise suggestions, but we cannot take away their ability to make their own choices. It's how they and all of us learn.

We often, when faced with problems and unexpected difficulties in our lives, claim that we are being punished by God for something, don't we? We find it easier to attribute our problems to "God's will," rather than to see that perhaps it's really a result of OUR free will and poor decisions we have made. I don't believe God punishes us for our wrong choices as a parent would a child who behaves poorly. God knows our hearts, and even though we may live a life of faith, God simply allows us to bear the consequences of our actions. His rules are set out in a very clear and straightforward manner in the Bible. He tells us very clearly how to live. But as humans, we often veer off on our own; sometimes intentionally, sometimes because we are too impatient to wait for God's still, small voice. Oftentimes we misunderstand and allow our own ideas to guide us, thinking it's what God wants us to do. I am often guilty of each of those, sadly. God's will for me at times seems a bit too slow in coming, and I take it upon myself...once again having to say, "Bless my mess, Lord!"

Regardless of the reason, it's usually our free will that gets us into trouble. But if we allow it, God in His great wisdom and mercy, will use these experiences to make better servants of us. If we simply recognize our mistakes and give them back to the Lord, we will be blessed in our faith walk with growth in the Lord. Remember Peter, who denied even knowing Jesus, became the rock upon which Jesus built the church. Peter made a bad choice using the free will God gave him, but God used him anyway in a mighty way, just as He can and will and DOES for us!

"If the Lord delights in a man's way, he makes his steps firm; though he stumble he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand." (Psalm 37:23-24)

Pat is a good friend who is passionate about her faith and her family. She works from home supporting a family business, and loves to read, write and garden when she can, and spends every spare moment with her grandkids.

God Is... Unchangeable

By Jason S (Connecting to Impact)

Many profess to like the God of the New Testament while not liking or not understanding the God of the Old Testament.

• The New Testament shows a loving, gracious, compassionate God and Father who gave His own Son as a sacrifice and ransom for many
• The Old Testament shows an angry, vengeful, God of judgment who destroys His enemies and those who oppose Him (or so it's thought)

I'm in no way mentally or theologically equipped to argue this in its fullness, but I do hope to bring out a few points that will show that God is not schizophrenic and He didn't 'mellow out' in the 400 years between the writing of Malachi and the birth of Jesus. He doesn't and hasn't changed.

That's right–God is unchangeable.

This is good news. I can't make Him love me any more by doing good things and I can't make Him love me any less by doing bad things. I can't make Him mad so that He leaves me. He disciplines–meaning I face hardships–but it's not punishment for sin because all that is wiped away through the blood of Jesus.

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Organize This!

By Ginny (MAD21)

My friend Beth V and her family are preparing to move over the next month. I wanted to give her a break from writing recipes so that she can focus on her family and the move. So if you are one of our visitors who comes to see what delicious thing Beth has made for us this week, she and her fabulous recipes will return March 25th. In the mean time, I hope that you continue to join us for a great new series.

Is this your living room; office; garage; mail pile?We are in the midst of winter now but spring is on the horizon. Hard to imagine, I know, since most of the country is covered in ice and snow right now. Most families are beginning to think of spring cleaning, so I thought it would be a good idea to have a series of posts on family organization.

I've written a few organizational posts about master lists, organizing toys, games and rooms, but I thought it would be fun to bring in a professional. Some of you might know her... Stephanie Calahan. When the idea of this series came to mind, she was the first person I thought of. She was very enthusiastic when I asked her to write some posts to help us with family management/organization, and I am so happy she has agreed.

For those of you who may not know her, Stephanie is the founder and CEO of Calahan Solutions, Inc. She is a nationally known speaker, media personality, author, publisher, productivity & organization consultant, and business coach. She asks the hard questions like: "Who would you be if your story was not holding you down?" She believes that life was meant to be lived, and helps families and businesses organize themselves so they can do just that.

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