Bucket List: Go To The Eastern State Penitentiary (Part 2)

By Beth M

Going Insane

At this time of year, when the ghoulies come out
People tend to enjoy a good scare.
They'll traipse through mazes, graveyards and more
Even be shut in the morgue if they're dared.

My history with scares dates to "The Exorcist" and "Scream"
It's been years since I've felt up for a haunt.
So it took twelve months to man up for this trip,
It was a year's worth of ridicule and taunts.

Down to Eastern State Pen on an October night
We drove, with m heart beating fast.
Not sure how I'd react, would I scream, faint or run?
Would zombies eat me? Make me join the Penn cast?

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The Do-Nothing Kid

By Michelle (Graceful, Faith in the Everyday)

I'm not one of those overzealous moms – the ones who enroll their kids in every next thing: soccer, T-ball, French horn, yoga for toddlers, Portuguese, Tai Chi.

Don't get me wrong – it's not because I'm self-righteous and virtuous and protective of my children's childhood. It's because I am simply lazy. The thought of schlepping Noah and Rowan back and forth, night after night and weekend afternoons to games and practices and recitals, combined with work and grocery shopping and Walgreens and trips to the post office paralyzes me. Frankly, I'm much too self-centered to spend all that time shuttling my children.

Yet I do strive to involve them in some activities, because heaven forbid, I wouldn't want them to become "nothing kids."

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Keep The Faith!

By Pat

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." (Hebrews 11:6)

Faith. We all know the importance of faith. We've all said to someone "keep the faith!" and we've all had it said to us in our times of struggle. But it's also something that most of us (if not all of us) wrestle with. It seems like one day we're on top of the world; things are going well for us, life is peachy. God seems close, and we can see Him at work in our lives. That's easy!

But what about when things are not going so smoothly? How about those times when finances are stretched, health is poor, or relationships are feeling a bit strained? That's when it gets tough to maintain an unwavering, unshakable faith. I know how that feels for sure, and it used to really disturb me to realize that perhaps my level of faith is contingent upon the size of my struggles.

But as time has passed, I have come to realize how very human I am, and that if I struggle with my faith, I am certainly in good company. The book of Psalms is full of David and his struggles with faith, and ultimately God allowing him to triumph over his doubts and weaknesses. Even Jesus' disciples, who were with Jesus every day, had their faith issues. We all know the story of Peter walking on the water...

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Praying For Respect

By Jason (Connecting to Impact)

Respect carries many different meanings depending on who or what group you’re talking to. To one, it may mean that a child never addresses an adult by their first name, but rather with Mr., Mrs., or Ms.  To another, it may mean consistent eye contact. Another might see a weak handshake as a sign or disrespect.

See what I mean? There are lots of definitions, but when we are teaching our children respect, I think we can focus on honoring others above themselves.

"Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king." (1 Peter 2:17)

I’m sure we’ve all witnessed kids who disrespectfully mock their parents to their face. It’s tremendously wrong. And if it begins there at home, the disrespect will expand to other authority figures and even God.

Respect is that important. Thankfully, my wife and I decided long ago that we would have each other’s backs and if we saw anything that looked disrespectful we would call our kids on it.

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Tasty Bites: Pumpkin Doughnut Muffins

By Beth V

OK, so last week I wanted to point out all of the delicious savory ways to add pumpkin to fall meals. As much as I love pumpkin as a savory addition, it sure does taste delicious in baked goods and sweets, doesn't it?  I cannot really pretend that this recipe is healthy, per-se, but you when you eat these, you can at least try to convince yourself that since they include pumpkin as a key ingredient, they might as well be health food! One thing I enjoy on occasion in the fall is a trip through my favorite coffee-shop drive thru to get a coffee and a pumpkin doughnut.  These delicious muffins are certainly much easier to make than doughnuts, and with a bit of crispness to the exterior and a tender, cake-doughnut-like interior, these may just fulfill that fall, pumpkin doughnut craving.

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