Love Songs

By Sarah (Living Between the Lines)

In life, there are these rare but brilliant moments in time when you know that you have experienced something special and unspeakable…  Sitting on the porch of a cabin in the woods, listening to the raindrops slapping the leaves.  Watching snow fall during the quiet dark of the middle of the night.  Swinging in a hammock with your eyes closed, feeling the hot breeze move across your face while the crickets and frogs screech and scream at each other…

One day last August, I came home from work at the end of one of the hottest days of the year in Eastern North Carolina. It was the kind of heat that could almost melt your tractor tires, but the local farmers had spent the day harvesting and so I could see the dust lingering in the almost-breezeless air.  As I pulled into my driveway, the sun sank behind the trees, leaving behind only a faint puff of pink afterglow.  I sat behind my steering wheel, watching the pink fade to dark and I felt like a child who had been told a secret.  But what was the secret?  It was at the tip of my tongue, but I couldn’t quite reach it. 

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One Word At A Time: Birds And Bees

By MAD21

Ok. I know. The word for this week's carnival is Lust. But I have to be honest with you and say, I just simply could not figure out what to write about, or what I would be comfortable writing about. I thought of going with the lust for power, either at work or over your child, but I just couldn't make the post work. But it did bring to mind an important topic for families, and that is the dreaded sex talk.

Ever wonder why we all, or most of us, really dread the day we have to explain where babies come from to our kids? I think a lot of it has to do with how we were brought up and how it was all explained to us. However unintentional it was on my parents part, discussing anything related to sex was shameful and embarrassing. I was one of those kids who blushed and turned away at the sight of anyone kissing on TV or anywhere else. My friends will tell you that even today, it doesn't take much to make me blush. I was told by many that this would go away once I had kids. I am here to tell you, it did not.

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Fingerprint Friday: Waiting Rooms

By MAD21

I recently went to a doctor's appointment with a close friend of mine. As I was in the waiting room waiting for her to come back out, I was reading a devotional book, along with a small pocket Bible, I had brought with me to read and pass the time.

I have to say my time in the waiting room was actually quite funny. There were a lot of elderly people coming and going, and their comments to each other were hilarious. But in the end it was just me and another older gentleman sitting across from me. As I sat quietly reading for several minutes, he asked me if I was carrying a Bible. I said, "Yes." He then went into a pretty great discussion about how much he loved God and his church. He'd said he had a really good relationship with his pastor and that they were "great buddies." I agreed that it was so important. I told him, "I am a mom of two little kids. I dont' know what I'd do without God."

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Whose Eyes Are You Looking Through?

By Chuck (Sharing Compassion)

This past Sunday at church, our sermon was on "Entering A New Year." Our pastor challenged us to Live for Eternity & Live with Passion. Somewhere near the beginning of the service there was something he said that triggered the title of this post. I spent some time reflecting on it and thought it was a great way to begin this year....it is a question that we should all ask ourselves. It is a question that can change our focus and perspective for 2010. As far as I can determine there are really two answers to this question that really impact us.

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My Chains Are Gone

By MAD21

New years represent a lot of things to a lot of people. But mostly it represents new beginnings. A fresh start. Or like the quote I posted in today's "Something to Think About," a blank page. As we face the challenges and tasks that await us in this coming year, let us remember the King of fresh starts, of grace and love, and of forgiveness. Let us go forth into this year with courage, perseverance and the knowledge that Christ is walking every step with us. I pray each of us has the courage to love others the way he loves us.

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