One Word At A Time: Joy

By MAD21

Have you ever met someone who just lights up a room? Sometimes without saying a word they make things seem better and brighter.

When I was working in a kindergarten classroom about eight years ago, I had a student who was just that. Rays of sunshine walking in the door. She started attending the school mid-year. I remember the very first moment she walked into the room. There was just something different about her. She had a smile and attitude that would just melt away any negative feelings you may have had before she got there. Each morning she would walk in the classroom with the beautiful grin God gave her as if to say, "I'm here people, how can we have an awesome day?"

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One Word At A Time: Self-Control

By MAD21

For the last three weeks, my youngest has been humming the same tune. It's not a terrible tune, it's just the the first few bars from the Wallace and Gromit show's theme song.

But as much as we love Wallace and Gromit, I am going to lose it if I hear it's theme song just one more time. A week ago, I told my daughter that she needed to find another song to hum. It worked for about an hour. I had to remind her a few times over the last week, but it got better with each day. I don't think I heard her hum it once over the weekend. Then... this morning. Back to Wallace and Gromit. <sigh>

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One Word At A Time: Gentleness

By MAD21

For someone who has ADHD, the concept of gentleness is a little foreign. Considering the high energy we usually have at any given moment, it's not something we experience very often because it requires us to slow down. That being said, because it is a rare occasion, when it does happen, at least for me, they become some of my most treasured memories.

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One Word At A Time: Faithfulness

By MAD21

The first thing I think of when I hear the word faithfulness is the old hymn, Great is Thy Faithfulness. We don't hear hymns much anymore, and I have to admit, I miss them. Our church tends to sing more contemporary worship music, but sometimes we get to sing some of the older stuff. I think the newer generations are really missing out on the messages some of these older hymns have to say.

A man named Thomas O. Chisolm wrote the words to Great is Thy Faithfulness in 1923. He did it as a way to tell people about how faithful God was all during his lifetime. I don't have the talent that Mr. Chisolm had to express in words my thankfulness to God for his love for me, but listening to the words of this song I feel the same passion.

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One Word At A Time: Goodness

By MAD21

I think "goodness" is one of those words that we hear a lot, but if asked what it was would be difficult to define. Is it truly possible to be good, or acquire goodness? We hear about goodness being wished upon someone, or giving it to someone, but is it something that can be given? Goodness is one of the fruits of the Spirit and it's referred to several times in the Bible. It's usually something that is in God's possession that he is sharing with us:

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