Then VS. Now

I can almost guarantee that at the beginning of every school year, one of my boys will have an assignment about themselves. It might be to tell about their life, their summer, or their family.

This year, the fourth graders had an interviewing project. The first criteria was that the interviewee needed to be at least 55 years old. Colby chose Chris's parents. We e-mailed the questions to them and Colby asked with every new e-mail if they had responded!

A few days later, the answers came and Colby was eager to get his project done. He took the answers to the table and was quiet for a long time. After reading through the answers Colby came up to me and said, "Wow, Popcycle had an interesting life!"

My father-in-law was born in a small town in Arkansas -- in his home, not a hospital. He lived on a farm and fed animals, brought in wood for their kitchen stove, brought water inside from the well. His best friend was his brother and they didn't have lots of toys, creating games themselves instead. So, you can imagine that I was interested in hearing what this 21st century kid would be amazed at with his grandfather's childhood.

With complete sincerity, he said, "Mom, Popcycle doesn't remember eating in one single restaurant when he was my age!"

Yep, that's my boy!!

A Full Palate

OK. So here is the last installment of my Beth Moore simulcast! I don't mean to sound "preachy"; but, I believe what she taught on is so relevant to ME and to women and to the general population as a whole. Kindness is not just being nice! Kindness has many faucets!! Kindness can change the world!!!

5. Kindness is a Savior.

Kindness took on flesh to dwell among us. There was and never will be someone here on Earth kinder than Jesus. Period!

Beth asked us if we had lost our wonder of Jesus? She showed us a picture of a little girl who had been surprised with a gift of a goldfish. Her eyes were wide and her lips were in a circle as if she were saying, "OHHH!" You could see she loved her gift and wasn't expecting it. She was taken aback with how awesome it was! Am I like that when God reveals something to me?? (Ouch! AGAIN)!!

6. Kindness has good memory.

Psalm 106:7

When our fathers were in Egypt,

they gave no thought to your miracles;

they did not remember your many kindnesses,

and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea.

When we cease to live without kindness, we have forgotten how good God has been to us. We must REMEMBER!

7. Kindness craves an outlet.

In II Samuel 9:1, David wanted to know if there was anyone left in the house of Saul that he could show kindness to for Jonathan's sake.

Is there anyone I can show kindness to? Is there someone I can bring true profit to?

Yes. There is always someone!

I donate lots of things throughout the year. However, I tend to leave the sack by the front door and let an organization hand them out. Maybe I could find an actual person in need and take them my things...

8. Kindness leaves a legacy.

Acts 28:1-2

Once safely on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. The islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold.

The Greek word used in the phrase "unusual kindness" in verse 2 is the word meaning "philanthropy." There has been a recent study on how countries around the world rate in their charitable donations. Australia and New Zealand are #1 and #2. The U.S. is #5. It was found that 83% of Maltans still give to charities today. They were "unusually kind" in Jesus' day and have continued that path.

However, it only takes one generation to drop to its knees and ask God to let it start now -- to start with me.

Our culture is breeding self-absorption.

If our children turn out kind in this world today, it will not be by accident! It will be because we have pressed on toward the goal of kindness. That we have lived it out in front of them. That we love our Savior and have taught them to love Him too!

WOW!

The First Four Tastes

As promised...per Beth Moore...Tastes of Kindness:

I am only going to give the first four tastes of kindness. I want those of you who read this to not be overwhelmed. Think about these ideas. They are little nuggets of gold!

1. Kindness is not a weakness.

*It takes divine empowerment to be kind in this mean world.

Luke 6:35

"But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful just as your Father is merciful."

Beth said that if in the last week, you haven't run across someone who it is hard to be kind to, then you are not getting out enough! It is time to head to the mall!! When we have to deal with unkind people is when we show we are His children.

This was the first "Ouch" point for me. Lately, I find myself staying at home. I just don't feel like dealing with anyone or anything. I always find some reason not to get out. I feel too tired to deal! Is the reality that I do not feel like being kind?? Guess I need to head to the mall more often!! :)

Beth also gave the difference between "kindness" and "being nice". (Another "ouch" point for me).

Kindness is being fully aware of the ungratefulness and wickedness in the world and making a decision to be kind.

"Nice" is from the Latin word "necius" meaning "ignorant", "not-knowing". In essence, if you can be nice, you're an idiot!

Wow! I find it easy to put a smile on my face and "pretend". That makes me nice, not kind...

She also pointed out that kindness is capable of speaking a hard word.

Psalm 141:5

"Let a righteous man strike me -- it is a kindness;

let him rebuke me -- it is oil on my head.

My head will not refuse it."

This is a great concept for parents who don't like to discipline their children. You can still be kind -- in fact, you ARE being kind when you discipline your child. Train them now in the way they should go and when they are old they will not turn from it!!

2. Kindness is not an action. It is a disposition.

The adjective word "kind" in Greek is defined as "profitable, fit, good for any use, good-natured".

You need JOY to be kind.

The noun word "kind" in Greek is defined as "the grace which pervades the whole nature."

Again, because kindness is a disposition, it cannot be faked.

3. Kindness wears down when we do.

DING, DING, DING!!! This has my name all over it!!

This is the work of the enemy! He wears us down!

It is easy to know when our hearts are broken, but not when our hearts get warn down.

What are some things that wear us down?

*resentment

*hatred

*jealousy

*pressure

*bitterness

*being sick of the rat race

What do I need to do when I am worn down?

Matthew 11:28-30

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Any time we are worn down, we need to be built up -- our spirit, not our egos!!

God also uses other believers to help build us up. We need to be vulnerable, transparent. This will produce accountability!

4. Kindness looks pain in the face.

Job 6:28

"But now be so kind as to look at me. Would I lie to your face?"

Don't look away from someone in pain.

In Titus 3:4-5, it says, "But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy." The Greek word used for "love" in verse 4 is "philanthropia" or philanthropy - "lover of mankind; lover of humanity". Our culture is trying to take "God" out of philanthropy! The ability to love and give to mankind cannot be found in ourselves. We need God.

Kindness is not an easy thing to be. But, it is so important for us to be kind. I am going to work harder at it!!

Women and Kindness

Beth Moore is one of my most favorite people! She is a brilliant Bible teacher teaching God's Word in a straight-forward, funny, life-changing way. She is a normal woman who has the same trials and tribulations as any other woman and uses those to touch her "students".

Today I spent the day at the Living Proof Live Simulcast. Beth was in Chicago and was simulcast to over 125,000 women of 20 different denominations in 11 countries. She is so on fire for God and even though she was on a big screen, her excitement was catching!

The theme of the day was "Law of Kindness".

Proverbs 31:26 was the key verse:

She opens her mouth with wisdom,

And on her tongue is the law of kindness.

Why study the law of kindness? Beth gave two reasons.

Reason 1: Because we live in a mean world. And, it is only going to get meaner!

*We need to protect the warmth of our hearts so we don't get mean also.

Reason 2: Because she "openeth her mouth"!

*A study was done that showed a woman speaks 20,000 words a day compared to a man's 7,000 words a day.

*As proof that women talk a lot, Beth pointed out the Jesus DID appear to women first after His resurrection because He knew women would spread the way!!

Women are teachers whether by example or by position. We touch people of all ages.

We are also published authors -- whether we blog, comment on a blog, Facebook, text, e-mail or tweet! And, scarily, we don't have editors to tell us a comment is not appropriate! God needs to be my editor! We need to think: am I lifting up Jesus?; am I building someone up?; or, am I stating my opinion to make myself look smarter or better than the other person?

It is inevitable that women are going to open their mouths. Luke 6:45 says, "The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks." When our hearts are full, something has to come out. What will it be? Unfortunately, what comes out can not be put back in!

Beth gave eight Tastes of Kindness. I am going to dangle those in front of you until I blog tomorrow! Let me just say that a few of them made me go "Ouch!"

What To Do When Your Bucket List Is Finished

Chris and I love to travel. We love to experience the culture, not just be a "tourist".

Because of his job, Chris has LOTS of opportunities to travel the world -- in fact, he is heading to Canada next week and then in a few weeks going to London, Cyprus, France and Italy! UGH!!! I will keep holding out for eight more years when I can go with him!

When our boys were little, we had a "bucket list" of vacations we absolutely wanted to take them on before they left home.

Hawaii

DisneyWorld

New York

Mount Rushmore

Yellowstone

Washington D.C.

England

As of this August, we have completed all of those except for England. Chris and I went there about four years ago and think that they would really love the castles and history of the country.

While in Albuquerque this summer, my cousin who lives in Australia was visiting also. I hadn't seen him in probably 10 years. He is married to a sweet Aussie girl. Daniel told us all about Australia and Connor hung on every word. Daniel loves to surf, his father-in-law has a big boat, there are poisonous snakes and spiders...you know, everything a boy likes!

Last week, Connor and I were discussing where we should go this next summer since most of our "have-to's" were finished. He informed me that we will be going to Australia. That is on HIS "has-to" list!

On MY list to do with the kids before they are no longer living with us besides England is an African Safari!

Colby wants to do DisneyWorld again.

Hmmm...looks like Chris needs to keep traveling the world to support our "New Bucket List"!!

Inquiring Minds Want To Know

Twenty-four days ago, I began a challenge from my husband...blog for 60 straight days.

No one questioned the idea until a friend of mine said she told her husband about it and he asked "Why?" (So, "Thanks, Scot for giving me a blogging idea!!")

I have a husband who is so encouraging and makes me feel like I am good at things even when I don't necessarily think I am.

I began blogging a few years ago. I did it as a way to "help out" my horrible memory. It was going to be a way to let our family get a glimpse into our everyday lives and a way for me to go back and say, "Oh, yeah. I forgot about that!" As a result 99% of my blogs are of something my boys have done. There weren't many posts that were very thought provoking.

I graduated from college with a Journalism degree. I haven't really used that degree; but, do still enjoy the process of writing. I guess that was what drew me to blogging in the first place.

As the time has gone by, my posts have gone from 3-4 a week to 1 a week to 1 a month! My avid fan would check it everyday and come home and ask why I hadn't blogged. He even got to the point where he didn't ask anymore.

So...he came home one day and challenged me. (See, after yesterday's post that proves I like a challenge!) He told me that after I blog for 60 days, it should be a habit and I will continue long after my 60 days are up! Sneaky of him, huh?!? In 24 days, I have only missed one day -- but I made up for it by posting TWO posts the next day. I will not loose this challenge. (That is why some days are pretty sketchy!!)

After blogging for a few days, Chris then went a little further and told me I need to not stress about what to blog about. I should look around and when something intrigues me, write about it. I have tried that the last couple of weeks. Kind of a "digging deeper" into myself. I have to admit that it is refreshing and exciting--but still stressful.

My blog is now emerging as a daily diary of sorts as well. It feels good. I am, crazily enough, learning more about myself. I don't know if I will blog EVERY DAY after my 60 day challenge; but, I do hope that I will take time to look at something like the "Sand" or a "Door" and write out my thoughts a little more often. Maybe my blog will actually help my boys look back one day and remember me.

Every Time Is The "Such" Time

Esther 4:14b

And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?

Esther was an amazing woman. She went from being a somewhat "normal" girl to a queen. And God put her there to help Him save the whole Jewish nation! She questioned Him. She felt inadequate. She was scared and unsure. Yet she obeyed.

Can you imagine how she felt when she became queen? Waited on hand and foot. Anything at her bidding. But, I bet she got really bored!

I am at such a time as this now...I am bored.

For the past 14 years, I have been a mom. When Connor was born, I threw myself into him. We would play on the floor with tractors all day or read a pile of books or go on some outing. He was my focus. Then Colby came along and I started all over again.

My boys are at a pretty independent age now. They don't want to play tractors anymore or snuggle on the couch with a pile of books. There are some mornings when I am turning the channel on the TV and I pass Blue's Clues or Thomas the Tank and I get verclempt!

Don't get me wrong, I am always ready for school to start! But, I do wish that I had appreciated those toddler years a bit more. (As I was rereading that previous statement, it occurred to me that is true of every stage of life and I need to appreciate the right now also.)

My husband has fully supported my being a stay-at-home mom and, I feel, has given me the honorary title of "Queen". He has never made me feel like I need to get a job or put me on any sort of "allowance". He never tells me that he is unsatisfied with how the house looks, or laundry feels, or meals taste. But, he knows that I am antsy. He has suggested that I find something -- job or volunteer -- that gets me out among the people. The interesting thing is that I have booked my calendar with Bible Studies, prayer groups, and volunteering at school. Finding time to clean my house, do the laundry or even blog is getting harder as the school year progresses. However, I am still antsy.

I am a couple of years (oh, OK, one year) from turning 40. And, I guess some days I wonder what I am going to be when I grow up! It's a little silly because I know that my calling was and is to be a wife and mom and I wouldn't change that for the world. But at some time the mom role is going to change. And I need to be ready for such a time as this when that happens.

This is one of the two blogs I wrote yesterday and felt needed lots of "tweaking". Maybe I was in a "Woe is Me" moment -- I definitely wasn't bored yesterday. I ran all day long. Today I needed to make a doctors appointment for Connor and while looking at my calendar, I was amazed at how full the next two weeks are.

I do think my main problem is that I need a challenge. Having babies was challenging. Raising toddlers was challenging! Moving nine times in 11 years was challenging. I just hope I can find that challenge before I build a whole ant colony from my antsy-ness!!

I took Beth Moore's "Esther" Bible Study -- which I highly recommend -- last year. Beth believes the main theme of Esther is: "What God can do when we resolve to obey and if I perish, I perish." Maybe what I need to do is be still and listen. Then I need to obey. And if I perish from God's challenge, then I perish. Esther didn't perish; she flourished and saved a nation. Yes, I need to get ready for my next "such" time.