It’s February.  The month of love.  Commercially speaking, anyway.  All the other 11 months should be months of love, too, but stay with me as I use February as a time to learn more about the love of Jesus Christ and what is expected of my life, because I am His.

This year, I’m going to work on putting love above all else for 28 straight days.  I know, I know – that’s what we are supposed to do anyhow.  But I admit, my human self sometimes – okay, OFTEN – gets in the way of that.  The Bible tells us in Luke 10:27: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, Love your neighbor as yourself.”  I do passionately love the Saviour, and I want to be obedient in how I live.  That includes “loving my neighbor as myself”.  I do, actually, love my neighbors.  David and Gigi are terrific.  And I love Sarah and Dan.  Richie and Michelle.  Brian and his family.  I am blessed to share a tiny piece of everyday life with them, even if just passing by each other, or thinking of them when I see their homes.  But the Lord means EVERYBODY, not just those neighbors who are easy to get along with.  And not just your physical neighbors.  Think about this:  He wants us to love

– the little boy who makes fun of your child at school
– the newspaper delivery person who always forgets to put your paper in a water-proof baggie
– the homeless person who pushes her grocery cart down Maple Street
– the teacher who just doesn’t understand your child
– the ex-spouse
– the ex-spouse’s new spouse
– the girl who is now a woman, but years ago was mean to you
– the woman who acts like a girl and is mean to you today
– the unsmiling grocery check out attendant
– the neighbor who complains about how you keep (or don’t keep) your yard
– the politician whose sins are publicly brought to light
– the preacher who might step on your toes with his message
– the people you share the roadways with
– co-workers, including your boss
– family members, every single one of them
– people who slander you
– him
– her
– them…

You get the picture?

Just love, y’all.  JUST LOVE.

Heavenly Father, thank you for your never ending love and for the grace and mercy you extend to me new and fresh every day.  Please guide me and teach me this month about love.  I long for a deeper understanding of your words from Luke 10:27.  I want to be obedient to your will for my life.  Please open my eyes and my heart to sharing love with my neighbor as you have willed for my life.  Father, please reveal to me opportunities to share the love of Jesus Christ through my actions and words.  May I be keenly aware of your presence in every moment, always.  I love you, Father God.  Amen.

When I was outside at recess, this boy asked me:  “Why do you always wear bow ties to school?”

I told him:  “Because I like to.”

The boy said:  “Well, that’s a good way to get picked on.”

I said:  “Most people just smile and laugh, but that doesn’t bother me.  If they smile and laugh, then they might have some joy, and I know that joy comes from God, so in a way, I’m bringing Him glory by making people feel happy.”

Then the boy asked:  “Do you go to church?”

And I told him:  “Yes.”

__________________

Today, this is the story my 10-year-old shared with me when I asked him about his day at school.
In his 5th grade world right now, he is figuring out that being different is not always easy (the risk of persecution…or in this case, bullying), but that being different can also can be a positive thing, like providing opportunities to sow a few seeds.

This momma is so thankful for how God continues to teach me through my children. 

The weather outside is an indication of how this day feels to me.
Overcast. Cold. And aside from those two things, pretty non-descript.
Found myself passing the gray minutes away, browsing at TJ Maxx.
Why?
Why not.
Didn’t know what I was looking for, if anything, really.
But then…I saw it.
A simple glass bowl.
Oval in shape.
Grayish in color, like today.
I brought it home.
A treasure!
What makes it special is spelled out on the price tag.
I’m leaving it stuck there.
It reads, “Made in Turkey”.

Four Hundred Eighty-Nine

There are some things you just don’t tell your momma.
Ever.
Then there are some things you tell your momma…eventually.

Now that I’m well into my adulthood, I get a kick out of divulging these latter type of things to my momma.  Things that were going on in my very self-centered world that (I thought) she might not have been aware of.  Like that time my best friend and I cut lunch when we were in high school.  We didn’t do anything “bad”, but the thrill of going off campus for lunch was something we couldn’t resist at the time.  I can’t remember all the details, but I do remember driving back into the school parking lot the wrong way and swiftly blending into the crowd to confused any authority who might have been looking for us.  Or that time, during our senior year, that my other BFF and I made a road trip to Columbia in the middle of the night to see her brother at USC.  Why?  Just because we could.  And yes, there are plenty of other things, but to keep from sharing evidence of any sort that my own sons could use as leverage in the future, I’ll plead the 5th now.

Last week, my oldest son hitchhiked about a 100 miles.  He was going from point A to point B, and used his thumb to get him there.  How do I know about this?  Not because he told me, I can assure you of this.  During his travels, he called my husband and told him.  That’s how I know.  🙂  Yes, my son would have told me…eventually…but this is the type of thing he wouldn’t share with me in advance, because he knows exactly how I would respond.  It’s probably how any other parents reading this would respond.

The more independent my son becomes, the more I can hear my momma saying, “I hope when you have kids they act the same way you did.”   I get it, momma, I really do.

I entered the dark stairwell. 
I could go upstairs or down.
First I needed a light, though.
“Where is that light switch”, I questioned.
It wasn’t where I thought it should be, right beside the door.
It wasn’t by either staircase.
“Hmmmm.”
I realized that I could probably go upstairs  or down with no problem, even in the dark, but there’s just something about that.  About the dark, I mean.
Moreso, there’s just something about its opposite, too.

Isn’t the light such a good thing? 

It exposes all sorts of problems areas. 
It reveals all sorts of safe passages.
It comforts.  Really Comforts.  In a very intangible, omnipresent way.

I considered, in that moment, how thankful I am for God’s light – The Light of the World that He has given to us.  The Light that is Jesus Christ. 

Having The Light of Jesus, even in that dark Stairwell, is a comfort.  Oh my, how He exposes things to us and how He reveals things to us, that help us in our daily walk. 

This world is a very dark place.  Outside of The Light, it can be cumbersome, overbearing and suffocating.  The darkness can be present in many ways – too many to count.  Maybe it’s a sickness, or an unexpected diagnosis.  Maybe it’s hunger.  Or Fear.  It can be all sorts of cleverly disguised things, too.  The darkness can be something that drives an unhealthy addiction or lifestyle.  The darkness can also be deceiving, and appear to have the qualities of comfort. 

Praise God, He has given us The Light of the World.  Jesus Christ is alive and wants to be the power source for all of His children.  All of them.  He wants all of us.  We are all sinners, and he wants us.  The suffering.  The lost.  The dirty.  The unworthy.  Every. Single. One.

Do you ever find yourself in a dark stairwell, searching for the light switch. like I was earlier today?  How about in a dark place, surrounded by dark circumstances?  Have you ever felt hopeless?  Scared?  Alone? 

The only powersource you need is Jesus.  He provides inextinguishable light to all who ask for it.  Ask for Him to be that light in your life.  You don’t have to wait until Christmas.  You don’t have to wait for a special occasion.  Ask Him today, right now, to be Lord of your life.  Walk in His light every hour of every day.  His love is abundant and merciful and waiting just for you. 

The rush to get out the door and get to school and work on time can be brutal.  Breakfast is frequently consumed in the car.  Bed head is often the style of the day for the ten year old.  Although the local Christian radio station is on and belting out really good worship songs, our heads are usually so busy with thoughts of the day’s schedule, that we sometimes have trouble “tuning in” ourselves.

One of the longest pauses we have in the morning drive is at an intersection we call “Five Points.”  This light can take FOREVER to rotate through the six different cross directions.  I know –  5 points, 6 crosses – I can’t answer the math on this one.  Another blog, another day.  ANYWAY, we started praying at Five Points this year during our morning commute.  The boys start naming specific prayer requests as we approach the intersection, then, as we stop, we pray aloud.  Prayers of thanksgiving for a new day, full of new opportunities.  Prayers for protection.  For guidance.  For clear directives.  For healing.  Whatever the need or concern.  Sometimes we pray for the social studies test that Lane will be taking.  We often pray for Reed’s busy schedule, and for his grades.  We pray for needs close to us, or those we learn of through news media.  Our daily prayer time at Five Points has become something we all look forward to.  It’s a pause.  A time to reflect.  A time to be energized.  A time to be united in outpouring to our Saviour.

This morning we had to take a different route than normal.  This meant that our Five Points prayer time had to be altered.  We named a different intersection “Baby Five Points” (it was really 4 crosses, so the math element is constant) and had our prayer time there.  After making a few stops, with my youngest son still in tow, we approached the Five Points intersection from the opposite side in our normal route.  As we waited, silently, my head running through the day’s check off list, Lane spoke up.  He said, “Mom!  We’re at Five Points now!  Can we pray again?”

Can you hear that?

It’s the same thing I heard in that moment.

Pin.

Drop.

Quiet.

“Of course we can!”, I exclaimed.

As we prayed, I could hardly speak clearly, because of the choked up feeling I was having, fighting back those tears of joy.  Pure. Joy.

We pray all the time, together and independetly.  We encourage the kids to have prayer with the Heavenly Father, letting them know that anytime is the right time.  But this instant when my son asked, so excitedly, for prayer again…what a blessing I received, a gift straight to my heart from His.  Thank you,  Lord!

So much for writing about an “I Am Thankful” thing every day in the month of November.  Truth is, I’ve become sidetracked.  Does that ever happen to you?  I have the best intentions, and the most willing heart, but then —WHAM!— something diverts my attention, my focus, my initial (often the most genuine and productive) forward motion.

Because I want to make sure you don’t miss this point, I’m going to go ahead and tell you:  I’m not talking about failing to post a blog about my thankful heart every day.  That’s small potatoes.  I’m talking about the state of my heart in this real world the last few days.

I hate to admit it, especially during a time when having a thankful heart seems most commercially acceptable by the general population… especially during a time when so many eyeballs are on me, waiting to see how I react to certain stimuli… especially when I know deep within my soul how pleasing my thanksgiving is to the Heavenly Father.  So what is it when I don’t share my thanksgiving with Him?  I would think that to be the opposite of pleasing.  Yuck!  I never want to displease my Father, but boy do I mess that up.  Daily.  Oftentimes several times a day.

Work.
Indulgences.
Relationships.
Pride.
Schedules.

I’ve let “things”get me sidetracked.

“OOOoooo!  Something shiny!”  That’s me.  And the shiny isn’t usually a positive thing.  Shiny like a fishing lure.  All that flashy bait that’s used to lure my footing off of the narrow path.  It happens so easily and comfortably, that I hardly even notice how wide the road has become until I am joined by all sorts of well-intentioned, but distracted, others who seem to feed the ease and comfort of walking along this wide open, directionless pathway.

I recognize the sin that’s been looming around the last few days.  Nothing anyone would notice.  Nothing anyone would hear or see.  But I’ve let worry and what ifs steal some precious time lately.  I’ve let these things that are definitely not of the Lord override what I know to be His truth.  I recognize it and I’m grabbing it by it’s strongest point and getting rid of it.

Heavenly Father, I desire to please you in all that I do and say and think.  I want to walk the narrow path you have carved out specifically for my footsteps.  I don’t need the company of things that are not of you, Lord, and I ask that you help me recognize things that are of this world and limited, so that I may move on from them.  Father, I want the light of Jesus Christ to shine so brightly through my life that the things I should steer away from are illuminated as such.  Thank you for washing me anew, Heavenly Father, with your mercies and grace.  Thank you for loving me just as I am.  Amen.

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.    Romans 12:2

I am thankful for…

…spoonerisms, and the entertainment they provide my family.

Long before I ever knew that there was an actual name for it, this impediment had taken on the descriptor “verySherry”, as in, that is verySherry.  I can’t help it!  Those who know me also know my rapidly firing mind that sometimes processes and questions so quickly, my poor mouth just can’t keep up!  That’s how we get things like, “Did you log the dets out?”, or “Put on your jed racket”, or “I thought we’d have reas and pice for supper”.  The thing is, they come so fast and furious (and unexpected) that most people within earshot don’t catch the slip ups instantly.  Boy, has this kept my family and friends laughing over the years.

Imagine our delight when, several years ago, we discovered the book, Runny Babbit by Shel Silverstein.  This entire book is dedicated to spoonerisms and it is a barrel of laughs.  There have been other books that we really enjoyed by Shel, like The Giving Tree (Favorite!!!) and The Missing Piece, but Runny Babbit holds a special place in our literary collection.  This probably has something to do with why my kids see me as “talented” instead of “misspoken”.

Just the other night, sitting around the backyard fire pit, our family yucked it up, spouting off silly spoonerisms, trying to top the one that was said before.  We came up with some good ones, like

Licken Chips  (Chicken Lips)
Sped Bread  (Bed Spread)
Naghetti Spoodles (Spaghett…..oh, you get it now!)
Cog Dollar
Stean Balk
Bigs in a Planket

We were laughing so loud, I was certain our neighbors were going to start flashing their porch lights or telling us to pipe down.  Good, clean fun.  Well, mostly.  There are a few things you should never mix up when it comes to this type of entertainment, but I’ll leave that to your imagination.  In a family filled to the brim with young men (including my husband here, I’m in need of prownie boints), it wasn’t a stretch to come up with some sketchy combinations.  But, we always come back to chicken.  Chicken is probably the funniest word to use when you’re honing your talent.  We have laughed a ton over things like Chicken Nuggets and Chicken Fingers.  Thinking of KFC, the winner of our night’s competition around the fire was the following:

Chicken Littles and Chicken Dippers

Go on.  Give it a try.
It will surely be easier to spit out reading it, instead of pulling it from memory.

You know you want to, so just do it.

Out loud.

No one’s listening.

Just switch the first sounds of each word in the pair.

You can do it.

And then, enjoy the laugh.

Licken Chittles and Dicken Chippers

Isn’t that hilarious?

Heavenly Father, yes!  I am thankful for laughter.  I have no doubt that you have a sense of humor, too, sometimes.  Thank you for my boys and my husband, with whom I love to spend time with in laughter.  All good things come from you, Lord, and I’ve no doubt that the authorship of our good fun around the campfire the other night, was penned from your hand.  Thank you, Lord!  Amen.

I am thankful for…

…the rainy days that keep our family tucked neatly at home, often landing us in the friendly competition of a board game.

Life is fast.
Busy.
On the verge of chaotic most days.

Give me one good blustery in-door day with my family and outside stress seems to fade away.  No schedules.  No deadlines.  No running up and down the road.  Just Monopoly, Scrabble or Phase 10…and all is right with the world again.

Togetherness, as stated perfectly is this poem by Lori Beal:

Family Togetherness