Loving the life I've been given

Thinking big

2010-02-22T12:03:00.000-08:00

Think back to the scene at the end of Matthew as Jesus is giving some final instructions to His disciples. They were trying to come to grips with the idea that He was alive again and now He tells them He's leaving. What are they going to do? Check out Jesus' response to that unasked question - "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations..." (Mt.28:19, NIV). I think God's expectations were a little higher than those of these men. He didn't tell them to share the good news with a few people. He commanded them to make disciples. And not just in their neighborhood, but of all nations.
I believe God has high hopes for you and I as well. Impacting the lives of those in our neighborhood should be very high on our list of priorities. But what about the rest of the world? Could God use me to share His love with someone in another part of the world? Of course He can. The question is really one of timing - does He want to use me now? Here's an opportunity to consider. Christian 107.3 is partnering with Mission of Mercy to take the love of Jesus to the people of the Dominican Republic in June. Check it out at www.christian107.com.
Perhaps this is your time. Maybe God wants to stretch you a little, get you out of your comfort zone, and show you what He can do through you. It's pretty big, but God is a god who likes to think BIG.

Back to School

2008-08-22T07:58:00.001-07:00

Well, we've enjoyed creating some great memories with our kids this summer and now it's time to start a new school year. As they adjust to new classrooms, new teachers, new friends and maybe even new schools, the one thing that remains a constant for them is us - the love and care of their parents. Look for the many opportunities this year to encourage your child and be available to listen as much as possible. They experience so much every day and we need to be the ones they look forward to sharing those experiences with. Now let's go out there and make this their best year ever!

Changing the world, one child at a time.

2008-01-11T07:47:00.001-08:00

Sponsoring a child through Mission of Mercy is one of the best ways we can invest our money. Our family sponsors a beautiful girl from Swaziland. Through our $30 a month Gcinile is able to receive education, food and clothing. Most of all she is being shown unconditional love and is learning about the only one who can give her true hope - Jesus. We got to meet Gcinile on our trip to southern Africa last year where we took her on her first shopping trip.She is a lovely girl living through very difficult circumstances.

Thankfully she has access to the Mercy Center near the home she shares with her cousins and her grandmother. I encourage you to pray about sponsoring one or more hopeful children through our 28 Hours of Mercy Feb. 5th and 6th. If you just can't wait til then, check out the link to Mission of Mercy's website. http://www.missionofmercy.org/catalog/index.cfm

What a story behind this new song

2008-02-20T07:29:00.000-08:00

There's a new song by Michael English you'll be hearing on Christian 107.3. It's called "The Only Thing Good In Me" from the soon-to-be-released project 'The Prodigal Comes Home'.

The story of Michael English is very much like the story in the Bible about that son who goes astray. In 1994 Michael went from being one of Christian music's most popular artists with multiple Dove awards, to experiencing personal failure and public disgrace. All because of a few really bad choices. About his failure Michael said, "I took my eyes off the prize and lost everything." After going from the top to the bottom almost overnight, Michael thought he would never sing Christian music again. But God had other plans.

Over the next few years, Michael started making right choices. He got connected again with the body of Christ through a local church. Michael's pastor for over 4 years is Stan Michell of Grace Point Church in Brentwood, TN. He explains it this way, "...we've been walking with him on a pastoral level, watching him, talking to him weekly...seeing he and Marcie's marriage do really, really well. The guy's gotten it together. And he's doing well. And he has a message. And his life is a message even more than the words."

Mark Hall from Casting Crowns says, "Michael's life is a beautiful picture of God's forgivness and restoration. He is a new creation. The old has passed away and all things are new-Michael has an amazing story to tell." Michael himself puts it plainly when he says, "I can't explain it, other than to say that God has cleaned out the cobwebs of my life."

So when you hear the new song from the new Michael English, know that it comes from the heart of a prodigal who has chosen to come home.

Really fun video

2008-02-12T11:56:00.000-08:00

In case you missed this when the song came out, here is a link for the NeedToBreathe video of "Signature of Divine". It's one of my favorite videos. According to the band it took a whole week to make because of the thousands of still shots they had to take. Anyway, enjoy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qxP5yEMk3k

You did it again!

2008-02-11T08:25:00.000-08:00

Thank you 100 times! You have once again made our 28 Hours of Mercy a huge success. After we ended the 28 hours on Feb. 6th at 10am we had 88 children who had been sponsored through Mission of Mercy. Then a few more of you decided to sponsor a child through the link on our website. There are now 100 more children who will be receiving food, medical care and most of all - love. Thank you for helping make an enormous difference in the life of a child. And if you are still giving thought to child sponsorship, here is the website where you can find out more www.missionofmercy.org. Every child deserves to be loved.

Safe Internet Surfing Tips

2007-03-28T09:43:00.000-07:00

If your family is like mine, you explore far off people, places, and time periods with relative ease through the magic of the Internet. Your home computer brings a wealth of educational resources into your homeschool on a daily basis that would be too expensive or too hard to find any other way. We also know that there is a lot of filth in the online world. How can a family safely use the Internet without bringing unwanted content into their home and into the minds of their children?

Surf With a Purpose
Surfing the Internet can be a similar experience. Many times the trouble starts when using the web for a specific purpose turns into mindless browsing. If someone begins clicking on any random page or ad that looks appealing, he is like the surfer who doesn't care where the wave takes him.

Keep the Sharks Away
There are many good filters to choose from, including ones that are free. An effective filter allows complete customization of its features including prohibiting obscene and criminal themes, letting parents allow or disallow specific sites regardless of the content, blocking chat, setting time limits and time of day restrictions, and keeping a history of both allowed sites visited and blocked sites attempted. My favorite filter even blocks "non-productive" activities like gaming.

A Second Set of Eyes
It's important to remember that all software filters have limits. Even when working perfectly, they cannot block every possible threat among billions of websites. Adding a second set of eyes to watch for Internet danger at home is just as valuable. To keep more eyes involved, put the computer in a high-traffic area of the home where it is highly visible. Face the computer screen out so that it is easily seen by others. A good rule of thumb is, if it has a door on it, it's probably not the right room.

The Internet is a powerful tool for good and evil. It can be as unpredictable as the ocean which brings smiles to playful children on one shore and a tidal wave to communities on another. Knowing how to ride the waves carefully can help protect your home from unwanted Internet content and bring you safely to many rewarding destinations.

David Edgecomb
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This article was originally published in the Jan/Feb '07 issue of Home School Enrichment Magazine. For more information, visit http://homeschoolenrichment.com/

The Life of Saint Patrick

2007-03-13T09:37:00.000-07:00

He was born in 389 A.D.

His father, Calpurnius, was a civil magistrate and a deacon, and his grandfather was a minister in the Celtic Christian Church, whose origins date from second-century Roman occupation.

At age 16, Patrick was kidnapped by raiders and sold as a slave in Ireland. For six years he herded pigs on a Slemish farm. Repulsed by the Druid's human sacrifice, magic spells, and superstitions, from which Halloween originated, Patrick committed himself to Christ, as he later wrote: "The Lord opened the understanding of my unbelief, that, late as it was, I might remember my faults and turn to the Lord my God with all my heart; and He had regard to my low estate, and pitied my youth and ignorance, and kept guard over me even before I knew Him."

He was led to escape to the seacoast, where he found a ship to freedom. He lived in a monastery in France for several months. Years later, Patrick had a dream, left his family and prepared for the ministry. In the year 432, Patrick crossed the icy sea to Ireland with twelve brave monks.

They made their way to the home of his old master, but found he died in a battle with a neighboring tribe. Undoubtedly, had Patrick not escaped, he would have been killed as well. They then went to the hall of Chieftain Loigaire, who was feasting with his warriors and Druid priests. A messenger ran in, interrupting the festivities, and announced the arrival of these unarmed strangers. As they entered the long, smoky hall, carrying a tall cross, silence fell. The Druid priests were threatened and alarmed when Patrick boldly spoke in their own language, which he had learned while a slave. The chieftain was astonished, and not only granted them religious toleration, but was baptized and donated the land for their first wooden church.

Feeling inadequate due to his lack of education, Patrick used illustrations to preach, the most famous of which was the three-leaf clover, which he used to explain the Trinity.
Wherever he went, Patrick left ministers. He founded 300 churches, baptizing over 120,000 converts. It was said that Patrick found Ireland heathen and left it Christian, resulting in Irish missionaries re-evangelizing Europe in later centuries.

Patrick died on March 17, 461.

William J. Federer

4 Ways to Get Your Marriage Back to "The Way We Were"

2007-01-24T13:39:00.000-08:00

Is your relationship with your husband or wife not quite what it used to be? Here are some possible problem areas and a few solutions courtesy of Tricia Cunningham from the National Institute of Marriage.
1) You Blame Your Spouse Often
If you find yourself blaming your spouse or being blamed by your spouse for everything from not being able to find car keys, to why your child scored a low grade on his or her report card, this is detrimental to a healthy marriage.
Solution: Remove blame from the discussion. Just stop the blame game, period. Instead, take personal responsibility for your part in the situation, and let your spouse take responsibility for his or her part without you pointing out what his or her part is.
2) You Assume the Worst
You've stopped giving each other the benefit of the doubt. In the early days of a marriage, spouses assume only the best motives for the other's actions. For example, the husband sleeps later than normal on a Saturday morning early in their marriage, the wife thinks, "He must have had a really hard week. I'm glad he gets a chance to sleep in." Now she thinks he’s being lazy and only cares about himself.
Solution: The next time your mate does something that you find irritating, try giving the benefit of the doubt. Cut each other some slack as often as possible. Remember the golden rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
3) You've Stopped Touching
If it's been a long time since you and your spouse have held hands together, cuddled on the couch, just reaching out to touch each other, you're relationship needs a booster shot. John Gottman says that when a couple's relationship has grown cold, they stop pinching, giggling over private jokes, and complimenting each other.
Solution: Look for times to reach out and touch your mate. Hold hands and kiss, even if you don't think it'll make a difference. You'll be surprised at the difference it makes. And try the 10 second kiss. Research shows that a ten second kiss can really add some "warmth" to a relationship that is cooling off.
4) You've stopped spending quality time together as a couple
If you still want to spend time together as a couple, but life has become so busy lately that it's gotten difficult, it could lead to trouble and needs immediate attention.
Solution: Plan a night or weekend together a.s.a.p. Plan to have fun together, doing something you know both of you will enjoy, and be intentional about re-creating good feelings towards one another. As you do this, you will begin to look forward to time together again. And as often as you can, flirt!

Loving your days as a Mom

2007-01-23T06:50:00.000-08:00

Organize to Thrive as a Mom at Home
Whitney Hopler
The following is a report on the practical applications of Cindy Sigler Dagnan's book, Who Got Peanut Butter on My Daily Planner?: Organizing and Loving Your Days as a Mom, (Harvest House, 2006).

As a mom, you want to give your best to your kids – but you don’t want to lose yourself in the process. Staying home with your kids doesn’t have to be an ordeal to endure; it can be an adventure to love if you organize your life wisely.

Here’s some helpful tips:

Recognize the importance of your job. Know that your efforts as a mom are vitally important to your kids and will shape their lives in crucial ways.

Aim to be productive. You can actually accomplish a lot beyond parenting while you’re home with your kids. Work toward other goals such as learning a new skill, exercising, reading, and doing volunteer service projects.

Get out of the house regularly. Give yourself the gift of a change of scenery as often as you can. Take the kids to a library, park, museum or other place to give both them and yourself relief from cabin fever.

Establish and maintain friendships. Get together with other women frequently to support and encourage each other.

Cultivate a sense of humor. Try to laugh frequently. Whenever you confront stressful situations, look for the humor in them to help you relax.

Pray often. Talk with God regularly about your thoughts and feelings. Make a prayer a habit to model faith in action to your kids.

Put situations in perspective. Ask God to give you His perspective on all you’re facing so you’re not stressed unnecessarily.

Plan well. Understand that if you don’t plan your days, circumstances will end up planning them for you. Every night, draw up an action plan for the next day, spending your time and energy doing what most helps you fulfill God’s purposes for your life.

Use time well. Turn downtime (such as time spent waiting in lines or in traffic) into productive time by writing notes or reading whenever pockets of time open up for you. Exercise regularly and get eight hours of sleep each night to boost your energy. Do your shopping at odd hours to avoid crowds. Don’t hesitate to say "no" to people who ask you to do something you can’t do your best on right now. Remind yourself of your blessings often, thank God for them, and continue to rely on God’s strength to help you with whatever you need.