My daughter is home from college for Thanksgiving this week. My senior is off this week as well. I’m taking this week off to spend as much family time as possible, so I won’t be posting anything. I hope you find this holiday full of things to be thankful for. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂
Yesterday was a really busy day at the school where I work. It was our annual Thanksgiving Feast celebration and we had close to a thousand people signed up to come and eat. There were people checking in and out all day long with very little down time.
On top of that, it had been a long week. It had rained all week long, pouring rain, and we had flash flood watches and river flooding watches. I hadn’t seen the sun in days. By Thursday, I really just longed to be home on my couch, underneath a blanket.
On that previous Sunday, when we returned from church, there had been a gift leaning up against my garage door. It was an Advent Calendar with a big Santa Clause on it. I knew immediately who it was from, but I wondered how it got there.
An elderly widow lived across the street from us from the time we bought our house until last summer, when she announced to us she was moving into a retirement community. She had shared with that me she was lonely and she was ready to move. She told me with a twinkle in her eye that she had heard that place was just like living in a sorority house. I was so sad to see her go, but really happy for her.
She bought my kids Advent Calendars our very first Christmas in our new home and continued every year well into their teenage years. I hadn’t thought much about this year until I saw it and the card she included brought tears to my eyes. She said she thought my son might enjoy one last Advent Calendar before he went off to college.
Her thoughtfulness and kindness really touched my heart and I gave thanks for her influence on my childrens’ lives. She certainly didn’t have to be so kind to them, but she always was. She was an inspiration to me and I prayed that God would show me opportunities to show kindness to others when I didn’t have to.
Yesterday, at the end of the day, I walked down to a classroom to get some kiddos to check out. The office was packed and there were some classes in transition and I was grateful for the escape. I walked purposefully to my destination holding a radio in my hand and after I found the teacher, I headed back.
But, as I headed towards the office, a kindergartener stopped me. She was at the water fountain trying to fill her water bottle. She asked me if I could loosen the top for her. That Advent Calendar blazed across my mind as a teacher came down the hall and offered to help her. I smiled, put the walkie underneath my arm and told her that was okay, I loosened the top and handed it back to her. The little girl beamed and thanked me as she walked back to the fountain.
God has often spoken to me through children. I think they are sometimes beacons for Jesus. It didn’t occur to the little girl that I was tired, or in a hurry, or that I had something in my hand. She was thirsty and she needed assistance, so she asked and I was given the opportunity that I had prayed for.
I was humbled and thankful. A little girl and an Advent Calendar reminded me that as we travel through Thanksgiving and head towards Advent that our aching world is filled with opportunities to be kind, and that if we prayerfully keep watch, God will show us the way. Perhaps you needed reminding too.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂
Thanksgiving is early this year. The latest it can be is November 28th and the earliest is November 22nd. I don’t know what makes it fluctuate, but since I am someone who looks for God’s fingerprints in the world around me, I suspect this year’s early arrival was Divine intervention.
This year’s little midterm elections which are usually a blip on the screen, were particularly ugly and contentious with an extra helping of accusations of cheating from both sides of the aisle. There are several states who have people in key races who have refused to concede, including my own, and once again, the state of Florida has some major voting issues, leaving the country in limbo.
We are clearly divided as a nation, yet there are some things that tend to bring us together. Thanksgiving is one of them.
It’s a uniquely American holiday that calls on us to stop what we are doing; this means working for most of us, but maybe specifically this year, fighting with each other, come together, and give thanks for all we have and let’s face it, we have a lot.
The vast majority of us have electricity, roofs over our heads, clean water and plenty to eat. Even our poorest, have more than those in other parts of the world. Sure, we can absolutely do better and we should definitely strive to do so, but we have no doubt, been blessed.
We have the goal of educating every child in this country, regardless of their sex, race or religion. The American dream is still a shining beacon to those who seek to work for it.
We are free to worship in the way that we see fit here, something that we tend to take for granted. It’s easy to forget that Christians in some parts of the world are killed or tortured everyday for acknowledging their belief in Jesus.
Division has often been a part of American life. From our nation’s birth, with the Loyalists and the Patriots, to the North verses the South, to the Civil Rights Movement that rocked us, but eventually made us stronger, we have always disagreed with each other.
But, in the end, we have always come back together. May this early Thanksgiving remind us how much we actually have in common and Who we have to thank for it, because in the end, acknowledging the Who, can unite us all.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂
Today we observe Veteran’s Day in the United States. It was first commemorated on November 11, 1919 because of an armistice, or cease-fire in World War I, occurred in the eleventh hour, on the eleventh day, in the eleventh month. World War I was known as the war to end all wars. The day was set aside to honor the soldiers who fought in that war as well as to honor the peace that had been secured.
There are other allied countries who also celebrate Armistice Day, most notably France.
Sadly, in 1939, World War II began and the Korean Conflict occurred after that. Next there was Vietnam and most recently, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. World War I was clearly not the war to end all wars. In 1954, President Eisenhower designated November 11th as Veteran’s Day, a day when all Americans of all wars, would be honored for their service to our country.
According to the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs, there were 20.4 million veterans living in the United States, as of 2016. That’s less than ten percent of the adult population. That’s a very small amount of people who have done a huge amount of work and made great personal sacrifices to guarantee our everyday freedoms and safety that we all too often take for granted.
According to the Census, in 2014, 3.8 million had a service connected disability. Another estimate of the Department of Veteran’s Affairs, is that 31% of Vietnam Veterans, 10% of Gulf War Veterans and 11% of Afghanistan Veterans suffer from PTSD. These men and women are carrying around emotional scars with them that others can’t even see, that can interfere with their jobs, relationships, health and their well being in general.
As I read all of these statistics, I feel particularly humbled at the thought that our military is strictly volunteer. We haven’t had a draft since 1973, yet these brave men and women, volunteer their lives to serve and possibly fight and die, for an ideal so precious and so much bigger than they are.
As we take this day to remember our veterans, let’s say a prayer of thanks for their service as well as for the sacrifice of their families and loved ones. But, let’s also pray for healing. For some of them, their physical service may have ended, but their emotional war continues.
We are so very blessed in this country. Let’s pray that those blessings will extend specifically to those who have fought to insure all that we have.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂
One of my favorite first graders came into the office today. I turned around in my chair and he was standing there in front of the clinic. The nurse had stepped out for a minute and I asked him what he needed. He told me his clothes were soaking wet.
Now, I love to hear this kid tell a story, so I asked him what happened. I was not disappointed. He went into a long narrative about how he had been on the slide, not the little kids’ slide, but the one for the upper grades. Everything was really wet, so he was sliding very slowly, and when he reached the bottom, he tried to turn to the left really quickly, but he wasn’t fast enough and fell into a puddle.
There are some kids who would have come into the office crying about being all wet. There are some who would have been mad. But, this one just wanted to change into some dry clothes so he could get back to the business of playing, and as soon as his story was done, he wanted to move quickly.
I helped him find some pants and then the nurse returned and she helped him with a shirt. He was out of there in no time flat, headed back to the playground.
I thought about that first grader for the rest of the day and I smiled every time I thought of him. I thought about how he openly told me about his failed attempt on the slide. He wasn’t embarrassed. He wasn’t mad or sad. It was simply a miscalculation and I suspect he would try it again. I also thought about how playing was his intent and he wasn’t going to let anything get in his way.
We can learn a lot from first grade logic.
We all try things that we fail at. They can be anything from a class, or a new business, or baking, or even relationships. We sometimes fail miserably, but even when we get all wet and covered with mud, are we willing to dry off and try again or are we too embarrassed and just give up? Do we see failure as a simple miscalculation or do we see it as a commentary on our character? How often do we let pride get in the way of our success?
As people of faith, we can pray for guidance and if we get a green light, try again, always remembering nothing is impossible with God.
A first grader reminded me we should always keep trying, if it’s important. Perhaps you needed reminding too.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂
Yesterday morning, my daily devotional was about the sunrise. It posed the question, that if you had spent your entire life in darkness and finally saw a sunrise, wouldn’t you believe it was a miracle? It went on to point out that, we experience brushes with the miraculous everyday, but we shrug them off because they have become everyday and mundane to us.
I was determined to take those words to heart as I headed off to work. Unfortunately, it was raining, but I kept my eyes peeled. The skies were gray for most of the day and at one point it was pouring, but in the afternoon, it began to clear and the sun came out.
When I walked out of work, it was a gorgeous warm afternoon. I knew I had to take a walk when I got home, even though my to-do list was a mile long.
When I got outside, my heart felt light for the first time in days and I marveled at the fall leaves. It seemed that they had turned colors overnight. How had I missed that little miracle?
As I continued to walk, I really took in all of the different colors and thought about how creative God is. Spring has always been my favorite season. I love to see life and beauty burst forth from what had previously been dormant. But, the leaves around me were just as stunning as the spring flowers are.
As I continued to walk and appreciate the miraculous, and give thanks for it, I felt a truth bubbling up in my heart.
Letting go can be beautiful. Just look at the leaves.
We tend to hold onto so many things we don’t need. My pastor recently said that Americans use two billion square feet for storage in forty thousand storage facilities and that doesn’t even count attics and basements. We used to have megabytes. Then there were gigabytes. Now we have terabytes.
We hold onto a lot of stuff both physically and virtually. We also tend to hold onto a lot of emotional baggage too. But, maybe we should all learn a lesson from the leaves and let some things go. We may find that something beautiful happens.
A seasonal miracle reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂
When this is published, it will be the day before election day. I am bone tired of hearing about it as I’m sure you probably are as well. Unfortunately, the Peach State, which happens to be where I’ve been a lifelong resident, has become the focus of the entire country.
Normally, no one cares about who our governor is, but not this year. This year millions and millions of dollars have been poured into our state to influence our election, by folks who don’t even live here. I wonder how many hungry kids could have been fed with that money, or how many veterans could have received much needed benefits, or how many struggling citizens could have received job training?
I can’t turn on the television, or the radio, or scroll through my Facebook page without someone giving their two cents worth about this election. At this point, is there seriously anyone who is on the fence about their vote, yet the barrage on weary Georgians continues.
My hubby and I were discussing it on the way to church and I told him if I could crawl into a cave somewhere and sleep for the next few days, I would. He agreed.
But, our pastor addressed the issue at church and she had a better solution. She acknowledged the negativity and the weariness and she reminded us that ultimately, whatever the outcome, God is in control and she recommended a prayer to deal with all of the negativity. Though it was familiar to me, I hadn’t prayed it in quite a while.
But, as we prayed is as a church, I felt some peace seeping into my weary soul. It’s the prayer of St. Francis:
“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love. Where there is injury, pardon, where there is doubt, faith, where there is despair, hope, where there is darkness, light, and where there is sadness, joy. O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console; to be understood, as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.”
As a people of God, this election is a huge opportunity to pray for our nation as well as our individual states. May we ask for God’s continued guidance and grace and that His will be done. The Bible tells us that He hears all of our prayers. Let’s choose to remember that.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂
I have been having some technical difficulties and have no post today. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂
We have just finished a contest at work, where we count and record our daily steps. We are in teams of four and the winning team will be announced today. I can’t even begin to explain how grateful I am that it’s over. I was not pressured in any way, to participate, but for some reason, I joined a team at the last minute.
I don’t own a pedometer or one of those watches that track every move you make, so I downloaded an app on my phone to record my steps. Looks like there really is an app for everything.
I learned early on, that I wasn’t making nearly as many steps as many of the other people in the contest and worst of all, I usually had the lowest number on my team and so, I made sure, I carried my phone with me all of the time. If I got up to make a copy, I took the phone. If I delivered something to a classroom, I took the phone. If I went to the bathroom, I took the phone. When I got home in the afternoon and did laundry, I carried the phone up and down the stairs and I lamented if it needed to be charged, because I couldn’t count my steps.
I was completely aware that the contest was just for fun and my teammates never once, said anything about my few steps, but I put the pressure on myself.
When Monday morning arrived and I realized that I could put my phone on my desk for the day and leave it there, I felt a rush of sweet freedom. For the next couple of days, I truly felt like I had laid a burden down and while I chuckled at myself at the absurdity of my feelings of newfound freedom, it got me to thinking about what else I might need to lay down.
What other unnecessary burdens am I currently carrying that might be weighing down my soul? We can carry things like unresolved anger or pain, or guilt and shame over past mistakes, or the illusion that we can control the world around us. We can even carry things like constant, nagging worry over things we have no control over.
Like that pesky cell phone I couldn’t put down, we can carry those things every step of the way, everyday, in the morning, in the evening, at home, at work, never putting them down.
But, Jesus calls us to a different path. “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.” Matthew 11:28-30
Jesus calls us to lay down our baggage and trust Him. We don’t need it and we can truly be free once we do. A contest reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂
As I sit typing out this post, I find myself wanting to shut off all media. There was a horrible shooting at a Pittsburgh Synagogue over the weekend, that left eleven people dead. Killing people in their house of worship is almost unfathomable, except that it’s not. In Sutherland Springs, Texas, in 2017, twenty-six people were killed during a worship service. In 2015, nine were killed in a church in Charleston, South Carolina, during their worship service.
As I ponder these horrible events, it makes no difference to my heavy heart, that one assembly was Jewish; one was predominately white and one was predominately African American. These were all people who worship my Judeo-Christian God, Jehovah, Yahweh, El Shaddai I Am, Father, Abba. He has many names.
Not surprisingly, the politicians seemed to waste no time in spinning the most recent tragedy to their benefit.
There’s so much division in our country right now over politics. The television ads have gotten so bad, that I’m tempted to watch Nextflix until after the election. Quite frankly, I’m tired of hearing all of the negativity that the candidates are engaged in tearing each other down and the amount of money they are spending to do it, makes me sick to my stomach. Shame on all of them for the frivolous use of funds.
It seems to me, that the attack that we need to be most concerned about at the moment, is the one occurring to God’s people. It’s really not about blue or red. It’s about hate and both blue and red have plenty of that to sling around.
As much as I want to withdraw from it all, I believe as a child of God, that I am called to counter it. The only way to defeat darkness is with light and so I’m writing to remind my readers and myself, that there’s clearly a spiritual battle going one here that’s much deeper than anything we can humanly see or understand.
That’s the only way to explain the hate that seems to be spewing forth from every direction. Hate does not come from God. Darkness does not come from God. The Bible tells us that: “God is light and in him there is no darkness at all.” 1 John 1:5
The Bible reminds us that there have always been ongoing spiritual battles and we should put on the Armor of God to shield ourselves. Ephesians 6:10-18 It also assures us that in the end, no matter how lost everything seems, God wins.
There is no possibility of a loss, or even a tie, of this we can be absolutely certain.
Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too. Please join me in praying for the victims in Pittsburgh and for the future of our country.
Prayer is the most powerful and effective weapon we have.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂