F is for Faithfulness!
–adjective
1. strict or thorough in the performance of duty: a faithful worker.
2. true to one's word, promises, vows, etc.
3. steady in allegiance or affection; loyal; constant: faithful friends.
4. reliable, trusted, or believed.
5. adhering or true to fact, a standard, or an original; accurate: a faithful account; a faithful copy.
6. full of faith; believing.
Faithfulness is every day, constant, trustworthy, and constant.
In my current WIP, I have been attempting to highlight faithfulness, and a lack of faithfulness through the story, but I know I haven't quite shown what I want to say. My MC has spouted out a bunch of stuff about faith and doubt in her dialogue, but that is so not what I want the story to be like. So, I have to sit down and revise . . . faithfully. Of course, revising faithfully every day is a struggle for me. So, it goes around. Doubt, faith, trust, daily constance, step after step for the right direction.
Faithfulness often requires a steadiness of thought, and an active decision to stick with a project, or a person. There are times when faithfulness seems to be an uncommon blessing in our world, something rare and precious. And yet, I see it in my life daily. I just need to remember to look for it.
Blessings in Faithfulness:
1. The Lord is faithful to me. He is faithful to each of us. As a shepherd, he seeks us out even when we are lost, or in danger of jumping off a cliff of our own making.
2. The Lord works in and through His Creation to show us faithfulness. In the seasons, the orbit of the earth around the sun, the growth from seed to flower to fruit, the Lord works in and around us deeply entrenched in the daily life of His creation. There are problems of course since the fall in the garden, the world and all that live in it wait for the final redemption and return of the Lord. But in the parts of creation that continue to thrive, we see God's handiwork.
3. When we turn to the Lord and turn our lives over to Jesus, He works in us and through us, growing His fruit in our lives. One of these fruits is faithfulness.
4. My husband's faithfulness to his faith in Christ. When I see him reading his Bible, I remember to pick mine up. When I see him at work in our church, I get to work. When I see him helping someone in need without being asked and often without recognition, I remember that I don't need a plan to serve, I just need to do it. When I see him in prayer, I pray with him.
5. My husband's faithfulness to our marriage, and to me. Many, many years ago - back in the dating days - we both struggled with faithfulness in our relationship. We placed our relationship in God's hands before we married. The Lord healed us both individually and as a couple, and has blessed us with honesty, faithfulness, and trust ever since. Of course, waking up every day and giving thanks for each other and our marriage helps too. (That's that daily decision to walk in faithfulness part)
6. My husband's faithful parenting. His relationship with our daughters is sweet, precious and includes those every day moments that mean much over a lifetime. Plus, he's really fun to be with . . . if anyone is going to start a snowball fight while skiing and snowboarding, it will be him. If anyone is going to find a fun spot to ski through some trees that ends in a jump, it will be him. He's a fun Dad, and a faithful one.
7. My parents faithfulness in their marriage. Their example has guided me.
8. My in-laws faithfulness in their marriage. Their example has guided me too.
9. We have some friends whose faithful marriage shines bright with love and joy. It's awesome to see. And thankfully, I'm not just talking about one couple here, but several.
10. The faithful work and service of those who come to our church every week, especially those who serve in worship.
11. Daily writing. I am thankful that I have been able to write every day in some form or fashion, whether it's here on my blog, with my WIP, poetry, or in small journal. Writing is like food for my mind and soul.
12. The faithfulness of my dogs and my cat - ok, that seems to easy, right? But the reality is, if you've ever owned a pet and treated that pet well, they reward you with amazing amounts of faithful dedication. Our dogs and our cat follow us around the house. They meet us at the door, and sit by us when we sit. They wake us up in the morning better than any alarm, and they keep us in good exercise routines . . . or can, if we walk them every day at the same time, they'll make sure we walk.
Scripture Blessings:
"Your love, LORD, reaches to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the skies.
Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,
your justice like the great deep.
You, LORD, preserve both people and animals."
Psalm 36:5-6
“'See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.
What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.'" Matthew 18:10-14
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." Galatians 5:22-23
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
E is for Exercise and 365 Days of Blessings, Day 311
E is for Exercise!
Exercise is a blessing, whether we are stretching our writing muscles, our heart muscle, our bodies, our minds, or our souls. Exercise keeps us fully alive.
Blessings in Exercise:
1.Writing Exercises keep my writing in shape, or at least stretch my abilities.
2.Writing exercise books.
3.Walking
4.Skiing
5.Dancing
6.Kayaking/Canoeing
7.Giving time and talent in service in our community – stretches our heart muscles.
8.Bible reading, prayer, worship, and serving in our church community are all soul exercise.
9.The puzzle section in the newspaper, reading new books, and homeschooling my kids all keep my mind exercised and ready for the next adventure.
10.Singing – it’s good for the heart, mind, soul and body.
Scripture Blessings:
"For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing."
2 Timothy 4:6-8
This isn't the one I was thinking of as I wrote this post, but it was the one I found this morning . . . sometimes God provides what we need to hear, and not what we think we need/want.
Exercise is a blessing, whether we are stretching our writing muscles, our heart muscle, our bodies, our minds, or our souls. Exercise keeps us fully alive.
Blessings in Exercise:
1.Writing Exercises keep my writing in shape, or at least stretch my abilities.
2.Writing exercise books.
3.Walking
4.Skiing
5.Dancing
6.Kayaking/Canoeing
7.Giving time and talent in service in our community – stretches our heart muscles.
8.Bible reading, prayer, worship, and serving in our church community are all soul exercise.
9.The puzzle section in the newspaper, reading new books, and homeschooling my kids all keep my mind exercised and ready for the next adventure.
10.Singing – it’s good for the heart, mind, soul and body.
Scripture Blessings:
"For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing."
2 Timothy 4:6-8
This isn't the one I was thinking of as I wrote this post, but it was the one I found this morning . . . sometimes God provides what we need to hear, and not what we think we need/want.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
D is for Dance, and 365 Days of Blessings Day 310
D is for Dance!
Dance:
1. to move one's feet or body, or both, rhythmically in a pattern of steps, especially to the accompaniment of music.
2. to leap, skip, etc., as from excitement or emotion; move nimbly or quickly: to dance with joy.
From some of my earliest memories to this very day, dance is a word, and a verb, that has shaped my life. I'm not a competitive dancer, or a professional dancer, or a dance teacher. I don't have great skill, and there have been many, many years that I haven't practiced any particular type of dance. But I still love it. I love moving rythmically to music, or just to the sound of my own made up rythm. I love dancing with joy. I've even danced when I've been angry or sad, in a determined decision to dance myself back into joy. I like dancing with a crowd, or a partner, or just by myself. One of my favorite metaphors about faith involves dance. One of my favorite quotes about writing has the word dance in the midst of it.
"Writing is a dance of language." - Ivan Doig
Do you love to dance your way through life and writing too?
Dance Blessings:
1. One of my earliest memories of dancing as a child involved dancing around the living room to my mom's classical music and pretending I was with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.
2. And of course, there is this classic, that has inspired me to dance through puddles - a necessary ingredient to enjoy living in the Northwest.
3. Plus, my favorite dance from that same movie, with Donald O'Conner and Gene Kelly is Moses Supposes
4. Then, one of my more recent favorites in dance and rythm:
5. I didn't like my desire to tap dance as a kid being compared to Shirley Temple so I refused to watch all of her movies until my kids were little and did different versions of Shirley Temple dances for their first recitals. They wanted to know who she was, and so . . .I rediscovered Shirley's amazing talent with them. This is one of my favorites:
6. Baryshnikov in White Nights gives this intense performance, showing how dance can express sadness and grief:
7. Back in that early 80's breakdancing craze, I was totally into that, and loved it. However, if you want to see some pretty cool breakdancing from a more current time this lady is pretty amazing. This is a commercial clip, but I still like it:
8. There are cool Christian Hip Hop Teams, which I discovered not that long ago:
My daughters were able to take a few classes from this same teacher just a few weekends ago at a Hollywood Dance Connection Convention in Seattle. My oldest daughter loved it - the first time she's really enjoyed Hip Hop.
9. Dancing with my Dad, with my Mom and my Grandma, with my Husband, are all amazing memories for me. I love dancing with family and friends.
10. Dancing is in the Bible too, especially when there is a celebration.
Scripture Blessings:
"Then young women will dance and be glad,
young men and old as well.
I will turn their mourning into gladness;
I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow."
Jeremiah 31:13
Dance:
1. to move one's feet or body, or both, rhythmically in a pattern of steps, especially to the accompaniment of music.
2. to leap, skip, etc., as from excitement or emotion; move nimbly or quickly: to dance with joy.
From some of my earliest memories to this very day, dance is a word, and a verb, that has shaped my life. I'm not a competitive dancer, or a professional dancer, or a dance teacher. I don't have great skill, and there have been many, many years that I haven't practiced any particular type of dance. But I still love it. I love moving rythmically to music, or just to the sound of my own made up rythm. I love dancing with joy. I've even danced when I've been angry or sad, in a determined decision to dance myself back into joy. I like dancing with a crowd, or a partner, or just by myself. One of my favorite metaphors about faith involves dance. One of my favorite quotes about writing has the word dance in the midst of it.
"Writing is a dance of language." - Ivan Doig
Do you love to dance your way through life and writing too?
Dance Blessings:
1. One of my earliest memories of dancing as a child involved dancing around the living room to my mom's classical music and pretending I was with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.
2. And of course, there is this classic, that has inspired me to dance through puddles - a necessary ingredient to enjoy living in the Northwest.
3. Plus, my favorite dance from that same movie, with Donald O'Conner and Gene Kelly is Moses Supposes
4. Then, one of my more recent favorites in dance and rythm:
5. I didn't like my desire to tap dance as a kid being compared to Shirley Temple so I refused to watch all of her movies until my kids were little and did different versions of Shirley Temple dances for their first recitals. They wanted to know who she was, and so . . .I rediscovered Shirley's amazing talent with them. This is one of my favorites:
6. Baryshnikov in White Nights gives this intense performance, showing how dance can express sadness and grief:
7. Back in that early 80's breakdancing craze, I was totally into that, and loved it. However, if you want to see some pretty cool breakdancing from a more current time this lady is pretty amazing. This is a commercial clip, but I still like it:
8. There are cool Christian Hip Hop Teams, which I discovered not that long ago:
My daughters were able to take a few classes from this same teacher just a few weekends ago at a Hollywood Dance Connection Convention in Seattle. My oldest daughter loved it - the first time she's really enjoyed Hip Hop.
9. Dancing with my Dad, with my Mom and my Grandma, with my Husband, are all amazing memories for me. I love dancing with family and friends.
10. Dancing is in the Bible too, especially when there is a celebration.
Scripture Blessings:
"Then young women will dance and be glad,
young men and old as well.
I will turn their mourning into gladness;
I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow."
Jeremiah 31:13
C is for Courage, and 365 Days of Blessings Day 309
C is for C-C-C-Courage!
When I hear the word courage, it is inevitably linked with the Cowardly Lion in the Wizard of Oz movie. He attempts to scare Dorothy, the Tinman, and the Scarecrow in the forest, but he is really scared of them. He wants courage so he can be the King of the Forest. So he joins them on their quest, and finds courage in himself. The Badge of Courage he gets at the end of the movie is really a celebration that he has found his courage while adventuring with Dorothy, finding the courage to help Dorothy and his friends. To see the Cowardly Lion as he struggles with his courage, check out this link: Cowardly Lion meeting the Wizard of Oz
However, another Lion I think of when I hear the word Courage, is the Lion of Judah. Jesus Christ, the fulfillment of OT prophecies, was the Lion of Judah. His unexpected submission to the cross still amazes the world today, but yet, it took courage for him to decide in the Garden of Gethsename, "Thy will be done." He gave himself for each one of us, a Lion turned into a willing Lamb of God.
Courage:
–noun
the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery.
—Idiom
2. have the courage of one's convictions, to act in accordance with one's beliefs, especially in spite of criticism.
For today's 10 Blessings, I'm picking 10 out of the many real life characters, and fictional characters who stand out to me at this moment for having courage:
1. The apostle Paul, found in the Bible.
2. The missionaries of today who live in many countries around the world. Today, I'm especially thinking of the Kraft Family in South America. Each person in their family from age 7 to age 40ish acts and lives in a missionary.
3. Stephen, in the book of Acts.
4. My dad, who has lived life fully even with a lifelong disability.
5. My mom, and she knows why.
And in fiction
6. Creel, in Dragon Slippers.
7. Bilbo, in The Hobbit.
8. Ender, in Ender's Game.
9. Lucy, in Prince Caspian.
10. Marcus, in the Farworld series.
Scripture Blessings:
"Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, 'O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.'" Matthew 26:42
Sunday Blessings, 365 Days of Blessings Day 308
On Sundays, we take a break from the A to Z Challenge, so I'll be celebrating some random blessings today with no theme, no limit! :-)
1. Quiet mornings.
2. Two dogs and one cat excitedly purring and rubbing up against me for morning love, and taking turns . . . mostly.
3. The game Sorry!
4. Re-organizing some old videos so that I have a bookshelf dedicated to Worship and Music, and Homeschool Co-Op teaching - my working shelf, so to speak. This now separates our fun reads, and our general homeshool books and materials from materials I use for the volunteering and teaching I get to do. Hopefully this will help streamline my time, and allow for more sanity in keeping track of my papers.
5. A recognition of a need for a writing shelf. If the "working" shelf were bigger, I could put my writing books and notebooks on there too, but it's a half-shelf, a leftover from my college days when I couldn't carry a truckload of books with me everywhere. So now, I have plans for an Ikea trip. :D
6. Night reading. I love reading to my kids and our family at night. I have read many books that state that reading out loud is a healthy and mind-stretching activity at any age, and have experienced that to be true. We read serious, homeschool books both aloud and silently during the days, but at night we read for imaginative fun, and enjoyment. Plus, we read our Bibles out loud too. It means that I read out loud sometimes for an hour, but I wouldn't trade that time for anything else.
7. Waking up when the sky is dark and the house is quiet, except for the ticking of a clock, the beating of our dogs' tails against hard floors and the soft purrs of our cat.
8. We were given a wooden dollhouse nearly six years ago, and now my daughters are ready to give it away to another little girl, someone they thought of right away when they decided to pass it on.
9. We organized our garage sale piles yesterday. We have a big box of Barbies, and Barbie accessories including a car, a few dress up items, baby dolls and stuffed animals, a crate full of fun books, and a crate full of educational books. We're ready to give this all to the lady in charge of our dance academy garage sale, which will benefit our dance academy. My daughters are actually happy about giving this stuff away, and picked it all out and organized the toys themselves. I was amazed, especially when my youngest said, "I like my shelves and my room better now. I can see everything, and it looks pretty." They've inspired me to work on my own organizational projects. (On a side note, this does not mean I expect my kids to give away all their toys, or their meaningful ones any time soon. I still have some old stuffed animals and a doll from my childhood sitting on a shelf, and see nothing wrong with keeping those memorable lovies. I even have a few old toy cars, some wind up toys, and some dog-eared Star Wars cards.)
10. Today is the Lord's day, and I am thankful for being alive!
Scripture Blessings:
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13
1. Quiet mornings.
2. Two dogs and one cat excitedly purring and rubbing up against me for morning love, and taking turns . . . mostly.
3. The game Sorry!
4. Re-organizing some old videos so that I have a bookshelf dedicated to Worship and Music, and Homeschool Co-Op teaching - my working shelf, so to speak. This now separates our fun reads, and our general homeshool books and materials from materials I use for the volunteering and teaching I get to do. Hopefully this will help streamline my time, and allow for more sanity in keeping track of my papers.
5. A recognition of a need for a writing shelf. If the "working" shelf were bigger, I could put my writing books and notebooks on there too, but it's a half-shelf, a leftover from my college days when I couldn't carry a truckload of books with me everywhere. So now, I have plans for an Ikea trip. :D
6. Night reading. I love reading to my kids and our family at night. I have read many books that state that reading out loud is a healthy and mind-stretching activity at any age, and have experienced that to be true. We read serious, homeschool books both aloud and silently during the days, but at night we read for imaginative fun, and enjoyment. Plus, we read our Bibles out loud too. It means that I read out loud sometimes for an hour, but I wouldn't trade that time for anything else.
7. Waking up when the sky is dark and the house is quiet, except for the ticking of a clock, the beating of our dogs' tails against hard floors and the soft purrs of our cat.
8. We were given a wooden dollhouse nearly six years ago, and now my daughters are ready to give it away to another little girl, someone they thought of right away when they decided to pass it on.
9. We organized our garage sale piles yesterday. We have a big box of Barbies, and Barbie accessories including a car, a few dress up items, baby dolls and stuffed animals, a crate full of fun books, and a crate full of educational books. We're ready to give this all to the lady in charge of our dance academy garage sale, which will benefit our dance academy. My daughters are actually happy about giving this stuff away, and picked it all out and organized the toys themselves. I was amazed, especially when my youngest said, "I like my shelves and my room better now. I can see everything, and it looks pretty." They've inspired me to work on my own organizational projects. (On a side note, this does not mean I expect my kids to give away all their toys, or their meaningful ones any time soon. I still have some old stuffed animals and a doll from my childhood sitting on a shelf, and see nothing wrong with keeping those memorable lovies. I even have a few old toy cars, some wind up toys, and some dog-eared Star Wars cards.)
10. Today is the Lord's day, and I am thankful for being alive!
Scripture Blessings:
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13
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