Joyfull Living

We're not talking finances here, but something of greater value.  A recent question from a devotion. .."What do you think is the difference between spending your life doing something and investing it in something? "  Do you have a way of regularly evaluating how productive you are being for God?  As an active part of my local church, I 'do' a lot. Along with many other church workers, we have an active church, due to those who do a lot. A recent addition of a weekly meal brought out several new and different tasks a Family Ministries team I am a part of do and love.  Food planning, shopping and preparation, connecting with many gracious volunteers turns out a fabulous meal each week.   Being a 'doer' gets things done and we often see fantastic results. But investing, that is a little different.  Where 'doing' can come easy, investing asks us to put forth a little bit more.  We lose that mode where we simply do the task and see

I love a good challenge, but usually find myself wearing out of the excitement after a few days.  Fitness challenges, eating well challenges, they help instill great habits, but I don't seem to do change very well!  Thankfully I have some good healthy habits in place, but there is always room for improvement.   Push ups....does anyone like them?  They hurt, they are boring and who wants to do them every day?  But, the more I read about their benefits, the more inclined I am to try them. They work several muscle groups, help your posture and build core strength.  An article  "Why the Push Up is the World's Greatest Exercise"  tells the great benefits and demonstrates the proper form.  So, with a new year and new fitness aspirations...I'm jumping in another 30 day challenge.  The 50 Push Up Challenge builds you up from 5 to 50 push ups in 30 days!  You can join the challenge HERE !  I can do 23 as of today without stopping!!   The exciting thing a

I will admit it, I am a neat freak.  But after raising 3 sons, I've learned to relax some.  As much as I love the accomplishment of a thoroughly clean house, no one wants to simply sit and stare at the tidiness (except me!), a home is  to be lived in .And sometimes, living is messy!   When our boys were younger, sometimes their rooms would be utter disaster areas.  Over and over I told them if they would keep things up, the room would not get in that shape.  Some took my advice, some still enjoy living in a mess until forced to make a change!  There are a few things everyone can do every day to help ensure a tidy house.  *Make Beds Make the beds every morning. Simple and easy and makes a world of difference in the way the room looks and feels. * Laundry  Right off in the morning do a load of laundry.  This means wash, dry, fold and put away.  Doing at least one load a day helps tame that laundry monster.  * Empty Trash Empty all trash cans regularly.  We

Are you a list maker?  If not, words cannot describe the feeling of accomplishment in making a check to note that a task has been done!  I love making lists, to do lists for the day, for the calendar, to record fitness goals, to simply go to town a list helps me stay on track of where I'm going and what to do when I get there!!  I am a passionate list maker! Another area of passion is words.  Words are powerful.  They can be used to uplift or to tear down. They often reveal what is in the heart. "Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. "  Words can set the tone for the day, create an atmosphere for the home or connect with a child...all for good or bad.  So often, those wonderful words lose steam once the day gets going.  A word of encouragement can quickly turn into a chastisement on the drive to school with a teenager!  Those lovely thoughts of what we want to say can disappear in the midst of dealing with unpleasant people.  Real life sit

January is the month many people put their mind to getting healthy.  By March, many are back to the old, comfortable and familiar habits!  If you have ever rode this roller coaster, you know that you don't turn into a lean, mean, clean eating machine overnight!  It takes time to go deeper than a diet, to incorporate life changing healthy habits into our lives.  That is where the lasting changes are!   This year, after a month of indulging in rich, sweet and way too much food, I want to make some changes to my diet.  A valuable resource I found is " Simple Green Smoothies".  While I have drank smoothies for years, the 'green' part used to scare me!  But I have learned to ease into it and gradually make transitions.   Some benefits of green smoothies include: 1.  Natural energy booster to keep a little pep in your step in the morning (and during those afternoon slumps). 2. Natural weight loss can be a happy side effect of gulping these in place

In December, right smack in the middle of all the 'fa la la la la', a phone call came from a son with stomach pain.  Meeting him and realizing this was no ordinary pain, we headed to the ER.  The hospital staff moved quickly, working to help manage his pain and running tests to see what the cause of it was.  We settled in for a long wait for test results and his pain was getting better.  It was just he and I and after a while, I was ready to open up and share with others what was going on.  Dear son knows me very well and warned me, do not tell this on Facebook!  Do  not take pictures, do not call any friends, etc, etc.  I got the message, this was time to stop, pray and focus on what was important.   The diagnosis was a severe case of pancreatitis and the treatment was 6 days in the hospital.  To keep family unity, I shared no Facebook status, no pictures, and learned to be still and be where I was needed.  In the process, I learned a few things.  We survived without shar

  There is just something about the New Year that make us want to be better.  When the slate is clean, such as the beginning of January, that isn't so hard.  But as days turn into weeks and the newness has worn off, it is the goals, dreams and resolutions that mean the most to us that will stand.   Marriage should be an area we want to continually see improve. Of course, that takes time, effort and loads of love!  There should never be a time we stop striving for better.  Most importantly, it is in those little areas where big changes can come.  A beautiful prayer from Marriage Prayers Today shares those everyday struggles and where to turn for overcoming help! Dear Heavenly Father. Love is holding your tongue when you’re angry, and stopping yourself when you’re about to say something you shouldn’t. It’s looking past imperfection to the find the good in your spouse. It’s patience. Love is letting go of the small stuff as you hope and pray for the best in each oth