I have two grandsons 10 weeks apart in age. These cousins constantly measure themselves against each other. They both want to be the tallest, but of course they have no control over their height.
Thankfully, spiritual growth is not like physical growth. We do have some control over our maturity. Although only the Holy Spirit can bring spiritual transformation, He won’t do it without our obedient cooperation.
This time of year is perfect for evaluation and goal setting. Think this sounds too analytical to be “spiritual?”...
Some of my electronic devices have an option to return to the original factory settings. I think this option is only deployed in desperate times, when the device has gotten so messed up that the easiest way to fix it is to just start fresh. There’s usually a warning as you start to engage the reset button, because it WILL erase, unrecoverably, whatever is stored there that didn’t come from the factory—photos taken, documents written, etc.
Sometimes I wish there was a “factory reset” button for humans...
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The dead of winter leaves many disheartened. SAD (seasonal affective disorder) is a form of depression my own friends and family struggle with annually. At times they don’t even feel like they’re part of the ‘land of the living’, wanting only to hunker down and hibernate until spring. But for many, SAD symptoms can improve by engaging with the ‘land of the living’, refusing to pull the covers over your head. Others find relief through light therapy because sunlight is lacking during winter’s shorter days....
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At a critical time in my life a Christian movie about love and godly marriage was produced and made it into theaters. The Kendrick brothers’ Fireproof movie of 2008 spoke to me, and I was ‘all in’ with their accompanying book, The Love Dare. The film’s main character journeys through this 40-day challenge as his marriage is dissolving. God changes his heart and saves his marriage! Better than Hallmark!
I have re-visited my “Love Dare” book repeatedly over the past 15 years...
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I am lucky that I am a creature of habit. I don’t usually do things randomly. I like to have a plan and I’m pretty good at sticking with the plan. A habit is “a settled or regular tendency or practice.” Habits are the things we do again and again until they become such a part of our life that we don’t even notice we are doing them. So it seems to me that a key to living a healthy life is to establish some healthy habits for both the body and the soul. One “body” habit that I have settled on...
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Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad, Joyeux Noel, Krismasi Njema, Boldog Karácsonyt!
As this greeting is translated into different languages the meaning is slightly different, yet very much the same. In English the word merry means cheerful or happy...
It’s that time of year -- when we all are thinking about weight loss, making resolutions, and putting together a strategy to do something about it.
Body & Soul® instructors are primed to help, especially with recent training. At the 2022 RECHARGE™ annual training convention for Body & Soul® instructors, education focus on the hips took a surprising and interesting turn in the “Fat or Phat” session...
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When I was growing up our family had many Christmas traditions that filled our hearts with joy. I loved helping with the decorating, and my Mom had many beautiful things that we unpacked and placed each in its own special spot. My favorite was the manger scene. It was breakable, so each piece was placed with care on our mantle, telling the story of the true meaning of Christmas - Jesus came to earth to save us from our sins on the first Christmas day. God with us, Emmanuel....
Christmas is such a wonderful time of year! Trimming the tree, sipping hot cocoa, shopping for loved ones, taking late night drives to look at Christmas lights… it’s truly the season of giving!
That’s certainly what many of us think of when we approach the holiday season. But there’s a flipside to that...
