dogs eat grass

Dogs eating grass is like humans consuming mint: natural remedies for an upset stomach. It doesn’t really matter the form albeit gum, candy, tea for humans or grass for the canines; all work to settle the stomach. I say keep some mint products on hand just in case and if you own a dog; you can do like some dog lovers do and have a patch of grass inside for your man’s best friend’s ingestion.

So what is it that turns your stomach? What gets under your skin that it literally makes you sick?

We should think about the atrocities of the world then pick a few that we can do something about. Poverty/starvation, human trafficking, and caring for orphans and widows should be at the top of all our lists.

“…visit orphans and widows in their distress…” James 1.27

We can’t do everything for everyone but we can do something for one.

Sponsor a child, bring food bags to give to the homeless or to fill a food pantry, volunteer your time and give a listening ear to those in need.

What other ideas is God bringing to your heart and mind? Do share in the comments.

The point is an upset stomach should remind us there is so much need. Purpose in your heart to help those who can not help themselves. If we each do our small part, then all will be reached and we will truly…

be.the.church

“Give freely and spontaneously. Don’t have a stingy heart. The way you handle matters like this triggers God, your God’s, blessing in everything you do, all your work and ventures. There are always going to be poor and needy people among you. So I command you: Always be generous, open purse and hands, give to your neighbours in trouble, your poor and hurting neighbours.” Deuteronomy‬ ‭15:10-11‬ ‭MSG‬‬

pennies from heaven*

My daughter-in-law loves donuts. She was having a bit of a down day. Now I am not promoting eating for comfort or suggesting you eat your sorrows away but every once in awhile a donut just hits the spot and helps you focus on the here and now. So I was determined to get her a special treat that day.

I was leaving church before her and my son. I also planned on stopping to get her (and us) some crispy chicken too (which she also loves) but like I said, I was leaving church which means it is a Sunday which means the best crispy chicken around to get would come from Chick-fil-a and it being the Lord’s day means…they are closed! Ahhhh!

Well, easy fix as she also loves Schwans chicken fries (and by the way, they have THE best ice cream in our opinion so see if a truck deliver is in your area – if not, I recommend you flag one down and try all their frozen treats). I decided I would go home to bake some of those but first a stop to get her a treat.

Back to donuts… she likes authentic donuts.

No offense but not the likes from chain donut shops or boxed in the grocery store and if truth be told and I had the time, I would have high tailed it up to Portland, Maine to go to the Holy Donut for delightful creations made from potato flour. Sweet potato flour donuts are particularly a yummy option. Try them if you ever get a chance.

I did a quick search to see what specialty donut shops could be found in our area and found a food truck was listed as one of the best.

Since it was literally down the street from where I was, I was off and so excited as apple cider donuts are a favorite of hers too.

I was delighted to see the truck parked outside the sports shoppe and even more delighted to smell the cinnamon and sugar in the air.

But, my excitement soon faded as their credit card reader was acting up so cash only was the option and I didn’t have any. The nice donut cooker behind the counter informed me an ATM was inside the store but I hadn’t brought my extended wallet and only had my license and a credit card on hand. I told her why I was there hoping she might have some sympathy and give me at least a donut hole to bring home but no.

So, I walked back to the car a little deflated and hoping to find at least enough coinage inside for one donut for her that I would gladly want to share but would tell her she didn’t have to today.

I was pretty sure there was no paper cash in the car and they would not accept a check. I was also pretty sure that the coin holder didn’t have much left after a recent raid for a parking meter.

And then, it happened!

As I walked back to the car, I saw a shiny nickel on the ground and thought that’s a start. I immediately recalled a local shop for their 50th anniversary that sold donuts at their original selling price of $.05 cents!

I smiled as normally one only sees pennies forgotten on the ground and was surprised I had found a whole nickel. Then I saw another coin…it was larger and a quarter and then I smiled knowing more coins would be found and before I even finished that thought there was another quarter and a dime and then a penny and another and another. And I thought, these coins truly are pennies from heaven.

I smiled knowing the coin holder in the car surely would have enough to add to those coins found splattered all over the parking lot ground.

Before I even got to the car to check though, I thanked God for sending me some pennies from heaven.

I did wonder however how they got there. Did someone leave them on their car? Was there an unknown hole in someone’s pocket? Why hadn’t others picked them up as they walked by? It made no sense as the parking lot was jam-packed and it wasn’t just pennies on the ground.

Again, I just smiled knowing they were left there for me as God knew I didn’t want to go home empty handed as I already told I would be bringing home a special treat. And I also thought I would have bought way more than we needed to eat if the credit card had been an option.

What’s the point? Every day I am certain we miss some of the little treasures God sends our way (pennies from heaven if you will) so keep an eye out. Some may say it was just coincidence I found those coins but I say there is no such thing as coincidence but rather God incidents!

Just one donut today to remind us that God is in the details and He was literally paying for that special treat for me to bring home to my sweet daughter in love as I like to say and call her.

Just one today to remind us He will provide just what we need – no more – no less.

Just one today that literally was paid for with those ‘pennies from heaven.’

So the next time you see a coin on the ground, pick it up. Think of this story and who knows maybe you will find enough to purchase a treat too. Then, I suggest you give it away and pay it forward for those pennies from heaven are not meant for you to keep.

be.the.church

*this was actually the first blog entry I wrote last year and the beginning inspiration of desiring to write a blog a day. Here I am almost half way through year one living out my theme word for the year – diligence.

“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might…”. Ecclesiastes 9.10

to infinity and beyond

Have you thought much about eternity?

Our finite minds have a hard time wrapping around the thought of forever.

When we look at ancient sites, we think “Wow, that’s old!” or if we know someone who is in their 90s or older, we look on in disbelief congratulating them for their old age.

When the earth was first created, I believe man lived much longer then and I, for one, can’t imagine being Methuselah who is the recorded oldest man in the Bible clocking in at 969 years. (Gen 5.27) Imagine living almost a millennium! I have an aunt who lived till she was 104 just a few days shy of her 105th birthday and oh the changes she had seen in living over a century! That is a long time and hard to wrap our finite minds around.

Well, back to eternity – can we really understand this side of heaven?

I don’t think so least not completely, but it is good to contemplate what is next and where you are going so you are ready to meet your maker.

Some believe everyone goes to heaven – reminds of the kids movie title All Dogs go to Heaven. I really don’t think that is the case for dogs or humans.

I also believe there is only one way to have salvation, which is to be forgiven from sin and confident that heaven will be your final destination, and that is by believing in the Lord Jesus Christ come to earth as our Savior and who is sitting on the right hand of Father God waiting for His soon coming return.

I know this may not be the popular view nor politically correct. Some may say there are many paths to eternity but I politely disagree and pray all find the right path before their time here is up.

I am not sure what heaven will look like or what we will do, but I for one am looking forward to the return of Christ when we are caught up in the sky to meet Him if I have not already passed over to the other side.

Will we live on a new earth that will be heaven?

What will we do?

I can be curious and wonder but I know that I know that I know, one day soon I will be off to infinity and beyond!

I can’t wait to see Jesus face to face. Be ready to meet your maker as the time is drawing nigh that every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Can I get an amen!

“Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” Revelation 21:1-8 NIV

Believe and share these things so others can join us to…

be.the.church

without spot or wrinkle…

you are special

You are Special is a board book by Max Lucado we read to our children when they were young. I have resurrected it and have been using it in ministry.

Before reading on, what do you think this book will be about?

I hope he or his publisher don’t mind that I am posting its text here. It is a story worth reading, sharing, and using to help others see their worth and be reminded that others’ opinions should not be weighed more than our heavenly Father’s. Go buy yourself a copy. In the meantime, here’s the story minus the whimsical illustrations of Sergio Martinez.

“The Wemmicks were small wooden people carved by a woodworker named Eli.

Each Wemmick was different. Some had big noses, others had large eyes. Some were tall and others were short.

Each Wemmick had a box of golden star stickers and gray dot stickers. The wooden people went around the village sticking stars or dots on one another.

The pretty ones got stars. Wemmicks with rough wood or chipped paint got dots.
The talented ones got stars, too. Some could jump over tall boxes or sing pretty songs. Others, though, could do little. They got dots.

Punchinello was one of these.

He tried to jump high like others, but he always fell. So the Wemmicks would give him dots.

When he tried to explain why he fell, he would say something silly, so the Wemmicks would give him more dots.

“He deserves lots of dots,” the wooden people would say. After a while Punchinello believed them. “I guess I’m not a good Wemmick,” he decided. So he stayed inside most of the time.

When he did go outside, he hung around other Wemmicks who had lots of dots. He felt better around them.

One day he met a different kind of Wemmick named Lucia. She had no dots or stars.

The Wemmicks admired Lucia for having no dots, so they would give her a star. But it would fall off. Others gave her a dot for having no stars. But it wouldn’t stay either.

That’s the way I want to be
“It’s easy,” she replied. “Every day I go visit Eli the woodcarver.”

“Why?”

“You’ll find out if you go see Him.” Then Lucia turned and skipped away.

“But will He want to see me?” Punchinello wondered. Later, at home, he sat and watched the wooden people giving each other stars and dots. “It’s not right,” he muttered to himself. And he decided to go see Eli.

Punchinello walked up the narrow path and stepped into Eli’s shop. His eyes grew big. The stool was as tall as he was. He had to stretch on tiptoe to see the top of the workbench.

Punchinello swallowed hard. “I’m not staying here!” Then he heard his name.

“Punchinello?” The voice was deep and strong. “How good to see you. Come – let Me have a look at you.”

Punchinello looked up. “You know my name?”

“Of course. I made you.”
Eli picked him up and set him on the bench. “Looks like you’ve been given some bad marks,” said The Maker.

“I didn’t mean to, Eli. I really tried hard.”

“Punchinello, I don’t care what the other Wemmicks think.”

“You don’t?”

“No. You shouldn’t either. What they think doesn’t matter. All that matters is what I think. And I think you are pretty special.”

Punchinello laughed. “Me, special? Why? I’m not very talented and my paint is peeling. Why do I matter to you?”

Eli spoke very slowly. “Because you’re mine. That’s why you matter to Me.”

Punchinello didn’t know what to say.

“Every day I’ve been hoping you’d come,” Eli explained.

“I came because I met Lucia,” said Punchinello. “Why don’t the stickers stay on her?”

The maker spoke softly. “Because she has decided that what I think is more important than what others think. The stickers only stick if you let them.”

“What?”

“The stickers only stick if they matter to you. The more you trust My love, the less you care about their stickers.”

“I’m not sure I understand.”

Eli smiled. “You will, but it will take time. For now, come to see Me every day and let Me remind you how much I care.”

Eli lifted Punchinello off the bench and set him on the ground.

“Remember,” Eli said as Punchinello was leaving, “you are special because I made you. And I don’t make mistakes.”

Punchinello didn’t stop, but in his heart he thought, I think He really means it.

And when he did, a dot fell to the ground.“

It is a great story, isn’t it? Let’s ponder some of its lessons.

What are the grey dots that others have labeled you with?

Punchinello believed what others said of him and let it become his identity.

Is there something others have labeled you with and it has become a part of your own identity?

Think about Lucia. Why was she different?

Any guesses what her name means?

It comes from Luz meaning light and Punchinello literally means punch. If you are called a punchinello, you are a short, stout, comical-looking person.

We don’t want to be punchinellos and just take what the world sees. We need to be God’s light like Lucia.

Those who got dots probably gave more dots out because as the old saying goes: hurt people hurt people. But, that is not how God called us to be.

Let’s talk about Eli – The Creator, The Maker, The only one who’s opinion matters. It was like that in the book and it is like that with us and The Lord of lords and King of kings. We are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139), let’s live as if we believe it.

Let’s also speak life.

Be kind.

And…

be.the.church by remembering:

“Life and death are in the power of the tongue.” Proverbs 18.21

Don’t put marks on others – sparkle and shine by using your tongue for kindness!

What other verses or lessons can we apply to this story? Would love to hear your thoughts. Please comment below.

wait for the sale

I am sure you know that items sold in stores usually have a huge mark up. Just wait for the sale. Wait for off season or mark downs. Plan to buy a larger purchase; definitely wait for the sale!

We are to be good stewards of the resources God gives so I say wait for the sale.

Waiting teaches us.

It disciplines us and helps us exhibit self control.

We can be a bright witness when we defer and delay purchases. Bet you never thought about that, have you?

Talk about the why and share your blessing story of what may happen when you wait. I once committed to not purchasing a single thing for myself for a whole year and more often then not the desires of my heart were granted anyway. I didn’t even need to wait for a sale.

In the waiting, we can learn much.

Rely on God, choose to see His blessings, and when in doubt or need be: just wait for the sale.

“Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways…” Psalm 37.7

every little child wants their daddy’s love

I had some disfunction growing up. Sadly, that is the world today and more often the norm then not. But that didn’t excuse me from my little heart wanting love from my father. Doesn’t ever kid want and deserve this?

When I was in grade school, I was so proud that my parents were not divorced. Most of my classmates were and I genuinely felt sorry for them. Only a few short years later I became one of the statistics too.

What I remember most during that time is being so angry with feelings of betrayal and abandonment. They flooded my soul and did not escape for decades to come. It was baggage I brought into my marriage and baggage I tried to leave behind when I became a parent. I did not want those old cobwebs robbing joy from me or my offspring.

There was a long period of about 3 years that I had virtually no contact with my earthly dad. I was court appointed to live with my mom with no visitation rights for him. Ironically, this was decided when I was 17 and in my senior year of high school about to turn 18 and to head off to college anyway. The divorce proceedings had been going on for 3 long years.

Note to the wise: never (I mean NEVER) bring a child to court and pit them up against their parents no matter what age they may be.

I can literally remember everything about that awful day especially when I was asked to take the stand. Lawyers on both sides were trying to make one parent worse than the other and all I wanted was love from both.

Fast forward with me to present day. Again, I have had no contact with my father for over 3 years, but for a different reason.

He went home to be with the Lord and I so miss him.

One thing about my dad is he was an encourager. He could brighten your day with a little charm and always boost your ego. You could not be down around him as some dumb joke would get you belly laughing even if you heard it 1,000 times before.

But, what I miss most about him is that he loved me well. And when tables were turned and I became the caregiver, he still loved well.

My heart was always filled with gratitude knowing through all the trials and years of separation, my dad still loved me unconditionally with no catch or conditions needing to be met. It was not so with others in my life.

And even though that love was not perfect, it reminds me of a Heavenly Father who is perfect and casts out fear with love (I John 4.18).

There is a missing link to my heart that he daily filled and I so wish another could take that place but there is only room in my heart for my one dad which in turn reminds me there is only room in our hearts for the one and only true God.

I am grateful to have had love from an earthly father which helps me accept love from my Heavenly Father.

So to all the dads out there, Happy Father’s Day!

And please, know: every child (girl or boy) just wants their daddy’s love so go love on those sons and daughters no matter what their age.

And if a dad is not in the picture, moms teach your sons and daughters how much their Heavenly Father loves them so they can know they are complete by His love as no man can love them better than Christ.

Like Aibileen from the movie The Help told Mae Mobley “You is kind. You is smart. You is important.”, our girls and boys, no matter what the age (including when they are grown), need to know and believe this too.

Help them see who they are in Christ and how God sees them – as a princess, a beloved bride, a loving daughter or a warrior-prince ready for battle.

“And since we are His children, we are His heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory…” Romans 8:17a NLT

And memorize these verses as we need to combat so much negativity this side of heaven…

And when you do, you will…

be.the.church

so much more impact-fully!

what are you willing to do?

Elisabeth Elliot died four years ago today at the age of 88.

I love this quote of hers I have quoted before: “The fact that I am a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian but the fact that I am a Christian does make me a different kind of woman.”

She is probably one of the most influential Christian women in our time and most have probably never heard of her. She was born in Belgium and was married to Jim Elliot. He was a missionary to a remote tribe in Equador who killed him and four others. This was a fierce tribe that no one had succeeded meeting without being killed.

What would you do after this if you were her?

I don’t think many of us would even consider doing what she did. She spent the next two years as a missionary with that same tribe that killed her husband with her only daughter who was only 10 months old at the time of Jim’s death.

If she did not have God in her life, there would be no way she would ever even have considered this.

Even with God, I can not imagine how hard that would have been.

Let’s read her quote again:

“The fact that I am a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian but the fact that I am a Christian does make me a different kind of woman.”

We have a different perspective now in hearing that as we know a little more about her. Right?

In her lifetime, she wrote over 20 books and was an in high demand public speaker touring well into her 70s. I believe that is a life well lived with out excuse or regret. Live your life with purpose so you can say that too: I have lived out life well without excuse or regret.

“Life is filled with peaks and valleys – it is what we do when in the valley” – be an Elizabeth Elliot

“Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.” Isaiah 40.4

You may feel like your in a valley but don’t add to others drama; stay in your own lane and purpose in your heart to be a difference maker.

Then, you will truly…

be.the.church

More Elisabeth Elliot quotes:

“Faith does not eliminate questions. But faith knows where to take them.”

“I have one desire now – to live a life of reckless abandon for the Lord, putting all my energy and strength into it.”

“I realized that the deepest spiritual lessons are not learned by His letting us have our way in the end, but by His making us wait, bearing with us in love and patience until we are able to honestly to pray what He taught His disciples to pray: Thy will be done.”

“God never witholds from His child that which His love and wisdom call good. God’s refusals are always merciful — ‘severe mercies’ at times but mercies all the same. God never denies us our hearts desire except to give us something better.”

“Waiting on God requires the willingness to bear uncertainty, to carry within oneself the unanswered question, lifting the heart to God about it whenever it intrudes upon one’s thoughts.”

“Does it make sense to pray for guidance about the future if we are not obeying in the thing that lies before us today? How many momentous events in Scripture depended on one person’s seemingly small act of obedience! Rest assured: Do what God tells you to do now, and, depend upon it, you will be shown what to do next.”

“God is God. Because He is God, He is worthy of my trust and obedience. I will find rest nowhere but in His holy will that is unspeakably beyond my largest notions of what He is up to.”

“Maturity starts with the willingness to give.”

“This job has been given to me to do. Therefore, it is a gift. Therefore, it is a privilege. Therefore, it is an offering I may make to God. Therefore, it is to be done gladly, if it is done for Him. Here, not somewhere else, I may learn God’s way. In this job, not in some other, God looks for faithfulness.”

“There is nothing worth living for, unless it is worth dying for.”

“Of one thing I am perfectly sure: God’s story never ends with ashes.”

She would also quote her husband: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” Jim Elliot, missionary to Auca indians in Ecuador

What quote from above is your favorite? You might need to go back and read them again and again. She had much wisdom to depart and help us each contemplate what we will do to…

be.the.church

what God looks like

Posted in April – repost?

I was in Sunday school and reprimanded by the teacher. We were to draw a picture of what we thought God looked like. Most kids drew a long haired Mediterranean looking dude. Some drew a picture of a man sitting on a throne with a crown and angels all around.

I imagined God must be like nothing the human eye has every seen so I made Him different.

He had four eyes – two on His face and two on the back of His head. I gave Him three or maybe it was four arms. I colored Him mostly purple with other rainbow colors for His hair and clothes. I loved my masterpiece and was so proud. I could hardly wait till it would be my turn to explain my picture.

We were to hand them into the teacher and she was to pick them in random order and display for the class to see. When she got to mine, she crumpled it up and had me stand with my face in the corner until I was picked up from class.

I remember trying to hold the hot tears back. I remember hearing sneers from some of the other boys and whispers as well as giggles from the girls. I was heated that I was not given a chance to explain what I thought was a brilliant interpretation of what God may look like then and still think it had such vision. Why wasn’t I even given the chance to explain it?

My father came to pick me up which was a rarity as he worked most Sundays. He saw me in the corner and the teacher tried to explain away my disrespect, but instead he firmly called my name and said let’s go.

On the way out of the room, I gently reached into that garbage can and took my drawing out. I tried my best to get rid of the wrinkles caused by that insensitive teacher.

She thought she was teaching me a lesson. If only she would have let me explain, she would have been the one learning.

I explained it to my dad as he lovingly responded with oos and ahs saying how creative and contemplative I was.

The extra eyes were there because I heard moms say : I have eyes on the back of my head so don’t try getting away with anything. If God created moms all-knowing, well, He must be needing those.

I gave Him extra arms because I had observed moms having their hands full with kids in tow. Surely if they could use some extra help, God must have more to be able to hold the whole world in His hands as the song sang.

I colored Him in bright, bold colors because that insensitive teacher was probably the one who had taught me that God had never be seen. Well, if He has never been seen and is the creator of all things lovely, He must be the most beautiful thus all the rainbow colors.

“And He who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald.” Revelation 4.3

The moral of the story is this: seek to understand. And please, please, please give the benefit of the doubt to another especially a child.

Sadly, that was the last Sunday school class I ever attended for a very long time. Teachers, take care of how you treat those you are instruct. I would never want someone not to return to class because of how I treated them. Make sure that is never you.

“Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly” James 3:1

diamonds are a girl’s best friend

Today’s entry comes from a good friend who just happens to be a girl (woman) and who also has some good thoughts and perspectives on diamonds.

“I have always wanted a diamond tennis bracelet. No reason why just been something I thought at some point I would buy for myself or receive as a gift.

There’s a few other things I have wanted. I thought maybe when I published my first book, I would buy a lap top as I have always wanted that too but I need to publish the book first. Another thing is I have always wanted a tv in the bedroom. I even bought one one year for our anniversary but it never made it up on the wall so I gave it to a son in college.

Back to diamonds.

I am not a big present needer but do appreciate a good thought out present especially written words. My husband over the years has given me some great gifts for random birthdays or Christmas or anniversaries – not ever year and not even necessarily for big events (for example nothing given for our 25th or my 50th birthday) but the gifts he choses are beautiful. The thing is I don’t always receive them graciously (but that is a story for another day).

However, rarely are the gifts something I would have picked out for myself but always a joy to wear knowing it was something he thought I would like or look good in. I have made it a habit to remember to wear something he gave me on date nights. Not sure he ever notices but I am reminded of days gone by and special moments he created by gift giving.

Gifts can be an outward expression of inward feelings. The engagement ring is best example of outwardly saying ‘I love you, desire you to be my wife, and this is a token to remind you of that love and commitment.’

So where did the diamond craze come from? I am convinced it was a western marketing ploy. But, somehow women have been duped into thinking diamonds and more diamonds will produce happiness. Not so!

I have a friend who saved Christmas gift money for a decade and purchased a beautiful band filled with diamonds all around. It reminded me of my desire of wanting that tennis bracelet, but I have decided that cubic zirconia or swavorski crystals would be less stress and way less expensive so maybe one day that is just what I will get.

But regardless, diamonds are not to be friends or sought after more than desiring to be a jewel in the Lord’s crown.

“Where your treasure is there your heart will also be.” Matthew 6.21

We are diamonds in the rough.

Allow God to refine you in such a way that in all you do, you beam with radiance more brilliant than a diamond so the world can see whose you are and where you are going.

I hope you see that people are the diamonds to seek after. So, go find some sisters to do life with and remind each other whose you are and where you are going because after all diamonds are a girl’s best friend.

Pick the diamonds you want to keep …the ones Marilyn Monroe sings about…

http://www.tcm.com/mediaroom/video/497401/Gentlemen-Prefer-Blondes-Movie-Clip-Diamonds-Are-A-Girls-s-Best-Friend.html

or how God is making diamonds out of us.”

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Yf1ARbpB0gA

be.the.church

If you want to learn more about what diamonds can teach us, check out this:

http://www.frontlinestand.com/index.php?topic=9.0

give respect

Want respect? Then, give it!

Pretty simple concept, right?

But, why is it so often people especially in positions of authority, don’t give it yet expect to receive it?

I heard a radio report that said 95% surveyed say they feel they are not appreciated at work.

The Bible has much to say about how we should live our life with others. Romans 12 shares how we are to love and appreciate.

One key to loving/respecting is to place high value on others and appreciate them right where they are at not where we think they should be. It is not our job to judge or correct, but love and appreciate. In doing so, we will win them over and in due time earn their respect. Then, we will have the right to correct or discipline. But of course, when doing so, do it in love.

What does that mean? Or what can that look like?

Want respect? Then, give it!

If you want honor; honor others.

Appreciate others and it will start creating an upward spiral. It begins with you and you can start today.

When we think of others more highly than ourselves, we will…

be.the.church

That is love in action.

That is sincerity.

That is hospitality.

That is living in harmony.

That is giving respect.

And when we do so, we might even get some in return!

But, regardless, give respect!

“Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Romans 12:9-21 NIV

When Jesus is at the center, we then can do all the above scripture instructs.