Saturday, March 30, 2013
Movie To Watch on Netflix
AMAZING LOVE -- When five teenagers embark on a youth group weekend camping trip, a confrontation occurs between two of the teens, giving the opportunity for their leader to share the touching Old Testament story about the prophet Hosea.
Friday, March 29, 2013
“Father, to what people or peoples, have you relationally assigned me, in this season of my life, for their benefit and mine?”
Good question to ask myself – ““Father, to what people or peoples, have you relationally assigned me, in this season of my life, for their benefit and mine?”” from http://www.alanknox.net/2012/08/for-my-organic-church-friends-would-you-be-willing-to-attend-a-traditional-church-indefinitely-to-impact-another-persons-life/
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Love this quote --
“In the meantime, I’ll be at the table, allowing God to break His bread and pour His wine; inviting whomever God wants to take a seat, and together we will remember. We will commune. We will tell stories of change and altering our perspectives and we will pass those on. But not the blueprints… for my friends, my children, the generations to come need to know that God is not finished yet. They will need to build their own homes…we all do.”
found at the end of the post here - http://deeperstory.com/easter-snow/ (actually the WHOLE post is awesome! – you should go and read it)
from “PRODIGAL MAGAZINE”
"All I have to do is show a bit of interest in a perfect stranger, and most of them will talk to me like I’m their therapist or pastor. They’ll speak in hushed tones, so the other passengers don’t hear, like they’re telling me a secret. I just keep asking questions, keep tugging on the little thread until their whole story comes spilling out."
~ Matt Appling, Writer
READ MORE: Permission to Tell Your Story
http://www.prodigalmagazine.com/permission-to-tell-your-story/
Sunday, March 24, 2013
found on Pinterest–so many great boards!
Homeschooling Divas -- Welcome to Homeschooling Divas! We are a Worldwide "Online" Homeschooling Community! Please visit us on Facebook to see daily updates! Also remember to "like" our page so you will never miss a thing! http://pinterest.com/HomeschoolDivas/
Saturday, March 23, 2013
love this…
"Isn’t it wastefully extravagant for the Father to give his children so much freedom? Isn’t it wastefully extravagant for the Father to discard his dignity and run into the street toward a foolish and immature son who squandered their fortune? Isn’t it wastefully extravagant for the father to throw such a raging party for this kind of wayward son?
But, see, I love that kind of grace." - http://www.patheos.com/blogs/nadiabolzweber/2013/03/sermon-the-parable-of-the-prodigal-father/
to continue…
"Because it is here we see that your relationship to God is simply not defined by your really bad decisions or your squandering of resources. But also your relationship to God is not determined by your virtue. It is not determined by being nice, or being good or even, and I struggle with this, but it’s not even determined by how much you do at church. Your relationship to God is simply determined by the wastefully extravagant love of God. A God who takes no account of risk but runs toward you no matter what saying all that is mine is yours. Amen."
Spiritual Abuse Awareness Week
http://wineandmarble.com/paved-with-good-intentions/
I didn’t even know there was such a thing as this but I do know there is an abundance of spiritual abuse that happens in the Christian culture. I have spoken with many people who have shared their stories with me. It breaks my heart to hear that people who call themselves God’s people can do such awful things to others. I just found this circle of blogs that are speaking about spiritual abuse and plan to go through and read the stories posted by the participants. Here are a few tabs that I have opened so far:
1. Paved with good intentions - http://wineandmarble.com/paved-with-good-intentions/
2. http://wineandmarble.com/spiritual-abuse-awareness-week-march-18-22/
3. How the Bible belt whooped us - http://bohemianbowmans.com/the-bible-belt/
4. How spiritual abuse has affected me -- http://bohemianbowmans.com/how-spiritual-abuse-has-affected-me/
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
open tabs… no internet to dig further
1. The Illusion of Divorce -- http://www.thejoyfulfamily.com/2013/03/the-illusion-of-divorce/
2. Stop Stealing Dreams -- http://www.squidoo.com/stop-stealing-dreams#module157146575
3. Refuse to try to control others among the church -- http://www.alanknox.net/2012/06/refuse-to-try-to-control-others-among-the-church/
4. The Baldwin Project – (Robin Hood) -- http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=baldwin&book=fifty&story=robin&PHPSESSID=7a8aed769c44ac231d7f7971bf0a4f2a
5. The Introverts Guide to Building Community -- http://project-based-homeschooling.com/camp-creek-blog/introverts-guide-to-building-community
6. Bible Copywork -- http://www.inkleinations.com/bible-copy and http://blog.inkleinations.com/search/label/Bible%20copy
7.
Monday, March 18, 2013
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Divorce... the gift that keeps on taking
My cyber-friend posted this today – “Divorce... the gift that keeps on taking” – and I completely agree with her.
“This is what divorce feels like. It feels like a death. Thing is, divorce *is* a death. It's the death of a marriage. It's the death of a family. It's the death of your parents, in a way.”
http://mamazee.blogspot.ca/2013/03/divorce-gift-that-keeps-on-taking.html
7 Questions You Will Ask at the End of Your Life
Read this today -- http://www.marcandangel.com/2013/03/14/7-questions-you-will-ask/
A few months ago I shared twelve pieces of wisdom my grandmother left behind for me after she passed. This wisdom was written in an old leather-bound journal she aptly named her ‘Inspiration Journal.’ Today I want to discuss seven questions she had written at the bottom of her final entry. Although my grandmother never wrote down her answers to these questions, the questions alone are extremely thought provoking. I’ve listed them below and shared some of my own thoughts about each one. I hope what I’ve shared here inspires you to live boldly and honestly, so that you can answer each question someday with a sense of peace and fulfillment.
to read the questions, click the link above.
My mom’s Facebook status today…
Live simply.
Love generously.
Care deeply.
Speak kindly.
Leave the rest to God.
I am working on this… Letting go…
Letting Go Takes Strength and a Lot of Love - http://www.purposefairy.com/8273/letting-go-takes-strength-and-a-lot-of-love/
Some of us think holding on makes us strong,
but sometimes it is letting go.
~Herman Hesse
LETTING GO TAKES LOVE
To let go does not mean to stop caring, it means I can’t do it for someone else.
To let go is not to cut myself off, it’s the realization I can’t control another.
To let go is not to enable, but allow learning from natural consequences.
To let go is to admit powerlessness, which means the outcome is not in my hands.
To let go is not to try to change or blame another, it’s to make the most of myself.
To let go is not to care for, but to care about.
To let go is not to fix, but to be supportive.
To let go is not to judge, but to allow another to be a human being.
To let go is not to be in the middle arranging all the outcomes, but to allow others to affect their destinies.
To let go is not to be protective, it’s to permit another to face reality.
To let go is not to deny, but to accept.
To let go is not to nag, scold or argue, but instead to search out my own shortcomings and correct them.
To let go is not to adjust everything to my desires, but to take each day as it comes and cherish myself in it.
To let go is not to criticize or regulate anybody, but to try to become what I dream I can be.
To let go is not to regret the past, but to grow and live for the future.
To let go is to FEAR LESS and LOVE MORE.
Remember: THE TIME TO LOVE IS SHORT.
~Author Unknown
You know who you are. You know what you believe. You know how to live your life…
“There is one thing about living in the Amish community: you know who you are. You know what you believe. You know how to live your life.” quoted from - http://notquiteamishliving.com/2013/03/who-do-you-say-you-are/
Sometimes I wish that I had that kind of foundation in my life… a community that gives identity and comfort and people who uphold you and help direct your way when your lost. You see, I come from brokeness and I have done what I can to live a life that I want instead of what I inherited from my previous generations. But without that solid foundation and community of relationships, it is not the same… it has been a struggle.
more thoughts to come as I process…
Old Farmer’s Advice
Old Farmer's Advice:
Your fences need to be horse-high, pig-tight and bull-strong.
Keep skunks and bankers at a distance.
Life is simpler when you plow around the stump.
A bumble bee is considerably faster than a John Deere tractor.
Words that soak into your ears are whispered... not yelled.
Meanness don't jes' happen overnight.
Forgive your enemies; it messes up their heads.
Do not corner something that you know is meaner than you.
It don't take a very big person to carry a grudge.
You cannot unsay a cruel word.
Every path has a few puddles.
When you wallow with pigs, expect to get dirty.
The best sermons are lived, not preached.
Most of the stuff people worry about ain't never gonna happen anyway.
Don't judge folks by their relatives.
Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
Live a good, honorable life... Then when you get older and think back, you'll enjoy it a second time.
Don 't interfere with somethin' that ain't bothering you none.
Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a Rain dance.
If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop diggin'.
Sometimes you get, and sometimes you get got.
The biggest troublemaker you'll probably ever have to deal with, watches you from the mirror every mornin'.
Always drink upstream from the herd.
Good judgment comes from experience, and a lotta that comes from bad judgment.
Lettin' the cat outta the bag is a whole lot easier than puttin' it back in.
If you get to thinkin' you're a person of some influence, try orderin' somebody else's dog around..
Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply.
Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.
Don't pick a fight with an old man. If he is too old to fight,
he'll just kill you.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
reading
Robin Sampson posted on Facebook today:
This quote is from a writing class I'm taking. It reminds me of Bible reading:
The first life of a piece of writing is when you read it the first time, when you experience it as a brand-new text that you’ve never encountered before.
The second life of a piece of writing occurs when you consider and then reflect on what it is you’ve just read—you may think of words that struck you in particular; certain details...
The third—and to my mind, arguably the most interesting—life of the text is the last one. After you’ve read it once, reflected on the text, and then read it again, you read through it yet again, armed with your precritical response and perhaps a few insights that you’ve gleaned from your initial read-through. This third life of the text is when you can really start to apply the principles of insightful reading.--Professor Dorsey Armstrong
Give
“Give. All the time. And never ask for anything return unless you really have to. … This isn’t a ‘favor for a favor’ thing. It’s being a good person. When you truly help people every chance you get, that reputation will get around and people will be more inclined to help you down the line.” quote from - http://whatspinksthinks.com/2013/03/13/build-your-network-without-shaking-hands/
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Finish each day and be done with it.
“Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day. You shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson
Monday, March 11, 2013
Jesus didn’t come to immunize me against pain or grief or heartache.
“
This is what I wish I’d learned in church growing up. This is what I now know the faith-journey to be. And yet this flies in the face of the breed of Christianity I was raised in.
Faith was a balm. Salvation was a rescue plan. Jesus was a Savior from all things hard and uncomfortable and icky.
And then life happened.
And I discovered none of that was true.
Jesus didn’t come to immunize me against pain or grief or heartache.
”
continue to read this gritty post here = http://www.gritandglory.com/push/
be happy
“Being happy doesn't mean that everything is perfect. It means that you've decided to look beyond the imperfections.”
William Walsh
It’s Biblically Impossible to Be Biblical
Ed Cyzewski on Facebook
I’m all for using the words of scripture to guide and inform us, but turning the words of an ancient book into a once and for all time authoritative guide is another matter. We’ll end up frustrated and divided over our interpretations.
http://inamirrordimly.com/2013/03/11/its-biblically-impossible-to-be-biblical/
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Love this story and the power of learning on the internet…
15-Year-Old Invents New Test for Inexpensive, Early, & more Reliable Detection of Pancreatic, Ovarian and Lung Cancer. Takes 5 minutes, and costs about 3¢
Pancreatic cancer is a devastatingly fatal form of cancer, and is typically regarded as the most deadly and universally rapid-killing form of cancer. According to the U.S. National Cancer Institute,1 an estimated 45,220 Americans will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer this year, of which 38,460 are expected to die
Part of the problem is that this cancer is usually diagnosed quite late, contributing to the abysmal five-year survival rate. It also shows you just how ineffective conventional detection methods and treatments are
All of that may soon change however — all due to the persistence and dedication of a high school kid who decided there must be a better way to detect this lethal cancer sooner
Yes, a 15-year-old boy named Jack Andraka has done what scientists with millions of dollars-worth of research grants at their disposal have failed to do. He invented a dipstick-type sensor to detect pancreatic, ovarian, and lung cancer that is:
168 times faster
26,000 times less expensive, and
400 times more sensitive than the current standard of detection
And he did it using Google and Wikipedia as his primary research tools — online resources that are available to virtually anyone on the planet with an internet connection. What’s more, the test costs three cents, takes five minutes, and has a 90 percent accuracy rate. Compare that to the current standard, which employs 60-year-old technology, costs about $800, and misses 30 percent of all pancreatic cancers
Please find the time to watch this awesomely inspiring TED Talks video of a high school freshman who accomplished a major feat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9yuAhusVts&feature=player_embedded
Thursday, March 7, 2013
How do we help each follow and trust Jesus?
Can you help me follow? Can you help me trust? Read it here -- http://www.alanknox.net/2012/04/can-you-help-me-follow-can-you-help-me-trust/
“But, what would change? What would change in how I interact with people if I want to help them follow and trust Jesus instead of giving them information about Jesus? What would I do differently? What would I say differently? How would I pray differently? How would I give differently? How would I serve differently?”
“Almost Everything I Know About God I Learned by Doing, Not by Studying” by Bob Goff
Read it here -- http://storylineblog.com/2013/03/06/learned-by-doing/
“He wanted people that got to the “do” part of faith; not because He wanted activity, but because He wanted our faith to matter to us.”
Christian community vs. personal religious experience
Read this post here -- http://www.alanknox.net/2009/07/christian-community-vs-personal-religious-experience/
“We should never underestimate the importance of community both for our own spiritual growth and the growth of the community, but also for evangelism. Community in Christ that is witnessed and shared is a great testimony to the fact that “God is certainly among [us]“.”
“You are in the hard, beautiful middle of faith. You are exactly where you’re supposed to be.”
The therapist explained it slow and patronizing, and my mouth fell open a little because she was saying, “Jesus is the only way to bridge the gap!” like it was brand new information.
I was thinking in all caps and profanity-laced anger. DIDN’T YOU HEAR A THING I JUST SAID? I was thinking, I believe in Jesus, and I am desperate to keep believing. I am seeking, and I am asking, and I still feel like I am falling.
READ MORE http://deeperstory.com/reconstructing-the-bridge-metaphor/
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
great parenting advice…
Seen on Facebook today:
Brave Writer · 1,239 like this.
-
A little parenting wisdom before I get out of the chair:
It's not always apparent what your children need. Sometimes we open the door too wide and a child flounders, seeing a blank canvas, rather than an enticing opportunity.
Sometimes we seal the window too tightly, pulling the curtains over the beginnings of a new vision or slowly emerging dream.
It's difficult to know when to direct: "Sweetheart, you do need to spend one year studying grammar," and when to relax: "Honey, grammar isn't that important this year; we'll get to it later."
Worse, you won't be able to evaluate when you pushed too hard or when you were too loosey-goosey until your children are grown and they tell you: "Mom, I needed you to provide me with structure. I wasn't mature enough to make myself learn math and I wanted someone to hold me accountable," or "Mom, I resented that you wanted to control what I read or listened to. I wished you had trusted me."
But for each of these, you'll also have a child who comes back to say, "Thank you for not letting me quit saxophone. I was just bored at the time and you could see that eventually I'd love being in the marching band," or "I'm so glad you let me play so many online games because now I know I want to be a programmer and I would not have discovered that without hundreds of hours on the computer."
You can't get it right. You can only do what you can with the light currently illuminated in front of you. You'll test philosophies, you'll zigzag from structure to freedom and back again. You'll have one child that thrives when you chuck the workbooks and another who will grieve and panic when you do the same for him.
What you can do, what you need to do, is to step outside your own skin occasionally.
Check in with yourself (not just your kids, not just your online homeschool friends). If you have a nagging sense that you are overlooking something important but are afraid to act on it (you are reading all the unschooling stuff, or you're in a group that is dedicated to child-led learning, or you hang with all classical, organized, detail oriented homeschoolers), don't let that feeling go.
Don't hide from your nagging sense of "not right." Take a risk. Move toward that thing—identify it, talk about it, express it. Perhaps even **do it** for a little while and see what happens.
If that means you enforce a quiet hour every day despite kids not wanting it, do it.
If that means you oversee math pages despite the kids not loving the book, but it's all you can afford and you need them to learn math—stick with it.
If it means you tackle grammar this year because you are afraid if you don't, you'll never do it—order the book.
If one child wants a schedule even though you told yourself you were unschooling, provide it.
If a child is breaking down every day over handwriting, and you want to stop teaching it for a year—be my guest.
If you tried to follow the schedule, but found yourself hating your life and wish you could just paint and sculpt clay with your children—paint and pot!
One of our Brave Writer moms shared with me her philosophy of education. I loved it:
Us-schooling
Your homeschool should be as distinct as your family is. You are entrusted to toggle between support with structure, and freedom to explore, risk, and follow rabbit trails of interest.
Both.
Both And.
Not either/or.
Don't let the homeschool boards and groups get you down.
Be good to you. And that will help you to be good to your kids.
Sunday, March 3, 2013
other links to go back and read
1. Helping My Daughter Grow Her Business -- http://amy-newnostalgia.blogspot.ca/2013/03/helping-my-daughter-grow-her-business.html
2. Pick and Draw -- http://pickanddraw.com/?ap_id=scribbledoodle
3. Simple Homeschool -- http://notquiteamishliving.com/2013/02/simple-homeschooling/
“we figured out our priorities:
- To provide a godly education for our kids
- To sign up each child for one extra-curricular activity a year
- To have dinner time as a family
- To train our children how to be part of the family unit and do chores
- To connect and serve in our local church
- To have reading time together as a family at night
- To see what God was doing in our lives and follow Him ”
4. This lady says this is her do it yourself summer camp but I think it is a great home school lifestyle routine -- http://powerofmoms.com/2012/05/do-it-yourself-summer-camp/#
I admit that I have used the TV as a babysitter too…
Steady Mom writes -- on how (& why) I use tv as a babysitter --- http://www.steadymom.com/2012/07/tv-as-a-babysitter.html
a post to read about community
“Community is a lot like family, it takes hard work.
Community is just a messy group of dysfunctional people trying to figure this thing out together.
I’m convinced we cannot fulfill God’s unique purpose for our lives without it.”
read the entire post here -- http://www.incourage.me/2013/03/a-community-mess.html
Tim’s Place
Tim Harris, owner of Tim's Place, is the country's only restaurant owner with Down's Syndrome, and the joy he gets from serving people good food carries over into his diner's most famous export: hugs! Tim's restaurant is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and is open 7 days a week. Read more about Tim & his restaurant here: http://timsplaceabq.com.
Saturday, March 2, 2013
seen on facebook --- rules for cellphone
Moms 18 Rules for iPhone
1. It is my phone. I bought it. I pay for it. I am loaning it to you. Aren't I the greatest?
2. I will always know the password.
3. If it rings, answer it. It is a phone. Say hello, use your manners. Do not ever ignore a phone call if the screen reads "Mom" or "Dad". Not ever.
4. Hand the phone to one of your parents promptly at 7:30pm every school night & every weekend night at 9:00pm. It will be shut off for the night and turned on again at 7:30am. If you would not make a call to someone's land line, wherein their parents may answer first, then do not call or text. Listen to those instincts and respect other families like we would like to be respected.
5. It does not go to school with you. Have a conversation with the people you text in person. It's a life skill. *Half days, field trips and after school activities will require special consideration.
6. If it falls into the toilet, smashes on the ground, or vanishes into thin air, you are responsible for the replacement costs or repairs. Mow a lawn, babysit, stash some birthday money. It will happen, you should be prepared.
7. Do not use this technology to lie, fool, or deceive another human being. Do not involve yourself in conversations that are hurtful to others. Be a good friend first or stay the hell out of the crossfire.
8. Do not text, email, or say anything through this device you would not say in person.
9. Do not text, email, or say anything to someone that you would not say out loud with their parents in the room. Censor yourself.
10. No porn. Search the web for information you would openly share with me. If you have a question about anything, ask a person ? preferably me or your father.
11. Turn it off, silence it, put it away in public. Especially in a restaurant, at the movies, or while speaking with another human being. You are not a rude person; do not allow the iPhone to change that.
12. Do not send or receive pictures of your private parts or anyone else's private parts. Don't laugh. Someday you will be tempted to do this despite your high intelligence. It is risky and could ruin your teenage/college/adult life. It is always a bad idea. Cyberspace is vast and more powerful than you. And it is hard to make anything of this magnitude disappear -- including a bad reputation.
13. Don't take a zillion pictures and videos. There is no need to document everything. Live your experiences. They will be stored in your memory for eternity.
14. Leave your phone home sometimes and feel safe and secure in that decision. It is not alive or an extension of you. Learn to live without it. Be bigger and more powerful than FOMO -- fear of missing out.
15. Download music that is new or classic or different than the millions of your peers that listen to the same exact stuff. Your generation has access to music like never before in history. Take advantage of that gift. Expand your horizons.
16. Play a game with words or puzzles or brain teasers every now and then.
17. Keep your eyes up. See the world happening around you. Stare out a window. Listen to the birds. Take a walk. Talk to a stranger. Wonder without googling.
18. You will mess up. I will take away your phone. We will sit down and talk about it. We will start over again. You & I, we are always learning. I am on your team. We are in this together.
It is my hope that you can agree to these terms. Most of the lessons listed here do not just apply to the iPhone, but to life. You are growing up in a fast and ever changing world. It is exciting and enticing. Keep it simple every chance you get. Trust your powerful mind and giant heart above any machine. I love you. I hope you enjoy your awesome new iPhone. Merry Christmas!
xoxoxo
Mom
the cross
"The cross does not satisfy the anger of God, it satisfies His most holy love. The self-sacrifice of Jesus reveals that God is not the bloodthirsty deity we imagined. It was humanity that murdered him. We were the angry deities that needed to be satisfied. The cross exposes humanity’s violence; in this act, in which He allows evil to do its worst to Him, He exposes and thereby destroys evil.
The cross was not necessitated by an angry revengeful god. Neither was the cross the necessary payment to satisfy a god who is bound by a sense of justice that demands blood. In other words, the idea that God is a judge who just couldn’t get over our sin, is replaced with the revelation that God is a Father, who simply couldn’t get over His children. It is God who takes the initiative to identify with us to the uttermost, and in doing so, bring healing to both the victims and the perpetrators of evil."
Baxter Kruger
Friday, March 1, 2013
Health stuff I am reading about…
1. Six natural alternatives to ibuprofen -- http://www.examiner.com/article/six-natural-alternatives-to-ibuprofen
2. Losing 5 Pounds of Bloat - Jillian Michael's Recipe -- http://domesticdana.blogspot.ca/2012/07/losing-5-pounds-of-bloat-jillian.html
3. How to make a smoothie -- http://www.superskinnyme.com/how-to-make-a-smoothie.html
4. Detox kit (friend mentioned on Facebook today.) -- http://www.godsherbsamerica.com/products/detox-kit-weeks-1-2
Stuff to do with Chris
1. Snap Circuits Junior (100 Projects) -- http://www.jmcremps.com/Snap-Circuits-Jr-100-Projects/productinfo/12528/#.US-kyFd-KiZ
2. Tinkerer’s Toolbox -- http://getyourmesson.blogspot.ca/2010/12/tinkerers-toolbox-tame-version.html
3. History of St. Patrick’s Day unit study -- http://www.freehomeschooldeals.com/history-of-st-patricks-day-unit-study-with-free-printables-and-worksheets-prek-5/
4. Connectorium is a unique app from developer Games for Soul, and a top pick as an educational game. The game play follows Nina, a young girl, who wakes up to find all of the connections in the world have gone missing. Players must help Nina make connections in real world settings showing how interdependent our world is. - See more at: http://www.funeducationalapps.com/2013/02/connectorium-a-unique-and-original-educational-game-app.html#sthash.94RoIJqf.dpuf
5.
Some stuff I have been reading today…
1. My Yoke is easy, my burden is light… – “This is one of these verses which sounds nice and for a while you can take comfort in it. Until things really just get pushed too far and you realize that you have no idea what the blazes it’s supposed to mean and it doesn’t even seem to be true as far as you can see. What is Jesus’ yoke anyways? ” --http://theupsidedownworld.com/2008/02/09/my-yoke-is-easy-and-my-burden-is-light/
2. Book – “The Way”. -- “Here’s something he wrote about God:
If I were to sit down and try to think out the kind of God I would like to see in the universe, I couldn’t come up with anything higher than that He should be like Christ.
Me too! Strange how Jesus still gets a ninety percent favorability rating in the United States and the God that religion presents gets blamed for disasters and bashed for being a bully. And you know what, God is just like Jesus. He loves broken humanity and seeks to rescue men and women from all the places they got lost in the world and draw them back to his house as beloved children. That’s what Jesus showed us in his humility, compassion, truthfulness, and graciousness. Jesus is a far better representation of God than anything religion has produced.
So why don’t people believe? ” -- http://lifestream.org/blog/2013/02/25/the-way-jesus/
3. Luther suggested Christians should meet together in a different way… – “For Luther, the public service in both Latin and German are for the purpose of exposing unbelievers to the Gospel. Notice that he does not see these services as being for Christians. So, what does Luther proscribe for believers? Keep reading for his “third sort of divine service”: ” -- http://www.alanknox.net/2007/02/luther-and-church/
4. Meeting and Eating – “meals can also be used to bring people together, sharing in common what God has provided, speaking and listening as each one expresses their struggles, their hopes, and what God is doing in their lives.Sharing a meal can be like sharing a part of yourself….” -- http://www.alanknox.net/2007/09/meeting-and-eating/
5.