Remember Downton Abbey – the television series and movies? If you watched this excellent period drama, I’m sure you’ll remember frequent times the Dowager Countess and Cousin Isobel are completely indignant toward one another. Their continual sparring is a unique dimension of their very unusual friendship. So, what exactly is “indignant?” Let’s look at what it means and who uses it.
We had a leap year this year. And it struck me again how that phenomenon only occurs every four years. So, what happens to the important stuff that occurs on Feb. 29th? Like a birth, anniversary, a death, start date of a business, etc. Do those special events get appropriate attention? Or do they make it on a list of important stuff we forget for another four years? From my connection with people who have a Feb. 29th event, most retain their date – but move celebrations or remembrances to the day before or after. What can we learn from this interesting reality?
Do you remember that funny scene in Shrek? The donkey is behind a group of people in a crowd. Shrek is going to choose a companion. And as Shrek considers his options, all you see is the donkey jumping up – over and over in the background. You don’t see him – and then you do! Over and over. As he jumps high enough to be seen above the group, he’s yelling something – “Pick me! Pick me! Pick me!” Interestingly, all people feel this way at times. Subsequently, it’s noteworthy and meaningful to remember God purposefully picks you.
So what does “Pick me!” really look like?
Read More …
Every person I know has lived through some pretty tough challenges. So many stories, my own among them. And I bet you have stories, too. So, a question for you: when everything seems tumultuous, when you can’t see, or when you feel overwhelmed and tired, how do you get through tough times well? There’s help by exploring two ways to live.
Do you remember the film, “Cast Away?” Tom Hanks plays a systems analysist named Chuck who is marooned on an island quite unexpectedly when his flight goes down over the Pacific Ocean. In this movie, you get a front-row seat on how a person might deal with loneliness. From hopelessness, to anger, to desperation, to finding a way. He’s alone on this island for four years! Meanwhile, he’s declared dead by family and friends back home. Chuck’s only friend is a volleyball that washed ashore from the plane wreckage. This ball becomes Chuck’s only friend: “Wilson.” Chuck becomes very familiar with the truth about loneliness.
Read More …
Feeling down is a common, yet challenging condition to manage. Whether over-tired, mistreated, discouraged, or even struggling with depression – being on the “down side” is real.
Do you remember when you first learned how to clean up a mess? Whether it was your own mess or someone else’s, it stared you in the face, and you had to clean it up. So, what tools did you use to clean up the mess? From spills in the kitchen to oil overflows in the garage. Perhaps a pet issue or simply spilled milk. Whatever the mess to clean up – you need a sponge.
Surely you’ve wondered at least once – “what’s the deal with God’s timing?!” He seems to be on a completely different time schedule. Admit it with me: there are times you’ve wondered when God is going to answer your prayers. Whether it’s personal or global tragedies that happen without warning, waiting years for God’s intervention in a difficulty, healing a relationship, providing for a need, or personal matters of the heart – all certainly involve God’s timing.
As we go into today’s content . . . Learn Well – Live Well – Love Well . . . I first want to read off a list of one-liners we’ve heard over the years. They deal with the hum-drum of life:
Same old – same old
And on go the one-liners we’ve heard in a variety of ways. All seem to speak to an emptiness, dullness, boring repetition, and rather skeptical view of life.
But life is NOT hum-drum! Therefore, let’s explore a full, exciting, fresh-every-day, and rather hopeful view of life. Will you join me?
Narrative is a word that has “ticked up” in usage recently. We’ll explore that. But this content is about God’s narrative of you. What is that narrative? Because you hear many different messages daily about your life and value, it’s tricky to determine which narratives are true and which are lies. So – do you know the truth? Comfortingly, God’s narrative about you is based in truth – and love.
What you think about what God thinks about you – matters! God is interested in you, in blessing you, and in your friendship.
