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Showing posts from March, 2017

In need of blogging inspiration

I need some blogging inspiration. I have a lot going on between work and weekend events, but I haven't had time to work on any new craft projects. I am trying to get to some new ones. I have lots I want to do, but no time to do it. I haven't even had time to open the box that contains my new computer battery after that whole debacle last week. HP called while I was out at a restaurant to follow-up, but I told them I hadn't had time to deal with it. Seriously. As much as I hate to, I may have to blog on The Bachelorette when it comes on in May. I was really planning not to, but maybe I just change HOW I've been doing it.

Are you Getting Jesus Wrong?

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We all want something from Jesus, whether that’s help to get through life, a new job, a new direction, a new exercise plan. Learn why that approach doesn’t result in real faith or love in Matt Johnson’s new book,  Getting Jesus Wrong .  Whether we’ve followed a false Jesus or attempted to coopt the real Jesus,  Getting Jesus Wrong  ultimately offers us hope because it helps us see Jesus as he is. Getting Jesus right gives us more than spiritual vitamins or a blueprint for living; it gives us a full, rich life spent exploring the depths of gospel love together. {MORE ABOUT  GETTING JESUS WRONG } (New Growth Press, February 2017) Jesus is not a life coach, a movement leader, a cultural visionary, or a blessing dispenser—but you might not know that by listening to many Christians talk about their faith. Feel-good slogans promote a caricatured Jesus made in our own image who cannot save us and leave us feeling guilty for not saving ourselves. Following the wrong Jesus d

A greater appreciation for green

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I can't say that I have been out of the house much since getting back from vacation, but when I have, I have a greater appreciation for the green of spring here in Texas. It seems like suddenly everything turned from brown to green. I couldn't take pictures while driving down the road this weekend to our craft fair, but Texas is blooming blue. We sure didn't see bluebonnets in Arizona or New Mexico. We did see a lot of dark pink bougainvillea around Phoenix. If houses had any color along with the palms trees and cactuses, it was this one certain color of dark pink bougainvillea. However, we did go to the Desert Botanical Gardens in Phoenix. This wasn't at the garden. This was at the Talking Stick ballpark. We sure don't have cactus growing in our batter's eye at the Ballpark in Arlington. 

You need to see more of my pictures

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I don't think I've shared enough vacation pictures. I have been working on getting a few uploaded to Shutterfly so I can print some for a collage picture frame. I realized that out of somewhere around 800 pictures, none of us got a picture of the snowy peaks around Flagstaff, just one in New Mexico.

Welcome to College helps students navigate the journey into adulthood

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  Setting the trajectory for a life of following Jesus Welcome to College helps students navigate the journey into adulthood College can be the most exciting, as well as the most frightening, time of a young person’s life. On one hand are all the freedoms a recent high school graduate craves, but on the other are all the freedoms that come with responsibility. It’s a challenging time, especially for Christians coming face-to-face with worldviews different from their own. In Welcome to College: A Christ-Follower’s Guide for the Journey (second edition) (Kregel Publications/March 28, 2017/ISBN: 9780825444883/ $21.99), Jonathan Morrow helps students tackle this new stage of life and emerge on the other side prepared for what God has planned for them. “Is there a more frightening question for a graduating high school senior than ‘What will you do with your life?’” Morrow asks. “In college, whether they realize it or not, students will answer that question every day with ea

Good Old Noah

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Here's a throwback to last year. Just the look on their faces in the still frame makes me smile. Good Ole Noah Built an Ark To the tune of “Old MacDonald” Change animals and sounds each time through Good old Noah built an ark, Like God told him to! And on that ark he took two lions Like God told him to! With a roar, roar here and a roar, roar there. Here a roar! There a roar! Everywhere a roar, roar! Good old Noah built an ark Like God told him to!

Back to busy weekends

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We had our first spring event of the year today. The first of three weekends in a row, at Mansfield Timberview High School. The first of the season seems to always be a bust (remember last fall which had some great events, but started with duds). We love the high schools in this area. They are usually good for us. This one wasn't well advertised, and while there were hundreds of cars parked in the front for a math competition, there was no signage pointing anyone to the back. The woman in charge said there were signs, but none of the vendors saw them. There were also issues on the booth sizes. Let's just say the geometry teacher should have explained booth sizes to the coordinator because booths around a circle are not square. The application said one size and when we arrived, we were told they were a different size. The only "shoppers" were the parents of kids who sang and danced in the area where the vendors were set up. They walked in the building, watched

Tech support gonna make me lose my mind... up in here, up in here

Every day this week (Monday-Friday) I had to get on tech support with HP for my computer. I have been having problems with my battery fulling charging. Two weeks ago, I realized my computer had a message "plugged in, but not charging." At that point, I got on chat, and they took remote control of my laptop, did some updates, ran a battery test and told me all was well and I wouldn't have the problem again. It was fine for a time. Then last weekend, it happened again. Monday I got on chat. They did the updates all over again. All was ok until I launched Tuesday. Tuesday I got on chat. They wanted to reset my computer to factory settings. I said no and asked for someone to call me. I got on the phone, they agreed with me and tried some other things. They said they would check back the next day. Or was that Wednesday. I don't even remember anymore. I know I talked to them every day. Oh yea, on Wednesday they called back after I recalibrated my battery. Thursd

Hanging Batman

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Wednesday nights in Bible class are rough. Everyone's worn out. By everyone, I mean us teachers. For real though, the kids are nuts too.  Wednesdays are a review night, and usually there aren't as many kids. (What was odd, last year there were usually more kids on Wednesday than Sunday.) These kids do not like to sing. At all. I hate Hangman, but Rachel was in charge this week, so we gave in.  Let me just say that if you play Hangman, it helps if you can spell. I'll leave it at that. Each kid wants to "earn" his/her nickname which usually actually isn't a positive thing. I finally decided this was "Smalls" as in "You're Killing Me Smalls." If you don't know what that refers to, you've never seen The Sandlot . Anyway, Smalls decided to hang Batman. Rachel and I were so entertained by it.  What was funny about Joseph is he was looking at one of our worksheets to come up with something to use has his

Control Girl to Jesus Girl

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Part 2 of an interview with Shannon Popkin, Author of Control Girl: Lessons on Surrendering Your Burden of Control  from Seven Women in the Bible “I control because I care.” “I just want to be sure of a happy ending.” “I worry that everything is spinning out of control.” Many women can identify with statements like these. They have a compulsion to make everything turn out just right and are willing to do anything to make it happen, but this unbalanced pursuit of control makes those around them anxious and defensive. When they realize control is slipping from their grasp, they lose control of themselves and react in anger or fear. Shannon Popkin knows this struggle inside and out. Keeping her inner Control Girl hidden is a full-time job. Thankfully, she also knows another very important truth: no woman has to be a Control Girl. Q: Tell about the epiphany moment you had several years ago, related to this problem with control. In Bible study, I ask

Lost and Found by Kendra Fletcher

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Are you too focused on the “right” ways of worship, work, and family life? Learn about the dangers of quiet legalism in Kendra Fletcher’s new book,  Lost and Found .  Kendra, homeschooling mom of eight, had it all “right,” until it all fell apart. In the course of eighteen months, Kendra found her baby in a coma, ran over her five-year-old, and nearly lost her eight-year-old to a septic ruptured appendix.  Lost and Found  is the story of how God used those events to transform her family’s self-righteous religion into freedom in Christ. {MORE ABOUT  LOST AND FOUND } Lost and Found: Losing Religion, Finding Grace   (New Growth Press, February 2017) The “right” homeschooling philosophy. The “right” brand of theology. The “right” meal-planning, home-managing, keep-it-all-together parenting. Kendra Fletcher, homeschooling mom of eight, had it all “right,” until it all fell apart. In the course of eighteen months, Kendra found her baby in a coma, ran over her five-year-old, and

The Bachelor Finale... Finally.

Here it is, Sunday night after 9 PM, and I'm starting my blog on the finale of The Bachelor (to post on Monday a week after the airing) becuase I need to suck it up and do it because this week is going to be crazy. I wasn't able to completely disconnect from work while on vacation and actually worked most all day on Saturday to catch up to be ready for work this week which is going to be new release madness. It would have been nice to relax this weekend from a week on the go and in the car, but after church tonight, I went to Walmart and actually bought groceries there which I never do. It's sort of like, "how much punishment can you cram into a weekend?" This week, I need to work on some projects because we start up doing three Saturday craft shows in a row, then I will work out at the shop we are in, have one week off, then we'll have two events in separate towns the last weekend of April, so I'll be making lots of stock over the next month. That&#

Sunday song selection

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I have a hard time convincing the kids I have in class now to sing, especially for video, so I'm pulling some videos from the past back up. These kids really enjoyed their "Pharaoh, Pharaoh." Pharaoh, Pharaoh Well a burnin’ bush told me just the other day That I should come over here and stay Got to get God’s people out of Pharaoh’s hand. And lead them out to the promised land. Chorus: Pharaoh, Pharaoh Woa-o Let my people go! Yea, Yea, Yea, Yea, Yea...  (repeat chorus) So me and God’s people going to the Red Sea Pharaoh’s army comin’ after me. I raised my rod, stuck it in the sand And all God’s children walked on the dry land Chorus Well, Old Pharaoh’s army was a comin’ too. So what did you think that I did do? I raised my rod and I cleared my throat And Pharaoh’s army did the dead man’s float. Chorus