From Frazzled to Fun

Have you heard friends talk about their "word for the year" and wondered how they found it? And what difference it made in their life?

Twenty-three years ago when I created my DIY prayer notebook, I began seeking a word, scripture, or phrase that the Lord would give me as my focus to write on the first page so that I could see it every morning and live intentionally.

Those words, scriptures and phrases through the years have provided me great inspiration and focus. 

And it's really cool to look back on them as I have those pages all still in the front of my journal, starting with the most recent.

I encourage you to give it a try! 

My simple step-by-step process for finding your "word for the year":

1. Get a pen and paper, find a quiet spot for 5-10 minutes, and ready your heart to hear from the Lord.
2. Pray something like this: “Lord, clear my heart and mind so that I may hear from you. Spirit of Truth, speak to me as I...

God bless you from my family to yours this Christmas and throughout 2023!

History

The idea of Christingles came from a Moravian Church in Germany in 1747 when minister John de Watteville gave children at the service a lighted candle with a red ribbon around it. He explained that this represented Jesus being the light of the world and the final prayer of that first service was "Lord Jesus, kindle a flame in these children’s hearts, that theirs like Thine become".

Moravian missionaries brought the tradition to the Church of England in the late 1700's and the Christingle was later made more popular in the UK by John Pensom in 1948 at Lincoln Cathedral.

The tradition is often observed either the Sunday before Christmas or on Christmas Eve.

Over the years the symbolism of the Christingle grew into what's known as a Christingle today. What does it represent?

• The orange represents earth.
• The candle gives light to the darkness, just as the love of God and Jesus himself does. (The foil is only there to catch waxy drips from the...

As you consider buying books for your child this Christmas, a book by historically-wholesome American Girl reminds us of the importance of vetting content.

The 96-page book, “A Smart Girl’s Guide: Body Image: How to love yourself, live life to the fullest, and celebrate all kinds of bodies” is written for girls aged 8-13 and promotes, among other things:

• getting "medicine" (puberty blockers) from doctors in order to "have more time to think about your gender identity"
• children contacting LGBT organizations if their parents are not supportive of exploring gender identity

“The way you show your gender to the world through clothes and behaviors is your gender expression,” the book reads, as reported by The Daily Mail. “Your gender expression can be feminine, masculine, or somewhere in between – and it might change! Maybe you’ll experiment with bright dresses and long, feminine hairstyles. Or you might try baggy...

Oh, God, source and giver of all things, you manifest your infinite majesty, power, and goodness in the earth about us. We give you honor and glory. For the sun and the rain, for the manifold fruits of our fields, for the increase of our herds and flocks, we thank you. For the enrichment of our souls with divine grace, we are grateful. Supreme Lord of the Harvest, graciously accept us and the fruits of our toil, in union with Jesus, your Son, as atonement for our sins. For the growth of your Church, for peace and love in our homes, and for salvation for all. We pray through Christ our Lord, Amen.

- Living God's Justice: Reflections and Prayers

God bless you and your family on Thanksgiving Day!

P.S. Have you marked your calendar for Coach Mom Live: Choose Joy, the retreat coming to sunny Phoenix Feb. 24-25, 2023? If not, what are you waiting for? The location is Arcadia City Church, and I want to see YOU there! Watch for more info!

Got asthma in your house?

I do.

And I recently learned something really important to know.

A 20-year independent study found that using national brand cleaners as little as once a week is as damaging to lung capacity as smoking a pack of cigarettes a day for 20 years.

Why is this important to share?

1. In 2019, 44.3 percent of children ages 18 and younger suffered one or more asthma attacks, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation. Increasing in percentage each year, it is one of the most common and costly diseases in America, and can be deadly.

2. I'm all about teamwork being dreamwork in the home and that includes getting kids in on the cleaning.

3. I've learned of some practical changes that can protect asthmatics in your family by eliminating the toxin exposure from common cleaners like Windex, Scrubbing Bubbles, Soft Scrub with Bleach and Fantastik. 

Mama, I do encourage...

 Nearly a quarter of a million messages were sent to the CDC board about the vote to adopt the covid shot to the recommended schedule of childhood immunizations.

On Thursday, however, the CDC voted to add the covid-19 shot.

The impact of this decision is that every child in order to comply would be required to get this shot in order to enroll in a daycare, school, or play athletics.

Three of the concerns about this:

1. This does not allow a parent to make what they believe to be the best choice for their child.

2. There are still so many unknowns about the effects of the shot and good science in support of them is lacking.
 
3. Shot makers have been granted a blanket immunity from lawsuits stemming from adverse effects.

States often DO follow CDC guidelines, but are not required to.

 So let's make sure our states do NOT accept this.

Please pray with me:

Father, I pray that NOT ONE state would adopt this recommendation. Protect our children and pour out your wisdom on all...

Have you heard about Walt Disney Company's latest anti-family move? Just this last year...

• They posed strong opposition to a Flordia bill that would empower parents
• They vowed to incorporate more LGBT characters and storylines into children's media
• Now the FXX Network, controlled by Disney, is premiering the animated series "Little Demon" (showing on FX and Hulu).

According to pluggedin.com and other online reviewers, the first episode, titled "First Blood", included:

• satanic imagery
• full frontal nudity
• sex talk, including references to bestiality
• animated blood and gore
• pentagrams
• dismembered bodies and melting human flesh
• satanic rituals
• witchcraft portrayed as good
• graphic violence, such as beheaded chickens
• urination on corpses
• extreme profanity
• teens drinking and vaping
• glorified murder

(All this in just the first episode....)

Yet, instead of terrifying, Satan is depicted as an average, middle-aged man with a "Mr. Rogers" look (sweater included!) And Hell isn't...

What we'd love: 

The ability to get our hands on the things we use regularly with ease and plenty of space

The unfortunate reality:

Often drawers and other spaces are crammed full of so much extra stuff that it makes the regularly used items cumbersome to get to

Good news:

By using a system that moves the less-used items to out-of-the-way-yet-quickly-accessible storage places, we can move efficiently through our daily tasks and also be empowered to get to those less-used items within 2 minutes when needed.

It works like this:

1. Gather storage boxes: cardboard boxes (file-box sized) or plastic containers (deciding ahead of time where you will store them will help determine this)
2. Organize an area, keeping only regularly-used items in the easiest to access places.
3. Fill each box with leftover related items (the ones you use less frequently, such as once a month or once a year.)
4. Place a number on the box. (Using a Sharpie, or numbered stickers, etc.)
5. Using "notes" on your...