DEEP WATERS

Okay, so if you're feeling anything like me, you're a little weary of all the talk of thankfulness. I was starting to feel that way too, quite honestly. But then God opens my eyes to some amazing thing, and I think "Hey, I'm still thankful!" So in the aftermath of Thanksgiving, I just have to share one more thing I'm truly grateful for today. And actually it's pretty appropriate considering my husband and I are little behind on the holidays here. Case in point: if you drove around our cul-de-sac you'd notice our neighbors have packed away their scarecrows, pumpkins and wreaths full of fall leaves. The day after Thanksgiving (for one family, the day after Halloween!) these folks strung their white Christmas lights and hung their silver and gold wreaths. That is, except us. So I figure it makes sense for me to hang out in Thanksgiving here, since I'm still in the spirit anyway. Surely by my next blog post, I'll have thrown away my pumpkin...

Today I read this quote, and I thought it would be a great way to end my series on gratefulness. "In ordinary life we hardly realize that we receive a great deal more than we give, and that it is only with gratitude that life becomes rich ." Dietrich Bonhoeffer It is only with gratitude that life becomes rich... Now that could preach. Especially today after a conversation I had with an old friend about SAT scores and college scholarships. While discussing a mutual friend and how well her daughter had done on the SAT, I exclaimed, "Man, those private schools. Those private school kids are so prepared when they graduate." Needless to say, my children are in public schools. And on most days that's not a problem at all. I'm actually quite pleased with their schools and teachers. But today, I immediately began wanting what my  friend has: the financial means to send her children to fabulous private schools that work overtime to challenge their students to be...

  Am I the only one that gets a little blue during the holidays? There are several reasons why I think this happens. I'll list a few, then hopefully I can leave you with a few words to encourage you (and myself, too). I think the holidays can be discouraging because: We miss the loved ones that have passed away and won't be able to celebrate the holidays with us Other families around us have received horrible news right around the holiday (an old friend of mine lost her father two days ago, a family in my church has a precious little daughter that just began chemotherapy, another church member just lost a family member to possible suicide, and the list just goes on) The world, with all its wars and controversies, hasn't taken a break for the holidays To sum up each of these points, I think we get blue around the holidays because we're longing for our heavenly home. Every day here on earth falls short of perfect joy somehow. And that includes even the very best d...

  I'll let you guys in on a secret. Since I've declared myself a "writer," I've faced rejection like never before. For every compliment or encouragement I receive about my work, I encounter at least two rejections. So, I figure, why not share some of the love here? The following devotional was rejected by a popular publisher of devotionals. It's not the best writing I've ever done, but I'd hoped to encourage people to have grateful hearts during the holidays, despite the painful experiences the year may have brought them. I have a cousin that lost her mother a few days after Thanksgiving. With Thanksgiving approaching, how can she be thankful for losing her most faithful confidant, cheerleader and friend? What about the family that just discovered their precious little girl has a rare form of cancer? What about the rest of us with our various disappointments, challenges and unrealized dreams? I'd like to propose that when we speak of I Th...

I'll begin this post by explaining the title of this post. I'm a writer, so bear with my detailed way of doing that. :-) Many of us over age 35 grew up on the "Cosby Show." We loved watching this sitcom every Thursday evening, grateful for the positive image of an African American couple that loved each other and trained their children well. On one episode (which I'll have to relay from memory), Cliff Huxtable (played by Bill Cosby) corrects one of the kids for saying he was "mad." He goes on to say, "Dogs get mad . People get angry ." The children then go on to list fictitious accounts of activities they've partaken in, like sneaking out of the house to go to a party across town. After each story, the kids ask their father and mother (Clair, played by Phylicia Rashad), "So Mom and Dad, are you angry ?" Each time their parents state they aren't angry, but they would get serious about the offender's punishment. At t...

Recently I've tackled a huge undertaking: writing my first nonfiction book. It's been exhilarating and fun, and I've stood amazed at how God is writing through me. I'll share much more about that in another blog post in the near future. For now, I'd like to continue with my adoption/orphan care series during this month, Adoption Awareness Month. When Steve Jobs passed away, I couldn't wait to blog about his fascinating life. You can read more about him in my earlier post Steve Jobs: Lessons from His Legacy . I thought I knew a lot about him, but my research led me to some interesting facts I didn't already know. Perhaps the coolest thing I discovered was the fact that he was adopted in infancy. In that post, I mentioned that "some of the coolest people are adopted," thus the inspiration for this post's title. Examining the life of Steve made me think about how adoption can completely change the trajectory of a person's life. It certainly ...

  This past Sunday, churches around the U.S. joined together with one voice for one purpose. Known as "Orphan Sunday," the first Sunday in November serves to bring awareness of the almost 150 million orphans around the world. These orphans should be a major priority of the Church. We Christians must make them a priority. Surely these orphans are part of the group Jesus had in mind when He said... "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." Matthew 25:40 So what will you do for the least of these? At Mosaic Church of Central Arkansas, we celebrated Orphan Sunday with great intentionality and purpose. Mosaic's "Hand in Hand: Loving the Fatherless" Missional small group began planning some time ago for this special service. The testimonies of adoptive parents, an Orphan Sunday video presentation and a challenging sermon from my hubby Anthony all challenged the congregation to discove...

"The Awakening" Statue in Washington D.C. There's a sleeping giant that's awakening in our midst. That giant is the Church. The issues that it's waking up over is caring for orphans. The signs are all around. I think we are starting to get it . Anyone who knows me knows my heart for adoption and orphan care. You know that my husband Anthony and I adopted two of our four children. You know that I talk about adoption as long as anyone will listen. So needless to say, I love when Adoption Awareness Month rolls around. During the month of November I have the perfect excuse to talk a lot about... well, adoption. For the past few months I have been a part of an organization called The CALL, or Children of Arkansas Loved for a Lifetime. The CALL was founded by Mary Carol Pederson, an Arkansas resident with a big heart for children, and especially children in foster care. Mary Carol knows it's impossible to alleviate the need for foster care, but her visi...

Some days I know exactly what I want to blog about. On those days I begin blogging like a racehorse running through the starting gate. Other times, I don't have a clue. By faith, I sit down at my keyboard and start writing. Those times are amazing, because I can testify to God writing those blog posts. Then other times, like today, I've got my mind totally set on my topic and I'm ready to write. Then God completely flips the script. Today is one of those days. For weeks now I've been planning to spend the entire month of November discussing adoption, foster care and the Church's call to care for the needs of orphans. With November being Adoption Awareness Month, I will certainly be sharing my heart for orphan care throughout the month. So stay tuned and pass my blog site on to any family, friends and church members of yours that have a heart for orphans as well. But a theme just keeps stirring up in my spirit that I know I'm supposed to commit some time t...