Author: Michele Minehart (Page 302 of 311)

I have not yet fully put together my thoughts for this post, but it’s something that’s been brewing this holiday season. i’ve been overwhelmed with gratitude. this christmas was one that i we could honestly say we needed nothing. i came up with a list for those who asked, but there wasn’t a thing that i thought “well, if i don’t get it for christmas, i’ll use some of my special money and find a way to buy it.” jj and i continue to see just how blessed we really are. and yet, we’ve been put in a place in this world with so many generous people who love so freely. we’re just surrounded by it – we were overwhelmed by it all when henry was born and the cards and gifts and prayers just poured in. but it’s continued throughout this holiday season. our parents are endless in their giving. our church family (ies) show us sooooo much love.

i think it’s because i’ve been struck by the ungratefulness of others that i hope my gratitude shows. i hope i’m able to express how appreciative we are for everything that others do for us and not just come to expect it. our generation is one that feels like most luxuries are our “right” in life, and i hope that i don’t come across like that. i’ve made a concerted effort to say thank you, but there reaches a point that you can’t say thank you enough.

and if i’m like this with those that i see, about the things i can touch… how much more am i likely to skim over the blessings that God has showered me with? i know i do it… but i’d like to stop.

last year i made a list of things that would make 2008 better than 2007. i think i’ll make another similar list. butt, hips and thighs will remain on the list as i did not put forth much effort on that one (i’ll plead pregnancy). and this year i’ll add: 1) show more gratitude and 2) be more generous.

being the TTYD that i am, i think i need to make an action plan. this will require time with kristy and a good bottle of chilean wine.

So many fantastic things lately. i must list them so that i can celebrate appropriately. someday i’ll be both motivated and disciplined enough to list 5 of these each day so as to keep proper perspective, but for now, i’ll just celebrate what i have loved about life the past 48 hours:

1) met with Mark L. to discuss youth stuff. i can list the things that put energy and life into my soul on one hand, and talking about jesus stuff and how it can shape teenagers (or people in general) is one of them.
2) bath time. it’s become a family event. henry and i get in, jj helps hold henry or soap him. i’m sure talented mothers can do it solo, but i need help :). as well, henry does not scream mercy – he’s actually starting to like it (until we have to lift parts out to soap up… cooooolddd!)
3) random trips to kenton with my family. it was like a mini-reunion yesterday at Jolene’s Kozy Kafe (yup, that’s Kenton for you… tacky misspellings and all). kev didn’t have school so lauren came, my folks showed up, and the whole Crop Insurance office was there. then i went back to the office for a few hours to catch up with the cousins. i wouldn’t trade these days for anything!
4) visits from good people. Jim B. stopped by bearing gifts and just chatted it up. i’ve been semi-working with him for a few months and he’s just so… good. i consider myself lucky when i encounter such people, let alone when they take an interest in my life.
5) christmas spirit. i’ve finally started to catch it :). bought jj a small present yesterday (seriously small. like $12 small. but he’ll love it). it’s a good day when i can get past the fact we have very little money and just give things for the sake of the season. and today we’ll be quite merry because we’re going to finish the shopping at easton as a family. speaking of which, i’d better go dry my hair before the little fella wakes up.

I was reading in my free subscription to Self magazine the other day and this editorial caught my eye. It was interesting on so many levels… here’s the first quote that kept me reading:
Why would an activity that’s supposed to be noncompetitive and inward-focused turn people into such judgmental loons? My theory is that our culture has gotten so cutthroat that even spirituality has become competitive. And because many of us don’t belong to a tight-knit religious community, yoga has become a substitute for spirituality, a word thrown around like a medicine ball. Feeling spiritual used to mean more than simply treating one’s body like a temple; it suggested a call to social action, the determination to be a better person and, in some cases, to be closer to God.

the author kept me going by commenting on thoughts about 2 of my favorite topics – exercise / health and religion:
…too many yoga students in this country have taken a tiny piece of a wider Indian worldview, one that isn’t just about exercise, and turned it into a new kind of self-absorption. Exercise is not sacred, much as we want to pretend it is. Worse, some yogis have internalized only the most negative aspect of religion—the tendency to think that outsiders are bad and wrong. The dark side of faith is when it turns on others.

i think maybe those of us who treasure this thing called church might get an insight or two out of the article… http://www.self.com/fitness/2008/11/end-fitness-snobbery?currentPage=2
could the accusation be true of us as well? just as the author challenges that exercise is not sacred, is it possible that we have made elements of our religion sacred that might not ought to be? the way we celebrate Jesus… how we worship… the elements to our Sunday with other believers… these things are not our faith, they’re expressions of a faith in a God that is Holy.

just food for thought.