LifeSavers

“The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.” ~Confucius How can a mountain better prepare us for life? At over 14,000 feet, there’s more to learn than I would have thought. Last week I sat on top of Mt. Shasta, a 14,179 foot mountain in Northern California. It was my first real summit and I was proud. Getting there took me through two days of snow, ice and below-freezing camping conditions, using crampons, an ice axe, and more layers than I thought I owned. As I climbed, and especially on my way down, I began to realize the lessons required to reach the top and make it back down safely. As it turns out, the most important rules are just as relevant in the snow as they are in conquering our everyday challenges. When was the last time you reached a mountain summit, whether outdoors or in life? We face our own mountains everyday. Some small. Some big. There’s always a summit we want to reach. Maybe it’s running those few miles before work, making that intimid...

1) Successful parents don't expect perfection either from themselves or their children. Parenting is an art, not a science.? Successful parents understand that, like themselves, their children aren't perfect either.? This frees them to love their children unreservedly. 2) Successful parents don't fear occasional failures. They understand that mistakes are a normal, even healthy, part of parenting.? They make the best decisions they can and when they're wrong, they learn from their mistakes and try to do better the next time. 3) Successful parents don't expect to have smooth sailing. Children have their own opinions, personalities and preferences. Inevitably, they cause us to say "Where did THAT come from" or "What WERE you thinking" Our responsibility to provide them with limits and guidance will sometimes clash with their growing desire for independence. Successful parents aren't surprised by them; they expect them. But successful...

John DeButts was the CEO of AT&T just prior to its breakup in the 1980s. At the zenith of his power, he had more than 1,000,000 employees around the world. DeButts retired very wealthy. Not long after that, he needed to have a leg amputated. He later said, "In spite of all that money, power, prestige and influence, do you know that as I lay there in my hospital bed, not one person came to see me, called me on the phone, or dropped me a card?  But there at my bedside, tending to my needs day-by-day, was the woman I had ignored for 30 years." If you haven't let your wife know lately how much you love and appreciate her, send her an e-mail or text right now.  Better yet, stop by a flower shop on the way home tonight.

Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us." Psalm 62:8 (NAS) The thunder and lightning of a powerful storm rattled our house last night.  As rain slashed against the windows and lightning lit up the dark sky, I woke up just long enough to make room for my youngest son and yellow lab to join me and my husband in bed.  I remember thinking with surprise that I didn't even know it was going to storm.  What a picture of my life lately.  It's been a year of unexpected rain.  Some just drizzles, but others, like the storm hitting me most recently, have rattled windows with wave after wave of thunder and bursts of lightning. What about you?  Is there stormy weather in your life right now?  Where are you finding shelter from the storms?  My friends and family have been a shelter for me this year, just like my family was last night as we all huddled together in bed.  They've encouraged and...

This is a quiz for people who know everything! These are not trick questions. They are straight questions with straight answers. 1. Name the one sport in which neither the spectators nor the participants know the score or the leader until the contest ends. 2. What famous North American landmark is constantly moving backward? 3. Of all vegetables, only two can live to produce on their own for several growing seasons. All other vegetables must be replanted every year. What are the only two perennial vegetables? 4. What fruit has its seeds on the outside? 5. In many liquor stores, you can buy pear brandy, with a real pear inside the bottle. The pear is whole and ripe, and the bottle is genuine, it hasn't been cut in any way. How did the pear get inside the bottle? 6. Only three words in standard English begin with the letters "dw" and they are all common words. Name two of them. 7. There are 14 punctuation marks in English grammar. Can you name at...

Why does God love you and me so much?  Why did He send His Son to die such a horrible death for us on the cross?  It is not because you and I are so wonderful; it is because God is so wonderful (Deut. 7:6-9).  The Scripture clearly tells us "God is love" (1 John 4:8).  Love is a BIG part of His nature.       God chose to love us regardless of who we are or what we do.  Because it was a choice of God, it is not dependent on you and me.  Talk about getting off the performance-based acceptance train!  Here is truth to put in your heart: There is nothing you can do to get God to love you any more than He already does, and there is nothing you can do to get God to love you any less than He already does.  HE JUST LOVES YOU!    Our job is to receive His love and rejoice in His love.  Obedience to His commands comes when you realize that everything God tells us to do or not to do is for our great...