March Musings - Day 17

“You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late.” 

― Ralph Waldo Emerson

We had an unexpected treat as we went to one of the nursing homes, and they gave us lunch! Thank you!!! Twas truly unexpected!

The Golden Rule (a guest post)

{John S.}

“So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the law and the prophets” (Matthew 7:12)

I’m sure many of you reading this know of this verse or have at least heard this saying sometime in your life. However at least I have found this to be one of those extremely tough verses to follow. I mean naturally our response to someone we don’t like or someone who has harmed us is to try to get even. However, when you read this verse it never discriminates against anyone. It just says others. That means anyone and everyone. When deciding on what to write for this post the first thing that popped into my mind was our society today and all the nonsense that the news keeps broadcasting. Everything from the major issue of racism to the push for homosexual rights all across the world. The general tone of the media is hatred towards people you don’t like. However we as people like to look at the big issues that seem so distant from us. However this verse is so important to our daily lives as believers. I know I’ve been on a few outreach trips through my local church. One particular thing me and my group did was go to Clinton Square in the city of Syracuse, New York and hand out free bottles of water to people who walked by. We didn’t sit there with signs protesting and we didn’t even push the gospel into people’s faces unless they asked about it. The whole time we were there most of the people that took the water were confused as to why we did this. In a world so filled with hate and bigotry showing a small bit of selfless kindness was foreign to most people. In fact a number of people took one look at us and went out of their way to avoid us, even going as far as to walk blocks out of there way just so they didn’t have to hear the message that they assumed we were saying. I can’t begin to say how many times I have seen Christians or “Christians” stand on street corners with megaphones and just shouting out the gospel for the world to hear. Which normally according to the Bible would be good, however when they do it and someone comes to cause trouble they lash out and yell at them and get angry. They show complete disregard for this very well, known passage and for the other teachings of Christ that say to show love and to not respond with hatred towards those who seek you harm. Luke 10:25-37 now this passage I’m sure a number of you have heard before. If you can’t quite remember it’s the story of the Good Samaritan. Here Jesus illustrates the point I’m trying to make better than I ever could. To love those who need it even if those people hate you for no good reason. So to all who read this keep this little thing in the back of your mind. Be kind and loving to everyone around you. I know people can be ridiculous and annoying and mean. However when that little voice in your head tells you to snap and get angry with someone remember this beautiful promise to help you fight that urge.

Philippians 4:13

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

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John Schairer is an amazing boyfriend (although I'm biased), a strong man of faith, and a wonderful friend (and again, I'm biased)! He's going to Clark Summit University to become a pastor, a call he has had for many years!

30 Days of Love: Day 12

Ephesians 4:31-32

Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

These verses pretty much explain themselves. Get rid of any of the above things that still may hinder your relationship with them. Instead be kind, compassionate, and forgive each other. Forgiveness is like a breath of fresh air.

30 Days of Love: Day 6

Proverbs 21:2

A person may think their own ways are right,
    but the Lord weighs the heart.

You may think this is a strange verse to choose, but think about it. You may think that you treat people kindly, but do you also treat them kindly in your heart? Do you treat them with kindness in with your thoughts? I challenge you to reconcile with God and with them.

30 Days of Love

So I'd like you to sit quietly for a minute.

Think in your head about someone that's close to you.

Do you show them loving-kindness?

How often do you pray for them?

Have you encouraged them recently?

And do you intentionally spend time with them?

Whether you get along or not, you still need to show them love.

Whether or not you love them all the time, you still need to show them love.

Love is hard.

I constantly forget to show love to the people around me.

That's why for the month of April we shall be having a 30 day challenge to love.

A Bible verse and an action will be posted for each day. 

Choose someone in your life to show loving-kindness to. 

If you join me with this challenge and have questions or need encouragement, just leave a comment and I'll reply as soon as possible. :~)

A Journey of Becoming a Young Woman of Faith - #15 Homemaker

Proverbs 31:10-31

The Woman Who Fears the Lord

¹⁰ An excellent wife who can find?
    She is far more precious than jewels.
¹¹ The heart of her husband trusts in her,
    and he will have no lack of gain.
¹² She does him good, and not harm,
    all the days of her life.
¹³ She seeks wool and flax,
    and works with willing hands.
¹⁴ She is like the ships of the merchant;
    she brings her food from afar.
¹⁵ She rises while it is yet night
    and provides food for her household
    and portions for her maidens.
¹⁶ She considers a field and buys it;
    with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
¹⁷ She dresses herself with strength
    and makes her arms strong.
¹⁸ She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.
    Her lamp does not go out at night.
¹⁹ She puts her hands to the distaff,
    and her hands hold the spindle.
²⁰ She opens her hand to the poor
    and reaches out her hands to the needy.
²¹ She is not afraid of snow for her household,
    for all her household are clothed in scarlet.
²² She makes bed coverings for herself;
    her clothing is fine linen and purple.
²³ Her husband is known in the gates
    when he sits among the elders of the land.
²⁴ She makes linen garments and sells them;
    she delivers sashes to the merchant.
²⁵ Strength and dignity are her clothing,
    and she laughs at the time to come.
²⁶ She opens her mouth with wisdom,
    and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
²⁷ She looks well to the ways of her household
    and does not eat the bread of idleness.
²⁸ Her children rise up and call her blessed;
    her husband also, and he praises her:
²⁹ “Many women have done excellently,
    but you surpass them all.”
³⁰ Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,
    but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
³¹ Give her of the fruit of her hands,
    and let her works praise her in the gates.

I challenge you to wear strength and dignity. To open your hands to the poor and needy. To speak with wisdom and teach the kindness of the Lord. To fear the Lord. As I write this I can see trumpets in my head, as a fanfare as we have completed the devotions I have written. I challenge you girls to start your own journey of becoming a young woman of faith!

A Journey of Becoming a Young Woman of Faith - #7 Daughter of the King

Colossians 4:5-6 Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

Walk with wisdom towards outsiders. We need to do be doing this regularly. We may or may not have a lot of un-churched friends but we do need to reflect God. For example if you go shopping and your Mom asks you do to do something, she doesn't like what you picked out or you end up with a grumpy cashier: smile and accept life graciously. They may not be having a good day until that smile. Make the best of your time. If you use the computer of the phone several times through the day, use it to uplift and encourage. The internet is so susceptible to arguments and idleness. These thing are tough and I will say I'm struggling through these. There is also the other extreme of using your time for EVERYTHING except God. This is a trap that we girls fall into as we are busy with family, school, friends, work and more. That is why I always use the end of my day to pray to and praise God. Let your speech always be gracious. Oy that tongue is dangerous. I feel slightly hypocritical as I write as I was just arguing with my sister. The tongue is dangerous and can hurt someone's heart in a snap with a judgmental or argumentative remark. Season your day with salt, compliments, courtesy, kindness, and gentleness. Just drop a kind word or two. Use these things so you can answer anybody with a smile. Do these regularly so others know who you serve and shine.

I challenge you to smile at everyone you meet & to say something nice and uplifting to everyone in your house. 

C.K.H.G.P.F.L. Part 2

How did you do with the challenge I gave you?

Remember this challenge?

How did you do?

Be honest with your self, don't chalk it up to "I was tired." or "I was sick." BE HONEST.

I think since I have been doing this over the past almost 4 months that I have improved vastly on these items.  God is at work! :~)

How about you?

C.K.H.G.P.F.L. - Colossians 3:12-14

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility,gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Colossians 3:12-14

If you have read my blog, you will get the inkling that I am a bit of a fashionata, it is a weakness I must confess. 

What if you take your clothes and view them as virtues?

I'm going to give you a 2 week challenge. 

For the next 2 weeks, "put on" each of the aforementioned virtues. Compassion, Kindness, Humility, Gentleness, Patience, Forgiveness, & Love. Be honest with your self if you fail. If you are like me, you strive to the very best to be more like God.

	Compassion	Kindness	Humility	Gentleness	Patience	Forgiveness	Love
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Total

For each that you nail, place a check mark, if you fail cross it off for the day. If you aren't sure, you can go for 1/2.

At the end of the 2 weeks tally your scores and see how you did. Be honest with your self, don't chalk it up to "I was tired." or "I was sick." BE HONEST.

When it gets hard, pray, pray, pray. And when you're done reflect on the 2 weeks to see how God worked in you.

In 2 weeks I'll check up on you!

2 Corinthians 8:11
 Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means.

Munchie Monday: Cinnamon bites

Your siblings or children will adore this super easy treat.

Ingredients

• Butter
• Bread (I used plain old sandwich bread)
• Cinnamon and Sugar mix

Tools

• Frying pan
• Butter knife
• Flipper (What is a thing that flips pancakes called? Spatula??) 
• Bowl

Turn the frying pan on Medium

Butter both sides of the bread (1 piece for little kids 2 for big kids or adults).

Cut it in squares or rectangles.

Fry on one side till golden brown, and flip.

You can make as much as wanted or needed!

Might be yummy paired with Hot Chocolate....have yet to try....

My Homage to Mr. Rogers of Mr. Rogers Neighborhood.

"For Fred, perhaps the earliest prototype of a true .neighbor. took the form of an elderly woman who lived in his hometown of Latrobe, Pennsylvania. She was his grandmother.s age, and everyone called her Mama Bell. Many times five-year-old Freddy (as he was called) would amble up her back-porch steps looking for a snack. He would arrive strategically on her back doorstep because it led straight to her kitchen, where she often made him his favorite treat.toast sticks. .Come for toast sticks, Freddy?. she would ask. One day Mama Bell asked Freddy if he would like to make the toast sticks on his own. Imagine his delight at being able to master what seemed like a grown-up task, as well as his pride at being entrusted with Mama Bell.s specialty. He was prompted to put the bread in the toaster, allowed to slowly butter the toasted slice, and then top it off with a dollop of jam. Mama Bell even let him carefully cut the toast into four long sticks.
Very soon after that encounter, Mama Bell got sick and died. Many decades later, Fred wondered if somehow Mama Bell had known she was reaching toward heaven and wanted Freddy to have this experience as a comfort to him, as a reminder of their unique friendship. Even though she was gone, he could now make toast sticks on his own, and he would always think of Mama Bell as he made them. Toast sticks may seem like a simple legacy, but they had a profound effect upon a young boy."

( http://amyhollingsworth.com/3.html)

I said.....

.....I would be available....hahaha....

but I haven't.

I have been juggling many things.... including projects that should have been done months ago.

I have kept to my cleaning schedule pretty well.

My goals have been shaky.....not at all.....

My name is Moriah, which means "The LORD is my Teacher".

And it is also a mountain in the bible.

God HAS and IS my teacher these past few weeks. Helping my climb the mountains I have faced. Juggling school, cleaning and family, plus time for my self.

Climbing those mountains are hard.

I have been faced with stress, and I responed in the usual way.

Crying.

Feeling I haven't done a good job.

Feeling like a silly whiny person.

The stress would bog me down.

I couldn't focus on anything.

And I still have that problem.

God has seen me through that.

And I don't know what I would have done with out him.

Off to juggle....but not very well.

Sermon Sunday

Kindness.

We went to the Syracuse Chief's final game of the year.

I am really not in to baseball.

But it was fun.

My sister waned to catch a baseball.

We were down by first base. But we never got one.

Then the man next to us said if she went down to where the Rochester Red Wings team was sitting they might give her a baseball.

And they did.

I was and am very happy and proud.

• Because of their kindness.
• Because my sister was blessed.

That was the highlight of her life.

Then.

Yes, there is more. 

The kindness spread.

My Grandmother is at the hospital.

We went to visit her.

My Sister brought THE Ball.

And she cheered up my Grandmother's room mate.

From one simple act of kindness, an old baseball, my Grandmother's room mate was cheered.

What an amazing Sunday.

God is good.

2 Peter 1:5-7
For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge;and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.