Five Minute Friday

John 10:10New International Version (NIV)

¹⁰ The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full

My #oneword for the year is abundant. In my daily life, I forget the truth of this verse, and I try to do life my way, in my own strength. Then, I wonder why I am so tired and cranky, and lacking joy. I need to remember where abundant life comes from. The source of abundant life is Jesus. He is the one that gave His life, so that we can have abundant life in and through Him. I have been thinking of the example Jesus set this Holy Week. He did not live his life for Himself, but he laid his life down for me. He is King of Heaven, and He chose to come to earth for us. He showed the apostles an example of service and love, and He calls me to serve  and love also- not in my own strength, but in His.

John 3:30

He must increase, but I must decrease

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This post is a part of the weekly Five Minute Friday link-up. My friends and I gather over at Kate’s blog Heading Home to write for five minutes on the topic of the week.

Five Minute Friday Surprise

I love surprises. I love it when my husband walks in the door, and says, “I got a little something for you.” My favorite types of surprises are simple surprises. My husband buying me my favorite candy bar is a wonderful surprise. He usually buys our kids some candy as well. So, I don’t have to share. I love that my little girls pick me wild flowers from our yard. My husband will joke around with me after the kids are in bed, “The girls brought you weeds, again?’ But I love their thoughtfulness. I also love that our Creator is a God of surprises. He shows us in beauty in nature and beauty in our ordinary daily lives that blesses, encourages, and inspires us to worship. I love watching bunnies hop all over my yard, or butterfly fluttering around flowers. I want to slow down so that I can savor every wonderful surprise that I have been given.

This is my thoughts on the word surprise as a part of the Five Minute Friday link-up. Every week we write on a topic for five minutes and then link up over at Heading Home. 

 

 

Five Minute Friday Share

With three children six years of age and under, I spend a good chunk of my day talking about sharing. My children frequently want the toy, pillow, blanket or cup that one of their siblings are using. It is human nature. It seems to be ingrained from birth that each one of us wants what we think is our fair share. I have been thinking of how counter-cultural the teachings of the Bible are. The Bible instructs us to be generous. It is better to give than receive. (Acts 20:35) I have found in my own life the joy that comes from sharing ,whether it is preparing a meal and sharing it with friends, or sharing our thoughts, feelings, and hearts with those close to us. I want to teach my children that it is a blessing to share with others. I want to be an example to them of sharing God’s love generously with others.

 

This post is a part of the weekly Five Minute Friday link-up. My friends and I gather over at Kate’s blog Heading Home to write for five minutes on the topic of the week. 

 

Tuesday at Ten Choice

In any one twenty-four hour period, I make a great number of choices. These choices not only affect me, but also my husband, children and others around me. I can chose to encourage or tear down. I can chose to live fully present and engaged with my family or I can chose to be perennially distracted. I sometimes become discouraged with how much of life is out of my control. I may not be able to control everything that happens to me and those that I love, but I can chose how I am going to respond to the circumstances of life. I want God to use me as a vessel of His love and grace. I want to chose to be a blessing for life.

I am linking up over at Finding The Grace Within for the Tuesday at Ten link-up. This week’s phrase was Choose.