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Roped Into This

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  Have you ever been roped into situations you had no interest in doing? As an introvert, almost anything social involves me being coerced. My husband is not like this. If someone suggests something, he is all in for an adventure. His latest adventure happened last night. He is starting a new position as a dean of students at a small school. Part of his initiation into this position was participating in a school FFA fundraiser rodeo. Originally, they wanted him to ride a bull. I reminded him that he was over 50, had never ridden a bull, and recovers much slower than years ago. They decided he and some of the administration should compete in a calf-dressing competition. What they didn't realize was what they thought was the 200 lb calf was actually a 600 lb yearling. That meant the calf was really big and angry. My husband walked away from the event a little sore, really dirty, but unharmed. Has God ever challenged you to do something you feel completely unqualified to do? I told Go...
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I Choose You (Making a Marriage Work)

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  My husband and I are celebrating 29 years of marriage today. We have been through many things over the years. We've cried together at injustice. We've clung to each other as we prayed for God to heal our daughter and protect her through brain surgery. We've laughed  through absurdities. And We've forgiven through hurt and betrayal. Ultimately, we don't just agree to stay together. We choose to stay together. I think of the show, The Bachelor . Of all the options available, the bachelor chooses one woman to begin a commitment. Of all the options available to us, we chose each other to begin a commitment. If you look at commitment in the Bible, commitment was an absolute, wholehearted dedication to obedience to God. It involved sacrifice, denying selfish desires, enduring hardship, and love through action. Luke 9:23 ESV And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. Taking up a cross, for Jesus, m...
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Super Speed

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When I returned from a week working at church camp, my lawn was crying out for attention. My husband has been very busy, so I thought I would help him out a little. Unfortunately,  our riding mower is in a shed that requires one to back down ramps from several feet high. I do not have the skill to do this maneuver. Trust me. I almost dumped myself off the mower when I attempted it once. This left me with a push mower that my husband recently acquired. It's great exercise, so I decked myself out in cool wear, sunblock, and a big hat. I struggled and pushed through very thick grass for a couple of hours. As I huffed and puffed my way to a sleek lawn, I accidentally pushed something by the handle of the mower. To this moment, I still don't know what I did. Suddenly, the mower launched forward as though it had a booster of nitro. I found myself desperately clinging to the handle of a runaway lawn mower. Yes, apparently, the mower was self-propelling, No one had the forethought to w...
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Refreshed

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  This past week has been extremely busy for me. After serving at Jr. High week of camp, I returned home with much work lined up . My husband rented a power lift to place vinyl siding on my daughter's newly moved mobile home. For two days, we braved extreme temperatures in order to put the double wide mobile home back together. After long days in the sun and heat, the most refreshing thing was cold water and a cool shower. It revived us. It made me think of Jesus talking to the woman at the well. She was shunned by those around her and forced to get water at the hottest time of day. This was very typical for a woman committing adultery during that time period. Jesus found her at the well and told her that he knew her past. Yet He still offered her more than just water from the well. He offered her living water that would not turn dry. As we drill for a well at the mobile home, we see the importance of a consistent supply of water. We do not want it to dry up. Jesus showed not on...
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When the Vines Choke Out Life

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  I am not gardener. I've mentioned multiple times that a black thumb or green thumb are not my issue. I am a smother plant mother. I see a plant and try too hard to love it, leading to overwatering, too much sun, or too much shade. This brings me to my current predicament. My husband brought in a landscape/tree removal company to clear overgrowth around our property. After two days of chainsaws, weed wackwackers, a woodchipper, our property has increased considerably. Here lies the dilemma. Along the path of chainsaw destruction is piles of undergrowth leaves and sticks. My husband works during the day and I am off briefly for summer break, so the task fell to me to remove the debris. Yay! As I tugged and pulled, my rake continued to snag on the vines and brambles that had wrapped itself around all plant life. It wasn't as noticeable until the tree people removed the overgrowth. The landscapers told us that unless we treat the parasitic vines and weeds with spray regularly, t...
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What Does Freedom Look Like?

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  As our country celebrated the 250th anniversary of independence, something stirred in my mind. On the Fourth of July, the remembrance of independence was ushered in with patriotic songs, red, white, and blue everything, and lots and lots of fireworks. I was able to sit on my front porch and watch a fireworks display the equivalent of a small city's. The pounding of artillery and bursts of light surrounded our house as the acrid smell  of smoke lingered in a soft haze. For many, this represented freedom. However, true freedom looks very different. When God sent His son, Jesus, to this earth, it was not to grant us the ability to do whatever we want to do. It was for freedom. Let me explain. When Adam chose to eat the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he didn't need to know what good was. He literally was able to be in the presence of God's goodness every single day. He wanted to experience and know the evil part. He wanted to decide for himself what wa...
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Out of the Muck

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  My husband sees himself as a bit of a farmer, so when the opportunity arose to get chickens, he jumped at it. I, however, am not a farm girl. When I was young, I grew up helping my grandparents with gardens and farm-like, country things. As an adult, I gladly left the farm life behind. My husband happily pulled me back into farm things. Enter chickens. We put together a coop and became chicken people, again. I say again because we have done this a few times in our marriage. The issue with raising chickens is the poo. Chickens are quite messy. Unfortunately, the never-ending rain has not helped the situation. After a month of rain almost every day, we were practically tossing a coin over who had to wade through four inches of muck and crawling into the laying house to get the eggs. It was disgusting. We were so excited when we found a chicken tractor that allowed us to always keep our chickens on clean grass while accessing the eggs outside the chicken  house. This is when w...
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