Spring 2008
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Grandma
Grandma
A grandmother and her grandson, whose face was sprinkled with
bright freckles, spent the day at the zoo. Lots of children were waiting
in line to have their face painted with tiger paws.
“You’ve got so many freckles, there’s no place to paint!” A girl in the
line said to the little fella. Embarrassed, the little boy dropped his
head.
His grandmother knelt down next to him. “I love your freckles.
When I was a little girl, I always wanted freckles”, she said, while
tracing her finger across the child’s cheek. “Freckles are beautiful!”
The boy looked up, “Really?”
“Of course!” said the grandmother. “Why just name one thing
that’s prettier than freckles.”
The little boy thought for a moment, peered intensely into his
grandma’s face, and whispered, “wrinkles.”
Author Unknown
Laws of Parenting
Laws of Parenting
1. The later you stay up, the earlier your child will wake up in the morning.
2. For a child to become clean, something else must become dirty.
3. Toys multiply to fill all available space
4. The longer it takes you to make a meal, the less your child will like it.
5. Yours is always the only child who doesn’t behave.
6. If the shoe fits…it’s too expensive
7. The surest way to get something done is to tell a child not to do it.
8. The gooier the food, the more likely it is to end up on the carpet.
9. Backing the car out of the driveway causes children to have to go to the bathroom.
Author Unknown
What I Think of my Mother…
What I Think of my Mother…
4 Years Old ‐ My Mommy can do anything!
8 Years Old ‐ My Mom knows a lot! A whole lot!
12 Years Old ‐ My Mother doesn’t really know quite everything
14 Years Old ‐ Naturally, Mother doesn’t know that, either!
16 Years Old ‐ Mother? She’s hopelessly old‐fashioned.
18 Years Old ‐ That old woman? She’s way out of date!
25 Years Old ‐ Well, she might know a little bit about it.
35 Years Old ‐ Before we decide, let’s get Mom’s opinion.
45 Years Old ‐ Wonder what Mom would have thought about it?
65 Years Old ‐ Wish I could talk it over with Mom!
Author Unknown
A Christian’s Beauty Box – Nail File
Today is the day to become a beautiful woman
for God. Now is the time to prepare our “beauty
box”…our hearts. We want to put in our boxes
only the things that will make us truly beautiful.
Add to your box:
A Nail File
Prepare your hands for service
“As each one has received a special gift, employ it
in serving one another as good stewards of the
manifold grace of God..” 1 Peter 4:10
Easy Chicken and Dumplins
Easy Chicken & Dumplings
(2)cans Progresso Chicken Pot Pie Soup
(1)can Pillsbury biscuits 10 count
Pour both cans of soup into large skillet. Heat to boiling.
While heating, separate biscuits and cut each biscuit into quarters.
Place biscuits into skillet with soup and simmer 10 minutes.
Cover and simmer an additional 10 minutes.
For best results, serve with a side of love.
“Life is
more than
food…” Luke 12:23
Rain, Rain Go Away
Rainy Day Activites for Children
1. Pull out the long forgotten board games. Forget those video games, show your
children how much fun those board games of the past can be.
2. Have a rainy day party, everyone dress up in their best clothes and fix a special
rainy day lunch or dinner. Sing fun songs and tell fun stories to celebrate the
rain. Incorporate a Bible lesson about Noah.
3. Take a trip, outside, that is. If it’s warm enough and no lightening in sight, dress
everyone up in their rain gear and make a splash outside. Enjoy the blessings of
rain rather than hiding from it.
4. Send a cheerful letter, nothing will put cheer back into a day than the thought of
brightening someone else’s. Have each family pick someone they want to write
to and let them create a special rainy day card to send to them.
5. Happy Rainy Day, each family member take turns calling family members and
friends to wish them a Happy Rainy Day.
6. Play Hide the thimble. My favorite activity as a child, grandma would hide her
thimble somewhere in the room while the children would “hide their eyes” in another
room. When she holler’d “ready” the children would search high and low
for the hiding spot (always in plain view). The first to find it gets to hide it next.
(Can use any shiny item if you are like me and don’t have a thimble).
7. Have fun. Don’t be afraid to have fun. Housework can wait. Spend the day with
your children and it will be a day that neither of you will soon forget.
The Worthy Woman
We, as women know that much is expected of us. God created us to be man’s helper (Gen 2:18) and helpers we are. When children are added to the mix, women suddenly become much more than just helpers. In fact, in a study done by Salary.com, “the typical mother puts in a 92- hour work week, and works at least 10 jobs. In order of hours spent on them per week, these are: housekeeper, day-care center teacher, cook, computer operator, laundry machine operator, janitor, facilities manager, van driver, chief executive officer and psychologist.” By figuring out the median salaries for each position, and calculating the average number of hours worked at each, the firm determined that the work completed by the average housewife should pay approximately $138,095 per year. Of course, we all know that we are not compensated in this manner. Our rewards come in various ways and some may not come until we leave this earth. Let’s take a look at the “worthy woman” described in Proverbs 31. The worthy woman brings her husband good and not evil all the days of her life (v. 12). She goes to great lengths to provide food for her family (v. 14). She works before the dawn and well into the night to provide food and clothing (v. 15-18). She works vigorously (v. 17), and is not idle (v. 27). Even after all she does for her household, she still finds time to help the poor and the needy (v.20). She is strong and dignified and still knows how to laugh (v. 25). Because of this, her children call her blessed and her husband praises her (v. 28). To sum it all up, “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate” (v. 30- 31). Nothing gives me more hope than to know my labor in the Lord is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58). May we all see the blessings of being wives and mothers, and continue our work for the Kingdom.
‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You were faithful with a few things, I will set you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Matthew 25:23
originally printed in the Spring 2008 issue
reprinted in the Spring 2012 issue
Focus (Spring 2008)
News, defined by Merriam‐Webster, has several meanings. A
noun originating in the 15th century, it means a report of recent
events, previously unknown information or something having a
specified influence or effect.
News surrounds us and is typically placed into two
categories: good and bad.
It takes a quick glance at any media outlet to see that we are inundated with warnings, death, destruction and immorality. It’s no wonder that “Depression disorders affect approximately 18.8 million American adults…”. [Depression Fact Sheet, www.upliftprogram.com, Bob Murray, PhD and Alicia Fortinberry, MS, 2005]. These statistics and news headlines are evidence of a world without hope (Ephesians 2:12). For “the sorrow of the world produces death” (2 Corinthians 7:10). God, having created us, knows “good news gives health to the bones” (Proverbs 15:30). Christ came into this world with good news (Matthew 4:23, Mark 1:4, Luke 8:1). Jesus is that good news (Acts 8:35), for it is in Christ that we have hope (1 Thessalonians 1:3). Jesus commands us to spread this good news to all creation (Mark 16:15) so that all “who has believed and has been baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16). What an encouraging statement from our Lord!
When my family first attended the Howe congregation, I was without hope. I knew that I was not “walking in the light”; therefore I had no hope of a home in heaven (1 John 1:7). If you’ve never been there, hopeless is a terrible place to be. Hopeless breeds depression, anxiety, anger, sadness and emptiness. Thankfully, the Bible tells us, in Luke 15, that even when we leave our heavenly Father, He never leaves and never changes but anxiously waits for us to return to Him. I am so thankful for my brothers and sisters in service at the Howe congregation. They did not become jealous of my return to the Father as the brother in Luke 15, but welcomed me and rejoiced with me. Since then, I have seen the love that you have for the truth and have been encouraged by that love many times. This hope that I now have, is the motivation for this newsletter.
This newsletter is meant to serve many purposes; but the most important being to bring glory and honor to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Think back to the last time that you were in the dark. Once light returned, there was an adjustment period prior to seeing clearly again. Your eyes might have become teary during the adjustment period. The same is true when you step from darkness into light spiritually. Since stepping back into the light, there has been much adjusting and several tears as sinful areas of my life became illuminated. Even while walking in the light, it’s still possible to stumble at certain points. It is my opinion, that we, as women, have a tendency to internalize our problems and try to attain perfection in the eyes of those around us. May we never forget that not one of us can be perfect (Romans 3:23) only perfected through Christ (Hebrews 10:14). Once again, our creator knows us best and tells us to “encourage one another” (1 Thessalonians 5:11, Hebrews 3:13). I know that life can be hard. This world we live in is not conducive to living a Christian life. I also know that without the encouragement I’ve received from you, my Christian sisters, I may have given up almost as soon as I began my walk. We all need this encouragement. We all need to know that we are not alone. I pray that this newsletter will help provide you with this much needed encouragement so you can assuredly say, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7).
I am thankful that the elders overseeing the Lord’s church in Howe recognize the benefit of a newsletter for women. I am thankful for Toby’s lessons on evangelism which helped me recognize a need for me to do more and for Toby and Debbie suggesting the idea of a newsletter. I am thankful for and encouraged by the help that I have received from Amy Ellis, Beth Howard, Pam Savage and Valerie Enoch in putting together this newsletter as well as the outpouring of support we received from the surveys that went out. This is a newsletter for all of us. Please feel free to submit any and every thing that will help strengthen and encourage women. It can be an article, idea, tip, recipe, poem or funny story. We also welcome any and all suggestions.
To conclude my thoughts, I am reminded of an episode Of Claire’s favorite cartoon, Calliou. Calliou’s mother is going about the daily chore of sorting the mail and sighs deeply as the bill pile grows while the “good news” pile remains unchanged…small. She wishes out loud to receive just one piece of good news. Calliou quickly sets about the task of writing and sending his mommy a letter to cheer her day. How many do we know whose “bills” (bad news or sins) are piling up while their “letters” (good news of hope) are few? How many of us Christians show the love of this child eager to brighten the day of someone he loves? God demonstrated His love by sacrificing His only Son on the cross while we were still sinners. Let’s spread the good news, one newsletter at a time.
By: Beth Drake