Saturday, June 22, 2013

Sports and Souls

1 in 5 American parents spend $1000 per kid on sports every year.
$1000… on sports. I’m not saying it’s right or it’s wrong, it just makes me think.
The odd my kid (or yours) is going to play professionally someday… odds are in the lower single percentages (except baseball whose odds aren’t that great).
So just to average it out we/they spend about $6000 per kid and countless hours at fields, practices and in the backyard trying to help them with their skills. $6000 per kid. So maybe your kid doesn’t do sports, they do piano, or drama, or whatever. It’s still money and it’s still time.
 What would our world be like if we spent that amount of money, time and effort helping our kids get into the Kingdom?
I am not innocent of this, I too fail. I spend countless hours at the fields, spending money and supporting (with excitement and love) my kiddos… and spend countless minutes reading them scripture, teaching them how to study the Word and sharing in our love for Christ.
Sure, we are a part of a Life Group. Our kids go to church camp. We do nightly devotionals. We listen to praise and worship music together. We volunteer at our church and in the community. We watch Christian movies. We love Christ together, daily. But that’s the easy stuff. That’s the check mark stuff. I can do more. I want to do more. I want to grow these little people to be pro-Christians. To lead them to the Stanley Cup of heaven. To wear the beautiful championship ring. To rest at His feet after hours of countless practices. I want to invest in their spiritual growth more than I invest in their physical growth.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Life List (update!)

A little over a year ago I posted this. It's time for an update!

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. ~ Mark Twain

Here are 60 62 (hey, I can add more if I want! ha!) things I'd like to do in my lifetime. Goofy, serious, or just plain crazy - it's my life and I only get to live it once.

  1. Swim with dolphins
  2. Visit every State (USA)...
  3. ...and Province (Canada)
  4. Spend some time under the Tuscan sun
  5. Rock my grandchildren to sleep
  6. Own a forever home
  7. Scuba dive
  8. Spend an entire summer in Wawa
  9. Go to Disney World with the kiddos
  10. Take a cruise
  11. Create life
  12. Throw a giant just-because party for my friends and family
  13. Own an elephant's painting
  14. Take a dance class
  15. Take a "girlfriends only" trip
  16. Get paid to do what I love
  17. Refinish a piece of furniture
  18. Make some one's dream come true
  19. Experience Mardi Gras in New Orleans
  20. Be able to see my abs
  21. Take a photography class
  22. Anonymously pay for some one's groceries
  23. Witness a birth
  24. Make pasta from scratch
  25. Make and can jam
  26. Teach my children to be Godly people
  27. Fly my nephews here for an entire summer
  28. Write a book
  29. See a Broadway show
  30. Have my favorite scriptures memorized
  31. Attend a Country Living Antique Fair
  32. Grow/maintain a vegetable garden
  33. Spend 3 months doing missionary work abroad
  34. Lead someone to Christ
  35. Lead a "green" life
  36. Take one shopping trip that mimics the people from "Extreme Couponing"
  37. See a professional ballet performance
  38. Learn to surf
  39. Visit the holy land
  40. Climb an active volcano
  41. Ride in a hot air balloon
  42. Inspire someone
  43. Visit the Grand Canyon
  44. Learn to make pottery
  45. Get a college degree
  46. Build a Habitat for Humanity Home
  47. Be an extra in a movie
  48. Consistently send birthday cards to my loved ones + on time
  49. Skinny dip in an ocean
  50. Ride on a sail boat
  51. See Bon Jovi in concert
  52. Understand politics
  53. Do a somersault on a trampoline
  54. Love to wear swimsuits
  55. Have an office/craft room
  56. Run a half marathon
  57. Go on an African safari
  58. Write an article for a magazine
  59. Retire comfortably
  60. Live as a vegetarian for 1 month
  61. Speak at a Christian women's event
  62. Do the rip cord at an amusement park

Enjoy

We've been back a couple of days and many have asked about our trip.

My heart and soul are so full. Peace filled. Love filled.
We were busy during our trip but my body wasn't exhausted. My patience was renewed. My laugh came easily. And my being enjoyed.

These past few months my life has seemed quite chaotic. Work, life, volunteer... my world has been non-stop. I came back to... the same thing. But it's different. My head is different. Things seem lighter. Life isn't easier. We came back to the same issues, but we came back rested. Connected. Whole.

For the first time in months, my anxiety has minimized.
God is so good. He is in control. I know this. I feel this.
I took some time to listen. To be still. To enjoy His blessings.