Monday Minute Memories, February 6, 2012

Out in Blogland several bloggers do a Friday’s Favorite Five where they name five favorite things about the past week. Or Wordless Wednesdays where they just show pictures of the past week. Here I am introducing my own version of a once a week blog called, “Monday Minute Memories” of memories of my past week.

Pollyanna or Ninny-hammer? Anyone else know what these words mean? As I have mentioned earlier I am reading One Thousand Gifts A Dare to LIVE FULLY Right Where You Are by Ann Voskamp. I told you it would probably take me an entire year. I am enjoying the slow read savoring the learning and accepting the challenge of being a Pollyanna and not a Ninny-hammer. Do you know these words? I didn’t I had to look them up, I am such a Ninny-hammer! That one I guessed pretty accurately only because on Elf and his self-proclamation of being cotton headed ninny-muggin because they are pretty close; but Pollyana? I’ll wait to see if you know, without going to the dictionary to look up Pollyanna leave me a comment on what it means. Next Monday, I will share with you some of my Pollyanna moments.   

2011 or 2012? As I hit save of this document I just realized that the past five Monday Minute Memory posts were all saved under the name of 2011, I am such a ninny-hammer! February 2012 has arrived and I truly believe winter skipped Oklahoma. This time last year we were all uncovering ourselves from the big snow storm that hit our state. The effects of cabin fever were being posted all over Facebook. I know I am weird, but I loved the snow storm, because it forced some capital Q “Quality” family time.

American Heart Month Once a year I get to wear civilian clothes to work and it is on Wear Red Day and it is a Friday, which means casual day - which means jeans! During February's American Heart Month, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) reaffirms its commitment to increasing awareness about heart disease among women and helping women take steps to reduce their own personal risk of developing heart disease.

Facebook Follies Thinking about the virtual word slams that I have seen on FB this past week. Virtual land, I believe, increases boldness in people to create controversies, conflicts, criticism and confrontations that they would never do face to face. An acquaintance of ours through one of our child’s extra-curricular activities from years ago, asked if anyone knew where to get information about homeschooling. I shared the homeschooling information we use. Needless to say another person not a friend of mine, whom I later creeped on after they made this statement, “Most of the home-schooled kids I have met have been pretty creepy. So be careful.” I found myself in a nasty turmoil of “I am going to give it to him/her” after all; I had ammunition from my creeping skills. However, the Spirit of God that lives within me quieted my vindictiveness and quickened my desire to be still and know that He is God and the only Righteous Judge.

Heavy and mourning I know technically this one should go on the next week’s post, but my soul is hurting for a precious family in our church family who suddenly, unexpectantly lost a husband and dad by a heart attack. It was not the news I expected as I was getting ready for work this morning followed with the heartache and pain that physical death leaves us here with. I know that precious in His eyes is the homecoming of the saints (Psalm 116:15); and I know that we do not grieve as others do who have no hope (I Thessalonians 4:13); but we still grieve and only through the lens of God’s Word can we press onward. So thankful for His Word and the Hope we have in Christ Jesus. We are told that we will face difficulties in this life. In my study of learning eucharisteo the question comes up “Who would ever know the greater graces of comfort and perseverance, mercy and forgiveness, patience and courage, if no shadows fell over a life? Without God’s Word the world warps.” If we never had pain, we would never know God’s comfort. If we were never weak, we would never know His strength. If we always got what we wanted, when we wanted, we would never know the benefit of patience. Without trials, we would never experience God’s courage in and through us.