As I loath on my couch two days after Christmas, having received gifts of food from many directions and meals prepared by well-seasoned cooks in my family, I’m thinking about the book of Job.  Why Job?  Glad you asked.  Job 8:7 tells us “Though your beginning was insignificant, yet your end will increase greatly.” Although this isn’t the correct context of that verse, (I encourage everyone to read the book of Job…wow) I can’t help but apply it to my over-indulgence this holiday season and the fact that I’ve reached for the leggings too many times lately. (I wore my ‘nice’ leggings for Christmas service and I always refer to Christmas as Christmas but I say holiday because this eating thing really began when the candy came out in October.)

Flashback to two days after THE Christmas.  Our savior is beginning his earthly journey.  There was absolutely nothing insignificant about that.  So significant and magnificent was the gift of Jesus…IS the gift of Jesus.  As I sit and ponder new beginnings with New Year resolutions of eating ‘right’ and bringing the regular pants back in to play, I also reflect on the greatest gift of all…the gift of Jesus who gives us, not just a new beginning in a particular area of life, but a new life altogether! 

I’m so thankful for new beginnings.  I make New Year resolutions just like everyone else. One of mine is to definitely live a healthier lifestyle, but I could not imagine ‘new beginnings’ without Jesus.  He brings me hope and excitement like Aunt Sally’s double chocolate cream pie can never do.

I pray, no matter what the new year brings you, that you have a personal relationship with our Lord and experience the joy only He can bring.  Happy New Year! ♥

JP, Grace and Pink

 

The free gifts I’m talking about today aren’t for us to get but to give.  It is so much better to give than to receive. For when you give, you receive a blessing every time. Warm fuzzies fill you up. Not literally, thankfully. You feel happy knowing your gave happiness to someone else. I’m personally on a frugal mission. I’m trying to DIY everything. EVERYTHING (just ask my hair salon lady…she recently fixed one of my DIYs). But who doesn’t love free? Here are a few gift ideas to try out. I promise they will not disappoint the receiver, or you. 

Kindness.  It’s free.  It’s costs nothing.  Zip.  Nada.  There’s even a phrase to help with you enemies/frenemies…”Kill ’em with kindness’.  It works.  It’s also becoming rare.  Try holding a door open for a stranger.  Leave coupons you aren’t going to use in a public place for someone who might need them. Say thank you.  Smile.  Give someone a compliment.  Pull a buggy out at the store for the person coming in behind you.  Leave a nice sticky note on the mirror in a public bathroom.  Warn the next person going in if the restroom is out of toilet paper.  You may even find that your frenemies become friendemies.  

Compassion. A little goes a long way.  Jesus was a beautiful example of how we should show compassion. One example,  Luke 7:13 When the Lord saw her, He felt compassion for her, and said to her, “Do not weep.” Someone may be going thru something you have never experienced but we can lend an ear or even a shoulder in their time of sorrow or trouble. Compassion received is not easily forgotten. 

Love. But now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; and the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13 It is so, so great that the Bible even tells us that God is love (1 John 4:8). There are endless ways to show love to one another.  Make some cards and pass them out at your local nursing home.  Fill up your thermos and grab some cheap styrofoam cups and head down to that person who has to work outside.  Pull up to the farthest gas tank instead of blocking two of them.  Maybe that one should go under kindness.  We can all think of ways to show love to one another.

I challenge you to pick a free gift to give away tomorrow, and I’ll do the same.  It doesn’t even require wrapping.

JP

 

We all have our favorites.  My favorite ice cream right now is Peppermint Bark by Blue Bell…err, by the pint.  My favorite color is purple…sometimes it’s red…or emerald green.  My favorite drink is coffee.  My favorite snack is coffee.  My favorite season is Autumn, except on the days it’s cold.  I could go on and on picking my favorite this and that.  We all could.

I am so very relieved that God does not show favoritism.  It says so in Romans 2:11.  I’ll back it up to verse 10 to get the bigger picture.

“10. But there will be glory and honor and peace from God for all who do good–for the Jew first and also the Gentile.  11. For God does not show favoritism.”

He doesn’t look at the skin pigment.  He doesn’t look at the paperwork and credentials.  He doesn’t look at the square footage or inside the garage.  He doesn’t look in the bank.  He doesn’t look at anything material.  He looks at the heart. ♥

I’m so thankful that on days when I have a messy pony tail, no makeup, a dirty house, and my account is sitting at the day before payday, I am still cherished by Him…as are you!

xoxo Grace and Pink

 

 

 

Do you ever find yourself comparing your size to someone else’s?  What about your hair…complexion…makeup…clothes…purse…vehicle…other characteristics or possessions?! I do.  Society tends to influence us as to what is “in” or “right” or “popular”.  I often fall for what society thinks, forgetting that it doesn’t matter a hill of beans what others think.  I often forget I’m not here to impress anyone aside from my Heavenly Father. When I die and pass in to eternity, it is not my mom or boss or friend or neighbor whose opinion will matter.  My ultimate goal is to hear my Father say, “Well done good and faithful servant.” Because of this, my energy can be better spent trying to follow his word instead on the Jones’, so the speak.

“We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise.” 2 Corinthians 10:12

I must remember that, whether my body is sporting a size 8 waist with fantastic brows and a Gucci hanging on the shoulder or a size 14 with split-ends and knock-off dollar store earrings, my Father is looking at my heart. ♥

“But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 7:6

When I look at a flower bouquet, I am reminded how beautiful variety is and tell myself it’s okay to not look like everyone else or have what everyone else has.  When I have a weak moment I think about the bouquet and how it wouldn’t look as beautiful as it does without the variety and how I don’t have to look and be like anyone else.  As long as I am abiding by His commands, I add my own beauty to the world just the way He made me.  So, enjoy being a hydrangea, or rose, or chrysanthemum, or daisy, or carnation, or sweet pea…

xoxoJP

Written by Grace and Pink

 

I want to share with you my favorite study bible.  If you are looking for one, I recommend checking this one out!  I thoroughly enjoy reading it and being able to read further explanations of the verses.  I also appreciate how the translation leaves out the “thou’s and “hast’s” and “taketh’s” and “cometh’s” and “go-eth’s”. I may have made goeth up but you get what I mean.  Those make reading a little harder for me!

My Study Bible

 

If you’re like me, when you go shopping and you get home, you don’t bring all the things in if you husband is home.  You do this for a number of reasons…it’s embarrassing, you don’t want him thinking you drained the account, you don’t want him to see your new Spanx, you had one of those baggers who doesn’t believe in mixing everything together so you have 20 bags and only 15 items.  Numerous reasons. So, you bring maybe two bags in and those are just the things that need to go in the fridge or that soap you want to use before you go back out.  You leave the rest in the vehicle and retrieve it when he isn’t looking.  That was all just a side note to my story but relatable to many, no doubt.

I went to retrieve my items around 5 A.M., after my husband left for work.  As I walked outside a shooting star caught my eye.  It was beautiful.  I caught myself, in my head, making my wish.  “I wish for my son a safe flight.  I wish for my uncle who has cancer a happy Thanksgiving.  I wish…”  Then I stopped.  I froze on the sidewalk in my pajamas and looked up.  What was I doing?  Wishing upon a star was actually more ridiculous than bringing my haul in from the truck in my pajamas at 5 A.M.  Why would I wish upon a star when I can pray to the one who created them?  I took these wishes and immediately turned them into requests to our Father.  The shooting star was just a wink reminding that He is waiting to hear from us. ♥

Love, love, LOVE this song! Stars by Skillet

 

 

Have you ever sat down in front of the T.V. or computer with a pint of ice cream and ate the entire thing?  Me, too.  What kept you from stopping at half a pint?  Same here.  It was GOOD.  We wanted all the ice cream.  (In case you are wondering, my favorite right now is Peppermint Bark from Blue Bell, and marshmallows in ice cream should be a crime.)

This is how God wants us.  He wants ALL of us.  He wants that part that is still stuck to the lid when you take it off and the parts that are melting in the crevices at the bottom when you get there.  He doesn’t want half of you.  He doesn’t just want you on Sunday or during your devotional time or at the supper table. He wants all of you, just the way your are, 24/7.  The difference is, he doesn’t care if you are Double Dutch Chocolate, Mint, Strawberry, Vanilla, Peppermint Bark or Rocky Road.  He wants the good and the bad.  He wants you…even if you have marshmallows! ♥

When Thanksgiving rolls around I always ask myself why it takes a holiday to give deep thought to what I’m thankful for.  I do often include thank yous in my praying thanking God for this and that but, at Thanksgiving, I tend to take it a little further by vocalizing my gratefulness… out loud…to people, more than I normally would.   I find myself in the classroom with my kiddos working on Thanksgiving projects, listening to what they are thankful for and agreeing or adding to.  With the exception of a few things, like a pet snake and siblings, I always agree with the same things they are thankful for.  (No offense to siblings).

With that being said, have your really pondered.  I mean PONDERED over what you are thankful for?  What I mean is, I am thankful for my electric bill. I’d be in the dark without it (pun intended). I am thankful for haters because haters are motivators.  I am thankful for menthol cherry tonic cough syrup because it means my family and I have medicine to take when we need it.  The list goes on.  I encourage you to think, or you could ponder,  about the things you might not normally consider being thankful for.  It really ups the count when counting your blessings.

Written by Grace and Pink

I want to share a thing I love and, since it’s the first thing I’ve shared that I love, I’ll uniquely call it #1.  As many know, my son is active duty military.  I am a proud stander.  I will go up to a stranger in uniform and shake his/her hand.  I’ll hug them if they let me.  I am so appreciative to the men and women who have served and currently serve in our Armed Forces.  With that being said, I found this laundry detergent at the local Wal-Mart.  The name caught my eye so I picked it up and read more.  On the front label it reads, “Every bottle sold supports our nation’s Veterans.”  I flip it over, as if I need to read more, and the back label reads, “A portion of all proceeds are donated to Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA.ORG).  Hero clean products are made in the U.S.A.”  I proudly put that bottle in my buggy and rolled up to the checkout.   There were two sizes of bottles.  I got the smaller, 50 oz- 32 load, bottle in case it didn’t do so great on my laundry.  I am happy to say it works great.  I mean, GREAT!  My clothes came out clean and soft!  This stuff smells better than any of the other laundry soaps out there.  Most are flowery, but I would describe this as a little masculine and little please-let-my-clothes-come-out-smelling-like-this…and they do!  The bottle states it’s “Scent 1”.   I recommend trying it out.  You’re buying laundry soap anyway so why not let your purchase contribute towards are good cause?  I’ll buy it again. ♥

Click here  to purchase Hero Clean laundry detergent, and try it for yourself!

(I am in no way paid for my opinion.  I just really love this item!)

I don’t know about you, but I am constantly washing my hands.  If I can’t get to soap then I am hand sanitizing, or, if you work in elementary school, I mean hanitizer or SANTAtizer (ho-ho-ho). I just like to feel clean!  Regardless of how much I wash, I am never truly clean all by myself.  I mean, my skin may be but I can never clean ME, the ME that is inside this body, by myself.  If it were up to us, we could scrub with soap, wallow in soap, SUBMERGE ourselves IN THE SOAP, but we can never be clean of our sins all by ourselves.  I don’t know about you, but my sins are dirty.  No, they are filthy!  Thank goodness, Jesus offers true cleansing!!!  We can’t do that by ourselves.  NEVER.  You will never find a cleaning service like the one He offers free to us.   1 John 1:9 ESV “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” ♥

JP/Grace and Pink

Have you ever made pancakes and then forgot you were making pancakes?  By the time you went to flip the one you forgot it was like flipping tar.  You continued cooking it as if the good side was going to make up for the bad side.  Nobody was around so you picked off the burnt part and ate the good part while you continued cooking.  Anybody?  Good….glad I’m not alone!

This analogy, AAACHOOOtruestory, reminds me that when someone does us wrong we are to turn the other cheek and offer it up, as well.  Say what!?  I don’t know about you, but when someone does me wrong one of my moods is to strike back and the other is to ask Jesus to “take care of that.”  I’m not thinking of flowers and a card when I say that, either.   The truth is, we are actually instructed to leave the revenge to God.  Revenge is not ours to institute, according to His word.  I see the reason for the two cheeks.  We are given the opportunity to stand in faith by offering the other.  Plus, three cheeks would be awkward.

I neglected one side of the pancake and then it had another side it readily offered.  I took advantage of that side, too.  However, the second side blessed me.  Be strong, get a little burnt, and give it all to Him to take care of.  I believe he makes some of the most beautiful blessings out of our steadfastness.♥

Luke 6:27-29 “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either.

Romans 12:19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”