Stuff to ponder

Interesting, isn't it, how often people criticize what they know the least about. Interesting as well how frequently people form their opinions based on their own experiences, or fond memories, or frustrated longings, rather than on what the Bible says. I wonder what the relationship between those two statements is?

Youth ministry

In the book Perspectives On Family Ministry, 3 Views, editor Timothy Paul Jones says this:  "That's when I began to ask some painful questions about student ministry that my training in youth ministry and Christian education had not equipped me to answer. What if, I wondered, this separation between students and adults--something that I was trained to see as a solution--has actually been part of the problem? What if God never intended youth ministry staff members to become the primary sustainers of students' spiritual lives? What if something is profoundly wrong with the entire way the church has structured ministries to youth and children? What if the reason so many ministers are bordering on burnout is because our ministry models are fundamentally flawed?"  (pg. 10).

Ten Blessings of Fall, last two

I)  Deer season!

J)  Football season!

Fall is definitely my favorite season.

Blessings of Fall part 3

G)  Thanksgiving.  Yes, I'm talking about the holiday. I know that the practice of giving thanks is always important. God deserves our thanks. Plus, it is good for us to thank him. It helps us to recognize where all good things come from. It helps us stay humble and dependent of the Lord. But the holiday is great too.

I love celebrating Thanksgiving. Anything that involves, faith, family, football, plus turkey & dressing, and pecan pie has to be a terrific thing!

H)  The colors of changing leaves. Granted, we don't get too much other than brown down here. However, there area few maples that people have planted that turn pretty colors, and the ginkos look pretty good. We also have a few sumacs that turn a very pretty red. Definitely love to see leaves changing into fall colors.


more later...

Fall Blessings Continued

Back to the list of ten things about fall for which I am very thankful.

D)  Butterflies. Admit it, butterflies are cool and beautiful animals. We always have butterflies to look at around here. But, this time of year we will get an extra dose as they migrate through. Its really cool to see them floating through the air. I've seen hundreds of monarchs at a time on trees by the lake. Butterflies are fun.

E)  Pecans. I love pecans. I have many memories of my dad cracking pecans while he watched football games. My sister and I would always try to sneak one out of the bowl. Man they were good. And my mother would then use them to make things like fudge, cookies, pumpkin bread, banana muffins, etc. Yep, pecans are a good deal. I don't know how the crop will be this year due to the drought, but I'm ready to drive around and find some trees on public property that are starting to drop the first nuts of the season.

F)  Mowing, or actually lack of it. As the days cool off a little and the photo period gets shorter, the grass really slows down its growth rate. This means less and less mowing as the weeks go by. Hallelujah!