What advice would you give to your teenage self?
In 2018, I wrote a blog post, Dear Younger Me, that was full of advice for myself. I wrote to the pre-teen me, but the advice would have been valuable in my teen years as well.
Now that my mother is gone, the last paragraph of my letter makes me sad.
What bores you?
I get bored when talking to some people. Some people. The ones who talk, talk, talk, without saying anything interesting or meaningful. The ones who talk endlessly about themselves with no interest in the person to whom they are speaking. The ones who dominate a conversation and don’t give other people a chance to speak.
A conversation is interactive. It involves the back-and-forth exchange of ideas between two or more people.
Introverts are not interested in small talk. Small talk is an easy way to begin a conversation, but it is boring. Gifted conversationalists (not me!) may begin a conversation with a question. What’s the scariest thing you’ve ever done? What’s your favorite hobby?
What loquacious extroverts may not know is that the person who isn’t participating in the conversation can’t get a word in edgewise. You have to pause once in a while to let other people speak.
Talk. Pause. Listen. Repeat.
Share one of the best gifts you’ve ever received.
We live in a material world, so naturally, many people will say that the best gift they have ever received is a material thing. I received the best gift I could ever receive in the basement of an old church. My Sunday School teacher told me about this gift. I can’t see it. I can’t touch it. But I gratefully accepted it, and I hold it in my heart.
You know that we are living in a material world
But I am NOT a material girl
Those of us who believe in Jesus use different phrases to describe the moment we received this precious gift. We are saved. We are redeemed. We are born again. We have accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior.
Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’
John 3:5-7
The best gift I ever received was a gift from God. He loved me (and you) so much, He came into our material world to give eternal life to whoever believes in Him.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16
Jesus gave me the gift of eternal life! He died on the cross for my sins, and He rose from the dead. As one of my favorite childhood hymns says, He lives! He’s in the world today.
I serve a risen Saviour, He's in the world today
I know that He is living, whatever men may say
I see His hand of mercy, I hear His voice of cheer
And just the time I need Him He's always near
He lives (He lives), He lives (He lives), Christ Jesus lives today
He walks with me and talks with me
Along life's narrow way
He lives (He lives), He lives (He lives), Salvation to impart
You ask me how I know He lives?
He lives within my heart
In all the world around me, I see His loving care
And though my heart grows weary I never will despair
I know that He is leading, through all the stormy blast
The day of His appearing will come at last
Knowing Jesus is the greatest gift I’ve ever received. It isn’t just the gift of eternal life. He is with me today.
This morning, decades after receiving this precious gift, I will go to Sunday School to tell children about Jesus. I want them to receive the best gift they could ever receive just like I did.
Are you patriotic? What does being patriotic mean to you?
It makes me sad when a good word is co-opted by misguided people. The word patriotic describes a person who is devoted to their country. The word patriotic used to evoke feelings of pride in my country, the sweet land of liberty. Now, it brings to mind people who are devoted to a man with autocratic tendencies and people who conflate faith with nationism.
The man who tried to prevent the peaceful transfer of power in the United States of America in 2021 described the insurrectionists he summoned to the US Capitol as ‘patriots.’
Were these rioters demonstrating devotion to the United States of America when they stormed the Capitol? No, they were demonstrating devotion to a man. They came to protest in D.C. on January 6th because a demagogue told them to be there.
The Capitol rioters aren’t the only ones who have soured me on the word patriotic. Christian Nationalists might well be described as patriotic; they are certainly devoted to the good old USA. Not only are they devoted to a misguided vision of our country, but they also idolize nationalism.
Let’s put truth over tribe and play a game called “America or Jesus?”
Patriotic Christians recognize they are citizens of heaven first and citizens of America second (Philippians 3:20).
Keith Simon, Truth Over Tribe
I am a Christian, and I love my country, but I am a citizen of heaven first. I am devoted to God.
My Father God to Thee, Author of Liberty, to Thee I sing.
My country, ’tis of thee,
sweet land of liberty,
of thee I sing:
land where my fathers died,
land of the pilgrims’ pride,
from every mountainside
let freedom ring!
Have you ever unintentionally broken the law?
I am one of the many people who drive faster than the speed limit, especially on highways. I have never gotten a ticket for speeding, though I certainly have deserved one. It is well known that you won’t be stopped if you drive within five mph or so of the speed limit, and I take advantage of that. Other people drive 10-15 mph over the limit, so I tell myself I’m good!
The one time I ever got a ticket was for failing to stop at a red light. I was with my husband, though we weren’t yet married. We were following another car on our way to a coworker’s house when the light turned yellow. As I was slowing down to stop, Kent told me to go so we wouldn’t lose them. Of course, a police officer was there!
And yes, I have unintentionally broken traffic laws. Going down unfamiliar streets, I have failed to see a stop sign or a reduced speed limit sign. I have unintentionally gone the wrong way down a one-way street, which can be terrifying!
The topic of breaking laws makes me think of everyday grace, the undeserved favor we show one another. Just as the police extend grace to traffic law breakers every day, most of us extend grace to others every day for minor annoyances. We are even more merciful when people unintentionally do something wrong.
Sometimes, we take everyday grace for granted, don’t we? When I speed, I am breaking the law. The police have the right to fine me for going even one mph over the limit.
God is even more merciful than we are. He does not treat us as we deserve to be treated. He is compassionate and gracious.
The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.
Psalm 103:8-10
Innermost Being 