Teen Jesus?

Don't ask me why but at some point during this past week it occurred to me that Jesus was a teenager.


Why have we never heard stories of Jesus as a teen? Did those books of the Bible get lost along the way? I haven't yet taken the time to think about Jesus as a teen but I might just do that. Any ideas on what he was like? Lemme know...

Thanksgiving and Selfish Giving

Happy Thanksgiving! Today is a day where most every American gives thanks and spends time with loved ones. It's a wonderful day filled with turkeys, apple and pumpkin pies, and lots of laughter. Family may travel to see relatives and friends gather.

Earlier today, on the way to our Thanksgiving feast, we passed a truck whose tire had blown out on the interstate. A comment was made about how awful that was because the tire couldn't be replaced (something about the rim, I was lost but accepted the explanation). I said I felt like we should stop. We didn't. We were sure he had a phone, who doesn't? Did he? Really, what would we have done? The tire (according to the given explanation) really couldn't have been replaced and we didn't know this guy from Adam so it was doubtful we'd have given him a ride. If he was nice, would we have? It was Thanksgiving day.

After we'd long passed him, I felt guilty. Now, had I been alone I probably wouldn't have because being a single woman it just wouldn't have been appropriate, but I wasn't alone. And I wasn't a single woman today. When I put all of my thoughts together though, it occurred to me... did I want to help him because it would make ME feel better? Because I knew it was the right thing to do... Or did I want to stop and help him because I truly did want him to make it to his own Thanksgiving feast? Of course I did want him to make it to his family dinner, but I just couldn't shake off the guilt -my guilt- of not stopping just to check on him. On this day of thanks when I have everything in the world to be thankful for, we could have stopped.

As we enter into the holiday season that is often filled with numerous opportunities for giving, I'm reminded to give selflessly and not selfishly. While all giving is GOOD because it is helping someone else, doing it for the right reasons is also important.

Wishing everyone safe travels and good bargains tomorrow!

Go and do the same.

As the holiday season begins I am trying to keep myself focused on what is most important. God. I am trying to reflect more upon where I want to be in my faith and where I want to be in life as called by my faith. Over the last few months I have lost so much movtivation, but have prayed for renewal. I know He is answering my prayer. As silly as it sounds, even having this blog has helped me. It's a place where I can record my thoughts and follow myself, in a different way. It make not make much sense but it works for me!

I've been in Boston this week and have been enjoying some time taking a break from routine. It's been so nice! I have so much loved having Nola with me this time. Today we went to the cutest pet store called The Pet Cabaret. I'd seen it last month when I was here but it was closed the only day we could go. Today, fuimos! It was great! They had all sorts of natural products and... they had the earth orbee toy from Planet Dog that I'd refused to order because of the shipping charges. As we were checking out I also grabbed some turkey jerky things and a deer antler, oh and a bully stick. Let's just say, that deer antler... best. thing. ever. It's SO cool. Apparently, they don't splinter and well, I'll have to write a separate post about my favorite dog things because I could obviously go on and on about that...

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I'll spare you the long list of things I'm thankful for (it's long!). We'll be going to Caveman's old boss' house and I will tell ya how thankful I am to NOT be cooking a full meal. Tonight, I made three huge casserole sized homemade macaroni and cheeses, two lasagnas, and a candy bar cake and I would be fine not being in a kitchen for the rest of this year!

On Thanksgiving I'll be praying from 11:00-11:20 PM for people around the world who don't have food and safe water. I'm glad to be doing this as it reminds me of what Jesus would want us to do, remember those who aren't as fortunate as we are. We are so blessed to live in the US and to have access to all that we do... Luke 10:37 says, "Go and do the same." I'd like to think that on Thanksgiving, Jesus would have invited the sick, widowed, afflicted, and poor to his house for dinner. While I won't be able to do that, I can remind myself just what this season is really about.

(And about that list of favorite dog stuff, stay tuned!) :)

Nola in New England

Well, long story short, plans changed. (As always!) I'll resist going into detail but let's just say I have the best Caveman ever!!! We arrived in Boston at 6:00 AM on Sunday morning. It was a long but safe trip and for that, I am thankful!

Today we went to Cape Cod... and there was SNOW! It was so pretty! We knew it would be really windy at the beach so we'd gone to Petco last night to get a sweater for Nola. She looked so goofy in it and I'm completely opposed dressing dogs in clothes but with her short fur and the cold, windy weather, we felt like she'd be more comfortable. Here are a few pictures and video from today!

Note to self

Today, I found a really great resource from Tom Davis' blog. It's something I look forward to working on over the next few weeks as 2008 quickly turns into 2009. I thought I'd share for anyone else who is interested. Enjoy!

Inspiring Video

Moms forced to pick which kids eat, which die

Did you know this week is World Hunger Relief Week? I know I've gone on and on about the global food crisis for the last week but the headline in the subject line caught my attention on CNN today. I remember a song I heard years ago (it was a song on a tape [yeah, that long ago!] from Compassion) called Ti Chape. In parts of Haiti children are not named until they are several months old because malnutrition is that bad. So bad that mothers may not even produce enough breastmilk to sustain their infant children. These babies are called "ti chape" until they are named. The article on CNN highlights Haiti and discusses the Wall Street bail out in comparison. Sigh. Check it out.