I can be stupid at times. How about you?

I learned early SMART goals are the matrix for planning. Working in the world of business, be it non-profit or for-profit, there are reports and the required outcomes to be met.

Specific- Measurable-Attainable-Relevant-Timely= SMART

Today, I realized I can be very stupid at times. SMART goals are not just for business; they are for life!

I agree with Merriam-Webster- the matrix is something within or from which something else originates, develops, or takes form. All the stress that can originate when I delve into the unknown of someone else’s goal or mission is very real. The matrix of only planning in the work place made me realize, yes, I can be very stupid sometimes.

My husband studies the word more frequently than I. One morning last week, he brought Deuteronomy 30:19 to my attention. “This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that your children may live.”

In my inquisitive self, I went for more context beginning at Deuteronomy 30:11 and beyond 30:19. There it is- SMART goals for life!

Specific– walk in obedience today

Measurable– its not too difficult or beyond reach

Attainable– the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart

Relevant– that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice and hold fast to him

Timely– today, everyday.

The Lord has shared his plan so that I am not only smart but also intelligent. There is a sense of peace knowing God is in control. There is a sense of expectation knowing, there will be blessings and curses. There is intelligence in knowing what God has planned for us is not too difficult. There is wisdom being guided and led by the Lord.

The goal and the mission has not changed from the beginning of creation to now. In this matrix of life experiences between the heavens and earth, I hope that when my final report is due, the outcome is good, very good.

In the humbleness of being me and the grace of his child Jesus Christ, Today, I seek not to be stupid.

Always grateful,

Hide & Seek

I remember the fun game of hide and seek as a child. I also remember the spanking and the talking to I received when the game was not so fun for my family.

It was a beautiful day with two “friends” playing outside. When we heard my aunt calling for me, they suggested I hide. I watched from under the porch through the lattice as my aunt went up and down the street calling out my name. I began to feel the mind and body telling me this is not good. But there I stayed to gain the ongoing friendship of my childhood peers.

I felt that feeling more recently, the panic my aunt must have felt when she could not find me. The game of hide and seek remains a fun game through the generations. As I played with my granddaughters in our home, there was one we could not find. The one that prides herself on hiding well. We looked and looked again, in the closets, behind the doors, under the beds, in the toy chest. We checked the doors leading to outside, they were still locked.

Where could she be? Then my mind and body began its process to manage the fear through a rush of hormones and other synapses. Then I called out- “This is not fun anymore, where are you?”

At the playground, I watched as two of my granddaughters, once again, played hide and seek. From my view I watched as one hid, finding much fun in her hiding place. I watched as the other called for her sister in hopes of finding where is she. I yelled to the one seeking, listen for her voice, follow where her voice is coming from. But she kept going further away from the hiding place. I begin to feel her concern of not finding her sister and ended this fun game of hide and seek on that day.

But the honest expression of a child is most reflective when I look back over my life and know the love my family had for me and the necessary discipline to keep me on the right path. When we settled in the car, one sister said to the other, “I was starting to think someone took you and I was scared.” And the other responded, “I’m sorry.”

By the way, that one that prides herself on hiding well. She was under the bed. Her excitement, in letting us know she saw us looking but we didn’t see her, was fun for all of us ( admittedly, fun after the fact).

Are you the hider, the seeker, or the observer?

All these hide and seek experiences reminds me that the Lord, Jesus Christ seeks for us. There is no hiding place that our God does not know. As he sits at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty, may you be blessed in seeking and finding him everyday. Rev.3:19-21

And when your mind and body comes to its senses, may you also seek forgiveness and come out of your hiding place.

Always grateful,

The 4 Seasons

History most definitely repeats itself! Its an historical event that occurs every year but I am fascinated by the seasons. Fall in all the beautiful colors and Spring, the beginning of new life. The winter snow and the summer heat, are all fascinating events of the created earth. A Saturday drive admiring the foliage is a beautiful and fascinating event.

Daily writing prompt
What historical event fascinates you the most?
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My Life is Football!!!

With great anticipation, I sat with my husband to watch the Commanders play. Will it be a win or will it be a week of looking back with frustration. It is definitely a WIN!!!

The quarters of life is like football. First quarter childhood– all the experience that determine who I am and the foundation of who I will become. The nurturing, the care, the bonding that takes place, and determining who that go-to person is for me. The 2nd quarter, puberty, is a beast. All the flags, some red and some yellow but all leading to lessons learned and what not to do. The 3rd quarter, life, is about pressing on through all the obstacles. It’s not always the touchdown and scoring big. It’s the field goals along the way that keep me in the game. The 4th quarter, eternity, is when it seems like its all over, time has run out. The clock is at 00.00 and boom- touchdown!!! The winning play that will be in the books and film over eternity.

I hope your life is like football. It’s the fourth quarter that matters. Take a look back at your game of life through all the quarters. You are still here!!!

What ever childhood experiences, be they good or bad- you are still in the game. The warning flags of puberty, some lessons that you dare not share. You are still in the game!!! The life experiences that you may wish were different. You are still in the game!!!

And when the 4th quarter comes and the clock is at 00.00 you are still in the game!!! There’s a line in the movie, Deep Impact, uttered by Morgan Freeman to Téa Leoni, the reporter that thinks she has a big story to expose. “It might seem that we have each other over the same barrel, Ms. Lerner, but it just seems that way.”

The 4th quarter of life may seem like we’re over a barrel and time has run out. But Christ demonstrated, it just seems like it. There is eternity with Christ. Press on- You are still in the game for eternity!

Always grateful,

We filled a dumpster!

The emotions involved with filling a dumpster is like a moment in time. All the things accumulated over the years stacked in the garage. Times of moving from house to house, times of children leaving and returning with sentimental things, and times of childhood possessions that remind me of my grandmothers.

It is also a time to wonder and reminisce of the special moments of placing the clothes of our first born in that now very broken dresser. The big green chair where our children sat, and played hide & seek under. Sorting through the furniture, appliances, and found pictures and wondering- do any of our children want any of this.

Later in the week, we met with all of our children for a familial dinner. We took them to the garage to sort through the things we thought would be special to them. It did my heart good to listen to their memories of that childhood desk, that green chair, the rotisserie no one wanted, and the VHS videos. It is heartwarming to hear them talk about our family favorite VHS- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. The lines we still use today, that others do not know, like- “Is there anymore”, “Tat tat, looks like rain”, “Thanks for noticing”, and Elphalants and woozles steal honey”, just to name a few.

Living with no regrets is like filling that dumpster. Looking back over time and sorting the necessary from the no longer needed. It was a bit hard for me to let go of some of the tangible things of the past. But listening to my adult children’s fond memories of things past let me know, it’s all good! It is the memories that are built over time, not the accumulation of things that is expressed in love.

Some say grief is most dominant in Regrets of Omission, the things we intended to do and did not. As my family and circle of friends grow, may the Lord provide discernment in the things that are necessary and the things that are no longer needed, that I may live without regret. That my words and actions are sincere and a reflection of Christ.

I pray the same for you.

Always grateful,