| Brian and I started a new blog!
check it out: http://brianandbethany.wordpress.com
bye xanga!
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| We are obsessed with being comfortable. Magazine photos display celebrities in bedroom slippers lounging around designer-decorated mansions. They appear labor and struggle-free. The first may be true, but they are not immune for trails and difficulties. Furthermore, God originally created us to work! Adam was placed in the garden told to tend it before the fall! Let’s not miss out on the satisfaction and fulfillment that can only come from work.
Anne Morrow Lindbergh writes, “If suffering alone taught, all the world would be wise, since everyone suffers." We know this is not the case! In these economic times where many are faced with financial strain, look at the opportunity our nation has to grow in wisdom! “It’s only when we put struggle within the Christian context of character development and self-sacrifice that it becomes profitable,” writes Gary Thomas in Sacred Marriage.
When gas prices first skyrocketed, I was curious to see if everyday life I our little town of Pine Mountain, Ga., would be affected. I’m pleased to say that it was; families stayed at home on evenings and weekends, friends and co-workers carpooled together, and chance to develop community in the core spheres of life was presented.
High gas prices and the signs of economic trouble ahead provided families with the opportunity to grow. Yet, how many people in towns like Pine Mountain didn’t see this trial as a blessing? I’m afraid that many failed at this initial test; or, perhaps when the stock did indeed plummet, their desperation would have been limited.
Why is it that “buffet” our bodies, but not our souls? We pay to compete in marathons, pushing ourselves to the max, and travel to climb mountains in high altitude places. If these things were easy and didn’t require sacrifice, they would lose their appeal. Yet, when we “freely” experience suffering, why can’t we seize the opportunity for growth?
We experience and will continue to experience suffering. May our perspective be selfless — not why is this happening to me, but how is God achieving his purposes and making me more like Him?
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| What we are learning:
March 19th:
Brian: Achieving an organic flow in writing, where you characters take share and dictate the plot,
happens only after perseverance and dedication!
Bethany: There are many forms of birth control. (I'll spare the rest of the details!....)
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| Every Tuesday at 808 Brian teaches from the book of James. I never cease to be struck by something from Scripture! And, even the teacher can be taught as he prepares.
March 17
Brian: "The tongue is a restless evil..." The phrase shows how ruthless this latent source of evil is!
Bethany: James spoke about the tongue being a pilot. Brian emphasized that this pilot should be Lord. Matthew 12:27, out of the heart the mouth speaks. Even though I've heard and quoted this verse in James numerous times, I'd always imagined an earthly pilot. However, it's so clear that the Lord should be piloting our bodies through what we say.
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| I had an interesting conversation on the shuttle ride back to Pine Mountain today. Larry was genuinely polite and a very pleasant conversationalist. We chatted from the airport to his stop in Lagrange about life, work, faith, and families. Larry fixes broken cable cars in the Seattle — an occupation that never crossed my mind until today!
Monday, March 16
Brian: Fearing failure can stifle your creativity. (from Steve Plunkett)
Bethany: Cable cars: Seattle kept its cable car lines longer than any American city except San Francisco. (Larry)
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