Invaluable

By Janet Morris Grimes –

I realized the other day the year is more than half-way over, and I have made about $200 this year through my writing. Ironically, I have worked harder for that amount than I ever have for any amount in my entire life.

One odd venture was to transcribe old video tapes from The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. Not just word for word transcriptions, but sound for sound, even when they talk over each other, all within perfect grammar and spacing.

Those comedians defined humor, but I struggled to spell Tim Allen’s grunting noises or Johnny Carson’s expressions. After hours and hours of reviewing those tapes, my hands were numb and my brain cells echoed each episode after scrutinizing the same show all day long. It is like an extended movie marathon, but with only one episode showing for eight hours at a time, and you can never turn it off.

In my past life, I was never one to make much money, but I could rest in the fact that the harder I worked, the more money I brought in. I knew how to be a good employee. I made a practice of going above and beyond the call of duty, and trusted that they paycheck would just take care of itself.

Life is very different now. In some ways, I feel as if I have been promoted, but without a pay plan.

But I know that God has a plan, and it involves me writing.

But it goes even deeper. His plan requires me to trust in him. His plan knocks me over with unexpected success on some days, while making sure I am prepared to be ignored and overlooked for long periods at a time on most of the others. His plan humbles me daily, causing me to question whether or not I am doing this right. His plan calls for me to show up every day and give Him my best effort, even when it feels like I am accomplishing nothing at all.

More than anything, His plan forces me to find my value in Him.

Because I have made about $200 so far this year, and I am exhausted.

The truth is that I am no longer worth what I was before.

Or, perhaps, I am more valuable than ever before.

I guess it depends on where I find my value.

BIBLE VERSE: “For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come” (I Timothy 4:8 NIV).

A Mentor’s Worth

By Lori Freeland –

In the state of Indiana, automated toll machines stand in place of live operators. Makes sense. More profit. No need for on-site restrooms.

During a recent road trip with my mom, I experienced this marvel of technology. Entering the toll way worked out fine—even though the wind tried to call dibs on my ticket as it spit out of the machine.

Exiting proved more difficult. Desperate for a restroom break, I took the off-ramp and waited behind a red pick-up. Never having used an automated machine, I rolled down my window and read the instructions.

Insert ticket according to picture.

Not too hard. I leaned out the window and popped in my ticket according to the diagram. The slot spit the ticket out. I studied the picture and tried again. This time the breeze caught it before I did.

I threw the shifter in park and rushed out to grab the ticket from underneath my front tire. By now, twelve cars waited behind me. Reinserting the ticket ten additional times did nothing for my emotional distress, the disposition of the other drivers, or my chances for finding a restroom anytime soon.

Decoding diagrams and maps isn’t my thing. What happened to throwing change into a basket? My hands shook and a trickle of sweat ran down my back as I slid in the car and looked at my mom. Even though I am a mom, letting someone else be the mom for a moment can sometimes take the pressure off. “Any ideas?” I asked her.

“Let’s just go through it and pay later.”

I nodded and put the car in drive. Her mom wisdom would have been great, had a long wooden arm not blocked our way. I took a deep breath and begged my bladder to hang on.

My wise mom pointed to the machine. “There’s a help button.”

Help. That’s exactly what I needed.

After I pushed the button, a scratchy voice prompted, “What’s your problem?”

I yelled over the honking behind me. “You mean besides the fifteen cars of aggravated people behind me?”

“Where did you get on the toll road, Ma’am?”

I gave my entrance point and seconds later, the correct exit fee popped up on the Pay This Amount screen. Ever helpful, my mom passed me a cupful of change. The woman in the Hummer inches from my bumper got out of her car. “It’s good,” I held up the change. “Be out of here in just a sec.”

She raised her eyebrows, punctuated her irritation with a sigh, and slid back into her car.

With shaky hands, I force fed the machine. It spit out every other coin. $3.25 and many coin feeds later, the arm raised. I escaped before it fell back down.

Whose idea was it to get rid of the live operators—the people who knew what to do and acted before one stuck traveler multiplied into many?

Not too long after my harrowing ticket booth debacle my oldest son, Kyle, returned from youth camp pumped-up on a vital message—Get a mentor. Be a mentor. People need people.

The message stuck. My tollbooth fiasco would have been a non-event had an attendant been there to help me. I need a mentor to steer me in the right direction when I’m stuck. I need to be a mentor and share the wisdom I’ve learned from others who have taken time to guide me.

“Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone” (I Thessalonians 5:12-14 NIV).

Discover Tasty Foods that Fight Fat

By Laurette Willis –

Want to lose some excess fat, eat REAL food (not make-believe “diet food”) and enjoy the journey? Here are some foods that are good for you, packed with nutrition and tasty enough for the whole family.

ALMONDS – These delicious nuts are high in alpha-linolenic acid, which can accelerate your metabolism of fats. Recent studies show that dieters who ate three ounces of almonds daily were able to cut down their weight and body mass by an amazing 18% compared to dieters who skipped eating almonds.

BERRIES – Want to burn up to 30% more fat? Strawberries, raspberries and other fruit high in Vitamin C can turbo-charge your workout, helping you to burn more fat.

CINNAMON – Try adding just ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon to food to help prevent an insulin spike (can help keep your body from storing excess fat).

SOY BEANS – Soybeans are rich in choline, which appears to block the absorption of fat and also seems to break down fatty deposits.

SWEET POTATOES – Definitely better than starchy white potatoes, sweet potatoes contain a high fiber content which helps keep insulin levels steady. This means less fat stored by your body.

MUSTARD – The turmeric in mustard not only gives it a yellow color. Now scientists have determined that tumeric also seems to slow the growth of fat tissue. Put it on hot dogs—and more!

ORANGES – The flavones in oranges help fight fat. Studies reveal that women who ate the most flavones have a much lower increase in body fat as they age. Don’t make the mistake of drinking orange juice and thinking it has the same effect. One must eat the entire peeled orange. Undiluted orange juice also has too much concentrated fruit sugar, spiking blood sugar too quickly.

SWISS CHEESE – Calcium-rich foods reduce fat-producing enzymes and increase the breakdown of fat in the body. Swiss cheese contains more calcium than many of its cheesy sidekicks.

See if you can create a menu using all eight of the foods listed above in one meal (breakfast, lunch OR dinner).

Patience at the Pumps

By Jarrod Spencer –

What will a guy do to save a little at the gas pumps?

I know what this guy will do; he will endure the worst gas pump situation ever to save 12 cents per gallon.

We were on our way home from a vacation and needed to fill up with gasoline. I noticed that most of the gas stations had raised their prices, except for one. The price difference was great enough to cause me to stop there.

The station appeared quite reputable – company, appearance, etc. The problem: the gas pump halted with every 10 – 15 cents worth of gas that I pumped.

I pulled the handle; it ran for a few seconds, then clicked to a stop. I adjusted the angle of the pump. Agin. Pull. Run. Stop. Readjust angle. Pull again – same result. Pull. Stop. Pull. Stop.

After approximately 30 stops, resulting in only $3.00 worth of gasoline, I thought it was the individual pump. I went in to pay my $3.00 and explained that I was moving to another. Different pump, but the exact same result.

I wish I knew how much time I spent at that gas station. It took a lot of patience for me and my family. We finally surrendered once I thought I had enough gasoline to make it home. When I paid, I told the manager that I would probably never come back again, due to this enormous inconvenience. I wasn’t mad at the company, just those particular gas pumps.

As I tried to find the perfect balance of trigger flow and pump angle, I couldn’t help but laugh in the middle of my frustration. It taught me to be patient, especially when situations are outside of my control.

This is something I learned, once again, as I struggled to be patient at the pumps.

PRAYER: Father, there are virtues in life that I want, but would rather not go through the effort to improve them. Patience is one such virtue, and I need it often. May moments like these strengthen my virtue of patience. Stay with me and guide me in this education process.

BIBLE VERSE: “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (Colossians 3:12 NIV).

September Song

By Kathi Macias –

September has always been my favorite month of the year. Seriously! Even—especially—when I was a kid. Yep, I was one of those “nerds” who loved school and couldn’t wait for summer vacation to end so we could get back into the classroom.

Most of my friends and both of my little brothers thought I was nuts. They were more like those two kids in the Staple’s commercial who drag up and down the aisles, looking like they just lost their best friend, while their dad leaps and dances through the store, tossing school supplies into his basket before racing toward the check stand.

I’m one of those people who, given half a chance and unlimited funds, would be a perpetual student. I absolutely love the challenge of learning a new topic and then acing a test on it.

And that’s another reason my younger brothers weren’t all that wild about September. They would show up in a new classroom and, as soon as the teacher spotted their unusual last name, hear her declare, “Oh, you must be Kathi’s brother. We’ll expect great things from you this year.” 

Groan.

As I progressed from grammar school to junior and senior high, I also loved the excitement of running for (and usually winning) a spot on student council. Entering the science fair was another treat because it meant I could spend my evenings and weekends working on my project while my brothers did silly things like playing outside or watching cartoons.

(Did I mention I was a firstborn? A type-A personality? An over-achiever? No? But you already figured that out, didn’t you?)

All well and good…until school becomes a thing of the past and real life happens right in front of you. Then what?

My husband and I married young—very young. Eighteen, to be exact. And we did so in the month of September. In the two years that followed, we had two babies, thirteen months apart. For the very first time in my life, I realized I did NOT know everything, nor was it necessarily fun to try and learn. Diapers? Are you kidding me? That was definitely before the days of disposables. (You don’t even want to go there.) Sleep deprivation? I set a new record that even “Sleepless inSeattle” hasn’t come close to breaking.

You know the one thing I did learn during those first couple of years? That a human being who weighs less than my head and can’t even sit up can at the same time absolutely take over the lives of two adults. Throw a second pint-sized person into the mix, and life as we knew it was over.

There were times during those early years of non-stop diaper changing and midnight feedings that I didn’t think I was going to make it. Suddenly straight-A averages and honor roll listings didn’t mean much. All I wanted was to be able to sleep more than 30 minutes at a time and to be able to eat an entire meal in one sitting.

But before I knew it, those years were behind me. Now, as another September is upon us, I look back on those early years with nostalgia. If I had them to live over again, which ones would I choose—the years where I couldn’t wait to get back to school and learn something new, or the years when I witnessed my child’s first smile or heard his first word? Hands-down, the sleepless years with my little ones.

September is a good month to reflect on the past…and to prioritize the future. Perhaps that’s why the Jewish calendar starts in September, rather than January. I’m approaching this September with a song of praise and thanksgiving in my heart and on my lips for all that God has blessed me with through the years. I encourage you to do the same.

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