How did it get to Oct???

Oh my sisters, sorry I have been so negligent on here... mercy me!! May to October?? Well, better late than never? So much has happened since May. I have been working a lot, my oldest daughter turned 21 (not months but YEARS!!!), my youngest turned 19 (also in years), and I'm sure there's more but for now, thats a lot for me. The dynamics have definitely changed in my life. When this (retired) homeschooling mom went back to working, things kind of got dropped, missed, overlooked, etc. It's amazing how UN Superwoman I am... seriously. Do you remember the commercial where the amazing woman on the screen struts to this tune, "I can bring home the bacon. Fry it up in a pan. And never, never let you forget you're a man cause I'm a woman, Enjoli." Um, well I practically forgot my husband was a man but that had nothing to do with the fact that I was a woman! Working retail, I sometimes get home after he's already in bed! Then he gets up and leaves before I'm awake. But we do have cell phones so we enjoy a virtual relationship daily! Haha! So UN Superwoman me has also failed to keep up with housework, reading, quilting, this blog, getting together with friends. Enter God's abundant grace, His grace is truly sufficient. Let me encourage you today that whatever you are facing in this crazy, sometimes break neck speed life, that God is a constant, faithful, sovereign Lord. He never leaves you nor forsakes you and He is a strength when you are weak (trust me I know about me being weak when He is strong!). Let's you and I rest in His grace, be saturated by it, be conduits of it. Take some time today to meditate on the instruments of His grace in your life. You will be amazed at His love for you. Bless you my sisters <3 Let's chat again soon <3

An Interesting Exercise

In "7 Habits of Highly Effective People", the author challenged the reader to try a very interesting exercise. Look down the corridors of time and imagine yourself at a your own funeral. Picture the room full of friends and family, business acquaintances and school friends. Of those present, four people will stand up and share what they remember about you and your life.

Therein lies the exercise... imagine what they would say. Consider what you would want them to say. Here are some of the questions posed plus a few of my own:

What is it that you would want those people to say?
What character did they see in you?
What difference did you make in their lives?
What difference did you make within your sphere of influence?
What kind of friend were you?
What kind of daughter?
What kind of wife?
What kind of mother?
What kind of sister?
What kind of qualities were you remembered for?
What adjectives would they use?
If you were a business owner, how did you handle your business?
In what way is the world different because you were in it?

As you mull these questions over, write down your answers. For me it was very fascinating to look at life in the reverse. I spent some time journaling my thoughts and impressions. It was a mixed bag of course... there were some things that I did not want to hear at my "funeral", things I knew I wanted to change. Yet there were glimmers of things that I wanted to hone and further develop.

Purpose... that is the point... to live life with purpose. Looking at life with a definite plan - if you will - so that you can live effectively. How different would my life look if I consistently thought about the end result of my choices and the use of my time? This exercise sort of built some personal accountability into my life because I set the bar myself (especially since I wrote it down). Keeping that bar in front of me motivates me to strive to accomplish it.