"There's a little flame inside a soul
Some shine bright
Some shine small
The rains will come
And the waters rise
But don't you ever lose your light
In this life you will know
Love and pain
Joy and sorrow
So when it hurts
When times get hard
Don't forget who's child you are
This little light of mine
I'm gonna let it shine
This little light of mine
I'm Gonna let it shine
Gonna let it shine
With the ones you love
Treasure the timeMay you live each day
With no regret
Make the most of every chance you get
And your eyes get wide
When you look at the stars
With the same sense of wonder as a child's heart
And for those who are gone
Keep the memories alive
Hold on to your dreams
Don't ever let go
There's a fire inside you
Burning with hope"
You may think God can't use you to make a difference. God CAN use you - whether you are a new Christian or you've been saved for years. There will be hard days. There will be tough times. God can use your trials and tribulations to reach others for Him. Stay focused on Him - He is our Prize and our Portion. He is our Deliverer and our Redeemer! He is our Light in a darkened world. He will turn our tears to laughter, sadness to joy and turn our dim lights to the brightness and excitement of Times Square.
Let this be our prayer TODAY - "May you live each day, With no regret, Make the most of every chance you get, And your eyes get wide, When you look at the stars, With the same sense of wonder as a child's heart"
You're light may be dim at the moment - but it's time to let it SHINE in a darkened world. Matthew 5:16 says, "In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." God can use YOU and He will use YOU if you let Him in.
"This little light of mine - I'm going to let it shine."
Lately, the Lord has really convicted me to step out more - to help others without looking for recognition. To learn to give HIM the glory. Last month we had the first edition of "Help Others Friday" ... here's #2 ... with more practical ideas of how we EACH can REACH.
Donate something you don’t use. Drop them off at a charity — others can put your clutter to good use. Try your local Good Will store or even someone you know who could use the items you are getting rid of (IE: children's clothes, toys, etc.)!
Comfort someone in grief. Offer a hug, helping hand, kind word, a listening ear, will go a long way when someone has lost a loved one or suffered some similar loss or tragedy.
Buy food for a homeless person. Sometime cash is a bad idea if it’s going to be used for drugs, but buying a sandwich and chips or something like that is a good gesture. Be respectful and friendly. Also --- it's a good idea to fix "homeless kits" and leave them in your car - with toothpaste, soap, etc. --- more to come on this in "GIVE BACK" newsletter.
Do a chore. Something small or big, like cleaning up or washing a car or doing the dishes or cutting a lawn (for your spouse, parents, etc.).
Send a nice email. Just a quick note telling someone how much you appreciate them, or how proud you are of them, or just saying thank you for something they did.
Create a care package. Soup, reading material, tea, chocolate … anything you think the person might need or enjoy. Good for someone who is sick or otherwise in need of a pick-me-up.
Love. Simply finding ways to express your love to others, whether it be your partner, child, close friend, distant friend or even co-workers… just express your love. A hug, a kind word, spending time, showing little kindnesses, being friendly … it all matters more than you know.
Hebrews 13:16, "Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God."
I hope your cleaning tasks are coming along well! We are still on the room-by-room detailed cleaning checklists - this week, we are tackling the bathroom!
Here's the Bathroom Checklist:
Clean the tub and shower. Spray with cleaner and scrub the walls in a circular motion from top to bottom. Spray the entire area with plain water to rinse off the cleaner, and wipe it down again with a damp cloth.
Shine the mirror. Spray with glass cleaner (I also love the new Windex Wipes).
Scrub the sink. Wipe the sink and the vanity top with a damp cloth or cleaner. Rinse completely and go over the area a second time. Scrub the drain with a toothbrush.
Disinfect the toilet. Scrub both the inside and the outside.
Mop the floor. Using a sponge and cleaner diluted in water, and starting from the farthest corner of the room, work toward the door, going left to right. Dip the mop into the bucket of cleaner, wring it out, and push it over a manageable section of the floor. Then dip the mop into a pail of clean water, wring it out, and mop the section again.
Clean the wastebasket. Spray both the inside and the outside of the wastebasket with all-purpose cleaner, and wipe it down with a cloth.
Wipe down the shower rods and rings. Use a damp cloth. Dust can build up, preventing the rings from working properly.
Clean out the medicine cabinet. Empty the contents, placing them in the sink, then mist the walls and the shelves with cleaner and wipe with a cloth. Scrub any dirty areas with a toothbrush.
Clean the cabinets. Lightly dampen a cloth with water and cleaner, and work in the direction of the grain, from top to bottom. Rinse and repeat. Polish the knobs.
Wipe the faucet and fixtures. Use a cloth spritzed with cleaner. Buff with a clean cloth.
Are you ready to have a home office that looks as organized as this? Time for an OFFICE MAKEOVER.
Here's a checklist for this week to help you to take that next step in having a clean, organized, ready-to-get-things-done vibe the second you walk in ...
Vacuum the desk chair with a brush attachment. Spot-treat any spills or stains on the seat, if it’s fabric, with a cloth and cleaner. And wipe down the legs, the arms, and the wheels of the chair with the cloth, clearing dirt off the wheels so that it doesn’t get ground into the floor.
Vacuum. Move the furniture, like the desk and the filing cabinets, and vacuum or mop underneath them. Don’t forget closets, where dust convenes.
Sanitize the telephone and remote controls. Use a disinfecting wipe (recommend Clorox or Lysol wipes) to sterilize the telephone’s keypad, handset, and cords. Rid those germs!
Do the light fixtures. Dust with an extendable duster or a microfiber cloth.
Clean the curtains or blinds. Vacuum on a low setting with a brush attachment. You can also dust the blinds with a damp microfiber cloth.
Clean the bookshelves. Remove all books, magazines, and storage containers and dust them with an extendable duster, working from top to bottom.
Clean the desk. Pick up any desk accessories and dust them, top to bottom, with a damp cloth or a damp microfiber cloth. Dust the entire empty surface of the desk, its frame, and the legs with a microfiber cloth, from top to bottom.
Dust the computer. Working from top to bottom, dust the screen and the keyboard with a microfiber cloth. Then use the cloth to wipe off the printer, the fax machine, and any other electronics that are in your office.
Dust the surfaces of filing cabinets, tables, and other furnishings. Use a damp microfiber cloth.
Happy Office Cleaning!
Check back next week as we cover another room of the house ...
I'm currently taking a Marriage Counseling class and am learning so incredibly much! I wanted to share some of my discussion board reflections from the class ... I'm not asking you to love my "marriage advice," but it really challenges our minds to reflect on our own marriage relationships. Think about the question for yourself...REFLECT. PRAY. SEEK.
The Question: Every marriage encounters problems at some point or another. What are some of the reasons marriages struggle as years pass by? ... (the rest of the question is about implementing strategies in counseling)
Every marriage does, in fact encounter problems at one point or another ... especially after years and years together. People get too comfortable, change their ways, become stubborn in their ways, sometimes people become lazy in their relationship, and some people just lose sight of why they fell in love and don't know how to make "love" last - by having Christ as the center and the core of their relationship. Gary Smalley says it best in his lecture, "Early on in marriage, we see our spouse through 'rose-colored' glasses, laughing at and enjoying all the foolish mistakes that are made." I think as people grow older and more mature in their relationship, they tend to be less forgiving, accepting and tend to become "set in their ways." We've all met couples like this ... the things they loved about each other when they first married became annoying as they were together longer, also called the escalation of "negative thinking". I think in times like this, couples forget the power of communication and let the negative thoughts begin to build up a wall against their spouse. When this wall has matured and has lots and lots of pain and annoyances that haven't been worked through, problems occur - fights happen, communication ceases, fun and laughter is non-existant. These are all vital to the marriage relationship and with them being non-existant, couples slowly begin to drift further and further apart.
In cases like this, when married couples feel like things are "missing" from their marriage (IE: laughter, fun, communication) and feel like all they do is fight and avoid each other, it's important to implement strategies to help change their negative thinking patterns. For example, focusing on the positives in marriage! In every single marriage, we could all dwell on just one or two things and if they consumed our thought process - things wouldn't be the same between us and our spouse. Soon, all you would do is dwell on the bad and sooner or later, everything in the relationship seems negative and gloomy. As Phil. 4:8 says, "whatsoever things are true, honest, just....think on these things." It's important to see the good in the someone---you can't avoid those "negative habits," but you can focus on and encourage the positive ones. As Greg Smalley pointed out, it's vital to give our spouse the "benefit of the doubt" and "stop the tendency to assume the worst about each other." I have learned this first hand in my marriage, we need to seek out the positive in our spouses and halt the escalation of negative thinking. Putting this "safeguard" into practice will help marriages throughout the good, bad and the just plain ugly times. It's important that we let go and let God be the center of the marriage relationship. We, as humans, like to try and do things on our own and forget how crucial Christ is in this relationship.
On to our challenge for this week ... there is one small challenge each day for the next 4 days ... try to accomplish the tasks, if you need to double up one day, I completely understand ... remember, BABY STEPS.
Day #1: Shine your sink!
Today, focus on scrubbing your sink (SCRUB IT GOOD), wash all the dirty dishes, put away all the clean dishes and even wash your dish drying counter organizer if you have one ... you will feel so different and accomplished when you walk in your kitchen.
Day #2: Focus on those "HOT SPOTS"
Set a timer and today, work on those "hot spots" ... you know, the place where we shove things when we are in a hurry and dealing with the hustle and bustle of life. Clean off the counters ... clean out the mail basket ... clean out the old magazines ... simple tasks!
Day #3: Work on "anything today"
Today, pick a small project (drawer, closet), put away laundry or simply dust, vacuum and mop for just 15 minutes! You will feel great and get so much accomplished in this short amount of time. TRY IT! You never know - you may go crazy and love it so much you clean for 16 minutes :)
Day #4: Swish & Wipe Challenge!
I'm super stoked about this last challenge - doing a quick cleaning in your main household bathroom! Swish the toilet with a toilet bowl brush and wipe down the counter tops and sink with a rag and put away all the things that have been gotten out. This takes all of two minutes to keep our bathroom ready for anyone.
