Building Others Up

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

Ephesians 4:29

This verse has been a constant lesson and reminder for me this year. It is so easy to say something that I don't mean. Before I can stop it the deed is done and I have hurt someone that I love. There are several things that I get out of this verse. The first is that we must speak purely. We cannot speak words that would be dishonoring to our Lord. The second is How we talk.

Speak only what is helpful for building others up. We must only speak good things about others. If we cannot, then we must not speak of them at all. In other words, we must keep most of that stuff to ourselves. We can only speak of things if it blesses the person we are talking about. So we can only talk about others if it is good or if they are in need. The person who is listening must benefit from what I have to say. Well that leaves us with very little to say. I guess that is the whole point.

This should change the whole structure of how we talk and how we think. I fail at this often, but think of what a difference it would make if we all strove to do this? This will be a lesson that I will be practicing for a lifetime. Each time we open our mouths we have the opportunity to bless or hurt someone. Let's start building others up.

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I Am Thankful

A few days ago my mom and I pulled into the driveway and we found my dad hauling a big thing into the house. We soon found out that it was a stove. We needed a new stove. Someone just gave it to us. WOW! I love it when God does stuff like that. The stove is definitely a big gift for my family. What a blessing!

This Christmas I find myself being thankful for so many things. We are having a simple Christmas this year. I am glad because Christmas isn't about the gifts. Why do we get so caught up on the material things? The only gift that matters is Jesus Christ and I am SO thankful that he saved me!

I am thankful for:

My parents, family, friends, safety, my home, God's provision, the opportunity to go to college, my job, and most importantly, my relationship with my Savior! May we all focus on the Savior this Christmas.

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Taking Care of Barb

There have been a few times in my life that were key turning points for me. I have been through a few different situations that have changed my life forever. During the summer of 2006 I was a counselor once again at Camp Daniel. If you go to camp long enough you get a camper that will challenge you.Each week has brought it's own set of challenges for me.

I had a camper in a wheelchair that week. Barb was 52 and had cerebral palsy. That week was the worst and best week of my life. That was the first time I had ever done full time care for someone. At first it was really overwhelming. Barb was so patient with me as I was learning how to take care of her. I had to feed her, clothe her, bathe her, and take her to the bathroom. I had to do everything for her. The first couple of days were stressful for me. When I finally let go of that and I truly embraced everything I was doing with her, the rest of the week was a blessing.

There were a few ladies who knew what they were doing and they helped me a lot that week. Thank you Nancy, Katie and Sherry. I couldn't have done it without them. They were such a good example to me of having a servant's heart. The body of Christ is supporting and helping each other at camp. I am continually blessed to see this in action.

It was an honor, a privilege to take care of Barb. Barb taught me so much that week. She taught me about love, patience, vulnerability, and being humble. Something happened that week that I can't describe. Something changed inside of me. As I took care of Barb, God softened my heart and broke me. My life has been forever wrecked in an amazing way, and I will never be the same.

This is a picture of me holding hands with Barb. This picture represents so much for me.

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