Why You Should Hang Up Your Robe
by Glynnis Whitwer

(Editor's Note: This article really hit home with me; I have a bad habit of not quite finishing what I started. Reading this article helped me to realize the importance of finishing what I start, even with such seemingly minor tasks as hanging up my robe. Thanks, Glynnis, for your wise words!)

“However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me…” Acts 20:24 (NIV)

My first instinct was to leave the clean, folded clothes on top of the dresser. Granted, my arms were filled with freshly laundered items, so it would have been difficult to open the drawer while balancing the stack. I had an excuse for leaving them on top. Didn’t I? Instead, I pushed past my instinct, took 30 more seconds, and placed the clothes neatly in the drawer.

This tendency to not complete a task happens with surprising regularity. I toss my bathrobe on the bed, drape jeans on the tub, and set the television remote on the nearest counter top. However, sometimes, when I’m a bit more self-aware, I take the few extra steps needed to actually finish the task.

Years ago, I realized my practice of stopping short of finishing what I started led to a cluttered home and office. Back then, I had a multitude of unfinished tasks that I just lived with. It wasn’t all simple things like putting away clothes, but included larger tasks like leaving a wall half painted.

Starting a project is fun, and usually involves a burst of energy. Then, that energy wanes as I approach the finish line. Instead of pushing to complete the task, assignment or project with excellence, I lean towards settling for good enough. Unfortunately, when I settle for “good enough” consistently, I learn to live with mediocrity. And accepting mediocrity is far from where God wants me to be. You see, finishing what we start is more than a good organizational or home management skill. It’s also a spiritual discipline.

As I identified the tendency to settle, I realized it affected me in a variety of ways throughout my life. In the past I accepted a distant relationship with God rather than one of intimacy. I’ve limited my understanding of Scripture to a surface level. My relationships with others have gone no deeper than, “Hi, how are you doing?” Instead of pushing to explore the fullness of what God offers in all areas, it is easier to stop short. Perhaps it’s safer. Simpler. And with less personal discomfort or inconvenience.

Interestingly, it’s actually been somewhat easy to address this issue. I admit the tendency within myself to settle, and I get firm with myself about it. Now, when I would prefer to leave the dryer full of clothes, or emails half typed, I say to myself, “Finish what you start.” I make a conscientious decision to finish the task at hand before I move on to something new. Obviously, there are some projects that require more effort, but this works on many of my issues.

I’m not sure of all the reasons for stopping short of finishing with excellence, but I do know the results. I end up with unfulfilled commitments, open loops and shallow relationships. That’s a far cry from the life Jesus came to bring, which is full and abundant. Not a partial life, but one lived with pushing to the limits and exploring the outer reaches.

Maybe that seems a deep principle to pull from putting clothes in a drawer or a dirty bowl in the dishwasher. However, the discipline of finishing well is one that is woven through my life…or it’s not.

So I guess I’ll take the extra step and actually hang up my robe. It’s one more stitch in this tapestry of finishing well that God is trying to create in my life.

Dear Lord, thank You for demonstrating finishing well through the life of Jesus. I know Jesus could have stopped short of paying the price for my salvation. But He didn’t. For that I will be eternally grateful. Please help me push through mediocrity in my life and explore the fullness You long to bring. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Application Steps:

Identify one home or office task that would take you less than 30 minutes to finish. Commit to finishing this in the next five days.

Reflections:

What are some reasons I avoid finishing certain tasks?

Could procrastination reflect a deeper spiritual issue for me?

Power Verses:

John 19:30, “When he had received the drink, Jesus said, ‘It is finished.’ With that he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” (NIV)

Genesis 2:2, “By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day He rested from all His work.” (NIV)
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Glynnis Whitwer is on staff with Proverbs 31 Ministries as the Senior Editor of the P31 Woman magazine. She is one of the writers of Encouragement for Today, the Proverbs 31 e-mail devotions, with over 500,000 daily readers. Her newest book, I Used to be So Organized, has just been released. Glynnis, her husband Tod, and their five children live in Glendale, Arizona. Visit http://www.glynniswhitwer.com/ or http://www.herorganizedlife./com to learn more.

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© 2011 by Glynnis Whitwer. All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission.

September Editor's Letter

Getting Back into a Routine


Since Cody and Morgan are both back to school, I guess that means summer is over! While I love the more un-scheduled days of summer, it is nice to get back into a routine. Cody started his sophomore year at Kansas State this week and seems to be enjoying his classes. Morgan started her college class (Spanish) on Monday, and her high-school senior year on Tuesday. It was bittersweet to take the last “first-day-of-school” picture, but she’s excited about her senior year and college next year, and we are glad about that (see Morgan's first, first-day-of-school and last, first-day-of-school photos, below).

We are also looking forward to the State Fair and AKSARBEN in September, and Tim is also holding a pasture sale mid-September. The month will fly by!

I accomplished a business goal this summer in creating a blog and Face Book page for my book Home is Where the Mom Is; A Christian Mom’s Guide to Caring for Herself, Her Family, and Her Home. You’ll find excerpts from the book and posts by moms of kids of all ages on the blog at http://www.achristianmomsguide.blogspot.com/. You can also “like” the Nebraska Family Times Face Book page and, between regular issues of the paper, receive links to articles that will “inspire, encourage, and motivate you in your Christian walk.”

September brings the 10th anniversary of September 11th, 2001. Like everyone, I clearly remember what I was doing that day. I had walked Cody and Morgan to school and came home to the news that the planes had crashed into the Twin Towers. I had been busy raising Cody and Morgan so hadn’t paid much attention to international news, and the concept of “terrorism” was pretty new to me. I remember thinking that I was glad we lived in the middle of the United States, where nothing was likely to happen…and then I heard on the radio that a “large distinctive airplane” (which of course turned out to be Air Force One, carrying President Bush) had just landed at Sac Air Force Base.

As I watched the events of the day unfold, I was sad to think that Cody and Morgan (who .were in 4th and 2nd grade) and their classmates would not remember a world in which “terrorism” was not an everyday term. The world changes were very evident in November of 2001 when our family flew to northern Wisconsin to celebrate Thanksgiving. We were greeted at the airport by BIG dogs, men with guns…and several security guards converging on us when the x-ray of Morgan’s backpack revealed a fork that I’d forgotten to remove with the rest of her lunch items.

In the days and weeks after 9/11 Tim and I had the task of explaining what had happened, and what could happen, to Cody and Morgan. Although it was very unlikely that any of us would ever be affected directly by terrorism, we have no guarantees on the number of our days. We were thankful that we could reassure our kids (and ourselves!) that if the worst happened—from terrorism, an accident, an illness, or any other cause—we could be absolutely certain that we would go to heaven and see each other again someday.

Our country is blessed to have men and women willing to serve in the military. Please remember them and their families in your prayers. And also remember those who lost loved ones and were directly involved in and impacted by September 11th, 2001.

Although there are wars and rumors of war and strife both within our country and throughout the world, we can be assured that God will not change. He is in charge, He knows what is happening, and He has promised us eternal life. And although I don’t think we’ll ever see world peace, we can have the peace that passeth all understanding (Phil. 4:7).

Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid.” John 14:27

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39

God’s blessings and peace to you!
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Morgan's first, first-day-of-school. She's pictured with her first dog, Hershey.

Morgan's last, first-dayof-school. Morgan is pictured with her dog, Jenny.
She's also sitting on the SAME swing that's in the first picture!

Bacon goes with...Chocolate Chip Cookies?

I enjoy trying new, unusual recipes, and last week my sister sent me a link to a recipe I just couldn't resist trying--Brown Butter, Bacon, and Chocolate Chip Cookies. ( http://mouthfromthesouth.com/brown-butter-bacon-chocolate-chip-cookies/ ). The recipe called for three kinds of chocolate, giving me an excuse to buy three bags of chocolate chips, and I'd never made brown butter before, either, so I was really looking forward to trying it.

Making the brown butter wasn't hard, just a little time-consuming since I was worried about burning the butter (the recipe and my sister both warned that the butter could go from "a little brown" to "burned beyond being able to use" in just a few seconds). The instant it started to turn brown and smell nutty, I took it off the heat.

The batter tasted just like batter for chocolate chip cookies...with bacon. (I felt an obligation to try the batter, just to make sure it tasted ok to bake. I wouldn't want to serve my family an inferior product, after all!). As I spooned out the batter on the cookie sheets, it was a little strange to see bacon pieces among the chocolate chips...but they came out of the oven smelling wonderful!

Morgan wouldn't taste a cookie until I did...I bravely bit in...waited for the taste to hit me...and the cookie tasted like...a chocolate chip cookie with bits of bacon in it. It wasn't horrible or disgusting, but wasn't anything fantastic either. I tried another cookie this morning (OK, two of them) just to see if "aging" overnight made a difference...nope. I'm going to send some of the cookies to my niece; maybe she'll take them to school on Monday. I don't know if they'll make her "the-most-popular-girl-to-trade-lunches-with," or "the- girl-to-avoid-trading-lunches-with"...but I bet she'll try them.

My suggestion? Try the recipe but leave out the bacon. Tim was right--chocolate chips and bacon are both essential food groups...best served separately.

And I will look forward to the next unusual recipe Becky sends me!

There is a whole cup of chopped
up bacon in this bowl!

New Blog!

Check out the new blog, featuring my book Home is Where the Mom Is; A Christian Mom's Guide to Caring for Herself, Her Family, and Her Home. I love being a mom, and now that my kids are a little older and more independent, I've felt a real push to encourage moms of younger children. I pray that the new blog does this, and that if they are interested moms will purchase Home is Where the Mom Is to further encourage them in their most important of jobs, being a mom.

I've also set up a FaceBook page, Home is Where the Mom Is; A Christian Mom's Guide. Check it out and if you like it, please "like" it! When I get 30 or so "likes" I have access to more information and can tell what posts get the most traffic, and therefore post topics of interest to more readers.

And as always--please leave me a comment as to what you like or don't like about this blog, and what you'd like to see covered in the Nebraska Family Times newspaper.

THANKS!

He Said, She Said…God Says

By Tracy Buzynski

A friend repeated something that she heard someone say about me. That person told someone else. Soon there was a loop of conversation about an untruth going around the school. Then it came back to me. So the saying “what goes around, comes around” left an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach. How did this even happen and how did I end up in the middle of it?

How many times has this scenario happened to you or some one you know? What is more important; why does someone who you consider a friend, repeat something that ends up hurting you?

Quite simply, sometimes people don’t think before they speak. At the risk of sounding not cool or tongue tied, unkind words slip out. And then suddenly, when more is added to it, the story takes on a life of its own, wounding everyone in its path. Whether it is in person or online words can hurt. One thing that is different today for our kids and almost unavoidable is that our kids have a cyber presence at a much younger age than ever before. As a parent you can avoid it for only so long. It is part of their culture. They learn and use it in school. So instead of hiding your head in the proverbial sand, teach your kids how to handle this situation and know what God’s word says about this.

1 Thessalonians 4:11… “make it YOUR aim to live quietly and to mind YOUR own business.” The scriptures tell us to think before we speak, since our words can be a powerful source of good AND bad. Wow! Mind your own beeswax! God’s word is just full of common-sense advice. So why is it so hard sometimes?

The world is so full of things to occupy our minds. Parents need to make it a priority to teach basic values. When a learning situation comes up, take the time to point out how a positive choice made a situation turn out positive and vice versa.

If you find yourself falling into the gossip chain, make it stop with you. If fuel is not added to the fire the fire will die out. Proverbs 26:20 “Without wood a fire goes out; without gossip a quarrel dies down.”

Resolve to speak encouragingly about everyone. Try it. Take a day and guard your tongue the whole day. That means do not say disparaging things about yourself either. Ephesians 4:29 “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.” It is not as hard as you think, especially if you ask for God’s help.

Take this feel-good challenge that you will benefit from as will others in your path.

Teach your kids how to pro-act so that they won’t have to re-act and become victim to idle gossips. Know what GOD SAYS and make a choice to live by what HE SAYS!

Tracy Buzynski is the owner of Encourage Me Kids; Encourage Someone Today, at http://www.encouragemekids.com/

Columbus Family Hosts Exchange Students

“They become part of our family.”

By Shelly Burke, Editor

The Drozd family made the decision to host an exchange student very quickly. Cheryl Drozd remembers, “We read about exchange students in the church bulletin several years ago. Our daughter Natalie, who has two younger brothers, thought it would be neat to have a sister for a year. Within just a few weeks we had gone from not knowing anything about having an exchange student, to hosting one!”

Natalie Drozd, now 13 years old, had a great time with her “big sister.” Cheryl says, “They had so much fun together! They stayed up late at night, talking and giggling together, just like sisters.”

“Then our son Cameron (now age 10) thought it would be neat to have a big brother to help him improve his soccer game, so for the next two years we hosted boys from Italy.


This year we are hosting a boy from Germany. He’s coming from France to play American football.”

Ben, age 7, also enjoys having host students in the home. They are like part of the family, according to Cheryl. “They help with chores, just like our children do. They also help with projects around the house. It’s neat to look at a room and remember that an exchange student helped us paint it.”

Cheryl says one misconception families have is that they should wait until their own children are in high school before hosting an exchange student. The Drozds have always hosted students who are older than their children. Cheryl explains the student selection process; “Students are chosen to go overseas only after they’ve filled out an application, they and their parents have written letters (about why the student should be considered) and they’ve received recommendations from teachers. They really want to go overseas. They are good examples for our children; they follow all of the ‘family’ rules—helping around the house, going to church, and so on. They know that they will be expected to do this, so it’s not a surprise to them.”

To be an exchange student, the child must be between the ages of 15 and 19 and have good grades in school. Families choose the student they want to host based on that student’s age, interests, etc.

Exchange students are required to have taken at least 5 years of English, so communicating is not a problem. The Drozd family asks their student to teach them one word of their native language every evening at supper, and every evening they review the words they’ve learned.

Cheryl says that students typically find America to be “much more rushed” than their lives at home. “We try to slow down for one night each week, and on that night the student shares his or her culture with us—we eat what they would typically eat (sometimes the student cooks for us) and we talk about their culture.”

Every year Cheryl coordinates 7-10 exchange students and their families in eastern Nebraska, including the Columbus, Fremont, Lincoln and Omaha areas. Families choose the student they wish to host, and Cheryl coordinates the process. She also contacts the student, the host parents, and the school every month to be sure everything is running smoothly and the student is doing well in school. Cheryl acts as a mentor and meets with the family and the student if there are any issues.

The host family is expected to provide the student with a bed, meals in the home, and a ride to school (students are not allowed to drive while they’re in the United States). Students are prepared to pay for any outside activities—tickets to sporting events, meals eaten out of the home and any personal items.

Students usually spend an entire year with the host family, although occasionally they stay for just one semester.

Cheryl would like to place several more students with host families by the end of August. If you are considering hosting an exchange student, call Cheryl at (402) 563-0699 or e-mail her at itsdrozd@frontiernet.net. Cheryl will talk with you on the phone or set up an in-person meeting to answer all of your questions, and put you in touch with other host families. If now is not the right time for you to host a student, but you’re interested in learning more, Cheryl will be happy to answer your questions.

The Drozd family obviously enjoys hosting students from different countries. Cheryl says, “The experience is life changing for our whole family. The host students become another family member, and we’ll think of them that way forever. We remember each others’ birthdays and send cards and letters at holidays. It’s such a neat relationship! We hope, someday, to be invited overseas to their weddings.”

(for more information go to STS Foundation-Students Traveling Schools – stsfoundation.org)

A Little Help from Friends

By Melanie Chitwood

"When Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up - one on one side, one on the other - so that his hands remained steady till sunset." Exodus 17:12 (NIV)

Devotion:

It had been a challenging year for our family. Opening a new business, extended family issues, a series of health challenges, writing a book, and daily life with newly-turned teenagers were some of the stressors we experienced.

One evening, feeling especially weary and desperate for support, I drove to my friend Holly's house to vent. I plopped on the couch, put my head in my hands, and announced, "I just don't think I can do this." Without missing a beat, her husband Dan said, "That's why you need your friends this year."

How true. We were never meant to deal with stress, discouragement, pain, or just a hard day with the kids on our own. God created us to need encouragement from each other, especially during hard times.

Today's key verse shows how Moses, just like us, needed support. While Joshua and the Israelite soldiers battled the Amalekites, God asked Moses to hold up his staff, representing God's power, throughout the battle. As long as Moses kept the staff raised, the Israelites experienced victory. It was a long battle, however, and Moses dropped his arms in fatigue. Then the Israelites began losing the battle.

That's when Moses needed help and encouragement from his friends. Scripture explains, "When Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset" (Exodus 17:12, NIV).

The Israelites ultimately were victorious, and a key to their victory was Moses' obedience to God as he held up the staff. But he couldn't have done what God asked him to do without the help of Aaron and Hur.

In the same way over the past couple of years I've needed my friends to hold me up, so I can be the wife, mother and woman God has called me to be. Friends have listened, prayed and helped me with practical matters of everyday life. Their support has given me courage to press on, to remain hopeful, and to find strength in them and the Lord.

Just like Aaron and Hur did for Moses, my friends have held up my hands and lifted my heart so I can be obedient to God's call on my life. We all need the help of faithful friends.

Dear Lord, thank You for the encouragement of friends - and for providing each one at just the right time. Forgive me for the times I've been prideful and independent instead of vulnerable and honest about my needs. Let me be an encourager to others the way they've been to me. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Application Steps:

Take time to thank someone who has encouraged you. Write an email, send a text, make a phone call or send a special gift to your encourager. You can forward this devotion to them and tell them "thank you" for holding up your hands!

Maybe as you read this devotion, you realize you don't have a friend to help you during the hard times. Start by praying for God to send someone your way. Then take the first step to initiate a new friendship.

Reflections:

Is it easier for me to help someone or to receive help? If it's hard for me to receive help, I'll ask the Holy Spirit to reveal why.

Am I part of a church community? If not, this week I am going to attend church regularly and to get involved in a service group, small group or Bible study.

Power Verses:

John 15:13, "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." (NASB)

Ecclesiastes 4:9, "Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed." (NLT).

© 2010 by Melanie Chitwood. All rights reserved.

Melanie Chitwood (http://www.melaniechitwood.com/) has been married for 20 years. She and her husband Scott have two sons, Zachary and Tyler. Melanie is the author of two marriage books published by Harvest House, What a Husband Needs from His Wife and What a Wife Needs from her Husband, Melanie takes an honest and biblical look at marriage, uncovering what husbands and wives really need from each other and how they can best meet those needs. These books include many real-life stories from her marriage and other couples of challenges and victory in marriage and is available at the ministry with which she serves, Proverbs 31 Ministries, proverbs31.org.