Spring is here at last, and I’m so thankful for that fact. This season inspires lots of people to work in their gardens. You can see the beautiful fruit of their labors all over town as bulbs bloom and well-tended shrubs burst into color.

Spring rouses other folks to exercise. I’ve been seeing a steady stream of these go-getters running and jogging and power walking along the sidewalks of our neighborhood for a couple of weeks now.

Spring makes me want to burst into song. All that fresh air and sunshine has always planted a melody deep in my heart. I can envision myself on a mountaintop alongside Julie Andrews, breathing in the beauty of God’s creation and belting out notes from The Sound of Music with all the energy I can muster.

I usually sing hymns or arias, but I’m also fond of show tunes. I admire the talents of the composers and lyricists alike, although I don’t always agree with the messages modern lyrics convey.

That’s why, for the past several years, I’ve channeled my springtime music-making-impulse into writing new words for popular songs and posting them on YouTube. Here’s the one I published this morning, just in time for Good Friday.

It’s a celebration of the great love that compelled Jesus to die on a cross in our stead. The revised lyrics are based upon one of my favorite passages in Romans:

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

– Romans 8:38-39

Maybe springtime and sunshine and contemplating Christ’s love for us has the same effect on you as it does on me. If so, you can use these words to sing along:

Never Enough

I know neither life nor death,
Neither height nor depth,
Can separate me from
My Savior’s unending love.

Nothing here and now,
Nothing future years may bring
Can make his hand
Loosen its grip on me.
He’ll hold me forever!

All the strength of a thousand armies
All the powers of evil and darkness
Will never be enough —
The victory’s been won!

Satan can try, but he’s too little—
His ruse may woo the world but it’ll
Never be enough
To sever Jesus’ love
For me.

Never, never
Never sever
His love
For me
For me

Never enough
Never enough
To sever His love
For me
For me
For me

All the strength of a thousand armies
All the powers of evil and darkness
Will never be enough —
The victory’s been won!

Satan can try, but he’s too little —
His ruse may woo the world but it’ll
Never be enough
To sever Jesus’ love
For me.

Never, never
Never sever
His love
For me
For me

Never enough
Never, never
Never enough
Never, never
Won’t sever His love
For me
For me
For me
For me

The post Never Enough (to Sever Jesus’ Love for Me) appeared first on Loving Life at Home.

Photo by Adrian Motroc on Unsplash

The first Christmas my husband spent in medical school, the faculty wives decided to do something special for the student wives.

Knowing that most of us were living on a shoestring budget while our husbands were in training, they planned a spa night at an uptown Dallas salon where we could all get our hair and nails done on their dime. What a thoughtful and generous group of ladies they were!

I had never been to a such a swanky place in my life. Christmas music wafted through overhead speakers. Scented candles cast a soft glow over skirted tables laden with hors d’oeuvres for us to enjoy while we waited our turn.

Photo by Whitney Wright on Unsplash

Let’s get this party started

Expectations were running high. I fixed myself a plate, then walked toward the back of the studio where all the magic happened.

I’ll admit to being mildly alarmed, however, when I spotted the stylists. The majority were males who looked like they might’ve moonlighted in an 80’s rock band.

Several were already wearing the black leather pants. Slather a little makeup on them, and they could’ve easily passed for KISS or maybe Alice Cooper.

Photo by John Pratt on Unsplash

The one in charge sported a spikey shag haircut with purple highlights. No way am I going to let that guy touch my hair, I thought to myself as I assessed my other options.

There was only one conservative-looking employee in the whole place — a petite blonde with a sensible cut – so I approached her and asked if she’d be willing to give me a trim.

“Sure!” she enthused, “I’d be glad to.”

“Just take a little off the bottom,” I told her as she sat me in front of the mirror and tied an apron around my neck.

Photo by Matthew Henry from Burst

Sadly, the first strand of hair that fell in my lap was about eight inches long. By the time she was finished, I resembled a redheaded Rod Stewart – not at all the results I was hoping for.

Well, that didn’t go as expected

Sometimes, the longer you spend anticipating something, the harder it is to accept when things don’t turn out the way you envisioned.

What happened to me in the upscale salon that Christmas was, on a small scale, representative of something that transpired the first Christmas two thousand years earlier.

The majority of those who’d spent the most time watching and waiting for the Messiah assumed He would come as a triumphant conqueror or a victorious King. They never dreamed he’d show up as a humble babe in a lowly manger. They were expecting Him to sit on a throne, not die on a cross.

“There was nothing beautiful or majestic about His appearance, nothing to attract us to Him.” (Isaiah 53:2) And they were more than mildly alarmed at the thought of putting their trust in such a One to save them.

So they looked for a work around, assessing other options – just as I did that night with the rock star stylists.

Have you ever noticed how obsessed our society has become with self-improvement? A new diet comes out nearly every week. There’s a gym or exercise studio on every corner.

Photo by Matthew Henry on Burst

“Self-help” and “self-care” are now some of the most frequently searched terms on the Internet. And pop-psychology books are almost guaranteed bestsellers.

Jesus tells us He came that we “might have life and have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10) He promises to cleanse us from our sins and wash us white as snow, if only we’ll let Him.

Although He is the only one who can save us, we’ve spurned His gracious offer and sought instead a way to save ourselves.

To better our own lot.

To enjoy abundant life, but without any accountability.

Dead men don’t revive themselves

If you learn anything from my salon experience, let it be this: When you reject a gift because you don’t like the way it’s wrapped, you risk missing out on something amazing. A bad haircut will eventually grow out, but there’s no do-over for a misspent life.

The purpose and meaning and satisfaction we crave will never be found in a fad diet. Or a yoga class. Or a speed reading course. Or a de-cluttered closet. Or a botox injection.

And it certainly won’t be found in a fancy new hairdo.

Photo by Daria Shevtsova on Pexels

Which brings me back to the rest of my story. That cold December night in the Dallas salon taught me an important lesson about making assumptions.

As I sat with a mountain of hair growing in my lap, I overheard a girl in the next chair arguing with the stylist I’d tried so hard to avoid.

“Lop it all off,” she commanded, tossing her waist-length tresses over her shoulder, “I’m ready to do something drastic!”

The idea clearly upset Mr. Purple Spikes. “But your long hair is so beautiful,” he cajoled. “Why don’t I just take a little off the bottom?”

Meanwhile, the bright-eyed blonde who was massacring my mane made a startling confession. “This is actually the first time I’ve ever cut hair,” she proclaimed proudly. “I normally just shampoo.”

The post Bad Haircuts & Rock Star Stylists appeared first on Loving Life at Home.

Did you know today is Grandparent’s Day? It always falls on the first Sunday in September after Labor Day.

Grandparent’s Day may not get the attention that Mother’s Day and Father’s Day attract, but it serves as a good reminder of the important role grandparents play in the lives of their children’s children.

My own grandparents lived several hours away. They did the bulk of their encouraging and influencing from afar. But they still made a point of pouring into our lives. They found lots of smart ways to connect with their grandchildren.

In contrast, my husband and I spent our first decade together living just down the street from my parents. Our kids saw their grandparents almost daily. We could hop on our bikes and be at Nana and Papa’s house in five minutes flat.

6 Smart Ways to Connect with Your Grandchildren

Now Doug and I are grandparents ourselves.

We often reflect on how our own parents/ grandparents fulfilled this role before us. And we intentionally mimic their best practices, including all of the following:

1. Connect with your grandchildren by praying for them

   Prayer is the first and best thing you can do for your grandkids. And it doesn’t depend on proximity. Whether your grandkids live on the other side of the street or on the other side of the world, you can pray for them daily.

   Pray for their health and safety. Pray for their relationships to family, to friends, and to God Himself. And pray for wisdom to know how you can best to encourage your grandchildren and build them up as individuals.

2. Connect with your grandchildren by spending time with them

   Although mine were long-distance grandparents, we made lots of great memories together during the years they were alive.

   Once in a blue moon, they came to Dallas to visit us. But Papa was hard of hearing in both ears and blind in his right eye. Consequently, he once drove off and left my grandma at a gas station inadvertently. He didn’t realize she wasn’t sitting in the truck beside him listening to him rant about gas prices until he’d traveled several miles down the highway.

   Perhaps that explains why, more often, we drove to Oklahoma to see them. We celebrated most major holidays at their house in Oklahoma. We also went camping together, along with all the aunts and uncles and cousins.

   And my sister and I spent an entire week with Mema and Papa almost every summer. They bought us fireworks. And baked us brownies. And took us swimming in the frigid spring-fed waters of Big Bear Falls in Sulphur. They also made us behave and took us to Sunday school and told us funny stories from when our daddy was little.

3. Connect with your grandchildren by cooking for them

   My grandmothers were both wonderful cooks, as my mother is still. My children love eating their Nana’s home cooking as much as I enjoyed eating all the homemade biscuits, home grown veggies, and home baked pies my grandmas spread on their tables whenever we visited.

   Especially in the fast-food age we live in now, there is something almost magical about those old-school meals we used to feast on as children around our grandparents’ tables. Next time your grandkids pay you a visit, why not break out a well-loved recipe that has been in your family for generations and share it with the next?

4. Connect with your grandchildren by writing to them

   I grew up in an era before email or texting or video chat. In those days, long distance phone calls were charged by the minute, but first class postage stamps sold for less than a nickel. Accordingly, my grandparents were my earliest pen-pals.

   My grandpa once wrote to thank me for a pet rock I’d painted him for Christmas. He told me “Pebbles” was a huge fan of rock music, especially the Rolling Stones, but had unfortunately fallen in with a rough crowd and come home stoned. He tried sending her to school, but her teacher sent home a note saying Pebbles was so hard-headed, nobody there could teach her anything.

   “So I put her back in her box,” Papa concluded, “and haven’t heard a peep out of her since.” Forty-two years later, I still have that letter, which I reread this morning before penning this column.

   My Mema also wrote me regularly. I can’t remember ever receiving a letter from her that didn’t have some sort of surprise tucked inside along with the correspondence: a stick of gum, a few coins, a coloring or activity page, a Cracker Jack prize, a dollar bill, a comic strip, or a handful of postage stamps for my growing collection.

   Once she sent a photograph of my father in his army uniform, which I initially mistook for a picture of her postman. (Anybody else remember when mail carriers walked house to house in dress blues to deliver the post?) I still have many of her old letters, too, as well as that picture of Dad in his military duds!

5. Connect with your grandchildren by cheering for them

   Celebrate your grandchildren’s milestones and achievements. Make a big deal of their accomplishments. Tell them often how proud you are of them.

   If you live close enough, show up for their piano recitals and soccer games and graduations. If you can’t attend in person, root for them from a distance. And let them know you’re with them in spirit.

6. Connect with your grandchildren by telling them stories

   One of the smartest ways to connect with your grandchildren is by telling them stories. You can do as my grandmother did and tell stories about their own parent’s exploits growing up. Like the time she spied my preschool-aged father at the top of a 50-foot windmill. She promised him everything in the book to coax him into climbing back down, but the first thing he got when his feet were back on solid ground was a spanking!

   Need inspiration for storytelling? Break out the scrapbooks and photo albums and go through them together, recalling details about the people and events pictured inside. Or, in the absence of true-life tales, you can do as the grandfather in Princess Bride did and read your grandkids the same stories your children loved growing up.

   Some of my grandchildren live close enough that I see them almost every day. Some live hours away — two on another continent. But near or far, I count it a privilege to carry on with them many of the same traditions my grandparents started with me.

Jennifer Flanders is the proud grandmother of ten on the ground and two on the way. She does her best to practice all 6 smart ways to connect with your grandchildren. For a fly-on-the-wall look at more of her parenting philosophies and family traditions, check out her book, Glad Tidings: The First 25 Years of Flanders Family Christmas Letters.

The post 6 Smart Ways to Connect with Your Grandchildren appeared first on Loving Life at Home.

[Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash]

Black Friday didn’t even have the courtesy to wait until the end of November this year. Did you notice that? Doorbuster ads started rolling out before we’d even polished off the last of the Halloween candy.

Once again, Thanksgiving – both the day and the act – seems to have gotten trampled in our full court press toward Christmas.

The shopping stampede has begun: Parking lots are already full. Stores are crowded. The wish lists are endless.

Kids queue up for an opportunity to sit on Santa’s knee and rattle off a litany of what they hope to find under the tree.

Some of those children seem demanding and ungrateful. But even the courteous ones — the ones who remember to say please and thank you — normally remain focused on their own pleasure. Here’s the list of what I want. What I need. What will make me happy.

As distasteful as this pervasive sense of entitlement is to me, if I’m being honest, I can see myself in the way those children approach Jolly Old Saint Nick. Because I sometimes approach my Maker in prayer with that same selfish attitude.

I have an easier time asking God to supply my needs than giving thanks with a grateful heart for what He’s already provided. After all, my needs, my wishes, my desperate desires remain at the forefront of my mind, whether I’m praying at a particular moment or not.

Yet God calls me to cultivate an attitude of gratitude:

Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude. (Colossians 2:6-7)

We are to give thanks to God with grateful hearts. But this should go far beyond a generic “thank You for Your bountiful blessings.”

We should be as specific in communicating appreciation as we are in making requests.

How to Give Thanks with a Grateful Heart

Need inspiration? Here are 6 categories of things that merit our gratitude..

And, since I love acrostics, the categories spell out T-H-A-N-K-S, to make them easy to remember. They’ll have you giving thanks with a grateful heart in no time!

T = Trials

It’s natural to thank God when life is going well. But what if things turn south? What if you’re dealing with a wayward child, with job insecurity, with slander and persecution or with some other circumstance that fills you with dread? What then?

Such situations may tempt us to worry or despair, but God has outlined a better way of dealing with trials:

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! (Philippians 4:4)

Now, before you convince yourself that “always” could not possibly mean always, consider the following verse, as well:

Consider it all joy when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.” (James 1:2)

Clearly, God wants us to be thankful, even in the midst of hardship.

We should thank Him for His purposes in sending such trials our way. Thank Him for his faithfulness to walk by our side in the midst of them. Thank Him for what he plans to accomplish through them.

We should thank him for His unchanging goodness, His unfailing grace, His empowering strength, and His trustworthy promise to use even difficulties for our growth and His glory. What others mean for evil, God can use for good.

H = Health

Reflect with me for a moment. Take a deep breath. Flex your fingers. Do your eyes work well enough to read the words on this page? Is your brain lucid enough to understand them?

Were you strong enough to get out of bed this morning and walk to the kitchen for a cup of coffee? Did you stop off at the bathroom on your way? When’s the last time you thanked God that your kidneys and GI tract are working properly? When’s the last time you expressed gratitude that your brain and lungs and legs are functional?

Such graces are things many of us take for granted. There’s nothing like a bout of ill health to help you appreciate the blessing of good health. When I recovered from three bedridden days of fever and chills earlier this month, I felt like I had a new lease on life.

If you are presently struggling with health issues, go back to the first point and thank God in the midst of that trial. But if you aren’t, show some appreciation and thank God for the blessing of good health.

A = Abilities

Are you a great cook? A talented musician? An inspiring teacher? Good with your hands? Strong in math? Have an eye for decorating?

Are you a natural athlete? A wise leader? A good encourager?

Has God given you the gift of service? A heart of compassion? A way with words? An artistic bent? The mind of a programmer? An incredible voice? A discerning spirit? A photographic memory?

Did you know that every unique skill, talent, and aptitude you have comes from God?

For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not? (1 Corinthians 4:7)

Make a list of all your various strengths and abilities. Thank God for every one of those gifts and brainstorm ways you can use them for His glory rather than your own. Then bloom where you’re planted.

N = Neighbors

When I say you should thank God for your neighbors, I don’t just mean the people who live next door.

“Neighbors” include people much closer than that: the family members who share your table. The spouse who shares your bed. The parents and siblings who share your DNA.

But, as Jesus’s parable of the good Samaritan proves, “neighbors” also refer to people much further away. People on the other side of the tracks or on the opposite side of the globe. People across town, across the country, and across the political aisle.

If you enjoy close, mutually encouraging relationships with the neighbors God has given you, give thanks for that fact.

If your relationship with some of your neighbors is strained or antagonistic, go back to the first point and thank God in the midst of that struggle, too.

Either way, pray for your neighbors. Thank God for putting them in your life. Ask Him to help you treat your neighbor as you’d want to be treated and to love your neighbors as you love yourself, just as He commanded.

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.(Matthew 7:12)

For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”(Galatians 5:14)

K = Kindnesses

We should also be thankful for all the many kindnesses we receive, both from God and from our fellow man. Pray that God will open your eyes to His daily mercies and to the thoughtful actions of others. Fresh air. Warm sunshine. An open door. A friendly smile. A steady arm.

Kindness begets kindness. So if you have trouble spotting much kindness in your community take every opportunity to sow some yourself. Offer a word of comfort. Voice an earnest prayer. Send an encouraging note. Leave a generous tip. Give the signaling car space to change lanes in heavy traffic.

And thank God for the opportunity to be the change you want to see in the world around you.

S = Salvation

Last, but certainly not least, we need to thank God for the gift of salvation and forgiveness He freely offers to all who call upon His name and repent of their sins.

Of course, that’s assuming you’ve accepted this gift. If not, there will never be a better time to do so than right now, this very minute.

The Bible tells us:

If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart God has raised him from the dead, you shall be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.” (Romans 10:9-10)

Truly, Salvation is God’s greatest and most unfathomable gift of all. It would be a pity to miss that one, above all others.

[Photo by Ryan Christodoulou on Unsplash]

The post Give THANKS with a Grateful Heart appeared first on Loving Life at Home.

Our family normally puts out our Christmas lights during the first warm weekend in November. If we wait too late, we run the risk of having to work in the damp chill instead of the soft sunshine. Of having to wear coats and scarves rather than shorts and flip-flops.

Brrrr! Don’t any of us want to do that.

Yet this November was unusually busy for our family. So one sunny Saturday after another passed without our marking that seasonal task off of our to-do list. When bright clear days were replaced by bitter, cold ones, I feared we’d missed our chance.

But the Monday before Thanksgiving dawned bright. I walked outside mid-morning to find my 11-year-old son hard at work, stringing lights along our sidewalks.

The skies were a bit overcast, but the temperature was warm. So Gabriel got up early and tackled the job on his own initiative, An early Christmas surprise for Mom.

Sights of the Season

I love seeing houses all decked out for the holidays. Eaves and gables outlined in lights. Wreaths gracing the doors and windows. Trees twinkling indoors and out. An occasional nativity scene or angel choir displayed prominently in the yard.

When I was growing up, my parents always knew where to find the best, most festively adorned neighborhoods. We must have spent hours during my childhood driving up one street and down another, admiring all the decorated houses.

Some neighborhoods we visited had a theme. Everyone on the block lined their lawns with the same hurricane lamps. Or posted the same giant candy canes at the end of their walks. Or displayed the same style sign in their yard that, taken all together, told the entire Christmas story, verse by verse.

My sister and I never tired of these December evening excursions. No matter how many blocks Dad circled, we’d always beg for “just one more street.”

Hidden Meaning

I loved looking at Christmas lights as a child, when such sights filled me with wonder. And I still love it as an adult, when the lights remind me of my precious Savior, whose birth we celebrate at Christmastime.

• Jesus says of Himself, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” (John 8:12)
• While He was on earth, He warned his followers, “For a little while longer, the Light will be among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going.” (John 12: 35)
• But Christ’s analogy doesn’t end there. He also exhorts believers, “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.” (Matthew 5:14-15)

Lost in Darkness

A couple of years ago, our family drove through Bowling Green, Kentucky, and we stopped to tour Mammoth Cave while we were in town.

When we got to the lowest depths of the cavern, our tour guide shut off all the lights. That way, we could experience what total darkness felt like.

Then she lit a single candle, and I was amazed at what a difference that one little flame made.

THAT’S the difference Jesus calls Christians to make in the world.

Don’t underestimate the power of that little light, even if you are the only one in your community who is on fire.

Which is why Christ tells us, “Let your light so shine before others that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)

Is Anyone Home?

Many years ago, I drove through a themed neighborhood one Christmas with some married friends. Every yard on the street was lined with luminaries, save one. That lone house looked so dark and deserted, it made me sad.

I wondered whether the owners were too sick or feeble to decorate that year. Did they move? Did they die? Did they get busy and forget? (Not every family is blessed with an industrious 11-year old to tend to such tasks for them, after all.)

Or perhaps their house was dark by design. Maybe their religious beliefs didn’t permit them to celebrate Christmas. Maybe they thought Christmas lights pollute the night sky and waste electricity. Maybe they relate more to Scrooge than to Snoopy.

As I was internally processing all these thoughts, my friend’s husband pointed to that dark and dismal abode and declared proudly, “That would be MY house, if I lived in this neighborhood.”

He’s always been a little contrary. If everybody else is doing one thing, he’ll do the opposite just to be different.

While I can respect his right to make such a choice, I can’t begin to understand it. I’m at the opposite end of the spectrum. I’d string lights, even if I were the only one on the block doing so.

Light Up my Life

I love Christmas lights. I love lights on trees. On wreaths. Along sidewalks. On fences. On houses. Over gates and doors and in windows.

Most of all, I love the Light of the World. I love having the light of Christ shine in my heart.

I want it to burn brightly — through every word, every thought, every action — no matter what anyone else around me is doing.

Jennifer Flanders thinks Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. Not because of lights and presents and tinsel, but because of Jesus and the gift His coming made possible: Salvation by grace through faith. For more from this author, check out her books or visit her family website.

The post On Christmas Lights & What They Mean appeared first on Loving Life at Home.