April 23, 2010 by Kelly.

I am reading a life-changing book right now. How do I know it’s life-changing? Because I can’t just zip through it. I find myself stopping every few pages and going back to re-read them. I’m underlining (in pen) sentences that make me say, “Yes!” or “Amen!” or “I never thought of that before.” There is only one other book that makes me do all those things, and that’s my Bible.

What book am I reading? Hearing God’s Voice, by Henry and Richard Blackaby.

This morning I read about “spiritual markers.”

“Spiritual markers identify times of transition, decision, or direction when you know God clearly guided you. … There are many ways to denote spiritual markers in your life. One method is to write the date and a brief notation beside the verses in your Bible as God speaks to you through them. … Write the date down beside the verse so when times become difficult, you can look back in your Bible and remember the day God made this promise.”

If you could see my computer desk, you’d understand why this concept jumped out at me. The right corner of my desk holds eight mini sticky notes, each with a Bible verse on it. These verses all spoke to me at some point over the past month or two. I thought I was doing good to write them out and place them where I could see them daily, to remind me of God’s Truth. I see now that I should take this a step further and note the date in my Bible!

Philippians 2:3-4 and Ephesians 5:21 are both great verses for those in leadership to keep in mind. I’ve been thinking about leadership lately, as I’ve volunteered to lead my local homeschool group starting in August 2010. I’ve not yet been “voted in,” but these verses remind me that it’s not about me–it’s about the group, and what God has planned for it. I want what’s best for the group, whether that means I lead or someone else leads. I will submit myself to the other ladies regardless of my role.

I found Proverbs 16:3 as I was preparing to release an ebook. I wanted to make sure I was doing everything properly, and legally, and at times I would get overwhelmed or confused about what to do next in the process. Once I committed the project to God, my mind cleared and the ebook is now published and available for purchase.

Psalm 86:11 came to me as I was praying about leading the local homeschool group. I wanted to be sure I was following God’s will for my life. I sought to keep my heart focused on Him and His plan.

There are others, such as Acts 4:12, which is my favorite Bible verse, and 2 Timothy 2:16, which I’m not sure why I wrote down–perhaps I need to examine my thoughts and speech!

As I read my Bible, I come across verses that I’ve noted in the past. I can remember the situations I was experiencing, and I can now “see” how God worked things out. How I wish I had dated those verses! As I look at “where I’ve been” I can more clearly see where God is leading. Now, when an opportunities arise, I can see which ones are most consistent with what God has already been doing in my life.

Do you have spiritual markers? Leave a comment and share some of them with me! I can already tell that this is going to be a great asset to my quiet time, and I hope it is (or will be) to yours as well.

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April 1, 2010 by Kelly.

For the past month, this dog has been wandering around our neighborhood. He’d often come to our yard and play with my children, or follow us as we walked around the neighborhood. Because of the “colors” in his fur, my children named him Skittles. Sometimes we’d go days without seeing him, then he’d be back for a couple days, sleeping by the fence next door or near a fire hydrant a block away.

After a couple weeks we figured he had a home and just kept getting out. He didn’t look malnourished or dirty; he was always happy and friendly. But we didn’t know where he lived, and he didn’t have a collar. None of the other neighbors that I spoke with knew where he lived although they’d seen him wandering around. It was thought that he lived at the end of our street, but no one seemed to know which house.

My children wanted to take him in until we could find his owner, but that just wasn’t possible–he obviously went home at times, and I didn’t want to stop him. They enjoyed having Skittles “visit” them a few times a week. We even set out water for him because it was so hot this past week.

Tuesday, 3/30/10, Skittles ventured out of our neighborhood and was hit by a car. My 9-year-old was devastated when he heard the news. He loved that dog.

Does your dog have a collar and a tag? Just a simple phone number is all that’s needed. If Skittles had been tagged, I would have called to find out where he lived. I would have let my children put him in our fenced pool area until I knew his owners were home, and then we would have walked him home. I would have done that over and over, however many times he got out.

We still don’t know who Skittles belonged to, or if they even know he’s never coming home again. Please, please put a collar on your dog, and put your phone number on the tag so that your dog doesn’t end up like Skittles.

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