What Have We Become?

My husband (former fan of D.C. Talk), put on this song after we had a discussion about a news story today. This song. Just so good. Lyrics below.


"What Have We Become?"

A preacher shuns his brother
Cause his bride's a different color
And this is not acceptable
His papa taught him so

It was love that he'd been preaching
But this was overreaching
The boundaries stretchin' further
Than his heart would choose to go

Like an angel with no wings
Like a kingdom with no king

What have we become?
A self indulgent people
What have we become?
Tell me where are the righteous ones?
What have we become?
In a world degenerating
What have we become?

Speak your mind, look out for yourself
The answer to it all is a life of wealth
Grab all you can cause you live just once
You got the right to do whatever you want
Don't worry about others or where you came from
It ain't what you were, it's what you have become

Mom and Dad are fightin'
As Rosie lies there crying
For once again she's overheard
Regrets of their mistake

With Christmas bells a-ringing
Little Rosie'd leave them grievin'
The gift she'd give her family
Would be the pills she'd take

An inconvenient child
She wasn't worth their while

What have we become?
A self indulgent people
What have we become?
Tell me where are the righteous ones?
What have we become?
In a world degenerating
What have we become?

Speak your mind, look out for yourself
The answer to it all is a life of wealth
Grab all you can cause you live just once
You got the right to do whatever you want
Don't worry about others or where you came from
It ain't what you were, it's what you have become

Don't worry about others or where you came from
It ain't what you were, it's what you have become

What about love?
What about God?
What about holiness?
What about mercy, compassion and selflessness?

You know it's true
He is there for me and you
Doesn't matter what you do

What have we become?
A self indulgent people
What have we become?
Tell me where are the righteous ones?
What have we become?
In a world degenerating

What have we become?
Have we come undone?
What have we become?
Have we come undone?
What have we become?

Selfish... [?]
With selfish... [?]
Selfish people
When you gonna learn?
Everyone of us
Gathered 'round in trust
What have we become?

My Holy Rubble

For the past four years, I've had this song in my heart. It's the song that would erupt when I sat in a puddle of defeat, splashing about, trying to find one ounce of hope in the mess. It holds the words that would crop up on my tongue when my spirit could only groan.

But I didn't know all the words. I just knew the first few,

Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, God in Three Persons, Blessed Trinity.

And those weren't even in the correct order...I just knew, Holy Holy Holy is what my heart could muster when my head was blanketed in darkness. I didn't even think to look up the words, I just let them come forth and sprinkle some kind of partial comfort for my ears, maybe my heart.

During the singing, I'd think of Isaiah before the throne, with a red hot coal on his tongue. I'd think of the Cherubim and Seraphim and the unworthiness of a man and the great mercy of God Almighty. And I'd beg that God would stay close, even though I felt abandoned.

I'd remind myself, that even though He seemed absent, He had a hold of me beyond my comprehension. No matter how strapped to this earth I was, with this life I had sculpted for myself crumbling at my feet, there was something so much greater out there promising me more.

Even though I didn't feel it. Even if it was hard to believe.

While my flesh rebelled, and my tongue lashed out, my spirit still sang, Holy, Holy, Holy. My spirit still sings Holy, Holy, Holy, when any prayer falls bankrupt.

Today, I sang the song again, but not in the confines of my closet where I'd hide my crying fits. Today, I sang it with the words in front of me, words that I did not realize were part of it.

Holy, Holy, Holy
Though The Darkness Hide Thee
Though the Eyes of Sinful Man Thy Glory May Not See

Oh how my soul had sung those first three words over and over like a skipped rock that sank into the pool at the third skip...potential and momentum lost...sinking deep into darkness.

Would I have found comfort in knowing that darkness had the power to hide Him, and would I have fought harder to escape it when blinded from His Glory?

Could it have been God's plan all along, to allow me to sit in the darkness, void of the Glory I longed for, with only the rubble that had been my life surrounding me, in need of being sifted through so I could find a new path to Him? One that was untainted by my opinions and biases and walls...one that shone truer His Power, His Love, and His Purity?

The more distance I put between myself and the rubble of my darkest season, the deeper I go, the bigger He gets, and the Holy declarations become more my heart's song than ever before, even if darkness is there, and I know the words now--Holy is He, and my soul sings it regardless of my mind. I've been given the next glimpse into more, and I believe it's because this is the time that my heart can handle the next words...when my heart had battled and discovered the truth behind them.

Holy, holy, holy
Lord God almighty
Early in the morning my song shall rise to thee
Holy. holy, holy
Merciful and mighty
God in three persons, blessed Trinity

Holy, holy, holy
All the saints adore Thee
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea
All the cherubim and seraphim are falling down before Thee
Which wert and art and evermore shalt be

Holy, holy, holy
Though the darkness hide Thee
Though the eyes of sinful man Thy glory may not see
Lord, only Thou art holy and there is none beside Thee
Perfect in power, in love and purity

And one day, I'll sing these with Truth abounding:

Holy, holy, holy
Lord God almighty
All Thy works shall praise Thy name in earth and sky and sea
Holy, holy, holy
Merciful and mighty
You are God in three persons, blessed Trinity
You are God in three persons, blessed Trinity
Oh, God in three persons, blessed Trinity

(Holy, Holy, Holy, by Donnie McClurkin)

Finding Contentment

Life is an easy distraction from a deeper purpose, isn't it? I can quickly slip into complaining and wishing for something better, instead of accepting my lot and realizing the great blessing--even in hardship.
My roles as a wife and mother often seem like crosses...but truly, they are my greatest gifts. Why do I criticize my gifts so? Why do I find myself inadequate in the journey? I have a sneaking suspicion it's because I am focusing on me, instead of on Him who gives me Life in the first place.

"We grow up when we see our life and our role from God's perspective; when we thank God for the role He has assigned us and begin to see our cup as a GIFT instead of a cross; when each morning we ask, "God, how can I glorify You today in my given role?"

Calm My Anxious Heart by Linda Dillow is pointing my inward perspective to an upward one. And the freedom is begin to ripple inside me.

Happy Sunday!

The Next Generation

I sat in church today, and the pastor listed several things that are turning away the next generation from church according to stats. And really, they have everything to do with human opinion and assertion, and nothing to do with an authentic relationship with the living Creator.

I reside with the next generation. And I don't want the details to derail their faith. Often, I wonder if these are the days of sifting for the Lord. Is He exposing all the old lies, the hang-ups, the faulty ways of thinking, to remind us just HOW BIG HE IS? Are we being given a gift in knowledge of an upside down worldview that was not align with a right side up God?

A worldview that may have compartmentalized Godly ideals to fit in a 

very limited human constructed box? 

I am clinging to the hope that whatever ill-conceived ideas slip from the mouths of people...whatever well-intentioned-but-completely-off explanations find my children's ears, that God will show up and blow them away with something even bigger and better: Himself.

I can't control their listening. But I can count on God hearing my heart's cry for the next generation.

God=Good=Life

He is near.

Faith-Filled Friday: You Knew

El-Roi.

He sees ahead of me.

Pulling Back the Curtain.

Today I took a peek behind the curtain. I didn't mean to. It's almost as if a word or thought or look pushed me back and I stumbled and fell into the big drape I had used to cover up all that was good, holy, and life-giving in my past.

It seems that I've crowded my head and my heart with the stuff of this earth, the temporary delights of the here and now, and I didn't realize how much I missed. I didn't realize I had open wounds that festered with sorrow. I had wrapped a bandage so tight on the loss and hurt, that I had become numb and forgotten it was there.

But I remember.

I remember in the songs.

I remember in the words of a seeking friend who hungers for the wisdom that I once openly strived to soak in...and now I am mocked to think of it as wisdom at all.

I remember the joy and freedom of worshipping my God with other believers--without doubt, without lies.

And now, I remember who I am and where I am and it's nowhere I had ever thought I would be.

I am lost. Lost in a mess. I need my God. I need to turn back and find Him again. Because I am truly not myself without Him. And I have not given Him a glimpse lately. I have pulled the curtain shut so tight that I am stuck in the dark.

Lord, give me Your light again.

Life is Too Short!

Life is too short.

My journey this past year has stripped away the lens of a very serious, very stuffy perspective, where those who were different from me seemed to "need to know" and "the way" was very stifling indeed. But when I think of life back then, I realized how shackled I was to joylessness, seriousness, and life-sucking worry.

It is just not what God wants for us at all. And yet, the world has a way of deceiving hearts and imprisoning minds...and I am not just talking about the world beyond God's people. I am talking about the world-all-inclusive, because really, God's people have an amazing way of falling short of abundant life as much as anyone else.

I would have never believed a year ago, that I would be having a blast as a Jamberry Nails Consultant, writing an intense conspiracy-theory-type Historical novel (check out my writer's page here), while feeling my faith and my heart have blossomed in the deepest way (scroll through this blog!) Joy, Passion, Love, and God, have poured into me abundantly when I let go of a stuffy attitude that true, purposeful life only fits in this tiny box that we might believe.

I am excited to be on this journey called, Life. And I can't wait to see what is in store next!

My Short Story, Scene 4

**I have been posting a scene each day. If you want to start from the beginning, please scroll down**

WHEN LOVE POURS DOWN, Scene 4

Before this storm, I flew away from home and lost myself. My painted wings were hidden in a chrysalis of uncertainty, so I decided to crawl along my first year of college and blend in with all those around me who hadn't ever grown wings at all. But the Painter of my wings pursued me, and He knew the best gallery upon which to display His design—the overflow of my heart. When love found me in friendship, my wings began to unfold. And my friends proclaimed the Designer and turned me to Him who gave me wings in the first place.

I fold the blanket across my boy's shoulders as he sleeps. “I am not strong enough.”

“You are right, Lisa.” My bestie, Melissa sips her tea and steadies her gaze on me. “You aren't strong enough, you aren't brave enough, you aren't worthy...”

“I get it.” I roll my eyes and step to the window of her guest room. Darkness floods the sky which had thrown about its elements all day.

“Do you get it?” She sets her tea down on the nightstand and joins me at the window. With a crank, the window rolls open and the scent of drying rain and awakened roots fill our nostrils. “Do you trust in Him alone, or are you taking matters into your own hands?”

Could she know? Really know what I am going through? But she speaks truth now. I packed my bags and left Steve in the name of self-protection...and mama-bear-love.

“Trust? It's not about trusting God.” I think. “But do I trust Steve with Jack's heart?”

“It's not up to Steve what happens to Jack's heart. God's bigger than Steve. And you.”

A gust blows through the screen and catches my hair beyond my shoulders. I am on the edge of the earth, the atmosphere is a thin veil covering my body, flowing behind me in long sheets. Nothing's touching me. I remember God's grasp, and He swells within me.

“You are Mine and I am yours.” Yes, Lord. “He is Mine, and I am his.”

Who?

Steve? Jack?

Perhaps both. But it's not up to me, is it? I cannot run far enough away from destruction and close enough to God to keep Jack's heart safe.

Just like Jonah from the story book. Well, Jonah from the only Real Book.

It's not up to me. I am not the designer of painted wings or human hearts.

His Spirit gathers all my fear and releases it in the wind.

In God alone.

In God alone will He shape Jack's heart to know Him.

In God alone will Steve find Him again.

Nothing I can do will bring about salvation. Nothing.

Except...

“Love is the only thing that will make you strong, Lisa. It bears all things. And really, it is all we are called to do.”

Love. Snapped in two like the willow. Crushed within me by Steve's faith betrayal. But before this storm, it is the very thing that released my painted wings to full span across my soul. It was first in the love of friendship showing me Jesus, and then another surge of love which prodded my heart to bloom and my wings to lift me higher. The love of my soulmate—Steve.

But I know better now. I no longer dream in childish scales, but in mature orchestra swells. My soulmate is Jesus. And Steve is my closest friend. The one I've drowned out with cacophonous conditional love. Nothing like that which my Father gives. Steve's not seen His kind of love from me.

Conviction weighs heavy on my wings like syrupy dew in the orange shade of dawn.

“What do I do, Mel?” The wind dies down and an owl calls from the wilderness outside. “How can I live with a man who'll never let me forget this heartbreak? Who'll test my faith day in and out, and never let me rest?”

She slides her arm around my shoulders and I weep.

“You need to let it go, Lisa. Remember that it's not yours to fight. It's between Steve and God. You are only called to—”

“Love.” I release the word with a breath so deep within me that I am left with a hollow in my core. And a craving to fill it...with love...for Steve.

Lord, where did that come from?

“He is so lost, Lisa. You are his wife for a reason. And Jack is his son for a reason. We may not know it yet, but let God's love get you through this. And share it with Steve. It's hard, I know.” She squeezes my shoulder. “They'll know us by our love, right?” Melissa reaches over to crank the window close and a flutter rushes towards the sill. In a delicate prance across the wood, a butterfly settles it's slender body in the stillness of night.

Its painted wings in perfect design.

His Word came alive to me long ago, that day when my wings were released by love. I knew that I was not good enough, except through Him who designed me in His perfect way. And while the love of my friends brought me to my knees for the first time, the love of my Steve illuminated the design upon my wings to glow with faith, hope, and Him who is Love.

Perhaps my wings were not created for me to flourish in my flight toward Heaven, but designed for me to carry God's love—through the desert, through the storm, and to the broken aftermath?

I peek over my shoulder at my little boy dreaming in fairytales. I am only his mother, not his God. But I'll do my best to show Him God through love. That is easy. A mother's love is hard to suppress. But what of unconditional love for the man who's cast off every condition of my God for nothingness?

 How can I return to the broken aftermath with wings drenched from the storm?

It's Personal

When I was younger, I didn't really get the whole "personal relationship" thing with Jesus. It seemed so...Protestant. And I was certainly not familiar with that.

Well...eighteen years later, I think I am finally "getting" it. And it isn't just a sitting side-by-side-with- God-watching-the-movie-of-life-and-sharing-a-popcorn-bin-but-only-speaking-when-it's- a-lull-in-the- show.

Nope.

It is more of the type of relationship where you invest your heart and energy to truly get to know Him, and you aren't just the talker and He isn't just the listener, but you listen, too.
I have been known to talk. Too much. And I have also caught myself (shameful lowering of head at this moment), to tune out a friend and formulate my next response. YIKES!! There must be a personality type that goes along with that...please don't say ego-maniac.

But, I have found, if I truly listen and wait on God, He doesn't just whisper, pass the route 44, and that's it. He bypasses the small talk and speaks directly to my heart...usually, filling it with the truth that sets me free--to be quite dramatic in a very truthful way.

There have been moments where He has not just assured me in our conversation, but has overwhelmed with His spirit's direction. So much so that I can hardly contain my heart from pounding clear out of my chest.

And it always, ALWAYS aligns with a deep truth in His word. He's not just giving me a whisper here and there to remind me that he's sitting in the same row...He's taking me by the hands and giving me His undivided attention no matter how loud the movie of life is clattering in the background.

There is such joy in that. And I get so mad at myself for allowing my circumstance to smother the joy. I think I get confused with joy and happiness. Happiness is certainly fleeting. It is finding a joyful moment in the flesh. It is a surface kind of feeling. Kinda like the happiness of sitting at a good movie with a good friend and enjoying a bucket of popcorn...maybe some m&m's too.
But joy...Joy is wrapped up in a deep belief in knowing that you are cared for, and that great things are to come beyond the credits, beyond 'The End". Joy is knowing that you don't just have a friend to pass the time with, you have a Soul mate who fills your bucket with just what you need.

Yep, after eighteen years, I have finally started to listen and understand this personal relationship thing. And it really is personal. And it really is real. And it's so much better than a date on a Friday night.

Broken

Have you ever fumbled a piece of china, trying hard to regain your grip on it, yet, in slow motion you watch it sail through the air and crash to the floor, splaying in a thousand pieces?

And the next days and maybe weeks, you find bits of the broken china beneath the cabinets, hidden in the rug, in the corner of the counter. Everywhere, broken pieces everywhere. You may have done the initial sweep up, gathered all the mess and tossed it. But, it might take a while to completely get rid of the broken pieces.

Broken.

Such a simple word, but one that implies long-term clean up. It's not so easy to fix something that's broken in a thousand pieces. We hear it often said: If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? 

But if it's broke, good luck fixing it.

Have you ever been broken? Are you still? You might have had those dtr's (define the relationship) and cleaned up that initial mess, but maybe there are still broken pieces of resentment, guilt, hatred, tucked away in the corners of your heart? Maybe, you were so broken at one point, that you chose to stay that way. You'd hop from shattered mess to shattered mess, avoiding slipping between the shards and drowning completely, but maintaining balance and control in the midst of the brokenness?

I have been in both places. But, being the fixer that I am, I usually end up with the initial clean up behind me, and then dealing with the shards that poke at the most inopportune time. 

The thing is, I will find myself clinging to those leftover pieces and allowing them to become my focus. Even if I know what needs to be done, I can't pull my eyes away from the brokenness. But, if I do, if I cry out to the Lord, He will deliver me, right? He will lift my head and save me. Even though my troubles consume me, the Lord is close by...waiting for me to look up. 

It's just a matter of will. Mine, that is. 

Sometimes, I just want to wallow. I want to cry and pity myself, and avoid the hope that might linger on the horizon. Sometimes, I am so hurt, that I want to be picked up and coddled like a baby. Taken care of without having to do anything in return. And really, I can do that. But there is something I must do to allow for such comfort. I must turn away from the broken pieces and look toward my Comforter. It's more difficult than it seems, though. And sometimes, it is the last thing I want to do. 

How about you?

These words I should hide in my heart for the next  broken mess:

"The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them;
    he delivers them from all their troubles.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
    and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

 The righteous person may have many troubles,
    but the Lord delivers him from them all;
 he protects all his bones,
    not one of them will be broken."

Psalm 34:17-20

God, the Genie

"Whoever seeks God as a means toward desired ends will not find God. The mighty God, the maker of heaven and earth, will not be one of many treasures, not even the chief of all treasures. He will be all in all or He will be nothing. God will not be used. His mercy and grace are infinite and His patient understanding is beyond measure, but He will not aid men in their selfish striving after personal gain. He will not help men to attain ends which, when attained, usurp the place He by every right should hold in their interest and affection." - A.W. Tozer

How often do I fall into the thinking, "if I ask, He will give", when I haven't even sought His will in the matter in the first place? God is not just a genie who wants his children to be fat and happy. He's a God who wants to give to His children good things that will bring Him glory. And sometimes, it's going to hurt a little in the process. I might throw a tantrum because He's not answering my prayer, or  worse, He's actually saying, "no". Just like my own child who kicks and screams because I say it's not time for the fun stuff yet...or who cries because I said "no" to that toy he really wanted. It's not that the toy is bad, but I have foresight and know how greed can destroy his heart if I gave in all the time. And I am not withholding fun from my child because I am ruthless and mean...but I know that if he just waits for the perfect moment, he'll see I've been preparing a great surprise for that special occasion. 

Just our breath is sign that God loves us enough. Why do we turn against Him when He's not giving into that one thing? 

Lately, I have grown weary in this publishing pursuit. I've entertained everything from I don't have what it takes to God doesn't want me to do this.

WHY???? Why do I always turn against God when things aren't going my way? How dare I, really. Tozer's quote above really resonates with me. 

It's all about Him.

He is the treasure. 

And He has bestowed upon me the ability to grow in relationship with Him. The Creator of the Universe wants me to know Him...intimately. Aaaah! That is so hard to understand. Obviously, so many people don't. But all other things, publishing, dieting, success, are absolutely nothing compared to a divine friendship with God Almighty.

Priscilla Shirer says it best in her study, Discerning the Voice of God, "Often we seek to know God's direction more than we seek to know God. We bypass the relationship because we would rather have answers about us. God wants to speak to you because He wants you to know Him; knowing His direction is just a by-product. God seeks to reveal truth about Himself because this knowledge will lay the firm path you can walk to fulfilling God's purpose for your life."

The thing is, when I have truly sought God's voice, a supernatural peace resides in my heart...and He doesn't fail in speaking. It is when I lean into Him for the sole purpose of listening and learning, that He meets me. It's not with a publishing contract, or a hidden secret to how I should live, it's with His whisper and His Truth.

Be still my heart and just abide. The desires of this world are nothing compared to Who wants you for His friend.

My only Hope.

How can we find joy in our burdens? Whether it be rejection in publication or broken relationships, I seldom rejoice like the apostle Paul declares in Romans 5:

³Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

But, I have a taste of the sweetness of this practice. It is in these broken places that I have cast off the childish way of seeking human approval or consolation, and clung desperately to my God. It is each morning that I crave my time with Him, and I cast my broken heart before Him.

And it is then that I realize, not only the perseverance,

not only the character,

But the HOPE.

And while my burdens surely disappoint, my God does not. In fact, He soothes me with an intimate word, a series of nudges that are sewn together with an everlasting thread of hope. I cannot escape His specific message that finds me in every place I turn when my heart bleeds for Him alone. I no longer believe in coincidence. Because this heart salve is too personal, too effective to heal.

As I journey through this casting off of my yoke to His loving shoulders, I savor the treasure He has placed in my heart, that is in Psalm 62:

Yes, my soul, find rest in God;

    my hope comes from him.

6 

Truly he is my rock and my salvation;

    he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.

7 

My salvation and my honor depend on God[c];

    he is my mighty rock, my refuge.

8 

Trust in him at all times, you people;

    pour out your hearts to him,

    for God is our refuge.

When I was younger, I doubted God's care in times of burden. I sought for human answers and human help. But as I grow older, I no longer find comfort in such superficial means. God is my only hope. 

LOVE.

I've been away from blog land for a while now. Actually, just this blog. I needed to quiet myself and get right with God so to speak. I needed to realize that my fleeting thoughts weren't good material for my blog. It takes some chewing on, some digesting, some PRAYING, to open your heart on a blog. It brings messy turmoil to open it prematurely and then try and step in sync with what you've said, when really, you're not a hundred percent committed to your words. Especially controversial ones.

It came full circle to me with the latest uproar about the Grammy's. I really could care less about what went on there. Have stopped watching Hollywood glorify themselves at award shows for years now. But when I read the lyrics to the song by Macklemore (yeah, just now...I'm really out of the loop), I am deeply saddened. Unfortunately, it sounds like hateful Christianity is what he's been exposed to. His story-in-rap is a symptom of the broken human condition...and I am not just talking about non-believers.

So many Christians, (including me), have spit out their thoughts and ideas prematurely, without chewing on them, digesting them, and most of all PRAYING...so much so, that believers in the greatest LOVE this world has ever seen, are looked upon as the Haters this world feels free to discriminate against.

Those who hate stereotypes in turn, stereotype us. While it is wrong, I see that there are Christians out there that make the temptation of stereotyping hard to resist.

How can that be?

How can a doctrine like the Gospel, centered on LOVE, become so distorted as to blind the blind with Hate? Remember, Christ's ministry? Did He shout from the roof-tops the sin of the people, or did he love the sinner, heal them, and ask them to go and sin no more? We are called to LOVE. The healing and imposed conviction is not our right--only God's.

It shouldn't be surprising. There's an Enemy out there who is the Great Deceiver. And He doesn't just deceive the lost, but the children of God. How appropriate that his biggest attack is on LOVE?

Persecution is inevitable. But let's not ask for it by flippant words and giving into prideful emotions causing us to force our doctrine on those who don't even believe in our God. Let's LOVE, build relationship, seek trust and worthiness to share our hearts with the non-believer. I would say that is the supple ground for God's supernatural power to heal and save.

It's time we as believers fall to our knees before we speak, before we type, before we act. The name of true LOVE is at stake.

After all, it is Christ's greatest commandment:

To Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, and soul. AND, to Love your neighbor As yourself.

Let's stop showing the world what we are against, but show them Who we are FOR...God is Love...pure, holy, right, and true.

That's the LOVE worth celebrating!

To Feed or To Greed

It's easy to question God, or even turn away from him, when you see the suffering in countries like India, Africa, Guatemala. This past Sunday, our pastor pointed out that we produce enough food to feed every living person a 3000 calorie diet! He made a wise suggestion that it's not God's will, but man's own doing. With dictators, leaders, greedy men and greedy countries throughout history, starving children are a normal atrocity in each of our minds, a "think of those people who don't have has much as we do" lesson for our children, something we feel hopeless to help and want to throw money at them when we can. Man's free will is a door to eternal love for the God, but it's also a door of a narrow tunnel, spiraling downward into a pit of selfish deeds that affect millions.
I couldn't help but talk with my kids about it today, when Thanksgiving came up. They hear it all the time (we participate in the mentioned-above lesson at least once a day), but can they really grasp it?
My husband is particularly sensitive to this, and fears that we are raising materialistic, selfish beings, entitled and arrogant.

Our church is amazing at counteracting our greed-driven culture, and always has opportunities to "get your hands dirty" and use some elbow grease to help. One way we are going to participate, is by providing all the essentials of a Thanksgiving dinner for a needy family, using a convenient grocery bag and grocery list the church has handed out.
Something else we as a family are finally going to do is put our kids to work...at the regional food bank! Next Thursday, I pray their little eyes will be open and their hearts will beat wildly in their chests for the thousands of people they will help feed this holiday.
Christmas presents are also going to be downsized at our house this year. We always feel like we have to spend so much, but there's so much more to it than that. And I hope we build a foundation of outward focus for the boys, not of internal satisfaction. One way is that we have always packed shoeboxes full of gifts and necessities for children in other countries through Samaritan's Purse.
Can you make a difference this year in your own children? Check out Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child, or find a local food bank to help stock, box, serve!