John 3:4-6, Huh? Born Again? Literary Living, Finding Joy

Hello There,

Thank you for stopping by!    I hope and pray you all have had a beautiful week and a peaceful Veteran's Day as you gave thanks for our many veterans who fought for our nation's freedom and democracy.  

For the last few weeks, an increasingly burning desire to somehow serve in a family literacy program has been on my heart.  According to my research, 54% of adults ages 16-74 are reading below a sixth-grade level - that's 130 million souls.  In my state, New Mexico, 29.1%, 622,551 souls are in this same category.  If you'd like to check your state's literacy stats, click here.  These dismal numbers affect all aspects of life:  earning power, health care, education, spiritual growth, and making informed decisions.  I will continue researching and praying to find my place in my passion:  increasing family literacy.   Would you please pray for me as I embark on this exciting journey?

Take good care and, as Daddy used to say,

"Make memories; it's later than you think."

HERE'S A WORD

Today's devotional is somewhat reminiscent of the popular children's book If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.  The LORD led me from one thought to another and my excitement grew!  I hope you are inspired to share your experiences and thoughts in the comments!  

Nicodemus asked this significant question: "How can someone be born when they are old?"  Many times, as we witness to others, we use "Bible speak" versus regular vocabulary, which can befuddle the simple steps to salvation.  Before I accepted Christ as my LORD and Savior, I used to hear and read that phrase, "born again" and was completely confused.  After a time, I came to understand that being born again is a new birth of my heart and spirit.  I loved how Tozer explains it in his book, The Holy Spirit.  Being born again is "of the heart...into eternity...and "of heaven".  

Then the LORD showed me how we might explain this more simply.  

We had no choice in our physical birth: 

Our birth mother's labor began and we were born. (Thank you, Mother!)

BUT, our spiritual birth is a choice, 

one of the most important ones we will ever make in our lives.  

The blinders were removed from my eyes as I realized this is fabulous way to explain being "born again"!  Thank you, LORD!

Then, I found this salvation card online at Salvation Card For Kids which would work for any age, regardless of literary abilities. The website offers a double-sided option to print the specific steps to salvation on the back.  Perhaps your church already has something similar.  If not, as we fill this year's Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes, why not insert one of these cards? 

Finally, I thought about all the times we try to witness to those who speak a language different from ours or who struggle with literacy in English/their native tongue.  When they do accept Christ, we give them some kind of Bible in English/their native tongue.  

"Read the Bible to know God and His will for your life," is a vital and common theme.  The new believer who faces reading challenges must feel so hopeless when they hear those words.  I  wonder how churches deal with this problem. According to Barbara Bush's literacy website, over half of the nation's population, 54% or 130 million people, between the ages of 16-74 read below a sixth-grade level.  

Perhaps instead of giving a new believer a mini New Testament, we could give them a New Testament comic book?  Perhaps there are some available in bulk?  My quick online search produced few results.  Perhaps your church is already addressing this need?  Please share your experiences and thoughts regarding literacy ministries in the comments.  

To be physically born is not a choice, to be born again is a choice.  

Let us work together to give all believers 

the opprotunity

 to live a rich, full life in Chirst.

18Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. 19Therefore go and make disciplesd of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Matthew 29:18-20

Please know this:  

You are loved.  You are not alone.  You are being lovingly prayed for.

FIBER FUN

I broke down my "To Dos" into three categories:  Finish, Focus, Prep/make a kit, and Be Kind = Soft Deadlines.  FoF represents the Fields of Fancy BOM, which I'm doing with Liberty of London Tana Lawn fabrics.  FBF represents the Flower Box Friends BOM

Last Week's List

1.  Finish -  Grandson #1's ornament Done!

2.  Focus

- Grandson's #2 ornament Done!

- FBF - the Poinsettia block:   Appliqué the leaves onto the background Done!

- sew embellishments on the red and white Christmas ornaments. Done!  It's hard to see the beads, but they're there!

3.   Prepare/make a kit

- Nothing at all!  Everything is already prepped and part of "Focus".

4. Be kind = Soft Deadlines - which are good for my mental health!

This is a good time to show you how I prep my cross stitch and my portable generic sewing box.  First, the cross-stitch kit.  This is the one I use for the Star Wars pattern available on Etsy. I keep this kit prepared permanently as there are 12 characters to stitch and they all use similar colors.  My Star Wars kit includes from top to bottom a needle holder, small sharp scissors, two needle threaders (in case one breaks), the floss on bobbins labeled with color numbers in permanent marker, a thimble just in case, the pattern, thread conditioner, a seam ripper and a highlighter to mark off sections stitched.  I print out my patterns and color key on 8.5" x 11" paper.  

 

I'm not sure where I got the idea for making this thread label (if that's what it's called?), but I love it!  I purchased a variety of options, but this one works for me.  I used scrap fabic and a sharpie to write the symbol, Presencia color number and the color of the thread.  Then I added a short sample of the thread.  Nothing fancy, but it works for me!

Now for my portable sewing box filled with general supplies.  

I've only picked up cross-stitch again about 4 years ago.  What do you have in your cross-stitch supply case/drawer that you would recommend?  How about in your Slow Stitching kit?  

This Week's goals

1.  Finish - nothing this week

2.  Focus

- Grands on #2 ornament

- FBF - the Poinsettia block:   Stitch the details on the petals of the poinsettia

- sew embellishments on the red and white Christmas ornaments.

- Psalm 23 Stitch a Day

3.   Prepare/make a kit- My main goals are my grandchildren's ornaments, which are all prepped.  So, I'll spend time stitching for now.  

4. Be kind = Soft Deadlines - which are good for my mental health!

LITERARY LIFE   

I love how my focus has increased with the "Finish, Focus and Prep" methodology I use with my Fiber Arts.  Consequently, I'm going to apply that to my reading life with a bit of a twist.  The categories will be "Finish, Focus and Next".  

This should help with my "Backburner Reads" which are books I started, enjoyed, but lost focus.  

UPDATE:  Have you heard about Jenn at Jenn's Bookshelves Thankfully Reading Week from taking place from November 24 to November 30?  I've decided to join in on the fun and will be posting my updates on Instagram.  

I didn't finish last week's books, so they are the same ones.  We had the discussion on The Hummingbird's Daughter today at my Latinx Book Club and it was so lively and engaging!                   

Finish

         

NEXT

Finished

(Libby Audiobook)

***** Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi is gentle, slow paced book about time travel.  The time traveler can indeed travel to the past for a very brief about of time:  the time it takes for their cup of coffee to grow cold.  However, nothing they do or say will change present day circumstances.  So why travel to the past?  Is there a real purpose?  That's for the reader to decide.

For me, as I mourn my precious Daddy, these books were gentle reminders of appreciating life and our loved ones.  Cerain lines stayed with me, causing me to weep, laugh and have hope.  Here is one such line:

"But Kazu still goes on believing

that no matter what difficulties people face,

they will always have the strength to overcome them.

It just takes heart."

Highly recommend.

Monday Mailbox - is a gathering place for readers to share books that they

added to their shelves or eBook readers the previous week. 

ereaderiq.com 

 
Hoopla:  None  Kindle Freebies:  None

Libby:  These are audio books which go by quickly.

NetGalley:  None

Purchased:  I picked up several books from our Friends of the Library Bookshop as well as Coas, our local bookshop.

FINDING JOY

LeeAnna's I Like on Thursdays at Not Afraid of Color helps me consistently find the joy in every life.  She also provides a prompt for us to use.  This week's prompt is:  Do you remember making construction paper turkeys in elementary school?  using your own hand? coloring them in or pasting on cut out colored feathers? taking them home and having a parent put them up in the house?

I don't remember the Thanksgiving crafts I made at school, but my students made many of the above mentioned ones each year.  How I wish I had thought of buying colored feathers for the turkeys!  That would have been so much fun!

Fall leads to one of my favorite ways to serve veggies:  roasted!  This time I included sweet potatoes, carrots, purple cabbage, fresh brocolli, and bell peppers topped with olive oil and seasonings.  Yummy!

Last Monday was a hard day...just missing Daddy.

Then Brenda at Songbird Designs posted this meme on her blog.  

It sure brightened my day.

I hope it brightens yours as well.  

Just a song

Give Thanks sung by Janella Salvador

Do you have a song that comes to mind during the Thanksgiving holiday?

Your comments are so appreciated! 

I hope you will share 

the supplies you have in your

 cross-stitch supply case/drawer or your Slow Stitching kit!  

I read each one and will respond by email.

You can also expect a visit from me as well!

Here are the parties I sometimes link up with:  

Sundays

Oh Scrap!  @ Quilting is More Fun Than Housework

Slow Sunday Stitching @ Kathy's Quilts

Sunday Salon at Readerbuzz

Mondays

Mailbox Monday  @ I'd Rather Be At the Beach

Sew and Tell at Melva Loves Scraps

What Are You Reading at The Book Date

Tuesdays

To Do Tuesday posts at Quilt Schmilt

Thursdays

I Like on Thursdays at Not Afraid of Color