devotion Archives - Page 42 of 59

Strike While the Iron Is Hot

February 19, 2018 Diana Derringer Comments 2 comments

Strike While the Iron Is Hot-making a horseshoe A blacksmith must strike while the iron is hot. When fire makes iron soft, the blacksmith hits it with his hammer. Only then can he shape it.

If he waits too long, the iron cools. It becomes too hard to shape. He must act quickly – when the time is right.

We must also strike while the iron is hot.

Like farmers who make hay while the sun shines, we act while we have the opportunity. If we wait, we may be too late.

Some tasks wait with no problem (dusting furniture). Others demand immediate attention (hungry children).

Some opportunities come only once. For example, we see people in need we will never see again. With those, we must act quickly.

Relationships matter most.

We often delay caring for people, especially those closest to us.

Family
Friends
Neighbors

We think we have plenty of time. Therefore, we never take the time to keep those relationships strong. As a result, we may lose them.

Remember an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Better to build strong relationships now than have to mend fences later. Look for ways to:

Show love.
Help one another.
Spend time together.
Make good memories.

“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another” (Proverbs 27:17 NIV).

Thanks to Shirley Redding Rice for the suggestion.

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From the Heart

February 12, 2018 Diana Derringer Comments 6 comments

From the Heart-quilt on a rocker Today’s post comes from the heart. I share it with:

Deep feelings
Sincere emotions
Love for the families I mention

Foster parents share their homes and their hearts.

They care for children who need a temporary home. They help children and families pick up the pieces of their lives.

Foster parents serve from the heart.

They love their children during good times and bad. They celebrate when children do well. They choose to love when children:

Reject their love
Damage their home
Break their hearts with bad choices

Foster parents receive few rewards.

News reports usually tell only bad foster parent stories. They rarely mention the families who give good care. Yet, foster parents continue their labor of love anyway.

My parents provided foster care several years. I worked with foster families almost 30 years. I saw their love and shared their hurt.

When I retired, foster parents gave me this quilt from their hearts. I recently wrote about it for Kentucky Living magazine.

When you see foster parents, thank them from your heart for:

Caring
Sharing
Giving
Healing

Happy Valentine’s Day to families who make our world a better place.

“Love one another deeply, from the heart” (1 Peter 1:22 NIV).

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Word to the Wise--Snow covered creek and field Let me give you a word to the wise: Don’t drive on slick roads. You don’t want to wreck your car or hurt someone. Another weather-related suggestion: Don’t skate on thin ice. Bad choices can put you under the weather.

A word to the wise is good advice – a word (or words) of wisdom.

A longer version says a word to the wise is sufficient. A wise person does not require a lot of words. A short explanation or hint is enough.

Sometimes a word to the wise tells you what to do.

Do:

Wash your hands often (especially during flu season).
Listen more than you talk. (God gave you two ears and one mouth for a reason.)
Think before you speak.
Obey the law. (Follow the straight and narrow.)

Other times it tells you what not to do.

It warns of danger.

Don’t:

Take silly chances (like skating on thin ice).
Go where you might get in trouble.
Stay angry.
Forget the importance of relationships.

“Listen closely, pay attention to the words of the wise, and apply your mind to my knowledge” (Proverbs 22:17 HCSB).

Thanks to Cecelia Lester for the suggestion.

Do you have an expression you want explained or a thought about this one? If so, please comment below.

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Stick to the Ribs

January 29, 2018 Diana Derringer Comments 12 comments

Stick to the Ribs--platter of roast beef , potatoes, carrots, onions I recently said I thought gravy was for the birds. J.T. Henderson commented, “Now gravy I like – ‘stick-to-the-ribs’ food.” My dad often said the same thing.

We usually like foods that stick to the ribs.

We describe them as:

Good to taste and good for you
Long lasting
Energy giving

They keep us going, even on cold, snowy days. They offer comfort. Sometimes they make us think of home.

Foods often described as stick to the ribs include:

Chili or thick soup (especially in cold weather)
Biscuits and gravy (even if I disagree)
Steak and potatoes

My favorites include:

Roast beef with potatoes, carrots, and onions
Corn from my garden
Coleslaw
Cornbread
Chocolate covered almonds (or almost anything chocolate)

Many favorites are not really good for us.

We simply like to eat them.

We know we should eat whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.
Yet, we say, “Forget the salad. Give me something that will stick to the ribs.”

Perhaps a better description for them would be stick to the belly. Getting food to stick there is easy as pie. However, when we try to get it off, we have our work cut out for us.

“Therefore, whether you eat, or drink, or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31 NIV).

Thanks to J.T. Henderson for the idea. What is your favorite stick-to-the-ribs food? Comment below.

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Figure Out

January 22, 2018 Diana Derringer Comments 14 comments

Figure Out--flowers with butterfly Some things in life are hard to figure out.

How do flowers grow from buds?
What makes winter so cold and summer so hot?
How do butterflies grow from cocoons? (Can you find the butterfly in this picture?)

Some people say figure it out instead of figure out.

When we figure out anything, we solve a problem.

We:

Learn how to do something
Understand what we did not understand before
Find an explanation for something
Begin to see daylight

Sometimes we figure out things. Other times we figure out people.

Not all people think the same way we do.
Our actions differ.
We have different goals.

We need to figure out how to get along in spite of our differences.

We don’t have to agree to be agreeable.
We don’t have to act the same way to act with kindness.
We don’t have to share the same goals to support one another.

If we look at the other side of the coin, we may learn something.

I have a hard time figuring out math problems. I know all my questions drove my teachers crazy. One would say, “Think. Just think.” I was thinking. However, I could not think like he did. I was in over my head. I am thankful those teachers did not give up on me. Instead, they bent over backwards to help me.

Life is often hard. Why not help one another figure out the best way to live it?

“This is God’s Message, the God who made earth, made it livable and lasting, known everywhere as God: ‘Call to me and I will answer you. I’ll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own’” (Jeremiah 33:2-3 MSG).

Thanks to Judy Clark for the suggestion.

Do you have an expression you want explained or a thought about this one? If so, please comment below.

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Six of One and Half a Dozen of the Other

January 15, 2018 Diana Derringer Comments 9 comments

I love mountains. I love oceans. Which one I visit is six of one and half a dozen of the other. I simply want to hit the trail.

Six of one and half a dozen of the other means I have two equal choices.

The result of those choices is the same or almost the same. (A dozen is 12 and six is half of 12.) Therefore, Six of One and Half a Dozen of the Other--ocean what I decide makes no difference.

Six of one and half a dozen of the other is sometimes true for:

Travel—which way I go
Jobs—which one I take
Free time—what I do for fun
Meals—what food I eat

Some choices are equally good.

Good choices for me include:

Hawaii (been there) or Alaska (want to go there)
Writing or speaking
Reading or walking
Chocolate or almonds (or chocolate covered almonds, yes!)

Other choices are equally bad.

Bad choices for me include:

Car races or casinos
Math teacher or scientist
Science fiction movies or heavy metal music
Gravy or liver (or gravy covered liver, no!)

Six of one and half a dozen of the other also refers to people.

Two people may:

Be equally qualified for a job
Share equal fault for a problem
Have little difference in personality

Neither choice stands out.

Six of one and half a dozen of the other choices matter little. However, the results of more important choices make big differences.

Enjoy the variety of unimportant choices. Choose wisely for decisions that matter most.

“He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way” (Psalm 25:9 NIV).

Thanks to Carole Fite for the suggestion.

Do you have an expression you want explained or a thought about this one? If so, please comment below.

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Fixing to

January 8, 2018 Diana Derringer Comments 5 comments

Fixing to-Lake Cumberland view My mother, sister, cousin, and I were fixing to eat when I took this picture. We planned to enjoy both our food and this great view of Lake Cumberland.

When we are fixing to do something, we are getting ready to do it.

In the southern United States, we often say fixin’ to. However we say it, we mean we are:

About to begin
Preparing
Starting

We plan to do something. For example, we are fixing to:

Cook dinner
Start a new semester
Go shopping

Sometimes people rush us.

We have not tackled a job as soon as they think we should. They want us to get the ball rolling. When that happens, we might say, “Don’t rush me. I’m fixing to do it.” That often happens with:

Children doing their schoolwork
Teens cleaning their room
Husbands or wives working around the house

Are we fixing to do what matters most?

Will what we are fixing to do:

Make life better?
Help anyone?
Have lasting value?

“You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him” (Luke 12:40 NIV).

Thanks to Carol York Patterson Brangers for the idea.

Do you have an expression you want explained or a thought about this one? If so, please comment below.

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For the Birds

January 1, 2018 Diana Derringer Comments 7 comments

For the Birds--ducks and geese My list of things for the birds includes:

Football
High heels
Gravy

I see little good in any of them. Neither do I understand why anyone likes them. Yet, you may enjoy all three.

Anything for the birds has little or no value.

We consider it:

Undesirable
Nonsense
A waste of time

For the birds can also mean something is:

Stupid
Boring
Frustrating
Annoying

This phrase may refer to birds picking seeds out of horse manure.

Probably none of us want to do that. I love the country and long walks in the middle of nowhere. Yet, I prefer to stay away from manure.

Although I don’t like to be near manure, it does have value. Manure provides a natural fertilizer for the soil. Some people buy it, so it is not just for the birds after all.

Perhaps we need to be careful what we consider for the birds.

What we think worthless may be a blessing in disguise.

However, I still don’t like football, high heels, or gravy.

“Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word” (Psalm 119:37 NIV).

Thanks to Melissa Graham for the suggestion.

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Begin to See Daylight

December 25, 2017 Diana Derringer Comments 2 comments

Begin to See Daylight -- a sunrise If we get up early, we begin to see daylight as the sun rises. After a long night, daylight appears. We enjoy the promise of a new day.

Sometimes our lives feel like a long night.

We face problems with no end in sight.

We think we will never get out of school.
Our job never seems to end.
Goals appear too far away to reach.

We begin to see daylight when success seems possible.

Classes are almost over.
We near the end of our long task.
Our goals appear within reach.

We finally see light at the end of the tunnel.

We don’t see daylight when we look the wrong way.

If we fail to look outside, we never see the sun rise. If we always look on the bad side of everything, we never see the good. We remain down in the dumps.

As this New Year begins, we choose.

Will we focus on our problems and the dark side of life?
Or will we look up and begin to see daylight?
When we begin to see daylight, will we let our light shine?

“My God turns my darkness into light” (Psalm 18:28 NIV).

Do you have a favorite expression or one you want explained? If so, please comment.

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Give Birth to Something

December 18, 2017 Diana Derringer Comments 4 comments

Some people complain about problems. Others give birth to solutions.

They:

Try to make life better
Explore changes
Work to make those changes happen

Kate Thomas, a writing friend, gave birth to the Kentucky Christian Writers Conference in 1996. She knew Kentucky writers needed training and encouragement. Her conference offers help to writers every year.