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In the Thick of It

In the Thick of It

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In the Thick of It--Stones in foreground with fall-colored trees in backgroundPlease welcome my friend J.J. LeVan as today’s guest writer. J.J. is an award-winning author with a heart for autism and its caregiver community. She released a children’s picture book entitled, “He In the Thick of It--J. J. LeVan photoMeant You to Be You,” which shares God’s love for these uniquely and wonderfully made children. Inspired by her oldest son’s diagnosis in 1998, she has become an advocate and an encourager to Children’s Ministry leaders working with neurodiverse kids. J.J.  is also a certified independent provider for the State of Ohio.

Are you in the thick of it?

Merriam-Webster defines in the thick of it as “in the most active or intense part of a situation or activity.” This idiom means you are:

  • Surrounded
  • Highly active
  • Engaged
  • Engulfed

Hear from real people in the thick of it.

I reached out to friends in our autism community about how I could best pray for them. Their honesty was gripping.

  • One mom spoke of her desperate need to find a caregiver for her 25-year-old profoundly autistic son.
  • A grandmother shared that her daughter felt discouraged caring for her 4-year-old autistic son. She was a young mom raising a child in a big city that “could be so cruel.”
  • Another mom had just received her late autism diagnosis just as she was learning how to help her young son on his own spectrum journey.

Each one of these women is in the thick of it.

Paul pressed on in the thick of it.

“We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.”  2 Corinthians 4: 8-9

Even if you find yourself in the thick of it today, take heart. You are not forgotten.

Press on! You are not alone.

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

In the Thick of It--He Meant You to be You book coverSubscribe to receive Diana’s weekly posts by email and receive a free copy of “Words of Hope for Days that Hurt.” On 11-23-24, one name will be randomly selected from Diana’s mailing list to also receive a free copy of J.J.’s book, “He Meant You to Be You.” If your name is already on the mailing list, you are automatically entered. Please encourage your friends to subscribe.

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Thanks to Phyllis Arnold for the blog photo.

Wear Your Heart on Your Sleeve

Wear Your Heart on Your Sleeve

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Wear Your Heart on Your Sleeve--a red heart on a white sweater sleeveDo you ever wear your heart on your sleeve? I don’t mean shirts or sweaters with hearts on them. Do you let your emotions show?

When you wear your heart on your sleeve, you openly reveal your emotions.

They become obvious to everyone who sees you. They show in your:

  • Face
  • Words
  • Body Language

Wear your heart on your sleeve applies to every emotion.

  • Anger makes you blow your top.
  • Love brightens the world around you.
  • Concern reaches out to those in need.
  • Fear makes you tremble.

No one has to wonder how you feel, especially when you are in love.

This expression may originate from a medieval custom.

According to The Phrase Finder, knights wore the name of a woman on their sleeves during tournaments.

The phrase later appeared in Shakespeare’s “Othello.”

Wear your heart on your sleeve with caution.

Openness is not appropriate in every situation. You don’t want to go off the deep end. Use wisdom and kindness in all you do.

Allow God’s love to flow through you regardless of your emotions.

When you let go and let God take control, your heart changes for the better.

“I will praise the Lord with my whole heart” (Psalm 111:1 NIV).

Thanks to Brad Leverett 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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No Bigger than a Minute

No Bigger than a Minute

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No Bigger than a Minute--Diana with nephewSome expressions suit us to a T.  This one describes me. All my life, I have been the smallest or one of the smallest in most settings.

  • Smallest person in my family
  • One of the smallest in my classes at school
  • Smallest in my office
  • Usually smallest in sports

You get the picture. Here I stand with my then 15-year-old nephew. The gentle giant with the shrimp of the family.

What makes this picture more fun: He was born tiny and premature. I was a big full-term baby.

No bigger than a minute means very small.

The expression often refers to a person who looks:

  • Tiny
  • Skinny
  • Frail
  • Hungry

This can also refer to animals or objects.

Abandoned baby animals look frail and hungry. In addition to food, they need tender loving care.

This expression has a few variations.

Although poor grammar, the following are common.

  • Weren’t no bigger than a minute
  • Ain’t bigger than a minute

 Anyone or anything no bigger than a minute can make a big difference.

Regardless of our size (or any other characteristic), God can use us to make the world a better place. Let’s work together — gentle giants, shrimps, and everyone in between — to spread God’s love with a hurting world.

“He will bless those who fear the Lord—small and great alike” (Psalm 115:13 NIV).

Thanks to Ann Klotz 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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Dollars to Donuts

Dollars to Donuts

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Dollars to Donuts--a collection of various kinds of donutsDollars to donuts (or doughnuts):

  • Prices will rise.
  • Taxes will increase.
  • People will die.

We can predict some events with confidence. We expect them to happen.

If we say dollars to donuts, we express certainty.

No doubts. No ifs, ands, or buts.

Many of us use the expression with no idea it comes from gambling. Whether we bet or not, we say dollars to donuts to voice confidence. To risk money against donuts or anything of little worth would be a safe bet.

We act with certainty on many issues, but hardly anything is definite.

  • Prices occasionally go down.
  • Taxes usually rise, but not always.
  • Jesus rose from the dead and offers eternal life to all who follow Him.

God’s promises never fail.

We can count on God’s offer of:

Those gifts are worth more than all the dollars and donuts in the world.

“For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his” (Romans 6:5 NIV).

Thanks to Tillie Cowherd for the suggestion. Image by Edward Lich from Pixabay.

Remember: On Saturday, October 30, I will randomly select the name of one person on my mailing list to receive a free copy of Tracy Crump’s book,  Health, Healing, and Wholeness: Devotions of Hope in the Midst of Illness. Please encourage your friends to also subscribe to my mailing list for a chance to win.

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

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Bushel and a Peck

Bushel and a Peck

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Bushel and a Peck-bushel baskets of applesI grew up with the knowledge that my parents loved me a bushel and a peck. How did I know that? They told me many times. They also sang “A Bushel and a Peck” from the Broadway show, “Guys and Dolls.” Their love made me feel snug as a bug in a rug.

My dad grew apples. Many people bought them in large bushel baskets. Others wanted only a peck (four pecks equal a bushel). Both are large amounts. A bushel and a peck together make a right smart of apples.

A bushel and a peck mean a lot.

Therefore, when my parents told me they loved me a bushel and a peck, they meant they loved me a great deal. At times, they held their arms wide to show another measure of their love.

Bushel and a peck often emphasize one person’s love for another.

Although the Broadway song focuses on romantic love, the expression can also refer to love of other people or things.

God gives the greatest measure of love.

God created all people and all things, including:

  • Everything that goes in our baskets
  • The materials that make the baskets

God also showers us with never-failing love, too great to measure. May we never fail to share God’s love for all creation and everyone in it.

“Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance? (Isaiah 40:12 NIV).

Thanks to Darrin Jenkins for the suggestion. Image by judymccleery from Pixabay

Do you have an expression you want explained? If so, please comment below.

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To Die For

To Die For

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My sister-in-law recently described a pie to die for. She told how it:

  • Looks
  • Tastes
  • Makes her feel

Anything to die for seems very important.

 People want it because it:

  • Looks wonderful
  • Makes them happy
  • Has great value

Most people will not actually die for a piece of pie (or other food).

However, they will pay a high price for it. They want it that much.

Besides food, items to die for might include:

  • Clothing
  • Jewelry
  • Cars
  • Houses
  • Trips

None of those is worth people giving their lives.

However, many people will die for what they believe.

A few who go beyond the call of duty include:

  • Veterans
  • Missionaries
  • Police officers and firefighters
  • Others who protect family and friends

God loved the world enough to send Jesus to die for it.

Jesus died so anyone who follows him can have eternal life.

“God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8 NIV).

 Thanks to Melissa Scott Taylor for the suggestion and to Winona Smith for the photo of one of her wonderful pies.

Do you have an expression you want explained? If so, please comment below.

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Jump through Hoops

Jump through Hoops

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Jump through Hoops--a dolphin jumping through a hoop in a poolSome animals have to jump through hoops to get what they want.

People also jump through hoops.

We have to perform certain tasks to get what we want.

Several services require us to jump through hoops.

That is true for:

  • Health care
  • Insurance
  • Government agencies
  • Jobs
  • Businesses
  • Schools

Often, we must jump through several hoops.

Phone calls may mean:

  • Make the call.
  • Wait on hold.
  • Transfer to another person.
  • Wait on hold again.
  • Leave a message or call back later.

Paperwork can include:

  • Fill out a form.
  • Wait.
  • Fill out more forms.
  • Wait again.
  • Make a phone call to see what happened to the paperwork.

Have you been there and done that?

I have bad news and good news.

The bad news: We will probably have to continue jumping through hoops for most services.

The good news: Jesus loves us just as we are. If we give Him control of our lives, He will:

  • Forgive our sins
  • Offer guidance every day
  • Give us eternal life

No hoops, just an invitation into the family of God and a home in heaven.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16 NIV).

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

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Head over Heels

Head over Heels

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Head over Heels morgue file8161310074013Have you ever been head over heels in love?

  • You were so in love you did not know up from down.
  • You acted silly but didn’t care.
  • You wanted to spend every single minute with your loved one.

Have you later realized that was not true love?

So often we get the meaning of true love all wrong. We focus on the temporary:

  • Physical attraction
  • Common interests
  • Popularity
  • Desire to love or be close to someone

None of those are necessarily bad. However, true love means so much more. Love that lasts means moving beyond puppy love to:

  • Commitment to the loved one, regardless of circumstances
  • Willingness to give 100 percent, not 50-50
  • Being there for one another when life gets hard

At the same time, we want to keep true love lovely by:

  • Talking and laughing with one another
  • Sharing fun times
  • Hugging and saying “I love you” often

That helps keep us head over heels in love with our loved one for life.

Above all, we want to follow the ultimate example of love – Jesus’ unconditional, sacrificial love.

“You have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes” (Song of Solomon 4:9 NIV).

Do you have an expression you want explained? If so, please comment below.

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Photo courtesy of morgueFile.