• Mom, I have the best ninja skills! 
• Did you see my awesome painting? 
• Can you watch me do my cartwheel? 
• Look at the amazing tent I made! 

Children seem to have no reservations when boasting about their many accomplishments and talents. Although we see flaws and imperfections, their little eyes are focused on a much better version. Boasting as a child comes with a certain amount of boldness and enthusiasm that we simply can’t get away with at any other time in our lives.

​Clayton, our five-year-old, will often grab my face with his sweet chubby hands and pull me towards him to make sure that I notice all the wonders he is about to perform. 

Jingles, slogans, catchphrases are a part of our everyday media-saturated world. They can get us to buy anything from the latest electronics to the newest menu item at our favorite fast-food restaurant. Advertisers know what we should as well: You only need a small number of words to relay a really big message. 

As we look ahead to turning the page on this year, we have already begun discussing what our family theme will be for the coming year. We often choose a word for our year with a matching verse. This year, we actually chose a song, “It is well with my soul,” that went along with our word which was “Good.” Little did we know how fitting this would be for the challenging and uncomfortable circumstances we would encounter. God’s goodness, and the reality that His peace is always available even in the darkest of times, allowed us to say no matter what, It was well, it is good.

Welcome to "Our Words Matter" a 5-part mini-series about using our words wisely and avoiding careless words. Last month we looked at The Sin of Careless Words. Today, we're looking at What Are Careless Words? Over the next few months (the last Friday of each month) we will also look at:

• Where Do Careless Words Come From?
• What Do Careless Words Do?
• How Do I Avoid Careless Words?

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​I hope you'll join us for "Our Words Matter" because they do! 

Careless words are those that are spoken rashly. They lack wise consideration and are often impulsive, thoughtless, and insensitive. In short, careless words are those that happen when we just don’t think. 

Let's be "Anxious for Nothing: Replacing Worry with Joy." Well, that’s easy to say.

​I know from personal experience that it is rarely helpful for someone to tell me "Don’t worry, be happy." When I allow anxiety into my heart, it becomes a crippling force that controls my moods, my words, and my actions. I don’t want to be told to "Let go and let God" when that happens. I want to curl up in a ball and binge-watch television shows until I can no longer escape reality. Then I want to cry and complain and feel sorry for myself.

​This past week, I have been living under the control of anxiety. Changes at work, a brief sickness, and some disappointments created inside me a feeling of emptiness, fear, and unease. I allowed my mind to dwell on things unlovely and untrue.

Christmas will be here before we know it! It seems to creep up on me sooner than expected every year and I am rarely prepared for it.

This year, however, our family is doing something a bit different. We are not giving gifts. Instead, we're doing experiences and having a family photo made.

All fourteen of us met at a local farm with our photographer, Katelyn, and afterwards for a family dinner. The dinner was one of those "experiences" as we spent the day making several different kinds of pasta for it.

​I know that some of you are already well into shopping for Christmas. Maybe, you even have all of your shopping done. But if you are one of those, like me, who wait till the last minute, have I got a sweet deal for you! It's like going to the mall (remember those days?) but better!

​We will use the alphabet as an acrostic and study topics like: Abide, Beloved, Calling, Delight, Endure, Faithful, Garment, Hunger, Increase, Justice, Kindness, Light, Manna, Name, Ordain, Path, Quench, Ransom, Salt, Testify, Upright, Vanity, Wait, Yield, and Zeal.

Every week, we’ll discover a different topic. Each topic is accompanied by five Scripture verses—one for each weekday. The Bible study has a page for each verse. Those spaces will invite you to write the verses out and journal what you’ve learned.

Every time I read God’s Word I learn something new. I also find that Scripture writing really helps me meditate, and as I meditate, God always shows me just what I need for that day—it’s AMAZING!

It was an early morning in November 2011 when my sisters and I sat with our dad in a surgical waiting room. Just a few short weeks before, our mom had been diagnosed with breast cancer found during a routine yearly mammogram.

I sat there that morning recalling the events of the weeks since the day we heard the dreaded “C” word. There had been a whirlwind of doctor’s appointments, scans, blood tests, and consultations.

I remember when the breast cancer specialist told us in a family consultation that the best course of action for the type of cancer my mom had was a mastectomy—a radical amputation of my mom’s breast. It was a shock, but none of us argued that day in the doctor’s office because we trusted she knew the best course of action to eradicate the cancer in my mother’s body.