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Do It
I am a total Harry Potter fan. I have read every book (multiple times) and frequently find myself pondering one brilliantly penned scene or another. Recently, I found myself contemplating the complexity of a scene at the end of book three. A swarm of dementors are descending upon Harry and his friends, ready to deliver…
Leave It
One of the first commands I ever taught my puppy was “Leave it!” Like a toddler’s newfound use of the word “no,” “Leave it!” quickly became an echoing refrain. Leave the garbage, leave my shoes, leave the cord to my cell phone… It wasn’t long before she knew what it meant. Acting accordingly, however, was…
Bird Talk
Sometimes God speaks to me through birds. I don’t mean in some mystical fashion. A brilliantly plumed creature has never perched upon my shoulder and shouted prophesies. But on more than one occasion, I have felt the nearness of God when looking upon one of his feathered creations. There was a time several years ago…
Lest We Forget
Not too long ago I read Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns. It was perhaps the most horrible book I have ever read. I highly recommend it. If you think that is a contradiction, it is not. The book sat on my bookshelf for several months before I raised the gumption to open it. I…
Do Something With It
In the last couple articles, we looked at the amazing things that occur when we start with what we have and then give it to God. What we haven’t looked at yet is how, in this cycle of receiving and giving, God also expects us to do something with what He gives us. I never…
Give it to God
Do you know what I love most about the story of Jesus feeding the five thousand? I love the boy with the fish. We know this story so well. We know how crowds of men, women, and children followed Jesus until he stopped to speak with them. We know how the day grew late, the…
Start With What You Have
As I think about this month’s article, three interrelated Bible stories keep crowding around in my head: Elijah visiting the widow (1 Kings 17), Jesus feeding the 5000 (Mark 6:30-44), and the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-28). These are important stories for anytime, but perhaps even more so for this annual season of reflection…
Joy of Giving
One night as I was reading my Bible – I don’t recall exactly what passage, but it was one that referenced our future in heaven when we would spend our time singing praises at the throne of God – I had one of those all-American, in-the-flesh, I-can’t-believe-I just-thought-that thoughts. I thought: what’s in it for…
Planning
Here’s something I need to hear, so I’m going to tell you, too: Sometimes God has a different plan. My mother sometimes laments how her days often do not turn out the way she expected. “I can have my whole day planned,” she’ll say, “and it can turn out completely different. We’re just not in…
Adjust
What can one learn by pet sitting a friend’s dog for two weeks? An appreciation for one’s own dog, who is quiet and does not pee in the house, perhaps. But, I suspect the answer is supposed to be a bit deeper than that. One night, early on in the visit, while “Ricky” was sitting…
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Meet Janet!
Janet Beagle, PhD is the founder of The Mustard Patch. She divides her time between the Midwest and New England, and if she’s not writing, she’s probably out hiking with her 2-and 4-footed friends.