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Abundant Gifts Blog Posts:
Easter in Autumn
This past Easter, I bought an Easter lily. I love Easter lilies. Love the sweet aroma , the strong stem and glossy, symmetrical leaves.
Every year at Easter our church gives the opportunity to buy a lily plant in honor of someone who has "gone before" as witness to the resurrection. I bought mine in memory of my dad, who two years before he died "became one of those born-agains" he used to scorn (including, of course, me).
I had prayed for him for some 30 years before he came to the Lord.
So, my Easter lily was special. Once a year, that sweet aroma that spills out of the trumpet-shaped flower would remind me of hope. The hope of Easter--life triumphing over death, fully and finally. The thing about these plants, though, is Read more
________________________________________ Welcome to ABUNDANT GIFTS a newsletter to help you develop the habit of seeing every day gifts from a lavish God ________________________________________ Published by Diane Eble author of ABUNDANT GIFTS A Daybook of Grace-Filled Devotions ( New Hope, 2004) ________________________________________
October
In This Issue: * A Timely Reminder * Don’t worry—Pray! * Name of God of the Month: Good Shepherd * Images of God as Shepherd * Perspectives * Abundant Gifts to Relish in October * On the blog * Pass It On * Subscribe/Unsubscribe Information ________________________________________
A TIMELY REMINDER
Gene and I were discussing the upcoming bills and the timing of some checks we expected. We had just prayed, and I was trying not to worry.
Gene asked me to sign a copy of ABUNDANT GIFTS he wanted to send to a relative. I randomly opened it up to the story, “The Hidden Gifts of Paying Bills.” I read it aloud to Gene. We both knew it was God’s word to us at that moment.
The story is too long to repeat here, but if you have the book, I recommend turning to it again when you pay your bills. (If you don’t have the book, you don’t know what you’re missing!)
I will include the prayer I quoted by Gunilla Norris: “Guard me against the arrogance of privilege, against the indulgence of feeling that I don’t have enough, and the poverty of spirit that refuses to acknowledge what is daily given me.” Amen! ________________________________________
DON’T WORRY--PRAY!
Another gift came when I was in the car and “happened” to turn on the radio to a Christian station, and Dr. David Jeremiah was preaching on the topic of worry. It was so timely! I pass on the scriptures that are surely worth meditating upon, if not memorizing:
“Trust me in your times of trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory.” –Psalm 50:15 (NLT)
“Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.” —Psalm 55:22
“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you.”—1 Peter 5:7
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” —Philippians 4:6-7 ________________________________________
NAME OF GOD OF THE MONTH: GOOD SHEPHERD
I have been pondering the names and images of God for a while, and over the past few weeks God keeps bringing one in particular to my attention: God as our Shepherd.
In the Young Children and Worship session with which I’ve been involved, I was deeply moved by the stories of God as Shepherd. How he cares for the sheep, leading them through the dark, scary places, how he knows them by name, how he leads them to the lush green meadows and the quiet, still waters.
Then I heard a call-in show on the radio where the guest talked about Psalm 23. A modern-day shepherdess called in and mentioned that sheep are so helpless, if they fall down, they can’t get up by themselves. They need the shepherd to get them up again.
I had recently “fallen down.” Several times in fact. What a comfort to realize that the Shepherd doesn’t expect me to get on my feet myself; that’s what his rod and staff are for.
Sheep, I’ve heard, are very dumb animals. That comforts me, too. The Shepherd doesn’t ask us to be smart, or capable, or beautiful. Sheep are seldom any of these things. The Shepherd loves them anyway.
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IMAGES OF GOD AS SHEPHERD:
“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want . . .” and the rest of Psalm 23
“He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.” --Isaiah 40:11
“I myself will tend my sheep and have them life down, declares the Sovereign Lord. I will serach for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.” --Ezekiel 34:15:16
“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.” --John 10:14, 15
“The Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” --Revelation 7:17 ________________________________________
PERSPECTIVES
"Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to the dangers of controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of 'crackpot' than the stigma of conformity. And on issues that seem important to you, stand up and be counted at any cost." --Thomas J. Watson
"Failure should be our teacher, not our undertaker. Failure is delay, not defeat. It is a temporary detour, not a dead end. Failure is something we can avoid only by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being nothing." --Denis Waitley
“The fairest thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is fundamental emotion which stands at the cradle of true art and true science. He who knows it not and can no longer wonder, no longer feels amazement, is as good as dead, a snuffed-out candle.” --Albert Einstein
“Prayer strikes the winning blow; service is simply picking up the results.” --S. D. Gordon
"Continuous effort--not strength or intelligence--is the key to unlocking our potential." --Winston Churchill
"If you're never scared or embarrassed or hurt, it means you never take any chances." -- Julia Sorel ________________________________________
ABUNDANT GIFTS TO RELISH IN OCTOBER
* The glorious display of autumn colors (at least in the northern areas) * The last vine-ripened garden tomoatoes * The color of mums * The smile of a loved one * The affection of a child * The routine of school or work * Those “boring” days when nothing [bad] happens * A good night’s sleep * Fresh apples ________________________________________
ON THE BLOG: “Room for All Kinds”
I hope you didn’t miss the story I wrote and published on the Abundant Gifts blog. It was called, “Room for All Kinds,” and it’s one of the most profound things God has ever revealed to me.
Whenever I feel impatient with or superior to someone, God reminds me that “in my kingdom, there is room for all kinds.”
Stop by the blog at and read it: http://wordstoprofit.com/Abundant-Gifts-blog/ .
While you’re there, please fill out the subscribe box. That way you won’t miss any of the articles I will be posting. ________________________________________
PASS IT ON!
If you like this newsletter, forward it to a friend! (In its entirety, please.) Your recommendations are how this newsletter grows. ________________________________________
SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE INFORMATION
To SUBSCRIBE, go to http://www.abundant-gifts.com/subscribe_to_newsletter.html
I Value Your Privacy! I will NEVER sell or trade your email address to anyone else. ________________________________________
Copyright © 2006 by Diane Eble. All rights reserved.
* Copyright Notice/Reprint Policy
All material in this ezine is protected by U.S. Federal Copyright law. It may not be reprinted in any form, or hosted on any Web site without explicit permission from Diane Eble.
ALL comments welcome and reprint permission available through e-mail request. No reasonable request denied. ________________________________________ Room for All Kinds
I was frustrated, not for the first time, by a particular person. Someone who does things very differently than me—in my opinion, too slowly, or without enough regard for reality. This person was unconcerned, in my mind, about what was important, and focused only on the negative. I did not want to deal with the person or the situation, but circumstances being what they were, I had to.
I knew it was I who probably had the wrong perspective. So I took the matter to God in prayer. And this time, I think I heard a clear word in my spirit. A clear message.
I had recently been to a church retreat called “The Kingdom and the Poor.” One of the most powerful moments of the retreat was when the leader had various people simply read the scriptures that mentioned “the kingdom of God” and another set that mentioned “the poor.” No comments, just the scriptures, one right after another, cascading over us, word by word constructing a picture of God’s vision and God’s heart.
When I went to prayer about my attitude toward this particular “difficult” person, the words that imprinted on my soul were, “In my kingdom there is room for all kinds.” And the sense was that, not only is there room, but “all kinds” were welcome, honored, cherished.
How different from the world, that dictates membership into The Accepted: you must be successful, productive, rich, beautiful, powerful, productive, useful. The whole advertising industry, to mention only one, is built upon reinforcing this. Why do people strive so hard to look as young as possible, to acquire as many possessions as possible, to become as successful as possible? Not really to get or become the thing itself—beautiful, rich, or successful—but, I think anyway, to become Accepted.
God’s way is different. God says “You’re accepted” just because he made us. I think he actually likes people who are “different” in some way, who have some sort of handicap or difficulty. His compassion is activated by our need, and his nature is to be compassionate, kind, loving, gracious.
“In my kingdom there is room for all kinds.” The words changed my attitude toward my Difficult Person. Knowing God loves that person, welcomes that person without asking for any change at all, humbled me, challenged me to do the same.
It also made me look at myself, at my own lacks and faults, and feel very, very glad that “in my kingdom, there is room for all kinds.”
Copyright (c) 2006 by Diane Eble. All rights reserved. To be sent an e-mail every time a story like this is posted on the blog, sign up now:
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The Amazing God Story that Can't be Written The story I have to share with you today is not the story I thought God would write in my life.
You haven't heard from me in a while, mainly because I've been super busy launching a book (MotherStyles: Using Personality Type to Discover Your Parenting Strengths) and a business (helping people get their books written and published).
Concerning the latter, I thought it would be very useful to go to the annual Christian Booksellers convention this week in Denver to renew my publishing contacts. Gene goes because he works for a publisher. I would have been able to stay with him, no extra charge. Time away from the children, together!)As an author, my publisher could get me in. The kids had friends they could stay with for a week. My only expenses would be for transportation. Surely God would provide that.
I prayed about it. I tried to earn extra. I even asked a couple of people to help me out. The money did not seem to be forthcoming, and I felt strongly that this was not something to put on the credit card, even if it was a business expense.
The day before Gene left for the convention, a friend called. After she told me about how God provided for her at the 11th hour, I mentioned my situation.
She said, "My husband has a voucher he got when he was bumped a year ago, and I think it expires this week. Let's see if I can find it, and if it's transferrable."
She did find something. We each called the airline company, described the vouther in details, and were reassured that it was usable and transferrable.
I checked flights to Denver, thinking this was God's amazing way of providing for me to go to the convention after all.
No flights to Denver available under that voucher.
I hung up, very disappointed. Then it hit me: I have a free ticket to go anywhere! Where did I want to go?
Portland, I decided. As in Portland, Oregon. I have two sets of dear friends out there I'd love to visit.
Called the friends. They'd love to have me! Portland is so beautiful now! We'd have so much fun!
But then I checked the airline again. No flights to Portland on that voucher. No flights to Seattle, either. At least, not through Nov. 8, when she stopped checking.
But there were flights to Miami. I have a cousin in Florida I'd love to see. Called her. Debbie said it would be a fine time to visit. We'd have so much fun.... "We'll do whatever you want to do," she said.
The Amazing God Story I thought I'd be writing was how God knew I needed a vacation even more than I needed to be at the convention.
But it was not to be....
When my friend, who had the plane ticket, went to the airport to transfer it over to me--a trip he did not relish taking--the airline told him it was not a valid travel voucher. Despite us having called the airline at least 7 times, describing every inch of the paper and being told it was indeed a voucher and transferrable, US Air told Bill it was not valid.
Case closed.
No vacation for Diane.
Did something wonderful come up for me this week anyway? Not yet. I stayed home, got a lot done. Today I'm taking a retreat of sorts. I will try to get something done that I've been trying to find time for for months. (Something that will benefit my Abundant Gifts readers.)
But here's what God did, that I can recognize. The morning my friend called about the plane ticket, right before she called in fact, I talked to a neighbor. The neighbor was having a garage sale, and I stopped by on my walk.
We got to chatting, and she told me that in April, she lost her future son-in-law. He dropped dead of a heart attack one day. Her daughter, who is 49, was devastated. She'd finally found the love of her life, and was all set for a wonderful future. Jane and her fiance had bought a house. They were to be married this summer.
Within a week of that tragedy, my neighbor, Genevieve, also lost her 33-year-old mentally handicapped son, who lived with her. She lost a son and son-in-law, her daughter Jane lost a fiance and beloved brother. All within a week.
Genevieve told me that she and Jane have a strong faith in God, and that is what is getting them through. Her faith lingered with me. I returned later that afternoon and gave her a copy of Abundant Gifts.
Genevieve's story framed my own disppointment with a new perspective. What was my diappointment in a missed vacation compared to the crushing disappointment of losing one's love and a future that seemed a dream come true? Of losing the son one has cared for and lived with for more than 30 years?
In a strange way, God used their story to help me. Even though I felt very disappointed in not being able to take the vacation I thought I'd take, I felt an underlying peace and sense that God is in control.
He has provided miraculously for me in the past. This time he chose not to. I may never know why, or he may reveal it. Either way, I know he's with me.
Life is full of disappointment. But it tends to evaporate when the presence of God is trusted. copyright (c) 2006 Diane Eble. All rights reserved.
The Amazing God Story that Can't be Written The story I have to share with you today is not the story I thought God would write in my life.
You haven't heard from me in a while, mainly because I've been super busy launching a book (MotherStyles: Using Personality Type to Discover Your Parenting Strengths) and a business (helping people get their books written and published).
Concerning the latter, I thought it would be very useful to go to the annual Christian Booksellers convention this week in Denver to renew my publishing contacts. Gene goes because he works for a publisher. I would have been able to stay with him, no extra charge. Time away from the children, together!)As an author, my publisher could get me in. The kids had friends they could stay with for a week. My only expenses would be for transportation. Surely God would provide that.
I prayed about it. I tried to earn extra. I even asked a couple of people to help me out. The money did not seem to be forthcoming, and I felt strongly that this was not something to put on the credit card, even if it was a business expense.
The day before Gene left for the convention, a friend called. After she told me about how God provided for her at the 11th hour, I mentioned my situation.
She said, "My husband has a voucher he got when he was bumped a year ago, and I think it expires this week. Let's see if I can find it, and if it's transferrable."
She did find something. We each called the airline company, described the vouther in details, and were reassured that it was usable and transferrable.
I checked flights to Denver, thinking this was God's amazing way of providing for me to go to the convention after all.
No flights to Denver available under that voucher.
I hung up, very disappointed. Then it hit me: I have a free ticket to go anywhere! Where did I want to go?
Portland, I decided. As in Portland, Oregon. I have two sets of dear friends out there I'd love to visit.
Called the friends. They'd love to have me! Portland is so beautiful now! We'd have so much fun!
But then I checked the airline again. No flights to Portland on that voucher. No flights to Seattle, either. At least, not through Nov. 8, when she stopped checking.
But there were flights to Miami. I have a cousin in Florida I'd love to see. Called her. Debbie said it would be a fine time to visit. We'd have so much fun.... "We'll do whatever you want to do," she said.
The Amazing God Story I thought I'd be writing was how God knew I needed a vacation even more than I needed to be at the convention.
But it was not to be....
When my friend, who had the plane ticket, went to the airport to transfer it over to me--a trip he did not relish taking--the airline told him it was not a valid travel voucher. Despite us having called the airline at least 7 times, describing every inch of the paper and being told it was indeed a voucher and transferrable, US Air told Bill it was not valid.
Case closed.
No vacation for Diane.
Did something wonderful come up for me this week anyway? Not yet. I stayed home, got a lot done. Today I'm taking a retreat of sorts. I will try to get something done that I've been trying to find time for for months. (Something that will benefit my Abundant Gifts readers.)
But here's what God did, that I can recognize. The morning my friend called about the plane ticket, right before she called in fact, I talked to a neighbor. The neighbor was having a garage sale, and I stopped by on my walk.
We got to chatting, and she told me that in April, she lost her future son-in-law. He dropped dead of a heart attack one day. Her daughter, who is 49, was devastated. She'd finally found the love of her life, and was all set for a wonderful future. Jane and her fiance had bought a house. They were to be married this summer.
Within a week of that tragedy, my neighbor, Genevieve, also lost her 33-year-old mentally handicapped son, who lived with her. She lost a son and son-in-law, her daughter Jane lost a fiance and beloved brother. All within a week.
Genevieve told me that she and Jane have a strong faith in God, and that is what is getting them through. Her faith lingered with me. I returned later that afternoon and gave her a copy of Abundant Gifts.
Genevieve's story framed my own disppointment with a new perspective. What was my diappointment in a missed vacation compared to the crushing disappointment of losing one's love and a future that seemed a dream come true? Of losing the son one has cared for and lived with for more than 30 years?
In a strange way, God used their story to help me. Even though I felt very disappointed in not being able to take the vacation I thought I'd take, I felt an underlying peace and sense that God is in control.
He has provided miraculously for me in the past. This time he chose not to. I may never know why, or he may reveal it. Either way, I know he's with me.
Life is full of disappointment. But it tends to evaporate when the presence of God is trusted. copyright (c) 2006 Diane Eble. All rights reserved. Here are some past issues:
************************************************ Welcome to ABUNDANT GIFTS a newsletter to help you develop the habit of seeing every day gifts from a lavish God _______________________________________________________
Published by Diane Eble author ofABUNDANT GIFTS: A Daybook of Grace-Filled Devotions (New Hope Publishers, 2004)
March 24, 2006
In This Issue: * New story posted: “The Gift of Creative Vision” * Perspectives on ... Gifts * You can still hear Diane on Midday Connection * Pass it On * Gifts from my web site * Coming soon ... * Copyright/reprint information __________________________________________________________
NEW STORY POSTED: “THE GIFT OF CREATIVE VISION”
I had so many things to write about that I promised you … Something on miracles, an article on keeping a gifts Journal … but …
Something rather exciting, to me anyway, sort of side-tracked me.
You see, I’ve been working for more than two years on a book With Janet P. Penley, called MotherStyles: Using Personality Type to Discover Your Parenting Strengths and …
THE BOOK ARRIVED THE OTHER DAY!
So, I sat down with it, and reflected on what it all meant to me. And I wrote it all up and put it on my blog and on my web site.
If creativity interests you at all, if you’ve ever had the spark Of a dream you wanted to do something about … you might enjoy this reflection.
So go here to view the blog: http://WordsToProfit.com/Abundant-Gifts-blog/
or here: www.abundant-gifts.com/current_newsletter.html
If you go on the blog, please post any comments. Or just send me an email: diane@abundant-gifts.com .
__________________________________________________________
PERSPECTIVES ON … GIFTS
"I hate the giving of the hand unless the whole man accompanies it." --Ralph Waldo
Emerson opening our mind to the unexplained worlds occupied by the needs of others." --Barbara Bush
“The Lord loveth a cheerful giver. He also accepteth from a grouch." --Catherine Hall
"No one has ever become poor by giving." --Anne Frank
"For it is in giving that we receive." --Saint Francis of Assisi
"Think of giving not as a duty but as a privilege." --John D. Rockefeller Jr
"People are marvelous in their generosity, if they just know the cause is there." --Will Rogers
"No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave." --Calvin Coolidge
"There is a wonderful mythical law of nature that the three things we crave most in life -- happiness, freedom, and peace of mind -- are always attained by giving them to someone else." -- Peyton Conway March "You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them." --Desmond Tutu
__________________________________________________________ IF YOU MISSED DIANE ON MIDDAY CONNECTION ... On February 2, Diane was the featured radio guest on Midday Connection, talking about gratitude and her book,ABUNDANT GIFTS.
If you missed the show, want to hear it again, or if you would like to tell a friend where to listen, click here.
Several callers shared their testimonies of God's grace during some tough times. I think you'll be encouraged by listening. ___________________________________________________________
PASS IT ON!
If this newsletter has encouraged you, please feel free to pass it on to a friend who would also enjoy it.
To subscribe, send an email to subscribe@abundant-gifts.com
To unsusbcribe, simply click the link at the bottom of this message.
__________________________________________________________
DID YOU GET THE GIFTS FROM MY WEB SITE?
If you haven't sampled the five stories from the Abundant Gifts Digital Web Book, go to: http://www.abundant-gifts.com/DigitalWebBook.html
To download the Digital Personal Journal to keep track of your abundant gifts on your own computer, go to www.abundant-gifts.com. There are several places to sign up, in the popup box, the web page itself (look in the box con- taining the story, "When the Gift is the Giver"), or at the bottom of the page.
All God's abundance to you,
Diane Eble
Copyright (c) 2006 by Diane Eble. All rights reserved.
* Copyright Notice/Reprint Policy
All material in this ezine is protected by U.S. Federal Copyright law. It may not be reprinted in any form, or hosted on any Web site without explicit permission from Diane Eble.
ALL comments welcome and reprint permission available through e-mail request. No reasonable request denied. Contact Diane at diane@abundant-gifts.com.
(Posted March 23, 2006)
The Gift of Creative Vision
"Cherish your visions and your dreams as they are the children of your soul; the blue prints of your ultimate achievements." -- Napoleon Hill I’m holding in my hands a copy of a book. The title is MotherStyles: Using Personality Type to Discover Your Parenting Strengths. The authors are listed as “Janet P. Penley with Diane Eble.” It is my tenth book (eleventh, if you count the compilation called The Happy BirthdayBook , as amazon does). It is Janet’s first. As I page through this book, so familiar yet new now that I hold the designed, actual book in my hands, I think about vision. About the power of a dream, of even passing desires. Somehow, they all have power. Energy to create reality. I think about what a gift it is to create. We co-create our lives, in tandem with God. And as we create other things as well--a book, a meal, a dress, a wreath, a new marketing plan, a baby--we express our essential nature: "made in the image of God," the original Creator. We can create alone, but more often, we create with other people. In this case, MotherStyles was born of two women's vision, and one woman's major life work. Although Janet Penley began her work with mothers in 1988, the book MotherStyles was conceived, you might say, in 1993, when I heard Janet speak at a mothering group, then called F.E.M.A.L.E. (Formerly Employed Mothers At the Leading Edge), now called Mothers & More. Janet spoke about 16 different mothering styles, based on personality theory developed by Carl Jung and popularized by Katherine Briggs and Isabel Myers in the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI). I had just gotten certified for giving the MBTI myself, and was writing a book at the time that also talked about personality type. I stood in line to meet Janet after her talk was over. Told her how excellent her presentation was, how I’d just become certified to give the MBTI myself, how all this personality type stuff had been like a huge light bulb of self-understanding for me. I also bought her self-published M.O.M.S. Handbook. In the days that followed, I devoured Janet’s Handbook. I called her, asked if I could interview her for my book, A Life You Can Love. Thus began our friendship as she graciously offered her insights for my book. I told her she should consider writing a “regular book” about Mothers of Many Styles. The Handbook was fine, as far as it went, but I knew there was a great book here. Something nobody had done before, something millions of mothers needed. I knew how much personality type theory had helped me. I knew how to get published. I’d help her write the thing even, if she wanted. I just wanted to see her material “out there,” enlightening other mothers on a grander scale. Well, she wasn’t ready. We kept in touch, off and on. I sent her books I’d written as they came out. She was especially supportive of Abundant Gifts. Every so often, I’d ask if she had any more thoughts of writing the Mothers of Many Styles book. She always had very good reasons for “not yet.” Then, in November 2003, she called me and said, “I think I’m ready to write the book. Can we talk about it?” And so we met and dreamed over lobster bisque and salad about what this book might be, and what my role might be. We solidified an agreement a few months later, and spent the rest of 2004 trying to get a handle on the book. Did a lot of market research, a lot of talking. Too much talking, perhaps. It seemed like we were going around in circles, and sometimes frustration surfaced. Yet I’ve come to trust the creative process. Sometimes dreams take a while to gather enough energy to manifest into a tangible product. Even though it felt like we were going nowhere, what was really happening was, the vision was gathering both shape and momentum. This was a necessary step in the creative process, called “assimilation.” The book was incubating, growing unseen and hidden from our consciousness, within both of us. Finally, by December 2004, we both felt the impatience of The Next Creative Step. Incubation was over, it was time for action! Reality cooperated. We found an agent. We pulled together a proposal, outline, sample chapters. Within three months, the book had a publisher. (Interesting side note: Years ago, I registered a conscious desire to be published someday by Addison-Wesley. That publisher no longer exists … it was bought out by The Perseus Group, of which Da Capo Lifelong Books is a division ... and Da Capo “happens” to be the publisher of |