Shirlee Abbott

Good Words (Tuesday)

Posted on November 26, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

Ephesians 1:3 (ESV)
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.

The words “blessed” and “blessing” here come from the Greek eu–good, well done, rightly–and logos–word, divine utterance, speaking to a conclusion. Here’s the same verse, my loose translation from the Greek:

Speak a good word to God our Father, who has spoken good words to us through Christ and granted us every good word in the Holy Spirit and the spiritual realms.

Your Tuesday challenge: Speak a good word to God; thank God for the good words granted you in the heavenly realms.

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Good Words (Monday)

Posted on November 25, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

What good words have fallen from your lips lately?

I told my spouse, “I love you.”
I congratulated a young mother on her well-behaved children.
I bought a sandwich for a homeless guy, wished him well.
Hey, it’s Monday. I’m not at my best and brightest.

Proverbs 18:20 (CEV)
Make your words good—
you will be glad you did.

Your Monday challenge: make your words so good that others are glad.

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Wisdom Calls (Friday)

Posted on November 22, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

“Patience is the companion of wisdom.”
Augustine (354-430)

Some Friday fun:

If Lady Wisdom looks like Katharine Hepburn, who plays Patience?

I think Patience is a bit of a wall-flower, someone who doesn’t attract a lot of attention. Nice enough, yes, but nobody’s doormat. Popular, not necessarily, but a pillar of the community.

My nominees: Alice Kramden , The Honeymooners; Melanie, Gone with the Wind; Aibileen, The Help.

Your vote?

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Wisdom Calls (Thursday)

Posted on November 21, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

Proverbs 9:11-12 (TLB)
“I, Wisdom, will make the hours of your day more profitable and the years of your life more fruitful.”

Wisdom is its own reward.

Profitable days and a fruitful life–one would think I’d be zealously chasing after Lady Wisdom, hanging on her every word. Here I am, watching TV and clicking through the internet. How rewarding:(

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Wisdom Calls (Wednesday)

Posted on November 20, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

I don’t always appreciate Lady Wisdom’s advice. For example:

Me: Look, blue shoes! I wonder if they’re comfortable.

Lady Wisdom: Blue shoes, really?

Me: I wear lots of blue. I could put them to good use.

Lady Wisdom: Good use? Lined up next to your black shoes, your beige shoes and three pairs of brown shoes? And that’s just your winter shoes. Do I need to bring up your summer sandals and winter boots, too?

Me: I wear them all!

Lady Wisdom: Right. Blue shoes, just what you don’t need.

I can argue with Lady Wisdom, but I can’t win. Darn!

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Wisdom Calls (Tuesday)

Posted on November 19, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

Proverbs 1:20-21 (MSG)
Lady Wisdom goes out in the street and shouts . . .
In the middle of the traffic she takes her stand.

I visualize a Katharine Hepburn-like Wisdom, white dress and picture hat fluttering in the breeze, calling to me as I drive to work.

As I pass the lumberyard:
Psalm 127:1 (ESV)
Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.

By the child welfare office:
Malachi 4:6
. . . turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers.

At the courthouse:
Amos 5:24
Let justice roll down like waters,
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

What’s Wisdom saying to you?

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Wisdom Calls (Monday)

Posted on November 18, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

Proverbs 1:20 (ESV)
Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice.

It isn’t Wisdom I notice calling to me in the marketplace. What calls to you in the marketplace?

Shoes–can’t have too many shoes
Decadent desserts in the bakery case
Potato chips, crave the salt
Four wheels, powerful engine and a sleek chassis, speed!

The other voices in the marketplace tend to drown out Wisdom’s voice. Truth be told, sometimes I deliberately ignore her. How about you? What voice do you really want to hear?

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War and Peace (Friday)

Posted on November 15, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

2 Corinthians 13:11 (VOICE)
Finally, brothers and sisters, keep rejoicing and repair whatever is broken. Encourage each other, think as one, and live at peace; and God, the Author of love and peace, will remain with you.

I especially like the reminder to repair what’s broken. I’ve known people who wear the life out of their houses. They never repair what’s broken. My husband and I are fixer-uppers. We try to leave each house we occupy in better shape than we found it.

Keep your church, your community, your job and your relationships in good repair. Strive to leave them in better shape than you found them. Live at peace.

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War and Peace (Thursday)

Posted on November 14, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

I have some interesting conversations with myself. I can have a “war and peace” discussion about something as simple as a candy bar.

Me: Mmmmm, chocolate!

I don’t need the calories.

It would be calories well-spent.

It would be more weight on my feet, gunk in my vessels, a useless sugar high.

And sweet on the tongue.

God: A chocolate war? It’s armistice time.

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War and Peace (Wednesday)

Posted on November 13, 2013 by Shirlee Abbott

“Christ . . . left a will in which He gave
His soul to His Father,
His body to Joseph of Arimathea,
His clothes to the soldiers,
and His mother to John.
But to His disciples, who had left all to follow Him,
He left not silver or gold, but something far better –
His PEACE!”
Matthew Henry (1662-1714)

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