Coffee CubBuster

Once upon a time, people only left home for war or in search of a "better life" (i.e. fortune, fame, or freedom). Today, most people in North America have the choice to leave their childhood nest simply to experience and explore the world. Our family loves experiencing and exploring, which is why we've taken so many trips even with little ones. However, there's a reason so many songs and movies profit from the line "home for the holidays." Things change when you leave the nest, and don't always reset when you return. Although it's not so much "things" that change, but people. Young family units begin with fresh coffee beans (permit me the caffeinated comparison). They are plucked straight from the coffee cherry shrub and ready to cultivate. The family plants itself together and decides what drinks fit best with their personal style. They can change how things are roasted from their past, or keep classic creations brewing. Either way, when ...

I recently finished a book called, Competing Spectacles , that refocused my vision. Doesn't every individual and corporation do the same thing from time to time? We hire marketing, design, or investment firms, to help us revamp, refresh, or rebrand in order to avoid a total shut down? Partial shut-downs help us find where the paint is chipping or the chips are getting stale. Whether its a revival or corporate fast, the goal is to remain running, and we need to regain focus and momentum to do that.  If not, a slow fade like the end of a broadway spectacle begins to dim our lights; our initial zeal for a cause, a calling, or a company cannot withstand the test of time. It's simply natural to become disenchanted as time progresses. In the same way that time can heal, time can also hurt us when it comes to our self-awareness and resolve. What better way to distract our focus than to have screen handy 24/7. The author of Competing Spectacles , Tony Reinke, states that "we are...

We had more sweet people say they were praying for Roman's endoscopy/colonoscopy than I would have imagined. As a standard procedure that wasn't even in a hospital, I wouldn't have predicted such protection partners. Yet, the prep work the day before proved harder and less hopeful than prayer should inspired. It wasn't just watching Roman become more and more lethargic as he refused to follow instructions and risked dehydration. It wasn't the frustration I felt as the doctor told us to discontinue the process and possibly forgo the following day's procedure. No, it was more than that. We felt it from every angle with every relationship under our roof at odds and ends. So what happens when prayers feel empty? When you hear of prayers, but you feel none? Does this mean prayer is pointless, or people are passive? Neither. Our true root-test comes in the wandering. When the Israelites had seen miracle after miraculous preservation only to find themselves wandering ...

“Keep your eyes open to your mercies. The man who forgets to be thankful has fallen asleep in life.” ~Robert Louis Stevenson I'm so thankful that even when kids are sick, they still want to have fun and hold to traditions. Our thoughts on this Friday's prep procedure instructions. Thankful for humor! Thankful we have enough provisions to keep this guy going! He never wants to put food down. He's always ready to eat! Thankful that we can all still ride together when we are under the weather. Thankful for pumpkin turkeys! Thankful for big turkeys... And little ones too! Thankful for mommy's cooking helpers, and reinforced knees! Thankful this boy wants to cook and eat knowing he once ate through a tube! Thankful they love to watch Thankful we can get four kids to say "cheese!" Thankful laughter is our best medicine! Thankful for rocks in water! Thankful Silas is always excited about what we ar...