November is National Adoption Month

The holidays are getting closer and closer.  And it almost feels like fall here in the south.  Most people have a favorite season or time of year, but I like them all.  I like that (usually) we get all four seasons here: fall, winter, spring and summer.  We tend to be off from the calendar by a few days or sometimes weeks, but we typically get a taste of all.  Fall weather is approaching slower this year.  I can't believe it's the 20th day of October and it's shorts and t-shirt weather still!

As we approach November, we have lots of dates marking family/friends get-togethers on the calendar.  One of the things to be thankful for and to celebrate is National Adoption Month, which is November.  Many churches do an Orphan Sunday around the first of November.  What an awesome way to bring to people's attention how many children in the US are legal orphans and waiting for a forever family.  And to so many children across the globe waiting for families.  I pray that one day our home will be a safe place and a forever home for one of those children (or several...).

In thinking about adoption I am always thankful.  Thankful for my parents and that God put our family together; thankful for my twin sister, Margaret, and that we get to share an adoption story.  Thankful for life!  And of course thankful for my birth mother who could have chosen to terminate her pregnancy, killing Margaret and me in the process.  But she chose the path of life and I am forever thankful.  Sh even took extra steps to live somewhere that she would not be talked into having an abortion.  This is one of the many reasons that I will never support abortion or pro-choice ideas/politicians.

In celebrating National Adoption Month, there are many ways to support adoption.  Not all are called to adopt, but all can do something to show support.  I've posted links to some awesome blogs below that list how we can come alongside foster and adoptive families and show support.  Please take the time to read them.  How incredible it would be if all of us did just one of the ways to help foster/adoptive families in our church or community!

http://jasonjohnsonblog.com/blog/making-orphan-care-normal-church

http://jasonjohnsonblog.com/blog/ten-ways-your-church-can-get-involved-foster-care

https://cafo.org/orphansunday/resources/event-ideas/

Fit For the Holidays- it's not what you think...

I recently had the privilege to write an article for our church's monthly magazine.  They asked me to write on being fit for the holidays- ha!  First thought- you're asking me to write on this topic??  I do love my Zumba and my walks outside, but this girl usually pigs out during the holidays.  It started years ago; there is even a picture floating around somewhere of me licking a plate clean.  No joke.  The cherry on top is that it was my mom's fine china plate.  She was horrified!  That was a good meal...

Second thought- hey, this might be a good way to have some accountability in my eating habits.  I need that and I really am trying to get my eating under control.  So I wrote something.  (I'll post the article at the end of this post in case anybody wants to read it.)  I think I wrote and re-wrote this article about 3 times.  I was limited to 800-1000 words, and that was a challenge for a chronic babbler like me.  And I wasn't sure which direction I wanted to go with it.  There are lots of ways to be fit for the holidays: physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually.

I ended up writing a lot about Zumba because I just love it.  I found a way to exercise that doesn't feel like exercise.  It's fun and a great workout.  I write about it so much and encourage ladies to attend a class because I know how it has affected my life, and I want that for others.  It took several teenage girls to convince me to attend the first class.  One class was all it took- I was hooked, even though that was the most uncoordinated I have ever felt.

So ladies, if you are in the Huntsville, AL area and looking for a fun way to get a good workout in, come check out a Zumba class!  The Whitesburg Baptist Recreation Ministry offers 3 Zumba classes: Mondays 6-7 pm and Fridays 8:30-9:30 am and 1:30-2:30 pm.  I teach the Friday afternoon class and sometimes get to sub in the other classes.  Ditch the workout and join the party!

Here's the article for anyone interested:

Y’all I do not like to exercise.  Especially around the holidays, because who has time??   For several years my sweet husband, Brandon, tried to talk me into doing some type of exercise.  I believed him when he said that it would make me feel better, I just didn’t want to.  I had not found exercise that I wanted to do, or that was fun.  And then I found Zumba! 

Zumba is a Latin-inspired, aerobic type exercise class that burns lots of calories and is so fun!  It was a slow start for me, but I was moving and doing something.   After going for a few weeks, I was able to do the routines better and didn’t feel so clumsy.  It didn’t matter if I did it exactly right; the point was just moving, being active.  Brandon was right- I felt so much better just by being active.  Plus, laughing while exercising burns more calories!  An unexpected result of consistently attending class was that I became a part of a small group.  Our Zumba ladies love exercising together and even get together outside of class.  We just do life together.  Zumba classes are offered at our Recreation Outreach Center, with several different options to attend.  For more information, contact the awesome ladies in the Recreation Ministry!

Naturally, Zumba or other aerobic classes aren’t for everyone.   But being active is!  Brandon and I like to go on walks together.  Some of our favorite walks are around our neighborhood to look at the Christmas lights.  It’s even fun to bundle up in the cold weather.  And ladies, as a bonus you get to wear those cute scarves and hats you see on Pinterest!  If cold weather walks aren’t your thing, there are lots of places around Huntsville to walk inside.  You can even walk inside your house.  I remember my dad doing that when I was a little girl.  I used to follow him around that small house, walking from corner to corner.  Walking is fairly low impact for your joints also.  Going on walks is a great time for conversations.  Sometimes I have the best talks while walking!  If you prefer to walk alone, it can be a wonderful time for praying and worshipping the Lord.  

Whatever you choose to do, just get moving!  I believe that life is a gift from God. Being able to move and breathe and exercise is a gift that I ignored for far too long.  James 4:14 says, “… What is your life?  For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.”   I am so thankful for life and don’t want to waste a single day!

More important than being physically fit, however, is being spiritually fit.  If this part of my life is out of shape, then the rest is too.   Look at these instructions from the apostle Paul to the Colossians, “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another, and if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other, as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.  And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.  And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body.  And be thankful.  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.  And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”  Colossians 3:12-17

I don’t know about you, but these words are so helpful and encouraging, especially during the holidays when it can be stressful, chaotic, and overwhelming.   I might not be able to control the circumstances or situations around me, but I can choose how I react.   I can choose to put on the new self, this new identity that I have in Christ.  My prayer is that God will use us, in every situation, to advance His Kingdom and to bring Him glory.