Comments on: A Fast Of Sorts – It’s Gotten Noisy!

By: A Circle Small Enough… | Messy Canvas

A Circle Small Enough… | Messy Canvas — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 13:58:26 +0000

[...] back to “testing out” minimal use of Twitter and Facebook. I did this back in January, and am feeling the urge to do it again. It’s a delicate balance so many of us are trying to [...]

By: Smorgasbord « My Blog

Smorgasbord « My Blog — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 02:20:29 +0000

[...] Ha! How lame? I told you. Just keeping it real. Don’t judge me! This amazing woman wrote a great post that perfectly explains how I feel, but much more [...]

By: Karen

Karen — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 05:26:31 +0000

Mandy, it totally makes sense and that is what I mean about local service. Not trying to send clothes to Africa, etc but just help your neighbors and your own community as it arises. (and you might need a break from all of it for a while) If someone down the street had a surgery, bring a casserole! Or if a Target is being built that will put the entire downtown where you and your kids enjoy walking out of business, then attend a meeting to say your opinion! Don’t stay quiet, it’s a great example for the kids to see natural acts of helping and not just helping people thrive but helping your place thrive. Of course, don’t make it a full time job–you are a mother after all!

By: Abbi

Abbi — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 16:16:13 +0000

This is amazing. Thanks, again, for sharing your heart with us!

By: mandy

mandy — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 15:45:14 +0000

Nicole – I’m always learning from you as well.

Karen – I’m really having to pull back from thinking about service right now, at least trying to drum up ways to serve. I just have too much guilt and comparison and pressure that I’m battling and so a lot of my service wouldn’t be from the right motives. Instead I’m asking God, “Please reveal to me ways I can love on others right in the context of my day as it plays out naturally.” Does that make sense?

By: Karen

Karen — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 07:52:55 +0000

What a great idea! I know you will still want to do service, so why not keep it confined to your town, even your neighborhood–go local. What will make your place better, and therefore your life and all those people and animals and plants, etc actually physically tied in with you?

By: Nicole Knox

Nicole Knox — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 03:21:37 +0000

You are always teaching me something. Thank you for this post.

By: Mandy

Mandy — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 21:03:51 +0000

I’m glad to hear it’s a rewarding thing to give up Anya, because I’m not going to lie, it’s hard. Hard to give up being “in the know” even when we want to. And hard to give up that addiction of comparison. I told Tony the other night, what do I do with my time now that I don’t know what other people are doing? How am I supposed to know who to keep up with or who needs me. Sad, sin’t it?

Cori – Here are two of my favorite verses right now in regards to comparing myself with others. “Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don’t be impressed with yourself. Don’t compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life.” Galatians 6:4-5. You didn’t choose “childlike” because that’s not the word God knew you needed right now. This does not mean you can’t learn from the word “childlike,” it just means what you learn will relate back to you personally, will relate back to “balance,” will relate back to your life and where God has you. I pray we both will be able to discover our own “coolness” firmly planted in us by our Creator. I can’t tell you how many times in my life I have felt uncool. Too many to count. Pretty much my whole semester at Focus was that way. I’m not settling anymore for uncool. Who defines coolness anyway? Give me a break. We are as cool as our Creator says we are…infinitely cool. I’m fighting to believe it.

By: Cori

Cori — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 20:21:10 +0000

As usual, good stuff, Mandy! I read your childlike post and instantly thought how it was such a cooler word than mine. (As if coolness is a factor in choosing a word.) Anyway, this post makes me think of my reasons for choosing balance as a word. I completely relate to thinking that there is so much that needs to be done in the world and so many hurts and so much I “should” be doing. I’m excited to hear how God uses this time for you and how it relates to my own journey for the year.

By: Anya

Anya — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 14:49:00 +0000

I did something similar over the holidays. I decided to remove the distractions of social media while my kids were home from school, my husband was off from work, and we had time to just be a family in our own little world. The blizzard even helped because it forced us to stay in and just have fun together. The silence was so relieving, I’m not sure how I feel about it ending. Enjoy the peace and quiet!