33 thoughts on “Our Daily Thread 5-4-16”

  4. I thought I would share this today. I have been up since a little before 6 doing “Kim” things. Meditation, The Great Divorce, etc, then this was in my email inbox.

    The Search for Meaning in Life
    The early Greek philosophers taught that all human beings are “telic” creatures. “Telic” comes from the Greek word “telos”, which means purpose. They believed we are all purpose driven, meaning-seeking creatures.

    I think they are right. We all have to live for something. We all believe deep in our hearts, whether we are aware of it or not, that there is something out in the world that will make us complete and whole, and that will give our lives meaning.

    Emily Esfahani Smith recently wrote a wonderful article in “The Atlantic Magazine” explaining why meaning in life is more important than happiness.

    She focused her research on Victor Frankl and his best-selling book that has become a classic,Man’s Search for Meaning. Many consider it to be one of the most influential books ever published in the United States.

    Frankl was a prominent Jewish psychiatrist and neurologist who lived in Vienna. In 1942 he, his wife, and parents were arrested and transported to a Nazi concentration camp. Three years later, at the end of the war, Frankl was set free, though his wife and parents did not survive. In 1946, it took him nine days to write, Man’s search for Meaning. In writing about his experience in a Nazi death camp, Frankl concluded that the difference between those who had lived and those who died came down to one thing: “meaning.”

    Frankl recognized that seeking to find a meaningful life is at odds with a culture that is much more interested in the pursuit of happiness. He said “It is a characteristic of the American culture that, again and again, one is commanded and ordered to be happy.” What Frankl concluded is that happiness is a by-product of leading a meaningful life. That is why Frankl believed that the very pursuit of happiness is what thwarts people’s ability to find it.

    Furthermore, research has clearly demonstrated that living with a sense of purpose and meaning increases a person’s overall well-being, thus life satisfaction, mental health, and self-esteem. Most significantly, a meaningful life decreases the chances of suffering from depression.

    However, modern people are having a hard time finding meaning in their lives. They are coming up empty. They are finding life to be pleasurable but not meaningful.

    This seems to have been a problem throughout history, going all the way back to the early Greek philosophers. They believed in a concept called the “logos.”

    It is where we get the English word logic. In Greek, the word logos literally means “the word,” but it has a secondary meaning, ”the reason for life.” The Greeks believed when one finds his logos, his reason for life, he would be complete and whole. He would then be able to find meaning and purpose.

    The problem is that the Greeks could never agree on what comprised the logos. They could never construct a unified belief on the reason for life. Rather than being “the word,” logos became nothing more than “just another word.”

    This is why, Tim Keller says, that the apostle John, in his opening words in the gospel of John, drops a bombshell on the world:

    In the beginning was the Logos, and the Logos was with God, and the Logos was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. Life was in Him, and that life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, yet the darkness did not overcome it. (John 1:1-5, author paraphrase).

    God is revealing to us that in the beginning was the logos, the reason for life; and the reason for life was God, and the reason for life became a human being and dwelt among us. What John says is that the logos, the reason for life, was not and is not a philosophical principle, as the Greeks believed, but the logos is in fact a person, Jesus Christ.

    When we enter into a relationship with Him and truly get to know Him and serve Him, we become complete and whole. We find a higher purpose for which to live. It is in Jesus Christ, indeed, that we discover our reason for life.

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  6. I love Bleeding Heart flowers; I did not know they came in white.

    I’m still so far behind from returning from my vacation . . . I came home exhilarated from all the conversations but exhausted from everything else. I don’t see the schedule clearing before next week, sigh, so I may continue to drag . . .

    But the weather is beautiful here at home with rain expected! 🙂

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  8. Kim.
    Right ON!
    Years ago, I preached a sermon that started:

    Why are you?
    What are you for?
    Are you going somewhere?
    ……………………
    Only in Christ can we know we’re on the right track..
    We will never know the bridges we cross, now the speed we are going.
    But when we reach the station, we know we are home.

    That, of course, was not all of it, but the essence. of the sermon.

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  9. Today I looked at Dillard’s and David’s Bridal. I am thinking you should limit your search to these two stores. I have gone back and looked at the wedding dress. I think I am going to steer you away from lace. I would like you to have something classic and soft.
    At Dillard’s I found 3 dresses but what I liked was the “tiered skirt” look. It is very flattering on the women I have seen it on. I found
    1. Adrianna Papell 3/4 Sleeve Lace Jacket Dress. Item #045514016. I have two Adrianna Papell dresses and I find them to be generously cut.
    2. London Times Portrait Collar Shutter Dress. #04150606. I have to admit I am drawn to portrait collars, so I may be prejudiced towards this dress. It also has an interesting ‘shutter’ design.
    3. Jessica Howard Soutache Lace Sheath. #04572034

    I think the best thing is for the two of you to go shopping and find something you both like. I would tend towards the softer colors because it is summer. I even like something a little brighter like the melon colored top I recently wore that all of you saw. I just don’t like dark colors for a wedding. When did it become OK for people to wear black to a wedding and any other woman besides the bride wear white? I can’t like it.

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  10. Kare, how are you folks doing with fire conditions up your way this year? Sounds bad over in Alberta. I realize those provinces are large so you might have totally different conditions.

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  11. Argh, trying to get some mistakes fixed in my story online, hate it when I do stupid things like misspell someone’s name (repeatedly!). Grumble, grumble. 😦 😦 😦

    Happy Wednesday morning

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  12. Kim,

    Apparently mothers of the bride are now allowed to wear black. (No. Mother and bride are both agreed that isn’t the right color for a wedding.) The summer I married, nearly all wedding-themed stuff was black and white. And even if it hadn’t been black and white, nearly all the designs were ugly. Everything from invitations to bridesmaid dresses were readily available in black and white. Dresses were available in other colors, but one really had to look for invitations and the like to have silver, gold, or other colors.

    I like dress #2 but it’s really too short. It’s shorter than knee length on the model and likely to be shorter still on me, so that wouldn’t work for me. But it is lovely. Dress #3 actually looks a bit too close to off-white for a wedding. The bride’s dress is white, but that is actually about the color of many of today’s wedding dresses. ??? Or were you looking at the blue one?

    My understanding of colors has always been you can’t wear white (or pastels) in winter, but you can wear any color you want (including dark colors) in summer. Is that incorrect? I can see the summer = light colors to some extent, but that I would think people other than family would tend to wear dresses they already own, and that might or might not be light colors. I do own a pale pink linen jacket dress that I don’t wear often (I’ve worn it to interview, but there aren’t a lot of places in everyday life that it really works). How important is it to wear the wedding color? (Blue looks good on me because I have blue eyes, and it’s my husband’s favorite and the bride’s favorite, but until I married this man it’s a color I tended to avoid. Too boring. Too many people wear blue on any given day, even apart from blue jeans, so I tended to wear other colors.)

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  13. I was mostly pointing out the styles of the dresses. I had taken into consideration your comment that you wanted it to be knee length. I really am not a color specialist beyond believing that we all have colors that look better or worst on us. I LOVE yellow but it doesn’t even like me. Ultimately the decision is what you and the bride decide on, but I would lean to lighter rather than darker. It’s a celebration, not a funeral, and everyone cops out and buys the Little Black Dress that is boring. If your husband likes you in blue, there are many shades of it and I am sure one that will look terrific on you. I do like the look of the sheath dresses that have the matching coat. I had looked for one last year when I had to attend an ultra dressy event. I think the portrait collar is flattering on most people.

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  14. Oy, another murder in our community last night. Hoping the cop reporter can handle, but he’s in court all morning … And I already have a breaking news story about a petition drive for more dog beaches to finish. 🙂

    Priorities

    Hmmm, so what colors should I wear today 🙂 ?

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  15. Michelle,

    I didn’t know there were white bleeding hearts either. I was shocked at having discovered them, so I had to get some pics. 🙂

    I thought that my mother would love them, since bleeding hearts were her favorite. I wish I’d discovered them sooner. 😦

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  16. Seriously Donna?

    It’s May the Fourth. So do like I’m doing, and just go with a nice Darth Vader/Kylo Ren black. Head to toe, including the shoes and hat. You can’t go wrong with basic black. 🙂

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  17. Kim, I can wear most colors. No orange. I get the most compliments on pinks, blues, and reds. I’m “one of the few people who can wear white,” according to the lady who did my colors (informally) 30 years ago. Obviously no white to a wedding, but I tend to go with pastels or brights, few earth tones. I love peach and own little in it. (Just one jacket/blouse, I think.)

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  19. A light aqua is a pretty color that looks summery, but I do not know if you could find anything in that color. I really like peach, too, being from Georgia ♡

    I have been at the WMU meeting this morning. We are all still suffering from our leader’s death. 😦

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  20. It’s very noisy here since men and machines are at work on the yard next door. When they leave I may get started on our yard since it is cool today. Someone else a few doors down is getting a new roof so there’s hammering which I can’t hear for the noise of the blowers next door.

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  22. So, I said a while back that there was a lot going on which I found hard to talk about. There is still a lot going on. As most of you know, I’m a practical nurse, which means I have a two year diploma, rather than a four year degree. That has been a bit of a handicap especially when looking to the mission field. So, this February, on something of an impulse, I applied to a bridging program which would give me a nursing degree. I applied late, and as the school said at their open house, they always have more applicants than positions, so it wasn’t likely that I would get in. Well, I just got a phone saying that I was accepted to the program. It will be three years, and there are still a lot of details to work through; but I see a tiny sliver of light at the end of the tunnel now.

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  24. I obviously have missed out on a golden opportunity. I ran into an old family friend when I went into town a bit ago. She cleans out people’s closets for them. Are you ready for this??????? She charges $1,000 a DAY!!!!!! Then she hauls off their discarded clothing and sells it through a consignment shop in another state. Her husband build a huge closet for her to store clothes in until they were in the season to sell when she ships them to the consignment shop. She said THAT is where she makes her real money!

    Now, why didn’t I think of that?

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  27. Now I know my worth when I clean out closets! And I actually enjoy it.

    Now our lawn is nicely mowed to match neighbor’s yards on both sides. Again, the weather was nice and cool for mowing. God knows how much I hate to pour sweat in the heat.

    Just wondering if any of the ladies here are members of a group at church like WMU which has missions programs and does missions projects? Our group has to restart since we lost our leader. I am hopeful to get some fresh ideas as possibilities for our group.

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  28. I am proud to report that I have successfully used a spiral issue on my 30 year old Kitchenaid to peel, core and slice apples. No one was injured, I followed the directions successfully and all appliances are still functioning.

    Maybe it was being able to watch a video that helped?

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  30. Mumsee, thanks for asking. It is very hot and dry here – setting temperature records everywhere – today got up to 33C (91F) today. Everybody is under a fire ban, but Prince Albert National Park is actually doing a prescribed burn (well prepared, monitored, fire guards set in place prior to lighting it). I drove alongside the burn yesterday and today to get to work – fascinating to watch and hear. Thankfully there are no out of control fires in Saskatchewan yet. Fort MacMurray is on fire – terrible picture of the entire city being evacuated – only 2 roads out; one to the north and one to the south. A very scary, dangerous situation. All it takes is one spark…

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  32. Re: Wedding attire. Back when black was still a no-no to wear to a wedding, my SIL knew a mother of the groom who wore black to the wedding in protest. She did not approve of the bride.

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  33. Stay safe Kare.

    I had a hard day, just chaotic and “stuff” to deal with. But it’s over.

    Tomorrow I start early, tagging along with a group of social workers in the local homeless encampment.

    No cocktail dress for that assuagement. 🙂

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