Tag: work

The Land of Plenty

Jennifred Jones

Then why don’t I have anything? or at least what I want/need/desire?

To me, a land of plenty means I can think about what I want, I can envision how to make it happen, and I have access to the materials I need to do it.

We have all these things. We have a mind. We have an imagination. We have something in our power to use. We have people around to help us and who need what we have to offer.

When you think about it, everything made on this earth began with the raw materials close to us.

That’s how last names evolved…Blacksmith, Wellman, Carpenter, Carver, Stonebraker, Shoemaker, Hunter, Potter, Goldsmith, Letterman…pick a trade!

Now days it could be…Blogger, EtsySeller, Writer, Photographer, Coach, Instagrammer, Utuber, Podcaster, Webman….trade your old trade-name for a new trade-name!

It doesn’t matter what your old last name was, take on the new name that is a better fit for today’s times and get busy!

We’ve got different kinds of trees to chop down and use in 2020, but they’re here for us.

They will build our homes. They will fuel our fires. They will cook our food. They will become chairs to sit on. They will introduce us to a whole world of new friends, and we will find our land of plenty where there is no lack!

It begins with the idea. It takes desire and courage to work it through to make it work.

Be determined. Get up. Keep moving. Fall down. Get up. Stay determined. Get moving. Look ahead. Keep your eye on your land of plenty!

How will I begin today? What tools do I already have? Do they need sharpening? Who can help me? What do I really want?

I will start small. I will commend myself for progress. God will open doors as I move forward. He will multiply my efforts.

A Piece of Pie for You

Jennifred Jones

Several years ago our adult Sunday School class was having a discussion.

Two men were talking about new opening positions at work, hoping to be promoted. There was some consternation about another beating them to it first …and they really needed the increase in pay to provide for their families.

They were afraid if they didn’t get chosen, there would be nothing left for them…no hope.

It occurred to me…they were likening it to a pie with only so many pieces. Once it was all divvied up, there wouldn’t be anything left for them.

But God is the master pie maker here. When one pie gets eaten He will make another one. Who knows, maybe the first pie finished off was pumpkin and you’d ‘a rather had cherry, and that’s what the next pie up ‘just happened’ to be…

God will not run out of what you need.

God will have a piece of pie for you.

It will be a flavor you like!

Start planning your pie.

Desperate for Flavor!

Jennifred Jones

A brilliant January sunshine was streaming in my office door this morning as I ran the carpet sweeper over the doormat to catch the shiny salt crystals that tracked in after our morning snowfall.

Flavor! Our lives want and were created for flavor.

Growing up, my brother and I would snatch a crystal of salt when Dad would refill the water softener tank and lick on it until we had had enough! We also begged mom every so often to let us lick on a bouillon cube. We’d carefully peel back the foil wrapper and take a few licks and wrap it back up for later…savoring the flavor. Yes, it was intense! (Probably people wouldn’t be allowed to do that today, but we’re still alive and well.)

Sometimes we just want to be able to taste something!

There’s a lot of bland and superficial in our lives…not just in food, but in our homes, our relationships and our work.

It’s no fun taking all the flavor out of something because we’re afraid someone else might not like it…we’re not trying to make something for everyone…we are sharing a bit of who we are.  Make something you really enjoy, be someone you really want to be, create a work environment you really would like to work in and find out who all might be attracted to it. And if they aren’t, then they’re not the right ones and you don’t need their approval anyway.

I believe our lives are crying out for more flavor, more interest, more zest and zeal. And we are the ones who have to do something about it.

Try a new recipe, a new meat, a new fruit or vegetable…actually experiment with some new spices in a big, bold way. Change up your wardrobe, rearrange your house, get a new plant, take your family to the art museum, brighten up your work space to say, “Hello work, I’m here for a good day!”

Beat back the winter doldrums with some flavor in your life!

It works just like yeast in bread…add a little bit and it will grow and your whole life can be changed.

What new flavors do you want to incorporate into your life today?

(…all this came about from a rock of salt on the carpet…)