Lauren Sparks

The Sparks Notes

My Family? In the Dallas Morning News?

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dallas morning news

When a former yoga student of mine approached me with the idea of writing a human interest piece on my family for the Dallas Morning News, I didn’t know quite what to think.  First of all, I somehow missed that she was a journalist.  Second, my family seems pretty ordinary to me.

 

I thought about it and prayed about it.  I concluded that we should pursue any possible opportunity to bring glory to God.  So I agreed.

 

Harriet Blake, a special contributor for the Dallas Morning News interviewed me, my husband and daughter, friends and neighbors and other family members.  She crafted a thoughtful and kind story. And I hope it glorifies God – center of all our stories.

 

Read the article at this link.

 

I want to extend a big thank you to Harriet Blake for this opportunity and for you, dear reader, for supporting me in these endeavors.  All praise God.

 

And now, this week’s featured post from the link up.

 

Robyn Jones helped me start making my Christmas list and I’m checking her suggestions twice!  So many thoughtful gifts in her Christmas Gift Guide for the Proverbs 31 Woman.

 

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

Grace and Truth_Meet Hosts

We encourage you to follow our hosts on their blogs or social media.

MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LAUREN SPARKS
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
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TAMMY KENNINGTON – Restoring hope. Pursuing peace.
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By Prayer and Petition with Thanksgiving #1

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Commercially, the Thanksgiving holiday gets dwarfed between Halloween costumes and Christmas presents.  I get it.  Retailers can only sell so many pumpkins and cornucopia decorations.  But

I love it.  The emphasis on our blessings instead of our perceived deficiencies soothes me.  Time off with family without the stress of finding just the right gift.  Not to mention some of my favorite foods and football!

Click To Tweet

 

As my heart turns toward thanking God more and grumbling less, I decided to reflect that in our prayer time each week this month.  We start with the passage that inspired the title of this limited series.

 

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”  Philippians 4:6 NIV

 

The Believer’s Bible Commentary describes prayer as “both an act and an atmosphere”.  I love this.  Instead of bringing our list of requests once a day (although I do this), we can live a life of constant prayer.  And this, I believe, along with gratitude for who God is and all He does, helps to dispel our anxiety.

 

My prayer for a loved one:

 

 

Replace the pronouns with the appropriate ones for the person (or yourself) that you are praying for.

 

I would love it if you would fill the comments this month with things you for which you thank our Lord and Savior.  Let’s flood this space with gratitude.  And don’t forget to share this on your favorite social media platform using the icons below.  Invite others to join in the thanksgiving.  And if you don’t want to miss any of the party, subscribe using the form on the right hand side of this page.

 

Praying for you in this.

Lauren

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