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| Holy Week...The Week Leading to Easter | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on3/16/2008 8:09 PM | |
| | Holy Week began today, Palm Sunday. During this week, Christians will remember the last days of Jesus' life. We remember how he entered Jerusalem on a donkey when people picked up palm branches and sang songs of praise to him. But then... the story gets sad! Many parents shy away from sharing the sad parts of this story with their children...but I think this is a mistake! |  | |
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| A Gift for Your Child: A Prayer Journal | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on3/3/2008 4:07 AM | |
| | I am now, in addition to being President and Founder of First Steps, the Associate Minister of Children and Families at First United Methodist Church, Colorado Springs. In our children's area we have a little chapel for children. Each week, I am adding a new prayer tool for the kids to use... | | |
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| The Academy Awards | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on2/25/2008 1:34 AM | |
| | I confess...I am sitting here watching the Academy Awards while I write this blog entry and besides hoping all my favorite stars will look beautiful, I am thinking of our children... | | |
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| So Much Sadness...How Do We Help Our Children Cope? | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on2/13/2008 3:04 AM | |
| | My friends and I were talking about how many people we know who are suffering with illnesses right now...with cancer, with muscular dystrophy, with diabetes, and heart issues. We were trying to decide if we were just older, so we know more poeple getting sick, or if there is more illness in the world these days. Whatever the cause, as we care for those around us who are sick and as we discuss their illnesses, let us not forget that our children are overhearing our concern. This can be a time of great concern for them, or it can be a time of great spiritual growth. The way we handle the situation will make a huge difference in the way our children process and understand the sadness around them. | | |
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| Ash Wednesday: The First day of Lent | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on2/6/2008 5:02 AM | |
| | The season of Lent is a time set apart by Christians to prepare our hearts and souls for the celebration of Easter. The season begins on Ash Wednesday (February 6th this year) and lasts 40 days until Easter Sunday. It is a custom and tradition to give something up during Lent and is often misunderstood as a time to make ourselves suffer. What it actually means is... | | |
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| It Is Raining Stars | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on1/28/2008 5:30 PM | |
| | Last Friday I was walking outside at night with one of my best friends kids. He is a preschool aged child and was chattering away like kids his age do. All at once he stooped, looked at the sky and exclaimed, "Look! It is raining stars!!" We stood still, looking at the stars, shining brightly through the night sky.
I stood there and prayed... | | |
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| Knowing What We Deserve | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on1/21/2008 8:51 PM | |
| | I just spent the weekend with my grandson. He is eight months old and bless his heart, he was in a strange home (his first visit to my house), a strange bed and while he would go to bed fine, when he woke up, he would have this pitiful terrifed look on his face. He would sit up in his little bed and scream, "Moma" which is the only word he can say. And he reminded me of a very important spiritual lesson... | | |
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| Sharing Our Stories: Important for Our Children | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on1/16/2008 3:24 AM | |
| One of my favorite times as a child was sitting at my grandparents table hearing my Pa telling stories about his childhood. I loved those stories! My favorite story was about a time when he was in 6th grade and his math teacher could not figure out how to solve a math problem. My Pa went to the blackboard, solved the problem and walked out. He never went to school another day in his life and yet he was the County Court Clerk of Laurel County, KY and Vice-president of the First National Bank in London, KY.
He would tell me that story and then say, "Remember Leanne, other people can teach you things, but never forget to educate yourself!" That story is probably the reason I read constantly, always search to learn and grow and led to my getting my Doctorate. Education was precious to me and is precious to me because of that story.
We all have stories to tell. Stories that will shape and mold the beliefs, morals and values of our children and gran ... | | |
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| Epiphany: A Time to Remember Your Star | | Leanne's Blog
| By Leanne on1/7/2008 4:03 AM | |
| | Today is Epiphany in the Christian tradition. It is the day when the scripture about the wise men visiting the baby Jesus is read. It is a day when we recall the story of these wise people from the east who followed a star to see Jesus. They left their homes, they left their families and they traveled, most scholars believe, for three years, one way to see the baby. They saw a star and followed it... | | |
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