Dear Reader:

Before we talk about one fascinating origin behind a daily response (that we take for granted) in today’s post..first let me thank you for your unforgettable responses to yesterday’s blog post. The idea of taking time out daily to talk to God hit home for many people.

Some of you said you can’t get through a day any more without your ‘personal time’  or ‘alone time’, ‘quiet time’ or ‘God and me’ time… private ‘time-outs’ seem to be needed even more these days than in the past.

Everyone could relate to mother’s plight… trying desperately to find time to reconnect with herself, her difficult tasks she faced each day, and her dependence on God to see her through it. Her faith at times might have wavered but God’s faith in mother never did…and it made her stronger, over time, in her personal relationship with her Creator.

Anne told me about a daily devotional she is now using for the new year (her neighbor Shirley told her about) and sent a couple of devotions for me to read.

Like Anne…the second one left me awe-struck at the simplicity yet complexity behind a response we use daily.. a mind-blowing concept that will stick with me from this time on…in fact every time I say it.

How many times a day do we respond to one particular question…in person, on the phone, text or email that asks how we are doing or how we are feeling? Right out of the box…we immediately say something along the line of “I’m (I am) feeling pretty good today, or feeling happy or ‘I am’ reading a great book, etc. We respond with “I am”…yet I have never made a connection to God while talking about me…until now.

First let me share an excerpt from this devotional to give you some background on these two words and how they connect us to something or Someone for a specific reason.

This excerpt reminded me of customs from several Native-American tribes who taught their young if a stranger asked their name they must not respond with their existing name at the time because it was sacred and never to be shared with a stranger…instead they were to give this generic yet personal response….translated: “I am the story of myself.” 

I always thought that custom was so full of wisdom…now… even more wisdom than I first glimpsed…our names are sacred because we speak God’s name first before we speak ours. We tell God’s story first because it came first!

So until tomorrow….

Thank you for reminding us Father that Your Name be praised foremost in our spiritual connection with you ….now and forever.

Brooke found this adorable Winnie the Pooh “update” …don’t you love it? What a great day for friends sharing anecdotes, stories, devotionals and Winnie-the Pooh tidbits of truth…I AM so happy!

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

***I went over to Susan’s yesterday and her granddaughter, Ady, was there with her….along with…Ady’s new dog…an adorable Australian Shepherd puppy! Ady has named her Millie. She is the sweetest puppy…content to just sit under the kitchen table while Ady was working on school assignments.