Posted on by Lori Cartmell

Which Body Part Are You?

Don’t you just love cookies shaped like little people, such as gingerbread men and women?

I always start munching on gingerbread people at the head. According to a survey conducted by the folks at Dunkin’ Donuts, I’m not alone. Almost two thirds of people surveyed start at the top when eating a gingerbread figure. A fifth of people begin with the legs, while the remainder go for the arms first. (To make some gingerbread people yourself, see below for a classic recipe.)

We seem to have a penchant for foods shaped like bodies, or at least named after various body parts.

There are chicken fingers, kidney beans, artichoke hearts, navel oranges, black-eyed peas, heads of lettuce, ladyfingers and elbow macaroni.

The Italians have given us pasta shapes like orecchiette (little ears), linguini (little tongues), and capellini (angel’s hair). In France, cotton candy is called, “Dad’s beard.”

Our bodies are precious to us and are wondrously made, so it’s no wonder we pay tribute to them by naming foods after our various body parts.

But did you know that if you’re a believer, you don’t just have your own body, you’re a part of another body, too?

Scripture tells us that those who follow Jesus are all parts of the body of Christ.

“Our bodies have many parts, but the many parts make up only one body when they are all put together. So it is with the ‘body’ of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 12:12)
“All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it.” (1 Corinthians 12:27)
Read more
Posted on by Lori Cartmell

You’re Not Insignificant to God!

When you look up at the stars in the night sky, what do you feel?

Many people say the vastness of the universe and the countless stars make them feel puny and insignificant.

In a way, that’s understandable.

The star that Earth orbits around is just one of many in the Milky Way, the galaxy in which we live. In fact, there are perhaps 100 billion stars in our cosmic “neighbourhood.”

And the Milky Way is just one of many galaxies. Estimates vary as to how many galaxies exist in the observable universe: some experts suggest a couple hundred billion, and others postulate as many as 10 trillion.

It’s impossible for us to know how many stars there are in the observable universe, but here’s the largest guess I came across: Multiplying the higher number of estimated galaxies by the Milky Way’s estimated 100 billion stars gives a possibility of 1 septillion stars in the universe (1 quadrillion in the European system). That’s a “1” with 24 zeroes after it!

The Milky Way is so enormous that, even travelling at light speed, it would take 100,000 years to travel across it. The observable universe is incredibly more vast: according to current thinking, it’s about 93 billion light years in diameter.

No wonder people feel small when they contemplate the unimaginable expanse of the universe!

But for me, this knowledge doesn’t make me feel insignificant.

It makes me feel just the opposite.

Read more
Posted on by Lori Cartmell

Forgive and Forget? Not!

Image by John Liu on Flickr CC BY-2.0

I know you’ll love these wise insights on forgiveness from my friend Veronica Gerber. We’re very fortunate to have her as our guest blogger today!

It’s popular to think of “forgive and forget” but, paradoxically, the bridge to forgiveness includes remembering, not forgetting!

Remembering what?

  • How much I’ve been forgiven and what it cost the Savior
  • Actions have consequences; learning from past mistakes
  • Vengeance belongs to the Lord

What dynamic is at work when you find it hard to forgive?

In my own experience, I’ve found it easiest to forgive when I remember how much I myself have been forgiven. When it’s hard to forgive, perhaps it’s because I’ve actually forgotten how much the Lord has forgiven me.

"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." (Ephesians 4:32, NIV)

That being said, actions do have repercussions. There is often a place for rebuke. Forgiving one another does not mean sweeping consequences aside! It’s not an easy or glib exercise.

"He who rebukes a man will in the end gain more favour than he who has a flattering tongue." (Proverbs 28:23, NIV)

True forgiveness includes a thorough assessment of the offence and yet chooses to extend the grace of forgiveness.

Read more