Wolfe Stew

When you realize that December is near, do you hear jingle bells or alarm bells? For me, the alarm bells are blaring: I cannot believe 2024 is nearly over! As you prepare for the festive season, we encourage you to take some time for yourself. Connect with God, family, friends, co-workers, and strangers, but don't forget to think about who you are and what you need. What is on your heart for you for next year? What is your biggest hope for 2025? What steps can you take toward achieving what you hope for? How can you partner with God in it? Will you trust Him even if it doesn't happen? My biggest hope for 2025 is that each one of you grow deeper in your relationship with Christ. That's my hope for me, too: to know  Him more.  We also hope to help you wrap up 2024 with a bow of JOY through this selection of activities we've stewed on for you. Our December 2024 offerings: December 2024 Ideas for  Every  Day Calendar  (family friendly, educational)  December 20...

Potatoes are simple, satisfying, and familiar. Although not typically what we crave, they bolster any meal you include them in. What a lesson for us. What JOY we would bring if we made this our purpose: to support every interaction with simplicity, goodness, and humility. Celebrate with this  Potato Dish recipe. JOY for Today Offerings: Did You Know...  Five facts about potatoes. Wolfe Stew Connects  To potatoes, Jesus, and ourselves. Bible Verses and Quotes  Inspired by potatoes. Activity Suggestions : Experiments, art, games, recipes, discussion questions, and family challenge. UPCOMING HOLIDAYS:   Statue of Liberty Dedication Day (October 28th Annually) Halloween (October 31st Annually) All Souls Day (November 2nd Annually) Did You Know: Potatoes are a highly desired crop to grow? Potatoes produce more food using less land and less water than most other crops, making them profitable to produce. More than a billion people eat potatoes worldwide and most coun...

As November nears our thoughts turn to thankfulness. I hope this year your gratitude lists are overflowing, and if they are not, I hope you are able to find a blessing or two in every day. They are there, even though they are harder to find on some days than others. A few ideas we're pondering this November are forgiveness and salvation. Often, we don't think we need forgiveness or salvation but are looking for ways to extend forgiveness and salvation to others. What if this November we took time each day to seriously consider, and be thankful for, the forgiveness and salvation we have been given? A few practices we plan to put into action include: Letting others - learners included - help us and express genuine appreciation for it.  Giving others - learners too - the chance to forgive us by apologizing when we've wronged them. Sure, you can do it on your own, and maybe an apology isn't necessary. But perhaps you need to learn to let others save you from time to time. M...

To love and be loved - a surefire recipe for JOY. It takes time, commitment, and effort, but the outcome is beyond worth it! JOY for Today Offerings: Did You Know...  Facts about love in the Bible. Wolfe Stew Connects  To the difficulty with loving everyone, always. Bible Verses and Quotes  About loving others. Activity Suggestions : Love notes; Love languages; Book list; Would you rather...?; Family challenge. UPCOMING HOLIDAYS:   World Communion Sunday (10/6/2024 - October's First Sunday) Inner Beauty Day (October 7th Annually) Columbus Day (10/14/2024 - October's Second Monday) Did You Know: There are seven words for love used in the Bible? The four Hebrew words for love from the Old Testament are: ahava/aheb (similar to our meaning of love; used 209 times), hesed (we translate as lovingkindness but more deeply denotes a covenantal love; used 247 times), racham (compassion, love between parent and child, infinite love; used 47 times), dod (commonly used to mea...

O-o-o-o-o-October. The month that tries to scare us. But we're not scared. No. We face a classroom of littles daily who stare directly into our faces and firmly tell us, "No!", in response to a gentle request; who hit other kids right in the face because they were too close; and who start crying uncontrollably because suddenly they miss their mom. No, we're not scared. Yet, truth be told, sometimes we are. Maybe we can face these kids seemingly confident, but on the inside, we're full of doubt. Like, "Please let this technique work, because I don't know what I'm going to try next if it doesn't." Or, "Do they know how much I actually care about them?" How about, "When others watch me, are they judging my response, or do they get it?" And the persistent one, "Are my efforts really getting anywhere?" The thing is, each day, you are serving those littles. You are using every tool you've been given to help them al...

Rocks and humans have a shared history. Early humans found shelter in caves and recorded their histories on the walls. Today we use rocks in endless applications. Your rock collection may be conventional: a display in your home or the border for your garden. Or your rock collection may be unconventional: reapplied to your face daily or reflected in the smiles of the people you meet, but you do have one. And, after connecting with the ideas in this post, we're hoping that your rock collection will bring you even more JOY! Gemstones by byrev at Pixabay . JOY for Today Offerings: Did You Know...  Five facts about rocks. Wolfe Stew Connects  To God's rock collection. Bible Verses and Quotes  Inspired by rocks. Activity Suggestions : Start a rock collection, learn about rock formation, read books about rocks, share opinions about rocks, and go on a rock walk. UPCOMING HOLIDAYS:   International Day of Peace (September 21st Annually) Fall Equinox (September 22, 2024 - Cha...