Apparently, our dog is adjusting to the new schedule also…poor thing had to get up and go outside every two hours, only to not be able to go. Fear not, everything was working on the regular schedule this morning. I need the coffee to kick in… Sometimes, I think these quotes do more to change my mood or attitude than that of their intended recipient. Number 4’s gets me right in the ticker. Guess we need to offer grace to our four-legged family members, too. By the way, this is what a post looks like when you write the first part early, find the quotes for the kids, then complete the 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting. Just because I don’t have a plan doesn’t mean there is no plan.
As a reminder, Lunch Box Quotes are notes I include in the kids’ lunches every day. Number 1 gets a text, but 2-4 get a handwritten napkin.
Visual credits to: Featured image – Peder Mørk Mønsted (1916), @Kierkegaarddd @Pergament_F @arealmofwonder
Quotes:
1. “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.” – Kiekegaard
2. “It’s not what we don’t know that gets us in trouble. It’s what we know for sure that just ain’t so.” – Mark Twain
3.“Books only have two smells. The smell of a new book, which is good, and the smell of an old book, which is even better.” – Ray Bradbury
4. “Never get tired of doing little things for others. Sometimes those little things occupy the biggest part of their hearts.” – St. Thérèse of Lisieux
21 Days of Prayer and Fasting – Day 3
Mark 4:30-32
Note: (These notes are a combination of the notes from my Bible, the study guide, and my thoughts. Mostly, though, they are the work of others, just rearranged.) Your faith, no matter how small (like the small acts of kindness), can have an impact that goes far beyond oneself, for a lot of life happens in the seemingly insignificant moments. The smallest of seeds, the mustard seed, ‘grows long branches’ to create a home and provides comfort. So it is with our simple obedience. One simple declaration of “I will” produces a harvest beyond our comprehension. There is a blessing that comes on the other side of obedience, or as in today’s quote, doing little things for others. What hangs in the balance of my doubt and my yes?
Fasting: Just as I suspected, eating only one meal per day is far easier than no social media/news after 6:00. I am not sure I like what that says about me.
Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for my wife and children, and thank you for the opportunities You give me to pour into them. Let me not look at the mundane as a chore but with a gracious heart that sees the opportunity for impact. Give me the boldness and confidence to continue planting seeds, and the grace and patience to watch them grow.
– Amen
Sources:
— Søren Kierkegaard Club (@Kierkegaarddd) December 30, 2025
“Books only have two smells. The smell of a new book, which is good, and the smell of an old book, which is even better.”
Ray BradburyGood night pic.twitter.com/e46R7r2K2l
— Sophia Proneikos (@Pergament_F) December 19, 2025
“Never get tired of doing little things for others. Sometimes those little things occupy the biggest part of their hearts.”
~ St. Thérèse of Lisieux🎨 Peder Mørk Mønsted (1916) pic.twitter.com/p1APBgr4Ey
— Cian McCarthy (@arealmofwonder) December 28, 2025