Number 4 has cheerleading tryouts today. She has tried out before but did not make the team, so she is going to be nervous. There was a lot of practice last night in the living room, “Dad, watch this!” She can do it, wish her luck today!
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. And we are in 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting. I am intermittent fasting with 1 meal per day, no alcohol, and no social media/news after 6 p.m.
Visual credits to: Featured image – @fraveris Quotes: @arealmofwonder @ACC_National @gregcatarino1
Quotes:
1. “And into the forest I go
to lose my mind and find my soul.” – John Muir
2. “Hunting is the pursuit of responsibility.” – American Conservative Coalition
3. “A seeker is one who is neither for society nor against society, who simply lives his life according to his own understanding.” – Francisco Ribeiro or a close variant of Jiddu Krishnamurti
4. “To be a star, you must shine your own light, follow your path, and don’t worry about the darkness, for that is when the stars shine brightest.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
21 Days of Prayer and Fasting – Day 9
Luke 8:11-15
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.) Thornpatch people become overcome by worries and the lure of materialism, leaving no room in their lives for God. There is a real difference between listening and hearing. Hearing scripture is active; it takes hold, and the listener responds in obedience. Growth depends on the condition of our heart and the Spiritual Discipline to stay in the word…and once we obey, transformation. This is the patient work of discipleship. It cannot be rushed.
Fasting: Food good, phone bad. I am actually feeling really good, good enough to step on a scale…and now I don’t feel so good. Might need Lent to fix this one.
Prayer: Dear Lord, give me the spiritual discipline to stay in word, to slow down and hear, to obey and let it transform my life. Let not my zeal for you get choked out or overshadowed by the worries of the world or the pursuit of the materials that do not matter. In your name I pray,
-Amen
Sources:
“And into the forest I go
to lose my mind and find my soul.”
~ John MuirAlong Snowy Forest Path
🎨 Claude Monet (1870) pic.twitter.com/K23NdzLZBi— Cian McCarthy (@arealmofwonder) January 12, 2026
Hunting is the pursuit of responsibility. pic.twitter.com/8WGAmeyOf2
— American Conservation Coalition (@ACC_National) January 12, 2026
A seeker is one who is neither for society nor against society, who simply lives his life according to his own understanding. pic.twitter.com/xUG0pDvSzY
— Francisco Ribeiro (@fraveris) January 11, 2026
“To be a star, you must shine your own light, follow your path, and don’t worry about the darkness, for that is when the stars shine brightest.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
(art: Kaoru Yamada) pic.twitter.com/aGdwoSA8pg
— gregorio catarino (@gregcatarino1) January 11, 2026