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Considering His Ways

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  I will meditate on your precepts and focus on your behavior. I find delight in your statutes; I do not forget your instructions.   Psalm 119:15-16 NET  Today, I feel like I grasp a different version of these verses more. Here’s the NIV’s version, “I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.” Matthew Henry, in his commentary, opened my eyes to an understanding of this when he said, “…I will have respect unto thy ways, as the traveller has to his road, which he is in care not to miss and always aims and endeavours to hit.” Instantly this brought to mind a story my husband told me of his first backpacking trip nearly ten years ago. He had never been on a backpacking trip, had never really hiked much for that matter, and he had decided to do this alone. He had chosen a very challenging trail, one that led to the Enchanted Valley in the Olympic National Forest. After driving hours to get there, he checked in ...
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Finding Pain Relief Options

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I am an Amazon Associate and when you purchase something through the links in this post I will receive a small bonus. This does not change your price at all, it just helps support what I'm doing on the Salty Zebra Blog  For a long time my pain-relief options have been quite limited. For the most part I stick to over-the-counter options like Tylenol, Ibuprofen and Excedrin, but they have helped less and less over the years. Now I often feel like I'm taking them just so I've tried something . But over the last year, I've added an additional tool to my toolbox and I wanted to share it with you in case it could offer you some relief as well! The first time I heard about this was after my husband sustained a terrible broom hockey injury. He was playing with the kids' youth group and was so focused on moving the puck with his broom at high speeds that he didn't notice the wall directly in front of him. This caused the end of the broom to hit him right in the sternum. ...
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Decoding the Mysteries of Airfare

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  I don't know about you, but buying airfare stresses me out! I don't want the flight I'm looking at to fill up, but Google says the price is high and to wait until later, sometimes much  later. What if I buy the tickets today and next week they're half the price? What if a sale comes up and I could have flown premium, or even first class? And then there's the dilemma of whether to use points/miles to book. And should I book directly with the airline, or through one of their partners, or even an Online Travel Agency (OTA). Do I book through my credit card's travel portal and pay with cash to get the most points, or do I book with miles and save the cash for other things? The more I learn about travel, sometimes, the more complicated and difficult it gets to make decisions!  One of my biggest stressors in buying airfare was its seemingly non-refundable nature. Sure, you could buy a "refundable" ticket for twice the price of a saver ticket, but are you r...
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Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth

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  How can a young person maintain a pure life? By guarding it according to your instructions! With all my heart I seek you. Do not allow me to stray from your commands! In my heart I store up your words, so I might not sin against you.   Psalm 119:9-11  How do we Abide in Christ and live a godly life that bears His fruit? By living out what we learn in His Word. It seems like such a simple question with such a simple answer, and yet, none of it is simple! The advice the psalmist gives here is to a young person. While it is important, critical even, for young people to begin their life this way, establishing good patterns that become grooves of good habits in their mind, it’s just as important for old folks like me! In fact, if I remember correctly, I first encountered these verses as a young person and took them to heart, beginning to study and memorize God’s Word. Now it’s not as much of a struggle to make it a part of my day because that pattern, that expectation, is...
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The Truth Shall Set You Free

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Then Jesus said to those Judeans who had believed him, ‘If you continue to follow my teaching, you are really my disciples and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’  John 8:31-32  In the days that Jesus walked the earth, slavery was a known institution. People could see it clearly around them every day. You looked at someone and knew they were a slave. You never wanted to be a slave. There was an "us" and a "them." Many, if not most, people in the world today are either unaware or less aware of slavery, but it is no less prevalent. In fact, according to recent estimates, there are nearly 50 million people living in slavery in our world today! If you look at the top 10 countries in the world by population of slaves, you might be shocked to find the United States among them. Isn't slavery illegal here? Yes, but so is murder, and yet it still happens.   Most of us don't know any slaves personally, and yet we are still a part of the cycl...
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Six Ways to Save with Capital One Shopping

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  Shopping is more fun when you do it with someone. When I was a teenager, we used to go to the mall. Yes, in person, shocking I know! We'd hang out, get a pretzel in the food court, wander aimlessly through stores and never buy anything. And it was fun! These days I do 90+% of my shopping online, even for groceries. And you know what, my friends just haven't hit me up for a zoom call to shop together. I'm not sure why! Not gonna lie, I have considered livestreaming my Prime Day shopping, but I'm just not sure who would watch 🤪. So, I settle for talking about it on my blog here at Salty Zebra. Sometimes I talk about it at Bible study too and I get the biggest kick when my friend pulls out her journal to take notes!   One of the things I have enjoyed in the vacuum of shopping without friends is my AI friends filling in the gap. No, they don't share what's going on with their families or pray with me, but there is kibitzing! Yep, I had to look up the word " ...
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Lost in the Wilderness

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  If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you want and it will be done for you. My Father is honored by this, that you bear much fruit and show that you are my disciples.   John 15:7-8  Do you ever have thoughts, doubts, even fears that you’re afraid to voice, even to God? Are you ashamed of them or worried that they will make it seem like you don’t believe, or you don’t have faith? I do. And today I am not going to let them win. Today, I am going to step out into my doubt with faith. That seems a little confusing, doesn’t it? But let me paint a word picture for you.   I’m standing, in my mind, on the edge of a dark forest. Outside of the forest there is sunshine and warm breezes, but inside the forest the canopy of trees blocks the light out until you can hardly see at all. I’m standing on a clearly marked path that I’ve been following for some time, but at the edge of the forest the path seems to dissipate into overgrowth and brambles. I ca...
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