Memory Monday: "You Are a Toy!" (Psalm 139:15-16)

We watched "Toy Story 2" last night. The funny thing is the girls had to go to bed in the middle of it, but my husband and I kept watching it. There's just something about that movie that keeps even the adults engaged. From Tour Guide Barbie to the evil emperor Zorg, the characters are engaging, the pop culture references funny and the underlying message applies to everyone, no matter what their age.

The main plot of Toy Story 2 revolves around Woody discovering that he is a valuable collector's item. He becomes convinced that living in a museum would be a better life than being loved by Andy, then being discarded when Andy grows up. It takes his friends to remind him that being loved is worth more than any fame and fortune.

We're all kind of like Woody. Too often, we see someone else's life or some lifestyle that's just beyond our reach, and we yearn for it. We're willing to forget our primary purpose to run after that thing that has suddenly become important. It's that "the grass is always greener on the other side" syndrome.

Yet, God has made each of us to fulfill a purpose in His plan. When we let things distract us and pull us away from that purpose, we step outside of the plan God has for us.

Woody forgot that his primary purpose was to make a child happy. He got caught up in dreams of fame and lasting forever. Buzz Lightyear tries to make Woody see the light in my favorite line of the movie, "You. Are. A. Toy!" -- the same words Woody said to Buzz in the first movie.

It's easy to get caught up in the trappings of what the world has to offer and miss filling our role in God's plan. Sometimes it's hard to see how our role even matters. We feel insignificant and unloved.

When it comes to our kids, who are just now becoming who God made them to be, it can be even more difficult. In those awkward moments of becoming, it's hard for them to even know who they want to be, much less be confident in who God made them to be.

In those moments, we need to keep the words of Psalm 139:15-16 close to our hearts. "My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."

God knows you, and he knows what he designed you to do. His statement to you would be "You. Are. Mine." No matter the temptation to chase after things that we think will make us happy, like Woody, the thing that will truly make us happy is doing the things we were designed to do.

Memory Monday: Finding Your Compass (1 Peter 4:11)

We're on vacation this week, so I'm re-running some of my favorite posts from the last year. Enjoy some of my favorite ideas, and I'll be back with you on Monday.



I spent a wonderful hour with my oldest daughter last night. Her sister and her dad had gone to hockey practice, so it was just the two of us. She decided she wanted to work on a jigsaw puzzle. As we sat on the floor sorting the pieces, we started talking about whatever was on her mind. The conversation turned to how some of the girls in her class have changed since the end of the last school year. We had a neat conversation about how hard it is for some of the kids to be confident in who they are.


I don't think it's just fourth graders that struggle with being confident in who God made them to be. I know adults struggle with it, too. The root of all that struggle is that we don't know our purpose. Our purpose serves as a compass -- it points us in the direction we want to go. If you're unsure of your purpose, you end like a fourth-grade girl struggling to find her way. You might try all sorts of different things and go in all sorts of directions, never finding contentment and joy.

As children of God, we have one purpose in this life -- to bring glory to God. This week's verse 1 Peter 4:11 says "If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen. "

No matter what you do, you should do it with an eye toward bringing glory to God. Our goal is to have people see God's love through us, which brings glory to Him. When we know our purpose, it's much easier to navigate our way along life's path without getting stuck in the brambles or distracted by the things along the way.

Illustrate this concept to your kids by sending them out in the yard to find something you have hidden. Once they find it, give them a compass. Explain how the compass works, then give them directions to find something else you have hidden using the compass. Talk about how much easier it was to find the thing when they had the directions and the compass. Explain that knowing God's purpose for our lives is like the compass. It keeps us on the right path, headed toward the goal of glorifying God.

As you learn this verse this week, keep your purpose in mind no matter what task you are doing.

Memory Monday: 1 Peter 4:11

I spent a wonderful hour with my oldest daughter last night. Her sister and her dad had gone to hockey practice, so it was just the two of us. She decided she wanted to work on a jigsaw puzzle. As we sat on the floor sorting the pieces, we started talking about whatever was on her mind. The conversation turned to how some of the girls in her class have changed since the end of the last school year. We had a neat conversation about how hard it is for some of the kids to be confident in who they are.

I don't think it's just fourth graders that struggle with being confident in who God made them to be. I know adults struggle with it, too. The root of all that struggle is that we don't know our purpose. Our purpose serves as a compass -- it points us in the direction we want to go. If you're unsure of your purpose, you end like a fourth-grade girl struggling to find her way. You might try all sorts of different things and go in all sorts of directions, never finding contentment and joy.

As children of God, we have one purpose in this life -- to bring glory to God. This week's verse 1 Peter 4:11 says "If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen. "

No matter what you do, you should do it with an eye toward bringing glory to God. Our goal is to have people see God's love through us, which brings glory to Him. When we know our purpose, it's much easier to navigate our way along life's path without getting stuck in the brambles or distracted by the things along the way.

Illustrate this concept to your kids by sending them out in the yard to find something you have hidden. Once they find it, give them a compass. Explain how the compass works, then give them directions to find something else you have hidden using the compass. Talk about how much easier it was to find the thing when they had the directions and the compass. Explain that knowing God's purpose for our lives is like the compass. It keeps us on the right path, headed toward the goal of glorifying God.

As you learn this verse this week, keep your purpose in mind no matter what task you are doing.