Sphere of Influence

We did something totally different at dinner tonight.  We usually do the pow-wow time...talking about the highs and lows of our day...BUT, tonight we did joke/homemade joke night...that was hilarious to me because most of the jokes we made up were really not funny AT ALL, but we threw them out there anyway and we laughed so hard at how NOT FUNNY they were :)

And then, we had a mini-history lesson from Brad and a talk about why it is such a privilege and a valuable right to vote.  After the mini-lesson, I gave the girls papers with the question "why is it important to vote?" and they all wrote down reasons.  Then, we spent some time as a family in prayer for this election and for revival for our nation.  The girls have really been impressing me with their prayers lately...like on Sunday when we prayed for the Persecuted Church... and I have been realizing we need to spend more time praying aloud as a family.  Even our youngest daughters have really sensitive hearts for people and I love it when they really pray a thoughtful prayer.  I am thinking we need more "Critical Thinking" nights that end in prayer time.  Anyway, that was an experiment for us and it went fabulously!

I saw a quote a while back that came to mind today while I was thinking about this election and our world in general...

Sometimes it is easy to feel overwhelmed and powerless with the things happening in our nation and world....BUT, we need to vote....we get to vote....it is such a blessing to vote!  I always think of my grandpa who was a POW when I have the opportunity to vote and it reminds me of the honor in that right.  It is also such a blessing and, responsibility, really....to share and teach these values to our children.   Strong families are powerful....the very core of our personal sphere of influence...we need to put much effort into loving and encouraging our families, and instructing our kids.