Author Archives: Monica Bass

The Price of an Education

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Perhaps it was the crisp fall air from this morning, or perhaps it was the bag of apples calling from the fridge, or perhaps it was the fact that this was the first evening in over a week that I’ve had a few minutes without a specific obligation. But whatever the reason, I decided to make an apple pie tonight.

My mom makes the best apple pie ever. Of course, pie baking expertise is not absorbed by osmosis—as I am well aware. It’s the crust that always gets me. My mom bakes a perfect crust—thin and flaky. I can’t remember that I’ve ever baked a good crust in the kitchen alone. But, since it’s been years since I last tried and failed and since I couldn’t reach my mom on the phone, I decided tonight was the night for success!

I pulled out my mom’s recipe and began measuring and mixing. Yep, the flour and salt mixed together great!

As I began to cut in the butter, I called Kristy, a dear friend from out of state whom I haven’t talked with in months. We chatted as I watched what was taking place in the bowl in front of me with growing concern. This wasn’t looking quite right. In fact, it was looking very wrong. Continue reading →

A Miracle Cure for a Tired Mind

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…is sometimes, believe it or not, rest.

Yes, it’s that simple. Rest works wonders.

It rejuvenates.

It renews.

It refreshes.

It reenergizes.

Sometimes when we are edgy and depleted, when we feel that we have no more to give, all we need is rest. Perhaps we need the rest of sleep. Perhaps we need the rest of a mental diversion.

I’m beginning to see that to not rest is a form of pride. Fatigue—mental or physical—makes us edgy and overwhelmed. It reveals a mindset that thinks the world depends on us, that if we step out of the current, everything will stop.

Proper rest, however, is a form of humility. It is a way of acknowledging our finite limits and our need of God’s cycles of renewal.

How do I know? Let’s just say I recently took a day of needed rest. And it proved both points!

Why I Doubled My File Space

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Tonight I tackled the project I’ve been putting off for weeks: “file all papers in box.”

It’s not that I don’t know how to file. I’ve known how to do it since my mother taught me  alphabetical sorting when I was six.

It’s not that I haven’t had time to file. I’ve made time for other things.

It’s just that my file box was already full, and I knew I had to sort through it and toss papers. I didn’t want to make that many decisions, so I put it off.

But tonight, with a determined mind and focused purpose, I pulled out my file box and set the tottering “to file” pile next to it. Be ruthless, I told myself. There’s no use keeping junk. Continue reading →

What Have We Gotten Ourselves Into?

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Exactly three years ago today, my brother and I drove our tan Chevy Cavalier out of the garage and into the pouring rain. In the trunk was our luggage, and wedged into the back seat was a bicycle I had just been given. We waved to a teary family and began the two thousand mile drive to West Coast Baptist College.

That was an eventful trip—full of significant “firsts.” It was the first time I had been west of Kansas, and it was the first time either of us had seen the Rocky Mountains up close. They were breath-taking. We even pulled over and improvised a thirty minute hike. We also met my great uncle and aunt for the first time. We toured their ranch on quads and enjoyed their gracious hospitality as we got acquainted.

But to me, the most memorable moment of that trip occurred within thirty miles of our destination. Actually, it was a statement Daniel made that stuck in my mind. Continue reading →

No Moving in Heaven

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I’m too young to fully appreciate the fact that we’ll never grow old in Heaven, but high on my list of “will never do in Heaven” is moving! And high on my list of dislikes is packing and unpacking.

Since the time I was two, our family has moved exactly two and a half times. (We lived in a temporary place for several weeks during one of the moves.)

But in the past three years, I have moved twice that many times—not even counting changing dorm rooms in college. And tonight, I just took the last of my boxes out to the dumpster from the most recent of these moves.

I knew in advance that each of the last four moves were temporary. Some were for a year, some were for a summer. So I was really looking forward to the “final” move of this week, because I thought of it as more long term. Continue reading →

Directed Towards Me

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The shortest chapter in the Bible contains one of the most profound truths—a truth about God that we too easily forget.

This truth is reiterated (and even more clearly expressed) all throughout Scripture. But two words in this short Psalm speak of a truth beyond my comprehension.

Here’s the truth: “His merciful kindness is great toward us.”

Did you catch those last two words? Mercy and kindness are two of God’s attributes. They are simply part of who He is. But what a joy that He directs His merciful kindness toward me! Continue reading →

Short Nights=Bad Mornings

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I write this post after two virtually sleepless nights—both directly or indirectly related to a bad rash of poison ivy. (Ugh!) While concentrating on not scratching last night, I remembered a verse about long, painful nights that had been a help to me during my college days.

“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning” (Psalm 30:5b).

I remember one morning in particular reading this verse after an especially short night of sleep.

Of course, none of us like to experience the “night of weeping” referred to in this verse—a season of heartache or pain. These night seasons always feel too long.

But as I read the verse that morning through droopy, bloodshot eyes, I realized that the alternative isn’t any better. Short nights don’t make for happy mornings! Continue reading →

5 Tips to Beating Poison Ivy

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If you have ever had an allergic reaction to poison ivy, oak, or sumac, this post is for you! I can assure you, I am writing from fresh experience. After several years of successfully avoiding poison ivy (to which I am very allergic), my sister, Michele, and I were attacked by poison ivy in the dark last week. (Well, maybe we actually attacked it while we were trimming bushes in the dark. But it was definitely not intentional!) At any rate, we both broke out with rashes that are causing torturous itching, swelling, and blistering.

You probably already know the basic helps to the malady of poison ivy—calamine lotion, benadryl, etc. But even with the use of these, I still go through several days of distracting misery. In some of my hours of distress the past few days, I’ve mentally compiled a list for other sufferers.

What can you do to retain your sanity during a bout with poison ivy? Here are five tips for your help and enjoyment: Continue reading →

The Story I Thought I Knew

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Two weeks ago, I was sitting on the second to the last row of a little girls’ class, helping with childcare during Spiritual Leadership Conference. We had already played games and spent some time on the playground, and now we were listening to a lesson.

(As a side note, one of the great blessings to me of this conference was hearing the lesson taught from our newly published Children’s Curriculum. I had briefly previewed this curriculum, but it was a joy to hear it taught and see firsthand how well the story held the children’s attention and how well they related to the application.)

Minutes into the lesson, a fourth grade girl next to me became restless and distracted. As she started talking to the others around her, I motioned for her to listen to the teacher. But with the wise nod of a fourth grader, she assured me, “I already know this story.” Continue reading →