“I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.” Ephesians 1:16 Like many of you I have committed to down-sizing this year. Too much stuff that gets in the way of being creative and productive at times. I have three boxes in our living room. Each box is labeled with a destination for removal. I have no problem with this method except…as soon as I take a full box someplace I find more that should have gone out the door! I remember a minister’s wife telling me one time, “Never have a garage sale in the town where you serve a church – for obvious reasons”. I smile when I think of her words and they do not hinder my process. What I have noticed is that the items that end up in the boxes are items that I have purchased NOT items that have been gifted to me. Items that have been gifted to me usually have a story. A crochet doily that turquoise, a gift from one of my students in 1988. Serena and I shared a birthday and when I left the school district, this shy second grader handed me a gift that she had wrapped herself. I later learned that in her Sunday School class for every bible verse the students memorized they got 5 cents. Serena wanted to get me a gift so she memorized verse after verse to earn enough money to purchase me this gift. When I look at this doily, I stop what I am doing and offer a prayer for her. Yes, even 32 years later. Yes, our house is full. Our house is full of memories of people, people that have touched our lives in many ways. Not all of the items are out on display so I am finding that in the process of down-sizing things are getting more organized and as the totes and containers are being put away, memories flood my mind with events and people and with each item touched or viewed there is a prayer. Praying for friends and people in our lives is just what Paul wanted and asked people to do. Pick a friend or maybe even a person that tests you at times and remember them in your prayers for in prayer we find strength while walking with a God that deserves to be included in our friendships. Stay warm, stay prayerful.