I have never been much of a coupon clipper. It seemed like too much work for $.50 to me, and I usually bought store brand stuff anyway.

I am starting to see the light. I never knew the glories of stacking coupons and drug store rebate programs… now that I have been introduced to this intricate game of couponing to save good size chunks of money, I can definitely appreciate how people are fanatic couponers – and I would like to become one of them!

This is going to be a long-term tackle, because couponing at its finest really is an art and a skill that has to be developed! I’m getting better, though, and I love that I’m starting to get free or nearly free health and beauty products from Rite Aid and Walgreens – our church collects these items for needy families in the area, and now I can regularly bring in donations that don’t even affect our budget in any noticeable way! [I have gotten four free/super cheap name-brand tubes of toothpaste in the past 3 weeks. How much toothpaste can one family go through? Give those babies away!]

I follow several different blogs that have helped show me the basics of couponing science.

KingdomFirstMom.com was the first to introduce me to the beauty of drugstore rebates combined with coupons! She also gives good tips on freebies and special promotions!

MummyDeals.org – I’ve been following Clair’s blog for quite a few months now, and she has given me some great tips on special rebates, promotions, freebies, etc!

Coupon Allies is a blog that I was just recently told about – it’s a newer blog, but they have great basic couponing information, and for those of you who are in my area, they have scoops about our local stores (Giant Eagle, Marcs, Beuhlers, etc.)

If you’re new to couponing, check out MommySnacks.net’s beginner’s guide here.

Do you have any favorite couponing/ frugal blogs that you follow? Any couponing tips from those of you who are veterans? Please share!

What are you tackling today?

My heart has been heavy lately – I wonder about the choices our government is making, the state of our economy, and what might be coming “down the pike” financially. I am burdened for the unrest in Iran and the godlessness and evil in the world around us, even while frustrated that Michael Jackson videos have usurped things of weight and significance in the news and in the minds of the American people. The friends of NP’s sister and brother in law whose beloved husband and father was killed for the cause of Christ this past week are frequently on my heart, and I am burdened for these brothers and sisters in Christ I have never met who will be attending a solemn calling hours this evening.

This morning as I took a much needed trip to Aldi, I listened to this Steven Curtis Chapman song over and over and over again – It’s all Yours, Lord! This world and the people in it are precious in the sight of God, and He knows all about what is happening around us. And He has never lost control!

Why so downcast, o my soul? Put your hope in God! I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God!

…he’s got some issues!

Please remember as you read through the Bible that, as we discussed earlier, the people aren’t the point. God did not give us Abraham’s story in order to tell us how great of a guy Abe was. God gave us Abraham’s story to show us what a great God Abe had!

Now, Abram (his name hasn’t been changed to Abraham yet) starts out great. In Genesis 12:1, God tells him to leave his homeland, following that (vs. 2-3) with the land, nation, and leader promises that we’ve already discussed. In verse 4, what does Abram do? He left! He obeys immediately. Abram’s sincere faith was evidenced by his obedience to God’s command. Nice job, Abram. Now, let’s keep reading chapter 12…

Hmmm. Abram barely gets started on his journey and he’s teetered off our pedestal. In verses 11-20, we have Abram being afraid for his life because of Sarai’s beauty, lying to Pharaoh, and generally doing his best to mess things up!  God intervenes and brings Sarai back to him.

Now, skip to chapter 15 – God is restating and expanding the promise – the promised descendants would come from Abram’s own, biological children. That seemed pretty impossible at this point, but God makes it crystal clear that it will happen. Abram’s response? Vs. 6: “And Abram believed God; then God considered him righteous on account of his faith.” (TLB)

Abram was not a righteous guy on his own. God considered him righteous because of his faith in God’s promises.

Check this out:
ch. 16: Abram and Sarai’s big mess with Hagar. Bad move there, guys.
ch. 17: God clarifies his promises and says their son would come from Sarai herself. And Abram laughs.
ch. 18: Jesus appears in the flesh to Abraham and Sarah, and says their son would be born the next year. And Sarah laughs. And then lies [to Jesus himself].
ch. 20: Abraham lies and says Sarah is his sister (AGAIN!). God rescues her from Abimelech.

We’ll look at chapter 22 tomorrow, but note this point. Abraham was not a flawless, holy man. He made some terrible mistakes. But, he believed God. His belief is what caused God to look at him as righteous.

Romans 4:3-5 says, “For the Scriptures tell us Abraham believed God, and that is why God canceled his sins and declared him “not guilty.” But didn’t he earn his right to heaven by all the good things he did? No, for being saved is a gift; if a person could earn it by being good, then it wouldn’t be free—but it is! It is given to those who do not work for it. For God declares sinners to be good in his sight if they have faith in Christ to save them from God’s wrath.” (TLB)

No matter how “good” or “bad” we are, it is our faith in Jesus Christ that saves us. We can’t be good enough to earn heaven on our own. We can’t be bad enough that He can’t save us.

Romans 3:21-24 “But now God has shown us a different way to heaven—not by “being good enough” and trying to keep his laws, but by a new way (though not new, really, for the Scriptures told about it long ago). Now God says he will accept and acquit us—declare us “not guilty”—if we trust Jesus Christ to take away our sins. And we all can be saved in this same way, by coming to Christ, no matter who we are or what we have been like. Yes, all have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious ideal; yet now God declares us “not guilty” of offending him if we trust in Jesus Christ, who in his kindness freely takes away our sins.” TLB

Amen and thank you, Lord!

**For more reflections on the Old Testament with personal application, you might want to download a free Bible study ebook!**

Yesterday we received some new books to review – first up: The I Believe Bunny by Tish Rabe!

This is a lovely book. The back cover says, “Introducing the I Believe Bunny – a delightful new series that teaches children how to put their faith into action.” Indeed, this book does just that, making it somewhat unique among other Christian children’s books I have seen.

Throughout this sweetly illustrated hardcover book, pleasantly rhyming text tells the story of the I Believe Bunny. On a rainy spring day, he hears a little voice calling out to him and discovers a small mouse struggling and unable to swim in the river. Bunny is all alone with no one to help him, and he doesn’t know what to do – he prays that God would help him save the mouse. Soon he hears his friends running to help him; God had sent them and answered Bunny’s prayer, and together they pull the mouse to safety.

So often we teach children about prayer with constant caveats about when God doesn’t seem to answer our prayers – while that is appropriate at times, I found this book to be a refreshing reminder that God does answer prayer and hears us when we call out to Him.

I hope to see more books from this series – what a great concept to teach kids that their faith is applicable for their every day life!

**I was provided with a copy of this book in exchange for my review from Thomas Nelson Publishers. I am an amazon associate and would receive a small percentage of any sales resulting from the links provided.  The opinions expressed in this review are my unbiased thoughts as in keeping with my disclosure policy.