Happy New Year from the Ferrenbergs

I never did get my Christmas Letter written this year, or cards sent out. I started, but still haven't finished and feel that it isn't worth it now being that it is January 15th.
I just really do not know where the time goes! It is absolutely crazy!
I've not given much time over to blogging these days and as I've said on FB, "Facebook will be the death of the blogging world." Because of FB I really feel that I don't "need" to blog. I also don't feel like I need to blog because I've decided I don't really have much of anything to say. But I'll still post from time to time things that I feel that have really been encouraging or eye opening, etc. Sometimes I read something and I really believe it has helped me and maybe it could help someone else.
I've seen other people talk about their New Years Resolutions and so I've been giving it some thought. This year instead of having a long list of resolutions I've decided to concentrate on just one! Because this ONE if concentrated on would really help just about anything else I would want to resolve to do. I was talking with friend yesterday about passions/sins and he read in "Unseen Warfare" ( I THINK that was the book) that in all of us we have a chief sin. If we were to concentrate on just that one sin, putting ALL effort into that one sin, we would be far better off. If we look at all our sins that we want to conquer we tend to get overwhelmed and feel like we can't possibly tend to everything so we don't do anything. But if we just look at that one and we put all our energy into that chief sin it actually will give us power to conquer others without even knowing it. I forget exactly how he said it. Sins gain strength from each other and work like a net so if we begin to conquer just one the others lose their strength as well.

So my resolution is to conquer sloth! Everyday, I want to run!

I'm reading Wounded By Love: The Life and the Wisdom of Elder Porphyrios. I read this and it has inspired me to put all my energy and concentration into fighting this one sin.
Elder Porphyrios says that he "ran, I didn't walk" whenever he did things.
There was no question of laziness. I liked to pray even when I was tired. When I was exhausted I sought God even more. You must believe this and realize that it's truly possible. It's a matter of love. It's not simply that you work quickly. You do one job, then you begin another, you come back and do yet another, and you make sure that you finish them all: you water, you hoe, you bring earth and branches, you go up the mountain, you fetch wood for your woodcarving. With love you are in perpetual motion. You should see then where sins go. They all fall into a deep sleep. Do you hear? This is truly a life lost from the world, a blessed and holy life, a life in Paradise.

I want to run!

Blessings to you all during 2010!!