Random Finds and Thoughts On Any Given Day: 10/1/10

Sunday, October 31, 2010

cookie recipes

Cookie recipes

so that men are without excuse

For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities -- his eternal power and divine nature -- have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

Romans 1:20 (New International Version)

an audience of One

I’m the girl who needs to remember WHO is in control of the pen. I need to live out my life in obedience for an “audience of One” and pray He uses my steps to touch whoever He chooses. That is His plan.
My story is one He writes for HIS purposes, not for my own. He can use even me, an imperfect, awkward and invisible girl who shares God through beautiful things.

found here: http://www.incourage.me/2010/10/beautiful-things-2.html

READING

"In concentrating exclusively on teaching the child how to read, we have forgotten to teach him to want to read…

somehow we lost sight of the teaching precept:

What you make a child love and desire is more important than what you make him learn."

~ Jim Trelease in the Read-Aloud Handbook

Saturday, October 30, 2010

Quote of the Week:

Laugh when you can, apologize when you should, let go of what you can't change, kiss slowly, play hard, forgive quickly, take chances, give everything, have no regrets. Life's too short to be anything but happy.

too many open tabs… going to list them here so I don’t lose them

1. Sample home education forms - http://www.wisdomhomeschooling.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=32&Itemid=107

2. Halloween and its origins - http://pebblecrossing.blogspot.com/2010/10/two-weeks-ago-we-posted-poll-to-find.html

3. Lady Gaga and our kids - http://www.commonsensemedia.org/lady-gaga-and-our-kids

4. Digital Citizenship - http://www.commonsensemedia.org/digital-citizenship/6-8

5. In defence of food and all who bring it to our tables - http://www.aholyexperience.com/2010/10/in-defence-of-food-and-all-those-who-bring-it-to-our-tables/

6. On your own own software - http://www.cwpub.com/on_your_own_software.html

7. Too much sitting will kill you - http://walking.about.com/b/2010/10/27/scary-facts-sitting-too-much-will-kill-you.htm?nl=1

8. I live therefore I learn - http://www.naturalchild.org/guest/pam_sorooshian.html

9. What "I'm bored" can mean: http://hypnosaka.blogspot.com/2010/01/bored.html

10.

Friday, October 29, 2010

Who are you?

“If you ask anyone who they are, they'll respond by telling you what they do, what they have done and what they will be doing. So what makes a person? God does. Who am I? I'm a servant of Christ.”

~Isaac Harris~

connect the dots

"Life is like one of those connect-the-dot puzzles, and we're the line. From our view, we see the closest dot and want to get there as quickly as possible. But God holds the pen, and He sees where the next dot truly lies, and, while it may confuse us at the time, His choices are the ones that will turn our lives into the beautiful picture it was meant to be."

~Isaac Harris~

Thursday, October 28, 2010

RABBIT TRAILS…

1. Bible Treasure Box - http://thelegacyofhome.blogspot.com/2010/10/homeschool-idea-bible-treasure-box.html

2. Mila’s daydreams (there is going to be a book… yay!) - http://milasdaydreams.blogspot.com/2010/10/im-just-daydreamer.html

3. Minimalist workhorse – the mason jar -- http://www.missminimalist.com/2010/10/minimalist-workhorse-mason-jars/

4. More thoughts on natural learning - http://www.truth2u.org/thehometruth/?p=677

5. Rediscover excitement: live life like an great big experiment - http://success.yourway.net/rediscover-excitement-live-life-like-a-great-experiment/

6. Jordan is look at buying a horse (or two) - http://www.equinenow.com/quarterhorsecanada.htm

7. Putting people first - http://www.alanknox.net/2010/10/putting-people-first/

8. Free audio stories for kids - http://storynory.com/

9. Quotes about education/unschooling - http://yes-i-can-write.blogspot.com/2010/10/quotes-make-me-happy.html

10. University students get unschooled - http://radiofreeschool.blogspot.com/2010/10/university-students-get-unschooled.html

11. why study the Bible? http://homeschoolblogger.com/belindaletchford/783736/

12. The church is a who? - http://www.alanknox.net/2010/10/the-church-is-a-who/

13. Godparents?

http://ezinearticles.com/?Tips-For-The-New-Godparent&id=473191

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20061220181617AAPpjMH

http://anglican.nb.ca/pgrbay/baptism/godprtjd.html

14. I am a home schooling a teenager - http://thepioneerwoman.com/homeschooling/2010/10/i-am-homeschooling-a-teenager/

ok…. time to get on with my day… I am off to Olds today. :o)

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

It is a dreary day here and I am not feeling well, so what better time to add something to my blog. :o)

1. This past weekend we had our fall cattle drive. It was a weekend full of friends and fellowship, great food and conversations and more. But Sunday night I was pretty worn out, but in a good way.

2. Monday found me actually being a farmer’s wife (I have always proclaimed you can be a married to a farmer without being a farmer’s wife. ;oP). I don’t usually help out with any of the cattle or field work, other than to feed the crews once in a while. But this past Monday I was out and about with the crew to do the record keeping as they weighed and vaccinated the calves. It was neat to see the whole process and observe the kids in action in their work environment.

3. I mentioned a while back we had a grizzly bear in our neighbourhood. I had not heard anymore about it until this past weekend. I guess it did hang around for a while and ate our neighbours bull. Fish and Wildlife have not said if the bear killed the bull but he definitely feasted on it. They had traps set up to try and catch him but he seems to have moved on now so they have removed the traps and bait so they don’t attract him back to the area. But I am kind of worried that now that he has had a taste for beef, when he wakes up in the spring he may be back for more tasty meals. :o(

4. This morning the kids are out helping on the ranch again. Today is preg checking. It is not very warm out there (winter seems to have made any early visit here). I should go and put the kettle on so the kids have something warm to drink when they arrive home.

5. This afternoon I am off to see the dentist to have an x-ray done on my back tooth that I had repaired a few months ago. I guess the dentist was worried because it was in pretty bad conditioned when he fixed it so he wants to make sure all is well and hopefully won’t have to have it pulled.

6. We are at the end of October and to date we have not accomplished much “academics” this school year. I figure we will get more focussed as the snow flies and comes to stay for the winter months. I need to sit down and do some journaling on what we have done (classes, discussions, reading, documentaries and such). Sometime in the next month or two my facilitator will want to get together for the first of our two mandated yearly meetings. It will be good to have something prepared to report to her.

7. It is now that time of year that the Christmas Monster starts to show its ugly head in mainstream society. I have really struggled with the season (which gets longer and longer every year) of Christmas. Firstly because it meant family would be getting together and some ugliness in personalities would rise to the surface at our gatherings. Then my next struggle with Christmas was all the commercialization and greediness and busyness and expectations of the season. It made me so irritated (and still does). So for a while I was struggling with how to keep “Jesus as the reason for the season”. But for the past year I am learning that Jesus was never the reason for the season, He was added in to the winter holidays of other peoples. So now I am wrestling with what do to with this season that I have never really liked anyway. I have been reading about what God wants from His people and it is becoming clearer and clearer, what the Christian religions are doing may not please Him. I spent some time this morning reading this resource (http://www.christmastruth.info/ChristmasTruth.pdf) and it does a good job of going through the evidence showing why God would not be pleased with what His people are doing at the Christmas season as worship to Him. I have read all these facts from other various resources but this pdf does a good job of bringing all the info together to read. What does God want me to do with this information?

8. Jordan had a parcel in the mail yesterday. His swords he ordered (http://www.visionforum.com/browse/product/?productid=87520&cid=556) came in. Now he really wants to get together with his friends so he can test them out. :o)

9. Have you ever wondered why plastic surgery is called plastic surgery? I have, and yesterday I finally took the time to find the answer (which you can read here – http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_is_plastic_surgery_called_plastic_surgery).

10. My favourite podcasters are back! Steve and Ray from BEYOND THE BOX are back from the hiatus. I love their conversations about stepping outside the box of institutional church. Their newest episode can be heard here (http://www.beyondtheboxpodcast.com/2010/10/fast-food-and-inspiration-aka-were-back/) but I encourage you to listen to their past episodes as well.

11. What is an agnostic? This term has showed up in my world quite few times in the past few weeks. The first time was with the guy who was taking my groceries out to my car for me. I was telling him about a Christian band that would be performing in town and how we had really enjoyed their last concert. He asked me “can an agnostic come too?” and I told him of course! But I wasn’t 100% clear what an agnostic was so of course I had to go and look it up – (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnostic).

12. Deanna discovered recently that she likes brussel sprouts (she had them at a friend’s house, they are not something I cook around here). I came across this recipe recently though and may try it very soon (http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2010/10/very-best-brussels-sprouts-ever-slow.html).

13. Paid to serve? -- http://www.alanknox.net/2010/10/paid-to-serve/ --

Eric at “A Pilgrim’s Progress” has written an interesting post called “Robbed of Joy.” He is writing about paid pastoral ministry, which he has recently stepped away from.
Eric is concerned about being robbed of the joy that comes through serving

14. Dave Black wrote this on his blog:

5:22 PM While running my errands today I happened upon our local Christian radio station that was airing what appears to be a new series on the church by Chuck Swindoll. Chuck had us looking at Christ's promise to build His church and then he requested his audience to turn to Acts 2 for a look at the birth of the church. Focusing on Acts 2:42, he emphasized that there are four marks of a local church. There will always be these four marks, he claimed. There may be more but never less. The four marks, as recorded by Luke, are teaching, fellowship, the breaking of the bread, and prayers. Ironically, and sadly in my view, Chuck reinterpreted the third mark to refer to "worship." Is this, perhaps by metonymy, what doctor Luke meant? I suppose it is possible. Of course, he may have also meant for us to take him quite literally -- that when the early church met it observed the Lord's Supper. I happen to think he meant the latter. The early church was focused on Christ. It fellowshipped around Him. His body and blood were commemorated regularly. Just because many of us no longer do so today is no reason for us to take the breaking of the bread and transform it into what today we call "worship services." (True worship, of course, is not what we do on Sunday but what we do 24/7. See Rom. 12:1-2. I have commented on this subject in my essay Enter to Serve, Depart to Worship.)
It seems, then, that the earliest church in Jerusalem was marked by an emphasis on the Word of God, genuine relationships, a common meal at which their absent but returning Lord would be preeminent, and times of prayer. Acts 20:7 seems to bear this out: the believers gathered together to break bread (note the telic infinitive), not to listen to the apostle Paul preach a sermon. Such Christocentricity would be a healthy thing, I think, for our churches. It would, I believe, go a long way toward replacing the pulpit-centricity in so many of our fellowships. In their essay The Lord's Supper: How Often?, D. G. Hart and John R. Muether write:
Most students of Calvin are aware that it was his desire that churches practice weekly communion. Calvin believed that this frequency could be found in both apostolic teaching and example, and that weekly observance was also the practice of the church fathers. Moreover, Calvin saw weekly observance as necessary for uniting the ministry of Word and sacrament. By sealing the promises proclaimed in the preaching of the Word, weekly communion enabled Christians frequently to return in memory to Christ’s work, and “by such remembrance to sustain and strengthen their faith.”
Infrequent communion, Calvin claimed, was a superstitious horror, “a most evident contrivance of the devil,” and he considered it among the worst of the many abuses of worship in medieval Catholicism. For Calvin, weekly communion was no less important than other reforms he sought, such as the use of the cup by the laity and worship in the language of the vernacular. So Calvin came to the conclusion that “the Lord’s Table should have been spread at least once a week for the assembly of Christians, and the promises declared in it should feed us spiritually.”
In fact, the grammar of Acts 2:42 suggests that the common meal (along with mutual prayer) uniquely represents the fellowship (koinonia) of the church. (The last two marks seem to be in apposition to the second one in the Greek.) Elsewhere I have concluded:
Realizing that each Lord’s Day was “Resurrection Sunday” – a day to celebrate Christ’s risen life – and anticipating that each Lord’s Day could also be the day of Christ’s return, the early believers feasted at Christ’s table as in His presence. This fellowship meeting, at the very heart of which was a social meal centered on Christ, represented the communion that existed between all the members of the brotherhood, because all had a personal fellowship with their Lord.
For the earliest followers of Jesus, the Lord’s Supper created an atmosphere of intimate communion between members of Christ’s Body, regardless of their social status, gender, or ethnic group. According to Acts 2:42 and 20:7, this meal was, in fact, the focal point for the gathering of the New Testament church. It was a time of great celebration and joy. And it was at the heart of Christian fellowship – not at the periphery.
Today we have lost the regularity – not to mention the intimacy, the pleasure, the enjoyment – of the Lord’s Supper. The New Testament pattern of the breaking of the bread has become utterly foreign to us.
Howard Marshall also says it well:
In line with what appears to have been the practice of the early church in the New Testament the Lord's Supper should be celebrated frequently in the church, and there is good reason for doing so on each Lord's Day.
I praise God for those congregations that do, in fact, place high value on the Lord's Table. I was in such a church not too long ago in Pensacola, Florida. There, in the ICON service of the First United Methodist Church, communion is served each and every Sunday. I can tell you, it was anything but perfunctory or boring. I have a nagging suspicion that many of our Baptist fellowships could learn a lesson two from them.

Well time to get going to the dentist appointment. I will be back later and perhaps share some more of my weird world of interests. :o)

Inspirational Story

Paid in Full
~author unknown~

A young man was getting ready to graduate from college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer’s showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted.

As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautifully wrapped gift box.

Curious, and somewhat disappointed, the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Bible, with the young man’s name embossed in gold. Angry, he rose his voice to his father and said “with all your money, you give me a Bible?” and stormed out of the house.

Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and wonderful family, but realized his father was very old, and thought perhaps he should go to him. He had not seen him since that graduation day. Before he could make arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son. He needed to come home immediately and take care of things.

When he arrived at his father’s house, a sudden feeling of sadness and regret filled his heart. He began to search through his father’s important papers and saw the still gift-wrapped Bible, just as he had left it years ago. With tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. His father had carefully underlined a verse, Matt.7:11, “And if ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children,how much more shall your Heavenly Father which is in Heaven, give to those who ask Him?”

As he read those words, a car key dropped from the back of the Bible. It had a tag with the dealer’s name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words PAID IN FULL.

How many times do we miss God’s blessings because we can’t see past our own desires?

Friday, October 22, 2010

Thought for the day (Dietrich Bonhoeffer):

Each morning is a new beginning of our life. Each day is a finished whole. The present day marks the boundary of our cares and concerns. It is long enough to find God or lose Him, to keep faith or fall into disgrace.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

recent web surfing and rabbit trails

1. why is every church not like this? - http://www.alanknox.net/2010/10/why-is-every-church-not-like-this/

2. steel cut oatmeal for the crockpot - http://www.food.com/recipe/steel-cut-oatmeal-for-the-crock-pot-101101

3. own your own beauty - http://www.blogher.com/authentic-mothers-body?from=nethed

Own Your Beauty is a groundbreaking, year-long movement bringing women together to change the conversation about what beauty means. Our mission: to encourage and remind grown women that it is never too late to learn to love one's self and influence the lives of those around us - our mothers, friends, children, neighbors. We can shift our minds and hearts and change the path we follow in the pursuit of authentic beauty.

4. Lee Valley catalogs - https://www.leevalley.com/en/home/OnlineCatalogs.aspx

5. blood ph? - http://healthtip.hacres.com/index.php/2010/10/19/acid-or-alkaline-your-life-hangs-in-the-balance

6. momentary troubles, eternal reward - http://www.incourage.me/2010/10/momentary-troubles-eternal-reward.html

7. resources for young writers - http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/resources

8. young novelist workbooks - http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/workbooks

9. free spelling course - http://www.splashesfromtheriver.com/spelling/courseoutline.htm

10. in praise of slow - http://www.carlhonore.com/?page_id=6

11. church life series (read from the bottom up to read in order) - http://www.alanknox.net/category/church-life/page/3/

12. what happened to biblical holidays? - http://heartofwisdom.com/biblicalholidays/?p=367

13. Stephanie’s home school plans - http://livinglifeonhisterms.blogspot.com/2010/09/homeschool-2010-2011.html

Vocabulary - Tom will continue in the Wordly Wise website, on level 5. Once that is complete he will move up to the next level. I really like using this site, as it has the audio, which helps him pronounce words he has never seen before. I require each of the boys to keep a Growing Dictionary of words from this site, and our other subjects. Each card has to have the word at the top, the definitions, and parts of speech.

14. kids and internet safety - http://thrivinginthe21stcentury.blogspot.com/2010/10/kids-and-internet-safety.html

okay… now back to work.

:o)

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Sad News

Deanna’s little pig Charlie Brown died yesterday. :o(

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Together :o)

I love this blog post: http://lisanotes.blogspot.com/2008/12/together.html

Together

More from Ann in What Now?:
You learn to be helpful and you learn to ask for help. It turns out that most positions in life, even the big ones, aren’t really so much about leadership. Being successful, and certainly being happy, comes from honing your skills in working with other people. For the most part we travel in groups—you’re ahead of somebody for awhile, then somebody’s ahead of you, a lot of people are beside you all the way. It’s what the nuns had always taught us: sing together, eat together, pray together.
Together. That’s how God designed the body of Christ. While we can do many things solo, we only get that beautiful harmony effect when we do them together. We serve together; worship together; love together.
Where would I be without you? Alone. No thanks. I choose together.

love all….. please One

And as I stand there, jeans still in hand, a change begins to happen. It seems Jesus lays His hands on those frayed edges, those places I wish were different, and He stitches them up with grace. He tells me again...

Love all. Please One.

Be who I've created you to be.

You are enough because I am enough in you.

(from the blog HEART TO HEART WITH HOLLEY - http://blog.dayspring.com/2010/10/when-you-have-frayed-edges.html )

Monday, October 18, 2010

a parable

Once upon a time there was a wonderful King that ruled a Kingdom. The King was always doing fine and wonderful things for His people. The people desired in their hearts to worship and glorify the King and His wonderful deeds.

So the King planned appointed times each year: special times for celebrations to tell the stories of His deeds to the people’s children and to glorify the King. The King wrote the instructions of how to observe the celebrations in a book called the Book of Wisdom.
For many years the people enjoyed these celebrations. Each year they would learn more about their King and feel closer to Him. They realized the King’s celebrations were not only to tell stories of the things the King had done for His people in the past, but also foreshadows of more fine things the King was planning to do for them in the future.

to finish reading the parable, click on this link (http://heartofwisdom.com/biblicalholidays/?p=7)

What does Hebrews 10:25 mean in relationship to our weekly church worship services?

Bill’s blog (http://thin-edge.org/2007/08/04/custom-or-command-christian-worship-hebrews-1025/) with the question:

What does Hebrews 10:25 mean in relationship to our weekly church worship services?

Alan Knox chimed in (back in 2007) with this answer:

Bill,
You’ve asked some great questions. But, the command in Heb 10:24-25 is not to assemble, but to consider one another in order to stir up love and good works. Meeting together does not satisfy any commands of God. If we meet with other believers every day of the week, but never interact with one another in order to help one another mature toward Christ-likeness, then we have accomplished nothing. Should we meet together? I think that’s asking the wrong question. We are brothers and sisters in Christ, why would we not want to spend time with one another? Our desire to meet with and interact with one another does not come from obeying a command, but from the new and mutual life that the Spirit is creating within us. As Paul would say, it is not “if” we meet together, but “whenever [we] come together” that we should do everything for the purpose of building one another up. Thanks for this post.
-Alan

if a man is called….

"If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music,or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well."
Martin Luther King, Jr.

Interruptions are my ministry

This guy (who just happens to be named Guy -- :oP) has hit the nail on the head for how I feel about my “spiritual gift”. I help people when they need me. I like how he shows this is just as much a ministry as an intentional ministry. You can read the whole article here – (http://guymuse.blogspot.com/2010/10/interruptions-are-my-ministry.html).

-----

One of my mottos is "ministry happens." I think that at least 90% of the ministry that happens in the gospels is spontaneous. Jesus was headed from one place to another and an opportunity would present itself. Jesus was willing to get off the beaten path and take the road less traveled. He didn't see them as detours or dead ends. Too often we mistake human interruptions for divine appointments. --from a Mark Batterson message entitled "Wild Goose Chase."

-----

What if God also has "to do" lists? What if God has on his list today for Juán to call me and see about our getting together for coffee at 2:15 this afternoon and talk about his problems?
When I seriously pray, "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done..." am I not in effect saying, "Lord, your "to do" list has priority. Your agenda today takes precedence over my own." While meeting Juán at 2:15 may not be on my list, I would be foolish to blow off meeting Juan at 2:15 if he is on God's list.

why i don’t care about success

‘Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value.’ ~Albert Einstein

read the article at the link - http://zenhabits.net/anti-success/

Success isn’t about achieving something in the future, but about doing something right now that you love.
So doesn’t that mean I care about success? Well, sure, if you define success as whatever it is you care about, then of course you’re going to care about success. But then “success” really doesn’t have a meaning, does it? If it can mean anything, then it means nothing.
So forget about “success”, and just find joy, passion, love, awesome-ness right now, in this moment. *That* is a success you can achieve, without any self-help course, without any method. Just go out and do it.

this and that…

1. Yesterday we discovered/confirmed that Deanna is allergic to kiwi fruit. She had mentioned a while ago after eating some kiwi that her mouth felt weird but I didn’t give it much attention and forgot about the whole matter. Then yesterday we were at Susan’s house and she offered Deanna a kiwi and Deanna mentioned she might be allergic. So I told her to try some b/c I had Benadryl on hand just in case. Well she ate one and a few minutes later her tongue was going numb and her throat felt like it was closing. So I gave her a Benadryl and now she will no longer be allowed to have kiwi. But the interesting thing is that if someone is allergic to kiwi they may also be allergic to latex so we will have to keep that in mind.

What is a cross reaction?

People who have a latex allergy may be allergic to some foods, as well. This is called a cross reaction. When this happens, your body responds with the same allergic symptoms that you would have if you were exposed to latex. Cross reactions differ from one person to another. Someone may have a reaction to all the foods noted to cause cross reaction while another may have no reaction at all. Likewise, if you are allergic to any of these foods, you may also be allergic to latex:

apples, bananas, kiwi, peaches, plums, figs, grapes, melons, papaya, passion fruit, cherries, nectarines, pears, pineapple and strawberries;
carrots, celery, raw potatoes, avocados and tomatoes;
chestnuts and hazelnuts;
wheat and rye.

If you are allergic to any of these foods, tell your doctor before having any medical procedure. You could have a cross reaction to latex.
http://www.health.state.ny.us/environmental/indoors/food_safety/latex/latex2.htm

2. We found out last week that we have a new wild animal in the neighbourhood. Someone took a picture of a racoon in our driveway. I had no idea they were this far north here in Alberta but my SIL said she heard on the radio they have been migrating further north lately. I think it would be neat to see one but at the same time I would be scared to come across it at night or something like that. http://talkaboutwildlife.ca/profile/index.php?s=522

30 day email detox

Stressed-out from too much sending and replying, Katie Goodman did what the rest of us only dream of: Quit e-mail cold turkey. Weeks later, she was a new (and much improved) woman. Take that, in-box!

http://www.oprah.com/money/The-30-Day-Email-Detox

I quit Facebook but I am not so sure I could quit email. ;oP

this fits in well with my previous post about careers and such

October 18, 2010

“Many people worry so much about managing their careers,
but rarely spend half that much energy managing their lives.
I want to make my life, not just my job, the best it can be.
The rest will work itself out.”

— Reese Witherspoon

They called a time of death on Jeff. Then, his doctor heard the Lord say, 'Pray for him.'

Sunday, October 17, 2010

what makes our labour holy?

"What makes our labour holy, what makes it eternal, is not just the work but the state of our hearts while performing that work. When we comprehend that truth, then we realize washing dishes is as significant to the Kingdom as operating on a patient; driving a truck is as eternally triumphant as leading a company. Then, even in the zig-zags of our careers, when life seems more random than ordered, when it feels like we're running in thick mud with heavy boots, we can rest in the knowledge we're serving God as we labour faithfully and diligently."
-- Randy Kilgore, Made to Matter

what if we lived Jesus to each other?

A heart convicting article I read this morning (and a reoccurring theme/lesson in my life):

He won't give up on me...
so how can I give up on you? ... What if we lived Jesus to each other?

a portion of the article says:

We are a society of quitters. Estranged parents, abandoned spouses, and spurned friends all can testify. And I myself have added to the suffering, turning aside those who were hurting, disobedient or just confused.

We have all kinds of terms in this society to justify turning people away. "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me." "God helps those who help themselves," and "The ball is in his court," "I deserve to be happy," and other such nonsense. Will any of those arguments hold up when we come face to face with Him?

God didn’t give up on me. What gives me the right to give up on them?

You can read the complete article at http://redletterbelievers.blogspot.com/2008/01/hound-of-heaven.html

2 articles I read this morning…

This morning I am doing my daily routine… wake up, pour myself a cup of coffee and sit down at my computer to see what gems I will get to read today. The first article I read touched on a topic I have been pondering off and on, mostly because my kids are of the age when we start to think about what they will do with their life, what career will they have and so on. The article is “The Passion Trap: How the Search for Your Life’s Work is Making Your Working Life Miserable”. The article has touched on the idea I have tossed around… do we need a “career” or do we need a means of making money and is there a difference. This article talks about the advice that has been circulating for some time about finding what your passion is and then finding a job/career that would let you fulfill that passion. But what I have heard and read is that those who do this quite often lose their passion that they once had.

The next article I read amazingly also touched on this topic of work (both are from blogs that I read that I have sent to me via email). But this article called “The Love with which we Perform” shares the story of Brother Lawrence, who learned the lesson “Who we are is not defined by what we do. Our daily work is given to us as a gift from Him, not as the etched nameplate of our identity.” And it from this kind of thinking that I think I get the idea that maybe we don’t need a “career” per say but a means of making money. I think the only way we will ever truly feel fulfilled is if we are living with God, in His purposes, listening to Him, following where He may lead us. :o)

With my kids I haven’t pushed the idea of a career. What I have been asking them is what kind of life do they want? Where do they want to live (city, town, in the country)? Do they want a family? How do they want to spend their time? So for example my son Jordan has said he does not want to live in the city at all, he would prefer the country. He doesn’t want a desk job, he would prefer a job that would have him working outside. He does not want a job that will make him travel because family is important to him and wouldn’t want to be away from them (we have two family members who work in the oilfield and spend months away). So by asking these kind of questions, it helps them to see their life as a whole and shows them that their answers will help them find work that will allow them to live where they want and have the life they desire because we are not our careers or our jobs (as we have seen from the Brother Lawrence article).

And now I have lost my train of thought, so I will stop here. It was fun to read these two articles back to back. :o)

Friday, October 15, 2010

ALBERTA PRIME TIME discusses home education in Alberta

My mom caught a program last night that was discussing home education here in Alberta. I was disappointed I had missed it but I did find the video on the web. You can watch it here – (http://www.albertaprimetime.com/Stories.aspx?pd=1558&FlashVars=Video/PTG_101410.flv).

“The number of Alberta parents choosing to teach their kids at home has risen dramatically in the last decade; the reasons ranging from religious convictions to just plain convenience.
While the Alberta government supports the option, providing funding and several program choices critics say home schooling puts children’s learning at risk. They argue it limits student’s perspective, hampers socialization and worry the quality of education can suffer.
How does the quality of home schooled education compare to that of a classroom? Is there enough monitoring to ensure standards are met? And what long term impact does home schooling have on the student?
Joining us for this discussion are Larry Booi, a former teacher and past president of the Alberta Teachers' Association. Ted Tederoff is president of the Alberta Home Education Association and Marco Pacione vice principal at the Centre for Learning at Home, a fully-accredited and publicly-funded Christian school that specializes in home schooling and online education.”

raising children

In raising your children, spend half as much money and twice as much time.
~ Anonymous

Thursday, October 14, 2010

teaching the Bible in oral form

This is a place where I will be keeping an online journal of my experience teaching the Bible in oral form. Everytime I have a storying session, I will give a brief summary here. The journal starts with a couple of groups already in progress, and I am looking to start a few more groups as time passes. The end goal is to plant reproducing local churches with baptized members who seek to obey Jesus above all others. Names have been changed to protect privacy.

http://smy2brazil.blogspot.com/

advice from Belinda Letchford

why do housework? http://homeschoolblogger.com/belindaletchford/783641/

when to clean the house? http://homeschoolblogger.com/belindaletchford/783643/

but i’m not ready yet! http://homeschoolblogger.com/belindaletchford/783646/

“Over the last few days I’ve written about cleaning house – why we clean house and when we clean house. To summarise:

We clean house in order to provide a retreat for family and friends
We clean house to prepare for relationship time with family and friends

But what happens if I just don’t get there. What happens if Friday night comes and the house is still a mess? What happens if people pop over and the house is in disarray or even chaos?”

a better gift giving guide

“It’s that time of year again. You know, still a few weeks away from Halloween, and yet Christmas trees and decorations are available in retail stores, and holiday gift giving guides are popping up all over the internet. Invariably, they are lists of the hot toys and gadgets of 2010 – the things that your loved ones will supposedly want and appreciate the most this holiday season.
But are any of you tired of the commercial feeding frenzy that seems to take over the last couple months of the year? Do you ever complain about the crowds, the lists, the effort required to find just the right gift, the stress, and all the hoopla? Do you struggle to rid your house of clutter only to find that it comes crowding back in – nicely wrapped with bows on top – during the holidays? Do you ever spend more than you can really afford on gifts, and then find yourself stressed about money in January? Do you get so excited about the holiday season that you build it up in your mind to be far bigger than it is, and then find yourself a bit let down after it’s all over?
It doesn’t have to be this way.” (click here to read the whole article - http://frugalbabe.com/2010/10/08/a-better-gift-giving-guide/ )

preserving family memories the simple way

http://www.steadymom.com/2010/08/preserving-family-memories-the-simple-way.html

Skills we should learn …

DIY store offers lessons in basic household jobs to under-14s
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1319539/B-Q-offer-children-DIY-classes-plug-skills-gap-35s.html#ixzz12KvtDKK3

A DIY chain has become the first to offer classes teaching children how to do basic jobs around the house.
B&Q has launched the hour-long sessions to help plug a 'skills gap' that has opened up in under-35s, compared to people from older generations.
Just one in five of people born after 1975 know how to tile floors or walls, for example, compared to 58 per cent of over-50s
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1319539/B-Q-offer-children-DIY-classes-plug-skills-gap-35s.html#ixzz12Kw5sYGy

THE DEVIL AND THE DUCK

There was a little boy visiting his grandparents on their farm. He was given a slingshot to play with out in the woods.
He practiced in the woods; but he could never hit the target. Getting a little discouraged, he headed back for dinner.
As he was walking back he saw Grandma's pet duck.

Just out of impulse, he let the slingshot fly, hit the duck square in the head and killed it. He was shocked and grieved!
In a panic, he hid the dead duck in the wood pile; only to see his sister watching! Sally had seen it all, but she said nothing.

After lunch the next day Grandma said, 'Sally, let's wash the dishes'. But Sally said, 'Grandma, Johnny told me he wanted to help in the kitchen.' Then she whispered to him, "Remember the duck?' So Johnny did the dishes.
Later that day, Grandpa asked if the children wanted to go fishing and Grandma said, 'I'm sorry but I need Sally to help make supper.' Sally just smiled and said, 'well that's all right because Johnny told me he wanted to help.
She whispered again, 'Remember the duck?' So Sally went fishing and Johnny stayed to help.

After several days of Johnny doing both his chores and Sally's; he finally couldn't stand it any longer.
He came to Grandma and confessed that he had killed the duck. Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug and said, 'Sweetheart, I know. You see, I was standing at the window and I saw the whole thing, but because I love you, I forgave you. I was just wondering how long you would let Sally make a slave of you.'

Thought for the day and every day thereafter:
Whatever is in your past, whatever you have done... the devil keeps throwing it up in your face (lying, cheating, debt, fear, bad habits, hatred, anger, bitterness, etc.)...whatever it is...You need to know that:
God was standing at the window and He saw the whole thing.

He has seen your whole life... He wants you to know that He loves you and that you are forgiven. He's just wondering how long you will let the devil make a slave of you.
The great thing about God is that when you ask for forgiveness;
He not only forgives you, but He forgets.
It is by God's grace and mercy that we are saved.
Go ahead and make the difference in someone's life today.
Share this with a friend and always remember:
God is at the window!

*author unknown to me*

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Gianna Jessen Abortion Survivor

PART 1

PART 2

http://www.giannajessen.com/EPK/bio.html

quote

Quote of the Week - David Alan Black

"The important thing is that the church live in the world as a community that demonstrates the Jesus quality of life.”

This will make you smile.

More than 200 dancers were performing their version of "Do Re Mi", in the Central Station of Antwerp. with just 2 rehearsals they created this amazing stunt! Those 4 fantastic minutes started the 23 of march 2009, 08:00 AM. It is a promotion stunt for a Belgian television program, where they are looking for someone to play the leading role, in the musical of "The Sound of Music".

Sunday, October 10, 2010

How do you prepare?

How do you prepare to meet with your brothers and sisters in Christ so that you
can encourage them to walk in maturity?

This is what Alan Knox wrote: http://www.alanknox.net/2010/10/be-prepared/

God encounters

Many Christians miss out on God encounters because they are satisfied with good theology.

praise - criticism

If you don't live by the praises of men you won't die from their criticism.

I just read this fun fact… 10-10-10

Today is the tenth of the tenth month 2010.

This month has 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays and 5 Sundays.

Only happens every 853 years.

I am so thankful for my community…

I came across this blog entry and it warmed me to see how many of these "imagine a community" things we have experienced.
Wes says - "I thank God everyday how many of these I don't have to imagine, I experience. " And he looks forward to God showing him some of the others.

http://elroybosch.wordpress.com/2010/10/05/imagine/

I’m sorry for being so quiet the past two weeks or so. I’ve been thinking lately about the values that were typical of the New Testament church. To me it’s much more exciting and important to champion these values than to highlight the mistakes of the modern-day church. Unfortunately when you emphasize biblical values, unbiblical values get mentioned by default.
To help my thinking I’ve used the “Imagine a community …” phrase that I then assign a biblical attribute to. This helped me a lot in my quest to discover the values that excites me so much. I’ve included some of them below and my list is continually growing. Read through them and add your own in the Comment box. Follow my tweets as I regularly tweet new Imagine phrases.
· Imagine a community where everybody thinks more highly of the next guy than of himself. Think church.
· Imagine a community where nobody carries a title. Think church.
· Imagine a community who has no hierarchical ladder to climb. Think church.
· Imagine a community who is not subdued by the leadership of 1 or 2 great men but a community who consists of great men. Think church.
· Imagine a community who considers everybody “called”. Think church.
· Imagine a community who are more concerned about your position in Christ than you are yourself. Think church.
· Imagine a community who heals the sick. Think church.
· Imagine a community to whom relationships are more valuable than possessions. Think church.
· Imagine a community where everybody is regarded absolutely equal in value. Think church.
· Imagine a community where everybody learns from everybody. Think church.
· Imagine a community to whom Christ is the absolute functional central figure. Not a pastor, reverent etc. Just Christ. Think church.
· Imagine a community where friends become as close and often closer than your natural family. Think church.
· Imagine a community to whom sharing and giving is the new normal. Think church.
· Imagine a community who will make personal sacrifices to see your legitimate needs met. Think church.
· Imagine a community who will literally pray through the night on your behalf. Think church.
· Imagine a community where each member’s contribution is regarded as absolutely essential. Think church.
· Imagine a community who is able to birth similar communities across the globe without budget restraints. Think church.
· Imagine a community who is not dependant on tithes and offerings for its success. Think church.
· Imagine a community who defines success by the maturity of the group and not by the giftedness of individuals. Think church.
Thanks for reading.

HERE ARE SOME FROM HIS TWITTER PAGE: http://twitter.com/elroybosch

Imagine a community to whom leaders are guide posts and reference points and not CEO-like directive leaders. Think church.
Imagine a community where worship is not a way of singing but a way of living. Think church.
Imagine a community who is much more family-like than business-like. Think church.
Imagine a community who urge and expect everybody to take part in their gatherings. Think church.
Imagine a community who will literally sell personal property to help one another. Think church.