Random Christmas Thoughts Swirling Around in My Head

Thought 1 - Simplify. This has been a truly restful Christmas season for me this year. In many years past, I have gotten stressed by procrastinating my Christmas shopping and cleaning. This year the Lord has allowed me to have peace as I have checked off my imperfectly done "to do" list. I am truly content with the abundance that He has provided! He gives me enough hours in each day to accomplish exactly what He has for me to to. The key has been to not make my burden more heavy than it needs to be by worrying about whether my house is perfectly cleaned or whether my Christmas menu is Top Chef-worthy! This year, I chose a few simple, fresh decorations, and left most of the fussy knick-knacks tucked away in storage. May I say that it feels absolutely fantastic to simplify?

Thought 2 - Spend the season meditating on the faithfulness of God: the God Who is there. He does not leave us without hope or without help. God's promises are sure. In all of his dealings with you and with me, God is faithful. Just as He was faithful to deliver the children of Israel out of Egypt, He was faithful to deliver us out of sin and despair by sending us His dear Son. "Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14) He has faithfully delivered me. He has been faithful to preserve me and will be faithful to raise me to eternal life in glory! Our God is uwaveringly faithful from beginning to end. Why should I waste time or energy worrying? "Let us hold fast to our confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised us faithful..." (Hebrews 10:2)

My meditation and prayer this season is that I would not only believe in God's loving faithfulness, but act on it. I pray that this Psalmist's prayer would be true of me this season -- "But I have trusted in Your lovingkindness; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, because He has dealt bountifully with me." (Psalm 13:5-6)

Thought #3 - Take time to share the meaning Christmas with our children: through Scripture, through stories, through songs. Be intentional about this! Set aside the regular tasks and academics to meditate on the goodness of God. Let's take time to do special crafts, read traditional stories, and make some memories. Here are some resources that we have been enjoying:

Advent Family Study
Our Grace Journey's Free Inductive Advent Study

Picture Books
One Wintry Night by Ruth Bell

The Legend of the Christmas Rose by William H. Hooks and Richard Williams

Short Chapter Books
Christmas at Fairacre: Village Christmas/Christmas Mouse/No Holly for Miss Quinn (The Fairacre Christmas Omnibus) by Miss Read
An Angel's Story by Max Lucado

"O measureless might, ineffable love
While angels delight to worship above
Thy mercies how tender, how firm to the end
Our Maker, Defender, Redeemer, and Friend."

-Robert Grant (1779-1838)

Have a blessed, and restful Christmas!

Fall Pursuits 2008

Another academic year has begun here in our little homeschool. My blog break was longer than intended, and my apologies for that! For my first post of the academic year, I am thinking it would be helpful to think about what my goals are for 2008-9. What am I shooting for this year above all else? I will keep returning to these goals to help me stay on track and evaluate what is most important in my day. Are the activities I am spending time on helping me meet my goals?

Here are my top goals and pursuits for 2008-9:

1) Pursue a loving relationship with God - "to have found God, and still to pursue Him is the soul's paradox of Love..." - AW Tozer

2) Pursue being a helper and mate to my husband - "My beloved is mine, and I am his" - Song of Songs 2:16

3) Pursue wisdom in my role as a Mom and home educator - "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord." Col. 3:16

4) Pursue good health and stewardship of the physical body as I plan meals and activities for my family - 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

5) Pursue and intentionally cultivate a gracious, serving heart - "Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear." Hebrews 12:28

Pages could be filled with more goals, as I have so many areas I need to work on! However, starting with 5 is do-able.

Hope your year is off to a good start and that you are reaching for the goals the Lord has laid on your heart! I have homeschool stuff and pictures to post, but I'll save that for later! Have you begun your year with the end in mind? What are the 5 things you will not fail to pursue this year?

Radical Effects of the Resurrection

by John Piper

If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. . . . Why are we in danger every hour? 31 I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day! 32 What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are not raised, "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die." . . . But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. (1 Corinthians 15:19, 30-32, 20)

Paul ponders how he would assess his lifestyle if there were no resurrection from the dead. He says it would be ridiculous-pitiable. The resurrection guided and empowered him to do things which would be ludicrous without the hope of resurrection.

For example, Paul looks at all the dangers he willingly faces. He says they come "every hour." On frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers. (2 Corinthians 11:26)

Then he considers the extent of his self-denial and says, "I die every day." This is Paul's experience of what Jesus said in Luke 9:23, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." I take this to mean that there was something pleasant that Paul had to put to death every day. No day was without the death of some desire.

. . . with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea . . . 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. (2 Corinthians 11:22-28) Then he recalls that he "fought with beasts at Ephesus." We don't know what he is referring to. A certain kind of opponent to the gospel is called a beast in 2 Peter 1:10 and Jude 10. In any case, it was utterly disheartening.

We do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. (2 Corinthians 1:8)

So Paul concludes from his hourly danger and his daily dying and his fighting with beasts that the life he has chosen in following Jesus is foolish and pitiable if he will not be raised from the dead. "If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied." In other words, only the resurrection with Christ and the joys of eternity can make sense out of this suffering.

If death were the end of the matter, he says, "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die." This doesn't mean: Let's all become gluttons and drunkards. They are pitiable too-with or without the resurrection. He means: If there is no resurrection, what makes sense is middle-class moderation to maximize earthly pleasures.

But that is not what Paul chooses. He chooses suffering, because he chooses obedience. When Ananias came to him at his conversion with the words from the Lord Jesus, "I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name" ( Acts 9:16), Paul accepted this as part of his calling. Suffer he must.

How could Paul do it? What was the source of this radical obedience? The answer is given in 1 Corinthians 15:20: "But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep." In other words, Christ was raised, and I will be raised with him. Therefore, nothing suffered for Jesus is in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58).

The hope of the resurrection radically changed the way Paul lived. It freed him from materialism and consumerism. It gave him the power to go without things that many people feel they must have in this life. For example, though he had the right to marry (1 Corinthians 9:5), he renounced that pleasure because he was called to bear so much suffering. This he did because of the resurrection.

This is the way Jesus said the hope of the resurrection is supposed to change our behavior. For example, he told us to invite to our homes people who cannot pay us back in this life. How are we to be motivated to do this? "You will be repaid at the resurrection of the just" (Luke 14:14).

This is a radical call for us to look hard at out present lives to see if they are shaped by the hope of the resurrection. Do we make decisions on the basis of gain in this world or gain in the next? Do we take risks for love's sake that can only be explained as wise if there is a resurrection?

Do we lose heart when our bodies give way to the aging process, and we have to admit that we will never do certain things again. Or do we look to the resurrection and take heart?

We do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison. (2 Corinthians 4:16)

I pray that we will rededicate ourselves during this Easter season to a lifetime of letting the resurrection have its radical effects.

Pastor John

© Desiring God

After finishing this book yesterday, I can tell you The Color of Water will rock your world! I literally could not put it down. Full of tragedy and triumph, mystery and candor, The Color of Water is a book of delicious paradox. Well-written and honest. Definitely a must-read! If you have been wanting to read a book dealing with racial issues for Black History Month, this one is a winner. Five Stars. See the Amazon.com reviews for more info.

Reminder: February is Black History Month

We plan to set aside blocks of time during the month of February to address racial issues and explore AA history. More on that later. For now, I wanted to post a "heads up" and post a recent series by John Piper to get us to begin thinking and praying about what the Lord Jesus wants each of us to do in our homes to become aware of and work on racial issues.

For Families and People of All Ages:
Plain Talk: A Century of African American Speeches


For Adults:

When is Abortion Racism? Part 2
Desiring God Radio


When is Abortion Racism? Part 1
Desiring God Radio


The Reformed Faith and Racial Harmony Part 2
Desiring God Radio


The Reformed Faith and Racial Harmony Part 1
Desiring God Radio


For Kids:

Black History Month for Kids

It's Operation Christmas Child time again - National Collection Week is November 12-19. Have you made plans to get your shoe box packed and dropped off? This year, Miss M took the responsibility for doing much of the shopping and packing. She chose a girl in her age range, aged 10-14, to send our gift to. We pray that our little package will reach just the right little girl and make her smile. : )

Links:

How to pack a shoebox

Find a drop off site near you

Why is America so attracted to the DaVinci Code?

Wild and Wacky Jesus Claims

From the Associated Press - April 7, 2007

"The Easter season has an odd, new tradition: The period of reflection on the Crucifixion and Resurrection has become a popular time for marketers to roll out works - from the scholarly to the sensational - that challenge Christianity's core beliefs....

New Testament scholars and archeologists say that, the more outlandish the claims, the bigger the sales impact - which increases demand for ideas from the fringe. They are being presented to a public with little knowledge of early Christianity reading unfiltered information on the Internet, experts say....

"Now all you have to do is click on the computer screen," said Jodi Magness, a specialist in early Judaism and archaeology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "That makes it easier for people to read up about things. The public is presented with information that they cannot really evaluate."

Read full article here: http://news.aol.com/topnews/articles/_a/christians-upset-by-wacky-jesus-claims/n20070406001009990004

FORGIV'ENESS, n. forgiv'ness.

1. The act of forgiving; the pardon of an offender, by which he is considered and treated as not guilty. The forgiveness of enemies is a Christian duty.

2. The pardon or remission of an offense or crime; as the forgiveness of sin or of injuries.

3. Disposition to pardon; willingness to forgive.
And mild forgiveness intercede to stop the coming blow.

4. Remission of a debt, fine or penalty.

--From Webster's 1828 Dictionary

• “So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.” Colossians 3 :12-13
  

Last night a friend and I finished up our Precept study of the book of Colossians. Verses 12-13 of chapter 3 (above) challenge, admonish, and even command us to forgive others as we are also forgiven by God. Then the verse goes on. Am I kind? Am I compassionate? To children, husband, co-workers, extended family members? Am I holding a grudge against anyone who has wronged me?

• 'The act of forgiving; the pardon of an offender, by which he is considered and treated as not guilty. The forgiveness of enemies is a Christian duty.' (Webster)

A Christian duty – how simply put and yet how profoundly true! I needed that reminder to let go of the offenses of yesterday and give each person a clean slate, just as God gives me new mercy each day.

• '...put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other...'

“Well, you don't know WHAT the person did to me!” Yes, but God does. He will repay and judge each person according to what he has done. That isn't up to me! Is there anyone that you can't stand to be around because of an old grudge?

• 'For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. "But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.' -Jesus speaking in Matt 6:14-15

Jesus is not in the business of making suggestions. His word regarding forgivenss is sure. My prayer this week is that I will be a woman of grace and forgiveness. Forgiveness is not natural, it has to be an intentional choice. An act of the will. It calls for trust --trust in the Lord's ultimate judgement. Every person will have to give account to God one day and stand before His judgement seat. Isn't it ironic that we so often seek grace and forgiveness from God for ourselves, but then want God's justice for everyone else. Hmmm. Can't have it both ways, can I?

Prayer:

Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting. Help me to devote myself to putting on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience by Your enabling. Remind me to forgive others, as You have forgiven me. Set me free from secret grudges and lingering bitterness. I yield them to You. Search my heart. --Psalm 139:23-24, Col 3:12-13.

Lecture: New Modernism & the Bible (MP3)

Writer's Spotlight:

He is There and He is Not Silent

by Frances Schaeffer, 1972

reprinted from The Shelter - A Francis A. Schaeffer Site

Summary:

One of philosophy's biggest problems is that anything exists at all and has the form that it does. Another is that man exists as a personal being and makes true choices and has moral responsibility. In fact, the only sufficient answer is that the infinite-personal triune God is there and He is not silent. He has spoken to man in the Bible.

Excerpts:

"No man can live without a world-view; therefore, there is no man who is not a philosopher."(Francis A. Schaeffer, He Is There and He Is Not Silent, Ch. 1)



"He is not silent. The reason we have the answer is because the infinite-personal God, the full Trinitarian God, has not been silent. He has told us who He is. Couch your concept of inspiration and revelation in these terms, and you will see how it cuts down into the warp and woof of modern thinking. He is not silent. That is the reason we know. It is because He has spoken. What has He told us? Has He told us only about other things? No, He has told us truth about Himself -- and because He has told us truth about Himself -- that He is the infinite-personal, triune God -- we have the answer to existence." (Francis A. Schaeffer, He Is There and He Is Not Silent, Ch. 1)

"Behaviorism, and all forms of determinism, say that man is not personal -- that he is not intrinsically different from the impersonal. But the difficulty with this is first that it denies the observation man has made of himself for at least 40,000 years (if we accept the modern dating system); and second, there is no determinist or behaviorist who can really live consistently on the basis of his determinism or his behavioristic psychology -- saying, that is, that man is only a machine." (Francis A. Schaeffer, He Is There and He Is Not Silent, Ch. 1)


"...philosophy and religion deal with the same basic questions. Christians, and especially evangelical Christians, have tended to forget this. Philosophy and religion do not deal with different questions, though they give different answers and use different terms. The basic questions of both philosophy and religion (and I mean religion here in the wide sense, including Christianity) are the questions of Being (that is, what exists), of man and his dilemma (that is, morals), and of epistemology (that is, how man knows). Philosophy deals with these points, but so does religion, including evangelical, orthodox Christianity." (Francis A. Schaeffer, He Is There and He Is Not Silent, Ch. 1)


"There are not many possible answers to the three basic areas of philosophic thought, even though there is a great deal of possible detail surrounding the basic answers. It will help us tremendously -- whether we are studying philosophy at university and feel buffeted to death, or whether we are trying to be ministers of the gospel, speaking to ordinary people -- if we realize that although there are many details which can be discussed, the possible answers -- in their basic concepts -- are exceedingly few." (Francis A. Schaeffer, He Is There and He Is Not Silent, Ch. 1)


"The view that everything is chaotic and there are no ultimate answers is held by many thinking people today, but in my experience they always hold it very selectively. Almost without exception (actually, I have never found an exception), they discuss rationally until they are losing the discussion, and then they try to slip over into the answer of irrationality. But as soon as the one we are discussing with does that, we must point out to him that as soon as he becomes selective in his argument of irrationality he makes his whole argument suspect. Theoretically the position of irrationalism can be held, but no one lives with it in regard either to the external world or the categories of his own thought world and discussion. As a matter of fact, if this position were argued properly, all discussion would come to an end. Communication would end. We would have only a series of meaningless sounds -- blah, blah, blah. The Theatre of the Absurd has said this, but it fails, because if you read and listen carefully to the Theatre of the Absurd, it is always trying to communicate its view that one cannot communicate. There is always a communication about the statement that there is no communication. It is always selective, with pockets of order brought in somewhere along the line. Thus we see that this class of answer -- that all things are irrational -- is not an answer." (Francis A. Schaeffer, He Is There and He Is Not Silent, Ch. 1)


"Beginning with the impersonal, everything, including man, must be explained in terms of the impersonal plus time plus chance....Beginning with the impersonal, there is no meaning or significance to diversity. We can think of the old Hindu pantheism, which begins everything with om. In reality, everything ought to have ended with om on a single note, with no variance, because there is no reason for significance or variance. And even if pan-everythingism gave an answer for form, it gives no meaning for freedom. Cycles are usually introduced as though waves were being tossed up out of the sea, but this gives no final solution to any of these problems. Morals, under every form of pantheism, have no meaning as morals, for everything in pan-everythingism is finally equal. Modern theology must move towards situational ethics because there is no such thing as morals in this setting. The word morals is used, but it is really only a word." (Francis A. Schaeffer, He Is There and He Is Not Silent, Ch. 1)

"If we begin with less than personality, we must finally reduce personality to the impersonal. The modern scientific world does this in its reductionism, in which the word personality is only the impersonal plus complexity. In the naturalistic scientific world, whether in sociology, psychology or in the natural sciences, a man is reduced to the impersonal plus complexity."(Francis A. Schaeffer, He Is There and He Is Not Silent, Ch. 1)



"Let us notice that no word is as meaningless as is the word god. Of itself it means nothing. Like any other word, it is only a linguistic symbol -- g-o-d -- until content is put into it. This is especially so for the word god, because no other word has been used to convey such absolutely opposite meanings. The mere use of the word god proves nothing. You must put content into it. The word god as such is no answer to the philosophic problem of existence, but the Judeo-Christian content to the word God as given in the Old and New Testaments does meet the need of what exists -- the existence of the universe in its complexity and of man as man. And what is that content? It relates to an infinite-personal God, who is personal unity and diversity on the high order of Trinity." (Francis A. Schaeffer, He Is There and He Is Not Silent, Ch. 1)


"Every once in a while in my discussions someone asks how I can believe in the Trinity. My answer is always the same. I would still be an agnostic if there was no Trinity, because there would be no answers. Without the high order of personal unity and diversity as given in the Trinity, there are no answers." (Francis A. Schaeffer, He Is There and He Is Not Silent, Ch. 1)


Commercial Availability of Work:

He is There and He is Not Silent (paper - 100 pages)
Trilogy (hard - 367 pages)
The Complete Works of Francis Schaeffer (paper)
The Complete Works of Francis Schaeffer (Windows CDROM) Quotes From The Book

LINKS:
Francis A. Schaeffer: The Early Years (free mp3 lectures)

Francis A. Schaeffer: The Later Years (free mp3 lectures)

Learning to Cry for the Culture (article in Christianity Today)

The Francis A. Schaeffer Foundation
Francis Schaeffer Institute
CyberShelter
L'Abri Resources by L.G. Parkhurst Jr.

Just Showed Up For

My Own Life

I saw Sarah Groves at the 2006 Hearts at Home Conference. Expecting light entertainment, I was shocked by what Sarah shared. While she could have just sung a few songs and left us "happy," she chose to relay the reality of human suffering that she saw first hand last year. This talented woman is choosing to respond to human tragedy in the world and teaching others to do the same. She showed a video clip of a film that documents her relief work: Sara Groves : Nomad: Just Showed Up For My Own Life DVD by Nomad. She shares her inspiring story of moving from a fearful, complacent suburban mom to a woman of purpose and action. I highly recommend her DVD for a jolt of reality. It is so easy to bury our heads in the sand, but Sarath and others are leading the fight to raise awareness and show real compassion for the world's oppressed. She is involved with an organization called International Justice Mission and IJM is one of many great places you can go to begin to educate yourself. Please visit International Justice Mission today!

In our homeschool, we have made a family project out of raising awareness about worldwide human and child slavery. I was horrified to learn that there are 27 million people in bondage around the world -- and half of them are women and children. Human trafficking is on the rise! Trafficking in human beings may soon bring in more revenue for organized crime than illegal drugs. Did you let that hit you? When we look the other way, we are part of the PROBLEM. Take a few minutes right now and watch this video: http://www.zoechildrenshomes.org/ourfight_overview.phpw.php

So, what can we do to help end the sale of human beings? Here are some ideas from The Amazing Change

Ten Things You Can Do

• Sign the Petition. Become an abolitionist by signing The Petition to End Modern Day Slavery. Click Here To Print a Petition. Take the petition to your school, church, family, friends, et al., and then send it to us (mailing address provided on petition)
  

• See Amazing Grace. This film is a great introduction to the work of William Wilberforce, an original abolitionist. Learn how you can carry on his legacy.
  

• Raise funds to free slaves. Use the tools on this website, such as Loose Change to Loosen Chains, to start your own fundraising campaign.
  

• Educate yourself. Use the resources on the site to learn about the horrors of historical and modern day slavery.

• Show solidarity. Buy The Amazing Change t-shirt and tell friends and family about your mission to abolish slavery.
  

• Create a Clapham Circle. William Wilberforce was part of a group of friends and neighbors called the Clapham Circle. They met regularly to discuss ways to advance the cause of abolition. You can form your own Clapham Circle. Have weekly meetings with friends or neighbors in your community to discuss the issue of modern day slavery. Download tools from this website to facilitate your discussion.

• Blog. Write about modern day slavery and The Amazing Change in our online community or on your MySpace, Xanga or Facebook profile. Include a link to our website so friends can learn how to get involved.


• Ask others. Talk to leaders in your community, school or church about The Amazing Change. and encourage them to become involved.
  
  
• Read More. Read books about modern day slavery like Not for Sale by David Batstone.
  

• Volunteer. Pass on the legacy of William Wilberforce and donate your time to The Amazing Change by joining the street team, creating a Clapham Circle, or fundraising to free slaves.

D0 SOMETHING.

Hidden Treasures

This is my first official blog entry. It has been so uplifting viewing others' blogs, I thought it would be fun to take a crack at blogging myself. Who am I? By His grace, I am first of all a follower of Jesus Christ, a wife to a great husband, a homeschooling mom to a vibrant 4th grader, a student of the Scriptures, and a part-time preschool teacher. Today's blog entry is based on Colossians 2...that all wisdom and knowledge is hidden in Christ. NOT man's philosophy, NOT in American culture, NOT in homeschooling, NOT in material possessions, but in Christ.

...that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God's mystery, that is, Christ Himself,
in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge....Colossians 2:2-3

A dear friend and I have been working through a Precept Colossians study, and it has been amazing. If you have never done a Precept study, may I heartily recommend finding a class in your area or a friend to work through a study on your own. We are really learning to dig into the Scriptures!

Currently in our homeschool we are beginning a study of the American Civil War using a Living Books approach, and TruthQuest as a guide. I went to the library last night and found a few excellent books, videos and audio books. The Boys War, A Nation Torn, Lincoln: A Photobiography, and Behind Rebel Lines all look like excellent reads. We will also listen to Little Women on audio and watch the Ken Burns Civil War videos. I can't wait to get started! Lately, I have been working on some TruthQuest history schedules, as well as some easy downloadable notebook pages. I will be uploading to my blog soon!

For my own education, I am reading a book myself on the topic of women in the Old South called Within the Plantation Household: Black and White Women of the Old South (Gender and American Culture) by Elizabeth FoGenovese. It looks a bit heavy-handedly feminist in perspective, but I expect it to be an interesting read.

OK, that's enough for my first post. I'll be back soon. Be sure and check back!