Matt had board-certification tests this week. He takes them in Milwaukee instead of Chicago. That meant Rachel had a couple of days to kill while he was at the test center. They spent the evenings with his family, and she spent two days hanging around here. It was SO nice to just be in the same house, not necessarily trying to focus on visiting, still doing chores or putzing outside, but just being together and getting plenty of time to chat. Katie and the girls came over on Friday too, and six of us had a picnic on the deck.
We also had non-family company. A gal from Duluth was visiting CUW. Her dad and sister needed a place to stay, so they were with us for a night this week.
I had my weirdest day ever at work. One sweet elderly woman came in with a check to cash, but she'd accidentally torn off the "micr numbers" on the bottom of the check, the numbers that tell which bank, which account at that bank, check number, and eventually the amount is encoded on that line too. I also had a couple come in and tell me that they were going to take a half hour. An exaggeration, of course. But it wasn't. At least they were very pleasant. Some other weird stuff happened too.
Katie, Nathan, and the girls showed up this morning at work. Katie needed quarters for laundry. Alia enjoyed talking to the personal banker about the little solar-operated Happy Flower on her desk. Zoe smiled shyly. It was clear from the conversation that these were my grandbabies. When they left, my co-workers asked, "So, was that your son?" Not one of them -- all of them thought Nathan was my son, and Katie my daughter-in-law. That was kinda sweet!
Gary did a gentle tilling over the asparagus patch. The sedum and hostas are cleaned out from the winter crud. Lilacs are starting to bud out. My bleeding hearts are not thriving, but they did survive another winter. I finished pruning the apples and cherries; I'm afraid I may have been overzealous with one of the apple trees. I dug up around the fruit trees and now need to surround them with a hefty dose of manure. I prepped one raised bed for planting and put in about 18" each of kohlrabi, spinach, beets, and lettuce. I have grand plans to put out a new 3' row of lettuce/spinach every two weeks, so we can load up with salads in May and June.
Maggie and I both need shorts. I don't think there's anything in the basement that will fit either of us. Bummers. Take time for sewing, or take time for shopping. Maybe I'll just keep wearing jeans when I'm working outside. But that will wear out my jean-knees, prevent tanning, and make me hot. Hmm, this problem must be solved.
Last Sunday Gary and I attended "To Kill a Mockingbird" downtown. I had low expectations because of our only other visit to this theatre, but this show was well done! One of my favorite actors played the bad guy. At the end of the show, Jimmy (having played the racist bigot who framed a black man for his own crime) came out for the curtain call with his arm around the actor whom he'd done in. It was classy.
Gary injured his hand several weeks ago, trying to open a car door that was frozen shut tighter than he realized. Having given it time to improve, and having it get worse instead of better, he saw the doctor and is now on drugs for a week.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Performative Word
When God says something, it happens. What He says doesn't merely give information. His word makes stuff happen.
When He said, "Let there be light," there was light. And there's still light.
When He says, "I forgive you all your sins," then, by golly, those sins are forgiven. His word makes it so.
When He says, "This is My body," then something happens. That bread becomes His body.
His word created light. His word created fishes and birdies and critters. His word to "be fruitful and multiply" means that people are still having babies. His word at creation means that grass still grows and that we can expect our gardens to bring forth food for us this summer.
That's the "performative word." It doesn't just describe. It actually performs what it says. But does it matter HOW it's said?
I don't want to tread into a naughty ground that implies the words must be spoken just so, with the right inflections and the right tone and the right pauses and all that jazz, lest the words be powerless. That'd just be stupid.
And yet, you've probably heard the same thing I've heard: people who can manage to speak words of sweet gospel with a demanding tone-of-voice, with a scolding face, managing to turn "Trust Me" into a damning command instead of a faith-kindling invitation. You've heard people who can turn the Beatitudes into words of law about how we're supposed to act, instead of being the blessing that they are. So does it matter how the words are spoken?
I was told recently that God's word must be spoken in God's way.
Wow. That answers a lot of things. That applies to the things I was just writing about. But it also explains why kids playing church (baptizing dolls or pets, saying the Words of Institution) are not administering the sacraments. These aren't magic words, incantations, effecting circumstances by their mere utterance. But when God's word is spoken in God's way, it is performative.
When He said, "Let there be light," there was light. And there's still light.
When He says, "I forgive you all your sins," then, by golly, those sins are forgiven. His word makes it so.
When He says, "This is My body," then something happens. That bread becomes His body.
His word created light. His word created fishes and birdies and critters. His word to "be fruitful and multiply" means that people are still having babies. His word at creation means that grass still grows and that we can expect our gardens to bring forth food for us this summer.
That's the "performative word." It doesn't just describe. It actually performs what it says. But does it matter HOW it's said?
I don't want to tread into a naughty ground that implies the words must be spoken just so, with the right inflections and the right tone and the right pauses and all that jazz, lest the words be powerless. That'd just be stupid.
And yet, you've probably heard the same thing I've heard: people who can manage to speak words of sweet gospel with a demanding tone-of-voice, with a scolding face, managing to turn "Trust Me" into a damning command instead of a faith-kindling invitation. You've heard people who can turn the Beatitudes into words of law about how we're supposed to act, instead of being the blessing that they are. So does it matter how the words are spoken?
I was told recently that God's word must be spoken in God's way.
Wow. That answers a lot of things. That applies to the things I was just writing about. But it also explains why kids playing church (baptizing dolls or pets, saying the Words of Institution) are not administering the sacraments. These aren't magic words, incantations, effecting circumstances by their mere utterance. But when God's word is spoken in God's way, it is performative.
Stuff
Perennial onions and cilantro are poking up in the garden.
Maggie and I are working on identifying trees in the pine family. Almost everything we find are spruces, with a pine here and there. No firs, no hemlocks, no junipers. I need to find an arboretum.
We saw the oral surgeon this week about the extraction of Maggie's wisdom teeth. The doctor said she's one of the rare people who actually has room in her mouth for wisdom teeth, and they came in nicely, unimpacted. But becauce of the vcfs, her teeth rot so badly. Some molars erupt with decay already in them. Wisdom teeth will rot. Not "might rot." But will. So they must go.
One of my favorite talk-radio hosts suggested using Verify the Recall to get an idea of where people running for [non-partisan] local office stand on some issues. It seemed like a fantastic idea, and I spent some time this evening looking up school board members and town board members. The village board is a good deal more liberal than the board governing the township. County board is next on the list. If you're in Wisconsin, use the list. (Of course, first you should verify whether your name was added without your signing. Not that I would ever suggest that there were irregularities or forgeries on these petitions....)
We stayed up too late last night, hoping for better ogling of the northern lights. All we found was ever-so-faint ones. But hey! Northern lights! Cool -- even if they are so faint as to be nearly invisible.
My regularly-scheduled days at work are going to be changing in mid-spring. I was SO looking forward to being able to attend symposium this year. Alas, I am again going to miss much of it. At least I make it through Passiontide this year, still with the bestest imaginable work-schedule. My schedule will presumably change again in fall, when one of my co-workers begins a new semester in college and her class schedule changes. This makes it hard to figure out what days to buy APT tickets for.
Athena has gotten snugly in her old age. She likes sleeping with a person. She will jump up on laps and ask to be petted. Last night, our bedroom door did not latch when we closed it. You know the game king-of-the-hill? Well, I was the hill, and there was a cat-spat over domination of the hill, and who got to sleep on my back. Silly girls.
Maggie had a hankering for cookies. So for some unreasonable reason, we threw together a batch of chocolate chip cookies last night. Mmmmmm. Warm cookies!
Maggie and I are working on identifying trees in the pine family. Almost everything we find are spruces, with a pine here and there. No firs, no hemlocks, no junipers. I need to find an arboretum.
We saw the oral surgeon this week about the extraction of Maggie's wisdom teeth. The doctor said she's one of the rare people who actually has room in her mouth for wisdom teeth, and they came in nicely, unimpacted. But becauce of the vcfs, her teeth rot so badly. Some molars erupt with decay already in them. Wisdom teeth will rot. Not "might rot." But will. So they must go.
One of my favorite talk-radio hosts suggested using Verify the Recall to get an idea of where people running for [non-partisan] local office stand on some issues. It seemed like a fantastic idea, and I spent some time this evening looking up school board members and town board members. The village board is a good deal more liberal than the board governing the township. County board is next on the list. If you're in Wisconsin, use the list. (Of course, first you should verify whether your name was added without your signing. Not that I would ever suggest that there were irregularities or forgeries on these petitions....)
We stayed up too late last night, hoping for better ogling of the northern lights. All we found was ever-so-faint ones. But hey! Northern lights! Cool -- even if they are so faint as to be nearly invisible.
My regularly-scheduled days at work are going to be changing in mid-spring. I was SO looking forward to being able to attend symposium this year. Alas, I am again going to miss much of it. At least I make it through Passiontide this year, still with the bestest imaginable work-schedule. My schedule will presumably change again in fall, when one of my co-workers begins a new semester in college and her class schedule changes. This makes it hard to figure out what days to buy APT tickets for.
Athena has gotten snugly in her old age. She likes sleeping with a person. She will jump up on laps and ask to be petted. Last night, our bedroom door did not latch when we closed it. You know the game king-of-the-hill? Well, I was the hill, and there was a cat-spat over domination of the hill, and who got to sleep on my back. Silly girls.
Maggie had a hankering for cookies. So for some unreasonable reason, we threw together a batch of chocolate chip cookies last night. Mmmmmm. Warm cookies!
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Psalm 77 -- The Cliff's Notes Version
Verses 1-9 Asaph says that he keeps praying, but it sure looks like God doesn't care.
Verses 10-14 He says he will remember what God done.
Verses 15-20 Asaph recites the events of the exodus. That stuff was history hundreds of years previous. Asaph wasn't remembering something God had done specifically in his life, at least not something that was unique to his life. Asaph wasn't talking about a recent miracle. He went back hundreds of years; he spoke of the same old events that were sung about in all the hymns, over and over. What kind of help would that be?
All the help in the world!
Our God is funny that way.
Reciting the "same old things" that He did a long time ago, that is where we find our help and our comfort. That is where we learn that His promises are sure and certain. That is where we learn that He is for us.
Verses 10-14 He says he will remember what God done.
Verses 15-20 Asaph recites the events of the exodus. That stuff was history hundreds of years previous. Asaph wasn't remembering something God had done specifically in his life, at least not something that was unique to his life. Asaph wasn't talking about a recent miracle. He went back hundreds of years; he spoke of the same old events that were sung about in all the hymns, over and over. What kind of help would that be?
All the help in the world!
Our God is funny that way.
Reciting the "same old things" that He did a long time ago, that is where we find our help and our comfort. That is where we learn that His promises are sure and certain. That is where we learn that He is for us.
Monday, March 12, 2012
Zoe and the Shark
We went to the science museum last week.
Alia peeking through the window of the boat.
Zoe could have hung out at the aquarium for hours.
Maggie peeking through the window too.
Nanna-mobile
I have car seats in my back seat.
And a cell phone in my front seat. But I was a good nanna and gave the cell phone back to its owner.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Perfectly Balanced
After 15 months, I finally had a month where my drawer at work was balanced every day, there was no need to contact customers to correct errors I made, and all my paperwork ran through the "proof machine" without mistakes. That means I finally made the Perfectly Balanced List.
Thing is, there were a couple of mistakes I made that were the kind that didn't show up in the place that counts toward being perfectly balanced. So I was feeling guilty for making the list. (Some way to hit my first time on the poster, eh?) Then I was the only one from our branch who made it this month, and my boss praised me before the rest of the employees. More guilt. Then to top it off, I won the drawing for a restaurant gift-card. I didn't even know that making the list made you eligible for a prize, but I won it, the very first time I made the list. More guilt.
Can I enjoy the lovely dinner-date with Gary even if I know I don't deserve the prize?
At least Gary's having fun with this. Look at the name of my blog and the reason I chose that name. Gary keeps laughing at the words "perfectly balanced" being used in conjunction with me in any way, shape, or form!
Thing is, there were a couple of mistakes I made that were the kind that didn't show up in the place that counts toward being perfectly balanced. So I was feeling guilty for making the list. (Some way to hit my first time on the poster, eh?) Then I was the only one from our branch who made it this month, and my boss praised me before the rest of the employees. More guilt. Then to top it off, I won the drawing for a restaurant gift-card. I didn't even know that making the list made you eligible for a prize, but I won it, the very first time I made the list. More guilt.
Can I enjoy the lovely dinner-date with Gary even if I know I don't deserve the prize?
At least Gary's having fun with this. Look at the name of my blog and the reason I chose that name. Gary keeps laughing at the words "perfectly balanced" being used in conjunction with me in any way, shape, or form!
Saturday, March 10, 2012
God's Memory
Psalm 78 tells what God had done for His people: He brought them out of Egypt, fed them manna, gave them water to drink in the wilderness, defeated their enemies, and so forth. Then I hit verse 53 where the Israelites are at the edge of the Red Sea:
He led them on safely
so that they did not fear.
They did not fear?! Bwaaa haaa haaa haaaa!
Sorry. That was my first reaction.
My second reaction was, "God, are You reading the same Bible I'm reading?"
Sorry. That would be sassy, wouldn't it?
But then I started thinking about Hebrews 11. Abraham, the man of great faith. God didn't seem to remember that little incident in Egypt with Abraham's wife being married off to the pharaoh. How about Isaac blessing Jacob "in faith"? Not because of trickery and deceit? Or how about David, the man after God's own heart, whose tale was told by Hollywood in the 50's because "telling a Bible story" was the only way they could get that much smuttiness and violence past the movie censors back then?
God calls them holy.
God calls them righteous.
God's memory isn't like mine.
According to Your mercy remember me,
for Your goodness' sake, O Lord. (Psalm 25)
He led them on safely
so that they did not fear.
They did not fear?! Bwaaa haaa haaa haaaa!
Sorry. That was my first reaction.
My second reaction was, "God, are You reading the same Bible I'm reading?"
Sorry. That would be sassy, wouldn't it?
But then I started thinking about Hebrews 11. Abraham, the man of great faith. God didn't seem to remember that little incident in Egypt with Abraham's wife being married off to the pharaoh. How about Isaac blessing Jacob "in faith"? Not because of trickery and deceit? Or how about David, the man after God's own heart, whose tale was told by Hollywood in the 50's because "telling a Bible story" was the only way they could get that much smuttiness and violence past the movie censors back then?
God calls them holy.
God calls them righteous.
God's memory isn't like mine.
According to Your mercy remember me,
for Your goodness' sake, O Lord. (Psalm 25)
Harvey
We recently watched the Jimmy Stewart movie about the fellow who had a 6'-tall invisible rabbit for a pal. Watching something like that makes you wonder about how society --then and now-- responded/responds to those who are mentally ill. Did society used to have more tolerance of people who were odd or melancholy or hallucinating?
I have a theory. Crimes used to be punished. Violence was not allowed to get out of hand. If someone was weird --but not a threat to others-- then that guy was allowed to be weird. But if he was a danger to others (such as someone with lots of knives, who had made threats) then there was no dinking around with his rights. If he was threatening other folks' rights, he was locked up. Because we are accustomed to the breakdown of society and our unwillingness to call sin sin, does that make us unwilling to deal swiftly and firmly with the mentally ill when they are dangerous? And does that make us uncomfortable being around anyone odd or quirky ... never knowing whether this is a safe person or not?
I have a theory. Crimes used to be punished. Violence was not allowed to get out of hand. If someone was weird --but not a threat to others-- then that guy was allowed to be weird. But if he was a danger to others (such as someone with lots of knives, who had made threats) then there was no dinking around with his rights. If he was threatening other folks' rights, he was locked up. Because we are accustomed to the breakdown of society and our unwillingness to call sin sin, does that make us unwilling to deal swiftly and firmly with the mentally ill when they are dangerous? And does that make us uncomfortable being around anyone odd or quirky ... never knowing whether this is a safe person or not?
Thursday, March 08, 2012
Mission Province in Sweden
The news is not good.
It's debatable whether the state church in Sweden is even Christian. Some of the pastors who love their Lord and yearn to preach His gospel purely have associated themselves with the Mission Province. Among the many theological problems in the state church, some of the outwardly obvious are women's ordination and the blessing of homosexuality. The state church (aka, the government) warned pastors not to officiate in services of the Mission Province's koinonias, and not to perform ecclesiastical acts, at risk of being defrocked. Not only does this threaten the pastors' office and income, but it threatens the laymen with the loss of their shepherds.
Please pray for our Scandinavian brothers.
It's debatable whether the state church in Sweden is even Christian. Some of the pastors who love their Lord and yearn to preach His gospel purely have associated themselves with the Mission Province. Among the many theological problems in the state church, some of the outwardly obvious are women's ordination and the blessing of homosexuality. The state church (aka, the government) warned pastors not to officiate in services of the Mission Province's koinonias, and not to perform ecclesiastical acts, at risk of being defrocked. Not only does this threaten the pastors' office and income, but it threatens the laymen with the loss of their shepherds.
Please pray for our Scandinavian brothers.
Tuesday, March 06, 2012
Tell No One
Jesus kept telling them, "Tell no one." After miracles. After the confession of Peter. After the transfiguration. "Tell no one."
As we studied the last chapter of Luke, Pastor pointed out the verse where Jesus instructed the disciples to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit was poured out and they were "endued with power from on high."
All through Jesus' ministry, the apostles were botching it up. They argued over who was the greatest. They told the Canaanite woman to get lost. They tried to shoo away the parents bringing their kids to Jesus. They wanted to fight with swords to defend Jesus. Even after the resurrection: "Lord, will You now restore the kingdom to Israel?" Even after three years of hanging around with Jesus in His peripatetic seminary, they couldn't get it right until Pentecost when they were filled with the Spirit and He brought to their remembrance everything Jesus had said and done.
It kinda sorta makes sense that Jesus had been telling them not to say anything.
As we studied the last chapter of Luke, Pastor pointed out the verse where Jesus instructed the disciples to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit was poured out and they were "endued with power from on high."
All through Jesus' ministry, the apostles were botching it up. They argued over who was the greatest. They told the Canaanite woman to get lost. They tried to shoo away the parents bringing their kids to Jesus. They wanted to fight with swords to defend Jesus. Even after the resurrection: "Lord, will You now restore the kingdom to Israel?" Even after three years of hanging around with Jesus in His peripatetic seminary, they couldn't get it right until Pentecost when they were filled with the Spirit and He brought to their remembrance everything Jesus had said and done.
It kinda sorta makes sense that Jesus had been telling them not to say anything.
Heart Recipe
Cover the heart with water and soak overnight in the refrigerator.
Drain. Trim away the connective tissue and any other icky stuff. Chop into cubes, about 1-2" square.
Sprinkle with seasoned salt.
Cover with water again, and let soak several more hours.
Drain and pat dry with paper towels.
Dredge meat cubes in white flour seasoned with pepper and Emeril's Essence.
In batches small enough to fit in your Dutch oven, brown cubes in bacon fat. This will take about 5 minutes per batch. Remove meat to a bowl and set aside for a few minutes.
Chop 3 large onions. Saute them in the same Dutch oven. I used bacon fat and a splash of sesame oil. While the onions are cooking, roughly chop 1 rib of celery and 1 carrot. Give them a whirl in the food processor to mince them, and then add them to the onions. When the onions are soft and beginning to brown, return the meat to the pot.
Add about 3-5 teaspoons of beef Better-than-Bouillon, stirred into 1/2 cup of water. Or you could use bouillon if you fail to buy the yummy stuff, about 3-5 cubes. Then add about 1 cup of wine. I used Madeira this time. Add any other seasonings you might desire, such as garlic. Put the lid on the Dutch oven, and bake it for 3 hours in a 350 oven, until meat is tender. Check occasionally to stir and to see if stew needs more liquid.
Serve over noodles or mashed potatoes.
Drain. Trim away the connective tissue and any other icky stuff. Chop into cubes, about 1-2" square.
Sprinkle with seasoned salt.
Cover with water again, and let soak several more hours.
Drain and pat dry with paper towels.
Dredge meat cubes in white flour seasoned with pepper and Emeril's Essence.
In batches small enough to fit in your Dutch oven, brown cubes in bacon fat. This will take about 5 minutes per batch. Remove meat to a bowl and set aside for a few minutes.
Chop 3 large onions. Saute them in the same Dutch oven. I used bacon fat and a splash of sesame oil. While the onions are cooking, roughly chop 1 rib of celery and 1 carrot. Give them a whirl in the food processor to mince them, and then add them to the onions. When the onions are soft and beginning to brown, return the meat to the pot.
Add about 3-5 teaspoons of beef Better-than-Bouillon, stirred into 1/2 cup of water. Or you could use bouillon if you fail to buy the yummy stuff, about 3-5 cubes. Then add about 1 cup of wine. I used Madeira this time. Add any other seasonings you might desire, such as garlic. Put the lid on the Dutch oven, and bake it for 3 hours in a 350 oven, until meat is tender. Check occasionally to stir and to see if stew needs more liquid.
Serve over noodles or mashed potatoes.
Monday, March 05, 2012
You Shall Not Make Any Graven Image
A friend asked once, "Who is the man in the picture with you, on the sidebar of your blog?" I told him, "That's my dad." That's what he expected me to say.
Those Wiccans knew that Pastor Wiest didn't think that the little piece of metal hanging over his heart was, itself, his god. They knew he meant that it depicted his God. Just like you and I know that my dad is not an arrangement of electricity and pixels on a computer screen. He's a flesh-and-blood person who begat me and taught me to bowl and ate supper with me. Still, we say of the photo, "That's my dad."
That was the only response I ever had for the iconoclasts (the people who disapprove of crucifixes, icons, stained glass windows in churches, and creches at Christmastime). But a friend's blog yesterday mentioned something from the 700's. St John of Damascus (whom we Lutherans might know because of his hymns "The Day of Resurrection" and "Come, Ye Faithful, Raise the Strain") said that we can make graven images now. (Aside: I'm not saying I agree with everything at this link. Some Orthodox writers talk about icons as representations of salvation history and the saints, while others talk about icons as a way to have a mystical encounter with the saints. Representations I understand; it kinda creeps me out to hear talk of icons being a means to communicate with those who've gone on before.)
Anyway, back to John's point. In the Old Testament times, God did not have a body. But in Christ's incarnation, God took on flesh. And if Jesus has a face, we are able to draw pictures of it, based on the pictures drawn by the guys who hung out with Him a couple of millenia ago. If God has a body, we can make a statue depicting it, especially when it shows what He has done to save us.
Sunday, March 04, 2012
Saturday, March 03, 2012
Saving the Environment
So, there are people in this country who are opposed to drilling for oil or building nuclear power plants. Man is the bad guy. Man ruins the environment. Man is the enemy of the animals. Everything in nature is good ... except for man. Man is evil.
But aren't these the same folks who don't believe in original sin?
But aren't these the same folks who don't believe in original sin?
Friday, March 02, 2012
Prayer, and the Fall of Jerusalem
Pastor's always telling us that God never tells us to pray for something unless He promises to give it. It sounds reasonable. God promises to forgive our sins, and thus we pray, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." He promises to provide for our temporal needs, and so He bids us pray, "Give us this day our daily bread."
But sometimes I still wonder. Really? If God tells us to pray for something, does that really mean He's promising it too? Always? Or is this valid only for the Our Father?
So, anyway, we're reading along in Matthew about the warnings of the approaching fall of Jerusalem and how it's connected to the end times. In that section where Jesus is telling His followers about escaping the destruction, there's a verse (24:20) where He says, "Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath." Hey! How does this fit with the rubric that God's invitation to pray for something is also a promise to provide it for us? After all, escaping Jerusalem was merely a temporal situation. Surely it wasn't a promise too?
Guess what? You look up the history of the Fall of Jerusalem, and you find that the Roman siege of the city began at Passover and ended in late summer.
I shouldn't find that freakily delightful. But I do.
But sometimes I still wonder. Really? If God tells us to pray for something, does that really mean He's promising it too? Always? Or is this valid only for the Our Father?
So, anyway, we're reading along in Matthew about the warnings of the approaching fall of Jerusalem and how it's connected to the end times. In that section where Jesus is telling His followers about escaping the destruction, there's a verse (24:20) where He says, "Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath." Hey! How does this fit with the rubric that God's invitation to pray for something is also a promise to provide it for us? After all, escaping Jerusalem was merely a temporal situation. Surely it wasn't a promise too?
Guess what? You look up the history of the Fall of Jerusalem, and you find that the Roman siege of the city began at Passover and ended in late summer.
I shouldn't find that freakily delightful. But I do.
I should be certain
that these petitions are pleasing
to our Father in heaven,
and are heard by Him,
for He Himself has commanded us to pray in this way
and has promised to hear us.
"Amen, amen" means "yes, yes, it shall be so."
Still Getting Stuck
Shouldn't Christians overcome sin?
You'd think so. We're not in favor of sin. The Spirit dwells in us. Shouldn't we just be done with it? Maybe the problem is we're not trying hard enough. Maybe there's another problem that we haven't figured out. Maybe, if we could figure it out, we could take care of the problem.
My eyes are ever toward the Lord,
for He shall pluck my feet out of the net. (Psalm 25:15)
"Shall"? That a future-tense verb. But the person praying the psalm is already a Christian who has lifted up his/our soul to the Lord. Somehow, it appears that my Christian feet are going to get themselves tangled in the net, in spite the Lord's instructing me. Even though I will become snarled in the mess, still He will pluck me out of it.
And where is our focus through all of this? On my feet? On my efforts? On my obedience? No. My eyes are ever, always, perpetually, unrelentingly, toward the Lord.
You'd think so. We're not in favor of sin. The Spirit dwells in us. Shouldn't we just be done with it? Maybe the problem is we're not trying hard enough. Maybe there's another problem that we haven't figured out. Maybe, if we could figure it out, we could take care of the problem.
My eyes are ever toward the Lord,
for He shall pluck my feet out of the net. (Psalm 25:15)
"Shall"? That a future-tense verb. But the person praying the psalm is already a Christian who has lifted up his/our soul to the Lord. Somehow, it appears that my Christian feet are going to get themselves tangled in the net, in spite the Lord's instructing me. Even though I will become snarled in the mess, still He will pluck me out of it.
And where is our focus through all of this? On my feet? On my efforts? On my obedience? No. My eyes are ever, always, perpetually, unrelentingly, toward the Lord.
Psssst: And when my eyes go somewhere
else, that seems to be when I am tripped up
and have to be rescued.
Thursday, March 01, 2012
Homeschool Story
At last Saturday's graduation ceremony, Milwaukee School of Engineering gave the Very Influential Person Award to some homeschooling parents. The award usually goes to a high school teacher. Logan Gill, whose parents homeschool(-ed) all 17 of their kids, chose his parents for the VIP Award. The Journal-Sentinel had a lovely story. More pictures are at another link. Looky there, a happy, functional family, Christians, successful at school, and they even like each other. And it showed up in the newspaper! Cool!
Oh, Those Dirty Dishes!
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Original Sin
In Psalm 58, we read about some bad guys. Verse 3 mentions, "The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies." I always thought that was just showing how very bad they were: they've been rotten their whole lives!
From the womb?
Sinners from the time they were born?
Maybe it's not about their badness and how early they started in on being rotten dudes. Maybe it's about the inborn sin.
From the womb?
Sinners from the time they were born?
Maybe it's not about their badness and how early they started in on being rotten dudes. Maybe it's about the inborn sin.
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