Complete in Thee

SONNET 116

2011-06-27T13:34:00.001-04:00

Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come:
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.
If this be error and upon me proved,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved.

~Shakespeare

One Week!!

2011-06-18T13:43:00.001-04:00

One week until my sister becomes a married woman....

One week until I can finally say I have a brother....

One week until I have to walk slowly and gracefully down the aisle as the maid of honor....

One week and a day until I can crash and not think about sewing again for a while. And then get back to sewing non-deadline doll clothes when I feel fully recovered from sewing those bridesmaid dresses... ;-)

I am so, so grateful for God's grace and guidance in the last several months. Things haven't always been as easy as they've looked but God has been good and has led Amanda and Alex, and, indeed, our whole family, to this point. I am so excited!!

P.S. Prayers would be appreciated as I wrap up some wedding-sewing this next week. One more dress to go and I'm feeling the pressure. ;-)

Psalm 62:5-8

2011-06-09T10:52:00.002-04:00

For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from Him.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
On God rests my salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.

Trust in Him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before Him;
God is a refuge for us.

Prayer Request

2011-06-08T12:04:00.000-04:00

For those of you who aren't on Facebook...

Please pray for my dad's best-friend-since-childhood David...he was hit by a DUI driver yesterday morning, spun across the highway median, and collided with a semi-truck. He is in critical condition and it's uncertain whether he will make it or not. Please keep him and his wife and two kids in your prayers. Pray for healing for David and strength and peace for the family...and for my dad as well, as this is his best friend, and he has so many other burdens on him right now as it is.
Thanks so much!

http://yourerie.com/fulltext/?nxd_id=177517&shr=addthis
http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011306089951

Guest Post : "What is Spiritual Love Anyway?"

2011-05-25T14:34:00.000-04:00

Note from Melanie: I've been planning on writing an article like this for a while but my sister got there first and did a way better job than I could have. Since she has a private blog, viewable by invitation only, I got her permission to repost her article here.

WHAT IS SPIRITUAL LOVE ANYWAY?
by Amanda A.

We as Christians know that love is to be the basis of everything we do. We know that we can have true love only as we are abiding in Christ and letting His love control our lives. But what does this love actually look like?

In the realm of conservative Christianity reigns a certain idea about love – that love is faithfully good to a person while the person is performing well, and once the person stops performing to the expectation, the loving thing to do is to cut that person off till they have repented and gone back to performing well. In the name of loving like Christ, we as Fundamentalists have hurt many people. In the name of the love of Christ, we have shunned our friends and cut them off. We have acted on the principle, “I will be your faithful friend as long as I see you as following the Lord.” If we had done it only once, and if we recognized our problem, the issue might not need to be addressed. But cutting off fellow Christians in the name of love has become so much a part of our lives that it can’t go unaddressed any longer. This mindset is dangerously unbiblical.

Look at what the love of God is. It is unconditional, not based on anything we do or don’t do. “We love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). Jesus loved us so much that He died to pay our sin debt when we were not following Him, in fact, when we hated Him and definitely didn’t deserve it. “God proved His own love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Jesus came to the world not to condemn it, but to save it (John 3:17). He came to seek and to save the lost (Matthew 9:13). He remains faithful in His love to us even when we don’t (1 Timothy 2:17).

What God’s love does not do is put people on probation. Think of Peter denying Jesus, and Thomas refusing to believe unless he actually could touch the Lord. Did Jesus pull back from them when they sinned against Him like that? He had gentle words of reproof for them, but He never withheld His love and forgiveness, or even His miracles and companionship from them.

Something that we seem to think Jesus does is put people at arms’ length when they wander from Him, and we do this in our own interactions with people whom we perceive as being in sin. One of the verses we use for this is 1 Thess. 5:22, “Abstain from all appearance of evil.” However, it would be more accurately translated, “Abstain from every form of evil” – not every appearance. If you think about it, Jesus did not abstain from every appearance of evil. He spent time with publicans and prostitutes. Seriously, if it is wrong to associate with sinners, Jesus was one of the most sinful people alive. In fact, association with sinners was one of the main problems the Pharisees had with Jesus. The Pharisees loved no one but themselves and were more concerned with keeping a good name and keeping ceremonially clean, and they ignored or altered the command to love one’s neighbor, and condemned those who did.

See a connection between that and our practice in Fundamental churches and our own thought processes? We change what it means to love one’s neighbor. What do we do when we see a girl who dresses borderline immodest and bleaches her hair get kicked out of her Christian college and then leave home? We say it is loving to cut her off, and we cut her off. And after we change what means to love one another, we condemn those few people who still show mercy to her who has been cut off by everyone else in the name of love. But what we don’t realize is that if we’re going to condemn those people who have compassion on her, we should condemn Jesus too. Jesus loves those who wander from Him and waits for them with open arms. After all, He didn’t come for the righteous, but for the sinners.

Mark 7 records in detail one of Jesus’ conversations with the Pharisees about this. The Pharisees altered the commands of God to give them more freedom to serve themselves. After all, who wants to honor their parents when they could alternatively give a gift to the church in the name of helping them and be free from any other responsibility? As Fundamentalists, we often apply this passage to Pharisees, to Catholics, and to other religious groups who place a lot of emphasis on works. But we forget to apply it to ourselves.

“This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men. Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men” (vv. 6-8). We worship God with our mouths, but our hearts are far from Him, and that shows in the way we “love” each other. Jesus said, “By this will all men know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.” We say we love God, yet we shun not only the lost He came to seek and to save, but also those who are His people. What’s even worse is that these believers we shun aren’t always as backslidden as we think they are, and that leaves us even less of an excuse to cut them off than we already had.

How do we act toward a family who comes to church only one service a week? We back away from them because they must be very unspiritual if they don’t come every time the doors are open, and maybe we can make them feel their need to come more if we ostracize them. But if we would choose to understand this family instead of pull away from them, we might find reasons behind their choice - maybe the father works hard all week and wants to spend Sundays with his family. That would be a very good reason to attend only one church service. Why do we forsake people for things like this? Think. Is it because these are utterly wicked people who will corrupt whoever spends time with them? Or is it a pride issue, thinking that we are better than they because we go to every church service and they don’t?

“You nicely set aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition…thus invalidating the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down; and you do many things such as that” (vv. 9. 12-13). Whether we realize it or not, we as fundamentalists have altered the command of God so we don’t have to love people the hard way. It’s easier to operate on the principle that love ignores people “for their own good” than love continues to reach out to them. We don’t want our children to be tainted by association with “the sinner”; we don’t want ourselves to be tainted by association; we don’t feel like getting our hands dirty in trying to understand the person’s reasons behind their actions. We would pull back and say it is none of our business rather than recognize and help a hurting heart. No person sins without reason. Every person has a heart, a soul, and a hurt and a reason buried deep inside. Jesus goes to the bottom of a person’s need – He isn’t afraid to dirty His hands to wash our hearts. If our Lord and Master can set aside the clutter of baggage, the pressure of popular opinion, and even the importance of His own reputation, what is to keep us from doing the same?

Think of the parable of the prodigal son. He wished his father dead, he took his father’s money when it wasn’t his yet, he spent it all on harlots, and he finally ended up taking the most unclean job a Jew could take – caring for pigs. According to Jewish law, he was unclean and a rebel. By the law, he should have been stoned upon entering the town. His father had every right to have him executed when he returned home. But did he exercise that right? No – in fact, he was waiting every minute for his son to return, because he knew what would happen if the village found him first. And when the son did return, his father was so happy that he didn’t even let him finish his apology. This parable isn’t about the need to repent and return to God, though it carries that concept. The real point is the love of God.

Without knowing it, we have fallen into the same trap the Pharisees were in. They may have honestly believed they were serving God by staying away from and condemning the wicked people in their world, but Jesus said to them, “But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” In our zeal to do the right thing, we skip over what is truly the right thing – to love our neighbors as we love ourselves.

You know the story of the Good Samaritan – how the Pharisee and the Levite avoided the hurt man for reasons of their own, and it was only the outsider who had enough compassion to stop and help a complete stranger. We praise him for what he did, and repeat Jesus’ words, “Go and do thou likewise.” Yet how often do we pass by the hurt people in our lives?

Perhaps we choose not to help people and love people the way God loves them because we’re concerned about association. After all, if we let ourselves get involved with these people, then we will be guilty by association and will ruin our reputations. If we’re going to take a side, then we’re going to be silent and side with popular opinion because it’s easier for us. What idiots we are. Did Jesus care about what anybody thought? The only person whose opinion He cared about was His Father’s. He died to free us to follow His Father like He did. What a slap in the face it must then be to Him for our biggest concern to be keeping ceremonially clean.

Another trap we fall into is having a superior attitude towards those whom we feel to be in the wrong. We probably don’t even notice it, but it’s there in this attitude: “You’re wrong, but I’ll extend grace to you anyway.” That attitude shouldn’t even come across on anybody’s radar – your grace should just be there. Jesus was better than everyone else; He was God! But He didn’t go around with an attitude of superiority or condescension – His position was nothing to Him, because His people were what He cared about.

The root of the mindset that we need to “mark the unbeliever” and stay away is pride. In his book, James writes, “Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother or judges a brother speaks against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge of it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and to destroy; who are you to judge your neighbor?” God is the only one worthy to judge the law or to judge any person. It is not our place to decide if someone needs to be put out of our lives. Jesus said the same thing in the Sermon on the Mount – “Judge not, that you be not judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you again.” Judging a person’s spirituality is such a delicate business that only God Himself can handle that responsibility. It does not belong to us. What does belong to us is discernment, caution, and true love.

You might have an amazing spiritual gift. You might be powerful in your presentation of God’s Word. You might be the most generous person in the world. But if you don’t have Christ’s true love, it is worth nothing. The world can be amazing and powerful and generous – what do you have that they need? The love they need to see is a love like Christ’s. Love that is patient - Jesus was patient with the disciples (and is with us!) when they didn’t understand His words, no matter how many times He explained to them. Love that is kind – Jesus fed the multitudes, healed the sick, and provided wine for a feast. Love that isn’t arrogant or jealous, that behaves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, that actively seeks the good of other people. Love that continues to reach out and doesn’t let people get under its skin, love that doesn’t hold grudges or require penance of people. Love that isn’t afraid to speak the truth or rejoice when it is spoken, upheld, and lived. Love that works and waits for change – doesn’t push it, doesn’t neglect it, but does its work and waits. Love that acts on and believes in the power of God in people’s lives, and has a positive outlook, knowing that God is powerful enough to change hearts; love that hopes, and in hoping has the strength to keep on working to make a difference in people’s lives. No matter whether the people refuse help, or whether love feels like they don’t deserve help, love endures it all and never gives up, because God is love, and love never fails.

The answer is never, ever to leave someone to their own devices. That is God’s business, not ours. Jesus left us on earth to be Him to His people. How sad do you think He is when He sees us trying to usurp the Father’s place of judgment instead of doing what He told us to do? “This command I give to you, that you love one another, as I have loved you.”

We are the body of Christ. “For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one spirit.” We are all equal in Christ, and all a part of Him. We are one, like all the parts of our body make up our body. By the same token, when we love each other as Christ wants us to, the body is made stronger. But when we cut off different members from ourselves, it’s the same thing as cutting off one of our hands or feet – the body is hurt, wounded, bleeding. This is more serious than just choosing not to be friends with so-and-so anymore “for their own good” – this is like ripping up the body of Christ with a knife that doesn’t even belong to us. It is harmful and it is wrong.

What I’m trying to say is that Jesus is the standard for our actions, including when people appear to be sinning against us and against the Lord. When people receive our treatment of them, what do they see about Jesus? A superior attitude, probation, shunning, attacking and cutting down, ignorance of pain? Or do they see help, friendly contact, unpretentious forgiveness, the second mile?

I’ve been writing mainly with the theme of our actions towards unbelievers and towards believers who have sinned against us. But if it is so wrong to treat in an unloving manner those who have sinned against us, how much more wrong is it to treat in an unloving manner those who have not sinned against us – those with whom we just don’t agree? It is presumptuous of us to assume that someone is unbiblical when their opinion on or application of something not specifically addressed in Scripture doesn’t agree with ours. God is the one who knows the hearts. We don’t, and to assume that we know exactly what God is doing in their hearts is to in effect say that we know God’s will for them better than God Himself does. It is bad enough that we put ourselves in God’s place of judgment towards those who have sinned against us, but it is even worse when we condemn someone for following God’s will in their own lives. God leads us all individually, and we each are responsible for our own lives and our own stands on issues. We answer to Him individually. When you assume that someone is wrong and then try to actually punish them or make them change, you have stepped out of that realm of personal responsibility before God by meddling in other people’s lives and trying to take responsibility for people other than yourself. This is dangerous.

If someone else is doing something differently than we are, or takes a different stand than we do, it doesn’t mean that he is wrong. We can ask them about it and try to get a feel for their reasoning behind their choices, but in the end, whether or not we agree, we need to let them follow God for themselves. True love will continue to accept them, not cut them off because of a disagreement of opinion.

I am not saying that we don’t love the Lord, or are terrible Christians, or aren’t trying to honor God; after all, God is the only one who knows the hearts. But living in this world, we have a huge range of influence. Every day, we see people, we interact with people. With so many lives in our reach, we need to have a clear understanding of the love of Christ. We must seek for the truth about this, forgetting what we have been taught and going to God’s Word as though we’ve never seen it before. We will find the truth if we look for it, and the truth will set us free to love like we never knew we could.

The Man in the Arena

2011-05-22T22:03:00.000-04:00

"It is not the critic who counts. Not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause. Who, at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat."

- Theodore Roosevelt

P.S. With that said: To those of you who feel it your sacred duty to criticize, slander, and shun people who have been in the arena of a certain trial and made decisions you may not fully understand, maybe even fallen once or twice... you can really stop right now, because you weren't in the arena so what you have to say doesn't really count. Perhaps, instead of throwing dirt, try extending the healing balm of grace or giving a cup of cold water to refresh the weary fighter, for a change. That, after all, was Jesus' sacred duty, and aren't we called to be like Him?

~Melanie

Trials

2011-05-18T11:08:00.004-04:00

"Pressed out of measure and pressed to all length;
Pressed so intensely it seems, beyond strength;
Pressed in the body and pressed in the soul,
Pressed in the mind till the dark surges roll.
Pressure by foes, and a pressure from friends.

Pressure on pressure, till life nearly ends.

"Pressed into knowing no helper but God;
Pressed into loving the staff and the rod.
Pressed into liberty where nothing clings;
Pressed into faith for impossible things.
Pressed into living a life in the Lord,
Pressed into living a Christ-life outpoured."

The pressure of hard places makes us value life. Every time our life is given back to us from such a trial, it is like a new beginning, and we learn better how much it is worth, and make more of it for God and man. The pressure helps us to understand the trials of others, and fits us to help and sympathize with them.

There is a shallow, superficial nature, that gets hold of a theory or a promise lightly, and talks very glibly about the distrust of those who shrink from every trial; but the man or woman who has suffered much never does this, but is very tender and gentle, and knows what suffering really means. This is what Paul meant when he said, "Death worketh in you."

Trials and hard places are needed to press us forward, even as the furnace fires in the hold of that mighty ship give force that moves the piston, drives the engine, and propels that great vessel across the sea in the face of the winds and waves. --A. B. Simpson

"Out of the presses of pain,
Cometh the soul's best wine;
And the eyes that have shed no rain,
Can shed but little shine."

~excerpts from Streams in the Desert by L. B. Cowman

Strength

2011-05-17T17:39:00.000-04:00

Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, "My way is hidden from the LORD, and my right is disregarded by my God"? Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

~Isaiah 40 <3

Update on Life

2011-05-07T23:11:00.000-04:00

I continue to be very neglectful of my poor blog here. I'm not even sure what to write about, presently, so I'll just give a quick update on life.

Most of you know, my buddy and older sister, Amanda, is getting married in June (WOOOHOOOOO!!!) and I have been commissioned to make three out of the five bridesmaid dresses. They are made of cornflower blue satin, using McCalls 4491 (views B and C). I am half-way through the first one (Bethany's) and having a blast. Amanda and Alex have been busy planning, and bridal showers are right around the corner. It's so wierd--but totally exciting!! :-D

I'm in the process of purchasing a new "model" for my Etsy shop.... Miss Esther Elizabeth, named after Esther Moore, one of the heroines in MD (and sequels). Unfortunately, with all the wedding sewing I have to do, I don't have time to work on any new doll outfits for the shop right now. I do have lots in the planning, though. ;-)

Speaking of MD, I've been slowly working on editing it, but more importantly, I've been figuring out the details for the two other books in the trilogy. In my searching to know my character's better, I found out an astonishing truth: that... well, somebody I thought was dead (can't say who ;-) ), actually isn't dead, and has been popping up throughout the story already, under a pseudonym, and I didn't even know it was...well, who it is ;-) . So that's been exciting. I also figured out, with the help of my writing buddy/editor Emily, more piratey names for the two main pirate villains and their ships. This has been helping me get a better understanding of their personalities, which is very helpful (obviously ;-) ). Earlier this week I was able to get together with my writing buddies, Emily, Matthew, and Mark, and get in an awesome writers chat... they were able to give some great ideas for MD and sequels, and it was just fun talking my stories and hearing about theirs. Writers chats are the best. ;-)

Last week my mom and I went to the mall and I got my hair cut and styled. I'm really excited.... I like it a lot. It feels much more grown-up. It also looks a bit like Rapunzel's at the end of Tangled when I blow-dry and flat-iron it the right way.. ;-) (I'm working on it. ;-) )

This next week I'll be going out of town to stay for a week or two with my friend Megan, who just had her first baby and needs help around the house and such. I'm very excited about that! It'll be a whole new experience for me. Please pray that I will be a help, not an in-the-way guest, and that I can help lighten her load as she and her husband take on this new adventure in their lives. :-)

I haven't been keeping to a "Bible-reading schedule" lately... it's been in my mind lately that I too often look at the Bible as an assignment, at reading it as something I "ought to do", rather than taking joy in drinking in its words-- however much I need for the moment-- and dwelling on it and seeing Jesus in its pages, and through Him, the Father. So instead lately I've been taking my Bible reading in little bits and purposefully looking for Jesus in what I read: what is He like, what did He do, what does this mean for me? Because Jesus represents the Father and is one with the Father, what does His life and ways tell me about the Father? I'm reading in John presently, but have always been parked in Romans 8 and Isaiah 40, chapters that speak specifically to needs in my heart right now.

And in case you are wondering, India is still much in my mind and on my heart, and I am praying about visiting a Christian children's home there...eventually (not sure when, especially with all the busyness going on right now). Until then, I'm planning to set aside 20% of each of my Etsy sales for the children's home (though I haven't been getting any sales lately, so, I'm not sure if that means anything or not right now! :-P ) But yes....please keep praying that I would know God's will concerning me and work in India: part time, full time, at all? Present there, or ministering from here? And when, how, where? Please pray that God would show me His will in His time and that I would follow it.

Okay, so, that's what's going on! Do you feel updated? :-) I really don't know how much I'll be posting in the near future... it will probably continue to be very sporadic. But please do comment. I love comments. I am still here, just not always posting. :-)

*waves* :-D
~Melanie

Sitting at Jesus' Feet

2011-04-21T10:26:00.000-04:00

Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.”

But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

~Luke 10:38-42

Literary Ball

2011-04-11T12:49:00.002-04:00

Last weekend I had the lovely opportunity to attend a ball hosted by my friend Kate. The ball was literary-themed, so everyone came as a character from literature.

My character was Amy Dorrit from Charles Dickens' classic, Little Dorrit. I based my costume on one of Amy's from the BBC miniseries. It wasn't exactly like hers, but it was close. :-)

It was a lovely time of dancing and visiting, reuniting with friends and making new friends.

~~~~~~~

Eva, Kate, and me, the day after the ball. :-)

Photos by Brandon P., Patrizia F., and Christopher L.

Homeschooling Pride

2011-04-08T15:49:00.003-04:00

The thoughts in this post may possibly go against the grain of some people's mindsets. I don't usually write controversial posts on my blog because I'm far too worried about people's opinions about my opinions.... but it's been on my mind so I decided to write it anyway. :-) Here goes, and no offense intended towards anybody.

Have you ever been in a conversation with other homeschoolers or homeschool graduates, and all of the sudden start hearing all sorts of statistics flying (and as you know, 76.5% of all statistics are made up on the spot ;-) ), about how much smarter homeschoolers are than public schoolers (to use the homeschool term :-P ), about homeschoolers going on to far more successful careers, knowing more practical skills, getting better scores on their ACTs, and actually having a better social life than public schoolers (because all homeschoolers know public schoolers don't know how to socialize with adults, right?)? (And then, almost inevitably, someone makes a comment about having graduated at sixteen!)

To answer the very long-winded question... Yes, I have been in conversations like that.

Let me make something clear before I move on. I love homeschooling. I by no means regret being homeschooled, and there is a very high possibility of me homeschooling my own kids one day. Homeschooling is very often a safer environment than public school, and there is more freedom to focus on the particular aspect of study the child is most interested in or needs most help in. You may not get snow days, but you do get to take off school and go on vacation any time of the year. Homeschooling also provides an opportunity for the parents to be there for their kids more and mentor their children to know Christ (though that is not always the case). Homeschooling is great. This article is not to prove that homeschooling is bad. I am not against homeschooling. And I'm glad my parents homeschooled me. :-)
Okay. Got that cleared up.

The thing I am against is the really disgusting spirit of pride often carried about by people in the homeschooling movement-- parents and children alike. The scenario I presented above is very similar to a conversation I was listening in on recently, which triggered the train of thought that led to this article being written. But before I start pointing fingers and talking about how disgusting other people's pride is, I need to remember... I have been there myself, and it's very easy to be there even now, if not about homeschooling, then about other matters.

Growing up homeschooled, I had a very homeschooled mindset. Anyone who was not homeschooled was known as a "public-schooler" (as was referenced in the opening paragraph). Homeschooling, in my mind, was always and only the best choice for anybody and everybody, parents who sent their kids to a public (or even private) school were bad parents who didn't care about their children's spiritual needs, and homeschooled children were inevitably smarter and more successful than other children. When people would bring up the argument of "How can your kids have socialization if they don't go to school?" I would wave it off as an inapplicable argument, even though for several years the only friend my age that I spent time with on a regular basis was a fictional character in a book (Millie Keith, to be specific :-) ).

As I've grown older and seen more beyond the realm in which I grew up, I've begun to see that many of my pre-suppositions about how much better homeschoolers were than other children were incorrect or warped. I am not saying that homeschool graduates aren't successful, but I am saying public school graduates can be successful too. I am not saying that homeschoolers don't know how to socialize, but I am saying that public schooled know how to socialize too! And I am saying that just because someone graduates at sixteen doesn't mean they are smarter than someone who graduates at eighteen.

We as homeschoolers create this idea in our mind that we are so much better than anybody else, that because we are homeschooled, we are somehow holier, smarter, and closer to God. But I am going to be radical (for a homeschooler ;-) ) and suggest that God couldn't care less whether we were homeschooled or not.

In Philippians 3, Paul looked back over the list of qualifications about himself that seemed like they ought to give him pretty good status before God. "If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh," he wrote, "I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless...." ("Graduated at 16, from a family of ten, a conservative Republican of Republicans; as to religion, a Protestant and anti-Satan's-Claus; as to theology, Reformed; as to fashion, dresses only; as to relationships, I never dated and I didn't kiss before I was married; a stay-at-home daughter and an ideal homeschooler...")*

Impressive list! It's easy to look at a list of qualifications and think those things made a person more holy, more nearly Christlike. However, Paul continues, "But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith-- that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead."

A person can be the most upright person in the world, keeping to all the standards, an ideal homeschooler, but if that person has missed what it is to know Christ, to lay aside any faith in his own accomplishments and rest completely and solely in the work of Jesus Christ on the Cross, he has gained absolutely nothing.

Don't take me wrong. Standards are a good thing. Homeschooling is often a great choice for families. If you graduate before 18 and become the town mayor by 20, good for you. But these things don't make a person closer to God or better than anybody else. In fact, most people aren't really impressed by what ultra-conversative homeschoolers consider accomplishments. (Most people don't really seem to think of going through 99 months of pregancy as a wonderful accomplishment to be praised... in fact, that's kind of an awkward piece of trivia to flaunt around people :-P ).

My point is that people get so caught up in statistics and trivia and standards that (seemingly) prove how much better they are than others (though it is rarely worded that way), that they lose sight of the only thing that really, truly matters... knowing God. And when I say "people", I include myself, because, as I said, pride in my own standards is no stranger to me either, though I wish it were. (I need to be careful not to make my own Philippians 3 list about being non-denominational and a reader of the ESV....) PRIDE IS DISGUSTING and the whole statistics/comparisons thing makes me want to gag. *gaaagggg*

Really, folks. For how great homeschooling is, it does not make you any better of a person in God's sight, and it does not make you a better Christian than the Christian mom who picks her kids up from the bus stop every afternoon. Are we willing to count all those "accomplishments" as loss? Because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ? "Not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law [works], but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith-- that I may know Him..."
Knowing Him. That's what matters. Not what school you went to.

We need to get back to the basics of life:
A heart that is pure and a love that is blind,
A faith that is fervently grounded in Christ,
The hope that endures for all times--
These are the basics; we need to get back to the basics of life.

*revised list of "qualifications" is not particular to me... it was more of a compilation of various points considered ideal among ultra-conservative homeschooling groups

You are the Light of the World

2011-04-07T14:41:00.000-04:00

"You are the light of the world.

A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.

Nor do people light a lamp

and put it under a basket,

but on a stand,

and it gives light to all in the house.

In the same way,

let your light shine before others,

so that they may see your good works

and give glory to your Father who is heaven."

(Matthew 5:14-16)

Is your light shining to guide those in darkness to the Great Light, or is it hiding under a basket in fear that the wind and the darkness might vanquish it?

In His Hands

2011-04-04T00:25:00.000-04:00

I know! I know!! I have been absolutely TERRIBLE about posting lately. Actually, I have my excuses. So much has been going on lately...some major changes took place and kind of sent me into a spin--stress, confusion, doubt, fear, loneliness ("ceaseless ebb and flow", as the poem below says)... so I really haven't even felt like sitting down and writing a blog post lately. Sorry about that, folks. :-/

I was looking at my quotes collection on OneNote this evening, for something uplifting that would set my focus on Christ, and came across a little four-line poem that I read somewhere, a long time ago, that was very encouraging. I decided to google it and see if there was more to the poem, and found four stanzas full of encouragement. They met me right where I am right now, and spoke to my heart what it needed to hear-- an idea that I've had in mind in recent weeks but was expressed so much more beautifully in this poem than I could have worded it. No matter my changing emotions, or the days when the clouds block the sunlight... God never changes, and He is holding on to me, keeping me, and helping me through. He never fails. He is SO wonderful!!!

I probably just said more than I meant to say...but anyway. Without further ado, here's the poem, and I trust you will be encouraged as I was.

IN HIS HANDS

'Twixt gleams of joy and clouds of doubt
Our feelings come and go;
Our best estate is tossed about
In ceaseless ebb and flow.
No mood of feeling, form of thought

Is constant for a day;
But thou, O Lord, thou changest not:
The same thou art alway.

I grasp thy strength, make it mine own,
My heart with peace is blest;
I lose my hold, and then comes down
Darkness, and cold unrest.
Let me no more my comfort draw
From my frail hold of thee,
In this alone rejoice with awe—-
Thy mighty grasp of me.

Out of that weak, unquiet drift
That comes but to depart,
To that pure heaven my spirit lift
Where thou unchanging art.
Lay hold of me with thy strong grasp,
Let thy almighty arm
In its embrace my weakness clasp,
And I shall fear no harm.

Thy purpose of eternal good
Let me but surely know;
On this I'll lean—let changing mood
And feeling come or go—
Glad when thy sunshine fills my soul,
Not lorn when clouds o'ercast,
Since thou within thy sure control
Of love dost hold me fast.

—John Campbell Shairp

Too Cute For Words...

2011-03-19T15:36:00.000-04:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day (late!)

Praying that your day is full of sunshine, green grass, tips of daffodils shooting out of the moist dirt, and other lovely reminders of the spring that's just around the corner! :-)

Because I am a Language Snob... ;-)

2011-03-14T12:22:00.002-04:00

–adjective Also, ep·i·cal.

1. noting or pertaining to a long poetic composition, usually centered upon a hero, in which a series of great achievements or events is narrated in elevated style: Homer's Iliad is an epic poem.

2. resembling or suggesting such poetry: an epic novel on the founding of the country.

3. heroic; majestic; impressively great: the epic events of the war.

4. of unusually great size or extent: a crime wave of epic proportions.

–noun

5. an epic poem.

6. epic poetry.

7. any composition resembling an epic.

8. something worthy to form the subject of an epic: The defense of the Alamo is an American epic.

9. ( initial capital letter ) Also called Old Ionic. the Greek dialect represented in the Iliad and the Odyssey, apparently Aeolic modified by Ionic.

World English Dictionary



— n
1.	a long narrative poem recounting in elevated style the deeds of a legendary hero, esp one originating in oral folk tradition
2.	the genre of epic poetry
3.	any work of literature, film, etc, having heroic deeds for its subject matter or having other qualities associated with the epic: a Hollywood epic
4.	an episode in the lives of men in which heroic deeds are performed or attempted: the epic of Scott's expedition to the South Pole

— *adj*
5.	denoting, relating to, or characteristic of an epic or epics
6.	of heroic or impressive proportions: an epic voyage

[C16: from Latin epicus, from Greek epikos, from epos speech, word, song]

epic definition

A long narrative poem written in elevated style, in which heroes of great historical or legendary importance perform valorous deeds. The setting is vast in scope, covering great nations, the world, or the universe, and the action is important to the history of a nation or people. The Iliad, the Odyssey, and the Aeneid are some great epics from world literature, and two great epics in English are Beowulf and Paradise Lost.

Note : Figuratively, any task of great magnitude may be called “epic,” as in an “epic feat” or an “epic undertaking.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(back to moi) Okay. Did you get all that? Did you notice that not a single one of those definitions said "epic" means "cool" or "fun"? :-P

Okay. So don't say you had an epic time at your friend's house last night unless a ten-headed monster came and attacked your party and a dashing man of unknown origins burst in and, after a great battle across the whole town, eventually killed the monster and was crowned king... or mayor...and somebody wrote a long piece of poetry about it. (Or whatever. Something like that.) (But definitely not playing volleyball and watching a fun movie.) ;-)

Sorry for the ramble. ;-D I get so tired of hearing people use the word "epic" to mean cool or fun (just as I am even more tired of hearing people say "legit" to mean cool. Look up the word legit/legitimate on dictionary.com too. ;-) ) "Epic" is such a huge word... it brings to mind a greatness and heroism too big for any other word. I hate seeing it dragged into the host of other perfectly good words that now simply mean "excellent" or "good". I know languages change over time, but really, we have enough words that mean "excellent" or "good", so let's enjoy using the other words the way they were meant to be used, okay? ;-)

*language snob bows and steps down from the podium* ;-)

Have a GOOD day, everyone! Maybe take some time to take a break over coffee and a book and immerse yourself in a timeless epic. ;-)

:-D

I'm Back!!! and one of those fun questionairre thingys... ;-)

2011-03-10T22:32:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone!
I guess I should say it the way most bloggers say it ("No, I'm not dead!") but that's too typical. I'm not going to say "I've been busy" either because that's not really it either. Well, I have been out of town, and last week I wasn't staying at a place with internet so I truly wasn't able to post then.... but besides that, it's not necessarily busyness but pre-occupied-ness that's been keeping me away from blogger. There's a difference. But enough of that.

Lynette Kraft is hosting a blog party on her blog. I'm not exactly joining the blog party because I'm not really interested in the giveaway, but you know me; I can hardly resist questionairres. ;-) Besides, you all need a post that says more than "Sorry I haven't been posting and this is why". So here's the questionairre with my answers, just for fun. :-D

How would people describe your personality? (If they could only use ONE word.) Are they right?

Sweet (lots of people say that). I'm not sure whether they're right or not. I guess I am sweet when I'm around people, but not all the time. (Amanda? Bethany? any thoughts?) :-P But who knows, some people may think I'm snobby because I'm very quiet around people at first, and tend to be distant when something weighing heavily on my mind. How would you describe my personality? :-P

What celebrity/celebrities would create a “Star-Struck” feeling if you saw them in real life?

Ioan Gruffudd!!!

(first one that came to mind.... ;-) ) (there are others too)

Who is your favorite blogger? Why?

I decline to answer this question, because I don't need to pick a favorite out of all the wonderful bloggers I know. :-)

What is your comfort food/drink?

Coffee... :-D

Be brave – tell us something very random and weird about yourself.

When I was little (five or six, maybe?) I had the most terrible habit of chewing on pencils and rulers. Every once in a while, I find a pencil or a wooden ruler with teeth marks all over it, and I know who had a hold of that... ;-)

Do you have a strong desire to do something you’ve never done? What is it?

Two strong desires: 1) To publish one of my novels. 2) To travel to India (and possibly live there, with the purpose of sharing Christ with the Indian people...probably not as a traditional missionary though.)

Movies: Action, Drama, Romantic Comedy, Documentary, Comedy? What are your favorite genres?

Family films, if that's a genre... Disney animated films... Period dramas... action as long as it's not too graphic and makes allowances for girl viewers...

Books: Fiction, Non-Fiction, Romance, Biographies, True Stories, Self-Help, Devotional/Study? What are your favorite types of reading material?

Fiction, biographies, and devotional.

Music: Funk, Rock, Country, Jazz, Classical, Film Score, Blues, Classic Rock, Crooner, Alternative, Heavy Metal, Techno? What are your favorite types?

I love Celtic, film scores, and ... whatever that kind of music is that doesn't exactly have a name. The Steve Pettit Evangelistic Team style music... a mix between hymns and...pop? Yeah...whatever that is. I also light Contemporary Christian (the more conservative, toned-down branch ;-) ) . Oh, and Broadway and Disney songs. :-D

If you inherited a million dollars, what is the first thing you would do with your money?

Go to either England to study for my book, or India for a survey trip. ;-) I think....maybe.

Name one weakness of yours (confession is good for the soul).
Disney...(Disney movies, Disney songs, Disney store...) and American Girl... you didn't know that, did you ( :-P ) Oh, and buying things on a whim (like the 5 1/2 yards of gorgeous purple polyester shantung for my Amy Dorrit dress, the other day... ;-) ) (I only do that when I have money though. ;-) )

If you could live anywhere at all (and take all your loved ones with you), where would you go?
England or India

Strange Talent? Can you juggle basketballs, put your legs behind your head or perform some other strange feat?
Um... not that I can think of. I can make really crazy faces though...like, really crazy... is that a talent? More like a random fact....

What’s something you consider yourself to be good at? (Don’t worry, it’s not bragging, it’s acknowledging a God given gift).
Well, I could say I'm good at writing, but a writer should never say something like that... not because it's bragging, but because it could keep them from becoming a better writer than they already are. :-) And sewing...

What is one of your favorite things to catch a whiff of?
<3 apple blossoms <3

When you leave a social gathering, do you wish: You would have talked more or You would have talked less?
I usually wish I'd talked less, even though I don't talk much in social gatherings anyway.

If money wasn’t a factor, what stores would you shop in?
The American Girl place. The Disney store. Kohls. J C Penneys. Definitely. ;-)

What is your greatest fear or strange phobia?
Fire is, without question, my greatest fear. Always has been, probably always will be. I'm terrified of the woodstove, the furnace, bonfires, lightning, anything associated with fire, except those who can stop it.

What is your greatest accomplishment?
I don't know.... I don't really feel like I have accomplished to much as yet... unless finishing a novel is considered a great accomplishment, though I've done it a couple times... maybe writing a 50,000 word novel in one month?

What are your favorite animals?
Cats: domestic, tigers, lions, snow leopards, etc.... I also love horses, long-haired dogs, and elephants. :-D

Are you a hopeless romantic?
Get ready for a complex answer. If, by "hopeless romantic", you mean always living in a dream world, then yes. But I don't know... I can't stand mush and sap, but I look a sweet, sincere, meaningful romance. I don't mind if the couple doesn't kiss at the end of the movie. I don't usually think too much of marrying, unless I like someone in particular (which is very hard to get me to do), or unless I'm thinking of practical things, like "They say single ladies tend to get kind of goofy when they get older, and I already am, so if I don't get married, I'll become known as the Crazy Doll Lady when I'm old..." (Okay, so that's not the only reason I would get married. Like any girl, I long for someone to build my life alongside of and raise a family with and serve God together with and love with all my heart and be loved by... but getting married isn't the top priority of my life.) But when I do think of getting married, I like to think it will be like in a storybook. "I am determined that nothing but the very deepest love will induce me into matrimony"... :-P And like I said, I tend to live in a dream world and see things with rose-colored glasses. So what do you think? Am I a hopeless romantic or a hopeless non-romantic?

What movie or book character can you most relate to?
It varies according to what's happening in life at the moment. Lately I've felt quite a bit like Molly Gibson from Wives and Daughters; lots of people confiding in me and relying on me, and me being in positions in which I could get in trouble either way, and needing to be there for people and listen even if I don't agree with them about everything. Other characters I can identify with in one way or another are Jo March, Bella Wilfer, Ariel (The Little Mermaid), Violet Parr, Eustace Scrubb, and Rapunzel... in one way or another. :-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 26

2011-02-12T22:40:00.000-05:00

A childhood memory.

I'm sorry I haven't been keeping up with the blog challenge! I've been kind of putting it off, since I got off-schedule the other week after my wisdom teeth surgery. And there have been other things to post. :-)

I have so many lovely childhood memories. The question is, which to post about??
Hm. Probably our visit to Campobello, when I was seven years old. Campobello is an island off the coast of Maine and Canada and was the site of the vacation home of Franklin D. Roosevelt. We went with our cousins from Indiana, whose grandparents (on the other side of the family) own a cottage on the island.

I have some very special memories of this vacation. We toured Roosevelt's summer home, visited lighthouses, hiked across rocky beaches, had a campfire on the beach, played games, christened and explored little nameless "islands"...and I got teased about the stringy seaweed strung all over the rocks on the beach behind the cottage. I thought they were so mean. :-P And yet still I look back on it as a great memory-- one of the most outstanding in my childhood.

I would go again in a flash if I had the opportunity. Maybe one day. :-)

A new website :-)

2011-02-09T13:39:00.001-05:00

Just for the fun of it, and for the enjoyment of fellow American Girl fans, I have started up an American Girl-themed website. :-)

Kirsten and Friends

There are pages for the doll clothes I make, doll repair, photostories, and a mini-blog. Just for fun. :-)

"The Screwtape Letters" by C. S. Lewis

2011-02-08T23:16:00.000-05:00

"My Dear Wormwood,

"I note with grave displeasure that your patient has become a Christian. Do not indulge the hope that you will escape the usual penalties; indeed, in your better moments, I trust you would hardly even wish to do so. In the meantime we must make the best of the situation. There is no need to despair; hundreds of these adult converts have been reclaimed after a brief sojourn in the Enemy's camp and are now with us. All the habits of the patient, both mental and bodily, are still in our favour."

Under this delusive hope, professional devil Screwtape begins a series of letters to his nephew, a learning devil, Wormwood, on how to tempt and snare a human soul away from God. A nameless young man comes to Christ for salvation, and Screwtape passes on his "expert" advice to Wormwood, teaching him to distract him from God by means of tension in the family, issues and divisions in the church, romantic interests, flippancy about spiritual matters, obsession with the Future or the Past, and so on. He is convinced that they will prevail in the end over the work of God in the young Christian... but can they?

There is no doubt Clive Staples Lewis has become one of my most favorite authors in the last year. This is not to say I agree with every point he makes, but overall his writings are so insightful, and his use of fantasy and speculative fiction to make such strong, valid Biblical points never ceases to amaze me. In The Screwtape Letters, Lewis presents truth by the way of contrast. The devil tempts the young man to do this or to think this way, in contrast to this or that which would bring glory to God. In Lewis' preface, he reminds his readers that "the devil is a liar. Not everything that Screwtape says should be assumed to be true even from his own angle." In a later preface, someone explains it thus: "Screwtape's whites are our blacks and whatever he welcomes we should dread." I found it very interesting and insightful, and it also helped to give me a fresh perspective on many things. It's worth reading all the way to the end--despite it's being written from the perspective of a devil (wallowing in his defeat), the last chapter was so beautiful, it brought tears to my eyes... but I can't tell you why. You'll have to read it for yourself. :-)

As I was reading the book, I wanted to re-post almost every chapter when I finished it, so even now I'm having a hard time deciding which excerpt to post for you. I will share the excerpt I first read that made me want to pick up the book, and one chapter that particularly stood out to me as I read.

~~~~~~~~
Chapter XV

MY DEAR WORMWOOD,

I had noticed, of course, that the humans were having a lull in their European war—what they naïvely call "The War"!—and am not surprised that there is a corresponding lull in the patient's anxieties. Do we want to encourage this, or to keep him worried? Tortured fear and stupid confidence are both desirable states of mind. Our choice between them raises important questions.

The humans live in time but our Enemy destines them to eternity. He therefore, I believe, wants them to attend chiefly to two things, to eternity itself, and to that point of time which they call the Present. For the Present is the point at which time touches eternity. Of the present moment, and of it only, humans have an experience analogous to the experience which our Enemy has of reality as a whole; in it alone freedom and actuality are offered them. He would therefore have them continually concerned either with eternity (which means being
concerned with Him) or with the Present—either meditating on their eternal union with, or separation from, Himself, or else obeying the present voice of conscience, bearing the present cross, receiving the present grace, giving thanks for the present pleasure.

Our business is to get them away from the eternal, and from the Present. With this in view, we sometimes tempt a human (say a widow or a scholar) to live in the Past. But this is of limited value, for they have some real knowledge of the past and it has a determinate nature and, to that extent, resembles eternity. It is far better to make them live in the Future. Biological necessity makes all their passions point in that direction already, so that thought about the Future inflames hope and fear. Also, it is unknown to them, so that in making them think about it we make them think of unrealities. In a word, the Future is, of all things, the thing least like eternity. It is the most completely temporal part of time—for the Past is frozen and no longer flows, and the Present is all lit up with eternal rays. Hence the encouragement we have given to all those schemes of thought such as Creative Evolution, Scientific Humanism, or Communism, which fix men's affections on the Future, on the very core of temporality. Hence nearly all vices are rooted in the future. Gratitude looks to
the past and love to the present; fear, avarice, lust, and ambition look ahead. Do not think lust an exception. When the present pleasure arrives, the sin (which alone interests us) is already over. The pleasure is just the part of the process which we regret and would exclude if we could do so without losing the sin; it is the part contributed by the Enemy, and therefore experienced in a Present. The sin, which is our contribution, looked forward.

To be sure, the Enemy wants men to think of the Future too—just so much as is necessary for now planning the acts of justice or charity which will probably be their duty tomorrow. The duty of planning the morrow's work is today's duty; though its material is borrowed from the future, the duty, like all duties, is in the Present. This is not straw splitting. He does not want men to give the Future their hearts, to place their treasure in it. We do. His ideal is a man who, having worked all day for the good of posterity (if that is his vocation),
washes his mind of the whole subject, commits the issue to Heaven, and returns at once to the patience or gratitude demanded by the moment that is passing over him. But we want a man hag-ridden by the Future—haunted by visions of an imminent heaven or hell upon earth—ready to break the Enemy's commands in the
present if by so doing we make him think he can attain the one or avert the other—dependent for his faith on the success or failure of schemes whose end he will not live to see. We want a whole race perpetually in pursuit of the rainbow's end, never honest, nor kind, nor happy now, but always using as mere fuel wherewith to heap the altar of the future every real gift which is offered them in the Present.

It follows then, in general, and other things being equal, that it is better for your patient to be filled with anxiety or hope (it doesn't much matter which) about this war than for him to be living in the present. But the phrase "living in the present" is ambiguous. It may describe a process which is really just as much concerned with the Future as anxiety itself. Your man may be untroubled about the Future, not because he is concerned with the Present, but because he has persuaded himself that the Future is, going to be agreeable. As long as that
is the real course of his tranquillity, his tranquillity will do us good, because it is only piling up more disappointment, and therefore more impatience, for him when his false hopes are dashed. If, on the other hand, he is aware that horrors may be in store for him and is praying for the virtues, wherewith to
meet them, and meanwhile concerning himself with the Present because there, and there alone, all duty, all grace, all knowledge, and all pleasure dwell, his state is very undesirable and should be attacked at once. Here again, our Philological Arm has done good work; try the word "complacency" on him. But, of course, it is most likely that he is "living in the Present" for none of these reasons but simply because his health is good and he is enjoying his work. The phenomenon would then be merely natural. All the same, I should break it up if I were you. No natural phenomenon is really in our favour. And anyway, why should the creature be happy?

Your affectionate uncle
SCREWTAPE

~~~~~~~~
Chapter XXVII

MY DEAR WORMWOOD,

You seem to be doing very little good at present. The use of his "love" to distract his mind from the Enemy is, of course, obvious, but you reveal what poor use you are making of it when you say that the whole question of distraction and the wandering mind has now become one of the chief subjects of his prayers. That means you have largely failed. When this, or any other distraction, crosses his mind you ought to encourage him to thrust it away by sheer will power and to try to continue the normal prayer as if nothing had happened; once he accepts the distraction as his present problem and lays that before the Enemy and makes it the main theme of his prayers and his endeavours, then, so far from doing good, you have done harm. Anything, even a sin, which has the total effect of moving him close up to the Enemy, makes against us in the long run.

A promising line is the following. Now that he is in love, a new idea of earthly happiness has arisen in his mind: and hence a new urgency in his purely petitionary prayers—about this war and other such matters. Now is the time for raising intellectual difficulties about prayer of that sort. False spirituality is always to be encouraged. On the seemingly pious ground that "praise and communion with God is the true prayer", humans can often be lured into direct disobedience to the Enemy who (in His usual flat, commonplace, uninteresting way) has definitely told them to pray for their daily bread and the recovery of their sick. You will, of course, conceal from him the fact that the prayer for daily bread, interpreted in a "spiritual sense", is really just as crudely
petitionary as it is in any other sense.

But since your patient has contracted the terrible habit of obedience, he will probably continue such "crude" prayers whatever you do. But you can worry him with the haunting suspicion that the practice is absurd and can have no objective result. Don't forget to use the "heads I win, tails you lose" argument. If the thing he prays for doesn't happen, then that is one more proof that petitionary prayers don't work; if it does happen, he will, of course, be able to see some of the physical causes which led up to it, and "therefore it would have happened anyway", and thus a granted prayer becomes just as good a proof as a denied one that prayers are ineffective.

You, being a spirit, will find it difficult to understand how he gets into this confusion. But you must remember that he takes Time for an ultimate reality. He supposes that the Enemy, like himself, sees some things as present, remembers others as past, and anticipates others as future; or even if he believes that the Enemy does not see things that way, yet, in his heart of hearts, he regards this as a peculiarity of the Enemy's mode of perception—he doesn't really think (though he would say he did) that things as the Enemy sees them are things as they are! If you tried to explain to him that men's prayers today are one of the innumerable coordinates with which the Enemy harmonises the weather of tomorrow, he would reply that then the Enemy always knew men were going to make those prayers and, if so, they did not pray freely but were predestined to do so. And he would add that the weather on a given day can be traced back through its causes to the original creation of matter itself—so that the whole thing, both on the human and on the material side, is given "from the word go". What he ought to say, of course, is obvious to us; that the problem of adapting the
particular weather to the particular prayers is merely the appearance, at two points in his temporal mode of perception, of the total problem of adapting the whole spiritual universe to the whole corporeal universe; that creation in its entirety operates at every point of space and time, or rather that their kind of consciousness forces them to encounter the whole, self-consistent creative act as a series of successive events. Why that creative act leaves room for their free will is the problem of problems, the secret behind the Enemy's nonsense
about "Love". How it does so is no problem at all; for the Enemy does not foresee the humans making their free contributions in a future, but sees them doing so in His unbounded Now. And obviously to watch a man doing something is not to make him do it.

It may be replied that some meddlesome human writers, notably Boethius, have let this secret out. But in the intellectual climate which we have at last succeeded in producing throughout Western Europe, you needn't bother about that. Only the learned read old books and we have now so dealt with the learned that they are
of all men the least likely to acquire wisdom by doing so. We have done this by inculcating The Historical Point of View. The Historical Point of View, put briefly, means that when a learned man is presented with any statement in an ancient author, the one question he never asks is whether it is true. He asks who influenced the ancient writer, and how far the statement is consistent with what he said in other books, and what phase in the writer's development, or in the general history of thought, it illustrates, and how it affected later writers, and how often it has been misunderstood (specially by the learned man's own colleagues) and what the general course of criticism on it has been for the last ten years, and what is the "present state of the question". To regard the ancient writer as a possible source of knowledge—to anticipate that what he said could possibly modify your thoughts or your behaviour—this would be rejected as unutterably simple-minded. And since we cannot deceive the whole human race all the time, it is most important thus to cut every generation off from all others; for where learning makes a free commerce between the ages there is always the danger that the characteristic errors of one may be corrected by the characteristic truths of another. But thanks be to our Father and the Historical Point of View, great scholars are now as little nourished by the past as the most ignorant mechanic who holds that "history is bunk",

Your affectionate uncle
SCREWTAPE

Psalm 146

2011-02-08T14:29:00.000-05:00

Praise the Lord!

Praise the Lord, O my soul!

I will praise the Lord as long as I live;

I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man,

in whom there is no salvation.

When his breath departs, he returns to the earth;

on that very day his plans perish.

Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,

whose hope is in the Lord his God,

who made heaven and earth, the sea,

and all that is in them,

who keeps faith forever;

who executes justice for the oppressed,

who gives food to the hungry.

The Lord sets the prisoners free;

the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.

The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;

the Lord loves the righteous.

The Lord watches over the sojourners;

he upholds the widow and the fatherless,

but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

The Lord will reign forever,

your God, O Zion, to all generations.

Praise the Lord!

(I don't know what can be more beautiful than that!!)

Character vs. Reputation

2011-02-07T15:55:00.000-05:00

"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation,

because your character is what you really are,

while your reputation is merely what others think you are."

~James Wooden

30-Day Challenge, Day 25

2011-02-03T23:04:00.000-05:00

A recipe.

Here is one I really enjoy. It is from a cookbook, not original to us, but I can't remember the name now...Anyway, it's very tasty and moist. Good stuff. :-)

BANANA BREAD

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
3 ripe bananas
1 teaspon soda
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup nuts (optional)

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time. Add vanilla and flour.
Beat together bananas, soda, and nuts. Ad this mixture last. Bake slowly at 325 degrees for 45 minutes. Use 2 loaf pans (4 1/2 inch by 9 inch) greased and lined with wax paper.

30-Day Challenge, Day 24

2011-02-02T22:07:00.000-05:00

A movie no one would expect you to love.

Agh. Some of these posts are not so easy.

I mean, what does it mean by "no one"? No one at all? No one upon meeting me? No one who knows me at least a little? None of you? And should it be one no one expects me to love that I do love, or that I don't love? (I analyze too much.) I think all my readers here are pretty familiar with the types of movies I like... I'm not too secretive about what I like. It is a fact generally acknowledged that I love Jane Austen and Charles Dickens adaptions and other period dramas (though not all) and animated films (particularly Disney). If you didn't know I love Disney animated films and get as much enjoyment out of watching them as I do out of watching a Jane Austen flik, then I guess there's the answer to today's post. :-)

But anyway, I thought it would be more interesting (and easy) to write about a movie no one would expect me NOT to love.

So I love animated films. And I have a soft-spot in my heart for, well, um, like dolls and stuff. :-) So what would you all expect me to like? (In general. At least, I think most people would expect me to like it.

Toy Story. :-P

Okay, rewind. I really like Toy Story 2. It's not one of my top 10 favorites, but I do enjoy watching it very much if I fastforward Jessy's depressing song.   But Toy Story 3 is a different matter.

I was hesitant at first about watching it because I knew the theme was Andy growing up, and I've struggled a lot inside about growing up and knowing I'm not a little girl anymore. (It has awesome pros, but it's kind of sad too sometimes. :-) ) But when I watched it, that aspect didn't bother me at all. I teared up in the end scene with Andy playing with the little girl... especially when he starts talking about how Woody is a faithful friend... Okay, so that was a lovely scene; I loved that part. In fact, I would probably have loved the movie except for one thing.

The climax.

*spoilers ahead* (if you haven't seen it and you don't want to know, just stop reading here)

If Lotso had clipped the "stop" button on the dump belt when I thought he was going to, and everyone had been saved just before going over the edge towards the fire pit, I would have been quite happy with the movie. I would have gasped with relief and sat back to enjoy the rest of the film.
But to have those "friends" of my childhood... Woody, Buzz, Jessy, Rex, Slinky, and the others, really actually almost burn to death?? I didn't even like when they all started holding hands. I've heard some people say they started crying there and thought it was so wonderful because it symbolized the strong bond of their friendship and how they would stick through anything together, but I didn't like it at all. I don't mind if the characters "almost die" and then get saved in the nick of time, but to really almost ALMOST die...and in such a traumatic way... and so emotional... and, I mean, Woody and Buzz, ya know?... yeah. It was just a little too much. I even had a hard time appreciating "The claaaawww!!" I was so tensed up after that that I had a hard time sitting back and enjoying the sweet ending. I did like the sweet ending, but I was too traumatized to really let it warm my heart, if you know what I mean.

In addition, the film did have enough "darker" moments that it just didn't make it to the top of my list. The evil Lotso bear that smells of strawberries, and... *shudders* that SUPER CREEPY BABY DOLL that looks like it needs someone on the American Girls Fans Message Board to fix it up.... (I still hated the baby doll even by the end.) And just little aspects here and there. Not bad things, necessarily, just things that didn't sit right with me when I wanted a heart-warming, nostalgic movie. :-)

Don't get me wrong-- I don't hate this movie, and I don't not recommend it (though I don't recommend it for children, even if it is a cartoon-- don't believe in that line on the back of the case that says "G-General Audiences"). I got some good laughs out of it, and I thought the ending was the perfect way to conclude the series. I loved Bonnie (absolute adorableness!) and her little toys, especially Mr. Pricklepants ("I am trying to stay in character!") :-) :-)   And who doesn't love Woody? (mmmmm!! *hugs self* I LOVE WOODY!!!!)   But it just didn't make it to my favorites list and I probably wouldn't watch it again unless my sisters let me fastforward through (or leave the room for) the whole dumpster scene. It just wasn't my idea of a good climax. The climax should have been a good several minutes prior to that, like, before the dump truck even picked the toys up in the first place. :-P

(Though it's kind of odd, because I don't really dislike intense scenes in general; I mean, I love The Incredibles and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, which have some intense, main-character-almost-dies types of scenes. (Didn't know I liked those? Maybe I should have featured them... :-P ) (another post for another time...) I think, though, that it was the fact that I sort of "grew up" with Woody and Buzz and the others, and already have a soft spot for (eh-hem) toys anyway, so to see them almost burn to death just wasn't what I wanted to see. :-P

So what did you think about it? Feel free to disagree with me. I'm very glad if other people like it, because I feel bad that I didn't. :-) What were your thoughts on Toy Story 3?

P.S. I'm sorry I keep posting about animated films. I tried to think about something else to write about for this post, but animated films kept coming to mind and I didn't know what live action films people wouldn't expect me to love. :-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 23

2011-01-31T22:40:00.000-05:00

A way in which you want to be remembered.

I had had ideas about what I'd write in this post for a while, but something I read today gave me a fresh perspective and helped me form more definite thoughts about it.

I was reading my mom's most recent post on Family Heirlooms and in this post she quoted part of the obituary of her great-great-grandmother, Katherine Daniels.

"All her life was spent in the east until 5 years ago, when she accompanied her family to California and had since made her home in Roseville, where her kindness and helpfulness to those in distress and her sweet and cheerful disposition endeared her to all who came in contact with her. She was a devoted Christian and an earnest worker in the Baptist church, of which she was a member, and her many acts of kindness will ever be remembered."

As I read, I thought, "Wow. That's how I want to be remembered." And then I thought about this post.

"Kindness." "Helpfulness." "Sweet and cheerful disposition." "Devoted Christian." Katherine Daniels was remembered in this positive way. I then think of other people who've reached heaven before me.

You all know my fandom of Eric Liddell... :-) It was said of him by an intern at Weihsien camp that he was "the finest Christian gentleman it has been my pleasure to meet. In all the time in the camp, I never heard him say a bad word about anybody".

I remember Aunt Leah being so cheerful and so full of life, serving the Lord and blessing others and raising her children to love the Lord.

My dearest memory of my own great-grandma, whom I got to know during our visit with her in April-May 2006, is of her faithfulness in prayer and her love for her family. According to my mom, Great-Grandma prayed for her daughter, her son-in-law, and each of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren by name every day, and her journals reflect her heart of love and care for the people God had brought into her life. When she was living, we always knew she was praying for us.

That's how I want to be remembered. Loving. Caring. Joyful. Faithful. Selfless. Courageous. Not just as a fun person or a good writer, but as a vessel of the Lord-- someone emptied of self and full of Christ, ministering God's love and gospel to people, praying for them, encouraging them. Whether I die young, or whether I die old, I want to be remembered as someone who loved God with all her heart and ministered the love of Christ to others in every way.

Hannah had a great post for this day in the challenge too, which I'd encourage you to read. (Ditto what she said. :-) )

30-Day Challenge, Day 22

2011-01-30T23:23:00.000-05:00

A website.

First, allow me to apologize for my lack of posts this week. I asked for prayer about my oral surgery and failed to give you all an update on that. Please forgive me! The surgery went well and I had no complications, except a brief panic afterwards where my blood pressure plummeted and they had to put me on oxygen for a couple minutes... after that, I was fine. I enjoyed lots of rest the first couple days, watched movies and read books and just relaxed. The last couple days, the swelling has pretty much gone away and I can finally smile regular now, and I'm beginning to chew my food now (though no chips or steak :-) ). Thank you all for your prayers and well wishes this last week; I have been so blessed by the kind notes I've received!

Now for the blog challenge. A website. :-)

FAMILY HEIRLOOMS
My mamma just started up this blog last week to catalogue her collection of pictures, newspaper articles, and documents she's gotten in her genealogy studies. The family history is really quite interesting. Mommy's most recent posts are about her great-grandparents who were settlers in North Dakota and Saskatchewan! Anyway, she has been posting pictures and other things she's found over the years, and I thought some of my friends interested in history might enjoy looking at them! I am! :-) Here's a sneak peak of her pictures--North Dakota homestead!

I'm sorry my post was not more detailed; I was going to share more websites of various topics but somehow it didn't save when I left my computer, and it's late now and I need to head to bed. :-P

30-Day Challenge Postponed ~ News

2011-01-23T21:39:00.000-05:00

Hello folks!

We now interrupt this program for a little prayer request and a little rest. :-)

I'm getting my wisdom teeth pulled tomorrow! Mm-hm. *smiles real big* Don't I sound excited?
I'm actually very nervous. Very. :-/ Not so much about the surgery but not being myself afterwards. :-S So if you could all pray, not only that it would go well but also that I would trust the Lord and rest in Him and not be afraid, that would be wonderful!

I had been planning on writing several days' worth of posts in advance and scheduling them to post on their respective days, but I couldn't think of what to write, and so I just decided to postpone the whole thing until next Sunday. That doesn't mean I won't posting at all this week (it might mean that, but not definitely ;-) ) but the blog challenge is put off for a week.

Thank you so much!

"Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." (Isaiah 41:10)

30-Day Challenge, Day 21

2011-01-22T18:39:00.001-05:00

Something you know you do differently than most people.

Amanda says I deal from the bottom of a deck of cards, not from the top.... I didn't know that was different from other people until she mentioned it. :-)

I also pour the cream before the coffee... most people I know pour the coffee in first and then the cream. :-)

I can't make it through a movie without critiquing on the style or historical accuracy of the costumes and planning to make a re-make of at least one gown in the film. I suppose other historical costumers do that, but not most people in general. :-)

What about you? Did I miss anything? ;-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 20

2011-01-21T16:56:00.001-05:00

A hobby of yours.

Sewing doll clothes....

Sewing historical costumes...

and the weird one that gets me some strange looks...

collecting American Girl dolls.

But then, we live in a time and place that prizes individuality, so people really shouldn't have a problem with it anyway. :-)

What are some of your hobbies?

30-Day Challenge, Day 19

2011-01-21T16:20:00.000-05:00

A talent of yours.

Well, it seems kind of self-centered to write about a talent of mine. :-P But then, talents are gifts given by God, and everyone has talents to do different things for God's glory.

God has given me a desire to, and ability to, write, particularly to write novels. I think he's given me that ability to write effectively (several people have told me something I wrote made them cry ;-) ) so my desire is to use my writing to change people-- to point them to the Saviour. After all, since God gave the talent to me in a first place, it only makes sense to use it for His glory! I also strive to use my writing to encourage people, through blog posts, emails, letters, and Facebook statuses. There are so many hurting people who just need an encouraging word and I hope the Lord might use me to do that in my writing.

Now, by reading this post, you probably think I don't actually have a talent for writing because that was very, very short. But it's kind of awkward to write about oneself. ;-) You can read more about my writing by clicking the tag on this post, "books I am writing". :-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 18

2011-01-21T16:06:00.000-05:00

A time when you felt passionate and alive.

This one kind of makes me chuckle because it sounds like the person doing the challenge must be old, tired, and decrepit. ;-) Though I have to admit, the last couple days I've felt very tired. But that's because I stayed up too late at night. ;-)

Anyway, this category is slowing me down and making me get behind on the challenge, and I have several posts to write before Monday because I'm having oral surgery on Monday and won't be feeling like writing for a couple days after that, so.... I'll just skip this one for now and come back to it later .;-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 17

2011-01-19T00:03:00.000-05:00

An art piece.

Here is one I really like. I'm not sure what it is about it... it's just sweet and homey and peaceful looking. :-)

I love this too. The sea... the flowers... the book... the tea... that's where I want to be right now. :-)

I also have several other "favorites" with sheep/shepherds theme but I've posted them quite often in various posts on this blog, so if you go back through "devotional thoughts", you should find them....

There. Now I think I'm caught up.... ;-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 16

2011-01-18T23:54:00.001-05:00

A song that makes you cry.

Good grief. I didn't even have to think about that one.
Probably the song that makes me cry the most is "When Somebody Loved Me" from Toy Story 2. When I watched that song on Youtube, it left me depressed for the rest of the day.
Watch at your own risk.

But that was just a "bad" kind of cry. There are plenty of songs that make me cry a "good" kind of cry. :-)
The one--or some-- that comes to mind first is actually the whole CD, So High the Price, by the Steve Pettit Evangelistic Team. The first several times I listened to it, it brought tears to my eyes with each and every song. The theme of the whole CD is Christ's sacrifice for us. When I listen to the songs, my heart is filled with awe as I consider my sinfulness and God's love and Christ's sacrifice for me and the glory of His resurrection... I nearly always get a lump in my throat now when I hear the triumphant words in one of the numbers, "Death is dead! Love has won! Christ has conquered!" Then the words of another song on the CD... "I was blinded by my sin/ Had no ears to hear Your voice/ Did not know Your love within/ Had no taste for heaven’s joys/ Then Your Spirit gave me life/ Opened up Your Word to me/ Through the gospel of Your Son/ Gave me endless hope and peace" ....

Here is another lovely selection from that CD:

30-Day Challenge, Day 15

2011-01-18T23:45:00.000-05:00

A person you admire.

A life lived for the Lord.

A courage that risked everything that lives and souls might be saved.

An endurance and steadfastness amidst physical suffering.

A pen that dripped with beauty and passion and love for her God.

A heart so closely knit to the Father's.

Amy Carmichael

P.S. I'm afraid I've really slacked off on this challenge. It's been a super busy week... we had church and company on Sunday, a friend over on Monday from 1:00 to 9:00 ;-), and dentist appointments and shopping today, PLUS two sewing orders. So yeah, busy. :-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 14

2011-01-15T12:58:00.000-05:00

A vacation you would like to take.

Well, first, here's the vacation I would like to take RIGHT NOW.

HAWAI'I !!!

Water...

Color...

Sunshine...

and WARMTH!!!!!

But actually, my big dream trip is to England. Studying for a book in London, visiting "Cranford" (a.k.a. Lacock), meeting my English cousin Louise, attending the Jane Austen Festival in Bath..... *sighs* It's a nice idea. Hopefully it will become a reality one day. :-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 13

2011-01-14T16:05:00.000-05:00

A guilty pleasure.

A what? Would that mean something I enjoy but feel guilty about?
I'd have to think about it.... Would getting a $3.50 cup of Starbucks flavored coffee every once and a while be considered a guilty pleasure?

30-Day Challenge, Day 12

2011-01-14T15:52:00.000-05:00

A song that you want played at your wedding(or was played).
I'm afraid I failed to do this one yesterday, for the overall reason that I don't know what I want played at my wedding because I really don't think much about my wedding. I think I know who I'd like to sing at my wedding, but besides that, I'm not sure.

I thought it would be lovely to walk up the aisle (or back down) to a Jane Austen soundtrack piece. "Hole in the Wall" would be a lovely processional (it was for some friends of ours). The main theme of Pride and Prejudice (1995) or the end credits piece of Emma would make delicious, exciting recessionals. As for a song to be sung? I don't know. I'm not much into love songs right now, not being in love myself, so I haven't thought much about that. Steven Curtis Chapman's song "Speechless" would be nice, even though it isn't a love song as in, love between a man and a woman, but it is about the greater, more amazing love of God for us. And the person I want to sing at my wedding would sound amazing doing that song, if I could convince him to. But then, that's a couple years away at least, so I don't have to worry about it yet.

:-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 11

2011-01-12T15:21:00.000-05:00

A photo of you taken recently.

This one was taken on Sunday... of my new haircut. :-)

This is from the Christmas Ball in December. I like the "movie feel" of the picture. Photo by Brandon Pieplow.

That was a pretty easy post.

30-Day Challenge, Day 10

2011-01-11T17:49:00.000-05:00

A photo of you taken over ten years ago.

Oh dear! We've got heaps of those and I am absolutely addicted to "old" photos. Anyway, here are some, because I did not take time to scan more, and besides, most of you probably wouldn't be as interested in them as I am. :-)

Okay, now I'm the one with my tongue sticking out, as usual. :-P

At the airport on the way to California, when I was six

probably watching a movie right here...eating popcorn...hanging out with my pal (my sister ;-) )...wearing my favorite pajamas (Disney's Pocahontas themed) :-)

At Campobello with my aunt Lois, when I was seven

And probably my favorite from the "era"... the Christmas I got Kirsten (1998...?)

I LOVE pictures from when my sisters and I were little!! :-D :-D :-D

30-Day Challenge, Day 9

2011-01-10T22:31:00.000-05:00

A photo you took.

Card game, anyone?

Kitty's pretty full of herself... she thinks she can beat you at cards. I dunno, I think she might not have all the rules down yet-- particularly Number 1 Rule: Don't let the other players see your cards! :-P

30-Day Challenge, Day 8

2011-01-09T22:26:00.000-05:00

A thank you letter to someone who has changed your life.

To a Very Special Friend:
It seems strange to write a letter to you for all the world to see, though I do it often enough when it's just you and me to read it. But I couldn't really think of who else to write a letter to. I suppose almost everyone that comes into our lives changes us in some way, which makes it harder to decide who to write this publicized letter to, especially as if I featured one person in particular, the others who have meant just as much to me might feel hurt and left out. However, you've made such an impact on the lives of so many of my friends that I am confident they feel the same as I do and will not feel left out in the least. :-)

Anyway, there really isn't anybody more deserving of a public "thank you" than you! You've known me all my life... even before I could see clearly or distinguish one word from another, and what's more, you've loved me. To this day, I'm not sure why you did, or why you still do... after all I've done to hurt you and disobey you! The fact that you keep loving me through all that fills my heart with amazement. When I complained about the food you put before me, you could have taken it all away, but you continued to give me food to help me live and grow. When I fought over toys with my little sister out of pride and selfishness in my heart, you could have thrown your hands up in the air and left me alone to have my way and hurt others, but instead you lovingly disciplined me and taught me what selflessness and humility and true love are. When life took its terrifying turns and I found people or things I loved falling from my grasp and I kicked against what you were doing, you could have cast me off as a hopeless case, but instead, you showed me that through it you were always there for me, you would help me through whatever the situation was, and that all I needed, in reality, was you.

And oh-- you remember those times when I got so depressed? Those awful times (and not all that seldom either) when satan was really after me, telling me life was pointless, that I was worthless, that I could never be good, that I might as well not exist? Ohhh, dearest friend, you were so wonderful in those moments. When I felt like I was in despair, you whispered to me, "Let me help you," and I feebly called out your name and asked for some ray of light. You could have ignored my cry because you knew my lack of faith, but instead you spoke in your beautiful, authoritative voice-- you bid satan be gone, and then you wrapped your arms around me and whispered, "Peace, be still." Each time that has happened, it has made me love you even more, because in those times I see your strength and your authority to rebuke those demonic forces that surround the walls of my soul with their battle axes and fiery arrows; I see your steadfast love and kindness in your words of comfort and continual presence; I see your goodness and faithfulness in keeping your promise to hold me in the palm of your hand and never let go. Wow. Even as I write, I remember more and more that I have to thank you for. THANK YOU!!

I'd have to say the biggest thing of all of those thankworthy deeds you have done, it would have to be the day you saved my life. You remember that, I know! I was sentenced to death, and rightfully so. I'm ashamed to think of what I did... so many things, most of which I'd hate to admit... But when I was to die, you stepped up and took my place. Yes-- you died in my place, thereby clearing me from the punishment of my sin and washing my sin away. Then-- oh, this is the best part!!-- you came alive again and gave me new life-- because you are not just like any other person. You are GOD. And because you are God, death couldn't possibly keep you in its chains. You arose a Victor, and I arose with you.

It is for all this and more that I thank you. I know that this was supposed to be a "thank you NOTE" and it turned out to be more of a letter, but how can even a blogpost of this length sufficiently thank you for all you've done?? You are so wonderful and so good and so great that if I had all eternity to thank you, it would never be enough.

Thank you again, dearest Friend! I love you, Jesus!

Love from your ransomed,
Melanie

"We love Him because He first loved us."

30-Day Challenge, Day 7

2011-01-08T20:14:00.000-05:00

Five things you couldn't possibly live without.

FOOD. Neither could you. (Sorry, I had to put that one first for effect. ;-) )
GOD. And for more than one reason too. Think about it.

He created me. Nothing exists without some intelligent mind outside of itself coming up with the idea and creating it. I honestly couldn't live unless God created and sustained me.
He loves me. He is love. If He was not, I would be gone a long time ago. In His patience and goodness, He grants me life and forgiveness when I don't deserve it.
He saved me. He granted me His Holy Spirit. This gives me peace and strength in the trials of life, hope of a future with Him, joy in His amazing unconditional love. "I could not do without Thee, O Savior of the lost." <3

FAMILY IN CHRIST. That includes my immediate family and those related not by blood but by Spirit. We all need that encouragement we receive from brothers and sisters in Christ... insights others have had in their walk with the Lord, guidance from more mature Christians, encouragement during difficult times, and just the same love for Jesus Christ and the common factor of being sinners saved by the amazing grace of God. I am so glad God did not leave us alone in our walk with Him but has surrounded us with people taking the same narrow way.
COLOR. I love color. More and more I love it. I am so glad we don't live in a monochromatic world or one of those sci-fi places where everything is white. I love blue, green, pink, orange, yellow, silver, gold, maroon, aqua, lavender, brown, turquoise.... <3 <3 <3
WRITING. Whether it be on computer, or pencil and paper, or slate, or just in my own mind. If I didn't have some avenue for my passion for writing and creating , I'm not sure what I would do. ;-)

What about you?

P.S. I have a "new look"! :-) :-) :-) "Snip snip, here we go!" I'll see if Beth can get a picture tomorrow so I can post it for you to see. ;-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 6

2011-01-07T21:40:00.001-05:00

A moment you wish you could relive.

Goodness. You might have asked me on a day I was feeling sentimental, and I've been trying not to be lately. :-) I guess right now I am of the mind that each day God gives us is precious, but once it is passed, it is passed, and we have a new day to live and to use as best we can for God's glory... that we can look back on memories but not let ourselves be stuck in them. While I greatly dislike fluffy nostalgic songs, I do tend to live in my memories, and the last year or two have had their harder moments of seeing childhood flitting away and the memories of it slipping farther and farther into the past. I am just recently getting to the point where I can accept the fact that I am growing up, I am where God has put me, and it's best for me to embrace the moment and move forward for God, while still appreciating the special moments He's given me in the past.

That said, I can't really think of a particular occasion I'd wish to relive, and I'd better not think about it too hard or I'll get myself depressed. :-) But I am thinking of some more general moments that I wished at the time that I could capture and wrap up and carry in my pocket to relive now and then. Moments like...

...standing on the beach with the wind blowing in my face and the waves crashing up onto the beach with a mighty boom...
...sitting with my feet hanging over the rocky ledge at Sunset Park, watching the sun sink into the calm waters of Lake Erie...
...climbing up Windlass Hill and being nearly blown away at the top by the strong Nebraska winds...
...walking in the woods when the sun was just at the right angle to light it up and cast golden patches everywhere...
...walking in bare feet with my buddies or my little friends, around the lawn at church, breathing in the warm summer air and just enjoying friendship...

...oh no. I'd better stop there. :-)

Well, lest I bore you any further with my ramblings about sentiment and memories, I'd better close up shop on my computer, read another chapter in my new volume of C. S. Lewis's nonfiction works, and then get to bed. I'm trying to get into the happen of getting to bed early and waking up early. Not sure if it'll work, but it's worth a try. ;-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 5

2011-01-06T19:06:00.001-05:00

A Favorite Quote

Listen, folks. I collect quotes. It's a hobby. I must have at least 500 quotes in my One Note quote collection. Anyway, here's just a sampler:

"I will not try to convince you of anything about God. I cannot. You must know Him. I only tell you I believe in Him with all my heart. You must ask Him to explain Himself to you, and not take it for granted that He has done you a wrong because He has done what you do not like. Whether you seek Him or not, He will do you justice. But He cannot explain Himself unless you seek Him."

~George MacDonald

" "Trust Me, My child," He says. "Trust Me with a fuller abandon than you ever have before. Trust Me, as minute succeeds minute, every day of your life, for as long as you live. And if you become conscious of anything hindering our relationship, do not hurt Me by turning away form Me. Draw all the closer to Me, come, run to Me. Allow Me to hide you, to protect you, even from yourself. Tell Me your deepest cares, your every trouble. Trust Me to keep My hand upon you. I will never leave you. I will shape you, mold you, and perfect you. Do not fear, O child of My love, do not fear. I love you." "

-Amy Carmichael

"Courage, dear heart."

~C. S. Lewis

"The heart set to do the Father's will need never fear defeat. His promises of guidance may be fully counted upon. Does it make sense to believe that the Shepherd would care less about getting His sheep where He wants them to go than they care about getting there?"

~Elisabeth Elliot

"Victory over all the circumstances of life comes not by might, nor by power, but by a practical confidence in God and by allowing His Spirit to dwell in our hearts and control our actions and emotions. Learn in the days of ease and comfort, to think in terms of the prayer that follows, so that when the days of hardship come you will be fully prepared and equipped to meet them."

~Eric Liddell

(I just realized that all the quotes I just posted are by the favorite authors on my sidebar. :-P See, I told you they were my favorite authors. :-) ) Anyway, I thought I might mention a few more:

"Difficulties afford a platform upon which He can show Himself. Without them, we could never know how tender, faithful, and Almighty our God is."

-J. Hudson Taylor

"God created us to live with a single passion: to joyfully display his supreme excellence in all the spheres of life. The wasted life is the life without this passion. God calls us to pray and think and dream and work not to be made much of, but to make much of Him in every part of our lives."

~ John Piper

"What am I? Well, here is what I am. I am the worst sinner I know. And by the grace of God I am doing better than I deserve. For I deserve the righteous wrath of God because of my sin. I deserve to be punished eternally. But in the mystery of His mercy, God sacrificed and crushed His Son on the Cross--as my substitute--so that I might be forgiven of my sin and know God as my Father rather than my Judge. What am I? I am truly amazed by the grace of God. That's what I am."

~ C.J. Mahaney

"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now life in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

~Paul the Apostle

Click the "quotes" label under this post to see a wider variety of my collection. ;-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 4

2011-01-05T23:56:00.005-05:00

A Favorite Television Program

Well, most everyone who knows me well knows that, in general, I hate TV shows. They're so repetitive and end up being such nonsense (I think). Therefore, if there is a TV show I remotely like, it would have to be called my favorite because I don't like any others. :-)

Granted, I don't mind the Andy Griffith show or Storm Stories, if they're playing, and now and then I'll sit and watch one of those old shows from the 50s or 60s. But I wouldn't say I like them especially. One show, however, that I've recently been introduced to and like very much is...

Now, I've only watched a few episodes of the first season, and it may be that as I watch more, I'll find them to end up being as repetitive and nonsensical as the other shows I've watched. But as it stands right now, I really actually do like the show.

Emergency! was a very popular show when my mom and dad were growing up, and both of them watched it on the opposite ends of the country. It's no wonder they were so popular. They're packed with action, and Johnny Gage (played by Randolph Mantooth) and Roy DeSoto (played by Kevin Tighe) are downright cool. :-P

Actually, I think the reason why I like Emergency! would be the close connection it has with my family. The show charts the very beginnings of the paramedics in the 70s--people were beginning to realize that people were dying one the way to the hospital who would have lived if they had received professional medical treatment on the scene of the emergency. The first episode shows the true-to-life loopholes the early paramedics had to go through to make it legal for them to administer medical help to patients on the scene. This holds great significance to me, because my dad is a paramedic, and my granddaddy was greatly involved in starting up the paramedic service in our area during the 70s (around that same time). We take it for granted these days that we have paramedics who can come when we need them and help us in an emergency, but it wasn't always so. While Emergency! isn't a Christian show, and the characters and most of the events are fictional, it reminds me that God was at work, preparing the details thirty/forty years ago to work out His plan in people's lives even today-- the saving of lives so that they might have another chance to find Him here on earth.

The episodes I've seen so far are very exciting. The characters deal with emergencies from house fires to California forest fires, from broken limbs to heart attacks, from car crashes to caving tunnels. They keep you on the edge of your seat, and what's nice is, at least in the early ones, is that you don't have to worry about seeing graphic details of the injuries. The only thing that bugs me is a negative comment in one of the episodes, where the doctor mentions "helping God to make up his mind" or something like that... an all-too-common attitude among doctors, I'm afraid. Oh, another thing that bugs me is Dixie's false eyelashes and Hollywood-influenced nurse outfit, but that's just because I think it looks really stupid. ;-)

But overall, it's actually a show I pretty much enjoy and I look forward to seeing more. I only wish I was familiar with them a couple months ago when Daddy got to meet Randolph Mantooth at a symposium. Lucky. :-P

30-Day Challenge, Day 3

2011-01-04T22:37:00.000-05:00

A Favorite Book

The Wingfold Trilogy/The Curate of Glaston

There are times when read a book, set it down when you're done, and forget after a while what the story was even about, but the underlying message of the book remains with you forever.

This was the case with The Curate's Awakening; indeed, with the whole Thomas Wingfold trilogy. After I read it, I remembered the basics of the story, but what remained foremost in my mind was the spiritual theme. It is the story of a curate whose world is shaken by an atheist's question, regarding his preaching: "Tell me, do you really believe one word of all that?" The curate, Thomas Wingfold, comes to realize that he doesn't even know what he believes; he only claims to believe what has always been taught him. This question plunges him into the study to know, "Is Christianity true? Was there really such a man as Jesus Christ? What does he require of his followers?" Through the help of a wise little dwarf named Polwarth, Wingfold digs into the Word of God to find the answers and finds what is it to know God-- to believe Him and obey. He challenges his congregation to do the same, to ask themselves: "Do I obey His word? Have I ever, have I once, sought to obey it? Am I a pupil of Jesus? Am I a Christian?"

The following two books in the series develop this topic through a wide variety of lives such as Thomas Wingfold the curate, Polwarth the dwarf, Leopold Lingard the murderer, Paul Faber the surgeon, Richard Tuke the bookbinder, and others. In the events of their lives, they find themselves asking some of the most crucial questions in life: Is there a God? If there is, how are we to find Him? How can we share with those who doubt it? If we say we know God, does our life show it? Is our Christianity real? How does God relate to us? Does He care when our hearts ache? Can He forgive even the most heinous sins? Can any person, however benelovent and good, earn God's favor by his own works? Is God still good even when innocent people suffer? This trilogy looks seriously at these questions and answers them with the Bible as its guide. It has challenged me to think about these things and to look into God's Word to see what our Source and Creator has to say about them. It has encouraged me to look at my own life and evaluate whether I am living out my Christianity and obeying what God has commanded me in His Word.

These books contain more plot than what I have just related, but this is the thread throughout which has stayed with me, making it one of my favorite series of books.

"My dear sir, no conviction can be got-- or if it could be got, would be of any lasting value-- through that dealer in secondhand goods, the intellect. If by it we could prove there is a God, it would be of small avail indeed. We must see Him and know Him. And I know of no other way of knowing that there is a God but that which reveals what He is-- and that way is Jesus Christ as He revealed Himself on earth, and as He is revealed afresh to every heart that seeks to know the truth about Him. . . . Your business is to acquaint yourself with the man Jesus; He will be the one to reveal the Father. Take your New Testament as if you had never seen it before, and read to find out. The point is, there was a man who said He knew God and that if you would give heed to Him, you should know Him too."

~Joseph Polwarth in The Curate's Awakening, page 60

30-Day Challenge, Day 2

2011-01-03T17:07:00.001-05:00

A Favorite Movie

I don't usually post about movies on this blog, so this will be a little different. ;-) You're probably expecting me to post about a period drama, but since I already post about those on my other blog, I decided to go with another kind of movie. I had a hard time deciding between It Happened on 5th Avenue (a new favorite) and Balto (an old but recently renewed favorite). I decided to go with Balto. And yes, it's a cartoon, but most of you know I love animated films.

Balto is based on the famous story of the little town in Alaska that fell under a terrible epidemic of diphtheria, and of a dog who saved the day by bringing in the medicine despite hindering weather conditions. The movie keeps only to the very bare bones of the true story (in most ways it's terribly inaccurate), but it makes up for it by an exciting story and excellent characterization.

Balto is an outcast. His heritage is a mix of dog and wolf, and most of the dogs, particularly the lead sled dog runner Steele (who is, in my opinion, Gaston re-incarnated ;-) ) , treat him as inferior because of this. Everyone, except a beautiful husky named Jenna and a comical goose named Boris, fail to see the strength and speed that will become Balto's greatest assets.

Panic descends when diphtheria sweeps over the town of Nome and begins claiming lives. The hospital runs out of medicine to treat the illness, and the weather is too heavy to allow anything but dogsled to go fetch and bring back the medicine. Steele's team is chosen for this, even after Balto proves himself to be the fastest runner. However, when the sled team team is reported lost in the blizzard, Balto determines to go find them and bring back the medicine that will save the town of Nome. It will be a journey full of peril on all sides-- weather, wild animals, natural forces...and Steele.

Balto

Balto is definitely a lovable hero. He is faced with odds, not only external but also internal-- he feels unwanted and useless, but he does not let this interfere with doing what is right. He also has a very patient and selfless heart, and does not fight to defend himself against Steele, but only to defend those weaker than himself. He is aware of others' needs. When he makes the decision to go and find the lost team, Boris exclaims in dismay, "He's going out into freezing cold to find a dog he doesn't like to bring medicine back to a town that doesn't like him!" And yet Balto does it, not to prove himself, but to save the children of the town and the lost dogs, even though they never gave him any reason to care about their well-being.

Muk and Luk

Balto also has its share of endearing characters. There's Jenna, who is quiet and gentle, and yet surprisingly brave; she is faithful to her owner Rosy and supportive of Balto. Boris is a hilarious Russian snow goose that can't fly; he hates bears; he is usually outwardly skeptical but stands behind Balto and encourages him; he also has some of the best lines in the film. Muk and Luk are two fat, fluffy, adorable polar bears whose oddity is that they can't swim (or at least, they think they can't.) Muk speaks in a cute British accent and Luk doesn't speak at all; they love Boris and are very simple, yet lovable.

Boris

Balto was a favorite of my sisters' and mine when we were little, but we only just got a hold of a copy again and watched it as adults. I think I like it better now than I did then! It is technically a kid's movie, but I'm allowed to like a kid's movie, right? It has all the qualities for a good film-- strong storyline, good characters, thrilling character arcs and climaxes, stirring music (James Horner ;-) see previous post ;-) )...Unfortunately, the film didn't do well in the Box Office (possibly due to the fact that it is a Universal picture, not Disney, and was overshadowed by Disney's Lion King, which came out the same year) and isn't sold in stores anymore. We borrow it from the library, but it has also been uploaded online.

Here's the trailer... beware, it gives away a lot of the story, but at least it doesn't give away the main climax. ;-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 1

2011-01-02T17:36:00.002-05:00

A Favorite Song

Frankly, I don't have a 100% favorite song.... I have zillions! Well, not really, but I do have a lot. So I think I will do as Hannah (@ Life in My Own Words) did and list my favorites under a few different categories (selected by myself ;-) ) .

Traditional Hymn
You can look in my categories at various songs I've posted, and that will give you a general idea. I'm going to post one I haven't posted previously (at least, I don't think I have).

In Heavenly Love Abiding by Anna L. Waring

In heav'nly love abiding, no change my heart shall fear;
And safe is such confiding, for nothing changes here.
The storm may roar without me, my heart may low be laid;
But God is round about me, and can I be dismayed?

Wherever He may guide me, no want shall turn me back;
My Shepherd is beside me and nothing can I lack.
His wisdom ever waketh, His sight is never dim;
He knows the way He taketh, and I will walk with Him.

Green pastures are before me which yet I have not seen;
Bright skies will soon be o'er me where darkest clouds have been.
My hope I cannot measure, my path to life is free;
My Savior has my treasure, and He will walk with me. Amen.

Contemporary Hymn
Again, I've posted several favorites (lots by the Gettys!) but here is another one I particular like. We sang it in church today so it's on my mind anyway. :-)

O Great God by Bob Kauflin

O great God of highest heaven,
Occupy my lowly heart.
Own it all and reign supreme,
Conquer every rebel power.
Let no vice or sin remain
That resists Your holy war.
You have loved and purchased me;
Make me Yours forevermore

I was blinded by my sin,
Had no ears to hear Your voice,
Did not know Your love within,
Had no taste for heaven’s joys.
Then Your Spirit gave me life,
Opened up Your Word to me;
Through the gospel of Your Son
Gave me endless hope and peace.

Help me now to live a life
That’s dependent on Your grace;
Keep my heart and guard my soul
From the evils that I face.
You are worthy to be praised
With my every thought and deed!
O great God of highest heaven,
Glorify Your Name through me!

Disney/Broadway
There are three that get continual stuck in my head. "You Can Fly" (Peter Pan), "Rescue Aid Society" (The Rescuers) and "Part of Your World" (The Little Mermaid). But these aren't my favorite (particularly "You Can Fly"...so annoying!) I think my favorite is probably "Tale as Old as Time/Beauty and the Beast". "Bitter sweet and strange, Finding you can change, Learning you were wrong...." You know the lyrics. ;-) I like this one because it hits on the fundamentals of life, unlike many of the other Disney songs. A lot of the songs are full of "You're good, you've got it all together, you deserve better, etc." This one speaks of the beauty of change....when we admit we are wrong and allow God's love to work in us, He changes us and makes us what we ought to be! It is truly a tale as old as time. I'm sure the songwriter didn't have that concept in mind when he wrote the song, but that's the message I get from that song. ;-)
Anyway, I do like "Part of Your World" (The Little Mermaid), "Once Upon a Dream" (Sleeping Beauty), and I get a kick out of "I'll Make a Man Out of You" (Mulan). ;-) I'm weird and kind of like the quiet, melancholy, 70's-feeling songs of The Rescuers too (and the "Rescue Aid Society" theme. ;-) )

Classical
I'd have to say "The Maldau" by Bedrich Smetana! (Sorry the song cuts off at the end of the video, but that has most of it). (It was the best arrangement I could find on Youtube. ;-) )

Soundtrack
Oh! So many!!! Also, it changes over time. Without a doubt, James Horner is my favorite soundtrack composer, and here is one piece of his that I've recently fallen in love. It's "The Heritage of the Wolf", from Balto, and contains most of the themes from the movie, which are all lovely (very stirring ;-) ) .

That's takes care of most of the categories I listen to and enjoy. It would take forever to list all the songs I enjoy, though. :-)

Even if you aren't doing the 30-Day Challenge, perhaps you might comment and share some of your favorite songs?

30-Day Blog Challenge

2011-01-02T16:29:00.012-05:00

Hannah at Life in My Own Words posted about this 30-day challenge, and I thought I could try to keep up with it. (I may alter a few of the topics as I go along, I dunno!) Now that I don't have to write The Marquis' Daughter, I'll have more time for blogging, and it'll be good to have something to keep me writing too.

Feel free to join me! It'll be fun! :-D

Day 1: A favorite song.

Day 2: A favorite movie.

Day 3: A favorite book.

Day 4: A favorite television program.

Day 5: A favorite quote.

Day 6: A moment you wish you could relive.

Day 7: Five things you couldn't possibly live without.

Day 8: A thank you letter to someone who has changed your life.

Day 9: A photo you took.

Day 10: A photo of you taken over ten years ago.

Day 11: A photo of you taken recently.

Day 12: A song that you want played at your wedding(or was played).

Day 13: A guilty pleasure.

Day 14: A vacation you would like to take.

Day 15: A person you admire.

Day 16: A song that makes you cry.

Day 17: An art piece.

Day 18: A time when you felt passionate and alive.

Day 19: A talent of yours.

Day 20: A hobby of yours.

Day 21: Something you know you do differently than most people.

Day 22: A website.

Day 23: A way in which you want to be remembered.

Day 24: A movie no one would expect you to love.

Day 25: A recipe.

Day 26: A childhood memory.

Day 27: A physical feature you love.

Day 28: A scar you have and it's story.

Day 29: Hopes, dreams and plans you have for the next 365 days.

Day 30: A motto or philosophy.

Off to work on Day 1....

Victory!

2011-01-01T18:55:00.002-05:00

At about 9:30, I wrote the last sentence of The Marquis' Daughter.
In other words, The End!
I am so grateful for the Lord's help as I made the effort to finish MD by the New Year. In looking back at old Facebook statuses, I realized that my goal to finish by January began in March, and the Lord helped me reach this goal! In the last two weeks I ran into so many roadblocks, trying to get my characters through a very high-stake mission and to tie up loose ends, but each time I hit a roadblock, I prayed, talked with my sisters and some friends, and I got past the blocks. ;-)

This last week was pretty rigorous.

On Tuesday I had a "writeathon" with a literary friend of mine, Debbie. We started writing from I believe 7:30 to 8:30 and counted up our wordcount, and then picked up again at 9:00 and wrote until 10:00. Then I took a break and tried to go to bed, but my mind was still moving (thankfully!) and I ended up writing until 1:00. My total wordcount for that day (day as in, period of awakeness ;-) ) was 2,438 words.

On Wednesday, I wrote a mere 810 words... that was a roadblock night. But the encouragement of my sisters and some friends kept me going.

On Thursday, I wrote 2,326 words... just half a chapter and an epilogue to go.

On Friday (last night), I started writing in the middle of the afternoon (I usually write just in the evening), I wrote a total of 3,390 words and finished the novel at about 9:30! Thank You, Lord!!

What a wonderful adventure this has been! I really am not sure what to do with myself, now that the book is done. Writing is a main part of my evening routine. ;-) Well, I suppose I will have more time to read and study now, and I'll need to go back and edit too. My plan is to read through the book in as few sittings as possible, fill in the places that need help, read back through it out loud (at least the conversations), edit for style and grammar, send it to some writing friends to proofread, and then hopefully find a publisher. ;-)

It's been fun looking back at the writing process of this last year. I started rearranging the whole book sometime in March or April, breaking away from the format it had gone by for so many years (I wrote the earliest edition of this book when I was seven or eight!) and combining the first two books into one. I also did some major character reconstruction on the characters of Isaac Barnum, Esther Moore, Lord Colonsay, and even Sophia and Mark. New characters popped up out of nowhere: Edmund (hearts!! ;-) ), Lady Elizabeth, Jemima, Mark's brothers, Liz, and the evil Wym (who may actually end up being a principle bad guy in the later books...strangely, because he totally popped up AS I WROTE.... I never sat down and thought him up :-P ). The themes of redemption, salvation, and friendship worked their way into the storyline, and Isaac's backstory took me by surprise and gave his character a new, fuller dimension.

In July, I set a goal of writing 500 words every day except Sunday, and except for exceptionable busy days (and sometimes weeks-- late November, early December), I kept pretty much to that goal. From July to November, I would mark down my daily wordcount on a calendar and when the month was over, I'd tape the calendar sheet to the wall. July reads my total wordcount as 18,989. August: 10,342. September: 19,550. October: 15,132. I didn't add up November's because by the end of the month I was so busy with sewing orders that I had almost no time to write, and I didn't get around to printing out a calendar page for December. :-S

Another habit I began was that of listening to soundtrack music while I write sometime in August. Soundtracks really help to set the mood when I write. James Horner's especially. ;-) Perhaps I will compile a music list of some of the different "themes" I used.

Besides those things, I also learned so much about writing. Books such as The Plot Thickens by Noah Lukeman and The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White, and blogs such as Wordplay have totally revolutionized by way of looking at writing, characterization, and style. "Show, don't tell" is not as terrible of a rule as I once thought, and thanks to those sources for teaching me that. :-)

I am so grateful for the Lord's help this year as I've written. Not only as He helped me as I wrote challenging scenes (particularly conversations) and developed characters and storyline that glorify Him, but He has also taught me a lot in my walk with Him. As several people have pointed out flaws in my writing, God has taught me humility. I don't know everything and there are much better writers than me who have a wealth of information for me to learn and apply, and the Lord is teaching me to accept these facts graciously and learn from my mistakes and others' corrections. He has also emphasized to me time and time again the importance of committing my work to Him. When I sit down to write, I ask His help and guidance for the scene at hand and pray that He will use my book to bring honor to His name. I hope this will be so.

Facebook has a neat little application in which you can "sum up" your year in Facebook statuses. I wrote frequently about my writing on Facebook so I put together a collage of writing-related statuses since I joined the book of face in March. I copied it to share with you. :-)

What's up next?
Editing. Good ol' editing. :-)
Happy New Year, by the way. ;-)

Race Towards The New Year....

2010-12-30T23:24:00.000-05:00

Hey folks!
In case you are wondering why I haven't been posting lately, it's not because I've forgotten to post, and it's not because I don't have anything to post. It's that I don't have time to post! ;-)
That is, I have a couple long post ideas in my mind that I'd like to write down-- a book review, a devotional article or two, reflections on this last year and this Christmas season-- but I am busy with something else instead.
You see, I am aiming to finish my novel, The Marquis' Daughter, by 12:01 A.M., January 1st, 2011. :-) And I still have almost a whole chapter and a short epilogue to write by then. So expect my "New Year" post to come a little late. ;-)
Well, I'd better get back to my writing now. ;-)
~Melanie

Hark! the Herald Angels Sing

2010-12-24T14:39:00.001-05:00

My absolute FAVORITE Christmas carol....ever...period. :)

Hark! the herald angels sing,

"Glory to the new born King!

Peace on earth, and mercy mild,

God and sinners reconciled!"

Joyful, all ye nations rise,

Join the triumph of the skies;

With th' angelic host proclaim,

"Christ is born in Bethlehem!"

Hark! the herald angels sing,

"Glory to the new born King!"

Christ, by highest heaven adored;

Christ, the Everlasting Lord;

Late in time, behold Him come,

Offspring of a virgin's womb.

Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;

Hail th' Incarnate Deity,

Pleased as man with man to dwell,

Jesus, our Emmanuel.

Hark! the herald angels sing,

"Glory to the new born King!"

Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace!

Hail the Sun of Righteousness!

Light and life to all he brings,

Risen with healing in his wings.

Mild he lays his glory by,

Born that man no more may die,

Born to raise the sons of earth,

Born to give them second birth.

Hark! the herald angels sing,

"Glory to the new born King!"

Come, Desire of nations, come;

Fix in us Thy humble home;

Rise, the woman's conquering Seed,

Bruise in us the serpent's head.

Adam's likeness now efface,

Stamp Thine image in its place:

Second Adam from above,

Reinstate us in Thy love.

Hark! the herald angels sin,

"Glory to the newborn King!"

~Charles Wesley

What's your favorite Christmas carol?

Swing Over and Visit...

2010-12-23T20:40:00.001-05:00

Bethany's new photography blog!
http://atbabphotography.blogspot.com/

Emmanuel

2010-12-23T12:05:00.000-05:00

"The Lord your God is in your midst..."

Emmanuel. God with us.

Approximately 2,000 years ago, Jesus Christ came to earth, fully God and fully man, and dwelt among men. He lived, died, and rose again. Now He has given us His Spirit to dwell in us and guide us. He is truly "God With Us".

Let this thrilling thought remain with you throughout this season and this next year. Wherever you are, whatever you are going through, God is with you, and He will never leave or forsake you.

We are never alone, for God is with us.

"Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion,

for behold, I come

and I will dwell in your midst,

declares the Lord."

Letting Go

2010-12-22T13:45:00.000-05:00

The following text is an excerpt from Elisabeth Elliot's Passion and Purity. In this chapter, she is speaking primarily of her separation from her future husband (Jim Elliot) as their preparation to serve the Lord took them different places after a short time spent near each other, studying in Quito. However, what she says applies to more than just a person's love life. I thought what she says here might be an encouragement to many of us who are going through the difficult process of "letting go", so I wanted to share it with you. May you be encouraged and blessed, as I was!

~~~~~~~

The growth of all living green things wonderfully represents the process of receiving and relinquishing, gaining and losing, living and dying. The seed falls into the ground, dies as the new shoot springs up. There must be a splitting and a breaking in order for a bud to form. The bud "lets go" when the flower forms. The calyx lets go of the flower. The petals must curl up and die in order for the fruit to form. The fruit falls, splits, relinquishes the seed. The seed falls into the ground. . . .

There is no ongoing spiritual life without this process of letting go. At the precise point where we refuse, growth stops. If we hold tightly to anything given to us, unwilling to let it go when the time comes to let it go or unwilling to allow it to be used as the Giver means it to be used, we stunt the growth of the soul.

It is easy to make a mistake here. "If God gave it to me," we say, "it's mine. I can do what I want with it." No. The truth is that it is ours to thank Him for and ours to offer back to Him, ours to relinquish, ours to lose, ours to let go of-- if we want to find our true selves, if we want real Life, if our hearts are set on glory.

Think of the self that God has given as an acorn. It is a marvelous little thing, a perfect shape, perfectly designed for its purpose, perfectly functional. Think of the grand glory of an oak tree. God's intention when He made the acorn was the oak tree. His intention for us is "...the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ." Many deaths must go into our reaching that measure, many letting-goes. When you look at the oak tree, you don't feel that the "loss" of the acorn is a very great loss. The more you perceive God's purpose for your life, the less terrible will the losses seem...

...There must be relinquishment. There is no way around it. The seed does not "know" what will happen. It only knows what is happening-- the falling, the darkness, the dying. That was how it felt to be separated as we were-- as though we had been given no clues as to why this had to be. "The wanting itself is good," Jim wrote, "it is right, even God granted, but now God denied, and He has not let me know all the wisdom of the denial." We were yet far from the depth of spiritual perception Lilias Trotter had when she wrote those profound words quoted earlier: "The first step into the realm of giving is...not manward but Godward: an utter yielding of our best. So long as our idea of surrender is limited to the renouncing of unlawful things, we have never grasped its true meaning: that is not worthy of the name for 'no polluted thing' can be offered." ...

...We were being asked to trust, to leave the planning to God. God's ultimate plan was as far beyond our imaginings as the oak tree is from the acorn's imaginings. The acorn does what it was made to do, without pestering its Maker with questions about when and how and why. We who have been given an intelligence and a will and a whole range of wants that can be set against the divine Pattern for God are asked to believe Him. We are given the chance to trust Him when He says to us, "...If any man will let himself be lost for my sake, he will find his true self."

When will we find it? we ask. The answer is, Trust Me.

How will we find it? The answer again is, Trust Me.

Why must I let myself be lost? we persist. The answer is, Look to the acorn and trust Me.

~Elisabeth Elliot, Passion and Purity, pages 163-166

~~~~~~~

May the Lord grow and bless and strengthen you all, and may each trial, each "letting go" He brings you to, serve to make you more like His Son Jesus Christ.

New Background...

2010-12-21T20:03:00.000-05:00

I played around a bit with the background and header today. It's not Christmasey.... just new. What do you think? Yes or no? Could the color scheme be improved? What think ye of the new header?

"Dare to be Alone"

2010-12-20T12:06:00.000-05:00

"Yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me" (John 16:32).

It need not be said that to carry out conviction into action is a costly sacrifice. It may make necessary renunciations and separations which leave one to feel a strange sense both of deprivation and loneliness. But he who will fly, as an eagle does, into the higher levels where cloudless day abides, and live in the sunshine of God, must be content to live a comparatively lonely life.

No bird is so solitary as the eagle. Eagles never fly in flocks; one, or at most two, ever being seen at once. But the life that is lived unto God, however it forfeits human companionships, knows Divine fellowship.
God seeks eagle-men. No man ever comes into a realization of the best things of God, who does not, upon the Godward side of his life, learn to walk alone with God. We find Abraham alone in Horeb upon the heights, but Lot, dwelling in Sodom. Moses, skilled in all the wisdom of Egypt must go forty years into the desert alone with God. Paul, who was filled with Greek learning and had also sat at the feet of Gamaliel, must go into Arabia and learn the desert life with God. Let God isolate us. I do not mean the isolation of a monastery. In this isolating experience He develops an independence of faith and life so that the soul needs no longer the constant help, prayer, faith or attention of his neighbor. Such assistance and inspiration from the other members are necessary and have their place in the Christian's development, but there comes a time when they act as a direct hindrance to the individual's faith and welfare. God knows how to change the circumstances in order to give us an isolating experience. We yield to God and He takes us through something, and when it is over, those about us, who are no less loved than before, are no longer depended upon. We realize that He has wrought some things in us, and that the wings of our souls have learned to beat the upper air.

We must dare to be alone. Jacob must be left alone if the Angel of God is to whisper in his ear the mystic name of Shiloh; Daniel must be left alone if he is to see celestial visions; John must be banished to Patmos if he is deeply to take and firmly to keep "the print of heaven."

He trod the wine-press alone. Are we prepared for a "splendid isolation" rather than fail Him?

~Mrs. Charles E. Cowman, Streams in the Desert

(Very timely!)

Green Leaf in Drought

2010-12-16T14:24:00.001-05:00

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,

whose trust is the Lord.

He is like a tree planted by water,

that sends out its roots by the stream,

and does not fear when heat comes,

for its leaves remain green,

and it is not anxious in the year of drought,

for it does not cease to bear fruit."

(Jeremiah 17:7,8)

The heart that hides in the Lord cannot be destroyed by the fires of trial, no matter how hot they may be. Rather, when the trial comes-- by sudden fire, by howling wind, by relentless sun-- they only serve to drive the roots of that heart deeper into the soil of faith. There, deep in the soil, the heart draws nourishment from the living water and grows as it never would have before.

God has promised us that nothing in heaven or in earth can separate us from His love, not even the ever-feared tide of change. In fact, it is these trials that prove whether our hearts are truly grounded in our Lord or not. If they are, we know that we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us, and our leaves will remain green.

As a sweet and beloved chapter in my life closes this December and a new chapter begins, may my heart not fight against it, but rather may it reach deeper to the source of life and love and joy and peace, that fruit may increase and abound for my Lord.

Regency Christmas Ball

2010-12-15T19:55:00.002-05:00

Here's for an abnormal post on my blog. ;-)

Last Friday, my family and I had the opportunity to attend a Regency-themed Christmas ball with a group of homeschoolers and homeschool graduates. We had a lovely time!
Here are some pictures:

We had a lovely time and the Lord allowed us to make new, like-minded friends. And I tell you what, English Country Dancing is addicting. I'm still skipping across the kitchen floor.... ;-)

If you want to see more pictures from the ball, here are some posts by some of the other young ladies who were there.

Rachel B's blog
Anna F's blog
Hannah M's blog
Kate D's Blog
Michaela F's blog

And videos-- I am sorry they're so big!! I'm not sure how to make them smaller.

STRATHSPEY

WALTZING TO IOWA

POSTIE'S JIG

Photos by Brandon Pieplow and Hannah L.

2010-12-14T10:21:00.000-05:00

"Stick with your work. Do not flinch because the lion roars; do not stop to stone the devil’s dogs; do not fool away your time chasing the devil’s rabbits. Do your work. Let liars lie, let sectarians quarrel, let critics malign, let enemies accuse, let the devil do his worst; but see to it nothing hinders you from fulfilling with joy the work God has given you. He has not commanded you to be admired or esteemed. He has never bidden you to defend your character. He has not set you at work to contradict falsehood about yourself which Satan’s or God’s servants may start to peddle, or to track down every rumor that threatens your reputation. If you do these things, you will do nothing else; you will be at work for yourself and not for the Lord. Keep at your work. Let your aim be as steady as a star. You may be assaulted, wronged, insulted, slandered, wounded and rejected, misunderstood, or assigned impure motives; you may be abused by foes, forsaken by friends, and despised and rejected of men. But see to it with steadfast determination, with unfaltering zeal, that you pursue the great purpose of your life and object of your being until at last you can say, 'I have finished the work which Thou gavest me to do.'"

-Anonymous

Trust in the Lord

2010-12-12T22:55:00.001-05:00

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart,

and do not lean on your own understanding.

In all your ways acknowledge him,

and he will make straight your paths."

Once again God is giving me the opportunity for testing-- testing to see whether I will really obey this command to trust and whether I will really believe this promise. You see, it's not a one time lesson. God's child may have learned to trust during one particular circumstance, but later become so comfortable in the untroubled day-to-day and so settled in her own understanding that when God chooses to shake her world again, she finds she does not trust as well as she should. It's these "shaking" times-- of uncertainties, of change, of separations-- that cause us to run back to Him and realize we don't have it all together, but He does. He has it all under control. He knows how our future course will run, even though we don't, and He has promised to direct it and make it plain to us in His timing and way.

It doesn't mean the path will be difficult now and then, and it doesn't mean we'll always be able to see the next step until we're there. And sometimes we have to follow the way He is leading the authorities above us even when we think we know better than they do-- we must still trust that He knows what He is doing and He is good, and He will not bring us into anything that is not ultimately good for us. Indeed, it is in times like this-- when it is dark and uncertain and we can't see what's happening, or why it's happening, or how to make it through-- it is in times like this that He whispers to us, "Courage, dear heart," and we realize anew that joy and peace that are found in trusting Him, the unseen yet faithful God.

Our own understanding? It'll fail us. Admit it, self-- you don't have it all together, not by a long shot. But God is always, always trustworthy. And He will direct your path.

P.S. Thank you, Lord, that You do not let me go on in complacency but rather give me testings in life to jar me out of the ruts that are so easy to fall into, and to draw me closer to You. You are SO good!!

Just a Post to Say...

2010-12-03T15:21:00.000-05:00

...Merry Start of the Christmas Season!

"Did you say Christmas? Is there anything under this tree for me?"

"O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree..."

Pictures by Bethany (and turtle property of Bethany) :-)

QUESTION:
What are some Christ-centered ways that you celebrate Christmas? I'd love to hear ideas. Also, any ideas for a Christ-themed, Christmas-themed blog-post series?

Living Christianity

2010-12-02T17:23:00.000-05:00

"This church stands here in the name of Christianity. But what is Christianity? I know but one definition. Christianity does not mean what you think or what I think concerning Christ, but who Christ is. . . . I tell you what I have learned only that I may stir you up to ask yourselves, as I ask myself, 'Do I then obey this word? Have I ever, have I once, sought to obey it? Am I a pupil of Jesus? Am I a Christian?' Hear then His words. For me, they fill my heart with doubt and dismay.

"The Lord says, 'Love your enemies.' Do you say, 'It is impossible'? Do you say, 'Alas, I cannot'? But have you tried to see whether He who made you will not increase your strength when you step out to obey Him?

"The Lord says, 'Be perfect.' Do you then aim for perfection, or do you excuse your shortcomings and say, 'To err is human'? If so, then you must ask yourself what part you have in Him.

"The Lord says, 'Lay not up for yourselves treasures on earth.' My part is not now to preach against the love of money, but to ask you, 'Are you laying up for yourselves treasures on earth?' As to what the command means, the honest heart and the dishonest must each settle in his own way. No doubt you can point to other men who are no better than you, and of whom yet no one would dare question the validity of their Christianity. But all that matters not a hair. All that does is confirm that you may all be pagans together. Do not mistake me. I am not judging you. For my finger points at myself along with you. But I ask you simply to judge yourselves by the words of Jesus.

"The Lord says, 'Take no thought for your life. Take no thought for tomorrow.' Explain it as you may, but ask yourselves, 'Do I take no thought for my life? Do I take no thought for tomorrow?'

"The Lord says, 'Judge not.' Did you judge your neighbor yesterday? Will you judge him again tomorrow? Are you judging him now in the very heart that sits hearing the words, 'Judge not'? Or do you side-step the command by asking, 'Who is my neighbor?' Does not your own profession of Christianity counsel you to fall upon your face, and cry to him, 'I am a sinful man, O Lord'?

"The Lord said, 'All things you would that men should do to you, do also to them.' You that buy and sell, do you obey this law? Examine yourselves and see. You would want men to deal fairly to you: do you deal just as fairly to them as you would count fairness in them toward you? If conscience makes you hang your head inwardly, however you sit with it erect in the pew, can you dare to add to your crime against the law and the prophets the insult to Christ of calling yourselves His disciples?

" 'Not everyone that says unto me, "Lord, Lord", shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that does the will of my Father who is in heaven.' "

-from a sermon by fictional character Thomas Wingfold in The Curate's Awakening by George MacDonald pages 104-106

( My apologies for any typos :-) )

I am re-reading one of my favorite fictional books and my favorite book by my favorite author George MacDonald. ;-) And once again I am being challenged and convicted. Is my Christianity real? Am I really living, thinking, breathing, in a way that glorifies my Lord? Do my life patterns reflect Christ in me, or do I act as anyone else in the world would act?

To read my review on the book I quoted from, The Curate's Awakening, click here. And if you can, get a copy. It's one of the best books I've read!! (I'm sure all the self-sufficient, got-it-all-together editors of today would have a hard attack how MacDonald "tells" rather than "shows" and breaks off into what they'd call "lectures" (rather musings on Biblical truth and encouragements to the reader), but if you are interested in growing in your life in Christ and knowing Jesus better, you'll love this book!)

:-)

2010-11-30T20:46:00.000-05:00

I'm so sorry, everyone, for my lack of posts! I have been seriously very busy. I had an Etsy order to finish "as soon as possible" and several other sewing orders from people for Christmas, I and am working on finishing Bethany's petticoat and hers and my Regency gowns for a Regency-themed Christmas gathering coming up on December 10th. I've had a little time to catch up on reading blog posts and writing emails, and very little time for writing MD (I am sooooooo glad I didn't do NaNoWriMo this year or I would have had NO time to write or else felt VERY overwhelmed), and almost no time for blogging. I have had several post ideas but they haven't taken the form of typed words yet. :-)

Hopefully next month I will have more time for posting.

Happy Last Day of November!

The Shepherd and His Sheep

2010-11-30T20:29:00.000-05:00

"For thus says the Lord GOD: 'Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land. And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord GOD. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice. . . . .
". . . . I will rescue my flock; they shall no longer be a prey. And I will judge between sheep and sheep. And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the LORD, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them. I am the LORD; I have spoken."

~Ezekiel 34:11-16, 22-24

Good Blogs to Read, Part 8

2010-11-20T15:30:00.000-05:00

Doing It Write

I met Amber a year or two ago on the Sense and Sensibility Forum. Our first interaction with each other was teaming together to defend the gospel of Christ in a rather interesting debate about religion. I then began to follow her blog, then we began emailing, then we friended each other on Facebook. The Lord has really blessed our friendship, even though we've never met in person; so many times the Lord has used her to encourage my heart or set my focus back on Him. And besides that-- we also share a love for writing! Not only does she like to write, but she does write, and she writes for God's glory.

Just recently Amber has started up a writing blog called Doing It Write. Here she posts her own struggles and triumphs in her writing, reviews on helping books and websites on writing, and thoughts on how we can glorify God with our writing. She speaks honestly and freely and brings everything back to God-- God has given us the ability to write; we should use it for His glory. Already I have been very encouraged and challenged.

I highly recommend this blog to all my writing friends! And even if you are not a writer, check out her other blog, The Fruit of Her Hands-- I guarantee, you will be blessed by Amber's writing!

In Which God Answers Prayer and Reminds Me of His Protection

2010-11-17T08:03:00.001-05:00

"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust. For He will deliver you from the snare of the flower and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and buckler. You will not fear the terror of the night..." (Psalm 91:1-5a)

Those who know me very well know that I am a very fearful person. In fact, a bit of a phobiac, if indeed that is a word. Ever since that month in which Aunt Leah, Harrison, and Sophia died in a fire, our cousins' cousin died unexpectedly from a seizure, and we discovered about our friend Megan R's death from an accidental gunshot wound, I have been terrified for the safety of my family. I have been terrified of fire, of carbon monoxide, of hunters, of illness, of the cracked tree in our side yard falling on my parents' bedroom during a windstorm. Many has been the night that I've laid awake praying over and over, "Lord, please protect us-- please protect each member of our family-- please protect our house."

I know the Lord understands the fear that arises from seeing tragedy in the lives of people around me, and yet that does not make that fear, that lack of trust, right or even "okay". But He cares. He watches over us. And today He proved that to me in a very special way.

I had been awake for much of the night. From the time I went to bed to about 12:30 or 1:00, I was awake thinking about this and that, and at around 4:00 I woke up again-- not with the terror that I've awakened with many a time, thinking I smelled smoke or something like that, but rather just with a nagging, quiet sort of fear. My dad was going to be leaving to visit some friends in another state at 5:30, and a violent wind was blowing outside and smacking raindrops against my window. I was worrying about him and Mommy driving to the airport in the bad weather, and about him flying, and about us at home, and the wind... and as usual in a windstorm, I was thinking about the tree in our side yard with the crack up the center. "Lord, please protect Daddy as he travels, and please protect us here at home. Keep us from all harm..."

I decided to stay up to see Mommy and Daddy off to the airport, so about five minutes before they left, I got up. Kitty had come in when they were taking luggage out to the van so I sat on the floor and pet her while Mommy and Daddy finished getting everything ready. Then I hugged Daddy and told him "I love you" and "Have a safe trip." Then Kitty and I went to the sliding door, which offers a good view of the road, to wave to Mommy and Daddy as they drove away. It was still dark outside, so I did the usual "wave" we've been doing since we moved to this house-- switching the porch light on and off a couple times. They disappeared around the corner and I let the curtain fall. "Well, I guess we'll go back to bed," I was thinking. But before I could move from that spot, I heard a noise.

Crack. Crack. Crack.

I'd heard that sound before-- like the prelude to thunder, only louder and closer. "Ohhhhhhhh Lord, help us! The tree!" I scooped up Kitty in my arms and made a dash for the side of the house opposite the side yard. Kitty, terrified, jumped out of my arms, and before I had even crossed the room, I heard a loud BANG!

My next thought was, "Did it fall on the house?" It hadn't sounded like it-- the bang was more of that of the tree landing on the hard ground outside. Still, I hurried to Amanda's and my bedroom to see. The windows in our 1950s ranch-style house are very high for a short person like me, so I climbed onto my bed, lifted the shade, and looked out.

My heart stopped.

Oh. My. Word.

Just outside my window the very tip-tops of the tree were just touching the side of the house. Right on the other side of the wall from where my head goes when I sleep. Right there. Just touching the edge of the house.

"Wow. God is good!" I said. Amanda, who had been awakened by the noise, climbed up on my bed too and was awestruck as she, too, saw the protection of God. A moment later, Bethany joined us and we all were amazed at the goodness of our God.

A while later, when the morning had cleared the darkness, we looked out and saw that the tree had not broken off close to the ground. It had broken off several feet up-- maybe five feet-- jaggedly, as it had had a crack up the middle (I think caused by us having our campfires right next to it). If it had broken further down, it might have landed on our roof and caused more damage. However, God guides even the forces of nature, and He had it cut off just where it did to protect us and our house, just as I had prayed He would.

I wonder why we are so hesitant to believe that God really does watch over us, that God really does hear and answer our prayers. Our God loves and cares for His children. He has promised in Scripture to watch over them, and He always keeps His promises. Sometimes He allows what we call tragedy-- a freak fire or a mistake gunshot-- but that does not mean He has forgotten to watch over His children. And sometimes-- in fact, most of the time, if you think about it-- He shields us from things that can harm us. Whether it is a tree falling on you during the night, or skidding on the ice on a bridge, or a semi-truck drifting into your lane-- so many things could happen that we don't even realize, but our God keeps His eye on these things, and He protects us. And he not only keeps an eye on our physical protection, but He also sees the other details of life that we think He might not notice-- family problems, church problems, friendship problems, stress from busyness, and other things. He sees, He knows, and He cares. And He always keeps His promises.

So now I know I do not need to fear. My God is watching over me, and when I lay my head down at the end of this day, I can do so knowing my God neither slumbers nor sleeps-- He is watching over me and my precious family.

2010-11-15T11:42:00.000-05:00

"You're Such a Dreamer... Get Over It"

2010-11-08T12:11:00.002-05:00

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."

(Jeremiah 29:11)

This verse is quoted frequently and often imprinted on Bibles, Bible cases, coffee mugs, pictures, pens, jewelry, and other gifts for high school and college graduates. It is used to encourage people that God has a plan for their lives, far greater than they can even imagine, for good and not for evil, and to encourage them to follow that plan.

However, in a practical sense, the same people who quote this verse, and others like it, and give gifts with this verse (and others like it) imprinted on them, also contradict it as they relate to the people in their lives. Everyone likes to be assured that God has a special plan for them, and that they can do something wonderful, but it is much harder, often, to accept His will and the dreams of others. I'd say this is probably a notable challenge for parents, as they watch their children grow and make decisions and form dreams, but I have struggled with it myself in regards to my family and friends, and I am not a parent.

Is this right? Is it a good thing to tell people God has a plan for them, and to encourage them to follow His will for their lives, but when we discover that this plan may involve something extraordinary or unusual or even dangerous, to suddenly discourage them and tell them they're just fanciful dreamers?

Many people who have done extraordinary and lasting things in the past faced this from others. Isobel Kuhn's mother, who was the president of the Women's Missionary society in the Canadian Presbyterian church, told Isobel, "If you go to China, it will be over my dead body. I will never consent." Eventually, the Lord used Isobel to bring thousands of the Lisu people of China to Him. William Carey, upon presenting the idea of going to India as a missionary and speaking of the command for Christians to evangelize, was told, "Young man, sit down: when God pleases to covert the heathen, He will do it without your aid or mine." Carey is now known as the Father of Modern Missions. Gladys Aylward was told by a missionary society that her education was too limited for her to go to China, and that the language was too hard for her to learn. However, she went to China on her own with almost no money and introduced many people to Jesus and saved the lives of many children during the world war. Our Lord Jesus faced rejection by family, friends, and the religious rulers of the day, because He did the will of God, and that will was not what they thought to be good. And He is our Saviour and perfect example.

These are just a few people who have sought to do God's will and been criticized and hindered by those who had a reputation as religious, God-fearing people. These people probably felt very justified in their opposing. "My daughter, go to China, where she could be killed for her faith? It is too dangerous, and as her parent, I must protect her." On the other hand, there are those whom God leads to do less "glamorous", but just as noble, things, such as being a homemaker, mother, and wife; and even though this is not a dangerous calling, they get the same amount of opposition. "Listen, you're an amazing pianist; you have so much talent! You can't just waste it like this! You need to go to college and put it to good use; what good will be it if you live your life changing diapers and making dinners? You're going to waste it all... You've got to go to college..." This is the prevailing mindset in this country, this mindset that screams of "I know better than God what is best for your life", regardless of how dangerous or how quiet God's plan may be.

A missionary speaking at our church yesterday spoke of this attitude many people have. Parents teach their children wonderful stories from the Bible; before the children even know their own names, they have heard the story of how God parted the Red Sea and delivered the Israelites from the Egyptians, how God used a young shepherd boy to kill a mighty giant and save his people, how Jesus walked on water and calmed a storm. They encourage their children to do God's will. Then their teenage daughter asks permission to join a short term mission team to New York City and the parents nearly lose it. "You? Go to New York City? No way. That place is dangerous. The culture is full of evil. You'd be surrounded by wicked people. You could get hurt. No way; you're not going to New York City." And by doing this, they basically say that God is a liar, and that all those stories are false-- God cannot part a sea so that people walk over on dry ground, God cannot use a young boy to save His people and kill a giant, God cannot calm a storm, God doesn't know what is best, God cannot change lives, God cannot protect a teenager seeking to spread His Gospel in New York City.

This is a serious problem. Is God pleased when we (I say "we" to include friends and siblings like myself) tell others that God is almighty and that they must follow His will and then, when He makes His will known to them, change our minds and say they are foolish? Could it be that when we do that, we do it, not because we don't believe it is God's will for that person, but because it is not our will for that person? Is it because we think they ought to do something else (as though we know better than God), or that God cannot take care of them as well as we can? Are we really concerned with God's will, or our own will?

Many articles have been written to encourage young people to follow God's will, no matter what. While I agree whole-heartedly and may write an article about that sometime, this article is for the family and friends of those young people. Are you really desiring God's will for the people closest to you? Are you stepping back to let God fully work in the life of your child, sister, brother, friend? Or is your attitude, "You're such a dreamer...Get over it!"?

"So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!"

(Acts 5:38-39)

Note: This article is not written directed towards any one person. This is something I've been convicted about myself recently and that we all need to be reminded of.

A Word of Encouragement

2010-11-03T11:00:00.000-04:00

God hath not promised skies always blue,
Flower strewn pathways all our lives through;
God hath not promised sun without rain,
Joy without sorrow, peace without pain.

But God hath promised strength for the day,
Rest for the labour, light for the way,
Grace for the trials, help from above,
Unfailing kindness, undying love.

God hath not promised we shall not know
Toil and temptations, trouble and woe;
He hath not told us we shall not bear
Many a burden, many a care.

But God hath promised strength for the day,
Rest for the labour, light for the way,
Grace for the trials, help from above,
Unfailing kindness, undying love.

God hath not promised smooth roads and wide,
Swift, easy travel, needing no guide;
Never a mountain, rocky and steep,
Never a river turbid and deep.

But God hath promised strength for the day,
Rest for the labour, light for the way,
Grace for the trials, help from above,
Unfailing kindness, undying love.

~Annie Johnson Flint

May you know the grace and strength of our Lord today as you "climb"!

HAPPY REFORMATION DAY!!

2010-10-31T22:39:00.000-04:00

I think this little-known holiday (accidentally fallen on the same day as one of the worst holidays imaginable ;-) ) may be one of my favorites, next to Christmas. This year, we "celebrated" it (if you want to word it that way) by watching the film Luther. You see, on this same day, in the year 1517, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door at the Church at Wittenberg, thus initiating what we now know as the Protestant Reformation.

This is a wonderful day to reflect, not only on the work of God in causing men to return to the Bible for truth, but also on the truth His Word does contain. The days prior to the Reformation were hideously dark days. People lived in despair and fear, toiling from day to day, fearing God's judgment and believing in terrorizing superstitions. They could not read God's Word for themselves, so they did not know about God's love, His mercy, His justice, His compassionate, His faithfulness... These truths bring such great comfort to us today, but they did not have this comfort. One can almost hear Jesus speaking directly to the Church of that day as he did to the lawyers of his day: "Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering."

However, when brave men such as John Wycliffe, William Tyndale, Martin Luther, and John Calvin, God's Word was opened up again to the common man. In translations from Latin into the common language, men and women were able to discover for themselves that God did love them, and that He gave His Son as a ransom for their sin so that they, if they would believe on Him, might have eternal life and blessing in Him. The re-entrance of God's Word upon the dark world sparked a great revival, seen not only in the Church, but also in matters of politics, science, economics, and morality. Indeed, "the entrance of thy words giveth light" (Psalm 118:130).

Take time today to thank God for giving us His Word, and thank Him also for the men who risked their lives to provide us with a way to read It.

Complete in Thee

SONNET 116

One Week!!

Psalm 62:5-8

For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,for my hope is from Him.He only is my rock and my salvation,my fortress; I shall not be shaken.On God rests my salvation and my glory;my mighty rock, my refuge is God.Trust in Him at all times, O people;pour out your heart before Him;God is a refuge for us.

Prayer Request

Guest Post : "What is Spiritual Love Anyway?"

The Man in the Arena

Trials

Strength

Update on Life

Sitting at Jesus' Feet

Literary Ball

Homeschooling Pride

You are the Light of the World

In His Hands

Too Cute For Words...

Because I am a Language Snob... ;-)

...I thought I would share a little something I looked up. ;-) (Hopefully you won't get bored with it... there is a point at the end. ;-) ) (Definitions and quotations come from dictionary.com . )

ep·ic

I'm Back!!! and one of those fun questionairre thingys... ;-)

30-Day Challenge, Day 26

A new website :-)

"The Screwtape Letters" by C. S. Lewis

Psalm 146

Character vs. Reputation

30-Day Challenge, Day 25

30-Day Challenge, Day 24

30-Day Challenge, Day 23

30-Day Challenge, Day 22

30-Day Challenge Postponed ~ News

30-Day Challenge, Day 21

30-Day Challenge, Day 20

30-Day Challenge, Day 19

30-Day Challenge, Day 18

30-Day Challenge, Day 17

30-Day Challenge, Day 16

30-Day Challenge, Day 15

30-Day Challenge, Day 14

30-Day Challenge, Day 13

30-Day Challenge, Day 12

30-Day Challenge, Day 11

30-Day Challenge, Day 10

30-Day Challenge, Day 9

30-Day Challenge, Day 8

30-Day Challenge, Day 7

30-Day Challenge, Day 6

30-Day Challenge, Day 5

30-Day Challenge, Day 4

30-Day Challenge, Day 3

30-Day Challenge, Day 2

30-Day Challenge, Day 1

30-Day Blog Challenge

Victory!

Race Towards The New Year....

Hark! the Herald Angels Sing

Swing Over and Visit...

Emmanuel

Letting Go

New Background...

"Dare to be Alone"

Green Leaf in Drought

Regency Christmas Ball

Trust in the Lord

Just a Post to Say...

Living Christianity

:-)

The Shepherd and His Sheep

Good Blogs to Read, Part 8

In Which God Answers Prayer and Reminds Me of His Protection

I know the Lord understands the fear that arises from seeing tragedy in the lives of people around me, and yet that does not make that fear, that lack of trust, right or even "okay". But He cares. He watches over us. And today He proved that to me in a very special way.

Crack. Crack. Crack.

My heart stopped.

Oh. My. Word.

Just outside my window the very tip-tops of the tree were just touching the side of the house. Right on the other side of the wall from where my head goes when I sleep. Right there. Just touching the edge of the house.

"Wow. God is good!" I said. Amanda, who had been awakened by the noise, climbed up on my bed too and was awestruck as she, too, saw the protection of God. A moment later, Bethany joined us and we all were amazed at the goodness of our God.

So now I know I do not need to fear. My God is watching over me, and when I lay my head down at the end of this day, I can do so knowing my God neither slumbers nor sleeps-- He is watching over me and my precious family.

"You're Such a Dreamer... Get Over It"

A Word of Encouragement

HAPPY REFORMATION DAY!!