Category Archives: Issues

Friday’s Fave Five

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Susanne at Living to Tell the Story hosts Friday’s Fave Five so we can share our favorite things from the last week. This has been a wonderful exercise in looking for and appreciating the good things God gives. Click on the button to learn more, then go to Susanne’s to read others’ faves and link up your own.

There are a number of things I could mention this week, but I’ll go with these:

1. The first week of summer vacation! I have loved not setting alarm clocks!

2. Feeling better. Jesse had an awful cold last weekend and then I caught it and was pretty miserable Monday and some of Tuesday. Thankfully I am feeling much better now.

3. Chicken Chimichangas from one of my favorite Mexican food restaurants. Tuesday night Jim was away and I gave myself permission to get dinner out, but I didn’t feel like going out, so we got take-out and had enough to for lunch the next day, too.

4. This funny video on The History of the Book from The Wall Street Journal at Robin Lee Hatcher‘s site. I couldn’t get the video to embed here, so I’ll just refer you there.

5. This video of Andrea Bocelli’s mother’s decision not to take the advice of a physician and have an abortion when he thought her child might have a disability. I had never heard this story before. Andrea is such a gift to the world: what  testament that a disability is no reason to abort a child. And how sad to think of all the people with their various individual gifts who are not able to share them with the world due to abortion.

National Day of Prayer 2010

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I have never “celebrated” the National Day of Prayer except to say a brief prayer in private for my country. I Timothy 2:1-2 says, “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.” I have to confess I often don’t think to unless there is some kind of trouble, imminent or potential, and I suspect many conservative Christians are the same way.

I know there is some controversy over the national declaration of such a day. Whatever the separation of church and state actually means, it is clear that our founding fathers did not mean that every vestige of religion be moved from public life. They often invoked God’s name in their writings, even in their official documents. While I think Christian leaders can declare such a day without governmental support, I think it is wise and helpful for government to acknowledge it is not beyond the need for prayer.

I am not much for writing out prayers — I’d rather just pray them. But I have benefited from the many prayers in Scripture and from other people’s writings, and writing them out can be a good way to sort out one’s stray thoughts, think through how one wants to pray, and focus without as much distraction. So in that vein, I wanted to write out what I want to pray today.

Dear Father,

Thank you for this nation. Even with all its flaws, it is a good place to live. I am thankful for its blessings and provisions. We too easily take for granted all we have here. Help us to be more mindful of others, even within our own country, who don’t have the blessings we’re so accustomed to, and help us to be more generous.

I do pray for our leaders, from the president all the way down to the local school board members. Help them to seek Your guidance. Help them to be honest, to be motivated by the good they can do rather than their own positions and status, to take a stand when needed and to know when and how to negotiate when needed. Help those who don’t know you to be convicted of their own need for you and to hear and believe your truth. I do pray “that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.”

I do not pray that we may “reclaim the culture.” I think what many people mean by that is that we might return to the cleaner lifestyles and family values of decades ago. While I do pray for those things, I acknowledge that people can live even in that culture without truly knowing You and without being motivated by Your truth. What I do pray for is a revival like the kind that shook our nation during the Great Awakening, in which people would acknowledge You, be convicted about living their lives apart from the dictates of Your Word, and believe on You for forgiveness and salvation. Your Word says, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD” (Psalm 33:12a). May our nation become a truly Christian one.

In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Earth Day 2010

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(Photo courtesy of the morgueFiles.)

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Genesis 1:1.

The earth is the LORD’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. Psalm 24:1.

A wonderfully balanced blog post I just discovered: It’s not easy being green…and conservative.

A public service announcement concerning walkers

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No, not the walkers babies use, but the ones the elderly or disabled use.

1. Do not pull or jerk on the walker, even if trying to help the person over a bump. There are several reasons for this:

  • It throws them off balance.
  • The walker is an extension of themselves and it is an invasion of their personal space as much as if you pulled on their arm.
  • It can make them feel helpless and embarrassed.

Sometimes, however, the person may appreciate a little assistance if they are having trouble maneuvering. If you see someone trying to get their walker up a step or over a hump, be patient and observe for a moment and see if they are doing all right or seem frustrated. If you think they might like help, offer first. “Mrs. Jones, can I help you get your walker over this step here?” Don’t just jump in and jerk it. Gently lift it, especially being careful if they are leaning on it for balance: you may need to let them take your arm as well, depending on whether they can balance on their own for a moment or need help with a step.

2. The person with a walker usually understands that he or she is a little slow and you may want to get around them, and that’s fine, but please don’t cut in too closely — the sudden movement and closeness can also cause balance to waver.

3. Some people can’t stand long even with a walker. They would love to talk with you, but may need to sit down first.

4. If you see someone coming with a walker, please move out of their way. Often they feel conspicuous and cumbersome and are embarrassed to ask. Some are not, though, and will just call out a cheery, “Beep, beep!” or something similar — please don’t be offended.

5. Similarly, please don’t be offended if they accidentally bump into you. Sometimes, especially with older people, their depth perception is affected as well. Some might not even be aware that they bumped you, but most would be horrified.

I am writing both from the perspective of having used a walker for several months after TM, but also from my elderly mother-in-law’s perspective now. I think most people mean well, but have just never thought about or experienced some of these things from the point of view of one using a walker. A little patience and thoughtfulness are much appreciated.

Please feel free to share anything I may have forgotten or not thought about, but please keep it positive. I don’t want people to think we’re ranting or griping at them, but rather just informing and educating.

Laudable Linkage

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Here are some great things I’ve seen around the “Net and thought some of you might enjoy as well.

Tim Challies shared a link to an incident that brought tears to my eyes: The Contagious Comfort and Mercy of God at Wrestling With an Angel. It begins this way:

One busy Saturday afternoon I was patrolling the local mall parking lot in my police cruiser. It was warm, so I had my windows down enjoying the fall air. As I drove though the lot I heard a loud piercing cry echoing like a sound bite from a horror movie.

After reading that post I clicked around and read a few other posts there. Very good, rich reading.

A Biblical view of self image and way of dealing with self-doubt by Laura at Outnumbered Mom, a new blog friend discovered through the Friday Fave Fives. Though it deals with self-doubt as a mother, the truths there are applicable to anyone.

Political angst by Wendy at Practical Theology For Women deals with a few pet peeves, such as angst in Christianity “over something the individual perceives as righteous or unrighteous but that Scripture itself only addresses in either very general terms or doesn’t address at all.”

The Marriage Bed. Be sure to read til the end! I’m sorry I forgot to note where I saw this one.

Respect within marriage.

How to Pray For Missionaries.

The Paradox of Parenting Boys. This made me smile.

A live web cam of a nesting owl, HT to Lizzie. It will be really fun once the babies hatch.

A refurbished vintage sewing cabinet. Lovely!

A video library of hand embroidery stitches. Great resource!

Paper silhouette art. These are very creative — I’ve never seen silhouettes like this.

If you need any ideas for cute Easter decorations or goodies:

Eggy Baskets.
Little nests.
Free printable cupcake toppers.

Have a great weekend! We start spring break this week!

Haiti

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Sometimes the news is just too horrific to watch. I can’t imagine how much more horrific it is to actually experience what is happening in places like Haiti after its devastating earthquake.

The Livesays (they’re the ones who made that sweet Christmas video I posted in December) are missionaries currently in Haiti who are updating as much as they are able with news and practical advice, for instance:

Coming down if you are not willing to risk and get in and clean out horrific wounds would just tax an already taxed place. Medical professionals should contact organizations with the ability to coordinate efforts and try to get here. It won’t help to have more non-medical people to feed and house. Hope that does not sound harsh – but it is truth.

Many of you know Frank Garlock, via either his books or messages about music or his hymn arrangements or as father-in-law to Ron Hamilton, aka “Patch the Pirate,” but he was on a mission trip to Haiti when the earthquake hit, and they’ve not heard from him or been able to get through to find out if he is all right. The local news had several folks in the same predicament with loved ones and friends in Haiti and means of communication being down. Update: Dr. Garlock has been found and is fine. Updates can be found here, but there are many with no word yet.

It always makes me sad when some are quick to say that sufferers are being judged for their sins, like Job’s miserable comforters. There are many reasons God allows suffering (and I urge you to take time to peruse that post, especially if you’re struggling with why God might allow such things as this.) One paragraph from that post:

Another thought is that God does not view death as we do. This was one thing that helped my son when he was troubled about why God let natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina happen. Death is in God’s hands, whether it is the death of an individual or hundreds of people, whether it happens in a car crash or an illness or a natural disaster. And, for the Christian, God looks at death differently than we do. On His side of it, He is ushering us into His Presence, and nothing could be better. To the lost and to the saved as well, these things can be a wake-up call — we all have a time limit, it is not guaranteed that we will live a certain number of years, and we need to be ready to meet eternity at any moment.

Some organizations are already collecting for needed relief efforts (please be careful — unfortunately, scam artists come out in droves at times like this), and beyond that, we can pray:

  • for those who are trapped to be found and rescued.
  • for communications to be restored.
  • for word to arrive about friends and loved ones there.
  • for medical help to arrive.
  • for wisdom for those coordinating relief efforts.
  • for wisdom for those like the Livesays who are there, that they might know the best ways to help.
  • for the physical needs.
  • for the spiritual needs: comfort, grace, and for those who do not know God to find Him.

Laudable Linkage

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Hope you’re doing well this fine fall day!

Still have a lot to get done today, but I wanted to share some good things seen around the Web lately:

How can I know I have a heart for God at By Grace.

The waiting is the hardest part of waiting by Big Mama. Quotes: “…f you can’t find contentment and security as a single woman, then you’re not going to find it in marriage” and “Marriage wasn’t going to take away all my fears, insecurities, and worries….marriage tends to just amplify whatever junk is in your life.”

Homemaking Internship

Study to show yourself an SAHM

Being merry with our husbands by nannykim.

I am my husband’s girlfriend by Candy.

Bless others with food: practical ideas and organizational tools for helping others by bringing food.

What about the culture? by Jungle Mom: answers from a missionary against the charge that missionaries adversely affect the culture they minister to.

How far is enough? Wonderful testimony from a missionary (husband of Jungle Mom).

Craft station out of a crate.

How fiction can powerfully inform the practical application of truth, part one and part two by Jeanne Damoff, whom I had never read before, but whom I now want to read more of. Quote: “God is good in what He forbids.”

funny pictures of cats with captions
see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Remembering…

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I was going to just post a link back to this post, but as I read over it, I felt I wanted to post the whole things again.

911.jpg

(Originally posted 9/11/06)

I used to volunteer at my sons’ school every Tuesday. On that particular Tuesday morning in September, a little after 9 a.m., I turned on the car radio to catch a bit of news on my way to the school. I was confused at first — I could tell something serious had happened, but couldn’t make out what. Finally the newscaster explained that an airplane had hit the World Trade Tower. I was stunned. I sat in the parking lot at the school and listened to the news coverage for a few minutes. Then I went into the school office, with the words, “Did you hear…?” on my lips. They had heard and someone had set up a TV in the office. Many of us stood, motionless, stunned, shocked, and watched the coverage. We thought we couldn’t be any more stunned — then we saw footage of a second plane hitting the other tower. Then we saw people leaping out of windows to try to escape. Then we saw the first tower collapse.

I don’t remember how long I stayed there. The function that I usually helped with was canceled for the day. Several parents came to pick their children up and take them home: they just wanted to have them near. The principal had a TV set up in the gym for those students and teachers who wanted to watch the coverage. I think most of the high school classes were canceled and students could either watch the coverage in the gym or study quietly in one of the classrooms.

For the rest of the day and the next several days, with most of the country, I was almost glued to the TV as more news came in and pieces of the puzzle came to light. I clicked on news sources online and read coverage and looked at pictures in magazines.

There are several things I remember from that time:

  • Feeling in shock.
  • Feelings of vulnerability.
  • Feelings of horror that anyone could do such a thing to other people.
  • Feelings of fear, wondering if this was but the beginning of a larger effort, of a war.
  • Feelings of empathy with those who had died, those who had lost loved ones, those in parts of the world for whom terrorism is an almost everyday occurrence.
  • A feeling of unity in our country that I had never experienced in my lifetime. That is one thing I miss.
  • Feelings of…awe? gratefulness? wonder? inspiration? I am struggling with the right word to express what I felt on hearing the stories of heroism, of bravery, of decency.
  • Feelings of more joy upon hearing the stories of so many who unexpectedly missed flights or were late to work at the towers.
  • Feelings of comfort as the Lord ministered to hearts afterward.

Regarding that last item, one of the young men in my sons’ youth group shared this verse with the teens, I believe that first Wednesday afterward:

Isaiah 25:4: For thou hast been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall.

How that ministered to my heart! I shared it with many loved ones via e-mail. There is only one true Refuge.

The question has come to many a mind, “Why did God allow it?” I don’t know that we’ll have the answer until time is over and we are with Him. But, surely we don’t mean why did God allow that to happen to us? We’re such a blessed nation, even in the state of spiritual forgetfulness and indifference we are in now — do we think we’re exempt from the troubles many nations experience daily? This was of a greater magnitude, yes, but many countries face the possibility of car bombs and suicide bombers every day. Then we get into the larger question of why God allows evil at all. All I know is that He allows for us to have and exercise a free will, and that results in sin, because we all choose our own way over His all too often. There will be a time when “sin shall be no more,” when every tear shall be wiped away and there shall be no more sorrow, sadness, death, crying (Revelation 21:4). That time is not yet. Until then we have to deal with a fallen world. But those who love God have this promise:

Romans 8:28: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

It is at the point of deep need that we learn the truth of that verse and others. We know it so well it almost become cliched to us, until we truly need it.

One of the “good things” to come out of 9/11 was the salvation of one of my son’s friends. He realized that life can end suddenly and unexpectedly and that he needed to be ready.

There are some who think we should remember 9/11 only with silence, who feel that replaying and reliving the events of that day only plays into the hands of the terrorists, inspiring more terror. I disagree. I can understand those for whom it might be too painful to reflect on much, but I disagree that we’re playing into the hands of the terrorists by remembering that day. It’s good to remember. We need to remember the fallen, to memorialize them. We need to remember those whom they left behind. We even need to remember our vulnerability. Psalm 9:20 says “Put them in fear, O LORD: that the nations may know themselves to be but men.” I can’t presume to say that that was one of God’s purposes for allowing this, but we do need to remember that we are “but men” (or women) even though we’re a “superpower.” We need to remember that “The horse [or the fighter pilot or the tank or whatever we might use in warfare] is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD” (Proverbs 21:31). We need to remember the empathy, the inspiration, the acts of courage.

My husband and I were saying yesterday morning that we wished they would do away with the Labor Day observance and instead have a 9/11 observance. But then we thought that, after a while, it would just be another Monday holiday. It would seem the height of disrespect to turn it into another day for retailers to have sales. I wonder if WWII veterans are horrified that Memorial Day and Veterans Day, beyond the occasional parade and wreath-laying ceremonies, are regarded by most people as an opportunity to be off work and go to the mall. May we as a country remember all of our fallen better than that.

Jon and Kate

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I don’t watch Jon and Kate Plus 8. I’ve caught just a few minutes of it here and there as I’ve flipped through channels. My fleeting impressions were that Kate was high-strung and somewhat disrespectful of her husband and that Jon seemed to be just…there.

I am very sad to hear that they are planning to divorce. I would hope they’d go for some type of counseling. All too often I have known of people to struggle silently in their marriages and then decide to divorce without trying to get help in the mean time, and it seems once that course of action is decided, the door is shut to any thought of healing and reconciliation. I am from a divorced family. The Bible calls marriage a coming together of a man and woman to become one flesh, and the rending of that relationship is just as painful as real flesh tearing.

But what also saddens me is the “chatter” I’m seeing on various blogs and Facebook about them, especially among Christians, whose speech is supposed to be “always with grace, seasoned with salt,” (seasoned with salt, not primarily consisting of salt.)

I admit I struggle with where the lines are between evaluation and judgment, criticism vs. critcal thinking, discussion and gossip. I don’t always know where the line is that crosses from one to the other.

I do know it is a major mistake to assign motives when we don’t know what is going on in another’s heart.

Of course, inviting the public into your everday lives means they are going to see faults and failures as well as everyday life, and of course we can learn from others’ mistakes. But that doesn’t mean we can’t exerise compassion as well.

Interests and Issues

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monay-testimonyGina at Chats With an Old Lady is running a series on Titus 2 women, sharing testimonies of women who have emphasized the Titus 2 characteristics of an older woman teaching and being an example to a younger one. If you don’t have someone like this in your life, perhaps these testimonies would give you an idea of the kind of person to look for and pray for. Some of us need to get used to the idea that we’re supposed to be on the other end — being a Titus 2 woman to someone — and these will give us some idea how to do that.

  • Those of you who pray, I’d appreciate your prayers for the talks in Washington about the auto industry bailout. I don’t pretend to have any idea what the best course of action would be, but this concerns not only the auto industry but also myriad other industries that contribute to it. Some of the big car companies are some of the biggest customers of my husband’s company, so anything that affects the “big” business affects his as well.
  • Frank Sansone brought my attention to something I had not heard of: the fact that President Obama has nominated David Ogden for the position of Deputy Attorney General. This is alarming because of Ogden’s record on pornography, as delineated in the article article: David Ogden and the New Pornographers: Why the Senate Should Reject His Nomination:

    • In addition to making it harder to prosecute those who sell images of child molestation and rape, Ogden has sought to ensure that pornography can be easily distributed and readily accessed in almost any medium or location. He has fought cases in Puerto Rico to allow Playboy to broadcast explicit programming on TV. He represented Philip Harvey, a man who runs the nation’s largest mail-order pornography shop out of North Carolina, in his attempt to deflect a Department of Justice investigation of his business. Completing a sort of multi-media grand slam, Ogden has sued to allow sexually-explicit content to be transmitted over the phone. Taking this quest to its absurd limits, he has even claimed in court that there is a constitutional right for pornography to be kept in firehouses. Ogden’s position is good for the industry groups he has represented but bad for female firefighters who could be subjected to humiliating and harassing images in the workplace. With an equal disregard for the comfort and protection of children, in 2000 Ogden sued to allow pornography to be accessed in public libraries

  • Albert Mohler has some additional thoughts here. I hope you will contact your senators to reject this nomination.
  • The Common Room rightly describes as “Deeply disturbing, heartbreaking” this news and these clips from Palestinian children’s programming glorifying hate, war, and antisemitism.
  • I’ve been saddened and even sickened by the ramifications of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. Sherry at Semicolon has a good summary of it here. The main purpose of it is to keep our children from being poisoned by lead in toys — a good and worthy goal. But it has spun off into senseless mania. Retailers, thrift shops, and others are having to do away with multitudes of children’s books even though there has never been a known instance of someone getting lead contamination from a book. The Headmistress has been blogging about this for days — I would encourage you read even a portion of the info. there on it. It is absolutely mind-boggling.
  • Finally, I have also been greatly frustrated at the push for the economic stimulus package. Again, I know very little about what would be the best thing for the economy, but what frustrates me is the push to get it voted through before it could even be read. On a local radio interview with my state senator, Jim DeMint, he said he was trying to get them to delay for a week so they could take and read the thing, but that didn’t happen. It’s just irresponsible to push for a vote on something when very few have any idea of the specifics, and I have heard the bill contains some alarming policy changes. One of President Obama’s campaign promises was that the people would have five days to view any bill once it reaches his desk before he signs it. I hope he keeps that promise, but it would be nice for lawmakers to have at least that long to study a bill before signing it.

Sorry to be so depressing. 🙂 I am not feeling depressed — just bothered. I started to look for something cute or funny to end up with, but I decided to leave this post as is to encourage our alertness and prayers for our country and our world.