Know and Tell Friday

Posted on March 21, 2008 by Barbara Harper

To Know Him hosts Know and Tell Friday, and we’d love to have you join us. The questions this week are:

Question 1
Do you color your hair (give me some background info on this one)?

No. Not yet anyway. 🙂 I never had a desire to as I was growing up and in my 20s. My hair was kind of a honey blonde and then started darkening a lot as I got older. I don’t mind that it got darker per se but it became kind of a blah color. I thought about coloring it, but I really, really hate to see people’s roots showing and felt it would drive me crazy trying to keep ahead of that with coloring. Now I do have some gray — a streak on one side and more and more sprinkled throughout. Twice in the last month or so I have been offered a senior citizen discount at restaurants (and I don’t qualify yet!!!) and twice in the last couple of years I’ve been thought to be my youngest’s grandmother. 😕 So I have been thinking about it. A friend recently told me about a type that washes out after 30 days, so that might be a good one to start with.

Question 2
What is one thing that you do with your family (or by yourself) to celebrate Easter?

I wrote about our Easter traditions here, but highlights of the day are the special church services.

Question 3
How old was your oldest living relative (still living or in the past)?

I am not really sure, but I think one grandparent on each side lived into their 80s.

Question 4
What is one thing that can be a “time waster” to you?

The computer.

Question 5
Most annoying bug?

Is there such a thing as a non-annoying bug? I know they have their purpose and I don’t mind them as long as they stay outside and away from me. Even ladybugs lost their appeal a while back when we had an invasion of them. But I guess the top of the list would be roaches, mosquitoes and what my husband calls “no-see-ums” — little things that fly around your eye and head outside in the summer.

Question 6
What does Easter mean to you?

It means to me a confirmation of all that Christ taught about Himself; it proves that there is life after death; it shows that Christ is victorious over death.
Question 7
(Feel free to pass on this question) Is there currently a sin that you are holding onto, and you know you should let go of?

There are some that I struggle with regularly, yes, but I don’t want to go into them here and now. Sometimes in church or after devotions I get to a point of yielding — or at least I think I have — and may have victory a time or two, but then fall right back into old patterns.

(By the way — I am celebrating my 1,000th post with a giveaway here. Hope you’ll check it out!)

Stricken, smitten, and afflicted

Posted on March 21, 2008 by Barbara Harper

Isaiah 53:4: Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

Stricken, smitten, and afflicted,
See Him dying on the tree!
’Tis the Christ by man rejected;
Yes, my soul, ’tis He, ’tis He!
’Tis the long expected prophet,
David’s Son, yet David’s Lord;
Proofs I see sufficient of it:
’Tis a true and faithful Word.

Tell me, ye who hear Him groaning,
Was there ever grief like His?
Friends through fear His cause disowning,
Foes insulting his distress:
Many hands were raised to wound Him,
None would interpose to save;
But the deepest stroke that pierced Him
Was the stroke that Justice gave.

Ye who think of sin but lightly,
Nor suppose the evil great,
Here may view its nature rightly,
Here its guilt may estimate.
Mark the Sacrifice appointed!
See Who bears the awful load!
’Tis the Word, the Lord’s Anointed,
Son of Man, and Son of God.

Here we have a firm foundation,
Here the refuge of the lost.
Christ the Rock of our salvation,
Christ the Name of which we boast.
Lamb of God for sinners wounded!
Sacrifice to cancel guilt!
None shall ever be confounded
Who on Him their hope have built.

~ Thomas Kelly, 1804

Cellulitis…again!

Posted on March 20, 2008 by Barbara Harper

This morning after I woke up I noticed a red band across my ankle. I thought maybe I had brushed against something, but the red area spread a few inches down my foot. I debated with myself all morning about whether to call the doctor or not and finally decided to after lunch. But this was her day off, so they told me I could go to urgent care or call my doctor in the morning. I wanted to go ahead and have it looked at, so I went on to urgent care, and was diagnosed with cellulitis. I had a bout of it last January when I banged my shin on a shelf and had a small wound there. This is the same leg but a lower area and there’s no wound to speak of. I don’t know what triggered this. Perhaps the last bout wasn’t fully cleared up.

But I am on two antibiotics this time, so hopefully this will take care of it once and for all.

I was dismayed about it all day — that it popped up again and that I’m going to be on antibiotics again — they tend to do a number on my system. But at one point in the car today I had the Christian radio station on during their prayer request time, and so many people had such awful things they were going through. I really don’t have any right to complain.

I am supposed to have my leg elevated 20 minutes out of every hour. So it looks I’ll be digging right in on my Spring Reading Thing list!

Happy First Day of Spring!

Posted on March 20, 2008 by Barbara Harper

Spring Cleaning

March bustles in on windy feet
And sweeps my doorstep and my street.
She washes and cleans with pounding rains,
Scrubbing the earth of winter stains.
She shakes the grime from carpet green
Till naught but fresh new blades are seen.
Then, house in order, all neat as a pin,
She ushers gentle springtime in.

– Susan Reiner

(Graphic courtesy of Graphic Garden).

Spring Reading Thing 2008

Posted on March 20, 2008 by Barbara Harper

Katrina at Callapidder Days is hosting another Spring Reading Thing, beginning the first day of spring, March 20, through the last day of spring. The idea is not to make a hard and fast list that you will feel guilty for not completing: it’s entirely flexible.

As Katrina says here, “Spring Reading Thing 2008 is simply an opportunity for you to set some reading goals, share them with the blogosphere, and work toward them this spring. Perhaps you want to add some variety to your fiction reading. Or maybe you’ve had very good intentions as far as reading that book on budgeting or marriage or starting a home business, but…you haven’t even cracked the cover yet. Some might want to read more with their children; others might feel guilty for never having read Wuthering Heights. Or maybe you just love to read and want to share your reading list and check out everyone else’s.”

More information and a Mr. Linky sign-up is here.

Here is my list:

The Restorer’s Journey by Sharon Hinck, third in the Sword of Lyric series. I am in the midst of this one right now (and loving it!)

Dawn’s Light, Restoration Series #4 by Terri Blackstock. The series deals with a cataclysmic event that knocks out all electrical power all over the earth and the ways people have to learn to cope, and this is the final book, due out April 18.

The Forbidden, The Courtship of Nellie Fisher #2 by Beverley Lewis, due out April 1. I had read the first in the series several months ago and am looking forward to the sequel.

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. I’ve wanted to read this for a long time and had it on a previous reading list but just never got to it.

Mansfield Park by Jane Austen. This will complete my reading of Austen’s books.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Somehow I have never read it or seen the film, but I often see it on people’s lists of favorite books.

In the Best Possible Light by Beneth Peters Jones, subtitled Godly Femininity in the Twenty-first Century. I started this last year but never finished it.

I will probably read more than these, but these will get me started. I have about 28 books on my to-be-read list that I can draw from plus I am sure there will be others that catch my eye along the way.

My 1,000th post celebration and giveaway!

Posted on March 19, 2008 by Barbara Harper

As I mentioned Monday, this marks my 1,000 post.

To celebrate, I am hosting a giveaway!

Here is what is in my prize package:

* A copy of the book The Restorer by Sharon Hinck which I reviewed here.

* A CD of hymn arrangements with piano and orchestra titled Reflections on a Journey by Greg Howlett.

* A set of Shabby Chic note cards.

All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on this post. I will use the random number generator to draw a name on Saturday at 10 p.m. EDT. This contest is open to international visitors as well. 🙂

I do appreciate my readers (and commenters!)

(By the way, I hope you will leave a comment even if you are not interested in the “prize.” I’ll count all comments on this post as entries for the giveaway unless you say you’re not interested. It’s just nice sometimes to see who is “out there.” 🙂 )

This contest is now closed. The winner is: #18, Need A Nap 2! I will be contacting you shortly to find out where to send your prize.

Recipe Round-Up: Side dishes

Posted on March 18, 2008 by Barbara Harper

Recipe round-up is a monthly meme hosted by different bloggers with a different emphasis every month. More information about it can be found here. This month’s focus is on side dishes and the hostess is The Accidental Pastor’s Wife.

I had actually thought this was coming up on Thursday, so I an running late!

To me deciding on a side dish is almost harder sometimes than deciding on a main dish. Here are a few of our favorites.

Cheesy Potato Casserole

1 bag frozen cubed hash brown potatoes
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 8-oz. carton sour cream
2 T. minced onion or 1 small onion chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 c. butter, melted
1 sleeve of Town House, crushed
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Combine ingredients in large bowl; spoon into 9 x 13-inch pan. Combine 3 tablespoons melted butter with about 1 sleeve crushed Town House crackers. Top casserole with crumbs. Bake at 350 for 1 hour. Yield: 8-10 servings.

(I usually start it in the microwave before adding the crumb topping, stirring every five minutes for about 15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender, then top with the crumbs and bake in oven for about ten minutes. This is a family favorite but probably pretty high calorie.)

Vegetable Medley

(I developed this as a way to eat broccoli without adding cheese sauce, which is the way I originally learned to like them, then added cauliflower and carrots later.)

1 1/2 c. fresh broccoli cut into small pieces
1 1/2 c. fresh cauliflower cut into small pieces
1 1/2 c. baby carrots, sliced
1 T minced onion
1/2 c. water
1 T. instant chicken bouillon

Mix all ingredients. Microwave on high 3 minutes. Stir. Microwave another 3 minutes. Stir. Adjust cooking time according to how well-cooked you like your vegetables. We like ours between crisp and mushy. You could try different vegetables as a variation.

Carrot Coins with Thyme

4 cups frozen sliced carrots, thawed
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup butter, cubed
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon pepper

In a large skillet, saute the carrots and onion in butter until tender. Stir in the lemon juice, salt, thyme and pepper; heat through. Yield: 4 servings.

(This was adapted from a Simple and Delicious magazine recipe. I used raw carrots instead, which worked fine except that it took a little longer.)

Find more great side dish recipes here.

Is reverence a lost commodity?

Posted on March 18, 2008 by Barbara Harper

When my boys were younger, we used to have family devotions from a Bible-in-pictures book for children. With that and other story books, we tried to make sure that the illustrations weren’t cartoonish. We wanted them to understand that these stories were different.

As Jesse in particular got older, we developed a bedtime ritual of devotions together. I found some devotional books for children that included a Scripture passage to read and a story that illustrated the biblical principle. We’ve done that for years, but now that he’s 14, I tried to find a devotional book geared toward teen-agers. I was disappointed at most of the fare available at the Christian bookstore for teens, but I came across one book written by a Christian author I respected who had written many great books in the area of apologetics. I knew he was in a “New Evangelical” camp, but I thought he was fairly conservative. especially in his theology. I had never read one of his books through from cover to cover, but I had used them often as reference books. So I felt this would be pretty safe, but I was on alert all the same.

Much of the book is good. But one problem I have with it is that there is an undercurrent of…I don’t know quite what I would call it. Flippancy, maybe? Not toward biblical truth, but towards God Himself. For example, one day’s devotional has the reader imagining himself in a dream with God standing before him in Reeboks and jeans, counting up the blessings He has bestowed on you with a calculator.

Now, I don’t think jeans are evil (Reeboks either, for that matter). If Jesus walked the earth today as He did in the first century, who knows what He would wear. I don’t think He would wear a suit and tie 24/7 and speak in King James English, and He probably would handle things like calculators and computers and such. That is all just speculation and I don’t want to veer too far down that rabbit trail just now.

I know when He did walk the earth He handled carpenter’s tools, held children, touched lepers, prepared a meal on the sea shore, ate, slept, was tired and hungry. I know He became a man, experienced what human beings do, was tempted in all points like as we are.

But I also know that when John, the “beloved disciple,” the one closest to Him of His inner circle, saw Him in his vision in Revelation, there was no back-slapping or hand-shaking or comments like, “Jesus! So good to see You again! It’s been a long time!” He fell at His feet as dead.

When Isaiah saw Him in His glory, his response was “Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5).

When Joshua saw the captain of the Lord’s host, thought to be an pre-incarnate appearance of Christ, he “fell on his face to the earth, and did worship.”

To be honest, I don’t know quite how to reconcile the intimacy of the heart-cry of the Psalms or of calling God the Father “Abba” (Romans 8:14-16 and Galatians 4:5-7) with being overwhelmed with God’s glory and majesty to the point of falling before Him in worship. In another sense, though, I can say I have experienced something of each of those things, though not at the same time and not to the extent that believers will when we see Him in heaven. All true Christians have the sense of calling out to God as our beloved Father and pouring out out hearts before Him, and if we think very much on God’s majesty and glory and greatness, we can’t help but respond as David did in Psalm 8: “who are we that You even pay attention to us?”

Maybe that’s the problem: we spend more time calling out to Him and asking Him to help us and meet our needs without spending time meditating on Who He is, beholding Him, thinking about His holiness and power and greatness and majesty. We do need to do the former, but we can’t neglect the latter.

God did come down to us in the form of a man, and Jesus is called our friend and our brother, yet I think we need to be cautious about “bringing God down to our level” to the point that we’re overly-familiar and disrespectful and have forgotten Who He really is. We can’t forsake reverence for intimacy: we need both in balance.

Hebrews 12:28: Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.

Time Travel Tuesday: Smells

Posted on March 18, 2008 by Barbara Harper

My Life as Annie’s weekly Time Travel Tuesday asks this week if there are any smells that take us back in memory. I don’t really remember too many.

My dad wore Old Spice cologne, so a whiff of that always makes me think of him. I don’t remember my mom wearing perfume, though I think she did. I don’t think she had one particular scent that she wore all the time.

I grew up near the Gulf of Mexico with frequent excursions to Padre Island, and the smell of sea water takes me back to my childhood there. So many birthday parties, overnight camp-outs, family get-togethers, and fish fries held there! And this was no wimpy strip of beach alongside a highway and hotels: this was sand dunes and sea grass as far as the eye could see in one direction, and endless waves in the other. I forget how much I miss the sea until I am around it again. We’re a few hours away from the water now, and, really, with the lack of public modesty we wouldn’t go much any more anyway, especially with three boys in tow. But a few years ago our kids’ spring break was an off week from the public schools’ and we spent a few days in Charleston at a hotel right on the beach. Hardly anyone else was around. It was wonderful!