To all!

For My Democrat Friends:
Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, our best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress,non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice Not to observe religious or secular traditions at all. I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the generally accepted calendar year 2008, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures.

For My Republican Friends: Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and May God bless you and yours in 2008!

Christmas Quotes

"Christmas casts its glow upon us, as it does every year. And it reminds us that we need not feel lonely because we are loved, loved with the greatest love there has ever been or ever will be."
Ronald Reagan

"In the chain of human events, the birthday of the nation is indissolubly linked with the birthday of the Savior."
John Quincy Adams

"How many observe Christ's birthday! How few, his precepts! O! 'tis easier to keep holidays than Commandments."
Benjamin Franklin

A Homeschool Family

http://www.doublesharpevideo.com/HomeSchool2/Homeschool2.html

Funny Quotes

“Everyone has a photographic memory. Some don't have film.”

"I guess I just prefer to see the dark side of things. The glass is always half empty. And cracked. And I just cut my lip on it. And chipped a tooth.”

“You know, somebody actually complimented me on my driving today. They left a little note on the windshield, it said 'Parking Fine.'”

"I used to think I was indecisive, but now I'm not so sure”

“Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you are a mile away from them and you have their shoes.”

“Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark. Professionals built the Titanic.”

“Since light travels faster than sound, people appear bright until you hear them speak.”

“If toast always lands butter-side down, and cats always land on their feet, what happens if you strap toast on the back of a cat and drop it?”

“I want to die in my sleep like my grandfather... Not screaming and yelling like the passengers in his car.”

“There Are Three Kinds of People - Those Who Can Count and Those Who Can't”

“Do you know why they call it 'PMS'? Because 'Mad Cow Disease' was already taken.”

My song lately....

It's been one of those days
When everything just feels so far away
Hope don't be a stranger
Won't you help me make it through today?

Then a voice comes calling out to me
You're never alone cause I am with you
And I will always be
I will hold you cause you belong to me
You're never alone cause I'll be with you
For all eternity

Someone tell me how I
Stumble into doubting all the time
Some days I'm all together
And other days I stand here asking why

Then a voice comes calling out to me
You're never alone cause I am with you
And I will always be
I will hold you cause you belong to me
You're never alone cause I'll be with you
For all eternity

Then a voice comes calling out to me
You're never alone cause I am with you
And I will always be
I will hold you cause you belong to me
You're never alone cause I'll be with you
For all eternity

You're never alone
You're never alone

Breadmen

Tonight we were sitting at the table finishing our math when the doorbell rang. I opened the door and there was an older man standing out there with a cane. He handed me 2 envelopes and asked if Iwould give them to the breadman and his helper. Jace had been there just last week to deliver the bread and had asked him how he was doing. He told him he hadn't been well at all. He said he had been in the hospital because he had a heart attack. Jace told him he was sorry that he wasn't feeling well and shared it with me when he got in the car. We prayed for him that night and hoped he would continue to recover. Now he shows up at our door with these cards and gifts of money for "the breadmen." What a blessing for us and what a blessing for him. I really believs he enjoys Jaces company (and recently Levis) and looks forward to the days they come over with bread. When we started selling bread we prayed that it would be a ministry to the people in Lakeland and God has surely blessed the kids with friends in the neighborhood that look forward to their visits. This particular man usually sits right out in his front yard and just enjoys the sunshine. I didn't notice that he had a cane before but probably has one now because of his recent heart attack. How sweet of this man to specifically drive over and think of my boys! We are blessed! Jace told me I better get a couple free loaves over there right away!

Rapper goes Country

Beautiful hair

I told Liberty. "Your hair is so beautiful." She looked at me and smiled. I asked her, "Where did you get such beautiful hair?" (Expecting her to say God, like she does about everything else) She looked at herself admiringly and said, "Cownnie Mowket."

Christmas Pictures

Doncha just love Christmas pictures? If you are like me and just take them at home you know what this is like. You always send out the one that looks the best right? I just wanted to send out a couple of "the way it really is." I am gonna do that some year. Send the ones where they're fighting, looking grouchy, punching each other, crying, you know. The ones where no one is looking or their heads are turned. I like how Levi's eyes are completely off in the above picture. I kept showing him the camera and saying, "Are you looking at me? Does it look like you're looking at me?" And the one below, "Close your mouth Liberty. Please close your mouth." I especially like how Jace just has the "Let's get this overwith look." Of course along with his Charlie Bucket (Willy Wonka) hairdo. We can laugh at these in about 20 years and even today if we want. :O) Keep your eyes out for that "perfect one" in the mail but remember how it really was!

Hold the baby

Sorry about the red eyes. I didn't get to it before it was moved to a different folder and whatever so you'll just have to picture her with greenish bluish eyes. She was so interested in holding our friends newborn baby "Kaden", til she got him in her arms. It wasn't as fun as she thought it would be and she didn't really know what to do with him. She just acted like a statue and mumbled that she was, "done holding the baby." It was pretty funny and cute at the same time!

And finally I'll ask him...

Levi went up to stay with my mom and Grampa Joe for a few days. He told me, "I'm gonna tell him all about the Lord. I'm gonna ask him lots of questions. I'm gonna feed the horse with him. I'm gonna go on rides with him. I'm gonna hang out with him on the couch and watch cartoons....and when I'm all done with that, I'm gonna ask him if when he dies I can have his dog."

Seen it?

A little history lesson: If you don't know the answer make your best guess. Answer all the questions before looking at the answers. Who said it ?

1) "We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good."
A. Karl Marx
B. Adolph Hitler
C. Joseph Stalin
D. None of the above

2) "It's time for a new beginning, for an end to government of the few, by the few, and for the few and to replace it with shared responsibility for shared prosperity."
A. Lenin
B. Mussolini
C. Idi Amin
D. None of the Above

3) "(We)...can't just let business as usual go on, and that means something has to be taken away from some people."
A. Nikita Khrushev
B. Josef Goebbels
C. Boris Yeltsin
D. None of the above

4) "We have to build a political consensus and that requires people to give up a little bit of their own...in order to create this common ground."
A. Mao Tse Dung
B. Hugo Chavez
C. Kim Jong Il
D. None of the above

5) "I certainly think the free-market has failed."
A. Karl Marx
B. Lenin
C. Molotov
D. None of the above

6) "I think it's time to send a clear message to what has become the most profitable sector in (the) entire economy that they are being watched."
A. Pinochet
B. Milosevic
C. Saddam Hussein
D. None of the above



Answers:
(1) D. None of the above. Statement was made by Hillary Clinton 6/29/2004
(2) D. None of the above. Statement was made by Hillary Clinton 5/29/2007
(3) D. None of the above. Statement was made by Hillary Clinton 6/4/2007
(4) D. None of the above. Statement was made by Hillary Clinton 6/4/2007
(5) D. None of the above. Statement was made by Hillary Clinton 6/4/2007
(6) D. None of the above. Statement was made by Hillary Clinton 9/2/2005

The Priest With Dirty Clothes

Have you ever read this book? It is most excellent and a great Christmas gift for kiddos! It is Libertys new favorite story. She wants to read it all the time. I also noticed in the book that they live near a lake called Loch Lomond in Scotland! How funny that Matt and Dana just visited there last week! This book is based on Zechariah 3:1-5. In this passage, Joshua, as High Priest of Israel, is standing before the Angel of the Lord wearing dirty clothes. The Angel of the Lord speaks to Joshua, telling him that he has been cleansed of his sin, and then replaces Joshua's dirty clothes with beautiful, clean garments. This is just how Christ cloaks us in His "garment" of righteousness so that we may stand faultless, or clean, before the throne of God. It is so awesome and your kids will love it too! Thanks for buying it for us mom!

Job

Jace asked me tonight if we could read the Bible together. This is so awesome to me because it wasn't during school and it wasn't bedtime. He told me he has been very interested in Jobs life. He has been watching "Superbook Series" (thanks Cbass for loaning us those-they have LOVED them!) He said he was just amazed that a man would suffer in the way he did and say things like "Naked I came from my mothers womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gives and the Lord takes away; may the name of the Lord be praised." He explained this to me (TO me!) this is so awesome and encouraging! Not that it was to me, but that he understands! I am so encouraged and praise God for what He is doing in his life. He then compared Jobs life to Pauls and we read some of Pauls sufferings. He (Jace) said he would be whipped a hundred times to "repay" Christ for what he has done for him. We talked about "repaying" and "grace" and he understands. He was saying he wanted to be able to join in the sufferings of Christ. I know this is "talk" from a 9 year old because he can handle a tackle but thats pushing it! It was still so awesome and incredible to study together. We read together, trading off, through chapter 3 of Job. We talked about it and chewed on it. He talked about Paul and Job and how he wanted to be like them. How much he has to learn. How much I have to learn. I am so grateful and amazed at the power of God in a life! All glory to Him!

In Christ Alone

This song was playing on Jaces cd player tonight. This is absoultely one of my favorite hymns of all time. Especially when Jace told me, "This is a very gripping song!" He said, "When I just began to know Christ, this song just gripped my heart," Thank you Lord, for encouraging my heart with these words from my boy who I pray you have already saved or will save!!!

In Christ alone my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This Cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heights of love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My Comforter, my All in All
Here in the love of Christ I stand

In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
Till on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost it's grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Brought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life's first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
'Till He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand

Amen. Praise God. It is finished!

Blessings!

Things the lord has blessed me with to name a few: salvation, my husband, my kids, my home, the ability to stay home, my husbands job, being able to teach my kids the Word, homeschooling, my mom, my sisters, my sisters in Christ, my church family, strong teaching of Gods Word, accountability, convictions, the holy spirit, people who pray for me, my health, living in the US, warmth, forgiveness, mercy, grace, being able to witness to my husband, childrens prayers, love, and last but not least (although there are MANY more),...........p....p....ppp....persecutions and trials

kiddos

Thought I would put a couple recent pics of the kids on here so you could see them. We were also practicing getting together for our Christmas pictures! I'm doubtful Pete and I will be in them this year but hopefully we'll get the kids done! I think they're ready to go! Now, getting them to dress up and pose for more than two will be the next challenge!

Fellowship

Tonight is pie and fellowship at church. We are really excited! Not so much about the pie and fellowship, although these things are awesome, but because Pete is coming with us! We are coveting all your prayers and thanking God for this amazing blessing! I am sure it will be a wonderful time! Also praying for Cbass as she is going to share some things God has been doing in her life! Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Mush

Levi crawled up in bed with me today to do a little snugglin. He was talkin and cozyin up when I said, "Weren't you just watching a movie?" To which he said, "I only watch a tiny bit of a movie when I get up. I don't want my brain to turn to mush." Good idea.

One of those days....

Well, the kids were on my last and final nerve today! Pete had to work and when he got home he could tell I was fed up with the day. He came over to me and said, "how was your day?" I said, "long." Well, since church ended anyway. He then proceeded to swallow his foot. At least I wanted to feed it to him. He said, "Oh yeah? What could possibly have made your day so long?" you know, he just came back from work-something I have no clue about. As the kids were wrestling around on the couch yelling and whining at each other I had a tiny vision of the movie "Christmas Vacation." You know the part......."Look around honey, we're at the threshhold of hell!" Wait. Back to reality. He wasn't here. He didn't hear them whining all day and pickin and fighting and punching and, and, and.....whatver! Ah! I decided to head for some laughter to the blogs! He came over after a while and gave me a little smooch and TOTALLY REDEEMED HIMSELF! Lucky. I just about had my vodoo doll made....

Shape up!

Jace was doing his school today and Levi warned him, "You better get doin your school! Do you wanna live in a box?!" I wonder where that came from Pete?

In You

"In You"

I put my hope in You
I lay my life in palm of your hand
I'm constantly drawn to You Lord
In ways I cannot comprehend

It's the Creator calling the created
The Maker beckoning the made
The bride finding what she's always waited for
When we find ourselves that day

[CHORUS:]
In You where the hungry feast at the table
The blind frozen by colors in view
The lame will dance, They'll dance for they are able
And the weary find rest
Oh the weary find rest in You

It's no secret that we don't belong here
Those set apart by the grace of You
And we look for the day when we go to a place
Where the old becomes brand new

I love this song because it reminds me of my dad. Thanks to Sheri, http://wwwcoffeetime.blogspot.com/ , I have been reminded so much of visiting dad in the hospital. It was a terrible and joyous time altogether. I can feel her pain and am sad for her. It also reminds me that dad is in heaven and the old has become brand new. Miss you dad. See you soon!

Question

Levi asked me this brainbuster today, "Why do we have dreams if we don't know what they mean?" Answer?

Having brothers

Libs was cuddling up to me on the couch one morning watching "Baby's Day Out" when some interesting words came out of her mouth. She said, "mom, that baby's gonna kick that guy in the nuts." I said, "What?! Who taught you that?" She said, "well, he is gonna kick that guy in the nuts." Mmmn....brothers? Today she was playing with a little farm set we had and she had what looked like the cover of a silo. She put it over her private area and said to me, "this is for wearing over my nuts." I guess this is going to be her word of choice for now. Thanks boys.

Funnies

Levi grew right out of his Sketchers. He had blisters on his toes-bad mom! I said, "time for a new pair of shoes!" He said, "Oh no! I love my S's!"

Liberty was wearing footie pj's one night when my mom was here. She told me she came out of her room the next day with a new pair on. My mom said, "what happened?" She said that when she went potty and tried to put them back on she couldn't find her arm! (The pajama arm was inside out and she just couldn't figure it out!)

I was telling someone last night about the guy in the tinfoil thong at Chipolte on Halloween and Jace overheard me. He asked me, "mom, what was that fancy name you used for underwear?" I stumbled around and told him they were the kind of underwear that were a little bigger in front and not so much in the back. He said, "ohhhh.....whitey tightys." I said, "Yeah, something like that."

Danger!

Danger! Do not harass gators! Like I was thinkin about it? One of those funny signs they have to post because people will do these crazy things! We looked and looked all week for gators and finally saw one on the last day sunning itself on the golf course. It's as close as I could get or wanted to get for that matter. There were trails all over the island through trees and swampland. It was fun and a little scary. One night we were coming back at dusk and we could barely see. Thank God we didn't come across any gators or any other wild animals! Lots of fun and adventure here! Hopefully you can see that speck of a gator in the last picture. We were really glad to have finally spotted one. We thought a lot about Joey and his canoeing through the swamps in Florida. That is crazy! One swish of the tail and over you go in your tippy canoe! Yikes!

Kiawah Island

Seriously-I think that is really what the people who live on this island believe! This was a sign hanging in the kitchen of our pad. We went vacationing to Kiawah Island, SC this past week and what a time we had! There wasn't much sun but a lot of relaxing, dodging gators on our sweet bikes, laughs, and gawking at the lifestyles of the rich and famous! The side house was where Cbass and I stayed while her parents had the rest of the mansion! We made sure we went in every room and watched every tv and used many bathrooms and showers. It also had a sweet brand new Lincoln Navigator with all the bells and whistles! Although there are thousands of houses on this island only 112 of them are inhabited. Unreal! I guess they are peoples vacation homes and investments. Whatever! I just put my whole self in, my whole self out, did the hokey pokey and......went home back to reality!

Zoo Boo!

Tonight we went to the Zoo Boo! Me, Jamie, Levi, and Liberty! Jace was at a football party with Pete so he missed out. There were some great costumes there! They got some candy, healthy snacks, and junk of course! It was packed as the entire city was there. Check out Levi and Libs in their sweet costumes! Liberty is posing with post-modern Wonder woman, Ariel, and Snow White. I love the clones and the superheroes too! What a beautiful day to walk around the zoo grounds! We had a great time!

Kiawah Island

http://www.lussocollection.com/page/kiawah_island.jsp
Cbass and her family invited Pete and I (he had to work-surprise) on their family vacation. Check it out. If you click on this link and then get to the Kiawah Island home page watch the Kiawah Island video and you can see the exact house we are at. It's incredible! Mom, I think I finally found an island big enough for you to cook on in the kitchen!

I'm the Mom!

Sweet homecoming

Imagine....I never told her he was coming home. She woke up at 6:30 on Monday morning and I went in her room and asked if she wanted to come lay with me for a while( I do not do this at all on a regular basis). She said she did and it was pretty dark so I knew she wouldn't be able to see him. When she was lying next to me she must've kicked him becasue she whispered, "is that daddy?" I told her it was, who else would it be? Nevermind. Anyway, she jumped and giggled and screamed, "kiss me!" She kept hugging him and squeezing him while asking, "do you wanna go to the zoo? Were you too far? Can you kiss me?" She talked with him in the dark for at least 10 minutes and then she leaned over to me and whispered, "I can't see his eyes." I got out my booklight and shined it above his head. She laughed and hugged and kissed him. "Did you wanna make sure it was daddy?" She said, "yes." It was one of those memories you'll never forget!

Guess Who?

My awesome sister Dana found this on a blog she visits regularly. I thought it was so great I had to post it myself...

Headless

I'm sure many of you have seen this before but I love it. Levi just loves it and wants to look at it all the time. He always comes over to my computer and says, "mom, show me that kid who can take his head off!" He stands next to me and just keeps shaking his head, "how does he do that?!"

Great Poetry

Anyone remember this one? Of course you do! My sister and I loved this book and "Where The Sidewalk Ends" of course. I put this one on because the boys and I were reading it tonight and they just love it! What an awesome way to get our poetry done! A subject I cannot stand but can absolutely love it if we read books like this! Pick it up if you haven't for a while-the memories come rushing back! My fave's are-"The Loser, Sister For Sale, Its Hot!, Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout, Sick, Jimmy Jett"...on and on! Any favorites for you?

Libs party

We had a birthday party for Libs today. What a beautiful day with lots of delicious food and fun! Thanks everyone for coming and spending the day and for all the wonderful food, gifts, and fun!

The big move

My sister and Matt are in Dublin! Click on Maranatha and Stiched up on my blog to see their progress. It is so cool! Pray for them! God is soooo good!

Book giveaway

http://www.challies.com/
Is giving away books! If you want to enter please use my referral code! I want to win! Its 10787. Cbass, you can enter and then if you win you can give me the books because you don't read! So that's actually 2 more ballots for moi! Yeah! Thanks Pat!

True love, almost

It is Libertys golden birthday today and dads 3rd year of eternity with Christ. Wow! Feels like a lifetime ago when he was here and when Libs was born. Amazing. Well, we went to the church picnic and had a blast. The kids ran around and played and we ate lots of great food! Jace and a bunch of other kids spent a lot of time in the henhouse chasing "chics" around. His little girlfriend, Hope, told me he rescued her chicken at least 10 times for her. I asked Jace about it on the way home from the picnic and he had an earful for me. He told me, "today was almost the day I told her that I loved her." I said, "no kidding?" He said, "I could tell that she was about to say it to me too." Wow. He then said, "ya know, I could just tell mom-when we gazed into each others eyes it was true love."

Mother Teresa

Interesting if you haven't read about Mother Teresa.
http://www.challies.com/archives/articles/the-myth-of-mot.php

Hands up!

Hands up! Some wild west fun with Jace and Libs!

State Fair!

The great Minnesota get together! Didja make it out? We had a lot of fun and a lot of food! Can't wait til next year!

Gramma Bunny!

Doesn't gramms look good! This is gramma bunny (my dads mom)! She came over for a visit last week and we had a great ol time! She recently turned 84 and she's been doing great lately. Wanted to post her picture for the out of towners! Thanks for the visit gramma bunny!

Communion

Yesterday at church was communion. Yep, you guessed it, a Levi story. I took the bread from the plate that was passed to me and Levi said, "what's that mom?" (He hasn't been in service for communion yet since he's turned 5) I whispered, "it's communion,shhh!" He wanted to know why he couldn't have some? I said,"it's not a snack." After Pastor talked a bit and we took the bread as a congregation he said in a loud whisper,"you tricked me! That was a snack!" Then came the "cup." Little cups filled with grape juice of course. He said, "is that the blood?" To which I replied, "it's symbolic, yes." As I was trying to reflect on what Christ did for me on that day I felt him inching closer and I heard a "sniff, sniff, sniff" over my cup. He said, smells like juice."

Darth Vaders

This is so funny! Guess who's behind mask #1?

May the sis be with ya Jame! Ha ha! Your sooo 5 years old!

Bedtime song

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uISuvTiTYJA&eurl

This is too funny. Just change some of the she's to he's and etc. You get the point people.

John Piper is bad!

I know some of you have seen this but I love it!
http://www.youtube.com:80/watch?v=6-GxkAJ1OBU

Moms know everything

While driving home from dinner tonight Levi said, "where's my gameboy?" Libs said, "in da backseat." Levi said, "you're not in charge Liberty! You don't know everything. You're not a mom!" He paused a few moments and said, "moms know everything." He eventually found it in the backseat and said, "Liberty, you were right." It was very cute. Shes a mom in the making!

Joke time

Chelsea Clinton was interviewing a man in the military and asked him what he thought about the war. He proceeded to tell her what it was like over there and how proud he was to fight for his country. She then asked him, "well aren't you afraid?" He then said, "there are only 3 things I am really afraid of. I'm afraid of O'Bama, I'm afraid of O'Sama, and I'm afraid of your mama!" Ha ha!

Sweet

I love this picture of Pete and Libs by the pool! Can you believe summer is halfway over? I'm so mad!!!!!

Good Soldier

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8aZXeFRSBA

This is an excellent cilp from Mark Driscoll. Everyones favorite I know.

Piper on prosperity

Check out how Piper thinks about health, wealth, and prosperity here-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukcV-xtU3hc

That I May Know God

It's as good as I could get the picture with my sorry computer skills. This book is the newest in my book collection. It looks to be an excellent read and I am on the first chapter and I quote:

"This journey with Jesus is really a spiritual pilgrimage in that we have confesses that we are "strangers and exiles on earth (Heb 11:13)." Once we are in Christ, we become sojourners and aliens on this planet; our citizenship has been changed from earth to heaven(Phil. 3:20), and we must now grow in the realization that no earthbound felicity can fully satisfy the deepest God-given longings of our hearts. During this brief pilgrimage, the terrain we encounter varies from grassy meadows to arid deserts and treacherous mountains. This pilgrim life is filled with joy and travail, with pleasures and afflictions, with clarity and confusion, with assurance and doubt, with comfort and pain, with relationships and alienation, with hope and despair, with obedience and disbelief, with confidence and uncertainty. But there are 2 critical truths to bear in mind when our surroundings become precarious: (1) others have preceded us in this journey, and some have left maps along the way to guide us through the territory ahead; and(2) God has equipped us with the spiritual resources He knows we will need throughout the journey.

I am excited to share more with you as I dig in!!!!!

Grampa Joe

Gramps and Jace at the Danbury parade! What a day! We sure enjoyed riding on Grampa Joes new 4-wheeler! I think he likes it a lot himself. He looks like a little kid out there with his big black sunglasses and his white hat on backwards! Gramps is Jaces best friend and has taught him lots and lots of awesome things! All the kids think he's the greatest! Him and his sidekick "Sparks."

Liberty!

Happy belated 4th of July! She should have been born on the 4th with a name like Liberty! I loved her get-up at the parade! It was a hot one but the kids loved it and they had lots of good candy. Hope you enjoyed your 4th! Happy birthday America!

Superman

Superman saves the day! We laughed so hard at this suit because it has a fan attached to the back to blow up his muscles. The funniest part about it is hearing the whirl of the fan as he's flying around.

YIKES!

Look at his fiesty little sheila! Giant eyes, slimy slickery body, and my what big teeth you have! Another one of his throw-backs! What? I wanted to eat this one! I don't want to swim with these monsters!

Delicious Bass

Heres puttin the camera to good use. Pete was happy to catch this delicious bass. :o) No, he didn't keep it but threw it back like a good fisherman would?

Ha HA Libs!

Liberty (aka/Libs) has been potty training the last couple of days and it's goin great. Yesterday I asked her to go potty after she got out of her swimsuit and meet me back in her room. She was in the livingroom and I said, "did, you go?" She said, "yes" all sing-songy. I wasn't going to believe her cuz she was so fast but as I walked around the couch she had 2 pieces of tp hangin out of her rear like butterfly wings. It was cute. I would've taken a picture and posted it but Pete's got the camera on his fishin trip. Dangit! I know you wanted to see it!

Uncle Steven!

You made the blog! Ha ha! Thanks for coming to Jaces party and for all your help in weeding my garden, shopping for me, playing with my kids, standing in my zone, and helping me endlessly!!!! Love you and appreciate you lots!!!!

Happy birthday Jace!

Happy birthday Jace! You are officially 9! Glad we had such an awesome party day for you! Thanks to everyone who is wonderfully part of your life! Especially you're favorite aunt Jamie!!!!

Summer!

Pools open! Been open for a while but it finally feels like summer! Yee-haw! Come on over for a swim? Yeah, notice the jaws rock in the background.....that's from my pool growing up. We hauled it to our house-it's a family heirloom!

Farewell my love!

Auntie Dana is moving to Ireland! The kids will miss her and Matt-man! Good "providence" my sister dear! I am excited to come and visit the land of darkness! :o)

Happy b-day u wretch!

Happy birthday to this wretch! It's been a year today! Amazing how fast time goes! I have to add on of course-another Levi story-this time disguised under a different heading.
While up at Grammas one of the local rednecks came over for a visit with her grandson who was Levi's age. After he left Levi told grampa Joe "His name was "Locust" (Logan) and by the way his dad is in jail." Just tonight we asked him what his dad was in jail for and he replied,"drinking and car-ring."

Good points

1) It’s not enough to know the truth; you have to practice what you believe.

2) It’s not enough to speak positively about the truth; you also have to confront error.

3) It’s not enough to be on guard for yourself; you have to be concerned for the safety for all the flock.

More of you know who

Levi's singing today
"It's raining, it's pouring, the "ultimate" is snoring......."

He's been waking up with wet pants lately. I'm sure he'd appreciate me telling you. Like a nice mom I asked him if he needed to sleep in diapers. He said no. I said what's the problem? He said he just keeps dreaming he's in the pool. That's all.

If the pool dreams would stop he'd be alright.
Wanna come for a swim?

I love it!

Summer! I cannot believe it is almost June 1st. Things I love about summer....
Barbeques
fresh smelling flowers
cozy fluffy rolling grass in my backyard
tans!
sun-kissed kiddies faces
bonfires
fireworks
warm summer breezes
late night warm walks where your hands get all sausaged up
pools open!
light out til 10!
baseball
I could go on and on!!!!!!!!!

How bout you?

Funny quotes

If toast always lands butter-side down, and cats always land on their feet, what happens if you strap toast on the back of a cat and drop it?

Practice makes perfect.....But nobody's perfect......so why practice?

The light at the end of the tunnel is just the light of an oncoming train.

Women complain about premenstrual syndrome, but I think of it as the only time of the month that I can be myself.

When I was a kid, we had a quicksand box in the backyard. I was an only child...eventually.

You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say will be misquoted, then used against you

You have a cough? Go home tonight, eat a whole box of Ex-Lax; tomorrow you'll be afraid to cough.

Undeserving

I am undeserving of....(I found this out there somewhere and had to totally agree!!!)

1. The love of God
2. The grace of Christ
3. The fellowship of the Holy Spirit
4. Forgiveness for my wickedness and sin
5. Adoption into the family of God
6. Justification before a just and holy God
7. Union with Christ the blameless and pure
8. Escape from the wrath of God that is coming
9. Having a people, Christ's people, to care for in the Christian ministry
10. The privilege of looking each day into God's Word, of either having this as a "job" or the sight and the mental ability to do it
11. Association with Christ by wearing the name "Christian" or participating in baptism and membership in His body, the church
12. Eternal life
13. Seeing Jesus by faith now and by sight when time gives way to eternity
14. The favor of the Lord in the form of my husband
15. The fruit of the womb, three children on loan to us for the glory of God
16. Friends and family who have loved me enough to teach me, correct me, bear with me, rejoice with me and pray for me

Clever

On the “interesting” side of things, how can you go wrong with a video clip of Joel Osteen preaching with clever subtitles added?

Come Thou Fount

I LOVE this song! We were talking about it in bible study today and I just had to put in on here! Notice where it hits me the most?

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of Thy redeeming love.

Here I raise my Ebenezer;
Here by Thy great help I’ve come;
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger
,Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood.

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord,I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

O that day when freed from sinning,
I shall see Thy lovely face;
Clothed then in blood washed linen
How I’ll sing Thy sovereign grace;
Come, my Lord, no longer tarry,
Take my ransomed soul away;
Send thine angels now to carry
Me to realms of endless day.

"Eye" max

The Minnesota Zoo, or "Joo" as Libs called it. Yep, we went today thanks to the Museum passes from the library or it surely would've cost us 50 smackers to get in the place. A beautiful day to spend with the kids and the animals! God is truly amazing! Some of the creatures out there are just bizarre!!!! Anyway, this post is not really about the zoo but the Imax. We went to see the Lion show in 3d. Cool. I don't remember the last time I had to put on those giant Big Bird glasses. We got into the theatre after we got our popcorn and soda and prepared to watch the show. All the kids had their glasses on (which were bigger than their heads) when the countdown began. They were amazed at the way the animals and everything else was poppin out before their eyes but kept having to push their glasses back up cuz they were so gigantic. They were doing the wave your hand in front of you and try to grab the lion or bird-you know. My sister and I were making jokes like, "great, the lions gonna claw our eyes out," and on and on. When the lions got really loud one time Levi said, "mom, I'm freakin' scared!" He kept pulling his glasses down and my sister and I kept saying, "get 'em on!" Finally Jace leans over and says, "mom, my glasses are foggy." I was like, "what?" I reached over and grabbed them and looked through. Sure enough they were-foggy with POPCORN BUTTER! I then tested out everyones glasses and they all had the popcorn smear. Oh well, at least it lasted til 3/4 through the show! I gave Jace mine and Libs didn't seem to mind and Levi watched without. I don't know how he could stand it! He probably just thought it was a bad vcr tape or something. So, the moral of the story? NO popcorn in Imax with kids under 8!!!!

Levi stories

Levi is hilarious. He really isn't my favorite, he just is the funniest kid. (I already hear you Steven-shush!) Some stories...

Levi broke bread at Grammas and said, "this is my body...."

Levi was walkin around a corner yesterday when I scared him. He shouted as he stomped towards his room, "I am going to pray to the Lord!"

Yesterday at church Pastor said something profound about God. I saw Levi out of the corner of my eye doing a slow nod back and forth. He said, "mmmnnn, that was good." I said, "what?" He said, "nevermind." As if I interrupted his majestic thoughts of God.

Playing hide-n-seek the other day I really had him goin. He was counting in the closet and everytime he would come out he would leave the door open which I was behind. When he would walk away I would go in the closet. He would end up coming back and finding me asking, "how do you get in here?" I always said it's a secret but one time I told him I'm in there with you while you're counting. So, a time or so after he was counting and he said, ".....7,8,9,....mom, are you in here with me?!"

Top 3

Top 3 places you would like to visit before this earth or you pass away and why?

Piper quote

“We are all starved for the glory of God, not self. No one goes to the Grand Canyon to increase self-esteem. Why do we go? Because there is greater healing for the soul in beholding splendor than there is in beholding self.”
-John Piper, Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ

Quote of the week

“Every departure from the doctrine of election in any degree has been a departure from the gospel, for such departure always involves the introduction of some obligation on man’s part to make a contribution towards his own salvation, a contribution he simply cannot make.” - Arthur C. Custance

3 funnies

While getting dressed today I laid out some jeans for Levi. He said, "not jeans!" I said, "yes you are wearing them." He said, "why?" I said, "because." He said while holding up his finger, "you need to be more specific."

Jace was telling me one of his verses tonight. He said, "God is the "Alfalfa" and the Omega......

I told Liberty the other day we were going to the Y. I also told her I had to work out because I'm a fat lard. She then retained that. Today I told her we were going to the Y. She said, "you wook out. You a fat wowd?" Thank you Libs-I'm on it.

Breaking Up

No matter what type of theology you follow, here is a post to help you know what to say when breaking up with that significant other.

This is quite funny.

Quoting J I Packer

There is no doubt that Evangelicalism today is in a state of perplexity and unsettlement. In such matters as the practice of evangelism, the teaching of holiness, the building up of local church life, the pastor's dealing with souls and the exercise of discipline, there is evidence of widespread dissatisfaction with things as they are and of equally widespread uncertainty as to the road ahead. This is a complex phenomenon, to which many factors have contributed; but, if we go to the root of the matter, we shall find that these perplexities are all ultimately due to our having lost our grip on the biblical gospel. Without realizing it, we have during the past century bartered that gospel for a substitute product which, though it looks similar enough in points of detail, is as a whole a decidedly different thing.
Hence our troubles; for the substitute product does not answer the ends for which the authentic gospel has in past days proved itself so mighty. The new gospel conspicuously fails to produce deep reverence, deep repentance, deep humility, a spirit of worship, a concern for the church. Why? We would suggest that the reason lies in its own character and content. It fails to make men God-centred in their thoughts and God-fearing in their hearts because this is not primarily what it is trying to do.
One way of stating the difference between it and the old gospel is to say that it is too exclusively concerned to be "helpful" to man - to bring peace, comfort, happiness, satisfaction - and too little concerned to glorify God. The old gospel was "helpful", too - more so, indeed, than is the new - but (so to speak) incidentally, for its first concern was always to give glory to God. It was always and essentially a proclamation of Divine sovereignty in mercy and judgment, a summons to bow down and worship the mighty Lord on whom man depends for all good, both in nature and in grace. Its centre of reference was unambiguously God. But in the new gospel the centre of reference is man.
This is just to say that the old gospel was [genuinely] religious in a way that the new gospel is not. Whereas the chief aim of the old was to teach men to worship God, the concern of the new seems limited to making them feel better. The subject of the old gospel was God and His ways with men; the subject of the new is man and the help God gives him. There is a world of difference. The whole perspective and emphasis of gospel preaching has changed.....

Changing a light bulb

How many christians does it take to change a light bulb?

Charismatic: Only 1-Hands are already in the air.

Pentecostal: 10-One to change the bulbs, and 9 to pray against the spirit of darkness.

Presbyterians: None-Lights will go on and off at predestined times.

Roman Catholic: None-candles only.

Baptists: At least 15-One to change the bulb, and 3 committees to approve the change and decide who brings the potato salad and fried chicken.

Episcopalians: 3-One to call the electrician, one to mix the drinks and one to talk about how much better the old one was.

Mormons: 5-One man to change the bulb, and 4 wives to tell him how to do it.

Unitarians: We choose not to make a statement either in favor of or against the need for a light bulb. However, if in your own journey you have found that light bulbs work for you, you are invited to write a poem or compose a modern dance about your light bulb for the next Sunday service, in which we will explore a number of light bulb traditions, including incandescent, flourescent, 3-way, long life and tinted, all of which are equally valid paths to luminescence.

Methodists: Undetermined-Whether your light bulb is bright, dull, or completely out, you are loved. You can be a light bulb, turnip bulb, or tulip bulb. Bring a bulb of your choice to the Sunday lighting service and a covered dish to share.

Nazarene: 6-One woman to replace the bulb while 5 men review church lighting policy.

Lutherans- None-Lutherans don't believe in change.

Amish- What's a light bulb?

Statue of Levi

Levi was sitting at lunch today and he held his cup up and Jace asked him, "are you the Statue of Liberty?" He said, "No, I'm the Statue of Levi."

Moving

We were just about to the end of the five year exam when the Doc left the room to get her assistant to come in and do the dirty work. As we were waiting I mentioned to Levi there was one thing left we had to do and he wasn't going to like it too much. He said, "Do I have to move?" (You have to know he has been having many fears that he has to move lately-we don't know why) I said, "No, and why are you so concerned about moving?" He said, "I think I'm ready. I can move to Janice's and that would be a good start cuz it's not too far away." Needless to say, he found out the final part of his exam wasn't moving and he took his shots like a brave little 5 year old. I told Janice he would be on his way after his arms are all healed up. :o)

My servant

Went to Mister Car Wash yesterday in Stillwater for a fill and fuel after Levi got his 5 year old shots. The place has the best carwash of all and it's cheap! Anyway, it's not the point. The guy comes up to my car and I say, "I'll have a fill and a carwash please." He says, "sure," and goes about his task. Levi pipes up in the back, "hey mom, is he your servant?"

I spy

We were playing "I spy" a top one of the big waterslides in the Dells out the window one morning when Levi said the funniest thing! First of all we went through all the normal things, a Dominoes, a red truck ,a fed ex truck, a subway, etc....When Levi said, "I spy a Perkins!" I looked near and far and couldn't find it. I said, "where?" He pointed to a hill a hundred miles away where there was an American flag. He then said, "Wherever there's an American flag, there's a Perkins!"

Happy birthday Leevs!

Levi is 5 today! He was so excited this morning when I told him, "it's today! You're REAL birthday!" He said, "it is? I'm 5? Like right now? Serious?" I said,"yes!" He stopped, looked very carefully at himself, up and down, felt around, etc......then he said all puzzled looking at me, "I don't feel five."

You Did That For Me....

I love this Sara Groves song. It reminds me of ALL Christ has done for me!!!! Praise Him!

I don't have to cry anymore • I don't have to worry about what's in store • I've walked that road exhausted and poor • I don't have to cry anymore • • And I don't have to know it all • I don't have to be so proud and stand so tall • I climbed that mountain only to fall • I don't have to know it all • • You did that for me • Oh, you did that for me • You wore the chains so I could be free • Yeah, yeah • You did that for me • • And I don't have to be ashamed • Hang my head or shoulder the blame • Wondering if my life's been in vain • I don't have to be ashamed • • Oh, you did that for me • Oh, you did that for me • You wore the chains so I could be free • Yeah, yeah • You did that for me • • Man of sorrows • Well acquainted with grief • Drug down to the city dump • Spread eagle on a cross beam • Propped up like a scarecrow • Nailed like a thief • There for all the world to see • • You wore the chains so I could be free • Yeah, yeah • Oh Lord, you did that for me • Oh Lord, you did that for me, You wore the chains so I could be free • •

Amazing Grace

Just thought some of you might be interested in this movie review of Amazing Grace.

Anna Nicole Smith

.....And Al Mohler finally comments on the Anna Nicole Smith story
Check this out. I found it to be very sad, sick, and true.

Third world countries live like...

Robert Heilbroner describes the luxuries a typical American family would have to surrender if they lived among the 1 billion hungry people in the 2/thirds world:

We begin by invading the house of our imaginary American family to strip it of it's furniture. Everything goes: beds, chairs, tables, television sets, lamps. We will leave the family with a few old blankets, a kitchen table, a wooden chair. Along with the bureaus go the clothes. Each member in the family may keep in his wardrobe his oldest suit or dress, a shirt or blouse. We will permit a pair of shoes for the head of the family, but none for the wife or children.
We move to the kitchen. The appliances have already been taken out, so we turn to the cupboards...The box of matches may stay, a small bag of flour, some sugar and salt. A few moldy potatoes, already in the garbage can must be rescued, for they will provide much of tonights meal. We will leave a handful of onions and a dish of dried beans. All the rest we take away: the meat, the fresh vegetables, the canned goods, the crackers, the candy.
Now we have stripped the house: the bathroom has been dismantled, the running water shut off, the electric wires taken out. Next we take away the house. The family can move to the tool shed...Communications must go next. No more newspapers, magazines, books-not that they are missed, since we must take away our family's literacy as well. instead, in our shantytown we will allow one radio....
Now government services must go next. No more postmen, no more firemen. There is a school, but it is 3 miles away and consists of 2 classrooms...There are, of course, no hospitals or doctors nearby. The nearest clinic is 10 miles away and is tended by a midwife. It can be reached by bicycle, provided the family has one, which is unlikely...
Finally, money. We will allow our family a cash hoard of 5 dollars. This will prevent our breadwinner from experiencing the tragedy of an Iranian peasant who went blind because he could not raise the $3.94 which he mistakenly thought he needed to receive admission to a hospital where he could have been cured.

Quoted from "Revolution in World Missions" by KP Yohannan

Wow. That can leave you speechless.

Jim Elliot quote

"He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."

Someone said...

"Our reputation is what others think we are, but our character is what our family knows we are."

American idol

A very interesting review by Tim Challies on American Idol.

American Idol is, once again, a smash hit. Despite being in its sixth season and presenting roughly the same package as the previous five seasons, the show continues to draw viewers. The new season's premier drew over 41 million viewers. More than that may take in the grand finale, due to hit the screen sometime in May. Where the Grammy Awards were once the annual pinnacle of the music industry, it now seems that American Idol is taking its place. The major draw, the one that drew 41 million viewers, is the early auditions.
These auditions showcase the absolute best and the absolute worst of the people who think they have what it take to be the next American Idol. They are paraded before a panel of judges and before an international audience of viewers. What many people do not realize is that these people have already been passed through between at least two prior levels of audition, the first before early screeners and at least one before the show's producers. These people weed out the good from the average and the abysmal from the bad. Those who are especially good and those who are especially awful (or otherwise interesting) are sent before the panel of judges: Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul. The few who can sing well are complimented and given a ticket to go to Hollywood where they will have another chance to impress the judges. Those who cannot sing are mocked, ridiculed and sent packing.
The ones that remain in the minds of the viewers are the ones who stick out both because of their poor voices and because of some physical characteristic. It is rare that a person appears before the cameras who is beautiful but who has an awful voice. Far more common are people who are both unattractive and have horrendous voices. They sing for thirty seconds and then face the panel expectantly. Randy Jackson, laughing all the while, says, "Aw, come on dawg. You've gotta bring it. I was wasn't feeling it, you know? It was just a'ight. It was just a'ight." Then Paula Abdul, playing the role of the giddy drunk, says "So you're a teacher, right? That is a great job and I think you're blessed that you can do something you love. I just don't think singing is for you, honey." Then she stands up and claps. And finally, Simon Cowell unloads with both barrels, feigning surprise that the audition was just so bad (though I'd be willing to bet dollars to donuts that the cheat sheets the judges have in their hands have already told them that this person cannot sing). "That was horrific. Let me ask you, when you sing how do people usually react?" This is a trick question, of course, though most contestants don't seem to know this yet. There are not many possible answers to this question. "They cry" will be met with "I don't blame them." "They clap" will be met with "I will too when you leave." "They sing along" will merit the reply "That's to drown you out." It's like that shell game you see street performers do. You're going to lose no matter what.
It is this cruelty that attracts viewers. We want to see people humiliated and want to see them cry. We want to see people's hopes dashed. There is something very satisfying about seeing a guy like William Hung, who somehow thinks he can sing, be paraded in front of the nation and made the butt of countless jokes. His very name is a joke now, all because he thought he could sing and because the show's producers were willing to make him think so for a short while. It certainly didn't help that he is a gawky and quite unattractive guy. There are hundreds of people who suffer this humiliation every season--people who have been passed through several levels of audition because they think they have a legitimate shot at winning the competition. But then the judges tell them that they are actually awful and that they have just been part of a big joke. They never had any chance at all. They were brought this far only so the world could laugh at them. And then they are sent packing, back to their schools or jobs.
Somehow this humiliation resonates with us. We love it. We lap the show up. 41 million Americans took time on a Tuesday night to watch this. If it were not for the humiliation, that number would have been 4 million. Maybe 14. But definitely not 41.
When I see or read about this show, I realize that it is just part of a wider phenomenon in our culture. We are exhibitionists. An exhibitionist is someone who derives pleasure from exposing his genitals to others. Or more generally, it is a person who deliberately behaves in a way that attracts attention. It is a person who is motivated to do things simply to attract attention. This feeds his ego or provides some kind of sexual satisfaction. American Idol is but one symptom of a greater disease. YouTube is another symptom, a place where people post videos of themselves that are so often, by any measure, distasteful and embarrassing (I don't spend much time scouring the archives of YouTube, but from what I've noticed, it seems that the video distribution is something like this: 25% are videos of girls making out with girls; 25% are people lip-syncing in front of web cameras, and the other 50% are people getting hurt). Reality television is another example, as are the countless video programs that showcase people getting hurt or killed. We have a sick fascination with parading ourselves in front of the world, allowing them to see us at our worst. Fifteen minutes of this kind of fame is somehow better than no fame at all.
We are exhibitionists, but we are also voyeurs. Voyeurism is a practice in which an individual derives sexual pleasure from observing other people. Or, if we move it outside a distinctly sexual practice, a person who derives pleasure from watching other people at their worst. This is exactly what our culture promotes. Without our voyeuristic tendencies, our culture's obsession with exhibitionism would have no audience.
In American Idol and in YouTube and in countless other manifestations, exhibitionism and voyeurism have collided in a perfect storm of entertainment. We are drawn in by it and revel sometimes in the successes, but more commonly in the failures, of other people. We love to laugh at people who think they can sing when all evidence points to the unavoidable opposite conclusion. We love to laugh along with the jabs and barbs that are sent their way and then to see them cry, swear, and storm off in shame and disgust. This passes for entertainment. And we love it.
I think Christians would do well to think about these things. We need to think carefully about what we endorse as entertainment and what our motives are in watching such things. There may not be anything intrinsically evil about American Idol, but surely some aspects of it are meant to appeal to our baser desires. Always we need to remember that entertainment and what we allow to pass in front of our eyes are not isolated from our lives. Our eyes are like gates to our hearts. What we allow in will stay there, resonate there, and both change and affect us. What we allow in will soon become manifest in what we pour out through our lives.

Happy Valentines Day!

I had to go out late last night and get my little sassers a little heart shaped box of candy each. They woke up this morning and found the boxes on the counter and were all excited it was a holiday! Last night my love took me to John Mayer at the Xcel. On one side of us there were a couple older ladies (I called them "Charlies Angels" from the past) having a midlife crisis, and on the other side a very young couple romancing each other against my backside. Concerts are an interesting place to be. A sea of people swaying, singing, and mesmorized by the singer. It was pretty good but I have to admit I am not a frequenter of concerts and am happy to listen on my ipod! My sister and I plan to make a valentines dinner for our men tonight and have it by candlelight (with Liberty). It should be pretty exciting! Have a great Valentines Day!

John Owen quote

“Do you mortify; do you make it your daily work; cease not a day from this work; be killing sin or it will be killing you.”

Thomas Brooks quote

Sinners' hearts are so glued to their lusts, that they will rather part with their nearest, dearest, and choicest enjoyments--than part with their sins! Yes, they will rather part with God, Christ, and all the glory of heaven--than they will part with some darling lust.

-Help Lord!!!!!

Top video

And the winner is..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCu5ojNlpi0

"Me" Church

Check out this out-of-the-ordinary church video

A couple funnies

Jace said,"Don't put your finger by my mouth or I'll bite it !" Levi goes, "Oh yeah, if you put your finger by mouth I'll bite it off and I'll be chewin' it all around!"

We were at a friends house when Levi walked up to this girl there who was dressed in gothic attire. He walked up to her with the many steel clangers haning off her pants and looked up and said,".......hey, chain.....man."

Levi woke up the other day with a headache. I said, "how does it feel?" He said, "like it's gonna break." I said, "ooooh." He said," I know I got it from the devil."

Jace went sliding the other day and said, "ya know there was pine trees at the bottom of that hill?" I said, "really?" He said, "yeah, that's why Iwanna wear a nut-cup when I go sliding."

Levi woke up the other day and said, "pack my bags mom, I'm moving to Janice's."

Go dogs, and eat the garbage!

Go dogs, and eat the garbage! (Charles Spurgeon, "The Soul Winner")
"So that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe." Philippians 2:15
I believe that one reason why the church at this present moment has so little influence over the world, is because the world has so much influence over the church! Nowadays, we hear professors pleading that they may do this, and do that--that they may live like worldlings. My sad answer to them, when they crave this liberty is, "Do it if you dare. It may not cost you much hurt, for you are so bad already. Your cravings show how rotten your hearts are. If you are hungering after such dogs food--go dogs, and eat the garbage! Worldly amusements are fit food for pretenders and hypocrites. If you were God's children, you would loathe the thought of the world's evil joys. Your question would not be, "How far may we be like the world?" but your cry would be, "How can we get away from the world? Howcan we come out of it?"

"Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable,if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things." Philippians 4:8

I love it. A great reminder-the church is much to like the world.

Memory

The memory bears evident marks of sin and corruption. What is good and worthy to be remembered, makes but slender impression, so that impression easily wears off; the memory, as a leaking vessel, lets it slip. As a sieve that is full when in the water, lets all go when it is taken out--just so is the memory with respect to spiritual things. But how does the memory retain what ought to be forgotten! Sinful things so bear in themselves upon it, that though men would sincerely have them out of mind--yet they stick there like glue! However forgetful men are in other things, it is hard to forget an injury. So the memory often furnishes new fuel to old lusts; makes men in old age remember the sins of their youth, while it presents them again to the mind with delight, which thereupon returns to its former lusts. Thus the memory is like a riddle--which lets through the pure grain, and keeps the refuse.

I always think, "why can't I forget those horrible sins!?" Makes sense to me!

Remain humble

"For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly." Mark 7:21, 22

Christian! the remembrance of what you are by nature, should keep you humble.

I love this quote because I know how much I notice these things in my own heart and mind.
I also need all the help I can get when seeking to be humble.

Worthy resolutions

Thanks mom, these are very worthy resolutions from Jonathan Edwards

1.To live for God’s glory
2. To make the most of this life, in terms of eternal impact
3. To take sin seriously
4. To become theologically astute
5. To be humble
6. To exhibit self-control in all things
7. To always speak with grace and truth
8. To constantly develop an eternal focus
9. To be a faithful Christian, in prayer and dedication
10. To daily pursue a fervent love for Christ

Resolutions?

Top ten resolutions. What are yours?

1) Spend More Time with Family & Friends
2) Fit in Fitness
3) Tame the Bulge
4) Quit Smoking
5) Enjoy Life More
6) Quit Drinking
7) Get Out of Debt
8) Learn Something New
9) Help Others
10) Get Organized