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One Another

Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to teh Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Colossians 3:12-17

Today's sermon was from this passage, and I want to hang it on the refrigerator this week to meditate upon.

October 31, 2004  |  Comments (5)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

The Other Election

For those interested in Ukrainian politics, I recommend Hubby's post about Europe's Most Important Election.

And, Einsondernull recommends the following blogs for "on-site news. Sometimes biased, maybe incomplete - but definitly commited and first hand."

Natalka’s Diary
Blog de Connard
Neeka’s Backlog
Ukraine, Oh My!
Teksty

Also, check out:
Maidana
Ukraine Election NewsFeed

Disclaimer: I haven't screened all of the content of these sites, so linking to them is not an endorsement of their views or validity of their information.

Update: Batesline Blog is also blogging on Ukrainian elections.

October 30, 2004  |  Comments (5)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

What We Did Today

October 30, 2004  |  Comments (4)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

A Hobbit Jig

Oh you can search far and wide
You can drink the whole ground dry
But you'll never find a beer so brown
As the one we drink in our home town...
You can keep your fancy ales!
You can drink them by the flagon!
But the only brew for the brave and truuuuuueee
comes from the Green Dragon!

My boys love Merry and Pippin's jig that they sing and dance in the Golden Hall in Rohan. They've watched and re-watched this scene while dancing on my bed.

They didn't quite have all the words straight, so they asked me to look them up for them.

October 30, 2004  |  Comments (3)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Ezzo.Info: Fall Focus '04

Professional critiques of Growing Kids God's Way

Growing Kids God's Way?
by Dr. Barbara Francis

An Evaluation of the Ezzo Parenting Programs
by Dr. Kent McClain

Focus on the Family statement of concern
-- received from FOTF Sept 04

(Via Ezzo.Info)

October 29, 2004  |  Comments (13)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Oooh! Ooooh! Homestar Runner Quiz!

Which Homestar Runner character are you?
this quiz was made by jurjyfrort

Well, I don't think I'm like the Cheat. Except for maybe the bad habits and artistic endeavors part. . .

(Via Pruitt Communications)

October 29, 2004  |  Comments (0)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Big News!

T6 lost his second tooth today! He lost the first one last month, but I couldn't get a photo up. Isn't he cute?

October 28, 2004  |  Comments (6)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Brownie Recipe?

I'm looking for an easy, from scratch brownie recipe that YOU like. The best brownies I've had come from a box, and the recipes I've tried here just don't seem. . . right.

So, if you have a great brownie recipe, please post it!

Brownie points to those whose recipes use cocoa or chocolate bars rather than baker's chocolate, baking soda rather than baking powder, and white sugar rather than brown sugar. Some things are hard to get here.

Thanks!

October 28, 2004  |  Comments (13)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Iraq, Russia and Syria

Most of Saddam's most powerful arms were systematically separated from other arms like mortars, bombs and rockets, and sent to Syria and Lebanon, and possibly to Iran, he said. The Russian involvement in helping disperse Saddam's weapons, including some 380 tons of RDX and HMX, is still being investigated, Mr. Shaw said. The RDX and HMX, which are used to manufacture high-explosive and nuclear weapons, are probably of Russian origin, he said.

Read the rest of the Washington Times article.

(Via Drudge)

October 28, 2004  |  Comments (1)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Highly Recommended

The Other Election is an great summary of the upcoming Ukrainian presidential election by Bruce Bartlett of the National Center for Policy Analysis.

Please remember Ukraine and her people this Sunday.

There is much more that is going on here that Mr. Bartlett doesn't mention and I'm not sure I want to go into right now. (Hopefully Hubby will blog about it or our journalist friend TLM will provide a link to a good story.)

Update: More on Ukrainian politics. I'm not endorsing the accuracy or viewpoints of these articles, but I do think they help provide a picture of what is going on here.
A Testing Time for Democracy
Russia's Interference in Vain
Action to Discredit the Opposition Note: This sort of thing happened last Saturday.

October 27, 2004  |  Comments (1)  |  TrackBack (1)  |  Permalink

 

 

Political Cult

Has the Democratic Party become a cult?

Any merit to these comparisons?

October 27, 2004  |  Comments (2)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Welcome, Margaret Elizabeth!

A belated welcome-to-this-world to Dawn and Jason's little girl!

Born: 10-13-2004
Weight: 10 lbs 1 oz (Wow! Good job, Mom!)
Length: 21.5 in.

October 26, 2004  |  Comments (5)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

God's Awful Love

‘Oh,’ the priest said, ‘that’s another thing altogether—God is love. I don’t say the heart doesn’t feel a taste of it, but what a taste. The smallest glass of love mixed with a pint pot of ditch-water. We wouldn’t recognize that love. It might even look like hate. It would be enough to scare us—God’s love. It set fire to a bush in the desert, didn’t it, and smashed open graves and set the dead walking in the dark. Oh, a man like me would run a mile to get away if he felt that love around.’

--the priest in Graham Greene’s The Power and the Glory

Hubby read this book last year and wrote about it in The Whisky Priest in Us All. I just finished The Power and the Glory, and I like it as much as the first Greene novel I read, Travels with my Aunt.

October 26, 2004  |  Comments (3)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Abortion Myths

After Abortion blog is doing a series on Shredding The Myths about Abortion’s "Benefits" to Women. For example:

Myth #3:

"Emotional Problems After Abortion?
Serious, long-term emotional problems after abortion are extremely rare and less common than they are after childbirth. Such problems are more likely if…a woman is depressed or already has emotional problems."

Read the research and personal stories Emily provides to counter this common abortion-supporting myth.

October 26, 2004  |  Comments (2)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Hooray, she's back!

Marsupial Mom is back online! (And be sure not to miss her hubby and friends over at The Rough Woodsman.)

October 26, 2004  |  Comments (1)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

At the Zoo

Today we went to the Kyiv Zoo with some friends from Odessa. It was a perfect autumn day to be outside. The boys especially loved watching the pelicans gum at the dead fish they had been fed, and the mommy monkey with her baby.

October 25, 2004  |  Comments (1)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Hey, Peter!

Your mama gave me your url! *eg*

(And y'all should check out PeterPike.com, too.)

October 25, 2004  |  Comments (1)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Ukraine Photography

We met a Ukrainian-Australian photographer at the embassy when we were renewing our visas. You can see the Ukrainian life that Bohdan Warchomij has captured on film at his website. He's back in Ukraine to photograph the election and hopefully spend some time among the Crimean Tatars.

October 25, 2004  |  Comments (2)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

O Sacred Head, Now Wounded

1. O sacred Head, now wounded,
With grief and shame weighed down,
Now scornfully surrounded
With thorns, Thine only crown;
O sacred Head, what glory
What bliss ’til now was Thine
Yet though despised and gory
I joy to call Thee mine

2. What Thou, my Lord, hast suffered,
Was all for sinners’ gain;
Mine, mine was the transgression,
But Thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior!
’Tis I deserve Thy place;
Look on me with Thy favor,
Vouchsafe me to Thy grace.

3. The joy can never be spoken,
Above all joys beside,
When in Thy body broken
I thus with safety hide.
My Lord of Life, desiring
Thy glory now to see,
Beside Thy cross expiring,
I’d breathe my soul to Thee.

4. What language shall I borrow
To praise Thee, heavenly friend,
For this my dying sorrow,
Thy pity without end?
Lord make me Thine forever,
Nor let me faithless prove
Oh let me never, never
Abuse such dying love

5. Forbid that I should leave Thee
O Jesus leave not me!
By faith I would receive Thee
Thy blood can make me free
When strength and comfort languish
And I must hence depart
Release me then from anguish
By Thine own wounded heart

6. Be near when I am dying
Oh show Thy cross to me
And for my succor flying
Come Lord and set me free
These eyes new faith receiving
From Jesus shall not move
For he who dies believing
Dies safely, through Thy love

Words: Bernard of Clairvaux
Translated: James W. Alexander
Music: Johann Walther
Adapted: Hans Hassler
Public Domain

October 24, 2004  |  Comments (6)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

For the Pundits

Real Clear Politics Poll Averages

Election Projection Map

For those that like this sort of thing, this is the sort of thing they like. . .

October 22, 2004  |  Comments (3)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Autumn Prayer

Be the Gardener of my Soul

Spirit of the living God, be the Gardener of my soul.
For so long I have been waiting, silent and still -
experiencing a winter of the soul.
But now, in the strong name of Jesus Christ, I dare to ask:
Clear away the dead growth of the past,
Break up the hard clods of custom and routine
Stir in the rich compost of vision and challenge.
Bury deep in my soul the implanted Word,
Cultivate and water and tend my heart,
until new life buds and opens and flowers.
Amen.

--Unknown

(Via Earth Girl)

October 17, 2004  |  Comments (1)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Welcome, Baby Sophia!

Rejoicing with Samantha and Jeremy (and the big brothers) on the arrival of Sophia Alexandria!

C'mon guys, we want to see pictures! *grin* It seems like other mamas' pregnancies pass by so quickly. . . It hadn't even registered that Samwas due soon!

October 16, 2004  |  Comments (4)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

JWs at the Door

A few minutes ago, the doorbell rang and there stood two well-dressed ladies offering me Jehovah's Witnesses literature.

I only understood about half of what they were saying, but after confirming they were JWs I told them I wasn't interested.

"You're not interested?"
"The Jesus you believe in isn't the Jesus that is taught in the Bible," I explained.
"You don't think we believe in Jesus?"
"No, I think you do believe in Jesus."
They smiled.
"But you believe in a Jesus that is different than the Jesus of the Bible. I pray that you will read your Bible more and understand who the Jesus of the Bible is. My kids need me--I need to go."
They looked at me quizzically and tuned to go. I hope I actually said in Russian what I was trying to say.

If Hubby had been home, perhaps we could have invited them in for tea and talked more about JW beliefs and the Bible.

Sadly in Ukraine, cults like JW and LDS are growing rapidly. The average Ivan on the street frequently thinks that any religious group that is not Ukrainian or Russian Orthodox is a cult. That can make things difficult for historical, small-o orthodox churches like ours.

October 16, 2004  |  Comments (5)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

What I'm Reading (online)

I read and skim way more often than I post on other blogs. Here are some I have open right now that I've found interesting, even if I'm not commenting.

Tales of a Farmwife: Combines and O Canada

Carol: Updates on Baby Lincoln

Mysterium Tremendum: What Jared is Reading

BatesLine: Oklahoma Politics No comment feature here--are y'all going to change that?

Coffee Swirls: Convoluted Recollections

Gideon Strauss: Phase One: What You Should Do With Your Life

Challies:Impact of Calvinist/Arminian Thinking I finally registered to comment. . .

CyberEcology: President of Integrity and Faith

Amy: And the Kids She Teaches

The Rough Woodsman: Skipping the Football, Reading the Politics and Theology

Non-blog sites open:
GCM Forums
AwareParent Forums
NRO Online
Drudge
OpinionJournal BotW Today

October 16, 2004  |  Comments (1)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Michael Peroutka?

Reasons Not to Vote for Presidential Candidate Michael Peroutka

Related discussions can be read by visiting the Mrs. Scarecrow or Barlow Farms.

October 15, 2004  |  Comments (3)  |  TrackBack (2)  |  Permalink

 

 

Welcome, Autumn!

"When the Frost is on the Punkin"

WHEN the frost is on the punkin
and the fodder's in the shock,
And you hear the kyouck and gobble
of the struttin' turkey-cock,
And the clackin' of the guineys,
and the cluckin' of the hens,
And the rooster's hallylooyer
as he tiptoes on the fence;
O, it's then the time a feller
is a-feelin' at his best,
With the risin' sun to greet him
from a night of peaceful rest,
As he leaves the house, bareheaded,
and goes out to feed the stock,
When the frost is on the punkin
and the fodder's in the shock.

--James Whitcomb Riley

Read the complete poem.

Our vacation was summery, by the beach and pool. We came home to the chilly days and changing leaves of autumn. Fresh crisp mornings like today, always bring to mind this poem my mother had us memorize when I was in high school. We'll make gingerbread cake and applesauce for Bible study dessert tonight.

Autumn days also bring out a lot of heart-thankfulness in me. And, since it's Thursday, I'll go ahead and list three things I'm thankful for, ala Kelly.

1. That our hot water was back on when we got home from vacation.
2. That our heat came on yesterday--two days early!
3. That my energy and optimism is renewed after vacation.

I'm off to start a pot of chicken corn chowder and then take the boys outside to play.

October 14, 2004  |  Comments (5)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Blogging in Iran

"Six online journalists and webloggers have been arrested in Iran recently in a crackdown on dissent on the internet." --BBC News

For more on Iran, check out Blog Iran and Free Persia.

Please also remember to pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ in Iran, as well as the people who desire freedom from an oppressive government.

(Via K-Lo at The Corner.)

October 14, 2004  |  Comments (0)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Places Not to Live

T6 told me the other day, "I NEVER want to be a missionary to China."

A startling, out of nowhere comment. "Why?"

"They eat too much rice!"

But, Bejing is one of the places that Marla and crew might be headed. Brilliant!

October 13, 2004  |  Comments (1)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Pyramid Project

As we started back into our school routine yesterday, J8 and T6 build pyramids and a sphinx. We discussed how difficult these were to make with play dough and how the ancient Egyptians actually built them.

Later, they built pyramids with cuisenaire rods, and compared the structure of a step pyramid with an actual triangular pyramid.

October 13, 2004  |  Comments (3)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

My Boys on Vacation

Hubby, C3, T6, R5, J8
September 2004

October 12, 2004  |  Comments (11)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink

 

 

Home again, Home again. . .

October 12, 2004  |  Comments (15)  |  TrackBack (0)  |  Permalink