Bloggy Break

I'm taking a hiatus this week...

Overheard

Scene: Breakfast table conversation.

Ben: Mom, for my next birthday, I don't want to have a Star Wars party, I want to have a NASCAR Star Wars party.

Mom (who has quite frankly had enough of Star Wars, thankyouverymuch): There's no such thing as NASCAR Star Wars.

Ben: I know, but we can just race around with light sabers.

How to Make a Box of Cereal Last All Week

My children are cereal fiends. They can easily empty a box, and sometimes two, at a single breakfast. I don't buy a lot of the stuff, since for the money there are more nutritious options available (eggs or steel-cut oats rank at the top of my list), but one or two mornings a week we do have cereal for breakfast.

Another way to stretch my dollar with cereal is by making this muffin batter. I try to mix it up on Sunday evenings and then we have fresh-baked muffins for five mornings. There are also versions of this recipe using Raisin Bran cereal. Just google "refrigerator bran muffins" and you'll see the variety of options.

I add raisins and top each muffin with a sprinkling of brown sugar right before baking.

From the More-with-Less cookbook.

Place in bowl:
2 C. ready-to-eat bran cereal (All-Bran or Fiber One)

Pour over:
2 C. boiling water

Set aside to cool.

Cream together in large mixing bowl:
1 C. butter
1 1/2 C. sugar
4 eggs

Add and beat in:
1 qt. buttermilk
soaked bran mixture

Sift together:
5 C. flour
5 t. baking soda
1 t. salt

Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture and fold until flour is moistened.

Fold in:
4 C. additional dry bran cereal

Store batter in covered containers in refrigerator. Keeps 3-4 weeks. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400 and fill well-greased muffin tins 2/3 full. Bake 20 minutes.

It's Finally Happening

We're going in to the belly of the beast.

We're going to Pole Night tonight. Ground Zero for NASCAR nation.

I hope to come home having refrained from: teasing my hair, acid-washing my jeans, swearing at the drivers, or shaving a number three in my back hair (please, please don't click that link if you are reading this over lunch).

I bought some earplugs for all of us, but other than that I am a complete amateur. Does anybody know where we should try to sit? It's General Admission. Anything else I should know?

When People Are Big and God is Small-- a question

This week's entry on this book is going to be much simpler than usual; I hope it will also be beneficial to the reader. I've been chewing on this all week.

In the current chapter, Welch describes a realization he had one week in church when a pastor asked the question, "How much do you think about God?".

That may seem at first glance like a dumb question for Christians, but think again. How many of your thoughts on a daily basis are about God Himself, and how many of your thoughts center around you as a Christian? Does your quiet time descend into a to-do list for self-improvement (mine often does)? How much time do you spend thinking thoughts about God's nature, His character, or His faithfulness to you?

Don't get me wrong. I think that the application of Scripture to the details of our lives is great. My observation, however, is that these principles are not always embedded in the fear of the Lord. The result is that our goal can be self-improvement rather than the glory of the Holy God.
We need more sermons that leave us trembling.

--Welch, p. 96

Random Pictures

I haven't been posting many pictures on here lately. So here are a few stream-of-consciousness pictures along with captions. Please do not try to make sense of anything.

Here is a cake my friend Laura made. She's, like, wicked talented and stuff.

For some reason I love this picture of Jonathan.

Here are some cupcakes I made for April Fools' Day (from the book, Hello, Cupcake!)

When first she encountered them, Maddie despised carrots.

Andrew, however, adores graham crackers.

If you are fighting with light sabers, remember that Plo Koon is the coolest Jedi. I always put in a good word for Mace Windu, though, because, um...hello? Samuel L. Jackson. 'Nough said.

Here are my Valentine's Day roses.

Overheard

Scene: Morning Bible reading.

Mommy reads from Luke 3: "Jesus, when he began his ministry, was about thirty years of age, being the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the son of Heli, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi..."

Ben: MOM! You are older than JESUS!!!

Mommy snorts in laughter and replies that yes, she is older than thirty, but she wasn't there at the foundation of the world.

Exciting things, part Deux

Well, I have been duly reprimanded for teasing my readers...here are the exciting things I mentioned earlier.... I must admit, though, that as I write them, I realize that they are more exciting for us here at our house than they are for everybody. But you can rejoice along with us.

Exciting thing number one: My husband has been very quiet about this in the last twenty-four hours but I am going to sing his praise. Yesterday at an all-hands meeting at work, David was recognized as having the Patent of the Year for his company. That means his invention (the only one he had all year) was the best out of everyone's for 2008! He received a beautiful lead crystal award and a nice monetary gift as well. I was so happy for him because he is a hard worker who does not clamor for higher wages, a better office, a promotion, or more recognition, but instead patiently goes about his work diligently and tries hard to be thankful for the job where he's been placed. God has blessed him with all of those things I mentioned -- and then some -- in the past few months. It gives us great joy to see these things unfolding clearly from God's hand in His time.

Exciting thing number two: Jason and Shawnda are adopting again!!! This time they are moving towards adopting from Uganda. I am thrilled to be part of the fundraising they are doing during this time. In two weeks' time I will be hosting a ladies' evening here at the house to benefit the adoption fund. Please leave your email address in the comments if you're in the Charlotte area and you'd like to attend or see more details. We're so grateful for the Kovacs and their heart to open their home to needy children.

Exciting thing number three: a new nephew! David's younger sister found out yesterday that she and her husband (remember the wedding?) will be welcoming a boy named Daniel come fall. Although it seems like boys rule the day in our family, our boys have only two male cousins while they have seven female cousins. It's so nice to anticipate another boy in the mix!

Exciting thing number four: a new sister-in-law! David's younger brother is engaged! And her name is.......(drumroll please)....KELLY! Of course it is. She's great, and we're so happy for both of them.

I am in a season right now where I feel like the Lord is showering us with blessings through the joy of others. People having babies, adopting, falling in love, marrying...in the last month, I've attended showers, bought bride's magazines, planned gifts...it's so wonderful, and I feel so blessed to be around all this happiness. :-)

Exciting things!

These past few days have been very exciting around here! Watch for updates later today!!!

(NO, I'M NOT PREGNANT.)

...And Still They Are Dead

A Bit Late

...but here's our family on Resurrection Sunday.

Simon Says

In case you missed it over the weekend: Scott Simon talks about his wife and her life as a mother.

Love to Jesus

Keep me from the error of thinking thou dost appear gloriously

when some strange light fills my heart,
as if that were the glorious activity of grace,
but let me see that the truest revelation of thyself
is when thou dost eclipse all my personal glory
and all the honour, pleasure and good
of this world.
The Son breaks out in glory
when he shows himself as one who outshines
all creation,
makes men poor in spirit,
and helps them to find their good in him.
Grant that I may distrust myself, to see
my all in thee.

--from "Love to Jesus," in The Valley of Vision

Collision

Here's a sneak peak...

COLLISION - 13 min VIMEO Exclusive Sneak Peak from Collision Movie on Vimeo.

When People Are Big and God is Small

Chapter 5: The World Wants Me to Fear People

Chapter five is instructive, less so on a personal level but more on a universal one. In this chapter Welch examines trends over history that have given way to "modern assumptions" in the world and the church. These assumptions are powerful influences in our pursuit of man's approval.

Assumptions about God

Prior to the 1700s, an understanding of God-ordained structure governed most people's thoughts. In most cases, Providence determined your family, your class, and your trade. With the rise of the middle class in the French Revolution, people had more chances to think about their individual choices and identities. A sense that one might determine one's own destiny became a reality absent of any submission to a divine authority.

An influential personality during this time was Rousseau. He believed in "god," but it was a god found in nature, and he moved the trend from an objective source of truth (the Bible) to a subjective one (feelings). This of course is a familiar refrain in today's society, but is perhaps best summed up by Emerson's cry that "the soul always believes in itself." You have your God and I have mine, and, as Welch so aptly puts it, "the only immoral act in such a culture is to say that your version of God is superior to anyone else's."

Such thought has heavily influenced the church, and we now have clergy who encourage people to "forgive God." The Biblical framework has been lost. "Anything that erodes the fear of God will intensify the fear of man."

Assumptions about ourselves

We are morally good. The heart of the "love yourself" movement says that we are ultimately good, and evil exists apart from us. Abuse of the Scripture "Love your neighbor as yourself" is rampant, as it is the "proof-text" for this line of thought. Welch correctly states, "...in reality the passage doesn't even suggest such an interpretation. Jesus spoke these words to a rich young man who clearly loved himself and his possessions too much. There is only one command in the passage, and it is 'love your neighbor.' "

Emotions are the way to truth. This frequently takes the form of people ascribing their feelings to God's speaking to them. But it subtly influences us in other ways, too:

There was a time in my own life when I would 'practice the presence of God'; then, when I felt his presence, I would pray. All went well until the day I didn't feel his presence. I waited for hours, filled with tears, but I never felt The Presence.... The Presence finally came the next day when I was asking for counsel from a good friend. His comment was simply this: 'Why didn't you just pray by faith?' He taught me one of the most important lessons of prayer: that prayer depended on God and his promises, not my own quixotic emotions.

All people are spiritual. This point goes hand-in-hand with the "feelings" trend, as spirituality becomes divorced from doctrine and substance and leans heavily in the direction of feelings-based experiences.

What does it mean that all these thousands call themselves Christians as a matter of course? These many, many men of whom the greater part, so far as one can judge, live in categories quite foreign to Christianity! ...People upon whom it has never dawned that they might have any obligation to God...At the bottom of this there must be a tremendous confusion, a frightful illusion, there surely can be no doubt. (Kierkegaard)

I am continuing to chew on this chapter. It's an interesting perspective on the world around me. The commercials on TV, the "news" which is really commentary, the publications in every bookstore all reflect these assumptions about ourselves and God. Can you think of any examples you've seen? Please leave a comment if you have.

"With God reduced in our eyes, a fear of people will rise."

Coffee for Justice

Storyville Coffee Co. is donating 100% of its revenue to International Justice Mission for the month of May.
If you haven't yet heard of IJM, please check out their website. They do wonderful work in Jesus' name and are well worth supporting!!

My Souvenir

My husband brought me a darling tea-towel from London with a map of the underground (i.e., subway) on it, because I'm "going to need to know it when we get there."

Did you notice the "when" in that sentence? :-)

Anyway, I love funky kitchen things, as he well knows, so it was a hit. I'm going to make it into an apron, I think.

Speaking of tea towels, I am tempted to buy a few more from this site and make them into aprons, too: To Dry For