The dark side of the Prophet is not dark to God

"I've been very zealous for the Lord, the God of Hosts" 1 Ki 19:19 Elijah loves God but his zeal for righteousness makes him feel depressed when he looks at the evil around him.  He is overwhelmed by the evil state of affairs.  Melancholy prophets sometimes need to adjust their thinking.  God dealt with Elijah's depression by revelation, vision and perception adjustment.  I love that.  The world gets me down especially living in Illinois.  The state legislature passes bill after bill contrary to God's word and God's law, entrenching injustice.  I know how Elijah feels, so its comforting to think about God's dealing with him.

First, God reveals himself as a supernatural all powerful being.  I have experienced this humbling revelation where God blows your mind with his awesome power and immensity.  It has the effect of giving one who is surrendered to Him, peace.  Usually it happens in the middle of worship or in the experience of an answered prayer.  

Often, we need to know what to do in order to stop morbid thinking.  We need vision in light of the great darkness around.  Knowing our action step pulls us out of hopeless helplessness.  God told Elijah to go do something--he makes him move. 

We also need our cognitive distortion fixed.   In author David D. Burns', "Feeling Good:The New Mood Therapy" meta discussion, he gives us ten thinking traps and how to avoid them.  One is "All or Nothing" thinking.  We see an example of this thought process in Elijah's exaggerated assessment of the state of the nation.  True, there were not many.  In his All or Nothing thinking, he minimized the few that were there and made it seem to himself there were none at all.  He magnified the extent of the problem.  All or Nothing thinking, Magnification  and Minimization are traps Burns discusses that I can easily relate to.  Especially when I am dealing with a large problem, and some point, I feel exhausted and that's when I begin problem magnification.  I can allow a dark night of the soul by allowing myself this perception license.  It leads to depression and anxiety.  

When I pray about my problems, I ask God to fix these misperceptions.  Sometimes he does a miracle for me like answering a different prayer that reminds me he sees me, though he's not lifting the pressure of the situation.  Other times, he reminds me to just take the next step and stop meditating, bemoaning, thinking too much.  Lastly, he reorients my perceptions through either a character in a book or movie, a devotional, a song, or a situation from my reading or life.  

I'm not going to lie, some of my misperceptions are stubborn.  I know they are wrong, but they are like a bad habit.  I chisel away at them year after year.  Yet, I find comfort when I turn to God and I see His hand of faithfulness in my life.  

"domus ecclesia"-- House church from Early Church

So cool ...this is the first time I've seen a replica of the early house churches in Rome.  Before Christianity was legalized, people donated homes to be used as churches.  This one shows the baptismal.  So this represents the church pre Constantine or 100-300 AD.

The Holy Spirit:a Mother's and Child's intimate guide and teacher.

"The Holy Spirit co-operates in teaching every fruitful idea," Art Middlekauff taught me at the homeschool conference.  For the Bible says "when the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. " Jn 16:12-13

This means He helps you teach your child every truth--numbers, nutrition, and nouns.  Mothers co-operate with the Holy Spirit in teaching their children.  Maurice explained this relationship between Holy Spirit and teacher back in Victorian days,

"The woman receives, not from her husband, not from her physician, not from her spiritual adviser, not from the books which she consults, — all these may help somewhat, if they do not hinder, — but from the Spirit of God Himself, the intuitions into her child's character, the capacity for appreciating its strength and its weakness, the faculty of calling forth the one and sustaining the other, in which lies the mystery of education, apart from which all its rules and measures are utterly vain and ineffectual."

If the Holy Spirit is our "living and personal Teacher and Guide," then why do I act as if he is not there, not in the room, not doing the actual act of bringing knowledge to my child?  How many times do I get in the way and hinder them from receiving from Him, "let the little children come to me and do not hinder them."

I feel convicted to pray in and through my homeschool lessons and with my children even more.

The week of Jesus' passion has begun

Passion week is a favorite of mine. 

 Today we read the story in the action Bible...

 and now for some coloring:

 

"What color was Jesus, mom?"  Always an important question.  We looked in our book of Israel, but the question isn't so easily answered.  There are Ethiopian Jews today, there are Jews from all over the world.. but she decided he was light brown :-)

Holidays are such opportunity to pass the faith.



Other Easter Posts:
Easter movies for 3-9 year olds
http://creationchild.blogspot.com/2011/04/kids-easter-movies.html

An Easter Garden inspired by Ann Voskamp's...
http://creationchild.blogspot.com/2011/04/easter.html

Easter dress inspiration from Psalm 45
http://creationchild.blogspot.com/2010/03/ps-45.html

Questions

Chad and I stopped on our weekly date at Powell's Bookstore in Hyde Park.  Browsing in the religious section, I saw volumes and volumes of the church fathers--whole books on the founding fathers of our faith like Augustine. They were huge books.  We don't really know about the Fathers or that we have records that they had alot to say, as Protestants. 

Clendenin points out in "Why I'm Not Orthodox" our need to learn from the Orthodox church:

"Moreover, evangelicals have some important lessons to learn from Orthodoxy. For example, it is understandable that evangelicals feel that the Orthodox doctrine of the church is too "high." But perhaps our theology of the church is too "low," much lower than our Protestant forebears would have it. In the opening pages of Book IV of Calvin's Institutes, for example, Calvin refers twice to the famous words of Cyprian (d. 258)—so Catholic-sounding to our ears—that "you cannot have God as your Father without the Church as your Mother" (IV.1.1, 4).

Or again, it is one thing to guard the doctrine of sola scriptura, but quite another to ignore or disdain two thousand years of tradition; surely there is a dangerous arrogance in imagining that we do not need to listen to the wealth of biblical wisdom from the patristic writers."

Do we really have a blind spot?  Is it important to pay attention to the tradition handed down from the early church fathers as Protestants.....on some level?  Or, Does Scripture interpret Scripture and that's really all we need?  If we payed more attention to the history of the church, the ideas and practices of the early church, how would it affect and change our everyday practice of the faith?  How would it affect our children?  These are questions I've been asking myself, and Chad and I have been thinking about these days.  

I loved reading Clendenin's book "Eastern Orthodox Christianity: a Western Perspective".  He writes about this "forgotten family" of the Orthodox church with respect and clarity.  I was shocked at how ignorant as a Moody Bible Institute grad, of the history of the church on the other side of the world--the Eastern Church!  I realized my schooling left it out.  Clendenin helps to see unity and differences between the Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox church, leaving me encouraged and grieved simultaneously.  I wish the church had one witness to the unbelieving world, that we were one as He is One, truly. Yet we are united in our faith in Jesus Christ.  I want to show my desire for unity by expressing a healthy respect for all that are in the family of God through faith in Jesus.  This means affirming my friends backgrounds who have come from other faith traditions, but are growing in faith in our church. 

Dryness

I feel that I am in a season of dryness. It feels like work to get nourished. Like I am walking miles with a 5 gallon bucket to get a trickle and bring it back home. No one is pouring the glass and setting it on the table for me. I have to seek it out. It feels like it has been a long time and I am growing weary. One of my wells lately has been C.S. Lewis' 365 days with George MacDonald:

"Troubled soul, thou are not bound to feel but thou art bound to arise. God loves thee whether thou feelest or not. ....He has an especial tenderness of love toward thee for that thou art in the dark and hast no light, and His heart is glad when thou doest arise and say, 'I will go to my Father' ....Fold the arms of thy faith, and wait in the quietness until light goes up in they darkness. for the arms of thy Faith I say, but not of thy Action: bethink thee of something that thou oughtest to do, and go to do it, if it be but the sweeping of a room, or the preparing of a meal, or a visit to a friend. Heed not thy feeling: Do thy work."

 I especially like the end part. Sometimes you spend time with God and feel bad and get up unchanged. You have to get up and do your work and move on. Often God chooses His time and meets me in an unexpected way through--a song, a verse, a word from someone.

Working making Bao Tse last year for Tom's birthday

Vintage coffee shot...but my everyday with God looks about like this still!

Probably trying to get out the door judging from Bethan???:-P

Vintage baby days...what a mess Thomas!!! I love that silly face!

Quick Quiche for Dinner

Working this Thanksgiving at my sisters in Kenab, Utah

 

Ignite faith with your family's passion

What is your family's passion?  Today we talked in our Next Generation Leader's@Home group about helping your family connect to God in a way that feels natural and is meaningful to them.  Whether you are active or reflective, creative or scientific, there are SO many wonderful ways to use those passions to ignite passion for God.  Our family is creative, musical, people oriented.  We like nature and some of us...the science of discovery.
Here are some books that I have used  to connect my kids to God.

FOR THE CREATIVE ART LOVING FAMILY:

This book takes classic paintings and helps a child observe them and connect them to life.

FOR THE MUSIC LOVING FAMILY: These books are the stories of the people behind the songs, their faith, and their journey with God.

 Same idea here but for younger kids:

FOR THE PEOPLE LOVING SCIENTIFIC FAMILY: This books tells about scientists and their relationship to God.

But we know teaching is not all about cracking a book.  Active games can help kids learn, too!  Get a ball out and roll it, toss it, and ask a question.  Talk about how we need each other in the body of Christ and play this game of tag: when you tag someone, they join you until you find everyone in the group!

FOR THE ACTIVE FAMILY:

Abi's game

People matter

Its scary our tendency as Americans to value prosperity over people.  Whether its our legal abortion laws, our 2.5 kid families, or women's obsession to build a career outside of their home life, we are bent to pursue money over people.  I feel this pull in myself.  I wish I could measure my achievements with a title, degree or a paycheck, but God reminds me that my investment is in People.  They are the concrete evidence of my efforts.

 Last night Chad and I got vegetarian tacos at El Faro in Little Village.  A couple grabbed us as we were leaving,

"Hey are you from Midway?"

"Yes, we go to New Life Midway...."

And on and on we chatted.  This couple had a radical turn around.  The wife came back to church after a long time, her husband got saved, her daughter got baptized, and the marriage they thought was over was revived and thriving under counseling and mentoring.  Wow!  But what struck me as straight from God was that they said Roger and Reyna Cadena were their mentors.  10 years ago, we gave ourselves to mentor and disciple the Cadenas.  We were life on life for a season.  And they have kept on giving away what they received.

At El Faro the Lord reminded me, "Look here Holly--you invested in people.  People matter."  Not titles, degrees, paychecks.  People.  These two...they are my reward.  Their ministry to others--my joy. 

Roger and Reyna Cadena: New Life Mentors for over ten years.

The Rich and Poor in the Kingdom of God ...and Paula White.

So, I guess there's this big fear of the prosperity gospel taking off now that Paula White is in Trump's religious in crowd. 
I used to watch PW when I nursed Bethan.  Christian TV was the only time with God I could carve out with a nursing baby and bouncing toddler.  I liked her messages.  I think down the road she has some issues--she divorced and remarried after helping pastor a mega church. CT lumps her in with the properity gospel preachers, which I am not sure is fair?  What do you think?  But the message of the prosperity gospel has had no draw for me, maybe if I grew up in poverty I would cling to that as a hope of escape?  But I have not, and it has alot of questions to answer in order to line up with what I read in the Bible.

There is an obvious problem with the prosperity gospel.  Jesus was born in a stable.  Fulfilling the will of God, he was then crucified.  God's will didn't mean he would be healthy and wealthy.  Why should we expect we will?  "In this world you will have suffering," Jesus said.  If its all blessing with God, why would he say that?  Why would the New Testament go on to say we'd have trials in this life?  That trials produce perseverance and perseverance hope and hope does not disappoint?

On the other hand, Christianity does not legislate poverty (although at times I wish it did, rules are easy to follow).  Scripture teaches the rich how to live, not to become poor.  Be generous, don't think you're better than the poor, use your money making gift for God's glory.   Yet, the ultimate example is Jesus--he became poor to make us rich.  But his example is not a law.  God at times increases us for his purpose and at other times allows us to be poor for his purposes.  "I have learned to be content in all situations" Paul said.  He knew this school of God.  So then being poor is nothing and being rich is nothing.  What means something, what has value to God is HIS WILL. 

Motherhood: A Labor of Love

"Nothing great is ever achieved without much enduring."

St. Catherine of Siena

Father in heaven, grant me the grace to appreciate the dignity which you have conferred on me. Let me realize that not even the Angels have been blessed with such a privilege—to share in your creative miracle and bring new Saints to heaven. Make me a good mother to all my children after the example of Mary, the Mother of your Son.

Small group conference spotify playlist

https://play.spotify.com/user/newlifechicago/playlist/1616kfKHzs35YqiQdfA17q

Lost Wisdom re: teens...taking a look from another century

Interesting excerpt from one of those books I saw in New Salem, titled "The Mother's Book" 1831. This is from the chapter on teenagers:

Young girls learn many mischievous lessons from their companions at school. Among a mass of young ladies collected from all sorts of families, there will of course be much vanity, frivolity, and deceit, and some indecency. The utmost watchfulness of a teacher cannot prevent some bad influences. For this reason, I should myself decidedly prefer instructing a daughter in my own house; but I am aware that in most families this course would be expensive and inconvenient. However, I would never trust a young girl at a boarding school without being sure that her room-mate was discreet, well-principled, and candid. I should rather have a daughter's mind a little less improved, than to have her heart exposed to corrupt influences; for this reason, I should prefer a respectable school in the country to a fashionable one in the city. For the same reason, I should greatly dread a young lady's making long visits from home, unless I had perfect confidence in every member of the family she visited, and in every person to whom they would be likely to introduce her. There is no calculating the mischief that is done by the chance acquaintances picked up in this way. If there are sons in the families visited, the danger is still greater. I do not, of course, allude to any immorality of conduct; I should hope girls even tolerably educated would never be guilty of anything like immodesty. But young ladies, ignorant of the world and its vices, often do imprudent things without knowing them to be imprudent. If they have strong and enthusiastic affections, even their innocent frankness will in all probability be misconstrued by those who are not themselves pure and open-hearted. At all events, the frequent intercourse likely to exist between a visiter and the brothers of her friend is extremely apt to fill her head with a diseased anxiety for the admiration of the other sex, and with silly, romantic ideas about love – ideas which have no foundation in reason, nature or common sense. Many unhappy matches have been the result of placing young people under the influence of such sentimental excitement, before they were old enough to know their own minds. Such unions are often dignified with the name of love-matches; but love has nothing to do with the business – fancy, vanity, or passion is the agent; and vanity is by far the most busy of the three. To call such thoughtless connexions love-matches is a libel upon the deepest, holiest, and most thoughtful of all the passions.

In this country, girls are often left to themselves at the very period when above all others, they need a mother's care. In France, mothers always visit with their daughters; and if restraint upon unmarried people is carried to excess there, we certainly err on the opposite extreme. We allow too much freedom, and we allow it too soon. I believe it is much better for a very young lady never to go about alone, or visit for any length of time from home, without her mother.

http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/child/book/book.html#X

Lost Wisdom

Interesting excerpt from one of those books I saw in New Salem, titled "The Mother's Book" 1831. This is from the chapter on teenagers:

Young girls learn many mischievous lessons from their companions at school. Among a mass of young ladies collected from all sorts of families, there will of course be much vanity, frivolity, and deceit, and some indecency. The utmost watchfulness of a teacher cannot prevent some bad influences. For this reason, I should myself decidedly prefer instructing a daughter in my own house; but I am aware that in most families this course would be expensive and inconvenient. However, I would never trust a young girl at a boarding school without being sure that her room-mate was discreet, well-principled, and candid. I should rather have a daughter's mind a little less improved, than to have her heart exposed to corrupt influences; for this reason, I should prefer a respectable school in the country to a fashionable one in the city. For the same reason, I should greatly dread a young lady's making long visits from home, unless I had perfect confidence in every member of the family she visited, and in every person to whom they would be likely to introduce her. There is no calculating the mischief that is done by the chance acquaintances picked up in this way. If there are sons in the families visited, the danger is still greater. I do not, of course, allude to any immorality of conduct; I should hope girls even tolerably educated would never be guilty of anything like immodesty. But young ladies, ignorant of the world and its vices, often do imprudent things without knowing them to be imprudent. If they have strong and enthusiastic affections, even their innocent frankness will in all probability be misconstrued by those who are not themselves pure and open-hearted. At all events, the frequent intercourse likely to exist between a visiter and the brothers of her friend is extremely apt to fill her head with a diseased anxiety for the admiration of the other sex, and with silly, romantic ideas about love – ideas which have no foundation in reason, nature or common sense. Many unhappy matches have been the result of placing young people under the influence of such sentimental excitement, before they were old enough to know their own minds. Such unions are often dignified with the name of love-matches; but love has nothing to do with the business – fancy, vanity, or passion is the agent; and vanity is by far the most busy of the three. To call such thoughtless connexions love-matches is a libel upon the deepest, holiest, and most thoughtful of all the passions.

In this country, girls are often left to themselves at the very period when above all others, they need a mother's care. In France, mothers always visit with their daughters; and if restraint upon unmarried people is carried to excess there, we certainly err on the opposite extreme. We allow too much freedom, and we allow it too soon. I believe it is much better for a very young lady never to go about alone, or visit for any length of time from home, without her mother.

http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/child/book/book.html#X

Lost Wisdom

Interesting excerpt from one a book  titled "The Mother's Book" 1831. This is from the chapter on teenagers:

Young girls learn many mischievous lessons from their companions at school. Among a mass of young ladies collected from all sorts of families, there will of course be much vanity, frivolity, and deceit, and some indecency. The utmost watchfulness of a teacher cannot prevent some bad influences. For this reason, I should myself decidedly prefer instructing a daughter in my own house; but I am aware that in most families this course would be expensive and inconvenient. However, I would never trust a young girl at a boarding school without being sure that her room-mate was discreet, well-principled, and candid. I should rather have a daughter's mind a little less improved, than to have her heart exposed to corrupt influences; for this reason, I should prefer a respectable school in the country to a fashionable one in the city. For the same reason, I should greatly dread a young lady's making long visits from home, unless I had perfect confidence in every member of the family she visited, and in every person to whom they would be likely to introduce her. There is no calculating the mischief that is done by the chance acquaintances picked up in this way. If there are sons in the families visited, the danger is still greater. I do not, of course, allude to any immorality of conduct; I should hope girls even tolerably educated would never be guilty of anything like immodesty. But young ladies, ignorant of the world and its vices, often do imprudent things without knowing them to be imprudent. If they have strong and enthusiastic affections, even their innocent frankness will in all probability be misconstrued by those who are not themselves pure and open-hearted. At all events, the frequent intercourse likely to exist between a visiter and the brothers of her friend is extremely apt to fill her head with a diseased anxiety for the admiration of the other sex, and with silly, romantic ideas about love – ideas which have no foundation in reason, nature or common sense. Many unhappy matches have been the result of placing young people under the influence of such sentimental excitement, before they were old enough to know their own minds. Such unions are often dignified with the name of love-matches; but love has nothing to do with the business – fancy, vanity, or passion is the agent; and vanity is by far the most busy of the three. To call such thoughtless connexions love-matches is a libel upon the deepest, holiest, and most thoughtful of all the passions.

In this country, girls are often left to themselves at the very period when above all others, they need a mother's care. In France, mothers always visit with their daughters; and if restraint upon unmarried people is carried to excess there, we certainly err on the opposite extreme. We allow too much freedom, and we allow it too soon. I believe it is much better for a very young lady never to go about alone, or visit for any length of time from home, without her mother.

http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/child/book/book.html#X

Abigail Ninth Grade Freshman--here we go!!

Yea!  It's a new year!  Welcome to your first year of highschool!! 

Rosebud

Freshman 

2016-2017

Arbor Academy
"I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward."  Edison

Here are some links you will need:

Literature: Long's History of English Literature

                  Oxford Book of Poetry

Current Events: Christianity today; Crosswalk Magazine on Culture  and World Magazine

Listening 101

Clep study helps

Khan academy Biology Crash course videos


Photography Blogs:

Nicolesy:  tutorials
Lightroom Queen: series
Lynda: Lightroom Essentials
Photo taco podcasts

Photo taco, "Ok, I bought Lightroom, now what?"



Science:
Master Gardening

Tomatoes

Do you hate rules?

"The chief aim of the Christian order is to give room for all good things to run wild."

Daily Audio Bible Long Walk on the Farm

I took Brian's challenge.  He invited everyone to Daily Audio
Bible's Long Walk (click sidebar link).... to take a long walk today with God and share it.

Some highlights from mine.  Pls forgive the 80's headphones, I think the kids borrowed my earbuds!

I'm trying to take in the heavens from east to west...

The light is shining on the droplets from the recent rain.  Its muggy and warm.  

We have seen literal amber waves of grain here at the farm.  The wind moves the wheat in waves of golden light.  The flowers ring the borders of the field: beautiful periwinkle chicory flowers, fuscia thistles, queen anne's lace, red clover...

Wish I could capture the misty light on these warm wheat fields and the glowing thistle flowers.  But I marvel at the beauty of God.  And I can't wait for the restoration of all things. What will that be like?

God's Idea of Woman from Genesis--a Heavenly Vision

I have been studying Gen. 1-3 lately and marveling at how God made woman for man.  He didn't make another man for him to hang out with, or an animal.  A dog is man's best friend, right?  He didn't make a dog for man.   He made a woman.    The word, "for" is repeated over and over in Gen. 2.  And then she is "brought to" Adam.  She is for him, presented as a precious gift.  Woman made from man, for man.

He created her with a specific design that would meet Adam's need.  God planned this and set him up to see it, feel it, and want woman.  And then, God created her specially for him.  What does it mean to realize that I was made for my husband?  The fear response comes immediately.  We live in a fallen world.  We immediately think of demeaned, deprived women.  God's idea is different.

He created her from Adam and gave her to him and later commanded him to treat her, "as his own flesh" (Eph. 5).  She was from his flesh, for him, and to be treated even as an extension of his very own self.  Husbands are commanded to nurture, cherish and lay their very lives down for their wives in Eph. 5 as they would do for themselves.  His precious gift is to be treasured.

18 The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. 
I will make a helper suitable for him.”

Garden Party #4 "The Wind and Waves Obey Him"

We invited two neighbor girls for dinner and our Wind &Waves Garden Party. Wind and Waves is part of our devotional for the Easter Season.

The girls helped set the scene.  Bethan cooked fish and garlic bread, Abigail made apple boats, Aziza found a few water themed toys.  We added to that fishy crackers and pretzel nets.  They love the whale scene. 

This week we also had the opportunity to share with some boys in the neighborhood who joined us for grilled hamburgers.  We told the story of how Jesus also grilled out with friends, but on the beach after he gave his disciples a great miraculous catch of fish!!

The powerful impotence of beauty

Faced with teaching my daughters about beauty, I have this paradox before me.    Don't underestimate your beauty's power--and dress without modesty, and yet, don't overate it either.

Uniqueness has only the power of temporary distraction--no real power in and of itself.  Only a person's character keeps them devoted and faithful to a single person; beauty will not guarantee faithfulness.  The reason for unique external beauty has more to do with God's creativity than ensuring personal security or happiness to its possessor.  Its purpose is probably more about God revealing his glory and expressing himself in his creation and less about what it gives them (value or security) or what they want to get by it or with it.  Women want to get love, total adoration, and faithfulness by their bust size or name brand mascara.  Contrary to the message of the horrid billboard on Pulaski, they'll get looks not love.  Like a tasty dessert enjoyed one moment and forgotten the next, a beautiful form and face doesn't sustain attraction or love. I think I believed it would when I was young.  Love and faithfulness are the fruit of a heart after God's own.  They grow from within when one's eyes are on Him not a unique corporeal frame.