Family Roots-Spiritual Roots

Family roots are wonderful to explore, but what are our spiritual roots?

This is a photo of my step-grandmother's family. She was just a baby in 1910 when this photo was taken. She was already being raised in a Christian home. I never thought of her as a step-grandma. I was very close to her, she was just "Grandma" to me. She was a godly, soft spoken woman. She opened her mouth with wisdom....she was a wise woman who loved her Lord. I want to grow up to be like her.



God speaks about the good roots of the person who trusts in the Lord. Not a perfect person, but a person who trusts in the Lord:

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
And whose hope is the LORD.
For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters,
Which spreads out its roots by the river,
And will not fear when heat comes;
But its leaf will be green,
And will not be anxious in the year of drought,
Nor will cease from yielding fruit." -Jeremiah 17:7-8

"All have sinned" Romans says. Christians are sinners. They haven't "arrived" at perfection. They are only different from other sinners in that they listened to the tug on their hearts that there is a God, He loves them and provided a way out of their hopeless situation. They realize their failings, their brokenness, their total inability to do good, to be good in their actions, or in their hearts, and they have thrown themselves on the mercy of the only righteous judge. A judge who took off His holy robe, stepped down into time and our world to die for our sin so that we don't have to suffer eternal death. The judge paid our fine for us. How cool is that?!

You might have been away from church for a long time, or never set foot in one. Maybe you think you know too many hypocrites in the church. There's always room for one more hypocrite! Come on in! We are all spiritually broken people looking for a hospital.

Speaking of hypocrites, there's a parable Jesus tells about the wheat and the weeds (tares) which is very interesting:

Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares? He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.” Matthew 13:24-30

Jesus gives the meaning in Matthew 13:36-43

That was a dirty trick, sowing weeds that look like wheat into the fields. They can't be removed without harming the wheat, uprooting it. Satan is the evil sower, so what is he sowing? His sons, which are everyone from the most awful unrepentant sinner to the false Christian. When I realized there could be tares in the church itself, it freed me from a lot of bitterness. That may sound strange, but the knowledge gave me relief to know that when Christian people are mean, they might not be Christians at all! It also caused me to look at my own life, stop pointing my finger at everyone else, and examine my own heart...."Am I a tare, or could I appear to be one to others?"
"Do I need to remove the beam from my own eye?"

We should "work out our salvation with fear and trembling" :

Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain. -Philippians 2:1-16



"Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled..." Hebrews 12:14-15

Arkansas Homeschoolers

Arkansas HB 2144

An Act Amending the Prerequisites for Home Schooling.
Click the link above for more information.

Our children are our God-given responsibility. Why do so many people, some of whom have no relationship with their own children, want to legislate away all parental rights to be able to make schooling decisions for OUR children? Some will rue the day these interfering bills were passed if they decide to jerk their own kids out of a public school which teaches things they don't want taught. There are MANY former public school teachers who have brought their own children home to educate them. If you think you can keep your children's hearts while they go to public or private schools that is your decision. It's nice to decide for your own family whether it be government school, private, or home education.

I confess, in the past I was one of those who applauded loudest when any restrictive, or so-called "accountability" bill was introduced. Why? Because I knew a family who were schooling at home, but only in name. The children were horribly behind. Were those children my responsibility? NO, they weren't, but like many other mistaken folks, I thought other people's children were my responsibility. They aren't! If the government school system isn't doing it's job do we get to tell them what to do with our children who are enrolled there? Of course not! I dare you to try!

I can remember when our daughter, a hard-working, excellent student, was frustrated that the kids who tested in elementary school for the gifted and talented program were still in the program in high school, whether they were still performing at that level or not. They could've been good students, or could've been doing drugs in a parking lot next to the school for all the other kids to see. In some public schools you can sign your kids away to "special" classes that you can never retrieve them from. Once they're in, they're in. It takes an act of Congress to get them out again. By the way, you are ONLY the parent, you can't possibly know what's right for your own child. Just forget about the ones who are passed from grade to grade because no one cares. Yes, it still happens folks.

The majority of the kids who are home educated go on to get a high quality, one on one education. The proof is in the pudding.

In one study it was shown that homeschooled students scored at the 85th percentile while the public school students averaged in the 50th percentile on nationally standardized achievement tests. Interesting results seeing that every year the government spends 92% MORE per student than the average homeschool parent does. (The percentage difference would be even higher for those of us who utilize the library and used curriculum.)

The children who only get a so-so homeschool education are getting at the very least what they'd have received from ps101. Have you had a thank you note from a publicly schooled, young person lately? Have you read the misspellings on grown kids webpages? Everyone makes mistakes from time to time, but you know what I'm talking about.

So Thankful

I can't tell you how thankful I am for caring friends and family who lifted up grandson, Benji, in prayer. Just knowing there were others praying gave me such peace of mind. It's hard being so far away from the kids and then not being there with them when this happened.

For those who don't know:

Benjamin is my 2-year-old grandson living with his parents in Germany. He fell quite hard on tile floors two different days, striking his head near his eye in exactly the same place. After the second mishap his mommy noticed that his eye on that side was slightly crossing, or wandering to the middle. They checked his vision, his pupils and after a long scream and cry he was playing and seemed fine. There was/is a small bruised place on his head, and he was complaining that light hurt his eye and is still rubbing it. They were advised by their family doctor to take him to the children's hospital where he and his mommy spent the night. (One more night to go for observation and testing.)

A doctor friend of Benji's other grandparents couldn't believe that they hadn't had a CT done yet, but after Benji's daddy spoke with the him on the phone, the doctor agreed that he does NOT need one. He said that if it happened in the US, they would have done a CT, but only because doctors are afraid of malpractice. Because Benjamin hasn't shown any lethargy, never lost consciousness, and his pupils are normal, he believes the CT is unnecessary.
He also said that the eye problem is probably because of local swelling that should go away within a few days.

The German eye specialist said the optic nerve looked fine. She said there was some bruising/trauma that she could see. She did not see the eye do it's wandering trick, but she also reassured them that it should go away in a few days. They are spending another night at the hospital, maybe another test in the morning, which is the middle of the night for us.

A little incident today made me feel my heavenly Father's care over this whole thing. First you have to know that last night I was listening to songs on the computer and found His Eye is on the Sparrow. Part of the words are, "His eye is on the sparrow and I know he watches me." That song comforted me and made me cry.

So back to today. My husband had to make a trip to Home Depot, so I went with him and was wandering around praying, thinking about Benjamin, and looking at plants. I walked over to where small bird baths are displayed. One little bird bath had two tiny cement birds perched on it's edge. When I peered into the bowl I could read what was written inside the rim.....
"His eye is on the sparrow and I know He watches me."

Goosebumps anyone? That kind of thing doesn't happen to me often,
but when it does, WOW!

A Good Belly Laugh

"A merry heart does good, like medicine,
But a broken spirit dries the bones." -Proverbs 17:22

"A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, But by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken." -Proverbs 15:13

There's nothing as uplifting as hearing my good friend, or my sister laugh uproariously. Both ladies know how to bring the cheer out of the depths of their hearts and let it spill out in side-holding, tear-inducing, I'm-gonna-wet-my-pants laughter. Just let my sister tell you the story of the time the Texas wind blew her nativity set away...."Mary was rolling across the lawn, Joseph was hitting the side of the house, and baby Jesus was no where to be found!"

I love being around cheerful people. God says a merry heart is good medicine and makes a cheerful countenance. What's a countenance? Technically it's your face, but it's also your demeanor, behavior toward others, expression, composure, your bearing. So I think that means what's on the inside comes out in our faces and actions, kind of like the other thing God said about what's in our hearts comes out of our mouths. (See: Luke 6:45, Proverbs 27:19, and Proverbs 4:23.)

As awful as sorrow is, God can use even sadness for our good. We can mourn over our sin. Bad situations can bring us back to God. There are situations were sorrow is better than laughter.

"Sorrow is better than laughter, For by a sad countenance the heart is made better."-Ecclesiastes 7:3

"For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning." Psalm 30:5

Silly Octopus

Tell me, O Octopus, I begs
Is those things arms, or is they legs?
I marvel at thee, Octopus;
If I were thou, I'd call me Us.  ~ Ogden Nash

Poor thing, he couldn't wait for his snack.

Seven feet long, thirty pounds and he squeezed himself through a 2 inch hole!

Putting on support hose has got to come in a close second to that squeeze. ;)

Octopus gets inside lunchbox at Boston aquarium - Boston.com


The Oklahoma Aquarium near Tulsa is a great place
to observe sea and lake creatures.

The next two homeschool discount days are April 21, 2009 and May 18, 2009.
You have to pre-register, but what a fun field trip!
It's one of my favorite places.

Here's an octopus I photographed there.

When we were there last I took photos of the jellies. My favorites! I made this composite photo of a jellyfish swimming. They are so amazing.  

How awesome is our God to think of such interesting creatures?!
Click the photo to see it larger.


By the word of the LORD were the heavens made,
their starry host by the breath of his mouth. He gathers the waters of the sea into jars ;
he puts the deep into storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the LORD;
let all the people of the world revere him.
For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm. -Psalm 33:6-9

Student Writing Intensive

These writing courses are from The Institute for Excellence in Writing and are lessons on DVD. I checked out the VCR versions from the library. I think we offer DVD versions of these also. My son actually liked these lessons! This was a breakthrough!

The company recommends that you choose level A, B or C based on your child's maturity level and age rather than on their writing ability. I didn't know this in the beginning, so we used level A and level C. I'm sure the extra writing didn't kill him, and I may repeat C.

They also offer High School Essay Intensive.

Bless Beth Moore!

I'm studying Esther with the Beth Moore study on Esther. I really like her people studies. I loved the Daniel study also. You could sink your teeth into that one!

Why do I especially want to say, "Bless Beth" today? Because in the last video lecture I watched she spoke about women who dress provocatively. I can't tell you everything she said, but she passed on a conversation she'd had with the mother of young men. The other mom had asked, "Why do young women dress that way? Don't they know what they're doing to these young men?" (and older ones, I'd say) Beth replied, "Yes, they know exactly what they're doing, and that's why they're doing it." She said women can dress cute without being revealing. When you show off what you have, you take away your dignity and your mystery as a woman.

She went on to say that no one dresses accidentally. Boy, is that ever true? We women do know exactly what we're doing when we dress a certain way. We shouldn't dress to cause another to stumble, neither should our daughters. We know instinctively that guys are sight-triggered, it is our responsibility to dress modestly, young and old women, little girls and teens.

1Peter 3:3-4
" Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel— rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God."

Searching For True Love

These are excellent VCR tapes by Josh Harris. There are 3 in the Searching For True Love series. You'd want them all. Love, Purity and Trust. They're oldies, but goodies.

Josh is funny enough to keep a teen's attention and serious enough for parents. His on-the-street interviews sadly show how people view the meaning of love. It's evident they don't have a clue. Do you? Do your teens?

I hope they eventually release them on DVD. Maybe if we pester him? The FBC church library has them. Well, not right now....I have them, but I'll take them back so you can borrow them. The ones I have were actually transferred to DVD. Cool, huh?

I wrote out a few questions for my teen:

• Am I content where God has placed me in my singleness? Why, or why not?
• Write out Ephesians 5:15-16. The King James and New King James versions say, "redeeming the time", What does this mean?
• How am I redeeming the time? (What am I doing with my single time for God?)
• What could I be doing?
• Am I committed to wait for the one God will bring to me?
• Am I firm in my convictions about courtship?
  

A Beka Bible Doctrines

A Beka Bible Doctrines for Today is sold for 10th grade. This is a book I recommend for high school and up. 5 thumbs up! :)

Possibly slightly younger grades could read through with parental help. Every Christian adult should have such a marvelous doctrinal gem on their bookshelf AND actually read and understand what's in it!

As is usual with A Beka courses there is a teacher book, student book, test & quizzes booklet, and answers to tests & quizzes booklet. If you know me, you know that we don't use everything A Beka puts out there, even though we LOVE their curriculum. We dug into the Bible and read through and discussed the Bible Doctrines book. Meaty, wonderful discussions. No tests were needed for me to know whether we'd "gotten it" or not.