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One Thousand Gifts

"I would have despaired if I had not believed I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living." Psalm 27:13

Bad things happen.

They happen to bad people and they happen to good people.

We do not have a God who sits up on His throne in heaven with a gazillion RC controllers linked to as many robotic human forms, not to mention all the other natural forces interacting with human kind.

People lose faith in God because they don't understand why He would allow bad things to happen. We have to look below the surface at this dilemma. If God were to have that degree of control in our lives, what would we think then? Do we want him controlling every minute event that happens to us? Really? Did he create mindless beings for his control or beings with hearts and minds to choose and ultimately to worship Him? We would have to accept the whole package if He were to protect us from everything bad--it would then be a matter of complete control, and where is the point of living a life like that?

Is such a scenario even remotely possible? If God provides complete protection for Anna, will that very protection bring harm to Brandon and Cassie? Do you see how the very nature of human interaction plus the interaction of humans with their environments makes complete safety and complete protection for any individual impossible?

More importantly, God has set down an unstoppable plan for good for His people, and every element of the ongoing epic poetry of humanity works toward that ultimate end. It is a plan for good--a good beyond anything we can conceive, and to think we can second-guess God and even suppose we could improve on that ultimate plan--or the working out of the plan in the mean time--is pride at its worst.

We will see the goodness of the Lord! No need to loose heart.

"Surely, just as I have intended so it has happened, and just as I have planned so it will stand. . ." (NASB)

And so, we find reason for joy~

22. A boy's voice quipping, "I love scripture!"
23. A moment of male camaraderie over guns outside my window, punctuated by the pop and smoke of discharged ammunition--a break from the monotony of the day's school
24. Laughter and connection between father and sons
25. A married son, calling just to chat and report the events from at day at college
26. A daughter learning the graces of homekeeping, sewing lovely and useful things for home and family
27. A new roof--before the leaking starts

One Thousand Gifts

^"Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.^[a] You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’" Matthew 25:19-21 (ESV)


The gratitude list continues:
18. The parable of the talents opened to me in a personal way by a friend's counsel in answer to my question, "How can I honor God with art and photography?"
19. Smiles on offsprings' faces, working side by side, laughing
20. Mutually beneficial arrangement between friends, resulting in play money for her and a wonderfully clean house (and time gained) for me~
21. Opportunities--so many excellent opportunities for the offspring, all six, to learn character, courtesy, trades, talents, and more--God-directed opportunities~

One Thousand Gifts

Don't quite fathom how to slow down with so many commitments, but am trying to keep my eyes open while I fly from one responsibility to another. Looking for ways to be grateful and express gratitude in the dailies, but reminding myself it is thanksgiving to my Creator, Redeemer, Master, and Friend that opens the door for miracles. A general attitude of gratitude might make me a more pleasant person to be around, and that's good stuff, but I'm not about being liked in this moment. I'm about pointing more of God's glory back to Him, where it fits most appropriately.
More of the list:
13. Thirty minutes to nap, my first defense against the diagnosis: clinical adrenal fatigue~
14. An overall successful photo shoot earlier this week, some portraits looking like outstanding memory makers!
15. A lovely lunch with those who have not flown the coop and greens--spinach, zucchini, asparagus, so fresh, and so nutritious that my very veins course with excitement! (Yes, I really do love vegetables this much!)
16. A plan taking shape~
17. Our believing forefathers and foremothers, humble, sacrificial, godly~

And now for that nap.

One Thousand Gifts

"The real problem of life--in my life--is lack of Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving creates abundance. . ." (Ann Voskamp in One Thousand Gifts)

10. The neighbor's regal little dog, accompanying my daughter and I on our morning walk, marking our trail.

11. Crazy, silly 14 YO daughter hiding in my bed to jump-start my heart. :-D

12. A 96 on a journalism test amidst his hectic father-employee-student life for the son who opened my womb twenty-five years ago .

One Thousand Gifts

And there is more, always more to be grateful for:

5. A mother, grandmother, great-grandmother dear to us, full of years, now resting in the arms of Jesus~

6. Sunlight explosions through the broken places in the blinds (that beg for replacements)~

7. My Man, who loves and wants the best for his family and his country~

8. Family, gathering soon over the treasured grave of the grandmother dear.

9. Sunlight gently, invisibly pulling the green of spring from it's hiding shelter of living earth~

And now to pack and load and drive to pay respects for the grandmother dear.

One Thousand Gifts

I'm inspired by Ann's words to take a moment now and again in my too-busy, math-formula, chore-supervision, husband-serving, prayer-propelled, clutter-conquest, knowledge-absorbing, Christ-seeking, achy, foggy-brained days to find the cause for gratitude and to catch the happening of each memorable moment like so many freeze frames, maybe even one thousand like Ann~

Today I begin with no promise of grandeur, but a step in the direction of full, gratitude-fed living. I join the throngs of women and follow Ann's suggestion and example in hopes I will live a more Christ-centered life--one that flows over and bathes my family in blessing that then flows outward to the community of believers.

In this list can we assume that my gratitude begins with God? The Father, Son, Spirit, Creator, Redeemer, Friend--He is first on my list and the reason I have anything for which to give thanks!

So, the list begins:

1. Warm, close, silly tickle hugs from a daughter who is not too old nor sophisticated to snuggle in the morning~

2. The cat. The second such animal with her crazy, cozy ways to change my mind about cats~

3. The boy who thinks I'm beautiful with pillow-tousled hair and only the makeup of sleepy hours applied to my middle-aged face~

4. The opportunity that lies in today to speak a word rightly, encourage a child, praise the Father, and put away pride~

And with that, a beginning--looking to the future hope for more gratitude~

Is God's Word a Love Letter or an Instruction Manual?

The Bible contains sixty-six books, and has been referred to as God’s Love Letter to us, and also as our Instruction Manual for Life. So, which is it? A letter, showcasing God’s great love for us and the gift of salvation through His son, or is it a manual full of to-do’s, without which we’ll make a mess of life?

The reality and importance of God’s sovereignty are discussed often in our circles. This new (to us) emphasis has been a welcome and much-needed change for the purpose of rounding out God’s sanctifying work in us. Though we could not see it, we were practicing some extent of legalism by its true definition (in my opinion), which is, trying to improve upon the finished work of the cross—thinking that there was some merit toward salvation in our standards. As I’ve mentioned in other writings, I believe that scripture (God’s very words, remember) instructs us to live rightly, doing all to the glory of God, which of course, we can only do in His strength. Living rightly in the good works God has prepared for us does not save us, but living rightly according to His example, because He loved us, and by the power of the Holy Spirit brings Him glory!

I find that as much as I enjoy and need and appreciate the heavy emphasis on God’s grace and sovereignty, it can be somewhat unbalanced. If God’s word were merely intended to relate the Good News, which is certainly its primary function, then what of Romans 15:4? “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction. . .” and Colossians 3:16? “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another. . .” Matthew 7:23b and 24 tell us “Depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness,” Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and acts on them may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. . .”

We are not to be confused. We must teach our children that our hope is only in the Lord, and in nothing else. However, in training our children, we must relate the entire purpose of scripture. God clearly gave it to us for instruction as well as for a vehicle to relay the gospel. Scripture tells us to “train up a child in the way he should go”, and that “all Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” (2 Tim 3:16,17)

Within the framework of the gospel, we are free moral agents, meaning that we make choices. We can make good choices or we can make poor choices. Our decisions, and our children’s, must be informed by excellent teaching and examples from scripture in order to equip us choose that which glorifies our Lord.

We are, and our children are, ambassadors of Jesus Christ. We must teach these fledgling ambassadors to have self-control and godliness, along with all the other character qualities found in Christ and taught in scripture. If we neglect to apply this aspect and purpose of scripture, we miss great opportunities to bring glory to God.

A godly life is a balancing act between two or more scriptural perspectives that can oppose each other when taken to extremes, but can complement and complete each other when viewed rightly. I see God’s word as a love letter with enclosures, including treasure maps to the ultimate treasure (salvation), and successive treasures (sanctification), along with an instruction manual to clarify the use of those priceless gems. What an amazing, loving, powerful God we serve!

A Confession

In virtually every how-to article written on blogging, you will find the admonition, "be consistent!" And so, I purpose to do just that--to consistently post to this blog because I see the value in it for my own therapy, and in possibly giving some mom out there encouragement to remain steadfastly in the trenches of parenting or homeschooling, or give some soul the hope of the gospel.

But that is where the confession comes in. I inherited a family trait that I share with my brother and my mom. I am interested in so many things that choosing between them becomes complicated. I do a few things in my life consistently, because I'm also a duty-bound personality type. I consistently pursue a relationship with my God, to whom I owe my life, consistently love and serve my family--even when it's hard, consistently home-school my children--even when it's inconvenient, and consistently keep my home (and that's just yuck.) But if a day offers and hour or two of "leisure", the options appear endless. Television and computer games don't even appear on my radar. Instead my mind runs to writing articles, poetry, or songs; painting in watercolor, drawing in pencil, or adding to my art journal. If it's not writing or art, it's photography, sports, or even driving (yep, I like motorcycles and trucks.) And let's not forget ministry and politics! The great thing about all these interests, is that I can share most of them, in some form or another with my family (my #2 priority), and more importantly I can use many of them to glorify God (my #1 priority.) The bummer is that when I turn to one, another falls by the wayside for a time.

That explains why this blog is so sporadic! I coordinated an art workshop with my friends, and excellent teachers, Barry and Saundra Stebbing, in early May. The workshop, designed for children and adults, inspired me to stop making excuses and start painting and drawing again. If you were to look at my photography blog (supposedly a 365), you could pretty much pin down when the coordination tasks started taking over my free time. From that point on, I devoted my free time to drawing, painting, and writing in my art journal.

I'm hoping to start multi-tasking by posting journal entries on this blog with the hope they will inspire some "a-hah" moments or bring encouragement to some. In the mean time, odds and ends of news and then my most recent completed watercolor:

1. #1 son and daughter-in-law will be (re)producing a grandson in late October--whoohooo!
2. #2 son will be taking a bride in July--yay!
3. #3 son moved out to begin his grand adventure--aww~
4. Remaining siblings at home and well!
5. My most recent article about how homeschoolers are impacting the world will come out in early July in Homeschool Enrichment--watch for it!
6. I sold a painting--wooot, woot!

So here's the most recent work of art~

Grace and Peace,
Carmen