ANSWERING ANNE'S QUESTIONS

I just started reading Anne of Green Gables to all of my children. I had started reading it to my daughter on two separate occasions but had stopped for some reason. I wasn't sure if my boys would like it but they enjoyed Little House and I love reading Anne out loud and doing the voices and getting excited about the plot, etc. so I just dove right in. My 9 year old son is really enjoying it and my daughter likes it that I'm reading one of "her" books. As I read the second chapter I thought about how Anne sees the world. Her outlook is so refreshingly naive. She looks at the world through innocent eyes and appreciates the simple beauty in everything. As Matthew drives her home from the station she barrages him with question after question. Almost all of his answers are, "Well, I dunno." Poor Matthew. I love that character so much but he didn't have much of an imagination. So I thought I'd pose Anne's questions to you gals instead. I'm sure I'll get more than, "I dunno," out of you.

1. Which would you rather be if you had the choice - divinely beautiful, dazzlingly clever or angelically good?
2. Upon coming out of the Avenue, Anne says she felt a pleasant satisfying ache in her heart. Have you ever had that kind of ache? What was it about?
3. Do you ever rename things like Anne did with the Avenue (White Way of Delight) or Barry's Pond (Lake of Shining Waters)? If you did, what would you rename and why?
4. Do things ever give you a thrill? What things?
5. Do you ever take the time to imagine the trees whispering or a brook talking?

I think it's so refreshing to just stop and observe whatever is around you - nature, your children. More often than not, I look around and get dismayed at the way things look and how they need to be improved upon or fixed. Anne has a way of noticing the inherent beauty of things, no matter how simple and commonplace. It reminds me of the Little House books where Laura describes how she and Mary would wipe the dishes and how she loved the little squeaky sound they made when they were wiped. Do we ever turn down the volume on our lives enough to even hear these things?

Have fun contemplating these questions.

HAPPY TEN YEARS TO US!!!!

I knew one day I'd have to put a photo of myself on this blog, so I picked one of the best ones. *grin* Ten years ago today my beloved and I were wed. There is actually a funny story that goes with this photo. We saved our first kiss for our wedding. That one went really well. *big grin* This picture shows the aftermath of our second attempt. As we walked up the aisle as husband and wife we tried to give each other a little peck...and we missed! We love to joke about that. 

OBLIGATORY SKATING POST

Anyone who knows me knows that I love skating. For Christmas we got a DVR so now we can record all this stuff and not have to stay up until midnight. Last night it came in handy. I just finished watching the pairs free skate this morning and I'm still sniffling. Did you see that performance by the Chinese pair? If not, let me tell you what happened. They were in second place going into the free skate. The Russians had just skated a flawless but cautious program. The Chinese pair came onto the ice ready to attempt to land the first ever throw quadruple jump in history. It's the first element in their program. He throws her into the air and she opens up and falls on her knee, twisting it and crashing into the boards. She gets up but doubles over in pain. They stop their program and go over to their coach. After a few tense moments they go back on the ice and complete their program! I'm such a sap. I was crying throughout the whole thing. It was truly inspiring. They did so well that they won the silver medal!

I'm looking forward to the rest of the skating competition even though Michelle Kwan has withdrawn. I wish her the best and in the back of my mind I'm hoping she'll get healthy and continue to compete until 2010. It's a long shot but I can dream. The men's short program is tonight and the women don't start until next week. Best wishes to all the US teams. And congratulations to the US pair, Rena Inoue and John Baldwin who landed the first throw triple axel in Olympic history. They ended up coming in 7th overall but they made history.

THE TEMPTATION OF THE HAMSTER WHEEL

The hamster wheel is something I jump on when I've had a couple really smooth days. Days where I've stuck to the schedule, I got up early and worked out, I didn't yell at the kids, Mt. Washmore was defeated (for the moment), and there wasn't too much dog hair all over the place. But a funny thing happens after I get on the hamster wheel. I fall off. I forget to set the alarm, I get behind on chores, or I get taken over by hormones and everything seems to fall apart.

When things are going well (in terms of my earthly circumstances), it's very easy to jump on and continue in the flesh. But falling off really is a gift of God's mercy and grace. Messing up should not cause me to throw a pity party. It should make me praise God that He loves me enough to get my attention. He doesn't want me to continue in the flesh. He doesn't want me to depend on my own resources. He doesn't want me to keep jumping on that hamster wheel. Funny thing about hamster wheels. There's so much energy expended but you never get anywhere.

I no longer need to earn God's approval or continued blessing. The temptation to live a performance oriented faith runs deep in me. But God has been doing some serious and yet gentle excavating. In repentance and rest is my salvation. In quietness and trust is my strength. (Isaiah 30)

Here are my best beloveds playing their favorite game - Cranium Hullabaloo. They got the game for Christmas and it has been something they pull out constantly. They play it in their rooms, in the hallway, in the den, anywhere. They can also play it all by themselves, without any adult supervision. If you're not familiar with the game, here's an overview. You have about fifteen different pads of various colors and shapes. They also have a picture on them. Some have pictures of food, others musical instruments, and others animals. You then turn on a small electronic device which runs the game for you. It calls out what you're supposed to do. It's kind of like Twister. At the end of a round you're supposed to freeze on a pad and if it calls out your pad, you win. The winner is then supposed to do something silly or take a bow. If you don't already have this game, go out and get it. It's a perfect cure for the February doldrums. Oh, by the way, adults can play too.

Do you like the matching jammies? Those are courtesy of my sister who gets them new pajamas every Christmas from Hanna Andersson. They call them their candy cane pajamas. What are some games your kids like to play? Has anyone tried any of the other Cranium games? 

10 MINUTE SNOWFALL!!

We here in the South really get excited over snow. If you aren't aware, a forecast which calls for even an inch of snow will get everyone out to the store to stock up on milk and bread. Seriously. Being a former Yankee, I've had to get used to this. It's kind of funny actually. This doesn't mean I don't get excited. I miss the snow. So this morning we're doing devotions and I casually look out the window and spot these big, fluffy flakes falling down from the sky. The rule in our house is that if it starts snowing you get to postpone whatever you're doing and go outside. So that's what we did. For 10 glorious minutes these soft clumps of snow fell ever so gently from the sky and then immediately melted. My kids tried to catch some on their tongues. That white spot in the picture is a snowflake, or rather a snow clump. Too bad it only lasted 10 minutes. At least we got to enjoy it. Make that another reason why I love homeschooling. We have the flexibility to just stop what we're doing and enjoy the little snow shower God provided. 

STALKING JOY

I'm right on schedule for my once every several months post on John Piper's book, When I Don't Desire God. LOL! Sorry about this. Chapter 3 is entitled The Call to Fight for Joy in God - Taking God's Demand for Delight Seriously. And he starts with a pretty serious statement ~

"Physical tastes like hot fudge vs. caramel are morally neutral. It's not right or wrong to like the one over the other. But having a spiritual taste for the glory of Christ is not morally neutral. Not to have it is evil and deadly. Not to see and savor Christ is an insult to the beauty and worth of his character. Preferring anything above Christ is the very essence of sin. It must be fought."

First of all, who else talks like this? This is why I love Piper. He sets his face like flint toward the goal of glorifying Christ and enjoying Him forever. He says things so plainly and yet so powerfully that you just have to sit back and say, "Whoa!"

Piper uses Jeremiah 2:13 to stress the serious nature of God's demand, yes demand, to delight ourselves in Him. It says, "My people have committed two evils, they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water." Yes, God says it is evil to seek soul fulfillment in things other than Himself. Piper says, "Esteeming God less than anything is the essence of evil."

Piper goes on to make the case that the reason why we need to fight for this kind of joy in God is because our eternal destiny depends on it. This kind of joy in God is the essence of loving Him. And it is the essence of real salvation. It's not enough to know the right doctrines or do good deeds. I will quote Piper again to clarify what he means because this is important.

"Loving Jesus, not just 'deciding' for him or 'being committed to him' or affirming all the right doctrines about him, is the mark of a true child of God. Jesus said, 'If God were your Father, you would love me' (John 8:42). Yes, I am assuming that loving Jesus includes the taste of joy in his personhood. I reject the notion that love for Christ is identical to mental or physical acts done in obedience to his Word. When Jesus said, 'If you love me, you will keep my commandments' (John 14:15), he was describing the effect of love, not the essence of love. First there is love, then there is the effect - obedience.

"Surely, then, this is worth fighting for. It may feel strange at first, but when we see what is at stake, no battle will seem more important. Loving Christ involves delight in his Person."

Do you need to understand all this to be saved? No, I don't think so. But what Piper is saying, I think, is that a true child of God will grow in their sanctification to a point where they, in Piper's words, "see and savor Christ above all things."

I'm going to stop here because there is sooo much in this chapter to discuss. What are your thoughts? Are these things new to you? I'll continue the review of chapter 3 in a couple days.

BLOGGING AND 1 THESSALONIANS 4:11-12

"Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody."

Is obeying this verse possible in the world of blogs, Google and instant information? How tempting is it to surf around the Internet for hours, figuratively peeking into other people's lives via computer screen. How many times have I gotten myself embroiled in one Christian controversy after another - through a bulletin board, a blog or a chat room? How often has my husband had to calm me down after I've discovered some interesting gossip about so-and-so in the Christian community?

Well, I for one, am done. I've been amply convicted by this whole controversy surrounding the film The End of the Spear, that I need to lead a more quiet life and mind my own business. Since when have I been called to make careful inventory of the lives of other brothers and sisters in Christ? Just because they may be in a leadership position, that doesn't mean I'm called to scrutinize their every action and sit on my own private judgment seat. That is not what Jesus meant when He said to examine their fruit. Lord, have mercy on me a sinner! Galatians 6:10, Romans 14:19 and Proverbs 6:16-19 pretty much summarize it all ~

"Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers."

"Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification."

"There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers."