a librarian v. a homeschool mom

I am in the midst of a blogger's discussion with some guy who is a children's librarian with a bad attitude. I wonder why I get myself into these debate situations. I guess I just can't let the other guy have the last word. The issue is a good one, though. It's about librarians and home schooling library patrons. There ought to be a partnership between the two, not a "chasm" as my sister calls it. My sister is a Children's librarian and a very good one, too. She has encountered many home schooling moms with requests for books that are out of print and hard to find. And maybe she's encountered some that are set on getting those books while rejecting more current selections or my sister's recommendations. Home schooling Moms know what they want and are pretty set on getting it. We can be difficult at times, but we're certainly not hostile towards those who are helping us educate our kids.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and that is probably why blogs are so popular. Everyone wants to share their opinions. Everyone wants to be heard. And that's o.k. We all have a need to matter; it's that "God shaped vacuum" that sets us apart as human beings. So what will be my response to him? He's a man in need of Jesus just like me. How I conduct myself in writing will say a lot about who I am as a Christian. I just like being right; how does that fit in with being a Christian?

June 1-
2 days later and the answer is: it doesn't fit in with being a Christian. I attended church today and I didn't realize how spiritually parched I am. I soak up God's word and worship and communion like a sponge. And the Holy Spirit awakened me to my pride. It has touched every aspect of my life, especially in my role as a Mom. It's been Mom's way lately, and now I realize that has been the driving force behind my need to debate total strangers on the internet.

I think I'll just stick to my own blog for now....

Signs of the Times

It's a strange world we live in these days.  Gas prices going crazy, mega-droughts predicted in the American southwest,  "happy" marriages being thrust down the rest of America's throats by the California Supreme court.  I'm quite upset by all of the change that seems to be happening so dramatically. 

The thought of explaining all these things to my children, within a Christian worldview, is intimidating to me.  Do I have it in me to explain it all?  Do I even understand it all myself?  I hear about all the natural disasters and climate change fears and think that well, in due time, Christ will return.  That seems like a simple answer, but it does seem to be the most logical end.  The world will not end in a flood, but with fire.  Do climate warming and mega-droughts seem so unbelievable or impossible?  Will this suffering just continue on until God returns?  Maybe nature really has nothing to do with the end times and this is just a cycle in nature with man's destructive actions compounding the events.  

What about the social conditions of this world?  My children cannot be shielded from the extreme lifestyles that are plastered all over the news and t.v.  And I feel inadequate to train them to be Christ-like leaders of their generation.  It seems that we are training our children as missionaries to America.   Lead or be led; is there any other choice for them?

Teachable Moments

Last evening we attended our home school group's "Presentation Night" for the children of the group to share something they learned or memorized this school year. During the performances there was a group of 6 pre-teen girls who were very loud throughout the evening. They sat unsupervised in the audience and yelled and screamed after every performance. It became very disruptive by the end of the evening at the dessert reception as they continued to draw attention to themselves in a negative way. I was upset by the whole thing; the girls were loud and inconsiderate of others, they didn't show any respect for the occasion and acted as if they were at a sleep over. Now I know they are pre-teens, but their behaviors were bothersome. Of course I went home thinking how their parents were painfully absent and needed to be actively guiding these girls. I was concerned for my girls who are almost that age that they would glamorize such things and think that was cool. I'm hoping for better for my girls; that is part of why we are home schooling them.

Today, however, opened my eyes to a lesson I needed to learn about teaching and training my own children. My 4 year olds are in a soccer class and today my 4 year old son was unwilling to fully participate. He can be clingy with me sometimes, and today was a good example of that. I kept telling him to go back and listen to his coach. He kept coming back to me to try to sit on my lap and avoid playing soccer. I was disappointed because he wasn't showing independence and determination to learn something the way that I wanted. During the class I realized that what I needed to do was to go along side him and play with him for a while to show him, to teach him. Of course I didn't feel like running around, kicking a ball with my boy for 45 minutes; I was feeling just plain l-a-z-y!

So, how is my laziness in teaching my son how to participate in class any different than the parents who allowed the rowdy girls last night to be by themselves? We both needed to come along side our children to model and encourage right behavior. I failed in that today because I just didn't want to do it. How many times do I face that these days? My children are growing up and into a phase of parenting that requires me to do more with them than for them. I know the Proverbs verse that says, "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." (Prov. 22:6 NIV) That verse requires action in the present tense. That is a lot of work!

Scripture also says that before I point out the "speck" in someone's eye, I ought to take out the "plank" in my own! (Matthew7:5). So before I go acting like the "parent police" I ought to think twice about my own parenting decisions.

What else is there to say? I went to school today and learned a good lesson. I hope I don't forget it.

Apple Slices say "I love you"

I spend a lot of time at the kitchen sink doing dishes and cleaning up and there's one good thing that comes from doing repetitive tasks: you can ponder and wonder and process and ruminate....Well, tonight I was just thinking about the apple slices I made over the weekend. They were a disaster. Pastry must be done accurately and my attempt missed the mark. So, I was thinking that I spent a long time on that recipe and it has mostly gone to waste. But, was it a complete waste? I don't think so anymore. My mom is a fabulous baker. My fondest memories of growing up are in the kitchen, watching her bake, helping her bake, talking with her when she baked. The best recipes I enjoy of hers to this day are ones that are true labors of love. Her sweet potatoes take a lot of time and attention, as well as her apple slices, apple pies, and even her scallopped potatoes(o.k. that is cooking, not baking). My great thought out of all this is that she effortlessly showed us her love through the sacrifice of making all her wonderful, tasty treats. She loved to bake and make her special recipes for us. She never said, "I bake because I love you or want to show you my love"; she just did it. Now I bake and like to make special treats for my family and for her, too. And now I understand why she does it. To make something is to give of yourself to someone. It takes your time, energy, concentration, and commitment to make something that tastes yummy.

Wow! Jesus' love in the kitchen, that's a new thought!

Gladys Aylward

We just finished reading a biography of Gladys Aylward, an English missionary to China who lived from the early 1900's until 1970. I am amazed at how she sacrificed her life completely for the sake of sharing the Gospel. She is an unexpected portrait of Jesus for me. Her life was in danger many times, and her work seemed so anonymous, so ordinary. She immersed herself in the Chinese culture with no formal education, and did whatever the moment needed in order to get the message of Jesus to those who lived around her. Her obedience in the face of danger is unbelievable. She risked everything for God. What a woman!

I'm glad my children get to hear about missionaries who leave the comfort of their own life and follow a calling from God to bring the "good news" to those who need to hear it. As a mom I imagine that I will be a bit afraid if any one of my own would venture off on an adventure to a distant or dangerous place. Do you know the words to "Trust and obey?" I believe in the third verse it says, "what He says we will do, where he sends we will go, never fear only trust and obey". ...if I could be so brave to pray for my children to have that kind of faith...

My homeschool life

I've been thinking that maybe I ought to have begun a blog about home schooling. It is a major part of my life and I do have lots to say about it. But, God can speak through that experience, too, so I will just add as I go.

I have to say that I really love to teach my children. I have become a person who loves to learn and I am realizing that a BIG part of education ought to be teaching our children to love to learn; whether that is about something that interests them, or another person's opinion about something, or how to do something better. Coming into life with a desire to learn all that one can is a great way to live and achieve greatness! I like that our home school is tailored to our individual needs as a family. Our school is an original and I like that just fine. Now, I must get to that schooling.....

why blog?

This whole blog idea began because my children and I are reading through the Bible this year. We are using "The Narrated Bible in Chronological Order" (I don't know who publishes it), so we read it like a story in the order the events occured. Admittedly, I must skip over and edit a lot of material for my young audience. Overall, I am learning a lot about the character of God and am beginning to ask some questions. Most of my curiosity comes from how God appears to be unfair in his dealings with people. He called Abraham his friend and permitted Abraham to go astray with his doubt and fear, while later on he punishes the nation of Israel severely for their disobedience. Also, poor Moses had to oversee the killing of the Midianites (the people from whom his wife Zipporah came). And, after God used Balaam to prophecy the future military victories of Israel, God killed Balaam. I know that God looks at the heart, which we cannot see. Is it so simple as that deep down we must believe the God exists (Hebrews 11:6) and since Abraham believed in his heart, he was not punished for his disobedience, but the Israelites fickle behavior showed a lack of belief that God existed?(even though they saw the cloud and the fire and he dwelt among them).

These are my questions, which I think are good to ask. My belief cannot be shaken in who God is; but maybe my understanding of Him needs some work. So, that is my purpose. To understand God better, to communicate what I am learning to my children so they can know Him better and begin forming a faith of their own(if they see me ask questions, maybe they will start asking, too), and to ultimately grow in their faith in Him.

That's all for now.

to begin

This is my first attempt at being a blogger. I don't know exactly how this will go and whether or not I will have time or desire to maintain this, but I'm venturing on anyway. At least I'll be able to develop some better writing skills. I thought that if I focus my thoughts on 1 purpose I will have something important to contribute. I don't want to be a person who just rambles or complains. I want to place my thoughts and concerns about family, society, my Christian faith and whatever comes with all those things here so I can sort them out. If people read them and comment, well that would be fine.

So, here's to learning about communicating on the world wide web and to beginning a new blog!