Updates on us all

I thought I would give a little update on the family today.



Ben and Elsa are doing very well, and we are getting excited about visiting them, Lord willing, in March, during Ben's spring break. Elsa continues working in the office at the School of Business at Indiana, and hopes to move to graduate admissions work there this spring. Ben is in the second semester of his PhD studies, and has a comprehensive test before him this semester, and several more years of study ahead. He seems to still enjoy what he is doing, however.

They remain active in their church. World Magazine recently ran an article about one of the elders at their church, a man who is in their small group. You can read about this fascinating gentleman here.




We really enjoyed our time with Tim and Nikki in Tucson last weekend. We had a lovely lunch with friends of theirs who run a bed and breakfast in Tucson. If any of you are travelling that way and want a wonderful place to stay, check out the Jeremiah Inn Bed and Breakfast.

Nikki has her interview for her permanent residence visa on February 12th. Please pray with us that they will grant her a visa, and free her to change her name legally, apply for a social security number legally, and do the myriad of things one can only do with one (like be placed on their bank account and get a valid driver's license!)




Dave continues to head up the working group for his area at the Test Site in Nevada, and to plug away at monitoring ground water there. He is faithful in so many areas. And this spring we pass 17 years since his last cancer battle. Perhaps Dave's faithfulness only reflects the amazing faithfulness God has shown to him!

And I am doing well. I continue to battle fatigue, but am resting in God's arms as best I can. I will see my primary care doc next week, and a pulmonary specialist the following week to discuss my sarcoidosis. Please pray for me to keep my eyes fixed where they need to be, and not to grow discouraged by my lack of energy. Ask the Lord to help me make every minute count for eternity, despite my weariness.

He is faithful to us all!

Homeschooling for the harvest

Mrs. Edwards' comment from my post yesterday got me to thinking about my homeschool journey. One of my classical homeschooling friends also wrote along the same lines:

I went to a meeting of moms in our church who homeschool — they aren’t numerous but they are all wonderful. We started talking about another homeschool mom who has finished her homeschooling journey and another mom said that she used to ask her how she did it and how she wasn’t intimidated and the response was this: “I always pray ‘Lord, let it be enough.’ “ So that is now my prayer.

I prayed several prayers regularly during those in-the-thick-of-it homeschooling years. One that I still pray occasionally is, "Lord, make up for all my mistakes." I also prayed that my boys would always get caught in wrong-doing so they could be corrected. God was gracious to answer both of those prayers with abundance! I think the trick is to figure out what you've been called by God to do with your life and your kids.

It can be a weary road to be obedient. And if God has called you to homeschool, you need to tough it out and learn to depend on Him in it. If He has called you to have your children in the public school system, you need to tough it out and learn to depend on Him through it. The vital thing is to know your calling from God, and then stick to it. Sensing His call makes a huge difference. He is so gracious, even and especially, through the toughest times when we are being obedient to that calling.

“Is that your plough leaning by the tree, and is it not too heavy?”

“It is heavy,” answered the Princess,” but I love to turn the hard earth
into soft furrows and know that I am making good soil wherein my seeds
may grow. When I feel the weight too much, I try to think of the
harvest”

~“Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm” by Kate Douglas Wiggin

So, let's get on with our plowing, Gentle Readers. My time of homeschooling is behind me, and right now my calling is to my comfy chair and my heating pad. But let's carry on and think of the harvest that is coming.

A trip to Tucson

This past weekend we spent a lovely few days with Tim and Nikki in Tucson. Watch for photos popping up of the strange and rugged beauty of that area!

We enjoyed a Lord's Day lunch with friends of theirs from their church. We found that one of my classed friends has a lovely daughter who married one of their sons. This lead to a friendly discussion about home schooling. Our gracious hosts explained their schooling decisions, and as I explained ours, I mentioned my worries that perhaps I had "ruined" my children. This is the secret fear of every conscientious homeschooling mom. I commented that as newly-Reformed, young believers, we had catechized our kids up one side and down the other, and wondered if they would show some latent problem because of our zealous experiment. Our hostess commented that Tim seemed "just great, but she was beginning to worry about his mom!" We all had a lovely laugh together.

This teasing made me think about the fact that our educational experiment has, indeed, been successful, and that I had better let go of my own insecurities. And God has been gracious to us, and allowed us the joy of watching grown men, with godly and lovely wives, continuing to serve Him.

If you are still in the midst of raising your children, Gentle Readers, keep your eyes focused on Christ. Whatever He calls you to do, do with confidence. He is gracious, indeed!

How about Wednesday with John this week...

Since Dave and I are going to be gone tomorrow through Monday or Tuesday, I thought I would post about our Calvin reading before Sunday this week, since I don't know what my opportunities will be like over the weekend. We have been reading ahead, too, so we can safely leave our rather large McNeill/Battles tome at home rather than drag it on the airplane.

We are well into chapter 1: The Knowledge of God and That of Ourselves Are Connected. How They Are Interrelated. I have been bookmarking sme of my favorites as we have been reading. Let me share a few:

The wonderful opening sentence is simply so true:

Nearly all the wisdom we possess, that is to say, true and sound wisdom, consists of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves.

Calvin's colorful use of derogatory language (as RG points out) is evident, and while it struck me as funny, should likely not be emulated. Take this as an example. poor Lucretius...:

This [the proclivity of man to confuse the creation with the creator] shows itself even more clearly in the sacrilegious words of that filthy dog Lucretius which has been deduced from that principle.
~1.5.5

Sometimes Calvin's colorful language surprises and delights me. This one, when speaking about Epicureanism, made me laugh:

Do all the treasures of heavenly wisdom concur in ruling a five-foot worm while the whole universe lacks this privilege?
~1.5.4

And the beauty of not only Calvin's words, but his thoughts, at times overwhelms me. Take this beautiful passage, discussing how the creation of God reflects Him:

The final goal of the blessed life, moreover, rests in the knowledge of God. Lest anyone, then, be excluded from access to happiness, he [God} not only sowed in men's minds that seed of religion of which we have spoken but revealed himself and daily discloses himself in the whole workmanship of the universe. As a consequence, men cannot open their eyes without being compelled to see him.Indeed. his essence is incomprehensible; hence, his divineness far escapes all human perception. But upon his individual works he has engraved unmistakable marks of his glory, so clear and so prominent that even unlettered and stupid folk cannot plead the excuse of ignorance.
~1.5.1

And perhaps this is the most succinct, beautiful explanation of what it means to be a Christian in all of literature:

For what is more consonant with faith than to recognize that we are naked of all virtue, in order to be clothed by God? That we are empty of all good, to be filled by him? That we are slaves of sin, to be freed by him? Blind, to be illumined by him? Lame, to be made straight by him? Weak to be sustained by him? To take away from us all occasion for glorying, that he alone may stand forth gloriously and we glory in him.
~Prefatory Address to King Francis, part 2.

What things have struck you as you have been reading through Calvin?

A little adventure is good, too

Adventure looks like different things to different people...just keep that in mind.

My dear husband, a man among men, has been looking for a new car for the last couple of years. Now I haven't gotten too excited about this becuase he is usually on something like the four-year plan, so I figured we had plenty of time to wait yet. But wonder of wonders, he has already purchased a used (new to us) car via his favorite care dealership, e-bay! (It is a 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe, for inquiring minds...) He is buying it in the town where he has a business meeting later this week, so I am going to fly with him, and then we will drive the car back, via Tucson, where we can spend a couple of days with Tim and Nikki. To me this sounds like a grand adventure! I love car-time with Dave, for listening to books together and talking, and just the change of scenery sounds exciting, not to mention time with Tim and Nik!

And as if that weren't enough adventure for the day, we also found some great Southwest Airlines deals, and have scheduled a trip to visit Ben and Elsa in March, over Ben's Spring Break. We have had to cancel plans to visit them in Bloomington twice now, and so are excited about getting to see them in their own home soon. Hurray!

God is awfully good to me. I am not sure what my stamina will stand, but even if I have to take naps or go to bed early, these will be wonderful trips, and I am looking forward to them!

A little adversity is good for the soul

"If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant; if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome."
~ Anne Bradstreet

I am about to head to my comfy chair for my afternoon rest time. Without this rest time, I can't get through the day. While that sometimes frustrates me, I am trying to see God's blessing in it. I can pray for an hour uninterrupted (except for when I fall asleep!) I have the ability to be home and order my days as needed, and a lovely place to rest.

I know God is slowing me down for a reason. I'd just like to have His reason and be done with it, and move on to other things. But what ingratitude that is! A dear friend reminded me today that unless Paul had been imprisoned, we would not have much of the New Testament. I have no illusion about God doing any big or mighty work in me, as He did in Paul, but I trust Him to have a good plan for me all the same. So I will rest here. A little adversity is good for the soul. It keeps me from complacency, and reminds me who to call upon in my times of need.

And speaking of need, here are some specific prayer requests. I know there are days when I am carried by the love and prayers of many of you, Gentle Readers. Thank you!

~Please pray that the sarcoidosis would not become a problem.
~Please pray that there would be no return of the breast cancer.
~Please pray for upcoming tests and appointments:
*Primary care doc last week of January
*Pulmonary specialist about sarcoidosis first week of February
*Mammograms and blood work in March
*CT-scans and appointment with oncologist in April
~Please pray that I would content myself beneath God's hand.
~Please pray that I would find my worth and sufficiency in Christ alone, not is what I can or can't do.

Sundays with John

Since Dave and I are reading through Calvin's Institutes this year, Lord willing, I thought it would be helpful to reflect on Sundays over what we've read for the week. Most of this past week, we read Calvin's Prefatory letter to the King of France. In it, Calvin basically gives the King his reasons of justification for the whole Reformation. It is fascinating reading!

Any of you reading along, feel free to share favorite quotes or interesting ideas or favorite themes in the comments section. I hope we can have some dialogue here! Also, below are some Calvin references that may be of help to you.

Here is a list of audio links to various Calvin resources.

Here is the online foreward and first chapter of A Theological Guide to Calvin's Institutes by Hall and Lillback. The foreward is excellent, and written by J. I. Packer.

Here is the Calvin Blog over at Reformation21, where various theologians are blogging short, helpful notes about each reading. You can also e-mail them for their excellent and do-able reading list.

Princeton Theological Seminary also has a reading plan for this year, complete with audio resources for listening to the institutes, and accessing the Lewis/Battles translation online.

Randy has also listed some other great resources over at SomberandDull.