Finished: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

You know, I always thought that 20,000 leagues was a measurement of depth, but through my (third!) reading of the book, I realized that it is the measurement of distance travelled under the sea.

I really, really like this book: the time it was written coupled with the technology foreseen...add to that the remembrance of the DisneyWorld ride when I was in 5th grade, and the mysterious Captain Nemo, and add to that the compelling plot, the mysteries of the deep...

I'll keep picking this up every few years and reading it again.

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Jules Verne

Control of Birth Control

Al Mohler has a timely commentary on The Pill.

Bird Song

Normally background noise with their twitters, cheeps and chirps, I understood the birds I sat outside while dawn broke this Resurrection morning.

Alto started, Cardinal constant in Cheerfulness. Bass resonated, Dove full of Sorrow, unmatched in his Grief. Soprano joined with her descant, Chickadee with reminders of Hope. Tenor, it seemed, had forgotten his part.

It was fully morning. The dawn had broken. The birds went back to their twittering.

Yet Tenor had not forgotten, was not late, as Owl, when all was silent for a moment, reverberated his part, declaring Truth.

The choir was joined by a part not written, a rogue line in the music, Flicker mocking.

Then all was silent.

I waited for Owl to reverberate Truth. I waited, knowing that Truth was the answer, the next line. But Owl was silent.

Instead, after the mocker, Grief came again, Dove resonating.

And they began their song anew.

Joy. Sorrow. Hope. Truth.

Search Me, O God

In self-righteousness, I protest, "But what about all those other things that I do?"

This in response to, "Why didn't you remember to do this? And how could you forget to do that? And that other thing...I can't believe you didn't do it!"

The bottom line is that those things that I have been "called out on"...the things I didn't do...I should have done. Self-righteousness has no place protesting against neglecting to exhibit love and gratitude. While I recognize that I cannot do it all, surely there are things that I overlook or neglect that are to my shame when I do not do them.

"Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.

See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting. " Psalm 139:23-24

A Timely Link

In the midst of conversations about contentment, paying for children's college educations and adoption, this post covers it all. Even boob jobs. (Her words, not mine.)

Please read it.

A Brilliant Marketing Campaign?

"A Chicago area urology practice is promoting vasectomies by informing potential patients that if they get the procedure done right before March Madness, that they’ll be able to stay at home for a few days to recover and watch some of the games uninterrupted reports the Southtown Star." (read more)

So, is this a strategic marketing campaign? After all, most men don't require an excuse to sit down and watch a series of games on TV. This just gives them an added incentive to be able to do so under doctor's orders. And on the surface, I think it sounds like an absolutely brilliant marketing campaign.

But is there a hidden agenda? Is it an attempt to sterilize our male population? I mean, can a guy just walk into the doctor, say "Hey, sign me up" and there's no further discussion about it? Are there any questions asked, protocols followed other than a few waivers and consents signed? I am sure the answer to this question varies by doctor.

And the procedure is reversible. In that sense, it isn't a permanent sterilization, should someone change his mind. But does the procedure enable more activity with less consequences? Would mass sterilization of our male population actually be of benefit, or would we find it leading to even further depths of immorality? Does marketing vasectomies in this manner trivialize the procedure into something to be done on a whim, with no consideration of the consequences?

You know, there are times when I should ask myself, "Is the kitchen clean yet?" And then I should go clean it. This may be one of those times.

Check This Out!

My sister opened an Etsy shop, that you simply must visit, just because it looks so nice!


Go see kassiescreations.

Glad I Read That

The back of my deodorant container caught my eye this morning.

Directions: Put on underarms only.

I was just getting ready to smear some on my head. Good thing I can read.

For My Own Contemplation

I was interested in this article in Newsweek about antidepressants, that poses an interesting dilemma. Posting it here for contemplation.

Integrity

Andree Seu has some great thoughts on integrity today at WORLDmag.com. Here's a taste:

"I want to be a person of “integrity,” not of spare parts hanging out all over the place that need to be constantly tucked back in, like Scarecrow stuffing his shirt in The Wizard of Oz."

I'll Show You My High Beams!

It was a dark, dark night. I was driving home from church. The car coming toward me had the audacity to flash his high beams at me.

"You wanna see high beams? I"ll show you high beams." And I flicked my lights back at him.

I pulled up to the traffic light, wondering why people felt it so important to flash beams at people when they were annoyed by the intensity of the lights. I mean, can't we just let things go? So you had a moment of discomfort when my bright lights hit your eyes.

Then the light struck me. There were no beams coming from my car. My headlights weren't on.

Excerpts: A Quest for More

"It is possible for us to profess allegiance to the big kingdom and yet, in our daily choices, be fighting for the success of the kingdom of one.

...there is grace for this battle! In the person and work of Jesus Christ, God has made ample provision for you and me as we live with kingdoms in conflict. His grace blows a hole in your self-contained kingdom, and in his redemptive love he reaches in and pulls you our, again and again."

A Quest for More, Paul David Tripp, pp 66, 68

I just love that visual. God's grace blowing a hole in my self-constructed wall and His great arm of mercy reaching in and plucking me out!

Finished: Debt of Honor

I picked this up at a book sale, not realizing that it was already in my basement and I had already read it. No matter. Enjoyed it again. (How could you not enjoy espionage, national security and "Get me the President!"?)

Spoiler: Jack-boy becomes president. Didn't we know that from the very first Clancy book?

Debt of Honor, Tom Clancy

Finished: The Possessed

What a terribly depressing book! I loved it! However, because pretty much everyone dies in the end, I've decided to not rename my children things like "Kirilov" and "Stepan Verkhovensky". The back cover sums up the book quite well: "...the young men...combine fanaticism, treachery and self-contradiction to incite an entire town to pillage, arson and slaughter." Premise: man creates chaos to match his tortured soul.

Thank God (literally) for Christ.

The Possessed, Fyodor Dostoyevsky

So Cavalier About Sin?

There are two bakeries that I pass relatively frequently: Sinfully Delicious and Sinful Delights. I find the names distracting. They do not entice me to purchase their goods at all.

The names' purposes are to allure and entice...to get you into the shop and purchase supposedly delicious baked goods. It is ok to name the stores this because it's a lie? It isn't really a sin to eat them, therefore, you can call it sinful? But then, isn't the lie a sin?

Why aren't casinos named things like "Spending in Sin" and whorehouses named "Sin and Stuff"? Why do baked goods qualify to have sin in their titles, and it's ok?

This is more a random thought...perhaps I'm overreacting a bit. But there should be great caution in how we utilize the English language. How many times (and I hear it over and over again) have you heard the phrase, "That's such a sin", but it's not referring to sin at all?

Our world does not recoginize the evil and destructive nature of the sin that dwells in us.

The Tongue

I was encouraged, edified and admonished (sorry, couldn't come up with another "e" word) by this post this morning.

A Beating Heart

As I draw closer to my midwife appointment, more and more anxiety sets in. I say to myself, "If only I could just hear the heart beat again. Then my fears will be stilled."

It occurs to me that the same thing occurs when feelings of doubt and questioning rise up within me about my spiritual life. If only I could sense that my heart was right...if only I could hear my heart beat.

Doubt and anxiety are rebellious irrational things. They rise up out of our hearts when logic defies them.

So this is why I can sing:

I lay my wants on Jesus; all fulness dwells in him;
he heals all my diseases, he doth my soul redeem:
I lay my griefs on Jesus, my burdens and my cares;
he from them all releases, he all my sorrows shares.

I rest my soul on Jesus, this weary soul of mine;
his right hand me embraces, I on his breast recline.
I love the name of Jesus, Immanuel, Christ the Lord;
like fragrance on the breezes his name abroad is poured.

stanzas 2 and 3, I Lay My Sins On Jesus, Horatius Bonar

Cultivating Thankfulness

As we teach our children to pray, we begin with simple thoughts of thanks. "Thank you for food. Thank you for dad. Thank you for peanut butter sandwiches."

I've noticed a habit in both of my older children that they continue to pray in thanks for requests. "We thank you that you would get Aunt Kristen home safely." "We thank you that you would help me sleep without a bad dream."

Perhaps it isn't quite intentional on their part, but I've learned a bit of anticipating the goodness of God in requests when they pray like that.

Swiss Cheese

My spouse wondered why I eat it.

My comment was that it made me feel holey.

His comment was that it makes him feel neutral.

Disgusting!

I find it revolting to look through the coupons from the Sunday paper, find one that looks really yummy, then discover that

IT'S DOG FOOD!