Doing Our Part

Last night, we had a lovely young couple of college kids over for dinner. We had good Italian crusty bread with a garlic basil spread for the apertíf, and homemade FROM SCRATCH pizza for dinner, and homemade cookies with homemade ice cream for dessert. We sent some pizza home with one of the kids. In this way and others, we are doing our best to fill the bellies and nourish the souls of the next generation of America's leaders.

I could not resist writing a quote from the book I am currently loving, True Woman by Susan Hunt. She writes, "To insist that men verbalize or socialize their faith in the way women do is to demean their maleness. When Christian men responsibly provide for their families, attend church on Sundays, love their wives and children, and give their offerings to the Lord, we should celebrate their male spirituality. I am convinced that women would never have done the tedious, technical work of drafting The Westminster Confession of Faith, but I suspect there were women who were praying every day those men were debating. The church is richer because of the different expressions of piety."

In this most highly recommended book, Mrs. Hunt points out how the moral state of a nation or community can be seen by the behavior and attitudes of their women. Even today, when I watch the news and hear of a violent crime committed by a man, I am saddened. When I hear of a violent crime committed by a woman, I am shocked, and sickened at the sinful state of our spiritually poor society.

Adventures in Gastronomy

Oh, nothing better than a well-fed tummy. Last night, Mr. M. made a marvelous alfredo sauce, and he added to it some tomatoes we had "sun-dried" in the oven. Before adding the tomatoes, he chopped and diced them in the food processor, so as to avoid biting into huge chunks of overpowering sun-dried tomato intensity. The flavor of the tomatoes was instead spread evenly throughout the sauce. We also made our own pasta. The theme for our kitchen is: "FROM SCRATCH." You may notice that there is a lack of ME in the kitchen. That was a corporate decision, based on the fact that Mr. M. prefers to have complete control over the entire cooking process, and he doesn't like anyone or anything to get in his way. I must say, he is a well-oiled machine, and watching him dance around the kitchen is like watching a beautifully choreographed ballet.

Later that day, I did do my part, and made cookies. And not just any cookies. I experimented wrapping homemade cookie dough around a chocolate kiss. I made sure to get feedback from Mr. M. and from S., my official taste-tester at Bible Study. Mr.M. prefers smaller chips dispersed throughout the cookie, and S. likes them better with the blander dough and confectioner's sugar, like the ones I made for J's party. So, it was a no go. What can I say? I came, I tried, I failed . . . but we enjoyed eating the mistakes, anyway.

Danger of Worship Without Doctrine

I have spent hours this morning with my Bible, tape, and scissors. I am taping the edges to keep them from further damage, and to help preserve my own little notes. "Why go to all this trouble?" "Why not just buy a new Bible?" I'm glad you asked. The Bible itself is the history of God and His people. My Bible is the specific history of God with me. I've had this Bible for almost 20 years, and I have written in the margins quotes that help me understand some verses, and ways a specific verse applied to a struggle I had in high school, and the names of people God's used in my life to teach me His truth. My Bible also reminds me of the excitement I felt when I first learned doctrine. Being religious and worshipful is of no value if you don't know who it is you are worshiping. That was the case with the Greeks who were very religious and had a statue to "The Unknown God." I don't want an unknown god in my life, and the Bible is the key to knowing God. Proverbs tells us that it is not good to have zeal without knowledge, and the Bible is where we gain knowledge.

Acceptable Worship

Worship seems to be widely misunderstood. Worship is something you do, and there is a right and wrong way to do it, but worship is really so much more. It is a lifestyle. Romans 12 says that everything we do with our bodies-which is everything we do-can be worship. Hebrews 12 says that God will only accept worship that is done with reverence and awe. When we go to church and sing, it must be with reverence and awe. When we listen to the sermon, that must also be done with reverence and awe. Communion and prayer (both public and private) must also be done with reverence and awe. And the reverence and awe has to follow us home from church. Everything we do, from the rising to the setting of the sun, from going to work or taking care of the kids, from watching TV to writing on our blog, must be done with reverence in our hearts for who God is, and awe for what He's done for us.

When The Days Won't End

My dear friend died a year ago this week. We read, and wrote, and laughed together, and made plans. We didn't get to realize our plans. One of our plans was to have a nice picnic in the park. I so wish we had done that, or that we could still look forward to doing it. Undoubtedly, we would have talked about God, and we would have talked about Heaven. We did that a lot-talked about Heaven. We wondered together what it would look and feel like. Jenn has now seen God, and she lives with, serves, and talks to Him in Heaven. There is no more wondering for her. I still wonder, and I look forward to the day when my wondering will be over, and Jenn and I can sit on the grass and picnic for as long as we like.

Friends as Teachers

As I was sitting in the seminary library yesterday, thanking God for all the wonderful resources I have available to me for learning, I thanked Him for my church and my Bible Study, for libraries and for books. I also thanked Him for my friends. I thought about how much I learn from friends, and how valuable their knowledge and opinions are to me. Thank you to all of my friends who help me grow in the knowledge of my Lord. I hope I do the same for you.

My Mother and Mentor

I just started reading Spiritual Mothering by Susan Hunt. It is a book about the power of relationships between older and younger women in the church. Of course, the primary older woman to a younger woman is her mother. My mom died just short of two years ago, but reflecting on her life, I see that I am who I am because of her. She lovingly lived with my dad for 52 years, and was never anything less than faithful and kind to him every day. My mom loved me every day, and encouraged me in all things good and Godly. My mom was the sensible one in the family, a wonderful example of logical decision-making. My mom often, OFTEN, said to me, simply, "Get real, girl!" She wasn't being mean, just practical, letting me know that the real world wouldn't be like home. I would have to work, even do things I didn't want to do. People in the real world, people outside of my family, weren't going to give me things just because I had a clean room, or just because they felt like it. This practical wisdom is something I want to pass down to women younger than I.