More on Summer Studies

In my last post, I mentioned my friend who loved church history, and loved the Heidelberg. In contrast, I have friends who see this extra-biblical study unnecessary if not idolatrous for the Christian. The Bible is sufficient for salvation. We can know all we need to know about ourselves, sin, life, God, and Jesus through the Bible. True, true, and very true. HOWEVER, it is that very Bible that extols the gaining of wisdom and knowledge. It is that very Bible that praises King Solomon for the extents to which he went to acquire knowledge, and Daniel and his friends were highly esteemed in God's eyes for their knowledge of mathematics and the sciences. So I will dedicate myself to gaining knowledge this summer, for knowledge leads to an accurate fear and understanding of God.

"Ye Olde Heidelberger."

I went to a conference this weekend. The topic was Jesus. The speakers were great. I may summarize some of the sermons later, but first I will tell you about a lovely aspect of the conference, a thing I look so forward to at any conference: the bookstore. I love, LOVE, books. I like history, especially church history, not because I'm smart or have any particular penchant for learning, but church history is MY history. I like MY history, the history of me. I don't know if I would have ever gotten a hold of a Bible were it not for the Reformation, and all the sacrifices made to print a Bible in the common language. The Heidelberg Catechism is something I know very little about, other than that my dearest deceased friend knew it well. I want to study it in her honor.

One of the more inspiring sessions at the conference was an informal panel discussion amongst the scholarly theologians about their reading habits. I have a pretty short attention span, but I could listen to any intelligent group of people talk about books and reading for hours! I can't wait to learn about the Heidelberg Catechism, and discuss it with my amazingly intelligent friends who've been studying it for years.

Mr. Clean, Marriage, and Mentoring

Mr. M and I are getting ready for a vacation in the desert, so while I sit drying my hair in the window, he is running back and forth between the bathrooms with various cleaners and rags. I see no point in this. It's not that I have anything against the lovely young ladies who will be staying here, taking care of our home and our dog. On the contrary, Mr. M and I are both extremely grateful. It's just that . . . well, how bad can it be? I mean, really, I use those bathrooms everyday without complaint. I guess the Mr. and I complement each other that way. You'll never see clutter in my house, not on my watch. Mr. M, on the other hand, is quite immune to clutter. I tend to be over-zealous in this area, practically throwing out anything that's not bolted down. Mr. M's thing is dirt. He hates dirt. Stains. He'll scrub for hours to remove a stain. That is something that doesn't bother me. I have no eye for insignificant details like stains. We make a good team. I get rid of the clutter, he sanitizes the area. Something I've always loved about Mr. M is that he loves me. He'd rather that I sit on the couch with him and watch TV at the end of the day than go clean or cook for him. That is really loving your husband-spending time with him.

I've started my summer studies in mentoring-reading others' views on it, and thinking about my own. I guess I believe mentoring is simply a relationship with someone that you admire, someone willing to let you watch them live. Someone who is willing to tell you that they don't like to clean.

The Most Boring Job in the World

We here at the M house are making major moolah by renting out our driveway to some local movie moguls. Our very quiet residential street is being guarded by a kid in a security uniform. There he sits in the shade of a small tree at the end of our little cul-de-sac. Poor kid. I got some surreptitious surveillance shots of him.

The Mercy and Wonder of God.

I was sitting in my little home this morning, praying in my favorite spot, right by the back window where the sun comes in. As I was praying, I remembered the God to whom I was praying, who is in His home listening to my prayer. I love my home. It's cozy and well-lit and colorful, and just the right size for me and Mr. M. The Bible tells us something of God's home-a throne, a sea of glass, jeweled gates, and precious gems throughout. Yet God, in Christ, comes to me in my little home and listens to my prayers. The great hymn, "Amazing Love" says of Jesus that "He left His Father's throne above" and came to this dirty, dusty earth to live among us and save us, Adam's helpless race. His love truly is amazing, and we are so blessed that He allows us to enter His throne room in prayer, and He sent His son from His glorious home to come be with us in our squalid and sinful homes.

CNN Reports That Blog Writing Is Up During Summer Despite What Some Philadelphians Say

I had a lovely morning out on the patio today, chatting away in the shade with a good friend. My friend commented on my good listening skills. That made my day! I've found that listening to others' stories helps you tell a better story. As you listen, you know when you are engaged and enraptured with the story. (For me, it is when there are facial expressions, wild gesturing, voice inflections, and any other theatrical feats.) Then you know how to engage your audience when you tell a story. You know how to get their attention because you know what gets your attention. Her compliment made me go and find my Compendium of Uncommonly Complimentary Quotes. (Compendium of Kind Compliments, for short.) This is like an adult yearbook dating back over 10 years. Many unsuspecting friends of mine who never thought they had said or written anything quoteworthy are quoted here. There are compliments to encourage me during some really terrible days, and some hilarious quips friends have said. My book is full, so I did a mad dash around the house and found some pens for my 2nd Compendium. I must give proper thanks to the friends who've contributed to the Compendium. You don't know who you are.

To my kind and complimentary friend who wondered where Rufus was when she left, he was sleeping in the bouganvillea. Now I have a dog-and a carpet-covered in purple leaves.

Various and Sundry Musings From my Life

Enough people have read my last post, so that I feel I can write a new one. I really don't have anything planned, so I wonder if I should write. Apparently, I already am, so I may as well continue. I was invited to a leadership position in an international para-church organization. It involves a huge time commitment. After many days and weeks of pondering and praying and asking the advise of many, I declined the position. The main factor was my health; it is just unfair to be in a position with people depending on me when my health is so entirely unpredictable. I was also concerned about making the spiritual investment. I am spending the summer getting to know the college students at our church, and I want to be available to them in the fall. The Bible tells us that God loves a cheerful giver, and that He wants us to serve from our hearts and not just out of obligation. That means we choose our area of ministry, and examine our hearts because the place where He wants us to serve is the place where we WANT to serve, and that is where we invest our time and talents. We focus our energies in doing things we enjoy doing for others. I find it interesting to note that when Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 9 that the harvest was plentiful, but the workers were few, He didn't ask His disciples to go out and do the work. Instead, He commanded them to "ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers." We each have a calling in the kingdom, a work that is just for us to do. We do our work, and we pray that others come forward to do theirs. I love the college kids, and I remember being one. I want to give my all to serving them. All that to say, these past weeks have been full of introspection, prayer, study, and prioritization. I find it interesting to note that when Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 9 that the harvest was plentiful, but the workers were few, He didn't ask His disciples to go out and do the work. Instead, He commanded them to "ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers." We each have a calling in the kingdom, a work that is just for us to do. We do our work, and we pray that others come forward to do theirs. What has come of all this, besides a final decision, is a better understanding of the local church, and my place therein. I am passing down the faith that I have, and sharing my Biblical insights with the next generation.

On an entirely separate note, I've been thinking about a neighbor of mine, a mean lady who's always looking for a reason to call the security guards to tell on someone. I used to sit on her porch and listen to her complain for 10 minutes, but then I decided for my own sanity's sake that I'd better just smile, wave, and walk on by. I wonder now if she was always mean. I wonder if a lot of people avoid her because she's mean. I got so scared at the prospect of someone being so mean and friendless, that I invited a large group of friends over just to reassure myself that I'm not mean and people don't avoid me. I think my friends are a gift from God, and it is a gift from Him that I'm not mean.


Monday Morning Musings

A friend of mine wrote on her blog about the dearth of summer blog writing. For me, it is quite the contrary. Summer means more leisure time for reading and pondering. Reading and pondering means writing. I can think much more clearly when I write. You could say I think always with a pencil in my hand. Plus, I see my blog as a tool, a tool to talk with people when I can't go to their houses. Call it a cyber coffee house.

As I said earlier, I will be spending time with the college kids this summer, inviting myself over for dinner. Allowing the kids to practice hospitality, I think, says volumes. A pastor friend of mine tells me the definition of hospitality is showing love to strangers. I am practically a stranger to them, so I see this as an opportunity for very hands-on and practical discipleship, a way of showing genuine Christian love that I hope will continue throughout their lives.

Later this summer, we will be studying the minor prophets at the college Bible study, and during the school year, I will be taking a class on Isaiah. I am so excited to learn more about the Old Testament, that I bought a special purple pen to use just for those studies!

Thank you for reading. Apparently, new blog posts are slow, and writers are caught up in the lazy days of summer, but I plan to continue writing my musings and ponderations for your encouragement and entertainment.

Christ's Compassion and Sufferings

In Philippians 3:10, the Apostle Paul tells us that he wants to have "the fellowship of sharing in Christ's sufferings, becoming like Him in His death." How do we share in Christ's sufferings, the sufferings that led to His death? We need to first examine what made Jesus suffer. He suffered the rejection of many. He was almost constantly threatened and rejected by the very people He came to earth to save. Jesus had compassion on His people because they were "like sheep without a shepherd." (Matthew 9:36.) You could say He was heartbroken over these people who were so lost, and wouldn't accept His help. We share in this suffering of His when we are heartbroken over those we love who won't let us help them, or share the good news of the Gospel with them. Ultimately, the very people Christ came to save killed Him. Our family and friends who reject our good news message may not kill us, but we do suffer in our hearts as Jesus did in His when we are despised and forsaken. The first thing we must do to have this intimate fellowship with Christ is to truly love and care for the souls of those we know. We must have true compassion and desire to "take care of Jesus' sheep." (John 21.) The extent to which we love Jesus is in direct proportion to the love we have for others.

The Couple Who Reads Together Saves Together

Mr. M and I have greatly varying interests. However, our interests have recently converged, and we've been reading and discussing the same book. I know what you're thinking: "It must cost a lot to buy two copies of the same book." Quite the contrary. You see, Mr.M is at work all day, so I read during the day, and use my bookmark to keep my place. Mr. M has his own bookmark, so after dinner, he picks up in our book where he left off, and I read another book. This is not a huge savings for us as our interests don't converge often, but for couples who may make a practice of reading and discussing the same book, the savings could soon add up to a luxury vacation . . . or a new car!

Illegalization, things that I think should be illegal

1. Turning nouns into verbs, as in, "I friended you on my social networking site."

2. Handing your sick wife four beautiful, chocolate covered strawberries and saying, "Don't fill up, dinner will be ready in a few minutes."

3. Acronyms.

4. Bumper stickers.

5. Unknown food sources.

Summer Reading , Psalm 1

Since many of my friends will be studying hard for school, I will also study this summer. I will be studying, with a friend, the Biblical model for influencing others. The first assignment in the study is to memorize Psalm 1:1-3 "Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or sit in the seat of scoffers or stand in the way of sinners. But his delight is on the law of the Lord, and on it he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree planted by a stream, whose leaf does not whither and who gives its fruit in season, and all he does prospers." These verses contrast two men, one who listens to wicked counselors, and one who delights in meditating on God's law. The third verse describes the reward of the man who delights in God's law-he will be as unbending and firm as a tree, and he will be healthy, fruitful and useful to God. This is what I want for myself, and also what I want for the students I know. Think of the alternative-being indecisive and easily swayed, in constant confusion. For me, I will delight always in God's law, and meditate on it.