Liturgy

On Sunday, our prayer of the day was:

Almighty and everlasting God,
increase in us the gifts of faith, hope and charity;
and, that we may obtain what you promise,
make us love what you command;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one god, for ever and ever. Amen.

Even as we were praying, I was grateful that from a young age Elisabeth is hearing the great truths of the Gospel in prayer so that she learns that they are not "finer points", but teach us how to know and approach God. Thank Christ for good liturgy!

Girl in the gardens

We 'discovered' some stunning gardens near our home (like Columbus 'discovered' North America) two and a half years ago. Since that time, it has been a frequent destination for relaxation, reading, family walks and photography. On Sunday afternoon we went there to snap some pictures of Elisabeth with the mums - and this is representative of the roughly 100 pictures that I took using the continuous shooting feature on my camera. We did end up with a few good ones, that I'll share later on.

I went to the gardens again today . . .

I can't stay away from the gardens when the mums are in bloom!

Bursting with laughter

Elisabeth just couldn't contain the giggles!

She's not my friend

Yesterday Elisabeth announced that one of her classmates was not her friend. She explained,

"She doesn't listen to the teacher!"

It made me think of King David's words:

I hate the work of those who fall away;
it shall not cling to me.
A perverse heart shall be far from me;
I will know nothing of evil. (Psalm 101:3-4)

I could understand why Elisabeth was saying that she didn't want to be this girl's friend: she's a brat. And so in a certain sense, I don't at all want her to be this girl's friend. Yet in another sense, I do. The same King David said:

Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me. . .
Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will return to you. (Psalm 51:11, 13)

David had just confessed his own grievous sin, and pleaded for mercy - and therefore was jealous to turn other sinners to the Redeemer.

I don't want Elisabeth merely to avoid this girl because she's disobedient. I want her to learn to be a friend in a way that doesn't condone her rebellion, but invites her to receive mercy. If she can learn this lesson well early, it will serve her (and her friends) well for the rest of her life.

Honey for a Child's Heart

We just received a great gift in the mail: Honey for a Child's Heart. (Thanks, Sarah!)

I make it my practice to ask the best parents I know for good book lists, since when I go to the library I usually leave disappointed unless I have gone with a list of recommended titles. So I recently asked friends from our church (the parents of four well home-schooled children) for a book list, and they recommended Honey for a Child's Heart for its lists, and for its approach to literature.

I'm ready for my first trip to the library with book in hand!

Sitting with Mommy

Gospel Language for Kids

Ray Van Neste reviews children's books on The Children's Hour. He has pointed me toward some excellent literature, and so I check in there now and again.

He recently wrote an article called Evangelizing our Children for a local publication on the importance of presenting the warnings and promises of the Gospel to our children. His thesis is that:

No gospel plea makes sense unless the hearers know their need of rescue from judgment.

He draws on John Brown of Haddington (Scotland) as an example of one who did not shy away from presenting the reality of hell right alongside the promise of being reconciled to God through Christ.

It was a great reminder to me that our age likes to celebrate the positive and turn the eyes off the negative. However, in the case of the Gospel, without the bad news (that we have cut ourselves off from God through our sin), the good news (that God reconciles us to Himself through His Son) makes little sense.

I need more mentors like John Brown.

From the gardens

Educating her parents

Elisabeth had a new student named Oudai join her class last week. When Elisabeth told Rebecca about Oudia, Rebecca asked, "Is Oudai a boy or a girl?"

With some puzzlement, Elisabeth replied,

"Oudai is a boy's name, Mom!"

Clearly Elisabeth is the one educating us!

The Meanest Thing to Say

In general I am not a fan of trade books. I usually find them to be very poor literature, and put them to the bottom of the pile.

However, I really liked The Meanest Thing to Say by Bill Cosby. The story line is simple and clear, and kids see through a clever and humorous narrative how to handle name calling and 'slams'.

While it is not the kind of great literature that we will read again and again, it is worth reading several times.

A perfect gift

On the day that we moved, Elisabeth's best friend's parents took care of her for the day and fed us an outstanding leg of lamb for dinner. What could have been an enormously stressful day turned out to be fun for everyone involved - thanks to great friends.

As we parted to go to our new home, Aidan's mom gave Elisabeth a TykeLight, a very clever nightlight for children that charges by magnetism, casts warm glow, and doesn't get dangerously hot.

It was a perfect gift, as Elisabeth's new bedroom does not have an overhead light, and we had not yet found the lamps from the boxes. She cuddled it to sleep that night, and has done the same on many subsequent nights. What a great gift!

Writing

For quite some time Elisabeth's verbal abilities have far exceeded her fine motor skills. She has learned to sound out words, but when it comes to writing the letters, she is often intimidated to try. In fact, the letter S has kept her from writing her name. She can write all the letters, but finds the S difficult, and so when she gets to it wants to quit. Thus, her signature over the past several months has been Eli.

This week she made two major leaps forward in writing. The first is that she gained the ability to write an S. (In reality, she just developed the initiative to try it until she got it.) So now Eli is gone, and we have Elisabeth back again! The second is her willingness to take dictation. For some reason, until now she has been intimidated to write letters when asked to do so. But this week she wanted to write Joe and Emily on an envelope for our neighbors, and so she asked me how to spell their names, and wrote their names letter by letter as I dictated them.

We're on the road to writing!

Here is Life

Eight years ago I had the privilege of volunteering with Here is Life in Aringa, Uganda.

View Larger Map

Last week we had a good friend, Elly Moses, from Here is Life stay with us, and I was reminded why I love those people, and why I believe so strongly in their work. Since they have not had a website to present, I put together a simple blog on blogger as a communication tool for them, and as a learning tool for those who are interested in their work. At present it is just a thumbnail sketch of the organization, but I anticipate it being well used.

Elly's stay with us reminded me of how significant missionary visits were to me in my childhood. I think the missionaries who stayed in our home, and the biographies of missionaries that my parents read to us continue to shape my view of the world, and my dreams of what God will do with me. I want to give Elisabeth the same privilege of knowing great missionaries.

Three busy weeks

The past three weeks have been some of the busiest of my life, hence the lack of blogging. I'm looking forward to a return to a more peaceful pace of life with time to read, write and rest. So you can expect to see more posts, and more pictures in the days to come as I recover.

Ready to slide

First dance class

Elisabeth had her first dance class on Saturday!

The Life of David Brainerd

Although I don't read much anymore (although I wish I did), being a full-time parent has afforded lots of time for listening. One of the best books I have listened to (repeatedly) is The Life of David Brainerd by Jonathan Edwards. It is Edwards' compilation of Brainerd's diary, which is a brutally honest testimony of his own spiritual life, and his mission to the native Americans. John Piper has a great catalog of Christians who have treasured this book and explains why:

Why has this life had such an impact? . . . .

The answer for me is that Brainerd's life is a vivid, powerful testimony to the truth that God can and does use weak, sick, discouraged, beat-down, lonely, struggling saints, who cry to him day and night, to accomplish amazing things for his glory. (source)

Why mention it here? This month it is available for free! So if you like to listen to books, this is one not to miss.

HT: Justin Taylor

Questions

I'm convinced that the best conversationalists ask great questions. Justin Taylor just spotlighted some great questions for fathers to ask their children. While they're geared to older children, I think they're a good starting point for asking young children good questions.

Today I asked Elisabeth a question that is accessible for her age: "Why does Jesus love us?"

She answered, "Because we love Him and do what He commands."

It was a great reminder to me of how daily I need to be speaking and embodying the good news the when we were enemies, rebels and disobedient, God reconciled us to Himself through His Son. I want Elisabeth (and any other children God gives us) to clearly understand that we are commanded to love and obey Jesus, but that His love for us precedes our love and obedience, and is not conditioned on it.

That is good news!

In the hammock

Elisabeth found the best place to snuggle with Grandma on a crisp fall afternoon.

Light posting

I thought about putting up an "under construction" sign on my blog to explain the light posting over the last week or so, but realized that most blogs with such a sign are referring to the blog, and not to any real physical structure. So I must clarify: my project has been putting up a wall, which Lord-willing, will be complete by Wednesday, when the painting will begin!




















The reason I'm building a wall is because . . .

on Saturday - which is another reason why I may not post much at all this week.

I've not abandoned parenting, or blogging, but just have other big things going on!