August 25, 2008 by pamela.

Today I’d like to acknowledge  the mothers who came before me… mothers who worked long before days dawned and long after suns set — women who, without conveniences, running water, power and supplies, cared for their families - putting them before themselves and tenaciously pressed on through the years of their lives.  It does not escape me that life for women in many places in the world live such a life today.

I feel as though I cannot personally relate - I have photos in my possession and have heard numerous stories my children have told me about living conditions in places in Mexico & Africa… I’ve listened to Christian sisters share specifics in testimonies of daily life in those and other ‘foreign lands’ and the effort mothers expend to simply survive from day to day.  Still, I’ve not been able to sincerely relate — though I’ve sincerely attempted to grasp the reality of life for women the world over.  I say women… for the simple fact that that’s who I’m relating to.  Stories of men and their lives and work the world over would be another angle to which I cannot relate.

My mother tells me stories of my grandmother and her methods of cleaning, cooking, sewing, making soap, heating kettles, boiling water and doing laundry in large pots, hanging clothes by necessity - not choice - and a myriad of other things she did for her family. Her story is unrecorded… as are the stories of the lives of most all mothers the world over… mothers who got their hands dirty.  Mothers who really worked hard - or mothers who really worked really hard.

In addition to the chicken we have for eggs, we’ve been raising chickens — meat birds — raising them for food.  There’s been one purpose for them. Week after week they’ve been growing.  We after week we’ve been taking care of them.  Saturday that part of the deal ended — they lived up to their end of the bargain.

Friends of ours graciously taught us how to handle the chickens when they lived up to their end of the deal.  As I stood there, a flood of emotion washed over me - a strange mix of sadness, remorse and nausea.  Then, I thought of the mothers who’ve gone before me… mothers who did whatever it took to put nutritious food on the table for their families.  I thought of the mothers who didn’t have the butchering conveniences I had before me, nor the running water for the process.

Now, I wasn’t alone in this whole process, for a couple of our boys were tackling the job with sincere eagerness to do well and Wes was right there working alongside them.  I’m glad our friend prayed before we began the process — I really had a terribly hard time with the initial ‘taking of a life’ and watching the helpless animal struggle for a moment.  The dipping in boiling water was not as challenging and the ‘defeathering’ was even less so.  Then came the moment for which I had not been prepared.  You know those packets with the “giblets” in them - the neat little packages you remove from the store bought chicken or turkey?  Well, there was not a neat little baggie or paper sacklet for the most inward parts of each chicken.  This was clearly a challenge to my sensibilities. By the third one, I realized that this was a job that just plain needed to be done.

And then that thought came to me, once again, that mothers who have gone before me had done this innumerable times. I thought about that for quite a few moments.  I smiled at the thought that I had now crossed into a new territory for myself.  It was another of those accomplishments that made me a kindred spirit to those mothers who’ve gone before me… mothers who got their hands dirty.

Posted in my fiftieth year, My life, Motherhood | Print | 5 Comments »

August 19, 2008 by pamela.

Pretty soon the beautiful hydrangeas will stop blooming for the year…
For now, each morning I love to walk around the yard and see the beautiful variety and  lovely shades of  blues, greens,  purples, lavenders and red hydrangeas… these are  my favourite flowers… but the roses are quite lovely, too.

in the rose garden are candlelight roses, lavender, various pinks, yellow, peach, coral and white… the whites are particularly beautiful this year!

produce from the garden this morning… in addition to many(!) zucchini, yellow squash, beans and onions, Naomi and ‘melia picked some carrots.  They came running in to show me the “married carrots” and the “pants carrots.”  I smiled… at the married carrots… sweet, innocent girls thought the carrots were dancing bcz they were married.  Sweet.  I love the delightfully sweet innocence of children.

Posted in Home Sweet Home, Family | Print | 3 Comments »

August 19, 2008 by pamela.

I’m still pondering: The old paths…

A few days ago I was looking at photographs and was trying to recollect those days… actually, those and a lot of other “days gone by” and I began to consider and ask myself: what good things did I do in those days do I no longer do? What did I leave off doing — and why? Did I get weary? Did I get overconfident? Did I get tired? Did I get lazy? Did I forget? Why did I stop doing the things that were working well? And, when? When did I veer off the path?

Slowly over the last several days and likely into the next several weeks, I am working to restore the old paths… the old paths of home… the routines, the objectives and the disciplines of our home life. A mama has to be the restorer of the breach(es).

Somewhere along the way some of the pavers of the old path slipped away… various floods of life and life’s trials broke up the path — children grew, needs changed, babies were born, children grew up and left home, the tides of business ebbed and flowed, sickness and health, strength and weakness… and so, along the way — here and there, places on the path were washed out.

Probably of all the decisions I’ve been making — or the tasks I’ve been doing lately — setting our home in order has been the most important. Clutter and disorder paralyzes people — and mothers, probably more than they realize, are rendered ineffective if there is much clutter and disorder. Clutter hinders creativity and productivity and disorder hinders unity and accomplishment — both in ourselves and in our children or daily family life.

I hadn’t really realized this was happening — it was so long in existence and so subtle in appearance. I hadn’t realized that I had stopped checking “completed” chores. I hadn’t realized that I had started finishing jobs others had either started and didn’t complete or hadn’t done at all. I hadn’t noticed that things were being overlooked… not put away… not taken care of properly.

I hadn’t noticed that jobs were being done well enough instead of well done! Close or ‘good enough’ is fine some of the time… but ‘good enough’ is not fine for all of the time. Close or ‘good enough’ is fine for younger children “in training,” but for myself and older children who know better, close or ‘good enough’ is not: good. Enough.

More on all this later.

blessings,

Posted in Homemaking, Family | Print | 1 Comment »

August 18, 2008 by pamela.

I’ve been thinking about paths lately… spurred on by reading in Jeremiah and considering ‘the old paths’ and doing the things we know to be profitable in our home/life. I had to smile at the following video. In our home, through the years, we’ve had many, many opportunities to train up boys and girls in the way they should go. This, most notably, is a spiritual training - but, it’s also training in life skills, work ethic and manners. Repetition (both in direction and practice) is the key to accomplishing the objective and to developing abilities. But, more than all that, it’s not just important that our children know how to work as that they do so of their own initiative - that they know what to do and do it well — that they see a need and fill it — that they do what needs doing without being told to do it - and doing so cheerfully.

So, we’re ever in training — ever in training mode.

And it’s not just important that our develop habits or manners — it’s important that they have a basis or a foundation for why they do or don’t do particular things. Beyond basics, they need to know why we tell them or instruct them the way we do. [I see I failed to originally share that our love for and thanks to the LORD is the foundation or the ‘why’ behind the way we go. Otherwise, we’d just be training the flesh to comply.]

From an early age they are learning about virtues, faith, honour, trust and obedience… behaviours of civility and self control and soon they move into reflecting moral understanding and to developing disciplines of responsibility and order and discretion. In time, they start to more deeply grasp the basis for morality along with a personal responsibility for actions, decisions and the benefits and consequences of attention or neglect.

Repetition. Repetition. Repetition - we pray the repetition results in a fruitful life - a life fully yielded to the LORD.

Posted in Parenting, Family | Print | 1 Comment »

August 15, 2008 by pamela.

For several months I have been using ‘home-made’ laundry soap and have been very pleased with the results! In addition to the ease of making the soap, the dollar savings has been a great help to me/my family! This may sound terrible, but I’ve never attempted to be very thrifty in the laundry room. As a front-loader user and a Tide–Clorox–Spray’nWash–Oxi-Clean-Downey girl and mom of many, I’ve obviously bought large, washed large and $pent large. Now… after several months of still washing large but not spending large, it’d be pretty tough to go and spend $27. on a box of Tide and $12.00 on a bottle of Downey. Now, I’m spending less than 5 dollars for about 100 loads of wash. I still use hot-hot water & double rinse for white clothes and towels.

I still use the Spray ‘n Wash occasionally and the Oxi Clean, too, on occasion, but for the most part I am using only the home-made soap and Vinegar in the rinse dispenser for rinse aid and softening the fabric. I’m going to try a mix of hydrogen peroxide/lemon juice —or— when I can order some, I’d like to try sodium perborate for whitening the clothes w/o using Clorox bleach.

So, here’s a way of making home made laundry soap. And… by the way, I used Fels Naptha for the first 5 gallon pail, and I used lavender goat-milk soap the last time. I think I prefer the lavender soap and so I ordered lavender bar soap from Azure Standard to use in making my next bucketful of laundry-soap next week. Okay, so I started with these: an empty 5 gallon bucket, water, bar soap, washing soda & borax. I got the soap, washing soda and borax at Fred Meyer (you can find these in most grocery store’s laundry products department).

First, I grated a bar of Fels Naptha soap and covered that grated bar with water in a medium sauce pot - on low - on the stove. I stirred it until it completely melted.

Here’s what the grated soap looks like in the pan — and this is what is then covered with 4-6 cups of hot water and stirred until completely dissolved.

Then I filled my bucket one fourth full of hot-hot water and 2 cups of Borax and 2 Cups of Washing Soda

… and then I whisked and whisked and whisked until the borax and soda were completely dissolved.

…and when then I switched to my large-long handled potato masher and used that to incorporate the liquefied Fels Naptha or other bar of soap. It becomes quite gelatinous and thick after blending. I moved the half full bucket to our laundry area and then I filled it the rest of the way with hot water and continued to blend well.

I then snapped on a Gamma Seal lid - a very cool product - especially if you have arthritis and prying off bucket lids is hard. I have slowly switched all of our former lids to Gamma Seal lids (fits most 3.5-7 gallon buckets). The seems-permanent ‘ring’ is snapped on the bucket and the center of the lid spins off to open and on to tightly close the bucket. I use buckets for grains, cereals, honey, raw sugar, granola… and now, soap!

When my soap is finished, I fill a small 1 gallon rubbermaid bucket that sits on my washing machine. And the rest of the soap remains in the 5 gallon bucket for refills. I use about one HALF cup per load - and less than that on lightly soiled clothes - so, essentially there are 160 portions in a 5 gallon bucket. [I had the math wrong here originally — oops]

My 5-gallon bucket is now empty - ready for the next soap making in a few days. One more note… I add a dropper full of Essential Oil (honeysuckle, orange, lavender mixed in a little bottle) to each load’s rinse water - yep, right into the vinegar in the “fabric softener” dispenser.

And… voilà nice clean, sweet smelling clothes! Happy washing!!

Posted in Recipes, Homemaking | Print | 4 Comments »

August 12, 2008 by pamela.

I forgot to post these photos from our local library in June. I was amazed at the blatant message of the posters - considering that they were located in the center of the library next to the computers. Slowly, desensitization and subtle indoctrination is taking place… you may not even realize it until you start using common jargon to describe sodomy, for example - or until other common words replace evil. Consider - what, at one time might have been called abomination is now (for fear of man) simply called: inappropriate. Now, to take this stand, one is commonly at risk of being called hateful - phobic. But, surely, that’s just part of the enemy’s tactic to silence people who stand for the truth. Standing for truth is not hateful nor is it phobic or fearful — but the defeated foe must employ whatever means possible to deceive and attack.

Here’s what adults and children saw in our library in June.

8/13 edit: For the record… my reason for posting this on my blog is that there are statements on this poster that are just totally absolutely reprehensible and egregious for a public library to endorse by posting this display in the middle of the library for the month of June.

Impressionable, vulnerable, *innocent* children must be protected from: “join the transexual menace” and from the potential for exploitation and abuse of others: “hang out with children and teach them how to cross dress barbie and GI joe” and by the mere suggestion that there are “things you can do to eradicate gender or multiply it exponentially.”

Shame on the Snohomish Public Library. What’s in the books on the shelves is wholly another matter. What’s on display in the middle of the library is the issue at hand here. And this is a blatant, in your face, attack on God, on faith, on the family and society at large. Shame on the Snohomish library for breaching the confidence and safety and assaulting the sensibilities of children and families… the patrons who pay for and frequent this library.

Well, Duh.  But - eradicating gender or promoting exploitation, abuse, confusion and/or abomination is not the answer.

Posted in Society | Print | 6 Comments »

August 12, 2008 by pamela.

Presentation is everything… image is everything… whatever the cost.  My friend used to tell me these things about the country to which she and her husband were missionaries.  My mother said very similar things upon returning from an extended visit to the same country.  I marveled each time I heard this… incredulous that it matters not at all what is but only what seems is important.  The end result… a perfect compromise… regardless the cost or what’s sacrificed.

…we should all understand it like this…”  Truthy not facty - not what is but what seems.

From the UK Telegraph

In referring to the decision to *use* Lin Miaoke for presentation in singing fro the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Olympics in China:

The main consideration was the national interest,” he said. “The child on the screen should be flawless in image, in her internal feelings, and in her expression. In the matter of her voice, Yang Peiyi was flawless, in the unanimous opinion of all the members of the team.”

“That was until attention turned to Yang Peiyi’s teeth. Nevertheless, Mr Chen thought the end result a perfect compromise. We have a responsibility to face the audience of the whole country, and to be open with this explanation,” he said. “We should all understand it like this: it is a question of the national interest. It is a question of the image of our national music, our national culture.

“Especially at the entrance of our national flag, this is an extremely important, an extremely serious matter. So we made the choice. I think it is fair to both Lin Miaoke and Yang Peiyi - after all, we have a perfect voice, a perfect image and a perfect show, in our team’s view, all together.”

Image is everything - what seems  is the only imperative.   Like the fireworks display for the opening ceremony… the world didn’t see reality.  But— that didn’t matter, because only image mattered.  The fireworks were computer generated graphics,

Gao Xiaolong, head of the visual effects team for the ceremony, said it had taken almost a year to create the 55-second sequence. Meticulous efforts were made to ensure the sequence was as unnoticeable as possible: they sought advice from the Beijing meteorological office as to how to recreate the hazy effects of Beijing’s smog at night, and inserted a slight camera shake effect to simulate the idea that it was filmed from a helicopter. Seeing how it worked out, it was still a bit too bright compared to the actual fireworks,” he said. “But most of the audience thought it was filmed live - so that was mission accomplished.”  [And as a spokeswoman for the Olympics said, “As far as we are concerned, we let off the fireworks - that’s what’s important to us”]

So, what’s all this got to do what Jeremiah?  Well, in reading through the first few chapters this morning, I was marveling at the similarities between the above and much of the “church” (general - mainstream - emergent, etc.) today.   Chapter 2 of Jeremiah, in particular and a few verses specifically:

5  Thus saith the LORD, What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain? … 7  And I brought you into a plentiful country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye entered, ye defiled my land, and made mine heritage an abomination. 8  The priests said not, Where is the LORD? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit.  9  Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD, and with your children’s children will I plead… (11) …but my people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit. 12  Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD. 13  For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water…  21  Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me?  22  For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord GOD. 23  How canst thou say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a swift dromedary traversing her ways;  24  A wild ass used to the wilderness…  25  Withhold thy foot from being unshod, and thy throat from thirst: but thou saidst, There is no hope: no; for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go.”

And then I consider… how can it be that truth doesn’t matter - that image is the only thing that’s important?  Vanity and pride - lies that entice and deceive men and women into forgetting God and though clothed in rags, masquerading as beautiful and wise.  The “church” today led by ‘pastors’ who do not know the Word of God - who, for their own profit and advancement of their own opinions exploit and lead millions astray.  I think of little Lin Miaoke - totally exploited for the sake of the image of a country - I wonder how she’ll feel when she’s old enough to understand mockery and fraud.

I guess she’ll feel used and ashamed.  But then, maybe she will remain under the delusion of her imprisoning government and continue to deny her own conscience or she will find redemption in the LORD… like those who come into the Light of the Truth of the Word of God - when they come to see the Lord Jesus and realize that all along they had been duped, tricked and rejected the only One who could give them Living water and eternal life.   Only then will she know genuine peace - true freedom.

I think of China… I think of Russia… our own pitifully deceived nation… and I wonder - O, God… how can the world continually reject You - our merciful, sovereign LORD?   O, the power of the enemy of God - the enemy of Creation - the enemy of our souls. O, the arrogance of vanity and pride.

Even so, Come, LORD Jesus.

Posted in devotionals, News DuJour | Print | 1 Comment »

August 9, 2008 by pamela.

I’ve been thinking about a lot of things lately… things I like to do, things I used to do… habits and regimens that have been most important in my life… things I’ve left off doing, things I need to prioritize.

I like to write.
I like to blog.
I like to share slices of life.
I like to write about what’s going on. and. what. I. think. about. it.
I like to link to others who think — really think — about things.
I like to hear from you.
I like to share photos.
I like to share stories.

I think it’s all part of the fact that I always thought I was born to be a princess. And, perhaps, that I think everyone wants to hear about something I thought was worth writing about — now, I didn’t say everyone wants to read what *I* thought about something, no, no, no…. I mean, when I see something in the news or a book or a study or hear something on the airwaves, I think others will want to hear about it too.

Problem is, (if you keep reading here) you’ll have to sift out my take on it, put it through your own filter, see what you think and… well, maybe you’ll come back and read again some other day. And then again, maybe not. That’s the cool thing about the proliferation of blogs. There’re hundreds of thousands of blogs from which to choose — dozens and dozens of newspages with hundreds of links everyday — so there’s surely no shortage of stuff to read.

When I started blogging over five years ago, there weren’t a bazillion blogs from which to choose and so it was easy to write, add links for further browsing pleasure and so on. I didn’t use a service like I do now with Wordpress. At first I didn’t keep monthly blogs on my site for future reference… I just cleared the page at the beginning of each month and started in again. But then I realized I would want to reference something and so decided to keep monthly blogs as their own file. Even today I go back to those blogs for info and sometimes just to reminisce - I’m migrating those to this blogsite for ease of navigation and for posterity, too, I guess. Today, there are so many blogs that one could not possibly regularly visit all the favourites. and. still. get. *any*thing. done.

Still… I miss blogging everyday. So… along with several other resolves to resume ’stuff I used to do’ - I think I’ll attempt to do so once again. It’s therapeutic for me — and it’s cheaper than therapy — and, besides, I was born to be a princess.

Posted in Potpourri | Print | 4 Comments »

August 8, 2008 by pamela.

The lights, action, cameras… all eyes on China.
Remember our Brothers and Sisters in chains.

All that glitters is not gold.

Pray for China… pray for persecuted Christians in China.

Posted in Potpourri | Print | No Comments »

July 24, 2008 by pamela.

I’ve received emails with the following article a few times since yesterday afternoon… and each time I receive it I’m once again encouraged and reminded of the great blessing of motherhood and childbearing specifically. I’m encouraged bcz the ones who have sent it are mothers who not only love their children but also love being mothers — mothers who have borne many children and whose bodies have been made comfortable… for babies… and adored by husbands who appreciate and marvel at the handiwork and blessing of the Lord.

Article by Jeff (The Public Undressing of America) Pollard

The True Meaning of Beauty:
A Pastoral Letter to Fruitful Vines

 Dear Fruitful Vines,

One never knows in God’s mercy and kindness what a simple appeal to a Biblical passage can produce. As I was pondering my last encouragement to you all, I pondered Psalm 128. Verse 3 says, “Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house.” I thought, “You know, instead of saying, ‘Dear pregnant moms,’ maybe, ‘Fruitful Vines,’ instead.” Now “pregnant moms” is a lovely term to me. Nevertheless, from the encouraging replies I received regarding the term Fruitful Vines, it will now be the address of choice!

This also pointed out to me again the importance of words and, especially in our society, of image. You dear sisters have to stand in the checkout lines of Wal-Mart and other stores all the time. Glaring at you are rows of magazines that virtually shout at you, “The Hollywood Harlots are the standard of beauty. You have to look like this, and display that, or you are not beautiful.”

Don’t listen to this. Reject it. Replace this lie with God’s truth.

Some of you mentioned waddling. Some of you mentioned that vines are thin. I was amused. Yet, I was also pierced to my very soul. Our society has made body-sculpting surgeons rich and constantly shoves its artificial, nip-and-tuck, silicone and Botox standard of beauty in your face. Let me tell you something: waddling, as your body bears the children God gave you, is holy. The changes, the aches, the pains, the swelling, the stretch marks, and all the rest-these are all beautiful in the eyes of the Lord and to any man who has his biblical wits about him. It is stunning beauty to see women submitting to the often painful changes that bearing the Lord’s children brings. Being fruitful and multiplying brings glory to the Lord Jesus Christ and is the holy act of bringing God’s elect into this world. Through virgin’s womb, our beloved Savior entered this world. Mary did the most holy waddling that has ever graced the planet. It was not the sultry, sensual sashay of seduction. It was the humble, load-bearing, groaning, aching waddle of the salvation of all God’s elect for all eternity.

Waddle on,groan on, swell up to the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ: you are displaying a true and holy beauty to your God and to anyone who has eyes to see.

My beloved wife used to say in her last trimester, “I feel like a beached whale.” I wish I had told her a million times and more, “But you are beautiful to me and to the Lord.” She was then and she is now the delight of my eyes. Dear Vines, there is a beauty in your fulfilling the eternal purpose of God to which all the airbrushed, surgically enhanced bodies on this planet will never compare. Your self-effacing sacrifice displays the glory of your Lord.

Waddle, swell, and groan to glory of your Savior. He knows true beauty when he sees it…”

The above article by Jeff Pollard posted at Vision Forum | Doug Phillips Blog Permalink

with love and thanks to the LORD for the inestimable gift of motherhood and opportunity for life…

Posted in birth control, Motherhood | Print | 3 Comments »

July 22, 2008 by pamela.

I wrote about all the swooning and fainting at Obama speeches and you know, I thought the whole deal was a perfect set up for the campaign or, rather, the candidate, to appear ‘messiah-like’ in his presentation and presence. He notices the fainting ones… he seemed to care… he was the only one offering help… he was a-mazing. He met felt needs, he presented material people wanted to hear, he appeared to care, he was sensitive, he offered solutions, he promised good things, he seemed to have all the answers…

I kept wondering [and I keep wondering]… is he really only a US Senator? Does he ever go to work? It’s incredible - only in America - could this happen… media driven America and the who-cares-what-he’s-done-I-like-how-he-sounds! What, actually, does he do? Or, what, actually, has he done?  I don’t mean what has he proposed or what has he talked about doing… I mean, what has he done?

Incredible, isn’t it!?!? No real track record of actual accomplishments. No great wisdom or understanding - to produce a change that will be actually wise and beneficial. No wise counsel or solutions - but lots of schmooze for the masses. Is it really *not* important to the American people that the Emperor really has no clothes? Incredible… as with so many other things… poor, poor America.

Here you go: look what Obama has done for you. [keep clicking, there’s more… much more]

But really, Rick Warren’s got all the answers for you here.

[edited Wednesday morning; for incredulity, humour is a bit of a tension reliever.]

Posted in Potpourri | Print | 3 Comments »

July 15, 2008 by pamela.

and I suppose if I could choose any photo… it would be this:

or this.

If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free… If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”
–John 8.31b,32,36

He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep
to gain what he cannot lose.”
–Jim Elliot

Posted in Timothy - Ghana, devotionals, Family | Print | 6 Comments »

July 14, 2008 by pamela.

I was thinking this morning that God’s grace is sufficient for the day… and then considered: how much grace does God have? How much mercy? The Word says He is plenteous in mercy and that He gives liberally. Can I exhaust the grace of God? Can I ask Him too often for mercy - for grace - for wisdom? Is His ear far from my cry? No… to all of these things, no… His arm is not shortened that it cannot save, His mercy knows no end and there is no accounting of His grace and wisdom - for if the grace of God is sufficient, then whatever He does, is, gives or says will be or is sufficient for me. Always.

I’ve been missing my boy… we passed the half year point since he left for Africa. I’m glad he’s there. Truly, I am glad. But I miss him - I miss his exuberance and enthusiasm for work and play. I miss his quirky characteristics - never giving a straight face or simple smile for a photo - quick wit - ready to help - zealous for the Truth - reading and reading and reading and then sharing what he gleaned. I miss his projects and inventions… seeing him in his reading chair or looking at articles, clips or notes on the computer.

I miss seeing him standing at the kitchen sink eating potato rolls with raspberry jam dripping down his arms.

I miss that he loved, loved, loved Poor Bear and everything Pooh Bear… and volleyball and running. I miss that I cannot see him ministering and preaching the gospel. I miss his eyes… his laugh… his Timothyism’s. I miss his observations of things I missed in places, people and photos.

I know many, many mothers have been or are where I am today. I used to think of that while I was labouring before birth… but that knowledge didn’t really help me then and somehow doesn’t really lift me now, either. But one thing it does is give me more compassion - more compassion for those who have gone before me and more compassion for mothers who are facing loss, disappointment, regret or hurting hearts today.

But I still miss my boy. a. lot.

God gives more grace. Praise His name. And I sing:

He Giveth More Grace

He giveth more grace when the burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength when the labors increase;
To added affliction He addeth His mercy;
To multiplied trials, His multiplied peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources,
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

Fear not that thy need shall exceed His provision,
Our God ever yearns His resources to share;
Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing;
The Father both thee and thy load will upbear.

His love has no limit; His grace has no measure.
His pow’r has no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus,
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again!

Annie Johnson Flint

God has given me everything I hoped for………………..

Timothy’s pages

 

Posted in Timothy - Ghana, devotionals, Family | Print | 3 Comments »

July 3, 2008 by pamela.

The contents of Timothy’s bags was pretty minimal when he left for Ghana six months ago. There were few necessities and few luxuries and I suppose that were he to have had to dump his possessions or to make a choice what to take and what to leave behind, the soccer balls would not have been in the ‘left behind’ grouping. There were few items on the priority list, but topping that list was soccer balls, for Timothy knows that wherever he goes, soccer is the universal language — it’s the great equalizer — anywhere.

Timothy had an opportunity to go with his Ghanaian friend, Clem, to visit Clem’s home village. A treat was to go to the beach. and. play. soccer.

Then… “small friends in Tacrodi”

Posted in Timothy - Ghana | Print | 1 Comment »

July 3, 2008 by pamela.

This pic’s from Timothy in Ghana.

There’s a story here. Hmmmmm.

Timothy says that’s the Methodist church in the back ground. A very typical sight in the extremely poverty stricken area.  Makes me think:  what are we saying here in the States with our exceeding wealth and mega-buildings and mega programs and mega institutions?

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July 3, 2008 by pamela.

I often say, your sphere of influence is greater than your sphere of acquaintance.   And now, my new favourite phrase is: you can number the seeds in an apple, but you cannot number the apples in a seed.  For, who can know the influence of a life?  Who can measure the value of a life yielded to Christ?

I’ve not been able to blog lately… so much time and so little to do.  Reverse that.   But I did receive a letter in the mails today that I thought would be worth the time of reading.  Truly, there is little encouragement in the pages of news and reports these days.  Surely, it seems, the whole world’s gone mad.  And the church with it.  O, may God help us all. What a sorry state when a man turns his back on God… but when ‘church’ leaders turn their backs on the Truth of the Word of God.  A certainty: perilous times have come… and I must suppose that judgment must begin at the house of God. (2Timothy 3.1; 1Peter 4.17)

 

Back in 1921, a missionary couple named David and Svea Flood went with their 2 year old son from Sweden to the heart of Africa to what was then called the Belgian Congo. They met up with another young Scandinavian couple, the Ericksons, and the four of them sought God for direction.

 
 In those days of much tenderness and devotion and sacrifice, they felt led of the Lord to set out from the main mission station and take the gospel to a remote area. This was a huge step of faith. At the village of N’dolera they were rebuffed by the chief, who would not let them enter his town for fear of alienating the local gods. The two couples opted to go
 half a mile up the slope and build their own mud huts’. They prayed for a spiritual breakthrough, but there was none. The only contact with the villagers was a young boy, who was allowed to sell them chickens and eggs twice a week.
 
 Svea Flood, a tiny woman only four feet, eight inches tall, decided that if this was the only African she could talk to, she would try to lead the boy to Jesus. And in fact, she succeeded. But there were no other encouragements.
 
 Meanwhile, malaria continued to strike one member of the little band after another. In time the Ericksons decided they had had enough suffering and left to return to the central mission station. David and Svea Flood remained near N’dolera to go on alone. Then, of all things, Svea found herself pregnant in the middle of the primitive wilderness. When the time came for her to give birth, the village chief softened enough to allow a midwife to help her. A little girl was born, whom they named Aina. The delivery, however, was exhausting, and Svea Flood was already weak from bouts of malaria. The birth process was a heavy blow to her stamina. She lasted only another seventeen days.
 
 Inside David Flood, something snapped in that moment. He dug a crude grave, buried his twenty-seven-year-old wife, and then took his children back down the mountain to the mission station. Giving his newborn daughter to the Ericksons, he snarled, ‘I’m going back to Sweden. I’ve lost my wife, and I obviously can’t take care of this baby. God has ruined my life.’ With that, he headed for the port, rejecting not only his calling, but God himself. Within eight months both the Ericksons were stricken with a mysterious malady and died within days of each other. The baby was then turned over to some American missionaries, who adjusted her Swedish name to ‘Aggie’ and eventually brought her back to the United States at age three.
 
 This family loved the little girl and were afraid that if they tried to return to Africa, some legal obstacle might separate her from them. So they decided to stay in their home country and switch from missionary work to pastoral ministry. And that is how Aggie grew up in South Dakota. As a young woman, she attended North Central Bible College in Minneapolis. There she met and married a young man named Dewey Hurst. Years passed; the Hursts enjoyed a fruitful Ministry. Aggie gave birth first to a daughter, then a son. In time her husband became president of a Christian college in the Seattle area, and Aggie was intrigued to find so much Scandinavian heritage there.
 
 One day a Swedish religious magazine appeared in her mailbox. She had no idea who had sent it, and of course she couldn’t read the words. But as she turned the pages, all of a sudden a photo stopped her cold. There in a primitive setting was a grave with a white cross-and on the cross were the words SVEA FLOOD. Aggie jumped in her car and went straight for a college faculty member who, she knew, could translate the article. ‘What does this say?’ she demanded. The instructor summarized the story: It was about missionaries who had come to N’dolera long ago … the birth of a white baby… the death of the young mother … the one little African boy who had been led to Christ … and how, after the whites had all left, the boy had grown up and finally persuaded the chief to let him build a school in the village. The article said that gradually he won all his students to Christ… the children led their parents to Christ… even the chief had become a Christian. Today there were six hundred Christian believers in that one village…. All because of the sacrifice of David
 and Svea Flood.
 
 For the Hursts’ twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, the college presented them with the gift of a vacation to Sweden. There Aggie sought to find her real father. An old man now, David Flood had remarried, fathered four more children, and generally dissipated his life with alcohol. He had recently suffered a stroke. Still bitter, he had one rule in his family:
 ‘Never mention the name of God because God took everything from me. After an emotional reunion with her half brothers and half sister, Aggie brought up the subject of seeing her father. The others hesitated. ‘You can talk to him,’ they replied, ‘even though he’s very ill now. But you need to know that whenever he hears the name of God, he flies into a rage.
 
 Aggie was not to be deterred. She walked into the squalid apartment, with liquor bottles everywhere, and approached the seventy-three-year-old man lying in a rumpled bed. ‘Papa~’ she said tentatively. He turned and began to cry. ‘Aina,’ he said. ‘I never meant to give you away.’ ‘It’s all right, Papa,’ she replied, taking him gently in her arms. ‘God took care
 of me.’ The man instantly stiffened. The tears stopped. ‘God forgot all of us. Our lives have been like this because of Him.’ He turned his face back to the wall. Aggie stroked his face and then continued, undaunted. ‘Papa, I’ve got a little story to tell you, and it’s a true one. You didn’t go to Africa in vain. Mama didn’t die in vain. The little boy you won to the Lord grew up to win that whole village to Jesus Christ. The one seed you planted just kept growing and growing. Today there are six
 hundred African people serving the Lord because you were faithful to the call of God in your life. … Papa, Jesus loves you. He has never hated you.’ The old man turned back to look into his daughter’s eyes. His body relaxed. He began to talk. And by the end of the afternoon, he had come back to the God he had resented for so many decades. Over the next few days, father and daughter enjoyed warm moments together. Aggie and her husband soon had to return to America-and within a few weeks, David Flood had gone into eternity.
 
 A few years later, the Hursts were attending a high-level evangelism conference in London, England, when a report was given from the nation of Zaire (the former Belgian Congo). The superintendent of the national church, representing some 110,000 baptized believers, spoke eloquently of the gospel’s spread in his nation. Aggie could not help going to ask him
 afterward if he had ever heard of David and Svea Flood. ‘Yes, madam,’ the man replied in French, his words then being translated into English. ‘It was Svea Flood who led me to Jesus Christ. I was the boy who brought food to your parents before you were born. In fact, to this day your mother’s grave and her memory are honored by all of us.’ He embraced her in a long, sobbing hug. Then he continued, ‘You must come to Africa to see, because your mother is the most famous person in our history.’ In time that is exactly what Aggie Hurst and her husband did. They were welcomed by cheering throngs of villagers. She even met the man who had been hired by her father many years before to carry her back down the mountain in a hammock-cradle. The most dramatic moment, of course, was when the pastor escorted Aggie to see her mother’s white cross for herself. She knelt in the soil to pray and give thanks.
 

O, the inestimable value of a life lived for Christ!

Praise Him.

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June 25, 2008 by pamela.

Homeschool law.