1 Thessalonians 5:18
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Giving thanks for...
...my Peter, the idea man, who keeps this place hopping with playtime delight, along with the detail man's help (that would be Paul). The last two days brought library simulation time. Peter and Paul rounded up "library cards" for everyone (our old CA driver's licenses and other old cards) and used Daddy's bible college books to set up a library, from which the kids checked out books, raced the clock and went back to a bedroom to "read" them. Next, they returned them, only to check out more. If they didn't beat the clock they had to pay an overdue fee of 5 cents a book. When checked out, the books were given a small cross stamp in red ink, on the inside back cover--the cross stamp being the smallest stamp they could find. Daddy would never sell his collection of bible scholar books, so I figured a small, inconspicuous stamp wouldn't hurt anything.
...Miss Mary delighting us with her pretend reading. She inserted dates and read thus: "In 1921 they sailed the seas, seeking adventure...." The boys, so tickled by Mary's readings, congregated outside the bedroom, listening and giggling. "In the 1590's they sailed and ran into aliens."
Okay, I admit it. Mary likes Backyardigan library videos, and though I personally hate them, I say yes a couple times a month. I suspect this is where she might get her "adventure language"? It certainly isn't from The Swiss Family Robinson, which Daddy tried to read to the boys after Mary's bedtime (They boys, it turns out, couldn't handle the Old English yet).
...a day of baking and blessing. I didn't keep the laundry moving yesterday, but we did bake ten dozen cookies, enabling us to bless our mechanic, Gary, and still have some left to enjoy at home. Husband considers it a happy day when he walks through the door at 7:00 PM (following 12 hours away from home), only to find a pie or freshly baked cookies waiting for him. We try to sit down to dinner between 6:30 and 6:45, so that we're all still there when Daddy comes home. He joins us and encourages the girls to finish all their food--a duty I hate. While he eats, the children start on the prayer jars for corporate prayer. The first one done eating, usually Peter, gets the dessert on the table (if we baked something). Next, someone starts on a Bible reading. When dessert is included Miss Beth, almost three, stays around longer. She also loves to unwrap prayers and "read" them after I whisper them into her ear.
...the beginnings of a beat up Bible. Do you have a clean, neat Bible, with pages still perfect? Shame on you, then! I too, have a Bible that doesn't look well studied. A well-used Bible, marked and dated each time a passage is read, is the way to a deeper Christian walk, along with regular prayer--disjointed though it may be. Let's all make 2012 the year our Bibles become marked up and well-studied. I started a few weeks ago with this, and last night I read the Book of Colossians, underlining my favorite verses and dating them with tiny numbers in the margins. Next time I read them, I'll add another date. Miss Beth did not have one of her wake-ups until I'd read the last line. How's that for divine intervention?
...Colossians, which is a beautiful book. My favorite verses below:
Colossians 3:12-17
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Giving thanks for...
...my Peter, the idea man, who keeps this place hopping with playtime delight, along with the detail man's help (that would be Paul). The last two days brought library simulation time. Peter and Paul rounded up "library cards" for everyone (our old CA driver's licenses and other old cards) and used Daddy's bible college books to set up a library, from which the kids checked out books, raced the clock and went back to a bedroom to "read" them. Next, they returned them, only to check out more. If they didn't beat the clock they had to pay an overdue fee of 5 cents a book. When checked out, the books were given a small cross stamp in red ink, on the inside back cover--the cross stamp being the smallest stamp they could find. Daddy would never sell his collection of bible scholar books, so I figured a small, inconspicuous stamp wouldn't hurt anything.
...Miss Mary delighting us with her pretend reading. She inserted dates and read thus: "In 1921 they sailed the seas, seeking adventure...." The boys, so tickled by Mary's readings, congregated outside the bedroom, listening and giggling. "In the 1590's they sailed and ran into aliens."
Okay, I admit it. Mary likes Backyardigan library videos, and though I personally hate them, I say yes a couple times a month. I suspect this is where she might get her "adventure language"? It certainly isn't from The Swiss Family Robinson, which Daddy tried to read to the boys after Mary's bedtime (They boys, it turns out, couldn't handle the Old English yet).
...a day of baking and blessing. I didn't keep the laundry moving yesterday, but we did bake ten dozen cookies, enabling us to bless our mechanic, Gary, and still have some left to enjoy at home. Husband considers it a happy day when he walks through the door at 7:00 PM (following 12 hours away from home), only to find a pie or freshly baked cookies waiting for him. We try to sit down to dinner between 6:30 and 6:45, so that we're all still there when Daddy comes home. He joins us and encourages the girls to finish all their food--a duty I hate. While he eats, the children start on the prayer jars for corporate prayer. The first one done eating, usually Peter, gets the dessert on the table (if we baked something). Next, someone starts on a Bible reading. When dessert is included Miss Beth, almost three, stays around longer. She also loves to unwrap prayers and "read" them after I whisper them into her ear.
...the beginnings of a beat up Bible. Do you have a clean, neat Bible, with pages still perfect? Shame on you, then! I too, have a Bible that doesn't look well studied. A well-used Bible, marked and dated each time a passage is read, is the way to a deeper Christian walk, along with regular prayer--disjointed though it may be. Let's all make 2012 the year our Bibles become marked up and well-studied. I started a few weeks ago with this, and last night I read the Book of Colossians, underlining my favorite verses and dating them with tiny numbers in the margins. Next time I read them, I'll add another date. Miss Beth did not have one of her wake-ups until I'd read the last line. How's that for divine intervention?
...Colossians, which is a beautiful book. My favorite verses below:
Colossians 3:12-17
12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Colossians 4:2-6
2 Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. 3 And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. 4 Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. 5 Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.
...the whoopee cushion. During my Thanksgiving shopping, I found a $1 whoopee cushion to keep the children busy while we cooked like fiends. Oh, the giggles! All these days later, they're still giggling and trying to trick us into sitting down on the whoopee.
...the morning Lincoln Log creations, which get more elaborate each day.
...pictures of Daddy reading to his sweeties. Those jean-couch cushion covers, a six-year-old eyesore, need to be dyed indigo blue. I'll get to that eventually, thanks to a friend who suggested doing it in the washer itself. Am I crazy to try that?
...online friends who encourage and love and bless every day. Without much family around and with no time to go on "girlfriend" dates, I sure need my online friends, who help keep me sane. Thank you!
More blessings another time. Looks like library simulation time is over, meaning I'll have to ride herd to get Daddy's books back on the shelves.
Have a blessed day!
2 comments:
i love when you count blessings. i do. what a joy. and miss mary just might be getting those adventuresome ideas from backyardigans. :) how fun.
Yeah, Backyardigans and maybe a bit of the Mayflower voyage. :)
Thank you, Jess, for your friendship and love!
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