The Bible Tells Me

I’m not the Bible scholar I should be. I know some verses; not as many as I ought. Still, I find most of my experiences can be framed or underscored, explained or illuminated, by Scripture. Or maybe a hymn or a worship song, a devotional or a testimony. Frequently, I have those “Oh, yeah” moments when I see God clearly in an event. Or realized that I should have seen Him.

These are the moments of “The Bible tells me.”

These essays reflect that. Do know that I can proof-text as well as anyone. I have a concordance, and I know how to use it. Well, truthfully, I do all of that online now, where I can quickly find a passage, see it in many versions, and choose the one I like best. I try not to be narrow, but instead broad, as I apply Bible words to my experiences. I know that your interpretations and understanding may be different than mine. But I also know that our God is big enough for all of us.

I have a friend who, in her prayer time, likes to tell jokes to God. “I know He knows the punch line,” she says. “But I tell them anyway. He likes it when I laugh.”

He likes it when I laugh. I’m going to hang on to that. It’s Biblical. The Bible tells me.

Our mouths were filled with laughter then,
and our tongues with shouts of joy.
Then they said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
The Lord had done great things for us;
we were joyful.

Psalm 126: 2,3 (HCSB)

Friends Add to the Fun!

August 8, 2019 | Joy, Love, Patience

I went to the post from two years ago, where that year’s Fun with Friends photos are. And, I have to say, they’re much like the photos from this year. Different kids. Same sorts of messes. Same sorts of FUN!!!

A number of years ago, I was wanting to have some more time, beyond the hour of Sunday School on Sundays, and beyond what we did in Bible School, to be able to provide some creative, interesting things for preschoolers to do. Music Camp was happening for school-age children, and I proposed to have some creative activities for preschool kids who had finished Pre-K and Kindergarten. I followed the Music Camp schedule and called the event Fun with Friends. The first group of kids who came to Fun with Friends are eighth or ninth graders now. We do Science one year and Art the next. This year was Art year.

We usually follow the Music Camp schedule, which is five days, sometimes mornings, sometimes evenings, in late June. Music Camp has been put on hold for a while, so I could plan a schedule that worked for more preschool families. We went with a four-Saturday schedule, 9-to-noon. It worked really well. Peter was able to come for the last two.

Saturday I-Collage

: Working together here to add a variety of collage items into the middle of letters that spell “Fun with Friends.”

: A variety of paper shapes are glued to paper at the easel.

: Crayon shavings are sprinkled onto waxed paper, another piece of waxed paper is placed on top, then an adult pressed a warm iron over the paper, which melts the crayon pieces into interesting designs.

: Collage day snacks–pizza collages

: Everyone is hard at work on sand and seashell collages.

: We had Eric Carle books to look at and read, because his illustrations are collages.

Saturday II-Drawing

: Working together as a group, adding different colored items into sections of a color wheel

: Easels are not just for painting!

: Kids drew designs on cookie dough using edible markers.

: Oil pastels work really well on dark, dark paper.

: July can be pretty hot, but this day was nice enough for chalk drawing outside.

: Many book illustrations are drawings.

Saturday III-Painting and Printing

: Paints, brushes, and sponge shapes, and kids making a space mural.

: Painting at the easel with a sponge roller.

: For snack, kids painted designs on bread, using milk tinted with food colors.

: We painted with tennis balls by rolling them back and forth through paint puddes in a great big box.

: And they painted with their bare feet.

: This is printing with a textured piece of a tray, wrapped around a rolling pin.

Saturday IV-Sculpture

: I have been collecting/saving all sorts of things, like cardboard tubes and marker lids and plastic bottles and round tissue boxes, and stuff like that, for months and months.

: They worked and worked and worked on their group sculpture. If I had not made them stop, because we needed to make our sculpture snack, they would have worked until noon.

: Each kid had a blob of bread dough to shape into a sculpture, as well as almonds, raisins, and pretzel sticks to add.

: Sometimes the thing I think will be exciting and interesting and keep children working does not work out that way. Other times, I just put out something that might, maybe, maybe not, be interesting. In our church resource room, I saw these chenille sticks and plastic straw pieces. I thought, well, it might be interesting. They worked and worked and worked with them.

: The finished color wheel from drawing day, the completed and dried) tennis ball painting, and the solar painted mural

Jesus called a small child over to him and set the little fellow down among them, and said, “Unless you turn to God from your sins and become as little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. Therefore anyone who humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. And any of you who welcomes a little child like this because you are mine is welcoming me and caring for me.

Matthew 18:2-5 (The Living Bible)

It’s interesting to me that, when Jesus’ disciples came to him to ask the question about which of them would be the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven, He calls over a small child. This means that there just happened to be a little kid nearby. I hadn’t really thought about the day-to-dayness of Jesus, and how there must have been people around Him and them, wherever He happened to be staying, visiting, walking by. I certainly feel better when there’s a little kid nearby. And ready for some fun.

BAKE!

August 1, 2019 | Love, Patience

I’ve mentioned before that Peter really enjoys the Great British Baking Show. When he was here, a year or so ago, I was watching it while I was walking on my treadmill. He got interested, and now we watch together when he’s visiting.

This past week, he’s been a little under the weather, and we’ve spent several mornings watching the Brits bake and also some Mr. Rogers episodes.

After the first morning’s baking encouragement, he thought we should make an apple pie. With chocolate chips. If Peter had his way, all fruit would come with mini chocolate chips already inside themselves, so when you peeled, chopped, opened them, there the chips would be! Maybe scientists are working on that right now!

I’d gotten a few different kinds of apples when I went to the grocery store a few days earlier. It looked to him like a good mix, and I began to peel them and chop them up. Peter had been a little under the weather, and in the middle of my peeling and chopping, he went to lie down. Then he went to sleep. I doused the apple pieces in lemon juice, and started on the crust. We’d gotten out cookbooks and he decided on a two-crust pie with a lattice top (instead of a plain, easy-to-do top crust). I followed the recipe until the addition of shortening, and I searched my cabinets for Crisco. No Crisco. I just don’t cook/bake very much at all these days. So, now what?

Since several cookbooks were out and opened to the Pastry/Pie sections, I looked and found a pie crust recipe that uses oil instead of shortening. I had oil, and it went together well. The instructions said to cut two pieces of waxed paper into 12-inch squares, and to put half the dough between them and roll out the dough. When the circle of dough reached the edges of the paper, then the crust would be the proper depth. Okay. That was easy. I rolled out two circles, and waited a while for Peter to wake up, which he didn’t do. So I finally put the pie together, adding the requested chocolate chips.

Even the aroma of baking apples and chocolate chips wasn’t enough to rouse him. Peter slept on.

Quite some time later, he woke. I said, “Smell that delicious aroma? That’s your pie.”

The sleepy, feverish boy had a bite and said, “Maybe I’ll have some later.”

The next day, after the pie had sat around for many hours, I sliced it up and froze the pieces. A couple of days after that, Peter said, “Why did you cut up the pie?”

“Because,” I said, “you weren’t eating any of it, and if it sat around for a few days, it wouldn’t be any good. So I cut it into slices and put them in the freezer. Now, anyone who’s hungry for pie can get a piece of your tasty apple and chocolate chip pie, and warm it up, and enjoy it.”

“Oh,” he said. And it seemed like a good idea to him. I don’t think he’s eaten any of it, and maybe he never will. Sort of the thrill of the hunt, I guess.

Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with joyful and sincere hearts

Acts 2:46 (Christian Standard Bible)

I’m grateful that I never have had to go hungry. I’m grateful for family with whom to break bread with a joyful and sincere heart. I’m grateful that I get to make apple and chocolate chip pie with a grandchild. I have a sincerely joyful heart.

Maybe It’s Just a LITTLE Bit Too Early

July 26, 2019 | Joy, Love, Patience

When David would complain about the huge holiday (Christmas) merchandise displays at the local craft/hobby store, in July, I went to bat for them.

“If someone’s going to create their own holiday decorations and/or gifts, they can’t wait until November to start working on them. Needlepoint stockings take a while to complete. Hand-crafted angel ornaments are not a week-before-tree-decorating-time project.”

One of the *several* aisles of Christmas stuff.

I still feel that way, but what I’m seeing now are full-blown trees, swags, boxed ornaments, lights, tree-top stars (all ready to plug in), ready-made wrapping paper and reels of ribbons, along with co-ordinated bows and to/from labels.

I don’t know that I saw any holiday kits or areas that had supplies for creating special Christmas stuff. Of course, there’s always supplies for drawing and painting and tee-shirts to decorate and yarn and fabric. So, of course, people who want to create special, one-of-a-kind gifts can find what they need. And then they can wrap the gift in matching paper, ribbon, and bow. It might look prettier in the box than it does after the box is opened.

But, you know, “crafted with love for . . . ”

: I certainly understand that, if you have brought in all that Christmas stuff, and there is more coming, you are going to have to start moving all that Thanksgiving stuff!

: And, so the shoppers do not get confused, you had better identify all that Christmas stuff with a sign that says, “Christmas.” You know, just in case they have lost track of things, it being July right now.

A few years ago, I needed a picture frame for a gift I was making for David’s mom. I went to the craft/hobby store and was delighted to find that all the frames were 50% off. Yay, yay, hooray! I found the perfect thing to take to her for Mother’s Day.

Then, I began to notice, when I would go there, that the frames were always 50% off. ALWAYS.

Hmmmmm. That made me feel rather fooled. And used. If the frames are always 50% off, does that maybe mean that they’d been priced at twice the price they should be? I guess I could go to Wal-Mart and Target and Michael’s and other places to compare the prices of frames at those places, also keeping in mind the quality and diversity of all those other frames. I’m not going to, but someone might should go. Why don’t you go and compare prices and tell me about it.

: The frame situation.

: These church window-type things are cute and attractive. They are not on sale. At any percent. I wonder if I talk to the manager and explain that I would like to put pictures in the spaces, would I get 50 percent off, like all the other picture frames.

I should have gotten closer to this sign on the door to take the picture. A little hard to read, it says, “Furniture, always 30% off Market Price.”

Really. Always? Maybe the store chain always does so very well, financially, that they actually can always take 30, or 40, or 50 % off their items. Or maybe the manufacturer inflates the market price so that stores that purchase their stock can say always 30, or, 40, or 50% cheaper that the market price.

Anyway, I purchased the colored DuckTape in colors I didn’t already have, and I bought extra paintbrushes so kid can make Painted Toast for Fun with Friends snack. It’s art this year, and this session is “Painting and Printing.”

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
The earth was barren, with no form of life;
it was under a roaring ocean covered with darkness.
But the Spirit of God was moving over the water.

God said, “I command light to shine!” And light started shining.

God looked at the light and saw that it was good. He separated light from darkness.

Genesis 1:1-4 (Contemporary English Version)

When it’s Science Fun with Friends, I start every day saying, “God made a wonderful world for us, and science is how we learn to understand that world.”

When It’s Art Fun with Friends, I start every session by reading Genesis 1:1. And I say, “God created our world. God creates. And you can create. You create different kinds of things, but you have good ideas and you can plan and work. You are creative, too.”

And speaking of God’s wonderful world, here’s what I saw a couple of days ago, while I was sitting on the porch, reading. A very active butterfly, it flitted all around the yellow flowers. I’m happy to have created such a pleasant, attractive space for it.

And, I keep forgetting to give the kitten report. A couple of days after I had first seen it (and hadn’t seen it since), I went next door to say goodbye to neighbors who were moving out of state. While I was talking to the mom, I was watching her toddler daughter, who was enjoying a chocolate doughnut. Then, all of a sudden, I saw a kitten scamper past, into the flowers.

I turned to my neighbor. “You took the kitten!” Yes, she said, and they had felt the same things I had, that I couldn’t touch it, I would have to take it to a shelter. But then, she said, she thought that a new, tiny pet might be the thing that would help the daughter and 5-year-old son adjust to the big change in their lives. So they had taken the kitten to the vet, had shots and medications to get her all well. And, she now had a bow around her neck, and was jumping and playing and trying to get a bite of that delicious doughnut. Turned out well.

Thinking Green. At Least Trying To.

July 18, 2019 | Joy

You have to be pretty sturdy, from a houseplant standpoint, to make it in our house. I appreciate the plants that begin to go limp when they need a drink. I notice, usually, and water them. The plants that are stoic and keep trying to stay healthy/healthyish looking, even when they’re water-starved, often just keel over when they can’t take it any more.

Recently, I’ve been trying to do better at plant care. Everything outside is looking really good. A couple of things inside are making it. A couple of things inside are not making it.

Wednesday, I made a visit to the houseplant department at Lowe’s, to replace some things that, well, have gone on to the land of compost.

I have a nice little dish garden that has three plants. I typically need to replace one every now and then, because sometimes a plant outgrows the space. Or, shrivels up. Here’s what I found to choose from.

: The folks at Lowe’s (or at least the nurseries that stock their houseplant area) provide nice labels that give me information like what their illumination needs are. The common name and the scientific names are included. For most of them.

: This was a little bit sad. It’s rather sweet that “Friends call me Beautiful Home Decor.” But pretty sad that “My full name is ‘Houseplant.'”

I went with the Royal Hustler Ivy.

I also have a couple of good-sized baskets sitting on chairs in the living room. One of them has a dead plant in it. The other one has a couple of leggy, sad, barely alive plants. I tossed out the dead plant, along with it’s container and the basket, which had a very marginalized bottom to it.

: This is a brand new beautiful plant, which came in a self-watering container. I do have to put water in the container, but there’s a smaller container inside that has a wick to take water up into the soil.

: And there’s this nice, new green plant. I did put it in the container that had those two leggy plants with lengthy stems. They seem to be integrating pretty well.

Last summer I brought inside a dish garden that I didn’t think would make it through the winter. I put it on a table by a window, and it did well there. It did so well that I’ve left it there, and I think it’ll stay there, all green and pretty. And still alive.

This day belongs to the Lord! Let’s celebrate and be glad today.

Psalm 118:24 (Contemporary English Version)

It’s Fun with Friends time again, so I’ll be spending time with kids at church, doing some art.

Peter will be coming soon for a visit, and Kevin will be coming by, too, on his way to a ComicCon.

All the plants outside seem to be doing well/staying alive.

I’ve got lots and lots to be glad for.

I Was Chuffed

July 11, 2019 | Patience, Peace

“Chuffed” is a fairly new word in my vocabulary. I heard it, several times, when Peter and I were watching an episode of “The Great British Baking Show.” Baking contestants said it when they got good comments on what they had made, so I imagined that it must be something really great. Their faces looked pretty happy.

I looked it up on Dictionary.com, where it said “delighted, pleased, satisfied.”

I was chuffed last Saturday, while I was out getting some picture books. I went to all four Waco libraries (fortunately, Waco’s not all that big, and it’s not a difficult thing to get to all of them).

I was looking for preschool books about art. At the library closest to me, I went through the computer’s list of books and wrote down the call numbers and library locations. Of course, I could have gotten the books from the library where I was, and requested the other books from other libraries, and they would have been sent over, and I could have gotten them in a couple of days. But, not every book was going to be something that I could use, and then I’d have to bring back the ones I didn’t want, and it just seemed simpler to go to the libraries, look at the books, and then only check out the ones I wanted.

I was chuffed at the downtown library because there was a plethora of babies being strolled in and out of the library, and strolled around the tables and shelves in the library. I’m sure that animated programs displayed on a computer screen do enthrall babies. But they are not the same as a baby sitting in a lap and having an adult turn the pages and read the words and talk about the pictures in a book. I found the books I was looking for, decided which ones to take, along with an interesting book for myself (completely un-art-related), checked them out and carried them to the car.

Next I went to the East Waco library. A family was walking up to the library at the same time as I was. Mom had a tiny baby strapped to herself. “I’ve been to a couple of libraries today,” I said. “I think you win the prize for youngest library patron.” Mom smiled, which I took as an invitation to keep talking (but not touching). “How old?” I asked.

“She’s one week old.”

“Sounds about right for a trip to the library,” I said, and I went in to get some more books.

At the next library, I walked in, looked around, and said to the librarian, “Where are the babies? Every other library I’ve been to today had babies.”

“If you’d been here five minutes ago,” she said. “There was a baby.” Too late.

But the best baby-and-me interaction happened at the first library. I had walked down the aisle where there are audio books. I’m driving up to Ft. Worth in a few days and want something to listen to. As I walked out from that aisle, I saw a mom with a round, happy baby strapped to her chest. I made eye contact and we smiled at each other. “Yes,” I said. “Everybody should have a baby with them at the library.” Mom agreed.

And I went on along to the bank of computers, signed in, and began to look for art books for kids. Then I wrote down all those books and the libraries, and went off to look for the ones that were at this particular library. I found them, looked through them, and decided which ones I would take with me. When I walked from between the stacks on my way to the self-check-out counter, whom should I encounter but my friends, the mom with the baby. We looked our surprise at each other, and I leaned down to look the baby in the face and said, “Are you still here?”

And then I think I asked some baby-related question, like how old was he, or did they have a busy week ahead of them.

“Well,” she said, “we have to go to the doctor.”

“Oh,” I said. “Is he all right.?”

“We have to go to the hospital. For a brain scan. To be sure he’s okay.”

And she told me he’d been really premature, and they were having to keep a close eye on him.

“One of his kidneys is smaller than the other,” she said.

“Are both kidneys working,” I asked.

“For now,” she said.

Ordinarily, because I don’t want to be the scary-lady-at-the-library (or grocery store, or Target), I try to keep a couple of feet between me and any kid I’m talking to. And I certainly don’t touch a kid. But, mom was right there … and I touched his head. And he smiled his happy smile. And we said good-bye, and maybe we’d see each other another day at the library.

I’ve read a lot of library books. Not all of them have happy endings. Then again, quite of few of them do.

If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, come to me and I will give you rest. Take the yoke I give you. Put it on your shoulders and learn from me. I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest.

Mathew 11:28-29 (Contemporary English Version)

A second definition of “chuffed” means “great displeasure.” I guess people have to look at your face to see what sort of “chuffed” you are.

What a Holiday!

July 4, 2019 | Goodness, Joy, Love

For my July 4 breakfast, I had the same thing I have every morning: a cheese and egg breakfast burrito. It’s not, I’m pretty sure, what the the Founding Fathers had for breakfast on July 4, 1776, but it is certainly an early American food. Very early, early American.

The word tortilla originates from the Spanish word tort meaning “cake” and its first documented use was around the mid-1600s. The food itself, a thin flatbread made from dried and finely ground corn, can be traced back many thousands of years to people of the Sierra Madre Mountains. Today, tortillas are second only to sliced bread as the number 2 packaged bread product sold, passing bagels and muffins.

I put some cheese on my tortilla. Apparently, not an American discovery, but I suppose we invented American cheese.

It is thought that cheese was first discovered around 8000 BC around the time when sheep were first domesticated, in Middle East, Europe, and Central Asia. Rennet, the enzyme used to make cheese, is naturally present in the stomachs of ruminants. The leak-proof stomachs and other bladder-like organs of animals were often put to use to store and transport milk and other liquids. Without refrigeration, warm summer heat in combination with residual rennet in the stomach lining would have naturally curdled the milk to produce the earliest forms of cheese.

East Indian history indicates that wild fowl were domesticated as early as 3200 B.C. Egyptian and Chinese records show that fowl were laying eggs for man in 1400 B.C. Europe has had domesticated hens since 600 B.C. There is some evidence of native fowl in the Americas prior to Columbus’ arrival. However, it is believed that, on his second trip in 1493, Columbus’ ships carried to the New World the first of the chickens, which originated in Asia, related to those now in egg production.

Most people of the world eat the egg of the chicken, Gallus domesticas. Nearly 200 breeds and varieties of chickens have been established worldwide. Most laying hens in the U.S. are Single-Comb White Leghorns.

My breakfast, then, has some American, and very, very, early American roots. I took my hand-held breakfast to the computer.

I enjoy working online jigsaw puzzles on the computer. They have a bit of an edge over regular jigsaw puzzles that come in a box. You do not have to worry about lost puzzle pieces, pieces that fall on the floor and no one notices, or, the ruthless friends and family members who will sneak a piece from the table and hide it in their pocket, so they can be the person who places the last piece into the puzzle, completing it. (No one like that in your family? Really?)

Anyway, I like the site Jigsaw Explorer. They put up a couple of new puzzles each day, and they have a big inventory of previous puzzles. The best part is that I can adjust the number of pieces into which the puzzle will be divided, from 6 to 1026. I like the 140-150 range myself. I enjoy completing a puzzle, but I don’t want to spend the entire day working on one. Thursday morning (July 4), I did the puzzle version of the painting “Congress Voting Independence,” by Robert Edge Pine.

For lunch, David said, “Where?” and I suggested D’s Mediterranean Grill, self-described as “Counter-serve Mediterranean-Middle Eastern eatery serving gyros, falafel, salads & kebabs in a casual setting.” He wasn’t so sure, but after looking at a couple of other places, he said OK. April and I had been there the past weekend and enjoyed it. They’ve been in business for several years and have expanded their menu quite a bit. In addition to their Mediterranean fare, they’ve added things like grilled chicken breasts, which is what I had, and, seriously, chicken fried steak, which is what David had. You get sides, and, last weekend, I had Fried Green Beans, which is why I suggested going there. More Fried Green Beans! David had some of those, too, braiding together Mediterranean/American cuisine in the most delicious way!

The saying “an army marches on its stomach” has been attributed to both Napoleon and Frederick the Great. It is recorded in English from the early 20th century.Which makes me wonder, “What did revolutionary was soldiers eat?” Or, rather, what were the revolutionary soldiers supposed to be getting to eat?

When in Rome . . . Well, IF in Rome

June 27, 2019 | Joy, Love

To people who question why I’ve spent so many years in Sunday School with preschoolers, I say, quite honestly, “It’s ‘way more fun.”

And quite interesting, in different ways, of course, from an adult Sunday School class. But interesting.

One Sunday last summer, the Bible story was Paul’s trip to Rome, which was interrupted by a storm that caused a shipwreck. Paul’s group and the sailors made it to Malta, where they stayed a while before going on to Rome, in a nice, new, sturdy ship.

I told the children the story, ending with, “And then Paul went on to Rome.”

One boy, a six year old who would be going into first grade in a couple of weeks, said, with aplomb, “I’ve been to Rome.”

And I knew he had.

Then, one of the youngest kids in the group, a four-year-old, said, as though everyone might have done the same thing, “I’ve been to Rome.”

And I knew that he, also, had been to Rome.

They both had done that traveling just a month or so before.

Because I live in a town with a Baptist-affiliated university and a Baptist-affiliated seminary, and I attend a Baptist church, I know folks who go really interesting places and do and learn really interesting things. The six-year-old’s mother is a professor of Old Testament, and she goes on digs, looking for bones and shards. The four-year-old’s parents teach in the language departments, and they spend a summer semester in Italy, teaching there.

I said to the boys, who’d been to Rome, “Some of the old buildings you saw in Rome are the same buildings that Paul saw, when he was there.” And, yes, they smiled and nodded, agreeing with me, without having assurance, or, frankly, strong memories of what they’d seen. Their memories were mostly of what they’d eaten there.

And how can a four- and six-year-old really understand: “You’ve seen buildings that Paul saw.”

Those families will most likely keep on with these summer travels and experiences. As the kids grow, they’ll know and understand more of the uniqueness of their experiences. I hope there are lots of photographs.

I did a little bit of research and learned that the buildings that existed in Rome in Paul’s time* were the mausoleum of Augustus, and the Temples of Saturn and Castor and Pollux . None of the other ancient buildings that we see in travelogues and brochures, existed in Paul’s time. The Biblical World article mentions the Pantheon, which was a building in Paul’s time, but it later had significant damage from two large fires, and was rebuilt, completed by Hadrian around 125 C.E.

Paul, a loving and loyal servant of the Anointed One, Jesus. He called me to be his apostle and set me apart with a mission to reveal God’s wonderful gospel. I write this letter to all his beloved chosen ones in Rome, for you have been divinely summoned to be holy in his eyes. May his joyous grace and total well-being, flowing from our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, rest upon you.

My commission is to preach the good news. Yet it is not entirely new, but the fulfillment of the hope promised to us through the many prophecies found in the sacred Scriptures. For the gospel is all about God’s Son. As a man he descended from David’s royal lineage, but as the mighty Son of God he was raised from the dead and miraculously set apart with a display of triumphant power supplied by the Spirit of Holiness. And now Jesus is our Lord and our Messiah. Through him a joy-producing grace cascaded into us, empowering us with the gift of apostleship, so that we can win people from every nation into a faithful commitment to Jesus, to bring honor to his name. And you are among the chosen ones who received the call to belong to Jesus, the Anointed One. I write this letter to all his beloved chosen ones in Rome, for you have been divinely summoned to be holy in his eyes. May his joyous grace and total well-being, flowing from our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, rest upon you.

Romans 1:1-7 (The Passion Translation)

Jesus then took the barley loaves and the fish and gave thanks to God. He then gave it to the disciples to distribute to the people. Miraculously, the food multiplied, with everyone eating as much as they wanted!

John 6:11 (The Passion Translation)

Several years ago, a guy at church, a high-school history teacher, planned a summer field trip to Europe. He was really interested in World War II, and the students who went visited places like Dunkirk and Paris. They even went to Haarlem, in the Netherlands, to see Corrie Ten Boom’s Hiding Place. His wife and 5-year-old daughter went, too.

One Sunday morning, lots of kids in Sunday School were talking about summer trips they made. One went to “a big, big mall; with a roller coaster!” Another went to a beach. Another went to Six Flags. The European traveler was listening to her friends, but not chiming in. I finally asked, “Did you take a trip with Mom and Dad?” She looked at me confused. “Did you fly on a plane with Mom and Dad and Dad’s students?” She nodded. “Did you see anything interesting?” Hmmmmmmm. “Did you have anything interesting to eat?” She brightened. “One day,” she said, “I ate all my meat and all my salad and all my vegetables.” Wonderful.

At the end of worship service that day, I went to find her parents and described what she remembered most about her wonderful trip to Europe. “She told me,” I said, “how she ate all her meat and all her salad and all her vegetables.” They looked at each other and rolled their eyes. “That,” they said, “was on the plane on the trip home.”

That was many, many years ago. This summer, that same girl, who is a lovely young woman now, is doing an internship at an agency in Africa. I can’t wait to chat with her when she returns. I’d love to know what sort of things she ate.

In so many different ways, we feed, and are fed.

* The Biblical World, Vol. 3, No. 2 (Feb., 1894), pp. 87-96 (10 pages); Published by: The University of Chicago Press: Henry F. Burto

I Had an Idea. And Then I Had a Better One.

June 20, 2019 | Joy, Patience

I had a idea, but it wasn’t a particularly good one. (Alas, my life has consistently been made up of: “Oh, yeah, that’s a good idea. I could so do that;” when the reality is more like: “That will never work!”)

This is a section from a photo album from July 4, 2009. We had this small grill, but I hadn’t actually used it myself. I had asked Kevin to put it on that bench and put the charcoal in it and light it so we could cook some hamburgers. Because I’d never used it, I didn’t realize that it had little legs that you were supposed to pull down, to raise the grill up a little bit. Kevin did indeed prepare the grill, just as I’d said to, and he came in a little while later and said, “The bench is on fire.”

That little illustration of a grill with legs is a cute sticker that I’d attached to the page, to make the whole thing look a little more attractive.

I kept that bench for many more years, but I just put plants on it and no one ever tried to sit on it.

Lately, I’ve been trying to straighten up and improve the appearance on the patio, and I had this good idea. I’ve made a shelving arrangement with some concrete pieces and cedar planks, where plants stay during the spring and summer and fall. I went to the lumber department of a local home store, chose some cedar planks, and had them cut to the right sizes. Then, I put weather sealer on them. This was a leftover piece.

I hated that the bench was unusable. I had an idea. What if I attached that extra shelf piece to the underside of the bench, underneath that burned spot. Then, folks could safely sit on it. Right?

I went and got clamps and a hand drill and some screws. I’m not real handy, but I’m sort of handy. I clamped the extra shelf piece underneath the blackened spot, then I turned the bench upside-down, to decide where I might think about drilling some holes.

This bench is, I think, leftover from a picnic table and bench set that had been on the patio since my childhood. The bench was all that was left. And, apparently, over the years, my dad, I guess, had spent time shoring up its aging self. There were screws and nails, and the whole thing was decidedly shaky. It seemed that, even if I did make the burned part sturdier, there were still going to be some security issues. I gave up. I got out a hammer, saw, screwdriver, and pliers, and took the whole thing apart. I sawed it into pieces and bagged the pieces up and put it all into the trash. And was a little sad.

I still wanted some place for folks to sit. I visited the garden departments in a few stores, looking for seats that might work. What I had in mind were smaller versions of picnic-table-type benches. I didn’t have luck finding the regular, old-fashioned-type picnic table sets, much less only benches. How disappointing!

Then I wondered if I could find something online. Well, of course I could find something online. It’s the “2 in 1 Outdoor Interchangeable Picnic Table/Garden Bench.” It comes partially assembled.

It came in a box about five feet tall and two feet wide and, oh, a couple of inches deep. It was pretty heavy. I shoved it off the porch after it got delivered; then I just turned it end over end over end, all the way to the back yard and the patio. There were all sorts of pieces (see left) and a handy tightener-thing, for bolts (see right). I had to use my own Phillips screwdriver.

There was an easy-to-understand diagram, with all the pieces illustrated and identified by number. The screws and bolts were identified by letter. That tightener was item “D.”

All put together, it can be a table with benches. Or, it can be a nice place to sit and read.

Nifty, huh.

May God do what you want most and let all go well for you.

Psalm 20:4 (Contemporary English Version)

There are many, many, many things I can’t do. And it seems like I’ve needed lots and lots of disasters to help me understand what I can easily do, what I might can get done, and what I should never, ever, ever even think of trying to do. However, the “2 in 1 Outdoor Interchangeable Picnic Table/Garden Bench,” oh, I’ve got that one!

The Fauna

June 13, 2019 | Love, Patience, Peace

The plants in the yard are looking quite nice and healthy. We’ll see how things go, now the the rain’s slacked off and temperatures will be rising. I’m being more diligent with the bug spray, but the more recent animal interactions have been a little startling.

Really. When you just glance at it, don’t you think it really LOOKS LIKE A COW!

I was taking a little bit different route home last week, and was seriously startled when I drove by this house, which is not one I usually pass. I just noticed the animal from the corner of my eye, and was breathlessly startled. Seriously. At first glance, I really and truly thought it was a calf. I’m not sure calves are allowed in the city limits. Of course, upon sensibly looking at the animal, I realized it was a dog. A LARGE dog. That looked very much like a young cow. I did go around the corner and drive by a second time, to snap a picture.

I didn’t take this photo, but it looks exactly like what I saw a few days ago, as I walked across the yard. I was seriously startled because the squirrel was standing up, watching me approach, not moving, and a little bit confrontive, and not scampering away, as most squirrels do. I stopped and then took a few tentative steps ahead, and then he turned and ran off. When the squirrels begin to stand their ground, I’m feeling pretty anxious.

The frightened kitten, huddled up by the porch.

And the most touching fauna encounter happened a couple of days ago. There’s a small flower bed at the front of the house that doesn’t get watered from the sprinkler system, so I always have to hand water that space. I’d planted some new plants, and, on Tuesday, I was watering there. I watered the new shrimp plants I’d put in and the Tuneria, an annual flower that I plant each year (both of those are heat tolerant). I watered the existing Yarrow plants and then moved the hose to a lantana plant that’s been in place for several years. To my great astonishment, something alive leapt from the center of that plant and scampered around the edge of the porch. I inched over to look and saw a huddled-up little furry animal that seemed to be a kitten. I moved back away and watered some more. I looked around the corner again, and the kitten looked at me and began to mewl. And mewl and mewl and mewl. I was very reluctant to interact because I didn’t know from where and from whom the kitten had originated. I didn’t want to make friends, just to need to take it to a shelter. And, if there was an owner nearby, I thought the kitten might be rescued by somebody who’d lost it. By time David came home from work, the kitten was gone.

Whew, I was relieved, but David said it was on the sidewalk by the porch the next morning. As of now, Thursday evening, we’ve not seen it again. I hope it has made its was to a safe place.

I should have saved the worm photos until today, I guess, to complete the invertebrate/vertebrate arc.

All creatures on earth, you obey his commands, so come praise the Lord! Sea monsters and the deep sea, fire and hail, snow and frost, and every stormy wind, come praise the Lord!

All mountains and hills, fruit trees and cedars, every wild and tame animal, all reptiles and birds, come praise the Lord!

Psalm 148:7-10 (Contemporary English Version)

I don’t hear much from the worms and ladybugs, or the butterflies and the moths, but the birds in my backyard are certainly doing their part!

And Spring Turns Into Summer

June 6, 2019 | Joy

As I’ve been working in the yard these past springtime months, I’ve unearthed quite a few worms. There seem to be more than usual, but I think that must be due to the enormous amount of rainfall we’ve had, these last few weeks. Some springs, and moving onto the high-heat summers that follow, there’s a minimum of rainfall and a maximum of searing sunshine.

I guess there were worms, but they burrowed ‘way, ‘way, ‘way down to where the soil is more moist and more easily traveled through, wormwise.

This spring has been really unusual. Lots of rain. LOTS of rain. I was digging up some plants to move to a different part of the yard, and, with every scoop of my shovel, there was a rather loud, squelching sound. SLUUUUURP! And, when I walked through some grassless areas in the yard, my Crocs would sink into the mud. Sometimes they would get stuck in the mud.

Things are a little less wet, now, but it’s still pretty easy to dig up things. Like those worms.

A dug-up worm obviously doesn’t like to be dug up. They wriggle and wiggle and work really hard to get back down in the dirt. They are very interesting to watch when they do that.

: This worm, in the center of the photo, has sent his head down, back into the dirt, but is in resting mode, and is thinking about things. The front part is the lower worm segment. The part of the worm at the top is actually the worm’s back section. It’s really quiet right now; I’m guessing that he’s pushing his front end around, searching for the most easily negotiated route for reaching safety.

: That front part has traveled mostly down, or over, leaving the rearmost part still on the surface. Patiently waiting for slithering orders. Notice the small black stick at the worm’s side.

: Find that black stick, and there’s the last, rather dirt-covered, part of the worm, barely visible. The re-locating process took a couple of minutes.

I know better than to think that the rest of the summer is going to have plenty of rainfall and delightfully cool temperatures. Meanwhile, I’m going to enjoy each day, until the real summer shows up.

Nor only are there worms (and, of course, bugs), but my little green friend has returned. Maybe he’ll help with the bug issue.

I did look up earthworms and found that I could actually purchase some earthworms.

The link is to Amazon. Worms, however, are not eligible for Amazon Prime.

Look how the wild flowers grow! They don’t work hard to make their clothes. But I tell you that Solomon with all his wealth wasn’t as well clothed as one of these flowers.

Luke 12:27 (Contemporary English Version)

I grateful for the rain that waters my yard and for the earthworms that make the soil good for growing things and for a good God that puts beauty in my life, in so many ways.