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Believe it or not!, Inspiring, Scripture, Wisdom

Overheard: Saving Satan

Posted on March 11, 2013 by Katharine

Surprised? Just think a bit: If you make war against someone, you have to believe he exists, don’t you? Right. So, the demons and their captain do believe Jesus exists, and, Scripture says, they at least have the sense to tremble at the thought, which shows they are not dumb.

Think some more: The old arch-nemesis can disguise himself in a multitude of ways, and it is obvious he has made his way into church membership in lots of places.

Right?

So, let’s see if you would agree he could join your church if he walked the aisle and asked the preacher if he could join. The folks at our church were fascinated with this exercise, and amid very quiet listening, got quite a few chuckles, which I will indicate here with asterisks (*).

Let’s ask all the typical questions we think are so important for church membership, and see if we would let satan join our congregation, as he has so many others before*:

Do you believe Jesus is the Son of God! — Of course, satan would agree. The evil one knows this is true and can agree to it, if it serves his purposes. After all, this fact is the inspiration for his hatred.
Do you believe Jesus was born of a virgin? — Again, he knows this is true; saw the star over Bethlehem, himself, right?
Do you believe Jesus died on the cross? — You know, he’d be thinking, I offered Him a way out but He was too stuck on Himself to take it . . . but he would say, “Of COURSE!”
Do you believe He rose from the dead? — Here he might hesitate. After all, it was his worst nightmare.* But still he would give a “yes” to this question.
Are you willing to baptized as a sign of your faith? — He would never refuse baptism, would never have a problem with it. Of course, he might sizzle . . . *
Will you commit to attending church weekly? — He might think: Thought you’d never ask!*— but he might say, “I won’t miss a single service! I’ll be there every time the doors open!”*

Sounds like a great prospect, so far, doesn’t he? Would he make it into the membership of your church’s congregation?

Now here is the final question:

Are you ready to repent? Will you quit fighting God and start life over? Will you trust and obey Jesus Christ as your Lord in every area of your life?

And exactly at that point is where it all breaks down.

As it should.

Because faith, by itself, when it is not accompanied by works, is dead.

James 2:19 – You believe that there is one God. Good. Even the demons believe that — and shudder.

Inspiring, Sayings, Wisdom

Wax Wanes

Posted on March 5, 2013March 7, 2013 by Katharine

Sincerity

The word “sincere” mean without wax.

Really.

Well, we use it to mean believability, but “sin-” means without and “cere” means wax.

You see, long ago, when the best container for holding liquids was made of some sort of fired clay, of unknown quality and skill, it was totally easy to mess up and crack one of these containers.

Totally.

Not like having engineered, mass-produced, tempered glass, at all.

Even the vendors and potters, themselves, could accidentally cause a small crack to occur in the product.

Oops.

A rather useful way to fix this problem, back then, was to pour melted wax over it and let it soak in, to seal it, buff the wax to make it shine, and if no one noticed, you could pass the container off as whole.

Not a cracked pot.

The trouble often came, though, that when a homemaker poured hot liquid into one of these waxed pots, she would discover a leak and realize what she had: damaged goods. She might not know whether she bought it that way, or bumped it herself, unless she could observe wax floating atop the liquid.

She might not discover it until the next morning.

She never could prove she had not waxed it, herself, though, so never could get any satisfaction, aside from spreading the news to her friends, to help them avoid this vendor.

While she might enjoy that as payback, she still needed a new pot. One that was without wax, “sincere”.

______________________

I recently signed a letter “sincerely” and immediately thought of the word history. I asked myself: Really? Am I sincere? Am I laying a coating over cracks in my believability? Am I pretending? Is this the truth? If not, will I be discovered?

I did not answer. Maybe I did not like the answer. Instead, I wrote this post.

Safer.

Maybe I’m a cracked pot? Should I avoid all heated content? Is there any other way to fix it besides waxing it over?

Yeah.

Blessings of Habit, Inspiring, Scripture, Wisdom

Where Is Your Heart?

Posted on March 1, 2013November 18, 2015 by Katharine

Still sort of thinking about the heart, although March is here.

A friend reminded me, today, to think of what I treasure. I treasure a lot of things. Some are good to treasure and some, because they are so temporary, are not wise things to invest much time in, or to treasure.

I remembered a Bible verse that lends some guidance, here. It’s found in the book written by Matthew, one of Jesus’ first 12 followers, and here, he quotes Jesus: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21

He makes this connection directly after stating we should not treasure things that can ruin, and He follows it almost immediately with the warning not to try collecting both earthly and Spiritual hoards, because it can’t be done.

Wise Man, right?.

So, my fun collection of bird houses, which do not house birds, but only collect dust in my sunroom, are not wise things to treasure. I already knew that. I view them like wallpaper or rugs, just decor. Only I bought them at garage sales for pennies, so they cost less. Although I like them a lot, I don’t treasure them.

When it comes to my grandkids’ souls, though, wow. Those I treasure, and my heart is full of them, often. If I even think I see a sign of a troubled soul, I have to remember I’m not the mom, and certainly not God. I have to work hard not to say anything outside of encouragement, except when speaking to the Savior of souls. I earnestly seek protection for their souls. Different from birdhouses, which I only dust.

The Test of Fire!

Our house caught fire, one time.

If there were a fire, I would rescue the grandkids and let the birdhouses burn. Easy to choose.

I remember reading a story about a wise woman in Little Rock whose house had burned. When interviewed, she thought of all the kind folk who were returning to her the gifts and photos she had given them, just so she would have SOMETHING.

She said, “After a fire, the only thing you have left is what you gave away.” That quote riveted me like little I’ve ever heard before. What wisdom!

And the Bible tells us our God is a consuming fire. Only what cannot be consumed remains after He is done with us.

And some resent that. They want to live down here, in this messed up world, instead of zooming on up to pure delight. Where is their treasure? Where is their heart?

The Test of the Two-Year-Old!

Some of us go too far with treasuring our people, though, and take it to the point of worshiping.

I knew a lady who complained that she never had time to pray or read the Bible because her granddaughter just took up all her time. She further explained that the child was in a demanding stage and it often took all day to satisfy her every whim, whether it be for food, entertainment, or even the simple need for sleep. They were often up until 10:30 or later, just fighting sleep, after which point the lady was exhausted, as we all would be, in that situation.

But where was her treasure ? Where was her heart?

I once read that wherever your mind goes, on autopilot, when you are not directing your thoughts, is where your heart is, is your treasure, is your god.

Don’t let it be some kind of idol.

Blessings of Habit, Good ol' days, Homemaking, Wisdom

Whatever Works: Laundry

Posted on February 27, 2013February 28, 2013 by Katharine

I’ve encountered another $100.00!

I’ve known for ages that the older ways were kinder on clothing, on the environment, and on the utilities bill, but I just recently found the exact dollar amount.

They say, if I dry my laundry the old-fashioned way, I save about $100.00 every year. I’ve been doing this for many, many years. It’s more like $4,300, really. And it takes only a few moments per day, really hardly any longer than just loading the dryer.

But that’s not all.

No, if we dry our clothes on a line or rack, we extend the life of the clothing about 50%. Of course, we may not make good use of the savings if we are enslaved to the changing of the styles, but for many of us, that represents another huge saving.

But that’s not all.

Clothing dried on a rack come “out of the dryer” pre-folded! How cool is that? I literally take towels and wash cloths off the rack and put them away, as is. T-shirts require only one more fold. Everything is already smoothed, stacks better, and just is twice as easy to put away.

But that’s not all.

How would you like to add to last Wednesday’s health tricks? Drying laundry indoors humidifies the air in the winter, causing the body to fight off upper respiratory problems more efficiently. The result is fewer colds. That’s what they say, and I think I can tell that is happening for us. We’re “weller” without the cost or the mess of a humidifier.

But that’s not all.

Quality of life seems to skyrocket. Towels are more absorbent when they are not gummed up with fabric softener. A rack-dried towel, fresh from the closet, gives a marvelous back-scratching. Cotton t-shirts feel more honestly real when you put them on, and smell better, too, especially if they’ve been line-dried outdoors. We never encounter static cling.

But that’s not all.

If you have never gone to bed between freshly laundered, line-dried sheets, you just come on over to my house, dear, and let me introduce you to some real sleep. Sheets that you can feel, that stay tucked in, and that smell like angel wings — you won’t know what hit you ’til mornin’ honey!

And that’s probably still not all.

Laundry day (edebock.wordpress.com)
Why Laundry, Like Ministry, Needs to be Culturally Relevant (ikhadinger.com)

Photos, Wisdom

Weekly Photo Challenge: Forward!

Posted on February 25, 2013February 22, 2013 by Katharine

Can’t!

Guest Post, Home School, Inspiring

Great Guest Post! – Why Teach Your Child to Draw?

Posted on February 22, 2013February 22, 2013 by Katharine

Ruth, from Ruth Bailey, artist, left a comment on one of my posts, a while back, and I again have been able to catch that big “click” the moment it happened, this time for my 3400th comment.

I know, it’s been a while coming. Ruth is a great watercolorist and was in the middle of an amazing commission, that busied her until recently.

I am so glad she is back!

Since Ruth is no stranger to home educating, I asked her if there were anything she might like to write for us about art in the home school.

She has graciously provided us with some great tips I really wish I’d had 20 years ago.

Read, enjoy, and learn! And please go look at her gentle but brilliant art!

Why Teach Your Child to Draw?

I believe that teaching a child to draw should be a part of every home-school curriculum.

Drawing is well suited to the home-school curriculum since it can be taught inexpensively, in short or long time segments, requires few extra materials, and the skills can be learned by anyone with enough dexterity to write their name. Drawing uses and develops the brain in ways that reading, writing, math, social studies, and science do not. Drawing uses non-verbal thinking skills and spatial relationships, while encouraging creativity, alternative problem solving strategies, and intuitive responses. Drawing also aids in teaching math skills since it involves the complex mathematical concepts of angles, measurements, graphing, and ratios. Drawing gives children and adults another language in which to express themselves and is pleasurable and fulfilling in itself.

Typically, young children start learning to draw by experimentation. They scribble on paper, enjoying the power of making marks. After a while they begin to assign meaning to scribbles, saying that this mark is “the dog,” or “daddy,” or “a birthday cake.” As their dexterity increases, they often adopt a symbol system, drawing stick figures, which get more complex as the child gets older. Sometimes these symbols are mimics of drawings by adults (who insist that their own drawing skills are inadequate). As children learn verbal language by example, experimentation and encouragement before learning any of the “rules,” they can learn the language of drawing in the same manner. This means giving them exposure to a variety of materials and time to explore. Paper and pencils, pens, crayons, markers, simple (non-toxic) paints, cotton swabs and food coloring, glue and bits of colored eggshells, etc. are typical household items that can be used. If a child expresses frustration or a desire to go further with drawing, I suggest enrolling the child in a class or trying out Mona Brooke’s book Drawing With Children to learn some formal drawing techniques.

Sometime around age 10 (fourth or fifth grade), a child’s brain goes through a “growth spurt” with an increased integration across the right and left hemispheres. This growth often leads to dissatisfaction with the difference between what is observed and the symbols used in drawings. Some children break through their established symbol system and are able to create realistic drawings at this time with little or no instruction. These are the children who are labeled “gifted artistically” or “talented.” Unfortunately for the others, this is the time when a child will give up on drawing, frustrated with his inability to make the drawing look like he wants it to, and calling his own efforts “stupid.” However, realistic drawing skills can be taught, and learned (by adults as well as children). There are many classes available to teach non-drawers to draw, and many books written on the subject. One of my favorites is Betty Edward’s The New Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. Although the exercises in this book are not difficult for a child, children in elementary school would be helped by having an adult supervise and explain the material. Going through the material together is an ideal home-school activity.

With the foundation of being able to draw realistically, a child (or an adult) can then continue the exploration and experimentation process, drawing from reality, memory, or fantasy.

I wish you many satisfying hours, teaching your child to draw, and learning to draw, yourself!

Ruth Bailey is a home-school mom who, now that her children have all graduated from high school, fills her days with painting watercolors, sailing on the Chesapeake Bay, and traveling with her husband.

You will love it at Ruth’s! Go there!

And check out one of my favorites of her many posts here!

Believe it or not!, Blessings of Habit, Health, Herbs

Whatever Works. A Code

Posted on February 20, 2013February 20, 2013 by Katharine

I’ve had a “code id by doze.”

But in one day I was well.

This was an entirely untimely disease that struck me very suddenly and flattened me.

In one day, I was well.

On last Wednesday afternoon, I was fine. By nightfall I was sneezing, weakening, and worried. By Thursday morning, I had a fever, aching sinuses, and zero energy.

We were leaving for a 12-hour car trip to an important destination on Saturday morning, very early. North.

However, by the very next night, I was well enough to realize I need not stay home, and on Saturday morning, very early, I felt cured.

I think you would like to know how I did this, so I will explain and you must believe I do not get any reward for mentioning the products I used. Here goes:

On Wednesday night, when I started feeling bad, I was out of the house, but had one very wonderful product in my purse: Sambucol. I keep that in my purse if at all possible. It is for taking at the first sign of a cold. I was sneezing and chilling. So I took it often. More than once I have found this product stops a cold for me. The directions call for melting the tablet in the mouth, but I know that works best for many people if we consider inside the cheeks the best melting place for these types of supplements.
Once I got home, I took Oscillococcinum. I took another dose right before bed, too. We try to keep this wonderful cold and flu stopper on us at all times, too, and I should have had some of it in my purse, but did not. My husband keeps this at work, too, because he, too, finds it supremely effective at stopping viruses. Again, it is to be melted and held in the mouth for as long as possible.
I often use another similar product called Coldcalm, and because I was worried about missing out on the trip, I chose this occasion to use it also.
Finally, I added Umcka Cold Care drops to my treatment. I was serious about getting well, you can tell.
With supper, instead of my usual beverage, I’d had water with Airborne in it. I always drink this when I’ve been around sick folks or when I feel my immunities need boosting. So by the time I knew something was amiss, I was already geared for action.
I keep a box of Celestial Seasonings Complete Care Echinacea tea , and made myself a double of that at bedtime. Mmm.
Also at bedtime, I took one Benedryl capsule, since my nose was beginning to burn and stop up. I also rubbed Mentholatum over my nose.
Because I ached and could feel fever coming on, and because I cannot tolerate aspirin, I took a couple of white willow bark capsules.
I went to bed early. Sleep is very important.
In the middle of the night I woke and drank a large glass of water, following it with another dose of “Oscillo” plus another dose of Sambucol.
All day, Thursday, I rested in a recliner and repeated all the above as often as needed. One exception: I used Sudafed in the daytime for my stopped nose and ears, at a half-dose.
I had absolutely NO sugar. Sugar zaps immunities. I seldom have sugar anyway, but was extra careful at this time.
By Friday morning, I felt quite a bit better; by Friday afternoon, I knew I could go on the trip.
By Saturday, although I took all those meds with me on the trip, I never used them, except for Benedryl at night. I was well.

The important aspect of all this is that I was able to catch the progress of the disease in the very smallest beginnings of it. Once a virus gets the upper hand, these products do not work for me. Nothing does, then.

You may price the above products and if you think them expensive, you have not been to the doctor lately, and you certainly have not had to go two or three times before you got well. We consider the price of these products health insurance, or even health “ensurance”.

Sincerity

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