Embracing Accusation

Another song I can't stop thinking about. So many times I have to pray that Jesus will block out Satan's voice so I can only hear Jesus.


Embracing Accusation
by Shane and Shane
from their "Pages" album

The father of lies
Coming to steal
Kill and destroy
All my hopes of being good enough
I hear him saying cursed are the ones
Who can’t abide
He’s right
Alleluia he’s right!

The devil is preaching
The song of the redeemed
That I am cursed and gone astray
I cannot gain salvation
Embracing accusation

Could the father of lies
Be telling the truth
Of God to me tonight?
If the penalty of sin is death
Then death is mine
I hear him saying cursed are the ones
Who can’t abide
He’s right
Alleluia he’s right!

Oh the devil’s singing over me
An age old song
That I am cursed and gone astray
Singing the first verse so conveniently
He’s forgotten the refrain
Jesus saves!



*Sorry I can't figure out how to add songs to my blog, but you can hear it on YouTube here. This particular version has an extra part added by John Piper.

For My Mother-in-Law

We finally got some family pictures taken.


This one isn't too bad, except in the left-side background you can see the messy living room...



Eric didn't like this one because it covers up our shirts...

This is the one we'll be sending out...

This one's okay too, except it's just kind of plain in the background...

Keeping It Real

This one's for you, Anne Marie!

Lunar Eclipse

I'm so excited! Tonite, in about 20 minutes, a lunar eclipse will begin. We won't see another one until 2010. The best part about it is my dad is here!

When I was a kid, Dad spent a lot of time teaching me the different constellations. We had so much fun watching satellites go by, and sometimes we'd catch a meteorite or even a storm. There used to be a cornfield behind our house, and we'd often walk out there to observe the night sky. I'm so excited that he is here now and we can watch the eclipse together.

Heartstrings

Music is really important in my life. I listen to it all the time. The only secular music I really listen to anymore is Enya from time to time, otherwise it's only Christian bands. I like a very wide range, from mild and mellow Shane&Shane to harder Blindside which surprises many people. I'm just so mysterious...haha.

When I find a song that I really love, I listen to it over and over again. Lately, I've been listening to Heartstrings Come Undone by Demon Hunter. The reason I love this song is simply because of the melody. It's unusual. Some of the lyrics are touching, but I haven't figured out what they mean. Maybe the lyrics are personal to the band. I'm wondering if the song was written for someone who is really lost and is afraid to let Jesus love him/her. Or maybe the lead singer is reflecting on a past mistake he made and how he hurt someone. When I listen to it, I tend to think of and pray for people I know who just keep rejecting Jesus. Anyway, I just thought I'd share the song with you.

Experiment

Well, I thought I'd make a goulash of sorts for supper tonite. I had the macaroni cooked, ground beef browned, green peppers and onions diced, cheese and spices added, and went for the can of kidney beans. I always have at least two cans of dark red kidneys because I make chili and taco casserole a lot. But tonite there were no kidneys. I thought we could just go without, but it would really seem lacking. I thought maybe Eric could grab a can on his way home, but then supper wouldn't be ready till really late. So...

I put a can of peas in. Drained of course. We'll see what happens!

Game Time

Right now I'm in the cold, unfinished basement with Emily in her exersaucer and Ethan sitting next to me on the couch. I've got a ceramic heater going which really warms the room up.

Although Owen is much more into soccer and football, Ethan loves video games. Don't worry, we don't let him play all day every day. As a matter of fact, the only time he really plays is when Owen, my husband or I am down here with him. He's too scared to be in the basement alone.

Super Paper Mario is Ethan's latest favorite. I'm down here helping him. There's a lot of scripting, and even though Ethan's reading is coming along very nicely, he still needs help with the reading.

I wish I could leave it at that. It sounds pretty good, me helping my son read the script on a video game. But that's not all I'm doing.

I've got my laptop open and I've googled Super Paper Mario walk-throughs. I'm helping my son beat the levels by reading aloud the walk-through. This gives us access to all the secret stuff and tells us how to finish each chapter quickly without having to figure it out on our own. At first I was letting him explore on his own before accessing the walk-through, but I discovered he'd get so lost and mixed up that we'd have to start at the beginning of the level in order for the walk-through to work. We both want to see the game completed but don't want to grind through it. So now I just read as we go. It's actually pretty fun. We spend about a half-hour/forty five minutes to finish a section, then head upstairs for a snack.

Okay, Ethan's been exploring in the game on his own and is getting frustrated. He spent all his coins to get access to a blue tube that seems to lead to nowhere. Better check the walk-through!

Shepherding A Child's Heart

Ethan and Emily are napping now, and so I thought I'd start this book my sister-in-law introduced to me. It's called Shepherding A Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp. I've only read the introduction, and already I'm touched. Page xix (what number is that anyway?) says:

"Proverbs 13:20 says, 'He who walks with the wise becomes wise.' As a wise parent your objective is not simply to discuss, but to demonstrate the freshness and vitality of life lived in integrity toward God and your family. Parenting is shepherding the hearts of your children in the ways of God's wisdom."

I love that. I want to be that, a wise shepherd, loving and kind, for my children's hearts, just like Jesus is for all of us. I've got a lot to learn, and God's got a lot of work to do in me. I'm so thankful He's not done with me yet.

Ethan Wants to Know...

Do kangaroos make sounds?

He asked me that today while we were eating our lunch. I honestly don't know the answer.

Sick

Yeah, that's a picture of me at Christmas at my mom and dad's. Dad thought it'd be cute to snap a picture of me and was gracious enough to email it to me.

That was the last time I saw my mother and father-in law, too, at Christmas, and I was sick. They are here now, visiting us after our big move, and I'm sick again. And so is Ethan. They've been so helpful, taking care of Emily, helping with meals, cleaning up around the house, DOING MY LAUNDRY (the best gift anyone could give me!). Please pray for them that they don't get sick. After their visit with us, they will go see more family and friends in two other states. I will feel so bad if they are sick on the rest of their trip.

Happy Day!

I know I tend to post more pictures of Emily and talk about her more, but I can't help it! It's not that I love her more than Owen or Ethan, but she's a baby and so darn cute. I came across these and just wanted to share them because I love them. She's walking completely on her own now, though. And I will work really hard to get more pictures of the boys on here.

Still Listening

I mean, it's incredible! How in the world did the people keep all this straight? Did Moses jot it all down for them and make extra copies? Can't you just see the priests with their manuals wide opened, asking, "Okay, Aaron, HOW many times are we supposed to sprinkle the blood? Is this a horns-on-the altar one or an in-front-of-the-curtain sprinkling?" It's mind-boggling.

I can't even follow a recipe a second or third time after I've initially cooked it without having my nose planted in that cookbook. It's incredible everything they had to learn, the discipline and obedience required. I'm such a slacker.

But then again, I imagine they had to do this continuously, so it probably didn't take long to get it down. And they had the Holy Spirit guiding them.

Just an Observation

I'm listening to Leviticus now. I'm not theological by any means, but I'm just listening, thinking about how BLOODY that tabernacle must have been! I just heard the part where if an Israelite or even the entire nation of Israel sins without realizing it, once they are aware of the sin they must present a bull, the elders must lay their hands on it and then it's sacrificed before the Lord. Then the priest dips his fingers in the blood and sprinkles it on the curtain (I think it's the curtain, I need to check on that). But just think how many times they had to do that! The priests, that must be all they did all day long is remove the innards from animals and burn them and sprinkle blood. A very gory job. Not for someone with a weak stomach (or someone who isn't a Levite~heehee! There's a little theology!). Sorry if you were looking for a deep message, but I just was observing how bloody the inside of the tabernacle must have been. And stinky. Well, except the smell of roasting meat isn't so bad. Anyway, I'll get back to listening. As I grow I'll get deeper and not sound so much like Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey.

Base Ten Blocks

Woohoo! I'm so excited! I ordered a starter set of base ten blocks and they arrived today. Owen is starting regrouping, and I got tired of trying to cut scraps of paper to make blocks, so I ordered a set.

I don't understand how children can learn regrouping and truly understand what is happening without these wonderful manipulatives. I'm sure children can memorize the procedure for regrouping, but then when they get to subtraction, they don't completely know when to regroup and when not to. These blocks make it concrete! I highly recommend them. In my teaching days, I couldn't live without them, and I wish they would have been around when I was learning regrouping as a child, it would have made much more sense for me back then.