Happy New Year 2010

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!
2010

Looking For A Tree

The Saturday before Christmas, we went to a Christmas tree farm to find our Christmas tree. Hannah and I got to help our Dad cut it down. We had fun being together as a family.

Here is the Noa family Christmas tree

Here I am helping Daddy cut it down

Here is Hannah giving it a try too

We got it!

Mommy and Daddy putting the lights on it

Hannah and I putting on the ornaments

Daddy topping it off with the angel

All done, doesn't it look GREAT!

Christmas and the Retirement Home Visit

One of the things I like about being home schooled is that once a month we go and visit a retirement home. We have been doing this for three years. At first, I was scared and very shy, I hardly talked, even if I was sitting next someone.

Once we were used to going, Alicia and I made friends with this one lady, she was a very nice, cheerful lady. She would recognize us when we came to see her. She would tell the person sitting next to her that "my girls are here". Then she would ask us what took us so long to come back. We enjoyed going and visiting her. A couple of months ago she got really sick and passed away.

The next month when we returned I met a new lady, her name is Esther, who I now visit with each month. She has a friend who is there taking care of her, and has been for over 10 years. I really like visiting with Esther and her friend.

I think God led me to her for a reason, here is why:

This month we went with a couple of other families. We sang songs, some Christmas
carols and some hymns. Then after wards we passed out Christmas cards
we had made. Each person received at least three cards. I had made a special one for Esther.
She left before I was able to give it to her, so I gave it to one of the lady's that works there.
She went to give it to Esther, while I finished passing out my cards.
A few minutes later, here came Esther with her friend. She came looking like she was ready
to cry. I walked over to her and she gave me a hug and said, "Thank you for the card. I have not received a card in a very long time." It made me sad to think she had not received a card
in a long time. But it made me happy to know I was able to help her in a small way.

I hope a lot of people will help brighten the day of an elderly person. Even if you are just walking past them in the store, you can smile at them and you just might get a smile back.

I am glad that I have been able to help the elderly and remember they have the most interesting stories to tell, plus it is what Jesus would do.

A Woman's Heart

♥ A women's heart should be so hidden in Christ that a man should have to seek Him first to find her. ♥ Brenda Rutherford

My Friends the Seppi's shared this.

Pachelbel Canon D Major

A beautiful, soothing, calming song. Need to relax during this busy time of the year, sit down and listen to this song.

Micah 4:10-5:5

"Writhe in agony, O Daughter of Zion,
like a woman in labor,
for now you must leave the city
to camp in the open field.
You will go to Babylon;
there you will be rescued.
There the LORD will redeem you
out of the hand of your enemies.

¹¹ But now many nations
are gathered against you.
They say, "Let her be defiled,
let our eyes gloat over Zion!"

¹² But they do not know
the thoughts of the LORD;
they do not understand his plan,
he who gathers them like sheaves to the threshing floor.

¹³ "Rise and thresh, O Daughter of Zion,
for I will give you horns of iron;
I will give you hoofs of bronze
and you will break to pieces many nations."
You will devote their ill-gotten gains to the LORD,
their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.

Marshal your troops, O city of troops,
for a siege is laid against us.
They will strike Israel's ruler
on the cheek with a rod.

² "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
from ancient times. "

³ Therefore Israel will be abandoned
until the time when she who is in labor gives birth
and the rest of his brothers return
to join the Israelites.

⁴ He will stand and shepherd his flock
in the strength of the LORD,
in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God.
And they will live securely, for then his greatness
will reach to the ends of the earth.

⁵ And he will be their peace."

Mary Did You Know by Mark Lowry

If you have never heard this song, please listen to it, it is very moving and powerful. If you have heard it before just sit back and enjoy it again!

Merry Christmas

Homily on Marriage

A selection from On Marriage and Family Life by St. John Chrysostom:

"Paul has precisely described for husband and wife what is fitting behavior for each: she should reverence him as the head and he should love her as his body. But how is this behavior achieved? That it must be is clear; now I will tell you how. It will be achieved if we are detached from money, if we strive above everything for virtue, if we keep the fear of God before our eyes. What Paul says to servants in the next chapter applies to us as well, ...knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same again from the Lord (Eph. 6:8). Love her not so much for her own sake, but for Christ's sake. That is why he says, be subject...as to the Lord. Do everything for the Lord's sake, in a spirit of obedience to Him. These words should be enough to convince us to avoid quarrels and disagreements. No husband should believe any accusation he hears from a third party about his wife, and vice versa; nor should a wife unreasonably monitor her huband's comings and going, provided that he has always shown himself to be above suspicion. And what if you devote the day to your work and your friends, and the evening to your wife; but she is still not satisfied, but is jealous for more of your time? Don't be annoyed by her complaints; she loves you, she is not behaving absurdly--her complaints come from her fervent affection for you, and from fear. Yes, she is afraid that her marriage bed will be stolen, that someone will deprive her of her greatest blessing, that someone will take from her him who is her head.

A wife should never nag her husband: "You lazy coward, you have no ambition! Look at our relatives and neighbors; they have plenty of money. Their wives have far more than I do." Let no wife say any such thing; she is her husband's body, and it is not for her to dictate to her head, but to submit and obey. "But why should she endure poverty?" some will ask. If she is poor, let her console herself by thinking of those who are much poorer still. If she really loved her husband, she would never speak to him like that, but would value having him close to her more than all the gold in the world....Furnish your house neatly and soberly. If the bridegroom shows his wife that he takes no pleasure in worldly excess, and will not stand for it, their marriage will remain free from the evil influences that are so popular these days."

To read the homily in its entirety go here.

God Came to Rescue Us

"I stand on the field’s headlands, snow crusted up to knees, and pray the combine can keep pushing through. Pray that we'll somehow haul the corn up onto glassy roads. Pray that the temperatures stay low enough.

Pray about the absurdity of all this, the craziness of a December harvest and a Christmas tree hanging with the symbols of the wildest story of all: A God pulling on flesh, wading out into the muck of this world, the stench of the barnyard, all to wrench us free from endless winter."

Read this beautiful story written by Ann Voskamp at Holy Experience. She is a gifted writer and takes some great photos too.

Sin and Their Consequences

Balloon Sermon Illustration from David Whiting on Vimeo.

FINALLY, We Are Above Freezing for the First Time This Week!!!!

Right Now for Lake Stevens, WA (98258)
Sunny 33°F Feels Like 33°F Updated Dec 10 02:05 p.m. PT

We Are Still Below Freezing!!!

Right Now for Lake Stevens, WA (98258)
Sunny 28° Feels Like 28°F Updated Dec 10 11:45 a.m. PT

Jeremiah 29:11

My favorite scripture verse in the Bible is: Jeremiah 29:11, it says,

"For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for a welfare and not for a calamity to give you a future and a hope."

This verse encourages me that even though I do not know what the future will be, God has everything in control. I can trust God to take care of me now and in the future.

Is This Washington State Temperatures?

Right Now for Lake Stevens, WA (98258)
Sunny 9°F Feels Like 9°F Updated Dec 10 08:05 a.m. PT

Dockers Ad...Who Wears the Pants!

I found this over at Doug Phillips' blog and had to share it with my readers too. This is great! Dockers is hearkening back to the "Good 'ole Days".

(My Friend, Jennifer did some research and found an article pertaining to this ad.)
***As an addendum to this post, I want to include an excerpt from an article by Elaine Wong, December 1, 2009. She is interviewing a representative of Levi Strauss, the maker of Docker on why they've put out this new, "Wear the pants" campaign. There's a lot here:

"We started to do some research. In today's world, men have lost a bit of footing, in part because women have come so far, but we also found a few surprising facts: Eighty-percent of those who suffered unemployment in the last year were men. Women outnumber men in the workforce now. But the most surprising fact of all was that men's testosterone levels have been dropping by a percentage point a year for 20 years."

Pride and Teachable Moments

Here is a great article on pride and teachable moments.

"As I look back over my own life, I can see that in my youth I was often not teachable. I was headstrong and confident, sure of my positions on many issues; and, quick to grab my soapbox to pontificate what I thought were high and noble ideals. I was also less than willing to listen to the thoughts of others. And even if I discovered I was indisputably wrong on an issue, I never admitted it. I just moved on to the next thing I could be “right” about.

Reflecting back, I can see where I was often prideful and hard-hearted. I was less inclined to consider the positions of others, and being right was far more important than learning something from someone else."

To read the entire article by James McDonald, go to Family Reformation.

Family Worship

Does your family have a regular family worship time? If not, what is stopping you from having one? Here is a well written article, by Voddie Baucham on how to handle children who recoil at having family worship and the importance of perseverance.
"Our job is simply to keep the gospel before our children. And one of the most effective ways to do that is to engage them in family worship on a daily basis. "--Voddie Baucham

To read the article go to Voddie Baucham Ministries.

The Original Female

by Nancy Campbell
Matthew 19:4 "And he (Jesus) answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female."

Interesting! God didn't make two Adams. He didn't make two Eves. He created an Adam and an Eve. He created a male and a female.

The most common Greek word for 'woman' in the New Testament is gune which means 'woman, wife.' However, Jesus used a more specific word when he answered the Pharisees who asked him about divorce. He used the word thelus which comes from the root word thele. It literally means 'a woman's breast from which a baby sucks to find sustenance and to thrive.' Jesus described the female as a suckling mother. "This is how God made them in the beginning," he reminded them. And God has not yet made a new model!

There are many women who do not like to hear this description. To be a suckling mother seems degrading to a career woman. And yet this is who God created us to be. When we embrace children and suckle them at the breast we fulfill our highest destiny. We live in the glory of our femaleness. We find our greatest beauty. And we wield a mighty power.

To read the entire devotional go to Above Rubies.

A Service Dog Needed For A Little Boy, Can you help?

I received this email yesterday and thought I would pass it along to my readers. If you can help Luke or any other child who needs a service dog, I know it would be much appreciated.

For Luke's safety, his therapy workers and child psychiatrist have agreed Luke needs an Autism service dog... Luke's service dog would be trained in search and rescue techniques so the dog could quickly find Luke if Luke wandered away, was hiding or was lost. Luke's dog would also be trained in tethering techniques, where the dog and Luke would be tethered together when outside or in public and the dog would lay down (providing an anchor) if Luke tried to bolt into a dangerous situation or wander away - thereby preventing Luke from being hit by a car, drowning, becoming lost or walking away with a stranger. Luke's dog would also be trained to interrupt Luke's meltdowns by licking, nuzzling and even climbing into Luke's lap to redirect Luke's attention to the dog instead of the emotional upset he is going through. Luke has never slept in his own bed, he is too fearful - a service dog can sleep with Luke and provide the security Luke needs to stay in his bed and sleep through the night.

Additionally, a service dog humanizes a disabled person in the eyes of their community. Instead of the community staring at an autistic child and wondering what is wrong with the child, the service dog at first sight tells people this child is unique and special. People accept the child's peculiarities - if the dog accepts the child, then the child must be "okay." This allows the child to socially interact in their community at their own level of ability, and the community can engage in conversation with the autistic child on a subject that is safe ground for both of them: the service dog. Social interaction is crucial for children with autism to practice and gain confidence in. For Luke, an Autism service dog will open many doors in multiple areas that have reduced his quality of life and made him fearful to leave his home. There are many additional benefits for a child with autism to gain from an Autism service dog, these are simply the main ones.

Autism service dogs are not new, but very few people have heard of them. The training required to produce an Autism service dog is extensive. The training is much more in-depth than the training required for a seeing eye dog or a hearing assistance dog. The cost involved is high, at $13,000 per dog. Traditional service dogs are generally given to their owners for free - this is based on the organization's ability to raise funds to pay for all training and costs involved. These organizations have staff whose job is to raise funds. This limits the number of dogs which can be trained and creates long waiting lists of up to 5 or 6 years.

At 4 Paws for Ability, Inc., they believe a family is able to reach out to their individual communities and raise funds quicker than the organization's attempts at fundraising, thereby reaching the fundraising goal quicker and allowing the child to receive their service dog quicker. When a community is aware of a child's needs, the community has the ability to pull together and help that child. This is where my request comes in. On behalf of Luke's needs, we are attempting to raise funds for his service dog by reaching out to those who have followed his needs through the years and have enjoyed Hope Chest Legacy while it was open. And basically, we are asking for help. As a family, we can't possibly afford the $13,000 donation for a dog and the $4000+ it will take in travel, lodging and food expenses (to train with the dog for 10 days). We might not be able to afford the dog, but we believe God can use parents and families to meet this incredible need. Will you please help us? Although we have never done anything like this before, we believe that humanity does care for its own - and God is greater than the $13,000 we need for this dog. When a need is shown, people work together to meet that need. In Luke's case, he needs an Autism service dog to increase his quality of life, help him overcome his intense fears and provide safety for him on a daily basis. Please help Luke...

All donations are tax deductible when sent directly to 4 Paws for Ability, Inc.

Remember, every donation counts and brings Luke that much closer to gaining his dog, a dog that will definitely change and enhance his life!

To donate directly through Paypal with our "Spare Change" fundraiser, send the spare change in your Paypal account to ERCCSWIL@aol.com. (This is not tax deductible.)

· Mail a check or money order directly to 4 Paws for Ability, Inc. This is tax deductible. Please place c/o Luke Wilson somewhere on the check or money order so Luke will be credited for your donation. Your check or money order can be sent to the following address:

4 Paws for Ability, Inc
253 Dayton Avenue
Xenia, OH. 45385

· Please visit 4 Paws for Abilities' website and read about these fantastic dogs, the impact they have on children's lives and how prison inmates help to train these dogs. Be prepared to cry as you read through the stories - these dogs are so incredible and what they do for their child is nothing short of heroic! http://www.4pawsforability.org/
· Go to http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/lukeadoodle for updated information about Luke's progress in gaining his dog. Please feel free to forward this to anyone you believe would be interested in helping Luke! The online community is vast and this message can reach many willing hearts...

On Luke's behalf - thank you for your help!

What Has Happened Every Friday at the Pentagon For the Last 4 Years?

By JOSEPH L. GALLOWAY
McClatchy Newspapers

Over the last 12 months, 1,042 soldiers, Marines, sailors and Air Force personnel have given their lives in the terrible duty that is war. Thousands more have come home on stretchers, horribly wounded and facing months or years in military hospitals.

This week, I'm turning my space over to a good friend and former roommate, Army Lt. Col. Robert Bateman, who recently completed a yearlong tour of duty in Iraq and is now back at the Pentagon.

Here's Lt. Col. Bateman's account of a little-known ceremony that fills the halls of the Army corridor of the Pentagon with cheers, applause and many tears every Friday morning. It first appeared on May 17 on the Weblog of media critic and pundit Eric Alterman at the Media Matters for America Website.

To read the remainder of this article go to Micheal Yon's blog.

Happy Thanksgiving

Church remodels house family thought it could never live in again

By Amanda Greene
Amanda.Greene@StarNewsOnline

Published: Saturday, November 21, 2009 at 8:19 p.m.
Last Modified: Saturday, November 21, 2009 at 8:19 p.m.

Amy King sat in her family’s Pine Valley driveway, dreading going inside. Her husband Aaron King and daughters Micah, 7, and Noel, 5, waited in the car with her. It was Nov. 3, Aaron’s birthday.

Just two months before, their 2-month-old son Ari had died of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) inside the house. Before that, Amy had suffered six miscarriages and a stillbirth.

Ari’s death made resuming life in that home too difficult. Since then, the family had lived with Amy’s parents in their Kure Beach home, while members of their church, Cornerstone Baptist, where Aaron is an associate pastor, volunteered to renovate the Kings’ house.

At first the church members were just going to re-paint the nursery. Then they found water leaks in the kitchen, buckling floors in the bathroom, a 30-year-old HVAC unit and rotten garage door.

So, instead of just giving the nursery a new look, they carried out a complete home makeover.

“When I did walk in, I was amazed,” Amy said, adding that she loves the open kitchen with its granite countertops and cubed glass backsplash.

“We saw that the sofa and the mirror in the living room were the same, and that was a pretty much it,” Aaron added. “What can we say to all that work? Thank you?”

“They knew they couldn’t take away the pain,” Amy added, through tears, “but they’ve made it easier to bear.”

Senior pastor Daniel Gillespie likened the effort to the HGTV series “Extreme Makeover.”

“We are called to love one another and care for one another,” Gillespie said. “This was an opportunity for the people to honor Aaron and love Amy.”

Church members worked for two months, sometimes until midnight, taking some rooms down to the studs. They put in all new floors and new paint in every room. They installed new cabinets and counter tops in the kitchen. They revamped bathrooms and provided a new bunk bed for the girls and bedroom set for their parents. The group converted the nursery into a play room, with a flower mural.

Forty people spent a total of 2,000 hours on the project.

The Kings’ next-door neighbors, the Taylors, watched the crowds come and go with astonishment.

“We never saw anything like it,” said Rose Ann Taylor.

Church member Pam Bourgeois joined the effort to decorate the house anew.

“Only God can take away grief like that,” she said. “To see the expression on her face when she saw it the first time and knowing I had not seen a smile on her face in so long was worth it.”

But the church’s giving wasn’t isolated to the house. After Ari’s death, one of Aaron’s friends continued Micah and Noel’s homeschooling. Friends took the girls to soccer and gymnastics lessons. And when the Kings returned, the freezer, cupboards and refrigerator were full of food.

“I tend to think that part of the pain of this life is to pry the hands of God’s children off of this life so they’re ready to be with him,” Aaron said. “My wife’s still hurting, but our God is good through this.”

After being back in their home for two weeks, the King girls are making new memories, filling up their chalkboard in the playroom with doodles. Slowly, their home is becoming a space to heal.

“We’re so grateful,” Aaron said. “With a thousand tongues and a thousand years we couldn’t express how thankful we are.”

Amanda Greene: 343-2365

On Twitter.com: @iwritereligion