Bad news for the hyper little ones in your home.
And lastly, though I’m against judicial activism and wish this was being handled outside the courts, I’m glad to see consideration given to better accommodating the downtrodden, even if the issue appears mundane.
In a paper scheduled for publication next month in the journal Epidemiology and Infection, a Harvard University-led team proposes that a vitamin D deficiency caused by inadequate winter sun exposure may predispose people to infection.
The Rice Owls are going bowling! (for the first time in my lifetime)
Here’s a thought. What distinguishes the sons of God? Faith. What distinguishes the firstborn of God? Faithful perseverance through suffering. Compare Job 1:3 [show]<div class="esv"><h2>Job 1:3 <object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://www.esvapi.org/assets/play.swf?myUrl=hw%2F18001003" width="40" height="12" class="audio"><param name="movie" value="http://www.esvapi.org/assets/play.swf?myUrl=hw%2F18001003" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /></object></h2>
<div class="esv-text"><p id="p18001003.01-1"><span class="verse-num" id="v18001003-1">3 </span>He possessed 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 female donkeys, and very many servants, so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the east. (<a href="http://www.esv.org" class="copyright">ESV</a>)</p>
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to Job 42:12 [show]<div class="esv"><h2>Job 42:12 <object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://www.esvapi.org/assets/play.swf?myUrl=hw%2F18042012" width="40" height="12" class="audio"><param name="movie" value="http://www.esvapi.org/assets/play.swf?myUrl=hw%2F18042012" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /></object></h2>
<div class="esv-text"><p id="p18042012.01-1"><span class="verse-num" id="v18042012-1">12 </span>And the <span class="small-caps">Lord</span> blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. And he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. (<a href="http://www.esv.org" class="copyright">ESV</a>)</p>
</div>
</div>. Job’s inheritance from the Lord has doubled, hinting at the double-portion received by the firstborn son. What took place between these two accountings of Job’s inheritance? A whole lot of suffering.
I can think of at least one other firstborn son who demonstrated his standing via suffering (Philippians 2:5-11 [show]<div class="esv"><h2>Philippians 2:5-11 <object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://www.esvapi.org/assets/play.swf?myUrl=hw%2F50002005-50002011" width="40" height="12" class="audio"><param name="movie" value="http://www.esvapi.org/assets/play.swf?myUrl=hw%2F50002005-50002011" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /></object></h2>
<div class="esv-text"><p id="p50002005.01-1"><span class="verse-num" id="v50002005-1">5 </span>Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,<span class="footnote"> <a href="#f1" id="b1" title="Or 'which was also in Christ Jesus'">[1]</a></span> <span class="verse-num" id="v50002006-1">6 </span>who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, <span class="verse-num" id="v50002007-1">7 </span>but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant,<span class="footnote"> <a href="#f2" id="b2" title="Greek 'bondservant'">[2]</a></span> being born in the likeness of men. <span class="verse-num" id="v50002008-1">8 </span>And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. <span class="verse-num" id="v50002009-1">9 </span>Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, <span class="verse-num" id="v50002010-1">10 </span>so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, <span class="verse-num" id="v50002011-1">11 </span>and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (<a href="http://www.esv.org" class="copyright">ESV</a>)</p>
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<div class="footnotes">
<h3>Footnotes</h3>
<p><span class="footnote"><a href="#b1" id="f1">[1]</a></span> <span class="footnote-ref">2:5</span> Or <em>which was also in Christ Jesus</em>
<br />
<span class="footnote"><a href="#b2" id="f2">[2]</a></span> <span class="footnote-ref">2:7</span> Greek <em>bondservant</em>
</p>
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</div>).
The local news hit a little too close to home today, or perhaps I should say, too close to my brother’s home. This story tells of four Dallas homes ravaged by fire, two of them completely destroyed. They sit in a row on the street directly behind where Peter, Katie, and our two sweet little nieces live. The backyards of the homes that burned back up to my brother and sis-in-law’s backyard. They told me they awoke at 4am this morning to see the house behind them engulfed in flames. How terrifying.
Tonight we are thankful that no one appears to have been injured in this three alarm fire, and that the flames did not encroach onto my brother’s family’s property. It was a sobering sight to drive by the scene of the fire today and see the devastation that can be wrought in just a couple hours’ time. May God comfort those families who have lost much in this disaster, and give them the means and support to rebuild and recover.
Actually, it is Abigail’s first poem, written back in March, but I forgot to post it. Enjoy!
Our world is very sinful
But God is full of righteousness
He came to earth as a tiny baby
Long, Long, Ago…
He will come back someday -
We don’t know when
But God knows when
And when He comes back
We will all crown Him as our KING.
My brother is asking some questions about WWJD. I’ll leave such questions to him, and instead turn the question on its head (or inside out, or something). Whatever one thinks of WWJD, I suggest it is particularly unhelpful to read the Bible in such a way that it condemns Jesus and his activity while on earth as recorded in the gospels.
Oddly enough, this means we have to leave a bit of room (perhaps only a small space over in the corner) for a single man, perhaps even a pastor or elder, to spend time in the the company of women of ill repute. And he might just be drinking a beer. And picking up the tab.
And now I’ll open the floor: anyone want to try to unpack the acronym WWWLJD? Take a shot at it in the comments.
I bought a used Acura TL back in November of 2004 when the head gasket gave out on my 12 year old Acura Legend (for the second time… had already footed an insane bill once to repair the same thing). I immediately took apart the dash, put in an adapter that converted the CD changer input to a couple of RCA audio jacks which I then ran through the dash into a little cubby/storage slot. After adding a gooseneck PDA holder, I had an iPod-ready car.
For my birthday in January of 2005, I got a set of Polk Audio DB6500s on the cheap off eBay and installed them myself. This involved taking the doors apart, cutting out portions of the doors, and yes, sticking a knife in my leg. For the next year I had fantastic audio in the car minus any bass whatsoever. The car had come with a subwoofer, but it was horrific, so I disconnected it. Great music sans bass. Until my next birthday.
For my birthday in January of 2006, I got an Infinity Basslink, a self-contained small profile 10-inch subwoofer and amp combo thingy (again, courtesy the fine folks at eBay). This time I had Best Buy do the install, and they did a great job. Since then I’ve been enjoying a wonderful audio “experience” as I motor around town. The subwoofer takes up very little room in the trunk and provides a terrific sound, though it is designed more for quality rather than quantity. I can’t entertain neighboring cars with heavy beats.
I really do recommend the approach of putting a solid pair of tweeters and mids up front coupled with a subwoofer. I mostly fade out the back speakers so they are inaudible in the front seats and just provide a bit more sound in the rear seats. You end up with a great shape to the music and by putting all the sound in front it maximizes the illusion of the bass originating from up front as well.
The weather started turning cold early Tuesday evening as we headed out for some Halloween fun, carrying hotdogs in one hand (supper on the run) and empty pumpkins in the other. We joined up with a large group of our new neighbors who also have fairly young children, to trek down a couple streets, and it was a great time for parents and kids alike. Josiah, er I mean Eeyore,
only stayed awake long enough to pose for a couple of pics, then promptly fell fast asleep in his stroller. When it got dark, we returned home in order to greet the very large number of costumed visitors who came to our door begging for candy. There were so many that despite the copious amounts of sweets we’d purchased, we had to turn our porch light off at 8:30 because we were all out of treats!
Here are some pics of the rest of our little Trick-R-Treaters, who, with the help of Mommy and her valiant sewing machine, put together some very fun costumes this year:
The lovely ladybug:
A brave cowboy:
Another, perhaps more silly cowboy:
As our readers are aware, we have moved. In the last several posts, I have alluded to the fact that we are living in somewhat sparse conditions, compared to what is likely considered normal for an American family. We have left most all our furnishings at the old house, to enhance its appearance for showing (and thanks for asking – we average about a showing a day, but no offers yet…we truly hope there might be one soon!). But anyway, we are admittedly missing our things, not because we own grand, expensive furniture, but because the house doesn’t quite feel like home without, for instance, our beds and pictures, and other personal belongings.
Yet in the midst of the sparseness, we are enjoying so many blessings here in our new place. Here are just a few:
family games of basketball on our long flat driveway
beautiful shade from our beautiful, huge, old trees
some of the friendliest neighbors we’ve had yet in our married lives
less time in the car, fighting traffic, and more precious moments at home
the rustle of the 40 year old cottonwood in the breeze (this is a completely new sound to me!)
a simpler floor plan inside, and no stairs to deal with (ok, the kids liked these, but the parents don’t miss them!)
the charm of a picket fence and gate out back
sweet friends and schoolmates just three doors away
roses in five different colors that began blooming just as we moved in
bike rides on the trail down the street
