A Link

Here it is.

I love how a certain political party makes big promises on how they will use our money. They make people feel guilty by saying, "Oh, you can afford to have more taken away from you, really." They forget that the government is the absolute worst steward of money that ever was. Or maybe they don't forget; maybe they want us to forget. My reasons why the government is not my charity of choice:
1) Accountability -- non-existent
2) Efficiency -- non-existent (been to a post office or tag agency lately?)
3) Cost -- how many government officials does it take (do we pay) to change a lightbulb??
4) Personal responsibility -- we don't have to help the poor...that's the government's job

There you go. :-)

Bible Time

I started doing "Bible Time" at breakfast with Nathan a few months ago, so I thought I would share what we do. :-) It works for us, and Nathan loves it.
Nathan has a cardboard children's Bible that is very abbreviated. As soon as I pick the Bible up, Nathan yells, "Bible time!!"
We sing the B-I-B-L-E song.
I open the Bible and say, "Genesis 1:1!!!" We are working on memorizing that verse; Nathan is not fond of memorization, so I generally just say the verse. This morning he actually said the whole verse while I was peeling his orange and pretending not to pay attention...ha.
I read the creation story, pausing to let him fill in the blanks. (God made the earth and the sun. He made the moon and the... Nathan says, "Stars!" One day I was hurrying and tried to just read it myself...someone got a little upset. )
I read the Noah story; sometimes we sing some of "Rise and Shine."
I read David and Goliath then Daniel in the lions' den (also known as "jealous men" to Nathan).
Sometimes we read about Joseph and Mary; sometimes we don't.
When I get to the part where Jesus is teaching, I say John 3:16, and he tries to say it, too.
I read about the sick woman and blind man who were healed (Nathan shouts, "I can SEE!!!")
I read about the children coming to Jesus. Nathan says "Go away!" when I ask what the men said. When I ask what Jesus said, Nathan says, "Come to ME!" and puts his hands on his chest.
We sing "Jesus Loves Me" or "Jesus Loves the Little Children."
We pray.

Anyway, Nathan loves his Bible time, and I am amazed at how much he remembers.

Weekly Menu 9-8 and 9-14 (two weeks)

I'm just posting dinners...I'm definitely behind. :-) The breakfast and lunch menus are pretty much the same every week.

Tex-Mex Mix
Chicken Pot Pie, salad
Refried Bean Burritos
King Ranch Chicken, corn, brussel sprouts
Salmon, broccoli and cauliflower
Chili, cornbread, cheese
Tuscany Peasant Soup
Chicken Enchiladas, green beans
Spaghetti, peas

Another link...

LINK :-)

Recipe for Peace

Philippians 4:4-7 (New Living Translation)


4. Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! 5. Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.
6. Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.



New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers.



What can I say? Fear has always been my worst enemy, and I always feel helpless in its grip. As of this moment, I am fine; there is nothing to worry me. Yet I know I will have the opportunity to worry soon enough. Somehow it always happens that what I want most becomes entangled with that which I fear most.
People who do not understand fear try to reason my fears away. Believe me, if reason worked, I wouldn't have this problem. I am a fairly reasonable person, and I have bent over backward in many situations trying to reason away the fear that gripped my heart and mind. Reason did not work. Also, I know that I will soon be faced with another reason to fear, one that even reasonable people cannot reason away.
As I was reading this morning, the "peace, which exceeds anything we can understand," caught my eye. I need that peace, the peace which guards my heart and mind and doesn't have to be reasonable. So, what now? Rejoice, be considerate, pray, ask, and thank. I am thankful for unreasonable peace.

Stem Cell Research

I was watching videos on CNN just a minute ago, and I came across this video about Biden's comments about stem cell research (if someone cares so much for special needs kids, why don't they allow stem cell research?).
I wouldn't have thought too much about the comments of the commentators, except that I had been reading about stem cell research earlier today. To sum up, scientists have "turned ordinary human skin cells into what are effectively embryonic stem cells without using embryos or women's eggs -- the previously essential ingredients that have embroiled the medically promising field in a nearly decade-long political and ethical debate." Of course, the media does not mention this. I guess because that would take away one of their talking points about Sarah Palin and her stance on embryonic stem cell research. An interesting opinion which I read was that keeping the government from funding embryonic stem cell research kept doors open for researching other options which no one considers immoral. Interesting.

CNN story

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/09/10/rescue.at.sea/index.html#cnnSTCText

A man and his autistic son survive more than 12 hours in the open ocean. Wow.