Jun. 30, 2008 - Service for the Lord
We have a neighbor who has been so crabby with our family or anyone who comes to visit our home, especially my step dad, one time he came out and watered his lawn along with my dad's car. Well he has gotten older and we saw him use a cane with a hook to pick up his newspaper. Then one day we were going to church and he dropped the cane. So my husband sent our son to help him out. Then my husband started putting his paper on his front door step each morning. I was very nervous when we were going out of town to ask any of our neighbors to help him with his paper knowing they would think we were crazy. And knowing that they probably had interacted with him, I had a list of 5 and the first person said yes. The man who lives behind us knew of him they had had words but was happy to help us out for a few days. And now for us and the kids he will bring over or have a friend bring over some fresh fruit or nuts, or a yummy bakery item. It has been good for the kids to look out and do something as simple as take a newspaper up to the door and really bless this man.
Then one day my son was out side and this neighbor drove up to the house and asked him what kind of pie do you like(it was around Thanksgiving) and he brought us a pumpkin pie from a local bakery. Very Yummy I must add. I told him it was all my husbands doing. And then when my husband leaves prior to the paper coming we all do it. This has been a real blessing to our kids and we look out for him when since he lives alone. He has turned out to be very nice. I think he is lonely and sad and now old on top of it.
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Oct. 6, 2007 - Books Books Books
Books there are so many great books to read. Each year I have an extra stack of books that I want to read. We start them and get busy and never finish. I get so bummed. Then they get buried in all of our stacks of books or I put them in a basket with a lid to hide them. When the day comes that I do come across them, I start reading and the day is gone and now we have ditched my plans for school. Then after a few days I balance it out and then they are buried again and or I am busy with life and the books are forgotten for another day.
It makes me so sad. This year I have a new plan and it is working out well. I have six books I want to add to our school this year. So I have scheduled them one a day and one is for my daughter and we are able to read that one while my son is working out with his personal trainer. It has been so nice to be more relaxed this year and at the same time getting more accomplished than ever before.
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Apr. 7, 2007 - Prayer
I came across these prayers and love them. I made a perpetual monthly calendar for me to daily pray for my family. And I had to share.
1 salvation "Lord, let salvation spring up within my children, that they may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory" (Isaiah 45:8, 2 Timothy 2:10).
2 growth in grace "I pray that they may 'grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ'" (2 Peter 3:18).
3 love "Grant, Lord, that my children may learn to 'live a life of love,' through the Spirit who dwells in them" (Ephesians 5:2, Galatians 5:22).
4 honesty and integrity " May integrity and honesty be their virtue and their protection" (Psalm 25:21, NLT).
5 self-control " Father, help my children not to be like many others around them, but let them be 'alert and self-controlled' in all they do" (1 Thessalonians 5:6)
6 a love for God's Word " May my children grow to find your Word 'more precious than gold, than much pure gold; [and] sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb'" (Psalm 19:10).
7 justice " God, help my children to love justice as you do and to 'act justly' in all they do" (Psalm 11:7, Micah 6:8).
8 mercy " May my children always 'be merciful, as [their] Father is merciful'" (Luke 6:36).
9 respect (for self, others, authority) " Father, grant that my children may 'show proper respect to everyone,' as your Word commands" (1 Peter 2:17a).
10 strong, Biblical self-esteem " Help my children develop a strong self-esteem that is rooted in the realization that they are 'God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus'" (Ephesians 2:10).
11 faithfulness "' Let love and faithfulness never leave [my children],' but bind these twin virtues around their necks and write them on the tablet of their hearts" (Proverbs 3:3).
12 courage "May my children always 'Be strong and courageous' in their character and in their actions" (Deuteronomy 31:6).
13 purity "'Create in [them] a pure heart, O God,' and let their purity of heart be shown in their actions" (Psalm 51:10).
14 kindness "Lord, may my children 'always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else'" (1 Thessalonians 5:15).
15 generosity "Grant that my children may 'be generous and willing to share [and so] lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age'" (1 Timothy 6:18-19).
16 peace, peaceability "Father, let my children 'make every effort to do what leads to peace'" (Romans 14:19).
17 joy " May my children be filled 'with the joy given by the Holy Spirit'" (1 Thessalonians 1:6).
18 perseverance " Lord, teach my children perseverance in all they do, and help them especially to 'run with perseverance the race marked out for [them]'" (Hebrews 12:1).
19 humility " God, please cultivate in my children the ability to 'show true humility toward all'" (Titus 3:2).
20 compassion " Lord, please clothe my children with the virtue of compassion" (Colossians 3:12).
21 responsibility " Grant that my children may learn responsibility, 'for each one should carry his own load'" (Galatians 6:5).
22 contentment " Father, teach my children 'the secret of being content in any and every situation. . . . through him who gives [them] strength'" (Philippians 4:12-13).
23 faith " I pray that faith will find root and grow in my children's hearts, that by faith they may gain what has been promised to them" (Luke 17:5-6, Hebrews 11:1-40).
24 a servant heart " God, please help my children develop servant hearts, that they may serve wholeheartedly, 'as to the Lord, and not to men'" (Ephesians 6:7, KJV).
25 hope " May the God of hope grant that my children may overflow with hope and hopefulness by the power of the Holy Spirit" (Romans 15:13).
26 the willingness and ability to work hard " Teach my children, Lord, to value work and to work hard at everything they do, 'as working for the Lord, not for men'" (Colossians 3:23).
27 a passion for God " Lord, please instill in my children a soul that "followeth hard after thee," a heart that clings passionately to you (Psalm 63:8, KJV).
28 self-discipline " Father, I pray that my children may develop self-discipline, that they may acquire 'a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair'" (Proverbs 1:3).
29 prayerfulness " Grant, Lord, that my children's lives may be marked by prayerfulness, that they may learn to 'pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests" (Ephesians 6:18).
30 gratitude " Help my children to live lives that are always 'overflowing with thankfulness,' 'always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ'" (Colossians 2:7, Ephesians 5:20).
31 a heart for missions " Lord, please help my children to develop a heart for missions, a desire to see your glory declared among the nations, your marvelous deeds among all peoples" (Psalm 96:3).
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Jan. 20, 2007 - Walking and Talking
I am so enjoying my energy coming back from my last surgery. This one was a hard one. I think with my chemo and three surgeries, I think that I never fully came back with a full energy level.
I am so enjoying fully schooling my kids each day (we aren’t needed many days off due to health issues). We start our days with a morning walk.
We get such a special time to talk about the things on the kids minds. It is so special to hear their hearts when we are away from home. We take a time to do memory work for a Sunday school skit, or for school review or even just to hear their ideas. I love to spend time and help them think come up with life plans and goals. They are so enjoyable and fun to be around. I love being with my kids. It is such a nice way to start our days, even if our dog misbehaves. We have funny jokes we see our favorite neighbor an elder from our church that lives a couple of blocks away. It is a time to pray for our youth pastor and his family as we pass their home each day. (He has some health issues right now that need prayer and a huge ministry to take care for and a young family-they need a lot of prayer)
Our walks are a very special time to talk and get a little exercise. What a joy to start our day-but I must admit that I do get my walking clothes on as I step out of bed so that I don’t change my mind-some mornings have been so cold lately I would rather stay home. But my kids are so fun to talk to I am loving our walks.
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Jan. 9, 2007 - Beowulf and Tolkien
What a joy to hear my kids still learning after a full day of school. We finished about 2:50 and my son had to be at a private lesson to workout with a friend from church at 3:00. Then my daughter and I ran to the library to pick up a couple of things. One was a book on CD of Beowulf. Then make dinner and pick my son up at 4:00, and yes I was a few minutes late.
We spoke at dinner a little about Beowulf and my daughter decided she didn’t want to start it until the next morning in the day light. But my son was totally into it after listing to his Jonathan Park Vol. 4. Then my daughter was on the computer World Book Encyclopedia and she looks up J. R. Tolkien she is a huge Lord of the Rings fan, and reads that he had gotten the time period for Lord of the Rings and some of the ideas from Beowulf and even names the hall the same as in the Beowulf. She can’t wait to start listing to Beowulf tomorrow.
I love to hear them wanting to learn more and not just what we are studying for school, but to really find learning a joy and a fun thing to do. It is neat that they are both doing different things but still learning together and wanting to share that with each other.
I just love homeschooling.
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Jan. 4, 2007 - Our Family
I am not sure how to get a real photo here so here is a small one
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Jan. 4, 2007 - Hope for our Family
3 John 1:4 I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth.
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Jan. 3, 2007 - How we try to guard our school time
As busy homeschooling mom life often interrupts our school schedule. I always have a book ready for those times to at least be reading to my children. I also try to protect my time as much as I can from phone calls, housework, errands, and e-mails. I set at least three days a week to be home then I have one for appointments like doctors, orthodontist etc. (at one time we had two weeks with three days a week out I was going crazy so now I have one day for appointments-Thursdays is that day for us)
Setting aside three long days home helps keep the schedule of schooling and still leave time to appointments and also fieldtrips. This is helpful also for the kids to know on the days we are home school in important and they enjoy it more.
I try to start a load of laundry before school and keep it going and fold after school work in complete. I like to have the kitchen clean before we start and the kids help with chores like the house being in order. I try to have a plan for lunch and dinner before we start school, this way I can start thing ahead to make our home run as smoothly as possible.
I do accept phone calls but attempt to make them as short as possible. And get back to school as soon as I can. I do have activities for the kids when I am on the phone. They can do a typing program on the computer, listen to Spanish tapes or CD-Rom, practice guitar or practice for a church musical.
I try to schedule appointments all on the same day that way it doesn’t mess up our whole week, and I only due errands when I am already out.
I like to be open to ministry opportunities, like taking a meal to a sick friend or a new mom. My kids recently had an opportunity to work at our local soup kitchen during the day. Had I not answered the phone we would have missed that special opportunity. My mom also often comes by and we try to stop school long enough to make her feel welcome in our home. But she understands that our school is important to us.
Ministry opportunity is a very important part of our lives so we want to stay open to the opportunities that the Lord guides us to and not say no to everything because it comes at a time we should be doing school work. The school work can wait. That is another reason we homeschool year round. This summer our plan will be to take Mondays off to go to the beach and school Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and if we need to Friday. But I hope to have Friday to prepare for the weekend or see friends who don’t want to go to the beach with us on Mondays.
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Dec. 22, 2006 - One more blessing about homeschool
Homeschooling opens you up many opportunities that would not be available if they were in a traditional school, today many of our local school are not on Christmas Break. And today we got a call from a friend who was going to got to give out gifts for Christmas to about 1000 under privileged kids who go to the local soup kitchen and when they are finished with that they will go serve lunch for the soup kitchen. I am so happy they have this opportunity. We had 20 minutes to get ready before they were picked up to go. It is such a blessing when ministry opportunities open up and you are available to serve. Normally I am not one to change plans from what we are doing, but I always want to be open to minister to people or other service opportunities.
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Dec. 22, 2006 - Enjoying my Family
I am having such a great day with my kids. They are so enjoyable to be around. We are enjoying the holiday season making cookies together, preparing for Christmas and celebrating the birth of our Savior. They love to talk about Jesus.
They are so interesting. I love having older kids. They are such a joy to watch them get all of the things we have been teaching them over the years. They are learning to lean on the Lord and trust Him. They love to talk about what they see Him doing in their lives and they watch their friends at church go through hard times. They are learning from their mistakes. I just really enjoy spending time with them.
We take walks each morning and they really start to talk out side of our home. I guess we get distracted at home. We have only been able to take short walks lately due to my health. But today they are just enjoying the day as we decorate cookies and spend time together.
We are so happy this Christmas Eve is going to just be our family after Church and we are so excited to have a special family day. These kids are truly our favorite people to be with.
Enjoying a happy family as we are serving the Lord and learning and loving together.
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Oct. 13, 2006 - Fall
We have been busy for the past few months, but are really enjoying the cool weather and the feel of fall. We have been focusing on school work and taking long walks before school, over looking the bay below where we live and trying to see the ocean in the distance. Today was beautiful with the storm clouds off the coast. (We may get some rain this weekend, we hope). It is a nice time to walk and talk about life with out home and school work to fill our converstaion. The kids are learning to make soups again. They are enjoying that. And our schedule is full of school and church with one in High school and one is Jr. High. But they are happy and love being a church learning and serving others. I am very proud of them. We are now at a full schedule of school. We starting the beginning of October started slow adding each subject. I love starting out that way. I think it helps we continue on for the long hall. Slow and steady is my motto.
Enjoy a cup of tea 
and an afternoon snack of apples
and popcorn
(our favorite fall snack)
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Aug. 4, 2006 - Remembering when we began homeschooling
As we are getting ready to start a new school year, I am thinking back to the days when we began many years ago. We had such fun days when the kids were little creating alphabet people or animals each week for kindergarten what sweet days and doing little crafts after reading a great book. Also I remember the struggle trying to stay home and not go out. (Sometimes we still struggle with that) So I had a pajama day each week. I would shower and shave the night before and put on a clean pair of jammies so that I could stand to stay in them all day. And we would have a special no rush day devoted to school. And right before my husband would come home I would get all cleaned up and then get dinner going. He didn’t know about my jammie days until much later. Now we are busy with sports (tennis right now) and swimming at my mom’s house. The school work is harder but we are still enjoying homeschooling as much as ever. But I really miss those days when the kids were small and we could be in out jammies until afternoon. I loved those days but would not go back and mess things up for my kids they are so sweet and special and my favorite people to be around except for my husband. It is just nice to remember those days.
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Aug. 3, 2006 - Another quote
Never be afraid to sit awhile and think.
-
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Aug. 2, 2006 - Books
.
There is no substitute for books in the life of a child.
-Mary Ellen Chase
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Jul. 26, 2006 - Oh we are so excited
Well today is the day we finished our school work for this past year. With all of my health problems and fight with breast cancer we are thrilled that today is the day we finished. We school year round so we will take of 2 1/2 weeks for camps that the kids are involved in and start up for three more weeks on August and then take September off. It is the best month here weather wise and all of the tourist go home and students are back in school. Then we will start again in October. After a family vacation.
Tammy
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Jul. 23, 2006 - The question I have been asked lately
The question people keep asking me about homeschooling. This was not just asked once but three times in the last month. It is not about socialization. I think people are realizing that maybe being around ones peer may not the best thing. But they are asking me, “Where do you get your curriculum?” That is so funny to me, if only they knew how many companies out there selling goods to homeschool. I can’t believe what they must think we do when we say we homeschool. As I am trying to get some information for a friend who is beginning to homeschool, I can’t believe how many neat things I want to share with her. I have so many I don’t want to overwhelm her with all of it at once. It is so nice to have many wonderful choices and great ideas.
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Jul. 22, 2006 - We are so proud
Every year our kids enter items into our county fair
This is our daughter’s items
Lime Meltaways (these were my favorite cookie she received a 1st )
¾ C butter
1 C confectioners’ sugar
Zest of 2 limes, 2 T lime juice,
1 T vanilla
1 ¾ plus 2 T flour
2 T cornstarch
Pinch of salt
3
Put butter and 1/3 C sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, mix on medium until pale and fluffy. Add lime zest, lime juice and vanilla. Whisk together flour, cornstarch, and salt. Add to butter mixture, and mix on low speed until just combined.
Divide dough in half. Roll in parchment to a log of 1 ¼ inches. Refrigerate logs until cold and firm at least 1 hour. Pre heat oven 350
Cut logs ¼ inch thick rounds. Space 1 inch apart on parchment lined baking sheets. Bake 13 minutes until barely golden. Transfer to cooling racks 8-10 minutes. While still warm toss cookies with remaining 2/3 C sugar in resealable plastic bag.
Raspberry Cream Sandwich Cookies- For this my daughter received a 2nd we loved them but had a small problem with the mixer and the flour went flying all over and we didn’t know how much to add. (I can’t wait to see the judges coments)
For the cookies
1 ¾ Cups all purpose flour
1 t baking soda
Pinch of salt
10 T butter, softened
1 ½ C sugar
1 large egg
2 t pure vanilla extract
1 vanilla bean halved lengthwise, seeds scraped and reserved
For the filling
1 1/3 C fresh or frozen raspberries
2 t sugar
7 ½ oz white chocolate
1/3 C heavy cream
Preheat oven to 350 . Sift flour, baking soda and salt: set aside. Mix butter and sugar, until pale and fluffy, add egg, vanilla and vanilla seeds, reserve bean for another use. Mix until smooth. Reduce speed and gradually mix in flour mixture. Using a 1 inch cookie scoop, drop dough on parchment paper lined baking sheets. Bake 8-10 minutes cool on rack.
Make filling: Puree raspberries and sugar in a food processor, pour mixture through a fine sieve into a small bowl. Discard seeds. Set aside. Melt white chocolate in a heat proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Remove from heat and whisk in cream. Add raspberry mixture. Slowly whisk until pale, about 3 min. Refrigerate 30 min.
Assemble cookies; spread 1 T of filling onto the bottom of 1 cookie and sandwich with another cookie. Repeat until finished,
A cute Flip Flop Pillow for my husband and my bed. It is in a fabric that matches our quilt that I made while I was in my treatment for breast cancer. It is a Hawaiian Cowboy print. She received a Reserve Best of Show and will receive $10.
A very cute daisy wreath for our home, she did it at a Fair theme and this year it is Flower Power-but they went pink and she did it in Blue. We now know to copy there art work and not just go along with the them. This she received a 2nd place award.
These are our son’s items
Royal Lemon Meringue Bars- We were surprised that this was not the best of show He received a 2nd the only thing is that is was hot the meringue may not have looked the best. So we can’t wait to see the judge’s comments
1 C butter
½ C powdered sugar
2 C flour
¼ t salt
Zest of one lemon
¾ C lemon curd
3 large egg whites
¼ t cream of tarter
2/3 C sugar
Mix butter and powdered sugar, gradually add flour salt and lemon zest, as you would pie crust. Press dough evenly into a 9 X 13 pan. Bake 20 minutes at 350 . Let cool 5 minutes them spread lemon curd evenly over warm crust. In a large bowl with an eclectic mixer on high speed beat egg whites and cream of tarter until thick and foamy, add sugar gradually and continue to beat into mixture holds soft peaks. With a spatula spread meringue evenly over lemon curd. Bake until meringue is lightly browned about 20 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes then cut into bars let cool completely in pan then remove.
Then he drew a picture of the Long Beach Grand Prix and received a 1st place. My step dad does work for
Chocolate Waffle Cookies this is my son’s favorite cookies to make He received a 2nd.
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
18 T butter (2 ¼ cubes)
4 eggs
1 t vanilla
1 ½ c sugar
1 ½ t cinnamon
½ c cocoa powder plus 2 T cocoa powder
1 ½ c flour
Vegetable spray
¼ c powdered sugar and more for dusting
1 ½ T milk
1) Melt chocolate and 1 cup of butter in a double boiler
2) Mix eggs, vanilla and sugar with paddle attachment mix about 4-5 minutes. Mix in chocolate a mixture, salt cinnamon ½ C cocoa powder, and flour
3) Heat waffle iron until hot. Lightly coat with cooking spray, Spoon about 1 T of batter onto each side of the waffle iron to make about 1 ½ inch rounds. Close iron and cook until set about 1 ½ minutes repeat with remaining batter, coat grids with cooking spray after each batch
4) Melt the remaining butter in a double boiler add powdered sugar and remaining 2 T cocoa powder stir until smooth add milk
5) Gently dip surface of cookie into the icing so that just the waffle lines are coated. Transfer to wire racks let stand 10 minutes and dust with powdered sugar
And then he made this sweet sweet lime divinity and received a best of show. He reveived a trophy and also a will get $35
Lime Divinity
2 egg whites
1 package (3 oz) lime gelatin
3 C sugar
¾ C hot water
¾ C corn syrup
Line a 9 inch baking pan with aluminum foil, extending over two sides of the pan, grease pan. Beat egg whites until stiff. Gradually beat in gelatin until well mixed. Set aside.
Butter sides of heavy saucepan, combine sugar, hot water and corn syrup. Stirring constantly, cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves, using a pastry brush dipped in hot water wash down any sugar crystals on sides of the pan. Attach a candy thermometer don’t let it touch the bottom of the pan. Increase heat and bring to a boil. Cook until mixture reaches 254 While beating at high speed, slowly pour hot mixture over egg whites beat until candy thickens and begins to hold its shape, about 4 minutes. Spread into prepared pan; cook completely. Use ends of foil to lift candy from pan. Cut into 1 inch squares. Store in an airtight container.
He also made a dog bed pillow for our puppy and he received a 2nd place ribbon.
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Jun. 19, 2006 - Father's Day Poems from our children
These were entered into our local newspaper yesterday and my husband was so blessed.
I Love My Dad
I is for Integrity
L is for Loving
O is for the Overalls he likes to wear
V is for Valiant
E is for Encouraging
M is for Magnificent
Y is for Young at heart
D is for Diligent
A is for Angels baseball
D is for Darth Vader
By K W
My dad is a super hero, but not like Superman or Batman.
My dad is a super hero because,
He takes care of my family
He loves my mom
He provides for my family
He is fun to hang out with,
but more importantly he has raised my sister and me in a Christian home.
He has taught us to love Jesus,
He is my best friend.
By JDW
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Jun. 14, 2006 - Olden Days and Now
I love old things, my antiques and old photos of family (I have covered over my living room) and pictures. I love reading books and seeing movies about past times and I idealize those times. I am reading now an old booklet from 1888 called “The Duties of Parents” by J.C. Ryle. It is sweet and helpful and really good.
But I now feel that if I lived in any other time or place I might be dead. With my cancer it was a rare form and my treatment was strong. I also feel if I had any other doctor than the one I had I might be dead. I am so thankful for my family and friends praying and helping me through all of this. I am thankful for our church helping feed us and serve us. Our family who help pay for us to have our home cleaned professionally. I am so happy to see my kids grow in the Lord through this hard situation. I am just so thankful to be alive (and yes I am excited to go to heaven and would leave today if all my family would go together, or if it was God’s will) But I see my life so differently and I am happy to see what God will do through my children’s lives.
So now I cherish my antiques and olden days are a dream. But today is just a special and wonderful to me and I dream of serving the Lord more and seeing what He will do in my life and the lives of my family.
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Jun. 4, 2006 - More Favorite Quotes
I am much afraid that the schools will prove to be the great gates of Hell, unless they diligently labor in explaining the scriptures, engraving them on the hearts of youth.
I advise no one to place his child where scriptures do not reign paramount. Every Institution in which men are not increasingly occupied with the word of God must become corrupt. - Martin Luther
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication –Leonardo DaVinci
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