Whispering Pines - Homeschool Blogger

October 30, 2007

Tue, 30 Oct 2007 08:29:00 -0500

I do not know the source of these words, but they came to me in an email forward and I thought they were worth putting down here for you all to read:

Jesus had no servants, yet they called Him Master.
Had no degree, yet they called Him Teacher.
Had no medicines, yet they called Him Healer.
Had no army, yet kings feared Him.
He won no military battles, yet He conquered the world.
He committed no crime, yet they crucified Him.
He was buried in a tomb, yet He lives today.

C.H. Spurgeon on the Word of God

Thu, 25 Oct 2007 08:36:00 -0500

The following is taken from C.H. Spurgeon's Morning & Evening Devotional:

"For the truths sake, which dwelleth in us, and shall be with us for
 ever."-2 John 2

"Once let the truth of God obtain an entrance into the human heart and
 subdue the whole man unto itself, no power human or infernal can
 dislodge it. We entertain it not as a guest but as the master of the
 house-this is a Christian necessity, he is no Christian who doth not thus
 believe. Those who feel the vital power of the gospel, and know the might of
 the Holy Ghost as He opens, applies, and seals the Lord's Word, would
 sooner be torn to pieces than be rent away from the gospel of their
 salvation. What a thousand mercies are wrapt up in the assurance that the
 truth will be with us for ever; will be our living support, our dying
 comfort, our rising song, our eternal glory; this is Christian privilege,
 without it our faith were little worth. Some truths we outgrow and
 leave behind, for they are but rudiments and lessons for beginners, but we
 cannot thus deal with Divine truth, for though it is sweet food for
 babes, it is in the highest sense strong meat for men. The truth tha!
 t we are sinners is painfully with us to humble and make us watchful;
 the more blessed truth that whosoever believeth on the Lord Jesus shall
 be saved, abides with us as our hope and joy. Experience, so far from
 loosening our hold of the doctrines of grace, has knit us to them more
 and more firmly; our grounds and motives for believing are now more
 strong, more numerous than ever, and we have reason to expect that it will
 be so till in death we clasp the Saviour in our arms.

Wherever this abiding love of truth can be discovered, we are bound to
 exercise our love. No narrow circle can contain our gracious
 sympathies, wide as the election of grace must be our communion of heart. Much of
 error may be mingled with truth received, let us war with the error
 but still love the brother for the measure of truth which we see in Him;
 above all let us love and spread the truth ourselves."


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          C.H. Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Devotional
                     Thursday October 25, 2007
        http://bible.christiansunite.com/devotionals.shtml
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Let Children Be Children

Thu, 18 Oct 2007 06:57:00 -0500

Lately, I have been thinking about how things have changed since I was a little girl. I am not THAT old, but some would probably say I'm "old-fashioned" and "over the hill". It seems to me that our culture is robbing children of their childhood these days--pushing them along to the next stage way before they are ready either emotionally or physically.

Young children are away from their moms at younger and younger ages and in Day Care (my mom didn't go to work till I was in school), Children are exposed and experience profanity, drugs, sex and alcohol at younger and younger ages. (I hadn't even heard the f-word until junior high and I grew up in a secular home with non-believing parents and even THEN it was considered the most obscene word one could ever use!) Now, it is common place vocabulary in many circles even as young as elementary school!

We pack children's schedules so full of activities from the time they are toddlers till they graduate from high school under the guise of "child development". They have to be enrolled in every sport, every activity and carted from one activity to the next almost daily. Households fall apart and homes are not homes anymore, just a place to sleep. Parents have given up the responsibility of parenting to the day dares and schools, and children are not taught right from wrong.

(And just as an aside, if our elected officials truly want to "help" the children, they would purpose ways to enable more moms to stay at home and care for their own children, especially during the infant and pre-school years. Why should parents from a two-income family get a tax credit for day care, while my husband and I try to make ends meet on one income and help pay to raise someone else's child through higher taxes? ) Somebody please tell me the logic of that!

And whatever happened to just letting children, be children? They don't need to KNOW about all the trash that is going on in the world at such young ages. We don't give children enough time to frolic in the sunshine and play in the woods. Let them work and help with chores around the house and learn that they play an important role in helping the household to function. Let them also learn how to be still and not always having to bounce from one activity to the next. Let them learn that they don't have to have the latest new video game or expensive jeans. We've lost sight of what's really important.

I am not against sports or other activities for children for they have a place and can serve a useful purpose. But somewhere there has to be a balance, and I believe that our culture has crossed the line way to the other side--not allowing children enough time to explore and just be a child, and enjoy each new stage of development from birth onward, instead we push them ahead to the next stage way too early.

Enjoy your child today. And let him enjoy being a child.

Private Citizen Speaks Out

Sat, 13 Oct 2007 10:32:00 -0500
One indeed has to wonder what is WRONG with some of our elected officials these days! I'm speaking right now, mostly of Harry Reid and his recent attack on Rush Limbaugh. Why would this man take up valuable senate time (and at the tax payers expense I might add) to address a radio talk show host? And in addition, it is OBVIOUS that Harry Reid doesn't even know what on earth he is talking about! Anyone, anyone who has ever listened to Rush Limbaugh knows that he is about as pro-military as they come. For our elected officials to get away from the business of the country in such a way is unthinkable.

Shame on Harry Reid and the Democrats who signed this letter!!! Since Rush is not an elected official, he has just as much right as anybody to say what he thinks--and you, the listeners, can simply turn the radio off if you don't like what he says. But our elected officials have no right to speak about another U.S. citizen in such a way. Again, they are to be shamed. And that is this mom's opinion, for what it's worth.

Evidence #1 for a Young Earth

Tue, 2 Oct 2007 11:57:00 -0500
As I understand it, the sun gets its power by tiny explosions that happen--called Thermonuclear Fusion, which in turn makes the sun brighter and hotter each year. Evidence for a young earth is seen in this because if we travel back in time, millions or billions of years as some scientists would have us believe, the sun would have been less and less bright and would not have been able to provide adequate warmth for life on earth. This would have also affected other aspects of the creation, and things would have been so cold that nothing could have survived.

It doesn't take a very big person to carry a grudge

Sat, 29 Sep 2007 20:39:00 -0500
"IT DOESN'T TAKE A VERY BIG PERSON TO CARRY A GRUDGE"

I came across this quote, and thought it to be so true. Grudges are never appropriate and actually show how small a person's character really is. If someone has offended you today--forgive, and forget! Life's too short to hold grudges, and it wastes far too much energy.

G'nite!

Fall is Here!

Tue, 25 Sep 2007 21:56:00 -0500
The sky is getting dark earlier. The morning is chilly and the night's are that way too. The leaves just started turning color today. Is it really time to bring out the jackets? Is it really time to take the summer clothes out of the closets and put them away, and replace them with flannel shirts, jeans and boots? Do I have to winterize the camper? Please tell me it isn't so.
I love the lazy, hot , and warm days of summer--and even with all the yard work that has to be done here--it is a welcome sight for me over the cold air that is blowing on the horizon this evening. Yes, fall is here, it is obvious every where on the plains.

September 18

Tue, 18 Sep 2007 22:38:00 -0500
Here we are winding down at the end of another busy day.

It rained a lot today, and tonight we had beautiful rain, lightening and some thunder. The rain and clouds have passed.   Now the stars are shining brightly and the moon has risen to her place. It's a beautiful night. Would be a great night to sit around a campfire or peer at the open sky thru the opened zipper screen window of the bunk end on our camper. In fact, we were tempted to do a little driveway camping tonight, but didn't.

Have been busy making lots of trips to the Dr. lately...for one child or another, or myself. But, thank the Lord for good medical care, and for living in a country where medical care is so easily available.

I have been thinking on some things lately in light of the recent 9/11 anniversary.

I live in the heartland. We are pretty conservative here and hold to some pretty traditional values. I occasionally do like listening to folks like Bill O'Reilly, Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingram and Sean Hannity but that doesn't mean I agree with them on everything.   We are a pretty conservative part of the country, and probably always will be. But no, we're not hicks. We know what we believe and why. Not because of Rush or O'Reilly--because many have held the same beliefs way before there was talk radio or Fox News. It saddens me that some folks look down upon what we believe just because what we believe is different than theirs. Why? Are we also not entitled to our beliefs and values? Do we not have the same freedom of speech as they? I welcome debate on anything. You can share your opinion, and I will share mine without reservation. But that doesn't mean I have to agree with you or we have to be the same. We are a melting pot of individuals from all walks of life, and each one is welcome to his or her opinion. And that is what makes America great. I just happen to share the same opinions as many who are conservative--does that make me the enemy?

In the end though, ultimately, the ONLY opinion that will matter is God's. God will be, and is the only opinion that matters for now and all eternity. Every knee will bow before Jesus Christ--either as Judge or Savior--no one is neutral--Jesus said you are either with me, or against me. Which side are you on?

Labor Day Weekend

Mon, 3 Sep 2007 08:34:00 -0500
We've had a busy weekend!

The weekend started off with #2 son's football game Friday night. It was a pretty exciting game in which our son made some great plays (recovering a fumble and intercepting a pass and making a few tackles)--our team won 34-6. The weather was beautiful and it is always a nice chance to do something together as a family, as well as visit with other parents.

Then we went camping with my mother and father in-law. We look forward to being together and enjoy each other's company a lot. The children in particular enjoy their Grandparents and I'm just thrilled they can make memories together!

Sunday of course was church, and #1 son sang with two other guys and two other gals. Great music was followed by a great message. Then the boys and their Dad did the church service at a local nursing home while I stayed home and worked on lesson plans for school this week. It was a busy, but fruitful day!

Our daughter is also in town, so we've had ample opportunity to visit with her as we have been "in" and "out" of the house.

Great to have all the kids home, coming and going and doing things...it's a busy household...and that's just fine with me! Reminds me of my husband's paternal Grandmother's house (she had 9 children) whenever we used to visit...always people coming and going...talking...eating...re-connecting--as some would say it's like Grand Central Station! If these walls could speak, the stories they would tell!

Ok, it's time for me to get busy with other things here--G'day!

Summer

Tue, 28 Aug 2007 20:32:00 -0500
It's been awhile since I've had the chance to sit down here and write anything.

It's hard to believe that summer is over and we are now into our fall routine. Where did the summer go?

We started it off with a camping trip Memorial Day weekend at our favorite local state park. Then my brother had major heart surgery and complication developed that kept him in the hospital from June 5 until just a week or so ago....where did his summer go?! (Praise the Lord he is doing better and home now!)

We also took a trip as a family to the lake for some jet skiing (only to have uncooperative weather) and the before I knew it, it was the 4th of July, and it was time to think about ordering school materials for the fall. After that, we took an extended trip to Yellowstone Nat'l Park for a family reunion and vacation. Mixed in there were many days of not feeling well (this writer's body is acting up), a few early morning fishing excursions, Vacation Bible School, cleaning the church regularly, celebrating three birthdays, grilling hot dogs and burgers on the grill and an occasional steak, running the go-cart around the yard, playing tennis, bike riding, swimming lessons, piano lessons, violin lessons, visits from friends, a few camping trips, trips out for ice cream in the evening, walks, hikes and a trip to an amusement park for the day and a few days out at the lake. I LOVE SUMMER!

I love the warm summer nights spent on the porch, or a pajama ride to look at the stars. I love fireworks on the 4th of July and grilling burgers out on the deck and making home made ice cream. I like not having to worry about jackets and being cold, walking bare-foot in the grass and playing badminton with the kids in the yard. I love the fresh air and warm sunshine, having the windows open and waking to the sound of birds singing in the wood on a summer morning. I love summer thunderstorms and watching the lightening on the horizon light up the night sky. I love to sit on the porch swing and watch the sunset or watch the kids play in the yard. Ah the lazy warm days of summer. Fond memories and special times.

Around the house we managed to paint the trim on the porch, clean out a few closets, clean out junk from the garage, keep up on the mowing and yard work , gardening, and all the while attempt to keep up on the daily household chores (cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc).

The days of summer come to a close and we see the days getting shorter and hear the locusts singing in the trees. Yes, we are refreshed and ready to pick up the books and begin another school year.