Steve Ricks' Office Adventure

And, for good measure, here's the short the boys entered in the Phoenix Student Film Festival a couple of years ago.

Play Music

My no. 3 son reminded me tonight that he wants me to post his most recent film here on the blog to make it easier for his friends to find. So, without any further ado, I present to you, Play Music.

And, part 2:

Menu Plan & Shopping Update

First the plan itself:

Sunday: roast beef, potatoes, carrots, swede, onions

Monday: baked potatoes with the works

Tuesday: stew w/bread (made from Sunday's leftovers)

Wednesday: French onion soup

Thursday: beef pitas (made from the rest of Sunday's roast beef, along with bell peppers, onions, & mushrooms (all purchased on sale) and spiced according to the Greek lists in Culinary Artistry)

Friday: chowder & clamcakes

Saturday: lasagne w/veggie & baguettes

As Judith and I sat down to try to get all this (plus breakfasts, snacks, and lunches) figured out, we were a bit stumped. I've gotten out of the habit of looking at the sale papers and I was finding it difficult to get back into the groove. My other kids were waiting to start a movie until Judith and I were done, so we were both feeling some pressure. Then I had a brilliant idea - at least, I think it was brilliant!. I pulled the other kids in and handed them each a sale paper from a different store. Then, when I needed to check the price on something, they each looked to see if it was on their particular ad. It became a bit of a contest among the boys to see who could find the best price. Once the other kids started working with us, it went much, much faster. Judith entered items into the price book and I ran the calculator and organized our shopping list. I think we'll have all the kids help in the future.

Then, today, Judith and I spent the day shopping - mostly loss-leaders at five grocery stores. It was tiring, but, by the end of the day, we still had over $100 dollars of the budget left to get us through the next couple of weeks (milk and produce and anything we may have forgotten). That should be a pretty easy couple of weeks. Last time we went shopping, at this point, we had only $35 left (and we made it with $2 to spare).

Today, I began to explain to Judith how they lay out grocery stores, with an odd number of aisles and the main things (produce, meats, dairy, bakery) around the outside perimeter to encourage as much impulse buying as possible. Next time we go, I'll start to show her how the shelves are arranged, with the higher-priced goods at eye level. (We did a lot of bending, today.)

What sorts of things are you teaching your children about marketing to help them when they grow up?

SDG!

Vocational Reading: Motherhood, Home Education

Motherhood:
Edith Scheaffer's What Is a Family?
How to Raise a Healthy Child … in Spite of Your Doctor, by Dr. Robert Mendelsohn
The Five Standards for Safe Childbearing, by David Stewart
Shepherding a Child's Heart, by Ted Tripp
Age of Opportunity, by Ted Tripp
Girl Talk: Mother-Daughter Conversations on Biblical Womanhood, by Carolyn Mahaney & Nicole Mahaney Whitacre
A Full Quiver, by Rick and Jan Hess
A Mom Just Like You, by Vicki Farris

Home Education:
Norms & Nobility, by David Hicks
The Trivium, by Sister Miriam Joseph (I haven't read this through, but I've been dipping in as I re-work my approach to rhetoric and composition, logic, and grammar.)
The Case for Classical Christian Education, by Douglas Wilson
The Seven Laws of Teaching, by John Milton Gregory (haven't read this one yet, but it's on my shelf.)
Wisdom and Eloquence: A Christian Paradigm for Classical Learning, by Robert Littlejohn (I haven't read this one either, but it's on my list and has been highly recommended by those I trust.)

Add to the Home Education list biographies, history, science, logic, literature, math, economics, philosophy, etc.

SDG!

Norms & Nobility, I

I'm currently rereading Norms & Nobilityas part of my plan to continue to educate and challenge myself regarding the specific vocations to which the Lord has called me.

It's going slowly, but that's a good thing.  I'm taking more time to contemplate what I'm reading - multum non multa, deeper instead of more.  A few years ago, I found it quite helpful to blog through my notes from CiRCE and I think I'll do the same for N&N.  This isn't an overtly Christian book, but much can be gleaned.  

From Chapter 1: 'Virtue is the Fruit of Learning':

The purpose of education is not the assimilation of facts or the retention of information, but the habituation of the mind and body to will and to act in accordance with what one knows.

While Mr. Hicks has just quoted Aristotle, I'm reminded of 'be ye doers of the word, not hearers only,' and 'for him who knows what to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.' 

Later on, as he develops the idea of the purpose of education by comparing the life of pleasure, the practical life, and the theoretic life (or the life of the mind):

The life of pleasure eventually fades and exasperates the pleasure-seeker because it is not a life that is sufficient unto itself.  Pleasure demands a never-ending list of luxurious accessories, the acquisition of which wears man down with work and worry.  In the end, the pleasure seeker becomes preoccupied with what he lacks to complete his picture of happiness; gratification never catches up with his desire, and consumption consumes the consumer.  By the same token, the practical life falls short of completeness.  The wealth one acquires in a business is a useful thing, but as such, it exists for the sake of something else. […]

Dr. Hicks then goes on to elaborate on the theoretical life, or the life of the mind.

So we arrive at the theoretic life - not to be confused, as Professor Burnet (1976) warns, with the contemplative or passive life.

'What Aristotle calls theoria is emphatically an activity.  The fact is that he includes a good many things in it which we are too apt to regard as wholly different, things of which we fail to realize as he did the fundamental identity.  In the first place, scientific research is theoria, and no doubt Aristotle was thinking chiefly of that.  But so too is the artist's life, so far as he is not a mere artificer, and so is all enjoyment of art and literature. So too is the life of the religious man who sees all things in God.'

Aristotle defends the theoretic life as the true end of education and the source of happiness.  One does not require more than the bare necessities in life to achieve happiness in thought, nor is the active life of the mind dependent upon inherently unequal endowments of nature.  One need be neither strong nor handsome, well-born nor gregarious, nay, not even brilliant to participate happily in the theoretic life. […] [T]he theoretic life is the life of virtue, so long as we mean by virtue all that the Greek arete expresses: the life that knows and reveres, speculates and acts upon the Good, that loves and reproduces the Beautiful, and that pursues excellence and moderation in all things.

I would add to that last paragraph: 'by the power of the Holy Spirit, because of gratitude for the Gospel of Christ, and to the glory of God'.  His definition of virtue reminds me of biblical fruitfulness.

I must keep reminding myself that it's not about how much I can cram into my children's heads, rather that I teach them (through example and precept) to act on what they know to be true, starting with the gospel from which everything flows.

Norms and Nobility: A Treatise on Education

The Mother and Her Reading, I

As I mentioned before, I've been slowly working my way through the Sovereign Grace Leadership series of podcasts, wherein, last summer, Josh Harris interviewed Jeff Purswell and CJ Mahaney. I'm amazed at how much of it I can apply in my life as a wife and home educating mom. While I'm not claiming pastor-status for what I do here, there are many parallels, so I thought I'd go through each podcast and share the things that occurred to me and how these ideas might apply.  However, I won't outline the podcast itself; better for you to listen to it in its entirety (it can be found through iTunes or on the Sovereign Grace Ministries website).

CJ's first point was about the importance of reading as a regular part of life.  If we want our children to become readers, it's important for us to model reading for them.  Read aloud to them; read books while they're awake and can observe you; rejoice with them as they learn to read; share your excitement when you receive the gift of a book.  If you save all your reading until after they go to bed, and don't talk to them about what you're reading, they'll think it's an optional part of life.  If, however, you share this part of life with them, chances are better that they'll catch your love of books.

CJ also emphasized planning our reading.  If we don't set aside time, if we don't plan which books we'll read, we won't read any or we'll meander through books and not benefit ourselves and our families as much as we could if we read more intentionally.

The plan may be to read a chapter or smaller section of several books each day, reading them slowly with time to digest the ideas.  Or, if you'd rather read one book at a time, you might read a daily, greater portion of one book, until you're finished.  The important thing isn't that our plans all look alike, but that we do what works for us.

Now, I do want to encourage moms of younger kidlets that grace is a necessary component of this idea.  Little ones demand a lot of time and energy, and if a little one isn't sleeping through the night yet, napping while the baby naps may be a better use of your time.  You may need to ease up on your reading for a season, or you may want to be more creative in carving out that time.  (I often had a book at hand when I sat down to nurse a little one.)  You may be able to listen to audio books while performing other tasks.  (That's something I'm not that good at - I need to see the words for it to make an impression.)  Please realize moms of littles, that there will come a time when you do have more time and can devote more of your time to reading.  There is a time and a purpose to every season under heaven.  Relax and flow with whatever season you're in now, thankful to the Lord for your little ones who grow so quickly and relying on the strength of the Lord to face these busy days.

A proper approach toward and priority of reading is a service to your family.  There have been many books I've read that have challenged my attitudes and thinking in managing my home, educating my children, and relating to others that my family has benefited from.  Reading, for an appropriate amount of time, is not selfish, but can help us serve more effectively.  (Reading can become selfish when it becomes more important than our children, our duties, our responsibilities, but that is probably rooted in selfishness and pride, not in reading itself.)

I've been finding that I'm fighting to maintain my concentration lately.  I was wondering why, and then I read an article that proposed the idea that time spent online, with its quick hyper-links and short articles, undermines our ability to concentrate (this is why I didn't include any hyper-links in my post today - I may begin adding them at the bottom rather than in the midst of the text, so they aren't such a distraction).  I think there's something to this and have determined to spend time each day reading from real books, away from the computer.  It is important for us to discipline our minds, loving the Lord with them, by reading real books: books that point us to Christ, helping us broaden our affection for our Saviour, as well as husband and children, inspiring us to creativity and fruitfulness.

Next time, I'll go through some of the categories of reading mentioned in the interview, along with some ideas of my own that those pastoral categories sparked.

SDG!

Merry Christmas

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all thro' the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,

In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of sugar plums danc'd in their heads,

And I in my helmet caref’ly watched the bait,

And settled my brain for a long winter's wait —

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,

Agent Moore sprang to the window to see what was the matter.

When, what to his wondering eyes should appear,

But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny rein-deer,

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,

He knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,

And he whistled, and shouted, and call'd them by name:

"Now! Dasher, now! Dancer, now! Prancer and Vixen,

"On! Comet, on! Cupid, on! Donner and Blitzen;

"To the top of the porch! To the top of the wall!
"Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"

As dry leaves before the wild hurricane fly,

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky;

So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,

With the sleigh full of toys — and St. Nicholas too:

And then in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.

As Moore drew in his head, and was turning around,

Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound;
He was dress'd all in fur, from his head to his foot,

And his clothes were all tarnish'd with ashes and soot;

A bundle of toys was flung on his back,

And he look'd like a peddler just opening his pack;
His eyes — how they twinkled!
His dimples: how merry,

His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry;

His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,

And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;

The stump of Havana he held tight in his teeth,

And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath.

He had a broad face, and a little round belly

That shook when he laugh'd, like a bowl full of jelly:

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,

And I laugh'd when I saw him in spite of myself;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,

And fill'd all the stockings; then turn'd with a jerk,

As we sprang and surrounded him, with guns and black vests
And cries of “FBI! You’re under arrest!”
We got him on house-breaking, and slave labor too,
For he forced the Elves’ work to get presents to you,
And bypassing Customs, and smuggling gifts,
And those things like LEGOs? They came from shoplifts.
He financed it all through embezzlement and fraud;
This Santa Claus fellow considered himself god!
That night we brought down his criminal empire,
I’m just glad we got him without any gunfire.
We hand-cuffed and led him out to our SWAT van,
Across the yard full of snow and with a snowman.

But I heard him exclaim, as I read him his rights —

“Happy Christmas to all, I’ve had one heck of a night”.

by Benjamin Spear (©2008), who is intrigued by all things FBI.

Yours, Mine and Ours

We recently watched the original Yours, Mine and Ours, with Lucille Ball, Henry Fonda, and a very young Tim Matheson (much, much better than the recent re-make).  There's a particular scene that I love.  Here it is (it has been snipped a bit):

After an altercation between Colleen's step-brother and her boyfriend, Larry, who's been pressuring her to go farther physically in their relationship. Mom, Helen, is upstairs in labor and the house is in chaos.

COLLEEN: Please, I can't talk to mother right now and I've got to talk to somebody.
FRANK: Well, talk fast.
COLLEEN: Larry says he'll never speak to me again unless I grow up. He says that I"m being ridiculous and I don't love him, but I do love him. Am I being ridiculous?
FRANK: You're not being ridiculous.
COLLEEN: Well, do all the other girls, like Larry says? And am I just being old-fashioned?
FRANK: The same idiots were passing the same rumors when I was your age. But if all the girls did, how come I always ended up with the ones who didn't?
COLLEEN: But it's all different now.
FRANK: I don't know, they wrote Fanny Hill in 1742 and they haven't found anything new since.
A YOUNGER DAUGHTER: Who's Fanny Hill?
FRANK: Go to bed, that's who Fanny Hill is.

They walk into the master bedroom where another daughter is helping Helen get ready to go to the hospital.  He helps her up. The following dialgog continues as Frank and Colleen help Helen down the hall, down the stairs, and out to the car, one on each side of her.

COLLEEN: I know this is a terrible time to talk about it, but Larry said...

FRANK: I've got a message for Larry. You tell him this is what's it's all about. This is the real happening. If you want to know what love is take a look around you.
HELEN: What are you two talking about?
FRANK: Take a good look at your mother.
HELEN: Not now.
FRANK: Yes, now. It's giving life that counts. Until you're ready for it all the rest is just a big fraud. All the crazy haircuts in the world won't keep it turning. Life isn't a love-in, it's the dishes and the orthodontist and the shoe repairman and ground round instead of roast beef. And I'll tell you something else: it isn't going to bed with a man that proves you're in love with him, it's getting up in the morning and facing the drab, miserable, wonderful, everyday world with him that counts.

I suppose having 19 kids is carrying it a bit too far, but if we had it to do over, who would we skip? You?

Demographic Winter

Chilling.  Sobering.  Not surprising.

Opportunity for Christians.

God is sovereign.

I'm ordering this DVD today.

SDG.

Pride & Prejudice Ball Photos

Photos from the Pride and Prejudice Ball

Pride & Prejudice Ball

We're taking Judith to We Make History's Pride & Prejudice Ball.  In honor of the occasion, Judith and I are making new Regency dresses to wear.

This is my fabric:

This is Judith's:

We'll start on her chemise and muslins while we wait for the fabric to arrive.

SDG!

A Gospel Primer, by Milton Vincent

This little tomeis one more in a long line I've been reading lately that seek to plumb some aspect of the depths of the gospel and Mr. Vincent succeeds admirably. Its value is not in its factual rehearsal of the gospel, although the poetic section at the end forces a slower, more contemplative reading, but rather in its continual seeking after what the gospel means in a believer's life. Each section (I hate to call them chapters, maybe 'micro-chapters'?) is only a paragraph or three long, yet contains so powerful a point that it's enough to contemplate all day or to discuss with others for a week.

I consistently found that the themes, observations, and challenges in each micro-chapter reiterated, emphasized, and explained in fresh ways those of that day's Scripture assignment and my daily forays into Trusting God and The Godly Man's Picture.  I love it when the Lord pulls things together for me (maybe it's just that I'm thick-headed and hard-hearted and he needs to repeat things so they stick!). As the Lord connected the dots for me, I began to see the bigger picture of how the gospel works out in real, day-by-day, rubber-meets-the-road life. The riches of Christ are a sea we'll swim in for eternity, and I've barely gotten my toes wet, but the process is a delight.

I'm reading this aloud to the kids right now and we're discussing our way through it. It's one that I'll come back to as part of my personal time with the Lord and that we'll continue to re-read together through the years.  

So, Dear Readers (I'm taking Angelina's correspondence course), I highly recommend this book.  It's worth every penny and much, much more.

SDG!!

Catching Up

Attendants' Dress Progress:

patterns all traced with preliminary alterations: check
all bodices cut out of muslin: check
2 muslins made and ready to try on this morning after church: check
all but the green silk pre-treated and pressed: check

This afternoon, I'll work on a few more of the toiles, especially that of Drew the Lesser's sister who lives in Dallas - I need to mail hers out tomorrow so she can try it on, mark it up, and send it back. I might even have time early in the week to make Drew's birthday Hawaiian shirt - only 2 months late!

School Plans:

I was going to start school on the twelfth (the eleventh is the first day of the government schools' new year and, after working all summer, we take that day and have a 'First Day of Public School, Aren't We Glad We Homeschool?' day off to watch movies, eat treats, play games, and read aloud together), but I've decided that, other than our time together (Matins? Lauds? still not sure what to call it - 'Morning Time' doesn't work because sometimes it happens in the afternoon!), the kids will work independently to give me time for wedding sewing.

Lately for our time together (whatever it'll one day be called) we've been…
reading through II Corinthians
reading The Gospel Primer
memorizing the books of the NT, with review of OT books once or twice each week
learning 'God Moves in a Mysterious Way' by Cowper, alternating with review of 'O Wondrous Love'
learning 'Paul Revere's Ride', reviewing 'Casey at the Bat' once each week
reading a chapter or two of Northanger Abbey

Jared's Plans:

He's in the midst of applying to Patrick Henry College. In Houston, spoke with Gene Edward Veith, provost of PHC, and he was so encouraging about Jared's application. We don't know what the financial situation will look like, but we're thinking Jared will complete his first year through PHC's distance learning option - we have to go with whichever option is less expensive. And, starting tomorrow, he has a job with an inventory company.

Been thinking lots about CiRCE, but haven't had time to put fingers to keyboard, yet.

SDG!

Morning Time

I'm working on a time based on Cindy at Dominion Family's 'Morning Time' (see the ClassEd blogs list in the sidebar). I don't know that mine will look just like hers or what I'll end up calling it (although I have some ideas, which I'll discuss in a separate post), or what it'll look like long-term, but I have a plan for this coming week. Each day we'll

*read the day's Bible reading assignment from our senior pastor's blog
*read a short section from The Gospel Primer for Christians
*sing 'O Wondrous Love' to work toward memorizing it
*recite the books of the Old Testament (also working toward memorizing them - my older kids know this, but the youngers have slipped through the cracks)
*read 'Casey at the Bat', also working toward a comfortable familiarity through repetition, if not memorization
*read at least a chapter of Northanger Abbey (we finished Alice this week)

SDG!

Engage…

He's done it! Drew proposed to Anna last night and she joyfully agreed to be his wife!

He spent yesterday setting up a scavenger hunt for her. She started here when she arrived home from work. He had left a package with a new dress, shoes, her favorite scent, a beautiful necklace and earrings that coordinated with the shoes and dress, a letter, and a hint. She was in a bit of shock. She began to suspect what he was up to, but wouldn't let herself go down that path because if he wasn't going to propose last night, she didn't want to disappointed in whatever he was doing.

Then she came to us and we spent some time encouraging her with the evidence of God's grace that we've been seeing in her life and we prayed for her. Then we gave her a yellow rose and another card that contained a clue about where she would be going next.

She had five other stops, where her friends, care group leaders, and pastors encouraged her and spoke about the Lord's work in her and in Drew. They each also gave her a rose and a letter from Drew.

Her last stop was at Tempe Town Lake where Drew was waiting nervously for her. He met her with another six roses to make a dozen and shared with her how thankful he was for what the Lord had done for the two of them. Then he dropped to one knee and asked if she would be willing to be his wife. She dropped to two knees and said, 'Yes, yes, yes!!!'

Then they came to a friend's house where about 40 of us were waiting to celebrate with them. What joy! I was asked a few times how I was feeling, with the expectation that I must be weepy and view this as bittersweet, but I'm not and I don't. We've been working to prepare her for this for over 21 years. How can it be bittersweet when the Lord answers our prayers for her? I feel nothing but joy and gratitude at the blessing that young Drew is to Anna.

So, now we move into wedding planning mode. Since I write about what I'm thinking about and what I'm doing and what the kids are doing, expect to see wedding musings and progress reports.

I think it's time to go watch Father of the Bride again!

SDG!

I Went to Buy Thread…

…and waved 'hello' to the President.

This afternoon, I was in Joann's exchanging polyester thread for cotton thread. The cashier expressed surpise that I'd come by way of Dobson Road because she thought it was closed. It seems President Bush was in town for a few hours (speaking within 5 miles of our house) and would be travelling that route on his way back to Sky Harbor.

When we came out, all the mall exits were blocked by police cars, so Elizabeth and I got small drinks at Taco Bell and waited on the sidewalk. A friendly Mesa police officer kept us informed of the President's impending arrival so we'd be ready. We waved as the motorcade drove by; there was one man in one of the limos saluting, I assume to the policemen lining the route.

Elizabeth was less than impressed, but maybe some day she'll look back on today with gratitude that her mother made her stand for a half hour in the warm sun.

SDG!

Busy Day

Joel needs a hair cut.

I want to finish my stays.

I want to finish fitting the bodice of my dress so I can cut out the fabric.

Need to straighten the kitchen to prepare to paint the kitchen this weekend.

Jared's graduation announcements are ready to be addressed and need to go out within the next few days.

Judith's dress needs to be measured, a mock-up of the bodice needs to be made, and then we need to cut it out so she can start sewing.

Rebekah and Ben haven't finished their bathrobes yet. Eliza is almost finished with her sleeves and then I'll take a picture of the two girls in them.

All that to say that we have lots going on and I don't have time to post anything thoughtful.

SDG!

Sewing!

I've been sewing lately! I gave it up about six years ago - I couldn't make anything fit and my cheap sewing machine had had it. I was able to purchase a new machine recently (Viking's Scandinavia 400, which is the latest incarnation of the belovèd Rose and which soon will no longer be made in Sweden). It sews and embroiders!

I also still have the wonderful black Singer Model 301 my dmil gave me when we moved to Arizona 21 years ago and it still works great! The small Kenmore machine we bought Judith for Christmas isn't working. It would cost as much to fix it as it originally cost, so instead we bought the girls a low-end Singer. It has lots more stitches than the Kenmore, but not as much precision as the Scandinavia in being able to recreate specific combinations of stitch-length and width. Fortunately, all the specialty presser feet that I used with the old Brother machine fit on the new Singer, expanding its capabilities quite a bit. It'll be a good learning machine, along with the 301.

I'll try to load pictures of everything listed, but for now, descriptions will have to do. Here's what I've been able to complete so far:

1. A bathrobe, originally meant for sale on Etsy, but instead given to Melody and Eliza's friend, Rylie, for her 8th birthday. She just loved it - pale pink with darker pink roses and buds, coordinating pink facings (on the outside) that I ran through a couple of the fancy stitches on my machine.

2. A bathrobe for Melody - pink with a musical score printed all over it. Perfect for this little girl.

3. A purse, complete with specially-measured, inside pockets for the items I carry most.

4. A beautiful, small backpack that I'm looking forward to filling with books and journals!

5. I finished my part of Eliza's blue dolphin bathrobe - she sewed a few of the easier seams; we had to put the foot pedal on a thick book so she could reach it! She's been begging me to teach her to hand sew and so she's hemming the sleeves by hand. She's doing an excellent job for an almost 7 yo who hasn't really sewn before. She wore out about 3/4 through the first sleeve and asked me to finish it, but I'm not going to. I'm not so mean as to make her do it all in one sitting, but I am mean enough to make her complete the job she started. Besides, it gets easier with practice.

I'm currently working on a blouse that I hope to get done by Gileskirk on Friday, and a set of Regency short stays from Sensibility Patterns. I'm almost out of muslin, but once I get some more we'll begin working on dresses for everyone for Jared's graduation.

Judith, Rebekah, and Benjamin are also making summer bathrobes (Ben wanted a camo robe and is going to change the pocket style so it's more manly), but haven't been very diligent and so they're not finished yet, but I hope to get on them about it this afternoon.

I've been learning lots and will post a list of the books that have been most helpful.

Well, it's time to go exercise!

SDG!

Baby Love

I went to a baby shower on Saturday and got to see my friend Mrs. Miller and meet baby Evangeline (what a cutie!). While there, I got to spend time with another young married gal from our church, Stephanie. She has been blogging about her baby research and questions as she and her husband prepare to start their family. One of her posts got me thinking.

Her question was:

Does having your first child change the way you view love? Do you feel like you have a greater capacity for love/compassion/self-sacrifice since becoming a parent? Or is all that the stuff of myth?

My initial response (which will show up in the post's comments when Stephanie has time to approve it - her blog has been raided by spammers, so she's having to moderate things more closely) was that the fact of having a baby certainly didn't make me less of a sinner than before I had a baby (any of them), but in the long run, the Lord has certainly used my children in the process of sanctification to mature me and teach me much about his love, which has indeed increased my capacity to love.

However, I've continued to mull this over and don't want to clog up her blog with a comment that's longer than her original post. That's why I have a blog of my own!

I think this thought that having a baby dramatically changes who you are is based on a Romantic (with a capital 'R') view of the world. Not 'romantic' meaning an ooey-gooey love story in which everyone lives happily ever after, but 'Romantic' as in the nineteenth century philosophical movement that was an over-reaction to the rationalism of the Enlightenment. The Romantic philosophers distrusted reason, preferring to rely upon their emotions for guidance and to lead them to truth. This meant that if they felt more loving, they were indeed more capable of love. This idea denies the bad news of the gospel - that we are sinners who cannot choose in our own strength to do right - and denies the good news of the gospel - that the gospel expressed through Christ crucified and raised again for our sins is the power of God at work in us. Looking through the lens of a Christian Romanticism, our emotions become the means of our sanctification and we must manufacture the right emotions so that we'll be changed.

While I don't think anything short of the work of God through the gospel of Jesus Christ can truly change us, the Lord does use earthly means, and one of those means is motherhood. Our children are most definitely ingredients in the slow crucible of our sanctification, but they are not a lightning bolt that changes everything in the blink of an eye (that's still to come!). I am also not saying that a new baby doesn't dramatically change one's life (which should go without saying, but I'm saying it anyway because I don't want to be misunderstood). Of course having a baby changes life in dramatic ways, but these changes don't necessarily equate to instant sanctification.

As Christ changes us into his image, those changes will affect our emotions. Our emotions, feelings, and sentiments will respond to the work of Christ. However, I see those changed emotions merely as a response to rather than a cause of our sanctification.

I have more thoughts jumpled up with this that I'm working to sort out, but they're best saved for another post.

SDG!

Honor, or What Achilles Could Have Learned

From the beginning of recorded history, we see a continual quest for honor. Achilles left the battle for Troy because his honor was stolen by Agamemnon. Gilgamesh fought Enkidu over honor. Alexander Hamilton died in a duel with Aaron Burr for the sake of honor. One's honor is to be defended, often to the death; it is more important than life.

Yet, as I watch the developing relationship between this young man and this young lady, I am struck by the honor of it all.

They each count themselves as nothing in their quest to glorify God and honor one another. He is not watching and defending his own honor and neither is she, but they are zealously guarding and defending the honor of the other. Their thoughts are not, 'Where is the line and how close can we get without actually crossing it?' or 'How many of my own aspirations and yearnings will you be able to fulfill?' but 'How and in what ways can I honor and guard you, without reference to my own inclinations?'

Because they view honor not as 'reputation' or 'acclaim' but as 'integrity' and 'esteem for one another', they have the former as they seek the latter. They have been freed from the selfishness of defending themselves and their own status. And their honor shines as they magnify the Lord together. This is honor that no one can steal from them.

What Achilles could have learned from this humble young man and woman!

SDG!