Tuesday, March 31, 2015

To know Him


 I love this verse in the Amplified bible...

My determined purpose is that I may know Him, that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His Person more strongly and more clearly
and in that same way experience the power of His resurrection which overflows and is active in those who believe Him,
and that I may be a partner with Him in His sufferings, by being continually conformed inwardly into His likeness, even to His death [saying yes to the Father's will as He did]
Phil 3:10


I think this is the answer to everything.

When we know God - His power and goodness and wisdom and creativity and ability and love - all of our worries fall into the right perspective because of Who is in control.

Our fears are calmed because of Who is caring for us.

Our struggles don't overwhelm us because we can say "I know the One who keeps His promise to work this out for some kind of good."

Our questions rest because we know we can trust His wisdom, even if we can't figure out how.

Our problems shrink in light of His incredible power and ability.


Lord, help me know You.  Let that be my determined purpose.




Saturday, March 28, 2015

On my nightstand









In This Mountain by Jan Karon
Jeff and I often read books together at night… like out loud together.  It’s something we started when we were first married, then abandoned for most of the years our kids were growing up because, well, we were exhausted.  But it continues to be a favorite thing we do together and we look forward to that time of day.  Especially if we’re into a really good story like this one.  It’s one of my favorite in the Mitford series.  We have also checked out the book on cd and listen to it in the car on our frequent long drives up and down I-5.



41 A Portrait of My Father by George W. Bush
I enjoyed the love expressed within this big, unusual family and also how down-to-earth and humble 41 is.  It’s certainly refreshing to hear a son extol his father’s character!



The Ambition by Lee Strobel
I believe this is Strobel’s first work of fiction.  I’ve read and appreciated his apologetics so was eager to read this.  It is about the pastor of a mega-church who gets involved with politics as he loses touch with his God. 



Counter Culture by David Platt
I am still reading (and loving) this book.  This is from the publisher’s synopsis: 
“…As difficult conversations about homosexuality, abortion, and religious liberty continue to inject themselves into our workplaces, our churches, our schools, and our homes, Christians everywhere are asking the same question: How are we supposed to respond to all this?”

Thursday, March 26, 2015

Phone photos

I would like to be one of those people who take pictures with their phone and have them be so stunningly incredible that others marvel.  Sadly, many of my pics come out blurry.

I need a class.

Thankfully I’m married to a photographer extraordinaire who supplies me with great pictures for our family and for the blog.  Today, however, you get these… 















My photographer extraordinaire husband is also extremely thoughtful.  Some months ago he suggested we try a new coffee place every Sunday.  I don’t have to tell you how much I loved this idea or how much it meant to me that he initiated it.  LOVED it.  I snapped this pic at a little neighborhood place we found called Maplewood Coffee. 
These are hot lattes served in tall glass cups.  If you’re like me, you’re wondering how we could hold them but the glass was thick enough that it was no prob.  And it made for a beautiful presentation, no?



My ‘sisters’ and I went to a Living Proof Live event in Seattle last month and had some truly wonderful seats.



Then we met up with two of our daughters!  We used to spend part of our girl weekends (Jubilees) buying little toys to bring back to our kids.  Now we meet them for coffee and they tell us about things like medical school and boyfriends. 



Here is someone taking some time in the morning to read her bible storybook.



I have coffee and a bagel regularly with my mom’s best friend Erna.  She is a delight!  We always talk about my mom – something I love to do but don’t often get to because she is one of a few people who knew her so well. 
Just before I snapped this she asked me "Are we taking a self-ee?"
And as a bonus, she always brings me her amazing fried rice. 


Sunny flowers given to me by a friend… thank you Janet!  These have lasted for two weeks and remind me why it’s important to keep fresh flowers in the house. 
They make you happy!



Jeff just had a birthday and we got away to our favorite cabin last weekend.  It rained most of the time but when the sun came out, it was glorious as usual!  Peace.  Quiet.  Books.  Good food.  So wonderful.

Before and after we met friends for coffee but true to my usual self, I didn’t take any pictures.  Sigh.

They would have been blurry anyway.

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Links I liked


Where’s the ‘Dreariest’ Place in America?
@msn.com
I live in #3 on the list.  But 'dreary' is a little harsh.


Why We Can Trust Him
@desiringgod.org
Yes, we want to trust the Lord, but why can we?


376 Days of Captivity in the Philippine Jungle
@lifeway.com
I remember when this was happening but Gracia Burnham's telling of her story
is heart-wrenching.  And so good.


Feeling Scrappy
@boomama.net
Sophie shares about a trip to HobLob.  I love her.



 What Will You Leave Behind?
@annaversacidesign.com
I don't really remember their stuff. I'm not sure if their home could have been featured in any kind of home magazine. This is what I remember…


Thursday, March 19, 2015

Any old bush will do



"This is the message of the bible, that God has chosen the weak and the base, the nothing and the things that are not to confound the things that are.  All God demands of a man is his availability - to be what man was created to be, the human vehicle of the divine life, inhabited by God for God... What you are is totally irrelevant - nationality-wise, money-wise, education-wise, personality-wise, and any other wise.  If only you will recognize the principle that it is God that works in you...  It is not the bush that sustains the flame, it is God in the the bush.  And any old bush will do."

                                        The Saving Life of Christ - Major W. Ian Thomas


~Reposted from May 2011
                                                            

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

The Mindset List

It’s been a while since I’ve posted from the Beloit College Mindset List – the annual list that shocks us old-timers because we can’t imagine these things could be true!  This list captures just some of the things that shape this generation’s world view.  It’s valuable for parents, teachers, marketers and those in ministry to young people.
Newsflash:  Kids who will be graduating from college in 2018 have a whole different mindset than us older folk.  Read these and see if you can relate feel old…

These things are true of college freshman this year:
  • During their initial weeks of kindergarten, they were upset by endlessly repeated images of planes blasting into the World Trade Center.
  • When they see wire-rimmed glasses, they think of Harry Potter, not John Lennon.
  • “Press pound” on the phone is now translated as “hit hashtag.”
  • Celebrity ‘selfies’ are far cooler than autographs.
  • There has always been a national database of sex offenders.
  • “Good feedback” means getting 30 likes on your last Facebook post in a single afternoon.
  • Since Toys R Us created a toy registry for kids, visits to Santa are just a formality.
  • Since they binge-watch their favorite TV shows, they might like to binge-watch the video portions of their courses too.
  • The water cooler is no longer the workplace social center; it’s the place to fill your water bottle.

You can read the whole Mindset List for 2018 here.

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Spring herald!





A little yellow cup





A little yellow frill





A little yellow star





That’s a daffodil
~author unknown

Monday, March 2, 2015

Mid-century cool


My parents bought their first house soon after I was born but couldn’t afford furniture right away so they lived in it using a bunch of miscellaneous stuff from their single days – just like we did.  But as soon as they had saved enough (this was about 1958), they bought several rooms of furniture in one big shopping spree (how fun would that be?)...  living room, dining room and a bedroom set.  They purchased it from a furniture maker in Portland, OR and it was all Danish modern in style. 

I remember my dad having a colleague from work over for dinner – I must have been about four - and when my parents were in the other room, I began bouncing on the sectional and telling the man that I wasn’t supposed to jump on the furniture so please don’t tell my mom and dad.  I remember many Easters hiding eggs underneath the coffee table (and in my grandfather’s armpit).  I remember Christmases with the Nutcracker playing on the huge stereo console with the built-in speakers. 


This was taken in 1967.  I am there on the left wearing a new bathrobe my mother made. I guess I still loved stuffed animals when I was 11?  In contrast to my little brother who got a gun that year.  Even my grandmother looks disturbed that an 8 year old was given a gun for Christmas.  Now that I think about it, this photo captures how different my brother and I are, though we no longer hit each other over it.

I remember laying out the custom-made table pads on the dining room table and setting it for many holiday dinners with my mom’s bone china.  I dusted that furniture with Pledge and helped my mom rearrange it a hundred different ways.


Don’t you love the 70’s tone of this photo from 1970?  Instagram now offers this filter!  I wanted you to see the couch back in the day but the only close-up I could find was with me posing before my 8th grade confirmation.  Please note the corsage.  And the large white ashtray that was also in the last photo.  And our dog hiding under that sectional. 

Eventually I grew older and reached that precious age when I suddenly knew everything.  Our furniture was completely out of style!  Nobody I knew had curved sectional couches without arms.  Nobody had round coffee tables with nesting tables underneath. 

 

As the rest of the world moved into the 70s, 80s and 90s, my house remained firmly, embarrassingly stuck in the 50s.  I lobbied for a rattan princess chair to replace the contemporary Eames-style lounge chair but no deal.  How about an overstuffed couch and matching recliner in a burnt orange plaid?  Nope.  My dad saw no reason to replace perfectly good furniture.   

Norm and Bernie didn’t know how cool they were.

Because now?  All of that furniture that I was so embarrassed by is trĂ©s chic.  Someone cleverly named it ‘Mid-Century Modern’ and for lots of hipsters and millenials it’s very must-have.  I still think it’s amazing that when I G**gle ‘mid-century modern furnishings’ I can point out sooo many images and say ‘We had one of those!’

We are in the somewhat long process of selling these treasures.  We’ve been trying to price things based on similar stuff we find online and so I go to bed at night with phrases like “tapered pencil legs” “iconic retro look” and “surfboard coffee table” swirling in my brain.  We’ve sold quite a bit of it… The living and dining room furniture is gone.  So is this ‘atomic’ teak and brass chandelier:


 

A couple drove over an hour and paid lots of money for that beauty.

But much is still left to find new homes.  Like a lot of furniture and this lamp…
  
  
Someone is going to love that look.  It’s just not me.

So if you’re in need of a seven-piece Mid Century Danish bedroom suite made in the early 1950s of solid walnut with some wear commensurate with its age, message me.  I’ll make you a deal!

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