I have decided...

After struggling for several days with unanswered prayers, worries for my kids, and feelings of failure, I heard Doug playing his saxophone. He was playing I Have Decided to Follow Jesus, one of my favorite hymns. It was a good reminder. The decision about how to respond to difficult circumstances has already been made. I have decided to follow Jesus, and to follow him means to do what he did. When he was faced with circumstances and a future from which he shrank in utter detestation and unwillingness to suffer, he said, "Nevertheless." That one word makes all the difference. "Nevertheless, not my will but thine be done."

So, when I find my mind whirling with fear and frustration, unwilling to tolerate any realities behind my imagined forthcoming disasters, I too must say, "Nevertheless."

Nevertheless, I will trust your promises and choose your will. Not my will, but thine be done.

Writers' Retreat

Our Writers' Circle at the Twinsburg Library had their annual Writers' Retreat today. Cari Dubiel, who runs the group, did a great job of setting everything up.

It's good for motivation... now I just need to get cracking!

Emergency Preparedness

I don't like to think of myself as a paranoiac, but with the currently shaky economy combined with the 'just in time' nature of retail systems, I've decided to stock up on some basics. It's the sort of thing I hope I never need, but given a choice between having it and not needing it, or needing it and not having it... well, 'nuff said!'

I did some shopping today, and got most of what I think I should have on hand. I'll go again in a few days and try and finish it off. It will be a good feeling if for no other reason than I can finally throw away the pages I printed about it several years ago when I first started thinking about it, and which have been living at the bottom of my 'to do' pile ever since.

Is progress always good, always bad, or somewhere in between?

I ask this because I'm reading a grammar text which states the following:

"This flood of language has had its effect on writing and thinking styles within the culture at large. Ideas today no longer need be expressed in full sentences. Rather, the ideas of today seem to come out in a continuous flow of ongoing language. Sooner or later the idea seems to be “out there,” and then the word-stream stops. But this style, based on flow and quantity, is not
the language style of yesterday. In the past, the carefully structured sentence was the medium for encapsulating and precision-stating our thoughts. Today, precision and structure seem to be less important than the ability to “wax eloquent” at the drop of a hat." [Quote by Robert Einnarsson, found in http://www.classiclanguagearts.net/resources/TESS.pdf]

A few paragraphs later he states that he wants his textbook "to stand against the current culture of language as quantity and flow..." My initial reaction to this introduction of the book was very positive, but then I found myself wondering if this is akin to publishing a guide to excellence in classical carriage manufacturing in the early 1900s.

As a homeschooler, do I want my students to be more facile with last century's methods of communication than with the next century's methods? In terms of writing, I suppose I'd like the best of both worlds. I want my students to be able to write an elegant essay, deliver thoughtful, well-reasoned oratory, and understand their peers' texty lingo.

Unfortunately, taking a hard look at things, I'm not sure I've succeeded in any of those goals.

Sundays

I love the idea of taking Sunday as a Sabbath, spending extra time in Bible study and prayer, and just hanging out with the family. Unfortunately, I usually spend Sunday trying to get ready for the week ahead.

I know that if I were completely honest with myself, it's because I "sabbath" when I'm not supposed to! If I were more efficient and especially more disciplined the rest of the week, I would have enough time to get it all done.

This has been an issue for me for a long time, but just recently I'm starting to get serious about changing things. I just don't really know how.