I get a daily email from The Generous Wife. It contains "ideas geared to bless your husband (a mix of practical, romantic/sexual and spiritual). [The author suggests you] use the ideas that will work for you and use the rest to spark your imagination in looking for ways to bless your husband."  This morning's suggestion was very timely. Some excerpts:

"I see a disturbing lack of compassion in marriages, and it seems to be getting worse over time.  A total lack of compassion will kill a marriage very quickly, but even a minor lack of compassion will cause significant damage over time.  In fact, having compassion but not enough, or only having it some of the time, is destructive.

Some folks are just lacking in compassion, but much of the time a lack of compassion is a side effect of some other issue.  When we are stressed, tired, worried, hurried or otherwise not at our best it is far more difficult to care, to show compassion.... Figure out the the reason, and then deal with that reason. 

...It's hard to care about others when you are tired and overworked... The solution starts with healthy self care, then moves through to some very hard thinking about priorities and ends in some very hard choices about time use.  We can not do it all.  We must simplify our lives so that we have the time and energy to care about those around us and do the things in life that are really the most important to us.

If you want to be compassionate and caring toward your husband (and others), you have to shape your life so that you have the personal/emotional energy and the time to do so.  It's likely to mean some very tough choices. 

Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has to be extraordinary.  What we need is to love without getting tired.  Mother Teresa"

Wow. Like I said, Timely. This morning I am wiped out. Yesterday I got up super early (for me) to celebrate a friends birthday over pancakes at Bob Evans and then spent the morning on the garage sale circuit. The whole day was packed (with good things) and ended LATE after a movie-in-the-park with some girlfriends and the kids. Since Joel was gone for the evening at a birthday party, I put the kids in bed, caught up on some emails and then at 12:00 sat down with a fascinating book. Sometime after 1:00 AM I finally pulled myself off the couch and stumbled back to bed. And the result this morning: A groggy momma who can't manage, let alone love or train, her children very effectively. That makes for a grumpy momma who doesn't end up being a very good wife later in the day.

Hmm... "When we are stressed, tired, worried, hurried or otherwise not at our best it is far more difficult to care, to show compassion... The solution starts with healthy self care, then moves through to some very hard thinking about priorities and ends in some very hard choices about time use.  We can not do it all."

For me, this mostly means going to bed EARLIER. Which means giving up some reading or browsing or TV. Those are hard to give up. I suppose those things can be worked in at other times, but
1) if being the wife my husband needs is my first priority after my relationship with God, and
2) that depends on me having the energy to properly manage and train our children (and keep our house in reasonable shape - not my strong point) then
3) I need to prioritize sleep appropriately.

"It's likely to mean some very tough choices." 

Timely.

I really appreciated my friend Sarah's thoughts on Doing without. So I'm thinking more about using what I have instead of just running to the store all the time.

I have been using The Grocery Game off and on for well over a year. There has been some reduction in our overall grocery budget, but I'm not sure how much comes from the TGG savings (on stuff that I *might* not normally buy) or from the fact that TGG provides a list for me to shop from (and you tend to spend less when you have a list). Overall I am trying to be more intentional with our groceries.

The Sentinel has had a good series on cutting your food budget and I have been trying to apply some of their suggestions along with practicing Sarah's challenge to just use what I have in the pantry (always cheaper to use what you have instead of buying something new). Also in an effort to better understand and pay attention to the cost of groceries, I started writing the unit price with a magic marker on a number of groceries (especially the jumbo size things of PB or cheese that I buy at Costco). I want to see if that helps me grasp our food budget better.

I am REALLY looking forward to the opening of our very own local Aldi grocery this fall. Can't wait to see what sort of saving that brings. Might totally reorient my grocery plan!

On a somewhat related note, I read last night that US households contain, on average, 52 unused or unnecessary items worth an average of $3100. That's about $60 per item (not $600 with which my faulty initial read of $31000 equated!) which is no shabby number. I could do a lot with an extra $3100 and would love the extra space that comes with clearing out stuff. Even before I read that statistic, I started posting some of our miscellaneous stuff on our local Craigslist and I'm loving the results!! Since Friday, we've sold a mattress set, 2 bed frames, a trolling motor and a kids train/play table through Craigslist. Love the new space! Love the extra cash!

Of course there are many more thrifty ideas to discuss but I only intended this to be a brain dump of some of the particular ideas bumping around in my brain today. I've been reading a few other sites that have some thrifty tips which you may find helpful:

http://motherhood-moment.blogspot.com/
http://www.debtproofliving.com/
http://www.moneyrulesdebtstinks.com/
http://bargainshopperlady.com/
http://www.thriftymommy.com/

Have fun saving!

In the vein of being faithful with little things... (that actually aren't very little)...

Nothing boosts my faith like seeing (or reading) about others who's faith is tested and they continue to trust the Author and Perfector of our faith. My friend Emily is one such example as her family faces many difficult circumstances through her son Grant's illness. I don't even know how to explain his situation. All I can say is, RUN, DON'T WALK  - metaphorically :) - to their site!!!

I've been thinking a lot about Chinese Believers, especially in light of the upcoming Olympic Games.  Our connect group spent a little time this week learning more about their situation and praying for the Church in China. "The Voice of the Martyrs, in partnership with China Aid Associates, has accepted that call and has produced the Olympic Prayer Band. We would like to invite you to request one to wear during the Olympics. Similar prayer bands will also be distributed to house church Christians in China and they will be praying for you as well." I will be placing an order for these probably with in the week. If you live in the Orlando area and want to wear a band during the Olympics, let me know ASAP so I can order one for you too. This is a very important topic that I would like to write more about soon. In the mean time, here are a few helpful links for more information:

http://www.persecution.com
http://operationworld.org
http://www.hrw.org
http://www.christianpersecution.info
http://www.amnesty.org

Finally, our pastor started a new series last week titled "Bread" about finding our nourishment in the Word. This weeks study guide has focused on John 6:1-15, 25-58 and boy, has it been good. Among other things, Isaac encouraged us to read the passage in several different versions and The Message version really spoke to me. Perhaps I'll write more on it later, but I just wanted to encourage you to check that out.

Well, I'm off to Closing Ceremonies for VBS. My kids have been loving the fun activities and songs that help them learn the truth about Jesus more and more. And the break for me has been wonderful too.

Cora comes around the corner with a somewhat guilty look on her face and a pair of scissors in her hand. My mind instantly recalls the begging from yesterday (and every time "the boys" get their hair cut) that led to me cut her bangs.

Do I even need to go any further with this???

"Mommy, I wasn't cutting my hair, I was...", she trails off.

Hmm, what would be a good alibi??

She did receive discipline for lying to Mommy. But I had a hard time keeping a straight face. She actually did a pretty good job. I know some pretty trendy teens with a similar cut. Not that I'm ready for my baby to be trendy, but it's better than it could have been...

Has it REALLY been 5 months since I posted anything here??? Wow. I am SUCH a slacker. No, I really am. Almost everyday, things happen that I think about writing about here. And do I do it? No.

So, now what? Should I even continue with this page?

Facebook is a problem. Most of my Internet communication happens there for several reasons. Most of my friends are there. And it offers a great platform for keeping up with the pictures, articles and events that your friends post. It's easy to comment on each other's items. Which provides instant affirmation and connection with your "readers". Not something I often get with items posted here. It seems like everybody has Facebook. But fewer people seem to have the log-in necessary to post comments on this site. So I end up missing out on the comments and interaction if I only post something here. It seems redundant to post pictures in both places. But if I don't post something here, my (few) non-facebook friends miss out. Also, even though fb has a feature for importing blog content (say from here to there so I don't have to double post) the formatting always gets messed up and I don't like the way it looks. Who knows maybe that's been fixed since the last time I posted something, oh 5 months ago. Guess we'll see in a minute, won't we?

Other factors. Joel is working mostly from home now. Which is great most of the time. But if I come into our office where he is working, to try to do something on the computer, the kids inevitably follow me in and end up disrupting his work time. Can't have that happen, so I rarely have extended time at the computer. Not that I was writing tons of posts before he was working at home this much, but the change in my available computer time has had an affect on the number of blog posts that I put out.

Another thing. In preparation for homeschooling, I got the idea to try to keep a record page/ blog of what we've been doing, just for my own personal accountability. Not for public consumption. So far that hasn't been going so hot. But it's something that's going to take away from blogging here. Hmm.

Let's see. There are probably more reasons I rarely post here. But I can't think of them now. It seems like the conflict with facebook is a major factor at this point. I'd love to hear some feedback from you on this!! Should I continue this? Are there people who read this who don't use facebook? Is there a reason you're not on facebook (other than being a nonconformist)? Just kidding.

Not sure what to do.

An interesting adaptation of 1 Corinthians 13 for Christmas. Enjoy.

If I speak in the tongues of Christmas materialism and greed but have not love, I am only a tinny Christmas song or an out-of-tune choir.

If I have the gift of knowing what Aunt Agatha will give me this year and can even understand last year's present, and if I have the faith that I won't get yet more socks and ties this year but have not love, I am nothing.

If I clear out the house and give everything to charity and my credit cards are snapped in half but have not love, what can I possibly gain?

Love is patient when the fourth store you've tried doesn't have a bottle garden.

Love is kind and lets the couple with only a few items go in front of you and your bulging shopping cart.

Love does not envy your friend who gets mega-presents from everybody.

Love does not boast about the expensive bike, the PlayStation 3, the TV, VCR, and computer your dad gave you.

Love does not attempt to out-buy, out-wrap, and out-give the rest of the family just to impress.

Love doesn't cut Aunt Flo off your Christmas card list because she forgot you last year.

Love is not self-seeking and leaves a copy of your Christmas list in every room of the house.

Love is not easily angered when the young girl at the checkout takes forever because she is just temporary staff.

Love doesn't keep remembering how many times your mom forgets you don't like Brussels sprouts.

Love does not delight in the commercial bandwagon but rejoices with the truth of a baby born in the stable.

Love always protects the family from Christmas hype.

Love always trusts that the hiding places for presents will remain secret for another year.

Love always hopes that this year more neighbors will drop in to your open house coffee morning.

Love always perseveres until the cards are written, the presents all bought, the shopping done, and the Christmas cake iced.

Toys may break, socks wear thin, but love never fails.

Where there is the feeling of the presents to guess their contents, and Mom going on about being good so Father Christmas will come, and searching through the cupboards to find your hidden presents, they will all stop.

For we think we know what we are getting, and we hope we know what we are getting, but when Christmas Day arrives, all will be revealed.

When I was a child, I talked with big wide-open eyes about Christmas, I thought that Christmas was all about me, I reasoned that Jesus should have been born more often. When I became an adult, I forgot the joy, wonder, and excitement of this special time.

Now we just hear about the angels, shepherds, and wise men; then we shall see them all the time. Now I know as much as the Bible says about the first Christmas; then I shall know just how many wise men there were and where they came from.

Now three things remain to be done:

- To have faith that the baby born in a stable is the Son of God.

- To hope that the true message of Christmas will not get discarded with the wrapping paper and unwanted gifts.

- And the most important, to have a love for others like the one that God has for us.

Copyright 2001 Claire Jordan (caleb@eurobell.co.uk).

Permission is granted to send this to others, but not for commercial purposes.

(Minor edits by GCFL.net)

 
Listening to tonight: Anchored in Love: A Tribute to June Carter Cash

ToDo tonight:

• finish supper dishes
• keep sorting toys on the patio
• catch up on Advent posts at our family site.
• go to bed early and try to kick this sore throat
• figure out what to put in the Advent box to illustrate icing cookies and drinking eggnog

ToDo soon:

• write our end of the year letter
• finish my list of 8 prayer requests for 2008
• Call/write a few dear friends
• get to the bottom of the pile on my desk

Recently acquired books that I have no idea when I'll read:

• In Search of the Source
• The Third Culture Kid Experience
• Right Wing, Wrong Bird
• Teaching Montessori in the Home: The Pre-School Years
• When Life and Beliefs Collide
• Raising Wordly-Wise but Innocent Kids: Wisdom from the Book of Proverbs for Modern Families

Books I am actually reading right now:

• While They Were Sleeping: 12 Character Traits for Moms to Pray
• The Hiding Place

Just a quick note to let you know that I have resumed blogging at www.rannebarger.net and wanted to invite you to follow along on our Advent Adventure. Experience tells me not to promise a daily post, but since I do have an easy (and daily) subject, that is my goal for the month of December. I also have a bunch of pics to post from our 2007 Stockdale Thanksgiving gathering in MO. You can look forward to those too.

And I look forward to your comments on anything on our site. Who doesn’t love feedback on their stuff?!?!

After so many months of nothing here, I just have to put up Something.

This is probably not the best evening for me to resume blogging. I feel tired (up late last night stalking Tupperware on eBay), ineffective (relatively trashed house), frustrated with the kids (what's with the YEAR of potty training?), overwhelmed by the Christmastime to-dos (The kids just don't get this - Is it Christmas yet or isn't it???) and rather worthless. Just so you know.

Since the minute I posted my last blog entry I have been composing new entries in my head.  Some really challenging, heart warming, insightful stuff. But you haven't seen any of it. What a slacker I am. Yes, I know I have two kids and all that. But is many ways, it all boils down to me just being a slacker.

Ooooohh. Galatians 6 comes to mind. Yes, Dad, I know the New Living Translation is the unauthorized version, but the Lord keeps using it in my life. Like right now.

4) Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else. 5) For we are each responsible for our own conduct.

Ya. Need to meditate on this some more.

And I need to go to bed. Tomorrow will be no different if I don't get the rest I need. See you soon.

I hope.

I just have to highlight two women who's blogs are well worth reading.

MotherMary is a pastor's wife in Minnesota who recently endured the year-long treatment for Hep-C. Her blog is a great mix of random personal stuff and really-basic-but-profound truth that God is teaching her. The style can be a little jittery but I am continually challenged by her humble heart. Recent fantastic posts include thoughts on Psalm 142:5 and a tribute to Ruth Bell Graham.

You know when the title of her blog is "And I shall yet praise Him" that there is a depth of faith in Carol Feistel's soul. She and her husband Malcom were missionaries for some time in Taiwan. I stumbled across their blog just as Malcom was entering his last days on earth before passing into the presence of his Lord Jesus Christ June 22, 2006. Her writing since that time has been a tremendous example of fidelity of faith ("faith toughened by testing"). I am at a loss to express how much her faith has challenged my heart. Recent fantastic posts include Submission and Words of song to fill my heart.

It's so easy to get sucked into the zillion interesting (and gazillion worthless) blogs out there. It has been good for me to pare down the material I read. These two heroes of the faith are going to be staying on my permanent blogroll.

May I follow in their faithful footsteps.

One of my favorite bloggers is an acquaintance who lives in Amsterdam. I say acquaintance because we've probably only met once or twice. But there are some similarities, and reading someone's blog can make you feel like you really know them. For instance, we're the same age and each have a firstborn son and a #2 daughter. Our father's have pastored churches and church planting is in our blood. All that aside, the thing I have appreciated most about Eric's writing is how graciously and frequently he shares Truth: uncompromising truth from the God's Word in accessible, compassionate language for the world I live in.

Most recently he dove into a sticky subject with a series titled Sexuality and Spirituality. I urge you to take some time to read through the seven posts and digest what he brings to light. In someway, nothing new, but something about the way he put it all together made me want shout out 'This is it!' Read his closing challenge:

"When the people of Communist countries renounce the god of their culture -- namely, the government -- in favor of the true God of the Bible, we cheer them on.  Even in the eyes of the secular West, these people who are willing to go against the flow are appreciated.  We cast them as heroes, freedom fighters, and martyrs... When the people of Muslim countries renounce the god of their culture -- namely, Allah -- in favor of the true God of the Bible, we cheer them on.  Perhaps it's not quite as politically-correct to pit Islam against the other major faith systems of the world.  But again, even in the eyes of the secular West, there is an implicit affirmation and appreciation of those willing to diffuse dogma and swim upstream against their culture.  We cast them as free-thinkers, true seekers, and martyrs... So why should it be any different for people in the West who renounce the god of our culture -- namely, love, sex, and romance -- in favor of the true God of the Bible?"

I would love to hear what you think about Eric's series.

One of the things I really enjoy is reading to the kids some of the books I read as a child. Recently I was reminded of Kenneth N. Taylor's fantastic books for children and requested them from our library.  The colored pencil illustrations and short lessons in rhyme with accompanying questions, prayer and Bible verse are perfect reading for the many sessions of potty-sitting that have been happening at our house during Corrie's training. Which are numerous and never ending. But I digress.

Today we were reading GIANT STEPS for little people and found immediate application for the following page:  

God wants you to share with others/ All he's given you./ So give your money cheerfully,/ And share your playthings too.

Store treasures in heaven where they will never lose their value, and are safe from thieves. Matthew 6:20

The illustration showed boys and girls and teddy bears bringing cans and boxes for a food drive. Several kids are helping stack and prepare the food to be given to children who are hungry. I took the opportunity to share how some children don't have enough to eat and they are hungry when they go to bed. One of the ways we show our love for God is by helping others. (Thanks, Boz!)

I asked the kids if they would like to share some of our food with kids who might be hungry and Jason got very excited. He quickly went to put on his shoes so we could take our food to a boy just like him. My heart just melted. I tried not to be too teary as I showed him the flyer we received yesterday from the National Association of Letter Carriers.

This Saturday, May 12, is their Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive. You simply place some non-perishable food items in a bag and place it by your mail box. Your letter carrier will pick it up and deliver it to local food banks. I told the kids that we could fill up a plastic bag with food and our mail carrier would take it to the boys and girls who don't have enough. We went over to the pantry to select items for out bag.

Like many families, not only do we have our regular kitchen pantry filled with food, but we also have a spare pantry with a variety of items tucked away, perhaps purchased 2-for-1 or in a multi-pack at Sam's Club.  Our spare pantry is full with everything from extra boxes of cereal to cans of soup. And not just the basics either, but yummy sweet-treats too. And here lay the real lesson. As Jason stood on the step stool to peer into the pantry and select some items for the bag, his little heart, like all hearts, began to reconsider.

"Mom, we can give them this (a soup that he really doesn't like) but not this (a particularly sugary treat)."

Ah ha. Sacrifice that costs us something personally is not as easy as giving away our cast-offs. I guess that's why it's a called a sacrifice. I had a good opportunity to talk with Jason about how it pleases the Lord to give not only of the excess of our lives, but of the things that are most dear to us. Sugar, in his case. I think he understood a little when we looked through the pantry again and I helped him to choose a few of his favorite things for a boy just like him, who would be so excited to open a bag and find those very same items.

As I write I am reminded of the things our pastor shared on Sunday. He talked about David exemplifying holiness in his own life, even after the Lord rejected his offer to build a permanent home for Him. (David's son Solomon was chosen by God for that task.) Instead of sitting on his laurels, David led his people in providing the resources for his son to use, not only from the national treasury but from his own personal stores. He then invites the people to participate with him: "Who is willing to consecrate himself to the Lord?" 

David understood that a sacrifice that cost him nothing was worthless. The benefit of true sacrifice is not merely the satisfaction of some legalistic decree, but the acknowledgement of a very basic truth: where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Hopefully Jason got a little taste of what this means in his almost-4-year-old world.

And that is one giant step.

Visit our family site for new pictures and a update (finally) on Rannebarger-life. 

See you there!

One Pastor's Prayer Vigil

Pastor: Words to Comfort Families Would Be 'Trite'

New Life Campus Fellowship

see also: The [nlcf] Manifesto

Thanks to those praying for [nlcf] and the campus. Please post public encouragement, prayers, or condolences here

Please pray for the believers at New Life Campus Fellowship to experience and share the grace of our Creator at this time.

Also, thanks to JR Woodward for the heads up that Jim Pace, NLCF pastor, will be appearing on Larry King Live TONIGHT, Monday, April 16, 2007 at 9:00 PM EST.

I am forever adding links to my favorites as a way to remember to read through them more thoroughly. Some are for my personal encouragement, others basic resources, and some are just quirky items of interest. In an attempt to clean out some of the 89 "favorites" listed in my "new" folder, I will list an assortment here for your perusal.

Come to think of it, having 89 "favorites" seems a little like an oxymoron.

Moron.

• MotherMary writes one of my favorite blogs. Nothing fancy, Xanga at that. She has been battling Hep C for the past year or so, enduring the treatment meds with humility, grace, and wisdom. I have so much to learn from her. Several times recently she has mentioned how much she has been blessed by the songs from Hillsong United. I need to listen to these more.
• I love putzing around with genealogy stuff and have found this dictionary helpful for translating things from Czech (for info related to my paternal grandmother's Bohemian ancestors.)
• In that vein, one of these clays I want to get back to the William McKinley Presidential Library and Museum in Canton, OH which houses several items owned by my great-great-grandfather, Charles Fiala, who was President McKinley's band leader during his campaign.
• An interesting article on Whole Foods. I'm trying to figure out where I stand with the whole organic issues. And other food related trends too. Too much to process right this moment.
• A helpful website for questions and info relating to tropical plants, which includes most houseplants and landscape plants here in Orlando.

I am frequently torn in how to perceive American Christianity. Watching my parents spend their lives on the mission field of Poland calls me to no longer consider myself an American Christian but just a Christian. And then this, from a critique of Douglas Sweeney's The American Evangelical Story:

"But when evangelicalism began reaching out from its American context, Sweeney argues that the movement lost some of its integrity in translation: "Many patriotic Christians who loved the American way of life-and who prided themselves on the blessings of their nation's 'righteous empire'- often neglected the crucial task of distinguishing biblical Christianity from the rest of American culture."

God, I believe You ordained that America would be my birthplace and earthly home. Yet I also see You calling me to be more than "just" an American Christian. You just want me to be a follower of Your Son. Please help me to follow Him alone and to make You my heart's real home. ~ Amen~

Has anyone seen the new movie Amazing Grace? I can hardly wait to see it! It tells the true story of William Wilberforce who fought for and won an end to the slave trade in England in 1807.

This article from Christian History and Biography on Wilberforce's correspondence with John Newton (author of the hymn, Amazing Grace) was particularly challenging. Newton's encouragement to the young legislator especially spoke to me:

"It is true that you live in the midst of difficulties and snares, and you need a double guard of watchfulness and prayer. But since you know both your need of help, and where to look for it, I may say to you as Darius to Daniel, 'Thy God whom thou servest continually is able to preserve and deliver you.'"

A glimpse at the thoughts bouncing around in my head....

• My new favorite website is a must for anyone who likes to read. Or who tends to accumulate things to read that they no longer want or need.
• Jason named the Queens Tears Bromeliad starting to bloom in my kitchen "Cloud of the Garden". I love it!
• "Then everyone went to bed, except Piglet, who wouldn't leave the light of the fire, and Pooh, who wouldn't leave his friend..."
• This CD has become the soundtrack for our evenings. Hopefully Cora will eventually get the picture that she ought to stay in bed and enjoy it instead of getting out of bed and getting into trouble.
• I am really enjoying Summit Church, which we have been visiting the past few weeks. Deciding on a church is a challenging process and I have lots of mixed feelings.
• I like Facebook much better than MySpace.
• "Mommy, I yuv mine pink goggie."
• Estate sales are my new pastime. A great way to spend a weekend morning, when I have one to spend. Thanks, Honey for the Friday mornings off!!!!!!!!!