Asimov and Progress

The children and I are busy organizing our rather substantial library. I came across a couple of general anatomy books written by Isaac Asimov. I had heard of Asimov, but didn't know much more about him than the fact that he was a science fiction writer. I went online to Wikipedia and found all I need to know right now, here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Asimov

I learned that Isaac Asimov, although brilliant, was not a Christian. He wrote books about the Old and New Testaments, but considered the Bible to be merely Jewish myth, in a similar manner to the Iliad being Greek myth.

As I was discussing this with my children, it came to me that my 7 year old son, Christopher, is more wise than Isaac Asimov ever was. Christopher is not a member of Mensa nor the Humanist Foundation. He has written no books, given no lectures, and outside of friends and family, he is known by nobody. Asimov was well-known throughout the world.

But my young son sat at the table this morning, listening to his mother read "Pilgrim's Progress". He was able to articulate that God is the one who rescued Pilgrim, and that the Holy Spirit is the Guide of the Christian. He knows that although the Devil wants to pour water on us to quench our fire, Jesus stands behind the wall and pours oil on our fire, causing its flame to burn brighter and higher in spite of temptation and adversity.

Critter prayed, "Dear Lord, thank you that we can sit around the table and read "Pilgrim's Progress", and learn about You." And even though he still says "Pwogwess" instead of "Progress", I would say that he is farther on his journey to the Celestial City than Isaac Asimov or any other brilliant atheist will ever be -- unless, by God's grace, they bow the knee and confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and believe.

Father, thank you for reminding me out of the mouth of my "babe", that salvation is by Your grace. Thank you for journeying with Your children through this life that is filled with many trials. Thank you that You will never, ever leave us, nor forsake us. And thank you so much that You have opened the eyes of my children, so they, too, can give thanks.

No Accident

I was in a head-on collision on Thursday night, and although very sore and bruised and in a bit of pain, I am fine.

I was on my way home with the trunk full of groceries, and was following a transport truck, which was about 400 feet ahead of me. The roads were clear and dry for the most part, but there was a bit of blowing snow - not the kind that reduces visibility, but the kind that blows across the pavement in waves. I was travelling normal highway speed. . . between 80 and 100 km/hr.

A vehicle approached the road from the left. I saw him clearly, and realized he was turning onto the road. I thought nothing of it, because I was sure he saw me, and that he was turning into his own lane. I had my headlights and fog lamps on, so the front of my car was clearly lit.

I couldn't have been more than fifty feet from him when he turned into MY lane. He simply made a wide turn, and he was right in front of me. There wasn't a thing I could do. There was a loud crash, my glasses flew, I felt my body slam forward, and everything stopped.

The next thing I knew, the guy in the SUV was right beside me. I undid my seatbelt, opened my door, and hollered, "You STUPID! What were you doing in MY lane?" ( I feel very ashamed that those were the first words out of my mouth.)

The elderly gentleman apologized, saying two or three times, "I'm sorry." I apologized for hollering at him. ( I thought of Pastor Bob, my beloved pastor. He would have inquired with a beautiful British accent, "Sir, are you all right?" Out of the mouth the heart speaks, and I was ashamed that my heart was full of anger.)

By this time, the guy who had been following me opened the passenger door, and told me to turn off my car. He had to tell me two or three times, because I wasn't responding well. I don't know why the car wasn't moving...I don't remember putting it in park. I assume it was so badly damaged that it couldn't move. I obeyed the man and turned off the ignition, and asked him to find my glasses, which he did. I asked the old fellow if he had a cell phone, and he didn't, so I asked the other guy to get my purse, and pass me my cellphone, which he did.

I called 911. Someone told me the number of the sideroad, so I was able to give specific directions. I then called Rick. I told him I had been in a head-on collision, that the guy had driven right into my lane, but that I was all right. I then told him I couldn't move (but I meant the car) and he got rather worried at that. I told him where I was, and he said he was coming, in the truck, because he was only about 10 minutes ahead of me. I (silly me) told him not to bother coming in the truck, that I was okay. (LOL - as if a husband wouldn't come as soon as possible when his wife was in a car accident. I guess I was thinking he should go home first and get rid of the big truck and come in the van. I was in shock, shaking, hurting...not thinking clearly.)

The fellow that had been following me asked me if I wanted to sit in his vehicle, and I said yes (after refusing the same offer from the elderly gentlemen - I wasn't rude, but I didn't really want to sit with him.). So I was able to get out of my poor car, and get into the guy's truck, with some help from him. He was very kind. I found out that he lives only a mile from me.The next thing I knew, Mike (Rachel's husband) showed up. He ran to my car, then looked for me and saw me sitting in the truck. He came to me and I was upset, and said "Rick shouldn't have told Rachel - she's PREGNANT!" It worried me that she knew I was in an accident. I would have preferred to tell her once I knew how badly injured I was.

The ambulance showed up, then Rick appeared. They took me to the hospital. I was definitely in shock by this time, shaking like a leaf.They put a collar on me and immobilized my neck and put me on a board. I had waves of pain in my back, neck, shoulders and head. Hospital, x-rays, etc... They gave me a thorough examination, sent me for x-rays, gave me a shot of an anti-inflammatory/painkiller, and finally sent me home.

On the way home, Rick took me by to see my poor car. Front end is gone. Sigh. I am very sore, badly bruised, stiff everywhere. I have pain in my head, neck, shoulders, back, legs, knee. My eyeballs ached a lot yesterday, not so much today. They felt like they were too big for the sockets. I have a homeopathic tincture to reduce inflammation and help with the bruising. I am using Loretta\'s "No-Pain" which is wonderful. I am forcing myself to keep busy as much as I can, and to move my body even though it hurts. The human body isn't meant to go from a highway speed to a dead stop. I am going to be sore for a while.

I have learned many spiritual lessons from this experience.

1. My Father loves me. He KNOWS. He knows the plans He has for me, and is always in control. He designed this experience for my good, and for His glory. He has spared my life, graciously, yet has also allowed me to suffer for a time. He is good, always good, and holy and righteous. I am so very glad to be His child.

2. I have a sinful heart. I repent in dust and ashes. Yet I rejoice that my Father has promised that if we confess our sin, He is gracious and just to forgive us our sin, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. My reaction when the poor old man pulled up beside me showed me that I constantly need the Lord. I am but a sinner, saved by grace.

3. Every day counts. I have no guarantee that my life will last another day. If this is to be the very last day of my life, I want to spend it pleasing Him. I want to live life to the full. I want to rejoice in God my Saviour, and in the people He brings into my life. I want to praise Him every single day, and glorify Him by my actions and my words.

4. Material things don't matter. The car was originally my mother's car, and I was grateful to have it for a time. It reminded me of her, and I enjoyed so many things about it. But, it really doesn't matter. I am reminded that this world is not my home, and I am just passing through. The things I use right now are just things...they won't be taken with me. On the other hand, the people in my life are precious and unique, truly a gift from God. I pray that God will use me in the lives of anyone with whom I come into contact, and that those people that meet me or know me will also see my Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

5. My family and my friends love me. I am truly blessed. Two of my daughters, my son-in-law, and my dh came to the hospital to make sure I was okay. They all prayed. My friend Darlene from Woodstock would have dropped everything and come to Stratford if I needed her (Rick assured her that I was fine). I have received phone calls and emails from so many, all of whom are a blessing to me. My heart is full, and I am thankful.

So, there you have it. I am fine, and all is right with the world. I expect I will make a full recovery, and I stand in awe of God who allowed me to have this experience, but also preserved my life. I can picture Him saying to Satan, "you can take her car, but don't harm her". I have a clear sense of His protection and provision. I was in a head on collision and nothing is broken except my car. The man following me saw the whole thing and was able to corroborate my story with the police. (The poor old fellow was charged with failure to yield.) My dh was only 10 minutes away, my son in law was 3 minutes from the crash site. I had a chiropractor appointment for the next day, and she was wonderful and supportive and helpful. The list goes on... but I am too tired and too sore to write further.

Cherish each moment, and live life to the full!

Psalm 91:
14 "Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name.
15 When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation."

I know God's name - only because of His grace.

He protects me. He delivers me. I felt His protection and deliverance in spite of the "accident".

He answers my prayers, and He is with me in times of trouble. He never promised that we, His children, would never experience trouble. Yet, in that trouble, He is with us, and answers us when we call out to Him.

He rescues me and honours me. I will be satsified with long life and He will show me my salvation.

God is good, all of the time. There are no accidents.

In Christ,
Janet

I love Elihu!!

Job 37:21"And now no one looks on the light when it is bright in the skies, when the wind has passed and cleared them. 22Out of the north comes golden splendor; God is clothed with awesome majesty. 23The Almighty--we cannot find him; he is great in power; justice and abundant righteousness he will not violate. 24Therefore men fear him; he does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit."

One of my favourite books of the Bible is the book of Job. It has it all: drama, pain, sorrow, betrayal, Satan's workings, God's Sovereignty, Miserable Comforters, Elihu's burning response, and God's Judgment and adamant statement of Who HE is at the end.

I guess I relate to Job so well because in a small way I understand his pain. I have never lost all of my worldly goods and my entire family in one fell swoop. However, our family has gone through grinding financial pressures that never seemed to end. We lost a baby to miscarriage, and watched our dear daughters go through the loss of their precious babies. We know what it is to suffer financially, and in a limited way(compared to Job), we know what it is to suffer the loss of loved ones.

We have experienced false accusations and betrayal from friends who misunderstood and gave unwise counsel. I read Job's responses, and I am right there with him, understanding his frustration. I know what it is like to wish that God would just leave me alone (but I thank Him that He didn't) and I know what it is like to long for Him to just come and sit down with me at my kitchen table, to explain away all of my confusion, and to make all things right.

I read Job's description of himself: he really WAS a righteous man. He was wise and kind; he served his fellow man; he prayed for his family; he was well-respected. People hung on his every word. What a guy!

I think because of his godly living, he was so confused by the tragedy that befell him. He was angry at his friends' ignorant accusations that it must have been his sin that caused all of this to happen. His three "friends" just added to his pain.

He justified himself before his friends. He fell into the trap of thinking that God was blessing him because he was so good. He was angry with God. He wanted to die.

Then, along comes Elihu, burning with anger, passionate to uphold the reputation of Almighty God! I can picture the scene in my mind. He sits there, listening to his elders, boiling inside, waiting for the opportunity to speak. When he does, the words tumble out. I imagine him pacing back and forth, arms flailing as he declares WHO God is, and how He has the power and the right to do ANYTHING He wants to do, and how it is all right and good - because God is Good!

It all goes back to the fact that God is the Creator. He can do what He wants to with all that He created. He controls the wind, the clouds, the rain, the lightning. He set the stars in place. He holds all things together by the power of His might.

Who are we to question God?

Elihu is a guy I can relate to. He burns with passion. He acknowledges that the breath of the Almighty gave him life, then goes on to say that God ordains trials for our good. When we respond in repentance and faith, God restores us (in His good time). God never does wickedness. He always does righteousness.

Elihu is so passionate that he even rebukes Job, a man he respects. Elihu has the courage to point out Job's errors in thinking.

It all comes back to who God really is:

Job 36:22Behold, God is exalted in his power; who is a teacher like him? 23Who has prescribed for him his way, or who can say, 'You have done wrong'?

24"Remember to extol his work, of which men have sung. 25All mankind has looked on it; man beholds it from afar. 26Behold, God is great, and we know him not; the number of his years is unsearchable. 27For he draws up the drops of water; they distill his mist in rain, 28which the skies pour down and drop on mankind abundantly. 29Can anyone understand the spreading of the clouds, the thunderings of his pavilion? 30Behold, he scatters his lightning about him and covers the roots of the sea. 31For by these he judges peoples; he gives food in abundance. 32He covers his hands with the lightning and commands it to strike the mark. 33Its crashing declares his presence; the cattle also declare that he rises.

He is the CREATOR!

Job 37:14"Hear this, O Job; stop and consider the wondrous works of God. 15Do you know how God lays his command upon them and causes the lightning of his cloud to shine? 16Do you know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge, 17you whose garments are hot when the earth is still because of the south wind? 18Can you, like him, spread out the skies, hard as a cast metal mirror?

He controls all things!

I hope and pray that I will be passionate about God, like Elihu. I hope my children and grandchildren will understand and know Him, and learn to bow to His will and accept all things as coming from His gracious, omnipotent hand.

What a mighty God we serve!

Reflections - 2006 - Praise Ye the Lord

At our prayer meeting this evening, Pastor Bob led us in a reading of Psalm 135. We praised God for His attributes, His preservation of His own "peculiar" people. We praised Him as the Creator, the One who does anything He pleases. We contrasted Him with idols, He who can do all things with idols who can do no thing.

Then our Pastor asked us if we had any testimony we wanted to share regarding what the Lord had done for us in 2006. It was a beautiful time of praising a beautiful God. One lady shared how God had taken her from a bitter, angry, uncaring, unfeeling woman to one who daily delights in the Lord and enjoys making dinner for strangers or sharing a loaf of bread with a neighbour in need. Another lady shared how seeing her friend suffer a stroke and become stronger and stronger through the year strengthened her faith in God. Another spoke of God's gracious dealings with her son, through surgery, tests, admission to college, etc. God truly directs our paths.

One of the men, a lay minister, marvelled at how God has provided opportunity after opportunity for him to preach, when his heart's desire is to preach the Word and interact with people. Our pastor's wife shared how she is learning to disregard the little things and focus on the big things: what God is doing in this world, and how He uses the weak things of this world to confound the wise.

What a blessing to hear God's people praise God for blessings AND for trials! They stood together, firm in their faith, knowing that our gracious Father works everything for good, that His timing is always perfect, that He is utterly in control, and that He can be trusted, day by day, with the little things and the big things.

How good it is to share with God's people. Reminds me of a verse in Malachi (3:16) - Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in His presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honoured His name.

17. "They will be mine," says the Lord Almighty, "in the day when I make up my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as in compassion a man spares his son who serves him. And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not."

It is good to be with other Christians. It is good to know that as we share our testimonies and encourage one another, the Lord is listening, and the Lord is hearing. It is good to know that our names are being written down in a scroll of remembrance. It is so good to know that we are His treasured possession.

Halleluiah! Praise the Lord!

Well on my way! (an ordinary day)

I had a great day today! I got up and read the entire paper, waiting for the rest of the family to stir from their beds. We've had a lot of late nights, lately, so early risings aren't happening at the present - except for ME. I am definitely a morning person. Sleeping in just isn't an option. If the sun doesn't peek in, I just know in my bones that it is morning, and if I roll over to try to go back to sleep for a few more minutes, it is just frustrating. Sleep doesn' t come, and I am wasting time.

Reading the paper all alone with a good cup of tea is not a waste of time, however. I read articles about Saddam Hussein, about Gerald Ford, about the new Archbishop in the Catholic church in Canada. I read lots of articles that I flagged to discuss with the children later. I skipped the sports section with nary a twinge, and enjoyed the puzzles and the comics, and even read "Dear Abby".

After that, I read the Bible. I am working through the Bible Chronologically (see this site: http://bibleplan.org/ ) this year. My 7 year old son, Critter, came in and sat on my lap while we read about the Flood and the animals and Noah and the long lives of the Antediluvian patriarchs. I was interested in the fact that there is a parallel genealogy - the line of Cain contrasted with the line of Seth. Critter and I talked about what we read and about how God has always preserved His people, since the beginning. We talked about God's power over the animals - He sent them to Noah - and over Nature - He opened the floodgates! We talked about the sheer size of the ark, and about God's protection of Noah and his family. Tiana (10) was up by then, and discussed the Sabbath Day with me. She had read about God resting on the Sabbath day, and thought that Sunday was the Sabbath. It's nice to know that she is thinking while she is reading her Bible.

The sun was shining and beckoning to us to come outside, so out we went for a brisk walk to the corner and back. It was a good start to my exercise program. I added weight work on the machine tonight, and I feel like I am on my way to better health and a slimmer me.

Rick and I had banking to do, then I did housework while the children mucked out the stalls and did some yard work and laundry. I then ran errands, made supper (Prime Rib roast, mashed potatotes, mixed vegetables, with a small glass of red wine) and enjoyed Bible time with the family.

All in all, a fine day. I think the fact that the sun was shining has encouraged me to no end. The fact that I set some goals for a more spiritually focussed life, as well as a healthier body, has also encouraged me.

This truly is the day the Lord has made, and I will rejoice and be glad in it.

Link to Amy's Humble Musings - on Getting in Shape!

http://humblemusings.com/archives/2006/12/20/getting-in-shape/

I have to say that of all the blogs in Cyberspace, Amy's Humble Musings is my favourite. Her post on using the Body For Life method to get herself in shape (after 3 babies!) is inspiring. I am putting it here for my own benefit, so I can read it again and again. Perhaps someone else will be encouraged by it, too.

Turning over a (nother) new leaf!

Here it is, January 1st, 2007 - New Year's Day. And here I am, turning over a new leaf (again!).

I love a new year. The beginning of each new year is brimming with potential; hopes and dreams, longing for change; self-improvement --- all of these things fill the mind and make one ponder.

Some people are against setting New Year's Resolutions, but I am all for it. So what if I don't accomplish all of my goals? So what if we as a family fail to keep every family resolution we make? At least we SET the goals. At least we tried. And because I am an eternal optimist, I refuse to beat myself up over the failures. I prefer to revel in the achievements and celebrate the accomplishments.

So, here goes, for all to see:

FAMILY RESOLUTIONS (in no particular order)

1. Smoke-free home. (Rick changed this to a nag-free home (grin) but we really want all of our relatives to respect that we choose not to smoke, and not to breathe in smoke from other people's cigarette habits.)

2. Clean up after ourselves. (Don't allow ourselves to 'gerbil' - to drop an item here, or fail to put away something that goes there...)

3. Daily Bible Time

4. Daily Memory Work (catechism and verses)

5. More outdoor activities TOGETHER

6. Fridays - Family Games Night

7. Keep Bedrooms clean

8. Pilgrim's Progress (followed by other read-alouds)

9. Mom doesn't do supper dishes

We have determined that we will strive to accomplish all of the above goals, as a family. We will hold each other accountable to do these things.

Janet's Personal Resolutions

1. Nothing By Mouth that is not Nutritious or "Fuel" for the Body. Everything is to be evaluated according to whether or not it will benefit me nutritionally, allowing me to achieve my goal of fitness and vitality, so I have the energy to serve my family and my Lord.

2. Daily Exercise. Minimum of half an hour of walking, plus weight lifting or exercise equipment.

3. Daily Devotions.

4. Daily Journal/Blog

5. Work on Website at least once per week. (Granny Pages)

6. Weekly planning and scheduling to be done on week-ends: school planning; finances; family scheduling, etc.

That's enough.

And I start tomorrow, for sure.