~Oh the irony as I sit here writing and you sit there reading, but I think we all struggle with balance…
About Mama’s Screen Time
I want to spend my days and my nights focusing on the things that are eternal. (This is a work in progress, friends!) But really, focusing on the things that will really matter at the end of life. Relationships. People. My walk with Christ. Servanthood. Deepening my friendships. Reaching out to those in need. Some of that can be done online, I admit. I’ve had good chats and stayed connected with friends and family who were far away through Facebook, email, etc. But nothing beats a real conversation, a real hug, a real moment. The feeling of a cool breeze on your face during a early morning jog. The sound of bullfrogs at twilight. This is life. These things are real. Time to reflect and give thanks and look up – these are the things that are so hard to do in front of a screen.
~Lots of good reasons, but number six is a pet peeve of mine (pun not intended.)
10 Darn Good Reasons to Get Married and Have Kids Young
Because having kids is better than having dogs. Dogs can’t laugh at your dumb jokes or tell you they love you in just the right way to melt your heart for the millionth time. They can’t take care of you when you’re old. You will never be your dog’s hero. Your dog will never come to you for advice. You will never watch with amazement as your dog comes to saving faith in Jesus. You will not spend eternity worshiping Jesus with your dog.
~You wouldn’t expect Joel Salatin to throw a cog in the wheel of the local food movement, would you? Excellent article.
Home Centric Food Systems
If we truly ponder the idea of “Local” we have to admit the most local we can be is to produce and prepare food at home. Too often talk about local food ignores the home and simply sees it as an arrival point for food, a consumer perspective, rather than also a production center. Thus Joel, as always, seems to find what should be at the heart of the Local Food movement: The Home.
~I’m doing the best I can and sometimes that’s 50/50 white/wheat that my family will actually eat and rarely is it soaked- only if I’ve noticed it reduced digestive troubles for the little ones. This made me feel just a smidge less guilty.
That Whole Grains Question: Is it Time For To Soak or Not To Soak
If I make my mom’s biscuit recipe with unbleached, unbromated wheat flour, home-rendered pastured lard, Real Salt, and organic, grassfed milk, but the flour happens to have all the bran and all the germ sifted out of it, is my resulting biscuit – which will be so fluffy and melt-in-your-mouth smeared with pastured butter that you’ll think you died and gone to Heaven – is it junk food? Is it real food? Or would some even say, “It’s not even food at all!” just because of the refined grains?
~I’ve seen Doug Wilson talk about organic foods (search Youtube) and simply can’t agree with his conclusions. Steak from petroleum products????! Huh?! I doubt that will solve the global food crisis and more so doubt that when God said we were to receive all food with thanksgiving, nothing to be refused that’s what He meant. If scientists can turn something that isn’t food into something that looks like food and perhaps even tastes like food, that doesn’t make it food, but I digress. Most recently, he has concluded that Christians with food allergies should eat the foods that will knowingly make them ill if served them rather than bring substitutes because it will interfere with fellowshipping and church unity. Maybe you’re lactose intolerant? I wonder if taking a roll of toilet paper with you and spending the time in the bathroom would interfere with the fellowshipping?? Thankfully none of my family has any food allergies at this time, but I’m offended on behalf for the many of you who do, ironically, most likely as a result of human intervention and manipulation of the food system. I don’t often rant (to you), but I think I just did- sorry. Here are two articles that address the issue much more eloquently than I am able to.
My concern is that Wilson’s writings are fuelling these judgemental attitudes towards those who want to be healthy. Consider a few examples. In a Credenda Agenda article from 2009 titled ‘The Fat is the Lord’s’, Wilson wrote that if you are zealous for healthy’ food, the chances are that you have been infected by false religion, and he compared health-conscious Christians to both the 1st century Judaizers and to 19th century cult leaders. In his article ‘Allergic to Other People’ he goes even further and suggests that those who have food intolerances and take their own food to someone else’s house are enemies of church unity. “If you have ever showed up to a dinner party (not a potluck) unannounced with your own food, then you are an enemy of church unity.”
Just Eat It
Should we really tell someone to “get over it” and eat whatever makes them sick simply to please our sense of fellowship? Should we tell them they should eat what is set before them because when they bring their own meal (in an effort not to inconvenience anyone) it irritates us? Where is the charity? Is Christian unity found in the food we put in our mouths or in gracious fellowship?
~A 4 part series…
Can’t Afford to Homeschool
Homeschooling may look daunting in the best of circumstances, but when money is in short supply, it can seem practically impossible!
According to 2006 numbers, the government spends more than $9,000 per student per year, and they have a whole staff to help each child “succeed,” from teaching, to counseling, to physical activity and even nutrition. It’s more than enough to intimidate the most confident parents.
But please don’t be discouraged!
We have a great, big God who is in love with us, yes, and He cares for us more than we can comprehend. How do I know this?–because Jesus said that God even knows when a sparrow falls to the ground, and that His care for us is far greater!
You may not own a desk, or wall maps, or even one teacher’s manual, but you are more equipped than the best teacher in the whole world if you have one very basic thing.
~A little encouragement for home educating moms who sometimes feel burdened by feeling their work is never enough.
Not Enough Syndrome
As mothers we ought to give all we can give. Our eyes are open to where we might make adjustments or improvements. But we are also faced with human limitations. Perhaps you have felt that your children aren’t getting enough or that you aren’t able to do enough. Take heart. Here is a truth that is trustworthy. If we are Christians we can place our trust in God to bring fruit from the seeds we lovingly and dutifully sow. Remember the parable of the loaves and fishes. The boy who offered the loaves and fishes gave all of his lunch, sacrificially. Was it enough for the multitude? No. Did our Lord Jesus make it enough? He blessed it, multiplied it and made it more than enough. He is able to do exceedingly more abundantly than we ask or think.
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