..."childhood sing-a-long..."

My husband's younger brother and wife live in our former city, a quarter of a mile from our old house.  What fun it would have been if we had stayed put and not moved 3 states east to Indiana... raising cousins in the same neck of the woods. But... that was not in God's plan. (I dont' know why the crazy website is formatting this with underline....)

My tale today is however set in that little Kansas suburb.  I love my sister-in-law dearly.  She is an only child, and calls me her "sister-by-a-different-mother."  She is an excellent sounding board for me, and will keep me in check if/and/when I get too crazy,
being one of my voices of reason...

Last weeks phone "conference" included a delightful tale about our 

3-year old nephew.

The local school district (where I happened to have joyfully taught & lived) continues to offer the Parents as Teachers Program.  An amazing feat as school districts are struggling with funding all over our nation.

Parents as Teachers hosts a weekly playdate in a preschool type playroom in one of the districts classrooms.  To wrap up the playdate the instructor gathered the children for circle time on the carpet.  They were singing songs, taking requests shouted out from the wee-ones... "The Wheels on the Bus," "Mary has a Little Lamb..." 

Our little nephew shouted out "Jesus Loves Me."  All adults were dead silent.  The instructor gave my sister-in-law a wide eyed look that silently said, "Tell him, no we can't sing that here."

But my steely-loved-one remained silent & gave the instructor a shoulder shrug and look back that said, "I am not going to silence him."

So the intructor asked the towheaded tri-year-old, "Can you help me?'"  Our sweet little nephew began singing... soon all the children were belting it out.... the parents were even joining in... in this "public school" sing-a-long.

What I find interesting is this... everyone knew the words, but were scared to sing them.  It was the children who had to lead.  Once they started singing, it broke the ice and the others (the grown-ups) followed.

What lesson is to be learned from this tale?  In the New Testament books of Matthew & Luke,
Christ tells his disciples to not hinder the wee-ones...

"Let the little ones come to me.... do not hinder them... for the kingdom of heaven is their's."

Sometimes the most poetic words are from the mouths of babes. How will you sing dear reader? Quietly? Silencing your inner child?  Will you belt it out for all to hear?

..."treasure..."

Happy birthday to my baby.... 7-years can pass you by in a flash.

Our youngest son turned 7 this weekend.  What fun it was to see the smile on his face...the joy in his heart.

It seems as though the circumstances of his life have robbed it of that joy lately.  He has been filled with frustration, a scowl on his face a large part of his days.  I can see it as body language defense.  He has to spend 7-hours of the school day "trying to hold it together." The tone and inflection in how others say his name. His body needing to bump or touch another object to "calculate" it's place is space. Bumping into something to hard and tipping it over, flipping a chair, rolling off the bouncy ball & body slamming into the table....
So many things triggering this negative body language.

Our son has been diagnosed with Sensory Processing Disorder. I need to interject that he is WICKEDLY intelligent, contemplating scientific theories and dillemas of history. The nuero-transmitters of his brain do not always send and receive the "messages" correctly. It has been described as a traffic jam in the brain. Like a puzzle with chunks of pieces missing.

His body feels like being an old Buick with no bells and whistles. Bumping into the guardrail to find it's position on the road... hitting a patch of black ice & skidding out of control, having inoperable speedometer & gages.  The rest of us are like Cadillacs.  We have all the fancy sensors in our brains, like a backup video camera, sensors to tell us if the road is slick, tailgates that can automatically open and shut...

His birthday however was filled with complete joy.  We ate piles of pancakes for breakfast and headed to the Lego Store, his two birthday requests.  When we fist entered the store, it was overwhelming for him.  Focusing in on building a mini figure meant too many decisions to make.  Eventually he thought through the process, selected one mini figure body part at a time & began to relax and enjoy.... to create.

One of the mini figures he received as a birthday gift came with a treasure chest.  He asked the Hubs if he would help his snap the lid on.

Our son then went into an oration about treasure,
"Some people would want gold or jewels in their treasure box. Me, I know the best treasure of all is Jesus, and you can't box him up.  You've got to share Him with everybody... showing His love and kindness to all the people you meet."

WOW!

Peter talks of treasure in the New Testament of the Bible.....
1 Peter 1:7

New Living Translation (NLT)

^"7 These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials..."

Demostrating rafting safety before
heading onto the Yellow Stone River.

So this weekend, I am thankful for my treasure.  The son the Lord blessed me with 7 years ago.  I pray that God will use me to show my son Christ's love and kindness.  To fill him with joy, rather than nag & be his "joy robber."  I am thankful that God is using my son to remind me of my faith... and the treasure that it holds.  When it is locked up in the treasure chest, you forget about it, do see it... you've got to let it out... to see, share and enjoy!

..."a game of..."

..."a game of..."

The fellers have taken up chess. Granny gave them a learning chess set, it tells which direction each piece can move.  They also practice on a chess app on the iPad. It will only allow you to move the pieces correctly.

So the two of them concocted a plan to meet at the the bench on the playground... between the lower elementary area and the upper elementary area. (big brother's in 4th grade, little brother's in 1st)

I go to school during morning recess to engage our youngest in sensory therapy, part of his sensory breaks ordered by his physician for Sensory Processing Disorder.

When I arrived the 1st grader (who usually lolly-gags & does not make it out doors very quickly) was already waiting on the bench... feet dangling, legs swinging back & forth.

"I'm waiting for ---- (insert brothers name) mom." he called out to me.

This was a precious sight... I will burn into my brain for eternity.

The big brother showed up.... empty handed.

"Where's the chess set?" the little brother inquired.

"The teacher didn't think it should come outdoors," the elder replied.

"That silly 4th grade teacher..... Let go swing, I'll push you," and off they went. Engaging in excellent sensory play.

The 4th grade teacher wouldn't allow the chess set to go out, she wanted the boys to understandably play and exercise. I spoke with her & she consented to allowing the chess match for the longer lunch recess.

This has me thinking about our relationships in Christ.  We are called to be brothers & sisters to fellow believers... to play together, break bread together, to support and love one another.... as well as those who do not yet know the Lord.

Peter expresses the critical-ness of this...

2 Peter 1: 5-7

Painting that hangs in our entryway...
...the beginnings of brotherly love.

5 Supplement your faith with a generous  provisions.........with 7brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.

So today they are trying again.  "Meet me at the bench for lunch recess," the elder called as they walked to their classrooms this morning." the sweet sounds of brotherly love....

..."lab rat..."

The fellers have been reading Harry Potter. They started the series on
the 30+ hour sojourn to grandma's for Christmas ... now the are
Hogwarts addicts. One of the main characters has a pet rat .....

Our neighbor boy is a freshman at Kansas State, majoring in Animal
Science. He's home for winter break and heard we were vaccinating 49
steer calves that arrived last week. He offered to give us a hand. On the trip to the farm he filled us in on his first semester at our Alma Mater .... he bought a pet rat for his dorm room....our boys were facinated by his "tales."

So the boys began researching....
Rats cost $9-15. Cages .... can be pricey.
At recess the next day, the 1st grader asked his former preschool teacher (who had a
class hamster) if she knew of any second hand cages for sale (gross,
huh)?  She happened to have a ferret cage someone had donated in
storage at the school.
So the fellers came home yesterday with a cage. They soaked, scrubbed
and disinfected it; loaded into the trunk for a future stop at the pet
shop.

This morning they were working on the Hubs. He called it the "full rat
press." My husband grew up on a farm, where you keep rats OUT of your
home .... not in them. He whispered in my ear before heading off to
the mill to feed America ...."Do not get a rat in Valpo today."

I predict  future rat-takes will follow.

The full rat press included such persuasion as,"God created rats, they
are one of His creations."

To tie this life lesson into the word of the Lord, I found a passage in the Old Testament in Leviticus.

Leviticus 11:29

The Message (MSG)

 ^29-38 "Among the creatures that crawl on the ground, the following are unclean for you: weasel, rat, all lizards, gecko, monitor lizard, wall lizard, skink, chameleon. Among the crawling creatures, these are unclean for you. If you touch them when they are dead, you are ritually unclean until evening. When one of them dies and falls on something, that becomes unclean no matter what it's used for, whether it's made of wood, cloth, hide, or sackcloth. Put it in the water—it's unclean until evening, and then it's clean. 

The Old Testament was written before Jesus the Messiah had come to Earth.  The Jewish people lived a life of ritual, following the laws of the Old Testament.  The amazing thing about the New Testament and the fullfillment of the prophecy of the Messiah is that we are no longer bound to all of those rituals.  We are "washed clean" by Jesus, the Living Water.  Jesus died for our sins, and we are washed clean by our belief he is our Savior.

So even though we have negative feelings about "creatures that crawl on the ground," my boys can keep working towards their goal of having one as a pet.... as long as they are good owners, having providence over them ... cleaning up after them.

P.S. (post script) The "full rat press" continues.  We visited the pet store in a neighboring town.  Rat prices there are only $4.99 What a bargain.  The boys have called a family meeting to practice their persuasive skills on their dad, a farm boy at heart.

..."rocket science..."

Rocket Science...

The fellers have been doing a little chemistry.  The younger one has a knack for science, always inquiring how things  work.... Loves watching "How It's Made."

He had finished a bottle if flavored fizzy water and declared that he wanted to fill it with something to make an explosion.  I got out the box of baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) & the remainder of a bottle of vinegar (acetic acid) and let him experiment.  Soon his older brother was joining in.... next they wanted the box of Borax we had used to make silly putty at the 1st grade Christmas party.
Once they had run out of baking soda & vinegar they where planning the next experiment, once they had replenished their supplies.

My husband makes agricultural animal feed. Baking soda is a key ingredient, it settles the cows and pigs stomachs. My husband and I have even been the guest of a soda mine owner in Telluride, Colorado; touring the mine where the baking soda comes from. Brock orders it by the truckload, priced by the ton.

So the fellers decided to put this connection to work.... asking Dad to bring home more sodium bicarbonate.... more chemistry ingredients.  He brought a "gigantic" bag to the car after school... charging them $3, but it beats the grocery prices.

The boys had fun changing the variable of their experiment. Greater amounts of baking soda... greater quantity of vinegar... Predicting and measuring the size of the reaction.  The we're controlling the variables.

This has me thinking about my relationship with God. How many situations do I try to tinker with the variables in His plan... trying to create the predicted or desired outcome?

Lately I have had to force myself to trust in the Lord, rather than try to tinker with and be in control of the situations in my life.

A recent verse in a sermon two Sundays ago is swimming around in my mind.

Proverbs 5
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart....lean not on your own understanding."

I'm thinking God is reminding me to lean not on my own control over my life.... To fully trust. To allow his sovereignty to reign over me.

After all, life is NOT rocket science, not an experiment .... rather divine providence.

... gift wrap...

"Gift-mas" 


The packages were wrapped with care... tied with metallic bows. We have had many get togethers to "undo" the gift wrap.


We had our own family-of-four Christmas Day 8 days before Jesus' birthday.  The Hubs and I wanted to have a day at home with our boys, filled with the traditions we started last year for our Indiana Christmas:  monkey bread & brown sugared lil' sausages... seafood dinner: crab legs, lobster tails, salmon ... afternoon filled with Lego-ing... evening playing boardgames.  It was also way to leave some loot at the homestead.


We headed to our second family get together the day before Christmas Eve, driving the 13+ hours to Grandpa and Grandma McKenna's.  We were joined by Uncle Brett, Aunt Tracey and Aunt Amy.  More gifting ensued.... Lego-ing, Nerf sword fighting following. We enjoyed "robber gift exchanging" with the extended McKenna clan at Aunt Shelley& Uncle Pat's; and sharing a Christmas meal with the Sauvage's.


The holiday sojourn continued as we headed back east to Granny & Grandad's.  Aunt Leslie, Uncle Brandy, Liam & Lanie joined us.  More gifting with the Petersons induced Lego pirate ship building, and Kinect sporting.


The great thing about our Christmases is that they were not just abundant in "things" ... they were filled with fellowship with family.


The Hubs and I have joked, 'tis the season for Gift-mas.  We meant absolutely no disrespect to Jesus Christ, for whom Christmas is named.  We are both followers of Christ, and found ourselves caught up in the other aspects of our Christmas traditions.


This has me thinking about the first Christmas gift.  A church sign I drove past last week read, 
"Mary wrapped the first Christmas gift."


How truly prophetic.  In our culture and society we have become a target for the marketing campaign of the season without possibly reflecting on why we give gifts.


My father-in-law read to the grandkids from Luke 2 on the night of the family gift giving, asking his grands why we give presents.  Our niece replied, "To celebrate Jesus' birthday."  Grandad explained that in the following reading we will read about God's gift to us.


Luke 2:6-12

^6-7While they were there (Bethlehem, the City of David), the time came for her to give birth. She gave birth to a son, her firstborn. She wrapped him in a blanket and laid him in a manger, because there was no room in the hostel.

 ^8-12There were sheepherders camping in the neighborhood. They had set night watches over their sheep. Suddenly, God's angel stood among them and God's glory blazed around them. They were terrified. The angel said, "Don't be afraid. I'm here to announce a great and joyful event that is meant for everybody, worldwide: A Savior has just been born in David's town, a Savior who is Messiah and Master. This is what you're to look for: a baby wrapped in a blanket and lying in a manger."

Mary and Joseph wrapped the Messiah in a blanket & laid him in a feed trough.  The angels professed where the shepherds could find their Savior, their gift from God.

Jesus is our gift from the Lord, gift wrapped by decendents of King David.  So dear readers, have you opened the gift and accepted Jesus as your Savior?  It brings the gift of eternal life.

It is as simple as praying a sort prayer, "Lord thank you for sending Jesus Christ to earth, to wash our sins away.  I accept Jesus as my Savior."


P.S. (Post Script): Our 1st grader has decided he wants to go to work for Lego and design "Bible Times" Lego sets .... out of the imaginations of babes.

..."donkey tale..."

... a donkey tale?

My 1st grader checked a book out of the library about the first Christmas in Bethlehem. Each page was narrated by a different character in the nativity story. The cattle telling of loaning Jesus their hay trough to use as his bed. The angle who first sang of birth of the Savior. The shepherd's  who followed the star and angelic chorus to discover the new born king.  What a fun bedtime tale it was, beautiful illustrations too.

This has my mind thinking of all the creatures present at the birth of Jesus...

My thoughts are focused in on one barnyard animal, the donkey.  The one who walked the 80-some miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem. The one who bore the weight of Mary and the gift in her womb. The one who carried our Messiah.  Did this barnyard creature know the importance of the cargo it transported? Was it clip-clopping along, trying to reach the destination; longing for a bite to eat and a place to rest?

I think the donkey knew... he was God's creation.  Created quite possibly for such a job as this.

He carried our Savior to the city of David. This was professed in Zachariah 9:9

"Rejoice o people of Jerusalem.... Your King is coming humbly to you... riding on a donkey." (NLT paraphrased)

I picture that donkey walking with his head held high, proudly delivering it's cargo to the stable of the Inn.  This Christmas season, how will you walk? Proud of your Savior as you celebrate His birthday? Or will you just be goofing through the motions of the season, forgetting the reason for celebrating?

Ironically, that same King rode into Jerusalem on a donkey again... Some 33 years later, to celebrate Passover .... But dear readers that may be a spring time tale...