God keeps His promises

This morning in the devotions that I did with my kids we read the story of Abraham and Sarah and how God promised them a son, even in their old age.

This is a quote from the devotion book we are using: "Abraham could hear the wind shaking the leaves. He could hear owls calling. He could even hear God talking to him. But he could not hear what God had promised to give him and Sarah: a baby. God kept his promise to Abraham and Sarah. God will keep his promises to you, too."

Psalm 145:13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The Lord is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made.

De-cluttering....

I would classify myself as a pretty good housekeeper. I enjoy a clean house and clutter stresses me out. There are times, naturally, when my house is cleaner than other times, and it usually isn't "picture perfect", but for the most part it is clean and clutter-free.

That is.....except for1 room (okay...so there's a "catch-all" corner in my bedroom too, but we won't talk about that). I think everyone has a room or a drawer or a counter that is THE "place" were things just naturally gather. Sometimes, it seems as if the clutter grows by magic! My "place" is my office/craft room. It seems that I can NEVER keep that room clean! Just 2 weeks ago I had it completely clean and everything in its place. Today, it looks as if a bomb went off! It the one room where I "drop" things thinking I will put them away later and "later" becomes a month or two "later". And, being that it is not only my office, but also my craft room, naturally I have a project or 2 laying around, and Olivia (the notorious mess-maker in our house) loves to "craft" too. Only....she doesn't enjoy cleaning UP after her crafting! The mess in this particular room really bothers me! Being that I work from home, it is the room where I spend the majority of my time. It would seem that since I spend so much time there, I would be able to keep a handle on the clutter!

Looking at the clutter this morning, I got to thinking about the "clutter" that oftentimes fills our hearts and minds. Those things that we need to "put away"; the bad memories from our past. The things that we need to "throw away"; the unforgiveness and bitterness that can creep in. The things we need to "give away" to Jesus; our hurts, cares, and concerns.

I think my heart is like my home.....usually clutter-free, but there is 1 "room" that is cluttered. From time-to-time I de-clutter that room in my heart, but it seems that the "clutter" of worry, frustration, hurt feelings, bad memories, etc. have a way of creeping back in. Instead of allowing that small room in my heart to remain cluttered, I need to make it a habit to daily give it to Jesus for as it says in Hebrews 4:15 "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin." Jesus understands our weaknesses and He wants us to give these things to Him.

I plan to work on the clutter this week, not only in my office, but also in my heart.

Pickles Giggles

LOL!!! Add a daughter and 2 more dogs, and take away the cat, and this is my house whenever I cook bacon! (Not to mention, Scott and I don't have that many gray hairs yet.) :)

Allow a mom to brag....

Today in school, Travis and Olivia had an assignment to write a paragraph telling why their mom and dad were the best parents in the world.

This is Travis’s:

“My Mom is a great mom. She’s caring, loving, and most importantly, she gives great advice. Although I don’t like everything she makes, she is still a good cook. My Dad also is a great dad! He can fix almost anything, and he knows a lot more about computers than I do!”

Here’s Olivia’s:

“My Mom and Dad are the best. I will make a list of things that make Mom the best mom and what makes Dad the best dad. Mom: 1. She works hard so we can have money. 2. She loves her family. 3. She loves God. 4. She cooks food for us. Dad: 1. He does the laundry for mom. 2. He loves his family. 3. He loves God. 4. He is a hard worker, and can fix anything.”

It does a mom's heart good to hear these kinds of things from their kids. It gives me a glimpse into the hearts of my children. The part in Travis's about my cooking is humorous because he is such a picky eater! :) It is so wonderful to know that Olivia mentioned our love of God. Thank you God that they can see You in us!

I recently had a conversation with someone who is totally against the idea of homeschooling and thinks my kids would be better off in public school. Though homeschooling is not for everyone, neither is public school, and I know that my children are thriving at home whereas they would be languishing in a public school setting.

These types of assignments are like gold, they are precious and very valuable. It makes all the work, stress, and frustration that goes along with homeschooling worth every minute and makes the inevitably hard times fade from memory.

The joy that comes from seeing them learn, and being there the moment that a challenging math concept finally "clicks". To watch them mature in their thought patterns, and to receive back writing assignments like the ones I got today makes me ask the question: Why on earth would I ever put them in public school and risk missing out on moments like these?

The words DO hurt.

Boy is this comic ever true!

I have had cruel words spoken to me and about me, as I'm sure most everyone has, and they cut me to my heart, and I will never forget them. It would have been easier to be physically hurt than the hurt that those words have caused. A broken bone will heal, but careless hurtful words are not soon, if ever, forgotten.

The Bible has a lot to say about the tongue.

Proverbs 10:19
When words are many, sin is not absent,
but he who holds his tongue is wise.

Proverbs 11:12
A man who lacks judgment derides his neighbor,
but a man of understanding holds his tongue.

Proverbs 12: 18 & 19
Reckless words pierce like a sword,
but the tongue of the wise brings healing.
Truthful lips endure forever,
but a lying tongue lasts only a moment.

Proverbs 21:23
He who guards his mouth and his tongue
keeps himself from calamity.

James 1:26
If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.

James 3: 5-8
Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. ⁶ The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. ⁷ All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, ⁸ but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

I Peter 3:10
"Whoever would love life
and see good days
must keep his tongue from evil
and his lips from deceitful speech.

These are just a small sampling of what the Bible has to say about that smallest of offending organs in our body.

At Revive our Hearts they have a series about the tongue called "The Power of Words". I would encourage everyone to listen to this series to learn what God says about the tongue, how it can be used for good or for evil, how it can give life or bring death, and how our words have the power to heal or the power to hurt. I've been blessed by these broadcasts, and I'm sure you will be too.

If something good could come from the experience I've had with how words can be evil, kill my spirit, and hurt immensely, it is that I've learned it is better to keep silent than say a careless word; because sometimes, without even realizing it, you can hurt someone with carelessly spoken words. The old adage "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all" are WORDS to live by!

The Incomparable Christ

Today starts the beginning of Lenten season, the 40 days leading up to Easter.

On Revive our hearts, they are doing a special series during the next 40 days on Jesus.

They will be using the book "The Incomparable Christ" by J. Oswald Sanders, and Nancy Leigh Demoss with lead the study as they talk about:

*The person of Christ - His birth, childhood, life, and nature.

*The works of Christ - The trial of Christ, and the atoning work of Christ on the cross.

*The seven words of Christ - The last seven words that Christ spoke as he hung on the cross.

I am excited to spend the next 40 days learning more about Christ! I invite you to tune in to the broadcasts and grow in Jesus.

Fair Oaks Dairy Farm Adventure

Today, the family and I plus the homeschool group went to Fair Oaks Dairy Farm in Fair Oaks, IN for a field trip. It is one of the largest dairy farms in the United States. It is a 20,000 acre farm (or farms to be more exact) that milk 32,000 cows 3 times a day at 9 different locations!

Inside the lobby of the visitors center.

These were the buses that took us on our 45 minute tour of the farm.

Calf hutches. The babies are moved to these outdoor hutches within a matter of a couple of days after they are born. One of the most exciting parts of the day was being able to witness a birth of a calf. They have a special "observation" building that was like an arena with stadium seating. They had 2 cows that were in labor behind glass. Outside the building they had a stoplight and when the stoplight was red, it meant that neither of the cows were close to delivering, yellow meant the cow was almost ready to deliver, and green meant that a birth was in progress. When we entered the birthing barn, everyone was warned to be very quiet and not to move around much because the cows could see us through the glass and it made them nervous. Within about 15 minutes of sitting down, one of the cows gave birth. It was very interesting, and not as messy as I expected it to be. She had a boy! :)
Milking carousel. They milk 77 cows at a time on this moving circular "conveyor belt". They milk 3,000 cows at this particular location. I was fascinated by how the cows are such creatures of habit and will move onto and off of the carousel without any prompting from the men who work the milking machines.
On the bus tour. These buildings are the dry milk barn, where the cows who are pregnant and taking a break from milking for a few months until their new calf is born are kept, the maternity ward, where cows who are giving birth, and about to give birth are kept, and also the cow barn where the cows that are being milked are kept. Also, the 4 large tower-like things is a system they have where they recycle the manure into usable methane gas for energy (the electricity it produces runs the farm), and the manure solids are processed into a "top soil" type product that they spread on the fields for fertilizer.

More cow barns.

The last pictures are part of the interactive program they had inside the visitor center/museum.


At the end of the 3 hour adventure, I came away with a lot of mixed emotions. I told Scott on the ride home that it was very interesting, but that I felt a little sad because it seemed just like a factory to me. "Assembly-line" production.

The cows are in no way mistreated. They were very healthy, they were well fed, not mistreated in any way....yet, I feel sorry for them. From the moment they are born, they are treated almost as a piece of equipment. They are born, and the mom immediately begins to lick them and clean them out of instinct, as God intended them to do. But instead of being able to bond with their mother's and nurse, they are immediately taken away. The colostrum that the mother produces for their calf to build immunity is pumped out and the calf is fed it by bottle. If the calf happens to be a boy, they have no use for it, and it is sold off within 2 days of birth. (Probably to become veal as one of the tour guides told me.) If it is a girl, it is shipped out of state (to Colorado) to growing farms (I think that's what they are called) until they are 2 years old. Then they are shipped back to Fair Oaks, already 7 months pregnant. Then, the cows give birth to a calf a year for the next 8 years, with only 3 months of "rest" from milking. When they are 8 years old, they are then sold to be made into hamburger for the fast food industry.

As I said, they are well cared for...but, what kind of life do they have? A short life. A life of barns and concrete, and traveling cross country on semi trucks or trains, and never getting to spend time grazing or walking in grass. It seems sad to me.

I understand the need for producing a lot of milk to feed the people of this country, but my soft heart was really saddened. It especially struck me after I witnessed the calves birth and saw the mother, who had worked so hard to deliver her baby, turn and start to lick him; and realize that as soon as the baby was on its feet it would be taken away from her.....and made into veal cutlets. I know that animals do not have the same emotions as humans do about their offspring, and within a matter of days she will forget all about him, but it is still a difficult thing for me to accept. It's just not natural!

All in all, it really was a nice place to visit, and I would highly recommend it. But, if you have a soft spot in your heart for animals, as I do, you may come away a little sad.