The Phenomenon of Sleep

For the past few months now, I've noticed this amazing thing that happens overnight... my baby is transformed into more and more of a little boy.  You know that phrase "babies grow overnight"?  Yeah, well it's definitely true in this household!  

It seems like every night I carry my plump little infant to his crib to fall asleep, and every morning this long, lean little boy wakes up in his place.  When I pick him up out of the crib he feels like he's been doing crunches all night, resulting in a hard, flat tummy and a 3" slim up around his waist; he also feels like he has grown at least 2" in height.  (Hugh has also noticed this phenomenon, so it's not just me, okay?)

But don't worry, I don't let him stay too lean for long.  Immediately after waking up he nurses for 20-30 minutes (that's double or triple a normal nursing session), and his pudgy little tummy balloons back out.  Usually I can get a snuggle or two out of him after nursing too, and then I reassure myself that he's not a full-on little boy quite yet... for at least one more day he'll still be my little infant.  :)

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Challenge

Well, I have a challenge for all of you blog readers out there...  As you may have realized over the extended weekend, the beginning of June is upon us!  This blows me away, mainly because we are moving sometime before July comes.. eek!!

Anyway, to celebrate the beginning of June, I wanted to challenge each of you (who are not already doing so) to commit to reading through the Bible in a year.  So far I have been keeping up with my reading plan (even though I have been a little slack in posting each book's theme), and it has really been beneficial for me.  In my opinion, reading the Old Testament gives so much more depth and insight into the New Testament.  I think that this says it all:

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.   (2 Timothy 3:16-17) 

Now, I know that many of you have excuses for why you can't do a reading plan.  Believe me, I had my own excuses too!!  So let me offer you a few ways to overcome some of the most common excuses:

1. I don't have the time.  Try picking an accommodating reading plan then.  The plan that I use, the Discipleship Journal Bible Reading Plan, requires less than 20 minutes per day.  It is also very forgiving of busy schedules because there are only 25 daily readings per month.  I also appreciate the way that it splits up the Old Testament and the New Testament so that you have 2 readings per day from the OT and 2 readings per day from the NT.  It's VERY doable.  The other option for those who are crunched for time would be to do 1/2 of the daily reading each day so that the year-long plan extends to cover 2 years.  The point is not how fast you can read through the Bible but is more so being regularly engaged with all of Scripture.  

2.  I don't like/am not good at reading.  Try listening to an audio Bible then.  There are several good ones that you can buy, but there are also many free options too.  Bible Gateway has great audio recordings by Max McLean (I know this is true for the ESV translation, anyway).  If you go to their website and search for the passage you should read (ex. 1 Kings 1-3), just scroll down and under the translation/page options heading, you'll see a grey bar with options for moving forward or backward.  To the right of that bar is a red volume button, which if clicked will bring a pop-up window (pop-ups must be allowed) with the audio recording of exactly what you searched for, even if it's more than one chapter.  

3.  I'm not organized enough/can't keep up with where I am in the reading.  This was a huge one for me because I'm such a perfectionist..  But trust me, you don't have to make this into a huge perfect project.  Keep it simple.  Try using some kind of page marker (see my example in the image to the right) to keep up with exactly what chapter you are on (this is just a cut up sticky note) that way you can use the reading plan as a guide (not a perfectionistic rule).  For example, even if I'm only supposed to read two chapters of 1 Kings, sometimes I lose track of the chapters because the story is so good, and the next thing I know, I'm three chapters past where I should have stopped.  No problem, just mark it!  In that case, I might skip the 1 Kings part of my reading plan during the next day's reading (since I'm already ahead on it) and just resume it on the following day.  See, no need for perfectionistic tendencies to keep you from enjoying reading through the Bible.  :)

4.  The Bible is just too hard to understand. But it really isn't...  I agree that you probably won't have the same level of understanding as someone with a seminary degree the first or second time that you read through it, but the Bible really was written to regular people, like you and me.  My advice is twofold: read thoughtfully and try to understand the way that each passage fits into the greater redemptive story that God has given us perfect insight into, and then reference a good study bible (like the ESV Study Bible) from time to time when you really get hung up.


Welp, there you have it.  Those are the main reasons that have kept me from being faithful in reading through the entire Word of God for so long.  And believe me, they are overcome-able (if that's even a word..), so don't let silly excuses keep you from committing!!   Give it a go and stick with it!
You will not regret it.

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God is Mighty in Battle - Joshua

Well, the book of Joshua depicts a huge pinnacle for Israel -- God finally brings them into the promised land, the land that he had promised Abraham so long ago (Gen. 12:1-3).  There are many amazing details to this story, and there are many themes that come out, such as God's faithfulness, his covenant, his justice and wrath, etc.


The theme that I was most struck by, however, is that of God being mighty in battle.  Yeah, you heard me right, God being mighty in battle.  Yes, of course, he also empowered the Israelites to fight well, but there are so many examples in Johsua of God, himself, being the sole cause of a victory.   Please, allow me give you a handful of examples...

God's Might in Battle

1.  The Lord parts the waters of the Jordan so that the people (again) cross over on dry land.  Although this may not seem like a "battle", it is one of the ways that God chooses to show his might to confirm to the Israelites that he will give them the land.. check out the underlined part:

And Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” And Joshua said, “Here is how you shall know that the living God is among you and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites. Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is passing over before you into the Jordan. Now therefore take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, from each tribe a man. And when the soles of the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off from flowing, and the waters coming down from above shall stand in one heap.”   (Joshua 3:9-13, emphasis mine)

2.  When five kings attempt to attack one of Israel's allies, the Lord again displays his might by actually killing more than the mighty men of Israel did...

So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valor. And the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not fear them, for I have given them into your hands. Not a man of them shall stand before you”… And the Lord threw them into a panic before Israel… And as they fled before Israel, while they were going down the ascent of Beth-horon, the Lord threw down large stones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died. There were more who died because of the hailstones than the sons of Israel killed with the sword.  (Joshua 10:7-8, 10a, 11)

3.  This summarizes a few other battles that the people fought:

And Joshua captured all these kings and their land at one time, because the Lord God of Israel fought for Israel.   (Joshua 10:42)

4.  And one last one at the end of Joshua:

And you have seen all that the Lord you God has done to all these nations for your sake, for it is the Lord your God who has fought for you.   (Joshua 23:3)

Now, there is one other thing I should point out relating to God's might in battle, and that is that God didn't always give the people victory.  There are examples in Joshua when the people blatantly disobey God, which results in our holy, just God separating himself from them because of their sin.  You would think that after having seen the amazing acts of God in giving them the promised land, that no one would disobey, but no, that's not how the story goes... The times when Israel disobeys ultimately show the innate rebellion inside the hearts of men, and even now our own hearts live in the same rebellion.

In my humble opinion therefore, the most mighty act of God in battle was not accomplished in Joshua's time.  It was when Jesus died on a cross, taking our sin upon himself to mightily battle the power of sin & death, which as a result of our own rebellion separates us from God.  And rising from the dead three days later proved his ultimate victory in battle - bringing us back into right standing with God.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.  By his wounds you have been healed.  (1 Peter 2:24)

God was most certainly mighty in leading Israel into the promised land, and thus fulfilling his promise to Abraham.  But oh the depths of God's might and grace in fulfilling the other part of that promise in blessing the nations through the redemptive death of Jesus, and thus winning the battle that we ourselves could never win.

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FFF: The Many Tongues of Enoch

Any of you who've been around Enoch in the past few weeks can surely testify that his tongue is constantly going... and not as in talking, but more so as in pointing.. or just sticking out in general.    ;)  I wanted to remember this cute, hilarious season of his childhood, so I thought that'd be a good post for FFF this week.  Below are a few of the many tongue (faces) of Enoch at this point.  It seems that right now he sticks his tongue out when he's smiling, thinking, concentrating, and/or trying to taste of something.  Little Man is especially charming with his tongue at Wal-Mart and other places where he sees friendly people who talk to him, he is particularly partial to the older women.  (They generally think it's the "cutest thing ever", but some give him a short sermon about being disrespectful, haha!)

 

 

Another thing he has just recently learned (within the past 1 or 2 weeks) is how to roll his tongue.. to the side.  It's incredibly hard to describe with words, but even harder to get a photo of, so I tried to get some good video footage (see below).  My theory is that he is getting much closer to having his next few teeth come in, and he is using his tongue to feel of his gums where one tooth in particular may be about to erupt.  :)  Sometimes he also rolls his tongue into a "u" shape while he rolls it to the side.  Here's a somewhat good shot of that:

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God and Marriage

There was a really good post over at the Desiring God Blog a few days ago by Jonathan Parnell.  He wrote: Four Reasons Why Marriage is God's Doing based on part of John Piper's book, This Momentary Marriage. 

I read Piper's book shortly after we were married and found it rather enjoyable and enlightening.  It's a nice short read that is packed full of worldview changing thoughts.  I think that this blog post, which highlights only a fraction of the book, is especially relevant now, considering all that is going on in our day and time regarding marriage.  In it, Parnell pulls out a few jewels from Piper's book that are sure to make you think more deeply about God and marriage and challenge what your worldview says about how the two relate (and possibly a few other issues).

If you haven't ever read the book, then one more reason to check out the blog post is that there's a link to a free pdf copy of This Momentary Marriage in it (it's a free resource from the Desiring God website).  As a sneak peek, here are Parnell's four main points:

1. Marriage was GOD'S DESIGN
2. God gave away the first bride
3. God spoke the design of marriage into existence
4. God preforms the one-flesh union

The fourth point is my favorite- God, himself, is the one who makes two into one.  Check it out for yourself and see if you have a favorite too.

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Spanish for this week (more face words)

Here are our Spanish words for this week.  I thought it might be good to do one more week of face words since there are so many parts to faces (which I think shows amazing insight into our Creator's attention to detail and creativity)!!

lips     ->   los labios
cheek     ->   la mejilla
forehead     ->   la frente
face     ->   la cara
teeth     ->   los dientes
tongue     ->   la lengua


One thing I've noticed about trying to learn/review these Spanish words is that practice really does make perfect!  Since most of the words I've been adding each week are commonly used words around our house (usually used at least once per day), I've noticed that if I am intentional about speaking each week's words in Spanish everytime I want to say them through my normal conversation with Enoch (or others), that it makes the words stick much better!  In fact, it's helped me avoid having to use notecards this time around.  (I used endless notecards when I was actually in Spanish class.)  Maybe the words are also sticking better because this time around my motivation for learning is bigger than myself and/or a grade... I'm learning for my son.  :)

Anyway, hope you enjoy this week's graphic.   haha!  That was Enoch's first picture showing his teeth. :)

Here's a pronunciation video:

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A good lookin' cowboy for your Monday

Enoch and I went to visit my mom and stepdad (Granny Sandy & Granddad Craig) this weekend... only not at their house.  They regularly compete in Cowboy Mounted Shooting (CMSA) events at a ranch in Oklahoma (ZOC Ranch), where Craig keeps up with the day-to-day operations.  So we went out to see the ranch, watch the competition, pet some horses, and get some grandparent loving.  I'd say that we accomplished all of those tasks, only I wish we could've toured more of the ranch - there just weren't enough hours in the busy day.  

While we were visiting, Enoch traded in his ball cap for a real cowboy hat.  :)

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera.  But there was a professional photographer there, so we might get some good photos from her once she's done editing them.  

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