The Temple's Silent Construction

I found this interesting! I guess it never registered, or my leaky brain forgot.
This was in the Days of Praise, written by Henry M. Morris PhD.

"And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building." (1 Kings 6:7)

Here is a remarkable testimony to the engineering and construction skills of the ancients. In order to erect the magnificent temple of Solomon, every portion was so carefully fabricated, far away from the construction site, that the building could be completely erected in reverent silence.

Furthermore, the stones were not small and rough. "They brought great stones, costly stones, to lay the foundation of the house" (1 Kings 5:18). They were quarried from limestone beds beneath the city and had to be laid in place. "And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew them, and the stonesquarers"(1 Kings 5:18).

In both its unique beauty and its silent assemblage, the temple is a striking type of the spiritual temple now being erected by the Holy Spirit. "Now therefore ye are... built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord; In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit:" (Ephesians 2:19-22).

In this spiritual temple, each new believer is a costly stone, carefully cut from the world's dark quarry, then silently placed in the growing structure by the Holy Spirit on the foundation of Jesus Christ, "to whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house: (1 Peter 2:4-5). "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" (1 Corinthians 3:16).

Here's the Plan, Folks

I've seen this email before, but it bears repeating, even if it is just to vent a bit. Enjoy, and thanks Dad for the email. ;)

This has been around before and still applies.

The Plan!

Robin Williams, wearing a shirt that says, 'I love New York ' in Arabic. You gotta love Robin Williams......Even if he's nuts! Leave it to Robin Williams to come up with the perfect plan. What we need now is for our UN Ambassador to stand up and repeat this message.

Robin Williams' plan...(Hard to argue with this logic!)

'I see a lot of people yelling for peace but I have not heard of a plan for peace. So, here's one plan.'

1) 'The US will apologize to the world for our 'interference' in their affairs, past & present. You know, Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, Tojo, Noriega, Milosevic, Hussein, and the rest of those 'good 'ole' boys', we will never 'interfere' again.

> 2) We will withdraw our troops from all over the world, starting with Germany, South Korea, the Middle East, and the Philippines. They don't want us there. We would station troops at our borders. No one allowed sneaking through holes in the fence.

3) All illegal aliens have 90 days to get their affairs together and leave We'll give them a free trip home. After 90 days the remainder will be gathered up and deported immediately, regardless of whom or where they are. They're illegal!!! France will welcome them.

4) All future visitors will be thoroughly checked and limited to 90 days unless given a special permit!!!! No one from a terrorist nation will be allowed in. If you don't like it there, change it yourself and don't hide here. Asylum would never be available to anyone. We don't need any more cab drivers or 7-11 cashiers.

5) No foreign 'students' over age 21. The older ones are the bombers. If they don't attend classes, they get a 'D' and it's back home baby.

6) The US will make a strong effort to become self-sufficient energy wise. This will include developing nonpolluting sources of energy but will require a temporary drilling of oil in the Alaskan wilderness. The caribou will have to cope for a while.

7) Offer Saudi Arabia and other oil producing countries $10 a barrel for their oil. If they don't like it, we go someplace else. They can go somewhere else to sell their production. (About a week of the wells filling up the storage sites would be enough.)

8) If there is a famine or other natural catastrophe in the world, we will not 'interfere.' They can pray to Allah or whomever, for seeds, rain, cement or whatever they need. Besides most of what we give them is stolen or given to the army. The people who need it most get very little, if anything.

9) Ship the UN Headquarters to an isolated island someplace. We don't need the spies and fair weather friends here. Besides, the building would make a good homeless shelter or lockup for illegal aliens.

10) All Americans must go to charm and beauty school. That way, no one can call us 'Ugly Americans' any longer. The Language we speak is ENGLISH..learn it...or LEAVE...Now, isn't that a winner of a plan?

'The Statue of Liberty is no longer saying 'Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses.' She's got a baseball bat and she's yelling, 'you want a piece of me?' '

UFO Sighting!

No, I'm not talking of the extraterrestrial kind.. I'm talking about those projects in a special plastic tub waiting to be finished. Now that I am starting to get back into the groove of things here for the most part, and finding out what our "new" normal is, I am trying to work in some time to be creative at least every other day, hoping to get that to every day. In other words, a time to work on some sewing or craft projects that I enjoy.

I got this book from my Grandmother a while back when she was downsizing her fabric and quilting stuff. I decided to try one of the quick and easy patterns in it a while back, and I just now finished it.





Here is what I have been working on recently. It is a nine-patch quilt, machine pieced, and hand quilted. Obviously I'm not done with the quilting yet. I started this project before we moved over 3 years ago, and I am determined to get it done. It has been stashed away for a while. No more stashing.. going to finish it this time. The nice thing about hand quilting is that it is easy to stop and go whenever I need to. Of course, most sewing is like. The problem is the cutting out phase that takes a while. For example, I will soon be embarking on the Spring/Summer annual sew-a-thon here. The sewing part will take a while, but at least it can be done in snatches of time. But the cutting out is more of a challenge, because I need CHUNKS of time, and when the table isn't occupied by schooling, crafts, eating, etc. You can guess how often that is. Anyway.. my current hand quilting project:

This About Sums It Up

Never seen a better comparison of Democrat vs Republican values:

"You cannot legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the wealthy out of freedom.. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is about the end of any nation. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it."

~~~~~ The late Dr. Adrian Rogers, 1931 - 2005

A Couple of "Firsts" and Misc. Rambling

We have hit a couple little mile stones with Isaac. The first one is that he smiled. Not that "I've got gas" smile, but a deliberate, look at Mama, and mimick the smile I was doing. He as done a few now for me and for Dale, and though I have hovered like the paparazzi, I haven't been able to catch it on the camera yet.

The next one is that for two nights in a row, Isaac has had a good chunk of sleeping time, one night was 5 hours (gasp... wow, real sleep!), and last night there was a 4 1/2 hour stint. Then he went right back to sleep for about 2 1/2, and is still in a food-induced coma in the bedroom. :)

Also, I finally tried Isaac in the sling, which after fussing for a couple minutes, he fell asleep and napped for 3 hours in it. I don't know if it was due to liking the snuggly feeling of the sling, or he was just overtired anyway. Either way, it was nice to have all the cuddle time!



Recovery from birth is going well enough for me. I feel like I am starting to get back into the groove of the basics here, and that tired, overwhelmed feeling has been less and less frequent in rearing its ugly head. Not that I am keeping up on everything, but close enough for now. Between all of us, no one is going hungry, naked, or dirty. :)

Yesterday we got some fresh snow, it the temperature dropped to low single digits last night. This morning the sun decided to make an appearance, and the landscape is all sparkly. I sent Benjamin out a little while ago to try and capture it digitally, as I wasn't dressed yet, and still on my first cup of java. The pics definately do not do the real thing justice! Trust me when I say, it was truly gorgeous.

Sit Still

It isn't always easy to "sit still". I like to keep my hands busy. I don't like to sit and do nothing, unless I am very tired. I like to be busy in general, doing things around the house, with the kids, outside, etc. Not so busy that I tear my hair out trying to race and get things done, but busy enough to keep me out of trouble. ;)

It is habitual for me to have the day basically planned out, and to tackle one thing after another. I'm not opposed to downtime, don't get me wrong. But the majority of the day is spoken for.

Since Isaac has been born I have been learning the art of taking it easy. A slower pace is emerging and taking hold, and to tell the truth, though it is better for us right now, it is hard to get used to!

The rule of thumb for post partum recovery is to allow yourself one week per birth you have had before you can expect to start working up to your normal pace. I know in this day and age and our society, that is poo-poo'd. After all, we are women. Aren't we supposed to do it all? No matter what? and goodness, if we take a break, then everyone wonders what is wrong with us. Are we sick? Upset? Backslidden? No, just realizing that I don't have to be SuperBaptistHomeschoolingPreacherwifeandMom 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It is okay to take a breath. It is okay to take a step back from the hurry and scurry of my schedule and enjoy.. yes, that's right ENJOY some hard earned, slower pace, recover time from growing a baby and birthing it. That's the other thing, according to today's society, if we DO actually take a break, then we are certainly not to enjoy it. We should feel guilty, and restless, and push to work our routines anyway. Right?

I totally disagree. As mother's our time is packed. Whether you have one child or more. Not everyone is in the same stage of child rearing. The years we had littles that were totally dependent on us, and no older children to help out were extremely busy and taxing. Now we have some olders to help with the youngers. You know what I have discovered? It is still extremely busy and taxing.. but in a different way.

It is good for Mama to slow down, and good for the children too. If I have to take it easy, then I might as well enjoy it. I have at least 8 weeks of recovery time, half of which are over. At first I admit I felt I couldn't take this time. There are still times now when I feel like I should be doing more, pushing myself to get more done. After all, I did it all myself when we had all littles, didn't I? What is wrong with me now? Have I gotten lazy?

I don't think so, truly. Circumstances are different now. I have olders to help out, so I don't have to do it all myself. And there is nothing wrong with delegation. Part of being a parent is training children to be able to take care of themselves, and Lord willing, a family some day. Also, I have noticed that even if they aren't particularly fond of a few extra chores to do, there is a certain sense of pride and satisfaction in knowing they are helping Mama and the rest of the family. I do try to praise them for the good work they do, and try to surreptitiously brag on them publicly when they are within hearing distance.

Oh, and Dale says, so sweetly "Not to mention you aren't getting any younger." Pfffft.

At this point, we aren't looking to remodel the house or start any major cleaning projects. There is a time and a season for those things. Right now we are just doing the basics of cleaning, cooking, and homeschooling. My main priority is taking care of Isaac right now. As time goes on he will be less and less dependent on me, more content and less fussy. For now I will try and remember to enjoy the days (and sometimes nights) when he needs me to hold him, or rock him or change his diaper, or nurse him. He will only be like this for a little time. The "newborn" stage doesn't last forever.

Along the lines of sitting still, I read this devotional in the Days of Praise the other day, and it struck home. It was written by Henry M. Morris, PH.D.

"Then said she, Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day." (Ruth 3:18)

This was the instruction given to Ruth by Naomi in hopes that her kinsman, Boaz, would be willing to perform his family duty and marry Ruth, whose Jewish husband had died in Moab. Ruth's behavior had been honorable, and she had done what she could to let Boaz know she was willing to be his wife, but now she could do nothing except to sit still and wait.

This lesson needs to be remembered by Christians today. All too often we rush ahead of the Lord, fearful that things won't work out unless we take matters into our own hands. When the Jews were being invaded by the Assyrian armies and felt the needed and alliance with Pharaoh, God warned: "The Egyptians shall help in vain, and to no purpose: therefore have I cried concerning this, Their strength is to sit still... In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength" (Isaiah 30:7-15).

Long before, when the children of Israel were in even more desperate circumstances, with the Egyptian armies pursuing them and the Red Sea in front of them, Moses had said: "Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD" (Exodus 14:13). Soon, the chariots of Pharaoh were at the bottom of the sea, just as, in due time, Boaz did marry Ruth, and as 600 years later, the hosts of the Assyrians were slain by the angel of the Lord (Isaiah 37:36).

There is, certainly, a time to work - and work hard - in the service of the Lord. There are spiritual battles to be fought and races to be run. But when we have done the best we know how, according to the Scriptures, and still don't see the answer, there comes a time when we must simply sit still, and wait for the Lord. He would have us "be still, and know that (He is ) God" (Psalm46:10).

Post Partum Depression? How to care for a newborn?

It always amazes me after even a home birth, you still get freebie materials for taking care of newborns.

This past week I got a phone call from the county health ledger.. a health association. The lady that called was very personable, I have to say. However she was asking about how the baby was doing, if I had any questions, what his stats were when he was born and if he had any vax's yet, yadda yadda yadda. Well, I told her we put off vaccination indefinately. Not sure I should have told her that, but I said "I know that can be a hot topic" and she very kindly said, no problem, I understand.

A couple days later I get this pack in the mail talking about how to take care of your newborn. Now I told this lady this way my 8th baby. So this made dh and I laugh. The first thing I asked my dh when he was looking over the pamplets was:

"So, how do they reccomend putting your baby down to sleep this year?"

Seems like every time I have a baby they change their tune on that one. This year "they" say you are supposed to lay them on their backs. Pffft. I think when I had my oldest that was a huge no-no. Isaac sleeps on his side for the most part.

Oh, and here is a good one...
"NEVER allow the infant to sleep on the couch especially with an adult."
Oh great... Dh loves to put Isaac across his chest and prop him so he won't fall off and snooze. I guess we broke that rule!

"Parents should never co-sleep with an infant." Uhoh. I do like to nurse/sleep with Isaac sometimes. Of course, I don't toss and turn usually, and I am very aware when he is in the bed, and so is dh. Usually I do these in the morning, after dh is up and getting ready for work anyway.

Here's one I don't understand at all...
"but baby at the foot of the crib". They show a little diagram. They want us to put the baby so his feet are close to the foot of the crib. WHY???? I don't understand that one at all. Right now he is sleeping in the portacrib, crosswise. However I can put him in without waking him up! LOL

Okay... here's what got me. The stuff in parenthesis are my own snide comments.

Are you a mom, with a baby, who tends to...
~cry for no reason? (Goodness, am I a woman with hormones?"
~feel "panic"?
~worry a lot about your health or the health of your baby? (what mother doesn't?)
~Have trouble sleeping or relaxing? (yeah, like when the baby is awake, or crying, or doing his pre-wake up snorting...)
~Stay away from other people (yup..as much as possible. It is flu/cold season and I have a newborn for crying out loud!)
~Have a change in appetite? (you mean like eating more because of nursing a baby? doh!)
~Have difficulty making decisions (does the term "sleep deprivation" mean anything to you?)

If you have some of these feelings or behaviors, you may be depressed, even thouh other people may not see your depression.

According to this pamphlet I have ppd, and no wonder, since apparently I am at high risk from having a stillbirth. Oh, and it has gone on past the two week mark so I am supposed to be seeking professional help.

Yeah right.

Is it me, or do those sypmtoms seem to apply to more than ppd and are too generic to be helpful? Maybe it is just another ploy of the medical establishment to get more money? I know there are women who really do suffer, I'm not making light of that, but those symptoms could apply to so many other things.

Oh, there is a list of things to do for yourself ALONG with getting professional help. One of the things is to "Look for humor. Have fun and Laugh." Well, just as I was finishing up reading about depression and how one of the symptoms is a feeling of hopelessness, "Taps" started playing on the radio. :doh: It was being used as part of an intro for a hymn "Nearer My God To Thee" which of course conjured up visions of Titanic... talk about feeling hopeless!

Okay... enough babbling... there is no real point to this post. Back to whatever you were doing. :)

ETA: I was reading this over to Dale who responded:
"I must have post partum depression too." LOL!