anyday fool

God's Graffiti

Taken from the Wicklow People Newspaper 

 

A GRAFFITI vandal who desecrated a Baptist Church has seen his work backfire, as quick-thinking church members turned the spray-painted words into a message from scripture.

In recent weeks the words 'There is no God' were sprayed across Arklow Baptist Church, causing an eyesore for worshippers and neighbours alike.

The vandal responsible was unaware that Bible scripture also contains these words and members of the church completed the excerpt from Psalm 14 by spraying 'The fool hath said in his heart: there is no God.'

Pastor David O' Gorman
Christ For Ireland

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

 

The above is from the March newsletter from 'Christ for Ireland' which Miss Artist receives via email.  I was thinking of this verse today and remembered the photo ~ thought I'd share  =)

100 things I might have done.. maybe

The things I’ve done are in GREEN. Those which I have not are in black ...or maybe brown since I'm having fits with formatting tonight. I’d love to see your answers, too, so if you do this, copy/paste on your blog and leave a comment so I can see what you have done!




I HAVE…

1. Started my own blog ~ suppose they put this one in here as a Gimme?

2. Slept under the stars... long, long ago


3. Played in a band


4. Visited Hawaii

5.Watched a meteor shower



7. Been to Disneyland (and Disney World before Epcot?)

8. Climbed a mountain ~ well, that's what we called it anyway - We were in the highlands of Colorado and found a side road to Bonanza that we had to travel... So fun. And we found a 'public' spot that my kids and Tim could finish the hike UP the mountain... I was expecting the Popper, so I guarded the van ;-)


9. Held a praying mantis ~ not sure, but I think I only looked at it

10. Sung a solo ~ as part of a duet, which was long ago and the congregation must have appreciated a "joyful noise" =)


11. Bungee jumped ~ Are you kidding?! I threw myself out a haymow at least once... who needs a bungee. And I'd rather ride a zip line, thank you.

12. Visited Paris


13. Watched lightning at sea


14. Taught myself an art from scratch ~ not sure how to apply this one? Bread-baking?


15. Adopted a child

16. Had food poisoning ~ pretty sure it was ~ lost 5# in one day when about 4wks pg with the Computer Geek :p I go very easy on cheese cake now, especially on top of a steak dinner

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty

18. Grown my own vegetables

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France

20. Slept on an overnight train ~ not in a private room if that's what this means? Got pretty cozy with a very full train on my last trip about 20 years ago to/from Washington state (20 years ago?! Yikes, my brother's been married a while!    Huummm, I guess I've been married most of that while too...)

21. Had a pillow fight


22. Hitchhiked

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill ~ that was my thought anyway, but I was quite sick within 24 hours...

24. Built a snow fort ~  I grew up in Iowa  =)

25. Held a lamb? ~ not newborn tho' ~ ask me about beating sheep off my toddler...


27. Run a Marathon ~ some of these are so funny


28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice

29. Seen a total eclipse ~ in Brandon, Manitoba in 1978 ~ my only trip into Canada and for that express purpose ~ one of my brothers is an astronomy nut =)

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset ~ can you imagine not?

31. Hit a home run ~ ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

32. Been on a cruise ~ meaning in a ship I suppose? (not a car up/down main street, usa?)


33. Seen Niagara Falls in person

34. Visited the birthplace of my ancestors ~ I'm thinking this would mean Norway or Denmark, nope.

35. Seen an Amish community ~ in Wisconsin, not Pennsylvania ~ not sure this really counts

36. Taught myself a new language ~ not by myself! 1 year college French and 6 weeks in France, and I was beginning to almost think in French... almost

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied


38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person


39. Gone rock climbing

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David ~ it's in the Louvre, right?  But you know that it's not supposed to be the biblical David, right?  It's just a physically perfect man who doesn't exist.  Little lesson in humanism for you.

{edit:  Conny tells me it's not in the Louvre; therefore, no, I've only seen it via media.  Lesson remains valid.  ;-)  Tell me why blogger won't let me change it from green...}

41. Sung karaoke


42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt


43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant


44. Visited Africa


45. Walked on a beach by moonlight


46. Been transported in an ambulance

47. Had my portrait painted ~ charcoal sketch on a Paris street, does that count? I paid him!


48. Gone deep sea fishing


49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris


51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling


53. Played in the mud ~ what child doesn't do that?

54. Gone to a drive-in


55. Been in a movie


56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business


58. Taken a martial arts class


59. Visited Russia


60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies


62.Gone whale watching

63. Got flowers for no reason

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma


65. Gone sky diving


66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp

67. Bounced a check


68. Flown in a helicopter

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy ~ for a while anyway, most are gone now...

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial


71. Eaten caviar

72. Pieced a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square ~ don't think so, but I did go shopping at Macy's, that I remember =)


74. Toured the Everglades


75. Been fired from a job

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London ~ haven't been to London, but I would say the French at the Arc de Triomphe are p.a.t.h.e.t.i.c. compared to the USMC at Arlington! =)

77. Broken a bone ~ January 1976 as my parents were flying out of state for several days.  But as I wrote to my mom, "It's not broken; it's just a slight fracture."  Aha...  vocabulary lesson.

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person

80. Published a book ~ I'm thinking my 3-ring cookbook doesn't count, right? ;-)

81. Visited the Vatican

82. Bought a brand new car ~ my beloved 1986 Chevy Nova (that looked like a Toyota) with something like 2.9% interest from GMAC.  Within months I hit a dog and seriously mashed the hood, etc.  Looked like I'd hit a deer.  So sad.  :-(


83. Walked in Jerusalem

84. Had my picture in the newspaper

85. Read the entire Bible

86. Visited the White House

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating ~ that would be my husband's territory ~ I cook it.

88. Had chickenpox


89. Saved someone’s life


90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous ~ can't think of anyone... besides my children =)


92. Joined a book club

93. Lost a loved one

94. Had a baby


95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake ~ got wet but I wouldn't call it swimming ~ very shallow and very thick

97. Been involved in a law suit ~ testified in a child custody case :-(

98. Owned a cell phone

99. Been stung by a bee


100. Ridden an elephant


Sorry to those who cut/paste - I added a lot of commentary for you to delete.
And there might be one or two more that should be green, but I plead the 5th...This is still America.  =)
By the way, I got this meme from Conny, who got it from Kari...

{edit:  After some sleep and thought, I've deleted a few items that were bugging me...  I should learn to think first, then post}

daybook 7

FOR TODAY

March 29, 2010

Outside my window...

it is slowly greening up 

the sun is shining brightly today (which is why I wish this computer wasn't next to a window facing west)

a line of traffic was moving slowly behind a tractor with implement... farmers are getting ready to go!

I am thinking...

about a recent phone call and decisions to be made

that I should be fixing Tim a sandwich for his quick supper

I am thankful for...

my mom and dad being here to celebrate with the Cattleman and the Popper for their birthdays and Miss Music Box and Miss Artist as they competed at Talents for Christ ~ what a busy weekend!

a new book to read from Jodi!

a new comforter set for the Cowgirl and the Popper  ~ for five bucks on clearance at Wallyworld ~ wow!

I am praying for...

Sophia W., Kate S., Jenn C., Wanda B., Veda H. ~young and old, all with health needs

From the learning rooms...

 We watched the movie Tora, Tora, Tora! on Friday night ~ so many WW2-related films we could watch, if we had the time...

From the kitchen...

We enjoyed so many good leftovers for lunch, we are going to be content with sandwiches for supper tonight ;-)

I am creating...

progress on several tax returns this afternoon ~ woot woot!

less full (can't say empty) dirty baskets in the laundry room ~ what a mountain after this busy weekend!

I am going...

nowhere today ~ ahh, the bliss of it!  So I'm not thinking about the rest of the week yet...

I am reading...

Prague Counterpoint by the Thoenes ~ can't say I'm thrilled with the 'adult content' but I'm into the story far enough that I want to finish it before I return it to the library.  I'm looking forward to getting started with Dancing with My Father by Sally Clarkson next ~ thanks to Jodi's give-away!

I am hoping...

to find (enforce?) a better balance of the many hats I wear (especially considering the time-consumers like blogging and reading fiction)

I am hearing...

the dryer, the Computer Geek next to me pecking at his laptop, (Mrs. Howe is currently on ~pause~ while Miss A takes a math quiz)

Around the house...

hmmm, do I have to look??  birthday gift wrap that should be folded up and put away, boxes from the same, lots of library books...

One of my favorite things...

chocolate ~ 'nuf said?   =)

A few plans for the rest of the week:

finishing all our tax returns??

bringing my thoughts back to celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus Christ... And can it be?

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...

 (122 pictures to download from the camera today!)
You can see why the dentist loves this boy's mouth.

  Find more daybooks at Peggy's ...  The Simple Woman's Daybook

the mighty power of God

I sing the mighty power of God,

that made the mountains rise,
That spread the flowing seas abroad, 

and built the lofty skies.
I sing the wisdom that ordained

the sun to rule the day;
The moon shines full at God’s command,

and all the stars obey.

I sing the goodness of the Lord, 

that filled the earth with food,

He formed the creatures with His word, 

and then pronounced them good.
Lord, how Thy wonders are displayed, 

where’er I turn my eye,
If I survey the ground I tread, 

or gaze upon the sky.

There’s not a plant or flower below, 

but makes Thy glories known,
And clouds arise, and tempests blow, 

by order from Thy throne;
While all that borrows life from Thee 

is ever in Thy care;
And ev'rywhere that man can be, 

Thou, God art present there.

~Isaac Watts, altered

history lesson... (rant?)

Bonus! check out this photo I found online:

Well, the comments are flying this week on Facebook, so I dug this out of our collection to post there also.  We must have gotten it several years ago  (after Bush vs. Gore election in 2000?)  And again I say, health care is not a 'right' to be provided by the government!  But, ultimately, my citizenship is in heaven ~ Praise the Lord for that.  =)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

At about the time our original 13 states adopted their new constitution in 1787, Alexander Tyler, a Scottish history professor at the University of Edinborough had this to say about "The Fall of the Athenian Republic" some 2,000 years prior:

THE FALL OF THE ATHENIAN REPUBLIC...

"A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse over loose fiscal policy, (which is) always followed by a dictatorship."

"The average history has been about 200 years. During those 200 years, these nations always progressed through the following sequence:

From bondage to spiritual faith;
From spiritual faith to great courage;
From courage to liberty;
From liberty to abundance,
From abundance to complacency! ;
From complacency to apathy,
From apathy to dependence,
From dependence back into bondage."

A typical cell from 'El Morro Castle Prison' where tens of thousands of political prisoners were confined during the 1960s and 1970s (from TotalitarianImages.blogspot)

.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

And more recent (~10 years ago) commentary which related to the above:
Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law, St.Paul, Minnesota, points out some interesting facts concerning the most recent American Presidential election:

Population of counties won by:
Gore 127 million
Bush 143 million

Square miles of land won by:
Gore 580,000
Bush 2,427,000

States won by:
Gore 19
Bush 29

Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by:
Gore 13.2
Bush 2.1

Professor Olson adds, "In aggregate, the map of the territory Bush won was mostly the land owned by the tax-paying citizens of this great country. Gore's territory encompassed those citizens living in government-owned tenements and living off government welfare..." Olson believes the U.S. is now somewhere between the "apathy" and the "complacency" phase of Professor Tyler's definition of democracy; with some 40 percent of the nation's population already having reached the "governmental dependency" phase.  (emphasis added - Interesting, eh?)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I heard discussion on the radio last week (Jan Mickelson on WHO ~ Anyone can and should listen to his podcasts!) ~ the caller said that only 50% of Americans are paying taxes.  So what does that tell us about the other 50%??  "Bring on the handouts. Who cares about the debt?" possibly?

And a few more peeves:  the Census form states it must count everyone living in the United States.  Nope.  The Constitution requires the citizens to be counted.  See the difference?  
Members of the Hispanic population want to boycott the census because they want illegal aliens to be counted - Hello?  (If you are in the US legally, I welcome you - If not, get in line on the other side of the border.)
A nearby city is campaigning for its college students to claim residence for the census ~ Are you seeing the dollar $ign$ in that idea?  Oh, and the census workers (who, HA, help the unemployment rate - HA) insisted they were required to leave a form at our vacant under-construction house - because "it had a roof on it" - Yup, my DH came down from shingling to talk to them.  No windows, but it had a roof!  That's our tax dollars at work for us!
Oh, and I have to dig out the book The Law by Bastiat ~ Jan Mickelson was explaining the 'broken window' idea from that last week.  Now you're curious, aren't you?  ;-)  I'll see if I can explain... Let's say a man goes downtown and breaks a window in a bakery shop.  Oh no, what a bad thing.  Oh, but wait, just think of all the stimulus to the economy!  The baker will hire someone to clean up the mess, buy a new window, and hire someone to install it - Think of all that money going into the local economy - new jobs even!  HOWEVER, all that money won't go into expanding the baker's business or even maintaining the business or employees he already has.  He's no better off.  Make any sense?  So, we have programs like Cash for Clunkers.  What did that accomplish?  Someone who needs a decent used car can't find one to buy because so many were destroyed at taxpayer expense.  The car dealer's sales were good during the program - with those buyers who had money to afford a NEW car, but what about now?  The new car buyers already bought a car last year.  Those who can't afford a new car still can't afford one -- and can't find a decent used car...  Hmmm?  Same thing in the housing market, don't you think?


Okay, I'll quit my ranting and raving, but I'll end with a favorite quote from President Calvin Coolidge ~

"The Government can do more to remedy the economic ills of the people by a system of rigid economy in public expenditure than can be accomplished through any other action."

(As seen in volume 4 of Clarence Carson's series, A Basic History of the United States, p. 255)

Carson also points out that Coolidge was true to his beliefs and led an administration which practiced economy in government.  "For the last time in American history (to this date ~1985), significant reductions were made in the national debt.  As a result of deficit spending during the war, the government had a large debt of $24 billion going into the 1920s.  By 1930, the debt had been reduced to about ~16 billion.  This was accomplished by keeping spending well below government revenues.  At the same time, however, taxes (except for the tariff) were significantly reduced.  The surtax on personal income was reduced from a top rate of 40 percent to 20 percent by the Revenue Act of 1926.  Estate taxes were similarly reduced, and gift taxes were abolished.  Moreover, despite several rounds of tax reduction, revenues continued to provide a surplus."  (page 256-257, emphasis added)

What a concept!  =)  The economy was stimulated when businesses and individuals were able to spend their own money willingly instead of being taxed into the poor house.

daybook 6

The Simple Woman's Daybook will be posted each Tuesday here.

FOR TODAY

March 22, 2010

Outside my window...

the sun is shining  =)

Friday's snow is long gone - still some piles from the biggest drifts

I am thinking...

as little as possible  ;-)

My head is too full of cold or allergy crud (or both).

Only TEN days until April!  Wow.

I am thankful for...

 oh so many things and people... my favorite ring, which would be my wedding ring set - which was LOST by my brainless self on Friday, away from home in the snow - and which was FOUND by our new acquaintance on Saturday, in his yard after the snow had melted.  I was going to reward his family with some homegrown rib-eyes yesterday, but I FORGOT them -- can you see that I am still quite brainless?!  God is so GOOD to me!

I am praying...

for Mr. Boylan and family who lost his/their sweet wife/mom this past weekend.

for the Brown family as they battle (sometimes with medical staff) for their littlest one's kidney health.

for the Stoll family as they are weary in the journey with Kate's chronic lyme disease ~ I was so teary-eyed blessed by a recent story of Kate's sweet response to her mom's concern:  "Don't feel sorry for me; Jesus is with me!"  ♥

From the learning rooms...

We are still reading about WW2 - and still unimpressed by the ungodly choices on both sides - and even less pleased with current government's efforts to further abandon our Constitution and the laws of liberty.  :-(  

So GOOD to know the Lord is ultimate control and that our eternal destiny is sure.

From the kitchen...

Beef-barley-vegetable soup is on the menu tonight.  Hmm, probably time I got that started so it has plenty of time to simmer.   (The rest of the week's menu is in the kitchen ~ and I'm lazy 'cuz this is my break...)

I am creating...

order from chaos, hopefully -- need to get back to that as well!  Still piles laying around the floor that need a home in a file cabinet.  But (woot, woot), I reconciled four months of bank statements for our checking account -- now if only I could find this month's statement...

I am going...

to sneeze again soon.

I am reading...

I finished the Hoover book last week while spending two and a half hours in the eye clinic with Miss Music Box -- woot, woot (and a yuck, yuck?)  I have read most of Esther - How can you quit in the middle of a story like that?!  =)  Otherwise, I've been looking at lots of boring paperwork today - won't claim to have read much of it.

I am hoping...

to take myself in hand and get more of our /s/t/u/f/f/ under control in this house (as in, get it outtahere!) - before we have to pack it up and take it to a new house!  

to live by this rule:  Do not take off any rings to put lotion on when away from home, especially while traveling down the road!  (...because you will forget to put it back on, and you will lose it out the door...)

I am hearing...

 Miss Music Box practicing for Talents for Christ, which is THIS Saturday!  She is playing a beautiful arrangement by Shelly Hamilton along with Mozart's "Turkish March."  Miss Artist will be playing "Wings as Eagles."  They have to play from memory ~ please pray for my girls!

Savior, like a shepherd lead us, 
 much we need thy tender care; 
 in thy pleasant pastures feed us, 
 for our use thy folds prepare. 
 Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus! 
 Thou hast bought us, thine we are. 
 Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus! 
 Thou hast bought us, thine we are. 

Around the house...

the Computer Geek is at his laptop (after playing basketball outside), the younger girls are playing with their Schleich animals in the basement (hmm, they haven't been outside today?)  

Laundry is relatively caught up, but those paper piles have got to go from the living room floor!

One of my favorite things...

reconciling bank statements, and the balance matches!  =)

A few plans for the rest of the week:

Out-of-town library has holds ready for me to pick up before Friday ~ not cool ~ so need to deal with that somehow.  That's mostly a note to self, so when I reread this, I will remember  ;-)   

Next weekend is Birthday-Birthday for the Cattleman and the Popper ~ in addition to Talents for Christ.  Busy, yes?  ( I need to think, think, think.  Pray for this Bear of Little Brain!)

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...

We're so thankful for our children's abilities to make this beautiful instrument sing!  And the sweet fellowship we had when we purchased it from a couple serving in a small rural church way back in early 2001.  And the wonderful piano teachers who have encouraged our children to be blessing with music.

More daybooks at The Simple Woman's Daybook.  Copy Peggy's meme and link up ~ join in!

just to clarify

Monday I posted this in my daybook:

One of my favorite things...

birthing babies at home ♥  Welcome, Ezra James!

But Ezra James is not our baby!  :-)  He was born at someone else's home  ;-)

The Cattleman was our last home-birthed baby, and he will be ten years old next week.

(and the barely-hospital-birthed Popper will be eight years old)