MY LIFE IN INK --

We will be traveling north today -- probably before lunch. My beloved sister Cookie is going to be moved to Presbyterian-St. Luke Hospital for surgery -- probably this evening to place a shunt that will drain the largest tumor in her brain. The shunt will provide drainage into her stomach.

I talked with her this morning and she sounded up for the surgery but admits she's scared.

Please keep us in your prayers for safe travels and also keep my sister, Anna Mae ("Cookie"), in your prayers.

I will resume my postings when this crisis has passed.

Thank you.

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MY LIFE IN INK --

Good morning friends from Germany, Italy, Bulgaria, China, Malaysia, and of course, the United States! Your messages tell me that you are at this web site primarily to read the Bible Studies. I pray that your reading and studying will enrich your daily walk in faith and that you will be nurtured.

Not good news about my sister, Cookie. The MRI shows there are three tumors in the brain -- one is in the back which accounts for her losing her balance and falling, without warning. A second tumor is near the pituitary, or pressing on it. The third tumor -- the smallest of the three, is in the frontal area of the brain behind the right eye, I believe.

The oncology doctors are meeting with the surgeon and primary care physician on Tuesday morning to see what needs to be done first. There is still the malignant tumor in her upper right lung. At least for the moment, the surgery to remove the upper right lobe is on hold until all the doctors reach a consensus as to what needs to be done first.

I thank all of you for your prayers. I have copied each prayer that has been e-mailed and given them to Cookie. She thanks you too, from the bottom or her heart.

I'm making bread today. I found a wonderfully easy bread recipe and got lots of packages of yeast yesterday on the way home from church. Also got some whole wheat flour. So I absolutely know that the bread is 100% whole wheat. And very low sugar since I use the brown sugar that 50/50 sugar/Splenda. Here's the recipe:

EASY ROLLS -- over 450 degrees

3/4 cup warm water
1 package dry yeast
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
  (add 1 T. baking powder if not self-rising)*
1 egg
1/4 cup Crisco (I use the zero non-trans fat, butter flavored)

Dissolve yeast in warm water; add sugar and salt. Beat in egg and then add Crisco. Stir in flour mixed with baking powder and mix until well blended. Cover bowl and let rise 2 hours.

Stir down mixture. Turn dough onto floured surface and knead lightly. Roll to 1/2" thickness. I use an ice tea goblet to cut the dough out. The first time I used this recipe, I used a biscuit cutter -- wasn't big enough for a hamburger. I basically like to make the rolls about the size of a hamburger bun. Cut and place on parchment paper. Cover and let rise 1 hour.

Bake at 450 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. Check after 10 minutes. Different ovens heat differently.

*The dough didn't rise to suit me the first time. So I'm adding the baking power for account for the whole wheat flour not being self-rising, like the white all-purpose flour was. I'll let you know if the tablespoon is too much. I just might have doughy stuff exploding out of my oven. They did rise up some yesterday when I made them, but not enough.

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BIBLE STUDY: Acts 6:1-15

The apostles had been busy indeed in their ministries. Their continued preaching in the temple had brought many people to faith in Christ. And as others heard of this gospel message, word reached out to other people. Now there were Greek Jews who wanted to embrace this new faith in Christ, just as the Hebraic Jews were doing.

And so the word of God was spreading mightily throughout the region as the Holy Spirit spoke through the apostles.

But you guessed this wasn't paradise, didn't you?

What, pray tell, could people possibly be upset about? Their hearts were filled with joy in their newfound faith. They worked fervently for this new gospel message and belief in Jesus Christ. They prayed prayers of thanksgiving for the gift of salvation that became theirs through the death and resurrection of Jesus. Their joy reached out to their fellow man as they brought their offerings to the apostles for distribution among the widows and others in need.

But squabbling began. And it grew.

Seems that the Greek Jews were claiming that their poor people were being overlooked in this distribution of food every day. Kind of like they weren't getting their fair share.

So the apostles put their heads together to come up with a solution to this problem. They certainly had not intended to overlook anybody, and yet they wanted to concentrate their efforts on the ministry of spreading the message of salvation. In verse 2b, we read: It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables.

So they came up with a plan. This plan sounds like the forerunner of a church council. They wanted their brothers to name seven men who were filled with the Holy Spirit and wisdom to oversee the distribution of food. That way, the apostles could continue to concentrate on their ministry of prayer and spreading the word.

Well, what a great idea! It worked for them. They presented these men: (from verse 5) Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism.

When these men were presented to the apostles, they prayed and laid their hands on the new group of ministers.

It was a good move. Now the word of God spread even more. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, it says in verse 7, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.

Simple. The more priests there were, the more people they could minister to. And the more people that were ministered to, the more new believers who came to know and accept Jesus Christ as their savior.

This chapter of Acts particularly points out that Stephen did great wonders and miracles among the people (verse. 8).

But there were people watching him. They called themselves the Synagogue of the Freedmen. They were Jews from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia and Asia (verse 9).

In verses 9b-10: These men began to argue with Stephen, but they could not stand up against his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke.

So they scurried off into the shadows of their lies and (verses-15) ...stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin. They produced false witnesses, who testified, "This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us. All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel." 

In this chapter, we come face to face with the realization that lying -- bearing false witness -- telling little fibs -- whispering little white lies -- gossiping -- are all sins against the 8th commandment.

When they accused Stephen of blasphemy against Moses and against God, they were referring to Stephen saying that the worship of God was no longer to be restricted to the temple. Out of that, this group of Freedmen twisted Stephen's ministry to say that he was attacking the temple, the law, Moses, and eventually worked their argument all the way up to an attack on God.

Of course Stephen's preaching had nothing to do with attacking God. Just the opposite, in fact, because the Holy Spirit was speaking through Stephen to bring more believers to God.

Believers could be in God's presence walking down the street, in each other's houses, during their toil and labor, as well as in the temple. They could talk to God anytime, anywhere. In the temple or outside the temple.

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MY LIFE IN INK --

Welcome to readers from Bulgaria, China and Malaysia -- and of course, the United States. And thank you all for your kind comments as you continue the Bible Study lessons. If you have comments you would like to post regarding any of the Hebrews chapters, you can do so at www.jane-reinheimer.blogspot.com and click on the Bible Study tab. The Hebrews Bible Study chapters are also posted on www.freerepublic.com in the Religion Forum.

Quint is now in Round 3 with the squirrels who have discovered a way to get into the bird feeder. Again. They can now jump from the ground to reach the bird feeder. They must be going to the fitness center for squirrels and working out those little leaping muscles in their legs.

We are going to take a ride this afternoon over to St. Elmo. A 76-year old Carpenter has built a prayer chapel by the side of the road on Rt. 40. The carpenter, Bill Stewart, says he was inspired by a similar chapel he had seen near Hannibal, Missouri. The little chapel has six pews which were supplied by a minister in Shelbyville. Some other materials were provided by local business people, as well as volunteer labor. It's called the Wildwood Prayer Chapel. A large Bible rests on a wooden lectern in the small pulpit area and there are hymn books in the pews.

What a great way to end up the week. It drizzled all day yesterday and the same is expected today. So we went to the library to return some books. I found six more that I am taking a look at on the Civil War, a subject that I'm dismally ignorant about.

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BIBLE STUDY: Acts 5:1-42

This chapter opens with Peter once again gifted by the Holy Spirit to perform miracles. This time, the particular gift allows Peter great powers of discernment that any judge or jury, police detective, even parent would really like to be able to do.

That gift of being able to figure out if someone is lying would be a great advantage. Can you imagine how honest we'd all become if other people could know what we're thinking and whether or not we're telling the truth?

We don't have those gifts. God knows what's in the heart of man.

We are introduced to a man named Ananias and his wife Sapphira. They sold a piece of their property and brought a portion of the money to Peter. They didn't tell Peter about the part of the money that they held back for themselves.

Peter called him on it. In verse 3b and 4b, Peter said: ...you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? ... You have not lied to men but to God.

When Peter said this to Ananias, the man dropped to the earth dead.

The people who saw this questioning were filled with fear. Can you just imagine? They had already seen Peter healing the crippled man. And now just by being caught in a lie that he'd not told anybody about, except his wife, he just fell over dead.

But it wasn't Peter he lied to. Peter made sure that Ananias understood that he had lied to God.

So then later, Ananias' wife comes in. Peter asked her pretty much the same question. Even to the point of asking, "How could you test the Spirit of the Lord?"
 
She fell dead too. Now the people were really afraid! It didn't take long for this story to get around to the whole church either.

The Holy Spirit continued to work through Peter. The word got out pretty quick that he was able to heal the sick. And in verse 14, we read that "...more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number." The people were so certain of Peter's abilities to heal that they laid their invalid loved ones on beds and mats so that Peter's shadow could fall on them when Peter passed by. In verse 16b, we learned that "...all of them were healed."

But it wasn't just Peter who was able to perform miracles. In verse 12, we read: "The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon's Colonnade."

Solomon's Colonnade was a porch along the inner side of the wall enclosing the outer court, with rows of 27-foot high stone columns and a roof of cedar. (Concordia Study Bible note)

They were told not to do that. The Sadducees weren't glad to see them back preaching in the temple. Besides that, they were jealous that the apostles could perform miracles.

Remember the Ninth Commandment: Thou shalt not covet. The Sadducees wanted some of the same power to perform miracles that the apostles had. So they had the apostles re-arrested and thrown in jail.

During the night, an angel came to the apostles and opened the door of the jail. The angel brought this message to them in verse 20: Go stand in the temple courts and tell the people the full meaning of this new life.

Put yourself in their place for a moment. Here they were in jail. They expected to go back before a very angry bunch of Sadducees the next morning and then this angel appeared out of nowhere, unlocked the door to the jail, and told them to go back to the very place where they'd been arrested.

That's exactly what they did. At daybreak, the apostles were back in the temple preaching to the people who had gathered.

In the meantime, the Sadducees had called the entire Sanhedrin together. This was the supreme Jewish court made up of 70 to 100 men. They sent someone to the jail to get the men they'd arrested but the guards came back empty handed.

This guard had to explain that the jail had been secured for the night with the apostles in the cells, and in fact, was still locked when the guard went in to get the apostles.

Then someone came in to tell them that the men they were looking for were over by Solomon's Colonnade preaching. They sent a captain with his officers to bring the apostles back to them. Once the apostles were back in front of them, the high priest said in verse 28: We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name. Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man's blood.

The confrontation was rebutted by Peter and the other apostles in verses 29-32: ...We must obey God rather than men! The God of our fathers raised Jesus from the dead -- whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might give repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.

That just made the Sanhedrin madder. They couldn't intimidate the apostles. So they took a recess. They made the apostles go outside and wait until they figured out what they were going to do. They sent for Gamaliel, one of the highest regarded teachers of the law. (Saul (Paul) had been one of his students.)

Gamaliel told the Sanhedrin to be very careful about what they did with the apostles. He reminded them of a guy named Theudas who had appeared once before. Theudas had said he was somebody too. In fact, he had about 400 people rallying around him. Well, Theudas was killed and eventually his group dispersed. Nothing ever came of it.

Gamaliel continued to remind them about Judas the Galiliean who had tried to stir up a revolt. He was killed too and his followers scattered.

But as far as the apostles were concerned, Gamaliel had this advice (verses 38-39): Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fall. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.

The Sanhedrin was persuaded. They had the apostles flogged. Then they told the apostles to quit preaching about Jesus again.

The apostles were overjoyed because they had been counted as worth of suffering disgrace for the Name. In verse 42 we read: Day after Day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.

Go back and re-read verse 32 where God promises to give the Holy Spirit to those who obey him.

I think sometimes we forget that we can call on the Holy Spirit when we come up against challenges to our living a Christian life. These challenges might be those times when we just cannot seem to wrap our head around the fact that forgiveness is a choice. If we are unable to forgive someone, then we need to ask God to send his Holy Spirit into our hearts to help us out.

These challenges might be getting help to resist the temptations that Satan throws at us.

Let me ask you this, when God made you, what do you think he had in mind? He most certainly wants you to obey him, and if you are having trouble doing this, then ask for help from the Holy Spirit.

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PSYCHOLOGY: Stress Inoculation Improves Coping

Stress Inoculation, as a therapy, has been around since 1977. It was introduced by Donald Meichenbaum, Ph.D., as a method to pull together how we think and feel with how we act.

Stress Inoculation has been used to help people with a wide variety of stressors that come from rape, anxieties, tension headaches, public speaking anxieties, social anxieties, stress in surgical patients, cancer patients, anger control, post surgical pain, and pain management in severely burned adults.

There are three steps to stress inoculation.

In the first step, we have to identify the stressors. Then we have to figure out how we responded to similar stressors in the past and whether or not our responses were successful, kind of successful, a little successful, or just plain old didn't work for us. And here's the kicker: if the strategies we've been using haven't worked out all that well, then we need to figure out what we've been thinking that might be getting in the way of our success.

Kind of like the power of positive thinking. 

People can get stuck at this first step because they are either not willing to look at the part they play in their stress, or if they are, then they don't believe that they have the power to change their self-talk that tends to defeat their chances of success.

However, with persistence and help, the people who get past this first step -- either on their own or with professional guidance, the second step is all about learning new skills to replace those that didn't work, or strengthen what might be called lukewarm skills.

At this second stage, we need to change the way we talk to ourselves internally.

For instance, if your boss comes up to you about a half hour before you're ready to walk out the door -- it's quitting time -- your first reaction might be, "Doesn't he ever think of anybody but himself?!!"

How about saying to yourself, instead, "I ought to get some bonus merits just because I'm being cooperative."

Then you make a little note in your work diary so you can remember your spirit of cooperation when it comes time for your merit review.

One of the cheeriest persons I've ever met was someone I hardly knew. I called her one afternoon at work (her husband had given me her work number) to see if she would mind taking flowers I had placed in church to a friend of my mother's. It was a birthday and the lady had just come home from the hospital. So here I was calling from four hundred miles away, I had met her exactly three times in my life and one of those times was at my mother's funeral.

Her response was, "I'd be glad to do that for you."

I have never forgotten how cheerful and positive she was. I don't know if I added a lot to her already busy burden of getting dinner for her family after church. She was so quick on the reframe if she felt burdened. I suspect that she has developed a long repertoire of positive coping comments that she has at her immediate disposal.

Stress inoculation is all about learning skills that will help you cope. Those skills are generally thinking skills -- because that's what cognitive processing is -- how we think -- what we make of something. Then it's about how we respond. What we do about what we think.

The third stage is about applying these new strategies to more and more situations in the real world of our lives.

In my own work with battered wives, the stress inoculation techniques have been particularly useful. But I can tell you that it would often take six months of weekly sessions to get past that first stage. Mainly because of a lot of misperceptions about what I meant when I made comments that I intended to be helpful.

But sooner or later, things worked out and lo and behold, the light bulb moment came when a client realized, "Hey, I can use this stuff at work too."

Right!

And with your kiddos and anywhere else that might be a stressor in your life.

Now I know that many of you will have questions. So jot them down and email me at jane@janereinheimer.com and I'll send you a private response. Just be sure to make a note in the subject line that you're coming from this website.

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UPDATE ON MY SISTER, ANNA MAE PERKINS

I just found out moments ago that my sister, who was waiting for the results on an MRI on her brain to determine the extent of any damage caused by previous strokes, has a large mass on the top of her brain. She is in the hospital and waiting for doctors to schedule radiation on the brain tumor, although she has surgery scheduled for November 7 to remove a lobe of her right lung where a malignant tumor is located.

Please pray for her.

Her nickname is Cookie. (She used to eat all the cookies when we were kids.)

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MY LIFE IN INK --

Quint can't keep up with his little feathered friends. Not only is his bird feeder empty (which holds a little more than a half gallon of seed nibbles) but also the thistle seed feeder is getting pretty low. He used to get corn on the cob for his squirrely friends but has cut back on that since the oak trees are releasing their bounty. Wouldn't you think the squirrels would be thrilled to run over and pick up some fresh nuts off the ground? Not! I think they would like to have us pick the acorns up and put them in a little dish so they would have to work so hard in their hunt. That's the problem with city squirrels.

I made sugar cookies yesterday afternoon. It's a new recipe and is absolutely scrumptious. The cookies were almost like a shortbread. I think next time I'm going to put some chopped pecans in them. I'll bet they'll taste an awful lot like my very own version of pecan sandies. I didn't use the corn syrup called for in the recipe, but substituted sugar free maple syrup, and also substituted Splenda. That way I end up with sugar free cookies. Keeps Quint happy.

I'm still experimenting with getting the freezer strawberry jam to set up right. It's just not cooperating. I like the freezer jam because it tastes like fresh strawberries since the berries don't get cooked. But strawberries have zero -- zippo -- pectin in them. So today I'm going to take the cores from apples after I make apple fried pies. I'll boil out the pectin from the apple cores and add it to the strawberries. See if that works.

Other than that, we're expecting rain this afternoon. It will be a good day to stay inside and do kitchen lab work, maybe wash some floors. And that will be about all the excitement I can stand for today.

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BIBLE STUDY: Acts 4:1-37

There was no way that the priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees were going to let Peter and John continue stirring up people's passions about Christ.

This is especially true because this man, the one who was crippled and miraculously was able to get up and walk, was forty years old.

This really really bothered the temple people. So much so that they came after Peter and John and threw them in jail for the night.

The next morning they all got together with the rulers, elders and teachers of the law. Then they started with the questions. And more questions. They wanted to know where Peter and John got the power to perform this miracle.

Oh, and there were about 5,000 believers now.

Even by today's standards, a group of 5,000 believers is huge. So it was back then too.

The Holy Spirit filled Peter so that he could answer the question put to him (verses 8-12): Rulers and elders of the people. If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but some God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. He is 'the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.' Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.

This is as profoundly true today as it was in that first century after Christ died: There is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.

You can forget the witchcraft. You can forget all sorts of pagan deities. You can forget any religion that is not founded on Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Through him alone will you ever get salvation.

These temple rulers knew that Peter and John had been with Jesus. They were surprised, though, that these rather ordinary, uneducated men could be so articulate in their response to their questions.

There was no denying, however, that some miracle had been done. After all, the man was standing there in front of them. That needed some explanation.

But there was no explanation that Peter and John could give that would satisfy them. Befuddled, that's what they were. They couldn't best the Holy Spirit's defense that was coming through the voice of Peter, so they kind of kicked Peter and John out so that they could put their heads together and see if they could come up with a plan.

"What are we going to do with these men?" they asked in verse 16.

Then they had an idea. They thought they could just make Peter and John stop talking about Christ and that way, the whole thing would die down -- kind of like yesterday's news.

So they called them in again (verses 18-21): After further threats they let them go. They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened.

So Peter and John were free to go. They went back to their people and told them everything that had happened.

Wouldn't you just love to have been there to hear Peter and John, so filled with the Holy Spirit, sharing all that had gone on in court at the temple?

They raised their voices in prayer (verses 24b-26) Sovereign Lord, they said, you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David:

'Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One.'

Peter and John reminded the people who had gathered that Herod and Pontius Pilate and all who had gathered against Jesus had done "what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen." (verse 28)

Then came their petition to God Almighty (verses 29-30): Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.

Peter and John were asking for some help. Their hearts were filled with great joy, but they were human too and must have had some thought in the back of their minds that this might not be the safest thing to do. After all, they'd been told to cool it and quit talking about their friend Jesus Christ.

In verse 31, we find: After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

Wow! Can you just imagine the power of the Holy Spirit moving through the assembly of people like a wave of strength and awe.

Have you ever heard a preacher speak with such conviction that it just moves you to new depths of belief because it touches the very soul inside you?

And the temple rulers thought they'd somehow be able to quiet that spiritual firestorm down!

It wasn't meant to be. Not back then. Not now. Oh for sure -- there are people walking among us Christians now who would like to be able to command us to be quiet and go away.

The Spirit of the Living God moves through us. Makes us remember all that Christ did. We walk the path he took with the cross over and over again in our minds. We anguish with him in the pain of his death because we know that he died for us. Our sins are the cause of his death.

We did it to him. But there is such joy in knowing and believing that he rose from his death. We learn that he died just exactly the way that the prophets of old said he would.

The same Spirit of the Living God who guided the prophets in their predictions that Jesus would die for our sins is the same Holy Spirit who beckons us to follow Jesus Christ today, in this modern age.

And just like Peter and John, there is work aplenty for each one of us.

This chapter closes with an introduction of a new person entering the landscape. It follows after the believers had sold their possessions and shared with all those in need. Then comes Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus (verses 36-37): the apostles called him Barnabus (which means Son of Encouragement), sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles' feet.

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PSYCHOLOGY: Anxiety Has a Purpose

Believe it or not, you can harness the negativity of the fears that anxieties dump on you. Whether you experience anxiety as a mentally crushing weight of tension and worries or body symptoms like nervousness and tension.

Either way, it's great when you come to the realization -- and belief -- that you can tame this mental beast that has taken up residence inside your head.

First thing you do is stop feeding your anxieties! Anxiety chow is made up of delicious little tidbits that sound like, "Yeah, but..." and "If only I'd..." Those two thoughts alone can feed an anxiety attack for days. So stop doing that. You're only arguing with yourself.

And when you argue with yourself, there's a 50-50 chance that you'll win. Or lose. Either way, you're the one who experiences the end result. So go for the winning thoughts.

Instead of saying, "Yeah, but..." say instead, "I can do this."

Instead of saying, "If only I'd..." say instead, "And the world didn't even end."

Truth is, anxiety gives us a chance to rehearse different outcomes to whatever challenge we're faced with.

Let's say, for instance, that you are living with the horrible fear that you're going to lose your house. The economy may be trucking along for most folks but you never dreamed that the ARM which looked so appealing five years ago would turn into a huge threatening pit that's gonna gobble up your home, family, and peace of mind.

You realize you have some pretty deep anxieties but you aren't sure what they're all about. Well, it's time for you to sit down in your favorite armchair and play Monday Morning Quarterback.

Keep in mind that the Monday Morning Quarterback always wins the game. Always. So don't even contemplate fumbling and losing the game.

As you're sitting there quarterbacking, think of all the possibilities you have available to you. You can think of even the zaniest solutions because you're not getting out of the chair anyway, and the solutions you're contemplating are quietly dancing around in your head. It's not like anybody can hear you.

The key to success here is not to talk yourself out of any possible solution that might be the Magical #1 Zesty Winner that will make the most sense for everybody.

Okay, so start with the solution that you like the best. Keeping the house you've got, kids stay in the same schools and commuting stays the same. Your wife is still a stay-at-home mom and all is well. Except that the ARM keeps peeking in your window and rattling the blinds -- just to let you know money time is looming fast on the horizon.

Since you don't have the money to resolve the ARM, that's not a solution at all. 

It's a situation that requires -- begs for -- a change of some kind.

This is where it gets interesting. And since it involves your wife, she'd better be sitting in the chair across from you. And since the conversational debate might get just a tiny bit heated, it would be a good idea to have this conversation after the kids have nodded off for the night. Let them keep their childhood innocence for as long as you can.  

First possible solution is to paper-and-pencil your budget to death. Sit down and figure out exactly what you spend your money on each and every month. You have got to know where you are at in the money battle.

What would it take to make the ARM go away?

Can you afford to re-mortgage? Let's say -- just for the sake of argument -- that you can't. The wolf is at the door and it's not going away until it's eaten a pound of your flesh. At least that's what you're telling yourself.

Hightail it to your banker and find out what your options are. I'm not kidding. You need to find out if it's as bad as you think it might be. Or do you have any wiggle room at all. Or keeping the house is out of the question and you're just going to have to move.

Question: Can your wife go to work at all? Even a part-time job? If you're $1,000 short of meeting your expenses every month, it's possible that a part-time job could fetch $250 a week, on a temporary basis.

Question: How much money can you trim from your budget? This is where the "s" word first appears. "S" for sacrifice. Get rid of the movie channels if you have them on cable. Stop buying potato chips in those little individual serving sizes. In fact, stop buying them at all. They're outrageously expensive and can be reserved for a once-in-a-while treat. Is there any way at all that you could get down to just one car? If you're going to the commuter lot and parking your car all day, this is a very real option. You could save a ton of money if your wife could drop you off at the train and come get you in the evening. Not only that, but you'd save car insurance and the parking fee for the commuter lot. Try it out. Park one of your cars and see if you can get through a whole month without driving it. If you can make it a month, you probably can live without it. Would it be better to cut down to one car rather than moving?

Soul-searching. It's hard. But the more you start identifying the challenges you've been grappling with -- the ones that haven't been identified -- the better able you'll be to start solutions popping up inside your head.

And as far as moving is concerned, think about those days long, long ago. Or maybe not so long ago. But remember those days when you had a thousand dollars left over at the end of the month after you'd paid all your expenses. Didn't that feel great? Wouldn't you like to be able to do that again? If you had to sell your house, would it truly be the end of the world?

If you bought the American dream once, you can do it again. But for now, maybe you need to take a breather and you and your wife need to get out from under all that pressure you're under right now.

So keep rehearsing all the possible solutions you can come up with. I've only touched on a few. The point is, the more you can get the ambiguities out of your head, the less anxious you'll feel.

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

I'm late! I'm late! I'm late!

Quint got breakfast this morning. Cheerios, banana and toast. Then I gave the set of shelves that are going into the bathroom a second coat of paint. That way, three hours from now when I'm finished with the columns for the day, we can hang the shelves. The paint ought to be plenty dry by that time.

It actually got down to 47 degrees during the night. Haven't had our first frost yet, for which I'm grateful. We're at that point in the seasons when I know winter is coming but I want to squeeze as much of autumn as I can out of the rest of the days.

This will be our first year that we've never had to worry about commuting. We plan on cuddling up and watching the snow fall. I hear it's pretty when you don't have to go out in it. And for those times when we feel especially guilty about being so self-indulgent, I'll just call my cousin Mark who is a Chicago police officer. You know, just to see how things are piling up and how traffic is snarling. Stuff like that. But then, maybe not. He'd probably hang up on me and change his phone number.

Maybe we'll just watch WGN out of Chicago. We get that here in Effingham.

It did stop raining so the leaves can dry out before we burn them. Wouldn't be a good idea to do any burning this afternoon.

I'll make oatmeal cookies instead. That's a good plan.

##

BIBLE STUDY: Acts 3:1-26

In this chapter, we see that Peter and John were going to the temple at 3 p.m. for prayer.

There were three prayers times for the Jews: the first was the third hour, or 9 a.m.; the second was at the time of the evening sacrifice, 3 p.m.; and the third at sunset. (Concordia Study Bible note)

As they were about to enter the temple gate called Beautiful, there was a beggar who had been crippled from birth. This beggar was put at this particular gate every day so that he could beg from people who were going into the temple.

The beggar noticed Peter and John and asked them for some money. The two disciples came over to him and Peter said (verse 6-9): "Silver of gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong. He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

Something jumps out at me from these verses. The first is that this man, who had been crippled from birth, was even able to stand. Okay, the miracle was that he was able, miraculously, to stand up and walk.

He didn't hobble along and walk feebly. Oh no. He was walking and jumping about. His muscles, if they had atrophied at all, were now strong enough to support his weight. He didn't need six weeks of physical therapy and massaging to make him whole. He instantly was able to walk about as if he had never been crippled.

And people who were regular worshippers -- maybe even regular contributors to this crippled man's welfare -- recognized him.

All the people came over to Peter and John who had, by this time, made their way to Solomon's Colonnade with this man. And human nature being what it is, maybe they figured Peter and John were some kind of magicians who could do all sorts of fancy tricks.

Well, Peter sets them straight when he said (verse 12): "Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?"

Peter was not about to take any credit for being able to perform miracles. He knew full well that this new ability of his had been gifted to him straight from the Holy Spirit.

Then, Peter begins his ministerial sermon that would be the template for the disciples who travelled in their missionary journeys (verses 13-26): The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you.

"You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus' name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.

"Now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders. But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, 'Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you -- even Jesus. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.

"For Moses said, 'The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you. Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from among his people. Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken, have foretold these days. And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed. When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.' When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways."

This basic outline of bringing the message of Christ would be repeated often as the disciples embarked on missionary journeys. First they would explain what had happened to Jesus Christ, their Lord and Savior.

Then they would bring the good news out of what happened to Jesus -- that even though he suffered and died and was buried -- as the prophets of old had predicted, Jesus rose from the dead.

The apostles had witnessed his death -- and they had walked with him in life after the crucifixion. So they were able, firsthand, to bring a most compelling witness to unbelievers.

At that point, the disciples would call for all to repent of their sins and turn to a new life in Christ. Very often, this would culminate in baptisms.

##

FUNNY LANGUAGE OOPS:

In a Tokyo hotel lobby: Is forbitten to steal hotel towels please. If you are not person to do such thin is please not to read notis.

In a Bucharest hotel lobby: The lift is being fixed for the next day. During that time we regret that you will be unbearable.

In a Belgrade hotel elevator: To move the cabin, push button for wishing floor. If the cabin should enter more persons, each one should press a number of wishing floor. Driving is then going alphabetically by national order.

In a Paris hotel elevator: Please leave your values at the front desk.

In a Yogoslavian hotel: The flattening of underwear with pleasure is the job of the chambermaid.

In the lobby of a Moscow hotel across from a Russian Orthodox monastery: You are welcome to visit the cemetery where famous Russian and Soviet composers, artists and writers are buried daily except Thursday.

In an Austrian hotel catering to skiers: Not to perambulate the corridors in the hours of repose in the boots of ascension.

On the menu of a Swiss restaurant: Our wines leave you nothing to hope for.

In a Hong Kong supermarket: For your convenience, we recommend courteous, efficient self-service.

Outside a Hong Kong tailor shop: Ladies may have a fit upstairs.

In an advertisement by a Hong Kong dentist: Teeth extracted by the latest Methodists.

Advertisement for donkey rides in Thailand: Would you like to ride on your own ass?

In the window of a Swedish furrier: Fur coats made for ladies from their own skin.

In a Swiss mountain inn: Special today -- no ice cream.

In a Copenhagen airline ticket office: We take your bags and send them in all directions.

In a Norwegian cocktail lounge: Ladies are requested not to have children in the bar.

Two signs from a Majorcan shop entrance: English well talking. -- Here speeching American.

##


PSYCHOLOGY: Of course, you can overcome test anxiety!

Students who do best on tests are the ones who have over-learned the subject.

Over-learning takes a lot more effort than just cramming at the last minute. Over-learning means going over the material over and over and still over it again. By the time you go into the classroom to take an exam, you're probably going to be plain old bored with the material.

Actually, we over-learn a lot of things. We've over-learned several things -- like the alphabet. Or the states in the United States. Some students have over-learned the capitols of each state. Or the multiplication tables.

So let me ask you -- do you have to stop and think about which letter comes after the letter "h" -- probably not. But if you way back in your tiny tot years, you'd have to stop and think. That is, until you over-learned the alphabet.

I grew up Lutheran so in Confirmation Class, we all had to over-learn a bunch of Bible verses. Could never figure out why I needed to know all those Bible verses. But you know what? When I got to be an adult and came up against more than a few crises, those Bible verses would just pop into my head out of nowhere.

Over-learning has its rewards.

Let's figure out how you can over-learn the material for your tests without having to memorize the textbook.

First of all, I think it's a good idea to pretend you're the teacher. If you were teaching this class, what would you want your students to take out of the class with them? And while you're at it, what questions would you zero in on for the test?

Students usually have a good feel for what teachers are emphasizing. It's a rarity for a student to get hit with something on a test that's a total surprise. Instead, there are thoughts like, "I knew I should have studied this more."

Have a "Plan B" -- what would be the worst thing that could happen to you if you just totally bomb the test? What's the percentage of the grade for the term you're taking? Is it half the value of your final grade? Or is it one of five tests that are sprinkled throughout the semester or quarter?

If you bomb the test, is it possible to do an extra credit project to show the teacher that you have a grasp of the material that was tested?

What about your study skills? How much reviewing are you doing? I hope you're reviewing after each class. This kind of cements the material into that pocket of consciousness that you've reserved for this class. Keep stuffing new information into this pocket and keep reviewing it so that it's not like completely new material when it comes time to review for the test itself.

Make a commitment to yourself -- a semester is seventeen weeks. Out of that time, the last week is finals week. So for sixteen weeks, give this class everything you've got. Practice what I call "active studying." That is, don't just sit and look at your notes or your textbook. Really read the material.

Discover something about how you learn -- are you a visual learner? An oral learner? A muscle learner who has to take a lot of notes to learn?

I was a junior in college before I realized that I was a kinesthetic (muscle) learner. I took detailed notes in class. Made up practice tests (fill in the blanks that I got from text quotes). This proved to be the most effective and it was a method that I used all the way through grad school.

It worked something like this: From a textbook on psychology, for instance, I might use this:

1._________________________ refers to following a response with an aversive (unpleasant) consequence. It 2.________________________ the likelihood that the response will occur again.

And on a separate sheet of paper, I would have a key:
1. Punishment
2. decreases

By the time I'd get through a chapter, I might have 80 questions or so. And if the test covered four chapters, I had a lot of review material. When it came time to review, I'd take my "test" and score it. Scoring is dividing the number of correct answers by the total number of questions. So if I got 70 questions right out of 260, my score would be 26.9%, obviously failing.

Then I'd retake the test, only answering the questions I missed. And I'd keep going, over-learning the material by taking the test I'd made up until I could get 95% of the answers correct.

That may be way too much work for some of you. But I absolutely hated that horrible feeling of going into a test being petrified that I'd flunk it. So I ended up making up harder tests than the teacher ever did.

And one other thing -- when the test is handed out, read through the questions. Each question. We tend to file our experiences into long-term memory grouped together. So everything you know about Chapters 4, 5, 6, and 7 are probably filed in a single "file drawer" in your head somewhere and if you can find one of the questions that fits into that drawer, it will probably be enough of a key to unlock the whole draw. If you can do that, then out comes all those answers you've tucked away.

And don't forget, you want to be just a bit anxious going into a test. Anxiety unlocks long-term memory, so don't be too terribly relaxed. And if you've over-learned your material, you'll be fine.

##

SINCE YOU ASKED --

Dear Jane: Do you think people can fall out of love? I know I still love my husband but I don't feel like I'm in love with him anymore. We have been married twelve years and have three daughters, ages 10, 7 and 4. My husband is a very active father and coaches our oldest daughter's soccer team. He is hard working and an active member of our church, as am I. Am I wrong for wanting a little excitement in my life? Signed: Wish I Weren't Here

Dear Wish: Let's see now. I'm guessing that at one point the two of you thought you may have invented love. But that was before the kids came along and the parent stuff. Now there's church activities, soccer activities, and busy busy things to do.

Did you stack up a bunch of activities to the point where you no long took time for each other?

Notice I said took time for each other. You have the same 24 hours a day that everybody else has -- marriages that are working well and marriages that are not. Marriages that work well have two people in them who take time to be together. They make time to communicate with one another. They keep on renewing their relationship.

In the first place, I have no idea what you mean when you say you are not "in love" with your husband anymore. I think what you might mean is that you miss the romance you once shared with your mate. Remember those days when you couldn't stand it when you were apart?

You know what love was then and you were definitely "in love" with your husband at that point. So much in love, in fact, that the two of you decided to get married and took a vow that you'd spend the rest of your lives together.

And now the two of you have let the fires of your passion cool down. Well, you'd better get busy and flame it up again because, in the process of becoming too busy for each other, you've created three children -- the oldest of which is halfway to adulthood. She practically grew up while you two were racing around trying to be busy busy busy -- at soccer practice, at church, and who knows what other activities you've volunteered for.

It's time to stand back and say "Enough!" Get your vows out and read them again to one another. That's where I suggest couples start. Let's see if I can help you out: To have and to hold, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer.

Unless there are the three As hanging around, you ought to get in there and re-engineer some pretty big gaping holes in your marriage. What you're looking at now is exactly the marriage that the two of you created. The "engineering" that you two did may be in need of repair, but that's no reason to toss it out the window.

(The 3 As are: adultery, abuse, alcoholism)

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

Welcome to all our night owls, and early birds -- readers from Zambia, China and Brazil. This is a first for readers from Zambia. Used to be called Northern Rhodesia. It's just north of Zimbabwe, which used to be called Southern Rhodesia.

I'd like to know who is going around re-naming all these countries. I just learned that there is no Burma anymore. It's now Myanmar. I pray for the safety of the monks who are having a bad time of it right now.

How about those wild fires in California. Heard on the news last night that the fire line goes all the way from Santa Barbara down to the boundary with Mexico. So far there have been 500,000 people evacuated from homes and at least 1,200 homes and buildings lost to the blazing inferno.

That's not the worst of it. When the rainy season starts here in a month or so in California, the mud slides will be horrible. Let's all pray for everybody's safety.

Today I am painting shelves again. These shelves are going into our bathroom. Remember the adage -- if you're running short of storage, use your walls. So these shelves are going to hang in our very small bathroom. It was kind of a culture shock since the condominium that we moved from had very big rooms. But this house was built in 1949 and I guess bathrooms weren't very "spa-like" back then.

Small price to pay for our beautiful back yard. It's nice to have our own dirt again.

##

BIBLE STUDY: Acts 2:1-47

This chapter opens with a reference to "when the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place."

Pentecost is also known as the Feast of Weeks or also the Feast of First Fruits.

This is a major celebration because it means the spring grain harvests are complete. It was a time when the Jewish people were to go to the temple with a tribute to God that was over and above their tithe. They came to give thanks to God who had poured out his blessings on their harvest. And they, in turn, shared their bounty with the poor among them, for they did not harvest the corners of the fields. These corners were left for the poor to come into their fields and take what they needed.

Remember that Jesus had told them earlier in verse 5: For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.

Jesus now had ascended into heaven, and the disciples had gathered together to celebrate the Feast of Weeks, or Pentecost. Little did they know that the gift of the Holy Spirit that Jesus had promised them was about to come to them.

The house filled with big sounds -- like a violent wind that came from heaven. Well, that got their attention! And what's more, when they looked around them, they saw tongues in the air. These tongues looked like they were made out of fire. A fiery tongue came to rest on each of the disciples. When that happened, the Holy Spirit enabled each one of them to speak in a different foreign language.  A language that they had not learned before.

There is a question here as to whether the tongues of fire rested only on the disciples or on the heads of everyone in the gathering. If we go back to Acts 1:15-16: In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty) and said, "Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through the mouth of David concerning Judas, who served as a guide for those who arrested Jesus -- he was one of our number and shared in this ministry."

Just from a grammatical look in Acts 2:1: When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. "They" refers back to the nearest antecedent, which would be those people mentioned in the closing verses of Acts 1, namely the disciples, including Matthias.

On this particular feast day there were people in Jerusalem from everywhere in the known world. They heard all this commotion of the mighty winds and came to see what was going on. Imagine their surprise to learn that the disciples could talk to them in their own language!

They were absolutely amazed. They tried to figure out what it might mean. Some said that they were just drunk.

Then Peter got to his feet and said to the crowd (verses 17-21: "These men are not drunk. Don't you remember what the prophet Joel said:

"In the last days, God says, 'I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.

"Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.

"I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke.

"The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.

"And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."

Then follows in this chapter a kind of template which the disciples used in their ministries to the various churches to bring others to Christ: First there was an explanation of what was happening. This was followed by a gospel message about Jesus Christ -- his death, resurrection and ascension into heaven. Then there was an exhortation, or counsel, to repentance and baptism.

After this message was shared with this large group of people, in their own tongue, the crowd was amazed. They asked Peter in verse 37: Brothers, what shall we do?

Peter answers them in verses 38-41: Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children for all who are far off -- for all whom the Lord our God will call."

With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation."

Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

Can you imagine the excitement that was running through the disciples? Here at last, their ministry was revealed to them! And they stayed with each other in fellowship, and they ate together, and prayed.

They sold all that they had and gave to the poor. They were glad to be where they were, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.

We read in the closing verse of Chapter 2 (verse 47b): And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

This was the first Pentecost where the gifts of the Holy Spirit were showered on the followers of Jesus Christ. It was a harvest, all right, but not an agricultural one.

##

THREE CHEERS FOR 4,000 JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL, HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE STUDENTS IN THE UNITED STATES!

Today is the day. Students at more than 4,000 junior high schools and high schools and on college campuses are joining together for a silent message against abortion.

This marks the fourth annual Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity.

The annual event is put together by Stand True Ministries. Bryan Kemper, president of the group, says that more than 100,000 students plan to raise the pro-life standard.

Today's event allows students to stay silent the entire day and to distribute pro-life literature to their peers and teachers to explain why they are being quiet.

One student said, "I was almost aborted! So I am standing for all babies who weren't as lucky as me."

Kemper said that he heard of 16 girls who changed their minds about having an abortion last year just because of this event.

Read more: http://lifenews.com/nat3397.html

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want a really good web site for answers for a zillion questions? here it is:
http://www.refdesk.com/

##

PSYCHOLOGY: Anxiety's High State of Misery in Children

Anxiety probably accounts for half of the people who go looking for professional guidance and help in getting out of the mental maze they find themselves in.

Simply put: anxiety is based on fear. Because anxious people can't figure out what they are afraid of, it's an irrational fear. We say that because if it were a rational fear -- that is, if you knew what you were afraid of, you could develop a plan and go after the fear.

Children fall victim to anxieties because of a wide variety of things going on in their young lives.

In the first place, children have not built a repertoire of coping skills that adults have. So when something is amiss in their home environment, it can knock these little kiddos off their moorings pretty fast.

For one thing, parents who have declared war on each other -- or are talking about divorce out in the open -- are bring anxieties to their children. Outwardly they may not think they're afraid of anything.

Adults usually don't understand anxieties, so how could children wrap their minds around this psychological phenomena?

Here are some things to look for in your children, if you suspect anxieties, or if your pediatrician has counseled you to get help for your child's anxiety:

1. Watch for a child being keyed up and restless most of the time. Kiddos just can't seem to settle down and relax.

2. Watch for early signs of lingering fatigue. This is the contradictory signal of being keyed up. Your child may either be running on full alert, or has backed off completely and is sitting somewhere napping or looking like he or she is just ready to nod off.

3. Then there's the mind just going blank. In the middle of a sentence, a child may stop cold and forget what the subject matter was. Yes, I know, it happens to me too. And guess what, it happens when I'm really stretched emotionally. When children are using up too much of their emotional resources, they hit blank spots in their thinking.

4. Irritability. Imagine that! Children get cranky when they become fearful and don't know what they're afraid of. Children get cranky when they are afraid they aren't going to be able to copy. Children get cranky when they suspect that the adults in their lives are too busy fighting, arguing, suing each other. Children get cranky when they fear that no one is going to be available to take care of them.

5. Muscle tension. Watch for this one most carefully. It may mean that stress has joined the anxiety. And if you haven't gone to a counselor yet, and are delaying for whatever the reason might be, you're going to have to spend extra time unbundling stress when it gets embedded with anxieties.

Some homes that seem to produce high anxieties in children include:
Homes where there's domestic violence
Homes where there's alcohol and/or drug abuse
Homes where there's a divorce threatened or pending
Homes where children do not have emotional access to an adult in the house
Homes where children are left to fend for themselves

Remember -- little people can solve little problems. If little people think they may have to solve adult problems, they become anxious.

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

Happy good Monday morning to you all -- except for those people who are living on the other side of the international date line. Then it's Tuesday. Boy, time goes by fast enough but to think that it's already a day later in China and South Korea makes me want to hurry and catch up!

The soup supper at church was wonderful. The menu was lots and lots of chili and a second choice of chicken noodle soup. All the soup suppliers brought 2 gallons of their favorite recipe and it then got all mixed together. (The two soups stayed separated though.) And there were hot dogs and ham sandwiches. And lots of pies. 

I'm making another sugar free lemon meringue pie today. It's one of our favorites. The one I brought to church yesterday disappeared pretty fast. There must be others who have to watch their sugar intake.

It's just wonderful to get back into the social life of a church congregation again. And church people do love their potluck suppers. There was a lot of visiting going on in the kitchen as we busied ourselves dishing up soup and keeping the soup bowls washed and ready for the next line of customers who came in the door.

Don, our neighbor from across the street, came over this morning to rototill a 12' square for a garden next spring. That ought to give me plenty of room for a few tomato plants, some pole beans, and green bell peppers. Maybe another Tabasco plant too.

We're expecting our first frost by this weekend. That means I'll have to put those ugly little cones on all my pretty roses pretty soon. Then the countdown starts for spring. We move back to standard time on November 4, and the days get shorter until December 22.

Then the days start to get a bit longer, even if almost a minute a day, as the sun turns north again to make its trek back across the equator. Then there's Ground Hog Day and right after that -- spring.

That just about covers my winter which will be spent embroidering and writing and counseling on a scaled back, part-time basis. And oh yes, my new hobby: genealogy. So far I've traced the Haltom side of the family back to 1790 in Maryland when John Haltom married Nancy no-last-name. And from there, begat Ezekiel who begat Zachariah who begat Leonard who begat Allison, my father.

##

BIBLE STUDY: Acts 1:1-26

Authorship: As early as the middle of the 2nd century, there appears to be consensus that Acts was written by Luke, the physician, the friend and fellow traveler of Paul.*

*(from Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, Volume One.)

In the very beginning of Acts (verses 1-3, it seems apparent that whoever wrote the third gospel also wrote the Acts of the Apostles. In this first verse, there is a reference to an earlier writing to this same person, Theophilus: In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive.

A further inference can be drawn as to Luke's authorship since Acts picks up where the Gospel of Luke leaves off. We read in Luke 24:51: While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven.

In the first chapter of Acts, Luke reiterates this event in verse 9: After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

There are a couple of curious notes I make from verses 10-11: They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressing in white stood beside them. "Men of Galiliee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."

First of all, these two men dressed in white seems to have appeared out of nowhere. Do you think, like I do, that there were angels?

The message is for the apostles to go on back to town. There's nothing left for them to do standing around on the Mount of Olives.

So they headed on back to town. In verse 12, we learn that it was about a "Sabbath day's walk from the city." How far would that be?

Well, we know from Exodus 16:29 that this distance is about 3,000 feet. That's the maximum distance that a faithful Jew could walk on the Sabbath, the day that he was supposed to be resting.

There is a transition of apostolic leadership in this first chapter of Acts. It's a replacement for Judas Iscariot, the apostle who had betrayed Jesus and who had committed suicide.

There were two candidates to take Judas' place: verse 23: Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias.

The apostles apparently were not so sure how they should replace someone to take Judas' place when, in fact, Jesus had called each of the original twelve to his ministry.

So they prayed, verses 23-26: Then they prayed, "Lord, you know everyone's heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs." Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.

I believe that the reason the apostles cast lots was to take the selection process completely out of their human hands and put the choice back into the hands of God. There are no coincidences with God. I believe that. The apostles apparently believed it too. They knew that God would select the next apostle by selecting the lot that was drawn.

Interestingly enough, this is the last time that the casting of lots is mentioned in the Bible.

When you are walking through your days, do you consider that God has put challenges in your path. That he has put people in your path that you are supposed to help. People who might annoy you. People who you'd really rather not bother with sometimes. People who are empty fields into which you are to plant the seeds of faith.

Memorize this Bible verse and file it in your heart, from Ephesians 2:10: For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

So your days may be blueprints filled with challenges drawn up by God, but what you do with your days depends on your choice -- you have the gift of free will.

Sometimes those challenges are opportunities that have a small window of time that won't open again. Let your heart be guided through prayer as you walk through your days.

I pray that God's richest blessings will be with each of you.

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PSYCHOLOGY: Resilient People Improve Their Life Skills As They Age

Resilient people are able to look back on their lives -- even their lives five or six years ago to figure out what they've learned. Following a near tragedy or traumatic event that happened to them, they are able to reflect on the experience as horrible but one that allowed them to grow and develop.

As time goes by, we get better at solving problems. When we look back at the problems we've survived, we get better at seeing the "silver lining" in the clouds of gloom.

We get better at seeing freight trains coming down the track at us. We don't kid ourselves into thinking it's the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. Nope, we see a freight train and we know we have to do something about it before it gets too close for comfort.

When we're in our twenties, we are much better at problem-solving than when we were a mid-adolescent. We've matured into a better, more dynamic thinking person.

When we're in our thirties, we start to see the trees standing in the forest. It's not just a blur of green anymore. We're able to look back on our twenties and think to ourselves, "Boy, I had some close calls."

Then in our forties, we're really starting to get good. We've honed our problem-solving skills to a fine art. We get so good at anticipating some problems, it feels like we can kind of see around the bend.

We continue to learn how to solve problems and to figure out what we've learned from our problems as we keep on going through life. The more we evaluate and pick a problem apart to find what it was good for, the most we develop resilience.

Remember, you don't learn how to become resilient.

Instead, you learn how to cope, how to solve problems, how to evaluate your problem-solving. And this allows you to develop resilience.

This concludes this little series on resilience. I hope it has helped.

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SINCE YOU ASKED --

Dear Jane: I don't think my marriage will ever work the way I want it to anymore. I admit that there is a wall between my husband and me. We'd both like to make the marriage work out because we have small children, but I'll never trust him again. He had sex with a woman at work after we'd only been married four years. I couldn't believe that he'd ever do such a thing. He tries to assure me that this is the only time he has ever been unfaithful but I just can't believe him. He says he's sorry and wants me to forgive him. We only had one of our children at that time. We now have three. Do you think we'll ever be able to make our marriage work? Oh, and another thing. He is the son of a pastor. Signed: Forgive and Forget?

Dear Forgive: Of course you can make your marriage work. The two of you are the only people who can make it work.

But will it be easy? Nope.

I don't know what the dynamics of the relationship were at the four year point of your marriage, but there is nothing that could excuse adultery.

And -- if he asks you for forgiveness, as a Christian you are supposed to forgive -- just like you want God to forgive you for your sins.

Look, no one is free of sin. But in the list of the Big Ten, is adultery more grievous than murder? Is it more grievous than gossiping about someone at work, or telling fibs about someone? Or is adultery more grievous than not remembering the "Sabbath to keep it holy?" Is it more grievous than stealing? Or wanting something that doesn't belong to you?

Who decides? You? I don't think so.

The wall that exists between the two of you is something you constructed. It's your job to take it down. That is, if you truly want this marriage to work. Your husband cannot tear the wall down that you built.

What the two of you need to do is sit down and figure out -- and I mean, really figure out -- whether or not you want your marriage to work. If your answer is yes, and you kind of hinted that this would be the case, then you each need to commit to getting to know one another all over again. Sounds like you've become strangers.

You say that your husband is trying to assure you that this is the only time he has ever been unfaithful to you. But you don't believe him. Do you have any evidence to the contrary?

What we know is information that we take in through our senses. Did you see your husband do anything that would prompt you to accuse him of continuing his adultery? If not, then you have to believe him.

Did you hear your husband talking with this other woman, or any other woman, in such a way that would cause you to doubt his fidelity? If not, then you have to believe him.

You do not know that he is being unfaithful until you either hear him or see him. Everything else is suspicious. How far are you in letting go of your suspicions?

To get past this, you may need to go to a marriage counselor. This would especially be true if you are not able to get past your doubts and suspicions. You can't punish your husband for something he did a few years ago that he apparently has deep regrets about.

Forgiveness is a choice. But more than that, it is a gift we give to ourselves. When you reach the point where you choose to forgive your husband, a giant weight will be lifted from your heart.

Start by becoming friends again. If you don't have parents in the area who can watch the kiddos, then get a babysitter from your church while the two of you go out to dinner. Doesn't have to be expensive. Could even be a picnic lunch if finances are tight.

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

It's menu making day and later, grocery shopping. I've taken to cleaning out the refrigerator except for condiments on shopping day. It's a new habit that I developed since moving into the house. I figure that if those little storage containers sat there with food in them all week, it's not going to get eaten up next week either. Besides, it's my duty to feed the garbage disposal too. I think I hear it growling at me if I don't.

We're having a Soup Supper this Sunday evening at church. I volunteered to make 2 gallons of chili and a sugar free lemon meringue pie. That way Quint is sure to have some dessert, just like everybody else. 

It's gloomy here. Some would say cloudy but I say gray and gloomy. It's the kind of day where you have to make your own sunshine. Tomorrow will be bright and shiny. Good autumn day and perfect weather for burning leaves. The maple trees turned a vivid yellow practically overnight. So pretty.

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BIBLE STUDY -- HISTORICAL NOTES ON CRUCIFIXION OF JESUS

Since I won't get the next Bible Study assignment until we go to church on Sunday, and finished up the book of Hebrews in mid-week, I thought I'd make a comment about the historical records about crucifixions during the first century A.D.

I will admit that as a Christian, I accept the Biblical truth that Christ indeed was crucified. Taking that on faith, I really do not need historical data to back up my beliefs. But in making the comment that records of crucifixions were kept, I need to at least share where that information came from.

I will admit that when I made that statement, it was from a memory of (theology) class discussions at Concordia University where I received both an undergrad and masters degree.

Could I cite the work of the person I was referring to? Not really. But I did remember the prof quoting Josephus. Josephus was a real live human being -- a historian who compiled lots of information in the first century A.D.

http://www.dtl.org/bible/treatise/what-30ad/part-1.htm
"Josephus was a Jewish historian who lived from 37-100 A.D. He also mentions Jesus' crucifixion (Josephus, p. 379). This passage has been hotly contested. Some believe the early Christians altered the passage. This belief has arisen because the passage appears too "Christian" for a Jew to have written it.

"However, an Arabic manuscript omits the questionable passages while retaining the phrase, "Pilate condemned him to be crucified and to die" (quoted in Habermas, p. 92).

"The Jewis Talmud (70-200 AD) records, "On the eve of the Passover, Yeshu (Hebrew for Jesus) was hanged" (Quoted in Habermas, p. 98). "Hanged" is used in the NT to describe crucifixion; so there is no contradiction (Luke 23:39; Gal. 3:13).

"Lucian, a second century Greek satirist, writes of the early Christians that they, '...worship the crucified sage' (Quoted in Habermas, p. 100)."


http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/anti-semitism/jesus.html
"When the New Testament was written, Christianity was banned by Roman law. The Romans, well aware that they had executed Christianity's founder -- indeed the reference to Jesus' crucifixion by the Roman historian Tacitus is among the earliest allusions to him outside the New Testament -- had no reason to rescind their anti-Christian legislation.

"To mention just one example, contrary to the above claims, Tacitus mentions the death of Christ under Pontius Pilate in "Annals" 15.44:

"...But all human efforts, all the lavish gifts of the emperor, and the propitiations of the gods, did not banish the sinister belief that the conflagration was the result of an order. Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular. Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred against mankind...."


http://www.answering-islam.org/Responses/Osama/smith_crucifixion.htm
"Although Tacitus does not mention expressly the word 'crucifixion' ('crucifixio', in Latin), but uses the Latin word 'supplicium' meaning literally 'torment', 'punishment', 'penalty', it is clear that Jesus was crucified since in the Roman Empire the crucifixion was the capital punishment generally inflicted on all those who were not Roman citizens, like Jesus for example, while Roman citizens were condemned to be beheaded (St. Paul for example).

"See Tacitus and Jesus for further discussion...The historical evidence for the crucifixion and resurrection is discussed in countless books and web pages. Whoever wants to carefully study the issue, will find plenty of splendid expositions on this topic. There is no need to repeat the arguments here."


In fact, there are 236,000 web pages that came up in response to my question about "Roman crucifixion records in 1st century."

So, to the individual who challenged my comment that Jesus' death is a matter of historical record, I hope that this will be a sufficient commentary.

The truth of the matter is, over the period of some 65 years of living on this earth, I have learned things, heard things, inhered information that I couldn't tell you where I learned them. But I know I heard things in lectures, read about things in books, or had a conversation with someone about something -- but I can't remember where in each and every instance because I do not have encyclopedic knowledge and I don't make a hobby out of collecting cites.

It's like making a cake, sort of. I know a cake is a sweet dessert. I also know I need to put sugar into the batter. But I can't sit here and write out a recipe for making a cake. I can still make the comment that cakes are sweet.

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PSYCHOLOGY: Resilient People Are Self-Confident

And, I'd like to add, self-confident people have an internal locus of control. More about that in a few minutes.

Play with the term "self-confident" a bit. We use it to describe people who are, well confident in themselves. "Self-confident" as opposed to what? "Other confident?" But now I'm being silly.

When we are self-confident, we believe in ourselves.

It means that you feel a sense of certainty about yourself. You can make a decision and be confident that it's the best choice at the time.

Self-confident people don't go looking for approvals from others in order to make decisions. They can weigh data, facts, consequences. All these elements go into making good, solid decisions.

That's not to say, however, that other people's point of view shouldn't be considered -- like a spouse, for instance! We extend all sorts of such courtesies to others. It's just the thing to do when we share an environment with someone else.
But that's not the same thing as making those decisions you're entitled to make and you're required to make all by yourself -- with confidence.

Self-confidence comes from a long list of abilities. As we go through life, we learn things. We acquire knowledge. We acquire the ability to engage in critical thinking -- hopefully. We learn to rely on our ability to make choices that work for us.

And the more we do that, we more self-confident we become.

Then there's the term locus of control that I referred to above.

When we have an internal locus of control, we do not need to take a vote from a bunch of other people to determine what we should do about something.

When we have an internal locus of control, we are able to affirm ourselves. We feel like we are a valuable person. We don't need to seek affirmation from others.

Sure, affirmations from others are great but we shouldn't require them in order to feel good about ourselves. They're great when they are layered over onto our affirmations about ourselves.

People who have an external locus of controloften think they're impostors. That is, they don't view themselves as competent individuals unless other people are telling them they're good at what they do.

We want to own our own personal success. In order to do that, we need to have a strong internal locus of control.

We need to keep ourselves centered and leveled. That means staying grounded so that someone can't nudge you off center.

Need more self-confidence? Then get some. Nobody is going to give it to you.

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SINCE YOU ASKED --

This next piece isn't really from an e-mail. I want to share it with you anyway, just in case you don't get a chance to read about such things elsewhere.

Several weeks ago, Rush Limbaugh got lambasted by the U.S. Senate. Apparently Rush said something on his radio talk show which airs daily that gave the senators some idea that Rush called our soldiers "phony soldiers."

I didn't hear the show so I don't know what the context was. Limbaugh explained that he was referring to people claiming to have participated in the war in Iraq when, in fact, they had never been in to Iraq.

However, Senator Majority Harry Reid saw to it that the U.S. Senate tried to pass a resolution demanding Limbaugh's apology. The resolution didn't pass, but 41 senators signed it. The letter went to the president of Clear Channel from which the Limbaugh show is broadcast.

This letter/failed resolution was passed on to Limbaugh from the Clear Channel president. Limbaugh decided to sell it on E-bay. He said all the proceeds -- all of the proceeds -- would go to the Marine Corps - Law Enforcement Foundation and would be used for scholarship assistance for the children of Marines or federal law enforcement officers who died while on duty.

Limbaugh offered to match whatever the final bid was came up to.

Well, friends, the bidding just ended. The final bid tally comes to $2,100,100! This is the figure that Limbaugh promised to match. And piggy banks and all, he's good for it.

Now what the senate needs to do is get back to the business for which they were elected and manage the taxpayers affairs, don't you think? For instance, congress has yet to pass a budget for the new fiscal year even though the old budget expired on September 30. President Bush had to sign an emergency tax bill just to keep government going until congress gets its work done and sends a budget over to the White House for approval.

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MY LIFE IN INK --

We had tornado warnings when we woke up this morning. Unusual to have the risk of tornadoes in the morning. Then when we were watching the news, there were tornadoes that ripped through an Oktoberfest in Oklahoma. Now, who would go to an Oktoberfest, sit out there in a big old tent when there is a sky so threatening that it looks like it could spawn a tornado or two?

Well, two tents fell down. These weren't little bitty tents either. They were the big old things you could use for a small plane hangar. Lots of people injured.

Don't they teach weather in earth science anymore? It's easy -- sky is black, stay out of tents. Better yet, stay home. Fortunately no one was killed.

I can just hear them standing at the front door. "Hey, Myrtle, you still want to go?"

"Oh sure. It'll blow over." Well, it did. With them in it.

We had an inch and a half of rain during the night and boy, did we need it. The ground was bone dry -- like concrete. You just know those poor little plants had ouchy pinchy toes.

We are enjoying each and every day of nice weather. The sun is shining gloriously so we'll be pushing leaves around as soon as we can get outdoors. Even though they're wet. We'll just put a plastic drop cloth on them so we can burn them Saturday when the weather turns dry again.

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BIBLE STUDY: Matthew 5:1-16

In this reading, we are reminded that Jesus says we are the light of the world. How is your light burning these days? When was the last time you shared the light of Christ with someone in darkness?

I do hope that you are reading these Bible Studies with your favorite translation of Bible next to you. This particular chapter in the Gospel of Matthew contains Christ's beautiful Sermon on the Mount in the first twelve verses.

In verse 14 we read: You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

When we were members of Trinity Lutheran Church in Oak Lawn, Illinois, Pastor Landgrebe would often close his sermons with this thought: Be careful of the life you lead, you may be the only Bible someone will read.

How true that is.

I remember counseling a client a number of years ago who came to me with an addictions problem. He told me his story -- of a mother who had deserted the family when he was a little tyke. And a father who couldn't seem to stay out of trouble with the law. And finally, when this young man turned twenty-three, his father began serving a sentence for hard time at one of the maximum security prisons in Illinois.

I was amazed that he had no legal troubles. Had never been arrested, in fact.

So I asked him how in the world had he managed to stay out of trouble. And where did he get his sense of ethics?

Then he told me that he figured out that he didn't want to be like his father. But he didn't have anybody around him that he wanted to be like. So he did the only thing that made sense to him. He started watching successful people. He wanted to be like them. His observations told him that successful people usually went to church. So that's where he headed. He was in church every single Sunday.

He wasn't sure why that ought to make a difference, but he kept going. Then he started getting something out of the sermons. He never socialized with the people at church -- he just wanted to be among them. He said he figured that successful people were good people and he wanted to be like them.

He's doing well. He's married with a couple of little tykes. He's a different kind of daddy than he had. He's a sergeant for one of the suburban police departments. But then, negative role modeling can be just as powerful as positive role modeling. That is, sometimes we don't know what we want, but we do know what we don't want.

The first question we are given to ponder is this: How is your light burning these days? Just the thought that you are even reading this Bible Study says that you are fueling the flame inside you.

And pray. Make your prayers sound like conversations. Prayers don't have to sound like Elizabethan English with all the "thees" and "thous." I'm not sure God speaks like that anyway.

A prayer could be something as simple as, "You know what -- I know I'm supposed to be doing this but I just can't. I don't know if it's because I don't want to or I just don't know how. Would you please help me out because something tells me that it's what you want me to do." Yes -- that's a prayer. A very sincere one.

The next question is: When was the last time you shared the light of Christ with someone in darkness?

You don't have to get out of bed every morning ready to write a sermon, but you can get greeting cards that have a Bible message as an inspiration. You can write a cheery little note to someone who is lonely. Or maybe make a telephone call to someone, or offer to take a shut-in out to lunch. There are all kinds of ways to do acts of kindness. Then you can be a sermon in shoe leather.

I have started a Bible Study blog at www.jane-reinheimer.blogspot.com and just yesterday, added a Bible Study on www.freerepublic.com in the Religion category. Maybe you don't want to write a Bible Study but you can share your faith in many other ways. Today, you can be the presence of Christ to someone you meet.

God bless you!

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PSYCHOLOGY: Resilient People Profit From Their Misfortunes

Or to put it another way, resilient people can learn from their mistakes.

One sign of intelligence is to change tactics when something doesn't work. If something doesn't work, it's not the time to keep doing to same thing only harder.

No. Instead, try to come at your problem-solving from another direction. Try something you hadn't thought of before. Remember -- you ought to have at least three alternative solutions for each problem you're trying to solve.

What you don't want to do is marry your solution. By that I mean refusing to try something different.

When you reach the point where you learn to take something valuable from solutions that work for you, then you feel less victimized. When you no longer feel like a victim to your problems, then you start to feel more resilient.

Remember -- you can't learn to be more resilient. But you can learn new tools that will help you develop resilience.

To try this out on my psychology students when I was teaching, I had two poles, each four feet in length and one C-clamp. The class, as a whole, was assigned to make a coat "rack" and they could put it anywhere in the room. But they had to use all three items.

They pondered and pondered. They thought so hard I swear I could smell the smoke. Every once in a while someone would come up with the solution I was looking for. (Now before I go any further, let me just say that this is one of those trick problems that theoretically only has one solution. Balancing a checkbook is like that too. Math problems generally only have one correct solution. So I'd have to re-think my position that there ought to be at least three solutions to every problem. In the gray areas of life, there ought to be more than one. In the black and white world of hard science, like the engineering problem I gave to the class, there can only be one solution that I can think of.

That solution is to hold the two poles together with the C-clamp, between the floor and the ceiling. It works as long as the ceiling is not greater than 8', which my classroom wasn't. Then the C-clamp "handle" operates as a kind of hook to put the coat onto.

Resilient people literally thrive in situations that are just too distressing for other people. Maybe rising to the challenge of finding a workable solution is seen as a challenge to test their problem-solving skills. I suspect that this is the case.

First thing a resilient person asks is, "How can I solve this problem?" And then, "What can I learn from this problem?"

Life's a hoot. Get out there and laugh a little!

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SINCE YOU ASKED --

Dear Jane: How can I make sure my children aren't at risk for staph infections? Do schools monitor this and is it viral or bacteria? Signed: Worried Dad

Dear Worried: One of the most powerful deterrents for the bacterial staph infection is wash, wash, wash those hands. As parents, we have to do a better job of role modeling.

Even watching the food channel, I see the chefs splash water on their hands but they don't really wash good. Look -- running water from the faucet over your hands is only slightly better than nothing.

Splashing a little soap in there is better. But if you really want to take care of possible bacteria, you're gonna have to suds it up and roll your hands around in the lather. Sing to yourself the words to "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" and by the time you get through the little ditty, you'll have lathered enough to get a whole bunch of bacteria headed down the drain.

Do schools monitor staph bacteria? Don't know. You'd have to check with your individual school principal.

When I was in school many many years ago, the teacher lined us up for hand washing before lunch. I wonder if they're doing that anymore. It ought to be every time the kiddos come back in from recess.

I shudder to think of what they're exposed to out on the playground. Birds fly overhead and you know what those little deposits are. They land on playground equipment. Kids hold onto equipment when they're playing on it. There's just all kinds of places where bacteria can hide and multiply explosively. 

Hand washing works. It helps the little staph demons slide off the skin and down the drain.

Dear Jane: I'm basically a shy person and my husband is a successful corporate attorney. When we go to company functions, he often leaves me alone, which terrifies me. How can I get over my fear of meeting strangers. I could never just walk up to a bunch of people I don't know and start talking to them. Signed: Desperate in Orange County

Dear Desperate: You might not be able to walk up to a group of people you don't know but you probably could approach just one person.

You didn't say whether this is true or not but I'm guessing that your husband is interacting with upper middle management persons or vice presidents of the company he works for. If that's the case, there are probably other women in the same boat as you are in. Some of them would probably rather be anywhere else. See if you can single one out to talk to.

If you don't think this would work, then I'd suggest giving one of the other wives a call before the event and get to know her a little over the phone. Either way, it's going to feel pretty risky until you get to know a colleague or two.

One trait that shy people share with all other shy people is this notion that everybody is evaluation them. Actually, nothing could be farther from the truth. People are too busy evaluating themselves than to worry about what you're up to. Pick out one of the other wives and walk up to her and say, "What a gorgeous color! It really sets off your hair." Then talk about her favorite topic -- herself or her children (if she has any) or her husband.

Two topics to stay away from: corporate politics and gossip. Maybe even governmental politics too.

It gets easier the more you do it. Trust me.

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MY LIFE IN INK --

Welcome to readers in Germany and China and our good buddies here in the United States. So glad to have you stopping by.

And thank you very much for your kind response to the new section "Since You Asked Me." As promised, I will not use your real names even though some of you are not too terribly innocent (by your definition, not mine).

We're still pushing leaves around in the yard. We spent about three hours yesterday afternoon with the leaf blower and Quint's burning in the fire pit. Then we transplanted some trumpet vine interlopers way back at the end of the property, just before the back yard drops off into a ravine. Certainly don't want our back yard to wash down in there, especially since we burned that mountain of brush in one of our ambitious projects. Now there's just bare dirt.

But the trumpet vines ought to take care of the need for roots to hold the dirt in place. Trumpet vines very happily grow anywhere. And next spring I'm planting a million sunflowers and myrtle. Anything that will grow in cracks in the sidewalks will be welcome back there.

Good news for my sister. The PET scan says there's no cancer anywhere in her body except the small mass on the upper right lung. But I told you that already. Yesterday afternoon she met with the surgeon and he says all he needs to do is remove the upper right lobe. That sounds scary enough to me. There are a few tests at the hospital before any operation can be schedule, so please keep her in your prayers.

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BIBLE STUDY: Hebrews 13:1-25

This final chapter of Hebrews brings many exhortations to the Jewish people.

So what exactly is an exhortation? It's defined as the ability to help others reach their full potential by means of encouraging, challenging, comforting and guiding.

Chuck Swindoll says it is the ability to bring encouragement, to help others see the relevance of Scripture, to give insightful counsel, to motivate, to comfort and to offer hope that prompts action.

That's a big "to do list," don't you think?

The Apostle Paul was always the teacher -- giving us lists of things to do and how to minister to others.

So what was on his list of things he wanted the Jewish people to do?

Keep loving each other, like brothers. Family always gets a special place in our hearts. So we're encouraged to embrace each other as if we were all one big, happy family.

Don't forget to entertain strangers. Some people have entertained angels without knowing it. Abraham certainly did. Remember when the angels appeared out of nowhere to him out in the middle of the desert? They came right up to his tent, knocking on the door. Weren't exactly in the neighborhood, would you think?

Remember those in prison. And put yourself in there with them as if you were a fellow prisoner. I remember going to a women's prison here in Illinois with a group of church women years and years ago. There was one woman who was illiterate when she started doing her time. But she had learned to read because of a Prison Ministries group of church women who came out each week to do Bible Studies with the inmates. True, the Bible was the only book that she read, but it was all she said she needed. What a ministry and a fellowship the Prison Ministries group is for all these women.

Remember those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering. How often we get lost in the comforts of our own worlds. We forget that there are people living in mud huts in other places in this world. We forget that there are women who are victims of domestic violence. We forget that there are people who live in terrifying places in their minds where there is no peace and comfort for them. We forget that there are children living in poverty because their parents drink and drug their food away from them. They go to school hungry and their parents lay in hungover heaps. We cannot individually solve their problems but we can pray for those who are mistreated. We can remember them.

We should keep our marriage beds pure and let God judge the adulterer and sexually immoral people. This is one of the most difficult challenges that threatens to rip a marriage apart. There's just so much anger for so many reasons that interferes with the victim being able to forgive the adulterer. In this exhortation, we are reminded that God is the one who avenges this wrongdoing.

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has promised never to leave us or forsake us. So much for keeping up with the Joneses.

Remember your leaders who spoke the world of God to you. That goes all the way back to your earliest Sunday School teachers. And on up the line to youth ministers when you got older, and then to pastors in churches who bring the message of salvation to each one of us. This exhortation reminds us to look at the lives that these people are leading and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ has not changed from the early days of your Sunday School lessons to the depth of faith as you grew. He may have a deeper faith message to you today, but it's because your faith has matured; he hasn't changed at all. Not since the beginning of time, and not even when he returns to collect all his believers for all eternity. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

There's an exhortation in this chapter to do away with the ceremonial foods. There were certain ceremonial foods from the sacrifices offered that the people could eat; others were to be eaten only by the temple priests. The sacrifices were brought to the temple so that the blood could be sprinkled, but the animals were taken outside the city where they were cooked. In like manner, Jesus Christ, being the perfect sacrifice for mankind's sins, also lost blood when he was scourged inside the city walls, but was taken outside the city where he died in a final offering for sin.
 
Because of Jesus, we are to continually offer a sacrifice of praise and with our mouths, we are to confess his name. Don't be shy about letting other people know you are a Christian. Pastor Landgrebe used to remind us "to be careful of the life you lead -- you may be the only Bible someone will read." Does your life give testimony to your Christian faith? Doing good deeds and sharing with others are ways that we can offer life sacrifices that are pleasing to God.

We are to obey our leaders and submit to their authority. That way their work will be a joy and not a burden. There are a lot of laws to obey, aren't they?

And then Paul asks for prayers from the Hebrew people. He says he wants to be restored to them soon. He closes the chapter by telling them that Timothy had been released already.

And finally, he prays that the Lord Jesus will equip them with everything good that they need for doing his will, and that Christ will be able to work through them in their work which is pleasing to Christ.

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PSYCHOLOGY: Resilient People Are Empathic

Without a doubt, the ability to see things from another person's perspective is one of the most powerful tools available to resilient people.

When I used to see people in couple counseling, I liked to hear them describe what it would be like to be married to themselves.

That was a shock. Here they were prepared with a long litany of things they didn't like about their partner, but had a really difficult time describing what their partner  thought and felt while experiencing them.

Even though people often think they are wonderfully empathic when it comes to "reading" others -- they aren't necessarily.

There are just too many psychics in the world -- and for sure, there are too many psychics in marriages.

When I talk about being able to "read" someone, I'm not talking about reading their minds. Oh no. Empathic understanding is not the same as claiming to be psychic.

Besides, if they're so psychic, how come they don't win the lottery. Or how come I have to tell them who I am when I call. Or how come they don't have perfect understanding of what's going on around them in their lives.

The reason is obvious. They aren't psychic. And they can't read anybody's minds. They'd do good to concentrate on their own minds and get to really know themselves. For any of us, myself included, that's a monumental task.

The more resilient you are, the more empathic you are.

The more resilient you are, the better you are at seeing the world from someone else's perspective. You don't have to subscribe to someone else's point of view, but you ought to at least be able to see their point.

Resilient people look for win/win solutions to problems. Somewhere in every conflict is a nugget of legitimacy for a point of view -- even one that differs from our own.

If you can't see it, or won't see it, then maybe you need to practice an exercise that isn't so emotionally threatening. If you can't talk safely about going to the in-laws for Thanksgiving dinner or the nuclear arms race or something equally threatening, then talk about the advantages of taking mini-vacations next summer instead of one big, expensive trip.

Practice getting the little empathies right before you move on to bigger game.

Empathy is something you can learn to do.

Resilience develops when you get better at it.

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SINCE YOU ASKED --

Dear Jane: My wife is having a relationship with someone she met online. At first it seemed innocent enough but now she's online just about every night. She waits until she thinks I'm asleep then gets out of bed and tiptoes to the computer. She denies that anything is going on but it doesn't seem so innocent anymore. We never have sex. She says she's just interested in sex. We have three young children. They demand a lot of her time during the day yet she's able to take a couple of good hours out of her sleep to chat with this guy. It's been over a year since anything intimate has happened between us. What should I do? Signed: Frustrated in Nova Scotia

Dear Frustrated -- Who would have ever thought the computer could ever be anything but a wonderful tool! Truth is, it has brought emotional affairs literally into our living rooms.

Satisfying the whims of a heart throb is what adolescents do. Marriage is where adults play. This game that your wife is playing has long-reaching and potentially devastating consequences for both you and her, and your children as well.

She obviously sees this cyber chatting as an innocent thing but here's the kicker: if it were all that innocent, don't you think she'd be willing to let you read the messages and participate in this friendship?

You don't think so? Well that's how we define doing something wrong -- at the point of shame recognition. Kids do it all too well when we catch them in a fib or doing something they aren't supposed to be doing.

Adults are the same. If your wife doesn't want you to see the dialogue going back and forth between her and this guy, then it's not all that innocent.

You need to let her know that you have deep feelings that are being ignored, for whatever her reasons are. And you need to think about her feelings that sent her looking for something titillating and fun.

Married couples have to really work at keeping their relationship fun and vibrant. It takes both people to do this.

There are four kinds of intimacies: spiritual, physical, intellectual and emotional. Spiritual intimacy is a recognition of where God fits in your lives; physical intimacy is want to share space with one another -- any of the five senses play into physical intimacy. Talking on the phone, holding hands, enjoying the fragrances of each other, and even sex; intellectual intimacy means you can have a discussion about ideas. Then there's emotional intimacy. This is where you're willing to be vulnerable with each other. Remember those early days of courtship when you bled your soul with each other. You could talk about anything and everything. Even things you might not have ever told anybody else.

Lack of emotional intimacy sends people running to places outside their coupleness. The two of you need to sit down and figure out where this emotional intimacy got away from you. You both need to make new commitments with one another. Cyber friends do not take the place of a flesh and blood marriage.

But she may not feel like she needs to get her needs met with you if she's spending the best part of herself sharing with someone else.

That needs to stop. Marriage is only a big enough place for two people. There's a reason why the marriage vows include "forsaking all others." She may not see an emotional affair as adultery, but it wouldn't be the first time that it's ended up there.

Dear Jane: I have a four year old daughter who is very temperamental. She seems to go into rages for no reason. She also spends a lot of time staring into space. If I try to get her attention, there are times when she jumps out of her skin. The lady at her preschool has told me that she needs to be on Ritalin to help keep her focused. Do you think this is a good idea? We don't have any attention deficit disorders in our family on either side. Signed: Bewildered Mom

Dear Bewildered: Oh how I wish teachers would quit practicing medicine without a license. Take your child to her pediatrician. Attention Deficit Disorder with or without the hyperactive component is a medical diagnosis.

There are a number of reasons that children don't stay on task. I remember when I was four years old I had some pretty profound conversations with God. At least, at the time, I thought they were. I could stay on task. Problem is, the task I stayed on was whatever was going on in my little head. I'm too old to have been part of a preschool class but I can tell you that if I had been, jumping into reading when I was busy thinking would not have made me happy.

Anxieties can also make children look symptomatic of ADD/ADHD. I'd rule out anxieties with your physician too. If there's a lot of turmoil in the house -- if there's any alcohol or drug abuse -- if there's domestic violence -- if there's talk of divorce -- all these things can make children afraid. And what could they be afraid of? Well, for starters, they're afraid that no one is going to be able to take care of them.

Children need all kinds of assurances from the adults in their lives that they are going to be cared for, cared about and taken care of. Does that make them selfish little creatures? No, it makes them children.

Make an appointment with your pediatrician right away and follow his advice. Diagnosis ADD is a medical diagnosis. End of story. And good luck.

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MY LIFE IN INK --

Welcome to our friends in Germany, Israel, and Canada -- and of course, our regulars here in the United States.

Good thing we like to walk. We walked back uptown yesterday afternoon to go to the library. We decided to do some book work on the Civil War. Quint's great grandfather Commodore Perry Llewelyn walked with General Sherman on his "March to the Sea" and my great great great grandfather Ezekial Haltom fought in the Civil War on Confederate side.

So there's a huge gap between what I know from Bible history events and World War II. Things were going on in that in-between time that I am woefully ignorant of. We're both starting with the Civil War just to start our quest for information. Next time we decide to check out a bunch of books, though, we may just take the car to the library. We limited ourselves to three books each but they got mighty heavy by the time we got back home.

If you ever see us walking down the street, you can point and giggle (quietly) and say "There goes Get and Smart again. Must be going back to the library to take books back."

We're about a mile from town. We have time to walk. The bank is right there. So is the supermarket, although that's a trip limited to a loaf of bread only. And the post office. Walking is good exercise.

This afternoon is leaf blowing time. That's really good exercise, even with a super dooper electric leaf blower. Good for the triceps. And lots of bending over to pick the leaves up to put them in the fire pit.

We got great news from my sister late yesterday. The PET scan shows only the one small mass in her upper lung. It's encapsulated and hopefully operable. She meets with the surgeon this morning so I expect a report later on today.

P.S. Lots and lots of e-mails this morning. I'm adding a column today and including some of the questions and my answers. I will always protect your identity, though, by not using your real name or where you're located. And, of course, if you absolutely do not want me to use your question at all, please let me know when you e-mail me. There is such a wide variety of questions from you. It absolutely amazes me. The column is going to be called, "Since You Asked ..." and it will be after the "Psychology" column. 

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BIBLE STUDY: Hebrews 12: 1-29

It's important in this chapter to differentiate "punishment" and "discipline."

Punishment makes sure that a certain behavior will not continue.

Discipline makes sure that a behavior will continue.

For instance, if we are speeding up and down the highways, eventually we'll get a speeding ticket -- as a punishment. Speeding tickets are punishments. They're a way of making sure speeders stop speeding.

Discipline is a little trickier to define. Making a child sit down and do homework is discipline. Discipline breeds self-discipline and eventually the child develops good study skills that come up out of parental discipline.

Discipline sets up good behavioral habits. We read in verses 11-13: No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. Make level paths for your feet, so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.

The fifth warning (all five warnings are cited at the end of this Bible Study) to the Hebrews can be found in this chapter in verses 14-29: Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile man.

See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears.

You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, because they could not bear what was commanded; if even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned. The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling with fear."

But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living god. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven. At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, 'Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.'

The words "once more" indicate the removing of what can be shaken -- that is, created things -- so that what cannot be shaken may remain.

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our "God is a consuming fire."

This particular passage draws a clear distinction again between the old covenant and the new covenant that Jesus brings with him.

The old covenant is the Mosaic law -- all who laid eyes on God would die -- except Moses. And even touching the holy mountain was cause for death, even for the animal. Touching this holy mountain meant being stoned to death.

But then Jesus came to the earth. He brought with him a new covenant from God. Now, the holy mountain was replaced by a holy temple. And all were welcome to come in and hear the message of God. All were welcome, and still are, to come in to the assembly where God is and hear his messages being spoken. This is the new covenant.

But the Hebrews are warned to take care. Back in Moses' day, the voice of God shook the earth.

What will happen if immorality and wickedness continue? God says in the last part of verse 26: "Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens."

Oh for sure, there are thousands of earthquakes every day here on the earth. Little wigglies that help relieve stresses between tectonic plates of the earth's mantle layer. But every once in a while, there's a really big earthquake in a 9 or greater magnitude. That sends people reaching for their Bibles.

Wouldn't it be better if we all searched our Bibles regularly to see how God wants us to live our lives now -- before he "shakes the earth once more."

Thank you for joining in this Bible Study.

Here are the verses for the five warnings that are included in this Book of Hebrews:

Hebrews 2:1-4
Hebrews 3:7-4:13
Hebrews 5:1-6:12
Hebrews 10:19-39
Hebrews 12:14-29

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PSYCHOLOGY: Resilient People Put a Positive Slant on Life

Resilient people look for solutions, not restatements of old gripes. Anybody can complain but it takes a resilient person who is not indulging in self-sympathy to look for solutions.

We have to train ourselves to look for alternate solutions to problems. And every problem should have a minimum of three solutions. The first, of course, is the ideal solution. The way I want things to be.

The second and third solutions may not be as idealistic -- not the best solutions, but solutions that would work to solve the problem anyway.

We want to build resilience -- in ourselves and in our children.

Adolescent Suicide was a major concern that zapped me in the head when I was in grad school. I wondered and wondered what was going on in this country -- the richest country on earth -- the country with the best, world class medical facilities available -- why were our youngsters killing themselves? And why were the incidences of suicide increasing?

One of the answers is that the suicidal person truly believes that suicide is the only thing they can do. To the person who is contemplating suicide, there are no other solutions that they can think of.

So I started speaking up about suicide -- to every adult who, in any way, had any contact with children -- parents, teachers, Sunday School teachers, vacation Bible school teachers, babysitters.

Everybody. Listen up. Teach children to find at least three solutions. It's not so hard to play solve problems when kiddos are little. They just love to think outside the box and some of the solutions they come up with as #2 and #3 are downright comical sometimes, but they get into the habit of hunting for three good solutions.

I'm not saying this is the only answer to the suicidality of our nation's youngsters. But it's one element that we can work on every day of our lives that we come in contact with kids who have problems.

Learn how to hunt for three solutions and then teach children to do the same.

You'll also help them become more resilient along the way.

Because of this positive slant that resilient people put on their world, they try to turn chaos into stability.

We just can't live our lives with all that frantic nonsense going on. It wears us out and depletes us. Resilient people don't use up all their reserves. That's mainly because they don't have to. Resilient people bring a positive attitude with them.

This positive attitude says, "I can do this. I can figure this out. I can solve this."

Resilience is not about having good luck. It's about carving out a new you. It's about becoming a positive thinker -- a positive problem-solver.

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SINCE YOU ASKED --

Dear Jane: My kids start screaming and acting up something awful every time they get in the car to go somewhere. It's like they know I can't do anything about it. They fight about everything. I thought that the DVD player would be a good solution but now they fight about what to watch. Any suggestions? Frantic and Frustrated

Dear Frantic: I have a perfect solution for you. But you may not believe it will work until you try it two or three times. When the kids start bellowing and screeching, just pull over to the curb, or into a parking lot and turn the ignition off.

(I recommend you bring your favorite magazine to read while they're calming down.)

Tell them that you are not going to turn the car or van back on until everybody gets quiet. This may take what seems like an eternity, but in truth, it will probably only be five or ten minutes.

Lock the kiddy-locks on the doors so that they can't jump out of the car.
 
Then just ignore them.

If you have trouble ignoring them, you're going to have to learn to not pay attention to their screeching. Don't look up from your magazine until you hear the blissful sound of quiet.

(They won't be able to watch their videos either when the car is turned off.)

Okay, so you may be late by ten minutes or so the first couple of times you try this. But it won't take long before the kids get the idea that you are the person in charge, not them. And you can't drive your vehicle safely if they're going to distract you.

Remember this: Reinforce the behavior you want to continue. When the kids settle down and get quiet, just say "thank you" and go on your way.

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MY LIFE IN INK --

Quint and I walked uptown to the post office to mail a letter to my sister. I copied all the prayers for her that have been lifted up by the prayer warriors on Free Republic. There are so many prayers and each one is very touching. I'm sure it will give her some peace and maybe comfort as well.

She had a PET scan on Saturday. She says she hopes she never has to have another one. It really made her nauseous. Please pray that the cancer has not spread from the one inch mass in her right lung to other places in her body. She meets with the surgeon on Tuesday and I pray that she will get good news.

How much we take our health for granted. Even just the ability to walk to the post office is something we seldom think about. Just get on our walking shoes on off we go. Since the library is only one block past the post office, we're going to walk over there later this afternoon and see if there are any good books that we've missed.

Both of us have pretty much sworn off TV. There's 20 minutes of commercials in every hour, so why bother. We do have ON DEMAND, so we catch a good movie every now and then.

Quint and I both are working on family genealogies. What fun!

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BIBLE STUDY: Hebrews 11:1-40

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.openbible.info%2Fgeo%2Fkmls%2Fheb.11.kml&t=k

This link will let you see the trek of the Israelites from the time they left Egypt, where they crossed the Red Sea, and finally to the promised land.

This chapter in Hebrews is known for its testaments of faith.

In fact, it is often referred to as the "Hall of Faith."

Faith is defined in verses 1-2: Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

And in verse 6: And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

This Hall of Faith in this chapter gives testimony to such faithfuls as Abel.

In verse 4: By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings.

This Hall of Faith includes Enoch -- Verse 5: By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God has taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God.

Then there was Noah. He started building this huge big boat in his back yard long before it started to rain. What do you think his neighbors thought? Yet Noah knew that if God said he'd need a big boat because the rains were coming, Noah had every faith that it would happen -- verse 7: By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

And there was Abraham. God told him he was supposed to just pick up and move his whole entire family. Didn't tell him exactly where he was going, but just get ready. Oh, and it's going to take you forty years and you'll wander around in the desert, but I want you to do this. Forget that nice little house where you could go up on the roof and watch the sun go down and catch the evening breezes. I want you to live in tents for a while. You can explain it to the missus. She'll understand. In verses 8-12: By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and building is God.

By faith, Abraham, even though he was past age -- and Sarah herself was barren -- was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise. And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.

In verse 17: By faith, Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son.

In verse 20: By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future.

In verse 21: By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph's sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff.

In verse 22: By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions about his bones.

In verse 23: By faith Moses' parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king's edict.

In verses 24-28: By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.

In verse 29: By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.

In verse 30: By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the people had marched around them for seven days.

In verse 31: By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.

And from verses 32 through the end of this chapter, there is a dissertation about so many others who exhibited great faith and made their choice, took their stand against what would have been more popular, and pleased God by their choice.

In verses 39 and 40: These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

Did you learn something about your faith in today's readings? Is it a strong faith that would please God?

Practice your faith and lift your prayers to heaven. God hears each and every one of our prayers. It pleases him greatly that we want to talk to him and bring our thoughts and concerns to him.

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PSYCHOLOGY: Resilient People Adapt Quickly and Are Comfortable With Contradictory Personality Traits

This is an area that I am constantly working on to improve myself.

I'm not so sure I adapt all that fast. Ideas have to grow on me. I admit that I like the status quo, especially if it's a "place" where I like to be. But sometimes change is necessary. And no matter how much I've dug in my heels, off I go to new adventures that I end up liking a lot. Sometimes it's just time to shut my mouth and get in the car and listen to Quint. He has yet to steer me wrong.

As far as the contradictions are concerned, that's me to a tee. I can be logical. I can by a contradiction of intuitive thinking.

I learned a long time ago that those gut feelings are often insights coming from above. And the more you pay attention to your hunches, the stronger they become. To the point where they can be, yes, somewhat precognitive.

I often wake up with intuitions. They're those little wavelengths that are delivered to me on the moonbeams of my slumber. You bet I pay attention to those ideas. They are never wrong. I think they may be the whispers of angels. If you ever wake up with such thoughts, better listen to them.

Other little incongruencies might be a sense of playfulness next to a serious nature. I know a lot of you are very, very serious. Just remember that it's okay to be playful too. Have some fun. Don't be so serious that you get to be gloomified.

What do you do to have fun? If you can't remember, then it's been too long. It doesn't have to be a big magnanimous vacation -- it can simply be a stroll through autumn hiking trails.

You'll have to hurry this year, though. At least here in the middle of the state of Illinois, it's been very dry so the leaves aren't going to have all that fall color like they usually do. And their teeny tiny little fingers aren't going to hold on to the twigs very long either.

Can you be strong and gentle at the same time? I think you can. Strong spirited, strong willed. Yet kind and compassionate. Wouldn't that kind of be like graciousness?

What are some of your contradictions? Subscribe to them. Put them in your mental pockets.

The Lebanese-American poet Kahlil Gibran said that pain carves ruts in our soul so that the ruts can be filled up with joy. And boy, I'll tell you -- I've got some deep, deep ruts. Maybe that's where my sense of silly playfulness comes from.

Oh well. Better that than shallow little pool of joy. Nope. I much prefer the deep stuff. It goes all the way down to the bedrock of my soul.

I just hope I'm done with the anguish. I think I've had enough, thank you very much.

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MY LIFE IN INK --

Welcome China and Germany and our mainland buddies here in the United States. And special wishes for Laura and Paul who are moving today. They closed on the sale of their home yesterday. Moving is hugely stressful. I believe it's rated #2, second only to the death of a mate. So I'm hoping that you're resilient enough with good coping skills to look at the move as a big adventure.

Having just moved out of a condo where we lived for nearly thirty years, I can tell you that there are many emotional ups and downs.

Life is about change and change requires adjusting. Problem is, adults don't adjust as quickly as children do.

Kiddos are constantly being exposed to new events and conditions in their lives. They go to school and find a new teacher or a substitute teacher for the day. Or someone moves into the neighborhood and there's a new face in the classroom. Or a new playground monitor. And lots of new things to worry about when the teacher introduces a new math concept that they just can't understand. Changes.
 
Maybe not so big as selling a house and moving hundreds of miles away, but changes rock a children's world too. Sometimes daily. They're big enough for little people.

But adults get to adjust to big changes. Supposedly we've developed a whole list of coping skills over the years that kiddos haven't put in their Life 101 basket yet.

We all need to just keep telling ourselves, "I can do this." Why? Because you can.

It's all in keeping your perspective. I got an e-mail from a soldier who's in Iraq. When I asked him how he was doing he said, "My unit didn't get shot at today. We had a good day."

So you go out and have yourself a good day. Each and every one of you.

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BIBLE STUDY: Hebrews 10: 1-39

We are reminded again in this chapter, in verse 4b, that it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to redeem a person from sin.

Then in verses 5-7, Christ addresses his father directly: Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. Then I said, "Here I am -- it is written about me in the scroll -- I have come to do your will, O God."

These words are actually the same as David's in Psalm 40:6-8.

The Hebrews are reminded in verse 10: And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Again, in verses 11-14, we get another contrast between the Levitical priests and Jesus Christ: Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

The Levitical priests always stood. Their work of offering sacrifices was never complete. But look at what Jesus does after his sacrifice to his father: he went to heaven and sat down next to his father. Christ's sacrifice was complete. His work as the sacrificial lamb was completed for all time.

The Hebrews are also reminded again, as they had been told by the prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 31:34): The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says: This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds. Then he adds: Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more. (verses 15-17)

Now we have permission to enter the Holy of Holies through the curtain that is the body of Christ. We are cleansed by the blood he sacrificed for us.

The Hebrews are told to hang onto this thought. And then go on to encourage each other in the Christian love they have for one another and to do good deeds. They had been told in verse 22 that there are four conditions for drawing near to God. They are: 1.) have a sincere heart, 2.) have the full assurance of faith in their hearts, 3.) have their hearts cleansed from a guilty conscience, and 4.) have their bodies washed with pure water.

This did not mean that the priests were to give the worshipers a bath, or that the priests were to sprinkle blood onto the worshipers. These references are used figuratively as reminders that the Hebrews were to remember what the priests had done under the Mosaic covenant and now, with Christ, there is a new cleansing under the Messianic covenant.

These next several verses compare Moses' law further with Christ's law -- especially in terms of obedience.

In the old days, under Moses' law, in verse 28: Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.

And then comes the stern warning in verses 29-31: How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, "It is mine to avenge; I will repay, and again, "The Lord will judge his people." It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

I wish that all people who have trouble forgiving those who have walked across their psyches, leaping about with glee at the anguish they cause, would memorize these verses. These verses carry the very powerful reminder that we are not supposed to try to get even with these ne'er do wells who bring pain and suffering to us, we are not supposed to be unforgiving either. Rather, we are supposed to let God avenge them for us, if there is any vengeance to be had.

We are not supposed to be running around acting like we're little gods who have the right to make other people miserable. They're miserable enough or else they wouldn't be projecting all their misery onto us. So let God decide what they need to learn as a life-changing event in their lives.

Sure, the Hebrews are reminded that they had been exposed to insults and persecution; that they had their properties confiscated. But no matter. In verses 35-36 they are comforted: So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.

##

PSYCHOLOGY: Resilient People Learn From Their Experiences

Life is a long series of trials and errors.

That's it in a nutshell. If all people could do this, then everybody would be resilient. There would be no more snipe attacks. There would be no more turf wars. There probably wouldn't even be any more divorces. We'd all be coping well with whatever life throws at us.

But life isn't like that.

With the very best of intentions, we do things that don't work out well. When that happens, we are faced with choices.

The first choice is to evaluate the experience. Boy, that sounds lecturey, doesn't it? But it works every time. People who tend to enjoy successes get really good at evaluating what went wrong with their plans.

Evaluations don't have to be deeply soul-searching. It's a simple list of two questions: what went right and what went wrong?

In the "what went right" category are all the things you want to do the same way the next time you do something.

And guess what -- if there are some things that didn't go well, those are the things that you either don't want to do the same twice, or could do a little bit different next time.

When you are able to identify what you're going to do differently, then you are learning from your experience. This is particularly true because next time, those are the very things that you'll be able to put in the other category. You know -- the one that's the list of things that went well.

The better you get at evaluating and learning from your experiences, the more resilient you become.

And then there are those experiences that seem to get forced on all of us.

Could be that you lost your job recently. How in the world do you learn from that experience when you had nothing to do with the reason you were terminated. Could be downsizing because of something you didn't even know about, much less have any control over.

You may have been going to work every day thinking the company's profitability was just fine. After all, there's new bushes being planted, the company cafeteria is being remodeled, the bathrooms have a fresh coat of paint on them. Maybe a new vice president has recently been hired. These are all things that people read as "company doing okay -- my job is secure."

Then you find out -- in your exit interview -- that the new vice president is a "turnaround" guy.

Oops. Things weren't as rosy as they appeared. Then came the rumors of layoffs. How in the world could a company be spending money like there's no tomorrow if they have to hire somebody to turn the company around?

Remember how you felt when you turned your car out of the parking lot for the last time? Fear? Probably.

But don't let fear immobilize you. Fear is a normal reaction to looking down the barrel of your future. Fear reminds you that you have to cope with something new. It's going to be uncomfortable and you're probably not going to like it.

But fear gives us energy too. Fear will make you get out that resume, dust it off, massage it a bit until it giggles and smiles up at you from the paper. Then it squeezes into an envelope and moves through the mail -- or maybe it moves through cyberspace.

Fear bonks you in the head and reminds you that you haven't updated your resume for a long time. That's supposed to be one of the first things you do when you get your new job, remember? But very few people do it.

So what would you learn in this case? Well, first off, I'll bet you learn to "read" the signs of a company's success a bit differently.

Another thing you might learn is that you ought to be thinking about your next career move. Complacency is a luxury.

Maybe you worked long hours. Maybe you took a whole bunch of time away from your family while you stayed at the office. Maybe you sacrificed your physical well-being when you sat at your desk and used it as an excuse for not working out, or not going for walks.

Maybe you learned that you were letting your job consume you, your schedule, and other people and things that were also important to you.

And maybe you learned that you need to go back for training to update your job skills. Does your evaluation of this life changing event include a desire to sign up for a course that will enhance your job-seeking abilities? You know -- the course you've been putting off taking for a couple of years?

Been there -- done that. Not going to do it that way anymore!

There, now you're on the way to becoming more resilient. You may not want to write down things you wish you'd done. But you do need to be honest about what you know you should have done differently.

What are some of the experiences you've learned from? And how well do you evaluate experiences you've had?

That's how you develop resilience.

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

First of all, welcome to our readers in Germany and Israel who are signed on, as well as our US buddies. And a big good luck to Laura this morning, who's closing on the sale of a house today. (Along with her husband, of course.) It's a momentous occasion so keep your chin up there, lady. You're off on yet another life adventure.

It's a bit chipper this morning. I think it might have been about 48 degrees when we headed out the door for our little stroll. We got a late start today -- mainly because old slugabed here didn't fall out of bed until about 7:45. That's very late for me. And by the time I had just one measly cup of coffee, we were running behind getting our walking shoes on.

By the time we got outside to play in the yard yesterday, it was about 3 o'clock. Quint manned the leaf burning while I pushed 'em to the back of the lot with my handy dandy leaf blower. Even so, it was just at the absolute deadline of 6 pm for burning leaves before we were done. It's a big yard (195 feet deep). It seems even bigger when I'm pushing leaves. But I love it. And it's great exercise.

Quint made pancakes for breakfast this morning. He makes the best pancakes in the whole entire world! I sliced and diced a peach to put on them. Then I have a layer of honey (believe it or not I found a sugar-free honey at Wal-Mart), Molasses (not sugar free), and Sugar Free Maple Syrup. And a great big glass of ice cold milk. That's a breakfast that even Maria Antoinette would love.

Speaking of Maria, if you have On Demand, there's a movie on right now about her. Don't know how long it will run but it is really enjoyable. The person who designed all the costumes got an Oscar for costumes. They're gorgeous gowns. Whoever did it must have had a lot of fun playing with the designs.

##

BIBLE STUDY: Hebrews 9:1-28

This chapter of Hebrews will speak to all of you who feel like you are not forgiven for something or other that you've done in your life.

Read it. And read it again. Copy the verses that are particularly meaningful to you -- those verses that bring you peace when their meanings flow like a river through your consciousness.

This particular chapter is one of my favorites in the entire Bible. I hear God speaking to me especially through these verses. I feel Christ looking over my shoulder as I write about him. I feel the comfort of the Holy Spirit once again reminding me that Christ's death on the cross brought a whole new meaning to the fulfilment of my worship.

If this doesn't happen to you in a single read-through of this chapter, I encourage you to read it again. And again. And again until the words take root in your heart. This chapter promises to unlock answers to the secrets that you've anguished about.

I pray most earnestly that this the Holy Spirit will bring you the profound peace of knowing that Christ's salvation is a gift that is yours for the claiming. You can't earn it. You don't deserve it. And even if you had been willing to die for it, it wouldn't have been good enough because your blood is contaminated by sin. This great atonement had to be fulfilled by someone who was without sin.

The first part of this chapter -- verses 1-5 -- is a description of the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place.

If I have it right, there was this huge curtain that separated the two parts of the tabernacle. It was thick as a man's palm. It was sixty feet tall -- that's six stories high! And it took 300 priests to get it in place. So there it hung. Nobody could go into the Holy of Holies, or the Most Holy Place, except the High Priest. And he could only go in once a year on the Day of Atonement (also known as Yom Kippur).

On that day the High Priest sprinkled the sacrificial blood that was a sin offering onto the atonement cover of the Ark of the Covenant. This atonement cover was a slab of pure gold. It is also called the mercy seat and this is where God's presence appeared. At either end of this atonement cover are two cherubim.

What the author of this letter to the Hebrews is doing is reminding the Jewish people that God was very precise in his expectations of just how the sacrifices were to be offered to him under the old Mosaic system.

Be sure to remember that part of the Ark of the Covenant that refers to the Mercy Seat. This is where God's presence was. When the high priest came back there to offer the special sacrifice on Yom Kippur, you just know that God was watching.

And then things changed. God decided that the old Mosaic system wasn't good enough anymore because it didn't have any way for people to become inwardly clean. Tp be redeemed from their sins.

The Mosaic system had a bunch of sacrifices that could be offered up for all sorts of things that people do wrong in their lives.

But there was no sacrifice at all to cleanse people on the inside -- in that innermost part of their being that is their soul. This is the place inside each of us where God comes to rest; watch how we're thinking. How we're behaving. What we're doing with our lives and how we're serving him.

Each one of us has this place inside. In a way it's a Mercy Seat where God himself is seated. It's the very seed of our spiritual being. It's where God lives inside us. It's our soul.

What this chapter of Hebrews is telling the Jewish people, and is telling us today, is that the Mosaic system was replaced forever when God sent his son to become the sacrifice for all the sins that had ever been committed and will ever be committed -- even for people who hadn't been born yet.

It's that forever thing that God does. The blood of animals was the sacrificial offering that God told Moses he wanted. And every year after that, the high priest entered the Most Holy Place and offered the sin offerings by sprinkling the blood onto the Mercy Seat of the Ark.

In verses 14-15 we have the great tipping point in this message of salvation: How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance -- now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.

This chapter also explains how the tabernacle was ritually cleansed by the sprinkling of animal blood.

But wait. This new covenant is better than that because Christ didn't go into the earthly tabernacle and purify it. Rather, he went into the heavenly most most holy place and offered himself up. This heavenly holy of holies is where God the Father sits.

But Christ doesn't do this again and again, year in and year out. No indeed. He only did it once. And it was for all time. We don't see Christ coming back to earth each year to re-sacrifice himself.

Oh, for sure, we honor what he has done in our remembrances in worship, but these are not re-sacrifices in the literal sense.

No indeed. Jesus Christ is sitting at the right hand of God right now, as you are reading this. Christ is renewed and is now free of any pain that he suffered during his crucifixion.

We are made new again, each and every time we ask for forgiveness from our sins. It is how you can know with full certainty that salvation for you is assured. It's how you know you are going to heaven. It's how you know your soul will never die for that is where God lives inside you.

##

PSYCHOLOGY: Resilient People Have Warm, Caring Relationships

And yes, there's a test to see how resilient you are. In fact there are a number of tests. The on-line test that I like is here: http://www.resiliencycenter.com/resiliencyquiz.shtml#quiz

It just takes a couple of minutes and you can score it on-line immediately to see how resilient you are. It's developed by Al Siebert, PhD, who is also the author of The Resiliency Advantage.

I'm going to spend the rest of the week talking about resilience, and maybe even into next week if I don't get it covered the way I want, or if you have e-mail questions. (jane@janereinheimer.com and put "resilience" in the subject line)

First of all, when we talk about resilience, we are talking about how well we bounce back. Resilience is not about just surviving an incident. We've all gone through horrific experiences. Each and every one of us.

And we've pretty much survived them. I say that because we're all walking around on planet earth.

So resilience and surviving are not the same things.

If you are resilient, then you are functioning at least as well as you did before the bad thing happened to you. If you got professional help, then there is every likelihood that your level of functioning will be at a higher level.

That research has already been done and don't ask me to explain it. I can only postulate an opinion but that wouldn't necessary give you the reason.

Most of the researchers I've read make the statement that you can't learn to be resilient, but you can develop resilience.

That sounds like psychobabble mumbo jumbo. But think of it like this. You can't learn to be a good student but you can develop into one. You can learn good study skills. And learning those study skills will help you develop into a good student.

What I'd like to do is talk about some of the building blocks that you can learn. These will help you develop into a resilient person.

Remember this:

If you can identify something,
You can measure it.
If you can measure something,
You can manage it.

So as you're doing this self-evaluation about your resilience, keep in mind that you're at Step #1 -- you're identifying something. As far as measurement is concerned, all you need to do is ask yourself, "Am I doing the same old thing over and over and over?" Haven't I learned one new thing in that last fifteen years that would help me cope just a little bit better?

Okay. There you have it. You've measured your progress. Or lack of it.

Then, when you decide that you're going to do one thing different every day -- or every couple of days -- than you're managing your improvement, or growth.

For instance, if you aren't very good at relationships, try this. Next time you go to the store, pick out a couple of those cheery little "thinking of you" cards." Don't get big giant ones. Just a nice little size that you can jot down a couple of thoughts on and send the cards to people you care about.

That will make your charm-o-meter start to go up the scale. Now you're managing improvement because you're changing it for the better.

I like sending notes. They make going to the mailbox a wonderful experience. And unlike telephone calls, they can be opened when it's convenient. They can be re-read and maybe even saved.

People don't always get around to opening their e-mails every day -- some not even every week. But the mail arrives with clock-stopping regularity. And warm, handwritten notes are always welcomed.

Resilient people enjoy friendships with other people. And they have loving family relationships. These caring relationships help us maintain self-worth and weather the storms of life that swirl around us.

more tomorrow ...

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

It is not good news for my sister Cookie. We pray that the chemotherapy, and possibly surgery, will bring her back to health. Thank you for your prayers. Prayers really do help. God hears each and every one. And he will answer them in his own fashion and according to what his plans are. We can only ask -- we can't tell him what to do.

It was a beautiful sunrise. And our walk this morning was brisk in the 50 degrees when we left our driveway. This is the time of the year that we're grateful for each and every day that lets us be outside.

This afternoon will be leaf blowing/burning day. There's actually enough leaves on the ground that it's worthwhile to get the leaf blower out. Might as well get at them rather than let them pile up, then get rained on. But for this afternoon, it will be nice to play out in the sunshine.

Changing the subject, I've been getting quite a few new e-mails that look like people type e-mails, not spams. Problem is, I can't recognize who the sender is. So unless you're someone I know and have an e-mail address that I recognize, please put something in the subject line that would give me a hint that you're coming from the web site. In fact, if you just type in "from reinheimer blog" -- then I'll know and I'll open your e-mails.

I really enjoy reading e-mails from all of you around the world.

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BIBLE STUDY: Hebrews 8:1-13

This part of the letter to the Hebrews is a reminder that the original covenant that God had made with the Israelites was not a perfect law. It was not perfect because it did not have any method of redemption.

It was a kind of "do this -- do that" list of expectations that God had of his children. On the other hand, when he sent his son Jesus to deliver a new covenant, he also included redemption. And through this redemption came the promise of salvation.

This new covenant is stated in verses 8-12: But God found fault with the people and said: "The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant, and I turned away from them, declares the Lord.

"This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,' because they all know me, from the least of them to the greatest.

"For I will forgive their wickedness and remember their sins no more."

This new covenant is a verbatim restatement of that promised in Jeremiah 31:31-34. It would not be unusual for someone as scholarly as the apostle Paul to remind the Hebrews of what the earlier prophets had said. Paul would certainly have had access to earlier Hebrew writings.

And there is a reminder here that Jesus is the true high priest. As a man he couldn't have been, but as God, he brought perfection to his priesthood.

There is much peace available to all of us sinners in the closing verse of this chapter: By calling this covenant "new," he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear.

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PSYCHOLOGY: Emotional Trauma -- How Good Are You At Adapting? (Part 3)

Reacting to an emotionally traumatic event shows up in our behaviors.

Big surprise. Of course it would have an impact on what we do, how we think, and how we feel.

If we have trouble sorting through the trauma, we run the risk of picking up what we call maladaptive behaviors.This could include substance abuse. Alcohol is included in this list of substances -- but also marijuana, cocaine and a wide variety of other psychoactives that work on the part of the brain that brings emotional discomfort.

Human beings don't like to feel discomfort.

If we can't make sense out of the trauma, or if we can't reassess the trauma and bring it in line with thoughts that allow us to mentally move forward, then we have other powerful mental opportunities at our disposal.

For instance, we could engage in superstitious behaviors. These might even become compulsive if what we did in one particular instance happened at the same time that a very slight change for the better occurred. Then we, in error, think that the change occurred because of what we did.

We tell ourselves that we have to keep doing what we're doing or else we'll have bad luck.

Some people are able to dissociate. When folks are highly traumatized, they can split off the horrors of their anguish and put them in a little mental box and set the box on a shelf. Things go along okay until they get the box out to look inside. Unless we've developed some really strong resilience, that might not be the best idea. At least for the present.

Generally, though, people fill up with despair and a sense of hopelessness. They don't believe they can cope and then begin to believe their are completely ineffective. Maybe even damaged permanently.

Emotionally wrecked, traumatized persons have difficulty maintaining close relationships. They withdraw socially. They argue with family members, their bosses -- even co-workers.

They are hostile and disagreeble. No matter what you say to them, they will rebut it. Their counterarguments may be more delusional than logical. This is mainly because their rebuttals are being filtered through their pain and suffering.

So out of all this, is there hope?

Absolutely.

Tomorrow, we'll talk about resilience. Get some!

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

Good morning, Canada. And I failed to mention a big cheerio to readers in South Korea and Germany yesterday. Of course the readers in the United States are always most welcome.

Good to see you again and thanks for stopping by.

My sister Cookie goes to doctor this morning, not tomorrow as she had planned. I pray for good news for her and I hope that you are praying for her too.

It was a brisk 60 degrees this morning. The maple trees are starting to shed their leaves. Not very splendid coloration. It was too dry this summer so the leaves aren't hanging on very well. Many of the cottonwood trees have already lost their leaves. Early autumn, looks like. I expect that the trees will be bare by Halloween.

We went for a walk before breakfast. Talk about feeling revitalized! The oatmeal was on the stove, steeping and waiting for us to return. I add a few raisins and walnut halves (for Omega-3) to the oatmeal. By the time we sit down to eat, it's an ultra-nutritious breakfast to start the day with.

It ought to hold us over until we get to a late lunch. That will be stew and it's cooking on a very low heat now, as we speak.

I have a couple of coaching/therapy phone calls between now and then. That always is something I look forward to.

And this afternoon I'm going to make another batch of oatmeal cookies. They don't last long around here. Maybe I'll bake two batches.

Quint is still working on the spice shelves. I can't wait for the time when I can have all the spices out in plain view. I'm sure I have duplicates of some of the spices.

We have lost our enthusiasm, truthfully, for putting things away. I suspect it's because we've actually found everything that we need. All this other stuff could probably go over to the resale shop and we'd never miss it. So far we have three big bags of various things in the trunk of the car.

I keep a running list going on a legal pad of when I add something to a bag. That way, when they give us a receipt for tax purposes, I just staple the receipt to the multi-page list. It just says "four bags of donated goods" on it.

When we do our income tax, I go to the IRS website and get the list of what you can deduct for various items, like "men's dress shirt" or "ladies dress shoes," etc. Actually IRS will let us deduct more probably than we'd get if we had a yard sale. So this way we get the tax deduction and someone else gets the benefit of our stuff. And we don't have to sit in the front yard all day.

I can't sit that long unless I'm embroidering. Or reading. Or at the computer.

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BIBLE STUDY: Hebrews 7:1-28

In this chapter we read about Melchizedek again. In these opening verses of this chapter, there is some clarification, I think, as to whether Melchizedek is an allegorical incarnation of Christ.

Aside from being the King of Salem (verse 2), and actually meeting Abraham (who gave him a tithe from the plunder that Abraham had gathered up when he beat the socks off the kings during that mighty war), Melchizedek, in verse 3, is described as: Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.

Now, I don't claim to be an expert Bible scholar. Rather, I believe that God speaks through the Bible and he says what he means to say, so when verse 3 tells me that Melchizedek is "made like unto the Son of God," I don't infer from that passage that Melchizedek was a predecessor incarnation of Jesus Christ.

Melchizedek was a most high priest. He wasn't even a Levitical priest and he got Abraham's tithe.

Bible scholars go back and forth on what to make of Melchizedek's genealogy not being mentioned in the Bible.

Some say his not having a mother or father makes him pretty special. Then others say that he was a man, so he must have had a mother and a father. I mean, he didn't just spring up out of nowhere.

Besides the Bible didn't record the family tree of every single person who walked the earth at this time in Bible history. At some point, the family tree of mankind (that started with Adam and Eve at its base) branched off to the point where every little twig of a family failed to get recorded. 

Nowhere is it written or suggested that the Bible is a complete written history of the entire world. However, it is a complete list of the line of Adam and Eve all the way to Jesus Christ.  

I mean, there's no reference in the Bible about London being incorporated as a city in 43 A.D.

There's no reference about the first wrestling match in Japan in 23 B.C.

And I can't find any reference to the Romans first use of soap which they learned about from the Gauls in 50 A.D.

Plutarch isn't mentioned in the Bible and yet he was supposed to be one of the best historians that the Greeks had to offer. He was born in 47 A.D.

The first date in Mayan chronology is -3372. The Mayans aren't mentioned in the Bible at all.

But much is made of the fact that Melchizedek's parentage is not recorded. It would have been recorded if God had wanted it recorded. He didn't so it wasn't.

But it is noted that Melchizedek received Abraham's tithe. Abraham was supposed to give a tithe to the high priest at the temple. The fact that he gave the tithe to Melchizedek says what? That Melchizedek was a higher priest than a Levitical priest? That's what Biblical references to Melchizedek note when he is referred to as the "priest of the most high God."

Maybe this will help explain. "Once a year, on the Great Day of Atonement, the earthly high priest of the Jews was permitted to enter the Holy of Holies with the blood of animals in order to make propitiation for sins. The author of Hebrews discovers a parallel between this high-priestly figure and the Lord Jesus, who by his death on the cross as a lamb of sacrifice has shed his blood once for all, and with that blood has passed into the heavenly sanctuary.

"A further parallel is drawn between Jesus and Moses. Just as Moses brought the Jewish people through the wilderness to the threshold of the promised land on earth, so Jesus brings men to the promised land of heaven..." (van Unnik, W.C., The New Testament In History and Message," Harper & Row, Publishers, New York, 1962., p. 150)

In this letter to the Hebrews, no claim is being made that Melchizedek is an immortal being. To the contrary, in verse 13 we read this: For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe, of which no man gave attendance at the altar.

So Melchizedek had his lineage in another tribe, not the tribe of Levi. And Jesus' lineage is from the tribe of Judah.

And why is all this talk about the rules of priesthood going on? Well, we get a good clue as to the reasoning in verse 19: For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by which we draw nigh unto God.

And in verse 24: But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Jesus, you see, because he was a man, became a priest. He became a priest because he appointed to be a priest. And because he is God, his priesthood lasts forever.

Now Jesus can say that people can come to God through him -- forever!

Jesus does not need to offer sacrifices like other priests were doing in the temple. The temple priests could only offer animals. Quite differently, Jesus became the sacrifice.

He died in our place.

Translation: King James Version

Historical references are from "The Timetables of History."

##

PSYCHOLOGY:  Emotional Trauma -- How Good Are You At Adapting? (Part 2)

This is the second part of a three-part column about emotional trauma. The first part can be found in yesterday's column.

Emotional trauma shows up in three different areas of our well-being. The body, of course, is the first way that we get the idea that we're not quite operating at full capacity.

Then, there are those feelings we get. This is where we feel emotionally shipwrecked.

And finally, how we think may very well change a bit when our feelings get stretched beyond our mental resources.

Let's go back to the physical.

I don't care what those commercials say, if you're experiencing or trying to survive a round of emotional trauma, you're likely to experiencing some decrease in sexual delights.

You're probably not going to be sleeping all that well either, and your food may taste like Styrofoam. So much for appetite, huh?

Then you may get a good case of what I call the "mopes." You probably know about that one. You could just sit and watch air move. You're lost inside your head and it feels like you're being held hostage. So you're just going to sit there and rest until someone comes up with the ransom.

Speaking of being inside your head, there may be a problem with how you're thinking. Maybe feel a bit distracted. Going to write a note to somebody but can't remember who. Maybe you're going to send a birthday card but can't remember how old someone now is. Going to make a grocery list but since you don't have any appetite anyway, why bother!

And in the ordinary course, you're sharp. Your decisions are right on. Now you can't even choose what to order for lunch. "I'll just have a glass of water," is not a good option. Besides, serving persons would go bankrupt with a bunch of customers who just ordered water.

Then there are those memory lapses. It does not mean you're losing your mind. Even if your concentration is a bit off.

It will all come back to you, so just relax. If you can. When you can.

Don't be surprised if you have some kind of transitory amnesia, especially about the time just before and just after some traumatic event. Our souls are kind to us and for some reason, memory of maybe 15 to 20 seconds immediately before or after the event will not be available to you. Don't go trying to dredge it up. It's buried for a reason -- mainly because you're not supposed to keep reliving a traumatic event.

We'll pick up with Part 3 tomorrow.

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

We went note this weekend to be with my sister. Her real name is Anna Mae but she's always been "Cookie" to me. That's because she used to eat a lot of vanilla waters. Then, when it came time for mom to make banana pudding, there were not enough vanilla wafers. So we nicknamed her Cookie.

She's only 15 months older than I am. We have never had an argument. It's one of those cherished relationships where we didn't have to stand ground against each other. If there ever was a disagreement, it was easy to defer to her unless something really, really mattered. In that case, she'd defer to me. So we never butted heads about anything.

We couldn't be angry with one another. Ever.

Besides, when you only have one sister, it's easy to figure out who your best friend it.

We survived the deaths of our two brothers, a father, a step-father, and most recently, our mother. Cookie was widowed twice. So now, it's just Cookie and me left in our nuclear family.

Last week she called to say a needle biopsy was scheduled for Friday. There's a tumor about the size of a golf ball on her upper right lung. That was a psychic earthquake that I can't even measure.

The aftershocks will continue until she gets the report from her doctor this Wednesday, about noon.

Please pray for Cookie.

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BIBLE STUDY: Hebrews 6:1-20

This chapter contains another stern warning to the Hebrews. We find it in verses 4-6: It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God, and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.

That's a stern warning, indeed. For if we reject Christ in our lives, we are crucifying him to ourselves.

And who would want to commit this kind of spiritual suicide? Oh, no! As Christians, we need to keep the death and resurrection of Christ very much alive in our hearts. Because he rose from death, we are given the key to eternal life. Rejecting Christ undoes all that and it's the same as if our sins had never been forgiven.

This passage in Hebrews warned those guys to get back with the program of living a life of redeemed people who claimed the gift of salvation from God. The warning in these verses is just as serious for us today.

We just cannot let ourselves wander off into fields of temptation where Christ doesn't matter.

And it's pure folly to live our lives with this notion that when times get rough, or times get short, then we'll get ourselves back to worship like we're supposed to.
 
The message to the Hebrews is that it's easier to stay connected than it is to get reconnected.

So don't go wandering off. Keep Christ alive in your heart.

Then this letter to the Hebrews takes on a note of promise, starting at verse 9: Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are confident of better things in your case -- things that accompany salvation. God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.

Remember the promises, the Hebrews are asked.

All down through the ages, prophets and leaders from Moses forward, the people had to be reminded that God had made a promise to them. And then, because Jesus came to earth, died and was resurrected, all people who believe in Christ can have that same promise for themselves.

In this very act of God's divine love, all of us can read the promises God made to Abraham and know that we, too, have this very same promise. We became children of God through Jesus Christ.

We become heavenly heirs and inherit the kingdom of heaven through Christ's suffering and death and resurrection.

From verse 13, we read (NRSV): When God made a promise to Abraham, because he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, saying, "I will surely bless you and multiply you." And thus Abraham, having patiently endured, obtained the promise. Human beings, of course, swear by someone greater than themselves, and an oath given as confirmation puts an end to disputes.

In the same way, when God desired to show even more clearly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it by an oath, so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible that God would prove false, we who have taken refuge might be strongly encouraged to seize the hope set before us.

We have this hope, a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters the inner shrine behind the curtain, where Jesus, a forerunner on our behalf, has entered, having become a high priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.

Keep in mind that "this hope that enters the shrine behind the curtain" is a reference to the curtain separating the Holy of Holies. This curtain in the temple marked the boundary beyond which only the High Priests were allowed to go.

It is also beyond this curtain where the Torah was stored, when not in use for worship. The Ark of the Covenant was also there.

It is this huge, heavy curtain in the temple at Jerusalem that was torn in half -- from floor to ceiling -- at the moment of Christ's death. Jesus went behind that curtain even though he was not a Levitical high priest. But he became the most high priest when he died for our sins.

Melchizedek was also described as a "most high priest." Melchizedek had occasion to minister to Abraham. And even though Melchizedek was called a most high priest, he was not from the tribe of Levi either. So he and Jesus shared the fact that they were both referred to as "most high priests," although neither of them were Levitical high priests.

That was a very big deal to the Hebrews. And it is to Bible students even today.

Incidentally, the tearing of the temple curtain coincides with an earthquake that occurred at the time of the death of Christ. This is a real moment in recorded time. I can't find my reference at the moment but I remember reading that this particular earthquake is purported to be in the range of a 7.5. That's a huge earthquake.

From Wikipedia, I found this: The church historian Eusebius of Caesarea (264-340) in his Chronicle, cited a statement of the 2nd-century chronicler Phlegon of Tralles that during the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad (AD 32/33) "a great eclipse of the sun occurred at the sixth hour that excelled every other before it, turning the day into such darkness of night that the stars could be seen in heaven, and the earth moved in Bithynia, toppling many buildings in the city of Nicaea. In the same passage, Eusebius cited another unnamed Greek source also recording earthquakes in the same locations as well as an eclipse. Eusebius argued the two records had documented events that were simultaneous with the crucifixion of Jesus. (read more at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crucifixion_eclipse)

Christ entered the Holy of Holies and takes us with him into that special place. His death and resurrection wills our soul with the hope of eternal salvation.

We become gifted in the promise of God, just as Abraham had.

So, whenever you get in a position where you tend to lose hope, when you feel yourself slipping back into the humanness of your temptations, when you want reassurances of the promises of God, put a paper clip at the top of the page in your Bible that will mark Hebrews 6 for you.

Let this chapter be one of your Biblical anchors that will keep you moored to Christ.

And just like the Hebrews had to be reminded, we too have to be reminded sometimes that there's one thing for sure in all of heaven and earth and that is: God's promises come true. 

And how do we know that? Because it is impossible for God to tell a lie. It says so in Hebrews 6:18.

Believe it!

Note: Just to make a clarification about the Temple Veils. They were big -- 60 feet long, 30 feet wide and the thickness of a man's palm. They were so heavy, says one writer, that it took 300 priests to move them into place.

The Veil being torn from top to bottom was of such significance because it meant that God's own hand tore it in two. Other notes about this event and the resulting requirement for the Sanhedrin to move out of this area of the temple to a trading area, can be found at: http://www.ensignmessage.com/archives/mysteriousevents.html

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PSYCHOLOGY: Emotional Trauma -- How Good Are You At Adapting?

The definition of emotional trauma includes such events as the breakup of a significant relationship, surviving horrific experiences such as earthquakes, tornadoes, car crashes, hurricanes, a deeply disappointing experience, the discovery of a life-threatening illness, or some other occurrence that takes a particularly high emotional toll on our sense of well being.

There are three criteria to meet in determining whether an event brings emotional trauma to invade us. They are:

1. We did not expect the event
2. We are not prepared to cope with what happened
3. We couldn't do anything to stop it from happening

Okay, so we had something happen that we didn't like -- didn't see it coming -- couldn't stop it and it just came out of nowhere.

But how is that traumatic? We feel like I've been shipwrecked. It surprises us because we can usually cope with anything. In fact, we're downright proud of the fact that we can handle the zingers that life throws at us.

Traumatic stress is a lot different from our average, ordinary stressors that we encounter just because we're human beings living in complex life situations down here on planet earth.

In order to differentiate which is which, we need to take a look at how quickly we return to normal.

We also need to see whether or not the upset is triggered with any frequency.

Then there's that old bugaboo of how threatened we feel. Over and over and over. How threatened do we feel? It's one thing to have a window blown out of the front of your house. That's a stress that the housewives in small towns could get used to, but when big waves of tanks came creaking across the landscape with their big booming cannons shooting holes through houses, day and night, that would be a different story. That's not stress -- rather, it's a traumatic event because it's a stressor that kept repeating itself. And there wasn't time in between tank shots to recuperate and regain equilibrium.

That helps explain, at least in part and to some degree, how battered women are able to cope with the stress of domestic violence, even though it's a repeating event. There's that period of the honeymoon phase in the cycle of violence that gives the victim time to recuperate and get back to what feels like normal again.

When we take too long to calm down, when stressors grab us and hold on too long, then we may well be frozen in emotional trauma.

This is a good time to go looking for a well-trained cognitive therapist. Interview potential therapists and ask them if they do cognitive therapy. If they can't define it, then keep looking. Otherwise, if you aren't seeing a cognitive therapist, you're going to spend a ton of money and take forever to make teensy tiny little gains. With a good cognitive therapist, you just may be back to normal inside of six months.

I'll pick up at this spot tomorrow.

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

Good morning to readers in Brazil and Bulgaria -- and of course, the United States, this morning. Always glad to see you stop by and rest a spell.

Life is peaceful and quiet here in the middle of Illinois. However, we'll be going on a corn patrol later this morning. Just curious to see where the harvest line is. Most of the corn here in the center of the state has been taken in. Beans too.

I told you about the poor guy whose bean field caught fire didn't I? He lost 30 acres and some out buildings.

But we're mainly going north to be with my sister, Cookie. I need a Cookie fix.

##

Hebrews 5: 1-14

What does it mean that Christ completely obeyed the Father for us? How can you, in turn, seek to obey the Father?

This chapter introduces instructions about how high priests were to be picked out. In verse 1, we read: Every high priest is selected from among men and is appointed to represent them in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness. This is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people.

Not only that, but they couldn't nominate themselves to be priests. It's not like the nominating committees for church council offices in this day and age that often go begging for people to fill vacancies.

You know how it is. People get running scared when it's time for the church council to be elected. Especially when they get a call from someone they know is on the nominating committee.

But in those early days of the Hebrew church, it was God who called people to serve. Try to turn him down!

In verses 4-6, this matter is cleared up: No one takes this honor upon himself; he must be called by God, just as Aaron was. So Christ also did not take upon himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father." And he says in another place, "You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek."

That "other place" referred to above is an exact quote from Psalm 110:4b -- "you are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek."

So who exactly was Melchizedek?

The first Biblical reference to Melchizedek goes all the way back to Genesis 14:18-20: Then Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, and he blessed Abram, saying, "Blessed by Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth. And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand.

What does it mean that Jesus Christ is a priest in "the order of Melchizedek?"

Jesus, like Melchizedek, was not a Levite. Because of this, neither of them would "qualify" for Levitical priesthood.

If you want to explore a diversion into Melchizedek and the fact that the Bible offers no lineage for him, no recorded family tree, there is plenty of information available from Internet sources.

One view says that just because Melchizedek's geneology is not recorded probably means that he was not a big enough "player" in Biblical history -- that is, compared to Abraham -- to have his lineage printed up.

I'm not sure I believe this. Melchizedek is mentioned several times in the Bible, and always in a position of comparison with Jesus Christ. That does not say "unimportant" to me.

Truth is, Melchizedek has a place in Bible history. But we can't trace his Biblical genealogy to Levi, so he couldn't qualify as a Levitical high priest.

But Jesus, on the other hand, is the Son of God. Because of his divine lineage, Jesus' ability to be a high priest more elevated than Melchizedek is assured by God himself.

All his life, Jesus was dutiful and obedient. And without sin. Even at the very end of his life, during his anguished suffering and death, Jesus cried out loudly to God above to be spared the painful suffering. He was not spared.

But Jesus submitted and because he submitted to death, we learn in verses 8-11: Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

But the Hebrews seem to have forgotten all that. In this chapter, they are called "big babies."

They've been lollygagging about when, in fact, they should have been teachers bringing others to the Lord. They were told that, quite frankly, they were slow to learn.

Might just as well have called them ignoramuses.

Now they had to learn the most basic, most elementary truths about salvation all over again. To make it perfectly plain to them, the Hebrews are told that (verses 13-14) Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

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OBAMA USING AN OLD PLOY -- IRONY. HERE'S HOW IT WORKS

I was reading quite a bit about Melchizedek this morning. I don't know quite how I got off on a diversionary track, but it's easy to do on the internet.

But I went down a road off the information superhighway about atheists.

Oh, I remember now. It has to do with Obama saying he was no longer going to wear an American flag lapel pin. He said something about being known by his actions that would determine whether or not people perceive him as an American patriot.

He's about three steps away from making a bait-hit for irony. And that might be something like, "Most people who wear a flag lapel pin are just showing off," or "Just wearing a flag lapel pin doesn't make you a real patriot (like me)," or "Most people who wear a flag lapel pin aren't real patriots."

If he says it long enough -- and there's plenty of time before the election in November to say it long enough -- the other candidates, Republican and Democrat alike -- will jump in and say "I am too. Who are you saying is not a patriot?"

And at that point, he gets a politician on the defensive. And he gets back in the news. He's been losing a lot of percentage points lately so he needs to figure out some way to get his name back in print.

I mean, after all, these dummy politicians started out so early that they have run out of things to say. There's only a certain number of times that any of them can go on the talk shows. Nobody listens to old, rehashed stuff. So they have to keep re-inventing their game plans.

Otherwise, people are going to do more interesting things. Like mow their grass on Sunday afternoons, or weed the flower beds.

Ratings then go down when these politicos come on. Pretty soon the TV show ratings go down. Then they go looking for interesting guests -- not political re-runs.

But the irony is an interesting ploy. We'll just have to wait and see if the political candidates bite Obama's bait.

If they do, it ought to be interesting. They're about ready to start cannibalizing each other.

Anything to grab a headline.

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

Today is going to be a better day. Yesterday, from about noon on, my back was a bunch of screaming bundles of nerves. So after I finished up the Bible study, I sat on a heating pad most of the day.

This particular heating pad is wonderful. It has little wiggling vibrations for the upper back, lower back and upper thighs. I also have the option of having heat added to the wigglies.

Not only that, but because I intended to lie down most of the afternoon, I did without the coffee. All the better to nod off. But I didn't. Not with HGTV changing programs every half hour.

I was just a mess. I'm not even going to cook today. Quint is going to Papa John's to get a Tuscan pizza. It has six different cheeses. Sounds yummy. We've never had a Tuscan pizza before.

Quint is putting the Grandfathers Clock together. It had been disassembled by the movers months and months ago. He has the clock works put back into the clock and I think there are other pieces to add in -- like the clock hands and the weight, etc.

And we can hang the single shelf unit that will be for CDs and DVDs. That was going to be yesterday's project but I wasn't much good for anything.

##

Hebrews 4: 1-16

The note for today is: "Find time today and everyday to rest in the Lord."

This chapter talks about two kinds of rest: God's rest and the rest he insists that his faithful followers take part in.

So what is God's rest?

God rested after his created the world. And then, when he had completed all things necessary for a smooth running of the world which he handed over to Adam, administratively, God rested on the seventh day.

But in verse 3 there were differences in this command to rest: Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said,

"So I declared on oath in my anger, "They shall never enter my rest.'"

And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world. For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: "And on the seventh day God rested from all his work." And again in the passage above he says, "They shall never enter my rest."

In order for me to be able to wrap my thoughts around this, I have to backtrack a bit to the time when the Israelites were gifted with manna from heaven. God specifically told the Israelites (Ex. 16:31) that they were to pick up only enough manna for the Today.

It required a lot of faith to resist hoarding. Some of the Israelites did hoard. Guess they weren't sure that God would keep his promise to supply them with the nutritious manna that fell from heaven.

The problem was that in their hoarding, their disbelief was met with a bunch of manna that got worms in it when it was stored.

It was like God saying to them, "Look, I told you people that I would give you fresh manna every day. You are supposed to have faith in my promises and not hoard any manna for tomorrow."

Okay, so now fast forward to the God's promises here in Hebrews that the people who have faith in him are to rest on the seventh day. I repeat, in verse 3, God said, "Now we who have believed enter that rest ..."

This command continues in verses 8-10: For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his.

There it is as plain as day: work as hard and as furiously as we want, but on the seventh day, we are to rest. So put your feet up and enjoy your day of rest and have faith that God will give you energy aplenty for tomorrow to get your work started up again.

God wants us to show evidence of the faith we have in him.

Farmers have a saying that work done on Sunday has to be re-done on Monday. For that reason, you seldom see farmers out in the fields working on Sunday.

And don't think you can ever sneak around and do something that God wouldn't be aware of. Read this in verse 13: Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

And are we ever tempted? You bet we are!

Consider this: We have Jesus the Son of God, who encourages us to hold onto the faith that we say we have. Jesus, as our high priest, has been tempted in every way, just as we are -- yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

##

HAIL TO THEE, MR. LIMBAUGH

He's clearly the king of talk radio. He has an army of fiercely devout listeners from coast to coast -- or better yet, around the world. Particularly listeners on U.S. military bases.

But he ignited a firestorm last week when he made reference to phony soldiers.

For sure, he was not referring to the soldiers who are out putting their lives on the line.

But what Mr. Limbaugh clearly has no use for are the phony soldiers who claim that they are decorated heroes who have, in fact, washed out of basic training. Phony soldiers are also people like the guy in Iraq in the early days of the war who tossed a hand grenade into another soldier's tent.

For sure, there are phony soldiers in every war who lay claim to Purple Hearts when they never got their injuries in combat, but rather, got bandaid injuries performing minor repairs to equipment. They weren't facing down the enemy at all.

So in response to Mr. Limbaugh's latest rebuke of all things dumb, his words got taken out of context. And Chief Senator Harry Reid actually took it to the senate floor and had the talk show host censored.

Never mind that the senate hasn't done any of the work of the people that's necessary to pass a new budget -- and this do-nothing senate caused President Bush to pass a temporary emergency measure to keep this country funded.

But in the meantime, both the house and senate are so busy trying to single out one talk show host that they don't seem to be able to find the time to do the job they were elected to do. At a cost to the taxpayers of $162,500 each!

##

JAPAN NOW HAS SATELLITE IN ORBIT AROUND THE MOON

It's in orbit about 60 miles away from the moon in an egg-shaped lunar orbit.

It weighs about two tons. That's about the size of a couple of cars.

It's going to launch two satellites that will assist in getting the lunar explorer into a circular orbit.

It was launched by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation). It was launched September 14 from the Tanegashima Space Center.

read more: http://www.jaxa.jp/press/2007/10/20071001_kaguya_e.html and at
http://www.jaxa.jp/projects/sat/selene/index_e.html

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ABOUT ALL THOSE POLLS

I listen to the polls and wonder who the pollsters are talking to.

I, for one, have never been contacted by any pollster. And I don't know anyone who has been.

Now with the "don't call me" list in place, I have learned that people who are on that do not call list cannot be contacted by any of the political candidates.

Unless --

and not until a "significant relationship" has been established with any candidate.

Making a donation to a candidate's campaign would establish such a significant relationship.

So, no wonder the candidates can report high numbers. They can only contact people who have donated to their campaigns. And we can assume that those people would most certainly be in favor of that particular candidate.

Do we have a bias going here? Certainly appears so.

I'm not sure if just going to a candidate's web site also qualifies as a significant relationship.

Either way, I'm not donating and I'm not going to any candidate's web site unless it's for the person I actually want to be elected to office, like president.

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

Welcome to readers in Japan, Finland, Pakistan, Iran, and, of course, the United States. In looking at the time charts, there are only two hours -- 4 am and 7 am -- when the web site is quiet. Other than that, there are readers on every hour of the day. I still just find that absolutely amazing.

By far, this page is clicked on most frequently. I am also happy to report that the Bible study is one of the reasons (conclusion reached from your e-mails).

Which reminds me. Much news coming out of Britain this morning from Princess Diana's inquest and never-before-shown photos of the accident. The three photos that were being shown over and over and over showed the back of the princess' head as she apparently was looking out the rear windshield at a rapidly approaching photographer on a motorcycle; another photo taken immediately after the crash; and the final photo showing a doctor after he arrived.

All the photos do is tell us what happened. The world knows that Diana died because the car crashed.

The photos do not seem to tell us why she died. Dodi's father is making all kinds of conspiracy accusations against the monarchy.

The truth of the matter is there would probably not be anything that would convince him to the contrary. He's either holding on to this delusion or something will come out at the inquest that will answer the why question -- and he may or may not accept it.

It would not be the first time that perfectly plausible explanations come forward in other death matters only to be met with skepticism by someone close to the deceased who insists on holding onto their delusions.

Truth of the matter is, this particular accident that caused the death of Princess Diana could be a safety poster for reasons why you should always wear your seat belt. She didn't have her seat belt on. Apparently she didn't like to wear a seat belt.

Physics says that if you are in a vehicle that is going forward at 80 mph and you have your seat belt on, when the vehicle makes a sudden stop, so do you. If you don't have your seat belt on and the vehicle stops, you continue going forward at 80 mph until something stops you.

Would she have lived if she had her seat belt on? Who knows. Maybe. Only God knows the answer to that. Everything else is speculation.

Quint is still working on the spice shelves. At least I think that's what he's doing over there in his corner of the basement kingdom. I see long boards that look like the uprights laid out on the sawhorses. And I heard his super dooper saw making a lot of noise yesterday.

He did make something the other day that looked like it could have been the start of the spice shelves but he used an 8" board for the back, not the 10" width. And he had used that gorilla glue, along with screws to hold the thing together.

Then I pointed out that it wasn't the right width.

Oops.

So he offered to try to take it apart. But gorilla glue is stronger than Quint and all of his tools, so we just turned it horizontally and put it on a wall in the hallway. It's the perfect size for CDs and DVDs. A CD shelf unit was on the list of things to do anyway, so we're ahead of ourselves.

##

Hebrews 3: 1-19

The point to ponder as you're reading this chapter is this: When you think of the way that Israel wandered do you ever say to yourself, "I would never have acted like that." Is that really true? Pray to God to show your weakness to you and ask for his help to correct your weakness.

This chapter begins with a metaphor.

Moses is compared to a servant in the house.

God is the builder of the house.

Jesus, as God's son, takes better care of the house than a servant would.

We hear the Holy Spirit talk in this chapter. The Holy Spirit warns the Hebrews not to harden their hearts like they did in the rebellion when they were being tested in the desert.

So the Holy Spirit reminds the Hebrews that this is why he was angry with their ancestors. In verses 10-11, he says: That is why I was angry with that generation, and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.' I declared on oath in my anger, 'They shall never enter my rest.'"

A series of rhetorical questions begin at verse 16 and continue through the end of the chapter: Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the desert? And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? So we see that they were not able to either, because of their unbelief.

This chapter defines rebellion as disobedience. As unbelief.

The children of Israel were rebellious. Even though they had hoofed it out of Egypt enjoying the umbrella of God's protection, Satan was wandering among them too.

Can't you just see the evil one whispering in their ears?

Redefining what he wanted the Israelites to think when they pondered what God had said to them through Moses.

Whether they bored or tired or just in the mood to grumble, they did the one single thing that would get really tick God off. They made an idol and they worshiped this idol.

And somehow, out there in the dry heat of the desert, they figured out how to make wine. Wine tastings led to debauchery. Adulteries followed. Probably murders too. Crimes of passion are easily wrapped around adultery.

They disobeyed God and this made him very angry.

And no matter how hard he ministered to them and preached to them, Moses couldn't stop the Israelites when they plunged themselves into some serious sinning.

So Moses didn't get to go to the promised land. He could only see it from afar.

Now the Hebrew people are getting another warning. It seems that they are on the brink of being disobedient. Rebellious. Sinful.

This chapter gives the Hebrews a stern talking to. A serious heads up.

We also need to look into our own hearts. We need to make sure that we don't become complacent in our faith. We need to make sure that we don't become fair game for the Big Liar who comes whispering when we are at the low points in our lives; when it's very easy to feel like God has abandoned us.

God does not abandon us. He is faithful to us every day of our lives up until the very moment when he welcomes us back home -- to him. Until we reach the other side of heaven's shores.

But if we get bored. If we get mad at God because things didn't go the way we thought they should -- not the way God had in mind -- then we put on our shades and prance off with the slithering Big Liar!

Then follow puny little alibis like when we say "I was so mad at God!"

And you say that like you're proud of it!

##

MY LIFE IN INK --

Welcome to readers in Slovenia, Finland and the Philippines. And, of course, everybody here in the good old U.S.A.!

Quint mowed the grass yesterday for probably the last time this season. First frost in this area is generally before Halloween. We've already gotten the deck stained and waterproofed. That was last week's big project.

The big project this week is making a set of shelves for all my spices. There's a nice little nook that isn't quite an arm's length from the stove. The shelf unit is 6' tall and 10" wide with many shelves. The shelves are only 4" deep. I should be able to get all the shelves in one place.

I made more oatmeal cookies yesterday and put three dozen in the freezer. I volunteered to make 6 dozen for an after-school program at church. My cookie day is November 2. I'll probably add a couple of dozen because kids don't eat broken cookies. Everybody knows that. Anyway, these cookies ought to freeze really well.
This afternoon I'll be gathering up some stuff to take to the resale shop. I already have two big bags in the trunk of the car. The bags are filled with treasures that I didn't think I could live without. But I'm actually going to part with some knickknacks and shoes I haven't worn for nearly five years. They're very nice dressy shoes.

Can't part with all the extra cleaning supplies. You'd think my house would be spotlessly clean with all the cleaning stuff I have. Not! I have more cleaning supplies than time or inclination. And when I was putting the bottles of Old English scratch cover away in the newly constructed linen closet, I discovered that there are at least ten bottles of scratch cover. That might just be a lifetime supply.

##

Hebrews 2: 1-18

There are five warnings to the Hebrews contained in this book of the Bible. The first of these warnings can be found in verses 1-4: We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.

For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?

This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him.

God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.

There are three points that come out of these first few verses.

First of all, there's a discussion about angels. Angels are messengers sent by God. They are heavenly beings that he created specifically to serve him. In this web site: http://www.ibelieveinangels.com/component/option,com_frontpage/Itemid,157/ the author says that angels are sent by God to watch over the human race, to deliver his message, to guard and protect us from danger, to do battle with other spiritual beings on our behalf.

The author goes on to say that since the beginning of time, angels have delivered God's messages to mankind. Sometimes the messages are warnings of impending danger, sometimes instructions as to what to do in a particular situation, sometimes they are simply "there" as protection from enemy forces. Sometimes they bring joyful announcements as in the day they announced the birth of Jesus.

What we need to remember, though, are three truths about angels:

1. The ministry of holy angels will never contradict the Bible.
2. The actions of holy angels will always be consistent with the character of Christ.
3. A genuine encounter with a holy angel will glorify God, not the angel. Holy angels never draw attention to themselves. They typically do their work and disappear.

Another web site that defines angels and gives us some Bible history of angels is found at: http://theshadowlands.net/angels.html#History

But back to this first warning in Hebrews: the messages of angels are binding. We ignore these messengers from God at our peril.

The second point that jumps out at me is that this message of salvation was confirmed by people who had heard it first hand. This indicates to me that the writer of Hebrews was not a person who walked with Christ. Instead, the message of salvation was confirmed by those who had actually been with and heard Christ bring the message to them.

And lastly, the author of Hebrews says that God distributes gifts of the Holy Spirit. These spiritual gifts are given to each person.

Do you know what your spiritual gifts are? The Apostle Paul refers to individual spiritual gifts several times in his letters. He identifies 20 different spiritual gifts in Romans 12:-48; 1 Corinthians 12: 4-11; 1 Corinthians 12: 27-30; and in Ephesians 4: 7-12.

I would encourage you to determine what your spiritual gifts are. There is an excellent inventory to help you figure this out at: http://www.acts17-11.com/gift_inventory.html

This is the inventory that Quint and I participated in and discovered what our spiritual gifts are at a church workshop several years ago.

The two of us share the gifts of intercession, exhortation, administration and teaching. This particular web site not only identifies the spiritual gifts by name, but also explains what each one is.

This chapter goes on to bring us more truths. Insofar as Jesus Christ is concerned, in verse 7: You made him a little lower than the angels; you crowned him with glory and honor and put everything under his feet.

Jesus was made man. By taking on flesh of humanity, (verses 14-18) by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death -- that is, the devil -- and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.

For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants.

For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.

Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are bing tempted.

For Christ, the cosmic clock had struck the minute hand of his destiny for he came to earth to become human, and yet his destiny was to bring salvation to all mankind who are born into sin. 

His destiny was to die for our sins. If he were not human, how is it that he could die?

And we know that he died. The Romans kept execution records. And we know that there was a horrific earthquake on that same day when Jesus died. This was, no doubt, the earthquake that tore the curtain in the temple that separated the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. (Luke 23:45)

Christ's death was an act of atonement for all of humankind. Embraced within that atonement is the assurance of forgiveness for our sins.

It is up to you to claim that forgiveness by confessing your sins, by your contrite spirit and your promise to God that, with the help of the Holy Spirit, you will not continually commit the same greedy little sins over and over again. Don't be complacent about this forgiveness because there is not a promise of another atonement for you anywhere in the Bible.

Claim forgiveness today as the gift from God that it is. Salvation for you is assured. So get down on your knees in a place where it's just you and God, and have a conversation with him.

I pray that you will feel the presence of God in this place. Even if it's a tickle that won't stop. Might just be his way of letting you know he's got you in his sights and is listening.

Heaven won't fall apart while he concentrates on hearing what you've got to say. He created lots of angels to be his servants. You are that important to him. Believe it!

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SOMETIMES WE LEAD AND SOMETIMES WE FOLLOW -- from Janet

Just up the road from my home is a field with two horses in it. From a distance, each looks like every other horse. But if you stop your car, or are walking by, you will notice something quite amazing. Looking into the eyes of one horse will disclose that he is blind. His owner has chosen not to have him put down, but has made a good home for him. This alone is amazing.

If nearby and listening, you will hear the sound of a bell. Looking around for the source of the sound, you will see that it comes from the smaller horse in the field. Attached to her halter is a small bell. It lets her blind friend know where she is, so he can follow her. As you stand and watch these two friends, you will see how she is always checking on him, and that he will listen for her bell and then slowly walk to where she is -- trusting that she will not lead him astray. When she returns to the shelter of the barn each evening, she stops occasionally and looks back, making sure her friend isn't too far behind to hear the bell.

Like the owners of these two horses, God does not throw us away just because we are not perfect or because we have problems or challenges. He watches over us and even brings others into our lives to help us when we are in need. Sometimes we are the blind horse being guided by the little ringer bell of those who God places in our lives. Other times we are the guide horse, helping others see. Good friends are like this. You don't always see them, but you know they are always there. Please listen for my bell and I'll listen for yours. Thanks for being my friend!
HERE'S ANOTHER REASON TO LEARN TO CONTROL YOUR ANGER

If you are one of those persons who have what we call trait anger, then you are at risk of developing coronary heart disease.

Trait anger is defined as a tendency to experience anger because of a wide variety of situations. In fact, just about anything could trigger an angry response.

Having trait anger makes you an angry person. Just about anything could set you off, so don't blame other people if you have never learned to control your anger.

All this expression of anger creates long-term stress. And that leads to heart problems.

Angry people need to learn to work it off -- to develop alternatives that do not include biting the bait of people who are trying to intentionally set you up just to watch you become angry.

Yes, there are people like that. And guess what? They tend to form intensely intimate relationships with people who have trait anger.

The two people, when coupled, go through their lives doing a "dance." Problem is, when they eventually wear themselves out and get a divorce, they usually end up with in another relationship with a person who has similar traits.

It's not until we change ourselves that we attract a different kind of person. Then we can build a warm, healthy, caring relationship.

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MY LIFE IN INK --

Yesterday was oatmeal cookie day. Crispy autumn afternoons beg for making two things: chili and oatmeal cookies. Since I already had made a couple of gallons of chili a week ago and my deep freeze is getting pretty full, oatmeal cookies it was.
I freeze them, eight to a bag. I'll include the recipe in today's blog, along with the recipe for the Cheddar Cheese Soup that I promised (if it turned out okay). It was more than okay so I'm glad to share it with you.

What I like about this particular recipe for the oatmeal cookies is that you can mix the entire batch up with your mixer. You can't do that with every kind of cookie recipe. At least I can't because I don't have one of those turbo charged electric mixers. Mine is just a hand-held mixer, and a wimpy one at that. But that's okay because I don't use an electric mixer all that much so it stays in a kitchen drawer until I let it come out and play on the kitchen counter.

It's starting to look more and more like autumn around here. I think that's mainly because we're in corn country -- and beans and alfalfa too -- and the farmers are bringing in their harvest. And the moon this month ought to be what we called a "harvest moon" when I was a kid. It looks like the moon is a lot bigger than it really is. It isn't really but apparently the moon orbits a bit closer to the earth and it just looks bigger. I think the full moon is around October 25th.

Big wigglies on the earth crust again. This time in the south Pacific -- like a 7.3 in the New Zealand area, 6.8 south of the Mariana Islands, another 6.8 in New Zealand and over on our side of the globe, a 4.9 in the Santa Cruz Islands. If you want to see where in the world the earth's crust is wiggling, go to this site:
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/quakes_all.php

And not only that, but a volcano erupted off the coast of Yemen. It's the first time there's been any volcanic activity in that area since 1883. Yemen is a little country off the coast of the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, and this island where the eruption took place this morning is only two miles wide. Well, it's probably getting wider as we speak. You can read more about this amazing volcanic eruption at: http://apnews.myway.com/article/20071001/D8S0CRV83.html

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We leave the Old Testament behind for now. I had thought about continuing with the Book of Joshua just to keep up the continuity, but decided to go with the homework assignment from Pastor Rensner at Faith Lutheran Church in Shumway. This is where we are going to be transferring our membership.

Anyway, our new Bible readings will be from the Book of Hebrews.

Keep in mind that the people in and around Judea called Jesus "Rabbi." When they went to the synagogue to worship God, they read from the Torah each and every week. And they would chant a psalm.

Jesus would have been very familiar with the writings of Moses that are contained in the Torah, or Pentateuch.

Of course, they didn't have any readings from the New Testament because the Jews did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah.

Hebrews 1: 1-14

There is some dispute about who wrote the Book of Hebrews. It's been widely credited to the Apostle Paul. But Paul identified himself in all of his other writings. There is no indication anywhere in the Book of Hebrews as to who physically wrote the book.

We have to remember that all of scripture is from God, our Heavenly Father, through the Holy Spirit. Not sure if it matters a whole lot as to whose pen the Holy Spirit decided to use to bring these messages to mankind.

It does appear though, from the writings, that Hebrews was written prior to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. That occurred in 70 A.D. Again, scholars are of the opinion that whoever penned the book would surely have mentioned the temple being destroyed if it were written after the destruction.

Well, that's a good assumption if you think of the Bible as a kind of Fox News on the Plains of Moab. Maybe yes. Maybe no.

I like to view the authorship as the late Dr. Walter Martin did when he said: The Book of Hebrews was written by a Hebrew to other Hebrews telling the Hebrews to stop acting like Hebrews. In truth, many of the early Jewish believers were slipping back into the rites and rituals of Judaism in order to escape the mounting persecution. This letter, then, is an exhortation for these persecuted believers to continue in the grace of Jesus Christ.

(read more at: http://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Hebrews.html)

The Apostle Paul was Jewish. Remember that his ancestry was from the Tribe of Benjamin. He was temple-trained by the Pharisees and was, himself, a Pharisee. That made him very well versed in all the laws that we just read about in the Book of Deuteronomy.

And when I say "very well versed," I am talking about being recognized as the #1 instructor of the law. If you could liken him to the law leader of his land, then comparing him to the Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court would be close. The Apostle Paul was it.

As far as timing of the writing is concerned, we know that Pope Clement quoted from Hebrews in 95 A.D. Clement was pope from 88 - 97 A.D.

Timothy was alive at the time the book was written.

There is widely accepted belief that the Book of Hebrews was written about 65 A.D.

By this time Paul had already sent his letter to the Corinthians -- in 58 A.D.

The first Christians were massacred/martyred in 64 A.D.

St. Peter was executed in 67 A.D.

Nero succeeded his father Claudius in 68 A.D. (Claudius had been poisoned by his wife Agrippina.)

Nero committed suicide in 68 A.D.

The Jews revolted against Rome in 70 A.D. Jerusalem was captured and destroyed also in 70 A.D. Vitellius was emperor at that time.

So back to the first chapter of Hebrews:

In the very first verse of the first chapter, the Hebrews are reminded that God spoke to their ancestors by using many prophets are his mouthpieces. But in the most recent times, God the Father spoke through his son Jesus Christ.

It was through Jesus Christ that God made the universe. (verse 2b)

It is Jesus Christ who provided the purification for sins. And Jesus Christ sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. (verse 3)

In verse 4, Jesus Christ is noted as being more superior than the angels. In fact, throughout this first chapter, the difference between Jesus and the angels is repeated.

But make no mistake about it -- angels are ministering spirits whose duty it is to serve. In verse 14, the chapter closes with this kind of job description for the angels: Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

Those are powerful words. Are you among those who will inherit salvation? You are if you accept that Christ came to earth, lived and died for your sins.

Salvation is yours to claim. It is a promise from God our Heavenly Father.

The next time you pray, say to God, "I'm really sorry for all the lame things I've done that must have broken your heart. I'm really really sorry. Please forgive me and give me the strength to resist Satan and all that is evil. I want your forgiveness and I thank you for the gift of your Son, Jesus Christ, who died for my personal sins, and the sin of mankind. But for my sins, I thank you for the gift of salvation."

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DO YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE -- from Cody Droege

I am God's child (John 1:12 )

I am Christ's friend (John 15:15 )

I am united with the Lord (1 Cor. 6:17 )

I am bought with a price (1 Cor. 6:19 -20)

I am a saint (set apart for God). (Eph. 1:1)

I am a personal witness of Christ (Acts 1:8)

I am the salt & light of the earth (Matt. 5:13 -14)

I am a member of the body of Christ (1 Cor 12:27 )

I am free forever from condemnation ( Rom. 8: 1-2)

I am a citizen of Heaven. I am significant (Phil.3:20)

I am free from any charge against me (Rom. 8:31 -34)

I am a minister of reconciliation for God (2 Cor.5:17-21)

I have access to God through the Holy Spirit (Eph 2:18 )

I am seated with Christ in the heavenly realms (Eph. 2:6)

I cannot be separated from the love of God (Rom.8:35-39)

I am established, anointed, sealed by God (2 Cor.1:21-22)

I am assured all things work together for good (Rom. 8: 28 )

I have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit (John 15:16 )

I may approach God with freedom and confidence (Eph. 3: 12 )

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil. 4:13 )

I am the branch of the true vine, a channel of His life (John 15: 1-5)

I am God's temple (1 Cor. 3: 16 ).  I am complete in Christ (Col. 2: 10)

I am hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3).  I have been justified (Romans 5:1)

I am God's co-worker (1 Cor. 3:9; 2 Cor 6:1).  I am God's workmanship (Eph. 2:10 )

I am confident that the good works God has begun in me will be perfected (Phil. 1: 5)

I have been redeemed and forgiven (Col. 1:14).  I have been adopted as God's child (Eph 1:5)

I belong to God. 

Do you know

who you are!?

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CHEDDAR CHEESE SOUP -- makes 8 servings

5 T. butter
2 medium carrots, finely chopped
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 green pepper, finely chopped
1/2 cup ham, finely chopped
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 T. cornstarch
4 cups chicken broth
4 cups milk
1 tsp. Chinese mustard
2 t. crushed red pepper
1 lb. shredded cheddar cheese
1 can (3 ounces) chopped mushrooms, drained

Melt butter in a large stockpot, add carrots, celery, onion, green pepper and mushrooms. Cook over medium heat about 10 minutes, until vegetables are tender, but not brown. Stir in ham.

Add flour and cornstarch, and cook, stirring constantly for about 3 minutes. Add broth and cook, stirring constantly, until soup thickens slightly.

Add milk and spices. Heat just until the soup is desired thickness. Be sure not to bring to boil.

Note: you may not want to add the red pepper, Patti, since your kiddos probably don't like the heat, like Quint and I do. But this is absolutely the best cheddar cheese soup you'll ever taste. We just loved it. In fact, I used some of it for steamed broccoli the next day. That was delicious too.

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CHEWY OATMEAL COOKIES -- makes about 2-1/2 dozen cookies

3/4 c. butter flavored Crisco (yes, it's 0% trans fat)
1-1/4 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
1 egg
1/3 c. milk
1-1/2 t. vanilla
3 cups quick oats, uncooked
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 c. raisins
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease baking sheets. (I use parchment paper.)

Combine Crisco, brown sugar, egg, milk and vanilla in large bowl. Beat at medium speed of electric mixer until well blended.

Combine oats, flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Mix into creamed mixture at low speed until just blended. Stir in raisins and nuts. (I added the dry mixture in three different steps.)

Drop rounded tablespoonfuls of dough 2 inches apart onto baking sheet.

Bake one baking sheet at a time at 375 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool 2 minutes on baking sheet. Remove cookies to cooling rack.

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THE WORLD'S A STAGE --

This could come under the category of "Oh, so that's how he's going to do it."

Has to do with Vladimir Putin. You know his term is up pretty soon. And Russia has term limits -- 2 terms and that's it.

But he likes being president. He really, really likes it.

Well, I had this thought back a few weeks ago when he just kind of dissolved the Russian government that maybe he'd figure out a way to keep his power base and still run things even though he wouldn't actually be president anymore.

Wow! That paragraph has too many words in it. Forty-three in fact. I try to limit my sentences to three or four. Six at the most.

But you can tell I'm reading Hebrews, probably penned by the Apostle Paul who is known for writing the longest sentences in the Bible. I can't remember where it is but Paul wrote one sentence that had more than 50 words in it. When I find it, I'll let you know.

But back to Putin.

He's thinking he'll become the Prime Minister of Russia. See -- that's how he's going to keep his power!

Just call me suspicious. Or intuitive. Whatever. I just figured he wasn't going to get off the stage just because his second term was up. Isn't he clever? But then again, maybe he's just a lawyer.

read more: http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8S0HT7G0&show_article=1

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THOUSANDS MASSACRED IN BURMESE REVOLT

Hla Win, a senior official in Burma, has fled to Thailand. He refused to take part in the massacre of Burma's holy men.

The monks led a peaceful march into the capitol of Rangoon last week to protest human rights abuses.

There are about 20,000 troops in Rangoon now to quell the protests. The monks have been put in school classrooms that are being used as makeshift jails. The police have gone into the temples and are rounding up dissidents.

read more about this developing story at this link: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=484903

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