Sunday, 12 April 2009
Easter
But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in dazzling clothing; and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, "Why do you seek the living One among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen." Luke 24: 1-6a
Saturday, 11 April 2009
To Think About
What I have for you today is a story about the 5 year old twins at work. I'm going to call them Mark and John (because those aren't their names). They are adorable and may someday remember all the letters and we all want to take them home. They aren't actually identical, but they look almost identical; we're just now starting to be able to tell them apart. They're good about correcting us if we get it wrong. So, enough background.
Thursday they came in a few minutes early to use the bathroom. On their way through one of the teachers said "Hi, Mark," to which he responded "I'm not Mark, I'm John." She was surprised because she had gotten pretty good about telling them apart. Lucky for us their mom was there to assure the teacher that she was correct; they had decided to try to fool us. It was the first time they had ever done that and she was surprised too. She did make Mark tell the teacher who he was, but then he went back to insisting he was John.
After a few minutes Mark was keeping it up, but John had enough and ran out of the room after him calling, "No, Mark, you're Mark! I'm John!" Mark was pretty persistant, though, until I stood them side-by-side and told them which was which. John was happy, but Mark was not. And that's when the truth came out: I told him that I knew he was Mark and he said, "But I don't want to buy the whistle!"
Yup, it was all a plot on Mark's part to keep from having to buy a whistle. See, we have a toy store at work and the students earn tokens by working hard and trying their best and then they get to shop. The day before Mark had blown the whistle (actually a cheap plastic instrument-type thing; you know the type) and I told him he had to buy it, but he couldn't take it home that day; I was going to put his name on it and keep it in my office until the next day. This meant that he wasn't going to get enough tokens for the car. So he hatched a plan to change his name so that he didn't have to buy it. Of course this meant letting his brother take the fall for him, but this doesn't bother many 5 year olds (except the brother, of course). He didn't get away with it, of course, but it was interesting.
That's my story; you can draw your own insights from it.
Thursday they came in a few minutes early to use the bathroom. On their way through one of the teachers said "Hi, Mark," to which he responded "I'm not Mark, I'm John." She was surprised because she had gotten pretty good about telling them apart. Lucky for us their mom was there to assure the teacher that she was correct; they had decided to try to fool us. It was the first time they had ever done that and she was surprised too. She did make Mark tell the teacher who he was, but then he went back to insisting he was John.
After a few minutes Mark was keeping it up, but John had enough and ran out of the room after him calling, "No, Mark, you're Mark! I'm John!" Mark was pretty persistant, though, until I stood them side-by-side and told them which was which. John was happy, but Mark was not. And that's when the truth came out: I told him that I knew he was Mark and he said, "But I don't want to buy the whistle!"
Yup, it was all a plot on Mark's part to keep from having to buy a whistle. See, we have a toy store at work and the students earn tokens by working hard and trying their best and then they get to shop. The day before Mark had blown the whistle (actually a cheap plastic instrument-type thing; you know the type) and I told him he had to buy it, but he couldn't take it home that day; I was going to put his name on it and keep it in my office until the next day. This meant that he wasn't going to get enough tokens for the car. So he hatched a plan to change his name so that he didn't have to buy it. Of course this meant letting his brother take the fall for him, but this doesn't bother many 5 year olds (except the brother, of course). He didn't get away with it, of course, but it was interesting.
That's my story; you can draw your own insights from it.
Friday, 10 April 2009
Returning from Self-imposed Exile
Hello, anyone still out there reading my ramblings....I have returned to ramble once again!
It's been a good break. This blog-reading had begun to get the better of me; I was spending way too much time reading the ramblings of people I don't even know. It was time to stop, get away from the internet, and spend time with real, live people! Plus, I am up to my eyeballs in schoolwork and church stuff and that job thingy...you know: life!
But I have missed writing so I'm returning to share my thoughts with the world in general.
For today, though, I have nothing for you. Just an announcement of my return. Oh, and I got my hair cut last week. It is now shoulder length with layers, not all the way down my back. She cut off a LOT of hair! I like it short, though. It saves a pile of time in the mornings, time that could be better spent sleeping.
Okay, that's it for today. I'm still limiting my internet time. I'll try to come up with deep and insightful for tomorrow (but don't hold your breath).
It's been a good break. This blog-reading had begun to get the better of me; I was spending way too much time reading the ramblings of people I don't even know. It was time to stop, get away from the internet, and spend time with real, live people! Plus, I am up to my eyeballs in schoolwork and church stuff and that job thingy...you know: life!
But I have missed writing so I'm returning to share my thoughts with the world in general.
For today, though, I have nothing for you. Just an announcement of my return. Oh, and I got my hair cut last week. It is now shoulder length with layers, not all the way down my back. She cut off a LOT of hair! I like it short, though. It saves a pile of time in the mornings, time that could be better spent sleeping.
Okay, that's it for today. I'm still limiting my internet time. I'll try to come up with deep and insightful for tomorrow (but don't hold your breath).
Friday, 6 March 2009
On a break...
I'm taking a blog-break, both from writing and from reading (although admittedly there are a couple I still sneak a look at, but my current policy is that I need to actually know the writer of the blog). So far I'm surviving withdrawal!
Sunday, 8 February 2009
Quotations
From To Everyone an Answer: A Case for the Christian Worldview
"Indeed they were so bold as to proclaim him messiah in Jerusalem -- the very place where there were numerous witnesses to his execution, which presumably should have scotched the rumor that he was more than an ordinary mortal."
Aside from the importance of what he's saying (roughly translated, that the disciples proclaimed Jesus was alive in the same city he was crucified), guess why I liked that sentence.
And in a different vein (still talking about Jesus):
"He came to make known something about God and something about humankind and something about their interrelationship in the crucible of a volatile environment in which proclamations about the intervening saving reign of God were dangerous and could get one crucified because of what such messages implied about one's own relationships of power to both God and God's people."
I have read that sentences, in general, should be no more than 15-20 words. A bit longer is okay to make a point, but longer sentences tend to lose people. This one has 59 words. I read it three times before I understood it at all. It's actually easier to understand now that I've taken it out of the paragraph. No wonder Apologetics is giving me a headache.
"Indeed they were so bold as to proclaim him messiah in Jerusalem -- the very place where there were numerous witnesses to his execution, which presumably should have scotched the rumor that he was more than an ordinary mortal."
Aside from the importance of what he's saying (roughly translated, that the disciples proclaimed Jesus was alive in the same city he was crucified), guess why I liked that sentence.
And in a different vein (still talking about Jesus):
"He came to make known something about God and something about humankind and something about their interrelationship in the crucible of a volatile environment in which proclamations about the intervening saving reign of God were dangerous and could get one crucified because of what such messages implied about one's own relationships of power to both God and God's people."
I have read that sentences, in general, should be no more than 15-20 words. A bit longer is okay to make a point, but longer sentences tend to lose people. This one has 59 words. I read it three times before I understood it at all. It's actually easier to understand now that I've taken it out of the paragraph. No wonder Apologetics is giving me a headache.
Friday, 6 February 2009
Crayons
I have determined that the life span of a box of crayons in Children's Church is not more than 9 months. Actually, it's about 6 months of living and 3 months on life support.
About 9 months ago I bought 6 new boxes of crayons from Dollarama. (Before you begin to wonder just how cheap I am, understand that they are Crayola crayons and they are boxes of 24. These are not cheap crayons; they are simply inexpensive!) Three months ago I straightened out the boxes (again) and determined that I had 2 complete sets of crayons, 3 mostly complete sets, and 1 box of broken crayon pieces. I figured they would last a few more months before I needed to replace them. Last Sunday I noticed that no one has a complete set anymore, so I decided it's time for new ones.
Side note: I understand the broken crayons. I do not know how so many disappear. When I'm teaching we check the table, the chairs, and the floor for crayons. It's after I haven't been teaching that I need to go through the boxes for the kids and reorganize the sets so they have the right colours (yes I spoil them; your point is?) and that's usually when I find out how many are missing. I don't think everyone is as compulsive as I am about making sure we have all the crayons at the end of class.
Anyway...today I bought new crayons. Six beautiful boxes. The kids will be very happy Sunday morning. The old crayons always go to the nursery unless the youngest Sunday School class wants them. I always feel a bit bad about that; basically I'm saying, "Here are some crayons that are no longer good enough for my kids so your kids can have them." On the other hand, we are talking about children who still eat crayons, so it's probably okay!
About 9 months ago I bought 6 new boxes of crayons from Dollarama. (Before you begin to wonder just how cheap I am, understand that they are Crayola crayons and they are boxes of 24. These are not cheap crayons; they are simply inexpensive!) Three months ago I straightened out the boxes (again) and determined that I had 2 complete sets of crayons, 3 mostly complete sets, and 1 box of broken crayon pieces. I figured they would last a few more months before I needed to replace them. Last Sunday I noticed that no one has a complete set anymore, so I decided it's time for new ones.
Side note: I understand the broken crayons. I do not know how so many disappear. When I'm teaching we check the table, the chairs, and the floor for crayons. It's after I haven't been teaching that I need to go through the boxes for the kids and reorganize the sets so they have the right colours (yes I spoil them; your point is?) and that's usually when I find out how many are missing. I don't think everyone is as compulsive as I am about making sure we have all the crayons at the end of class.
Anyway...today I bought new crayons. Six beautiful boxes. The kids will be very happy Sunday morning. The old crayons always go to the nursery unless the youngest Sunday School class wants them. I always feel a bit bad about that; basically I'm saying, "Here are some crayons that are no longer good enough for my kids so your kids can have them." On the other hand, we are talking about children who still eat crayons, so it's probably okay!
Tuesday, 3 February 2009
What's Making Me Happy Today
- Getting off work early today (actually I got off at 5, but I've been working so many evenings that 5 feels early).
- Finally finding that I'm understanding the apologetics text books. The more I read the more it makes sense.
- Finding the "Stuff Christians Like" blog. If you head over that way, be sure to check out the comments as well as the posts; sometimes the comments are funnier.
- E-mails from the kids. They make me smile.
- Reading comics instead of apologetics for a while.
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