Well, I've been sticking to my plan of reading at least a chapter/hour in each book for school. I'm making some progress. My mom called to say they were in Nebraska on Tuesday and would be picking Jack up on Friday evening. So we did laundry on Tuesday and started thinking about what he wanted to take for his month long trip. Yesterday it was so hot and sticky (I'm not sure the air conditioning is working properly at work), we went swimming after work instead of shopping for batteries. We figured we could do that on Thursday when we packed.
Well, I'd been stressing about what to pack all his 'stuff' in (a month is a long time to be away from your 'stuff'), so after dinner I went and got a box I had brought home for my husband to use in recycling the smaller cardboard boxes. I then put in the board games and cards, etc, and asked him to start thinking about other things when the phone rang. My mother called to say they were held up by the rain in Cleveland (two days earlier and only two hours away!!) and that they would be here in the morning! Well, we started to scramble to pack his clothes and his skateboard/equipment, and everything else. Plus deal with the 'it's really real' jitters.
So at 6:15am on Thursday, my mom and stepdad pulled in the driveway. It gave my mom and I time for a long visit, before Mike came home to say goodbye and Aurora came over to have breakfast and we got everything loaded up and at 8:00 by boy pulled out for four weeks (plus three days) at grandma's house.
Now, I just have to fininsh my reading plan, print out my report, go shopping, finalize my sermon for Sunday, and get everything packed and loaded for my month at Duke.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Monday, June 25, 2007
making progress
Well we are six days and counting -- I am so far behind in my reading for school that I am committed to one hour in each book between now and Sunday when I leave for Duke, which so far has amounted to one chapter per book!!!
I did write my paper, I just need to remember to print it off and take it with me!!! I also need to double/triple check the syllabus to find out if there is anything else I need to have ready to turn in on July 2nd.
I also need to contact the school and find out about my accomodations. I will need to contact my roommate to be sure she will be in the apartment on Sunday night when I get there or I will not have a place to sleep on Sunday night. Registration begins at 8am on Monday and then classes begin sometime around lunchtime.
Just so you know, reading these books about how the Bible came to be can make an athiest out of anyone. Having the authors show you over and over again how the Hebrew Bible is full of pagan rituals and responses to pagan history and nowhere do they say it is God breathed or God inspired or even that God is leading the people is just hard for me. I personally am an Old Testament Christian -- Jesus came and died for me and my sins -- but it's all about the Father for me and the way he related to the people of the Old Testament. We'll see how I feel in five weeks!!!!
I did write my paper, I just need to remember to print it off and take it with me!!! I also need to double/triple check the syllabus to find out if there is anything else I need to have ready to turn in on July 2nd.
I also need to contact the school and find out about my accomodations. I will need to contact my roommate to be sure she will be in the apartment on Sunday night when I get there or I will not have a place to sleep on Sunday night. Registration begins at 8am on Monday and then classes begin sometime around lunchtime.
Just so you know, reading these books about how the Bible came to be can make an athiest out of anyone. Having the authors show you over and over again how the Hebrew Bible is full of pagan rituals and responses to pagan history and nowhere do they say it is God breathed or God inspired or even that God is leading the people is just hard for me. I personally am an Old Testament Christian -- Jesus came and died for me and my sins -- but it's all about the Father for me and the way he related to the people of the Old Testament. We'll see how I feel in five weeks!!!!
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Sermon Prep (or not!)
Well, I thought I had a good idea for a sermon. It would be based on historical quotes that everyone has probably heard except that they are actually Biblical. I wanted to show that our country (or at least its founders) were biblically literate. And expand it to include other popular sayings such as "Red sky at night..." which is also something that Jesus said.
But guess what....I don't have enough of these. I sent an e-mail to almost my entire address book and got some replies that included links to websites that were a little helpful or since I had used a Lincoln quote got more Lincoln quotes.
What I was looking for was "My favorite quote is _____ and then I found out that it's in the Bible!" Maybe those of you who have actually found this blog have a quote you would like to share so I can finish my sermon for 07/01/07 (would also be my July 4th/Independence Day offering).
God bless you all!
But guess what....I don't have enough of these. I sent an e-mail to almost my entire address book and got some replies that included links to websites that were a little helpful or since I had used a Lincoln quote got more Lincoln quotes.
What I was looking for was "My favorite quote is _____ and then I found out that it's in the Bible!" Maybe those of you who have actually found this blog have a quote you would like to share so I can finish my sermon for 07/01/07 (would also be my July 4th/Independence Day offering).
God bless you all!
Thursday, June 14, 2007
time's running out
Well, I just looked at the calendar and I am sixteen days from heading off to Summer Course of Study (SCOS) at Duke University/Divinity School. I have at least two books to read, a paper to write on a book that I actually did finish, and reread five or six books of the Bible in the RSV. I need to really get into the syllabus for each course (there are four of them).
In addition, this week I need to take my five year old to the zoo - we haven't been there very often this year -- our schedule has been crazy. On the 22nd and 23rd, I will be in Cleveland for the Women of Faith (WOF) conference and preconference with Beth Moore. The after work on the 29th, I need to take my five year old to grandma's where he will be spending the month. This is in addition to the SCOS work, my day job, preparing a sermon for each of the next three Sundays (I'm leaving for Duke from church on the 1st!), keeping the household together and keeping up with my daughter who is at her dad's (just around the block) for the summer before heading to Edinboro for her junior year.
Last year I was not assigned a roommate so I had a lot of down time to study and read and nap, etc. This year I am rooming with one of my classmates -- it's going to be interesting to see the dynamics of that along with the fact that most people agree that the 2nd year is the hardest of the five years of SCOS.
In addition, this week I need to take my five year old to the zoo - we haven't been there very often this year -- our schedule has been crazy. On the 22nd and 23rd, I will be in Cleveland for the Women of Faith (WOF) conference and preconference with Beth Moore. The after work on the 29th, I need to take my five year old to grandma's where he will be spending the month. This is in addition to the SCOS work, my day job, preparing a sermon for each of the next three Sundays (I'm leaving for Duke from church on the 1st!), keeping the household together and keeping up with my daughter who is at her dad's (just around the block) for the summer before heading to Edinboro for her junior year.
Last year I was not assigned a roommate so I had a lot of down time to study and read and nap, etc. This year I am rooming with one of my classmates -- it's going to be interesting to see the dynamics of that along with the fact that most people agree that the 2nd year is the hardest of the five years of SCOS.
Saturday, June 9, 2007
networking/holy conferencing
I created this blog with the intent of deleting it immediately. I do not like to put things into writing. The written word can be used to uplift, to become historical or they can be used against you -- also with the age of the internet it becomes even more difficult to keep track of who knows your thoughts.
But I just came out of a meeting, that due to what could only be God's timing, I just gave an impassioned speech to the Bishop of our annual conference! I felt compelled to not shut my mouth and sit down when it was observed that he was on his way to join our meeting. (I did not actually direct these words at the bishop, but was okay with him hearing them)
Well, the bishop actually affirmed that what I had to say saying I had articulated a new or expanded viewpoint and then went on to discuss with the entire room his thoughts on the issue.
I may still not blog often or put too much of me in this blog. But I feel I have just made progress!! Please pray for me, that my blog will be honoring to God and the larger church as well as the community at large.
But I just came out of a meeting, that due to what could only be God's timing, I just gave an impassioned speech to the Bishop of our annual conference! I felt compelled to not shut my mouth and sit down when it was observed that he was on his way to join our meeting. (I did not actually direct these words at the bishop, but was okay with him hearing them)
Well, the bishop actually affirmed that what I had to say saying I had articulated a new or expanded viewpoint and then went on to discuss with the entire room his thoughts on the issue.
I may still not blog often or put too much of me in this blog. But I feel I have just made progress!! Please pray for me, that my blog will be honoring to God and the larger church as well as the community at large.
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