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Little House by the Railway Line
2009 Goals
- Learn to make yoghurt
- Pickle walnuts
Make marmalade- Perfect my granola bar recipe
- Grow green beans to eat
Grow spinach- Grow peppers and winter squash
- Save seeds from peppers and winter squash
- Knit lots of dishcloths
- Finish my hidden stars quilt
- Make napkin rings
- Finish cardigan back
- Learn how to do water-bath-canning
- Knit a pair of socks
Preserved this Year
- February: Marmalade, 10 1/2 standard jars, 2 tiny jars
- February: Blatjang chutney, 6 jars
- March: Caramelised onion chutney, 6 jars
- June: Elderflower cordial, 5 jars
- June: Strawberry Jam, 7 standard jars, 3 tiny jars
- June: Elderflower cordial, 4 1/2 jars (2nd batch)
Projects in Progress/ Planned
- Navy and pink lap quilt
- Hidden stars bed quilt
- Sampler cardigan
- Amish Alphabet Cross-Stitch
- Knitted scrap blanket
- Planned: summer blouse and skirt
Scripture Memorised this Year
- Psalm 8
- Psalm 103
- Romans 12
- Romans 13
Bible Study Thoughts
In my morning readngs, I've been reading through Deuteronomy over the past few weeks. Yesterday morning I read chapter 20. There's a section in it about rule for the Israelites going to way:5 The officers shall say to the army: "Has anyone built a new house and not dedicated it? Let him go home, or he may die in battle and someone else may dedicate it. 6 Has anyone planted a vineyard and not begun to enjoy it? Let him go home, or he may die in battle and someone else enjoy it. 7 Has anyone become pledged to a woman and not married her? Let him go home, or he may die in battle and someone else marry her." 89 When the officers have finished speaking to the army, they shall appoint commanders over it.In other words, they gradually weed out of the army anyone who is not 110% committed to fighting for God.
Then the officers shall add, "Is any man afraid or fainthearted? Let him go home so that his brothers will not become disheartened too."
I didn't think much about this section when I read it yesterday morning, until later, in Bible Study, when our pastor mentioned the parable Jesus told about the Great Banquet, and the guests who all made their excuses and didn't go. I looked it up and it's in Luke chapter 14.
16Jesus replied: "A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 17At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, 'Come, for everything is now ready.'It struck me that these are essentially the same idea. The same "excuses" are used in both passages: marriage, farming the land. In the Deuteronomy passage, the officers of the army send away anyone who is not prepared to be fully committed to the Lord, and in Luke, the guests themselves decide that they place a higher priority on other things than attending the feast - which, given that this is a parable, is synonomous with serving God. I don't suppose that the "excuses" are meant to be taken as bad things - as surely they are things commanded in scripture - but rather that they must be seen to be less important that serving God.18"But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, 'I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.'
19"Another said, 'I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I'm on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.'
20"Still another said, 'I just got married, so I can't come.'
21"The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, 'Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.'
22" 'Sir,' the servant said, 'what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.'
23"Then the master told his servant, 'Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that my house will be full. 24I tell you, not one of those men who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.' "
In all probability, the connection would have been obvious to Jesus' original hearers, who were rather better versed in OT scripture. Pure speculation, but I wonder if maybe there was a culture or practice of using the Deuteronomy verses to get out of doing something unpleasant that God required, and this was Jesus' way of refuting.
I don't suppose this is a particularly exciting observation to anyone other than me, mind you. But I always get really excited when I find cross-references like that between books - and particularly between the Old and New Testaments.
Teaching Sunday School
My husband and I attend a very small church; about 50 people attend each Sunday morning (on Sunday evenings there are rather fewer - yesterday it was 10). One of the implications of being such a small group is that there are correspondingly few children, and the attendance of one family can make a vast difference to the Sunday school.We teach the primary age group - that's the 4-11 year olds. It's a huge age range (though better than it used to be - we used to keep them until they turned 13), which can make things very difficult. There are probably about 10 children who might turn up, but very few of them are actually regular. Yesterday, we had two children, one aged 4 and the other almost 11. We did also have the mother of the 4 year old; the 4 year old refuses to be apart from her mother, so the mother comes to Sunday school rather than going to creche-and-parents-Bible-study with her toddler. Since she's got fairly major learning difficulties, it's probable that she's actually on the same level as her 4 year old daughter, so it's not really a problem, and she seems to enjoy joining in with the crafts and story time.
When we have more children I like to split them into infant (4-7) and junior (7-11), so that the older ones are able to think about the story for the week more carefully, while the little ones can colour pictures to remind them of the story. But I didn't think that was going to work with the group I had yesterday! (Especially since the little girl had taken a shine to the older one and was trailing round behind her). So I mentally re-planned the lesson as I was going along. Normally I hate having to do that, but it was alright yesterday. I did an extremely short question/discussion session, before moving straight onto craft, and used the colouring as a time-filler instead.
It's just such a relief to have a lesson work for once; we did it with just those two girls a few weeks ago, and the younger one just looked absolutely terrified for the duration, before vacating in tears to the creche. If they've managed to sort a friendship together it will make life much easier (they are by far our most regular attenders).
Memorising Scripture
I've been persisting the the scripture memory challenge I started, and I've been finding it really encouraging. So far, I've learnt Psalms 1, 8, and 103, and I'm about halfway through Romans 12, which is the current passage. I actually think learning the longer passages is easier for me than just verses on their own, as there's more context to trigger my memory.Yesterday, we were at our old people's home doing a little service for the residents there, and the chap who does the talks (hardly a sermon, but the same principle) quoted from Psalm 103. Even though he was using a different translation to the one I've memorised, I still knew exactly where he was, and what had come before and what was coming afterwards, which really helped It was lovely - really helpful and added to my understanding of what was being said.
The Romans passage seems to be proving a little harder, probably because it's prose rather than verse, and maybe also because I've switched to the NIV (which is what I read mostly), whereas before I was memorising the AV, which I'd heard was easier to memorise. The problem with learning the AV was when I read a passage I'd learnt in my morning quiet time, I found it was complicating it a little. But I may switch back again, I'm not sure yet. To be honest, I'm not convinced that which version I learn matters so much as just learning it (so long as don't chose an outright bad translation, of course).
Christmas Holiday Bible Club 2008
On Saturday our church held a one-day Holiday Bible Club for Christmas. The theory is that on the last Saturday before Christmas the parents might like to dump off their kids for the day and go shopping without them, and we do crafts and games with the children and prepare a Nativity Play, which we perform outside in the middle of the village just before sundown.(Personally, I'd far rather look after 15 seven year olds for a day than do battle with the crowds in town on the last Saturday before Christmas. This is why they invented internet shopping; because not everyone thinks fighting round shops with thousands of other people while they play piped in music is a good pastime.)
We did it for the first time last year, and essentially ran with the same programme. The script was fractionally different, but not by much. I was officially leading the year 3 group, who were being shepherds, with my husband and two teenage girls helping me. One of the girls I know very well, from youth group and because her little sister comes to church, the other I'd never met (we do it jointly with other local churches - although we use our premises - and she's connected to a different church), but they were both brilliant helpers. So often with teenage helpers they're almost as much work as the children; very willing, but need to be told exactly what to do and then when they've finished it they pester until I can think of another job. These two looked around, saw things that ought to be done, and did them, without me having to ask at all. Actually, I think they may have been more on the ball that day than I was (I wasn't as prepared as I usually am for these things), and it would almost certainly have been a terrible scramble without them.
The kids seemed to have a lovely time. We made a group banner, coloured Christmas cards, made a 6-days-to-go Advent Calendar, did decoupage pictures, and made models out of chocolate fingers, and built cardboard towers in the car park. There were a couple of upsets; a little boy who didn't understand the instructions to a game and burst into tears, a little girl who was being very catty and calling the other girls names (why do little girls always do that) who then cried at the outdoor play because her Daddy hadn't turned up to watch, and the little boy who had the runniest nose I have ever seen in my life. However, all in all it seemed to go quite well. They were very tired by the time they were taken home at four o'clock, though - and the Angels Group, who were 5 and 6, looked ready to fall asleep standing up.
Which is exactly what I felt like when I finally got home just after six. Thankfully, I'd made the supper the night before so I could fall asleep on the sofa before we ate, and then the soup just had to be warmed up on the stove.
Scripture Memory
Some months ago, I started thinking about memorising Scripture. This is something I wish I had done when I was much younger, as I understand that small children memorise things much easier than adults. (I suppose growing up in an atheist household meant it was unlikely I would have been taught to memorise - or even read- scripture). The odd verses I can remember I find very useful, but I was intrigued to read of people memorising whole chapters and books, and it seemed like a good exercise to try.With no idea where to start, I began by trying to memorise Psalm 1 (because the Psalms sounded like a relatively easy thing to remember and because I am inherently methodical, so number 1 seemed like a good place to begin). I learnt it faster than I'd expected (and several months later, I am still word-perfect despite only revising it every month or so), but never seemed to get up enough momentum to do Psalm 2. I often find that once I've proved I can do something, I lose the incentive to actually do it.
Then a couple of weeks ago, I found this challenge online, and thought I would join in. The first passage, which finished yesterday, was Psalm 8. A little bit longer than Psalm 1, but not so much that it seemed daunting, and I learnt it fairly easily. I've been mentally reciting both Psalm 1 and 8 (to make sure I'm not just replacing the first thing I learnt with the second) in odd moments (standing in the shower, for instance). I think having an externally set schedule is helpful in keeping me accountable, even if I'm not actually reporting to anyone.
The next passage has just been announced; it's Psalm 103. This time it does feel daunting; it's well over twice as long as the previous one. I find writing things out helpful, and it's far too long to fit onto the little scraps of paper that fold up so nicely into my coat pocket so I can get them out when I'm standing at the bus stop for ages in the evenings.
I suspect I may need to be more focussed this time. Perhaps I ought to intentionally sit down and read it out loud in the mornings, rather than just glancing through it at the bus stop. (Reading out loud helps, I think - that's how I used to memorise all my vocabulary lists at University).
But if I think it's a worthwhile endeavour - and I do - I will persevere with it.
Sunday School Woes
On Sunday, we were in charge of teaching the primary-age children's group. For some time now, it's really been a junior group, as there's been no-one between the ages of 2 and 7 in the church, but the last few weeks we've gained a couple of four year-olds and a six year-old, so it now covers the whol age range.
We had nine children on Sunday, fairly evenly spread across the age range, and I thought, on the whole, the lesson went pretty well. We were looking at 1 Thessalonians 5, where it talks about living as children of the light, so we played a game involving "stealing"the "treasure" from the "householder" in the dark, did a short reading and discussion, and then sorted activities into "dark" and "light" activities, and then made suncatchers to remind us that we are children of the light. We also tried to learn a song "Jesus Bids Us Shine", which no-one but me (even G) knew, but seemed appropriate.
All of that worked, and I think they all, even the little four-year-olds, took some of it on board. The problem is getting the to sit down. In between each activity - and to a certain extent during - they were continually getting up and down, sitting under their chairs, sitting on them backwards, rearranging the furniture, and dragging the Youth Group board games out of the cupboard. And I just don't seem able to enforce any discipline.
I'm a bit worried, as it was incredibly chaotic. I really need to work out how to manage them better. And I'd like to manage without turning it into the ultimate in boring Sunday school lessons - copying out chapters and sitting in rows and raising one's hand to speak. It's supposed to be informal, with bits of discussion as well as instruction, but it's borderline to degenerating into chaos.
One thing I shall try to do is covering up all the board games and the table football. I never even notice they're there (I'm oblivious to my surroundings to the extent that I didn't bother decorating the church for my wedding - just can't see the point of it), but I will try and make sure they're all hidden to reduce temptation.
The other thing I thought of, is that I probably take pauses that are too long between activities, either for me to collect my thoughts or to allow the children to answer fully. I think their attention spans can't quite handle the gaps and they wander off to other topics. But I'm not sure how to train myself to think quicker between activities. Maybe I need to "rehearse" the questions beforehand so I don't need the piece of paper with the instructions on it.
Much time was spend after the morning service and before the evening meeting yesterday discussing this problem (it isn't just when I'm leading, although I think it may be worst then), and I ended up feeling it had all been very negative. I don't want to be too hard on the children - at least one of them comes from a very troubled homelife - but at the same time there needs to be a measure of structure and discipline.
However, I must remember to remember that having the children there to teach, coming willingly to the church (in some cases of their own accord, unaccompanied by their parents), is a great privelege and blessing. And I must also remember that it is God who will teach them to respond to Him, not me. All I can do is teach what the Bible says, I can't force the children to believe in it.
Holiday Club advance planning
Our church does three holiday clubs every year; a week-long one in the summer (mornings only) and one-full-day ones at Christmas and Easter, and I've always really enjoyed helping out at them. We have them for kids aged 5-11 and have between 50/60 (at Easter) and 200 (in the summer - this is really too many) children in attendance. The last few times I've actually had enough confidence to lead a group, as long as G is there to be my assistant and help me out. We generally have a middle-group (6/7/8 year olds).I almost enjoy the planning more than the actual event, so I was rather pleased yesterday when our Assistant Minister (who also happens to work in the same office as me) arrived at work with a batch of books, some for Christmas and some for the summer, and said since he was going to be busy planning the Christmas one, I could take the summer ones home and look at them. There are two, one new testament one around a theme of "hands" (which is really a midweek club plan, and I think would be better suited to that), and one an old testament club about Elisha.
I expect to spend a lot of time over the next week reading them and trying to see how they'd work for us. (Of course, what I should be doing is planning Sunday School, which we're leading on the 19th.
Brightest and Best of the Sons of the Morning
Dawn on our darkness and lend us Thine aid;
Star of the East, the horizon adorning,
Guide where our infant Redeemer is laid.
Cold on His cradle the dewdrops are shining;
Low lies His head with the beasts of the stall;
Angels adore Him in slumber reclining,
Maker and Monarch and Savior of all!
Say, shall we yield Him, in costly devotion,
Odors of Edom and offerings divine?
Gems of the mountain and pearls of the ocean,
Myrrh from the forest, or gold from the mine?
Vainly we offer each ample oblation,
Vainly with gifts would His favor secure;
Richer by far is the heart’s adoration,
Dearer to God are the prayers of the poor.
I was struck the first time I heard it more by the tune than the words; yesterday I was struck by the words. I don't really understand the first verse, but the other three, and particularly the fourth verse. I think I could do well to ponder on the ideas there, and try and take action based on them.
Lloyd-Jones on our need for Jesus
"Even the first man, Adam, who was made perfect in the image and likeness of God, sinned and fell; and God could not save the world by making another perfect man. The perfect man had failed. Not only can fallen man not save himself, perfect man cannot stand against the devil by himself. He needs more, and more has come..." [I Am Not Ashamed: Advice To Timothy: Chapter 5: Christ Our Saviour (preached 10th May 19640, emphasis mine]
I was rather struck by this when I read it last night. I know some Christians who who seem rather to over-emphasis doing good as the operative component of Christianity, as though by behaving well and doing the right thing one is accepted as a Christian regardless of one's faith or otherwise, and yet here it appears that even if we were to acheive the impossible and be perfect, we would still be incapable of attaining salvation unaided. I'd never really thought about it like this before; that Adam, before the fall, was technically a perfect man - because original sin is in the world as a result of Adam's fall, therefore he can't have been inherently a sinner before that event. And, of course, despite being perfectly made (Genesis 1:31a - God saw all that he had made, and it was very good), he was completely unable to stand against the devil's wiles.
Which all goes to make even more clear our dire need for a saviour.
The Bible in the Original Languages
I have a degree in Classics. That means that, theoretically, I should be able to read things written in Latin and Greek. I only graduated four years ago, and yet I'm always embarrassed to discover that I can't even read the Latin inscriptions inside old churches - when we visited St David's Cathedral my husband was able to work out almost as much as I could, just from logic, common sense, and a decent English vocabulary.Now, technically, the Greek I learned at school / university is different to the Greek of the New Testament, as Greek is a diglossic language and they are about 500 years apart. However, NT Greek is significantly easier than Classical Attic. We used to get Luke 2 as a easy Christmas "treat" translation homework, because it's such simple language when compared to Plato/Xenophon etc.
And yet, despite that, I've let it lapse very badly. I have a Greek New Testament at home somewhere, that I picked up for a couple of pounds in a junk shop once, and I almost never open it. Last time I tried, I could only read it with the English in front of me, and I was probably performing some educated guesswork / understanding from the context.
I was reading an article in an old Banner of Truth magazine on the bus into work this morning, which was talking about the vital important of studying scripture in the original language (it was primarily talking about it being necessary for pastors to do so, but I don't think that really lets me off the hook), and I feel determined to try not to let my meagre Greek lapse any further. I have a text and a dictionary - admittedly all my grammars are in a box in the attic, but they could be retrieved if necessary, I expect. It's really nothing but lack of priority that keeps me from touching them.
So I resolve to make a concerted effort to read something from the New Testament in Greek, without the English translation in front of me, each week. I'm not quite sure at this stage what a manageable quantity would be - knowing my inclination to feel daunted by things if they feel too large, I imagine it might be best to stick to about 6-10 verses.
At some point I might even get so far as to pick up my copy of "Teach Yourself Biblical Hebrew" - I think I got to about page 2 on my previous attempt, and now can't recall a single letter.
About Me
Hello! I'm Jo, I'm 26 and I live in a small house in England with my husband. I work full time in an office, and in my spare time I help out with Sunday school and the church youth group. When I have time, I enjoy reading, cookery and crafts, and I'm trying to learn about the garden.
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