December 2008 – The Welcome Home

Homemade Laundry Soap – easy – still!!

ingredients for homemade laundry soap

I’m using the ingredients (above) + water to make “homemade” laundry soap – and after several months of doing so, I’m still pretty satisfied with the results. I’d still use Tide if it showed up on my doorstep and I’d still use Downey if someone forced me to. ~wink~ But for the first time in my marriage, I’m more concerned with saving money than I am with the most *perfect* looking clothes. Our clothes are clean enough for me… and I’m sort of choosey.

So… for the soap, one more time:

I grate the Dr. Bronner’s Lavender pure castile soap and warm it up in a small pot of water on the stove. Then I put 2 cups of Borax and 2 Cups of Washing Soda in the 5-gallon pail (I use this pail bcz it has a sturdy handle and a gamma seal lid that’s *easy* for me to spin off). I fill the pail with hot water (about half way) and whisk like crazy until the Borax and Soda granules are all completely dissolved. Then I stir in the liquefied lavender soap. And I blend this for several minutes more. Then I add more hot water – nearly to the top of the bucket.

After I blend thoroughly again, I let this set for a day or so. Then I transfer the thick laundry soap to a gallon pail that I keep in the cabinet above my washing machine. It’s really easy and really inexpensive.

I use the gamma seal lid on all our pails… a bought a few a month for a year and have those spin-on / spin-off lids for all our pails. Everything stays fresh and tight this way!

(mis)perception — even still, God so loved the world that He gave…

coal cartoon Jack Ohman - the Oregonian

And… isn’t this just the epitome of man’s view of self before God? I’m pretty sure I haven’t been this naughty?!?!

And yet… it was for sin and sinful man that God *gave* the greatest gift the world has ever known, the greatest sacrifice ever made and the greatest promise ever promised — the greatest promise ever kept and the greatest love no man could measure: the gift of the Lord Jesus.

And yet… the world goes on in its perception: “just happy as I am, thanks” day after day. A sad misperception of the Truth.

There is none righteous, no, not one. And yet we all want to think we’re just a-okay — that our lives are going along just fine and we don’t need any intervention or any interruption from any judge – and for many, much less: the Judge of all mankind. We would like to think we’re the ones in control of our lives – our destiny and our future. All sorts of sin and deceit are brushed off — for none of us would dare to imagine we’re unacceptable by nature. Even if we admit some naughtiness — we want to quickly cover ourselves — excuse our failings. Even in the face of the stark reality of sin, we’ll attempt to hide sin and proclaim some righteousness, some self-preservation. Sons and daughters carry on this legacy of deceit and are nearly excused for doing so… consider this:

The competition is greater, the pressures on kids have increased dramatically,” said Mel Riddle of the National Association of Secondary School Principals. “They have opportunities their predecessors didn’t have (to cheat). The temptation is greater.”

Despite such responses [to the large-scale survey of highschool students], 93 percent of the students said they were satisfied with their personal ethics and character, and 77 percent affirmed that “when it comes to doing what is right, I am better than most people I know.””

When self is the measure or standard, we would all tend to think we’re ‘better than most’ and a few of us would perhaps humbly say we’re probably not as good as someone else… but that’s according to man’s standard… but according to the perfect law of the Lord, *all* have sinned and come short of the Glory of God. None can stand before the Lord and claim to be “better than most.” All will be judged by the perfect Law.

But it’s foolishness to men… men who walk on in darkness believing themselves to be good enough or “better than most”think the Bible, the laws of God are just not for them! And yet all will stand before God. Death will come in a moment none can fathom and will bring men and women to the feet of God — the Righteous Judge. No one will escape the Judgment. No one.

“For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.”
1Corinthians 1.18
“For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.”
1Corinthians 1.21

There is a Redeemer. Only One.

There is a Redeemer… Jesus, God’s own Son, Precious Lamb of God, Messiah, Holy One, Jesus my Redeemer, Name above all names, Precious lamb of God, Messiah, Oh, for sinners slain….”

I share these things bcz really, these things are imperative — nothing else is.

It’s December 18th

I thought I’d better just log-in, write something, share a few thoughts or blog an entry in order to dispel any thoughts that I dropped off the face of the earth. Or am still coughing. Or am still sick. Okay, I’m not sick… but am still coughing.

It’s December 18th and all through the house every creature is stirring — even a mouse! Little traps are all set with peanut butter and bacon — in hopes that the little creature would soon be achin’ and what to my wandering eye should appear, but more snow, yes, more snow is here! I went to the window to see the great sight and low and behold more snow fell in the night and the whole world looks to be a beautiful, pure white!

You have to know that I just sat down to type, forgot the story and so cannot continue the rhyme.

So, it’s December 18th… it sure doesn’t look like there’s a big celebration going on — or even planned… but it’s here, it really is. The pantry is filled with ingredients that, when assembled, will bring great delight… and will conjur up memories of Christmas past and set the tone for the days ahead. Each recipe I prepare and each “tradition” I don’t forget to keep seems to say to my family: I love you, I love you, still.

I’m trying to be renewed daily in the Spirit of my mind and keep the “what would Jesus do?” thoughts in the forefront of my singing and plans and daydreams and concerns. I think on each child; I pray for specific concerns particular to each one. My mind harkens back to days when they were small… such different days than these… in those days I would fall into bed, so exhausted from the work of the day and would sleep soundly — and then wakening to the sounds of a baby’s cry or the pitter-patter of little feet. In those days I could hold them in my arms and cover them with little blankets — now I can only hold them in my heart and cover them in prayer.

I miss those days and find myself thinking: hmmmmmmmm, nothing and everything prepared me for these days. The LORD is faithful. I’m thankful He never tells me what’s ahead and yet, all the while, He’s preparing my steps and my heart to accept each new dawn — strengthening my faith day by day.

I stand at the sink and ponder these days, ponder those days and think: If I could go back to those days — would I? For I wouldn’t want to miss these days in order to relive those. I attempt to recall what I was doing on any given December 18th of the last 30 years… and I smile at the thought of the early days and decide to not spend much time there — each year seemed to add a chair at the table — and even though now each year seems to take away a chair from the table, I decide to embrace these days – these good old days.

It’s time to go bake a memory.

more paul washer

Still sick… but not with the same thing – this is a new week, so I have a new bug… now the flu has come through our home and I, a gracious hostess, somehow seemed willing to host this unwelcome guest for the last couple of days. I’m really surprised to have sickness linger… so, yeah… sick again.

Cool to have the laptop here beside the bed so I can listen to tremendous sermons while I rest. Gotta say… Paul Washer is probably my favourite to listen to. But some of you knew that already. With all the religious foolishness being “preached” and all the godless movies being embraced by “believers” it’s refreshing to listen to someone who is *willing* to tell the Truth.

I’ll attempt to answer letters tomorrow – for now, have a listen:

Link Potpourri

Men Pleasers
I’ve often wondered how, or by what means, the church will be carried away — what will it look like when the elect are deceived (Mark 13.22) and who’ll deceive and be deceived (2Timothy 3.13). When “An influential evangelical leader is coming under fire for saying in a NPR interview he believes in homosexual civil unions and that Christians who oppose same-sex marriage and abortion may still find reasons to support Obama.” the church ought to take notice!

Perfect Turkey Every Time. No Kidding.
Was your Ts’giving turkey heavy-duty dry? Well, if you’ll follow Mrs. King’s advice, you’ll never have to serve dry-as-shoe-leather turkey again. She explains it quite well — you’ll have to bookmark this one when you want to prepare your next turkey.

Browsing the News
Did you think OJ would ever be brought to justice? Me neither. The judge called him “arrogant and ignorant.” I always wondered how this would play out.

Kaz humidifier & Vicks
I’ve been sick this week… coughing, coughing, coughing. O, I’ve been taking it easy — I have this tremendous fear of a bout of pneumonia — so I take it easy when I have chest congestion like this. So I have a Kaz cold-air humidifier going and for the last couple of nights my husband has been rubbing my feet with Vicks. We’ve been told that doing so quiets coughs – and though I know it sounds like a hoax, I have slept better the last couple of nights and my feet feel terrific when I wake up!! ;o) So, after my bath, he rubbed the Vicks on the bottom of my feet and then covered them with cotton socks. Nice. Try it… if you’ve been coughing, maybe the Vicks will help you, too!

(I must say, though, with the humidifier going in our room, I was dreaming that I was on an jetliner and the steward was telling the passengers that the cabin would soon be pressurized and… yeah… different jetliner dreams all night. )

How much is $53,000,000,000,000?

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Then, visit http://www.IOUSAtheMovie.com and join us in our Fiscal Wake-Up Movement. Together, we can make American fiscal responsibility a reality.”

And Bernanke says there is no comparison between these days and the ‘Great Depression’ — and makes that claim bcz he is a “scholar of The Great Depressionon… written books about the Depression…” [ Right. ]