Heart's Desire

I have a friend who is on a year long mission trip in Uganda. She has a great post about how God has granted her heart's desires over the years. I think she is especially blessed because her heart's desires so closely align with God's desires.

It doesn't matter who you are, what your education level is, what YOU think your skills are. God knows you. God loves you. God wants you to have the joy of participating in His work. And what greater work is there than that which the Creator of the Universe is doing?

Go check out the rest of the post.

Two Things That Made My Heart Glad

The first was the report from 40 Days for Life that at the 20 day mark there had been 268 confirmed babies saved from abortion. Praise God for that!

The second was this story from the Dallas Morning News. The seniors at Aledo High School have chosen Miss Kristin Pass as their homecoming queen. So why did this touch me? Miss Pass has Down syndrome. In a world where most Down syndrome babies are aborted, it did my heart good to know that there are a bunch of high schoolers can learn to appreciate the beauty within a person instead of focusing on things that don't matter as much.

Creation for Little Sprouts

If you are visiting my blog because OneMom recommended my Creation for Little Sprouts DVDs, feel free to click on the video clips to the right and see what you think. I made these DVDs out of frustration that all nature videos for toddlers left God out of the picture. They are a labor of love from my family to yours. I don't usually sell them retail, but OneMom talked me into adding a PayPal button to my blog. (It is under the clips.) If you have any questions about the DVDs, please leave a comment and I will answer them.

Marital Advice From a 4-year-old

After watching Beauty and the Beast, my 4-year-old daughter declared, "I am going to marry a nice man not a punk like Gaston." The next day she was telling my husband about it. She expanded the idea with this statement. "Even if it takes thirty years to find a nice man, that is better than marrying a punk. And he should love God." We, of course, agreed with her.

So there you have it ladies. Marry a nice man that loves God. Wait for that good man. Sometimes kids are right.

Christopher Columbus

I have been reading a book called The Light and the Glory by Peter Marshall and David Manuel. It is a very interesting book about God's hand in the beginning of America. It starts out with Christopher Columbus. I never really knew that much about Columbus except that he sailed the ocean blue in 1492. The book is written in narrative form (as opposed to textbook form) but the authors researched translations of Columbus' journal and other first hand accounts. From what I read so far, Christopher Columbus was a man with many vices but also amazing faith. Columbus felt called by God to bear Christ (this is what his name means) to Japan and the Indies. He tried talking a few other monarchies into ponying up the dough, but he really stuck with King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella because they were the most religious. (The authors point out this religious fervor had them involved in the Crusades. They were also the ones in power during the infamous Inquisition.) Columbus' main character flaws seem to be greed and arrogance. But he was also brave and bold. I really believe that God used Columbus (faults and all) to begin the path of America becoming a country. Columbus' story rather reminds me of Sampson. He is a rather unsavory character in many ways but God still used him.

The saddest part of Christopher Columbus' story was how his lust for gold won out over his original calling. This lust lead to the deaths of many thousands of Native Americans and hundreds of Spaniards. The second and third trips to the Americas were devastating in many ways to the native peoples.

So what am I teaching about Columbus on Monday? I will try to convey both the good and the bad. We will discuss how money and riches and fame can still get in the way of serving God today. I will point out that God uses people with some serious flaws. And we are also making a Santa Maria out of a juice carton.