Baking Day

Lately God has blessed our family so much and our lives have been so full, and it seems like Thanksgiving has just slipped up on us. Usually we would already have a lot of preparations done, but this year - well, we ended up doing most of it all in one day!

Last night Caleb got home for Thanksgiving break and had a surprise visit from one of his new college friends. Jedidiah wanted a picture of them in front of Raul's truck.

Today Caleb decided to work on some history assignments.

Jedidiah also had some schoolwork to do before heading outside to pick up some cans.

Meanwhile, I was catching up the laundry.

And Mom was cooking! :)

Peanut butter crackers

Nobakes (Caleb's favorite)

What would Thanksgiving be without pumkin pie?

Or a turkey?

Mmmm . . . chocolate!

Buckeyes (Jedidiah's favorite)

Also dipped in chocolate, of course :)

The result - just the sugar portion of our feast

(minus the kuchen which is my favorite and has yet to be made)

This is my new favorite family picture. Caleb wanted to be carried out to his car on Sunday afternoon when he needed to drive back to the Cumberlands.

Oh, Tame Me, Lord

Oh, tame me, Lord! rebellious nature calm,

Oh, tame me, Lord!

This heart, so tossed and filled with wild alarm,

Oh, tame me, Lord!

These human longings, let them end in Thee,

And let me be Thy bondslave, even me!

I will not ask Thee to account to me

For aught Thou dost;

For crosses sore, or paths I cannot see:

But I will trust.

No second causes shall perplex my soul,

Or stay from yielding all to Thy control.

The raging storm I dare not fight alone,

Ah, show Thy face! Say, "It is I!"

Thyself to me make known,

Ah, show Thy face!

Then what care I for darkest depths of woe?

Thine arms, O Christ, shall fold me close, I know!

Oh, save me, Lord! Subdue this stubborn will;

Oh, save me, Lord!

In spite of all, Thy purposes fulfil

In me, Oh, Lord;

I yield my self, and all I have and am,

To follow Thee, Thou all redeeming Lamb!

How can I fear? Thou art so near to me;

How can I fear?

I hear Thee say, "Believe, and thou shalt see!"

How can I fear?

I now believe, and trust Thy mighty power,

To save, to heal, to keep this very hour!

Prepare for Battle!

At the present moment the War Between the States is being dramatized behind my house. The characters are my brother and a neighbor. It seems that they are on the same side, however, as all interaction seems to have been friendly thus far.

Aagghh!! The enemy has spotted us!

Guard duty

On the run

Cheery Sun, Cheer Clinic, and Children

Okay, that sounds kind of dorky. But I want to share several pictures that don't exactly go together.

For starters . . . the sky has been absolutely beautiful lately!!! Have you noticed? "The heavens declare the glory of God" (Psalm 19:1).

The sunrise the day we went to the

Clays Mill Road Baptist Church Ladies' Conference

The sunrise again :)

Mrs. Fugate, Mrs. Tackett, Mrs. Corle, and Mammaw

Mom

The things you can do with balloons!

The sunset later that day

Again

And again :D

Different day - babysitting Lindsey and Carly

"Carly! What'd you do that for?"

Her words, not anyone else's.

"Carly! Get sissy!"

Don't you love to hear little kids laugh?

Challenging Femininity

The second issue is out! I haven't read all the articles yet, but I'm really excited about the interview. You wanna know why? Because it's with Mrs. Gretchen Acheson from my favorite blog ever - Young Ladies Christian Fellowship!!! I've read that blog for about seven years (I think), and the girls have been such an encouragement to me! Here is the link for Miss Jocelyn Dixon's web magazine: http://feelinfeminine.com/?p=2297

Become an Elisabeth

The Elliots are two of my favorite people. Definitely modern heroes. They were missionaries to Ecuador many, many years ago - long before I was born. While they were there, some of the natives killed Jim and four other missionary men.

Of course, Elisabeth is now Elisabeth Gren. Here she is with her husband Lars.

Elisabeth has written so many good books! Just the ones I've read include These Strange Ashes, The Shaping of a Christian Family, Let Me Be a Woman, Secure in the Everlasting Arms, Quest for Love, and my favorite - Shadow of the Almighty - some of the letters and journals of her first husband.

I've been thinking lately. . . . Jim Elliot was such a strong Christian. He was so passionate about God, His Word, the Church, reaching the lost, and making a difference in the world. He was such a dedicated missionary. He was strong in the Lord even before that, as a student, in his relationships with family and friends and Elisabeth, in his exercise and Bible study.

I want to marry a man like Jim Elliot, and I know other girls who have the same desire. The other day as I was thinking about this, a thought struck me. If you want to marry a Jim Elliot, you have to become an Elisabeth. Interesting . . .

Foolish Lonely Heart

The Cry of the Faithful Heart:

"Help, LORD; for the godly man ceaseth;

for the faithful fail from among the children of men"

(Psalm 12:1).

The Answer of the Sovereign God:

"Yet I have left Me seven thousand in Israel,

all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal,

and every mouth which hath not kissed him" (1 Kings 19:18).

"Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant

according to the election of grace" (Romans 11:5).