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Our Daily Thread 11-27-13

Good Morning!

On this day in 1779 the College of Pennsylvania became the University of Pennsylvania. It was the first legally recognized university in America. 

In 1901 The Army War College was established in Washington, DC. 

In 1910 New York’s Pennsylvania Station opened. 

In 1973 the U.S. Senate voted to confirm Gerald R. Ford as vice president after the resignation of Spiro T. Agnew. 

And in 1980 Dave Williams (Chicago Bears) became the first player in NFL history to return a kick for touchdown in overtime.

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Quote of the Day

“Medicaid is essentially bankrupt, Medicare is essentially bankrupt, why the heck would we give the federal government another entitlement program to manage?”

Tim Pawlenty

Good question.

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Since it’s Thanksgiving Eve, I thought this was appropriate.

And today would have been Eddie Rabbit’s birthday. From BransonMusicFactory

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QoD?

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. So what are you thankful for this year?

44 thoughts on “Our Daily Thread 11-27-13”

  2. I’m thankful that Aj posted early this evening. 🙂
    I think that I am most thankful that God has given me the privilege of being a grandma.
    And also for meaningful work that is part of something bigger that I believe in. I know that I can do this job and do it well. I have job security. No one else is looking for my job and I can continue as long as the Lord allows. I am blessed.

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  5. Rain again, so I can’t take pics outside today either. 😦

    I wish this rain would stop. It’s fine if you’re a duck, but I’m not.

    Although being a duck this time of year would be better than being a turkey…. 😯

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  6. We had more torrential rain here today. Playground flooded, sinkhole sank again! I was in the weight room with its uncovered tin roof. The rain was so loud I wanted to put my fingers in my ears. I think it was in response to my prayers – there was more fighting and I firmly prayed that God would stop them in their tracks. That rain stopped everyone. However after an hour or so, it clears up again.

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  7. What am I thankful for? Too many things to list really.
    The fellowship I find here
    Friends I love sometimes more than family
    My Baby Girl
    Mr. P
    A new to me home with lots of space
    Two dogs instead of one–I know this sounds silly, but this is the first time IN MY LIFE I have had to split my affections between two things. I have always had ONE of anything. I am an only child with an only child. I had one mother and one father. I wouldn’t begin to compare my dogs with your children but I am finding out I love Lulabelle too, although Amos is my dog and Lulu is Paul’s dog.
    After several years of talking about it BG and I finally went to Mumsee’s.
    That when I got there and asked what she needed most from me, she asked me to just make sure everyone got fed. You all know that I show love by feeding people.

    That I am having 15 or so people for Thanksgiving tomorrow and as much as this seems to disturb my husband, (He is worried about seating and feeding them) I can pat him on the knee, laugh, and tell him not to worry we have plenty AND WE DO

    Speaking off Mr. P and rotten puppy dawgs…he just got his coffee and roamed into the living room. A forty pound lab mix couldn’t wait to get in his lap when he sat down. She really does love her human.

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  8. Aj, the weather headed your way is nasty. It’s snowing in Hendersonville. The temperature on my deck is 32.6 degrees; so it’s likely to stick.

    in one of the comics in today’s paper, a guy says, “I can’t believe Jackie named our daughter after her cat.” My granddaughter is naming her son after the town her husband was born in. I’m glad Tom wasn’t born in Bat Cave, Horseshoe, Indian Trail or Flat Rock.

    😆

    When I lived in Virginia, I would look out on a snowy morning and ask myself “Can I make it?” if I thought so, I would go in to work.
    As I approached retirement, I would look out and ask myself, “Is it smart?”
    Now, it doesn’t bother me. If it’s snowing even a little, I trek out the mailbox. That’s it.
    It’s really snowing like mad now!

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  9. Things I’m thankful for:

    The Word of God in my language
    Eternal salvation purchased for me
    A husband who loves me and our children
    Adult children who represent themselves well
    Growing children of various ages
    The privilege to homeschool
    The prayer support and fellowship of friends I have yet to meet
    Local friends ready with a hug and an “I love you” whenever I need it
    Good relations in extended family
    An adult daughter who called and chatted on the phone with me yesterday for close to a half hour!
    Young sleepyheads waking up, with their tousled hair and little morning noises 😉
    A home in the country
    Living in an area with a variety of seasons
    A warm home when it’s cold out, a cool home when it’s hot
    The music of Beethoven and many other classical composers
    Owning a piano and knowing how to play it

    There’s got to be many others, but I’ll stop there.

    God’s blessings to all of you today!

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  11. Chas, the company I work for develops and delivers courseware in a variety of methods (online, in person, web seminars). It was called General Physics up until two years ago as it was named after the first course that the founders developed. My boss always likes to say that he’s glad that the first course they developed wasn’t Sexual Harassment.

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  12. I am thankful that through all this economic mess, Hubby has had work.
    I am thankful for my family especially Hubby, my problem child, Mamma and my brothers, (who turned out way better than I ever thought they would considering what pains they were when we were kids 🙂 ).

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  13. Thankful for Jesus and the gospel, that He sought me and caught me and has kept me. Too often I know I am an unprofitable servant. The older I get, the more cognizant I am of the fight against the world, the flesh and the devil that rages in this life. Yet even when I fail, I know who my Master is.

    I’m grateful I live in a country where we can worship Him openly.

    As for more temporal blessings, I’m thankful I remain employed in an industry that has seen nothing but massive downsizing and economic decline over the past years. I’m thankful our employer (at least for this year) still provides health care that is partially paid by them. Very thankful for a regular paycheck, though it continues to shrink a bit year by year now. I am thankful I have work that I still love doing for the most part.

    I’m thankful for friends, co-workers and whatever family I have left.

    And I’m thankful, too, for the critters who share my home, they really are a source of delight — and exercise. 🙂 Walking the dogs can be a chore every night, but how grateful I am that I have the simple physical ability — something I take for granted too often — to walk.

    I’m thankful for God’s provision of shelter, clothing, food and health.

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  14. Things I am thankful for.

    1. For spiritual gifts. The Lord has chosen to save even me, who doesn’t disserve any of the blessings I am about to enumerate.
    2. That my entire family, so far, has chosen to follow the Lord. I told you about my great grandson being baptized. I know that some of you are still struggling with close kin who are careless about their spiritual lives. I have some similar relatives, but those of my issue have responded to the Lord’s calling.
    3. For good health for TSWITW and me. Especially for old codgers like us. We have normal physical degeneration, but can still get around when we remember to do so.
    4. For Aj and the rest of you. I do not say that offhandedly. You are important to me.
    5. That I was born in the USA. I could have been one of those kids I saw in Asmara, Eritrea, or Karachi, Pakistan. One guy had his brother on his back, begging with the others. I slipped a couple of dollars to him surreptitiously because you don’t want to be caught giving money away. You would be swamped.
    6. Not only that I was born in the USA, but I was in the epoch when America was a great nation, and a light to the rest of the world. It still is in many ways. As Reagan said, “If not us, Who?”
    7. The Lord gave me the perfect mate for me. She isn’t perfect by any means, but there is not one who is better fitted to be my mate. It wasn’t happenstance that placed us together on the stairs of FBC Columbia that October day.
    8. That the Lord brought us through difficult financial times during the early years. The first seven years were very hard. Without a thrifty wife, we couldn’t have made it.
    9 The things I forgot.

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  15. I’m thankful for the salvation offered through Jesus Christ. 28 years, as of Sunday last.
    I’m also thankful for:
    -a wife who puts up with me no matter what. 32.5 years and counting.
    -Children who turned out all right, regardless of the failures of their parents. Now if #4 were saved, all would be well.
    -A son-in-law who is the greatest person my daughter could have married.
    -A relatively safe area of the country to live, away from the mayhem of big cities, but close enough to one for those times we want to be in one.
    -A job in these troubled times.
    -Two second jobs to cover those things we want, and few things we need.
    -Friends and family wherever we go, even if they are strangers, the children of God are there when we need them.
    -Too much more to mention.

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  18. I’m thankful for:
    -Salvation
    -Being a member of God’s family (brothers and sisters in Christ)
    -A wonderful husband; we are an excellent match and he is a very good man
    -A very good relationship with my stepdaughters (one of them initiated “Love you” last night)
    -The privilege of having in-laws, and very good ones, esp. with my own parents gone 10 and nearly 30 years
    -A sweet dog who is thriving as a family dog with a big country yard. (I always knew she’d do better with more than one owner; she loved it when I had housemates.)
    -The best year, income-wise, in four years, without being “too much” (as a married woman, I really just don’t want full-time hours; work isn’t my first priority)
    -Several chances to get away with my husband this year
    -Visits to several Indiana state parks this year as well as the Smoky Mountains
    -Fun taking photos of many varieties of butterflies
    -Fun making photo books with many of the photos I’ve taken
    -Fun learning how to use some new tools in making cards
    -Health and contentment
    -The ability to spend a couple of days with my sister and her husband a couple months before her husband died unexpectedly–if we hadn’t taken that short visit with them, we two couples would have never had a chance to interact (they came to our wedding and, previously, came to Nashville for my bridal shower, but our interactions were naturally limited)
    -My oldest brother and his wife being able to spend Thanksgiving with my sister and her family . . . and with Photoshop to create a family portrait for her from a group photo taken at a wedding my sister and family attended (they didn’t have any family portraits, and that saddened her; but they had attended my nephew’s wedding, and thus were all in the photo of the groom’s extended family)
    -Friends around the country, including friends on this blog

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  19. I am thankful for knowing Jesus as Lord and Savior and for the Father’s good gift of His word. I am thankful for His plans for salvation of all who take His word to heart and believe. I am thankful to know and be encouraged by His believing children through my church, through Christian authors and through this blog site and others. I am thankful to be made in God’s image and know all other people are, too, for there is great potential for good in this world because of that.

    I am thankful for the good journey through homeschooling and the educational opportunities given to our son. I am thankful for his continuing spiritual growth.

    I am thankful for my husband’s abilities to help people with their income tax situations and bring them relief from anxiety in many situations. I am thankful for his sense of humor and our many laughs shared. I am thankful for his appreciation of music and how that has made me more musically oriented.

    I am thankful for some of the best friends in the world. BFFs. I am thankful for opportunities given to develop skills as a Christian writer. I am thankful that God gives me joy in being creative whether in preparing activities for Sunday School or in writing.

    As we all could enumerate for days what we are thankful for, I will stop here and leave room for others to take up the light of thanksgiving and carry it forward.

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  22. I enjoyed that World article, Donna. There’s someone I know who needs to read this part: “Let’s think about what food really is. Food nourishes you. But it’s not supposed to be your god. It’s not something you should focus on, or shop and plan for all day, or talk about all the time on Facebook. It’s supposed to be a tool for God’s glory.” The person to whom I refer wouldn’t agree she’s made it her god, but that is virtually ALL she ever talks about online and in person. Plus, a huge portion of her day is spent preparing the “right” foods.

    There’s a balance in these things. Yes, we want to be good stewards of our health, and what we eat can definitely affect that. But I don’t like all these “shoulds and shouldn’ts” that are always being put forth as if they are gospel truth. It’s good to be informed about different discoveries people have made with regards to certain foods and their potential interaction in the bodies of various people, but even things like “Eat low-fat foods”, well, not necessarily. For a woman my age, my height is at the 95th percentile and my weight at the 5th percentile, so I need my high-fat foods!

    And it’s been a real blessing to me that gluten-free grains are so readily available now. I kept losing weight over the course of my first fifteen years of motherhood, until I went gluten-free. So that’s been a blessing that I could curb my weight loss without giving up grains, which I love.

    One size doesn’t fit all, but moderation and a focus on thankfulness for God’s provision is important.

    My two cents. 😉

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  23. So, what books are you all reading right now? I know that gets asked from time to time here, but the list keeps changing, right? 😉

    I’ve got five in process at the moment — the first three are library books, the last two are e-books I purchased.

    1. Girls With Swords: How to Carry Your Cross Like a Hero, by Lisa Bevere

    2. A Different Kind of Teacher: Solving the Crisis of American Schooling, by John Taylor Gatto

    3. Salt, Sugar, Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us, by Michael Moss

    4. The Unwired Mom: Choosing to Live Free in an Internet Addicted World, by Sarah Mae

    5. 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life, by Crystal Paine

    All five are good so far, but I’ve got to get done with that first one soon. It’s due on Monday and is reserved, so I can’t renew it.

    Off to some more reading… 🙂

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  24. My husband and I are reading the book, Every Waking Moment, by Chris Fabry as our car/commute book. I. was not sure if it would be right for my husband since it focuses mostly on one woman. But my husband, and I both love it. My husband says it is Fabrys best yet, and they have all been excellent.

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  25. On Kindle I am half way through Alana Terry’s Beloved Daughter which I highly recommend, also. I am reading No Wonder They Call Him the Savior by Max Lucado and everyone knows how good he is. I want to start into True Spirituality by Chip Ingram and I have some Christmas books I want to get into. All I want for Christmas is more hours to read. Who needs two front teeth , anyways?

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  27. I just finished Les Miserables today and started The Book of the King: 1 (The Wormling) by Jerry Jenkins and Chris Fabry. Light reading, but after Les Mis I needed something short. Besides, it was a free Amazon download. I’ve been getting several of those. I also plan on reading Michelle’s book that I won in her little contest. I started it once, but haven’t had the time to read it. And I am working through Doctrine Matters by Piper.

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  29. I’m reading Saving Leonardo by Nancy Pearcey, and in work-related reading (one editing and one proofing) a very deep philosophical book about the soul and a novel based on some Old Testament stories. I’m also slowly making my way through the three-volume biography of Churchill called The Last Lion; I’m halfway through the first volume. And working slowly through a wonderful but tough book by John Owen, The Death of Death in the Death of Christ. I’ve been on that last one for quite some time, because I read a few pages and then forget to pick it up again; a few pages is all one can handle in a sitting, but it’s really wonderful.

    Some time before I married and moved, I finally rearranged part of my library in a way I find helpful: I have a couple shelves of “books I haven’t read yet.” So often in the past I’ve run across one on my shelf and realized I haven’t yet read it and I want to, but it isn’t a book I want to read right now. And then I forget about it for the next two years. Now I can scan a shelf of unread books and choose one. I still have some unread books on other shelves, classified by subject or author, but it’s helpful to have some right there to choose from, and books that I keep wanting to read (like the Pearcey book) are getting read. The books there range from deep to easy; novels and memoirs generally don’t end up there; I usually read them pretty quickly since I buy them because they sound interesting.

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  30. 1 1/2 lbs Brussels sprouts
    1/4 cup butter or 1/4 cup olive oil
    2 limes, juice of
    salt
    pepper

    Cut the sprouts in half and lay flat on a chopping block.

    Cut each half into julienne strips.

    Heat a large skillet over med-high heat. (I use a wok).

    Melt butter, then add the sprouts and saute’ until tender about 6 to 10 minutes.

    Season with lime juice, salt and pepper.

    Janice,
    I am so jealous you are having Cranberry Stuff tomorrow. I didn’t make it this year. I WAS going to make the Brussel’s Sprouts but there is a glitch in my refridgerator and everything I put in the vegetable crisper FREEZES! I had to throw the sprouts away 😦

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  31. Good Piper article, Cheryl. That should be required reading for every Christian parent in America.

    We’ve got a young relative whose parents are preparing him to be shot. 😦 You can pray that I’ll bite my tongue tomorrow, as he’ll be at the Thanksgiving gathering we are attending. Things don’t go well if anybody speaks up about the problem. One of the parents is starting to catch on, though, and now tells him to stop his antisocial behavior, but doesn’t deliver any unpleasant consequences, so it’s not much of a deterrent. The other parent still says and does absolutely nothing.

    We just pray.

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  32. I am thankful for so very many blessings, many of which have been mentioned by others. First & foremost, I am thankful for my salvation through Jesus, for His Word, & for His work in my life. Right after those, I am thankful for my husband, my daughters, & my precious grandson. (He drove me nuts today, but he’s such a sweetie. 🙂 ) Also thankful for my home, my church, my dog & my cats, & many more blessings.

    As for reading, I have been reading through the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Sad to say, I never read them as a child. But I am enjoying them now. I am currently on On the Banks of Plum Creek.

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  34. Karen I have never read the Little House Books…I did read all of the Anne of Green Gables books and enjoyed them very much….
    I am almost finished with Weekends with Daisy….just finished A Christmas Memory/Thanksgiving Visitor by Truman Capote….and am slowly reading again The Pursuit of God. I am starting the book Tending Roses for my next month’s book club…

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  35. I never read the “Little House” series either — but I do remember “A Christmas Memory,” very sweet story. Capote was a good writer.

    Long day at work with police being shot in a city to the north of us and then I had to write up a motorcycle fatal. 😦

    There were more than the usual very colorful words coming from our editor today — the usual frustration of trying to find enough copy to cover the holiday + weekend right afterwards.

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  37. Little House books: I never read them at all until first adopted son was reading them in school and I read them with him. He asked for the set from the little book selling mag they have, and I bought them for him for Christmas. He read, read, and reread them until they were nearly worn out. He has loaned them to several others. I bought the set for the little ones and have been reading through them again. Twelve year old son asked for them and got them for his birthday, he is reading and reading and reading them. Amazing I find them rather boring but the children, particularly ten to twelve year old boys, seem to really like them. Less than two weeks from fifteen year old son still refers to them often and what he learned from them.

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  38. I had read only the first two “Little House” books when I was a girl. In one of the early years as a homeschool mom, I did the “Prairie Primer” unit study with 1st and 2nd Arrows, which utilized all nine of the books in the series. We enjoyed all the books, as well as the activities which we chose from the unit study. Second Arrow went on to read a bunch more books on her own about Laura’s mother, grandmother, daughter, and whoever else may have had books written about them. (Caroline, Charlotte, Rose…I may be forgetting more…)

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  39. Thanks, Kim, for the B. Sprouts recipe. Sorry to hear you had to throw yours out. I don’t have lime for this batch, but do have lemon left from making Cranberry Stuff. It should work, too, and I can do lime for Christmas. You have the best recipes!

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  40. Church tomorrow morning, then back home to change clothes, grab our food contributions, and head to the family gathering. Second Arrow’s boyfriend wants to meet the family (he’s already met my husband and me and all our kids, and also my parents and my husband’s parents and one of his brothers). Tomorrow he’ll meet all but one of my siblings and their families. He’s brave. 😉

    Have a most blessed Thanksgiving, everyone!

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  41. Jo, I hope you had a pleasant Thanksgiving. I heard on the news we will be having the coldest Thanksgiving since maybe 1911.

    I don’t sleep so well when it gets this cold. The heating system goes from heat pump recirculated air to the emergency heat which warms the house more quickly so I end up too warm and then the house cools and then the warm air blasts out again. I am very thankful for the heat, of course, but the inconsistency of the system does not work so well with my system. I prefer to sleep with the house cooler but I guess because my husband has hypothyroidism he needs it warmer.

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  42. Thanks Janice. Had to open the windows here after walking home up the hill. Left my van at school. It would not make it up the hill so I had to back down. And this is after having it at auto shop all yesterday afternoon. I think that I wll skip market in the morning as it is just to hard to cart everything up the hill. I think my van may be suffering from a bad batch of fuel.

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  43. I have read the Little House series out loud to my children five different times. The most memorable day was a snowy afternoon in CT where we read the entire book The Long Winter!

    Taking a vacation break from WWI and reading 80 Days, about Nelly Bly’s race around the world in 1889. Another woman took off in the opposite direction 9 hours later. Her name was Elizabeth Bisland, and I think she had the harder trip. She was leisurely sipping tea and reading the paper when a message arrived. 9 hours later, she was on a train headed west!

    33 for dinner at noon. My niece is currently on Skype making an apple pie in Paris. Life is good!

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  44. We’re only having the five of us here for Thanksgiving. The positive thing about my brother’s family not coming is that I didn’t have to knock myself out cleaning. 🙂

    Forrest gets to eat with us in the early afternoon, & then go to be with his dad’s family in the late afternoon. He sure is going to be well fed today!

    Speaking of Forrest, he had a great morning because Papa (Lee) was home this morning. (Usually Lee has to go out for a few early-morning hours on his days off.) He made sure that he & Papa dressed alike (even down to the blue underwear 🙂 ), & brushed their teeth together. Then, after breakfast, Forrest insisted Papa go outside with him so he could show him what he was doing yesterday, & to play with him for a while.

    That little boy adores his Papa. 🙂

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