November 29, 2004
Lord God, almighty and everlasting Father, you have brought me in safety to this new day: Preserve me with your mighty power, that I may not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity; and in all I do direct me to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ my Lord. (Collect for Morning Prayer)

November 20, 2004
Due to the graphics I included, this post can only be seen at www.contemplativemom.com/blog.html

November 14, 2004
If you watched "Faith Under Fire" this week, I just want to apologize for the last, long ad. If you watched it, you know what I'm talking about. I hope the show grows in popularity so that PAX can be more selective about how they fill those breaks.

Now, I know I didn't answer David K's question about what I would ask God. First of all, some questions are a little too personal to post here. Actually, now that I'm thinking about some of them, I'm feeling a little too embarrassed to type them out.

I was talking with my kids about having questions we'll ask God when we're with Him. One of the kids looked up and said, "I have some questions that I want to ask."

"Like what?" I asked. "Could you share any of them with us?"

"I think so. I'd ask God, 'Why can we see the moon in the daytime sometimes?' And things like that."

"That's a very good question," I said, after a pause. I was debating about what to do. Finally, I said, "You know, some things--not all, but some things--people have been able to figure out. Like the moon, well, you could ask Mrs. P. about that (her science teacher), because she knows a lot about science. I'm pretty sure she could explain that to you, if you want to know. Not that I'm saying she's as smart as God, and there are still a billion questions that she can't answer that only God can, but...you might start with Mrs. P. And then the one's she can't handle, you could try to figure out when you're older, or just wait and ask God."

She listened politely to me, cocked her head to one side, thinking, then stated, "Naw, I think I'll just wait and ask God."

Blogger wouldn't let me post for a couple of days. Here I'm catching you up from my other blog.

November 8, 2004
Yesterday evening I attended a public conversation among three thoughtful people, including Howard Gardner (Multiple Intelligences guy), Andre Dubus III (author of House of Sand and Fog), and Renita Weems, an author, educator and minister. The moderator was author Scott Russell Sanders. The resulting discussion was fascinating.

At the very end, Sanders asked a question for us all to ponder as we consider how to make a difference in the world, and I found it hopeful and provocative. Usually when people consider how they might change the world, they're thinking "What can I change?" or even "What am I opposed to?" and one might go so far as to ask "What can I get rid of?"

Instead, Sanders posed the question in the positive: "Ask yourself, 'What do I want to see more of in the world?'"

He offered a starter list, to get us thinking. "Do you want to see more laughter?" he asked. "More happy, healthy children? Do you want to see more green space?" He had more items than that on the list; those are the only ones I can recall just now.

I loved the hopefulness of the question and how positive it felt.

What do I want to see more of in the world?

As a believer in Jesus Christ, this takes on an even more interesting slant...what does the Lord Himself want to see more of in the world, as far as I can ascertain from Scripture. Then, understanding that, what do I hope to see more of in the world and suspect that He might be calling me to be part of bringing it about?

It's a big question that I'm not sure I'm ready to answer.

November 6, 2004
This is a little silly, I'll admit, but sometimes I reach for my cell phone and realize I didn't really have a person I needed or wanted to call. I set it down, then, and realize I'm wanting to hear from the Lord.

It happens online sometimes, too, when I'm doing research. I'm looking up something in Google that leads me to something else and then I end up with big, huge questions. My cursor blinks on the entry line with the big G-O-O-G-L-E letters hovering above, and I think, "The only place left to look for the answer to this is the Lord." And then I sit for a moment thinking how nice it would be if the Lord had a system like this where we could type in our questions and issues, click "go" and pull up articles that represent His thoughts on the matter. How nice it would be if we could indeed pick up our cell phone and dial Him up to chat.

I hate to be too simplistic, but I think it really is sort of like that, otherwise what is prayer?

As for looking up subjects on a divine search engine, well, that's not so easy. For that He's given us Scripture and the principles they represent, but I find that harder. The wide range of interpretations are indicative of that, and I happen to be studying Judges right now. My class instructor is giving us some background to understand it better, but it's still hard. He has us back with Milton again, John Milton, reading Samson Agonistes. I don't expect Milton to serve as God's search engine, but he did meditate on that passage enough to address two theological concerns I had while reading the biblical rendition of Samson's life.

I have a list of questions I'd type into God's heavenly search engine, some of them more personal and private, and some more broad and theological in nature. I do ask, on the divine cell phone, but I haven't had very many of them addressed yet.

November 5, 2005-morning
Well, I slept and woke up, so it's the next day for me even though the date is the same on my heading. I just got a link to the Willow Creek Community Church website. They have discussion guides for each of Lee's shows, including this week's.

Click here for discussion guides

November 5, 2004
It's technically the 5th, though it's actually still Ann staying up too late and thus the end of the 4th. I got this interesting response from a friend in New Mexico who owns a theater and is producing (and performing in) edgy, experimental work, at least I think that's how you'd describe their personality as actors and artists. I haven't actually seen any of their shows, so I'm going with the tidbits I'm piecing together. Anyway, I asked her thoughts on being an artists, because she's so committed to it. Here's what she wrote:

"What is it that makes us artists? Of all the artists I've met (and I've met quite a few), the thing that makes them artists, in my opinion, is their constant and unrelenting pursuit of their work. How this plays itself out is in their constant questioning and (like Waugh) unwillingness to go with something just because it's 'in'. I've known some that LOVED technology, some that eschewed it, but really the issue was not technology but the why behind their choices. A lot of people like to say they are artists because they think its tres chic, but what I've found is that a life in art is very uncomfortable, a lot of hard work that mostly leaves you feeling in constant doubt about everything: Including whether you are an artist or not."

November 4, 2004
They say that reading blogs was an effective way to get up-to-the-minute information on the election. They weren't, I'm certain, referring to my blogs. You may have noticed I've remained silent on political matters. Much more intelligent people than I were discussing those matters in-depth on their own blogs, so I decided to stay quiet about it. I hope you didn't mind. I figured you could find more interesting information elsewhere.

Have you watched Lee Strobel's show yet, Faith Under Fire?

You should really check it out at least once. He hosts several mini-debates about a wide range of topics with guests representing opposite (or at least quite different) points of view. I've missed a couple of weeks, so I may have missed some good topics.

This weekend he has Hugh Hefner on as a guest. Isn't that an attention grabber? The only thing you have to get used to is how short the segments are (and how awful the commercials are, which of course Lee has no control over). Just when the guests get rolling and developing their point of view, it's over. I guess it's just to whet our appetite (and keep things moving, if you don't care too much about that particular topic). I'm tuning in to find out what Lee's going to ask Hefner.

What would you ask Hugh Hefner?

It's on PAX, Saturday nights. 10 p.m. EST & PST, 9 p.m. CST & MST.

More comments on the Evelyn Waugh post:

Today's Writer's Almanac had a piece about Evelyn Waugh, whose birthday it is today.Toward the end, they tell us of Waugh, "In his later life, he grew to hate everything about the modern world--modern music, modern art, modern inventions. He never drove. Heused an antique pen that had to be constantly re-dipped into ink, and when his hearingwent bad, he refused to buy one of the new hearing aids. Instead, he started carryingaround a giant horn that he held up to his ear...Waugh lived in a huge house out in theEnglish countryside, as far away from the modern world as he could get, and he kept apet pig named Glory."
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Ann,
I just had to respond to this. When I went to school in Germany we had inkwells and "real" pens. We even made pens out of duck and geese (goose) feathers. My Opa "grandpa" lived with us and we had to talk to him through a horn. I really don't think it was that big but probably 10 to 12 inches long. He died when I was about five years old. The one strong memory I have of him is when he would slaughter a goose. I would watch him and learn from him. When he died my mother was with him and he said, as he was dying, in German, "I can see the light." What a memory for me and what a testimony.

I can't wait to get away from this modern world when we move to our new home. I won't have a pig but probably chickens, rabbits and maybe a goat or two to keep the weeds trimmed.
--P.W.

And then this (from my mom):

Just finished reading your latest...what I have to add probably doesn't mean anything, but it is something I have been thinking about, probably because something recently made me remember last fall's visit to Winchester Cathedral (now my favorite) where Jane Austen is buried. As you know, she is my favorite author, and has been since 1954, when I was "forced" to read Pride and Prejudice in a college lit class. She is kind of the "in thing" right now, but I mention that to show I am not just "flopping along with the flow." When I mentioned, in that long-ago lit class, that I thought she was very funny, most of the others thought I was crazy. But she is, subtly, very funny. And in a very modern way. Jane lived about 200 years ago, yet her work is still very fresh, and very true to human nature, which she seemed to understand as well, and better, than anyone since. She wrote under the most difficult conditions, scratching her excellent novels out in quill pen, hastily shoving the pages out of sight if anyone came into the room, because writing novelswas not what well-bred young ladies did in those years. Apropos of what you were saying, I'm not sure how this fits in, except Jane was very forward-thinking in her day, to the point that after 200 years she is still not out of date. But she didn't have any modern technology to aid her, nor even any societal (is that a word?) approval. It humbles me, I guess, because I think I like to write, but today, even a manual typewriter seems too difficult, my time seems too limited, and I like to be more sure of eventual rewards! I admire you, in that respect, because I can't seem to write "on spec." I have hardly ever written anything that I wasn't pretty sure would be published, and me paid for. I don't know if this makes any sense at all....

P.S. Eccentrics like Evelyn Waugh are the "spice" of life, but wouldn't do for most of us for the day-to-day grind.

November 1, 2004
I don't watch much TV these days, but I started tuning into Extreme Makeover: Home Edition on Sunday nights.

Man, o man, if you don't watch this show, just try it once. This coming Sunday night is a two-hour special where they are going to renovate a home for a family that has one son who is blind and another who is deaf.

The show selects families who send in videos to explain their plight, and the team swoops in with volunteer help to transform "homes" (some of them are in such terrible shape I hesitate to use that word) into wonderlands, havens, oases. It's a powerful show that demonstrates how changing an environment can change a life.

There are theatrics and entertainment involved to make it fun to watch, so it's more than establishing a safe and healthy home; they also want it to look cute and appealing esthetically. For the same amount of energy and investment they could probably build 45 Habitat for Humanity homes, but I'm not complaining. No, I'm advocating it as positive television demonstrating how people can make a tangible difference. It's so much more exciting to watch than other reality TV shows that are about greed and gaining. It's about sacrifice and giving. I'd love to see more of this, more of the power of human beings pouring into each other's lives. Media can do this, if those with the power are willing to take the risk, and it seems that they are.

Bravo to ABC, to the folks putting this show together, and for all the companies donating stuff and time and energy and skill so that families in need can be blessed. Sure, the blessings are all things that you can't take with you in the end, but they are also things that breathe hope into people's spirits. For example, this past week highlighted a single woman who adopted two children who were born addicted to drugs. She nursed them through to health and has raised these outstanding young boys making tremendous sacrifices and dealing with dismal circumstances. She contacted the show because a contractor had bailed on them leaving their home in shambles, uninhabitable. They were renting a one-room attic space with the mom sleeping on a chair. The boys are twelve years old.

At the end of the show, after touring their new space, the contractor announced that they are pledging a scholarship so that the boys can go to college. So it's more than colorful drapes and ingenious fireplaces. It's about generosity from big hearts.

And it's fun, too.