Time is a precious commodity.

It is time we came to an understanding. I have always said that if there is one thing I wish our family could do without, it's the internet. Not e-mail, but the whole rest of the world wide web. There was a time when we did without, and enjoyed ourselves. Can we get there again?

Today I sat on the couch and informed my daughter that the old run-down house she wants is up for sale. There I was with Sarah on my right, Elijah on my left, and Tom across from me on the chair. We began a conversation about how we could buy this house for Sarah (we can't but it's a nice dream) and it would be a nice dowry for her. (No, you do NOT hear wedding bells yet, don't even think it.) That led to a discussion about what dowries biblically are meant to be (protection for the bride, and something for her to fall back on in case her hubby died or turned out to be a wife-deserting scumbag) compared to what they became in American history (totally turned over to the husband to enhance his estate, leaving her with nothing if he turned out to be that worthless scumbag).

Tom got up, to go do whatever pastors do on Saturday nights (go to bed early), leaving me to supervise the bath/shower routine. Josiah took his place on the chair, then Lizzie snuggled up between me and Sarah, and Abby snuggled in on the other side, between me and Elijah. We continued to speculate on how we could get that house for Sarah, with Josiah adding a half-dreaming plan or two of his own. (Seriously, if I had the money I'd get it, if it were structurally sound enough to be worth fixing--old houses are so much more "alive" than the factory made, cookie cutter houses of today.)

The point of this post is not to discuss the topic of tonight's conversation, but to emphasize the fact that a conversation took place at all. Sarah did NOT have her laptop in her lap, I was NOT on my computer, and NObody had mp3 players plugged into their ears. I was snuggled up with some of my most favorite people in the whole world, just talking.

It was nice.

If, in a year or two, you come back here and still don't find anything new, it's because I'm doing something more important: spending time with the people I love the most.

P.S. In case you think I'm being extreme, here's a good video to watch: A Journey Home. Set aside 45 minutes of your time to watch this with your family. Seriously. I've been praying for a long time for something similar for our family. Tom hardly ever watches a video with us, but he found this one, watched it, recommended it to me, we watched it with some of our children, then I watched it yesterday with the rest of our children.

Be sober, be vigilant

Years ago, in a church we once attended, was a couple who loved the Lord and His people dearly. He was a deacon in the church, a true servant. She was one of the most hospitable people I knew. Many were the hours of true Christian fellowship we spent with them. We lost touch with them after we moved, but I have always remembered them fondly.

Recently I was shocked and saddened to learn that, some time ago, this wife gave up 20 or so years of marriage and left her husband. I could not have imagined a more impossible thing. I have no idea what happened, but two verses came to mind.

One is found in Titus 2. The list of all that men and women, young and old, ought to be ends with this admonition: "...that the word of God be not blasphemed." When our homes are not operating according to the Scripture, we give the unbelieving world cause to blaspheme God's Holy word. They call us hypocrites, and rightly so.

The other verse is this: "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8). I don't know what this woman's point of departure was, but there came a point when she ceased to be vigilant. Her adversary, who was already stalking her, seized this opportunity and devoured her. From what I hear, she is far from happy in her chosen lifestyle.

My prayer is that God will deal in mercy with this woman. But she will never be able to gain back what she threw away: her husband belongs to another woman now.

Oh, my fellow sisters in Christ! Let us be sober. Let us be vigilant. Let us not blaspheme His Word by failing to be what we should be in our hearts, in our homes, in our churches, in our world.

Paul Washer on Courtship and Dating

I hope every parent and every single person aged 12 and up who reads this blog will listen to these messages. Here is a way to be biblically and radically different from your culture. This is cutting, convicting, wonderful, sobering, practical stuff. I can't stress enough the importance of the message Paul Washer puts forth in these three sermons.

There is a problem with two of the messages in that for some reason you don't get the whole thing, but there is enough of it there that they're still worth listening to.

Dating
Courtship, Part 1
Courtship, Part 2

Daddy, dip your finger in the water

I hesitated somewhat to post this, but decided to go ahead. This is a sad and sobering post. It is also a request for prayer.

Today my husband will bury another of his brothers. This brother died in his sins. Oh Lord! When will the plague of death be stayed for this family? How long before You turn from Your fierce anger and save members of Tom's family? O Lord, in wrath remember mercy! There are five brothers left, along with their families. Please pray that God will have mercy. Pray for Holy Spirit conviction of sin. Out of all Tom's large family, he is the only one who is saved. He has already lost his father, his only sister and another brother to the judgment of God. We believe his mother is with the Lord, and possibly his step-dad.

Tom's step-dad was raised in a Presbyterian home, with a godly mother who took him faithfully to church every Sunday. I don't know why or how, but he turned away from all that. Tom was about ten or so when Pop married Tom's mother. He was totally antagonistic toward anything to do with religion in any way. After Tom was converted, he refused to allow Tom to read the Bible to him, or to pray with him. Just before he died we think God had mercy and saved him. Tom read to him from the book of John and prayed with him as he lay on his deathbed, and for the first time he wanted to hear the Scriptures read. Later a Christian nurse told how she had talked with him about the Lord, and had prayed with him. She said he also prayed that God would save him. That is our hope.

However, Pop died without ever saying anything to his children about the Lord. The title for this post is a line from a song I once heard on the radio. The song tells the story of a man who is sleeping, and dreams that his child is calling for a drink of water. As he goes to give his child a drink, he realizes that his child is calling to him from the place of torment, asking his father to dip his finger in some water to cool his tongue. I first heard that song during the week that Pop lay dying of cancer. I couldn't help but think of all the knowledge this man had about the Lord and the way of salvation, that he deliberately withheld from his children.

Pray for Tom today, and in the weeks to come, but especially today, that he might be able to speak to his family of the hope that lies within him. Oh, that God would have mercy on this family!