Milestone

We reached another milestone today. It is fifty years since we moved into this house. 

We were married in July 1967 and lived in a rented house for fifteen months while we bought a little over an acre of land and built a house on it. 

The carpet had not been installed in the living room when we moved in and the lawn and landscaping were not done. The upstairs was one big attic room. On the main floor were two bedrooms, kitchen, living room, bathroom, and laundry, plus an attached one-car garage. We had one three-month-old son and very little furniture. Walls were white plaster and decorating was limited to a calendar on the wall. Multiple bathrooms and central air were luxuries we didn't even consider.

Leroy worked all through the next spring and summer to seed the lawn, one section at a time. I took the picture below after we had grass, shrubs, and a tree in the front yard. They are so small you can hardly see them!

We had a lot of ideas for improvements to the place and it took almost fifty years to get them all done. Maybe that's why we never moved. As the family grew, we added a bedroom upstairs and later a second bedroom and a half-bath. That floor was crammed full with five boys. Our bedroom was downstairs and our daughter had the second bedroom.

As the years passed we built a two-bay garage beyond the right of the attached garage. When the boys were teenagers another two bays were added.

We also added a patio behind the garage end of the house and sometime later turned it into a sun room by enclosing it. Several years later it was finally finished when tiles were laid on the floor. This place was a work in progress, doing things only as needed and we could afford it.

The basement was unfinished with cement block walls and concrete floor. That was fine since it was a rec room. We had a wood stove down there which heated the basement and main floor. The concrete floor was perfect for the children to ride tricycles and roller skate. Leroy hung some swings from the floor joists and the picnic table was stored down there for the winter. In the 1990s we got rid of the wood stove and installed an oil furnace for heat. The children were growing up and our tribe was increasing as grandchildren were added, so the time had come to finish the basement and turn it into a family room for parties and Christmas dinners.

One of my dreams had been to have a sewing room in the second bedroom on the main floor. I thought I would spend my time sewing when I was an old lady. By the time that room was no longer needed for a bedroom, things had changed. I was spending more time writing than sewing so it became an office. We had an Amish man custom-build a desk to fit the room.

Some non-essential items on the "someday" list were adding shutters for trim and blacktopping the driveway. They eventually happened and we chalked off the final one when the driveway was finished last year.

Of course, there were a lot of other changes and upkeep that happened through the years. Wooden windows were replaced with vinyl ones, the roof was replaced, the garden expanded to cover almost a third of an acre and kept shrinking as the children established their own homes.

This place has served us well and could tell a lot of stories. It is the only home our children ever knew. God has been good and we are very blessed.

Moral Questions

Medical science has made great strides in modern times. A hundred years ago, during WWI, people died by the thousands from the flu. Today joint replacements and open heart surgeries are almost routine. People are living longer as a result of better health care. But some of the advances raise difficult questions, especially as it relates to the sanctity of life in reproduction and end-of-life issues. How much effort and money should be spent to prolong life? When is it time to "pull the plug"? What methods of birth control should a Christian not use? Is it morally right for an infertile couple to try conceive a child by IVF (in vitro fertilization)? Medical science has created a quagmire of moral questions that were not an issue a generation ago.

The first test tube baby, Louise Brown, was born in 1978.  Many of those who successfully undergo IVF end up with leftover frozen embryos. As the use of IVF grows, the number of embryos in storage also grows. An estimated 600,000 frozen embryos are now in storage across the United States. 

The government views these embryos as tissue and personal property rather than a human being. Most of these frozen embryos will eventually be destroyed. Since we Christians believe life begins with conception and these embryos are human beings, this creates a moral problem. 

The year Louise Brown turned 20, another couple welcomed America’s first "snowflake baby,"  the term advocates of embryo adoption use to describe the children born from this procedure. President George W. Bush began an initiative through the Department of Health and Human Services to promote embryo adoption.

When couples use IVF, one option available to them is to donate the leftover frozen embryos to another couple. This is an alternative way for an infertile couple to adopt a family. After the doner releases their embryos to the adoptive parents, the embryo is thawed and implanted in the womb of the adoptive mother. She carries and gives birth to the child, allowing the adoptive parents to not only have a child but also experience pregnancy and childbirth. A child that would have been destroyed (technically aborted) is given a chance to live. Most people have not heard of embryo adoption but I believe it is not morally wrong and is a valid way for an infertile Christian couple to build a family.

America Needs the Lord

This past week was déjà vu time for everyone old enough to remember the Clarence Thomas-Anita Hill controversy. But in the midst of many striking parallels between the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings in 1991 and 2018, we have largely overlooked a very telling, quite ironic comment from Justice Thomas.
But first, some of the parallels.

Then, As Today

Then, as today, there were two compelling stories.
Then, as today, there were two believable witnesses, a qualified male judge and a respected female professor.
Then, as today, there were charges of sexual impropriety.
Then, as today, there were concerns about political hit jobs.
Then, as today, the judge was a conservative nominated by a Republican president.
Then, as today, the woman was brought in by the Democrats.
Then, as today, the male judge was hailed as courageous for his impassioned denial of the charges against him.
Then, as today, the female professor was credited with helping to empower women who had suffered sexual abuse and harassment.
Then, as today, the woman was reluctant to come forward and wanted to preserve her anonymity.
Then, as today, the woman’s anonymity was compromised by leaks to the media.
Then, as today, the judge was considered to be a virtually certain appointee until the charges were leaked.
Then, as today, the man felt his reputation had been tarnished for life.
Then, as today, the man denied the accusations “unequivocally and categorically.”
Then, as today, the Republicans and Democrats voted along party lines.
Then, as today, the hearings were brutal.
Then, as today, the judge and the professor received death threats.

“A Travesty … Disgusting”

In fact, it was John Sununu, President George Bush’s chief of staff and a supporter of Thomas, who knew that Bush’s picking of a “true conservative” would result in a “knock-down, drag-out, bloody-knuckles, grass-roots fight.”Yes, the parallels are beyond striking, as indicated by these comments from Thomas in 1991 when asked by Senator Joe Biden if Thomas had anything to say to the committee.
Thomas remarked, “I think that this today is a travesty. I think that it is disgusting. I think that this hearing should never occur in America,” referencing the “dirt” and “sleaze” that had been dug up (really, manufactured) against him “by staffers of members of this committee.”
He continued, “I think something is dreadfully wrong with this country when any person, any person in this free country would be subjected to this.”
Dreadfully wrong, indeed, and a sentiment echoed by Kavanaugh.

Lesson Not Learned

But here’s the sad irony of all this. We have not learned our lesson, and the hopes of Clarence Thomas were not realized.
It was Senator Orin Hatch who asked Thomas if he had expected to go through the particular hell he endured as a result of his nomination.
Thomas responded, “Senator, I expected it to be bad. And I expected the awful treatment throughout the process. … I expected to be a sitting duck for the interest groups. I expected them to attempt to kill me. And yes, I even expected personally attempts on my life. That’s just how much I expected.”
But, he added, “I did not expect this circus. I did not expect this charge against my name. I expected people to do anything, but not this.”
And then the words that are so sadly ironic.
Thomas said, “And if by going through this, another nominee in the future, or another American, won’t have to go through it, then so be it [my emphasis]. But I did not expect this treatment. And I did not expect to lose my name, my reputation, my integrity to do public service.”
Tragically, we have not learned our lessons. We have not improved our conduct. We have not become more civil.

Healing, Restoring, Awakening

Quite the contrary.
Through the tidal wave of social media and endless news outlets, through our increasingly divisive politics, we are on the verge of tearing ourselves apart. And if the Thomas hearings could be likened to a “circus,” the Kavanaugh hearings can be likened to gladiatorial combat, with the bloodthirsty crowds cheering on. What in the world is coming next?
Recently, Rev. James Robison urged Bible believers to, “Release the powerful weight of [God’s] kingdom presence — right here, right now, for His glory and eternal kingdom purpose.”
Nothing other than divine intervention will do. Nothing less than a great awakening will work.
America needs the Lord. Desperately.
So I pray, “Heavenly Father, have mercy on us, and come and heal and restore our broken nation.”
Can I hear an Amen?
 By Michael Brown, Published on September 29, 2018

Wimpy Campers

We spent the weekend in Ohio with our daughter, Cheryl, and her family. The main purpose for going this weekend was Arianna's baptism on Sunday morning but it expanded to stretch from Friday evening to Sunday afternoon.

Gerald and Kelly were looking for a place to go camping that was not a campground. Cheryl said they have plenty of room to camp on the thirty acres they own above their house. They would pull their camper up the hill for Gerald and Kelly to use. They snapped up the offer and went with us. 

We got there a little after 7pm on Friday. Richard had the camper in place and a blazing fire ready to make mountain pies for supper. We hurried to make them because a thunderstorm was coming. 

We got some mountain pies eaten but retreated to the house when it was obvious the rain was coming. After it blew over, we went out again and made more mountain pies. I totally trashed my less-carbs diet. Gerald and Kelly slept in the camper but we are wimpy campers and went down to the house to sleep.

Cheryl said it had been in the 90s all week but the thunderstorm broke the trail for fall to arrive. There was an abrupt change Saturday morning and we needed jackets. We went up the hill to the campsite where Gerald had a fire ready to make breakfast. It was about 9:30 when we had breakfast but we couldn't believe how much food the seven of us put away. Must have been the cooler air and campfire that induced us to go through two dozen eggs, two pounds of bacon, a dozen sausages, coffee cake and cinnamon rolls.

The men went fishing in Richard's dad's pond.

The women went to watch a bit and Kelly even tried her hand at fishing.

While they were fishing, the women went to a coffee shop and to see the bulk food and deli store where Arianna works. Angie was surprised I had never been to a coffee shop. I decided to splurge and see how a latte tastes. It was good but I am much too tight to spend $3.75 for a cup of coffee unless it's an emergency.

The men came back with a string of ten fish for our supper. Josh caught the most but Gerald got a few too and Leroy caught two. They spent the rest of the afternoon shooting clay birds up at the campsite. We just watched them having fun blowing up their money.

Raindrops were threatening so the women went in the house to prepare supper. The shooting went on until it started getting dark. Then the men came to grill the steaks and Josh fried the fish.

It was a privilege to be able to be at Arianna's baptism Sunday morning. She was one of a class of six young people who were baptized. May all of them be faithful to the vows they made and grow in their walk with Christ.

We all went back to the house for lunch and then headed home as soon as possible. It was a good weekend of sort-of (for us) camping. Gerald thought his nephews enjoyed it and maybe they should do it again next year. Maybe we will---as long as I can sleep in the house!

Judaizers, Gnostics and Nicolaitans

The early church was attacked by three groups of false teachers, the Judaizers, Gnostics and Nicolaitans. Who were these people? What did they believe? Do they exist in our world today?

Judiazers

A Judaizer taught that, in order for a Christian to truly be right with God, he must conform to the Mosaic Law. Circumcision, especially, was promoted as necessary for salvation. Gentiles had to become Jewish proselytes first, and then they could come to Christ. The doctrine of the Judaizers was a mixture of grace (through Christ) and works (through the keeping of the Law). This false doctrine was dealt with in Acts 15 and strongly condemned in the book of Galatians.

Paul made the case that, in Christ, there was no longer any distinction between Jew and Gentile, for God had purified the hearts of the Gentiles by faith (Acts 15:8-9). He said it plainly in Galatians 2:16: “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified."

There are many groups today with beliefs and/or practices very similar to those of the Judaizers of the New Testament. It's a doctrine that is a mixture of law and grace. They reason that such a grand gift as forgiveness from such a holy God must require some kind of payment from us. They thank God for His grace, but think He expects us to somehow earn that grace—in other words, there must be something that we can do to pay off the debt we owe to God. The Bible is clear that the attempt to add human works to God’s grace overlooks the very meaning of grace, which is “undeserved blessing.”

Not all Judiazers require people to keep the Mosaic Law. Those who uphold man-made traditions and prohibitions as necessary to obtain (or earn) salvation are also "Judiazers." If our faith is based on our own performance, we are missing the point. There are things Christians need to deny themselves and do to be right with God but we will never earn our salvation by good works. If we could earn our salvation, Christ would not have had to die to provide it.

Don't get me wrong. God is a God of order and His church should operate in an orderly manner with proper guidelines. We become Judiazers when we base our salvation on keeping the Ordnung (church rules) rather than on faith in Christ.

Gnostics

Gnosticism is difficult to define because it comes in so many flavors and interpretations. By itself, it is not a separate denomination or religion but a religious philosophy. It is a framework from which to explain the nature of God, creation, good and evil, man, and the purpose of life. Gnostics tended to focus exclusively on the inner life of the spirit, which they clearly differentiated from material life.

In its most basic sense, Gnosticism is knowing, but its knowledge, while sometimes including the Word of God, does not have it as its foundation. Gnostics valued what they experienced, what elders told them, or what they learned from "angels," astrology, or chemistry, more than what was contained in Scripture. 

This same distrust of God's Word is readily seen in today's world. Basically, Satan told Adam and Eve, "You do not need to follow God's way, for it is obviously unfair and far too stringent. You can follow your own way. You can take knowledge to yourself of what is good and what is evil. You can be just like God in determining what is right and wrong." They took the bait, and ever since, man has rejected God's standard of righteousness in favor of his own.

Modern Gnostics who believe in "progressive revelation" have also succumbed to this first of Satan's ploys, "Hath God said?" While God does reveal things to us, the critical point is that what is revealed—if it truly comes from Him—will never contradict what He has already revealed in His Word.

Currently, the Bible's legitimacy is undergoing an intense assault. Due to popular Gnostic writings like The Da Vinci Code book and movie, many people are questioning the validity of the Bible. Satan seems to be asserting that the Word of God is subject to the whims of men and thus cannot be trusted. At every turn, faith founded in God's Word is being undermined.

Nicolaitans

The early church's choice of "Nicholas of Antioch" as one of the first deacons implies he likely possessed natural abilities and leadership qualities, as well as fulfilling the apostles' qualifications of being "of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom" (Acts 6:3).  That Luke calls him a proselyte tells us that he was a Gentile who converted to Judaism before his calling to Christianity. 

Both Irenaeus and Clement of Alexandria consider Nicolas of Antioch to be the founder of the Gnostic sect known as the Nicolaitians. Another early writer, Hippolytus, adds that Nicolas "departed from sound doctrine, and was in the habit of inculcating indifferency of both life and food," meaning he taught the Gnostic belief of the irrelevance of physical things. This reinforces Clement's claim that Nicolas became an ascetic and that his followers later perverted his teachings to encompass idolatry and immorality.

Though sincere and devout, he came to believe that the only way to grow spiritually was to consider his body and its desires as unimportant. His fundamental doctrine of asceticism appears to have been "the flesh must be treated with contempt" in order to reach a high level of spirituality.
Over the years, however, this teaching took on a more Gnostic spin: Since the flesh is unimportant, even contemptible, what one does in the flesh is of no consequence. Spiritual life, growth, and ultimately salvation occur in the soul, and since God is spirit, He has no regard for the flesh. Therefore, Nicolaitans reasoned, what does it matter if one satisfies the flesh's desires? At some point then, Nicolaitanism evolved from an ascetic philosophy to a licentious one—one that Christ says He hates (Revelation 2:6, 15).
When members of the church teach and practice that they are not obliged to keep the laws of God, sin will inevitably break out and apostasy will increase. 

To summarize, Judiaziers corrupt belief in Christ with faith in their own works. 
Gnostics are their own god, trusting in their own knowledge and reasoning. Common labels today are Atheism or secular humanism which deny any spiritual reality.
Nicolatians today often say, "It's what's on the inside that counts."  They believe they can live as they please and nothing they do will cause them to lose their salvation.

In contrast, Theists believe God is the Creator of all things and a personal living God. Jesus Christ is the Son of God and our Savior. Only by faith in Him and Him alone can we have peace with God and enter His presence after this life. His Word is the absolute authority and the standard by which we must live. That is what I believe, but I think we need to be aware of the false teaching that can so easily creep into the church and deceive us.
"Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness. But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen." 2 Peter 3:17-18.

End of Summer

Although summer doesn't officially end until a few weeks after Labor Day, this weekend is considered the end of summer. Many schools opened at the end of August and the rest will open after Labor Day. 

For quite a few years now we have gone to my sister on Labor Day to make apple butter in a copper kettle over a wood fire. The crowd is different every year with a combination of my siblings, children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews gather for the event. For some reason, this year we had the smallest crowd ever. Even some of those who always come had other things today. So those of us who could kept up the tradition and made a small batch of apple butter. A few more were there than are shown here. It was the first year Gene and his family were there.

We start with applesauce and each quart cooks down to three cups. By noon it was finished cooking and we took it off the fire to cool while we ate lunch. Then we each took our share.

We capped the day by crossing the Susquehanna River on the Millersburg ferry on the way home.

The Millersburg Ferry is the last operating ferry on the Susquehanna River. It crosses the river between Millersburg in Dauphin County and Buffalo Township in Perry County. The ferry was established in the early 19th century. The Millersburg Ferry crossing was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006. It is believed to be the last wooden double stern-wheel paddle boat to be operating in the United States. It is owned by the Millersburg Chamber of Commerce and operated by the Millersburg Ferryboat Association from May until October when water levels permit.

It was fully loaded with four cars. 

It was a beautiful day and a smooth ride. Grayson wished it would have been a wider river and a longer ride. 

When we got to the other side there was a line of cars waiting to cross. So we drove off to make room for them and went home taking the memories with us. It was a lovely end to a good summer.

Shifting Gears

With the help of my daughters-in-law, we wrapped up the August canning season last week. Pears will come in by Labor Day but that won't amount to much. It seemed strange to not have any canning or freezing to do this week but I was not twiddling my thumbs. I shifted right into the next season along with the children who headed back to school this week. 

My schedule no longer revolves around the school year but each season has its own domestic chores to keep a household running smoothly. When the end of August rolls around it's time to start the fall housecleaning. I begin with scrubbing the front porch and enclosed patio behind the house while it is still warm enough to be slopping with the hose. 

Today was the day to begin with the front porch. I didn't realize until I started scrubbing how much mildew had grown there. It's been a very wet summer and I should have known. I expect I'll find a lot more of the black stuff inside the house as I get to it later. At any rate, the front porch is clean now and looks like it's been to the dentist to get its pearly whites shined.

As I was scrubbing I was thinking about how there's never a time when I have nothing to do. Finish one job and the next one is waiting. Just as canning comes to an end, housecleaning begins. I was reminded of what my my sister-in-law's mother once said. She raised a family of sixteen children and then adopted three more. And after that she kept foster babies until she was 80. Someone once asked her how she managed the work of raising such a large family. Her answer was simple but profound. "Just do the next thing."

Life is a series of things that need to be done in a daily, weekly, monthly, and seasonal pattern. What those things are will vary with our age and interests. We can get bogged down and frustrated when there are more things that need to be done than we have time to accomplish. I know because I've been there, done that. But what I couldn't do in one day always waited for the next and eventually it all got done somehow. My mother used to say, "Tomorrow is another day, and if it isn't, it won't matter."

So as we stand on the verge of fall which brings a change of seasons and schedules, take to heart some good advice from two wise women. Just "do the next thing." And if you don't have enough time to finish everything on your list for the day, "Tomorrow is another day, and if it isn't, it won't matter."