| Page 100

Missions Accomplished

Valerie Basham

June 22, 2011

We are only taking about three weeks off for summer break before hitting the books again. The weather is extremely hot and has been for some time. We’ve also had little rain lately, but after the massive thunderstorms and tornadoes that we endured during March, April and part of May, I can’t complain. However, I’m sure the farmers are needing some rain. Because the weather is so hot and miserable, and we’re forced to stay inside, we decided to make use of that time. We took a few weeks off to rest up from the previous school year, get organized for the next year, and so my children could each enjoy their turns staying with my Mom for a week. We plan on taking a break mid-autumn, Lord willing, when the weather is cooler.

Here are a few things I’ve accomplished during the break. I’m a list-maker, so I thought I’d see how many jobs I completed! 🙂

Moved small bookshelf and books out of girls’ room and into the school room where I can keep track of the books better. They have a very small room, so this also opened up more space for them to play with the Littlest Pet Shop toys that a friend in our church gave us for free! What a blessing!!
Cleaned girls’ room thoroughly, including the closet.
Cleaned out file cabinet, organized books, got rid of some books, and, yes, I even got a few new ones at our library’s book sale. Good thing I made some room for them! 😉
Cleaned fridge.
Washed curtains and dusted windows and ceilings.
Finished up report cards, organized school books for the coming year.
Made copies of the Sunday School material we’ll be using for our daughter’s 7th grade Bible class. (Yes, we had permission.) 🙂
Got off Zoloft – that’s right! I’m medicine free, finally, and feeling great!! I didn’t realize how tired that medication made me. I have so much more energy now! Yes, I do feel the effects of stress a bit more now, but it’s nothing like it was when I was suffering with PPD. I can cope again and that feels so, so good. I am grateful to have had the medication available when I needed it.
Read Sarah, Plain and Tall, James and the Giant Peach and Jed Smith: Trailblazer of the West aloud to one or more of the children. Read myriad other children’s books aloud to the little girls.

Here are a few books we’re planning on reading aloud next:
The Shakespeare Stealer
Holes
My Brother Sam is Dead
Humbug Mountain
Cam Jansen and the Mystery at the Haunted House
Door in the Wall
Across Five Aprils
The Cabin Faced West
The Whipping Boy

We’ll read them all, but I’m not sure when or in what order.

It’s hard to believe, but we’ve officially lived here longer than anywhere else! Well, the official date would have been June 7, but I figure I’m close enough. 🙂 Yes, I’m a list maker and a date keeper! Haha! The longest we had lived in one place before was in Hot Springs, Arkansas. We lived there for three years and three weeks. We came very close to breaking our record in Texas, but God moved us here about six months before our record. Wow…it feels good to have this time “under our belts”, so to speak. The ministry is definitely work! Anyone who thinks that a Pastor doesn’t work for a living, simply hasn’t tried it. Satan is fighting. I’m sure there are folks who wish we had moved on quite some time ago. I know my husband would have quit long ago if God had not called him to do this.

The other day, my husband and I were looking at Matthew in his highchair and commenting how cute and adorable he is. “Matthew, everybody just adores you! How does that feel?” I asked him playfully, as he broke into a heart-melting grin. Terry then made a comment that really stuck with me. He said, “Put a Bible in his hand and he won’t be so adored.”

You know, that’s the truth. Jesus wasn’t very popular, nor was Paul. Daniel was hated, David was despised, as were Peter and James. John the Baptist was killed for the cause of Christ and the blood of countless saints was shed because they chose to believe and obey the Bible. Why should we expect an easy road for ourselves? We serve the same God of Paul, Daniel, David, Peter, James, John and of the Lord Jesus Himself. God hasn’t changed. His truths still pierce the soul and convict of sin. And that will never be popular.

May we all stay faithful till He comes to get us.

Signs of Summer

Valerie Basham

1 comment

June 21, 2011

The kids’ clothes and towels hanging up to dry in the warm breeze after a fun romp on the homemade slip ‘n’ slide (a tarp spread out and the kids taking turns holding the water hose on it as they slide down). 🙂

I love summer.

Father’s Day 2011

Valerie Basham

2 comments

June 21, 2011

We had a very good day at church for Father’s Day this past week. Of course, anytime I get to hear my husband preach is a good day. 😉 Terry preached some powerful messages, and by that I mean extremely convicting! The Holy Spirit was at work in my heart, that’s for sure. I like that, though. I like it when the Holy Spirit nudges me and says, “Ahem, that’s for YOU!” It’s a nice reminder that I’m saved and cared about by my Heavenly Father. Of course, it’s uncomfortable for minute or two, but I think that a person who wants to live the Bible cannot be uncomfortable for long (unless they are not a child of God, then they just need to come to Christ for salvation.) A Bible-lover will repent and go forward. The Lord is rich in forgiveness and mercy, and that’s a wonderful feeling.

Here are a few pictures from our day.

We were blessed to have the Silvey family with us this past Sunday to provide special music. Their oldest son, Will, plays the piano for us when they are there. Bro. Silvey is working on some curriculum to help encourage Fathers to complete their biblical role of leading the home and family.He is a pastor and is hoping to start a church soon, but has been visiting with us in the meantime. I’ll be honest, we’d love for them to join us and help us in that endeavor! Oh how the hearts of men need to be less focused on working, fishing, hunting, golfing, etc., and more on their precious families! We are enjoying them as long as God lets them stay. 🙂 Terry had him share his burden for fathers with us. Very appropriate, considering it was Dad’s Day! 🙂

Of course, this man needs no introduction. I know you recognized the world’s greatest husband, father and Pastor! 🙂

Here’s a group shot of the Father’s present this past week.

Please pray for our ministry here, if you think of us. We are about to lose a wonderful family due to a job relocation. We will all miss them, but especially my own children. This family has five kids and my children have so enjoyed having them here to play with. I know God knows best and he will comfort their hearts and strengthen our faith during this time. But it will still be painful. Also, more specifically, we are needing workers for our Master Club ministry next year. This is a burden to my heart because I’m very involved in this work and would hate to see this ministry end.

Thanks so much for taking time to visit me! I have recently learned that the embedded comment form has been giving some commentators trouble when they’ve tried to write me. I’ve now changed it to the pop-up form, so I hope it makes it easier. Just wanted to let you know. Special thanks to Linda for letting me know that this might solve the problem.

Oh! And on a very happy note, my brother, Kevin Courtney, is the new pastor of Wild Peach Baptist Church in Brazoria, Texas. If you are down that way or if you live around there, please stop by for a visit! Tell him his little sis sent you. 🙂

Hope you all have a great week!

Laughs from the Past

Valerie Basham

3 comments

June 17, 2011

Every year, since we’ve lived in Arkansas, my children have had the opportunity to spend a few days alone with my mom. This year, they are each getting an entire week with her! My little girls went to her house together last week, and now, my oldest daughter is there for her week. My son will go when Lauren returns. They look forward to this time alone with her all year long. And is it any wonder? She makes them huge breakfasts, complete with Toaster Strudels (a luxury for us), takes them shopping and to the massive Saline County Library, and basically anwhere else they want to go. 🙂 They make lists of what they will do, “Go to library” and “play in sprinkler” are the most popular items on their lists. They all insist that they be there with her for a Sunday, because they love going to her Sunday School class (even if their a bit too young or too old) and her Children’s Church. It warms my heart to think of my six year old sitting in the same children’s church that I did when I was six! I’m so thankful my parent’s were never “church hoppers”, they stayed put, even when the church faced hard times, and they stayed faithful.

When the kids are away, no matter which one is gone, it changes the entire dynamic of how things are run here. I felt like a lady of leisure while the little girls were away! I had less laundry, two fewer baths to assist with (only had to bathe Matt!), and I could work with fewer interruptions. I took the opportunity while they were away to thoroughly clean out their room and closet and I moved a small bookshelf out of their room and into our school room so I could better keep up with our many books! I got a lot accomplished, but I was missing them! I was so happy to see them come through the door yesterday! Now, I’m missing my girl, Lauren. She’s my big helper, my left arm (I’m left handed).

While they were gone, I managed to go through the piles and piles of stuff that had collected here, there and yonder. Yesterday, I cleaned out my file cabinet, throwing away user’s manuals to items we no longer have, old papers, and so forth. In so doing, I came across a file of some of my writing from years gone by. I didn’t realize how much I’d written “pre-blog”. I have about 550 posts on this blog, 130-something on another blog and many notebooks and file folders, or so I recently discovered! Some of the stories cracked me up! I don’t know what I was thinking! I thought I’d share a poem I found that I wrote on Oct. 7, 2002. (yes, Mom taught me to date everything!) I thought it was so funny! Reading over my old material, I discovered that my writing has improved with practice! I still have a long way to go, but I was pleased with my progress, considering I haven’t had a creative writing class since high school. 🙂 So, here you go.

Do What You Love

To feel the autumn breezes blow,

To take a walk on paths you know,

To hear the buzzing bumble bee,

The black and yellow, can you see?

Describing colors rich in hue,

The crimson red and midnight blue,

To go to mountain peaks so high,

They reach the dome above the sky.

I’d take you to this land with me

From plains of wheat to salty sea,

But if you come, please do beware,

You just might feel the cold night air.

For good words, they tend to call,

You’ll want to touch that waterfall.

You’ll smell the earth, the scent of rain

And walk for miles that dusty lane.

To take you to a place so far,

To see the moon or touch a star!

It’s what I do, it’s what I love!

Shhhh….did you hear that dove?

Sheer joy it brings if you could see

The things that mean the most to me.

Kids at play, a laugh, a sigh,

These make my days, I cannot lie.

On desks, or tables, the kitchen sink!

I must write down the things I think.

It fills a need – a deep, dark void.

It makes me glad and overjoyed!

To know that one day you might read

The things I wrote, and be agreed

Don’t spend your days with push and shove,

Do what I do, do what you love!

Thanks for indulging me as I fill my “deep, dark void”! Haha! I was so silly. Have a great day!

He Called Me His Partner

Valerie Basham

no comments

June 16, 2011

Ex. 20:12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
When the springtime breezes rustle the leaves, gently blowing my hair, carrying the sweet scent of honeysuckle, I am immediately transported to a beautiful place. I reach for it, only to see it vanish before my eyes. But, I know it exists. In this place, I am very young. My blond hair is cropped short. My skin is beginning to show freckles. I look up to see a very tall man, with thick, dark hair. We go for walks around the block, each of us with our own walking stick. In this place, the summers are long and lazy. The late, late breakfasts on Saturday mornings are such a delight. We climb into the car and head for McDonald’s, where we each order a stack of hotcakes with plenty of syrup. Some strangers, who are visiting our town from out of state, pause to comment on how this man resembles Ronald Regan. We laugh, I talk, he listens.

The visions are of my Father. But that name is too formal, it doesn’t fit at all. He’s Dad. He graduated to Heaven seven years ago. It was one of the darkest nights of my life. If a daughter’s love could pull a man’s soul back to Earth, my Dad would still be here. As I lie in bed that night, crying into my pillow and fearing the worst from 500 miles away, I was just a little girl, who desperately needed her Dad.

We were “partners” – that’s what he called me. We worked on the car together. We made many a trip to the hardware store together, browsing the power tools. We rode to the orthodontist’s office together, as well as to school each day. His laugh is forever etched in my memory bank. So is his smile, and his tender heart. The smell of his cologne is also burned in my memory, as is the sight of his greeting my Mother with a kiss after a long day of work in Little Rock. Ahh…his work. I remember that, too. I remember how everyone in his office liked him. He didn’t think they did, but I could tell. Even at age nine, I could tell.

I remember his way of rousing me from the covers each morning for school. He sang “It’s time to get up” to the tune of “Reveille.” He would bend over and whisper “It’s time to wake up, sleepy head”, breathing his coffee breath in my face. He’d been awake for quite a while already. I remember how he was always in his pew in church, every time the doors were open. I remember his reading the Bible each morning at the breakfast table. I remember the furry throw blanket he and Mom bought me at Sam’s Club when I was twelve. I still have it! It has a teddy bear on it. Each time I curl up in it, I’m reminded of my parents’ love for me.

I remember the sad look on his face as he watched me grow into a woman; when I stopped working on cars and making trips to the hardware store with him. He was sad to see those days fade.

I remember the electric blanket he gave me after I was married. As Terry and I were loading up to go home from visiting them one evening, he brought it out to me.

“But Dad, this is yours, you all just bought it.”

“You don’t have one, do you?” He asked me.

“No sir, but we can get one.” I said.

“Well, we aren’t using this one, so you take it. The Bible says we shouldn’t withhold good from someone when it’s in our power to do it.”

“Thank you, Dad.” I said. As I placed that blanket in the car, I thought about the verse he referenced. I knew that Mom and Dad lived every part of the Bible that they possibly could, perhaps all of it! He and Mom had not just been Bible believers, but Bible doers. I’ve since had to part with that blanket…it just got too worn out to use. I snapped a photo of the kids with it though and I told them the story. I told them about one example, out of many, that their Papa lived God’s Word.

His Home-going was most unexpected. No one in my family saw it coming. In that moment, the entire world came crashing down around me. It was then that I truly realized the weight that he had been carrying all of those years. My Grandfather had died when Dad was only 21 years old. He told me more than once how he grew up overnight when Granddad died. He told me how he once heard Granddad whistling as he walked up the sidewalk to come home. Dad ran to the front porch, excitedly pushed open the screen door, only to find no one there. He realized anew that his Dad was gone. He would never again come whistling up the sidewalk. I didn’t understand Dad’s sorrow as I sat in his lap, listening to him tell me this story and watching his blue eyes grow misty. I just knew that my Dad was there, holding me, talking to me, making memories with me. I knew he would come home every night from work. He would kiss Mom, sit in his recliner, and then join us for supper. He would laugh and tell stories at the table, all the while fiddling with his napkin, turning it into all sorts of shapes. My childish mind could not comprehend death.

Then, on July 29, 2004, I grew up. I was 26 years old and had been married for seven years. I had two children, but I wasn’t grown. I now understand what my Dad was trying to explain to me so many years ago.

I remember those first days home after his death. His walking shoes were just where he’d left them. His glasses were on his dresser. My Grandfather’s crystal ash tray sat in its rightful place, filled with pennies, as usual. His Bible, worn and used, was right where he had left it. He had been reading the book The Prayer of Jabez, and it too, was just where he’d left it, with the bookmark neatly in place. Mom said he had begun praying that prayer a few weeks before his death. He was constantly growing closer to the Lord. I thought of Enoch as I observed my Dad’s things for the last time. Everything in my parents’ home pointed to the Lord. No, Dad did not get translated to Heaven like Enoch, but he did walk with God like Enoch. In my mind, they walked and talked so often that Jesus said “Ron, let’s continue this up here,” and then took him home. Perhaps that’s ridiculous to you, but it seems so logical to me.

I must now end this walk down memory lane. I hate to leave, really. It seems I’m happiest when I am there. But I know that too much time spent in the past causes me to waste the precious time God has given me in the present. I now realize what a valuable commodity time is. I don’t ever want to forget the sweet, wonderful, sincere Dad that I had. I want to keep his memory alive not only for my children, but for myself. I want to remember that a person can walk with God all the way to the end.

With a heart full of love,

Learning to Love – A Giveaway {Closed}

Valerie Basham

15 comments

June 14, 2011

My husband recently preached an excellent sermon entitled “How To Be Perfect”. Sound intimidating? I thought so when he announced the title. “Oh boy. Get ready for a mile-long list of dos and don’ts!” However, as he got into the message, I quickly saw that my presuppositions had been incorrect.

Here’s the passage that he preached from:
Matthew 5: 43-48
43Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.

⁴⁴But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

⁴⁵That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

⁴⁶For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?

⁴⁷And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?

⁴⁸Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

Many preachers, pastors and perhaps theologians would say that the word “perfect” here means “complete”. In some passages it does mean that. But, here, the Savior is telling us that we can be “perfect”. It doesn’t mean “completely sinless and wonderful”, though, if I could attain such perfection I would strive to do so. No, we must look at the preceding verses to see what He means. Jesus is talking about loving our enemies. Does God love His enemies? Well, seeing that He sent His only Son, Jesus, to pay for our sins, I would say yes. Seeing that He saved and used the Apostle Paul, a man who had killed those who worshiped the Savior, I would say again, yes. God is perfect in every way, including in His ability to love those who do not love Him in return. Prior to June 12, 1993, this was I! Loving our enemies is one way that we, as Christians, as disciples of the Lord Jesus, can be perfect, just like our Father!

I’ve been re-reading this passage in my devotions. I’ve been mulling it over, trying to determine, what is love? Must I go spend the afternoon with my enemies, hanging out? Is that love? Should I call them daily and chat? Is that love? Or, is love simply not hating them? You know, not wishing evil on them, praying for them, etc.? To be clear, I don’t think I have any enemies, in the traditional sense of the word. I don’t think there is anyone out there slandering me or plotting my demise.(At least, I hope not!) But, I know there are some folks who are not exactly my number one fans. Or even my 2,679,342nd fan. These folks don’t want me to drop by for a coke and they don’t want to chat with me if they see me at the store. So, I’m calling them “enemies” but I feel that word is a bit harsh. The point is, I want to love everyone, even those who don’t exactly like me…at all.

It’s been a while since I had read portions of the book If by Amy Carmichael. I believe it’s no coincidence that I picked it up again just today, when I’m striving to learn how to love. I wanted to share a few passages that convicted me.

If I hold on to choices of any kind, just because they are my choice; if I give any room to my private likes and dislikes, then I know nothing of Calvary love.

If I put my own happiness before the well-being of the work entrusted to me; if, though I have this ministry and have received much mercy, I faint, then I know nothing of Calvary love.

If I am soft to myself and slide comfortably into the vice of self-pity and self-sympathy; if I do not by the grace of God practice fortitude, then I know nothing of Calvary love.

If I do not give a friend “the benefit of the doubt,” but put the worst construction instead of the best on what is said or done, then I know nothing of Calvary love.

If I take offense easily; if I am content to continue in a cool unfriendliness, though friendship be possible, then I know nothing of Calvary love.

If a sudden jar can cause me to speak an impatient, unloving word, then I know nothing of Calvary love.*
*For a cup brimful of sweet water cannot spill even one drop of bitter water, however suddenly jolted.

If I feel injured when another lays to my charge things that I know not, forgetting that my Sinless Saviour trod this path to the end, then I know nothing of Calvary love.

I could go on and on. I received a bonus from this book. Not only am I learning how to love my enemies, but also how to better love those who love me in return. I long to share this book with all of my readers! It will be a great addition to your devotional time. However, I do not have the funds available to purchase a copy for everyone. I have decided to give away two copies, of either the book or the audiobook,(winners’ choice) to two readers. I will hold an old-fashioned drawing for the winners on Friday, July 1, 2011, at 6 PM. Winner will be announced immediately after the drawing.

How to Enter:
Do one or more of the following, each item counts as an entry, just let me know in your comment how many you have done. Those already following my blog can also count that for an extra entry! Just let me know you’ve been following!

1. Comment on this post.(If comments are not working, please let me know on my chat box or by e-mail. Thank you!)
2. Post about this giveaway on Twitter.
3. Follow my blog
4. Follow by e-mail
5. Post about this giveaway on Facebook or your blog.

I look forward to blessing two readers with this marvelous and convicting little book!

My Broken Heart

Valerie Basham

5 comments

June 13, 2011

Isaiah 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.

This verse has been ringing in my ears lately. Over and over, I see its truth as never before. I have a friend in Great Bend, Kansas, named Melissa. We attended church together for a while in Lawrence, Kansas, until she and her husband moved to Great Bend to start a church. I had the privilege of calling folks in Great Bend and asking them if they would like to receive a pamphlet in the mail about the new church starting up. This was about 8 years ago. Melissa was expecting her first child when we met. She had been unable to bear any children until then.

About a year ago, she found out she had breast cancer at age 36! She had been caring for three foster children as well as her own child, and she continued caring for them as she fought for her life. God saw her through the agony of chemo, hair loss, and radiation, and so far, she is cancer free!

On December 28, 2010, a baby boy was born that they would adopt! They named him Joel Thomas. They got to bring him home from the hospital and have cared for him ever since. The paper work finally went through on June 6, 2011, and he became legally theirs! She was elated!

Then, on June 11, 2011, only five days after the final legal loose ends were tied up, she found her sweet boy had passed peacefully on to await their reunion in the arms of Jesus. It was devastating. I’m crying now as I type this. I sob off and on throughout the day. I don’t understand God’s ways, I don’t understand. I don’t mind questioning God about it, either. Jesus questioned God on the cross, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” I, too, raise my tearful sobs to Heaven and ask, knowing that HE knows best, “My God, my God, why must my dear friends suffer?” As a mother, I fall apart pretty easily, I guess.

I’ve suffered the loss of life in my family. I’ve not lost a child, but I’ve traveled the well worn path of grief. I know it’s lonely. I know it’s painful. I know the toughest days are those yet to come. I don’t want my friends to walk this road. Not yet, not now. But, walk it they must. They are strong – stronger than I. I admire them so much. They are amazing people.

Would you please pray for my friends, Ken and Melissa Gray? Would you pray for me? God is doing the things that He must do to mold and make me into His image, and the Refiner’s fire is often hot and uncomfortable. He is being glorified by the suffering of His saints, but we are still flesh, and we must have His strength to finish the course He has given.

May God receive the glory from this trial, and all of the trials I face. To read the obituary of this precious baby boy, you may do so here. To send a card or other gift to the family, please contact me for information.

With love,

Life: The School of Hard Knocks

Valerie Basham

1 comment

June 12, 2011

“Son, there’s one thing they can never take away from you and that’s your education.” My grandfather said to my Dad, when he was a boy. Dad hated school. He would have much rather been outside playing baseball, basketball or football. He was jovial and fun loving, not the studious type. He was extremely intelligent, but whenever he heard the words “Time for a test”, his stomach got all tied up in knots, he started sweating, and he forgot everything he had been learning. The result? A bad test grade.

My dad went on to college, even though that meant sitting in class, taking notes, and (gasp!) taking tests! Discouraged after only two years, he decided a “sabbatical” would be in order.

“If you quit, you’ll never go back.” My granddad said to him.
“Yes, I will.” Dad would say.

When my grandfather died suddenly of a heart attack during Dad’s time off, my Dad was heartbroken. He would never be the same. He grew up overnight. He was now the man of the family, but still struggling to figure out his place in the world. Now, with his father gone, he had no one to lead him or help him in his journey.

One thing he knew for sure: he would go back to college. He had told Granddad he would, and Granddad doubted him. Dad would prove those doubts to be false. He went back and he graduated. He wasn’t an honors student, but he did it! He also met and married the woman of his dreams, my mother.

His hardest lessons, however, were not the exams he took in college under the his most feared professor, Dr. Adams. No, the hardest ones would be the tests he’d endure the rest of his life.

“I graduated from the ‘School of Hard Knocks’.” He told me, while I helped him put on a lawn mower blade in the driveway, wiping sweat from my forehead, like he did. “It’s a lot tougher than college! But, when you have the Lord, you can have a lot of help through the lessons.” He had met the Lord a few years before I was born, on a clear evening in Hot Springs, Arkansas, sitting at the kitchen table with my mother. The Lord changed my parents forever. Dad finally had someone to help him through the tough exams of life! He didn’t have his dad, but he had his Father!

Here I am, many years after that conversation on the driveway, going through the “School of Hard Knocks” myself. I’m still a young whipper-snapper, nowhere near graduation. And, to make matters worse, I lost my dad seven years ago. I’ve really needed his counsel, direction, prayer and comfort over these last seven years. I miss him every single day. But, before he left, he introduced me to the One who could guide me through the pain, sorrow and suffering that I must endure here at Hard Knocks University, the Lord Jesus. I don’t think I could make it without Him, that’s for sure! The tribulation is sometimes unbearable. I couldn’t make it if I didn’t have the Lord to carry the load.

I’m so thankful for my Dad, my “partner” in childhood. I’m thankful that he taught me about the “School of Hard Knocks”. He showed me by his life how to graduate from that school with honors.

Making Plans

Valerie Basham

no comments

June 7, 2011

We have come to the end of our school year. We took our time, smelled the roses and really enjoyed our first full year of using ACE. Well, I did make some changes to our materials at the semester break. I stopped using the ACE math and switched to Math-U-See. A choice that I’m extremely pleased with. Because we started the Math-U-See halfway through the year, we are completely done with the workbooks we started, but we’re close.

This year, we’re only taking a short summer break, about a week or two, before going right into our next year’s work. Summertime is excruciatingly hot and humid here. My kids are forced inside due to the heat every afternoon. Rather than let them sit around all day in the AC, why not get some work done? When the cooler temps arrive, they can take the entire day off and enjoy the great outdoors. This goes against my habit – I have always taken a summer break – but I think this will be a good change for us. We can be more flexible during the regular school year, which will really take some pressure off of me.

So…here’s how things are shaping up for our 2011-2012 school year.

Lauren, Grade 7:

Math: Math-U-See Zeta
Language Arts:
English: ACE
Literature ACE and Of People (Abeka)
Writing: Combination of The Write Stuff Adventure and From Heart to Page: Journaling Through the Year for Young Writers.
Spelling: ACE
Science: ACE
Social Studies: ACE
Bible: ABC’s of Bible Doctrine (material my husband used in Sunday School)

Electives: Typing practice, You CAN Sew, Music (piano lessons), Art

Mitchell, Grade 4

Math: Math-U-See, finishing Beta and moving into Gamma
Language Arts:
English: ACE
Writing and Literature: ACE Creative Writing & Literature paces.
Spelling: ACE
Science: ACE
Social Studies: ACE and Arkansas State History
Bible: ACE Bible Reading paces

Electives: Art, typing practice, music (piano lessons)

Leslie: Grade 1

We will be using ACE for all of her subjects, supplementing with readers from Abeka, Bob books (all sets) and other books from the library. She will also do art and I’ll be reading Storytime with the Millers to Leslie and Laci together.

Laci: Pre-school

I have found some excellent books for pre-schoolers from Rod & Staff. I have purchased 6 of these books and we will complete 3 each semester by only doing 3 pages a day. We will also be introducing the ABC’s of ACE toward the end of the year.

We also do a family read aloud as often as we can. For a list of some of the books we’ve read, check out the Books We Love.

As you can see, I’m mostly using ACE materials. I love the fact that my children and so easily be independent learners with this material. Even with Math-U-See, they can watch the DVD lesson once a week, or as often as needed, and complete the work with minimal assistance from me. This frees me up to read to my little ones and work them on math. I would love to use Apologia science or living history or maybe even a unit study! But, alas, that is not feasible for me right now. An active baby/toddler and preschooler demand much of my time, not to mention the million other things that beckon me such as housework, cooking, and laundry!

Have you planned out your school year? I’d love to hear about it!

How to Be Saved

Valerie Basham

1 comment

June 7, 2011

This past Sunday morning, my husband preached two amazing messages. Okay, I love all of my husband’s messages, but let’s be real, shall we? There have been a few of his sermons from which I’ve walked away thinking Huh? Of course, the power of the sermon isn’t in him, it’s in the precious book he preaches from, the living Word of God. His power comes from the time he spends in prayer; from the Holy Spirit. So, even a message that may not have been crystal clear to me, probably was a blessing and help to someone. It’s not for me to judge.

With that being said, these two messages hit home in a powerful way for me. On Sunday mornings, he’s been working his way through 1 Peter. This week, he came to a verse that some interpret to say that baptism is necessary for salvation. The verse is 1 Peter 3:21. He dealt with the passage in context, which I’d heard before, and showed us how this verse is not saying that we must be baptized to be saved. This part wasn’t eye opening, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The next part blew me away. (Yeah, okay, some of you may have heard this before, so humor me! )

He pointed out how that some false teachers claim that there are different dispensations of salvation. For example, they claim the Old Testament saints were saved by faith, and the New Testament saints were saved by baptism.

Okay, so, let’s run with that.

If that’s true, then in Acts 16:30-31, why didn’t Paul tell the Philippian jailer that he needed to be baptized when asked how to be saved? Don’t you think Paul would have mentioned that when the man asked him in earnest “What must I do to be saved?” YES! If someone asked me how to get to the hospital because they had a child who was not breathing, I wouldn’t merely tell them how to get halfway there! No sirree, Bob! I’d tell them exactly how to get there right then! Their child’s life hangs in the balance! In this passage in Acts, we see an eternal soul hanging in the balance – in this case, it’s the jailer who was going to kill himself when he thought Paul and Silas had escaped. Paul wasn’t going to tell him half the plan of salvation, or a wrong plan of salvation. We can trust Paul to give accurate and clear instructions on how to be saved: Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

In a society where we feel like we must earn everything we have, this sounds too easy. Shouldn’t we do something? Like get baptized? You know, to sort of seal the deal?

No.

Baptism is a work of man, and salvation is a work that can be done only by God through His Son, Jesus. (Eph. 2:8-9) We cannot do anything to gain favor with God. Nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Okay, you get the idea. 😉

Is Baptism important? Yes! As believers, we must follow Christ’s example and be baptized. We want to show the world that we believe the Gospel. Just like my husband wears a wedding band to show he’s “taken”, baptism shows the world that we’re “taken”; we belong to Christ!

And just a side note here, if believing on Christ plus baptism saves a person, then wouldn’t that make John the Baptist greater than the Lord Jesus? He is, after all, the one who baptized Jesus? And, didn’t John the Baptist say he wasn’t worthy to even unloose the shoes of the Lamb of God? (John 1:27) John isn’t greater than my Lord. Christ is all I need to enter Heaven. As the song says, “Jesus paid it all!”

I hope I’m not upsetting anyone with this post. I just love people. I want everyone to go to Heaven someday.
Don’t depend on baptism to save you. Trust Christ and Christ alone, today!

With great love,