The Countdown Begins to NaNoWriMo

Well, only a few hours until the kickoff of the National Novel Writing Month! I am so nervous and excited. Chris left note in the Multiply comments that says she is experiencing the same symptoms. I think I know where I am headed with it but I have some blanks ahead. Of course, my tentative outline is far more than I started with last year!

For all you creative writers out there, there is still time to sign up for NaNoWriMo. In fact, they will allow you to sign up for the whole month of November! But if you do it by midnight tonight, you will be there when the starting gate opens. So, join Chris and I and about 90,000 other people around the world as we race for 50,000 words in 30 days!

And say a prayer for us... cause we're gonna need it.

Pray for Nancy

The following is an update from Alice O about her sister Nancy. As many of you know, I've asked prayer for her on my blogs. The situation has worsened as it too often does with cancer. I am again, asking for a special prayer for Nancy. Her suffering has escalated and the outlook is bleak. But God IS real and he DOES heal and save.


I've been told 2 weeks to 2 months.

The type of cancer she has is hereditary...believe that one?!!!

The type of cancer is called: Scaymous Cell Nasopharengeal Carcinoma - Stage IV.
Hospice has already been called in. She is taking Oxycodone for the pain. She is taking radiation treatments one day, then chemo the next day.

She's been losing weight (which she never needed to do to begin with). I've been making her some "milk" shakes (they consist of 350Calorie Ensure, 2 Scoops of Protein Building Whey, and the rest ice cream - everything is chocolate flavored). They've put 3 lbs on her in a week. Which is good.

She still has the double vision, so Jim and I went to a halloween store and bought all their pirate eye patches. We've had a decorating party for the "passion patches"...

She now has a wheelchair, quad cane, shower chair and a high rise toilet seat.

She cries with pain. This morning when we were alone, she started crying and telling me she hurts so bad that she wondered if she was dying and if it was going to hurt this bad when she did die...

It's pitiful. I don't know if I should go back home and wait...should I stay here? Our house payment needs to be made, we have bills to be paid...this is ALL of our vacation time being used up...so what do I do? (Don't worry, I know you don't have the answer...just blowing off some steam)...

More later - and pass this on to whoever you feel necessary.


Keep those prayers a coming!

Alice

Changing The Way I See

I have never used Firefox browsers before but I've hear a lot about in from various sources. This week, I downloaded it at work and thought it looked pretty good. Today, I downloaded it at home and I am sold. Everything looks better! Why in the world is that?

And it is so much faster! I have an old system (500 mhz!) and no money to buy a new one. So, I have to get the most out of this one. The browser is really faster!

My sites look so much better and the graphics seem sharper. That makes no sense to me! There are some need addons that you can try and even themes to change the look. I just made it look like the XP silver to blend in with everything.

If you haven't tried Firefox, you should test drive it today. If you don't like it, you can remove it.

Recovery

I'm trying to recover from a stressful weekend. I did not go to work today because I am not feeling well. I'm tired from lack of sleep and I have a headache because I didn't take some medication on time.

I was looking over my contact and I see I have nearly all my wonderful friends and a few new one that I think I will enjoy having here. For the new, my blog is not just where I gripe or whine, although I am apt to do both, it is also where I write at times and post news about what is happening to me, my family, and maybe the world around me. So, some days you may be bored to tears while other you may be laughing or crying. If the latter is true, I have succeeded.

My love is writing and I have a couple of things going on in that area. I have a novel in progress posted on Blogger. Hidden in the Mist is an invitation only blog that I am working on. The last month has been a bit of a problem and so I have not posted anything. I need to catch up a bit.

However, Thursday is the kickoff for the National Novel Writing Month (hereafter referred to as NaNoWriMo). I am trying for the second year to write 50,000 words in 30 days. I have been thinking and planning on what to write this year, as opposed to my seat of the pants, spur of the moment, off the cuff mode of last year that garnered me just over 30,000. I was elated to reach that but felt I could have done better. Check some of the older post and you will see what caused my shortage. To help me keep a bit more on target, I have started a blog for this years challenge. I will be able to access it from any computer and can therefore write whenever I have a chance. I am hoping this will help me build my word count and keep it up.

I hope everyone has a great week. Mine will be long and tedious. End of month usually is.

Pain levels are up but I think it is because of too little rest. I hope to take care of that tonight.

Happy Birthday from Chevy

I was looking forward to the weekend. It is my birthday Sunday and my aunt and uncle are coming up from Atlanta. But my car broke down last night and I am depressed.

I do not know what is wrong but it won't back up. My concern now is that it is going to cost me money I don't have. I have no credit cards anymore so I can't charge it. And I owe more that the stupid car is worth. I didn't buy the junk heap, my husband did. And I can't afford a $300 a month car payment!

Any constructive ideas are welcome. All prayers are too.

Happy blinking Birthday.

Coming Home Late

This story originally appeared in The Haven Times newsletter and is posted on my website, www.cindysplace.4t.com. I am posting it here because the message hasn't changed and today is the Lord's Day. Permission is not granted to repost on any other site. You may forward the web address to this site if you want to share it.

Mama let me date him because he was a “church boy”, meaning he went to our church. She also knew his mother and so it was all right. To my 14-year-old eyes, he was wonderful. He was 16 and had a car. He was tall and played the guitar. And I was the new girl in town.

It was a small church and I was one of three teenaged girls. One of them already had a boyfriend outside the church. Her sister, Debbie, and I were the same age and immediately at odds with one another. We all know about green pastures and he saw a break in the fence.

We dated through the summer and into the school year. During one of the first football games of the season, we were on a date and he was supposed to pick up his brother after the game, truly the cuter of the two but with no car.

My curfew was always 10:00 p.m., no matter what. I seldom rebelled on any rule Mama set but then, it never occurred to me that I could. Nevertheless, we rode around the parking lot looking for his brother and the clock kept ticking. He finally said he better get me home. Suddenly, I knew Mama wouldn’t mind if we were a bit late. After all, his brother was my age and was standing around somewhere waiting for his ride. We couldn’t leave him here. The stadium would be empty soon. He would have to stand around in the dark, alone, waiting for his ride that was not there because it was taking me home.

At 11:00 p.m. we pulled up into my yard, without the brother. And as my young man walked me to the front door, Mama got up from her rocker and, in a quiet voice, said, “Do you know what time it is?” Well, of course, we did, but I don’t remember thinking that she was asking for the time.

We both said, “Yes, m’am.” She proceeded to tell me who I was and what I was supposed to know. During the course of her speech she managed to politely tell him how much she thought of him and how she expected him to have me home when he said he would. I, of course, tried to explain about his poor brother standing somewhere at the school waiting for a ride that still had not appeared. Mama was sympathetic but unmoved. I had come home late.

It was a short romance and only lasted about three more weeks. We never dated again. He discovered his old school girlfriend, who happened to be one of my classmates. I don’t know if she had a curfew but my guess is she didn’t have my Mama. She tried to be nice to me and I liked her but I could never really hit is off with her. She wasn’t a church girl and she took my boyfriend.

I am a beast about punctuality and it is no wonder. My life has always been about keeping appointments and knowing where I was supposed to be and when. When I was 17 and dating my husband, he was always careful to get me home on time. Whenever Jerry brought me home my great-grandmother’s mantle clock was striking the hour. I didn’t have to tell him, he had a Mama, too. One night as we walked into the house Mama jokingly commented, “I believe you two sit around the corner and wait for that clock to strike.” We all laughed but Mama’s eyes twinkled at me. I had never come home late but once.

I have been re-evaluating many things that have evolved in my life and that only now I think I understand. I feel as if I have come home late and that Mama is sitting on the porch, in the dark waiting for me to roll in. I hear that quiet voice is saying, “Do you know what time it is?”

I have raised two sons and they now have wives of their own. I feel I did the best I could under the circumstances of our life but as I watch their foolishness, I doubt myself. I see the waste, the unconcern, and the lack of dedication. I feel like Mama sitting on the porch, in the dark saying, “Do you know what time it is?”

It is not just in my children that I see it. It is in a whole generation. There is time to spend hours living in a small box where a world of make-believe people live and fantasy events happen. There is time to spend hours at an amusement park, a ball park, the beach. There is time to cruise hour after hour along whatever street is cool and be seen by countless others just cruising through life along the same street. And I hear Mama, sitting on the porch in the dark, asking in a quiet voice, “Do you know what time it is?”

There is no time to spend in church. There is no time for prayer. There is no time for any pursuit that enriches minds or hearts. A thousand excuses overflow to fill the time.

“Do you know what time it is?” Never before have I heard that voice so clearly. It cuts me to the quick because all the excuses have been mine. At the time all of the reasons seemed, well, reasonable. And yet, “Do you know what time it is?

I look at all the days of my life and wonder. If life was like a carousal where I could capture brass rings of time as I sailed by, I would reach out and pull the ring of time that let me spend wonderful laughing hours with Mama. I would pull the rings of my children’s lives and never let go of any of them. I would grab the rings that let me relive the most precious moments I have ever known; putting my head in mama’s lap, my marriage, the birth of my children, my sons’ baptisms, every minute of their childhood, my children in my lap, my family reunions, my sons’ weddings. I would grab every ring of opportunity to pray more and truly converse with my creator, to read my Bible. I would grab rings to relive every exciting service I ever attended and re-listen to every riveting sermon I ever heard. I'd grab every laugh, every sigh, every heartache, every tear and I'd hang on to them.

I cannot recapture one moment of time.

Brass rings of time.

“Do you know what time it is?”

I only came home late one time. It took 30 years for me to realize what it meant.

Oasis

"I walked a mile with Pleasure,

She chattered all the way;

But left me none the wiser

For all she had to say.

"I walked a mile with Sorrow,

And ne'er a word said she;

But, oh, the things I learned from her

When sorrow walked with me."

This poem is the ending to the devotional for September 19 in a devotional book of mine by Mrs. Charles E. Cowman. I'll tell you the name of the book shortly. This is my second copy of the book. The first was bought sometime between 1984-1988. I bought the original at a second hand shop. It had a devotional for every day of the year. Little did I know when I bought the book that it would be a lifeline for me for three years.

You see, when I bought the first copy, I was in a desert. I had no church to go to of my faith. Oh, there was one where I was but I had to leave for reasons I won't go into here. Let's just say it was a lot like David's situation with Saul. He ran for his life. I ran for my soul.

What is interesting is that the original copyright of this book is 1925. I didn't know one thing about her. I didn't know where she lived, who her family was, where she came from, if she was still alive, nor what religion she professed. All I knew then was that Mrs. Cowman wrote a book in 1925 that ended up on a table in a second hand book store in a very small town in South Carolina in the late 1980's. It was waiting for me.

For nearly three years Mrs. Cowman's stories and poems contained answers to tormenting questions. Innumerable times I found comfort when I became overwhelmed. I can remember times when I would read the day's devotion and weep because it was exactly what I needed at that moment. It soothed a parched spirit as well as any sermon I have ever heard although each day's reading is only one page.

You see, I was alone in a desert place. I had no church family to call, my spouse was not living for God, my children were small. I had not one single Christian friend in that city or state. Every person dear to me aside from my husband and two children were hundreds of miles away in Georgia, Alabama and Florida. A desert place, oh, you have no idea what a desert place. There came a point in time that I began to hear preaching in my sleep. I actually wrote a couple of the sermons down! Even I was shocked by that.

I can't tell you everything about that time because it is far too painful. I can tell you I came out of that desert a very different woman than the one who went in, partly because of Mrs. Cowman. God used an odd devotional by an unknown author to tell me he heard me and was in the desert, right next to me, every minute of every day. In the midst of the heartache, whether I was lonely, or hungry, or thirsty, in a dry and barren land, he was there.

Oh, the name of the book? "Streams in the Desert"

Fireworks on the Riverfront

Fireworks on the Ohio, July 4, 2007

.. I am so tickled at these shots. This is the photos I took when we spent the evening on the Ohio River on July 4, 2007. I've never been sucessful when I tried this in the past but I had a roll of film and it was Sarah's first 4th celebration, so I took a "shot" well, 24 shots and these are the ones that came out. They were taken with a Canon AE1 and I used the bulb setting and just held the apeture open for different counts. I believe some were as little as 10 seconds and the longest time was 30 seconds. Some are not that great but I am very pleased with the overall results. I'll be interested in what Art Guy has to say about these. He inspired me. (This blog previously posted on Yahoo 360)

Rarin' to Go

Well, I've managed to get things up and running here at Multiply. Now, we'll see how it runs. I really like my 360 page but I see problems ahead and I am not going to get caught in that mess. I now have four blogs on Blogger, one on 360 and this one. How stupid is that? Of course, one of the Blogger sites is defunct, another is by invitation only, and one is going to be just for NaNoWriMo where I can post my writing for my friends. It will be limited to my blog friends and contacts only.

Today I am going to have lunch with my friend who is leaving town. I mention him in the post called Honor Where Honor is Due. I doubt I'll get to see him again so this will be a bit sad. I've truly enjoyed his friendship over the last 17 years. It is hard when friends leave. I don't have a lot of close friends to start with and so losing one has been very sad for me.

I am supposed to work tomorrow but I don't really want to. The weather is turning cool again and I don't know what effect that will have on me. Also, I don't have but one day a week that is truly completely mine and that is Saturday. Even that is often shared with other people wanting something. I just want to be alone and quiet and do the things I need to do at home. So, when I get up in the morning, I'll decide how I feel. If my pain level is up I won't be in.

I must say here that November will be a slow month for me. NaNoWriMo begins Nov. 1 and I plan to participate again this year. I have written about it a bit in my 360 blog. For those who are game, join me there as a writing buddy and write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days! I reached over 30,000 last year but I've done some planning this year and I want to reach the goal. My ID is Dixiegirl.

Now back to work. I took a few minutes to update. Nice thing is that this post will be cross-posted to my other blog, A Dixie Girl's Ramblings.

Hope everyone has a great day!

A 360 Wanderer

I just started this Multiply thing and I think it may be just what I wanted! I've transfered some post from one of my other blogs, A Dixiegirl's Ramblings at Blogger to kind of give you an idea of what interest me.

There is another blog I have on Yahoo 360. In fact, it is why I am trying this out. They are about to change things on 360 and my experience so far is that they mess up something everytime they change things. A lot of us love 360 but I'm just tired of the hassel and lack of response. I've backed up my blog there and probably will be posting some of it here.

Now if I can talk my friends there into joining me here, I'll have every thing I want in my blog and my friends too!

Rules of Respect

I was cleaning a file today and ran across something I wrote when my sons were entering those troublesome teen years. For several years it was posted on my refrigerator and every time they got in trouble they had to read it aloud to me and review the one that applied to their situation.

Rules of Respect

1. Show courtesy to everyone. Please, Thank you, Sir, M’am, You’re welcome, and excuse me, are all keys that open doors. Everyone likes respect. You get what you give.
2. Ask first. Do not take something that is not yours. If you “borrow” without asking, it is stealing. Get permission
3. Wait your turn. Do not interrupt others when they are talking. Or, if you are not part of the conversation and need to speak to someone, “excuse me” is an appropriate way to get their attention if you have waited for several minutes.
4. Know who’s in charge. If you see a need or problem, do not give orders – find the person in charge and politely mention the problem. If you have not been put specifically in charge, allow the person in charge to give the orders.
5. Refuse to argue. Ask if you can quietly discuss the problem. The Bible says “a soft answer turneth away wrath.” Usually, it is hard to yell at someone who won’t yell back. After a while they get tired. Remember, sometimes it doesn’t work, especially if you have wrecked the car or broken curfew.
6. Allow the other person to be right. No one is right all the time but neither are they always wrong. YOU could be wrong. It is more embarrassing to loudly declare you’re right and be proven wrong than it is to keep your mouth shut and let others loudly declare when you are right.
7. Offer help. If someone is ill, physically unable to do a chore, or simply needs an extra pair of hands, offer to help. Do not wait to be asked. Offer kindly. If your help is refused, say nothing and allow them to do it themselves. If asked -- give your help to the best of your ability.
8. Respect other’s privacy. Do not ask questions about someone’s personal life unless it will affect you personally. For example: You do not need to know about someone’s sex life unless you plan to have sex with them. Do not tell secrets you have been told unless there is a danger involved or a crime. Do not listen in on others’ conversations uninvited. Do not tell something you have overheard in a private conversation. Would you want someone to tell your secrets?
9. Do unto others. If you want kindness, give it. If you want love, give it. If you want help, give it. If you want friendship, give it. If you want understanding, give it. If you want fairness, give it. If you want truth, give it. If you want joy, give it. If you want peace, give it. If you don’t want any of this, do nothing and you’ll get nothing.
10. Overlook the jerks. There will ALWAYS be someone who defies all of the above. And because of it, no matter what you do, it will never be enough or it will always be wrong – to them. Walk away and smile. If you have done your best and followed the rules, you have won anyway. Always, always, always let them go before you. When the axe falls, it will be their head that rolls.

You have been taught a set of values. If you choose to abandon these, we will not avert the consequences of your actions. If you get arrested, we will not bail you out; if you catch a disease, we cannot cure you or even get expensive medical care. Adult behavior requires adult responsibility. You are on your own when you set your own values and rules of behavior. If they conflict with our moral code, you must move out and support yourselves. We will still love you but we made our choices before you were born. We have not changed our minds since then and will not do so now. As a result, we may lose you but if we give in, not only will we lose you but we will also lose ourselves.

Today, when I found them and read them again, I realized that all the self-doubts I’ve had lately were foolish. I did do something right. I didn’t neglect the important things. They may not have stuck but I did the right thing. I can’t understand why the sons I raised became who and what they became but it is not my fault.

Down in the Dumps

Things are not good right now. There is this sense of hurtling toward something unseen. I've felt very down for a couple of days. There has been some family stress from several sides. I keep trying to back off and let it just move on without me but it simply follows me.

I went and joined the YMCA last night. My plan is to start working out again 3 days a week. That's the plan. I may go tomorrow and Monday and Tuesday since I am off until Wednesday. That might be good. I might feel better getting some exercise.

I think the problem is that I didn't have my pain meds for two days. I've been having more pain since yesterday and last night I was really depressed. Tonight I just feel tired.

Let's face it. I don't really know what the problem is and I'm just grasping. I'm going to get a hot bath, get some comfortable clothes on and I may just go to bed.

Fireworks On The Ohio

9-21-2007-23
Originally uploaded by Dixiegirl2007

This is just one of my 4th of July Fireworks photos taken on the river front. We had a wonderful time.

It was Sarah's first celebration of our Independance. I hope someday she will be celebrating the same event with her children, if not on the Ohio, then somewhere nice.

Honor Where Honor is Due

I have a dear friend who contacted me Saturday night to say that he has a medical problem and is retiring from his teaching position and moving back to his home state. I am truly devastated.

He was my writing teacher and he became one of my dearest friends. I met him in 1990 when Daddy died and I went to take an Anthropology test I had missed. It was my second year of college. He stood out in the hallway and evesdropped on my conversation because I was talking about writing. He was waiting to get something for his wife, who also took the Anthro class. He stepped brazenly into the room and told me to take his 400 level editorial writing class. I wasn't even a junior and didn't have any of the prerequisits. Yet, he followed me out of the building and dared me to take it anyway. I did and it changed me forever.

He isn't a Christian. I don't actually know if he is even a believer. He's never said so outright but my impression has always been he'd like to think there is nothing to faith or religion. But maybe he was really wanting to find a reason to believe. I don't really know. The few times I discussed religion or faith with him, he would want to debate the issue. This, as you all know from this blog, is not a debatable subject for me. So dealing with questions whose answers are entirely based on my faith was not something I wanted because ultimately it would come between our friendship. I had always felt that God had put this person in my path but there were many times I didn't have a clue as to why. He wasn't going to listen to me on the subject of faith.

So, I avoided that discussion. Only occassionally did some topic of religion come up and we would briefly discuss it but nothing in depth. He knows what I am. He told me the last time we had lunch, "I can't figure you out. How can a woman as intelligent as you be such a fanatic?" I think I just smiled. My opinion is that they are not mutually exclusive. You can be intelligent and believe in a loving Saviour and creator of the world.

He is a hard person to like. Gaining his friendship is one of the hardest things I've ever done. He would hate and deny this but when I first met him he had all these preconceived ideas of "religious nuts". I was immediately a "fanatic". He would make comments in class and watch for my reaction. Only once did he ever offend me and when I told him, he apologized. Since then, I've spent the better part of 17 years trying to shatter every one of those preconceptions. The friendship that has grown has been a blessing to me because it has taught me about me. I've learned to look beyond the surface. I found honesty, integrity, and sincerity in someone I'd not normally spend more than a few minutes on.

I know a little about his personal life here. He set these barriers and boundaries with his students that only a few could breach. I was priviledged to have scaled the wall. On occassion, there would be this glimpse of a funny, relaxed man who wanted to be liked. He hid behind the tough as nails newspaper man. Since I graduated nearly 10 years ago, we've met for lunch off and on and I would listen to what was going on with the students, his latest writing project, what was in his head. I don't think I actually did a lot of talking. It doesn't seem like it. Sometimes he would joke about religion in an attempt to bait me. I didn't usually bite and he would know to move to another subject.

And oh, what a teacher! I loved his writing classes. That funny outgoing man held sway in the classroom and most of his students adored him. Yet, he is a person who will tell you if your work is good or if it stinks. There will be no sugar coated words or sparing of your feelings. Just the Facts, m'am. And that is why he has a hard time with faith. It requires accepting as fact what one can't see.

It is because of him I truly began to write again, to believe that I could write. He told me I could. He told me I was the best writer to ever grace his classes. And because of his words, his honesty, an open wound that I had not realized was there was healed. He couldn't have known then about the emotional damage to a young girl by another thoughtless, stupid teacher many years ago that sent the young writer into hiding. My friend is a Teacher.

Now he is leaving. I realized, when I heard the words, that I would ultimately be friendless here in this city and because we come from opposite ends of the country, I will probably never see him again. It is so painful, that even now I cringe from the reality. Oh, I have "friends" and I love my church family but there is a place that this friend has carved in my heart that will be empty when he leaves. There are conversations and ideas that no one else will understand.

Saturday night I told him that God places people in our paths that we will need in our futures. I said it regarding someone who has helped him during this time but I meant it about me, too. God put this wonderful, stubborn person in my path because of what I needed. I hope I have impacted his life as much as he has mine. I have said many prayers for him - to find peace, to find God, to find faith. I don't know if he ever will. I will just keep praying.

I will miss you, my friend. I won't forget you because I have carved you in the palms of my hands. (Isa. 49:15)

Grandmother's Brag Blog

Well, a year has come and gone. Sarah Cheyenne was 1 year old on September 2, 2007. She is the sweetest little thing and such a joy to be around. I know all grandmothers say such things but other people tell us the same thing so I don't feel I am exaggerating.

She is so smart she scares me a bit. I've never seen a baby her age do some of the things she can do. Neither of the boys were as smart as she seems to be, nor as attentive to details. She will watch you do something until she figures it out. In a few hours she learned to turn on a toy she got for her birthday. She has to push down on the head to make it go.

She apparently hides her pacifiers all over the house and no one can find them. Her mother will tell her to go get it and Sarah will come back with one in her hand. She puts them in cabinets, drawers, shoes, and boxes. It is nightmare to try and locate them. So we don't anymore. If Sarah can't find one she comes back in the room and raise her hands in a gesture that says, "I don't know."

Today, the cordless phone was on the floor and Becca said, "Sarah, go get the phone and give it to mommie." Sarah got down off the couch and walked across the room and got the phone and brought it back to her mother. She's 12 months old!

I'd be interested in anyone else who has seen children this young follow such detailed instructions. It has me stunned.

Her mother reads to her but sometimes Sarah takes books and sits down and turns the pages and makes talking sounds! (I have heard of this. My grandmother and aunt said I did that as a toddler.)

I'm a bit depressed as well. Not sure why. My birthday is next month. . . 51. Joy, joy, joy. Officially over the hill. I feel very old and useless tonight. I am homesick again but not so much for home as for some relief from the city congestion and the frustrations of a ridged schedule of work, clean, sleep. My life had become a circle of drudgery. I hate having to be somewhere at a certain time to do the same things every day, seeing the same faces, hearing the same whinning voices. I am missing the travel and excitement of moving to new places to make a new start in new surroundings and finding new interest.

I'm going to bed now because I have work tomorrow. I have bragged and whinned enough. Maybe tomorrow I can do some real writing. I have sort of let this blog falter and I want to get back into it. I like the My Yahoo 360 page with all my friends but lately it has become a burden. I think everything has for some reason.

Poetic Justice from the Throne Room

There are times when I am listening to the Sunday School lesson that a verse jumps out at me or something the teacher says connects to something I have read in my Bible. The following resulted from a single verse heard in the adult Bible class on a Sunday morning. My revelation had absolutely nothing to do with the lesson that morning.

To understand you have to read Lev. 27:1-34, which I have copied below for your convenience. Basically, the verses relate how the priest were to establish the value of a person, animal, or possession in order to redeem them.

1. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 

2. Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When a man shall make a 

singular vow, the persons shall be for the Lord by thy estimation. 

3. And thy estimation shall be of the male from twenty years old even unto sixty years old, even thy estimation shall be fifty shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary. 

4. And if it be a female, then thy estimation shall be thirty shekels. 

5. And if it be from five years old even unto twenty years old, then thy estimation shall be of the male twenty shekels, and for the female ten shekels. 

6. And if it be from a month old even unto five years old, then thy estimation shall be of the male five shekels of silver, and for the female thy estimation shall be three shekels of silver. 

7. And if it be from sixty years old and above; if it be a male, then thy estimation shall be fifteen shekels, and for the female ten shekels. 

8. But if he be poorer than thy estimation, then he shall present himself before the priest, and the priest shall value him; according to his ability that vowed shall the priest value him. 

9. And if it be a beast, whereof men bring an offering unto the Lord, all that any man giveth of such unto the Lord shall be holy. 

10. He shall not alter it, nor change it, a good for a bad, or a bad for a good: and if he shall at all change beast for beast, then it and the exchange thereof shall be holy. 

11. And if it be any unclean beast, of which they do not offer a sacrifice unto the Lord, then he shall present the beast before the priest: 

12. And the priest shall value it, whether it be good or bad: as thou valuest it, who art the priest, so shall it be. 

13. But if he will at all redeem it, then he shall add a fifth part thereof unto thy estimation. 

14. And when a man shall sanctify his house to be holy unto the Lord, then the priest shall estimate it, whether it be good or bad: as the priest shall estimate it, so shall it stand. 

15. And if he that sanctified it will redeem his house, then he shall add the fifth part of the money of thy estimation unto it, and it shall be his. 

16. And if a man shall sanctify unto the Lord some part of a field of his possession, then thy estimation shall be according to the seed thereof: an homer of barley seed shall be valued at fifty shekels of silver. 

17. If he sanctify his field from the year of jubilee, according to thy estimation it shall stand. 

18. But if he sanctify his field after the jubilee, then the priest shall reckon unto him the money according to the years that remain, even unto the year of the jubilee, and it shall be abated from thy estimation. 

19. And if he that sanctified the field will in any wise redeem it, then he shall add the fifth part of the money of thy estimation unto it, and it shall be assured to him. 

20. And if he will not redeem the field, or if he have sold the field to another man, it shall not be redeemed any more. 

21. But the field, when it goeth out in the jubilee, shall be holy unto the Lord, as a field devoted; the possession thereof shall be the priest's. 

22. And if a man sanctify unto the Lord a field which he hath bought, which is not of the fields of his possession; 

23. Then the priest shall reckon unto him the worth of thy estimation, even unto the year of the jubilee: and he shall give thine estimation in that day, as a holy thing unto the Lord. 

24. In the year of the jubilee the field shall return unto him of whom it was bought, even to him to whom the possession of the land did belong. 

25. And all thy estimations shall be according to the shekel of the sanctuary: twenty gerahs shall be the shekel. 

26. Only the firstling of the beasts, which should be the Lord's firstling, no man shall sanctify it; whether it be ox, or sheep: it is the Lord's. 

27. And if it be of an unclean beast, then he shall redeem it according to thine estimation, and shall add a fifth part of it thereto: or if it be not redeemed, then it shall be sold according to thy estimation. 

28. Notwithstanding no devoted thing, that a man shall devote unto the Lord of all that he hath, both of man and beast, and of the field of his possession, shall be sold or redeemed: every devoted thing is most holy unto the Lord. 

29. None devoted, which shall be devoted of men, shall be redeemed; but shall surely be put to death. 

30. And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's: it is holy unto the Lord. 

31. And if a man will at all redeem ought of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof. 

32. And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord. 

33. He shall not search whether it be good or bad, neither shall he change it: and if he change it at all, then both it and the change thereof shall be holy; it shall not be redeemed. 

34. These are the commandments, which the Lord commanded Moses for the children of Israel in mount Sinai.

One must remember that the Bible is filled with connections which at first glance do not appear related at all. For example, it is interesting to note here that the price paid to Judas for betrayal was the redemption price of a woman between the ages of 20 and 60. This is symbolically an insult to Jesus. The high priest would not even pay the price of a man.

My revelation came at verse 28: Anything set apart by the Lord was considered Holy. A person specially set aside by God to be destroyed CAN'T be redeemed --> They MUST be put to death. Jesus was set apart by God to be destroyed. According to Levitical Law he was Holy and could not be redeemed. He had to bear the sins of the world; nothing could change his destiny.

But here is an irony. Judas went to the priest and HE set a value for Jesus life. By doing this a betrayer symbolically stepped into the office of the priest. What is even more shocking is that the Priest actually PAID the redemption price set by Judas and by doing so, they symbolically redeemed Jesus! Something the Law said they could not do! They became, again symbolically, the redeemers of the Savior and transgressors of the Law of Moses.

Poetic Justice from the Throne.

So Busy I Can't Think!

This blog has fallen by the way a bit. I've been spending an inordinate amount of time on the 360 blog. It is easier to post where you know people are reading! And I like my friends list there.

I've been working on my novel for fun "Hidden in the Mist". It is now over 38,000 words! I thought it would have died a painful death long ago. But I have decided to follow it to the end. I have closed it to the public and it is only by invitation now. I am considering doing my next project the same way. This is a good way to get input on my draft. Other eyes see what I miss!

I am also gearing up for the National November Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). This is where you write a novel of 50,000 in 30 days. The only prize is the satisfaction of doing it. I tried last year and reached about 35,000 words. I was frustrated I didn't make it but I am looking forward to trying again. I did get a good start to a new story so even though I didn't reach the stated goal; I reached a goal of sorts.

I will have a writing buddy this year, I think. Chris from my 360 blog says she wants to try it. It will be nice to have someone to commiserate with! If you are into personal challenges, please look at the the NaNoWriMo site.

Michael had an MRI and EEG this past Tuesday. If you check the 360 blog you will find a post explain why this occurred. He had some kind of seizure a few weeks ago and we don't exactly know what caused it or if it will happen again. The test this week looked ok they said but they want another in 3 months.

I'm not closing this blog down. I just haven't had the time to do two at once. There are still things I like about it, but it needs a few tweaks. I'd like to put up my own wallpaper but don't know how.

One Minute of Your Life

I don't usually forward many items because I know   a lot of people hate to get forwards. I received the item at the end of this from an email friend and felt it had potential. I do not know if the information is true. However, if it isn't, it should be.

I believe we are at a pivotal time in history. The potential for anything to happen is very real. If you feel no concern, you should. But to feel concern without courageous and honorable action, is a waste of time. To be complacent and put your faith in politics and weapons of war, is foolishness. I am not a preacher and I am not an evangelist seeking converts. I am telling people that unless we wake up as a nation, as a single people unified under a banner of truth and righteousness, we are in trouble.

I put no faith in the abilities of any human being to resolve the problems facing us today. But I do know AND believe that as the prophet said, " If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." 2 Chro. 7:14.

There is an Almighty God waiting to hear from people who want to call Him "Lord". He will answer the prayer of those people if we simply pray with the right attitude. Please note that there are several key contingencies to this prayer: we must humble ourselves - we aren't special or deserving of favor, we must seek his face - actively looking for him, sincerely desiring his favor, pray and THEN turn from our wicked ways - repent our foolish attitudes, behavior, and ideals and let go of the things that    weigh us down, that ensnare us and degrade us as people.

I can't describe what we have become in my lifetime. As a nation we have abandoned the values that made this a place that every person on earth wanted to live. They respected our values and envied our lifestyles. Now, they envy our wealth and despise us. What a change in   perspective that is. There are more broken homes, broken people, more abused children, and more perverted values than ever before and we still believe we are just fine. We are not. And now, we stand poised over an abyss.

But perhaps there is hope. If we can reach Heaven, if one voice as many waters can be heard, something will happen. I believe it. If you would be a voice, join this call to prayer. It is one minute of your life that may change your world and mine.

ONE MINUTE EACH NIGHT
           In WWII, there was an advisor to Churchill who organized a group of people who dropped what they were doing every night at a prescribed hour for one minute    to collectively pray for the safety of England, its people and peace.  This had an amazing effect as bombing stopped.
           There is now a group of people organizing the same thing here in America.  If    you would like to participate: each evening at 9:00 PM Eastern Time (8:00 PM Central, 7:00 PM Mountain, 6:00 PM Pacific), stop whatever you are doing and spend one minute praying for the safety of the United States, our troops, our citizens and for peace in the world.
           If you know anyone who would like to participate, please pass this along.   Someone said if people really understood the full extent of the power we have available through prayer, we might be speechless.  Our prayers are the most powerful asset we have.
 Thank You.   Please pass this on to anyone who you think will participate.

Trying to Keep It Together

It has been a trying month. For more info here check the 360 site. Suffice it to say it has caught up with me. I am exhausted and depressed. The two usually do go hand in hand where I am concerned. When I get tired, I get depressed. I am going to try and get some real rest tonight.

David and Becca moved into their apartment. I hope everything will go well for them now. If he will just get that GED so he can get better jobs. He now thinks he wants to join the Coast Guard but they won't take GED's. I told him get the GED and take a college math and college English class. That will effectively get people to look past the GED. Who knows, he may find he likes education.

Right.

I'm not going to have a bowl of ice cream and go to bed.

Happy 4th of July, America! I love you.


By dixiegirl at 2007-07-01

Passing Through on the Way to the Shower

I wandered in again and decided to post something. I have finally managed to get the house refinanced. This will save me thousands in interest and eliminate two payments totaling $275 a month. It will only raise my house payment by about $60. But even it it was more, the interest on the second mortgage and on my credit card were over 100 a month. I feel I can breath a bit now.

Of course, the middle east will get a hefty cut of my pay as gas has not hit the $3.00 mark in Southern Indiana. How stupid that our country can't find an alternative fuel source. We would not need their oil. Of course, when politicians have their fingers in the oil pie, we don't dare bake another pie.

I'm headed for the shower after which I hope to clean my desk and sit down for me time. It hasn't been a good day off. Well, there is Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday to make up for it. We shall see.

Tomorrow we have bi-lingual service at church. We have some hispanic families coming and some of them speak no English. They are very nice. I've been trying to brush up on the Spanish from my college days. . . 10 years ago! Actually, I know a lot of words but stringing them together in a coherent sentence needs lots of work.

Back again soon. The shower beckons.