Top Quotes of the Week

During my readings each week, I come across quotes that seem especially relevant or that I want to remember, so I'm going to try to start recording them here for future reference.

The most pondered quotes by me this past week include:

"The argument is that mathematical laws, in order to be properly relied upon, must have attributes which indicate an origin in God. They are true everywhere (omnipresent), true always (eternal), cannot be defied or defeated (omnipotent), and are rational and have language characteristics (which makes them personal). Omnipresent, omnipotent, eternal, personal… Sounds like God. Math is an expression of the mind of God...Modern natural science was created by people who said that they were trying to 'think God’s thoughts after Him.'” - from an interview with Vern Poythress by Jerry Bowyer, "God in Mathematics", Forbes 

Biblical Masculinity

I fell asleep reading these words in a book by John Piper, "At the heart of mature masculinity is a sense of benevolent responsibility to lead, provide for and protect women in ways appropriate to a man's differing relationships."

Then as soon as I woke up the following morning, Facebook sent me this applicable quote by my son when he was only 5 and likely only modeling the "mature masculinity" his father possesses.

While my husband was away on a camping trip with our daughter, I commented to my 5-year old, "I don't like it when Daddy is gone for the night."

My boy put his arms around me and said, "Well, I guess that means I'll have to protect you tonight, Mom." And so he did.

2016 Elections

"Moreover, look for able men from all the people, men who fear God, who are trustworthy and hate a bribe, and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens."  (Exodus 18:21, Jethro's advice to Moses)

Given that Hillary is clearly very ill as evidenced by her most recent public fainting incident (I'm convinced she has advanced Parkinson's Disease) but still lying to cover up whatever it is, she is not able. She obviously is not a man and given her lust for power, her compulsive lying, her gross corruption, her bribes, pay-for-play, stealing items and even large furniture from the White House, and her long history of corruption, she is certainly not the type of leader Jethro had in mind. 

Of course, Trump isn't exactly qualified either.

"A false balance is an abomination to the Lord, but a just weight is his delight.

When pride comes, then comes disgrace,but with the humble is wisdom.

The integrity of the upright guides them, but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them.

Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death.

The righteousness of the blameless keeps his way straight, but the wicked falls by his own wickedness. (Proverbs 11: 1-5) 

And this is why I'm so outspoken about the elections this year. The corruption, deceit, greed, and battle against God and all that is good and right is epic.  We must fight it.

Trials

Context:  After my daughter shared all her frustrations over the AAU basketball tournament today and with the way other players are treating her, I replied, "If it is causing you so much angst, maybe you should take a break from basketball now and just focus on field hockey."

She replied, "No, Mom. I can't quit. Besides, bad days make better players." 

That quote must have come from the Lord, for it sounds a lot like Romans 5:3-4.

"Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope." (Romans 5:3-4) 

Living Life Abundantly

"Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing."  - Helen Keller

Friendship

"If you want to make friends, spend more time noticing and caring about others than you spend trying to get others to notice you." -Paraphrase of a quote by Tony Dungy from his book, Uncommon

 M3 Memory Verse

 "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.^"  (Romans 12:1)

Stream of Consiousness Ramblings: What is Love?

As the amount of hatred dominating headlines escalates out of control, I've been thinking about what love really is, given that hatred is the absence of love, just as darkness is the absence of light.  Our cultured tried to kick God out decades ago, so if God is love, it should come as no surprise that our culture is void of real and lasting love. To complicate matters, people can't seem to agree on what real love truly means. I've had some really good talks about current events and the expression of love with my daughter lately. 

My favorite parenting stage so far has been adolescence. I love that my daughter is at an age now where we can discuss or debate philosophical ideas using our own perceptions with a thoughtful respect for each opinion instead of me telling her what or how to view a situation, for she has a different personality and different set of spiritual gifts and is old enough to seek the Lord on her own for answers while challenging me in my own views.  It's so refreshing to see her tackling issues on her own, seeking the Lord for answers herself instead of letting me define right and wrong for her.  Now is the time when she gets to really own her faith, asking the Lord tough questions, seeking His word with prayer for guidance while still feeling the freedom to consult with me.  We still set firm boundaries for her, but the more she learns to let God lead her, the safer she will be. And the more she understands for herself why she believes what she believes, having experienced the Lord for herself, the stronger she will be when every media, university, and cultural voice tells her the opposite.  The degree to which students are indoctrinated is mind boggling, and I could not believe what I was hearing was true until I tried to have a civil, intellectual conversations with young people over something more removed from us as Brexit, much less heated issues closer to home.  They cannot think at all.  They can only feel.  Logic, reason, critical thinking are all absent from the minds of students coming out of universities today, although they can manage to memorize the insane lists of offensive terms forbidden on campus.  Free exchange of ideas is absent on campus anymore.  You either say what the regressive liberals want you to say or you shut up and get out.  Anyway, I digress....but knowing what my daughter is up against, and how disappointed she will be when she can't have an intellectual thoughtful discussion with anyone her age except those who came from classical schools or strong Christian families, I am relieved to see her engaging her mind and seeking the Lord for wisdom in a world of folly at only 12 years of age.  She'll be a force to reckon with when she graduates, I pray.

While my personality profile is strong on critical thinking, fact finding, defending absolute truth, and fighting for justice, she has enough mercy to make up for what is lacking in her mother, father, and brother combined. She is better at empathizing with the feelings of others, so I was curious to hear her definition of love. She quoted 1 Corinthians 13 to me, which is certainly a very good place to start.

 ^" If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. ² And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. ³ If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

⁴ Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant ⁵ or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; ⁶ it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.⁸ Love never ends." (1 Corinthians 13: 4-8)

What does love look like for something coming from a secular belief system?  If we are to tear down walls of bigotry and hatred, we need to understand each other better.  And we especially need to agree on what real love is, or at least understand the different definitions.

I take my definition from John 15:13, "Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends." Love is sacrifice, and I see Jesus' work on the cross as the greatest picture of love. So for me, love is a daily laying down of one's own comfort and forfeiting one's own desires for the betterment of another. For example, instead of letting my kids watch TV or play computer games all day, we have strict controls over what they watch and how long they watch it. We pay dearly for monitoring systems and sacrifice the convenience of free baby sitting screens provide to keep this limit enforced. We risk losing our kids' favor, and they do get mad at us when we remove screen privileges when they abuse them, but it's for their long term good. If I have a friend who I know is struggling with alcoholism and that friend wants me to join her at the bar  to celebrate her birthday, I will recommend another venue  (even if I had not chosen for myself to be a teetotaler for my own protection - cue Romans 14- not saying I would impose that man-made rule on anyone else, but I would highly encourage it for anyone with a history of alcoholism or addictive personality). When the time seems right, I would firmly but kindly confront her and help her get professional help. If I see a friend headed down any dangerous path, I will say the hard thing with as much grace as I can muster because I am willing to risk having someone not like me to save that person from destruction.

If I refuse to endorse or approve of someone's behavior, I am in no way suggesting that I think I am any better, nor am I ever implying I do not accept that person who was made in the image of God just like everyone else. I have my own struggles and expect a true friend to boldly confront me, helping me make choices that bring life, healing, and righteousness instead of accepting my poor choices out of a desire to be liked. I don't define people by their behaviors or choices just as I hope others don't define me by my worst behaviors or poorest decisions. According to my understanding of real love, it is terribly selfish to let someone destroy themselves out of fear you may offend them and then they may not like you. Love that approves of what is harmful is not love for anyone but yourself.  1 Corinthians 13:6 does say that love does not rejoice in wrongdoing, so given that fornication of any kind (pre-marital sex, adultery, or homosexualtiy) are clearly and repeatedly labeled as abominations to God, I cannot rejoice over a ruling legalizing gay marriage.  But love doesn't boast of being holier than thou or utter rude comments either.

I don't agree with all the choices any of my closest loved ones have made, and I certainly don't approve of the mistakes I've made in the past, but I am not defined by my mistakes, nor do I define others by theirs. I love them regardless. Love, to me, is unconditional, and irrespective of choices, but real love will risk everything (even offending someone) to protect and save the beloved one.

A more prevailing view on love in secular society is that to disapprove of even one behavior or lifestyle is not to love the person at all. That belief was central to the media wars against Chick-fil-a when they stood for traditional marriage. Yet CFA has sacrificed and served the gay community is many ways, like when they fed all the people in line in to give blood to save the victims from the Orlando shooting, to show they still love them, but for those who define love as accepting certain immoral though culturally in vogue behaviors, CFA will always be accused of hatred.

While intending no disrespect toward those who hold a different view of love, I do hope that someday, those who hold a secular view of love can at least understand that our view, while difficult to hear at times, is motivated out of love, or it should be. We mess up and say things we shouldn't when we speak from the flesh instead of being led by the Spirit of God, but I regularly ask myself these questions before I speak out.

Is it better to have lots of friends, having neither offended nor helped anyone, or to have only a few friends after spending your life helping others find spiritual freedom and climb to a better place?  What good is it to have 1000 people at my funeral if I reach heaven having never obeyed the last command Jesus gave his followers before His ascension?  The Great Commission had to be important if it was the last command Jesus gave making it one they could not forget.  He wasn't speaking to an audience of seminary graduates, ordained, and on staff with a megachurch. He was speaking to all his followers then and to you and to me now.

¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”  (Matthew 28:19-20)

If I'm not sharing the gospel with others, teaching others His precepts, or helping others grow more mature in their faith for His Glory, then what is the point of my life?  If I'm only using my one and only life on earth to make others feel better here without any thought of eternity, then I've squandered my time on earth.  If I'm only saying what people want to hear so they will like me instead of saying what they need to hear to point them to Jesus, regardless of what they think of me, then I am only in love with myself.  If, however, I am faithful to whatever God has called me to do, and if I maintain an eternal perspective that compels me to lead others to Christ and to His righteousness with a humble, grateful heart and kind words filled with uncompromising truth no matter how they may reject me, persecute me, or isolate me, then I have lived a fruitful life. That's my take on love.

But with so many different love languages and definitions of love, how do we communicate love in a way all will receive it so as to build unity?  I don't want to build walls, but I can't let someone destroy themselves either.  Throughout my life, I'm sure I've built plenty of walls, but when someone wanted strength and truth, they have come to me.  I pray I can also give them kindness and mercy and compassion when they need that as well, but I know I err on the side of proclaiming God's word as absolute truth, and that may sound judgmental.  Thankfully the body of Christ is filled with those who overflow with mercy and goodness, gentleness and compassion (my daughter is one).  While continuing to do some serious work on my heart in those areas, I trust my almighty God to lead  seekers to those in the Body of Christ who can best glorify God in ministering to their point of need.

Here is another passage describing love in action:

"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited." (Romans 12:9-16)

How do I rejoice with those who rejoice if they are rejoicing in wrongdoing?   The context is set by the verses preceding it which instruct us to hate what is evil and cling to what is good.  Context is important here, and God would never rejoice in evil, so neither must we.  But we do need to keep any spiritual pride grounded by bowing at his feet, considering God's holiness compared to our worthless deeds, if we are to love in ways others can receive it.

"The problem with the liberal Christian is that he wants to downplay the existence of evil. Don't ask me to show compassion toward the evildoer if you refuse to acknowledge and condemn the evil. Downplaying evil does not make you my moral superior. It just makes you someone else's naive enabler."  (Mike Adams)

Hypothesis Testing & the Christian Faith

I'm tutoring several AP Statistics students this year, and the test this week is on hypothesis testing. When I taught this course, I usually began each lesson with a real life story, practical life application or Biblical parallel so that students would approach the topic as something valuable for life, not just something they had to do to graduate.  The parallel that occurred to me for this topic deals with apologetics, and the story I shared with my students is one I do not want to forget, so I'm sharing it here as well.

We recently traveled to Israel with a very diverse group of people with different worldviews.  There were only a few Christians, so it was interesting to watch each teammate process what we  were seeing and try to reconcile it with his or her own belief system.  One agnostic or atheist traveler was a seasoned attorney who was a voracious reader and considered himself to be an intellectual elite.  He was so confident that he often tried to correct the tour guide (a well educated PhD Israeli with at least 15 years of experience touring groups through Israel).  He tried to initiate little debates with myself or another Christian woman in the group one-on-one.  I find it interesting that he did not confront the men, but I think he saw us as weaker opponents.  He would ask me questions with the goal of making me question my faith.  We both agreed that by definition, religion requires some measure of faith, not undeniable evidence, so I merely pointed out a wide variety of examples showing how the more we uncover through archaeological digs about our history and the more we learn about how the universe works, the more confirmation Christians have that our faith is more than an idea or belief system, but that is true.  We cannot prove the Bible to be true (if we could, there would be no need for faith), but we cannot prove it to be false either.  True science reveals what is true, but it cannot prove what we want to be true.  Even so, scientists with doctorate degrees have been rigging studies and experiments to support their beliefs for centuries.  

The senior attorney never refuted any of my answers (or the other lady's I learned later), but he kept going in circles as unbelievers tend to do, asking new questions. It was a classic case of the straw man fallacy, and as an attorney, he surely knows more about the technique than I do, but when someone cannot refute your response, that's how they make you think they did.

Immediately after his conversation with me, I began overanalyzing what I said and thinking of much more "clever" responses I should have used that could have shown him the holes in his arguments.  I was beating myself up over it but decided to focus instead on reading scriptures.  Since we had just walked through the Via Dolorosa the day before, I focused my attention on the passage beginning with the plot to kill Jesus through His crucifixion and burial.  But for some reason, my eyes fell to the chapter right before the plot to kill Jesus, specifically Luke 21:13.  It had to be the Holy Spirit leading me to this specific passage in Luke 21 just above where I planned to start reading.

¹³ But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony. ¹⁴ Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; ¹⁵ for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist.  (Luke 21:13-15)

What a gift.  Chills.....tears....awe.   If I had planned what I would say to him, I would have gone on the offense...using man's reason and showy words to poke holes in his argument,  but it would have sounded cold, without love.  Instead, he caught me off guard so that I could receive the Spirit's words instead and point to God's glory through my personal testimony and in all we were seeing on the trip.

So, all that narrative to make the following point:

As with statistical hypothesis testing, our null hypothesis as believers is that the Bible is true.  We believe that Jesus is exactly who He said he was. 
The world's alternate hypothesis is that the Bible is false.  Hypothesis testing does not prove that the null hypothesis is true or false.  It merely collects data to determine if there is enough evidence to reject the null hypothesis. It is similar to our legal system which declares someone innocent until proven guilty.

Mathematically, we could write those statements as follows:

Let p = Probability that the Bible is true  (Jesus is who He says He is)

H_o:  p = 1

H_a:  p <> 1

So while we cannot prove the Bible is true, there will NEVER be enough evidence to prove that it is false.   The law of large numbers states that tif you have infinite data or repeat the experiment enough times, you will eventually arrive at the true probability.  Science is showing us that the more we dig up underground or discover about the way the universe works, from the tiniest cell to the expanse of the universe, the more evidence we have in support of the null hypothesis and the closer we get to the true probability.  As n increases, p gets closer to 1.  There will never be enough evidence to reject our null hypothesis.  Hallelujah and amen.

Teaching and STEM Updates

One of the disadvantages of having a brain skewed to the left is the tendency to see the practical obstacles (everything that could possibly go wrong) with a new idea. My daughter and my husband don't see obstacles; they only see opportunities. So we balance each other out, and I have to make an effort everyday to NOT be a dream crusher.

So imagine my surprise when my husband and daughter looked at me like I had two heads when I told them I would be filling in for the band director at school. They only saw the obstacles. (I've never directed a band before; I dropped out of band in 11th grade, etc.) "Did you not consider what that would involve?" they asked. 

They doubted me, but I put my engineering and business management skills to work for me, and the band made great progress that week while the director was out.  I just had to choose leaders for each section (cross-functional teams), delegate authority to those with the best skills set (who can best conduct this band for me?), offer the right incentives (if you learn this new Mozart piece, we'll play "Happy" next), and make tool substitutions as necessary to minimize downtime.

Now where did that conductor's baton go?  Here's a coat hanger.  Use that instead. 

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My daughter doubts me in other ways, too.

Then when my daughter came into my classroom the other day to find me wearing an apron, she said, "You must be doing some sort of messy science experiment because you couldn't possibly be cooking." Teachers don't have time to teach and cook, don't ya know!

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I got to sub for a weight lifting class the last week of school before Fall Break, so I challenged the students in the class to one of our Mighty Mom weight workouts. Who thinks the athletes and/or jocks could keep up with the Mighty Moms? I lead by doing, so I knew it would be fun, but guess how many agreed to do my workout?  Not even one!

Maybe they didn't like having a female in the classroom messing up their mojo.  Maybe they didn't want me to guide them in full body training and injury prevention.   All I know is that I was not who they were expecting, and they motivated me to bust out a crazy number of pull-ups, plyo-push-ups, one-arm push-ups and a full body weight routine to boot.  

#‎teachertalkingsmack‬ ‪#‎weteachsowecanplay‬ ‪#‎onthejobtraining‬
 
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Arthur L. Schawlow (Professor of Physics at Stanford University, 1981 Nobel Prize in physics) wrote, "It seems to me that when confronted with the marvels of life and the universe, one must ask why and not just how. The only possible answers are religious. . . . I find a need for God in the universe and in my own life."

We all need God, but few are willing to admit it.
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 I encouraged all my students to watch the fourth blood moon of the current tetrad (significant in Jewish history - happening only eight times in the past 2000 years and will not happen again for 600 more years) which took place September 27-28.  It was much too cloudy to get a good view of the blood moon last night, but we did at least get to see it eclipse behind the clouds.

Then when I taught the science behind a total lunar eclipse at a rather formal Christian school and tried deliver a compelling Biblical analogy comparing the lunar eclipse to the darkening of the human heart that occurs when the things of this world come between you and the Son (the light of the world) so that you no longer reflect His light into the world's darkness... I accidentally started singing, "Total Eclipse of the Heart" (just that one title phrase, no mention of needing you tonight) before catching myself and apologizing for the impact the world's 80's music has had on your own heart.  Then a dear student said, "That's okay, Teacher my mom sang that same song too when we watched the eclipse on Sunday night, and I even know the singer's name. It's Bonnie Tyler."

Another teacher told me I should have given him extra credit!  LOL

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Since the Bible is divinely inspired and always relevant, each time we read the same passage, it takes on deeper meaning or provides new application for our lives as our circumstances change. It truly is like no other document anywhere. In the past, when I have gotten in a rut, usually due to my own lack of focus or effort, studying history has helped make it fresh again as I see how prophecies have unfolded exactly as foretold over time. Studying science has a similar effect as technology enables us to make discoveries deeper into the ocean, further into space, or down to tiny molecular levels only to realize that these same discoveries were described in the OT thousands of years before such mysteries could be fathomed, much less revealed. I dare any of my believing students who will be learning about some of these new discoveries for the first time over the next few classes to read Genesis, Psalms, Job, or Proverbs afterwards without seeing so much more there than you ever saw before. I pray you will be compelled to worship and love Him more.

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ANOTHER SOAPBOX RANT ON TEACHING:

I do not have a degree in elementary education, so I have not been taught by elite academia what my guiding principles should be in the classroom. Thus, I have adopted the following principles based on what I have studied on my own, observed, tested, and learned from God's word. I am stating them publicly here to hold me accountable. How do these ideas compare to what they say I "should" be doing?

THEME: Never expect more from students than you consistently give to them.

1. If you expect students to love learning, be passionate about the subject, or enjoy your class, then you must love your students unconditionally, enjoy the subject you teach, and point to God's glory in all of it.
2.  If you want students to grow in confidence and achievement, never belittle them, especially when they simply do not understand the way you teach. Be willing to teach the material in a different way.
3. If you want them to believe that diversity is good, do not insist that they all conform to your one oddly shaped mold. Instead of "teaching to the middle" as they say, teach to individual students by incorporating different teaching methods that appeal to multiple learning styles, particularly the visual spatial, kinesthetic, social, or logical learners whose brilliance too often gets buried under the false perception a teacher gives when insisting that a child can't learn if he doesn't readily learn in the only way the teacher knows how to teach.
4. Don't expect students to give their very best effort if you are too lazy to rewrite the same lesson plan you've used for the past 20 years. Continuously improve what you give them.
5. Similarly, if you want your students to become avid readers, researchers, and independent thinkers, then make sure you regularly investigate and employ better curriculum and reinforcement options for your classes.
6. If you want your students to be studious and to strive for continuous improvement, then pursue new skills and more knowledge and wisdom yourself through diligent study.
7. If you want them to obey you cheerfully, make sure you do not punish them unjustly out of your own frustration or desperation while unwilling to consider the facts carefully or rationally.
8. If you want them to care about you, then show them that you genuinely care about them.

Okay, so that sounds like way too much to ask of teachers who are underpaid, overworked, unfairly disrespected, and overwhelmed (which is why I only teach part-time. Ha!). It is one of the hardest jobs in the world to do well. So I'm all for anything that will increase the support teachers receive.
But clearly, no decent teacher goes into that profession for the money. It is a calling by God to nurture the hearts, souls, and minds of the next generation. So to those who love teachers, please respect and support them. But to those who teach, may we never underestimate the value of each and every soul in the classroom or the impact our words and actions could have on them for eternity, be it good or bad. Let us commit to give our very best. If I am ever unwilling or unable to uphold these principles, may the Lord remove me from that post, for it is better to cram too many students into a classroom filled with love from one dedicated teacher than to have only a few children in a classroom with a teacher who simply does not care.

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I truly have always thought teachers should be paid more for their long hours of toil, sweat, tears, heartache, and frustration as they equip the next generation, but as I've stepped into the classroom a little myself, I'm discovering that smiles like this one buy more happiness than money ever could. Who ever thought I, of all people, could love teaching so very much?

 I have also learned something rather surprising through this STEM class.  Students who other teachers think should be medicated to help them focus thrive in my classroom.  I use a different teaching style that is more geared for visual spatial learners whereas the traditional classroom targets audio sequential learners.  My approach is very open and interactive instead of lecture format.  Instead of absorbing information, students are discovering it for themselves.  It's mostly hands-on with lots of real life technological applications, so students can see how they will use this learning in
the future.  We learn by playing games.  For example, during the water microbiology class I'm teaching this week, 3rd through 5th graders are given several water samples from seven different sources.  By analyzing the microbes inside the water using a DIY microscope made out of $1.17 worth of household supplies, testing the pH of each sample, and measuring the turbidity, they get to guess which sample comes from each source, which forces them to use critical thinking skills and systematic problem solving in a detective style game.  I would have never guessed that any of these students had focusing issues based on what I see in my classroom.  

I do have one student who appears to have some sort of severe autism or asberger's syndrome who has never been in a classroom setting before in his life.  My class is his first, and he's almost 11.  I have no training in education, much less special ed, but I'm determined to reach him or at least let him know he's loved.  He was sweet to ask me during the 2nd class, "Did I do any better this time?"  Even though he tells me repeatedly that my class is boring - oh how it hurts to hear him say that - every other student tells me the opposite.  

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Hello, my name is "Mrs. ________", and I'm addicted to STEM projects. I know I need an intervention because my idea of a good time on a Friday night is building an early stage prototype of a human hovercraft that I hope my husband will help me build for my students to reinforce our lesson on air pressure. (Shhh! It's a surprise to them and will be a surprise to me if it actually works with human bodies on it instead of a cup!)

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A typical week of week of traveling all over to collect samples and supplies for my students may look something like this:

Collecting water samples at the creek after flooding rains

Collecting water samples at the lake at sunset was nice!

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"Let these words SINK into your ears: The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men.” (Luke 9:44) - Emphasis mine

For something to sink, it must be denser than the solution it displaces.

Density = mass/volume

So the massive content of what Jesus said in a volume of only 15 words made it exceedingly dense, especially compared to vacuous ears, simple minds, and fragile hearts into which it sank. No wonder His disciples could not understand it. Oh how those words must have sank swiftly with a thunderous swoosh....troubling their spirits.

What other word than "sink" could possibly convey the enormity of what Christ did for mankind compared to man's hopeless, empty, estate? Our greatest good work are like filthy rags in comparison, for no one can save himself. All glory to the One who is worthy and did the work for us. ‪#‎HowSTEMPeepsDoBibleStudy‬

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Even though I write my own lesson plans, labs, and presentations while drawing from numerous curricula and the internet, I have one student who insists he has already seen all these experiments before on YouTube. Unwilling to let boredom ruin his learning fun, I am determined to come up with something totally original. So I am writing this next unit on oceanography largely from scratch, making up my own experiments and drawing on my husband's encyclopedia brain and rich experience as an officer on a nuclear powered submarine for ideas. You know I am getting closer to something that kid has never seen before when my husband answers my questions with, "Sorry, but that's classified information", or "If I told you, I would have to ..."  ‪

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The student I previously mentioned who challenged me to come up with totally original, fun lessons with cool experiments that were nowhere to be found on the internet...the kid whose zeal for fresh knowledge combined with my OCD kept me up past 4:30am many nights over the past week....well, that kid made it all worth it today when he gifted his teacher with some jewelry! Check out my new bracelet! Try to top that, Pandora and Tiffany & Co.

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My tutoring schedule continues to grow with four students in the same subject.  Praise the Lord.  That sure beats five students in four different subjects in years past.  I like this meme for them.  I'm tutoring the subject I taught last year, so it should be easy enough, but more students are struggling in this subject than any other because it is applied math requiring critical thinking and systematic problem solving and math applied to real life situations, not rote worksheets.  They have to learn to think in real world terms and stop trying to memorize algorithms for a test.  Therein lies my challenge and the entire reason I started the STEM program.  12th grade is much too late to start learning those skills.

 

Parenting, apologetics, and some hopes for my kids

Parenting is hard work.  If we truly love our kids, we will faithfully train them and offer correction as needed.  In my weekly Bible study, we've been studying the book of Proverbs which is filled with great parenting advice and helpful reminders. 

Proverbs 22:6

Train a child in the way he should go,
    and when he is old he will not turn from it.

The Book of Proverbs uses the word "train" when describing parenting.  It does not merely say to "teach" or to "preach" but to "train".  I've trained for a myriad of new jobs.  I've trained for full marathons. I do rigorous strength training on a regular basis.  Teaching is merely giving instruction, possibly only once, but training is consistent, arduous, repetitive, thoughtful, purposeful, and very difficult.  Effective training requires diligence and discipline.  Training is never easy.  And parenting is never as easy as we dreamed it would be before having children of our own.

 

Training our kids must begin very early before wrong thinking and bad habits take root in the heart of the child. (Lamentations 3:27) 

Proverbs 22:15

Folly is bound up in the heart of a child,
    but the rod of discipline will drive it far from him.

Parents who unconditionally love their children will discipline them just as God disciplines us.

Proverbs 3:12

because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in.

While the Proverbs do not provide guarantees, they do give us general guiding principles.  If we are faithful to train and discipline our children correctly, with diligence and consistency, then we are more likely to experience peace and joy as our children grow in wisdom.

Proverbs 29:17

Discipline your son, and he will give you peace;
    he will bring delight to your soul.

 Proverbs 29:15

The rod of correction imparts wisdom,
    but a child left to himself disgraces his mother.

On those days when parenting seems especially challenging, exhausting, and simply overwhelming, I want to remember these precepts and recall some of the more enjoyable teachable moments with my kids.  When they make me laugh or show evidence of developing a Godly virtue, then I want to celebrate those moments and take note of them for future encouragement.

My mother kept a keepsake journal for me during my school age years.  For each grade of school, she would record a few things about me such as my height, weight, teachers' names, favorite activities, new friends, and career aspirations and paste my school picture to each grade section.  She would also include a few pieces of school work or letters to represent that school year.  When my kids received their school picture proofs this past week, I pulled out my journal to compare my photo at that age to my daughter's since most people say we look just alike.  In so doing, she pulled out one of my writing assignments from that year and rolled on the floor laughing at my imaginative stories.  Apparently, I wasn't always so left brained.  It was a great bonding moment for us both as she appreciated my stories and saw more similarities between us.  While reading one story which was written in my best 8-year-old cursive handwriting on notebook paper (now faded to a brownish yellow) she commented, "Oops, Mom, you made a typo!"  She is clearly a child growing up in the digital age!

4th grade school picture proofs

My boy has always wanted a continual buffet at our house as his teeny tiny belly wants him to graze all the time, just like his mama does.  I really try to encourage him to eat more at each meal so that I can get out of the kitchen occasionally.  All that whining about being hungry can get annoying after the 1432nd time. When I picked him up from school this past Thursday, he complained of being hungry, and we had four hours of driving to/from activities ahead of us with very little time to stop off for snacks. I asked him if he ate all of his lunch and snacks, and he confessed that he did not eat his lunch. Feeling frustrated, I probed further to find out why and then discovered that he had offered his lunch to a boy at school who had left his lunch at home.  We treated our generous boy to several servings of bacon wrapped steak for dinner!  Whenever he complains of being hungry again, I don't think I will be so annoyed.  Instead, I will thank God for teaching him to put others first.  I hope I will learn to follow my boy's example.

1st grade school picture proofs

Whenever I take the kids to/from school, we pass a gorgeous 175 acre horse farm on which sits a beautiful historical mansion. My daughter and I have always dreamed of living on a horse farm, so when I saw that the property was for sale, for fun, I examined the listing.  Seeing the $6.35 million price tag (not a bad price for so much land near a city where land sells for over $1M per acre), I wondered how I would convince my daughter that we should not buy this property.  When she saw that the house had 7800 sq. ft of finished living space, however, she said, "That's way too much house to clean," and lost interest. Giving her chores is having the desired effect after all!

Here are a few pics since there are so many ideas in this house that I would like to copy in our next home.

 

 

 

 

I'm glad my daughter understands that everything we own has the potential to own us.  We must consider the full costs, not just the purchase price of any material thing we desire before buying it.

Another principle I hope my kids will grasp when they approach the teenage years is that of avoiding serious dating relationships until they are ready to pursue a lifetime spouse.  I saw this quote on Facebook and wanted to post it here as a reminder to teach them about courtship vs. cultural dating.

 

Heavenly Father, please help them understand why it is so important to avoid serious relationships which build emotional, spiritual, and physical intimacy because these were only intended to exist between husband and wife.  Any one type of intimacy will lead to too much intimacy in the other areas.  May these precious children save themselves (heart, soul, and body) for the future mate you have for each of them instead of leaving fragments of themselves with a string of people leaving little left for the lifetime mate you have chosen for each of them.

On Feb 2, I overheard my 8-year-old having a conversation with her brother's talking Darth Vader figurine:

Darth: The dark side is strong with you.
My Girl: Maybe, but Jesus is stronger!
Darth: It is your destiny!
My Girl: Nope! Heaven is my destiny!

I hope and pray she'll never forget these truths, especially when professors, educators, the media, and politicians try to brainwash her into believing Satan's lies.  I remember having heated confrontations with professors in college.  One professor, who wore the Darwin fish pin with evolving legs on his lapel every day, constantly tried to ridicule me, but I did not back down from my beliefs.  While I may have gotten an A in God's eyes, this professor gave me a very subjective B that year, ruining my 4.0 GPA.  When I asked him why, he gave me no answers. He only said, "You did B work."  To my kids, I say, "Get a B or even an F if you have to, but never back down from the truth."  

The following conversation between a student and a professor, which is likely made up and never happened, still provides a vision of what I hope conversations are like for my kids should they ever have antagonistic professors who do not worship the one true God.

Professor : You are a Christian, aren’t you, son ?
Student : Yes, sir.
Professor: So, you believe in GOD ?
Student : Absolutely, sir.
Professor : Is GOD good ?
Student : Sure.
Professor: Is GOD all powerful ?
Student : Yes.
Professor: My brother died of cancer even though he prayed to GOD to heal him. Most of us would attempt to help others who are ill. But GOD didn’t. How is this GOD good then? Hmm?
(Student was silent.)

Professor: You can’t answer, can you ? Let’s start again, young fella. Is GOD good?
Student : Yes.
Professor: Is Satan good ?
Student : No.
Professor: Where does satan come from ?
Student : From … GOD …
Professor: That’s right. Tell me son, is there evil in this world?
Student : Yes.
Professor: Evil is everywhere, isn’t it ? And GOD did make everything. Correct?
Student : Yes.
Professor: So who created evil ?
(Student did not answer.)

Professor: Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things exist in the world, don’t they?
Student : Yes, sir.
Professor: So, who created them ?
(Student had no answer.)

Professor: Science says you have 5 Senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Tell me, son, have you ever seen GOD?
Student : No, sir.
Professor: Tell us if you have ever heard your GOD?
Student : No , sir.
Professor: Have you ever felt your GOD, tasted your GOD, smelt your GOD? Have you ever had any sensory perception of GOD for that matter?
Student : No, sir. I’m afraid I haven’t.
Professor: Yet you still believe in Him?
Student : Yes.
Professor : According to Empirical, Testable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says your GOD doesn’t exist. What do you say to that, son?

Student : Nothing. I only have my faith.

Professor: Yes, faith. And that is the problem Science has.

Student : Professor, is there such a thing as heat?

Professor: Yes.

Student : And is there such a thing as cold?

Professor: Yes.

Student : No, sir. There isn’t.

(The lecture theater became very quiet with this turn of events.)

Student : Sir, you can have lots of heat, even more heat, superheat, mega heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat. But we don’t have anything called cold. We can hit 458 degrees below zero which is no heat, but we can’t go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold. Cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.

(There was pin-drop silence in the lecture theater.)

Student : What about darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as darkness?

Professor: Yes. What is night if there isn’t darkness?

Student : You’re wrong again, sir. Darkness is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light. But if you have no light constantly, you have nothing and its called darkness, isn’t it? In reality, darkness isn’t. If it is, well you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn’t you?

Professor: So what is the point you are making, young man ?

Student : Sir, my point is your philosophical premise is flawed.

Professor: Flawed ? Can you explain how?

Student : Sir, you are working on the premise of duality. You argue there is life and then there is death, a good GOD and a bad GOD. You are viewing the concept of GOD as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, Science can’t even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing.  Death is not the opposite of life: just the absence of it. Now tell me, Professor, do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?

Professor: If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, yes, of course, I do.

Student : Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?

(The Professor shook his head with a smile, beginning to realize where the argument was going.)

Student : Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor. Are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you not a scientist but a preacher?

(The class was in uproar.)

Student : Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the Professor’s brain?

(The class broke out into laughter. )

Student : Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor’s brain, felt it, touched or smelt it? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established Rules of Empirical, Stable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says that you have no brain, sir. With all due respect, sir, how do we then trust your lectures, sir?

(The room was silent. The Professor stared at the student, his face unfathomable.)

Professor: I guess you’ll have to take them on faith, son.

Student : That is it sir … Exactly ! The link between man & GOD is FAITH. That is all that keeps things alive and moving.

Before my kids leave home, I want them to clearly understand why they believe what they believe.  My daughter is going through struggles now in her walk with Christ.  She doesn't doubt His existence, for even the demons know He is, and all of creation declares it.  When she falls short, however, she feels so distant from Him, so we've been working through her crisis of belief together. 

Do I believe God is near when He doesn't feel close?  Do I believe Christ's payment was enough?  Do I trust Him to mold me into His image or am I, in my own stubborn independence, still trying to be perfect in my own strength?  Does the clay do the shaping and molding or does the Potter?  These are the types of questions she is grappling over, and while I pray for her through the trials, I am rejoicing as well because I know that working through each crisis of belief will bring her from a point of believing because her parents, church teachers, and school teachers tell her it's true to believing because she knows with every fiber of her being that it is true. 

¹⁷ Pay attention and listen to the sayings of the wise;
    apply your heart to what I teach,
¹⁸ for it is pleasing when you keep them in your heart
    and have all of them ready on your lips.
¹⁹ So that your trust may be in the Lord,
    I teach you today, even you.
²⁰ Have I not written thirty sayings for you,
    sayings of counsel and knowledge,
²¹ teaching you true and reliable words,
    so that you can give sound answers to him who sent you? (Proverbs 22, 17-21)

Our son has accepted Christ with blind faith, trusting his parents to always tell him the truth.  His faith has not been tested yet.  When I tucked him in recently, I asked him, "How do you know God is all He says He is in the Bible?  How do you know He is real?  How do you know His promises are true?"  He simply responded, "Because you and my teachers told me so." That simple faith is precious, but my goal for both of my children is to own it, live it, know it.

Years ago, I remember discussing end times with someone who has been raised in the faith and remains actively involved in the church.  He concluded by simply saying, "I guess we will all find out who was right in the end."  Unlike the moral relativists of our day, he understands that two contradictory belief systems can't both be true.  If Christ claims to be the only way to God, then any other belief system that presents another way cannot also be true. If A = C, and A does not equal B, then B cannot equal C.  That's introductory logic.  

However, to say "I guess we will find out" implies a hint of uncertainty.  While we all have doubts from time to time about various aspects of our faith, when we know God's truth, have experienced His power and have intimate fellowship with Him, then there is no guessing. We know the truth is as He tells us in His word.  He has never broken a promise!  Every prophecy of Christ's coming was perfectly fulfilled.  He is completely trustworthy!

John 14:6
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

While theological issues over which event comes first in the end times will not be made plain until that time, there is no question whatsoever over who will be victorious and who is the only One who can save us.  To own it isn't just to choose one belief system over another but to believe it and know it to be true with utmost certainty.

Mark 9:23-25

²³ “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for him who believes.”
²⁴ Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”