Book List

In light of recent acquisitions at three used book sales I thought I'd give you a list of some of the "finds" we've been reading. A few I've mentioned already, I think. This will give you a picture of my interests, thus my home schooling bent!

"The Maytag Encyclopedia of Home Laundry"
"I Can Read About Good Manners"
"Katherine"
"Snowshoe Country"
"Canoe Country"
"Behold Your King"
"Early Candlelight"
"First Thousand Words in Spanish"
"Trolls"
"Corgiville Fair"
"The Official Book of Homeschooling Cartoons"
"Surprised by Faith"
"A Long Way Gone"
"Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet"
"Mathematics"--Jacobs
"The Celtic Stone"
"Reader's Digest Biblical Mysteries"
"Of German Ways"
"Ideals"
"The Problem of Pain"
"Reading Lolita in Teheran"
"Magic Tree House"

It's really fun to find books that interest for quarters. Reading is simply a huge part of our lives, and finding worthwhile books cheap saves time and inspires interest like nothing else. I'm not embarrassed to say that we got at least 3 bags full of old and newer used book bargains! I got them shelved, ready to read!

Because it is raining today it seems rather gloomy. Job search blues get to you, too.
Add to that the hive news:
The bees had a glorious introduction to their new home last week. Sunshine and clover, water nearby and pollen everywhere in abundance. They seemed rather feisty for having it so good. So far the stings have been numerous since the move. The weather has since been stormy and cool, cloudy. Not the best for bee moods. We're trying to analyze what is making them so aggressive. The hive that wintered must be split and a new queen was purchased. She looked okay this morning, but in starting the process of introducing her to the split she looked weak. Queens cost $25 and that is a real loss in beekeeping if one dies.
Because the bees are on my parents' property, Mom and Dad have to get used to them. That is also a process!
I walk out in our yard and I miss them! Bees going about their business is such a fascinating thing to observe. I suppose it's like sitting by water, watching the endless light changes. You can observe the colors of pollen they bring back, how they are greeted by the guard bees, little conversations (waggles) going on at the door of the hive, flight patterns. It's entertaining.

On the spiritual side of life I finished reading "The Power of Kingdom Living" to the younger three.
This book explains the parable Jesus told the disciples about the seed and the sower. In an interesting perspective Gothard equates the "seed" with the knowledge and application of Christ's teaching and commands. When you do this (not the more common "Gospel Message" equation) it seems to make a little more sense with the soil analogy.
We have been learning the commands of Christ over the last several years, along with the assigned character qualities, i.g. Repent!=Humility, Let Your Light Shine!=Generosity, Despise not the Little Ones!=Tolerance. There is also an animal example to illustrate each character quality and this makes it especially interesting to Darling Daughter (Younger). In this latest teaching Gothard comes up with corresponding Names of Christ to pray, according to the need, in Christ's Name for Kingdom issues. Fascinating, really. I always liked grids because they hold so much of value. This teaching is like a giant grid to help you navigate prayer, your needs, your spiritual health, and Kingdom business.
Even the day after we talked about Christ's Names we prayed to "the Servant of All" to help us be available (character quality) to serve---the command of Christ (Mark 9:35). This is an example of praying that Christ's Kingdom would come, as Jesus prayed. This is praying in His will, in His name, and it will be answered provided we have confessed our sins! Formulaic? Of course. Jesus did teach such things. You can call it whatever you want, but I see the truth in it. We're going to put it into practice as we remember. Perhaps I'll let you know how it goes! I see spiritual growth on the horizon. This teaching is NOT a "prosperity" teaching in the least. One doesn't ask for earthly wealth. This is Kingdom of Heaven teaching. Do we benefit from it here? This IS the Kingdom of Heaven, now. Following Christ's teachings right now. When you belong to Christ worldly/earthly things don't matter because Christ takes care of those things for you. There is a great deal of comfort there for me, even on this gloomy day.