Christmas in July

Today was a big day in the Kirby household, as two highly anticipated packages arrived.

First, we received Luke's Thomas book bag and lunch kit that he had picked out online for when he starts preschool this fall.  Needless to say, there was much joy and excitement when I found this box on the porch.  He drank from the thermos the rest of the afternoon, and wore the book bag, with lunch kit inside, on our walk.  We have already practiced opening all of the containers, and I anticipate that many lunches between now and the first day of school will be served from his lunch box. 

You can't tell from the picture, but Luke is also wearing his name tag and arm band from VBS still.  Per request, we have transferred it to his pajamas and to today's outfit.  I think that is so funny.

Also today, an extremely highly anticipated book arrived.  Hot off the presses (out July 22), I had ordered Richard Hughes' Christian America and the Kingdom of God.  Hughes is Church of Christ and a "Distinguished Professor of Religion" at Messiah College in PA.  I was literally giddy with excitement over this book.  I had to resist the urge to tell everyone at VBS about it this past week, and was restrained only by the assumption that they didn't care about some random book I ordered:).  It mercifully arrived right before the kids' naptime, a time when I was supposed to work on the budget and catch up on Project 365.  Right when I saw the box in my mailbox, I knew that wasn't happening.  My heart was pounding with excitement as I started to read.  The idea of the Kingdom of God and its relation to America has been a concept near and dear to my heart for a few months now.  In fact, just last night, I finished a crash reading of the New Testament in an attempt to understand the Kingdom of God after I was dissatisfied with merely looking up every single passage that contained the word "kingdom."  And much of the advanced praise for the book centered on how seriously Hughes took the Bible, some of it even mentioning his Church of Christ background.  Thus, I was incredibly excited to see what Hughes was going to do with everything I had just read.

Part of the dedication was to Barton Stone and David Lipscomb, if that tells you anything.

But now, ninety pages in, I am disappointed in one of the major threads that runs through his biblical analysis.  He speaks so compellingly and thoroughly of the Kingdom of God as represented in the Bible.  But any biblical text that seems to contradict that vision, whether its Joshua's bloody conquests, or I Timothy's command for women to be silent, Hughes relegates to the dustbin (essentially).  His line is basically that the Bible is contradictory, and you have to pick out the principles of the Kingdom of God from within it.

What???  Forget for a moment of whether that is true (which I really believe it's not).  More practically, who is the intended audience here?  Because Hughes just alienated around 100% of evangelical Christians who believe that America is a Christian nation.

Sigh.  I so fervently believe in the principles of the Kingdom of God that Hughes lays out so well, but that part has been frustrating. 

Still, it has been an exciting read so far, and Greg wants me to finish it before he leaves for Workcamp so that he can take it with him. 

**Update**

Just finished the book, and it was good overall.  I liked the biblical analysis, besides the above argument.  Chapter 4 (of 5) was great where he looked at our nation's history, especially the history of religious movements, like the Second Great Awakening, and their impact on our nation's culture and beliefs.  And the second half of the last chapter was very enlightening as he looked at the relationship between the religious right and politics, especially in the War on Terror. 

Oh, and I don't think he is Church of Christ:).  I think he has that background.

Who They Are Now: Luke

When I was pregnant with Luke, either Greg or I had said some smart remark, causing my mom to reply, “When Luke gets bigger, I have a feeling he is going to get a lot of spankings for being a smart aleck, and it won’t be his fault!”  Hmmm…well, let’s just say that he has recently been impressing us with his, er, reasoning skills:).

For instance, the day before Greg’s birthday, he received a card in the mail from his Grandma.  I was threatening to open it because Greg was taking too long, and Greg said, “You can’t open it!  It’s not your birthday!”  Luke was walking by, and without looking up, he retorted, “It’s not your birfday, eever (either).”  I was rolling.

Though I was not so triumphant the other day when he told me that, “When I’m bad, you’re bad.”  When asked for clarification, he eventually imitated me saying in a stern voice, “Luke!  Be careful!”  I acknowledged that I have been known to say that, and he pressed the issue:  “But you say it like that.  You say it in a mean way.”  Yikes.  That, of course, led to a discussion in which I admitted (and apologized) that I sometimes spoke more harshly than needed, though sometimes I did speak sternly because Luke had not listened when I spoke nicely.  Still, the comment kept me on my toes.

One time, he was just plain haughty:).  One night at Gaga’s, Gaga asked me to put Luke to bed since he would not lay still for her.  After stories and prayer, when it was bedtime, he complained and begged for Gaga to come in and lie with him.  When I told him she couldn’t, he gave me a stony look and replied, “I need to go tell Gaga something.”  I figured he was going to tell on me as he got out of bed and started to march out the door.  When I asked him what he was going to tell Gaga, he shot back over his shoulder, “I don’t need to tell you.”  Whoa.  That led to the stern voice, let me tell ya:).

He’s not normally that kind of stubborn, though.  He usually takes the sweet, conciliatory route.  When he asked if he could watch a movie on the way to Gaga’s church, and I responded that there was no point b/c church was only five minutes away, he reasoned sweetly, “Well, we can just watch a movie for five minutes…”

Well.  What do you say to that? 

A few others:  he says “like,” a lot.  I know he gets that from us.  He told me this morning that he wanted to wear the new clothes Gaga got him because “then I will look like a COOL MAN!”  He always asks us what time it is, and when we answer, he immediately asks, “What does that mean?”  He wanted a “toy Gaga” for his birthday.

He makes logical connections that amuse us, like the idea that only things with eyes have names, or only boys use microphones (from church, I assume).  He recently told me that people with room have toys, and when I explained to him that some children did not have any toys, he was immediately sympathetic (“Awww…”).  He then suggested that “we could take some of my money…(pause for thought)…and some of YOUR money, and buy them some toys!”  Greg made a good political joke from that one.

Based on those comments, I suggested to him that we purge some of his toys to give to people who don’t have any.  To my surprise, he was all for it, and also to my surprise, he was very unsentimental in getting rid of his toys, volunteering his Thomas trains, his “Luke” train that Gaga made him, his monogrammed wooden toolbox from Jack, and the “Shh-shh” that was Greg’s as a baby, among others.  I actually spent more time limiting him in what he could give away than prodding him.

He did insist on keeping his Weasel ball.  Sigh:).

A few other facts:  when visiting Gaga, he noticed a new bathroom rug and the fact that her pelican flower pot was moved from on the porch to right beside it.  He does not want his food to be broken or cut—he wants whole food.  He loves to play Candyland, Cariboo, Hullabaloo, and his Thomas board game.  He’s not so much into puzzles anymore (I think he has completely forgotten his states!).  He is into “saving food for later,” and is always worried that we will eat his food when he’s gone to the bathroom (he warns us sternly against that).  He is all about connecting things with string, and we will often grab a tennis shoe, only to realize that it is tied to a basket that is connected to the nightstand.  He still loves to read, and is enjoying much longer books.

He keeps us thinking, laughing, and praying.  It has truly been a joy to watch his mind expand.

Who They Are Now: Anna

It’s hard to believe that little bit is 18 months old.  Of course, she has long considered herself to be about Luke’s age, and has acted appropriately.  Her verbalization has expanded so much in the last few months.  Out of her babbles have emerged several words and phrases, including (but not limited to):  I love you (Ah lubboo, or just lubboo); I don’t know (dono); What’s that (Wassat); outside and side (of the pool); Cheese (said whenever she sees a camera); choo-choo; juice; ball; no ball! (from playing Cariboo); and then the old faithfuls (mama, daddy, bubba, sissy).  She also can do several animal sounds:  cow, sheep, duck, horse, monkey, dog, cat, wolf, and goose.  Plus, she can identify lots of body parts:  hair, ears, eyes, nose, mouth, tongue, arms, hands, fingers, belly, legs, feet, and toes (or piggies, which she also thrusts toward us whenever we get to the “This little pig” page in her nursery rhyme book).

She also clearly understands most of what we say, judging by her immediate acquiescence, or vehement protests, to our words and instruction.

Besides talking, Anna has also grown in her love for music and dancing.  When the “Wheels on the Bus” song comes on in the car, she laughs, cheers, and kicks her legs.  When we sing, “If You’re Happy and You Know It,” she claps, stomps, and raises an arm appropriately.  She also likes raising her arms up at the appropriate part in “The Wise Man Built his House Upon the Rock.”  In the evenings, we often put on some upbeat music and dance around while getting dinner ready.  Anna, especially, loves this time, and has really gotten into swaying, spinning, shaking her hips, and waving her arms to the music.  It cracks us up.

She is still my climber, as careful as always.  She strongly dislikes any situation where she doesn’t have  a firm footing, such as a swinging bridge on the playground, or the boat on the lake.  After testing a situation and considering it unsafe, she does not hesitate to remove herself from it.  However, there are many times when she clearly thinks she is safely in control when she is not.  In such cases, I must intervene, much to her dismay.

She loves eating right now (I need to write that down to remind myself that the time did exist, for when she goes through a picky phase, as Luke is doing now).  Plus, she is just as passionate about feeding others as she is feeding herself.  She regularly foists food and drink on those around her, including any dolls or stuffed animals that happen to be nearby.

By far her biggest party trick is her utensil control.  This girl is a phenom with a fork and a spoon.  She is far better than Luke!  Still, I would not have really noticed, or just chalked it up to differences in personality, if her abilities did not regularly draw the praise and awe of onlookers.  And I guess it is pretty impressive.  When she is scraping out a bowl, she will even pick it up with one hand to get it closer to her mouth, while using the other to furiously scoop out any remaining morsel with her spoon.  It is quite amusing. 

At her last well-baby visit, she firmly established that her “normal” is in the 25% percentile in weight, 50th in height, and 90th in head circumference.  Is that not bizarre?  I swear she looks more proportional than that!  Other than battling excema on her legs, and an occasional cold or mystery fever, she has been in perfect health, thank God.

Our little girl keeps us laughing everyday, whether by her giant smile, her passionate discourse, or her courageous (often outrageous exploits).  At this point in her life, I think we’ll keep her:).

Package Deals

I had a conversation last week with a former youth grouper turned youth intern. She was talking about a Sunday school series she was teaching to the girls at her church on syncretism. The most recent lesson was on country music, a genre in which, to paraphrase her words, “God, church, drinking, America, and tractors” are all grouped together with a tidy bow. She was obviously highlighting the potential dangers of such philosophies which join Biblical concepts with unbiblical practices.

I have been thinking lately about the different things like that, but I haven’t been using the word syncretism (that’s a little too fancy, if you ask me:)). Instead, I’ve been thinking about things that are what I call “package deals,” things that have both good and bad in them, but you have to take the whole package. Take a movie, for example. A movie might have some amazing themes about life, love, and redemption that really make you think...and that same movie might have profanity, sex, and loads of violence. If you choose to watch it, you are taking a package deal. You have to take the good with the bad. Or take a political party. The two major ones each have their own package deals, called platforms. If you are going to vote for a viable candidate for office in this country, you must choose one or the other. And in doing so, you take the whole package of that party. I would love if I could pick and choose. I would love a party that was pro-life, pro-children, pro-education, pro-Christianity, pro-poor people, pro-environment, and anti-torture...but that party does not exist. That’s the problem with package deals. You have to compromise in order to choose them. And while compromise isn’t bad, per se, comprising one’s morals is always dangerous.

Christianity is a package deal, too. I think every sinful human would agree that there is stuff that is “good” and “bad” about Christianity, and by that, I mean there are elements that are either appealing or unappealing. God, peace, heaven, Jesus—appealing. Dying to self, turning the other cheek, giving everything to God—unappealing. But it’s a package deal. There is a point where you either believe and obey the Bible, or you don’t.

Here’s what gets me. I see the dangers of certain movies or certain political parties, but at different times in my life, I have chosen to compromise and watch them/align myself with them. But it is apparently a lot easier to compromise my morals than to compromise my nature. Because when I hear something that goes against my very nature (like the above “unappealing” aspects of Christianity), I am tempted to rationalize them away. Why is that?

I don’t think I am alone in that, which compounds my problem. Take turning the other cheek. I am beginning to think that the church is moving past the idea of turning the other cheek. More and more, the things I hear are not like, “Well, we should turn the other cheek, but our sinful nature makes it hard.” It’s more like, “Jesus apparently meant something else or was speaking hyperbolically, b/c turning the other cheek is completely impractical. I mean, how the heck are we supposed to fight wars if we turn the other cheek? Seriously, it makes no sense.” I hear indignation at the concept of turning the other cheek. I even read a Christian book in which the man advised his son (and readers, apparently) that if anyone ever bullied him, he was to hit them as hard as he could right in the face (cough, Wild at Heart, cough). I’m sure the feral nature in every man’s heart would leap at that chance. Unfortunately, I really do believe that the Bible would not approve knocking someone’s block off in order to defend yourself. I mean, what do you think dying to self means, if not denying your very nature? Yeah, if someone hits me, I want to hit them back. No duh. And I’m not even a man. That’s what makes the whole “love your enemies” thing hard. And though I will entertain discussion on the use of violence to protect others (war might even fall into that category), to say that you should punch back the person who punches you, I believe, is biblically indefensible. Because according to our sinful nature, the Bible is hard. Christianity is hard. Dying on the cross was hard. And yet, Jesus tells us to be like him, to obey His words, to take up our cross, to die to ourselves. I mean, what did he mean by that?

I have similar thoughts regarding giving, but I think we’ve driven the bus far enough into Crazy Town for one blog, don’t you think? Just know that if you are reading these thoughts and feeling internal opposition, I’m right there with ya. Do you think I want to turn the other cheek? Do you think I want to die to myself? Do you think I want to give the way Jesus apparently called me to? No, no, and no.

But I do want to be with God. And I want to know God. I love Him, and I want to live for Him. I really do. And I am open to the idea that Christianity is radical, crazy, and completely impractical. Because Jesus was all those things.

Why am I writing all of this instead of showing you pictures of my cute kids? I don’t know. Frankly, it completely ruptures the thematic unity of my blog:). I just know that right now in my life, I really want to embrace the “package deal” of Christianity. I’m not even sure what that looks like, exactly, but I am trying to find out. I do know that the whole, entire purpose of my life is to know God and bring glory to Him, and to the extent that I don’t do that, I am wasting my life. Wasting it. And I don’t want to waste my life. I want to embrace my purpose, to be the person I was designed to be.

Even if that means taking the package deal.

Money-makers and the Magi Project

As I'm sure all you CVS-er's know, mid- to late summer is a great time at CVS.  It is the time that they start giving away free school supplies like crazy.  Last week were packs of pencils and tape.  This week, it's rulers, notebooks, pens, glue, and kids' scissors (I had to get a raincheck for the scissors).  Also, it's a good money-maker week, as I made $5.00 off the Tylenol Arthritis and $5.00 off the glucose monitor.  Which means, the above picture is a money making scenario (I made $2 after tax and the Pull-ups). 

And now, let's discuss what to do with all these goodies, shall we?:)

You may have need for many of them yourself.  But if you don't, may I recommend putting them toward a Magi Project box?  The Magi Project is like Operation Christmas Child, only instead of through Franklin Graham's Samaritan's Purse organization, it runs through Healing Hands International, a Church of Christ organization founded in 1991 by Lipscomb students.  You can read all about HHI here, and about the Magi Project here.  As of now, The Magi Project only sends boxes to Honduras and India, and they ask for Spanish Bibles to be included in the boxes to Honduras (you can pick up a Spanish Bible for $1.88 at Wal-mart, btw).  The only issue with the Magi boxes is that I think Nashville is the nearest drop center.  BUT if you live in my area, you can give your boxes to me before the college kids go back to school, and I will send them with a Lipscomb student to drop off.  If not, the deadline is October 1.  Just something to think about.  If you are a CVS'er, you will be able to get most of the school supplies free over the next few weeks, and you are probably always able to get toiletries free, so all you will need to do is to pick up some toys (and a Spanish Bible) to round out the box.

Speaking of CVS'ing and Healing Hands International, if anyone is looking for a worthy place to donate your overstock (especially toiletries and medicine), it is a great organization that, among other things, helps to equip C-of-C missionaries around the world with supplies to give to their churches.  Again, if you live in my area, you can give your overstock to me, as I send periodic shipments with Lipscomb students.  They (HHI, not the students) particularly love glucose monitors, and if you haven't caught on to the drugstore glucose monitor racket, I suggest you get on board:).  Basically anytime you see a glucose monitor coupon (particularly for Contour monitors) in the paper, cut that bad boy out...and then go buy five more papers:).  The q's don't expire for months and are good for up to $30 off.  Then, wait for the drugstores to do their thing.  They will at some point, either as a monthly deal or a weekly deal, lower the monitor price from $80 (or whatever) to something ridiculous like $14.99...and then give you 5-10 ECB's or Register Rewards (Walgreens).  So you go in, buy the monitor, use the q (they will have to adjust it down...you won't get overage), and pay nothing.  It will then print you your ECB/Register Reward, making it a money-maker.  Then, unless you have diabetes and need one, you give the glucose monitor to me:), so that I can give it to HHI.  Or give it to them yourself.  Or some other organization.  Regardless, it's a fine piece of medical equipment that someone can use....and I'm sure you can use the money that comes from buying it.

Okay, everyone got that?  I'm always free to answer questions:). 

Happy 4th of July!

Well, I am currently sitting with Luke while he tries to go to sleep, since once again, terror and mayhem have descended on our neighborhood in the form of the accursed fireworks.  Don’t get me wrong—I love fireworks.  Luke, on the other hand, views them as a sign of the impending apocalypse, so we must close the blinds, turn up the noise machine, and give constant assurances:).  Children.

Outside explosions aside, we have had a great 4th.  We would love to one day celebrate with my parents in Macon, who have a huge cookout every year, or even to have our own cookout, but the 4th falls when we are “all traveled out” from Impact and are badly wanting some quiet family time.  So that’s how we have spent it for the last two years—together. 

This year, we thought about going to Patriot’s Point in the morning to see the Yorktown, but we weren’t sure if it opened before the afternoon festivities, so we opted for Charles Town Landing, instead.  Charles Town Landing is the site of the original settlement of Charleston, which apparently only lasted about ten years before they realized they made a big mistake and moved to the peninsula.  We got there before it got too hot, and had a great time walking the “history trail” and seeing what we could see.

We asked Luke if he wanted to try the stocks, and he was definitely opposed.  I think he thought we were crazy!

Luke’s favorite part was the trade ship, complete with sailor:).  The sailor showed Luke how to scoot down below deck on his bottom, so he wouldn’t fall.

Maybe our favorite part of the whole excursion came after we left the ship when we came upon this turtle under the bench.  Now, depending on who you are, you might find this either really weird or awesome, but we came just in time to watch it dig a hole with its feet, lay ten eggs in the hole (we counted), and then cover them up.  It was amazing.  Seriously, I was slack-jawed the whole time (which is not a flattering facial position.)  I have never seen a turtle do that!  I felt a little rude, since it kind of seemed like a private experience, but the turtle didn’t seem to mind, and it was just too fascinating to leave!

After we left, we headed to Queen Anne’s Revenge, a pirate-themed restaurant on Daniel Island that we’ve been wanting to try with the kids.  Unfortunately, they were closed for the 4th (um, guys, you could have put that on your website!), but a sign on the door recommended The Buccaneer, their “sister” restaurant downtown.  Though we were starving, we decided to give it a try.

It was too dark to get really good pictures at the table, but we sat right next to an aquarium, so the kids had fun looking at the fish while waiting for our meal.  The food was alright, but I think Queen Anne’s Revenge would have been better, and I still want to try it!  But this was a good alternative.

Then, we came home for naps (all of us!) and woke up to grill hamburgers and fix potatoes and green beans.  I had even made a red,white, and blue parfait for dessert, though I kind of messed it up (hence, the lack of pictures:)).  But the kids loved it, and I know what I did wrong, and I still have all the ingredients, so I’ll make some more this week, and show you a picture if it’s pretty:).

So those were our 4th of July adventures.  We are so thankful to live in a country that gives us such freedom, and I pray that God’s church uses our blessed freedom to further His Kingdom.  What an amazing opportunity and responsibility!

I hope you all had a wonderful Independence Day!