Looking Up

Looking Unto God

I look to Thee in every need,

And never look in vain;

I feel Thy strong and tender love,

And all is well again:

The thought of Thee is mightier far

Than sin and pain and sorrow are.

~*~

Discouraged in the work of life,

Disheartened by its load,

Shamed by its failures or its fears,

I sink beside the road;

But let me only think of Thee,

And then new heart springs up in me.

~*~

Thy calmness bends serene above

My restlessness to still;

Around me flows Thy quickening life,

To nerve my faltering will;

Thy presence fills my solitude;

Thy providence turns all to good.

~*~

Enboosomed deep in Thy dear love,

Held in Thy Law, I stand;

Thy hand in all things I behold,

And all things in Thy hand;

Thou leadest me by unsought ways,

And turn'st my morning into praise.

~ Samuel Longfellow

What Do You Say?

As a home school graduate, I cannot began to tell you how many times people have told me that I need to get out and socialize more with people my own age. For some reason people assume that I will grow up dysfunctional in some form or fashion if I do not. Once upon a time I did bemoan the fact that I did not have any friends my exact age, but as time passed I began to see that it is not the number of years a person has been alive that counts, but the amount of love and understanding they have that makes them good friends.

I once read that something that has always stuck with me. "We are not raising our children to be children, we're raising them to be adults." Now when people talk as if I am missing out, or will grow up into some type of lesser person for not have had extensive communication with people my own age, I laugh. No, I may never have to deal with extreme amounts of peer pressure, and I may know how to have intelligent conversations with adults, but I do not see that as a bad thing. Why should I? The way I look at it is that I actually have an advantage over my peers.

I would love to hear stories from fellow home schoolers on this one. What have people said to you, and how did you respond? Do you think that having only friends your age is an advantage? Or not?

Expectations

I was reading chapter three of Do Hard Things and was laughing and shaking my head sadly at the same time. Here is why:

Ages 10-14...

• make your bed every day
• be able to take a message on the phone
• clean your room once a week (with help from Mom and Dad)

Ages 15+ must do all the above, plus...

• do a daily chore [just one], like taking out the trash
• make sure the gas gauge stays above a quarter of a tank
• clean your room once a week (without help from Mom and Dad)

This is a list Alex and Brett Harris found online of what kinds of expectations parents should have of their teens. The article even went on to assure the parents that they should not feel that their children should have to even do all of these things, because that might be expecting to much from them!

If you are a young person and that does not encourage you to rise above low expectations (and in this case very low expectations) I do not know what will. Why, adults expect almost that much from two-year-olds.

When we were little we were expected to help pick up our toys, obey, and learn new stuff every day. Think about it, if you are two and you refused to learn new words, you would never learn to talk. If you thought that your parents were expecting to much to encourage you to walk, then you would still be crawling around. If you refused to eat real food that you had to work hard to chew since you did not have all your teeth, you might still be eating baby food. Why is it all right to expect toddlers to learn so much and work so hard to become more independent, and it is not okay to ask the same of your teenagers?

I am a Rebelutionary, and I am proud of it. I believe that every young person is capable of so much more the what is expected, and I challenge you to rise above what people expect of you and do great things.

"Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity."
1 Timothy 4:12

God's Love is Huge

One of my goals for this month is to re-read Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris. I have not yet gotten past the first chapter, yet already I have been given food for thought. It is something I have heard all my life, but it never really sunk in fully until the other day. Then I was awed by the magnitude of the thought.

"He [God] will never -could never- love you more than He does right now."

-Do Hard Things

Nothing I can say or do will make God love me more? Whoa! Hold it a minute. That means if I am always doing good deeds, obeying God's laws, reading His word, and I pray faithfully He still will not love me any more then He did when I was dirty and very much without Him? Then why do I do any of these things? Isn't it just a waste of time?

This is where the definition of true love comes in. If you truly love someone you will do them good and never expect anything in return.

Say you are the mother of a wayward child. You love him and care for him yet he never even acknowledges you unless you have something he wants or needs, yet as his mother you continue to love, pray, and hope for him. That is true love.

Even though nothing we do makes God love us more, we do not do it expecting a return, we do it because we love Him and because it is our God-given purpose in life to serve Him and bring Him pleasure. In serving Him, we are fulfilled. I would not call that a waste of time. Would you?

We cannot earn God's love, we already have it. It does not matter how vile and sin filled we may be, God still loves us. He still extends His grace to us, and offers all of us the free gift of eternal life through His Son Jesus Christ. It is a gift of love, and a gift by definition is: "Something transferred by one person to another without compensation." You cannot earn it, you can only receive it.

"Not that we loved God, but that

He loved us and sent His Son."

1 John 4:10

"You are my God, and I will praise You;

You are my God, I will exalt You.

Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!

For His mercy endures forever."

Psalm 118:28-29

The Speck In Their Eye

"If Christ appeared to me, would I see Him for who He is, or would I be blinded to the truth? Would I even know Him? If only I would always treat others as I would Christ, then I should never have reason to be reproached."

~December 26, 2009

From my Bible study notebook

~*~

How often I am judgemental of others. I hold them to some impossible standards, while I, myself, sin against God. I can be so proud of my "goodness." So proud, in fact, that I am blinded to the truth. I do not see my broken promises as important, neither do I allow myself to see how my words often hurt and discourage my younger siblings.

I am a sinner. Far from perfect. I have not right to judge anyone else's actions. That makes me nothing but a hypocrite.

"Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your own eye. Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye" Matthew 7:1-5.

When I see women within the church dressed in a way that escapes the word modesty, I am being judgmental more times then not in my thoughts towards her. When I see families living outside of God's principles who claim Christ, I judge. Yet, look at me. There have been numerous times I have worn something just a little too tight, or a little to low cut, in hopes of drawing attention to myself. How many times have I not been totally truthful? Have I always been respectful and obedient to my parents? No, of course not!

Modesty is more an issue of the heart then a stern dress code. I can wear a sack that covers everything from my neck to my ankles but still be immodest. Immodesty is about attitudes of the heart, actions, and words that come from a sin filled heart. Thus, in matters of immodesty, I am just as guilty as anyone. How then can I judge?

I would be the first to admit my unfaithfulness in always living by God's principles. I have lied, talked ugly, disobeyed. I have judged others and been a hypocrite. I am not perfect, so why do I hold others to standards so high that I myself cannot keep them? And if they fail, I grind them into the dust with my thoughts and maybe even my words?

God holds everyone to very high standards. In fact, His standards are much higher then mine. Yet, He knows mankind. He knew we would fail because we are sinners. That is why He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for us. He knew we would never measure up, but He loved us anyway.

My job is not to judge others faults, to condemn them. That is God's place. I am to live by God's standards to the best of my abilities, and while I can hold God's standards up for others to see and encourage them in keeping those standards, I cannot rightly judge them. "For all men fall short" (Romans 3:23), the Bible says. Even me. Especially me!

The next time I am tempted to judge another for his or her "sin," I am going to remember the planks in my own eyes and not expect perfection from them, because on earth perfection is unattainable. When a girl walks into church wearing something less then modest, I want to remember Matthew 7:1-5, and examine myself with all honesty. I want to encourage her to live by God's principles, and humbly ask her to encourage me to do the same. We must always remember the planks in our own eyes. For how can we possibly see well enough to judge others when there is no way we can clearly see the specks in their eyes for the boards in our own?

If A Bird Can Cling...

If A Bird Can Cling

If a bird can cling

To a spray aswing

In a mad May wind,

And sing and sing

As if he'd burst for joy;

Why cannot I,

Contented lie

In His strong arms

Beneath His sky

Unmoved by earth's annoy?

--Unknown

Where He Leads Will I Follow?

It looks like my family may be moving in the near future. We have known this might be a possibility for about a year, but it has been one of those situations that I have pushed back in my mind and not thought of as happening now. It has always been "someday we will move", not "we are moving now."

It may sound crazy but when it became clear that we might be moving before summer is over, I went into a panic mode. When I learned that my parents where considering buying a house in a community I was not interested in living in (I did not like the house either) I was floored. This could not be happening to me!

I fought it. I reasoned that there was no way we could fit in that house. We have been used to five bedrooms and this house only has three. There was no way my parents were going to really choose this house, was there?

As the days went by my fears became a living nightmare. My parents were seriously leaning towards buy the house I was so set against. I am ashamed to say I even tried to convince them that there was no way we could live there. Despite my outburst my parents continued to pray seriously about the house.

One day I was getting ready for work. I was talking to God and telling Him that we could not fit in that house, it was not the place we needed to be. Then, it was as if someone turned the lights on. Who was I to think I knew better then God? If my parents were praying about this and they felt that this certain house -which I hated- was the one, who was I to argue?

"But, God, I do not want to go there. Why must I go there?" I continued to argue.

Then I heard a voice so clearly in my heart I knew it was of God. It said,"You promised the Lord you would go wherever He might send you. You promised to follow Him to the deepest, darkest jungle if that is where He lead you. Even if it meant leaving all those you loved behind. Now He is asking you to move to a little town that is still in your home state It is only a few hours from your currant home, you will be with your family, and yet you are refusing to go? What is up with that?"

That is when I knew. God was not asking me to go to deepest, darkest Africa, He was asking me to go to this place I did not want to go. This town, this house I hated. I thought on in a few minutes then whispered, "Lord, if this is where you want me, I will go. I do not understand why You are asking this of me, but I will trust You. I will go where You send me Lord. I will go."

I still was not excited about moving, but the peace that had been evading me returned as it always does when I surrender my will for that of my Father's. It is human nature to play tug-of-war with God over issues of control, yet it is only when we give everything over to Him that we find peace and lasting joy.

I do not know what the future holds, but I know God is with me and that He is in control. I am looking forward to whatever lies ahead with hope because I know that God will remain faithful even when I do not.

So, what hard thing is God asking you to do today?

Changes

Hi, there. This is Kathryn, formerly known as Kaomi here on Musings From the Feet. When I started this blog last year my parents were unsure of me posting my real name on the Internet for all the world to see, but as the year passed we decided that as long as I only posted my first name it would be okay. I have found it rather confusing to myself and my friends to go by a second name here, so those are the reasons that I will now be going by my given name, Kathryn.

You may have noticed the changes to Musings From the Feet. I decided to change things in celebration of my second year of blogging, and because I want to start anew, if you would. As I mentioned not long ago, I have not been posting much these last several months, and aim to change that. I thought the change in blog design would be a sign of the change to come.

So, do not worry, this is really still the same site, and you did come to the right place.

God Bless,
Kathryn

Cole Slaw

Cole Slaw

1 Medium head of Green Cabbage (shredded)
1 Carrot (shredded)
1 T. Minced Onion

Combine these vegetables together.

Dressing:
1 1/4 c. Miracle Whip
1/3 c. Sugar
1/4 c. Vinegar
1/4 t. Celery Seed
1/4 t. Black Pepper
Salt to taste

Whisk it together and add to vegetables. Mix it all together well.
Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

A Year and Counting

"Do not grow weary in doing good."

2 Thessalonians 3:13

Today I am celebrating the first year anniversary of Musings From the Feet. As I look back on the past year I am discouraged at how easily I have become distracted, and how quickly I grew "weary" of what I believed was a good thing when I started writing here a year ago.

When I began this blog I had visions of twenty or more followers, maybe they would only be family and friends, but everyone has to start somewhere, right? As time went by and I continued to have only a few followers I grew downhearted, and over time I have all but stopped posting here. I kept asking myself what reason was there to write when no one ever reads it?

Life has gotten a might busier and blogging is hard to fit into my days now. I would love to promise a post everyday, or at the least a post every week, but I will not make a promise I cannot keep. I have been thinking about it, and have decided that I have had it all wrong. It is not that if I write no one will read it, but rather, if I do not write then no one can read it. Yes, I may not have a huge following right now, in fact, I do not even know if anyone will read this, but if I do not write then they surely will not.

Everyone has a testimony, a life story if you will. Mine is of God's faithfulness, and mercy. Even if my halting words should encourage just one soul, then this time spent writing is not a waste of time.

So in the year ahead I am committing to try my best to write twice a month, hopefully more. I want to not grow weary in doing that which God has impressed upon my heart for me to do.

It is time to refocus, and walk in faith that when I have no ideas about which to write, God will provide. I must trust that God will show the way, and that He will use my little efforts here for His glory.

In Him,

Kaomi

Life: As it Now Stands

Dear Readers,

I would be the first to admit that my posts on Musings From the Feet have been way to sparse. I am not here to make another lame excuse, but to fill you in a little on what I have been doing, and on why finding time to write has been most challenging.

In March I started out on a new journey. I became a student with College Plus!, an online college program. The plan is for me to finish a four-year traditional degree in two years time, or possibly less if my schedule allows.

As you can imagine, starting College Plus! has been full of firsts, and has consumed a greater part of my time. Hopefully things will settle down after a while, and I will have time to get back to posting more frequently.

I am currently working through a course called Life Purpose Planning. This book guides you through an in depth, prayerful journey to discovering God's will and purpose for your life. It has been a joy to work through so far, and I would highly recommend that all high school students work through this booklet before deciding what to do in college. Knowing your purpose in life at a young age gives you goals to work towards. It is a pretty awesome concept.

Other then school, I have continued to work part time as well as spend time with my family.

Spring is rapidly progressing into summer, and though I am not looking forward to hundred degree weather, I am thankful that the freezing temperatures are behind us. I have enjoyed every moment of spring. Watching the trees burst into bloom, the grass push its way up out of the earth, and once again hearing the song birds singing when I awaken each morning has brought me such joy. I marvel that God created all of this in only six days! What a truly awesome God we serve.

As I continue on the road that leads to a "brighter day" I will be thinking of all of you girls and young women out there who are traveling this road along with me, and will try to post as time allows. I pray that each day brings you closer to the King of Kings, and that you will find peace and direction upon this path called life.

May God bless and keep you,

Kaomi

"A man's heart deviseth his way:

but the LORD directeth his steps."

-Proverbs 16:9

Pizza Crust

1 c. warm water (105-155 degrees )

1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil

1 teaspoon salt

1 package dry yeast

3 to 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided

1 to 2 teaspoons yellow cornmeal

Combine water, oil, and salt in large mixing bowl; sprinkle yeast over water mixture, stirring to dissolve. Add 1 1/2 cups flour; beat at medium speed of an electric mixer until blended. Gradually add enough remaining flour to make a firm dough, mixing well.

Pour dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic (about 5 minutes). Shape into a ball, and place in a well-greased bowl, turning to grease all sides. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85 degrees), free from drafts, 1 hour or until doubled in bulk.

Punch dough down, and divide in half. Ball one half to a 1-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Transfer dough to an ungreased pizza brick or pizza pan sprinkled with cornmeal. Fold over edges of dough, and pinch to form crust. Repeat with remaining dough. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes. Fill and bake as desired. Yield: two 12-inch pizza crusts.