Amazing Grace

Yesterday was quite a day. I somehow managed to lock the keys in my van while at Walgreens. My father was at home watching the kids and did not have car seats for them, so he could not pick me up, plus the spare van key that was supposed to be at home was nowhere to be found. My mom and Paul both have spares, but they were both at work. So I ended up deciding to walk home. When I was at the corner of Pontiac and Hanna, my dad's friend Jonathon picked me up and drove me the rest of the way home. (Those of you who know Fort Wayne may be cringing at the location I was walking in, but I assure you that at 4:00 in the afternoon I was perfectly safe).

Fortunately, Paul thought it would be a good idea to go out to dinner last night after my ordeal. After all we had to get everybody out and around anyway. We had dinner at Casa D'angelo, a local Italian eatery. I had the eggplant parmigiano, which I share with Abigail and Isaac. It was delicious.

For those of you who were fast yesterday, I apologize for my discussions of food. If it makes you feel any better I am sorely missing coca-cola already.

I believe that my Lenten resolution will help to strengthen my faith in God, but man is it hard.

Before I start any religious discussions, please let me begin by sharing a little bit about my own faith background. My mother was raised in the Church of the Brethren, which is a conservative group stemming from the anabaptist movement. My father was raised United Methodist. When my brothers and I were born my parents attended an Episcopal church, but they left it before I was old enough to remember. Much of my childhood was spent church-hopping. For those of you unfamiliar with the term, church-hopping is when someone switches churches frequently. People do this for a variety of reasons, as a general rule, I think this is not a good thing to do. In any case, the churches which we attended for the longest were United Methodist and Missionary. When I was in high school we began attending a Dutch Reformed Church (RCA) which my mother still attends, although my father now attends the Episcopal church again. Both of them are now enrolled in RCIA and will be becoming Catholic in late March (they also attend Catholic Masses now). I am still grappling with their decision to become Catholic, and because of this I have been studying Catholicism in depth. I must admit though, that it is really hard to sit down and read the Catechism. I cannot handle more than a page or two at a time.

I seem to have gone off on a tangent though. Since being married, I have attended a Free Methodist church. Our church has gone through a great deal of struggling the past few years, but that is a whole different story which I will not share right now. Many of you may be scratching your heads and wondering what on earth are Free Methodists anyway. Methodism was a movement started by John Wesley in the eighteenth century. Wesley would speak to the working class and huge crowds would come out to hear him preach. Initially his group was a sort of club that met several times through the week. He did not have any wish to start a new church, he was more focussed on strengthening the faith of the people, who were still expected to attend to mass in the Anglican church. The term Methodist was a derisive term because the organization he designed ordered its religious societies into classes and bands which focussed on religious instruction and accountability. Although he was despised by many in the Church of England, he remained part of that body thoughout his life. It was not until later that the Methodists became a church unto themselves.

During the early nineteenth century, most churches in the Americas charged rent on pews. If you wanted a nice seat near the front of the church, you paid a higher price. Many in the Methodist-Episcopal church felt that charging rent on pews was wrong. Also, they believed that all men deserved to be free, and that slavery was wrong. Because of these issues the Free Methodist church was founded in 1860. Many of its early members were active in the Underground Railroad.

The Free Methodist Church is considered, with the Church of the Nazarene and the Wesleyan Church to be a Holiness church.

With that background given. I think I shall take the plunge.

Salvation is by Grace Alone

Are you about ready to jump out of your seat and argue with me? I hope not. Please notice also, that I did not say Salvation is by faith alone (sola fide). It is my belief that these to statements are very often confused, but I would like to discuss the difference.

Imagine that someone is holding out a gift to you. You look at him and ask for the gift, he gives it to you. You say thank you. Then you say look! I have this great gift, and all I had to was ask for the gift. Therefore I earned the gift by asking. It's not a perfect analogy, I know. But this is a little bit like saying that salvation is by faith alone. It sort of implies that I earn my salvation simply by having faith. An even greater heresy that can stem from this is the belief that it does not matter what I believe, as long as I believe something. After all salvation is by faith.

Many protestant churches teach salvation by faith alone. So then people give a profession of faith and are "saved". Sometimes the profession of faith seems accompanied by a change of heart, sometimes not. Sometimes the person continues on sinning, but they have "asked Jesus into their heart" so they are ok, right? At this point people start debating Is it true that if a person is once saved they are always saved? Someone once asked me this. I was taken aback at first. I decided that yes. If a person truly receives salvation that this is something that cannot be lost. But I do not think that reciting a certain prayer is the same thing as actually being saved.

On the other hand, salvation by works, also called legalism, is a gigantic fallacy. Suppose you are handed a gift and reach out to receive it. To say that salvation is by works is like saying that you received the gift because you reached for it.

Salvation is God's gift to us. Both of the analogies are backwards because they imply that we get the gift because WE take the gift, not because God gives it to us. We cannot earn salvation, not by believing, not by doing good works.

Yes we do have to ask for the gift, yes we do have to reach out and take the gift. But it is not because of these things that the gift is given.

Child Evangelism Fellowship explains in three easy steps how we may be saved.

A. Admit you are a sinner.
B. Believe that Christ died for our sins.
C. Choose to follow him.

Faith comes in part B, works in part C. As it says in the book of James "faith without works is dead". (Presumably this is why Martin Luther did not think James should be part of the Bible). If we truly believe that Christ died for our sins, then it is only natural that we should strive to live as he would have us to live.
We must remember that it is by grace, through faith that we are saved.

"Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound!
That saved a wretch like me.
I was was lost, but now am found.
Was Blind, but now I see."
-John Newton

My crunchy total

73! I guess that I am sprinkled with granola. Mmm! Granola. I should make some of that soon. But today I think we will make some cookies.

Happy Ash Wednesday? + Crunchy Quiz Part III

Okay, so Lent isn't exactly "happy". But it is a very important time of the year. Throughout the course of Lent I plan to have several posts on religious subjects. Though I also plan to include much of the day to day chatter as usual.

Today, though, I am going to post the last part of the Crunchy Quiz.

13. What's your take on childhood vaccinations?

15 points for no vaccines

10 for delayed, selective vaccination

5 points for selective, on schedule vaccination

2 points for thinking about not vaccinating

0 points for vaccinating on schedule.

5. We did delay Abigail's vaccinations, but have not for the boys. This is primarily because all of her allergies made her more at risk for the complications vaccines create. On the other hand, because of Sam's compromised immune system he was more at risk from the diseases themselves. In general I think vaccines are a good thing, though I certainly think it is not necessary to vaccinate for absolutely every thing.

14. Would you/have you ever breastfeed/fed someone else's baby or have someone else bf your child?

10 points if "yes" (have or someone has breastfed your baby)

5 points if "yes" (would)

2 points if "maybe"

0 if "no" (wouldn't consider it).

5. I would totally be willing to do this, but I have never had the opportunity. I guess I need crunchier friends!

15. Do you use cloth/re-usable products for mom?

10 points if "yes" (make own cloth menstrual pads)

5 points if "yes" (buy cloth pads or the keeper)

2 points if "thinking about it"

0 points if "no".

0.

16. Do you use positive discipline?

15 points if "yes" (never yell, spank, punish)

10 points if "yes" (believe in it and try really hard)

5 points if "sort of" (use time out, don't spank, and use rewards for good behavior)

2 points if "thinking about it" (use time out, spank occasionally, use rewards for good behavior and punishments for bad)

0 points if "no" (you think spanking is needed)

1. I think much of "positive discipline" is a crock of hooey! I don't spank very often, but time outs are very common.

Ratings
120 – 205 Super Nutty, Ultra-Crunchy Granola Earth Mama
105– 119 Mmm! Love that whole-grain crunch!
90 – 104 Pretty Crispy
30 – 89 Sprinkled with Granola
10 – 29 Instant Oatmeal
0 - 9 Jell-O

Crunchy Quiz Part II

Crunchy Quiz Part II

6. Do you co-sleep?

10 points for “yes” (all night every night)

5 points for “yes” (part/all of most nights)

2 points for “thinking about it”

0 points for “no”.

1. When the children were babies, I kept them right beside our bed in a bassinett. And there were many, many nights that they slept on my tummy. In general though I don't think any of us would get much sleep if we tried this as the kids got older.

7. Do you use a sling/soft carrier?

5 points for “yes”

2 points for “thinking about it”

0 points for “no” (wouldn’t consider it).

5. I have a sling, snugli, and a hip hammock. I have used the snugli most of all, and I don't know if I could have survived without it.

8. Do you believe in/practice child-led weaning (even if that means breastfeeding for several years)?

15 points for “yes” (complete child-led weaning)

10 points for “yes” (up to 3 years)

5 points for “yes” (up to 2 years)

2 points for “thinking about it”

0 points for “no” (you’ll wean the baby at 1 year or earlier).

5. I really would be surprised if Isaac makes it two years, he is 10 months now, and is already losing interest. But I am definitely not nursing him longer than that.

9. Do you tandem nurse/nurse during your pregnancy?

10 points for “yes” (nurse during pregnancy and tandem nurse)

5 points for “yes” (nurse during pregnancy, but wean before birth)

2 points for “thinking about it”

0 points for “no” (wouldn’t consider it).

5. But I'm really hoping he'll be weaned before I get pregnant again.

10. Do you eat organic/whole/natural foods and limit your meat? Do you use natural cleaning products?

20 points for “yes” (grow own/buy organic, shop only at health food store, grind own wheat, vegetarian, natural cleaning products, etc.)

15 points for “yes” (grow some of own food, buy organic, use whole wheat flour, bake own bread, eat some organic, free-range meat occasionally, some natural cleaning products)

10 points for “yes” (grow some of own food, use whole wheat flour, bake own bread, eat some meat occasionally)

5 points for “yes” (try to buy natural, whole grain foods, etc.)

2 points for “thinking about it”

0 points for “no” (wouldn’t consider it).

7. We actually eat quite a bit of meat. But it's mostly free-range. We have half a cow (less some) in our deep freeze. We also use free-range eggs (ack! Somebody catch those eggs). Rather than whole-wheat, I use brown rice flour. And I do buy some bread. Yum Ezekiel 4:9 (if you haven't tried this you should). And I have to admit, I have some weaknesses for some completely processed junk food (e.g. coke).

11. Do you use herbal/homeopathic remedies?

10 points if “yes” (very rarely see a regular doctor)

5 points if “yes” (but use a doctor occasionally)

2 points if “thinking about it” (see a doc for now)

0 points for “no” (wouldn’t consider it).

4. I use herbal remedies fairly often. But we also use the doctor more than occasionally. It sometimes amazes me how much the doctors have forgotten simple common sense treatments, and instead use drugs.

12. Do you or will you homeschool?

10 points if “yes”.

5 points if "part time" (do a combination of private or other school some days and home school others).

2 points for “thinking about it”

0 points for “no” (wouldn’t consider it).

10. That's the plan for now anyway. I do school time with Abigail now, and she absolutely loves it.

I'll save the rest of the quiz for next time. And maybe soon, since I'm no longer using my seven-year-old laptop I will post some pictures and add some more links soon.

I don't know what's up with the size/boldness. I tried to fix it but only made it worse.

Crunchy Quiz Part I

It's been a crazy weekend! My mother-in-law and sister-in-law (hereafter referred to as Linda and Cheryl) were here to visit. They are truly wonderful people, and I always look forward to their visits, but that doesn’t change the fact that I am exhausted by the time they return home.

Cheryl is a vegetarian, and with all the allergies we have in our family, that makes meals a little more challenging. But we did alright. I think Paul may have exceeded his monthly vegetable tolerance level, though.

So after reading Dave’s definition of a crunchy conservative, I am pretty sure that applies to me. But I am still intrigued by the crunchy quiz, so I am going to share it with you.

1. Do you have homebirths?
20 points for "yes" (unassisted)
15 points for "yes" (midwife in attendance)
10 points for natural childbirth in an alternative birthing center
5 points for natural childbirth in a hospital
2 points for “thinking about/would like homebirth or natural childbirth”
0 for “no” (wouldn’t consider it).

I gave myself 3 points (feel free to give yourself whatever number you find fitting --and feel free to estimate). First of all, I assume by unassisted they mean without a professional. If anyone has seriously had their babies at home alone I think that they deserve 100 points. I also think that if they chose to do this, they are stupid. In general I think the idea of homebirths sound nice, but I am certainly glad I did not do this. I doubt Abigail would ever have survived (after three hours of pushing, they used a vacuum extractor). And I am certain that Sam would not have. I am certainly not going to try homebirths after this, but if there was an alternative birthing center around here I would certainly strongly consider it.

2. How do you feel about routine (no medical indication) infant circumcision?
10 points for "believe circumcision is a human rights violation and will not do it to your sons"
5 points for “won't circumcise your sons, but don't feel strongly against it"
0 points for “will circumcise your sons”

0 for me. Our boys both were circumcised. And if I have any more sons I will certainly make the same decision. It certainly reduces the risk of infections, and since it has been done for thousands of years, I don’t really believe it is that unnatural.

3. Do you use cloth diapers?
25 point if you do Elimination Communication (no diapers)
20 points if "yes" (wash and make your own using natural organic fabric)
15 points if “yes” (wash and make your own or purchase natural organic cloth diapers)
10 points if “yes” (wash your own)
5 points if “yes” (diaper service)
2 points if “thinking about it”
0 points if “no” (wouldn’t consider it).

7 points. I do use cloth diapers. But I also use disposables. By the way, does anybody have any good suggestions for getting my diaper pails really clean. They are getting kind of yucky.

4. Do you observe your fertility signals using Natural Family Planning/Fertility Awareness and use that for birth control/trying to conceive?
10 points for “yes” (observe and use for birth control and trying to conceive or just for birth control) or you use ecological breastfeeding/lactational amenorrhea
5 points for “yes” (observe for trying to conceive, but not for birth control)
2 points “thinking about it”
0 points for “no” (wouldn’t consider it).

10! Well I’ve never actually tried to conceive, it just sort of happened. I am not sure why this isn’t worth more points.

5. Do you breastfeed exclusively for the first 6+ months?
10 points if “yes”
5 points for “no” (use occasional bottles of expressed breastmilk)
2 points for “no” (use occasional bottles of formula or early solids)
0 for “no” (don’t breastfeed by choice).

5. I assume Sam doesn’t count here since he couldn’t drink. I think pumping for several months so he could have breastmilk through a feeding tube ought to count anyway. Besides, I hate pumping, and almost never use my pump (it’s much better to keep the baby close).

Anyhow, we are only about halfway through the quiz. I’ll post more of it later. Let me know how you’re doing. Or if these choices don’t apply to you, let me know your opinions of the issues.

Crunchy?

Sammy’s IFSP went well today. It is a long boring meeting where we figure out what developmental goals he should have for the next year and how we can help him meet them. This is a good thing. But it involves a bunch of B.S. and sign about a bazillion papers. The good news is that he will continue in physical and speech therapy (for feeding issues).

But many of you may be wondering about the crunchiness thing I mentioned. First, a confession: I like to read the blogs of people I have never actually met. My brother Dave and his wife Monica have blogs and these have links on them that lead to other blogs. The other night while I was up with Isaac, I was reading random blogs and came across one that had a quiz “how crunchy are you?” I was unfamiliar with this term, but I took the quiz anyway. Afterwards I decided to research crunchy, and I am now intrigued. Is crunchy supposed to be good or bad? Basically the term seems to refer to preferring things that are natural and/or organic, like granola. In regards to mothering it means natural births, cloth diapers, homeschooling, co-sleeping etc. I wanted to post a clear definition, but I haven’t found one. Maybe some of you are familiar with this term? I’d like to post some more on this. But Paul is waiting to get online.

Did you know Amulances have baby seats?

Generally I love snow. It makes me feel like a child. I love to tromp through it even when Paul has shovelled the walk. And with the snow it has been nice to have Paul home. I do not know how clear other residential streets in the area are, but ours has been clear since 6:30 this morning.

Why did they get to our obviously unimportant little street you might wonder? They dispatched a plow with the ambulance. Ahh yess... It was a very hellish morning for us.

Little Isaac has been sick since Saturday evening. I took him to the doctor Monday, and he was started on some meds. This helped for a little bit. Then he got a lot worse. This morning he was having a lot of trouble breathing and was turning blue. Since the roads were impassable, I had no choice but to call 911. Normally, I would have driven him to the ER myself.

To make a long story short, Isaac has pneumonia. And we were sent home with even more meds. (Although is took a long time for Paul to be able to come and get us.)

And a summary of the ER experience --- doctors who have been on site for over twenty-four hours tend not to be very helpful. I think the doctor spent less than one total minute with us. Fortunately the respiratory therapist and radiologist were a little bit more caring.

On a brighter note Paul and Abigail got to build a snow fort.

Happy Valentines Day everyone!

Coming Tomorow: A report on the results of Sammy's annual IFSP. And a discussion of crunchiness.