Ephesians 2: 1-19

(click title for link to scripture)

As a Christian who grew up in a Christian family, I sometimes wonder about how tiny my Christian journey seems compared to others. I don't have an elaborate conversion story. I am a sinner, and have not always lived the perfect christian life, but I have since been forgiven and I seem to have fewer haunts and regrets because I chose to walk relatively close to my christian upbringing. But sometimes bad things happen, even entire days, weeks or months worth! The choices we make or the loved ones around us can bring us down, make us feel sad or angry or left licking our wounds. Thinking back on my own troubled times with depression, I find that God is showing me now that the point of hopelessness I got to is the same point a non believer is in who is dead in Christ. The difference being that I have a Light and know where to look for Him. But we often take Gods grace for granted, knowing it is there for us when we really get into a bind but living by our own accord in the mean time. Or the opposite, thinking our problems aren't big enough to warrant Gods attention.

Today in church the pastor was reminding us that we are all born hopelessly dead. To be physically dead is to have your body permanently separated from your soul. Your body, has no response to stimuli. Although it can be peaceful, I guarantee you it is never pretty. All that is left is an empty shell that sinks in limply shortly after the last breath as your muscles hold your shape no more, you are soon incontinent and a obscure color and an whiff rapidly sets in. You quickly take on a shape that does not resemble your former body as decay sets in.

Like wise in our spiritual death our soul is permanently separated from God. We are but a shell of what God intended us to be when He created us. We can be the nicest, cleanest, honest, philanthropist on earth... but we are still separated from God unless we accept Gods grace of forgiveness. Because despite our good characters, we all learn to hide things and we all fall into moments of selfishness and hidden sins known only too ourselves and God. It is easy to ignore the sin in our own lives when we are busy showing the world how good we can be. By not accepting Gods grace we are taking credit for all the successes of our lives,ignoring the fact that God is the one who created that very life in the first place.

But this is no better than a funeral homes expertise to cover up death, by embalming and makeup. Although they make you appear the same as when your body was alive, you are still not alive, and they can not at this point bring you back to life.

Pastor Mark Lowrie told us this story:
His son loved to collect "things" he loved to be out side and often came home with a collection of something carried in his pockets. One such day he collected caterpillars. He had no jar so he put them in his pocket to carry home. But he forgot all about them until he sat down to his supper. With a look of surprise in his eyes he stood up quickly, reached into his pocket, and pulled out a handful of squished, dead caterpillars. (A horrible sight at anytime but most unnerving at the supper table I'm sure!) Nothing his son could do, or say, or feel could make any of those caterpillars ever come back to life. Some where mangled beyond recognition, while others simply just did not move.

But what if God had reached into his sons pocket, and pulled out a handful of butterflies instead? How exciting the very transformation of a butterfly is to begin with! But to bring life AND change to something that was dead, what an amazing gift!And God offers this to all of us, a life that is changed and glorifying.

It's scary to think about death, and just as scary to dig up all our old sins and wrongs that we've hidden. But in death, which is going to happen to us all one day, is judgment. Unless you have laid all your heart and soul in this life at the feet of Jesus.....those sins, in death, are also going to be dredged up and punished.

The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord (!)
Romans 6:23

Won't you let God pay for those things now, in this life, instead?



CEJTM 2009

Magic Kniting Tote?

I think my old/new project tote is magical, everything I set in there gets finished! The sweater from my previous post was in it and I finished in a week, and this crochet hat pattern was carried in it and it's finished too! I have a sweater half done for DD that I keep procrastinating about, I think it belongs in the magic tote next! This hat was made of Lambs Pride wool ,Strawberry Smoothie. (A RAK gift from a Ravelry friend) I'm not usually a huge fan of variegated yarn, but this skein was gorgeous! The hat is from the pattern Jayde Hat, and I added a scallop to the brim at the request of my daughter. I love it!

New Baby....New Pattern !

My step niece is expecting a baby boy any day now, so I created this simple and beginners knitting pattern ( because this is only the second ever knitting project for me!) I based it off of a T shirt and actually wrote it down as I went. I even had to look up how to make button holes, I'm that basic. This has been checked , but let me know if you find mistakes!

Easy Baby Button Pullover

by Charlene Tremain Morrison

Size 3- 6months

Finished Measurements
Chest = 20 inches
Length = 9 inches

Materials

3 Balls of 153 yards each light worsted / DK yarn

Size 4 knitting needles

2 buttons

needle and thread to sew on buttons

yarn needle to sew sides

Gauge

20 sts and 26 rows = 4 inches

Directions

Back

Cast on 50 st. Knit 6 rows and switch to stocking st. Stocking st until back measures 9 inches from beginning to end, ending with a WS.

Next row (RS): bind off 37 sts, knit to end of row -- 13 sts rem. Work 4 rows in St st on rem sts for button flap.

Next row (WS): *K1, p1; rep from * to last st.

Bind off rem sts in ribbing.

Front

Begin the same as back until piece measures 7 inches from beginning to end, ending with WS

Shape neck

K 18 sts. Sl rem 32 sts onto holder. Working on 18 sts on needle, dec 1 st at neck every row 5 times Work 4 rows even.

Next row (RS): *K4, k2tog, yo, rep from * , knit to end of row.

Purl 1 row;

Knit 1 row.

Next row (WS): *K1, p1; rep from * to last st, k1. Bind off sts in ribbing.

Shape Buttonholes

Sl sts from holder onto needle and bind off center 14 sts; knit rem 18 sts. Dec 1 st at neck edge every row 5 times sts. Work 4 rows even. Bind off all sts.

Sew left front and back together at the seam

Collar

Pick up 70 stitches all the way around the neck, (Including the tabs) starting on RS Knit 3 rows and bind off

Overlap back tab at shoulder with the front button holes and tack the shoulder edges together

Sleeves - Left sleeve

With RS facing, pick up 48 sts between front and back armhole markers on one side of body.

Beg with WS row, work in St st for 5 rows.

Sleeve decreases
Dec row (RS): K1, k2tog, knit to last 3 sts, ssk, k1 -- 46 sts.

Rep dec row every 4th row until 38 st remain

Work even until sleeve measures 5 inches ending with a RS row completed.

Cuff

Knit for 6 rows and bind off

Repeat for Right sleeve, but make sure to pick up st through both layers of shoulder

Construction

Block

Sew up sides and sew on buttons

Laura's log Cabin

We took a day and went over to my parents to borrow grandpa and his tools for this project. (And his supply of cut willow from the tree in the yard!)
It was made by hand tools (Except for a few magically placed drilled holes) and all the children had a turn at the jobs. Today at home we got out the Crayola air dry craft clay and chinked our house and added grass clippings to the roof to "stop the rain" Here is a pictorial of the job!

Building materials

Everything goes better when we all work together...right?!


Getting it straight!

Keeping tabs on the hired hands!

I missed pictures of DD chinking, but here is the finished product!
There are nails placed inside to hang curtains for the window and door, and we made a table and benches from scrap wood and the ax.

Little House in the Big Woods

Besides nature journals we are also following along with a group on Ravelry doing the Little House on the Prairie series. Here's what we did this week

For week One we read Chapter One of Little House in the Big Woods.

Here are our activities we could choose from

1 Go on a nature walk and collect sticks and other natural items (you will want a lot of sticks as they will go with another activity this week!) Done!

2. Use your sticks and natural items that you gathered on your walk (or rolled up brown paper) to create a miniature “Little House” Done!

3. Make Jerky Also suggested was dried apples or fruit leather

4. Make Johnnycakes (HEY, THESE ARE GLUTEN FREE!) using this recipe:
1 cup of cornmeal
1 teaspoon each sugar and salt
Add
1 1/4 cups water, creating a thick batter.
If you want your johnny cake thinner, add one half cup water or milk for a more rich flavor. Drop the batter onto a buttered or greased griddle (Laura used bacon grease!), fry until pale brown, and flip to cook the other side. Serve the johnny cake warm with toppings of choice; butter and maple syrup are common, although jam and savory spreads can be used as well.

5.Make a rag-doll using this pattern. We will be making more things for our dolls (both male and female depending on which doll you want to have), so please make this if you can! Don’t forget to hand-sew and use recycled fabrics if possible. Done!