Blind date, and silent

I have a terrible time remembering the titles of books I’ve read. But decades later I still remember this one: How to Talk with Practically Anybody About Practically Anything, by Barbara Walters.

I also have a terrible time remember much about what I’ve read. But I still remember one point from that long-ago book: Show interest in your conversation partner by asking questions. When I remember that advice, I get along much better.

But I will never be as adept as the young woman in this Kid History video (“kids talk, adults act”). Maybe I should be glad I don’t have her “skill,” and I’m definitely glad that my dating days are behind me. Conversationally, I was much more like the guy here.

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65 is the new ___

Almost 2 weeks ago, my husband stepped out of the role of Pastor of Preaching and Vision, moving into several years, Lord willing, of different kinds of work and ministry.

Almost 3 weeks ago was my birthday. Which one? The Medicare one.

Tonight a group of 8 people stood in front of the congregation to receive prayer as we send them off on a short term mission to Senegal. That’s not unusual. But something was very unusual about this group. The average age among them was 65. And that’s with one young man of 21 wildly skewing the figures downward.

So Char, Brad, Keith and all, as we prayed that you be encouraged in your mission and ministry, you yourselves were ministering encouragement to me in our transition to a new chapter.

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Question for you:

What is something you dream of doing, no matter what your age will be before it can happen?

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How do you feel?

Beginning August 1, Jason Meyer was Associate Pastor of Preaching and Vision at Bethlehem Baptist alongside my husband, the Pastor of Preaching and Vision. Now, as a result of resounding congregational approval, as of yesterday those roles are switched. Now Jason is Pastor  for Preaching and Vision with Johnny as his associate.

This is the next-to-last step in our transition to our next chapter, when–as of the end of March–Johnny no longer is part of the pastoral staff of Bethlehem. We are thrilled with God’s guidance and work in all of this.

Last weekend was Johnny’s last sermon as “senior” pastor. Last night, during his last minutes in that role, he led Bethlehem into the New Year in communion together at the Lord’s table.

As we walked into the house at 12:30 am, he asked, “How does it feel to be the wife of an associate pastor?” Considering that I’ve spent exactly half my life as the wife of one man in one position in one place, that could have been a jarring question. But it wasn’t.

I answered, “Feels just the same. It’s you that matters, you who are my husband.”

One of the things about the he who is my husband is that he’s a man who expresses thoughts of love and life and life events and changes with poetry, as he did in his end-of-the-year blog post at Desiring God.

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Kindle Fire or Kindle Paperwhite?

Our anniversary and my birthday are less than a week apart, with Christmas in between. Sometimes that means one larger gift that covers all the occasions. I guess I wasn’t very subtle about what was on my wish list this year for Christiversaday–a replacement for the Kindle I couldn’t find when I returned home from a trip a while back.

I’d played around a few minutes with a friend’s Kindle Fire and was impressed by the colors and apps. So that’s what I was crossing my fingers for. And that’s what my husband blessed me with on our anniversary. We enjoyed getting acquainted with it together.

Though the apps and games would be fun, my main use of a Kindle is for reading. So my heart sank when I realized that reading on the Kindle Fire is missing the same 2 important features that are lacking on the Kindle app for various devices (iphone, android, iPad, PC, Mac, Blackberry,Windows Phone 7)  –features that were a normal part of my earlier Kindle experience:

• Unbroken continuation of a highlight from one page to the next.
• The ability to organize my books into Collections.

Highlighting. On my earlier Kindle, to continue a highlight to the next page, I just kept the cursor moving to the bottom corner of the screen and the page automatically turned and the highlight continued. By contrast, when I’m highlighting in the Kindle app on my phone or on an iPad, I can’t drag the highlight beyond the bottom of the screen. That means if the passage continues on the next page, I have to start a new highlight on the next page. So when I go later to my notes and highlights, I find it saved as if it were two highlights rather than as one passage. That’s the way the Kindle Fire does it too.

Collections. Some people keep only a few books at a time on their Kindles and store the rest in “the cloud” until they want them (I know that’s an accepted term and shouldn’t need quotation marks, but it sounds like a nebulous–pun intended–metaphor to me.). But I keep pretty much everything in my device. So I want a way to organize my books and not have to page through several hundred hoping to find the one I want. The Collection feature on my earlier Kindle let me create categories that are most useful to me–fiction, Christian living, China, biography, etc. That feature is not available in Kindle apps or in the Kindle Fire.

I had made the big mistake of assuming that every new Kindle product was an upgrade–keeping the great features and making them better. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. It was too subtle for me that the Getting Acquainted with Kindle page was showing a Kindle Fire Family of devices and a Kindle E-reader Family. I thought Kindle meant Kindle.

I returned the Kindle Fire and ordered instead a Kindle Paperwhite E-reader. Now that has what I wanted and more.

What I wanted:

• Collections.
• Highlighting that continues to next page.

And more:

• Noticeably smaller size and lighter weight than the Kindle Fire and earlier Kindle e-readers.
• Touch screen.
• On-screen keyboard that pops up as needed.
• Higher resolution (62% more pixels)
• Adjustable built-in light that is not a backlight  (page down here for a more technical description).

When it comes to reading, the Kindle Fire is in competition with iPad, not with Kindle e-readers. If you want color and don’t care as much about the reading features, a Kindle Fire is probably what you want.

But if you’re like me and want the possibility of 1000 books in one 7.5-ounce device you can drop in your pocket, purse, or carry-on, go for a Kindle e-reader (Kindle E-reader Family on this page). My choice is the Kindle Paperwhite.

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Dear traveler

If you love a traveler or love to travel, you might want to take a look at the gift ideas at Tell Me When to Pack.

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Advent: Looking backward and forward

Last Sunday, I asked, “What is Advent?”  But that answer was only half the answer. I quoted this passage, which looks back to all God’s people who were waiting for God’s salvation, which came to us through Jesus, born at Christmas:

Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look. (1 Peter 1:10-12)

But if we keep reading, the very next verses turn our eyes forward in Advent, looking toward the return of Jesus–his second coming.

Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.  14 As obedient children,  do not be conformed to the passions  of your former ignorance,  15 but  as he who called you is holy, you also be holy  in all your conduct,  16 since it is written,  “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”  (1 Peter 1:13-16)

There will be another advent of Christ; he will come again.

Advent is a season for introspection. Peter gives us God’s high standard as we contemplate our standing with him: “You shall be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16). This is a time to ask ourselves questions like:

• Am I clear-thinking and sober-minded, or are my concerns mainly trivial? (verse 13)
• Is my hope set fully on the grace I will receive from Jesus at his Second Coming, or do I cringe at the thought of leaving behind the life I love? (verse 13)
• Am I an obedient child of my Father, or am I still shaped by the passions that drove me before? (verse 14)

If regular personal devotions are not part of our lives, this would be a time tailor-made to begin. We remember that God charged the adults in Deuteronomy 11 to “lay up these words in your heart and in your soul” (verse 18), and that he expects us to “love the LORD [our] God” (verse 1). The living water in our own hearts is the fountain from which we shower Christ on our family. Our time with God and his preparation of us is a necessary foundation. Without it our Christmas activities will degenerate into hoopla.

But however much we want a significant Christmas celebration for our families, that is not the primary reason for our contemplation and self-examination. Our deeper motivation is the strengthening of our ultimate hope in Jesus, “so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming” (1 John 2:28).

May this time be a reflection of what our lives are—gratitude for the promises that were fulfilled when God gave us the gift of his son and anticipation of and preparation for Christ’s coming again.

Adapted from Treasuring God in Our Traditions

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Lots more books for boys (and girls too)

After my list of books for boys a few days ago, here are a few more I thought of:

    s   

Then wow! Thank you so much for your many, many  suggestions. Let’s start with books actually written by a couple of you:

By Hannah McKay and her father, Jeff Roth

To be released in January — 1st in a series

All they wanted was a little adventure. What they got was the adventure of a lifetime.School is out for the summer and Jack, Ben, and Jeb can’t wait to go exploring. Packing their knapsacks and saddling their horses, the trio sets out. But when they stumble across a hidden cave, they also discover the remains of an old Spanish soldier. And a valuable treasure they never could have imagined! But soon they are being followed by a stranger who wants the treasure. In the chase, the brothers end up trapped in an underground river bed, fighting for their lives. They must find their way out before they perish like the Spanish soldier. The boys have trusted the Lord to help them in the past, but will they trust Him now? Join Jack, Ben, and Jeb as they fight for their lives and learn to trust God in Tahosa Treasure! (Amazon Description)

By Bryce Morgan and Mitch Martin

Rescue Me! is a comic book that helps kids connect classic superhero themes with the amazing message of the Bible. This is not what some might think of as a Christian comic book! This is a classic comic book hero in a classic (family friendly) comic book story, interspersed with lessons connecting themes in the story to the timeless truths of the gospel. Kids of all ages won’t be able to put it down! (learn more at www.itscaptainsun.com) (Amazon description)

Here are a bunch you’ve told us about, many of which I haven’t read, but some of you like them and so I pass them on:

Each of the following image links represents either a series or one of several books by the same author:

Now I’m picturing hundreds of boys hidden away in their secret reading nooks–the space between bed and wall, a loft corner, up a tree in clubhouse or on a wide branch, behind the sofa or garage . . . Too bad for you if you were hoping they’d take out the trash or dry the dishes.

Please keep those suggestions coming!

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If you decide to purchase an item here, I do appreciate it if you link through from this site or from the sidebar at my travel blog. That way, I receive a small commission, which costs you nothing extra. I recommend only items that I think will be of interest to my readers and that I probably have used personally or wish I did. 

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Are there Advent calendars?

“Mommy, Mommy! May I open the next window on the calendar?” A simple pasteboard Advent calendar with one flap to open on each day in December is probably the most familiar way to help a child understand the wait until Christmas. In the stores, several themes are likely to be available, including Swiss mountain villages and Santa’s workshops. But since the Advent—the coming—we’re waiting for is Christ’s, let’s make sure our daily countdown has a real Christmas setting. (from Treasuring God in Our Traditions)

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To all who have asked, I’m sorry. I don’t have Noel Advent Calendars anymore.

There’s been a pang of regret every time I have to say that. For a season I was making them myself. After that, I contracted the work. Now the last few years, plans just haven’t worked out to continue producing them.

That pang somewhere in the area of my heart was because I felt I was fulfilling a mission to help families treasure God in their CHRISTmas celebration. It gave me great pleasure to hear of God’s work through the Noel Calendar.

But this year there’s been a lightening of my heart because I’ve seen other Advent Calendars that I’d be pleased to use myself, and even the most expensive costs less than what I’d need to charge for mine.

Here’s the story that goes with the Noel Calendar. You may have lost yours or you may find a way to use the story with another Advent calendar. Blessings as you count the days till the day we remember Jesus’ birth.

Here are an assortment of Advent calendars, sorted somewhat by price. Some are for one season’s use. Others could become part of your family’s tradition.

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The familiar sort of Advent Calendar with one door to open each day.

Come to Bethlehem and See — Advent Devotions and Stickers with Advent Pamphlet

Magnet Advent Calendar

The Magnet Advent Calendar is fun for kids to play with even if you’re not using it in the usual day-by-day Advent calendar routine.

Advent Calendar and Story Book

Nativity Advent Banner with pockets

Nativity Fabric Advent Calendar

Wooden Nativity Advent Calendar Set with Wooden Stable

Wooden Nativity Advent Calendar with 24 Magnetic Figures

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Another Bible story audio

So sorry for my absent-mindedness. Here’s another Bible story audio that I fully intended to include in my original list. Thank you, Sarah, for the reminder.

A few years ago, we gave The Big Picture Story Bible to all our sons’ families. I was wishing there was audio, and now there is.

The title is perfect. This is a Bible story book that focuses on the big picture, not just each individual story as a stand-alone. Trevin Wax says that if “you have long hoped for a book that teaches children the biblical story from Creation to New Creation – a book that anticipates Jesus in the Old Testament and makes his crucifixion and resurrection the proper climax of the New Testament - then this book is for you.” (Note: He links to the earlier edition that does not include CD).

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Sally Lloyd-Jones’ audio for kids

Thank you, Amanda and Erin, for reminding me about The Jesus Storybook Bible, by Sally Lloyd-Jones (to link to the audio version go to the “format” box and choose “audio”). That’s one that I definitely was going to include on the list in my last post, but my brain turned off too soon. The reader you mention with the “charming British accent” is David Suchet.

If you’re not familiar with The Jesus Storybook Bible, here’s our son Barnabas’s review.

One of the great values of good children’s Bible-related audio is to help our children have “Bible Time,” as we called it in our family–a time alone with the Word–even before they’re able to read. Tim Keller recommends Sally’s newest book, for just that reason:  ”Thoughts to Make Your Heart Sing may be the best, first introduction for children to have their own time with God.”

If you’re getting the audio (once again, the narrator is David Suchet) be sure to get the book too. With this book, as with The Jesus Storybook Bible, Sally has partnered with Jago for the artwork which multiplies the appeal and impact of Sally’s word pictures. The one-page devotionals are rich in the truth of God’s love, faithfulness, forgiveness, salvation that draw a reader’s heart toward him–that make a reader’s heart sing.

Song of the Stars is one Bible story–the one that the saints of the Old Testament were waiting for, the one that all creation awaited on tiptoe. Sally leaves a reader breathless with the joy as the bated breath of generations is exhaled in celebration at the birth of the Savior.

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Help us: Bible story audio recommendations?

Update: Here’s a free audio of Hurlbut’s Story of the Bible. Thank you, Kim, for your message at my Facebook page. To get the download, page down slightly to choose the type of download you want.

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“What do you think I am? A dog? Coming against me with sticks and stones! C’mere, kid! I’m gonna feed you to the birds!” Three-year-old Abraham, in terry cloth robe and dishtowel head covering, plastic sword in hand, growled Goliath’s challenge. 

Quickly he threw aside the sword and faced the other direction, becoming David, grasping his imaginary sling. “You come to me with a sword and a spear, but I come to you in the name of the LORD!”

This “reality” form of make-believe grew out of Abraham’s daily morning Bible time. He couldn’t read yet, so he listened to Bible stories on tape, filling his mind and imagination with the Lord who fights for his people. . . .
(From Treasuring God in Our Traditions)

Someone asks at my Facebook page: “Could you please give some Bible story audio recommendations for children?”

My children are old enough now that I’m rather unfamiliar with what’s good now. So I’m counting on some of you to give us your recommendations. In the meantime, here are a few suggestions.

I have to start with Hurlbut’s Story of the Bible, the Bible story book I grew up with. It was a gift when I was born. I had no idea till just now that it’s available in audio (In the “formats” box, click the Audio Edition option).

Since the book is designed to lead the young reader to the Bible itself, and not away from it, the language of the Bible, or a language somewhat like that of the Bible, has been employed. The Bible stories are made plain with explanation of unfamiliar terms as they are introduced, but the stories themselves are not rewritten or changed. (Amazon description)

Justin Taylor wrote:

If you’re looking for an illustrated family Bible story book, especially with elementary school children, I would warmly recommend The Mighty Acts of God. I’ve been using it with my kids and they really like it. . . . the best in terms of capturing the details of the individual stories and their God-centered point.

I wish The Word & Song Bible were available new with CD instead of cassettes, but I mention it here so you can watch out for it used. I gave this to each of my sons’ families one Christmas a few years ago.

Though I haven’t used The Lion Children’s Bible or its audio, I’ve liked all of the individual Bible stories published by Lion.

All the significant stories of the Old and New Testaments from Genesis to the book of Acts are retold in clear, simple language which children understand. The stories may be read on their own, yet they form a continuous narrative which closely follows the “one story” of God and His people contained in the whole Bible. (Amazon description)

An earlier edition of The Action Bible was a favorite of one of our sons. It was falling apart by the time he “outgrew” it. We didn’t have an audio version back in those olden days, so I haven’t heard it, but the comic book art is just right for some kids at some ages and I imagine the audio can only add to the pleasure.

Here are some of the basics I’m looking for in audio for pre-readers.

• A Bible story told without added details or characters;
• Presentation of God as the central character;
• Appropriate respect given to the Word of God;
• and less important, but helpful for a younger child’s understanding is that stories be narrated rather than dramatized.

 What audio Bible stories would you recommend?

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Advent: What shall I do? part 2

More suggestions for Advent devotions.

1. Good News of Great Joy — I mentioned earlier Desiring God’s booklet of daily Advent readings. It is available now to download.

2. A Twitter follower suggested that I check out The Park Forum. They describe themselves as “helping urbanites enjoy the Bible daily by writing short and smart devotionals. As the Park is to the City, so the Word is to Life.” I’m curious to see their devotionals during advent.

3. A Jesus Advent Celebration — MrsHLBjr’s comment on my previous Advent post:

Last year, I downloaded Ann Voskamp’s Jesse Tree Advent Devotional which includes printable ornaments to be cut out and hung on the tree after reading the day’s entry. We also used this in conjunction with her son’s advent wreath, which can also be used during lent (along with her Trail to the Tree Lent Devotional) and the 40 days until the Ascension.

My kids loved this and we created new traditions for our family with these tools.

4. Knowing Him by Name — Bethany’s comment on my previous post:

Focus on the Family has an an advent book which is free for download. It uses Scripture readings, activities, and thought-provoking questions centered around the names and titles of Jesus to help parents introduce their children to the Savior.

Thank you, thank you for your suggestions.

Are there other Advent resources you’d like to mention?

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