Trying to live my life simply, so that I can simply serve God.
Lindsay has been working on an apron for me and it's nearly finished. She only needs to add the neck & waist straps. She re-cycled some old overalls to make it. I think it's a really cute idea, and can't wait for it to be finished.
For other cute aprons go to Tammy's Apron Show and Tell.
While looking at some old photos that I have on cd; I came across several of men in uniform. Lindsay and I began to wonder what role these men had played in various conflicts. I called my dad and asked him about some of the pictures that I found. There were a couple men who were not pictured in their uniforms one was my great-uncle Buddy, and the other was my great-uncle Tommy. Buddy served as an MP in Iran, and he also worked on the railroad and cooked, but I'm unsure of how Tommy served.
As is often the case around here, many of my ideas wouldn't come to fruition without Lindsay's help. We both had the idea, independently, to create a slideshow using some of our pictures. She worked on it this afternoon and put it to music. My desire is for you to pause and remember those who fought for your freedom and those who served/serve to protect it. Many times I wonder at why the Lord allowed me... me of all people, to be born here in America---free. All over the world people live in constant opression, yet I'm free. Just as my salvation was bought with a price, Christ's blood, my freedom has also been bought with a price...the blood of millions of young men who bravely fought so that I might be free. I can never repay either of these debts, so I choose to remember and cherish them both.
Please click on the little soldier to go to the slideshow.
This summer the girls and I will be doing a unit on World War II. We have already begun reading The Victory Garden, which is a fictional account of a young girl's life during WWII. We are planning on creating our own webpage with activities we have done, books we have used, websites we like and lots of pictures. If you have any suggested materials, please post them. We are also planning on contacting the VFW to get in touch with a WWII vet. I would hate for my girls to grow up not having had the opportunity to hear the experiences of a WWII soldier.
This weekend in honor of Memorial Day, Gene, Lindsay and I watched The Great Raid. I love old war movies and this is a new one that feels like an old one. You may have to love old war movies for that to make sense. If you haven't seen the movie, it is a very good depiction of a terrible time. It is the story of the rescue of the soldiers who survived the Bataan Death March and 3 years in a POW camp afterwards. These men survived terrible atrocities that you or I can hardly imagine. They were deserted by their country for 3 years, never expecting to see home again. It is one of those stories, that if not true, would be unbelievable. The odds against Mucci's Ranger unit being able to accomplish their mission were insurmountable. Yet, this Ranger unit had 600 volunteers for a mission that was not strategic and would only utilize 100 men. They were facing 250 Japanese guards at the base, after having to cross 30 miles which were heavily patrolled by the Japanese. They weren't fit for combat any more,so there was only one purpose behind this mission, which was to do the right thing--to bring these men home.
I hope that you enjoy the slideshow and that it will cause you to stop and reflect on the price that has been paid for both your earthly freedom and your eternal salvation.
The last couple of weeks have been quite busy for us, and thus I haven't been posting. Let me catch you up on a few things that have happened. I will try to keep them in order as much as possible.
May 19th was Gene's 45th birthday, and the girls and I decided to surprise him by showing up at his office to decorate his car. It wasn't easy keeping Sarah quiet, but we were able to paint all the windows for him. For those of you who don't know Gene, he hates to have attention drawn to himself in this way. So you may ask yourself, "Why would you do such a thing then?" The answer is... Gene loves to play jokes on all of us, so we figured this time the joke would be on him. Besides, he doesn't drive that far to work. He even got a car wash out of it. Lindsay washed his car when he came home so he didn't have to drive it into downtown Houston that way.(Do you think part of it could have been she didn't want to ride into Houston in a car that was all painted?) Here are some of the pictures we took.
For dinner we had one of his favorite meals, oven fried pork chops with yam patties, cabbage and butter beans having coconut cake for dessert. Later that evening he went and did his favorite activity... witnessing to the lost.
On Sunday night, the 21st, I took Lindsay to see United 93. It was a well made movie, in my opinion. It's hard to call it a "good movie" because of the subject matter. I do feel that it was handled well and that it showed an acurate portrayal of how people would have responded. There were no "super-heroes", only men and women doing their best in a no-win situation. I also thought the way they filmed it added a lot to the movie. It was filmed as if it were a documentary, which made you feel you were a part of it, not just a spectator on the sidelines. It's a hard movie to watch emotionally, but I think it's good to remember what happened that day.
Here are the pictures from the utility room when the laundry detergent oozed all over the floor.
This is a picture of the floor with cat litter all over it-- boy was that a mess!!!!
Here is Lindsay in her goo cleaning attire...isn't she lovely? Look at her stylish shoes. ;-)
Here is a close-up of the stylish shoes. Do you think she should go into fashion design??
I have been working in my garden a good deal also. I have everything in now, though some of it was planted much later than I intended. That won't cause a problem down here in South East Texas, as we have a very long growing season.
In the last couple of weeks, I have been visiting Mrs. Wilt's blog, which I enjoy immensely. Her blog is titled The Sparrow's Nest . Mrs. Wilt has begun a book society, which she has named The Antiqui-tea Book Society . We are going to be reading Edith Schaeffer's Hidden Art of Homemaking. I encourage you to check into it, as I personally can't wait to begin.
I have also been visiting Tammy's blog, and have enjoyed what she has shared about her home. This weekend she has made two adorable purses that I just love. I've been talking about making my own purses for quite some time, and she has truly inspired me to try. Click over to her site and see how cute they are.
Saturday we were thrilled to have our neice Christa and her fiance, Matt, come for a visit. We had never met Matt, but had heard tons about him. They were engaged Friday, March 17th. Matt surprised Christa in a great way. You can read about the story here. It's a really sweet story and we are excited as we watch what path God unfolds for them as a couple.
We took a picture of Christa and Matt together.
Then Matt took one of the rest of us and Christa--thanks Matt.
Saturday evening we had a bit of excitement around here. Caroline came and woke me from a cat nap to tell me she could see dark smoke from her window. We went outside to see what it was, and it was obvious it wasn't someone grilling hamburgers. When I came in to put some shoes on, Gene took Hannah, Rachel and Caroline down the street to see if they could see what it was. When Lindsay and I met back with them in the driveway, they told us they could see huge flames to the east of our subdivision. The girls and I took the camera and went for a walk:* a homeschooler never passes up and opportunity to teach something. When we got to the far edge of the subdivision we found an empty lot with a lot of people looking over the 6 foot privacy fence. The fire was in a pile of mulch at a Landscaping company that abuts our subdivision. This is what we saw:
We then decided to walk to the main road that leads into the subdivision on the south side of the fire. It was a very educational experience, as the girls had never had the opportunity to see how a fire was fought. We were about 400 yards from where they were fighting the fire, but were able to see a little of it. There were 10-12 fire trucks there, providing the hoses for those fighting the fire. The closest fire hydrant was nearly 1/4 of a mile away. This is what we could see from the road:
The firemen took several hours to extinguish the fire, and the next morning it was still smoldering as we saw smoke coming from it.
That catches you up to where we are. Drop me a note and let me hear how you're doing.
For those who know us, it is obvious that the above statement applies to our family. Tonight is just a case in point. Lindsay and I were each on a couch in the family room reading. Lindsay got up to get something in the kitchen. Nearing the end of my book, I was none to happy to hear the urgently pleading phrase, "Mama, could you please come here?!" I walked into the kitchen and noticed that Lindsay was standing in what appeared to be water. Our washer has been a bit ill lately, vomiting water all over our utility room twice this week. I assumed that once again it had spit water everywhere. Now mind you, Lindsay has taken everything, except the washer and dryer, out of the utility room 3 times this week. Twice for a sick washer, and once when the quaking washer broke a lightbulb in there. This will make the 4th time we are emptying it. Except this time was the real doozie; it wasn't water, but about 150 ounces of liquid washing detergent!! 
We tried mopping, but that just spread the mess, then we tried wet rags; they were no better. Then I had an idea. We had some clumping cat litter. We sprinkled in onto the mess, and a few minutes later we could see it soaking up the detergent, with no slimy floor under it. This stuff is oh so slimy to step on...almost as bad as Lindsay's slug experience.(Note from the editor: Nothing is as disgustingly slimy as that!) I took a picture, but can't find my cord...I'll attach it tomorrow. We also ran out of cat litter and will need Gene's help to move the washer and dryer to clean underneath. I've been saying I wanted to deep clean the utility room; guess I don't have a choice now! Just another day in the life at the Keeth household.
I was given a great deal of special treatment this Mother's Day from my 5 darling daughters and my sweet husband. My Mother's Day was spread over several days, actually, beginning with last Wednesday. Hannah, Rachel and Caroline had been concocting a plan for several weeks in which they had decided they wanted to spend their money to buy me a special plant. Last year for my birthday they each bought me a rose, and they know how much I have enjoyed them, so they decided for Mother's Day to get me another of my favorite flowers, hydrangeas. For me, flowers, like certain foods, are strongly tied to memories. When I see gardenias, roses, narcissuses, or jonquils I think about my mother's mother. She lived out in the country and grew all of those I mentioned.
The hydrangeas remind me of two homes that we lived in when Rachel was a baby. One was a house that had been built in the 1830's which had electricity, but no central air or heat, and was also a small house for 6 people.(I know in some parts of the U.S. central air isn't used, but in South Louisiana you melt without it!) It's what the Lord provided for us at the time and we have lots of great memories of our times in that house. One of our special memories is of star gazing. Behind the house we had a very large concrete patio with a couple of benches on it. We would go outside at night and lie on the benches, looking at the stars. Being in the country, stargazing is amazing, as you can see hundreds more stars than you are able to in the city. Lindsay and I still talk about those times, 10 years later. I enjoyed many things about the house, including the plants that had been there for years and years. We had a huge live oak tree, probably about as old as the house, in which we had a great rope swing. There were camellia bushes that were huge and a great many hydrangea bushes. I loved cutting bunches of hydrangeas for the table and that's where I first fell in love with them. Time passes so quickly and our little ones grow up before we realize it, so whenever I see hydrangeas I'm transported back to a time when my girls were still little and were noticing things such as flowers for the first time.
The Lord has chosen to provide us with a simple life by American standards, though compared to the rest of the world we are quite wealthy. I am so thankful for this simple life. If I had lots of money I know my sinful nature well enough to see that I would not appreciate all the blessings that I have. My husband and my daughters are the greatest blessings He has given me and I am very thankful for them all! When things are difficult for a time or we are going through trials they bring me great comfort. The Lord has used them all at different times to get me back on track, causing me to focus on the truth of His word.
Sunday, the girls provided many special treats for me. First they made poppy seed muffins in flower pot muffin cups and we had a nice brunch together. Lindsay, the tricky one, presented me with an apron she has been making me out of some overalls. She's tricky because she had me believing she was making the apron for herself and was even getting my imput on how to best construct it. I'll attach some photos at a later time. Rachel made me some homemade orange chocolates, and Hannah made me some bath salts and soap. Sunday evening, Hannah, Rachel and Caroline put on a skit for me. To avoid the Sunday rush we decided to go out to eat on Monday night. Last night we went to IHOP and had a blast. The girls had purchased a card that plays "Sea of Love" for me, and it was quite funny when I opened it in the restaraunt. There was only one other family sitting in our section and when they heard the doo-wop song they began looking around to hear where it was coming from. The girls thought that was too funny, as they know that I don't care to make a spectacle of myself, generally. Though they have found out I will do it if I think it will cause them undue embarassment.
Though I don't put a lot of stock in "Hallmark Holidays", I think it's important to show those that we love that they are important to us. Just as we should be in service and worshipping our Lord everyday, not just on Sunday, I think we need to show others how important they are to us everyday, not only on the ones Hallmark has chosen. I am thankful that my loved ones showed me they love me in such a tangible way on Mother's Day, but honestly, they show me in many ways everyday.
I am truly blessed by the Lord!
Last night we had one of our favorite easy dishes for dinner, Texas Style Quesadillas. I would like to share with you the way that we make them. I hope that you will try them sometime and let me know of any different things that you add. It's always fun to come up with a new twist on something.
This time I began with pre-seasoned fajita chicken that I purchased at Sam's. I sliced the breasts in strips and then cut the strips in half so that they are about 3 inches long.
After all of the chicken is cooked I begin assembling the quesadillas. I cook them on my griddle so that I am able to cook more than one at a time. I layered homemade re-fried beans, cheddar cheese, chicken, queso cheese and cheddar again. This time I used big tortillas so I am folding them in half instead of using two tortillas for each quesadilla. Sometimes I will carmelize onions to put into the quesadillas, but only Rachel and I like them, so often as not, I don't. 
Once I put them on the griddle I put a heavy plate on top of it to help it flatten out as it cooks.
Here's what they look like when they are finished.
I also made a great dip using cream cheese and peach mango salsa. It's great with chips! Here's a blurry picture of it. I'm still working on getting good close-ups with a digital camera. I ended by topping the quesadillas with guacamole and sour cream.
I'd love to hear any additional ideas you have.
Please be in prayer for the team tonight. I awoke this morning with the downtown team and the group at Bootcamp on my mind. I prayed a lot for each group as I started my day, and then I put it out of my mind. Javier is at Bootcamp and that puts Gene in charge of the group downtown. That's not a problem, he's done it many times. But tonight, it was as if everything was against him getting down there. When Lindsay goes she usually drives, and she did tonight as well. They had not been out the door long when I received a phone call from Gene. They had a blowout on the feeder road just before getting on the interstate. The huge blessing is that they didn't have the blowout on interstate. So, Gene changed the tire and asked me to meet him at Walmart to trade vehicles. That went ok, except my van was nearly on "E" and he was going to have to go get gas. The other girls and I go into Walmart and a couple of minutes later I get a call from Gene... I had left my keys in the van, the only set I have for the car. So, now he had to come back to Walmart to bring me my keys. 
Lindsay called me and told me they finally got downtown ok. Whenever there are so many obstacles in the path of doing what I know God has planned, it always gets my attention. I'll update on any divine appointments that happen tonight.
It seems that in the mainstream Christian way of thinking, you are either called to evangelize or you‘re not. If you aren't, then the thinking is you should either be discipling or being discipled. The problem with the last statement is most Christians want to be discipled for 20-30 years. The church* today is encouraging this in several ways. First, and I feel foremost, is the belief that the way to get people saved is to make your church* as welcoming (seeker friendly) to the unsaved as possible and offer programs that will attract them, in the hopes that somewhere along the way they might think about spiritual things. This has resulted in a church* full of unsaved people with an extremely watered down doctrine. The second way is with the implied teaching that pastors/teachers are more anointed than other believers and that you have to be in this special class to be doing God's "real work".
In the last three and a half years, since we began using Way of the Master methods and really began to see that every believer is called to evangelize, we have had many discussions on this matter with many different people. If you aren't aware, we have an evangelism ministry and work with a team from all over Houston going out witnessing and street preaching. One day I was asked by a man I know who isn’t involved in our evangelism work, "Do you think all men should be doing what Gene is doing?" Let me give you a better picture of what Gene does so that you will understand my answer completely. Gene has a full-time job working 40-45hrs a week. In the evenings he has been writing a novel, and he spends a great deal of time with me and our 5 daughters. We have set aside Friday nights as our evangelism night. Every Friday night, Gene & Lindsay go into Downtown Houston and witness and open air preach from 9pm until 12am. Sometimes things run late, and after the 45 min drive home, they arrive home between 1:30am and 2am. This causes our Sat. mornings to be late mornings, but that is part of what we do. During the week, as we come across people, we will give out tracts or witness to them depending on the situation. To us, giving up a few hours a week for evangelism is a very small thing to do, considering what was done for us two thousand years ago and considering the destiny of those who aren’t saved. So when I was asked this question, my answer was yes, I do. Now, I wouldn't have gone up to him or anyone else and said, "Hey you, why aren't you out witnessing?" But he asked my opinion on the matter, and my true feeling is that we are all called to evangelize. I don’t often go out with Gene on Friday nights because as a mother, I have responsibilities here at home, but I do evangelize as I go through my day. For clarification, by evangelizing I don't mean lifestyle evangelism. I don't believe that is what we are called to do. You didn't see Paul walking through a city just hoping someone would come up to him and say, "Hey, it's really cool the way you were thrown in jail. What can I do to get thrown in jail, too?" He didn’t try to impress anyone with his lifestyle. He opened his mouth and shared the gospel. I tend to give out lots of tracts just because the people I come into contact with are generally working and can't have a conversation. But a good tract is a great tool to use in a situation where you don't have time to strike up a conversation.
My conversation with this friend was very long and drawn out and he was really battling a lot of things, mainly how do you balance work, family, and ministry. We are all called to minister to others as well, and I believe that discipleship and ministering works are handled in the same way. I can't minister to the whole city of Houston, but I can minister to those God brings into my path. I can't disciple a lot of people either, but I can direct people to God's word and show them things as we come to them in our walk together. Think about how Jesus did much of His teaching with the disciples. It wasn't in a classroom at the temple, it was as they came into situations. When something would come up, He would correct their thinking on it. We have many examples of when He used this method, such as when the disciples tried to stop the children from coming to Him. We work similarly with our children, giving them a set of guidelines to work within, but doing much of their training and teaching as situations arise.
The scriptures make it plain that we are called to both evangelize and disciple, not either or. Sadly, less than 2% of all “professing” Christians share their faith . . . makes ya wonder doesn't it? If we truly love others, and if we understand what we have been saved from, then why aren't we doing something about it? One thing that really impacted Gene was an atheist he heard on the radio. The atheist had called into a talk show and said, "Christians don't really believe what they teach about heaven and hell, because if they did, they'd be on every street corner warning people about what was to come."
My prayer is that you would think about all that the Lord has done for you, even if your life seems to be in shambles. If you are His child, He has given you the greatest gifts ever: pardon from your sins and eternal life, neither of which do any of us deserve.
Here is a great quote by William Booth that really sums up how I feel:
“‘Not called!’ did you say? 'Not heard the call,' I think you should say. Put your ear down to the Bible, and hear Him bid you go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin. Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity, and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell, and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father's house and bid their brothers and sisters and servants and masters not to come there. Then look Christ in the face -- whose mercy you have professed to obey -- and tell Him whether you will join heart and soul and body and circumstances in the march to publish His mercy to the world.”
*This refers to what is called the church by most people, not the true church which is the body of all believers.
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You scored as Fanny Price. You're Fanny Price from Mansfield Park! You are quiet and feel alone most of the time, and you don't usually speak out. Because of your quiet, sweet nature, you are sometimes used as a most unfortunate scapegoat.
Which Jane Austen heroine are you? created with QuizFarm.com |
