to ride on the heights of the land

"If because of the sabbath, you turn your foot from doing your own pleasure on My holy day, and call the sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable, and honor it, desisting from your own ways, from seeking your own pleasure and speaking your own word, then you will take delight in the Lord, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; and I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken."

- Isaiah 58:13-14

What is the application for those on this side of the new covenant? If we are wishy-washy on setting aside an actual day of the week, what other device do we need to re-member (ourselves to) God and the covenant He's established? God not only deserves the honor but promises delight to "the heights of the earth" for His people who act in accordance with their sanctification.

Crucial to the sabbath is the concept of holy rest and with it the profound absence of doing that's so hard for the busy to submit to.
Reflecting on the sabbath makes me realize how reluctant I am to give up my plans for a weekend day and "desist from (my) own ways... seeking (my) own pleasure." For even pragmatism can become a stumbling block if, despite the practicality of "catching up" from the week, it obscures the habit provided by God of honoring Him and partaking in the holy.

Love and Logic Parenting

just saw some YouTube clips of 'Love and Logic,' and absorbed these new goals for our parenting:

- Speak with excitement about your job (if only to your spouse/another adult) in the hearing of your children. This is also helpful in promoting education e.g. "I'm so glad I went to college so I could get this job."

- Speak with excitement about what you learn each day (Also a good inter-spouse habit). For me, this took form yesterday as relating what I've been learning in 1 Kings 8 and Nancy Pearcy's book 'Saving Leonardo.'

- "Energy Drain". When The Pooklet whines or disobeys, we moan "Energy Drain!" and tell him that (whichever disagreeable behavior of his) drains Mommy and Daddy of their energy (and this makes it hard for us to play). "What do you think you can do to put energy back in Mommy/Daddy??" we ask him. Then, and most crucially, we suggest something helpful, rather than responding with a Love and Logic no-no: Telling the child to do something (Stop it! Come here! Hurry up!), which is usually ineffective. The only thing I could think of doing the first time I tried this, was to tell him to go to his room and count to 10, which he gladly did, probably because it seemed like a game. But it interrupted the annoyance and, most importantly, directed me to do something constructive rather than harsh, generic, and emotional.

- Empathize with your child's sadness. We've encountered this before from other sources in the way of matching your child's emotional state and stating/restating the reason for his woe. This is another handy device for thinking instead of acting out of annoyance and, sometimes more importantly, more effective at stopping the immediate problem.

mousy! there's a mousy!

numgat trotted into the bathroom and spotted the Zhu Zhu toy, exclaiming, "Mousy! There's a mousy!" Then, she picked it up, walked it over to me, and made it give me a kiss.

Numgat helps herself to some pretzels

I was getting the kids ready for bed the other day, and my attention was on the Pooklet. After dumping him into the bathtub, I went looking for his little sister to ensure she wasn’t up to any trouble. I headed to the kitchen area, and heard the sound of the pantry door and a plastic bag. By the time I got to the pantry, there was no trace of her so I swiveled around, tuning in to the sound of padding feet, just in time to catch a glimpse of her little head walking back toward the hallway. I hurried after her and caught up to her heading back to the bedroom/bath area. She was holding a pretzel in each hand, contentedly munching on one of them. I grabbed them from her, admonishing her above her ability to reason for taking food without asking.

Still, it was the funniest thing to me that she just went and helped herself to a snack when the whim struck.

Time for Change

Numgat just whined and said, "Change!" indicating that she had a stinky. So I said, "OK! I'll give you a change. Let's go!" and she promptly led the way to the bedroom, where she lay down in change position.

Never before has she clearly indicated and submitted to a change.

prayer

Another prayer/poem that arose out of Bible Study Fellowship homework, based on Isaiah 24:14-16a

Lord Almighty,
You give the sinner hope.
my hope is in you before the trials.
The joy of Your justice will come.
I rest and rejoice in Your righteousness.
Make my joy complete for my heart laments the godless.
But I look to the future and smile
and pray your glory displaces all sorrow.
I will acclaim with every nation
when the harvest is complete.
Enlarge Your kingdom, O God,
our Banner and our Salvation.
May the chorus of Your redeemed cry out,
every language lift Your name.
Until our tears are wiped away,
may we shed them for your fame.

rar?

last night as i was putting the Numgat into her car seat before leaving SF, she held up her stuffed tiger - the one that makes a roar sound - and said "Rar?" It didn't register to me at first, as I was hurriedly strapping her in, but she kept repeating it imploringly as she held mr. tiger up to me.
Only later as the wife acquiesced to the Numgat's demands in the backseat as we drove home did I realize that my daughter was asking me to play the tiger sound because it delighted her so.

rar! rar!