Wordy But True

". . . from whence I have since often observed, how incongruous and irrational the common temper of mankind is, especially of youth, to that reason which ought to guide them in such cases, namely, that they are not ashamed to sin, and yet are ashamed to repent; not ashamed of the action for which they ought justly to be esteemed fools, but are ashamed of the returning, which only can make them be esteemed wise men." 

                                         ---Daniel Defoe in Robinson Crusoe

Such an astute observation of us sons and daughters of Adam  . . . and stated so well.

                                                                                                                        Titus

Haste Makes Waste--One Thousand Gifts Chapter Four

Being in a hurry.  Getting to the next thing without fully entering the thing in front of me.  I cannot think of a single advantage I've ever gained from being in a hurry.  But a thousand broken and missed things, tens of thousands, lie in the wake of all the rushing. . . . Through all that haste I thought I was making up time.  It turns out I was throwing it away. 
--Mark Buchanan, The Rest of God: Restoring Your Soul by Restoring Your Sabbath

On every level of life, from housework to heights of prayer, in all judgment and efforts to get things done, hurry and impatience are sure marks of the amateur.
--Evelyn Underhill, quoted in Marin H. Manser, ed., The Westminster Collection of Christian Quotations

Hurry always empties a soul.
--Ann Voskamp

Busted, big time.  It's going to take a whole lot of grace to help me change my wasteful, amateurish, empty habits!  

Ruthanne's Group Shots--LW '11

This was our fun shot.  We were told to line up in front of the camera, I think.

This is the official group shot--and we don't even look like we just got back from a long walk thanks to Ruthanne's wonderful photo shop skills . . . speaking of which . . .

. . . this is what I got when I asked Ruthanne to cut and paste herself into the fun picture.  This displays her sense of humor more than her photo shop skills--another of her attributes which I highly appreciate!

"All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us." 

--J.R.R. Tolkien as quoted by Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts Chapter 4

And a corresponding constant prayer:

"So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom." Ps. 90:12

Training Wheels--One Thousand Gifts, Chapter 3

"If you think of this world as a place intended simply for our happiness, you find it quite intolerable: think of it as a place of training and correction and it's not so bad."  C.S. Lewis

"Practice is the hardest part of learning, and training is the essence of transformation."--Ann Voskamp

" . . . life-changing gratitude does not fasten to a life unless nailed through with one very specific nail at a time."--Ann Voskamp

Ladies' Weekend 2011--Part 2: Scenes from Sugarloaf

"Without exception . . . all try their hardest to reach the same goal, that is, joy."

from Augustine's Confessions 
as quoted in chapter two of One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp

Ann's book was an encouragement to all of us last weekend. More favorite quotes to come.

Ladies' Weekend 2011--Part I: Scenes from the Lake House

 

 

 

 

 

 

Diapers and Autonomy

Today's brief post on Conversion Diary is worth clicking on to read in its entirety; the quote below sums it up pretty well:

But to buy into that mentality, the idea that I would be happier and my life would be better if I could just do whatever I want all the time, would be to fall back into the spiritual morass I found myself in before my conversion to Christianity.  As I’ve said many times before, one of the most shocking truths I discovered when I converted to Christianity was that autonomy is not the path to happiness. The golden calf that I spent most of my life worshiping turned out to be a dead idol. I always thought that the secret to a fantastic life was to optimize on getting as much autonomy as possible so that I could do whatever pleased me, whenever I felt like doing it. Boy was I surprised when I found out that that kind of life left me amused but not deeply happy, and that the only source of real happiness — of joy — is God. And you only need to glance at a crucifix to be reminded that God is the God of self-sacrifice.

My Life Changing Diapers

Leave out the atheist phase while substituting "pride" for "laziness" and changing the numbers to reflect our ten years of parenting six sanctifying blessings, and this post could be mine.  However, Jen has once again said it better than I could.