Hymn Study: Have thine Own Way Lord

Lyrics:

1 Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way!
Thou art the potter, I am the clay.
Mold me and make me after thy will,
while I am waiting, yielded and still.

2 Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way!
Search me and try me, Master today!
Whiter than snow, Lord, wash me just now,
as in thy presence humbly I bow.

3 Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way!
Wounded and weary, help me I pray!
Power, all power, surely is thine!
Touch me and heal me, Savior divine!

4 Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way!
Hold o'er my being absolute sway.
Fill with thy Spirit till all shall see
Christ only, always, living in me!

United Methodist Hymnal, 1989

Written by Adelaide A. Pollard, a woman who wrote hymns, but we can't be sure how many as she seldom signed them.   Her devotion was to furthering the cause of God, not to seeking recognition for her own work. 

This particular hymn was inspired by the prayer of an elderly woman who asked God to simply “Just have your own way with us”. 

"As Adelaide left the prayer meeting that night the phrase from that prayer, “Have Thine own way”, rang in her mind. On the way home she formed the lyrics in her mind and before going to bed that night, she wrote the words on paper." (source)

The tanbible includes this tidbit "Upon returning home that evening, Miss Pollard mediated on the story of the potter, found in Jeremiah 18:3-4.

       Then I went to the potter’s house, and behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it."

Some hymnals have altered verse two to say 

 2 Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way!
Search me and try me, Savior today!
Wash me just now, Lord, wash me just now,
as in thy presence humbly I bow. 

The reason for that change being found here.   Personally I think she's meaning how our hearts are changed from being dark with sin to be being white with the light of being cleansed by God's work in our lives.  
 
      

Set your face against Mount Seir

We continue our study in Ezekiel, the last time we met was about Showers of Blessing. You can read more in my Ezekiel Studies here and here.

Today the Lord has a word against Mount Seir. 

I wondered where this was so thought I would do a bit of research on it.  This image comes from right here. 

Mount Seir was located in the mountainous region for the descendants of Esau. Genesis 36:8 tells us this is where Esau made his home.

The descendants of Esau were called Edomites.

"The name Edom is a Hebrew baby name. In Hebrew the meaning of the name Edom is: An alternative name of the Old Testament character Esau. Red, a reference to either the red skin or the red earth of Eden from which the Old Testament Adam was created in Genesis 2."  (source)



God is speaking out against The Edomites today.
Why?

•  cherished perpetual enmity 
•  gave over the people of Israel to the power of the sword at the time of their calamity

I read that word cherished and it made me quake inside.
I watched a show the other day and the bad person in the show was one who cherished the pain and destruction of others.   LOVED watched it,this character did.  All over a small wrong done to them a long time ago.

Cherishing such hatred.  I don't understand it.  
Why couldn't they just let it go?

Kicking a man when he is down.  That is basically what the Edomites (those who dwelled on Mount Seir) did.   They saw the Israel had been punished, and instead of being satisfied by that, allowed the sword to be brought against them.   Whether they attacked them or allowed them to be attacked isn't immediately apparent to me in this passage. 

Therefore, since they like bloodshed so much, God is going to prepare them for a time of bloodshed.     

As he says: I will make Mount Seir a waste and a desolation, and I will cut off from it all who come and go. ⁸ And I will fill its mountains with the slain. On your hills and in your valleys and in all your ravines those slain with the sword shall fall. 


God end purpose?  Then you will know that I am the Lord.

Isn't that always his purpose though?   For people to know that HE is the Lord.

The people of Mount Seir knew that Israel belonged to the Lord and none the less said "These two nations and these two countries shall be mine, and we will take possession of them’—although the Lord was there—"

Their envy and jealousy will be their downfall, they will learn the folly of putting themselves above the Lord, wanting to claim his people and their land for their own.  They will "know that I am the Lord" says God. 

God heard it all you know, their reviling of the people, their reviling of him, that joy at Israel's destruction.  He saw how they magnified themselves (built themselves up).   It caused the Lord's displeasure.

And so God will make them a desolate place, all of Mount Seir and Edom.
For the purpose of teaching that God is the Lord. 

It makes me wonder you know, how long the Lord will withhold his judgement on so many people in the world today.   All those who see themselves above the Lord and above the Lord's people.  

It also makes me feel small.  There are so many times that I can (and do) elevate myself, seeing the results of my actions, and putting it out that I DID THIS.  When in actuality, it was the Lord doing it, just using me in the process.    I need to remember that more often.

Oddly Run Week

This week has felt very odd to me.  Nothing seemed  to go the way I wanted it to all because we did things differently this week due my body not being happy with me.  

I've felt frustrated too often this week.
BUT TODAY.. ah..glorious sunshine and .. it was JUST GOOD.  :)   And that is indeed a marvellous thing.  :)

Monday
I KNOW I KNOW.. you are expecting me to say.. off to gramma's today only... we didn't.  That nasty bug that ran through my system over the past couple of weeks.... decided that it was Going to FIGHT ME HARD on leaving my system once and for all.. so we didn't go to London.  Thoughts were.. we'd go on Tuesday.
The lad worked hard on his schooling, getting done by 130.  We played Settlers of Catan with me wrapped up in a cuddle blanket.... I still managed to win though.  :)

Finished up a human body experiment.   Turned out way better than I thought it would...but in honesty was rather gross to deal with.  The lad wouldn't touch it so I helped him out.

Tuesday.
The bathroom remained my friend today.  No trip to London.
The lad was learning about exponents today in Math.   Doing well but occasionally getting confused.
Played Settlers of Catan again.  Hubby won today.
I took pictures of almost all the for sale stuff today and will be busy putting them up on the for sale site for London homeschoolers.

Wednesday.
BUSY BUSY BUSY at the foodbank with a cup of hot chocolate at a friends afterwards.  The lad played with her cat, taught it to do a high five. 
Surprised the lad when we got home and said "you're done for the day".  Thing is...he worked hard at the foodbank, was good spirited and helpful.  That's worth something in my book.   He whooped and promptly gathered up some boxes and made a cat playhouse.   (little did he know that he was still learning!).   :)

We played Saboteur today.   Lad had karate.

Thursday:
This morning we managed to do some schooling.
Since we didn't go to London on Monday, we decided to head off there today.   We had fun pokemon going in Victoria Park... what fun we caught some new pokemon.  

I dropped a bunny and some books off in London for sale.   It is SO Good to sell some of our old schooling books and some review books.  SUCH a good thing.  Helps our pocketbook too you know?  :)

We headed home in time for supper and for the lad to go to Cadets.

Friday: 

We had plans to make a cloud, but that ended up not happening.  The lad has been totally into doing his research on the CN Tower.  We've been learning so much about this Canadian Icon.   You can find his report here. 

We also worked on one of our STEM projects...today the lad had a satisfaction... a robotic hand that worked!

Saturday:
I rushed around this morning putting together another book order for a lady to pick up.   Then we headed out for the Health Fair in Lucan.  WOOT WOOT the lady who makes the skin cream my lad uses for his occasional eczema was there so we were able to buy a big tub of it.    We had thought we'd need to go to London to sell some books but some young children needed a nap so that didn't happen.  Perhaps Monday.  :)

Reviews:
 Same Kind of Different as Me for Kids.  Junior version of adult adult.
The Painting-In Book. Cute art book for children.
Undefeated. Loved this book.

Faith and Life:
Word Prompt Post on the word weak: You are my strength when I am weak.
Book Series: Parenting.  Are you an ambassador?
Recipe: Homemade Marinara Sauce. 
Song Study: I am Not my own.

Homeschooling:
Guestposted at the Crew Blog.  You can find my post on Why It's important to study the Philosophers of Old. 
STEM: The making of a sword.  It's a great thing to make, is a sword.
Lab Report: Bones in Vinegar.  
E is for Edgewalk. Tourist walk at CN Tower.
Postcard Toronto: A guest post for castle view academy.


   Linking up at the following Places:
 
Homeschool Highlights.
Family Friday Link Ups:
Weird Unsocialized homeschoolers: Weekly Wraps Up.
Homeschool blog and tell. 

The Lad's Research: The CN Tower

The construction of the CN Tower (Canadian national tower)  was finished in 1975 and held the world record for tallest freestanding structure until 2010, But it is still the tallest freestanding tower in the western hemisphere, The tallest tower and 6th tallest freestanding structure world wide, It is 1,815.3 feet tall and over 2,000,000 people visit it each year, It  is one of the modern wonders of the world. It has a sky pod where visitors can stand on a glass sheet that is 348  meters above the ground, The 2.5 inch thick glass can hold the equivalent weight of 36 moose, From the skypod you can see 100 miles  on a clear day. The CN tower is almost completely vertical it is off by 1.1 inches.

It is able the withstand a earthquake of of 8.5 of the richter scale and winds of 270 miles per hour, Though they don't get many earthquakes there. There is a restaurant in the CN tower that rotates, It takes 72 minuets to rotate completely. The last piece of the tower has put in place on April 2 1975, They used a helicopter with a crane to put it on, In the process the helicopter got caught on the tower with only 30 minuets of fuel left, Workers were able to free it and it safely landed with 17 minutes of fuel left in its tank.

You can learn more by going here. 

End of the lad's report.   I added this video.   

I'm guest posting today!!!

You'll be able to find me RIGHT HERE.  Right on the crew blog eh!

I'm talking about why it's important to talk about the philosophers of old.  Studying them helps us learn how people think, and to glean truth from untruth, so we can see the connecting points to God.

You are my strength when I am Weak

"You Are My All In All"

Na na na…holy

You are my strength when I am weak
You are the treasure that I seek
You are my all in all
Seeking You as a precious jewel
Lord, to give up I'd be a fool
You are my all in all

Taking my sin, my cross, my shame
Rising again I bless Your name
You are my all in all
When I fall down You pick me up
When I am dry You fill my cup
You are my all in all

Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name
Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name

You are my strength when I am weak
You are the treasure that I seek
You are my all in all
Seeking You as a precious jewel
Lord, to give up I'd be a fool
You are my all in all

Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name
Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name

Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name
Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name

Jesus, Lamb of God
Worthy is Your name
Worthy is Your name
Worthy is Your name 

This song immediately popped into my head when I saw the word Weak was our word prompt for the day.

It's funny you know.

The older I get the more I realize that God is my strength.

When I was young I knew that God could move mountains if he so desired.

I knew this.

I didn't count on it though.

I counted on my strength and ability to see me through by the end of the day.

But as I mature... I'm a whole 51 years old eh... I see more of God in action.

As  he helps me through a day when I feel grumpy because my body is yelling at me.

His strength keeps me from yelling at the lad or making hubby feel horrid just because I do.

Knowing that he has my back helps me from feeling discouraged when an highly anticipated litter of bunnies proves to not come about, or dies, or a possum gets into the rabbitry and wrecks havoc. 

These small things help me to rest secure when bigger things happens like church closures and job searches begin.   

I can't say that I always rest easy (because that would be a lie) but it helps me to rest more secure that in the end, God will work it out.

------------------------------------------------- 

This is a five minute friday post 

Hosted by Dear Miss Kate. 

Today the word prompt is Weak. 

Five minute free write.

 Link up.

 Encourage others.

 Join the community.

STEM: The Making of a Sword

What does cardboard, duct tape, a dowel and a ball of yarn have to do with each other?

It's a weapon for an 11 year old boy that's what it is.   My son has been making or using swords for a very long time.   As he gets older they are getting more elaborate with better details.  He has a weapons book that is frequently a source of inspiration.

Take one dowel, add some cardboard and wrap it with yarn.  Judicious use of duct tape is must.

Make sure you craft your cardboard carefully so you can make a good hilt.  Protecting one's hand while swinging a sword is vitally important.   A good grip equally so.

Take time to form your foam to make your sword blade.  Think enough to provide cushioning, thing enough to not look horrible. 

Safety is very important...no accidental injuries needed.

After applying the foam to either side of the dowel there was a space in either side that just didn't look right.  Here is where some thin foam came into play.

And of course, no sword is complete without the knight to go with it eh?

He used to have boots and leg protectors but they just proved a pain to deal with so he discarded them.  His shield can take quite a beating. His gauntlets provide a good range of motion and give him more protection then you'd think.  

The sword, unless swung with determined force, doesn't hurt when it hits, but is long enough that we need to be mindful of lamps, candles and overhead lights.  :)  I'm looking forward to the spring when I can use my scimitar the lad is going to make me, against the lad's sword.  :)

The Lad is getting practical experience in how difficult it would be for students of the knightly arts to control what their sword was doing.    He's built a sheath for it (needs a bit of fine tuning so no pictures allowed).

I love how my lad will spend hours creating, changing, adding, and learning about the armour and weapons of old.   Doing STEM and not even realizing it.   AND it works and works well.  He's due for a refit of his chest-plate etc and he's gone through a growth spurt and is finding it just a tad bit tight now....  

So tell me... would you want to face this young warrior in battle?? 

If my son has peaked your interest, some books that might appeal.  Affiliate links used to help my family without cost to you.
 

Review: Same Kind of Different As Me for kids

This lovely book is based on the book "Same Kind of different as Me".  It is based on a true life story of Denver Moore and Ron Hall.

I have to admit... it's a intriguing story.

A lady with a vision of a fellow in her mind.  A man who she said would be wise.

Denver Moore, a hardened street man, criminal, living a life that is tough.  And suddenly Miss Debbie spots him and knows that he is the man she's been waiting for.

It took him, but eventually Denver Moore became friends with Debbie and her husband Ron.  This led them onto a road of change.  Keeping alive the cause of homelessness in cities across America.

My thoughts:
This is a gentle book.  Giving the history of a man who as a child wanted more and as an adult failed to get it and found himself beaten down by his life choices.  Then something happened.... LOVE stepped in.

Love changes things in dramatic ways at times.  This time it took a street man and changed his life into a helper of other street people.   From a man who only could look to his own interests, to one who saw to the needs of others just like him.  

 Should you get this book?

Yes.  It's an easy way to show children what God can do if we direct our love at his people.  How he can effectuate change through our obedience.   And just to promote the fact that we aren't called to change the world, we are called to influence the people in our world.

Same Kind of Different as me for Kids
by Ron Hall and Denver Moore
32 pages
Published by Thomas Nelson
Age Range: Elementary
Hardcover
Non-fiction

Amazon.ca: Same Kind of Different As Me for Kids

Amazon.com: Same Kind of Different As Me for Kids