My Excellent Wife and Sourdough Bread

From time to time I like to take a few moments to brag on my wife, and today is the day. The bread that you see to the left is the results of her first attempt to make sourdough bread, and I must say that the bread was excellent.

"She rises also while it is still night And gives food to her household..." -Proverbs 31:15

The Mockingbird is singing, "Free, Free, Free."

Well, if you do not own a copy of Derek Webb's newest album, Mockingbird, now is your chance to get it for free. Yes, you read correctly...FREE! Go here to download the album and to find out why Derek is giving his music away.

And in case you didn't know, this is a really good album. So, what are you waiting for?

So, I Didn't Shave My Head...

I must take a moment to eat my words, so here it goes:

"Amy, I was wrong. I never should have doubted that you would be able to give me a good haircut. I teased you about cutting my hair. I thought that I was going to have to wear something shameful upon my head, but you proved me wrong. As I write these words, I am fully aware that you have given me a good haircut. Granted, I was a little scared that we would have to shave my head. (Because we have had to go to such measures in the past.) But, alas, the tides have changed. Amy, you are offically my new hair dresser."

Playing Catch-Up

So, we're still reviewing On Being Presbyterian. Just in case you missed the latest reviews, I've linked to them below:

Chapter 7
Chapter 6
Chapter 5
Chapter 4

The Lord's Provision from the Hands of His People

I just wanted to take a few moments to give God praise for His daily provision and care for my family. So, let me begin by setting the senerio: First, our family moved to Anderson (which brought about a lot of extra expenses to pay such as amoving truck, apartment deposits, utility deposits, and various other fees. Second, Amy and I still had to pay some bills to the owner of the house where we used to live. Finally, at Rockwell Automation (where I work), my pay was reduced by $1/hr. (Granted, this reduction didn't occur because of any slackness on my part, but the reasoning for the deduction would take to long to explain right now.) So that means, that I lose about $80 from my paychecks each month.

Now, because of all of these happenings, we knew that we were going to be in a very tight financial strain. By tight, I mean that after getting paid on August 31st, we would not have any money left by September 1st.

During this time, a number of scripture passages kept coming to mind: James 1:2-4 challanged us to joyfully endure the testing our our faith, knowing that God is using the trial to cause us to be "perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." Philippians 4:11-13 confirmed that we must learn to be content in every circumstance, whether plenty or hunger, abundance or need, and to realize that we can "do all things through him who strengthens [us]." Psalm 104:27,28 reminded us that God is the great provider and creator who gives all of his creatures "...food in due season. when you give it to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are filled with good things."

And our encouragement came not only from the Word but also from His people. Over the last week, we have been blessed by so many people as we have seen them give sacrifically to us in our time of need. The Lord gave to us each day our daily bread. God is the great provider, and we have seen His provisions come from the hands of His people.

I can think of no better way to praise the Lord than to echo the word of Psalm 105:1-6:

Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him;tell of all his wondrous works! Glory in his holy name;let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! Seek the Lord and his strength;seek his presence continually! Remember the wondrous works that he has done,his miracles, and the judgments he uttered, O offspring of Abraham, his servant,children of Jacob, his chosen ones!