Get ready for some fun links-- these should give you lots of interesting reading, so here we go!
INTERESTING VIDEOS:
- Mt. Sinai, Moses & the Exodus: This video is absolutely incredible; it's in 10 parts and takes about an hour and a half to complete. Full of interesting, on-the-ground archaeological and geographical research into the biblical account of the exodus based on the biblical text, the evidence unfolds before your very eyes. Ethan & I had so much fun watching this video after having read through the exodus account over the last few weeks in school.
- Butterfly Emerging from Chrysalis: I was explaining this to the boys a couple weeks ago and realized that there was probably a video on the internet that would show the whole thing. Bada-bing, bada-boom- I found this... a time-lapsed video that shows it in high-speed (and then you can click to watch the slow, real-time version). The internet has its drawbacks, but stuff like this is so incredible!
- Dinosaurs in computer animation: Based on bone structure and placement, animal "norms" and other research, Discovery channel put out these interesting videos that show what dinosaurs may have looked like in their original environment. Interesting stuff.
- Even feminists are saying it: Wanna have a baby? Now's the time.
- John Piper has put out a new statement about the biblicality of birth control.
- Royal college warning about abortion: it can lead to mental illness
- Baby supposed to only live a few hours is perfectly healthy: makes you wonder how often this has happened before, when parents have opted to abort, doesn't it?!?
- The abortion industry's #1 provider-- Planned Parenthood: your tax dollars at work.
- Natural labor induction techniques: the most complete list I found, FYI.
- Post-partum dressing tips: great and feminine ideas from Emma about hiding the post-baby "pooch"
- I love you, but you love meat: not only an interesting commentary on veganism, but also an interesting commentary for all of us to consider about how personal idiosyncracies or preferences might keep otherwise compatible men & women from marrying and starting a family together.
- 83 Years of Marriage: what a neat story! Maybe we'll make it to 83 years-- there's at least a chance- we were married at 21! :)
- Holding Out: Boundless wrote a great article about young Christian singles who seem to be waiting for greener pastures... I'd love to hear from you guys on this-- do you think this is an accurate assessment of how things are going among Christian singles/college students?
- Either Serve God Wholeheartedly OR Get Married?
- An honest commentary about the "appeal" of abstinence education as it's been done by churches and Christian families in recent decades
- 6 Aspects of Humility: Desiring God blog reminds us of what it means to be humble
- Brother Yun's Thoughts on the Western Church: See America's churches through the eyes of a Chinese house church pastor
- Obeying the Word of God: Terry reminds us to focus on obeying the basics of Scripture.
- The Unwasted Life: Tamara writes about intentional living-- living for God's glory-- living in light of eternity... good stuff.
- Girls: Rod Dreher shares his thoughts about the natural differences between the sexes.
- Is a Woman Just an Egg-Factory? Around the world, this is happening more and more.
- Bratz at the Beach: Crunchy Con shares some great thoughts about how the culture is affecting teenage and college-aged girls and their aims & dreams. It's disappointing and insightful all at once.
- Buying Clothes: the frustration of being a normal woman in a sex-driven, cleavage-baring, nothing-off-limits world-- do you ever find yourself wondering, "where can I get some normal clothes???"
- An Open Letter to the Religious Right: WOW. I found myself nodding along to so much of this... especially-- ESPECIALLY-- the part about Ann Coulter.
- Mike Huckabee's take on the Obama/pastor/race issue
- Why Mike Huckabee's candidacy mattered
- Missing Mike Huckabee already
- Questions You Should Never Ask ANYONE- my friend Bethany compiled a great list of rude questions people ask when they oughtta just bite their tongue (I've been asked some of these!)!
- Stages of Responsibility: I found this to be helpful for ideas and to evaluate the reasonableness of asking kids to do various things around the house. It's a listing of chores and home responsibilities based on children's ages and skill levels
- On My Sewing Machine: Shannon might just inspire you to pull out the fabric & thread!
- Depressed in the Lap of Luxury: Why "having it all" does NOT equal happiness
- "How I Feed My Family of EIGHT on $300 a month"-- need grocery-savings tips? I think this woman's series of articles is a great place to start!
- Battling Sexual Sin
- Why I Don't Read Your Blog - I found myself nodding to a lot of these-- I've had to cut back on my blog reading anyhow (it's just overwhelming, and I easily fall into what Joe Carter described himself as-- a complete media junkie), but this list describes some of the reasons why I choose not to read certain blogs (ETA: Additionally, I found this list helpful in identifying problem areas that I need to avoid when blogging.)
- Jonah: Too Horrifying for Kids? - an honest appraisal of the dumbing down and p.c.-ing of Bible stories
- Designed for Sex: an incredibly good article about what sex is for and what we lose when we lose sight of God's plan for intimacy
- This is something I've always been bothered by: the phrase "Hedge of Protection"-- and Tim Hawkins' comments about it cracked me up!
18 comments:
I too was one of those women who was told by my perinatologist that I need to abort my child because there is NO way she would survive to be born (this was at my 20 week sonogram) and that if by some miracle she did make it to birth, she would die a horrible painful death within a few minutes of being born. I told him that abortion was not an option, and he continued to tell me how stupid I was.
My daughter was born at 39 weeks and 4 days perfect in EVERY day. I sent a note along with a picture of Lana to the doctor who told me she wouldn't survive. At her 12 month check up, I got a copy of the paperwork that says how advanced (she was doing stuff that 24 month olds do) and perfect she is, and sent that along with an updated picture of her.
I thank God everyday that I am not one of those people who take everything that the doctor says as the end all and be all.
~Jennifer
Jess, I am really curious about what your thoughts are on John Piper's article. Does it change in any way how you regard the question?
Congrats, Jess! That is very exciting!!
Thanks, Jess! Where do you find all these great things? I especially enjoyed the statement by John Piper on birth control and the "Holding Out" article.
~Bethany
love your links, as always, Jess (even though I don't usually respond!).
Just on Brother Yun - in his book, he also says that in China, persecution comes from outside the church. But in the west, persecution comes from within the church. Interesting!
Sim in Oz
Holding Out: Boundless wrote a great article about young Christian singles who seem to be waiting for greener pastures... I'd love to hear from you guys on this-- do you think this is an accurate assessment of how things are going among Christian singles/college students?
Hm, I don't know?
Speaking for myself, though, as single Christian male, albeit one who's not in college, I know I long to get married if the Lord would ever grant it someday.
I don't think I have unrealistic expectations for a wife. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe I'm not the best person to evaluate my own motives. But when it comes to marriage, I don't think I'd ever hold out for someone "better" in the future if I've found someone godly whom I like now.
I don't have many "requirements" I look for in a wife. And even those "requirements" I do have, I attempt to evaluate in light of grace.
Of course, I'm looking for someone who is a godly Christian and growing in grace. As a Christian, that obviously goes without saying. But I'm not confusing godliness and growth in grace and Christian maturity with perfection or even near perfection (however "I" might selfishly define it) by any means. Heck, if I were, I'd disqualify myself! :-) After all, among its many other blessings, I'm beginning to better understand that marriage likewise sanctifies us like few other things do in this world. So I want someone with whom I can grow in holiness together throughout the years.
Personality-wise, I want someone with whom I can more or less get along with. Someone with whom I can sometimes laugh and sometimes cry with. I realize that's a vague statement, but to be honest I'm not looking for anything specific. She doesn't have to like (almost) everything I like or dislike (almost) everything I dislike, or have (almost) the same sense of humor, or whatever else. There's so much room for growth in marriage! If we were married, I'd highly doubt, say, that 10 years into our marriage we'd end up liking and disliking all or perhaps even most of the same things we started off liking and disliking anyway. :-)
However, I have admit, I would like someone I'm physically attracted to. That said, godliness counts for so very much, too, and true holiness is so very attractive to me -- humility and respect towards the Lord and others, gratitude for the small blessings in life, etc.
Late last year, I moved away from my home state of California, leaving behind friends and family, familiar places and faces, my job, and much else I loved to pursue a godly Christian woman in the Midwest. She wasn't necessarily the ideal woman of my dreams, but after I had gotten to know her, the single thing I most loved about her was her love for and pursuit of the Lord. I don't know how else to describe it but her love for the Lord was so very attractive to me. There was a beauty in her holiness.
Also, I want to mention that I didn't think we "clicked" right off the bat either. Personally, I didn't feel a connection with her when we first dated for two weeks (I had flown out there to date her for two weeks before committing to moving out there). But at some point during these two weeks, because I saw that she was most certainly a godly Christian, that we did more or less along with one another, and that I did find her attractive -- and, again, I kid you not, her attractiveness grew in my eyes the more I saw of her godliness, I simply decided that I would love her and be committed to her if she would ever do me the honor of becoming my wife.
Sadly, however, things didn't work out: she decided that the Lord was leading her elsewhere. Although my heart was and still is so very broken, I trust she made the right choice. But my larger point is that, although she wasn't necessarily the woman of my dreams, her zealous desire to love and follow the Lord at any and all costs made her quite attractive to me. And even when she broke up with me, trusting that the Lord was leading her elsewhere, because I trust her decision was ultimately a God-driven decision, her breaking up with me in fact made her even more attractive to me if such a thing is possible.
Ah, well.
Just my two cents' worth.
"Does Job fear God for nothing?" Satan replied. "Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land." Job 1:9-10
Can I be excuse from giving my thoghts on this? It's late where I am (Australia) and my brain has stopped working. I just stared at it for a full 5 minutes and my thoughts would not come into alignment. :)
Hi Jess--
The holding out article was interesting, but I think it is important to look at "settling" from both sides of the relationship. Would you want to be the person someone else "settled" for?
I would be devastated if I thought/knew that my husband had settled for me because "being alone in a marriage is better than being alone."
It just seems a little cruel-- at least if both people involved aren't clear on the terms.
Thanks!
Emily
Jennifer,
Thanks for dropping by and sharing your story about pre-birth diagnoses and how they can differ from post-partum reality.
Maria,
The only time I've ever publicly clarified any specific leanings I have one way or another on the birth control issue was in the comments of a post I wrote a while back... Here's the link to those comments. (Mine's the 7th comment, and it's the only place where I've knowingly, publicly taken any sort of firm-ish position about this issue.) We've discussed many of the "ins and outs" of birth control a lot of times here at Making Home, but I'm not one to take a hard line stance one way or another, because I know that: (1) I don't see any 100% clear directive in Scripture that compels me to take a hard line stance about it, (2) I'm young and therefore may not be seeing the issue from a full perspective, and (3) Godly people who have gone "before" me have seen this issue in a variety of ways (including John Piper).
I think if you read through my comment there, you'll find that I don't disagree in any big ways with Piper on this issue. I appreciate his perspective, which is why I chose to highlight it (in addition to the fact that his insights on issues like this are always very helpful).
Bethany,
I just am very careful to bookmark any links that I find interesting as I'm going about my normal reading, and then every 3-5 weeks, I browse back through them, open them back up, and determine whether it's worth featuring here. I'm so glad you enjoy them!!! :)
Thanks for commenting, Sim in Oz; everything I've ever read about Brother Yun has been challenging and compelling.
Patrick & Emily:
Thanks for adding your thoughts to the singleness/holding out issue. I found the article interesting-- it's good to hear other's perspectives on it.
Jen,
WOW. Thanks for sharing that verse-- I never knew where the hedge of protection phrase came from, and that must be it. Thanks for writing- I'm a lot less perturbed about that verse knowing that it comes from a scriptural background. :)
I still think the Tim Hawkins video is HI-larious, but it's good to know that, so thanks for sharing!
~Jess
Thanks for the reference to your other comment! I really enjoyed reading it and I must say I totally understand where you are right now. I suppose that's pretty much where I am right now - as for all the questioning, I mean...
Sorry if my above comment rambled on a bit and may not have been clear. What I mean is that even though she wasn't originally the woman of my dreams, as I got to know her more, particularly seeing her godliness and holiness, she became the woman of my dreams. I don't know if that makes sense, but, anyway, for what it's worth if anything.
Jess,
Congratulations! One step closer to being a more-than-just-a-blogger-writer. :)
I'm sure Maranatha will be blessed and proud.
Congrats, Jess! The letter was really beautiful and deserving of recognition. And thanks for the link.
I read a few of the other links: The Brother Yun piece, the feminists advocating having babies sooner rather than later, and the Piper BC piece. They were all very good. I really related to the one about not being able to find normal, feminine, tasteful clothes. Good links!
I just stumbled onto your blog (the joy of clicking link after link :) and I must say I've really enjoyed these links. I've recently been thinking a lot about the "snipping" of Bible stories, so was particularly interested in the Jonah article.
Jess, you always provide an array of great links. Thank you!
I was perplexed by the people who were coming to my blog from yours. Now I know why. :) I love the idea of just giving out some fun, educational or otherwise interesting links. Might have to steal that idea.
Thanks for sharing these links...has given me lots to read and look at over the last week or so :)
My preschool class really loved the butterfly hatching video!
Thanks again for sharing.
MaryBeth
Jessica, your dad has really enjoyed the Tim Hawkins videos. I think he has seen most of them now. They have cracked him up! The "Hedge of Protection" one is my favorite after seeing it with you.
Mom
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