Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Epic

Epic Hike

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Gone Hiking...


We went for a hike to the top of Griffith Park the other day and here are some of the pictures we took :)

xoxo
Olivia

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Nice Lazy Dayoffs :)

There's nothing like a good day off :)

xoxo
Olivia

Monday, September 19, 2011

Etrade Baby :)

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

At The Top

Yay! I got to go up to the top of the Sears tower the other night and it was a lot of fun :)
It's a gorgeous view of the city at night even though these blurry pictures don't do it justice...

{images via my android}

xoxo
Olivia

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Time Travels...



Jumbo's Quote of the Day!

[monkeys_think.jpg]

"If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans."

~Woody Allen~


Videos to Chillax Vicariously

Here are a couple of videos that helped me (at least mentally) cool off on this warm summer day. Enjoy!




Friday, August 26, 2011

Lunch: Asaka Grill Express!


While we're out on the tech job Andrew and I find a lot of cool places to eat like Shamrocks and Rocco's Italian Sandwiches, plus thanks to the Yelp app on our phones (which helps navigate us to delicious spots) we are always informed about all the specials and discounts going on at the different locals.

Today we stopped by this Japanese place for lunch called Asaka Grill Express on our way through Ranchos Palos Verdes.

It was scrumptious!

I ordered the BBQ Chicken Burger with a side of fries and Andrew got the Teriyaki Salmon with brown rice and Macaroni and Cheese.

The chicken was awesome!


We also ordered some tasty appatizers:

Tempura...yum!


These Crab Rangoon were stuffed with some sort of flavored cream cheese -- very tasty especially with the sweet and sour sauce!

So if your ever traveling through RPV (Ranchos) you should stop by and see how delicious the food is for yourself :)

xoxo
Olivia

Jumbo's Quote of the Day!

[monkeys_think.jpg]

"There is no greater folly in the world than for a man to despair"

~Cervantes Saavedra~


Thursday, August 18, 2011

Jazzy Music

These are two of my favorite songs from the Diana Krall station on my Pandora, enjoy:



My Ship by Nancy Wilson




Cry Me a River by Diana Krall



And this one is nice too :)

xoxo
Olivia

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Poet's Respite: Claude McKay's, If We Must Die


If we must die, let it not be like hogs
Hunted and penned in an unglorious spot,
While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs,
Making their mock at our accursed lot,
If we must die - oh, let us nobly die,
So that our precious blood may not be shed
In vain; then even the monsters we defy
Shall be constrained to honor us though dead!
Oh, Kinsmen! we must meet the common foe;
Though far outnumbered, let us show us brave,
And for their thousand blows deal one death-blow!
What though before us lies the open grave?
Like men we'll face the murderous, cowardly pack,
Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back!

Saturday, July 23, 2011

For the Music Lover - Facundo Cabral


May 22, 1937 - July 9, 2011

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Click on image to enlarge

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Lazy Jane


This is kinda how I felt when I woke up this morning...
Just one of those lazy, lazy Sundays :)

xoxo
Olivia

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Blogiversary Adventures: Our Baby Blog Turned 2!



Early this month Sarah and I celebrated our second year blogiversary!
S & O Productions turned two years old on June 1'st and thanks to Andrewski we managed to have a nice blog birthday party :)

{yep that's our awesome-possum chauffeur}

The original plan was to go eat ice cream and stuff ourselves with sweeties and candies...but by the time we got to our destination (Cold Stone Creamery) we were starving for food!


So we toddled along to Johnny Rockets and had a deeeeeelicious hamburger with crunchy french fries and onion rings!

{Yes, that hamburger is cut into two pieces because Sarah & I are too much of weak-sauces to handle burgers of our very own}

The waiter was really cool he drew faces for us out of ketchup -- totally neat right?! Not to mention he informed us of the "endless fries" perk they have going on at Johnny's :D

{He made three faces because he didn't want us to fight over who got the awesome ketchup doodles}


As you might be able to tell, it was a hoot and a half :)
Maybe Sarah and I weren't able to finish all of our ice cream after all those never ending french fries and onion rings, and maybe we didn't succeed at stealing Andrew's YUMMY coffee moca milk shake while he looked the other way...but it was still a blast!
Thanks for coming along with us Cuz-cuz!

Here's looking forward to many more happy blogiversaries!

xoxo
Olivia

Thursday, June 2, 2011

For the Music Lover: Sarah McLachlan - Angel

Mother's Day




Matthew treated us all to one of his newly found Indian restaurants for Mother's day, and it was a blast :)

We ate tikka masala (say it with me...tika-ma-sala), ginger chicken, lamb pasandar, lamb biryani, garlic naan and some funky little cracker type bread and tasty dips.
Mom got a free henna tattoo for being a mother it looked pretty swell...still hasn't washed off (should she start to worry?).

And then we went to see the movie THOR <--- Awesome movie!

Bet your mother's day wasn't as fun as ours :D

xoxo
Olivia

Monday, May 30, 2011

Just for Sweethearts

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Camera wanted!

Just when I'd begun to truly enjoy my old low quality camcorder, and just adventured into playing with it's different settings and manual mode it died. It was old after all, 6yrs old (that's 200 in technology years :), and it had lived a good long life. I suppose it was just time for me to move on.

Which leads me to spending my weekend researching the web thoroughly for a good replacement cam. My how things have changed since 2005! Cameras have not only advanced technologically but now you need to learn an encrypted code of Geekie gibberish to understand them.

Since I've never really shopped for a camera before, this is a new experience and it's kinda exciting. I never understood how people (mother) could get addicted to researching electronics. But once you start you can't STOP!

I'm looking forward to the moment when all this researching pays off and I'm sitting in the living room with a pair of scissors in hand cutting open the box to find my own little Canon baby tucked in bubble wrap.

And then my adventure into the manipulation of the manual setting and exposure begins and a beautifully filmed cinema follows...*oh sigh*

Xoxo
Sarah

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Peaceful Prayer

I was looking for some non-brain-numbing background sounds to play while pattern making today and among other things, found this.



I thought it was nicely done as well as inspirational.

Cheers,
Momsie

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Friday, May 20, 2011

Jumbo's Quote of the Day!

[monkeys_think.jpg]

"Any man who can drive safely while kissing a pretty girl is simply not giving the kiss the attention it deserves"

~Albert Einstein~

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Zeng Zi Butchers The Pig

One morning, Zeng Zi's wife was going to the market, and her little son cried himself red in the face, wailing to go with her.

As the market was far away from their house, the lady had no choice but to leave the little boy at home. To comfort him, she said: " Stay at home and be a good boy. When I come back, I will butcher the pig to make you a yummy dinner as reward.” Her son was happy with this alternative and let her go peacefully.

When she came back in the afternoon,she caught Zeng Zi preparing to butcher the pig that they kept to offer to the Ancestors at the end of year.

She hastily stopped her husband "Husband! what are you doing? I was not seriously going to kill the pig!"

Zeng Zi replied seriously: “ A child is not to be trifled with like that! A child does not know much and cannot judge for himself. He learns from his parents and listens to what they say. To lie to him is to teach him to lie to others. If a mother lies to her son, he will not trust her anymore. How is she then to educate him?”

Convinced by him, his wife helped Zeng Zi slaughter the pig and made a good meal for their son.

~ Han Fei Zi On the importance of keeping one's word ~

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Just for Laughs! Funny Commercial

How One Person Passed the Test

Jesus and the Canaanite Woman

From: http://www.rationalchristianity.net/canaanite_woman.html


Matthew 15:21-28

Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession."

Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, "Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us."

He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel."

The woman came and knelt before him. "Lord, help me!" she said.

He replied, "It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs."

"Yes, Lord," she said, "but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table."

Then Jesus answered, "Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted." And her daughter was healed from that very hour.


Mark 7:24-30

Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret. In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an evil spirit came and fell at his feet. The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter.

"First let the children eat all they want," he told her, "for it is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs."

"Yes, Lord," she replied, "but even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs."

Then he told her, "For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter."

She went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.



Was the woman a Greek or a Canaanite?

The World Book Encyclopedia says in its article on Phoenicia:

The word Phoenicia may have developed from the word Canaan, meaning land of purple, the name first used for ancient Palestine and Syria. Canaan was a main source of red-purple dyed goods. The Greeks probably used their word phoinix, which meant red-purple, when referring to the people who traded these red-purple goods to them. Phoinike, or Phoenicia, eventually became the name of Canaan's coastal strip.

Mark tells us the woman was born in Syrian Phoenicia, so this is in agreement with Matthew's statement that she is a Canaanite. Mark also tells us the woman is Greek, which may mean that one or both of her parents were Greek. This is no more a contradiction than it is for descendants of immigrants to America to describe themselves as Chinese-American, Mexican-American, etc.


Weren't Jesus' remarks mean? Why didn't he heal her daughter immediately?

Jesus tested the woman with a test he knew she would pass. Jesus treated the people he healed as individuals, and dealt with each person differently based on their level of faith. Some people's requests were granted when they asked (Mt 8:2-3); some were healed without asking for it (Mk 5:1-13, 25-29); some were asked if they believed Jesus could heal them before they were healed (Mt 9:27-30). Jesus may have done this to teach the woman and the disciples: the woman learned that she could always trust in God's love and mercy, even when her requests were not immediately answered (something Jesus taught the disciples in Lk 18:1-8), and the disciples learned that God's salvation and mercy were extended to the Gentiles as well as the Jews.

Good Question... from: http://christianthinktank.com/qcrude.html


On...why was Jesus so mean and insulting to the Canaanite woman?


(last updated Oct 2006, with link to gooddoggy.html)


On Sun Oct 20 10:17:24 1996 XXX wrote:

I've thought many times how do You explain the conduct of Jesus depicted in St. Matthew 15:22 - 28?


Thanks for the question...

Let's look at the passage first:

Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession." 23 Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, "Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us." 24 He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel." 25 The woman came and knelt before him. "Lord, help me!" she said. 26 He replied, "It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs." 27 "Yes, Lord," she said, "but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." 28 Then Jesus answered, "Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted." And her daughter was healed from that very hour.

Important details are added from the parallel passage in Mark 7.24-29:

Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret. 25 In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an evil spirit came and fell at his feet. 26 The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter. 27 "First let the children eat all they want," he told her, "for it is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs." 28 "Yes, Lord," she replied, "but even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." 29 Then he told her, "For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter."

At first blush, Jesus' reply to this needy woman seems harsh and insensitive (this bothered me for years and years), but as we get into the details of this exchange, the wisdom and tenderness of our Lord's work will become apparent.

First, let's look at some background material-- historical, literary, theological, pedagogical.

· Historically, Jesus is taking his disciples aside for some very needed rest. So, William Lane (NICNT:in.loc.):" The purpose of Jesus' withdrawal to Tyre was to secure the rest which had been interrupted both in the wilderness (Ch. 6:30-34) and in the district of Gennesaret (Ch. 6:53-56). The house provided a place of retreat for Jesus with his disciples."

· Jesus went into the vicinity of Tyre--not the city. He was trying to escape notice, and get some badly needed rest for His disciples [Note: His purpose was to minister to His disciples--He was not seeking rest for HIMSELF. His focus of ministry at that point was on His disciples]. The woman would have had to travel to find Him.

· From a literary standpoint, this section is wonderfully placed--the wonderful woman serves as a foil against both the Jewish leaders and the disciples (in both Gospels). So, D.A. Carson, EBC:Mt, in. loc.:

Of greater interest is the placing of this periscope in both gospels. It not only records Jesus' withdrawal from the opposition of the Pharisees and teachers of the law (cf. 14.13) but contrasts their approach to the Messiah with that of this woman. They belong to the covenant people but take offense at the conduct of Jesus' disciples, challenge his authority, and are so defective in understanding the Scriptures that they show themselves not to be plants the heavenly Father has planted. But this woman is a pagan, a descendant of ancient enemies, and with no claim on the God of the covenant. Yet in the end she approaches the Jewish Messiah and with great faith asks only for grace; and her request is granted.

and Lane (op.cit.):

the faith of the Syrophoenician woman contrasts dramatically with the determined unbelief of the Pharisees and the scribes from Jerusalem while her witty reply to Jesus indicates a degree of understanding which puts the disciples to shame.

· Theologically, Jesus was sent (as Messiah) to the Jew only. The biblical intent was that the Nation of Israel would accept the Messiah, receive the Spirit, and turn-around and evangelize/minister to the whole world (as they will some day--Romans 11.15). The Gentiles were included in the covenant promises to Abraham, but the blessings to them would come "through Abraham" (Gen 12.3). Cf. Jesus remarks in John 4: "Salvation is from the Jews." So, His PUBLIC ministry was semi-confined to the nation of Israel. [In fact, this scene is the only known traveling of the adult Jesus outside of Palestine--and it was to hide!]

But, AS A JEW HIMSELF (not as the Jewish Messiah), Jesus had a responsibility to non-Jews. As a private citizen, He was to show kindness to foreigners (Lev 19.33ff; Ex 22.21; Dt 10.18ff). Israel was supposed to be a 'kingdom of priests'--to mediate to non-Israel the blessings of God (Ex 19.6). Jonah is an OT book whose central theme is Jewish evangelism of gentiles (Assyria).

Jesus illustrated this in his encounter with the Samaritan woman (John 4) and the Gentile Centurion of Luke 7--and here. The crowds that listened to Jesus--for example, hearing the Beatitudes-- included foreigners (Mk 3.8; Lk 6.17), and He had a specific ministry to the Jews among the Gentiles in Galilee (Mt 4.15), so His fame would have not been bound to national boundaries.

· Pedagogically, we have to remember that Jesus (as were traditional rabbi's of the day) was fond of using questions, challenges, and puzzles to engage a student in the learning/growing process (e.g. Mt 13.51; 15.34; Mt 16.13; 17.25; 19.17; 20.22; 20.32--esp. 22.41; Mk 3.4; Lk 10.36; Lk 20.17; John 5.6). Silence-as-response was used by Rabbi's in teaching (e.g., B Ket 77b), and Jesus had used silence-as-response in John 8.1-11, to dramatically heighten the event, and may be using it here in this way. [Or He might be simply developing her faith, as He did when He listened to the disciples' many discussions without responding until later...and as He does constantly with me in MY prayer life, silently waiting for me to be persistent in prayer--smile]. He obviously had SOME point to it, since He did NOT simply send her away immediately.

Now let's look at the flow of the text:

1. Jesus hides in a house with his disciples, presumably in the countryside, to get the rest Jesus had promised his disciples in Mark 6.31.

2. News of Jesus' proximity reaches the woman, who immediately drops what she is doing and seeks out the house in which Jesus is staying (Mk 7.25)

3. She is apparently outside of the house, where she cries/yells out to Him, using the messianic title "Son of David"

4. Jesus doesn't yell an answer back to the woman from inside the house (Mt 15.23), nor does he speak to the disciples about the matter (they are SUPPOSED to be resting).

5. They decide to approach Jesus about her, and ask him to grant her request and send her away (Mt 15.23)[Notice that this is the kind of behavior God wanted the Jews to have--to intercede for Gentiles (although it might likely be motivated more by their desire for 'quiet')! Was Jesus silent at first, to provoke the disciples to do this ministry?]

6. Jesus makes a theological comment, to the disciples (ONLY), about Him being sent "publicly" only to the house of Israel, but this remark (or its tone--which cannot be conveyed by the text) SOMEHOW encourages them to let the woman inside the house!

7. The woman, only now with full access to Jesus (Mt 15.25), makes her appeal in humility. (The standard understanding of the nature of demonic exorcism--involving physical proximity, cf. Mt 17.14ff-- would have made her request into a 'please come to my house, and drive out the demon'. Cf. Also Jairus in Mark 5.22ff..

8. Jesus uses a mini-parable or household image about children getting temporal priority at feeding time over their play-pet "puppies" (He actually doesn't even say 'no' to the woman--only something like "something else must be done first").

9. Seeing exactly the subtle hint that Jesus has provided in the image, she agrees with Jesus (the adversative 'but' in many English translations is simply NOT in the text at all--the kai gar is everywhere else in the NT translated "for even"!), and points out that sometimes the puppies get little morsels BEFORE their regular feeding time, by simply hanging around the dinner table and catching the parts not used by the kids.

10. Jesus is deeply moved by such a powerful faith--He addresses her in Matthew with "O, Woman!"--a Greek construction (in Hellenistic Greek, not Classical) indicating deep emotional response (Carson, EBC, Matthew, p.356).

11. Jesus compliments her on her great faith, and explains that the demon has already left her daughter--(and that, by implication, there is no need for Him and the disciples to travel to her home.)

12. She leaves (apparently trusting Him with that powerful faith--like the Centurion in Luke 7) and finds her daughter cured.

Notice that there is not the slightest indication that the woman felt insulted, discouraged, or even frustrated in this narrative--and also notice that this woman's incredible faith is immortalized forever in the NT (cf. Mk 14.9!).

Now, let's make some observations about this flow:

· First, Jesus has made an implicit commitment to allow the disciples to rest. If Jesus were to go with this woman, the crowds would be thronging them, and they would be right back where they were in the last 2-3 chapters. Jesus has to "draw the line" somewhere. There is a time to rest and a time to work.

· Jesus' comment to the disciples about 'the lost sheep of Israel' does two things: (1) it 'sets them up' pedagogically on a different track for His dialogue with the woman; and (2) SOMEHOW, encourages them to let the woman into His presence.

This latter point could be accomplished in a number of ways, many of which are not able to be conveyed in the text. We know, for example, of several cases of irony/sarcasm in Jesus' words that can only be learned from the setting (cf. Luke 13.33: In any case, I must keep going today and tomorrow and the next day -- for surely no prophet can die outside Jerusalem! or John 16.31: "You believe at last!" Jesus answered. ) For all we know, this verse might have been said with a 'tired irony'--something like the modern--"I was sent only to the Lost Sheep of Israel--yeah, right!". In any event, his words or his tone or his gestures encouraged them to 'let her in'.

· The woman now makes a request "(come to my house and) perform an exorcism" which conflicts with Jesus' current 'mission' to provide rest for his disciples. But instead of saying "No," he turns the event into a three-pronged teaching and development session--for her, for his disciples, for us--WITHOUT compromising His commitment to his disciples' rest, or His compassion for this woman's need.

· He responds with a mini-parable or image of supper-time, little children, and their inside pets. This image is so well chosen, that it will deliver two 'payloads' to two different audiences.

Remember, the disciples were 'set up' with the theological statement about 'to the Jew only/first.' They will 'process' the words of Jesus with the equivalencies of "children-Jews"//"puppies-Gentiles". They will hear Him speak about how God has a special place for the Jew in the salvation of the world.

The woman, on the other hand, has probably neither heard this remark, NOR has the theological sophistication to make this connection. She is not an Israelite, and although she uses the Son of David title for Jesus, probably has little or no understanding of the theological subtleties required to process the words in the same way as the disciples. But she has already had some interaction with the disciples, and they have probably told her that they are there to rest, not minister. So SHE will hear the words of Jesus and make the equivalencies of "children-disciples"//puppies-me". She will understand Jesus to be saying that she WILL GET FED, but that He must take care of His disciples FIRST. There is not a 'NO' in Jesus' words at all--just an implicit "WAIT."

This "WAIT vs. NO" scenario is what prompts the woman to persevere. Either the image or the tone of Jesus encourages her to make her quick-witted response.

· The image Jesus has chosen is an image of endearment, not insult. The picture of supper-time, with little kids at the table, and their pet "puppies" (the Greek word for 'dog' here is not the standard, 'outside' dog--which MIGHT BE an insult--, but is the diminutive word, meaning 'household pets, little dogs'... see gooddoggy.html) at their feet, maybe tugging on their robes for food or play. The puppies, dear to the children and probably so too to the master (cf. 2 Sam 12.3f: but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.), were to be fed AFTER the children (notice: not DENIED food--there was no "NO" in Jesus image--only "WAIT"). But the temporal order is clear--Jesus must take care of His disciples FIRST, and if meeting her need involved interrupting their rest and GOING SOMEWHERE, then it was going to have to wait.

· Implicit in Jesus' image, however, is a very obvious 'hint' to the woman as to how next to proceed. His word choices are interesting. He COULD HAVE SAID "it is not fitting to take the children's food and give it to the (outside) dogs", but instead said "it is not fitting to take the children's food and TOSS it to the (inside) pets." The image, using the different Greek form for "inside puppy-pets" rather than that of the "outside dog" (cf. Luke 16.21), makes the "toss/inside puppy-pets" stand out in the saying. If the woman had ever had any inside pet-related experiences, she would have instantly visualized the obvious--the little pets NEVER sit still away from the table--they are always (esp. the puppies) 'hounding' the children, with the often result of a morsel here or there BEFORE their real mealtime. The hint is there; and the quick-witted woman instantly seizes upon it.

· And the woman apparently took no insult, nor was discouraged at all. Instead, realizing the dynamics of the image, she instantly saw the built-in "way out"--she didn't want to interrupt the meal--she only wanted a simultaneous 'bite'. She quickly agrees with Jesus ("You are absolutely right Lord, I do not want to interrupt that...") and develops a latent feature in the image ("...in fact, I want you to do that so abundantly so that some of it 'falls off the table' to me the puppy--that way I can eat my little bite at the same time")! This amazing statement amounts to believing (1) that Jesus can do the two things at once--bless His disciples with rest, while He heals her daughter; and (2) that the miracle she needs is a simple 'crumb-size' work for the Son of David! This is 'action at a distance' (without the physical presence of Jesus), an implicit version of the Centurion's faith in Luke 7:

"Lord, don't trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. 7 That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8 For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, `Go,' and he goes; and that one, `Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, `Do this,' and he does it." 9 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, "I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel."

And, accordingly, earns the same praise and deep response from Jesus.

· The woman, upon getting the 'your request in granted', maintains her great faith, and leaves without needing Jesus to return with her. Her faith has proven strong, but she has also learned something--that there will still be a BIG FEEDING time for the "puppies"--in the future. This notion of the future time for blessing of the gentiles is ALSO present in that image, and this would have been instructional both for her personal faith, and for the theological education of the disciples--they needed to know about the later mission to the gentiles that would occur (cf. John 10.16: 16 I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.).

· Thus the Teaching Master, in a masterful stroke, instructs the woman, heals her daughter, avoids the spotlight, grants rest to his disciples (while teaching them), and creates a masterful example to us all!

Summary: This passage proves to be a masterful teaching session by the Lord. It does not contain the traditionally-assumed insults to the woman, nor the insensitive rejection of her anxious request. Instead, it shows a sensitivity to her urgent need AND the disciples' needs. Through the skillful selection of a warm, household image, Jesus creates a situation that leads the woman to a more informed faith, a more precise hope, and the disciples to a greater appreciation of their role and of their privilege. Jesus has stayed true to His priority at the time (His disciple's needs), but was willing to interrupt that (briefly) to minister to a needy, faith-filled heart and to use that in leading His disciples to the greater rest that comes from greater faith in God. And this situation, recorded in scripture, challenges US to recognize His power and His willingness to meet our needs, although we MAY have to learn something in the process too...:>)

Such a Savior!

glenn miller, 10/22/96

Sunday, May 8, 2011

The Magnitude of His Mercy



This is an interesting video to watch, what I found more amazing then his
story is his attitude, its truly inspiring. The man, Wilburt Smith, who produced this video I had the pleasure to meet when he ran for superintendent of schools here in California a number of years ago.

The video runs about five minutes.

All the best.

Malcom

One of Mother Nature's Wonders

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Happy Easter

Have a blessed and Happy Easter!

Sunday, April 17, 2011

The following excerpt is from the book,"Heaven and Hell", by Emanuel Swedenborg. Here he speaks about the importance of recognizing the divine and it's inflows:

"...[W]e can draw our conclusions about the quality of people whose minds' more inward reaches are closed off toward heaven, as in the case with everyone who has not accepted some inflow from heaven by recognizing something Divine and by a life of faith.

Everyone can judge for himself what he would be like if he were allowed to behave without the fear for the law or for his life--without outward bonds, which are fears of injury to his reputation or loss of prestige and profit and their pleasures.

In spite of all this, their madness is controlled by the Lord to keep it from hurtling beyond the bounds of what is useful; for some use comes even of every such person. Good spirits see in them what evil is and what it is like, and what a person is like if he is not led by the Lord. Another useful function is the gathering of similar people by them, and their separation from good people...bringing them into the evils of their own life and the false elements of evil, and so getting them ready for hell.

...Everything evil brings its own penalty with it. The two are bonded together. So the person who is involved in something evil is also involved in the penalty of the evil. Yet no one there suffers a penalty because of evil things he did in the world, but rather because of evil things he is doing currently.

Still, it comes down to the same thing whether you say he suffers penalties on account of the evil things he did in the world, or that he suffers penalties because of the evil things he is doing in the other life, because everyone returns after death to his own life, and therefore to similar evils. For the person is of the same quality as he was during his physical life".

Friday, April 8, 2011

Giggle giggle... :)


If Moses had Facebook








Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Monday, April 4, 2011

Gummy Bear Attack! :)




Say hello to the world's largest gummy bears, they are massive!

Saturday, April 2, 2011

The Transparent Canoe


The transparent canoe is made from bullet proof class, weighs around 40 lbs (which is a lot less than the regular wooden and aluminum canoes) and allows 100% visibility of what's going on around and underneath you...


Seems like a really neat idea, especially if your kayaking over gorgeous coral reefs...

I'm not going to lie, I kinda want one...a lot :)

Triumph!


Today us girls (Mommy-pooh, Sarah, and myself) went for a bike ride up some extreme hills near our area, we made an attempt at the hill last week and only made it half ways up...but today we made it to the top!
We pedaled ourselves over the numerous inclines and mounting slopes all the way up to that serene spot shown above :)

*WOOT WOOT!*

In a few more weeks we're going to try and tackle an even bigger monster of a hill...the winding and steep vagabond mountain! It's practically vertical!

Wish us luck...gulp!

xoxo
Olivia

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Pretty Cool Trick :)

Friday, March 25, 2011

Lost & Found


Hope you got some giggles out of this, I know I did, LOL :)
Found via Mandy.

~Olivia
Related Posts with Thumbnails