just the fringes

Read about what's behind this video here.  It looks the best if you make it full-screen!

"The departed spirits tremble

Under the waters and their

   inhabitants.

"Naked is Sheol before Him,

And Abaddon has no covering.

"He stretches out the north over

   empty space

And hangs the earth on nothing.

"He wraps up the waters in His

   clouds,

And the cloud does not burst

   under them.

"He obscures the face of the full

   moon

And spreads His cloud over it.

"He has inscribed a circle on the

   surface of the waters

At the boundary of light and

   darkness.

"The pillars of heaven tremble

And are amazed at His rebuke.

"He quieted the sea with His

   power,

And by His understanding He

   shattered Rahab.

"By His breath the heavens are

   cleared;

His hand has pierced the fleeing

   serpent.

"Behold, these are the fringes of His

   ways;

And how faint a word we hear of

   Him!

But His mighty thunder, who can

   understand?"

Job 26:5-14

Give Them Parking Space But Let Them Starve to Death

Another moral threshold was crossed when a tiny baby boy, at the specific request of his parents and with the sanction of the Supreme Court of Indiana, was starved to death in a hospital. “Infant Doe” (he was not allowed the usual recognition of being human by being named), born with Down’s syndrome and a malfunctioning esophagus (the latter could have been corrected with surgery), died, as the Washington Post (April 18) stated, “not because he couldn’t sustain life without a million dollars worth of medical machinery, but because no one fed him.” For six days the nurses in that Bloomington hospital went about their usual routines of bathing and changing and feeding all the newborns except one. They bathed and changed Baby Doe but they never gave him a bottle. Over his crib was a notice, DO NOT FEED. Several couples came forward, begging to be allowed to adopt him. They were turned down.

What went on in that little box during those six terrible days and nights? We turn our imagination away. It’s unthinkable. But if I were to think about it, and put down on paper what my mind saw, I would be accused of playing on people’s feelings, and of making infanticide (yes, infanticide—call it what it is) an “emotional issue.” Let me suppose at least that the baby cried—quite loudly (at first). One report says that he was placed in a room alone, lest his crying disturb others (others, perhaps, who were capable of helping him).

Joseph Sobran, in his column in the Los Angeles Times Syndicate, suggested that “opposition to infanticide will soon be deplored as the dogma of a few religious sects who want to impose their views on everyone else.” The language sounds sickeningly familiar.

There has been a conspicuous silence from those who usually raise shrill protest when other human rights are violated—the rights of smokers, homosexuals, and criminals are often as loudly insisted upon as those of children, women, and the handicapped.

The handicapped? What on earth is happening when a society is so careful to provide premium parking spaces to make things easier for them, but sees no smallest inconsistency when one of them who happens to be too young to scream, “For God’s sake, feed me!” is quietly murdered? It is in the name of humanity, humaneness, compassion, and freedom that these things occur, but never is it acknowledged that the real reasons are comfort and convenience, that is, simple selfishness. “Abortion not only prefers comfort, convenience, or advantage of the pregnant woman to the very life of her unborn child, a fundamentally good thing, but seeks to deny that the life ever existed. In this sense it is a radical denial not only of the worth of a specific life but of the essential goodness of life itself and the Providential ordering of its procreation” (R. V. Young, “Taking Choice Seriously,” The Human Life Review, Vol. VIII, no. 3.)

But weren’t we talking about infanticide and haven’t we now switched to abortion? The premises on which abortion is justified are fundamentally the same on which infanticide is seen as civilized and acceptable. What Hitler used to call eugenics is now called “quality of life,” never mind whether the life in question happens to be the mother’s or the child’s. death, according to three doctors who put the issue out into the open in the New England Journal of Medicine in 1973, is now considered an option in the “treatment” of infants; in other words, a mortuary may now replace the nursery. One cannot help thinking of the antiseptic “shower rooms” of the Third Reich, where the unwanted were “treated” to death. Nor can one forget the words of Jesus, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me” (Matthew 25:40, KJV).

Can any Christian argue that the smallest and most defenseless are, by virtue merely of being too small and too defenseless, not His brethren?

* excerpt taken from "Keep A Quiet Heart" by Elisabeth Elliot, pages 202-204

Sandia Crest

I love autumn and spring.  I prefer the beginnings of seasons rather than the completion; summer and winter are alright, but not my favorite.  So I was thrilled when my family went up to the mountains yesterday to see the trees turning, and then we went to the Crest.  I haven't been to the Crest in at least eight years, and didn't really remember it, so it was fun!  Then on the way home we saw that our brakes were smoking and crashed into a tree pulled over into the ski area, where we let the car cool off.  Then Rachel and I got a crash course in going down a scary, twisty, steep mountain when your brakes aren't in the best shape.  But, God is good, and we got down safely!  Here's some of the pictures from our day.

A huge bird nest

The ski area

Glory to Thee, My God, This Night

Glory to Thee, my God, this night

For all the blessings of the light;

Keep me, O keep me, King of kings,

Beneath Thy own almighty wings.

Forgive me, Lord, for Thy dear Son,

The ill that I this day have done,

That with the world, myself, and Thee

I, ere I sleep, at peace may be.

Teach me to live, that I may dread

The grave as little as my bed;

Teach me to die, that so I may

Rise glorious at the awful day.

O may my soul on Thee repose,

And with sweet sleep mine eyelids close,

Sleep that may me more vigorous make

To serve my God when I awake.

When in the night I sleepless lie,

My soul with heavenly thoughts supply;

Let no ill dreams disturb my rest,

No powers of darkness me molest.

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow,

Praise Him, all creatures here below,

Praise Him above, ye heavenly host,

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

-- Thomas Ken

home in heaven

This little guy was keeping me company this morning.

Along with these pictures, I wanted to share this poem I found today in a book called Hearts of Fire by The Voice of the Martyrs.

Safely Home

I am home in Heaven, dear ones;
Oh so happy and so bright!
There is perfect joy and beauty
In this everlasting light.

All the pain and grief is over,
Every restless tossing passed;
I am now at peace forever,
Safely home in heaven at last.

Did you wonder I so calmly
Trod the valley of the shade?
Oh! But Jesus’ love illumined
Every dark and fearful glade.

And He came Himself to meet me
In that way so hard to tread;
And with Jesus’ arm to lean on
Could I have one doubt or dread?

Then you must not grieve so sorely,
For I love you dearly still;
Try to look beyond earth’s shadows,
Pray to trust our Father’s Will.

There is work still waiting for you,
So you must not idly stand
Do it now while life remaineth
You shall rest in Jesus’ land.

When that work is all completed,
He will gently call you Home;
Oh, the rapture of that meeting
Oh, the joy to see you come!

-- Edgar Guest

I Will Lift My Eyes

I recently found this song on youtube, and I love it!  One of my favorite bits is at the beginning of the chorus, where it says: "I will lift my eyes to the Maker of the mountains I can't climb."  How great and awesome is our God!

To You I lift up my eyes,

O You who are enthroned in the heavens!

Psalm 123:1

More Than Everything