The Philosopher's Scales :: In Honor of the Pearl of the Season, "The Pearl of Great Price"

A monk, when his rites sacerdotal were o'er,/In the depth of his cell with its stone-covered floor,/Resigning to thought his chimercial brain,/Once formed the contrivance we now shall explain;/ By inspiration, dream, deep seated thought we know not; indeed, 'tis no business of ours.

Perhaps it was only by patience and care,/At last, that he brought his invention to bear./In youth 'twas projected, but years stole away,/And ere 'twas complete he was wrinkled and gray;/But success is secure, unless energy fails;/And at length he produced

THE PHILOSOPHER'S SCALES

"What were they?" you ask. You shall presently see;/These scales were not made to weigh sugar and tea./O no; for such properties wondrous had they,/That qualities, feelings, and thoughts they could weigh,/Together with articles small or immense,/From mountains or planets to atoms of sense.

Naught was there so bulky but there it would lay,/And naught so ethereal but there it would stay,/And naught so reluctant but in it must go:/All which some examples more clearly will show.

The first thing he weighed was the head of Voltaire,/Which retained all the wit that had ever been there./As a weight he threw in a torn scrap of leaf,/Containing the prayer of the penitent thief;/Then the skull rose aloft with so sudden a spell/That it bounced like a ball on the roof of the cell.

One time he put in Alexander the Great,/With the garment that Dorcas had made for a weight;/And though clad in armor from sandals to crown,/The hero rose up, and the garment went down.

A long row of almshouses, amply endowed/By a well-esteemed Pharisee, busy and proud,/Next loaded one scale; while the other was pressed/By those mites the poor widow dropped into the chest:/Up flew the endowment, not weighing an ounce,/And down, down the farthing-worth came with a bounce.

By further experiments (no matter how)/He found that ten chariots weighed less than one plough;/A sword with gilt trapping rose up in the scale,/Though balanced by only a ten-penny nail;/A shield and a helmet, a buckler and spear,/Weighed less than a widow's uncrystallized tear.

A lord and a lady went up at full sail,/When a bee chanced to light on the opposite scale;/Ten doctors, ten lawyers, two courtiers, one earl,/Ten counsellor's wigs, full of powder and curl,/All heaped in one balance and swinging from thence,/Weighed less than a few grains of candor and sense;/A first water diamond, with brilliance begirt,/than one good potato just washed from the dirt./Yet not mountains of silver and gold could suffice/One pearl to outweigh, -- 'twas THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE.

Last of all, the whole world was bowled in at the grate,/With the soul of a beggar to serve for a weight,/When the former sprang up with so strong a rebuff/That it made a vast rent and escaped at the roof!/When balanced in air, it ascended on high,/And sailed up aloft, a balloon in the sky;/While the scale with the soul in't so mightily fell/That it jerked the philosopher out of his cell.

by Jane Taylor (1783-1824)
(with a slight liberty taken by me in the intro)

Why Can't We Forgive Ourselves?

*Grace isn't grace if we have to be good enough for it to apply to us.

"Tear Free from the Shroud of Bondage of Unforgiveness"

The Lord has been dealing with me in my own life regarding the subject of forgiveness -- of others, but mainly of myself.

Have you ever found yourself thinking "I just can't forgive myself for thus and such?"

I wonder who hasn't thought that at one time or another? The devil would love to keep us in self-condemnation for the things we have done or failed to do. He knows it paralyzes us and prevents us from making the kind of impact in our lives and the lives of others that has God intended for us.

Many of us have read a while back of the young teenager who accidentally struck his 5 year old sister, with a car, tragically killing her in their driveway. And as tragic as it is for a child to die in that way at such a young age, the greater tragedy is the difficulty this young man will have forgiving himself.

Though few of us have faced something as dramatic as this, many of us have pasts that we cannot let go of... secret things--big things , horrific things, or nagging little regrets that the enemy tricks us into focusing on, making us continually believe we just don't measure up... we all need to overcome these thoughts that are aimed against us to render us ineffective in God's Kingdom

Let's beat these thoughts into the ground -- haven't they beaten us long enough?!

1. Realize that we only deserve forgiveness because of the blood of Jesus. Not because what we did wrong "never happened," or it wasn't that bad or ugly or wasn't sin. Give up rationalizations and excuses.

2. It was that bad, but God is even MORE good! James 2:13 says mercy triumphs over judgement. His mercy toward you TRUMPS your judgement over yourself. Believe that God is bigger than what you did, thought, felt etc. In Luke 22, Peter denied the Lord 3 times, and Jesus forgave him. Later, Peter preached the first sermon after Jesus rose from the dead, and 3,000 people were saved in a day! Peter was able to forgive himself when he knew Jesus accepted him. In the same way, realize that you have been accepted by God, no matter what you have done -- simply by believing on the work of the cross of Jesus Christ.

3. Give up your right to hold against yourself ANYTHING that God Himself does not hold against you. If God can forgive you, you can forgive yourself. His standard is absolute perfection, and He forgives you. Psalm 103:12 says, "As far as east is from west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us."

* It is as though our sins don't exist anymore--they are gone, gone, gone, gone!

4. Stop rehearsing what you did. It's done. It's over. Now accept the blessing that God offers;

Philippians 3:10 says "forgetting what lies behind, and reaching forward."

* Not forgiving ourselves is a subtle way of competing with Christ's atonement. God has already punished jesus for what we did. (see 2 Corinthians 5:17. When we don't accept our own forgiveness we are punishing ourselves (Dont we just always want to "do" something to earn our favor?)

Instead of accepting jesus' sacrafice for my failures. This competes with our Lord, Christ's finest work.

5. Believe that condemnation doesn't come from God. He doesn't condemn you toward repentence. The Holy Spirit will convict of sin so that we may repent and be in fellowship once again with a clean conscience.
Romans 2:4 says it is His lovingkindness that leads us to repentance. Since this guilt and shame and condemnation do not come from God, there can be only one other source -- the devil. James 4:7 says, "Submit to God -- resist the devil -- and he will flee from you."

* Walking in the light means following without compromise anything God shows you to do


6. Give up the SELF-PUNISHMENT -- some people have said to themselves in essence: "I'll make myself feel bad to pay for what has been done." Why should we pay the price that has ALREADY been paid for what we've done wrong? Stop beating yourself up -- no one beats us up better than ourselves. The fact is whatever we have done that we can't seem to forgive ourselves for is already forgiven. By trying to "pay for what we have done," we are insulting the very blood of Jesus that HAS PAID the price in full.

THINK IT AND SAY IT...

I receive mercy today, because of the blood of Jesus. Though I didn't deserve it, God proclaims over me, that I am "not guilty". Where I have failed, God's mercy triumphs over judgement.

I give up my right today to hold ANYTHING against myself -- I deserve to be punished, but Jesus took THAT punishment for me. I forget what lies behind and press on, moving forward in my life with God, even though I feel like I have blown it beyond repair.


*Relinquishing bitterness (even against yourself) is an open invitation for the Holy Spirit to give you His peace, His joy and the knowledge of His will.

I reject this guilt and self-condemnation that the devil is trying to put on me. God is the God of 2nd chances. I will no longer try to make myself feel bad to pay for what has been done. The price for what I did or failed at has been paid in full by God! In Jesus' Name!


* And finally, a prayer for when the devil tries to make you to go back on your resolve:
Father, I ask you to help me during these times of prayer, recommitting the devil's thoughts to you. I thank You that the weapons of my warfare are not carnal, human or fleshly but are mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds, imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of Christ and bring every thought unto the obedience of Him and His finished work and my identification with Him.


Pray diligently, Keep moving forward! and keep looking up!


God's Blessings to ya'll





Majority written by Pastor Gregory Dickow,
along with Pastor RT Randall


& some editing & editions from me :)

Katy kicks back

It's frigid outside, but cozy, warm in. Katy enjoys this weather, as do we... We take advantage of the intimacy that the early evenings and the home centered days with heavy draperies, warmth and the aromas of stick-to-your-rib meals for my dear hubby , as we help ready him for work in the late afternoons :) Lots to do this winter... but plenty of (in time) to get it done! Thank you Lord for small blessings as well as the big ones :)

A CALL TO ACTION

Protest the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008!
Share
shared by Pamela Vasquez
Thu 12:18pm

(My daughter posted this after I sent it to her and did such a good job expressing herself, I asked if I could copy and paste it.)
I would only add that in addition to Etsy and people who sell there, this will kill church bazaars, fundraisers, craft shows, and other home businesses.
At this moment, there is actually debate over whether one is able to make something to give to a child without having it tested. That seems rather outrageous and unbelievable, but so it the law in general, so why not?
This is not a rumor - some of the links go to the actual act on the Consumer Product Safety Commission website.) If you're like me and love sites such as Etsy and the like, you can pretty much kiss them goodbye after January. I love Etsy because pretty much every product on there is hand made, one of a kind, no two the same, or they are very old and vintage.
Either way, if it is for children under 12, it'll be illegal to sell after January. Maybe they have good intentions, but it is NOT their right to kill small business like this.
These artists and DIY folks are not going to be able to pay to have everything tested, especially since EVERYTHING THEY MAKE IS UNIQUE. They would have to have EVERY item they sold tested. It's just not going to happen.
Things sold on eBay and Garage sales will be effected, too. It doesn't really effect the majority of us reading this now, because it's only for products for children under 12. But it does effect a lot of other people and it's just not right.Please take the time to read this and then take some sort of action against it.

Thanks,Christina

If you haven't read about the new Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of2008 (HR 4040), you need to. This will affect EVERY item you buy for your children or grandchildren. Clothing, bedding, feeding utensils, wipes,cloth diapers, disposables, toys and on and on.
Starting in Feb 2009, every item made for a child under the age of 12 must be tested AFTER MANUFACTURE (not testing the components) to ensure it complies with the flammability, lead and phthalate limits set in this law.
The law specifies that testing must be done at the SKU level (which means atthe SIZE level--so if you have a rack of blue shirts at Walmart, EACH size of that shirt must have 1 unit tested to ensure it complies).
And when the lot changes (new bolt of fabric, new batch of snaps, new batch of zippers,etc) it must go through testing AGAIN.
The tests are estimated to costbetween $180-$4000 EACH, and must be done at CPSC approved labs. Any inventory on the shelf on Feb 9 that does not have a compliance certificate stating it meets the requirements will be considered "banned hazardous material" on Feb 10, and will not be able to be legally sold in this country.
Obviously, this will be the END of the hand-crafted, one of a kind industry in our country, as there is no way someone with a small cottage business can afford the testing on small batches like they make.
This will also affect Goodwill, thrift and resale shops, ebaying your child's used items and even garage sales. The grandma knitting baby blankets for the church bazaar will be a felon.
Fines are $100,000 per violation, with felony jail time a real possibility.EVERYTHING you buy will be more expensive, and your options will be severely restricted.

I just read (may be hearsay, it wasn't from Fuzzi Bunz) that they will be reducing their selection to one color per size to comply with the new CPSI Alegislation. (they currently have 15 colors and 6 sizes. That's a cost fortesting for EACH lot, cost range 16,200-360,000.
Fabrite fabrics come on bolts of 50 yards, and you can get about 5-6 large diapers per yard.)
Also, Haba and Selecta (European toy manufacturers who make toys to a more exacting standard than the CPSIA requires) are pulling out of the US marketas of the end of 2008 due to the cost of the end unit testing requirement.
Their wood toys are made with wood and finished with beeswax. NO possibility of lead issues or phthalates, but doesn't matter, each sku must still be tested.

Thank you Washington for eliminating the option for consumers to choose something other than plastic MIC for our children.
It is really important that everyone contact their reps to protest this bill as written. Some links if you feel like learning more: http://nationalbankruptcyday.com/

(scroll down to the video testimony linksof Rick Woldberg and watch--it is really good).
http://www.thesmartmama.com/bg/index.phpoption=com_content&task=view&id=195&Itemid=23http://www.cpsc.gov/about/cpsia/faq/faq.html#102pppa (the cpsc faq page)

http://www.etsy.com/storque/craftivism/handmade-childrens-items-unintended-consequences-consumer-pr-3056/
(Etsyadmin's letter about this)

If you are stymied about what to say, or short on time, use this: http://capwiz.com/americanapparel/issues/alert/?alertid=12274476
(there issome required text and then an editable portion for you to customize it, aswell as drop down boxes at the bottom to fill in who it needs to go to andfind the right addresses for you).

It is tempting to just stick our heads in the sand and think, "it can't REALLY be that bad, can it?" But it is. I've been reading a LOT about this in the past week. I've read opinions from lawyers, and others involved in the children's markets both big and small. It is HUGE. And Feb 10 is not being called National Bankruptcy day for nothing. Expect the next industry group to be in front of congress asking for a bailout to be the big boxretailers. But there will be no bailout for the thousands of home-crafters. Take the few minutes to write or call your reps, and spread the info on any other groups you are on to have them do the same. (You can copy this post if you like). The grassroots effort IS beginning to spread and build steam.We need to FLOOD Washington with protests about this legislation as it is currently written.The intent is good--to protect our children from harmful substances in toys. The implementation is HORRIBLE. The fact is, the toys that werere called in 2007 did not meet the laws on the books at THAT time. More legislation is never the solution to keep the bad guys from breaking the law. It only impacts the honest. Lawbreakers will still try to get around it.Thank you for reading, and taking action.

Thank Your Dear Lord

Lord, I thank You for my family, my dear husband and my sweet daughter. I thank You for my daughter & son back in PA and for the grandsweeties that You have blessed me with as well... Lord, keep them all in Your loving arms and put a strong hedge of protection around about them... Draw them nigh unto you, keep their hearts soft and help us all be sensitive to our sin. We need you Lord, Thank You for your graciousness... and keep loving and drawing us to yourself!

Another blessing... another deer visiting our yard shortly before the end of summer... I just love these creatures...

Open Arms

Reaching out to find surrender, Open arms can find a peace.

Faith becomes a holy blessing, hidden just beyond release.

In the depths of never knowing, trust can find a place to grow.

Seeds of deeper understanding, blossom into letting go.

Open arms can hold acceptance, letting us begin to see.

faith reveals the arms of Heaven, holding our security.

--jean pomeroy

Cozy Pages

Do YOU have cozy pages?
:)

I have always loved studying and reading from my own Bible. My Bible was given to me by my father, back in 1987, the year of my 2nd birthday... The day I was born into God's family.

For the past 20 some years... I have marked faithfully what The Lord has faithfully shown me or spoken to my heart through His word in that same Bible. So, suffice it to say, It is well marked, well loved and well marked ;)

I reading the other day and my daughter comented on my marked up book... I proclaimed that they were my "cozy pages!" coz they, to me are a comfort.. (cozy) and are a tangible reminder in a ambiguous "feeling oriented world" ... of God's faithfulness to me through the years. (well, At least My world is feelings oriented :) ~maybe a bit too much, but the Lord keeps me balanced in various and sundry ways, one being, sending me a pragmatic husband to walk by my side through my feely, feelings oriented life LOL! helping me keep my feet on the ground!
Never failing Is the Love and the reminders He sends my way when I open my Bible to seek Him and His truths...

~~Thank - You Lord for my many cozy pages!