There Will Be Famine and Earthquakes...

I watched a bit on Fox News this morning about a food crisis in Egypt. People are getting killed and trampled while standing in line to pay a penny for a piece of bread. And then guess what came on next: a commercial for dog food. The dog food was beef stew with large chunks of beef and carrots and peas and a delicious looking sauce all over it. Dog food. I wonder how many of those people would kill for a can of that dog food. It is absolutely heartbreaking.

I often think that because TV is everywhere we worry too much about what is going on in other countries. If we didn't have TV, we wouldn't know there was a huge cyclone in Myanmar, or a deadly earthquake in China and we wouldn't be sending billions of dollars over there. Then maybe we'd be focused more on our own people and the crises going in our own inner cities and elsewhere. I am not unfeeling toward the plight of those people, I just know that here in our own country, people are suffering in the same manner: no food, no home, no one cares. So why are we taxing the people to send all that money over there, when we can't even help our own people? Were we made to take in this much human responsibility? I mean, there is no way I can even begin to make a difference to all these people. How do you deal with it? It's so overwhelming that all I can do is stop thinking about it.

On the other hand, I have just read:

Matthew 24:6-8 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.

And again in Mark 13:6-8 and Luke 21:10-11

So, there is the idea that the entire world would know everyone else's crises. I don't know what to make of these times. I'll tell you this much though, I am thankful for this little home we have, for the food in our pantry and for this land of freedom, as messed up as it is.

It makes me think about adoption more. I just read here that if 14% of Christians would adopt there would be no orphans. How reliable do you think that information is?

Not Your Nature Television

Yesterday we went on a Fabulous Family Adventure. Don't you just love those? We went to the Alafia River State Park and hiked, picnicked and played on their playground, screamed at bugs, bled, threw rocks and sticks and leaves and oohed and aahed at all the wonders of God's great creation.

Having grown up hiking and camping mainly in southwest Colorado and northwest New Mexico the flora and fauna of Florida is so different. I miss the aspen trees and columbines and the smell of pine trees and the rocks you can pick up anywhere and throw in the rivers. It's hard to find rocks in Florida. It's all sand and these teeny little excuses for rocks. Makes gardening easier, but not quite as fun when you're hiking.

One thing that I learned yesterday had something to do with the whole communication issue in regards to Shepherding a Child's Heart. I find myself often being bored or uninterested in what my kids are talking to me about and it's usually because they are retelling me parts of movies they've seen over and over and over again. As I was tucking the kids in last night I stopped and talked to Sarah in depth about her day, asking her what her favorite part was and what her least favorite part was and it was genuinely fun talking to her about our adventures. I am starting to consider the television and it's distractions and divisive qualities as one of the biggest detriments to a good, quality communication relationship with my kids. This is something that God is really convicting me about. I am not convinced that all television time is inherently evil (although I'm willing to discuss the merits of this argument), but I am of the persuasion that our family watches too much T.V.

On a lighter note, someone please tell me what the deal is with this...frog. We thought he was a new frog with his "tadpole" still attached but he's awfully big to be a baby frog, we thought. It's a little creepy.

Bobby Flay

So I have had food network on in the background today. I did this yesterday too...out of character for me, but I am making something for dinner tonight that I saw on a show yesterday. Anyway, Bobby Flay's Boy Meets Grill came on. I have never really liked Bobby. He just seems so cocky to me. I think I never really liked him, but my opinion of him dropped really low after he was on Iron Chef and when he won, he hopped on the counter to cheer and happened to hop on the wooden cutting board when he did. He really offended the Japanese chefs because their boards are sacred to them, in a similar way to the way a chef's knives are sacred to them. Then after he was told why he offended them, not only did he not care, at a later date he did it again on a different show just to rub it in. That was it for me. I cannot watch him anymore without thinking of how rude he was.

Speaking of TV, I am so pumped because it is Thursday and Thursday is Lost day. Have you gotten hooked on Lost like me?