I want to protect. They don't want protection. I want them to love life and see good days. They embrace a world that calls good evil and evil good. They follow a culture that idolizes the temporal and ignores life.
Jesus I am resting, resting
In the Joy of what Thou art;
I am finding out the greatness
Of Thy loving heart.

Confrontation is needed. Do I have to reveal my sources? Do I have to listen to their excuses and rationalizations and justifications and denials?
Thou hast bid me gaze upon Thee,
And Thy beauty fills my soul,
For by Thy transforming power
Thou hast made me whole.

My source's heart is now unburdened. The burden has transferred to my heart.
O how great Thy loving kindness.
Vaster, broader than the sea!
O how marvelous Thy goodness,
Lavished all on me!

Today is not the right day to confront. I don't have my other half for support. What do I do with the upcoming requests for more world-engagement?
Yes, I rest in Thee, Beloved,
Know Thy certainty of promise,
Know what wealth of grace is Thine,
And have made it mine.

The anger of betrayal wells up. It is not a righteous anger. How do I interact with the weeds where I planted flowers and prevent my unrighteousness from fertilizing the weeds?
Simply trusting Thee, Lord Jesus,
I behold Thee as Thou art,
And Thy love, so pure, so changeless,
Satisfies my heart;

I have an inkling of my own depraved heart. I recognize my need for a non-stop shower of grace. My weeds think of themselves as flowers and profess an infatuation with desert conditions.
Satisfies its deepest longings,
Meets supplies its every need,
Compasseth me round with blessings;
Thine is love indeed!

I wait, with no patience. I wait for the common grace that has them doting on puppies while they fill their ears and heads with violence to be saving grace.
Ever lift Thy face upon me,
As I work and wait for Thee;
Resting 'neath Thy smile, Lord Jesus,
Earth's dark shadows flee.

One of my sin-riddled progeny labors to repair a computer with a corrupted registry. The parallel is obvious to me. Yet the work is done in oblivion. Only One can completely reformat a system; a mindset; a lifestyle; a heart.
Brightness of my Father's glory,
Sunshine of my Father's face,
Keep me ever trusting, resting;
Fill me with Thy grace.

Jesus I am resting, resting.

Two sleep walk incidents last night: I heard noises downstairs and saw the kitchen light on around 1:30. I went downstairs and John was standing in the middle of the kitchen, with his head bent and arms hanging at his sides. John, John! Startle. Go to bed! Huh? Shuffle, shuffle, and off he went.

At 3 I was awakened by an odd clump, clumping sound down the stairs. I stirred from my sleep and heard all kinds of pots and dishes banging around in the kitchen. I went to investigate and Megan was downstairs doing the dishes, of all things! In my sleep befuddled mind, I stopped her. (Meaning, I shouldn’t have interrupted until they were all done!) Megan, what are you doing? I forgot to do the dishes last night. Megan, go to bed. Oh, okay. And off she clumped in her one slipper (the cause of the clumping). I heard a dog bark outside, called Luna in and headed for bed. I went to put Luna in Megan’s bed and tripped over Megan; she was curled up on the floor of her room. Again, Megan, get up and go to bed. She stood up, walked 3 steps and fell like a board across her bed. She had no memory of any of this in the morning.

I think I need a nap.

"Do not be anxious about anything. . ." Okay. How about wonder with little gnarly things in my stomach thrown in for good measure?

The pregnant dog ate my daughter's Valentine's Day Dove Chocolate rose. Not enough to kill her, just make her sick. On the carpet. On the sofa, seeping between the cushions, dripping onto the floor. But what about the puppies? Gnarl, gnarl.

My 14 y/o SOT (Son of Thunder) has figured out how to get around the cyber blocking. Today it's only unapproved TV shows, what about when that gets old? Should I pull him from cyber school so that he will not have continual computer access? Gnarl. Can they make the cyber block stronger? Gnarl.

The same son flew through a final exam (presumably so he could get to the TV show) and got a 61% Those submit buttons are so unforgiving. Gnarl.

Eldest son is signed up for an online Physics course. He works all day, comes home, doesn't understand the problems so plays computer games. Gnarl.

Eldest daughter posted her graduation party on Facebook. Potato salad recipe times 6. Pick up another 4 packages of hotdogs. Up to 160 cans of Coke, Mt. Dew, etc. How many buns do I buy for the BBQ and dogs? Are 8 bags of cheese curls enough? Will we be eating potato salad for the next week? Gnaaaarrrrlll.

We had all six kids at the dentist three weeks ago. The insurance (new) came back and informed us that our dentist is not a preferred provider. $$$Gnarl$$$$.

". . but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. " Phil. 4:6-7

TITLE - Why John McCain should be president

THESIS - I believe John McCain would be the best choice for president in 2008 because he is experienced, ready to lead and a true American hero.

In the up-coming 2008 election, two men are running for the right to lead the country. They are: Barack Obama (if he is elected he will become the first black person to be voted into presidency), and John McCain. I believe John McCain would be the best choice for president in 2008 because he is experienced, ready to lead and a true American hero.

I believe John McCain should be president because he has had extensive leadership experience. McCain has been a U.S. Senator from Arizona since 1987. As a senator, McCain is the ranking member (most senior member) of both the Senate Committee on Armed Services as well as the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, and the former chairman of the Committee on Indian Affairs. As a Senator, John McCain has been responsible for many laws, including the famous McCain-Feingold. This law is about campaigning and it is the law which makes politicians say, “I’m name of candidate, and I approve this message” at the end of commercial ads. Previous to his work as a Senator, McCain was a U.S. Representative for Arizona from 1983-87. John McCain has already been Republican primary candidate for President in 2000; he was National Security Adviser to the Dole/Kemp Presidential Campaign in 1996. Barack Obama has had SOME experience, but not as much as McCain. Obama was an attorney, an Illinois State Senator for eight years, and a U.S. Senator from Illinois since 2005 but John McCain has had far more leadership experience than Barack Obama.

Based on his leadership experience in paragraph one, John McCain is ready to lead now – he knows what to do when the country is in crisis, like it is now. With the DOW and other major stock markets plummeting, we need someone to do something about it. America needs somebody that already has experience and knows what to do from day one of his presidential term. Any mistakes from being inexperienced could be crucial. It could cause the end of the war in Iraq (which is what some people want), with us on the losing side. That is why we need John McCain for president. He believes that winning the war in Iraq is crucial to keeping America safe from any further attacks similar to 911. He also states that we should increase security along America’s borders to keep illegal immigrants from bringing in illegal drugs and weapons. Having Obama as president could be critical. Obama believes that we should end the war in Iraq for America’s safety; Obama also believes that we should allow immigrants to come as they please, that would allow terrorists to come into America and devastate many more American citizens.

Americans admire presidential heroes like George Washington and Teddy Roosevelt and John McCain is another true American hero. He was a fighter pilot during the Vietnam War. He flew combat missions over land. He was on one mission when he had to bail out after a SAM (Surface to Air Missile) blew the right wing off his plane. He landed in a lake, right in the corner of Hanoi, one they called the Western Lake, with his right leg broken near the knee, his right arm broken in three different places, and his left arm. He was taken prisoner by southern Vietnamese, held hostage for over three years, given hardly any medical treatment until he gave government secrets, beaten daily, tortured by having his thumb nails bent back and the skin underneath burnt, and forced into saying false things about his country and its leaders until the end of the war. He has military experience and knows what to do with the war in Iraq. Obama has had no fighting experience at all and would need training on what to do about the war in Iraq.

Of course, not everyone wants John McCain as president. One of the reasons for not wanting him is because of his age. He’s 72 years old and he would be the oldest president if elected. Well being old has given him the advantage of learning more. He’s had more time to learn than Obama and this is another way of saying McCain is more experienced. Another reason people don’t want John McCain as president is they say that voting for him is like giving George Bush a third term. This means that he and Bush are similar in the way they would lead the country. But McCain is known as an independent maverick. He and Bush are both Republicans but they were fierce rivals in the 2000 primary and nobody thought they were the same then. Finally, the main reason for supporting Obama is CHANGE. But no matter who is elected, there will be change, no matter what because we are electing a new president.

In conclusion I believe John McCain should be president of the United States of America. I believe John McCain would be the best choice for president in 2008 because he is experienced, ready to lead and a true American hero.