Bev and I are busy with our VBS at church this week, and I’m sure many of you know how that can tie up things in our lives. So projects have been on hold for a bit. God willing, we’ll be back soon to let you know what’s going on here.

Our theme for VBS this year has been Daniel. The children have been learning about many facets of the life of this great man of God. Indeed he’s a Christian hero that each child should learn about! I’ve been enjoying going over those familiar stories once again–Daniel refusing to eat the king’s food, the fiery furnace, the humbling of King Neb., the handwriting on the wall, and of course, tomorrow’s feature: the lion’s den. We even have a lion’s den set up in our church! Exciting stories, and the best thing about them is that young folks learn about the greatness of God through Daniel. Hope he’s a special hero in your household.

Dare to be a Daniel,
Dare to stand alone!
Dare to have a purpose firm!
Dare to make it known.

Don’t you pray that more and more of our youth would dare to be a Daniel?

For His Glory,
Maxine

Here is a wonderful opportunity for teaching about a modern day Christian hero who is making history right now.

If you have time, this post at the Persecution blog is worth your reflection. It should make all of us think about our Christianity, especially those of us who are in the western Church. The Lord knows we need help.

For His Glory,

Maxine, a/k/a Nanna

As always, I hope they will be useful to you as a means of encouraging your kids towards the greatness that really does matter for eternity.

I just told you about the one change, however, which is that for the most part any new articles in this category will be appearing in the newsletter instead of this blog.

Maxine, a/k/a Nanna

I’ll still keep the category here, since every now and then, there may still be something worthwhile to post here on the subject. In the meantime, you may want to go back and read a few to share with your kids. If you’re not familiar with what we’ve been doing here with that, you might want to go read the page “About Christian Heroes” (link on the right). God bless.

Maxine, a/k/a Nanna

Did you know that this tall, stately man had a terrific sense of humor? Once I was looking for joke books for children for my business newsletter, and ran into a delightful one entitled The Abraham Lincoln Joke Book by W.L. Cummings, which contained a bunch of interesting stories about him and by him. He was really funny!! You might want to get this book for your children; it’s in the juvenile section of our library.

I’d like to post here a few of the quotes by this great man (from several sources); I could include so many more if it wouldn’t make this too long. There are some of you who will especially notice several of the ones I’ve included; you’ll know which I mean. Heavy duty.

“Our defense is in the preservation of the spirit which prizes liberty as a heritage of all men, in all lands, everywhere. Destroy this spirit and you have planted the seeds of despotism around your own doors.”

“America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.”

“I remember my mother’s prayers and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all my life.” [Remember this one, moms.]

“If you once forfeit the confidence of your fellow citizens, you can never regain their respect and esteem. You may fool all of the people some of the time; you can even fool some of the people all the time; but you can’t fool all of the people all of the time.”

“In great contests each party claims to act in accordance with the will of God. Both may be, and one must be wrong.”

” Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally.”

” I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true. I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live by the light that I have. I must stand with anybody that stands right, and stand with him while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong.”

“Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side, for God is always right.”

“Republicans are for both the man and the dollar, but in case of conflict the man before the dollar.”

“We the people are the rightful masters of both Congress and the courts, not to overthrow the Constitution but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution.”

“Don’t interfere with anything in the Constitution. That must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties.”

This one is a favorite of mine, especially in the time we find ourselves now. I’ve posted it before and hope you don’t mind if I post it again:

“Property is the fruit of labor…property is desirable…is a positive good in the world. That some should be rich shows that others may become rich, and hence is just encouragement to industry and enterprise. Let not him who is houseless pull down the house of another; but let him labor diligently and build one for himself, thus by example assuring that his own shall be safe from violence when built.”

In the past, we’ve used one of these quotes as one of our Speakables. Hopefully, in the future, we’ll use more. Mr. Lincoln was always a favorite American for me. I consider it a blessing that our children can learn about him in their history books. I hope that he has been or will be a part of your learning in your school, whether it be at home or elsewhere. In my estimation he was not only an American hero, but a Christian hero as well.

Talk to you soon,

Maxine, a/k/a Nanna

Bless the LORD, O my soul. This psalm begins and ends like the Hundred and Third, and it could not do better: when the model is perfect it deserves to exist in duplicate. True praise begins at home. It is idle to stir up others to praise if we are ungratefully silent ourselves. We should call upon our inmost hearts to awake and bestir themselves, for we are apt to be sluggish, and if we are so when called upon to bless God, we shall have great cause to be ashamed. When we magnify the Lord, let us do it heartily: our best is far beneath his worthiness, let us not dishonour him by rendering to him half hearted worship. O LORD my God, thou art very great. This ascription has in it a remarkable blending of the boldness of faith, and the awe of holy fear: for the psalmist calls the infinite Jehovah “my God, “and at the same time, prostrate in amazement at the divine greatness, he cries out in utter astonishment, “Thou art very great.” God was great on Sinai, yet the opening words of his law were, “I am the Lord thy God; ” his greatness is no reason why faith should not put in her claim, and call him all her own. The declaration of Jehovah’s greatness here given would have been very much in place at the end of the psalm, for it is a natural inference and deduction from a survey of the universe: its position at the very commencement of the poem is an indication that the whole psalm was well considered and digested in the mind before it was actually put into words; only on this supposition can we account for the emotion preceding the contemplation. Observe also, that the wonder expressed does not refer to the creation and its greatness, but to Jehovah himself. It is not “the universe is very great!” but “THOU art very great.” Many stay at the creature, and so become idolatrous in spirit; to pass onward to the Creator himself is true wisdom. ~ Charles H. Spurgeon

In a gem of a book, The One Year Christian History, the entry of the day is about Charles H. Spurgeon, beloved by us all. Do you know the story of his conversion? He was caught in a snowstorm and for shelter ducked into a Methodist chapel. He heard a simple sermon that day, one in which he was exhorted to “look” to Jesus and be saved. He did and he was on the day. The date was January 6, 1850 and his life was forever changed. Wouldn’t you say that we’ve all benefited from that day?

I hope you read the priceless writings of Mr. Spurgeon in your home. He’s a Christian hero, you know.

Maxine, a/k/a Nanna

I doubt if it’s a great sin to have our children clap and cheer at such occasions or at sports events, but I wonder how often we put the true heroes before them, the ones who have never appeared before the bright and colorful lights or before huge stadium crowds. I’m thinking of brave and courageous people who may have appeared before a crowd in an arena for the purpose of being eaten by lions or who have been locked up in a dungeon for years some place. Some of them are unknown and unsung, but I want my children and grandchildren to know about them and to know what they stood for. So I guess I’m saying make sure your kids are fully aware of them as much as the ones who entertain them.

Please don’t think I’m being judgmental. We all enjoy a good ball game, myself included, and we sometimes enjoy the good singing of someone whom God has gifted with a good voice. But please endeavor to have your children know the name of someone like William Whiting Borden and what he did with his young life and fortune as much as they know the names of David Cook and David Archiletta.

However, the persecution of Christians continues, the battle goes on. This occurs on many fronts and in many ways. Keep the prayers going for the ongoing work of the Church.

Our homeschooling year has begun and until I settle in, the work of SG suffers a bit. There has been somewhat of a lull in book sales, which is the doing of God, I’m sure. I need the time.

New publications are coming, but slowly. We’ll do our best to keep things moving towards that end.

The Christian Heroes posts will not be made weekly anymore, only as time permits. I have been quite captivated by the fact that so many heroes are still being made in our day and age. Some have been slain, but new recruits are emerging. Praise the Lord.

We don’t know how God will finally deal with this matter, but many people are pleading with North Korea for the release of this man. For particulars on the matter read the posts for this past week at the Persecution Blog. You may even feel inclined to send a letter to Mr. Son via the Prisoner Alert website. I know we have so little spare time to spend on things like this; may God help us to take the time.

From my perspective, Mr. Son is a Christian hero.

Maxine, a/k/a Nanna

I’ve said this over and over, but THIS is the kind of hero you want to have your sons and daughters look to. Read the full story at Glimpses for Kids at CHI. A wonderful Sunday afternoon meditation, I would say.

Maxine (a/k/a Nanna)