1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
  
5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. 7 Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.” 12 So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “Whatever could this mean?” 

A Hymn for Pentecost Sunday

Holy Ghost, Dispel Our Sadness 

Holy Ghost, dispel our sadness,
Pierce the clouds of sinful night;
Come, thou source of sweetest gladness,
Breathe thy life, and spread thy light.
Loving Spirit, God of peace,
Great distributor of grace,
Rest upon this congregation;
Hear, O hear our supplication.

From that height which knows no measure,
As a gracious show'r descend;
Bringing down the richest treasure
Man can wish, or God can send.
O thou Glory, shining down
From the Father and the Son,
Grant us thine illumination;
Rest upon this congregation.

Come, thou best of all donations
God can give, or we implore;
Having thy sweet consolations
We need wish for nothing more.
Come with unction and with pow'r,
On our souls thy graces show'r;
Author of the new creation,
Make our hearts thy habitation.

Trinity Hymnal #246 

The feral grill has finally been replaced, but not retired.  Eldest son will be taking it home with him.  It looks a little wild, but it's still kickin'.  

God is Sovereign.  He reigns Supreme in fact as well as in right.  This universe to Him is not a surprise, a defeat, a failure, but a development of His eternal purpose.  That purpose is Predestination.  That development is Providence.  The one is the all-wise predetermined plan in the mind of God; the other is the all-powerful execution of that plan in the administration of the universe.

Edgar Watson Smith

The Creed of Presbyterians 

As I stepped outside in my robe and slippers this morning, sleepily accompanying Eve on her early morning potty break, I glanced at the sky, wondering what the day would bring.

A balloon!  I love discovering balloons, especially when they are silently floating right above me!  Sneaky and spectacular against the blue sky, always a surprise.

Nobody can be uncheered with a balloon.

Winnie the Pooh 

And because I saw this at Lisa's and Kim's

And because I have no original ideas today:

The ONE WORD meme:

1. Your cell phone? ...... unused
2. Your significant other?..... husband
3. Your hair? ....... shorter
4. Your mother? .... working
5. Your father?....... deceased
6. Your favorite thing?....... depends
7. Your dream last night?...... unforgettable
8. Your favorite drink? ......Yalumba
9. Your dream/goal?........ multiple
10. The room you’re in... .... office
11. Your talent ?........ calligraphy
12. Your fear?.......... audience
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years?..... home
14. Where were you last night?..... home
15. What you’re not?........ ambitious
16. Muffins?............bran
17. One of your wish list items?...... Kindle
18. Where you grew up?........ everywhere*
19. The last thing you did?..... treadmill
20. What are you wearing?...... AVIAs
21. Your TV?............ cable
22. Your pet(s)?........... hilarious
23. Your computer? ...... old
24. Your life?........ marvelous
25. Your mood?....... expectant
26. Missing home?......yes
27. Your car?........old
28. Something you’re not wearing?.. . . earrings
29. Favorite Store?........ Blicks
30. Your summer?......... short
31. Hate someone?.........no
32. Your favorite color?....... green
33. Last time you laughed....... today
34. Last time you cried?....... yesterday
35. Who will re-post this?.....YOU!

*stolen from Kim.  Great answer. 

I think we all know by now that not all fats are created equal.  There are fats and then there are, well, fats. The good fats are monounsaturated fats (or MUFAs).  MUFAs are found in plant foods such as olives, avocados, nuts, oils such as olive oil and safflower oil, and chocolate.*

One serving of a MUFA rich food with each meal can actually help you lose weight and get healthier!  Really!  In order for MUFAs to work their magic, though, you must pay attention to serving size:

One serving equals:

oil:  1 T

avocado: 1/4 c.

olives:  10 large

nuts: 2 tablespoons

chocolate: 1/4 cup (must be dark or semi-sweet--no cheating!*) 

Here's a recipe I've come up with that is tasty and will help you get your MUFAs.  Serving size: 1/3 cup.

 

Creamy Avocado Salad

1/2 ripe avocado, diced

1/2 small tomato, diced

10 black olives, sliced

lots of chopped chives

1 tablespoon bleu cheese crumbles

1 tablespoon ranch dressing.

Toss together and serve as a MUFA-rich side dish. 

Makes about three servings 

May 8, 2007

 

same hosta 

May 8, 2008

moiety \MOY-uh-tee\, noun:
1. One of two equal parts; a half.
2. An indefinite part; a small portion or share.

A new word to me.

I like the second definition better.  Is that allowed? 

Picnicking with the Past

We dream;
our blanket spread
on the wake of sea dreams;
gritty sand in our mouths.

More In 15 Words or Less poems at laurasalas.

A week from today, Ann will be hosting our next Recipe Round-up.  She's chosen an international theme:  Recipes Around The World.

To be included in the Recipe Round Up just send her your contribution in the comments at the link above or email it to her by 8am BST Thursday May 15th.

I'm going to play it safe and post mine on the 14th because I don't want to take the time to figure out how 8 am BST compares to CST.  (Oh, and there's a giveaway, too!)

: D 

A week ago, "a very busy couple of house finches had been very busily investigating the two grapevine wreaths that hang on the windows on either side of the front of my house."

They (literally) messed around for a few days, industriously building then destroying then rebuilding nests in both wreaths.   But by Wednesday or Thursday I stopped seeing them.  The only remnants of their work are two piles of debris under the wreaths and a little bit of Easter grass woven into one. 

I was sad because I love watching birds, especially when they are raising a family and I was looking forward to seeing the finches raise their brood from egg to fledgling.

Friday was a rainy, deary day but my spirits rose as I watched a Mama Robin build a new nest on the site of the one I had chronicled on my blog two years ago.   I was comforted.  Even though the finches decided to take up residence elsewhere, we'd have robins again.  All that day, every so often, I would take a few minutes to watch Mama building her nest.  She started with twigs, then moved on to muddy, messy grasses.  She brought her sopping wet bundle to the nest, deposited it in the bottom, then hopped in and tamped it down with her fast birdy feet, keeping her tail erect and out of the way of the mud.  Eventually, she topped it all off with a layer of drier grass, woven into concentric lines.

Then she left and we never saw her for the rest of the weekend.  I looked into the nest yesterday and there were no eggs.  

This morning, I decided to take a photo of the pristine nest, for its construction truly is a thing of beauty.  Lo, and behold!  There she sat, on the nest, as still as a stone, tucked amidst the blooming.

I think she may be the same Mama Robin as before because she did not swoop away from the nest, but tolerated me as I poked my camera into her safe haven, as one who had become used to my periodic invasions of her privacy.

In my morning blog reading, I came across an excellent short post by Iain D. Campbell at Reformation 21, Law and Gospel.

To demonstrate the essential need of the church for both the Law and the Gospel, he included a short exerpt from Ralph Erskine "The Believer's Principles Concerning The Law & the Gospel"

Thus gospel-grace and law-commands
Both bind and loose each other's hands;
They can't agree on any terms,
Yet hug each other in their arms.

I'm somewhat familiar with Ralph Erskine, having stumbled upon several of his sermons online, but I never knew he had written these Gospel Sonnets.  Naturally, I googled:

The Believer's Principles Concerning The Law & the Gospel  by Ralph Erskine (1685-1752)

You'll find three sonnets.  Here is an excerpt from the first one, The Mystery of Law and Gospel

I through the law am dead to it,
To legal works and self-conceit;
Yet, lo! through gospel-grace I live,
And to the law due honour give. 

 My printer is finished.  I'm off to read the rest of the sonnets.

ADDENDUM:  Rebecca has left another link to a goldmine of Erskine sermons and poems --both Ralph and his brother, Ebenezer in the comments.  Two I have read and recommend:

Christ's Treasures Opened by Himself 

and

Heaven's Grand Repository 

My friend, Kate, tagged me for an easy, retrospective meme.  I get to sort through my old posts, (the thought of which made me laugh, after so recently reading what Kim's husband Buggy says about linking to/reposting old posts:  "re-posting old material is the first step to quitting blogging.") and select one representative of each of the following themes: family, friends, me, something I love and anything I like.

FAMILY: I am excitedly waiting to become a Grandmother in June!  We're having a little grandson and I can.not.WAIT to see him and hold him and smell him and kiss him.

FRIENDS: My RL/BFF Dorothy now has a blog!  Have you visited the Field Stone Cottage?

ME:  I'm going to be a Grandma!! (wait a minute; I guess I've used that one already.  Oh, well.)

SOMETHING I LOVE:  Quotes

ANYTHING I LIKE:  Jack Sparrow

Let's see; I'll tag Jill (because I'm sure she'll link to some very cute baby pictures and you really MUST go see her banner) and Pam (because I really miss her) and Staci (because she is a relatively new friend and I wonder why it took me so long to find her blog and I'm sure she'll have very good posts to share that I haven't read yet)

 As always, ladies, play if you have time--no pressure!

He that believeth on Jesus shall never be confounded.  Never was any; neither shall you, if you believe.  It was a great word of faith spoken by a dying man, who had been converted in a singular way, betwixt his condemnation and execution:  his last words were these, spoken in a mighty shout:

"Never man perished with his face toward Christ Jesus."

Traill, quoted in Holiness, by J. C. Ryle 

Stand up, and bless the Lord,
Ye people of his choice;
Stand up, and bless the Lord your God
With heart and soul and voice.

Though high above all praise,
Above all blessing high,
Who would not fear his holy name,
And laud, and magnify?

O for the living flame,
From his own altar brought,
To touch our lips, our minds inspire,
And wing to heav'n our thought!

God is our strength and song,
And his salvation ours;
Then be his love in Christ proclaimed
With all our ransomed pow'rs.

Stand up and bless the Lord;
The Lord your God adore:
Stand up, and bless his glorious Name
Henceforth for evermore.

Trinity Hymnal #14 

I took this one through the storm door, so the quality isn't the best, but I still like this photo.  Can you see the little white dots?  Those are raindrops sparkling in the sunshine. 

 

Genesis 9:12 And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13 I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. 14 It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; 15 and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16 The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” 17 And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”

The Lord is good to all: and His tender mercies are over all His works.--Psalm 145:9

O GOD, our Father, we are about to enter upon a new day. To meet well all duties and responsibilities that come to us; to resist firmly every distraction and temptation that seeks to draw us from our path; to be utterly prepared for any danger or any crisis that may this day befall us; to be found, when the evening is come, pure and holy--this is our desire.

And we would be friendly with all men; strength to the weak, hope to the despondent, joy to the sorrowing, power to the tempted.

We wait, therefore, our Father, for the coming of Thy Spirit upon us ere we venture into all that this day holds for us. In the quiet of this early morning hour, bowed before Thee, our souls wait. Touch us with that hand which has been laid in blessing upon others before us; speak to us with that still, small voice of power; fill us with Thine own righteousness.

Give us of Thyself, that we may this day so live for ourselves and before men that through us Thy Kingdom may in part come, and Thy will more fully be done among men. For Jesus' sake.

Amen.

Rev. Seeley K. Tompkins,
Cincinnati, Ohio

And you thought it was May Day!

I learned about RSS Awareness Day at Blogging Basics 101 and made a mental note to mention it here at Hiraeth.

 Do YOU use an RSS Feed Reader?  If so, which one do you use?  I started out with Bloglines, flirted with Netgator and Yahoo and have finally settled on Google Reader. 

If you don't use one, I highly recommend it!  According to Google Reader, I am currently subscribed to 62 blogs.  I'll admit to skimming from time to time, but without a feed reader, there is NO WAY I could keep up with so many blogs, skimming or no.

One of the things I like best about subscribing to blogs with a feed reader is that I don't lose track of the bloggers who only post every once in a while.  I don't waste any time checking for new material.  It's amazing how quickly you can read multiple pages in a feed reader.  

There are down sides, though.  Sometimes a blog gets a design makeover and I miss it because I don't click through to the blog.  Sometimes reading fast gets in the way of my leaving a comment; I always think I'm going to go back later when I have more time. . .(more time?  What's that?)

Even so, the benefits of reading blogs in a feed reader FAR outweigh the downsides.

So, on this RSS Feed Reader Awareness day, take a few minutes to 1) make sure you provide an RSS feed for your readers, 2) make sure your feed is healthy, and 3) register for a feed reader if you aren't already on the band wagon!