Saturday 24 February 2018

Reading, Thinking, Domesticity #3

When I started this Reading, Thinking, Domesticity series in January, I mentioned that one of the definitions of the word 'domesticate' means to tame. We're taming and reclaiming the lives of those in our home but more importantly, our own life.
Dr Harold C. Mason said that:

"Man was made to dwell in a garden but through sin he has been forced to dwell in a field which he has wrested from his enemies by sweat and tears, and which he preserves only at the price of constant watchfulness and endless toil. Let him but relax his efforts for a few years and the wilderness will claim his field again."

A.W. Tozer echoed this observation in his own words:

"The bias of nature is toward the wilderness, never toward the fruitful field," and he defined temptation as "the effort of the wilderness to encroach upon our newly-cleared field."
This 'law of the wilderness' operates universally and any part of our lives that are neglected will become overrun and any previous gains lost.

I was thinking of  the words above in the context of 3 John vs 2:
 
“Friends, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” 

To prosper means to make good way and is linked to walking, so going back to the wilderness analogy, prospering requires a steady, consistent effort toward something. To stop walking is to wither.
Have you heard of the spinning plates analogy? It's difficult to keep all our plates spinning and they sometimes/often end up falling as we fail to keep them spinning on their sticks. Sometimes we just have too many plates. This verse in 3 John highlights the internal life, the soul/spirit, as the most important plate to keep spinning but obviously we have a responsibility to look after our physical health also.
This is possibly the last item on the agenda in many a busy home educator’s life but the older you get, the more you realise how important it actually is, and the harder it is to establish good habits!


 

These are some ways I'm addressing these areas; keeping the plates spinning and looking after Spirit, Soul & Body:

‘For the Love of God’ by D.A. Carson is a daily companion that has a systematic 365 day reading plan that takes you through the New Testament and Psalms twice, and the Old Testament once. It’s based on the M’Cheyne Bible reading schedule & includes a daily commentary that focuses on one of the chapters you’ve read that day.

I’ve been enjoying this free Bible app (Bible.is). I don’t use it for every reading but it helps me fit in a lot more Bible as I can listen while I walk or when I’m in the car. It’s been helpful when I’m tired and I lose track of what I’d just read!! or when my mind wanders.
I've always found C.S. Lewis to be very accessible and read many of his books when I was a new  Christian. I somehow missed The Screwtape Letters although my older children have read it. It is fun while being instructive.

'The Rosemary Tree’ by Elizabeth Goudge is such a wonderful story - quality nutrition for the soul. Just lovely! I've nearly finished it and have so many passages underlined ready to be put into my commonplace book.
‘Strength Training for Woman’ by Joan Pagano is an excellent, well-illustrated book and contains exercises that may be done at home or the gym. I discovered that my bone density was low which surprised me as I eat a lot of dairy products so I've been making an effort in the past year to be more consistent with weight bearing exercises. I joined the gym with my husband about two years ago but I was only averaging one session a week. I've upped that to two to three sessions a week and incorporated some of the exercises in this book. My gym-going 21 year old plumber son who is built like a tank told me I now have biceps - not very noticeable, but they're there.

When Screwtape was instructing his nephew in how to destroy a young man’s faith he said:

‘...you must always remember that they are animals and whatever their bodies do affects their souls.’




10 comments:

Sharon Wilfong said...

Nice selection of books. I work out at a gym. I'm trying to circumvent getting those flabby arms that wiggle in the wind when I shake them. I also like the sauna. :)

Anonymous said...

These are very thoughtful and pertinent comments.
Oh dear do you think I am leaving it to late to be thinking that as I approach the end of homeschooling that it will be time to devote to caring for myself a little more!!

Scott Pape, The Barefoot Investor says this, in his finance book, but I am sure it applies to life in general,"Willpower is a limited resource. Baumeister says that people who succeed don’t have more willpower than you, they just develop better daily routines and habits, which after a while become automatic and require less thought, conscious energy and willpower."
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and great quotes.
Margaret

Carol said...

Hi Sharon, the strength training book mentions that the no.1 question the author gets from women is how to work on those flabby triceps!

Carol said...

Margaret, I drop my daughter at squad (swimming) 3 times a week & go to the gym which is a couple of minutes away. I used to use that time for patchwork, reading, blogging & grocery shopping ☹️ I’ve always looked after my health to a certain extent but genetics has forced me into being more intentional. My Mum, a slim, non-smoker, had her first heart attack in her 50’s & my Dad had multiple bypasses; most of my siblings are on anti- hyprtensives. I’ve had to make some concessions in other areas to fit this in & just when I thought I’d have more time because I’m only homeschooling one, I find I’m scratching around for time.

Carol said...

BTW - I bought The Barefoot Investor for my husband’s birthday in a couple of weeks.

Aflyonmyhomeschoolwall said...

C.S Lewis is a favorite around here. I so enjoyed reading The Screwtape Letters with my teens a couple of years ago.

It is good, isn't it, to fill our minds with food that also feeds our spirits. These books look like they do this very thing.

Carol said...

Yes, it certainly is good, Anne.

Jeannette said...

Can I even remember what homeschooling and a pastime profession and etc required of me? Yes, take good care of yourself in the midst of it all.

Carol said...

Easy to forget when you’re in the thick of it!

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