In the last 2 weeks Camden has rolled over twice. From tummy to back.

The pesky bottom teeth still won’t bust through the gums.

He moves his legs constantly.

He wears 6-9m clothes.

Today the thumb finally made it’s way into the mouth.

Camden is my precious pea (and he doesn’t get the double chin from me).

I’m terrible.  Camden doesn’t have a baby book.  I haven’t even written his birth story.  Should I feel bad?

Well, in an effort to document something I’ll blog his milestones starting at 3 1/2 months.

Weight: 16lbs

Length: 26 1/2″

Interests: people

Special qualities: Camden talks more than any child I’ve ever heard of! It’s not just a family thing, he will talk to anyone who will look at him.  It usually surprises strangers but they always leave feeling like they are special!

Learned skills: other than lots of laughing, smiling and cooing he hasn’t yet “learned” anything else.

Nutrition: Nurses great.  He burps like a beast after every feeding. Maybe that should go under special qualities.

Sleep: Camden goes to sleep at about 7:30 every night.  He stays asleep until about 3 or 4, sometimes 5.  I nurse him and put him back in bed.  I don’t sugar coat laying him in bed as I did with Haley and Haven.  I’ve learned with every child that allowing them to put themselves to sleep is a life saver.

Pacifier: We give Camden a pacifier to soothe him in the day and when he goes down for naps.  In the middle of the night I don’t give it to him.  He doesn’t love it but he’ll suck on it for a few minutes.

Eyes: They’re still blue.  I can’t recall when Sterling’s changed from blue to brown.  I know at this age Sterling’s were still blue.  We’ll see.  So far Sterling is the only child to have his eyes change color.

Baby Carrier: Camden doesn’t love the baby carrier but he rests peacefully in it during grocery shopping, which is really all that matters

Car: All of the sudden Camden isn’t a big fan of the car seat.  Which has transferred over to the swing.  He acts like there are thumb tacks poking him.

Church: Camden’s first visit to the nursery was last week.  Eeek!! It was very unplanned but necessary due to another child problem.

This is a cross-post from my husband’s blog Theological Thoughts. This is my favorite post yet of his (I think I say that every time he posts). Discernment is a huge attribute God is training me up on lately. Every where I turn I am realizing that I can’t take anything at face value. What’s the message behind those lyrics I’m jamming to (Bon Jovi is completely protected from deep evaluation), what are the beliefs behind an author’s words, what are the theological beliefs of a pastor I pick up on the radio. I’ll be quiet now and let you read words much deeper than mine…

Recently a new “Gospel-centered Bible curriculum” was published for parents to use with children. The author of this curriculum began speaking at homeschool events to promote his material, including the Great Homeschool Conventions.

And that’s when the big controversy started…

You see, the author is none other than Peter Enns. Dr. Enns was suspended by Westminster Theological Seminary in 2005 for his book released that year, which denied the inerrancy of the Bible. Enns went on to join with Biologos, which teaches evolution and denies a real, historical Adam. Biologos also teaches that the Biblical authors errred in their writings:

If Jesus as a finite human being erred from time to time, there is no reason at all to suppose that Moses, Paul, John wrote Scripture without error. Rather, we are wise to assume that the biblical authors expressed themselves as human beings writing from the perspectives of their own finite, broken horizons. – See article here.

Here’s Enns denying Paul had a correct view of Jesus and Adam.

The biggest problem with Enns denial of Adam is that Paul’s theology in Romans 5:12-21 and 1 Cor. 15:20-28 depends upon on a historical Adam to make sense to the reader. Enns agrees that Paul clearly believed Adam was a real person. He says “There is really little doubt that Paul understood Adam to be a real person, the first created human from whom all humans descended” (article found here.)

To keep from denying the Christology Paul is teaching in the above verses, Enns has to admit Paul was wrong in believing in a real Adam. Which is where you end up when you deny inerrancy. Jesus also clearly believed in a literal Adam and Even (see Matt. 19:4, which is a clear reference to Gen. 1:27). Inerrancy itself may not be heretical, but where it leads certainly can be. Without inerrancy, one begins to create their own theology, which Enns is happy to do:

And whatever way forward is chosen, we must be clear on one thing: we have all left “Paul’s Adam.” We are all “creating Adam,” as it were, in an effort to reconcile Scripture and the modern understanding of human origins. – From Enns article here.

Back to Enns promoting his Bible curriculum to homeschoolers. The irony is that most homeschoolers believe in a real Adam and Eve and a literal six-day creation taught in Genesis. I can imagine Enns left out his views on evolution and Adam when speaking at these conventions earlier this year.

But Ken Ham, from Answers in Genesis (AIG), was also a speaker at the same conference. Answers in Genesis often refutes the false teachings of Biologos and Peter Enns, which he continued to do at the recent North Carlina convention.

This week, Ken Ham was uninvited from the next two Great Homeschool Conventions (GHS), the first of which is held next weekend in Cincinnati, just down the road from AIG’s headquarters and Creation Museum. The reason given was Ham’s public criticism of other speakers at the convention. Ham reportedly said Enns was a “compromiser” during one of his presentations. Or possible GHS is refering to the blog post he made before going to the convention (see here.)

AIG’s statement about the “uninvitation”, can be found here. AIG reports:

“Ken Ham did mention Peter Enns by name in one of his five talks at an earlier South Carolina convention in Greenville organized by Mr. Dean. Ken showed two video clips of Dr. Enns, done in the context of showing how some modern Christian speakers are compromising God’s Word in Genesis. Ken did say that Dr. Enns was also speaking at the conference and had connections to another convention speaker, Susan Wise Bauer. In another talk about a common Christian viewpoint that compromises Genesis, Ken briefly mentioned that one of the speakers at this convention took that view.”

Other speakers from the convention, like Jay Wile (who has written many science texts for Apologia) have joined in the debate over Ham’s “uninvitation”. Dr. Wile sides with Enns in the matter and feels that Enns is within Christian orthodoxy. When I asked Dr. Wile how Enns can reconcile his views with the fact Jesus and Paul clearly affirmed a historical, Wile replied as follows:

I would disagree with you that Jesus and Paul “clearly” affirm a historical Adam. A symbolic Adam takes no meaning from any of the New Testament. This is why many serious theologians do not believe in a historical Adam.

I then mentioned to Wile the problems with reconciling Enns view of Adam with 1 Cor. 15 and Romans 5. Dr. Wile, claiming to believe in the inerrancy of Scripture, stated:

Michael, what Paul believes is irrelevant to the passage. What is important is what God is saying. God is powerful enough to inspire Paul to write the truth, even if Paul believes something that is wrong. If Adam is a symbol, the message of Romans is exactly the same.

This response is illogical. What God is saying is what Paul is writing (assuming doctrine of divine inspiration of Scripture!) What Paul believes is what Paul is writing to the churches. Paul is not speaking prophecy like the OT prophets, who spoke exactly what God told them, and may not have understood the prophecy fully. Paul is writing on the authority of Christ, using Paul’s own mind, with his own background, all of which was providentially brought about by God.

(See Wile’s defense of Enns in the comments on his blog here.)

Being a homeschool parent, this trend of comprising on a Biblical view of creation concerns me. It is subtly making its way into homeschool conventions, textbooks and our children hearts.

It’s interesting this occurred in the same week Rob Bell’s new book on universalism hits shelves. Bell, like Enns, likes to blur the lines and make people question whether we have really interpreted the Bible correctly all these centuries. He questions whether there is even a real place of eternal punishment. Enns denies (and tries to get others to question) whether we can really trust the Bible.

And when certain believers stand up and try to point these false teachings out, they are quickly pounced on by the rest of the flock. After all, what’s wrong with asking the question, “Yea, Hath God Said…?”

I don’t, but that’s what popped in my head when trying to come up with a blog post title which would then inspire some wise words.

I have been in a strange content phase lately.  Well, aside from the incredible need to buy more TOMS which thankfully has dissipated.

I haven’t wanted to go anywhere (including the grocery store), talk to anyone (including my children ) or write any blog posts.

But, I know you have been checking in daily to see if I have any pearls to bestow unto you.

Why yes I do.

Here it goes.  Potty training after the stomach bug is a bad BAD idea. Any sane mother would quickly go back to diapers.  I did, for a day.  Then today I was gung ho (not sure on that spelling) about going 100% underwear.  Not even 10 minutes after getting out of bed, sitting Sterling on the potty and putting on underwear did he poop.

And not once all day did he want to sit on the potty– although pre-stomach bug he did.  *sigh*

The good news is he did pee on the potty tonight…sort of.  You see Michael was gone and I had– well you know how all heck breaks loose when the husband is gone …

Anyways I sit Sterling down while I’m holding Camden and after singing to him a little (it helps with the anxiety he’s developed after a couple of not so good stomach bug episodes) he pees.  He pees out of the toilet onto the floor.

Does this mommy get mad? NO!!  I am so elated and I try to steer him away from the puddle so he doesn’t realize the mistake.  Haley comes to the rescue, grabs Camden and takes Sterling to get M&Ms.  I should let her take over

I am relieved that we ended the day on a high note.  Tomorrow we go at it again and before I know it he’ll be a pro.

Was Mork & Mindy a good show?  I recall, very vaguely, one scene.  I’ll have to go watch some on YouTube now.

I LOVE IT! Now I’m hooked. I watched this one:

The chicken birthing the egg–HILARIOUS.  And I have a new reply to “have you seen my keys?”… “Sure, many times”

Today has been a GOOD day!!

1. I got up within 15 minutes of the alarm going off at 7 AM.  That’s early.  Michael desires that we be up at 7 and to honor his wishes makes me feel oh so good-wifeish.  He’s a little neurotic.
2. Haley is finished with school work BEFORE lunch! Wow.  This waking up early has many perks.
3. I’m not tired yet but I am famished.  My little tummy (ha! that is funny that I just said little) is used to eating at 8:30.
4. Sterling’s nighttime diaper was dry.  It has been many times before so this time I took the cue.  We began potty training. And guess what???

HE PEED IN THE POTTY!

…after 6 or 7 mini-squirts on the floor throughout the morning.  But, that’s ok.  He’d come to me and say, “I already peed.”

And, I feel this is worth mentioning, Camden has been so happy today.  Happy like, sitting in his swing awake and staring off contentedly.  Happy and not spitting up.  Happy probably because he slept the WHOLE night last night.  WHOLE= until 5ish am.  That’s pretty close to the whole night

That 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep I was dreaming of would have happened if my 4yo wouldn’t have crawled in our bed and kicked me all night. Yes, I could have gotten up and put her back in bed but being kicked while in bed seems so much easier than getting up.

Oh, so that chili pepper chocolate I talked about in the title.  Everyone deserves a reward for peeing in the potty.  Chocolate is the best reward.

Unfortunately for Sterling, the only chocolate I had on hand was a little spicy

Oh, come on! You know you have an addiction to at least one household responsibility!

Here are a few definitions for drug:

• Alters normal bodily function (stress to relaxation)
• Modifies a chemical process in the body for a specific purpose (stress hormones are decreased)
• A substance, often addictive, which affects the central nervous system (a sigh of relief)
• Alters mood, perception or consciousness (ahhhh, peaceful)

Examples of domestic drugs:

• Vacuuming
• Swiffering
• Dishes
• Laundry
• Organizing
• Cleaning out hobbit holes

My domestic drug of choice is vacuuming.  It’s one of the most highly addictive, mood altering, muscle relaxing drugs on the market.  My brand of drug is Rainbow.

My Rainbow makes my horns go down, steam ceases to blow from my ears and the hint of a smile creeps upon my face.

Amazing, just writing about vacuuming induces a deep breath. You should try some Rainbow.  I hear Dyson, Hoover and Dirt Devil are good too.

What is the household duty that brings you joy?

Since I haven’t had anything really meaty to add to this blog lately I went in search for inspiration.

Justin Taylor’s post titled “A Sentence that Changed My Theology” provided that for me.  For Mr. Taylor that sentence came from R.C. Sproul:

You are required to believe, to preach, and to teach what the Bible says is true, not what you want the Bible to say is true.

—Chosen by God, p. 12.

I wish more preachers (Rob Bell et al.)/teachers/fathers would read that quote and change their theology.

I would bet that most Christians can think of a sentence or message or Scripture that changed the course of their Theology.  For some they were awakened to the fact that as Christians we all need to study Theology, then there are those that were shaken in their boots by a conviction that screamed, “WAKE UP! YOU’VE BEEN DECEIVED!”.

The second scenario applies to us.  Well, actually they both do.

Be glad you didn’t go to that church. They’re 5-point Calvinists.

Um, okay. What the heck does that mean?  That’s what we were thinking when a dinner guest in May 2009, said that to us in regards to a church we visited before moving to Kerrville.

We could have shrugged the sentence off and gone on with our way of thinking.  That’s probably what most people do and undoubtedly what we had done dozens of times before.

We had no idea what a Calvinist was, much less why it was bad.  We had spent the first 9 years of our Christian walk being deceived into believing that studying “theology” was for stuffy professors.

In case you too have been deceived, the word theology comes from a combination of two Greek words, theos, meaning God, and logia, meaning knowledge or study—study of God. You SHOULD study the God you put your faith in!!

So, why would a church encourage you not to study Theology or know God better?

Because Theology, when used properly, equips Christians to call out heresies and false teachings.  If the members of mega-churches, seeker friendly churches, catholic churches… all began to study their Bible and learn what the TRUTH is then there would be a mass exodus!

Teaching your congregation expositionally (which the above mentioned groups are failing to do) will educate them on what God says not what the “pastor” thinks a certain passage means and how it relates to his or her extracurricular activities.

I have a hard time calling many church leaders pastors. Our word pastor equals the Scriptural term elder. Elder, from the greek word poimeno, means shepherd.

How are many of today’s “pastors” doing in their role of shepherding?

Terribly.

Back to the original point of this post.
Because of that sentence, Michael began to study God.  We learned Truth.  Soon after we joined the church this dinner guest referred to because of their commitment to expositional preaching.

Does it tell us in Scripture that we should know God better?

Ephesians 4: 13-14

1Peter 3:15

Jude 1:3

If you don’t study Scriptures, therefore knowing more about God, how can you contend for the faith, defend the faith or not be carried away by every wind of doctrine?

Ingredients needed:

1-2lbs ground beef/venison/turkey

1 can Cream of Mushroom soup

1 can Tomatoes w/ green chilies

1 can Refried beans

Chili powder

Cumin

Tortillas

Cook up the meat

Add chile powder and cumin…however much you prefer

Add can of cream of mushroom soup and tomatoes

Lay tortillas in bottom of dish handed down from mother-in-law who gave you this recipe.

It isn’t possible for me to make this recipe and not put it in her mother’s dish! Makes this meal so much more special.

On top of the tortillas spread 1/2 can of refried beans. Top with 1/2 meat.

Add another layer of tortillas and repeat.

Top it off with shredded cheddar cheese!

Bake in 350 oven for about 20 minutes (melt cheese, allow tortillas to soak up flavor).

Yesterday our beloved family dog, Chance, passed away. He was my first baby.

Michael and I married in August 1998 and got Chance in October.  He went everywhere with us.

Chance lived in 10 different houses and saw the birth of 5 children.

I cried for hours yesterday. My eyes were practically swollen shut.  Seeing his bed makes me cry.

Today a friend rang the doorbell…there was silence.  I wanted to cry again.  Chance always barked like crazy when the doorbell rang.

I really miss him.