Mutts... again

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from the Storrie clan!!

We pray that everyone is having a blessed Christmas and remembering our Lord's birth and all He has done for us! I hope that memories are being made to remember for years to come! In one of the Christmas cards we received there was a fun fact that I thought was interesting. You all may know this already but here it is if you don't! :)

Have you ever wondered why there were such strange gifts given in the song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas"? We recently came across an explanation. The song was written during the 16th century, a time when there was much persecution of Christians. The purpose was to teach church doctrine in code that was not easily identified. Here are some of the hidden meanings found in the lyrics:

Partridge in a pear tree - Christ on the cross
Two turtle doves - The Old and New Testaments
Three French hens - Expensive gifts brought by the wise men
Four calling birds - Four Gospels
Five golden rings - Five books of the law
Six geese - Six days of creation
Seven swans - Gifts of the Holy Spirit
Eight maids - Beatitudes
Nine ladies dancing - Fruit of the Spirit
Ten lords - Ten Commandments
Eleven pipers - Eleven apostles that spread the message of Christ (only 11 because Judas did not embrace Christ or His message)
Twelve drummers - The Apostle's Creed (includes 12 points of doctrine)
My True Love - God is our first and only True Love

I'm not sure where they found this and how accurate it really is but it was still interesting. Well, I have lots of pictures to post from the past couple of weeks but right now the painting project is calling me (or my brother and sister who would like my help:)!

A very merry Christmas to you all and may your new year be filled with both blessings and challenges to draw you closer to the Lord!

Mutt's are the best!

Winter Wonder Land

Each season has it's own beauty and in Colorado one of the beauties God shows us is white!

Birthday Time! =)

In our home birthdays are kind of a snowball effect...once they start...they don't stop! Noah's birthday is November 30th and Dad's is December 3rd and from there they just keep happening! So here are a couple pictures of the most recent "birthday boys" in our family!

The Best Part of Books is the Memorable Statements...

For those of you with good memories (and I know that some of you do have those handy things), you will remember that a few months ago, I promised on my brother’s blog to post some quotes from “Les Miserables” by Victor Hugo, and now they are here at last. I know it’s a different blog, but after all, his is supposed to be computer information, not a literary society. Hope you enjoy…

“…one can no more pray too much than love too much.”

“In passing, we might say that success is a hideous thing. Its false similarity to merit deceives men.”

“Because things are unpleasant…that is no reason for being unjust toward God.”

“The true division of humanity is this: the luminous and the dark. To diminish the number of the dark, to increase the number of the luminous, there is the aim. That is why we cry: education, knowledge! To learn to read is to kindle a fire: every syllable spelled sparkles. But whoever says light does not necessarily say joy. There is suffering in the light; an excess burns. Flame is hostile to the wing. To burn and yet to fly, this is the miracle of genius. When you know and when you love, you will still suffer. The day dawns in tears. The luminous weep, be it only over the dark ones.”

(The next few are on Javert, the policeman intent on the capture of the hero, Jean Valjean. At the point that these sections are taken from, he was wrestling between doing his duty and showing mercy. If you want a more thorough bio, Google him.)

"He had a superior...; he had scarcely thought, until today, of that other superior, God.
This new chief, God, he was feeling unawares, and he was perplexed by that.
He had lost his bearings in this unexpected presence; he had no idea what to do with this superior; he who was not ignorant of the notion that the subordinate is bound always to yield, that he should neither disobey, nor blame, nor discuss, and that, in presence of a superior who astonishes him too much, the inferior has no resource but resignation.
But how manage to send in his resignation to God?"

"One of his causes for anxiety was that he was compelled to think. The very violence of all these contradictory emotions forced him to it. Thought, an uncommon thing for him, and singularly painful.
There is always a certain amount of internal rebellion in thought; and he was irritated at having it within him."

On Waterloo:

“But what difference does it make to the Infinite? This entire tempest, this vast cloud, this war, then this peace, all of this darkness, do not disturb for one moment the light of that infinite Eye, before which the smallest insect leaping from one blade of grass to another equals the eagle flying from spire to spire among the towers of Notre-Dame.”

“It was the day of Destiny. A power beyond man controlled that day…One, to whom there can be no reply, took it in hand.”

“Whenever immense strength is put forth only to end in immense weakness, it makes men meditate.”

And my personal favorite:

“It is nothing to die; it is horrible not to live.”

Have a great day!
Rebecca

Girls day at the park!

Usually we are taking a troop of boys to the park but yesterday it was a girl day (or I should say, hour) at the park! We were blessed to spend most of the day with our very special friend Elisabeth and before Becca had to leave to get her wisdom teeth pulled :P, we decided that just the girls should go for a little walk! Well...our walk was a most interesting "walk". We got about half way around the path and then decided that the hill ahead looked like way too much fun to pass up so down the hill we went! After the hill we went and played on the bleachers and then we were off to the playground...and had a grand time!

Thanking the Lord for a Priceless Friend...

Today has been rather quiet around the Storrie home. We have all been fighting “bugs” here so we were not able to do the normal Thanksgiving dinner and celebration. Everyone around here made this an “off” day, no school, no major projects worked on - just a day to read and rest. It gave me a lot of time to pray and reflect on the many things God has taken us through this past year. Even though this year has brought many trials our way I’m thankful that our loving Lord holds us up when we can’t stand on our own.

There have been many things the Lord has done in our family this past year and as I think of the many blessings He has given and the many He has taken all at one time it is overwhelming. If I were to make a list of the blessings He has brought our way or blessings He has shown us, even through hard times, the list could go on and on. This Thanksgiving however I want to honor, remember and give thanks for a life that has ended on this earth but has just begun in eternity with our Savior.

On November 11, God in his wonderful love took a very dear friend to be home with Him. Mrs. Searcy was more than just a friend to us though, she was an example of joy and love. The first thing that I think of when I remember her is her laugh, even when things in our eyes were hard she always had a laugh to share and a warm hug to give. She always had time for whatever you needed weather it was picking something up for you, popping in just to say hi, or just being the listening ear on the other end of the phone. Although we will miss her while God has left us here to finish His work for all of our lives, we will see her, laugh with her, sing with her and hug her once again! Our love for her will never fade so this Thanksgiving, and always, I’m thankful that God gave her to us, for her example of being a woman of God, for the love she abundantly gave to her family and friends but most of all that I will be with her in heaven on day!

So even though our road these days has seemed rough, and our eyes are blured with tears right now, I'm thankful that God has a plan that is better than anything we could put together and that His love is always the same.

Thanking the Lord for Mrs. Searcy and the legacy she leaves us!

Blessed us... with countless gifts of love!

Now thank we all our God, with heart and hands and voices,
Who wondrous things has done, in Whom this world rejoices;
Who from our mothers’ arms has blessed us on our way
With countless gifts of love, and still is ours today.

O may this bounteous God through all our life be near us,
With ever joyful hearts and blessèd peace to cheer us;
And keep us in His grace, and guide us when perplexed;
And free us from all ills, in this world and the next!

All praise and thanks to God the Father now be given;
The Son and Him Who reigns with Them in highest Heaven;
The one eternal God, whom earth and Heaven adore;
For thus it was, is now, and shall be evermore.

God's Thread

The poetry of Amy Carmichael always seems to express, without insincerity or affectation, what so often seems to be common in most peoples' experience. Her collected poems fill over 400 pages, but I'm not going to put them all down here... at least not all at once. This one I especially like - particularly the last part, beginning with the phrase, "...but I alone am He..."

"An ill dread is hanging over me,

Slung on a single strand of cobweb thread.

I do not know how I can live today

The usual life of common duties, turn

A calm front to the day's perplexities,

A smile upon its small, persistent cares -

While inwardly a raging fear devours

Courage in mouthfuls; and my chariot wheels

Drag heavily; and gladness flies from me,

Leaving me standing shivering on the edge

Of unknown desolation; and all things

Look dark to me. O God, Thou knowest my fear;

Go Thou not far from me lest trouble be near."

~ ~

"An ill thou dreadest hanging over thee,

Slung on a single silken strand of cobweb thread -

Think: Is it cobweb thread? No spider of chance

Spun that fine-twined thread from out herself

In blind obedience to some unknown law.

But I, thy God, thy Father, spun that thread

Whose very substance is My eternal will,

My eternal Love. And in My hand I hold

The further end and guard its whole long length

From human intermeddling. I may use

Some visible hand to operate and loose

The seeming ill; but I alone am He

With whom thou hast to do. And I, thy God,

The Father of Lights in whom no variableness

Nor shadow cast by turning ever was,

Am with thee, to be light to all thy days,

Even to the end. Therefore, thou wilt be strong

And more than conqueror; for I am here:

I go not from My own when trouble is near."

Hoop Skirts, Horses, and Such...

As many of you know, I (Rebecca) went to Missouri to visit my friend, Jamie Billings, and her family. The excuse to get me down there was a Civil War reenactment of The Battle of Pilot Knob, but we managed to fit a few other things into the time, including a visit to a teahouse, horseback riding (and lots of it!), and staying up until unearthly hours, talking, eating ice cream, and other things that people do at that time of night or morning, whichever it happened to be. :)

All dressed up and ready to go (Jamie even curled my hair in authentic sort of curls)
The ultimate Southern Belle
The Confederate line
My first "real" horseback ride :)

(Please make note of the saddle blanket)
And off she rides into the sunset...

"Mr. Papa" and David William

A Date I'm Glad to Remember

Most people have their own set of personality peculiarities - what we call in our house, "quirks." :) One of mine is a penchant for remembering notable dates and today happens to be a very notable one. My arm first began to shake on the 13th of August and watching that date go by for the past 14 months has been difficult. Today, though, is the one month mark of my arm having been still once again! Whether it is permanent or just a respite, I do thank God for restoring my arm to me for this time... and thank each of you who have stood with my family and I during this past year.

This hymn was the one that played through my mind while I waited for my Mom to come take me to the ER that first day. It has been very meaningful to me since then, as it speaks to both the joy and the pain that have filled this experience.

O Love that wilt not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in thee;
I give thee back the life I owe,
That in thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.

O light that followest all my way,
I yield my flickering torch to thee;
My heart restores its borrowed ray,
That in thy sunshine’s blaze its day
May brighter, fairer be.

O Joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to thee;
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
And feel the promise is not vain,
That morn shall tearless be.

O Cross that liftest up my head,
I dare not ask to fly from thee;
I lay in dust life’s glory dead,
And from the ground there blossoms red
Life that shall endless be.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

As for God, His way is perfect. Ps. 18:30

Since we must begin by introducing this blog, we decided to do it the right way...

Dear Friends, meet our blog.
Blog, our friends.

There... now that all of the ceremony has been taken care of, we can get on to particulars. Particularly what we're planning to do with this blog.

First of all, we shall try to not let it get lonely too often. Part of the impetus behind starting this was because Ben doesn't exactly think that pictures, quotes, pictures, little brother stories, pictures, topics under discussion (which include our books), pictures, etc., really apply to his blog - which is generally commited to computer "stuff." So, contained herein will be a glimpse of the household goings-on and all of the pictures that a certain member of our trio thinks will be most neccessary. (The other two of us shall probably do our fair share of contributing - only, most of the time, along less visual subjects.)

Until next time...