Sign of the Season, from Uganda

Rural, Private, Primary School in Uganda

More pictures, description in the other 12/06/2007 post.

Pictures of a rural, private, primary school in Uganda

I've been meaning to write some essays about our trip to Uganda, but, well, you know how it goes. These pictures are of an Seventh Day Adventist primary school in rural Uganda. The pictures speak for them selves. We were at the school for about three hours.

Only a short amount of that time was spent looking at their three buildings for about 90 students.
The church building, the brick buildings, and even the one with just the boards, were classroom structures. The "kitchen" was the lean to structure.

The rest of the time, the children entertained their Dear Visitors. Their singing and dancing was extremely well done. One thing I can say about the Ugandan school system is that they train leaders.

These pictures are not of the Royal College of Kamuli. See the side bar link for that school.

Giving, Tithing

I copied this tithing thought from Lemonholm. Well, I guess he copied it too.

Christian thinker Ron Sider has figured out that if all the Christians in the USA alone were to tithe – give 10% of our income – we could provide basic nutrition and healthcare to all the poor in the world, and have about $70 billion left over each year.

How differently the Third World would see the USA if it was our priority to save life rather than to take it! The best way to store up treasure in heaven is to give our earthly treasure to people in need. As St. Augustine said, the bellies of the poor are the best storerooms for our extra grain.

Welcome Phone Call

My son called to say that he was fine and that he wasn't anywhere near the sight of the bridge collapse in Minneapolis. He was intending to drive home to his apartment this evening right after he called me , and that could be a problem because he lives less than 2 miles from the bridge.

Evangelical pastor, Lutheran bishop to debate baptism on radio

A good one minute synopsis of baptism here .

Ministers launch petition to stop Bush library

Link
No comment. None implied.

Wine

Jesus turned water into wine, as we learned in the Gospel lesson for today.

Then we sang the Hymn of the Month: "Fill My Cup, Lord."

Search engine for baby boomers.

"Cranky is a specialty search engine designed to please aging baby boomers by processing every request from the perspective of someone who is at least 50 years old." Article here.

I'm trying to decide whether to be glad or insulted.

My biggest problem with web searches is that the links come up without regard to how old the info is. I'm always wondering what will happen in two years or ten? Instead of 100,000 hits, will I get 1,000,000 hits?

The actual searching doesn't bother me....I had to do so, so many research papers in high school, that I got used to the old fashioned search process. I think I did more researching in high school than most college kids do these days. They just need to sit in their dorm room, TV on in the background, and use their computer. ..... And while I'm complaining and comparing, just think how much easier it is to do a paper when you have a computer and word processor. Who remembers the old days of manual typewriters and ten page term papers? And yes, I walked to school a mile, up hill both directions. Actually, the road was flat, but it was a mile.

No Smoking

The new Speaker of the House announced that there will be no more smoking in the Speaker's Lobby off the House floor.

Hooray for HER. I guess it takes a woman to make this sensible change. And I've never understood the mentality of those who think that they can do whatever they want to, ie smoke indoors, in somebody else's air space.

Things I’ve Learned in the past year, part one.

The empty nest is wonderful. Both sleep and conversation are interrupted less often. I still worry about my kids, but whatever I don’t know about, I can’t worry about.
It is easier to let go when there is distance.

When the offspring come back to the nest, it is still too easy for them to become children and for me to become “parent” again. Need to pray on this one.

It is a shock to have to check the age range on forms that officially says that I am a senior citizen. Suddenly senior citizen doesn’t seem all that old and retirement doesn’t seem all that far away. Besides, I’m already tired; what could “re-tired” mean?

Arthritis doesn’t necessarily get worse with age, but sitting at the computer guarantees I’ll be stiffer than I am when I’m active.

Blogging is more personal than I thought it would be.
I’ve come to care about the writers of some of the blogs I read regularly, especially because they’ve shared their family situations and struggles. I have prayed for LP, LZ, LC, SO, and the other PS, for example, and some bloggers have told me that they prayed for me. Thank you.

There is a “small world” aspect to blogging. The other PS, EL and I are familiar with the same locations. LZ knows one branch of my family. I may yet get to meet SO, as she lives near several of my relatives.

Blogging about faith issues is more political than I thought it would be. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, since Jesus said many things that, if followed, could upset the worldly culture (his day and ours.) I’m just surprised at how “ungraceful” some of the conservative Christian bloggers are.

Does Christ’s Church need to be defended with such meanness? Are the people who proclaim Christ as Lord, but who worship in a “new” style, really dangerous? Would it be Satan or God who defends the meanness?