responsive thinking.

we had the privilege of attending bible study this morning with zero runny noses and the absence of hacking coughs. when we took the girls to the patch of punkins yesterday, it crossed my mind that this might not be the best idea. as you can see, that was short-lived. i think the fresh air did us some good.

now, back to bible study. for my bible study going friends, this might seem a bit repetitive, but i wanted to share some things that promisingly stuck out to me. as we delve into our new study of 'raising responsive children' (i wanted so badly to type in responsible - i guess that just comes with time, right? right?!), the author of the book has us look at the beginning. where it all started. the big, beautiful creation of goodness. you guessed it, genesis. to remind us that we were created out of love. with purpose. with a plan. and that God the Father is our ultimate parent. a parent who loves with precepts and parameters. these same guidelines and tools that i will need to raise my sweet, innocent little girls. haha? ha.

something that judy rossi--author of the study--mentions in the first two pages of her book was intriguing to think about. she uses a metaphor to hit home an important point. it goes something like this; when someone invents something they are called the 'author' or 'father' of that invention. if they're smart, they proceed to put a patent on this specified item to protect it from getting copied, exploited or stolen. this legal protection on their plan can only last so long, by law. after the duration of this protection is expired, anyone can do with this item what they please. seems kind of shady to me. but alas, it's a law.

now, for the cool part. creation as we know it, from the beginning of time to the current course it is on, was created by an Author who's ownership didn't come with an expiration date. no matter who tries to corrupt, change or counterfeit His creation, He is the designer of every institution that sustains it. including marriage, family, religion, and government. God knows exactly how His design should function in order for it to continually operate at its optimum. sweet, huh? i thought so.

i think i'm really going to enjoy this study. as long as i discipline myself to doing the work, balancing out my time to provide adequate study time, i should really see the fruits of my labor.

and just for kicks...here's a scary, very disturbing human-looking pig eating jessa.