Just For Fun Friday!!

Occasionally, I enjoy a strange generated quiz. They make me laugh...and take minimal thought. Just for fun check out Blogthings sometime. Today I have shared with you my Native American Name, my inner Sesame Street character (in honor of their anniversary), and a fun Halloween quiz about candy apples. Oooo...yummmm...drool!!
Your Native American Name Is: Meoquanee Shuman
Your name means: Red Wearing Rattlesnake

You Are Big Bird
Talented, smart, and friendly... you're also one of the sanest people around.

You are usually feeling: Happy. From riding a unicycle to writing poetry, you have plenty of hobbies to keep you busy.

You are famous for: Being a friend to everyone. Even the grumpiest person gets along with you.

How you live your life: Joyfully. "Super. Duper. Flooper."

You Are Innovative and Brilliant
You're the type of person who likes to do Halloween your way. And what "your way" is changes every year.
Maybe you'll dress up. Maybe you'll build a haunted house. Or maybe you'll start your own tradition.

Your favorite Halloween celebrations involve you, and maybe a couple close friends. That is, of course, if you feel like celebrating at all.
You march to your own spooky beat, and you're just as likely to be trying to scare the neighbor kids as you are to hand out candy.

A pretty song with a little Latin translation & trivia!

A few days ago I posted beautiful Autumn pictures with an arrangement of For The Beauty Of The Earth by John Rutter. I mentioned how much I enjoy his music. I was looking for Gloria ...

John Rutter: Gloria - 1. Gloria In Excelsis Deo - Polyphony, The Wallace Collection , the City of London Sinfonia; Andrew Lumsden, organ; Stephen Layton conducting

...something I'd sung in college...a real goosebump song. As I was looking for it I came across some John Rutter trivia. I was sort of bummed to read the following.

"Despite composing and conducting much religious music, Rutter told the US television program 60 Minutes in 2003 that he was not particularly a religious man, but he is inspired by the spirituality of sacred verses and prayers."

I was further bummed by this because I had recently come across his Te Deum...a little Latin translation for ya'll...Te Deum is the beginning of the phrase Te Deum laudamus: te Dominum confitemur, which means O God, we praise Thee: we acknowledge Thee to be the Lord. All Te Deum's go on to speak of God's awesomeness in all aspects. Anyone wanting to read a full Te Deum go here.

Yes, I know that he is not the first composer to say he wasn't religious, etc. but after singing several of his works I'd sort of hoped he was a professing Christian. His music is something like what I imagine heaven will sound like...and I'm hoping I can join the heavenly choir!!

I do agree with something else I read about him. He holds "singing days" and says, "It is wonderful to go to a choral concert, to hear a choir sing. But I think the deepest joy of all is to actually sing.”

Oh, and the translation for Gloria...

Gloria in excelsis Deo. Glory to the highest to God.
Et in terra pax And on earth peace
hominibus bonae voluntatis. to men of good will.
Laudamus te. We praise thee.
Benedicimus te. We bless thee.

You's a good MomE too...

I was making baby gifts for some expectant friends...and gave Emmy my prototype messed up first one. She found her favorite dolly...and cooed and crooned to her for hours.
At one point, she said to me, "You's a good MomE too!" Awww...I told her how nicely she was holding and treating the baby. She later taught her brudder how to hold the baby! It was sooo cute. He wasn't really interested in holding her baby at all...but he humored her for a tiny bit!
I was pretty happy with how things turned out. I got the ideas from Little Birdie Secrets.

Word FILLED Wednesday: Are you a worker?

I was recently challenged about my attitude toward the unsaved. The challenge actually started in a discussion that pointed out that there is no genuine turning to Christ in faith without repentance. That would mean that you can't clean up your act before you come to Christ. Of course, you have no power. When talking with sinners the issue is not their present sin but their need of a Savior!

Think about the woman at the well...Jesus cuts right to the issue with her...he asks her a question that convicts her of her sin! Conviction is purely God's Work..followed by Contrition, a real sorrow for that sin...and Conversion, turning from that sin. We cannot allow ourselves to be offended by the world.

The question was asked, "Who have you ignored or disliked because you're offended by their worldliness? We cannot expect regenerate behavior from those who haven't yet been changed. We need to see their need for salvation from sins. We need to see their thirst that only the Living Water can quench! I love this quote from St. Augustine, "God, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you."

I want to be a worker in His fields that sees the plentiful harvest...and isn't repelled by it...but runs to it with tools in hand to bring it into His storehouse!

Please join all the Word-filled folks at Susan's blog where she is....Forever His!

For The Beauty Of The Earth...

For the beauty of the earth
For the glory of the skies,
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies.

Lord of all, to Thee we raise,
This our hymn of grateful praise.

For the beauty of each hour,
Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and tree and flower,
Sun and moon, and stars of light.

Lord of all, to Thee we raise,
This our hymn of grateful praise.

For the joy of ear and eye,
For the heart and mind's delight,
For the mystic harmony
Linking sense to sound and sight.

Lord of all, to Thee we raise,
This our hymn of grateful praise.

For the joy of human love,
Brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth and friends above,
For all gentle thoughts and mild.

Lord of all, to Thee we raise,
This our hymn of grateful praise.

For Thy Church, that evermore
Lifteth holy hands above,
Offering up on every shore
Her pure sacrifice of love.

Lord of all, to Thee we raise,
This our hymn of grateful praise.

For the martyrs' crown of light,

For Thy prophets' eagle eye,
For Thy bold confessors' might,
For the lips of infancy.

Lord of all, to Thee we raise,
This our hymn of grateful praise.

For Thy virgins' robes of snow,
For Thy maiden mother mild,
For Thyself, with hearts aglow,
Jesu, Victim undefiled.

Lord of all, to Thee we raise,
This our hymn of grateful praise.

For each perfect gift of Thine,
To our race so freely given,
Graces human and divine,
Flowers of earth and buds of Heaven.

Lord of all, to Thee we raise,
This our hymn of grateful praise.

I came across this arrangement while looking for the traditional one...so thought I'd use it instead! I love John Rutter's work...very interesting to this vocalist! Makes me really really miss college chamber choir! There are several verses not included in this recording...so I italicized them for you...so you can benefit from them all!

For The Beauty Of The Earth - The Cambridge Singers

Memory Monday: Hummmm...

Proverbs 31:26, "She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue."

As I meditated on this during the week...I realized that, for me, this means saying ALOT less. I've put a little hummm in my speech too. It makes me put my lips together and think before correcting or speaking or saying anything... I soooo want to be a Proverbs 31 Mom, and Wife and Friend!

Caffeinated Randomness: My blog's a teacher too!

I decided to follow Critty Joy and psychoanalyze my blog. It was fun...and very interesting. I still have a typical teacher Myers Briggs result...ESFJ...

E STANDS FOR EXTROVERSION

I prefer to get my energy by socializing in the outside world.

S STANDS FOR SENSING

I prefer to experience the world through my five senses in the actual, present moment.

F STANDS FOR FEELING

I prefer to make decisions based on my feelings and values.

J STANDS FOR JUDGING

I prefer a lifestyle that is structured, scheduled, and time-sensitive.

HA! I'm not sure how accurate the typealyzer is...but even the Keirsey type agreed that I'm a teacher idealist!

ESFJ - The Socializers

The social and opinionated type. They are especially attuned to the feelings of themselves and others. They tend to be very aware of the values of their peer-group and tend to see things as either right or wrong, good or bad. They tend to be traditional and value their friends and family the most.

The Socializers are down-to-earth, practical people and very keen on making sure everyone is alright. This quality makes them enjoy social work places. Since they enjoy being and keeping things neat and tidy, they often also enjoy working in such environments.

I found this excerpt from the Kiersey study to be most accurate but a little too positive. I would love to say everything about my personality is positive...but many of these things lead to pride and selfishness. Ahh...another post perhaps?

In whatever field they choose, Teachers consider people their highest priority, and they instinctively communicate personal concern and a willingness to become involved. Warmly outgoing, and perhaps the most expressive of all the types, Teachers are remarkably good with language, especially when communicating in speech, face to face. And they do not hesitate to speak out and let their feelings be known. Bubbling with enthusiasm, Teachers will voice their passions with dramatic flourish, and can, with practice, become charismatic public speakers. This verbal ability gives Teachers a good deal of influence in groups, and they are often asked to take a leadership role.

Teachers like things settled and organized, and will schedule their work hours and social engagements well ahead of time-and they are absolutely trustworthy in honoring these commitments. Valuing as they do interpersonal cooperation and harmonious relations, Teachers are extraordinarily tolerant of others, are easy to get along with, and are usually popular wherever they are.

Teachers are highly sensitive to others, which is to say their intuition tends to be well developed. Certainly their insight into themselves and others is unparalleled. Without a doubt, they know what is going on inside themselves, and they can read other people with uncanny accuracy. Teachers also identify with others quite easily, and will actually find themselves picking up the characteristics, emotions, and beliefs of those around them. Because they slip almost unconsciously into other people's skin in this way, Teachers feel closely connected with those around them, and thus show a sincere interest in the joys and problems of their employees, colleagues, students, clients, and loved ones.