At this festive time of year, Mr. Scrooge, it is more than usually desirable that we should make some slight provision for the poor and destitute

Are there no prisons?
~Plenty of prisons.
And the Union workhouses - are they still in operation?
~They are. I wish I could say they were not.

Alastair Sim plays Ebenezer Scrooge in my absolute favorite version of Dickens' A Christmas Carol (actually titled just Scrooge in this London version). In the first scene at his office, Ebenezer is solicited by two gentlemen who are raising money for the poor. His questions, and the Collectors' retorts I have copied above. Scrooge, clearly irritated by the amount of time wasted in this conversation, continues by dismissing the gentlemen without donating anything.
Immediately, his nephew shows up to wish Uncle Scrooge a Merry Christmas - to which he replies most famously: 'Humbug!'.

Let us, on the eve of another turning of the calendar, pray that we are everyday less and less like Mr. Scrooge.

Let us pray that we are less and less focused on and driven by our own busy-ness.

Let us, as the ghost of Jacob Marley reminded Scrooge, make humanity our business.

Let us slow down, enjoy the scenery, smell the (insert your olfactory organ's most enjoyable aroma-producer here).

Let us whistle while we work.

Let us greet each other well.

Let us care - really care - about each others welfare.


Here's to new beginnings, new habits, new outlooks, and new adventures!

May your 2014 be most blessed in every way!! 

 

LORD in Your mercy, hear our prayer

On Christmas Day, 2013, Pope Francis concluded his Urbi et Orbi with this beautiful prayer:

Lord of life, protect all who are persecuted for your name. Grant hope and consolation to the displaced and refugees, especially in the Horn of Africa and in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Grant that migrants in search of a dignified life may find acceptance and assistance. May tragedies like those we have witnessed this year, with so many deaths at Lampedusa, never occur again!
Child of Bethlehem, touch the hearts of all those engaged in human trafficking, that they may realize the gravity of this crime against humanity. Look upon the many children who are kidnapped, wounded and killed in armed conflicts, and all those who are robbed of their childhood and forced to become soldiers.
Lord of heaven and earth, look upon our planet, frequently exploited by human greed and rapacity. Help and protect all the victims of natural disasters, especially the beloved people of the Philippines, gravely affected by the recent typhoon.

Dear brothers and sisters, today, in this world, in this humanity, is born the Saviour, who is Christ the Lord. Let us pause before the Child of Bethlehem. Let us allow our hearts to be touched, let us not fear this. Let us not fear that our hearts be moved. We need this! Let us allow ourselves to be warmed by the tenderness of God; we need his caress. God’s caresses do not harm us. They give us peace and strength. We need his caresses. God is full of love: to him be praise and glory forever! God is peace: let us ask him to help us to be peacemakers each day, in our life, in our families, in our cities and nations, in the whole world. Let us allow ourselves to be moved by God’s goodness.

CHRISTmas

LORD, how can I even begin to put into words the joy, the wonder of What we celebrate to-day??
"When Thou tookest upon Thee to deliver man, Thou didst humble Thyself to be born of a virgin."
Praise to You forever, eternal praise; blessing, honor, and glory are Yours!
Glory be the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit! As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen!
Praise to Jesus, the God-man, the Son of God, Emmanuel, God-with-us!
Praise to the Christ-child of Bethlehem, our Redeemer!
Praise to Jesus, Who did not consider equality with God something to be grasped!
Praise to Jesus, born of the Virgin!
Praise to Jesus, because He will save His people from their sin!
Glory to God in the highest!

  

 

Son-blest We Are

Thanksgiving Thursday with my mom and dad, brother, sister and her family, and lots of friends. Way too much food even though I tried to put a dent in as many mains/sides/desserts as I could. A little football on tv, a little football outside, Apples to Apples, and songs aplenty. Great to see everyone, especially my sister-with-many-children and my brother-who-lives-out-of-state. He even made a trip out in his BA black rental Dodge Charger with mom and dad on Friday.

Saturday yestreday was college football day and too many exciting games to also try and fit in a trip to Schaffer Road, Walmart, and the Lakehouse. We got home late and put in 1951 Scrooge with Alistair Sim and lit a fire to warm us.

To-day already we took our mechanic neighbor out to the Grape (left at Walmart) to help with the transmission that had been slipping. And then UH-OH, the nation's in upheaval; no tranny fluid and God saved us from evil! Two quarts in (one with the stop-leak additive) and the diagnostic touch pad screen thingy and voila!!! Praise God no more slipping or running rough!!! My neighbor Scott rocks - he wouldn't let me give him any money (we made him accept a little) but I did buy him a White Castle Double Cheeseburger Sack Value Meal (it just doesn't get much better than that).

So, right now I'm boiling eggs for our early week salad and Moni is taking several purchases back (with receipts) to various stores in Livingston County. We are Son-blest indeed!

Thanksgiving

Almighty Father,
Thank You for Your Son, Jesus, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit forever and ever!
Thank you for the Life in Christ!
I'm thankful for everything You provide for our good: sunshine and food and water and jobs and vehicles, family and friends and those-who-aren't-yet-friends; for Rudolf and Charlie Brown and George Baily and Tiny Tim Cratchit; for football games and a warm fire and a warm bed.
Amen! Amen! 

Clive Staples Lewis

The Chronicles of Narnia have been a tremendous blessing to me throughout my years as a believer. Moreover, Lewis' style is not unlike that of my favorite author - John Ronald Reuel Tolkien - who was the only fiction author I ever read...

The following excerpt is from the final chapter of the final book of the Chronicles: The Last Battle. The children are with many who have chosen to follow Aslan, and have passed into a beautiful country...

"Further up and further in!" roared the Unicorn, and no one held back...And soon they found themselves all walking together - and a great, bright procession it was - up towards mountains higher than you could see in this world even if they were there to be seen. But there was no snow on those mountains: there were forests and green slopes and sweet orchards and flashing waterfalls, one above the other, going up for ever. And the land they were walking on grew narrower all the time, with a deep valley on each side: and across that valley the land which was the real England grew nearer and nearer.

The light ahead was growing stronger. Lucy saw that a great series of many-coloured cliffs led up in front of them like a giant's staircase. And then she forgot everything else, because Aslan himself was coming, leaping down from cliff to cliff like a living cataract of power and beauty...

Aslan turned to them and said: 'You do not yet look so happy as I mean you to be.' Lucy said, 'We're so afraid of being sent away, Aslan. And you have sent us back into our own world so often.' 'No fear of that,' said Aslan. 'Have you not guessed?' Their hearts leaped and a wild hope rose within them. 'There was real railway accident,' said Aslan softly. 'Your father and mother and all of you are - as you used to call it in the Shadowlands - dead. The term is over: the holidays have begun. The dream is ended: this is the morning.'

And as He spoke He no longer looked to them like a lion; but the things that began to happen after that were so great and beautiful that I cannot write them. And for us this is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after. But for them it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: witch goes on forever: in which ever chapter is better than the one before.

Beautiful

Merry Christmas-Canon With Lyrics

Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas

(The joy that he brings)
Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas
(The joy that he brings)
Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas
(The joy that he brings)
Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas
(The joy that he brings)
Merry Christmas

This night, we pray
Our lives, will show
This dream, he had
Each child, still knows

This night, we pray
Our lives, will show
This dream, he had
Each child, still knows

(He had)
This night, we pray
(Our lives)
Our lives, will show
(He had)
This dream, he had
(Our lives)
Each child, still knows

(He had)
This night, we pray
(Our lives)
Our lives, will show
(He had)
This dream, he had
(Our lives)
Each child, still knows

(He had)
This night
(On this night, on this night, on this very Christmas night)
We pray
(On this night, on this night, on this very Christmas night)
(Our lives)
Our lives
(On this night, on this night, on this very Christmas night)
Will show

(He had)
This dream
(On this night, on this night, on this very Christmas night)
He had
(On this night, on this night, on this very Christmas night)
(Our lives)
Each child
(On this night, on this night, on this very Christmas night)
Still knows

Glory to God!

 

Wednesday musings...

A mix of (very little) Sacred and (the overwhelming majority) Secular Christmas music has already been playing on 100.3 in Detroit round the clock for a couple weeks, I think.

Some I could listen to any time of the year:

Do You Hear What I Hear
The Little Drummer Boy
Merry Christmas - Canon
Exerts from the Hallelujah chorus
You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch
Anything sung by Bing Crosby (with or without Bowie!) or Burl Ives
Santa Baby
Anything from A Charlie Brown Christmas
Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer reminds me of the nieces and nephews at Christmas ("like Monopoly!")
The Chipmunk Song ("ALVIN?!??!?!?!?!") 
So This is Christmas I have only recently come to love, due to my nephew, Carlos
Anything by Mannheim Steamroller or the Trans-Siberian Orchestra
Bare Naked Ladies feat. Sarah McLachlan: God Rest Ye Merry/We Three Kings

Nat King Cole's The Christmas Song

 are all cool.

But there are some songs that are not so cool:

Blue Christmas makes me want to vomit violently
The moon is right, the spirits up makes me want to break things
Little Saint Nick is barely tolerable, until the 'Christmas comes this time each year' repeats ad nauseum (To a disgusting or ridiculous degree; to the point of nausea) at the end

Recipe #29 - Sausage and Chicken Gumbo in the Crock Pot

Got this idea from Best Recipes Ever on PBS Create and Channel 9 from Canada.

Ingredients:
1 package Jenny-O turkey sausage sliced
4 chicken leg quarters
Extra virgin olive oil
2 onions chopped divided
2 potatoes chopped small
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables
1 small can tomato sauce
3 tbs tomato paste or ketchup
2 ribs celery chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
4 bay leaves divided
2 tsp fresh thyme divided
tsp ground black pepper
tsp paprika
2 tbs Franks hot sauce

Parboil chicken for 20 minutes with 1 onion, 2 bay leaves, and 1 tsp thyme.
Meanwhile, add some EVOO to your favourite fry pan and brown the sausage. Add to slow cooker.
In the same pan, add a bit more oil and cook vegetables, sauce, ketchup, and spices til celery is soft; about 8 minutes. Add to slow cooker.

After 20 minutes, take chicken out of water and remove meat, dice, and add to slow cooker. Strain remaining water and boil another hour. Add two cups of stock to the slow cooker and save the rest for soup or whatever else you may want.

Add the hot sauce and mixed vegetables and cook on high for four hours. It will make your home smell good.

Before serving, remove bay leaves and any thyme sprigs that may still be present.

Litany of Humility

I try to pray this every day - I was reminded to-day to pray it regularly until I really mean it!

Attributed to Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val (1865 - 1930), Secretary of State for Pope Saint Pius X

O Jesus! meek and humble of heart, Hear me.

From the desire of being esteemed,
Deliver me, Jesus.
 
From the desire of being loved...
From the desire of being extolled ...
From the desire of being honored ...
From the desire of being praised ...
From the desire of being preferred to others...
From the desire of being consulted ...
From the desire of being approved ...
From the fear of being humiliated ...
From the fear of being despised...
From the fear of suffering rebukes ...
From the fear of being calumniated ...
From the fear of being forgotten ...
From the fear of being ridiculed ...
From the fear of being wronged ...
From the fear of being suspected ...

That others may be loved more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be esteemed more than I ...
That, in the opinion of the world,
others may increase and I may decrease ...
That others may be chosen and I set aside ...
That others may be praised and I unnoticed ...
That others may be preferred to me in everything...
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should…

Morning Prayer

Christ Jesus, let me never forget that any day, any time could be the time of Your returning. Let me never stop being vigilant, being ready, being mindful of You.
Finely tune my heart this day, that I might love, and then still love, and then again love more. Remind me frequently of my calling, and let me not miss opportunities You provide.
Jesus, in Your Spirit, I serve You - the King of kings and Lord of lords - to the glory of God the Father, amen.

Sermon to Self

♪♪
Whatsoever you do
to the least of my people,
that you do unto me. (by Willard Jabusch)

1. When I was hungry, you gave me to eat;
When I was thirsty, you gave me to drink.
Now enter into the home of my Father.

2. When I was homeless, you opened your door;
When I was naked, you gave me your coat.
Now enter into the home of my Father.

3. When I was weary, you helped me find rest;
When I was anxious, you calmed all my fears.
Now enter into the home of my Father.

4. When in a prison, you came to my cell;
When on a sickbed, you cared for my needs.
Now enter into the home of my Father.

5. When I was laughed at, you stood by my side;
When I was happy, you shared in my joy.
Now enter into the home of my Father.

Dearest LORD,
This is my prayer to-day: for the courage to be who You would have me be.
The opportunities are always there, and please forgive my choosing to ignore so many of Your people in need of You. Fill me with Your wisdom, guide me by Your Spirit so that the love of Jesus cannot be contained by even my hardened, cynical heart. Flow from me to-day, Lord of Love, I offer myself as a channel, a funnel, an instrument. Let me not grow weary at the end of the day when my flesh tends to take over; strengthen me moment by moment throughout this day.
In Jesus' name I pray; Amen!

Wednesday Things

My address in Detroit growing up 17327 Prevost, Detroit, Michigan 48235; phone number 273-0266 (we didn't need ten digits back then, and we had one phone for five people for 25 years... one bathroom too!)

I attended daily Greenfield Peace Lutheran School at 7000 West Outer Drive for 13 years.

And then attended daily Detroit Lutheran High School West at 8181 Greenfield for four more.

And then attended frequently Western Michigan University for six years while spending much time doing much math and geology at Rood Hall...

While living in Eicher Hall,

French Hall,

In a duplex off-campus on Vine Street, near Westnedge,

In the Knollwood Apartments,

In an apartment on Nichols Road with a fireplace and balcony off the kitchen (which I could not find a picture of - doesn't look like it still exists...),

and then in some apartments on Greenwood.

Briefly with my folks in Westland,

then rented in Brighton

then got married and lived in Lakeland, MI!

We bought a home in Canadian Lakes.

Then moved to Allen Park and finally to beautiful Whitmore Lake, Michigan!

Saturday was the U-M - MSU game...

Go Green, all smiles

Family

Joslin Mia (Minnie) with her little brother Liam Jason (Monster) on Halloween evening, Francis E Warren Air Force Base, Cheyenne, WY

What to do with those boneless pork chops...

My wife is increasingly enamoured with crock pot meals: we can throw everything in one container in the morning, go to work, and come home to a house smelling more like a restaurant and less like Otis's litter box.

Otis the Quat lounging

She made an early morning Kroger run to-day and came home with center cut boneless pork chops and five pounds of potatoes and asked what I could do with that. 'Well, dear', I retorted, 'Lemme come up with something...'.
So I did; and here it is.

4 medium Russet potatoes rough chopped
1 medium red onion
3 ribs celery chopped
3 carrots chopped
1 green pepper chopped

1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
2 tbs dijon mustard
1 cup catsup
3 cloves garlic minced
2 tbs cider vinegar
2 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1 tbs dark brown sugar
1tsp ground black pepper
fresh basil and sage from the garden
a pinch of garlic powder

Start with the sauce on the stovetop - combine catsup, mustard, garlic, vinegar, Worcestershire, sugar and pepper in a small pot and bring to a gentle boil. Set aside.

Into the crock pot put the potatoes and season them. Lay the pork over the potatoes and then pour in the sauce. Add the herbs, the other chopped vegetables, then the tomatoes.
Cover, cook on LOW for 8 hours, then enjoy.

White Bean and Chicken Chili

We made three batches of this (with slight variations, of course) this past weekend and thoroughly enjoyed ours both the first day and the second day. We did it in the crock pot on high for about six hours and also on the stove top letting it simmer for about an hour with everything in it.

2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast
2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 medium white onion diced
4-5 cloves of garlic diced
1 green pepper diced
2-3 celery ribs diced
1 big jar of Great Northern Beans, divided, drained, and rinsed
1 can of white corn, drained
1 can of diced tomatoes, drained
2 cups chicken broth or stock
1 cup of sour cream
Chili seasoning: ground black pepper, ground cumin, oregano, chili powder, garlic powder, paprika, dried parsley, dried basil



Oil up your favorite pan and soften the garlic, onion, green pepper, and celery 4-5 minutes. Dice up the chicken and add to pan, stirring frequently, until cooked through.


Add beans, corn, broth, sour cream, and seasoning and bring to a boil. Then simmer for an hour or so.

OR

Add all items to crock pot and cook on high for 5-6 hours.

To thicken the sauce, puree half of the beans and add back to pot.

Thanks to Dashing Dish for the idea and original recipe http://dashingdish.com/recipe/crockpot-white-bean-chicken-chili/

Morning Prayer

Our Father,

To You we commit this day; guide us that we may always, always love. 
We lay at the cross and deliver to You any self-ishness and insecurities we may be holding on to.
We go in Your Grace, Your Name, and Your Love; to serve as Christ served.
Grant this, LORD, unto us all.

Amen
 

A Prayer for To-day

O Lord my God,
I believe in you,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit...
Insofar as I can,
Insofar as you have given me the power,
I have sought you.
I became weary and I labored.
O Lord my God,
My sole hope,
Help me to believe
And never to cease seeking you.
Grant that I may always and ardently
Seek out your countenance.
Give me the strength to seek you,
For you help me to find you
And you have more and more given me
The hope of finding you.
Here I am before you
With my firmness and my infirmity.
Preserve the first and heal the second.
Here I am before you
With my strength and my ignorance.
Where you have opened the door to me,
Open to my cry;
Enable me to remember you,
To understand you
And to love you.
Amen.

Prayer by St. Augustine of Hippo, 354-450

...thoughts...

Thursday the 24th of October

Heavy frost on the vehicles these last two nights, but still we enjoy the full range of autumn color in the trees.
Boston smoked St. Louis last night in the first game of the World Series 8-1. Lester went 7 and two thirds giving up five hits and a walk, and struck out eight Cardinal hitters. Brilliant.
My beloved is packing flower bulbs in a garage in Ann Arbor to be sent with love to people all over the world.
I think I would like pizza tonight.

Recipe #37

Crock Pot Shepherd's Pie

We ate this for three days and each day a different aspect of flavor jumped out at me. I like my mashed potatoes chunky, and the chunks really add texture to this comfort dish.

Extra virgin olive oil

1 lb ground meat (turkey, beef, lamb, chicken, ….)

1 medium onion diced

2 cloves garlic minced

1 12 oz bag of frozen vegetables (peas, corn, carrots, …)

2 ribs celery chopped

4 medium Russet potatoes

4 cloves garlic halved

Salt and pepper

½ cup milk

¼ cup butter

1 tablespoon ketchup

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon dried

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 teaspoon paprika

Boil potatoes with chunked garlic and salt til soft with fork. Mash and add milk, butter and pepper to taste. I also use sour cream, or cream cheese if I’m in the mood. Let these rest.

In your favourite fry pan, start with a turn of olive oil and soften the onion and garlic. Add the ground meat and cook til almost done. Stir in catsup, Worcestershire, thyme, and a pinch of black pepper.

Meanwhile in a small bowl, whisk cornstarch with 1 cup water. Add to skillet and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes.

In crock pot of slow cooker, layer meat mixture from pan, then vegetables, then potatoes; top with a pinch of paprika.

Cook on low for 3-4 hours.

Thanks to www.allyou.com at

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/slow-cooker-shepherds-pie-10000001892145/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIFHnPJjKFw

This is DC Talk; good lyrics, love the harmonies

I'm setting the stage for the things I love
And I'm now the man I once couldn't be
Nothing on earth could now ever move me
I now have the will and the strength a man needs

(chorus)
It's my will, and I'm not moving
Cause if it's Your will, then nothing can shake me
It's my will, to bow and praise You
I now have the will to praise my God

Complexity haunts me for I am two men
Entrenched in a battle that I'll never win
My discipline fails me, my knowledge it fools me
But You are my shelter, all the strength that I need

(repeat chorus)

I'm learning to give up the rights to myself
The bits and the pieces I've gathered as wealth
Could never compare to the joy that You bring me
The peace that You show me is the strength that I need

(repeat chorus)

(bridge)
We've got to be children of peace
Don't you know we've got to be children of peace

#10Commandments

I was reminded by a brother to-day that it might be time to show honor to my parents... with a note or phone call or something. I put this in the mail to-day:

 

17 October 2013

Dear Mom and Dad,

I just wanted to thank you for a few things that I probably have taken for granted over the years; things that are a part of me, because I am a part of you two.

So here’s my list – thank you for introducing me to

Jesus

Handel’s Messiah

The Lutheran Liturgy

Sports

Jarts

Meat and potato dinners

Recreation

Lake Michigan

Tiger Stadium

Hasbro Rose Bowl Computerized Football

 ‘Catch’

Via de Cristo

…

May the LORD bless you and keep you, may His face continue to shine on you and be gracious to you, may His countenance ever be upon you, and give you peace.

Ex animo,

David