SelahV Today

IF YOU LIKE ME...OR NOT

...I knew you'd enjoy seeing these precious little girls.  My eldest granddaughter, Bethany, spent a half-hour on her little sisters' hair, then got them all gussied up and took them to the meadow at my daughter's house.  She took their pictures, made a Father's Day card and album for dad.  And she gave me a framed photo of the sweethearts.  I played with the photos today and added some captions, so I could add them to my journal.  Just thought I'd give ya some ideas on what to do with your photos.  Enjoy....

  

AIN'T WE SWEET?

HAPPY MONDAY!

TIME FOR A TEAPARTY!  

God is sooo very good to me!  selahV 

CAUTION...THIS MAY SOUND A BIT HUBRIS ON MY PART

Oh for the love of moose bile!

Charlie Gibson now stands as the man of the hour.  He scooped the first sit-down interview with Gov. Sarah Palin.  Liberal and Conservative commentators sat glued to the screen to see how Palin would perform.  And what does he do with it?

He began by insulting her.  He actually had the gall to presume upon Sarah Palin's integrity.  Yeah, folks.  That's right!   Make no mistake.  He didn't question her qualifications, nor her experience in being the next Vice-President of the United States when he told her to look the country in the eye and then pointed to the camera over his shoulder.  He questioned the audacity of her to even consider she was fit for the job.  He presumed to know that she had to have questioned her own fitness.  When she answered him, it wasn't good enough. He didn't accept her answer.  He gave new definition to the phrase "drill baby drill".  With incredulous presumption, he probed her and went so far as to question her own words.  I wonder why he didn't pull out a Bible and ask her to swear that what she was about to say was the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help her God.  Maybe Charlie should have used a lie-detector machine.

His demeanor was contemptible, his questions prosecutorial, and body language was beyond hubris.  By the way, "hubris" is defined as "exaggerated pride or self-confidence."  What a stupid question, Charlie!  Basically Charlie asked the Republican Vice-Presidential nominee if accepting this position wasn't arrogant on her part.  Uh, did Charlie ask John McCain if he might have had a senior moment when he made his pick?  For Charlie to assume Palin had exaggerated pride and confidence, by default, he had to assume McCain had no judgment in the matter.  At the risk of being "hubris", I ask you, "Am I the only one in the free world who sees this?"

Did Charlie ask Obama if he was hubris in announcing he was running for President of the United States when he'd never once held an executive position requiring a budget of millions, let alone billions? 

Did he ask John McCain if he was hubris in this interview in assuming he had a chance of winning the nomination when all looked bleak?

Has Charlie asked that of any person in this campaign?  Has he told anyone else to "look the country in the eye" and then when they answer him, he accuses them of having "exaggerated pride and confidence"?

Hey Charlie, do me a favor.  Spare me your mind-reading sessions.  They seem a bit hubris to me.  selahV

[© SelahV Today, hariette petersen, 2008]

 

    

WHERE I DRAW THE LINE WITH WORKING WOMEN SUCH AS...

MY FRIEND FREDDIE. 

She is one of those working women who makes all women long for a tenth of her energy and enthusiasm.  Nothing ever slows her down.  She's a marvelous cook.  Fabulous homemaker.  Great mom, loving grandmother and devoted wife.  She is a community organizer's dream volunteer.  She's a servant--in the world, and in her church.  She visits the sick, comforts the grieving, gives to the poor and is bold in witnessing.  She is an example of superwoman that few can equal.  In fact, when the Holy Spirit was doling out gifts, I do believe He lingered quite awhile over Freddie and decided to give her a chunk of many.

HOWEVER...

while I might follow her lead in many areas, and long to have a large portion of her drive and tenacity, there's some places where I must draw the line.  When Freddie decided she wanted to do this to celebrate her 60th birthday, I said, "No way, no how, no SelahV."   

FEMININE PERSUASION, THE QUANDRY OF IT ALL

Betwixt and between.  This side or that.  Inside or outside.  Over or under.  One way or no way.  My view or their view.  From pantsuits to dresses, from working or not, from assertiveness to shrillness, from confidence to arrogance.  Women struggle with it all.

I am all but certain that men do not struggle with anything quite like women.  Often I think we struggle just as much with other women as we struggle with our own consciences.

There's been so many women against women since I've been alive, I've wondered where did it all begin?  When did the worldview that condemns and impugns us, lauds and applauds us, ever withstand the barrage of scrutiny that we, individually, have impaled upon ourselves?  Will we ever have the answer to what makes us tick?  Where we belong?  To whom we're accountable?  To whom we are not?

I have hundreds more readers than I do commenters.  In fact, some of the readers who do not comment, send me their thoughts by email instead.  Just this week I received an email that I've decided to share:

"Dear SelahV,

Queen Esther comes to my mind today.  I know some think we are taking it out of context, but I don't think so.  I think Sarah Palin's nomination is one of those situations where God takes us so far out of our comfort zones we balk....we think this can't be God's will because it goes against what we believe.  I've struggled with this kind of situation for years now and had finally come to the conclusion that I can't say what's God's will for me, as a wife and mom, is God's will for you, or even that I'm always in God's will, ya know.....I want to be, but I know I still have my struggles with what I think God wants me to do.

I have learned (I hope) that I can't take the credit for what God does in me and through me.  How He wants to use me is up to Him.....how He will be glorified in it, is up to Him, not me.  Even if people think I'm messing up big-time, yet I know what God has told me to do....He'll work that out....I don't need to try and explain, defend, convince, or show others why He wants me to do what He wants me to do, OR that they need to do it too.    SO, I don't know what God is doing with Sarah Palin or why, but just because it goes against what I believe (in general), I can't say it's wrong.....that she's out of God's will or that she hasn't sought His will.  I'm really hoping that's not liberal thinking.  I still don't believe in women pastors...I think the bible clearly teaches against that."

My commenter's email seems to echo the hearts of many Christian women today.  None of us want to be outside of God's will.  We all seek to adhere to His Word.  We all want to make a difference in our world as He so leads us.  We know we do not have all the answers.  And we know we often make mistakes when we try to dictate what is right for others according to our own understanding of ourselves and our relationship with Christ.  As we walk this journey of faith with our Lord, may we continue to find the continuity of His presence and the oneness we have with each other provided by His grace and sacrifice to us all.  And may we discern His Word and stand on the principles He sets before us.  selahV

WHAT I DO NOT KNOW OR UNDERSTAND, I....

[© SelahV Today, hariette petersen, 2008]     

PALIN'S PROMISES AND WHAT SOME THINK IS TRIVIAL

I learned a long time ago not to make a promise I couldn't or wouldn't keep.  Last night I heard something in Palin's much debated speech.  I heard something that perhaps her critics didn't hear.  In case you missed it, let me repeat it:

To parents of special-needs children, Gov. Sarah Palin promised that if she and John McCain win the White House, that these parents would have an advocate in the Washington.

Another thing Gov. Palin said was that she would be praying for all the troops because as a mother who will soon have a son going to Iraq, she understood that need to pray for them.

Now, some folks might think that these are tiny things.  Trivial, in fact.  But to other folks they mean something.  Something special:

I went to lunch today with my friend, Barb.  As we were standing in line waiting to give our order, the line was a buzz with Palin conversation.  The lady in front of us asked her friend if she'd heard Palin's speech last night.  Her friend replied that she had not.  Immediately she told her how great Palin was.  Then she said, "did you know she has a Downs child?  She had him with her.  And she said she would be an advocate in Washington for parents with special needs children."  Her friend was immediately impressed and obviously touched because she knew someone with a Down's child.  So this was not so trivial to these two ladies.

37 MILLION-plus people tuned in for Sarah Palin's speech.  I wonder how many of those people know someone who knows someone who has a special needs child?  I wonder how many of those people think this is a trivial matter?  I wonder how many of the 37 million people who watched last night heard her say how proud she was of her son and that she was going to be praying every night for him and other troops in our military?  I wonder how trivial that is to them? 

I wonder if it matters to them that someone else wrote part of the rest of what she said.  I sure don't.  selahV

[© SelahV Today, hariette petersen, 2008]

   

RAH RAH, SARAH PALIN!!

I feel such a kindred spirit to this lady.

Having undergone the scrutiny of so many people as a minister's wife for nearly 23 years, I empathize.  I know firsthand what it means to have your children's lives dissected, placed under a microscope, judged higher than any other's children.  I know what it feels like to have their mistakes gossiped about, their apparel criticized, their spirituality questioned.  I know how it feels to uproot your children from all that is familiar--their friends, their family, their home.  I know what it means to have to explain that doing what we believe in is going to cost us financially because we do not make a third of what we did before their daddy went into the ministry.

HOWEVER, would I have resisted the call on my life as a wife to a minister because I had to go into the work force to help put food on my table and dress my family?  Would I have turned away from ministry because I had to help provide medical care for my family?  No.

And trust me, I was accused of making my husband do things he didn't want to do.  I was accused of writing his sermons even though I never even knew what passage from which he was going to preach each Sunday.  I was accused of making all the decisions within our family because I was not the sober, quiet wife I should have been.  (blabber mouth, I actually thought folks wanted to know what I thought when they asked me.)  I'm so stinking opinionated, I argue with myself over my opinions far more than anyone else does.

In fact, I can't even believe myself that I would vote for a woman on the ticket of what I consider the most important election of my adult life.  I will set aside my own convictions because I believe there is no other choice.  And I also will vote this way because I agree that Sarah Palin will compliment John McCain's desire to shake up the establishment in Washington while standing for the principles in which I hold most dear:   Protection of our country. Protection of the liberty and democracy for everyone in the world. Protection of the unborn. Protection against our own government intruding upon the decisions I make and the choices I have.  Protection of the religious freedom I exercise.

I have more reasons.  And I will give them later.  But I like to keep my posts short.  So you'll just have to wait.  That is, if you are interested at all.  selahV

[© SelahV Today, hariette petersen, 2008]

MUZZLE IT!  KNOW WHEN AND HOW TO SPEAK...

SARAH PALIN, WHAT ELSE DON'T WE KNOW?

Just when folks, and talking heads begin point by point reasons for the ludicrousy of McCain's Veep pick, I discover this super/mom/lady also Homeschools (as reported by Michael Bates).  Can this be true?  Are we going to learn next she grows her own food, cans her own green beans and lives within her means on a household budget and follows Dave Ramsey's financial advice?  The more I hear about this lady, the more I like her and the smarter I think John McCain is for choosing her.   It's her experience with things that count to me and people I know that make me like her more and more.

I envision dialogs about vouchers, better choices afforded to stay-at-home moms as well as working moms.  I envision greater spotlight on drilling for oil in Alaska and allowing states to decide for themselves what they do with their land.  I envision discussions on better energy policies that help us get off the dependence of foreign lands.  I see a lady who can speak up to the Speaker of the House and let her know that American's are not satisfied with the worst legislative body since Pelosi was honored to serve her party as Majority Whip.  I am excited.  Yeah, buddy.  selahV   

CANVAS, PAINT AND SOUL

She wanted to paint.  I set up the paints, the canvas, and gathered the brushes.  But HayJae wasn't satisfied.  "You paint, too, Grama."  So I did.  And this is the result.

I am not an artist.  I play with paint.  Phyllis Franklin paints.  From her heart flows the peace and contentment of God's place in her life.  Sometimes she is not satisfied with what she feels inside.  But onlookers who wander onto her blog landscape can clearly view the inner sanctum of her soul if they choose to take the time it takes to have a cup of tea. 

Take a moment and think about what picture we would see if we were to look inside your heart today.  selahV   

I MAKE A LOUSY FEMINIST...

I hated working outside the home.  Literally hated it.  In all the positions I've ever held, (mostly in sales or sales management or marketing), I always had particulars in the jobs that I didn't like.  I never really aspired to be a manager or hold a big-deal position.  Just always kinda happened.  Never felt like I was looked down upon because I was a woman (only because I was a Christian).  In fact, the only people who seemed to treat me meanly were other women who worked and wanted my job.  Then there were the women who worked and were mad at me because I didn't work.  (Talk about feminism at its worst.  So much for a woman's right to choose.)  [FOR MORE...}

FEMININE MATTERS~~TO DRINK OR NOT TO DRINK

DO I REALLY HAVE TO?  I suppose I do.  For so long I've been an avid opponent to imbibing but I am such a coffee hound that I never had much use for any other beverage.  Some will pray I'm reduced to nothing when I over indulge but many will join me, so misery will join misery in a song of sorts as we drown our sorrows each day.  While others drink in moderation, I'm afraid if I want to prove a point, I'm forced to drink till my kidneys meet my eyeballs.  [FOR MORE...}    

WOMEN! WE'RE SO PREDICTABLE

  OR ARE WE?  Is that a fair statement?  Woman are predictable?

My husband told me the reason he loves me so much is because I'm unpredictable.  Go figure.  But truly, although men can't figure us out, they think they can lump us in a bunch and say we act the way we act and think the way we think because, well--we're women!  Are we being profiled?

As I've already posted, I will be writing a devotional over at sbcImpact on a daily basis under the subtitle Daily Impact and launched on September 1st.  I already posted a little intro to see what interest might be sparked by the plan running around in my heart and mind as to the format, the voice and slant of my new Baby.

I say Baby, because it is brand new.  It shall have--to my understanding--no other participants contributing to the posts.  Just me.  So what's up?

A couple of commenters, and I admit they are a bit biased toward me, have noticed what they view to be a hand on a Bible that, in their opinion, looks like a man's.  Since I wasnt' there to take the photo and to my knowledge no one else was in the mix of conversation, I'd have to agree that the hand does look more like a young man's hand than a 59 year-old woman's.  That said, I have to laugh.

My very first blog about what I hope to create with the site is greeted with a discussion thread dividing over gender issues.  It's hilarious!  I am also, to date, the only female on the collaborative blog and I think that is daringly fun.  I rather like being a mother hen and for most of the contributors--if not all--I am their elder.  RESPECT.  I might finally get some.  I may even let the grey grow out in my hair.  No more Clairol #44 for me!  Who knows?

Well, my dear readers--and you know how nice I am to you over here--would you take a minute and drop by Daily Impact and cast your vote on the issue.  Men are welcome--in fact, I encourage you to help me in this search for truth and journalistic integrity.  selahV

MODERN DAY WIFE~~ NEED SHE BE VIRTUOUS?

"Who can find a virtuous wife?

For her worth is FAR above rubies."  Proverbs 31:10

FAR ABOVE rubies.  The value of a virtuous wife.  It's amazing how brilliant a virtuous wife is according to Proverbs 31.  She's competent, diligent, hardworking, intelligent.  She's a multi-tasked, multi-talented person.  She is courageous, wise and honorable.  She's a business woman, a cook, a seamstress.  She shows hospitality and compassion.  AND...

"Her children rise up to call her blessed; her husband also, he praises her." {28

In the instant-pudding, microwave, fast-food culture we live in today, we have all but forgotten the worth of a Biblical virtuous woman.  Is she an illusion?   

In today's society we are raising girls to look for careers outside the home.  We are teaching them to seek the most high-paying jobs.  We are teaching them the main priority is financial success, and career satisfaction.  We are instilling in them ideas that they can do anything they want and anything a man can do.  I wonder if we are neglecting to teach them the value of being a virtuous woman--a God-created woman who helps her husband and nurtures her children. 

Have we passed the threshold of no return as we leave childrearing to daycares and school systems?  Have generations of working women, and also divorce--necessitating women to work--abolished virtuous homemaking skills?

Have fast-food restuarants and supper-on-the-run replaced the need for family dinners around the table? Has this destroyed the conversation and communication lacking in homes today?  Most women are too tired to come home and cook a meal--after all, there's the laundry to do, bills to pay, and often presentations to create for work the next day.  Therefore, mothers do not have time to teach their daughters how to cook, sew, or budget a paycheck.  They leave for college with no idea how to sew on a button or wash their clothes.

Often, a young women fantasizes a marriage and homelife that mom and dad never delivered.  She vows her life will be different, her marriage will not be like mom's.  She longs for what she'd been created to have in all its fullness and is shaken when life doesn't measure up to the fantasy of family-centered life.  Have we failed her?

If a virtuous woman was worth far above rubies in Solomon's day, wouldn't she be of far greater value today?

JUST WONDERING....WHAT CHARACTERISTICS DEFINE A MODERN-DAY VIRTUOUS WIFE? selahV

[copyrighted, SelahV Today, 2007]