Author: Wick

Husband, Father, Pastor, Missionary, Writer, Poet, Friend, reader, coffee enthusiast, hockey Wing-Nut, musical participator, etc...
Posted in Different Scriptures

Family Prayers..

Posted on by Wick

In a time of prayer a while back, I was struck once again by how similar my prayers are for my family, my local church family, and the family of God.  Motivated both by a desire to connect with these prayers, and admittedly a desire to create something…I came up with a long list of passages from scripture that captured such prayers.  Obviously, I couldn’t use all of them in one fell swoop.  But here are some that made the cut:

Deuteronomy 6:2-4
Zephaniah 3:17
Matthew 22:37-39
Mark 10:15
Luke 14:13
Luke 22:19
2 Corinthians 5:17
1 John 4:16
Revelation 21:5

I began by writing out some of the prayers with finger-painting, and then covered the canvas by hand…with the word “Love” through the image.  While that dried, I wrote out the scriptures, and tried to see what words or phrases would capture them well, to fit on one canvas.  Finally, I attempted to fit those phrases, with my horrible penmanship…onto the painting.

I enjoyed it.  I think I might even hang it somewheres.
Posted in Different Moments

Tummies & Jail

Posted on by Wick

Last fall, I was at the breakfast table with my girls before church.  Sarah had made some homemade apple muffins that morning, and they were just about ready to eat.  Just then, Addie dramatically put her hand on her side/belly, and said, “My tummy hurts…”  To which Sarah and I, not really worried but wanting her to know we love her…asked her why her tummy hurt, and if she was just hungry for breakfast.  But before Addie could reply, a voice came from across the table…Sophie wasn’t waiting to hear anything:

“Dear God, please help Addie’s tummy to feel better. Aaaaa-Mennn!!  (then turning to Addie)  Now your tummy don’t hurt anymore!!”

Which would be the cutest event that week, until Childrens’ Church.  I went with Addie, because as a 4 year old, she still wasn’t quite comfortable being left alone in a new class of older kids.  So we sat/listened together.  They talked about Jesus “paying the price” for our sin, and enacted a scene to illustrate.  Each child stood before the “Judge” (a nice older lady, who couldn’t help but smile as she pretended) and read a card handed to them.  The card told them what they were guilty of (bad words, stealing, etc.), and the judge told them how much they owed.  No one could pay, so all had to head to the “Jail” (row of chairs), from which Jesus rescued them all later on.

Addie and I were last.  I didn’t know how she’d respond, but figured it was good to find out anyway.  We walked up to the judge and were handed our card.  “Lying to your parents” was our offense.  I looked at Addie with a wink to let her know we were just pretending and said, “Uh oh Addie, we lied to our parents.”

It didn’t take long for the fun smile to leave her face and her eyes to get larger.  But instead of the tears I thought may come from such an accusation, she didn’t miss a beat before defending herself: “No I didn’t, dad, it was Sophie!!”

Needless to say, me and the judge were cracking up. 🙂

I love my girls. 🙂

Posted in Different Learning

Evil Flute

Posted on by Wick

Just an important announcement I felt I should make.  To anyone who is thinking to themselves “I love music.  I want my child to develop musical abilities.  I want my kids to grow up being able to express themselves making creatively audible noises.  I remember playing the recorder when I was young, and I want my little girl/boy, even at age 3, to begin enjoying such an experience.”

If you’ve had any of these thoughts, you may have looked at the Little First Act Discovery – My First Recorder.  Click the link.  See how cute the kid looks?  See how happy he is to be able to create music?  See the list of amazingly simple tunes your child will be able to perform before family and friends, proving once and for all that your kid is the cutest thing since sliced bread (the cute kind).

It’s a lie.

That kid was totally faking it.  He wasn’t happy.  Or at least, his parents weren’t.

Granted, the recorder definitely makes noise.  But even from a trained recorder playing professional (I played 2 years all-pro in my elementary days.), the notes available don’t allow for much of any actual music to be played.  I did learn that by covering the bottom hole, you can play notes a little more agreeable to the human ear, but still off by quite a bit from anything you could piece together into a song.

Giving this recorder to your child will do nothing but encourage bad pitch recognition, make your ear drums want to pack their bags, and teach your future musician that Mary Had a Little Lamb is best played with sharps and flats that aren’t anywhere near the Barney song they’ve heard before.

And you will want to break it.  But your kid may give you the fake “this musical instrument fulfills something within me” smile similar to the child in the link above.  Don’t buy it.  I have yet to gather the emotional strength it takes to shatter the thing….but when I do….I will rest easier.

That is why I’m warning you, before you make the purchase.  Or open the present from a loving relative.  Quick…exchange it for something else before it’s too late!!!