We have recently been doing some renovations to our barn in preparation for a future acquisition.  Elizabeth has been doing a lot of work out there, including a very large amount of cleanup.  Here she and Evelyn are making some new shelves.

The barn did not have any windows on the first floor at this side, so the next project was to install two of the windows that had been removed from the house when we made our extension.  They don’t look much like barn windows, but they work to let in the light and air!

Once we had strengthened the walls on three sides, we had to build a new fence to keep this creature from escaping.  Here are Nathanael and Elizabeth fastening the new wall to the floor.

Once the fence was complete, we had to paint the whole thing.  We had some difficulty opening one of the paint cans, which had remained shut for approximately the past twenty years.

And here is the finished product:

So, what do you think is going in here?  Shall I tell, or shall I keep it a secret until it arrives?  Maybe I should give you some hints.

Guess what animal will be here.

It is an animal that is commonly found in barns, but it is not a sheep or a goat.

It is reputed by some sources to be able to jump quite high, but it is neither a rabbit nor a locust.

Some have a golden-brown colour, and a few people have seen theirs swimming or wading, but it is not a goldfish

It is larger than a dog or cat, but it is not a deer, and it is not a giraffe.

Psalm 50:10 “For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.”

We enjoy taking vacations, but sometimes our vacations are a little different from most people’s.  A wonderful thing to do with a vacation is to spend time, not alone on the beach getting sunburnt, but with the people we want to know better, especially our family.  Most of our vacations are educational is some way.  Oh, and we often like to get some excercise in while we’re at it.  So, last Friday, Dad and the oldest ones and some friends went to the White Mountains of NH to do some hiking.  We did the Falling Waters Trail loop over Mounts Little Haystack, Lincoln and Lafayette – a total of 14.3 km (8.9 miles) with an elevation change of 3,900 ft.  The highest point in this trail is Mount Lafayette, with an elevation of 5,260 feet.

We started at the Old Bridle Path and Falling Waters trail head at 9:30.

Starting up the Falling Waters Trail, we discovered a simply beautiful path crisscrossed by cascading streams and rivulets.

More photos from the Falling Waters Trail: I guess they named it right!

“… Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come … for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water …”  — Isaiah 35:4-7

Beautiful scenery has a way of attracting …

Photographers!

After reaching the summit of Little Haystack and eating lunch, we continued along the Franconia Ridge.

We had a good time sharing together in spite of severe leg cramps part way around which hindered one member of our party from walking for quite some time.

Near the summit of Mount Lincoln, we found New Hampshire a new “Old Man of the Mountain”.

This Old Man seems a little younger than the old Old Man, and only works if you get the right angle.

Finally, we got down to the Greenleaf Hut, where we rested for a while and replenished our water.

This trip reminds me of the hymn translated and written by Stewart K. Hine, “How Great Thou Art”.

O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder
Consider all the works Thy hands have made.
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Refrain:
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee;
How great Thou art, how great Thou art!
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee:
How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

When through the woods and forest glades I wander
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;
When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur
And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze:

(Refrain)

And when I think that God, His Son not sparing,
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;
That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing,
He bled and died to take away my sin:

(Refrain)

When Christ shall come with shouts of acclamation
And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!
Then I shall bow in humble adoration,
And there proclaim, my God, how great Thou art!

Last Monday was beautiful weather, so we bicycled to a friend’s farm hoping we could “be helpful”.  After spending some time nailing floor mats to the barn floor, I got to join the haying crew with Mr. T.

It is such a blessing to work with a godly man.

As we were raking, we saw a coyote.

I think he was looking for mice or moles that couldn’t hide anymore in the tall grass.  

A hay wagon in the sunset.

Genesis 8:22: “While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.”

I am so grateful for all that my father has done for us through the years.  

A few weeks ago, I was asked to give a Father’s Day message at a nursing home.  Thanks to the research I did, I have become even more grateful for my father.  His godliness, leadership, training, and prayers have been a guide, an example, and a model to me.

After researching what were the Biblical duties of a father, I went through my outline a second time, this time researching how God fulfilled those duties.  Guess what?  He did it perfectly!

Here is the rough outline for my Father’s Day sermon, though I doubt anyone will actually read through the whole thing:

In addition to this message, each of us guys shared something that we appreciated about Daddy.  I am so blessed to have a father who, though not perfect, has fulfilled every one of the duties of a godly father.  Thank you, Daddy.

   For our 31st anniversary this year, we were blessed to be able to go camping in the White Mountains for a few days.  Thank you to all at home who “held the fort” and looked after younger ones while we were gone!

While there, we did a number of small hikes to some very pretty waterfalls.

   We also did two longer hikes, each 6-7 miles with 2500-2700 feet of vertical ascent.  The first was over two peaks (Mount Jackson and Mount Webster) and the other was a hike up Mount Eisenhower.  The trail up Mount Eisenhower was well maintained thanks to the work of a dedicated man, J. Rayner Edmands, who in the early 1900’s did much work to make the path pleasant to hike, so there was much less “scrambling” up boulders and steep spots than on many longer trails.

We are thankful that the Lord allowed us this special time together to enjoy His beautiful creation!

For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.  Isaiah 55:12

Good evening,

We have recently received some comments regarding an issue about the comments on the blog posts.  In certain circumstances, it is impossible to place a comment, and the blog just “hangs”.

I have reduced the issue down to an issue in the theme.  I am currently working on this issue, and will update this post as soon as everything is working again.  Thank you for your patience.

For those people who would still like to make a comment, there is a work-around currently available.  Click the name of the blog post (at the top of the post), and then add “?theme=Indigo” without quotes to the URL.  Example: to comment on this post, go to this URL: http://www.createdinchrist.com/Blog/post/A-comment-on-comments-not-commenting.aspx?theme=Indigo  The blog will look different, but it is the same blog.

Please note that the blog may have temporary outages or peculiar quircks as we attempt to resolve the issue.  I appologise for any inconvenience this has caused.

   This comes from a proud sister…

   Not long ago, David planted his first real estate sign!  The duplex has actually been listed for a little while now, however, for various reasons, he was not able to put up the sign until recently.  I was intrigued by the way these signs are actually put up. (Odd, isn’t it…  Why have I never noticed the methods of installation for the “For sale” signs in front of houses previously? )  In the first picture, David is hammering in the metal base for the sign.  Then he tied up the sign using plastic screws and nuts.  The reason for this, I learned, is that the plastic will not rust and leave stains on the sign the way metal ones would.

   So, if anyone is looking for a nice, well-maintained duplex in Magog, you now know who to ask!

Some members of our family have enjoyed bird watching for quite a few years, but it was only last year that we started keeping track of which birds we have seen.  Since then, and since we have had a bird feeder within sight of the windows, we have all enjoyed watching the many birds that have appeared around our house and trying to identify them.  It reminds me a little of the work Adam had to do in the garden of Eden – naming the animals.

Genesis 2:19-20  “And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.  And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; …”

Here are the common names for the birds we have identified and recorded so far this year.  The crows, chickadees, blue jays, mourning doves, woodpeckers and nuthatches stay here all year round.  The redpolls are the only ones that have gone north for the summer, some time around the beginning of May.  The bald eagle, the northern cardinal, the ring-billed gull and the common merganser were the only ones not seen at our house.

Here are a few pictures of some of the birds our family has seen in southern Quebec.

I also enjoy taking pictures of flowers.  They don’t move as fast as birds.  I can’t tell you how often I have tried to take bird pictures where the result was just an out-of-focus background.  That doesn’t normally happen with flowers.

Here are some flowers we sometimes forget to enjoy – flowers that grow on trees, such as maples or larches.

Genesis 1:20-22 “And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.  And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.  And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply…”

   It has been quite some time since we posted an update on the happenings around here. Though much has occurred, perhaps it is best simply to give a quick overview…

   We are yet in the season called “Still Winter” as can easily be seen in these pictures taken on the second of April. Though it is normal still to have snow this time of year, it is a little unusual to have this much. Yesterday, it was snowing on and off all day. This morning, Daddy received a birthday surprise of another dusting!

   The beautiful fresh snow was just perfect for sugaring off and the sap was flowing too. For our readers who have never experienced such an event, this is how it takes place. The sap is gathered from the trees and boiled past the syrup consistency, to “soft ball” on a candy thermometer. While it is getting to that temperature, pans (we use various bread pans and cake pans) are filled with packed, clean snow. When the syrup reaches the desired temperature, the rush commences. It must be poured onto the snow before it solidifies in the pot. As soon as it touches the cold snow, it begins to harden, so those who have been only onlookers up until now get to work rolling the “tire” onto popsickle sticks. Mmm… Here are just a couple pictures:

   The snow hasn’t been the only cause of excitement here.  Some sewing has been underway – making matching shirts and skirts for all our family! The last ones were finished last Friday. We are looking forward to wearing them together soon. A family photo would be a good idea too.

   Possibly one of the busiest locations in the house of late is the kitchen. Thursday, last week, we had a meal and time of fellowship with several wonderful families, bringing our “family size” up to 43! It was a wonderful time of getting together with like-minded followers of Christ. Of course, with a big crowd, there needs to be a lot of food and consequentially a lot of cooking – a favourite pasttime of our family. There is nothing like having all of us working together on a big project!

Evelyn did a fantastic job of arranging and decorating the tables.

It was a wonderful time of fellowship.

   Cooking isn’t the only thing that has happened in the kitchen either. Stephen has been studying chemistry and thought it would be interesting to try out some of the things he was learning. Electrolysis seemed a good place to start. And capturing the hydrogen produced proved even more interesting. The next step was inevitable… Someone suggested igniting the hydrogen. No, it didn’t blow up the kitchen! In fact, as those of you who know much about this will know, it made little more than a small “pop” and caused water droplets to condense on the inside of the “test tube” (aka flower stem keepers).

   That was a very brief update, touching only on the highlights, but perhaps it is better than nothing! It has been a busy few weeks – ones in which we have been pratising diligence. I am reminded of a verse that speaks of the most important area in which to manifest this quality. “Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: for so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” II Peter 1: 10-11

   Oh, just one more thing… When working in the kitchen, it is very important to cover all dishes of food, particularly cakes. I didn’t once and when I brought the cake out later in the day, it was covered in bugs! They weren’t just on the outside either – I counted 22 caterpillars between the layers!

   Late winter/early spring is the season we often get the most beautiful sunrises.  Being an early riser, I see this spectacular sight almost every morning, however, I never cease to revel in the intricate beauty of this simple phenomenon.  Thursday last week was no exception…
   I stood transfixed as the eastern horizon gradually paled, transitioning the night sky into day.  There was, however, one glitch – a shadow of clouds covered the fading, deep blue hue of the celestial expanse.  Would these “intruders” mar or disrupt the perfection of the light soon to appear?  Far from it!  On the contrary, the millions of suspended droplets enhanced the glory of the rising sun.  Catching the first rays of light, their grey was transformed into vibrant shades of pink, orange, and gold.  The scene was breathtaking!  Rather than detract from the beauty before my eyes, the clouds served to create greater glory.

   As I ponder this, I perceive immediately the simple analogy.  Our lives are not without clouds – disappointments, hurts, and sorrows that seem bound to hide the light of the “Son.”  However, this is not God’s design.  Those clouds which seem ominous by night and dreary by day, are to be transformed by the light of the Son rising within our hearts.  His light filtering through the veil of grey causes the sunrise to be all the more glorious – with a glory that could not be were it not for those clouds.
   When I consider the “clouds” that have been in my life, I marvel that it was through those things that were hard, the things I would not have chosen were the decision left to me, that God has changed me the most and brought blessing, not only into my life, but also into the lives of others.  May we stand in awe of His working!

   “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.  For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.” Isaiah 60:1-2