It is not very fruitful for this post to have an external link, yet that is the most convenient way to recommend music.
Anyway, go listen to the 90-minute album from Psallos titled 'Hebrews' with the best sound equipment you possess. It is meant to be experienced entirely, but I highly encourage you to reserve time for it.
Bonus nerd points if you open your Bible and follow along
If we had taken a genetic test when my wife was pregnant with him, it would have shown he had an ultra rare chromosomal abnormality. One that could cause failure-to-thrive, growth problems. He might never talk, never walk, never leave home. It’s impossible to tell how it’ll affect him
His first night alive his heart stopped and his oxygen levels dropped. They told us he essentially died. We bought an oxygen monitor to go home with.
At the time we didn’t know he had any other issues. We wouldn’t know for nearly a year and a half.
When we did it took a while for it to set in that all the dreams and hopes we had for him were dead.
But he, he was alive. He was with us. He is still our wonderful boy, just now with extra struggles.
His immune system struggles more than the rest. At 6yrs old he’s the size of a 3yr old. He didn’t walk until he was 3-4. He’s only semi-verbal and still not potty trained. We’ve had him in every form of therapy available. Even a routine dental procedure requires anesthesia which local dentists won’t do due to his condition.
Those are his struggles. They’re real. They’re difficult.
If we’d done the testing back then, the doctor would likely have offered killing him in utero as the solution to his and our “problems.”
But his life doesn’t begin or end with his problems and struggles.
It begins with his life. His incredible, God-given life. His beautiful smile, his bubbling laugh, the way his crimson curls bounce as he runs around the yard after his little sister or his brother. It’s in his love for his siblings, and their love for him. It’s in his kind heart and thoughtfulness and desire to help with anything he can, even if it means he puts dishes in the trash by accident.
He’s my little buddy, follows me around like a shadow and his favorite thing is to snuggle up with me when I’m sitting on the couch playing a game.
He isn’t a burden on our lives. He’s not an inconvenience. He’s a blessing who enriches every single part of all of our lives
Every day I’m beyond grateful that God gave me my little boy.
The world shall tell you that mankind is utterly alone in this universe.
They will also speak of extra-terrestrial life as possible, but likely hostile to us.
Speaking doubly, it seems true but rings false.
There is Heaven, and there is Earth. Both are populated.
Your daily life has always been observed by both loving and despising eyes, seeking to influence your thoughts.
We have never been alone.
@MichaelFKane@ryanpatrickauth Pre-2015 Sanderson was fun and enjoyable.
Post-2015 was a slog through lore and lacking deep meaning and appeasement to the masses.
He had a lot of promise with the idea of the Cosmere as a connected universe, but it seems like he's lost his way. Much like Kaladin possibly
@maximumleader Avoid the unhealthy canola oil or whatever they put in it in the shelf stable bottles. Mix together greek yoghurt and sour cream with some buttermilk, then add in a ranch seasoning packet. Tastes way better anyway
The tower of Babel was also coated with pitch, but it's a different word - Hemar.
They sought atonement on their own terms, and many scholars believe this was an attempt to make it waterproof in case God flooded the earth again. Ironically, God promised he wouldn't and they disbelieved his word.
In the 1st Century AD, it was common practice to leave undesired infants in the market square, called the Agora.
Babies would either starve or be taken by slavers.
The Apostle Paul in Galatians 4 says that Christ came to Redeem us.
The Greek word is Ex-Agoradzo, lit Out of the Market.
We who were cast off and spurned, were redeemed by the Son and have been adopted ourselves into sonship.
Not slavery.
Not death.
We are in the family.
Thus, Christians began orphanages, taking in the undesired, and showing them the same love they have received.
For you who have sought to be rid of the undesirable ones in your life, remember that the God of the Cosmos does not want you to be left exposed in the Agora.
For you who have been Ex-Agoradzo already, remember that it is the kindness of God that leads to repentance. The world shall know you by your Love.
My dinner tonight
Homemade burger and fries.
Homemade buns from scratch.
Made my own olive oil mayo.
Homemade(ish) curry ketchup.
Way better than fast food, and cheaper.