What is Lent?

 None of this is my writing. It was shared by my church- Redemption Hill on our website.

Not only is is fascinating to me, but it proves to me that this RH is our home. We have never been around a more genuine and forward thinking crowd. The Gospel is the life of so many in this church and we feel so blessed to be a part of it

Anyways!- Here is some information about Lent!


Lent is a period of 46 days (40 days not including Sundays) between Ash Wednesday  and Easter, originally a period of preparation for those to be baptized at Easter. It later became a time of penitence and self-examination for all Christians. Lent is a word that many people associate with deprivation, self-denial, and drudgery.  But this is far from it’s actual and intended meaning!

The word ‘Lent’ actually means Springtime!  Faithful Christians through the ages have always used the 40 days of Lent to restore vibrancy, life, passion, and vision in their walk with God.The tradition of Lent reflects the wisdom of our Christian ancestors who understood that we seemingly can’t help ourselves when it comes to accepting substitutes for God.   C.S. Lewis, in his famous sermon The Weight of Glory said it well:  “We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because we cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at sea.  Weare far too easily pleased.”

The forty days of Lent are meant to be symbolic of the forty days spent by Christ in the wilderness being tempted by Satan. By observing Lent, we follow Jesus into the wilderness, resist temptation,pray, and proceed “on the way” to Jerusalem and the cross of Good Friday. However, unlike Jesus, our Lenten journey is one of repentance, that is, changing directions from self, self-serving patterns anda myopic focus on our life, toward the others-focused way of life of following Jesus. On this journey, we follow Jesus in laying down ourselves for others and trust that the power that raised Jesus from the dead is enough to guide us in repentance and renewal. The intervention of God’s gracious Spirit makes life-long changes become possible. Turning from the old self and experiencing a dying of old ways prepares us to truly experience the joy of Easter.

The season of Lent our prayers have repentance astheir focus. First, we own our sin as it shows itself in the different aspects of our being, wrong thinking and attitudes, wrong affections and aspirations, wrong behaviors and actions. Second, we turn from our sin to Christ for forgiveness and strength to change and grow to be more like Him.

Lent is a sober reflection upon our condition, which leads us to faith and fresh trust in and leaning on the finished work of Christ.  The reflection on our sin, our brokenness and all the ways we are tied to and contribute to the brokenness in the world, should serve to increase our gratitude and wonder at the love of God.

For so many, Lent only carries connotations of fasting and self-denial. To be clear, there is a place and call for fasting— from food, from situations, from elements of our environment. However, as Thomas Chalmers reminds us in his sermon, The Expulsive Power of a New Affection, the rooting out of the sinful elements of the world is best accomplished by replacing that desire with something more powerful and desirable—the Gospel. Maturity is not just turning away from sin but rather it is the declaration of a dependance upon all that God is for you in Jesus...it’s the power of grace becoming a renewed affection for you.
You can never replace something with nothing. With that in mind, it is better to not be so caught up in the idea of giving things up for Lent as much as leaning into the disciplines of grace—prayer, fasting, acts of mercy, meditating on the Word of God, the sacraments and the communion of the saints.Thomas Chalmers also wrote: “In bygone days when God’s covenant people sought to strengthen their piety, to sharpen their effectual intercessions, and give passion to their supplications, they partook of the means of grace in all holiness with humble prayer and fasting. When intent upon seeking the Lord God’s guidance in difficult after-times, they partook of the means of grace in all holiness with humble prayer and fasting. When they were wont to express grief—whether over the consequences of their own sins or the sins of others—they partook of the means of grace in all holiness with humble prayer and fasting. When they sought deliverance or protection in times of trouble,they partook of the means of grace in all holiness with humble prayer and fasting. When they desired to express repentance, covenant renewal, and a return to the fold of faith, they partook of the means of grace in all holiness with humble prayer and fasting. Such is the call upon all who would name the name of Jesus. Such is the ordinary Christian life.”

The following outline for this period of prayer and reflection is intended to assist you as you along the way. It is not meant to be a new legalism. But let’s face it, we often need help in focusing on what is truly important and in laying aside distractions... and this guide is designed to provide that help. Use as much or as little of this as seems appropriate for you.
May this season be a “springtime of faith” for us all. Our Lord has written the promise of the resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in springtime.

—Martin Luther Our Lenten Rhythm: A New Twist on an Ancient Practice
This season let’s try something new...not for the sake of new or because the old way is broken. But in an effort to be more holistic and intentional, let’s strike an intentional rhythm to the steps of our journey to the cross.

This year our Lenten journey will look like:
Weekly Fasts
Each week, we’ll be fasting from a particular pleasure. Lent Sundays are “Feast” days when in celebration of the goodness Jesus brings, we break our fasts. Do each fast for the week and only for that week; or, consider letting them build on each other, so that by the end of Lent, you are doing all six weekly fasts at the same time.
Daily Readings & Prayers 
Our daily rythmn will be reading & reflection one day, prayer the next. On one day, you’ll read a passage of Scripture and reflect on a specific aspect of it. On the next day, you’ll use the Lord’s prayer as a guide to pray through what you’ve discovered about your heart the day before. For example, on Day 1 there is a reading on simplicity with questions designed to help you wrestle with what things end up ‘owning you’. On day 2, you would pray through the Lord’s Prayer with the intention of letting each petition shape and challenge what you discovered in your heart the day before.
Corporate Prayer/Feasting Days
On Lent Sunday,  feast days, we will all be using the Lord’s Prayer as a guide to pray for Redemption Hill. When possible, do this with members of the Redemption Hill community in connection with feasting in anticipation for the ‘great feast’ that is Easter.

As a way of being accountable: 
Share your intentions for Lent on The City, with your housemates/family, with your community group
or a friend.

As we observe Lent, here are some other helpful practices to put into
the rhythm of your daily life:
• Read through one of the Gospels between now and Easter.
• If you don’t already journal, begin now. Reflect on your readings,
  prayers and questions.
• Find a way to go to bed earlier, get enough rest and rise earlier.
• Make a list of people with whom you need to be reconciled. Pray for them
  and let Jesus guide you in your thinking and feeling toward them.
• List the priorities in your life at the beginning of Lent. Revisit at the end.

If you want to read any more or just check out an amazing church Check out Redemption Hill

Never too early for 3 Lakes Nature Park!

Since the weather is amazing, we've been spending a lot of time outside! Last Friday we decided to head to 3 Lakes Nature park for some fun!

I was sick so I slept in the car with Gabriel, while Daddy and Bastian played Soccer!

Cutest miss ever!

Finally Gman and I left the car for a walk on the deck to watch the ducks and turtles! Gman was amazed!

Bastian held tight to his hand for the entire walk to the deck!

Aren't my men handsome?

What's the deal with the crazy faces!

What a fun day! We love 3 Lakes! 

Peace,

Nikki

More of my goofy boys!

While trying to get some normal photos of my men, I got these! I do like some of them and I love that they both show lots of personality! 

Peace,

Nikki

ANGRY BIRDS!!

Angry Birds is a big deal around here! Everything becomes either an "angry bird" or a "pig"

When jumping on the couch or bed or trampoline Bastian loves to crash into pigs.

When in the bath he crashes his boats of angry birds into boats of pigs.

When drawing Bastian likes to draw pictures of pigs with collapsed houses.

And DOWN THEY GO!

To make the most out of this current obsession we decided to make actual towers out of our wood blocks and then trash them with Angry Birds! We pay attention to the height, shape and colors so that we can attempt to make it an intentional learning experience!

Bastian LOVES our new game!

Peace,

Nikki

Team Whitehead Recycling

Bas pushing Gman in the Paper Bin!

In an effort to educate Bastian about the importance of recycling and being a good steward, Tony and I have decided to make sure that we know what we are talking about! 


We've been recycling and composting for quite some time, but I couldn't tell you the real reasons. Other than the normal "It saves energy" or "it keeps it out of landfills"... I want to know how much energy we are talking about here and since paper breaks down relatively quickly is it actually better to recycle it, compost it, or toss it in the trash?

Gman's new favorite place to play is the recycle bin!

For anyone who is interested. 
Paper Facts:
 *Environmental Protection Agency claims that producing recycled paper requires 40 percent less energy than making paper from virgin wood. 
* Recycling paper instead of making it from new material generates 74 percent less air pollution and uses 50 percent less water
* Recycling 1 ton of paper saves 17 mature trees, 7,000 gallons of water, 3 cubic yards of landfill space, 2 barrels of oil, and 4,100 kilowatt-hours of electricity — enough energy to power the average American home for five months.
   So Score one for Paper Recycling!


Metal Facts:
* Recycling aluminum saves 95% of the energy needed to produce new aluminum from raw materials. Energy saved from recycling one ton of aluminum is equal to the amount of electricity the average home uses over 10 years
* Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to run a 100-watt bulb for 20 hours, a computer for 3 hours, or a TV for 2 hours
*Americans throw out enough iron and steel to supply all the nation’s automakers on a continuous basis
* The 36 billion aluminum cans landfilled last year had a scrap value of more than $600 million. (Some day we'll be mining our landfills for the resources we've buried.)
 Pretty Much a Good idea to recycle Metals as well!


Glass
* Glass never wears out -- it can be recycled forever. We save over a ton of resources for every ton of glass recycled -- 1,330 pounds of sand, 433 pounds of soda ash, 433 pounds of limestone, and 151 pounds of feldspar.
* *Americans throw away enough glass bottles and jars every two weeks to fill the 1.350-foot towers of the former World Trade Center.

*Most bottles and jars contain at least 25% recycled glass.

   Toss the glass in the recycle bin! (Unless you are like me and save every last bit of glass that you can get your hands on!)

Plastic

*Americans go through 25 billion plastic bottles every year.

* According to Dr. Mike Biddle, President of MBA Polymers, recycling plastics uses only roughly 10 percent of the energy that it takes to make a pound of plastic from virgin 

materials. 

  Much better than not recycling- but cutting down on plastics is best!

Styrofoam

* Un-recyclable. Stop using it!

Unfortunately as recycling technology increases, the number of items that are being recycled is not growing at the same rate. This is because consumers assume that by tossing that last water bottle in the recycle bin that they are at peace with the world and can snag another bottle out of the fridge. Recycling is not a 1:1 ratio... most of the time plastics are down-cycled and turned into something that can not be recycled. Many companies that use plastic packaging know this and use recycling to push consumerism. Why not, you can just recycle that old bottle anyhow!  This combined with the fact that 74% of plastics are NOT recycled at all, is creating a downward spiral of good intentions ending up in the garbage! 

The best alternative here is to reduce consumption overall. 

Alright, that last picture is unrelated... but I Like it!

Peace,

Nikki

Welcome to Whitehead Farm!

Phew!- Finally posting about Gman's birthday bash!
Not too shabby considering I've been posting things about 4 weeks after the fact!


Gabriel's Big Birthday Bash was awesome!

I  realized how much harder it is to throw an big party with 2 little ones, and that means that we will probably be scaling back on future parties. (I know, I am SO lame!) But I am realizing that other things need to be as exciting and important as planning a party and so as I struggle with my priorities, something has to give. And can you believe that it's a party?! Of all things!

Anyways- We had so much fun with our friends and we definitely had a full house!

Here's the run down on the festivities!

Theme- Whitehead Farm (we never really did decide if we were a cow, horse, pig.. farm so I guess it was just a Farmy farm)

Food- Pretzel Sticks for Hay, Chex Mixy Snack for Chicken Feed, Animal Crackers for... Animals

  We also had Mini Apple Pies and Apple Pie Pockets. Tony also made some rockstar Ice cream! and we had  No cake! 

Activities- Farm Animal Toss- Tonya and I made a barn out of foam core to toss farm animals through (I think 2-3 people played it) We also had a planting station where each child could plant either a pumpkin, a sunflower or corn in a small plant-able pot. (2-3 kids did this as well) We are just getting to the age of party games and fun... so I'm not real shocked that the activities didn't each have a mile long line. And I have a bunch of small plant-able seed starting pots for the garden this year! Woot!

Party Favors- Homemade Granola with a snazzy label!

Due to the time of the party (2-4pm) Gabriel was pretty tired toward the end of it and he actually fell asleep in my lap at about 3:30. So we did not open gifts with guests. :( We loved everything though and we just started our Thank You Cards- so they should be to you soon! 

Peace!

Nikki

Factor Tree for Free!

We recently found a website called Factor Tree- which is apparently a better way to teach kids math.

It is pretty neat site that makes math fun for the little ones!
Here is some info from the website.

A better way to learn math

Every student learns differently — shouldn’t your child be taught math in the way that works best for them? The team at The Factor Tree think so. Which is why their online supplementary math education platform adapts as your child learns, to ensure your pre-K to 6th-grader is always taught in the way that gets the best results.

What makes the Factor Tree so effective?

• Provides the practice and repetition needed for a child to truly master key math skills
• Use a skill-adaptive progression algorithm to pinpoint each child’s true skill level
• Provides parents with helpful reports, metrics and notifications to track their child’s progress
• Combines a state testing-compliant curriculum, world class educational theories and innovative technology to create a better learning tool

Visit thefactortree.com to learn more about its distinct approach to education and sign up for your free one-month trial.

Use the code "bzzagent" to get 2 weeks free!

It's neat enough to try for free- and see if you like it.