Creation Museum

Our God is AMAZING!!!! The vast hugeness of the galaxies are held in His hand, solar systems are like tiny stars dotting the sky, and He knows each by its own name. Billions and millions of stars and He knows each one, and yet He chose to create one small blue planet and put all the things that are most precious to Him on it. Of all the beautiful and awesome things, He choses us to love the most. And, get this, God wants us to love Him back. Our freewill to chose Him is important to Him! It’s just mind boggling to think of.

I wish I could find adjectives to better express my feelings when looking back on these last two days. I’ll have to do my best to relate the events.

We left at about six last night to make the 5 hour drive down to Petersburg, Kentucky. We had made a reservation at a lovely hotel to spend the night in. The room was great and we were almost sorry for not staying two nights.

Anyway, today we woke up to Karin exclaiming from her bed, “Coffee! Room service!” It was to be expected. Seeing as we were all coffee people we had to head directly down to the lobby for some of that delightful drink and a sustaining breakfast of physical and Spiritual food as we did morning devotions.

My expectations of the Creation Museum, I’ll confess, were low. I’ve seen a lot of museums in my life, most from big cities that attract many people. I expected to see here a couple of small exhibits with some bones, rocks, and the odd wax person here or there. Upon entering the building I would soon realize that there was a huge difference between my expectations and what was true. The main hall is decorated like a rocky forest. As the eyes climb the fake stone wall they are astonished to see a moving dinosaur! It growled and grumbled as it swung its long neck over us.

In the same room were some smaller dinos and kids next to a brook, these all moved robotically.

The skeleton is holding a Bible!!!

 

 

 

 

The first show we saw was a comical special effects show. It opened with a girl sitting by a campfire as she questions the creation of the world. To answer her questions, “Gabe” and “Mike” the angels appear to guide “Wendy” and the audience (us) toward truth by describing God, creation, and contradicting one of Wendy’s professors in a comical but interesting way. The show was enhanced by wind that blew when the angels flew by and water that splashed our faces during the “flood” part of the show!

After that we headed in the direction of the planetarium to see two shows. The seats reclined comfortably to give us a view of the ceiling which was transformed into a night sky view.  But rather than point out all the Greek history dealing with constellations as were most planetarium shows that I’ve seen, this one took us on an awe inspiring journey through the universe in a Biblical perspective. In the end I could only think of how God made all of this and still loves me and desires my heart! Praise be to God!

After that we went through the walkthrough portion of the museum. The walk started us out in a pretend Grand Canyon. The lesson here was about dinosaurs and paleontology. Then we walked into the beautiful land of Eden. Tall trees made a green roof above us, the ground was covered in every kind of beautiful flower and plant. Among the flora, animals were playing. There was all kinds of animals from the quiet lamb, to a ferocious lion, a goofy penguin, and a mean dinosaur all stood about the forest in peace. And, in the midst of the animals and plants was Adam. We walked further to see Adam standing with another being: Eve. Together they enjoyed the garden, swam in the pool, and walked with their God.

But then sin entered the world. The hallway we entered was black save for a single light which illuminated an evil beast. The serpent hung from a tree and appeared to be almost smiling at his treachery. You know what come next. Eve gave the forbidden fruit to her husband, and sin had come into the world.

Now Adam and Eve would have to sacrifice perfect lambs to atone for their sins.

We continued the walk to see how this one mistake had affected the entire earth forever. I felt like crying when I came into a dark alley way. The walls were plastered with depressing and terrifying news articles and graffiti. Garbage littered the ground and one could almost smell the filth. The obvious dirt of the alley way gave way to what looked like a pleasant neighborhood. This neighborhood was anything but pleasant, however. Drugs, gossip, and disrespect, the sins that seem to be small littered this place.

At some point we came to an impressive exhibit of Noah’s Ark.

And we met some of the famous characters of the Bible

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m sure it’s obvious to see that we had a great time, but we also learned a ton!

There was a guy walking around the Museum with snakes and lizards on his back!! He was giving some presentations at the museum and when he was not presenting, he let people hold his snakes and get to know them a little. The picture below is of Daisy, the albino Python.

We took a walk out in the snow to go to the petting zoo portion of the zoo before getting in the car for a long ride.

At the zoo we saw a Zorse, a Zonkey, some sheep and goats, wallabys, a cow, alpacas, and this awesome camel named Gomer.

Then it was homeward bound! We had an excellent trip!

First Week of School

It’s so cold outside I decided that I just cannot leave Steve to freeze all day, so I brought him in as soon as I got home and have been enjoying his company since. He is huge in my opinion, reaching just about to my Greater Trochanter, which is a part of the femur that pokes out just at the top of the thigh on the lateral side of the leg (in case anyone wanted a little anatomy lesson.)

As you can see I have, since Tuesday, plunged into my studying at full blast. There was no easing into things this semester to my despair. The fifteen credit hours of mostly lecture this week has gotten my mind so stuck on all of it, that I find that I can only think in PTA terms. It is becoming a challenge for me to describe stuff in words other than, “medially to” or “in flexion” or “around the height of my greater trochanter”.

Steve has just come over to slobber on my laptop, reach up to give me a kiss then spook at the cat and stomp at the dog. How can I type when all this entertainment is happening around me!!!

Where was I…school! Earlier in the week I was becoming very stressed. I came into this year with high expectations and after only the second day I was starting to feel behind in the class. It seems to move so quickly, that if you don’t understand something the day it is learned, your toast. But now, at the end of the week, I’m finding a little more rhythm to it all. As a result the stress has melted away, a little.

On Wednesday, the vaulters got together after a long winter break to start practicing for the March Springfield show. I won’t say the practice went well, because, as a first practice, it was pretty bumpy as we stumbled around on the barrel trying to find what will work and what won’t. Our approach this year is very different as we are attempting something that no other vaulting team has done before to my knowledge, and that is to act out a play on top of the horse. Perhaps it’s never been done before because it doesn’t work, nevertheless, we are trying it. This could be either revolutionary or a huge flop. We’ll see. Anyway, we hope this practice will go smoother as we now have a better idea of a routine. We will be having practice inside the Horsemeister office on the barrel in a couple hours.

Ha! I just watched as Steve bravely faced Abby, stomped his foot in defense and then did a little hopping dance all the way around her as she wagged her tail. Her only response to this was to go lick him in the nose which gave him quite a fright. He then ran to me  for some comfort. Poor Steve!

Anyway, after school was let out at twelve today I gave mom a call. She invited me to have lunch with her at the Chinese Restaurant. It was good that we were meeting because she had some things she wanted me to take home with me anyway. Well, as we were transferring stuff from her car to mine, a blue car stops and starts honking. I wasn’t exactly in the way, but a quick glance told me it was an elderly woman, and I figured she must be a little sensitive to driving near pedestrians. I stepped between some cars, but she kept honking. Confused I turned to mom and asked, “is she honking at US?” She was indeed, for it was Mama, who just happened to be meeting Csilla there for lunch. It was a party now! We came in and were seated as we chattered about the coincidence of meeting up in this way when we run into Phil and Anna Sceggel! What are the chances?

Anni has been fortunate enough to find a steady babysitting job through Csilla. She will be sharing it with Kinga, my cousin. If anyone knows Anni well, they will know that she never has money! This opportunity is very welcomed on her part, though I must say, I dread thinking of it, not due to her, but due to my Mom. Mom tends to sort of latch onto a subject and will use it for EVERY conversation until it is past the point of being worn out. She resents me saying so but it is true! I’ve her analyze and excite over this dumb job for weeks now, and quite frankly, I almost wish Anni had never gotten it…ok I don’t wish that. It’s ok though, one little annoyance is not enough for me to ever find reason to fight or be angry with mom at all. I know I have my quirks too.

Alright, I just have to write this: Dad got mom some BEAUTIFUL roses for mom’s fiftieth birthday. She put them in a vase and placed them proudly on the counter between our kitchen and living room. The counter is rather tall and the flowers situated in the middle of it. Well, Steve spotted them and with his amazing balance, stood on his back two feet  to try to reach them. He had no success, but it was fun to watch.

Tonight we are leaving for the Creation Museum. We found a 21 year old to go with us to get the hotel, so all systems are go. The 21 year old is actually my Aunt Karin, who is always up for a fun time, and always willing to help a person out. And she likes hanging out with the teenagers, so it’s perfect.

Oh, now Steve is friends with Abby and is licking her! So odd.

Christmas Present

This video didn't show up in the Christmas post, so I'm fixing that little problem.

Galatians

Once or twice a certain question has come to my attention recently: What of the Old Testament applies to us? Because there are some laws in there that just aren’t done anymore, so what distinguishes the ones that are from the ones that aren’t. My answer used to always be that with Christ came the new “law”: to love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, and strength and your neighbor as yourself. True as it is, this answer seemed a bit unsatisfying.
It just so happened that I found a Bible study book on Galatians much like the James and Titus Bible studies from our church and it talks a lot of this exact question and many more. It says:
“When Paul says that non-Jews (Gentiles) are no longer bound by these laws, he is not saying that the Old Testament laws do not apply to us today. He is saying certain types of laws may not apply to us. In the Old Testament there were three categories of laws:

Ceremonial Laws
This kind of law relates specifically to Israel’s worship. Its primary purpose was to point forward to Jesus Christ. Therefore, these laws were not longer necessary after Jesus’ death and resurrection. While we are no longer bound by ceremonial laws, the principles behind the—to worship and love a holy God—still apply. The Jewish Christians often accused the gentile Christians of violating the ceremonial law.
Civil Laws
This type of law dictated Israel’s daily living. Because modern society and culture are so radically different, some of these guidelines cannot be follow specifically. But the principles behind the commands should guide our conduct. At times, Paul asked the gentile Christians to follow some of these laws, not because they had to, but in order to promote unity.
Moral Law
This sort of law is the direct command of God—for example, the Ten commandments. It requires strict obedience. It reveals the nature and will of God, and it still applies to us today. We are to obey this moral law, not to obtain salvation, but to live in ways pleasing to God.

Anyway, I thought that was helpful. Also, in this study is a lot about the faith of Abraham and the Law of Moses. Before I never really understood or noticed the difference and significance of the two. Whenever I saw the word “law” I would just skim through because I didn’t understand it. Now I do and it is amazing the way God laid out His plans. “The covenant with Abraham shows that faith is the only way to be saved; the Law focuses on actions to show us how to obey Him.” I’ve learned that the point of the law is to reveal the nature and will of God, and to point out people’s sins and show them that it is impossible to please God by trying to obey all His laws. The whole thing is beautiful in a way and I am so glad that God’s revealed this to me.
You know what’s funny. For awhile I’ve kind of balked at the idea of studying the Word in a deeper level because I thought that lead to getting ideas that didn’t line up. In my mind, the people who are Bible scholars are the ones who know how to argue all those controversies like “once saved always saved” “Predestination” etc. and read all the books concerning said issues. I clung to the fact that ours is a simple faith and that when we read the Bible it should be taken as that: simply. I still believe that it is a simple faith, were it not, I would be the first one to burn (as Karin would say) because I can never seem to understand any of those arguments and that’s ok with God. But what has changed is, instead of just reading the Bible and not daring to look more deeply into it, I’ve learned how to read and make connections with other parts of the Bible, to read whole books at a time to see the big picture, and to read single verses and cross reference them to others, to find out the definitions to words, to figure out where the end of Paul’s long sentences are in order to better understand his point, to find where the things I’ve read applies to my life, and to love what I’m reading. In no way could I call myself a Biblical scholar or even Bible smart, honestly I don’t think my intelligence will ever allow me to grasp enough of the Bible at one time in order to earn a title such as that, and that’s alright because that’s ok with God. He made it all easy enough for me to understand and hard enough that I will always have more to learn. Christianity is perfect.
Oh I could go on and on, and I do often to mom who is so wonderfully patient with all my inspirations, but I’m afraid, the blog could not hold it all, and I bet it’s boring to read. So the fun stuff.
For these past two weeks, my family has returned to school and work, but I’m am still on break. The original plan was to go to Disney, but that fell through, so I’ve been a couch potato. Just kidding, I’ve gotten a lot done and its been a lovely respite.
Karin and Grandma went away to Haiti for these past two weeks to spend time with the Reinhards. We have been blessed with the privilege of watching their dogs. Anni has been sleeping at Grandma’s house to keep Heidi, her German Shepard, company, and Karin’s dogs: Elli and Studley came to our house. Well, lets start with Heidi. Jessica, Anni, and I have actually enjoyed Grandma’s house a lot. It’s a little log cabin situated right above a beautiful lake. Cozy is an understatement to describe the interior of the home, but it is all I can come up with for now. It’s always warm and smells good. We’ve had some good times watching home videos, playing board games, and the most fun is playing house. All on our own we eat supper, spend an evening together, and go to bed. Then in the morning, all on our own, we prepare breakfast, clean dishes, make the beds, and go on our merry way. One morning I woke up earlier than Anni and Jess and made them breakfast so they woke up to the smell of coffee and bacon. It was so delightful to treat them in this way and I can’t wait for when I get married (if it’s God’s will that I do of course) to treat my husband in the same way (I would do it for my family except they all wake up so stinking early!). The only downside to watching Heidi is that she keeps running away. She ignores her shock collar and she and Ebby, Diane’s dog, go gallivanting around all the time.
With Studley and Ellie, the story is a little different. Ellie was dropped off at my aunt Beth’s way back when. The little dog was so loyal to her previous owner, that Beth said she waited by the road for three days. When Karin took her, she put her loyalty on her in the most extreme way. Ellie never let Karin out of her sight, pushing herself to the limits to follow her even on horse trails. The only way for anyone to dog sit Ellie was for Karin to leave her car there. Well, as precious as Ellie’s loyalty was, she became quite old, as most living creatures do and with that her breath began to smell and she was always panting. She got a gross tumor in her eye and, as we discovered, really bad breast cancer. Though, I’m sure, deep deep down, Karin still had a little bit of feeling for the little dog, she told us before she left that if she runs away or get hit on the road, she’ll pay us extra (you have to understand Karin’s humor, she is not as cold hearted as this sounds). Well, the cancer on her belly was bad. One of the tumors had ruptured and was seeping, and she just looked terrible. Mom called Judy to see if Rhoda would look at her and Judy, along with Diane, right away made the decision to put her down. They felt it would be best to do it without trying to get ahold of Karin because 1. they are not easy to get ahold of down there and 2 they didn’t want her to feel guilty. Judy was taking a trip to the vet anyway that day so we chose to send Ellie along. That morning was dreadful for me. Mom told me, that since it was her last day I should be extra nice to her. So, knowing that this was her last day to live, I showered Ellie with attention that she hadn’t had in a long time. I fed her treats to which she almost purred at and spoke soothingly all morning. Though it was difficult to even look at her I did it. Well, when it came time to meet Judy I was a mess, and I apologize to her for that. I understand that she was a smelly ugly dog, but, well, she was a living creature. (Now I know I’m pathetic because just writing this I’m tearing up) Well, the deed was done, and in the end I’m glad we did have her put down because, she really was in awful shape and it could only possibly get worse from here. However I’m not sure we’ll be doing much dog sitting in the future. “Hey, Karin! Glad to see you’re back, here’s one of your dogs, we killed the other!”
As for Studley, he has actually been enjoyable. His spunkiness and loving nature is almost contagious and he and Abby have been getting along beautifully. When I bring Steve in, they love each other and show their affection by licking each other's faces. It’s cute.
Last weekend, on Saturday, a group of us went up with the Bible class for the ski trip. I’m not sure if I’ve ever had so much fun snowboarding! It was great. On top of that, we some great conversations on the way back.
On the weekend of the 22nd a group of us girls are taking a trip to the Creation Museum. I am so EXCITED!!! so that should be great.