Lemonade

There is an old saying that goes: "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." I have no idea who said this first, though it reminds me of Erma Bombeck.

This week my family has been making a lot of lemonade. It was supposed to be my hubby's vacation. The plan was to go camping and to take the kids to a nearby space museum. So we spent most of last week cleaning, repairing and replacing the old camping gear to get ready for the trip. Clothes packed, coolers filled, van loaded, we started toward our destination. About an hour from home the transmission in the van decided to spring a huge leak. A visit to a local transmission shop did not provide good news. We turned around and attempted to make it back home but about half way there the transmission gave up for good. Of course, the spot were it died was out of cell phone range. A very nice gentleman allowed us to use his phone and we were able to get a tow truck and a ride home. He was also nice enough to let us wait on his shaded front porch until help arrived. We had a lovely visit during our wait.

We arrived back home with kids (and a hubby) who were distraught that we were not going camping. So I took the youngest on my knee and asked if he would like to camp in the yard since the van was dead. You should have seen his eyes light up. We spent the rest of the afternoon locating the perfect "camp site" and setting up camp. We cooked supper outside, even roasted marshmallows. The house was referred to as the "bath house" or the "camp store" depending on whether we needed the bathrooms or some other part of the house. Mom was still allowed to have computer access and the kids got the enjoy the great outdoors. Our second night was spent on the living room floor due to thunderstorms but we put on a movie and still had a great time. We probably had as much fun as if we had been at a real campground. We haven't laughed so much in ages.

We have used the remainder of the week to garden, get a few baby chicks to raise, read, knit, listen to music and generally goof off. Yesterday, the kids even honored us by cooking an anniversary dinner. It has been a nice time of family bonding after all.

Of course, we are still haven't made it to the space museum, we are still concerned about how to afford major repairs or replacement for our van and our only vehicle doesn't have an operational air conditioner. Gas prices and food prices are on the rise and I didn't get that job I was hoping to get. Life is full of lemons lately but we still managed to have a good time and we know we will get by. We know that God will provide our needs even if we do have to suffer some temporary inconveniences. The situation reminded me of Paul's exhortations to the church at Philippi.

"... for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me." - Philippians 4:11-13

Idols

I have been having an ongoing discussion with SmallFry about idols. I am having a hard time helping him understand what it meant when the Bible talks about the Israelites worshiping idols. Then I ran across a thread on a knitting forum about knitting being an idol. So I started thinking more about what really is and is not an idol.

When you are studying the Old Testament you tend to think of idols as a statue carved from stone or metal or wood - like the golden calf that Aaron made in Exodus 32. But was there something about that calf that made it intrinsically evil. Not really. If you look a little closer at this incident you will see that it was the attitude of the people who made the golden calf a problem. Notice verse 1 and verse 4 of Exodus 32.

When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, "Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him." - Exodus 32:1

And they said, "These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!" - Exodus 32:4 (emphasis added)

The problem with the calf was not that it was a statue of gold but that it was becoming their substitute for God. The people of Israel had made for themselves something to replace God. There are over 100 different places in the Bible where idolatry is discussed, warned against and condemned. But we live in a civilized, intellectual society and we would certainly never bow down to an idol like they did in the Old Testament. Are you sure? In our society NFL football, NASCAR and a number of other sports hold their major events on Sunday. Children's sports leagues increasingly hold their games on Wednesday night and Sunday. The most watched television shows are more often than not on Sunday and Wednesday. Maybe, we would never bow down to a golden calf or a stone face, but there are plenty of other things in our society that are becoming our substituted for God. Perhaps, it is time for us to reread the passages in the Bible warning of the punishment for idolatry and reevaluate our own priorities.

Little children, keep yourselves from idols- I John 5:21