Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving and God Bless. In the early autumn of the year 1621, the 53 surviving Pilgrims celebrated their first successful harvest, which was the custom of the English. This celebration in Plymouth thanking God is remembered as the First Thanksgiving.

"our harvest being gotten in, our governour sent foure men on fowling, that so we might after a speciall manner rejoyce together, after we had gathered the fruits of our labours ; they foure in one day killed as much fowle, as with a little helpe beside, served the Company almost a weeke, at which time amongst other Recreations... And although it be not always so plentifull, as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so farre from want, that we often wish you partakers of our plentie."-Edward Winslow

"They begane now to gather in ye small harvest they had, and to fitte up their houses and dwellings against winter, being all well recovered in health & strenght, and had all things in good plenty; fFor as some were thus imployed in affairs abroad, others were excersised in fishing, aboute codd, & bass, & other fish, of which yey tooke good store, of which every family had their portion. All ye somer ther was no want. And now begane to come in store of foule, as winter approached, of which this place did abound when they came first (but afterward decreased by degrees). And besids water foule, ther was great store of wild Turkies, of which they tooke many, besids venison, &c. Besids, they had about a peck a meale a weeke to a person, or now since harvest, Indean corn to yt proportion. Which made many afterwards write so largly of their plenty hear to their freinds in England, which were not fained, but true reports."-William Bradford

George Washington's Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1789:

General Thanksgiving
By the PRESIDENT of the United States Of America
A PROCLAMATION

Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me "to recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted' for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have show kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best.

Given under my hand, at the city of New York, the 3rd day of October, A.D. 1789.

G. Washington

The Goblin Market

An 1859 poem about two sisters and some goblins. Follow the link below to read the poem.

The Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti

Evening by evening
Among the brookside rushes,
Laura bowed her head to hear,
Lizzie veiled her blushes:
Crouching close together
In the cooling weather,
With clasping arms and cautioning lips,
With tingling cheeks and finger-tips.
"Lie close," Laura said,
Pricking up her golden head:
"We must not look at goblin men,
We must not buy their fruits:
Who knows upon what soil they fed
Their hungry thirsty roots?"
"Come buy," call the goblins
Hobbling down the glen.
"O," cried Lizzie, "Laura, Laura,
You should not peep at goblin men."

Esther by Sir John Everett Millais

Esther by Sir John Everett Millais

Horse-drawn combine harvester

Horse-drawn combine harvester

The Duties of Marriage and Family.

The Duties of Marriage and Family.

The Duties of Husband and Wife

So much for their duties that be further off from equality in the family, as parents and children, masters and servants. Now those that are more equal are husband and wife, whose duties are either common to both, or more particular to either of them. The common duties. First, they must love one another with a pure heart, fervently. This duty both husband and wife must perform mutually one to another, which that they may the better strive for, let us consider of some excellent commodities that will proceed from this love. First, this benefit will certainly ensue: if there be fervent, and dear, and matrimonial love betwixt themselves, it will preserve and guard them from all unchaste actions and strange lusts, as appeareth, Prov. 5:19-20.

A godly form of household government for the ordering of private families, according to the direction of Gods word

Therefore at the beginning of their marriage, the wise and discret husband ought to use all good meanes to winne the good liking of his wife towards him: for if then their love be fixed, and truely setled one towards the other, although afterwards they come to some houshold words and grudgings, yet it proceedeth but of some new unkindnesse, and not of old rooted hatred; and therefore the sooner remedied. For love and hatred be mortall enemies, and the first of them that taketh place in the heart, there it remaineth a dweller, for the most part, all the dayes of life: in such wise, that the first love may depart from the person, but yet it will never be forgotten at the heart. But if the wife from the beginning of marriage, do take the heart to loath and abhorre her husband, then a miserable life wil follow to them both.-John Dod & Robert Cleaver

What is the Biblical Trustee Family?

The trustee family has the most power and scope. It is called the trustee family because its living members see themselves as trustees of the family blood, rights, property, name, and position for their lifetime. They have an inheritance from the past to be preserved and developed for the future. The trustee family is the basic social power … The head of the family is not the head in any personal sense but as family head and as a trustee of powers.-R. J. Rushdoony

For Better or Worse

Young people are assaulted by a ridicule of matrimony; they are barraged by appeals for a revolt against marriage; they hear catch-phrases promising a new freedom for a new age. The press, the radio, the stage, the screen, — this quadruple alliance which often helps mold their thoughts, — are often confederated in attacking home ideals. And youth cannot altogether escape the impact of newspaper headlines nor the panderings of erotic novels, which, banned by a wiser generation, are now offered in unexpurgated editions at a few pennies for daily rentals... Marriage is a divine institution, established by God Himself. It is not a social evolution or a heritage from any alleged brute ancestry. As the gift of God, sex, marriage, and family life are holy; and even though disfigured by sin, they should be honored by all men as divine bestowals... In the choice of a companion for life the decisive factor should not be wealth, physical attraction, higher education, and social position, but common devotion to the one Lord and Savior, the harmony of religious oneness... A general compatibility of age, culture, and race is normally essential for sustained happiness... Christian marriage must be marked by an intensity of self-sacrificing love. Wedded life characterized by frigid aloofness is not only greatly displeasing to God, but also soon becomes a caricature of the true conjugal devotion-Walter A. Maier

We need to teach our daughters

"We need to teach our daughters to distinguish between a man who flatters her - and a man who compliments her. A man who spends money on her - and a man who invests in her. A man who views her as property - and a man who views her properly. A man who lusts after her - and a man who loves her. A man who believes he is God's gift to women - and a man who remembers a woman was God's gift to man... And then teach our boys to be that kind of a man."

Source: Teaching Our Sons and Daughters and Sign of the Times

Charles Spurgeon

Charles Haddon Spurgeon: A Biography

The Spurgeon Archive

Charles Spurgeon Quotes

How Do You Socialize Your Children?

How Do You Socialize Your Children?


A good short video on the foolish attacks on homeschoolers.

Legalism?

I am starting to think "legalism" is becoming as bad as "sexism" or "racism." It seems to be an all purpose and meaningless insult by anyone who doesn't like moral standards. In theory opposing legalism shouldn't be antinomianism-the belief Christians have no moral obligations.

But after some reading I see I misunderstood it's meaning somewhat; "Legalism is alleged against any view that obedience to law, not faith in God's grace, is the pre-eminent principle of redemption." I always thought of legalism as forgetting the spirit and purpose of the law. Also often one thinks of legalism as tolerance of immorality on the grounds of convoluted argument. The fault of the Pharisees was not that they made rule rules to keep themselves holy, but that they made rules to excuse their unholiness, as John Owen (1616–1683) said; "These two principles, their own reputation and that of their sect, constituted the life and soul of Pharisaism of old."

In a perverse way this modern-day anti-"legalism" is becoming a form legalism in which people use to create convoluted arguments to justify their own selfishness. It seems many use such argument to get around the fifth commandment and it often does pave the way for antinomianism. I don't recall any place in the bible where it states eating nothing about eating nothing but candy and staying up till 1:00 a.m. are banned, but parents don't let their young children do such, is that "legalism" too? A rebellious daughter may accuse her parents of "legalism" if they require her to dress in a modest or traditional manner. This poisonous anti-"legalism" destroys tradition and morality.

On the other a child can be rebellious in legalistic way, following the letter of what his parents tell him, while doing things which they should know is wrong. This is a complex topic.

"Honour thy father and thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee."-Deuteronomy 5:16

"Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set."-Proverbs 22:28

"Tradition means giving votes to the most obscure of all classes -- our ancestors. It is the democracy of the dead. Tradition refuses to submit to the small and arrogant oligarchy of those who merely happen to be walking about. All democrats object to men being disqualified by the accident of birth: tradition objects to their being disqualified by the accident of death."-G. K. Chesterton