The Prodigal Son.

This passage from the New Testament was the Scripture passage today's sermon was taken from.
"And he said, A certain man had two sons:
And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of the goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living.
And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living.
And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want.
And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.
And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him.
And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!
I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee,
And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.
And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.
And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son.
But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet:
And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry:
For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.
Now his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew neigh to the house, he heard music and dancing.
And he called one of the servants, and asked what these things meant.
And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound.
And he was angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and entreated him.
And he answering said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends:
But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf.
And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.
It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found."
~ Luke 15:11-32. KJV

Flower Pictures.

While working at the garden with my family today, I wandered into the greenhouse and fell to admiring this flowering plant, and then I noticed that several of the flowers were different from the rest.

                          Gorgeous buds that will produce gorgeous flowers in a few days.

                        A half-opened flower bud, with the promise of beauty peeking through.

A regular looking flower; note the number of petals.

     An abnormal looking flower; there are twice as many petals as on the previous picture.

Beautiful, aren't they? :)

         This is my pet pigeon Francis who was hanging out with me while I snapped the pictures.

Link.

Here's a link to a post I read and enjoyed; the garbage that is common nowadays is awful and we, as Christians and homeschools, need to train ourselves and our children not to read it and be exsposed to it's filthiness. Even many modern professed Christian writers produce garbage! As my mom frequently says, "Read the best, and skip the rest."

http://www.therebelution.com/blog/2011/02/wall-street-journal-boys-who-read/#comment-680421

Song to the Men of England

"Men of England, wherefore plough
For the lords who lay ye low?
Wherefore weave with toil and care
The rich robes your tyrants wear?

 
Wherefore feed, and clothe, and save,
From the cradle to the grave,
Those ungrateful drones who would
Drain you sweat – nay, drink your blood?

 
Wherefore, Bees of England, forge
Many a weapon, chain, and scourge,
That these stingless drones may spoil
The forced produce of your toil?

 
Have ye leisure, comfort, calm
Shelter, food, love's gentle balm?
Or what is it ye buy so dear
With your pain and with your fear?

 
The seed ye sow, another reaps;
The wealth ye find, another keeps;
The robes ye weave, another wears;
The arms ye forge, another bears.

 
Sow seed, - but let no tyrant reap;
Find wealth, - let no impostor heap;
Weave robes, - let not the idle wear;
Forge arms, - in your defense to bear.

 
Shrink to your cellars, holes, and cells;
In halls ye deck another dwells.
Why shake the chains ye wrought? Ye see
The steel ye tempered glance on ye.

 
With plough and spade, and hoe and loom,
Trace your grave, and build your tomb,
And weave your winding-sheet, till fair
England be your sepulcher.

 
~ Percy Bysshe Shelley.

2 Peter 3.

"Beloved, I now write to you this second epistle {in both of which I stir up your pure minds by way of reminder},

that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior,

knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts,

and saying, 'Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.'

For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water,

by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water.

But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent hear; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.

Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,

looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?

Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;

and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation - as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you,

as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.

You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked;

but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen." ~ 2 Peter 3. NKJV

Top 15 Books to Read in 2011.

Top School Books.

1. Lawrence of Arabia by Jeremy Wilson.
2. Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T.E. Lawrence.
3. History of Egypt by James Henry Breasted.
4. Riddle of the Rosetta Stone by James Cross Gavlin.
5. Sahara: A Natural History by Mara deVillers and Sheila Hirtle.
6. Persia Revisited by Thomas Edward Gordon.
7. The Blue Nile by Alan Moorehead.
8. Into the Mummy's Tomb by Nicholas Reeves.
9. The Cross and the Switchblade by David Wilkerson.
10. The Sea Hawk by Rafael Sabatini.
11. Rubies and Sapphires by Fred Ward.
12. Far Above Rubies by George McDonald.
13. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.
14. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte.
15. Sir Gawain and The Green Knight by J.R.R. Tolkien.
    

Top Personal Books.

1. The Vigilante's Bride by Yvonne Harris.
2. Flight of Shadows by Sigmund Brouwer.
3. Halt's Peril by John Flanagan.
4. Scorpia Rising by Anthony Horowitz.
5. Captain Blood Returns by Rafael Sabatini.
6. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas.
7. The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann D. Wyss.
8. The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells.
9. Ben Hur by Lew Wallace.
10. Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens.
11. Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson.
12. The Brethren by H. Rider Haggard.
13. The Talisman by Sir Walter Scott.
14. Sir Nigel by Arthur Conan Doyle.
15. Honor in the Dust by Gilbert Morris.

G.A. Henty Historical Novels.

1. At Aboukir and Acre by G.A. Henty.
2. In the Heart of the Rockies by Henty.
3. A Roving Commission by Henty.
4. Rujub, The Juggler by Henty.
5. The Young Carthaginian by Henty.
6. Won by the Sword by Henty.
7. By Right of Conquest by Henty.
8. In The Reign of Terror by Henty.
9. True to the Old Flag by Henty.
10. By Pike and Dike by Henty.
11. A Final Reckoning by Henty.
12. Wulf the Saxon by Henty.
13. Captain Bayley's Heir by Henty.
14. St. Bartholomew's Eve by Henty.
15. Among Malay Pirates by Henty.