Why Aren't Christians Outraged By The Planned Parenthood Shooting?

I've been thinking about this post for a couple days and been waiting to be proven wrong. (According to this article from The Gospel Coalition, which I highly recommend, I am wrong http://blogs.thegospelcoalition.org/trevinwax/2015/12/01/advocating-for-life-after-colorado-springs/.)

So far, I haven't seen a single friend utter a comment about the Planned Parenthood Colorado Springs shooting. If someone has, it hasn't built enough voice to present itself as a "trending topic". I'm friends with Christians who have blown up my Facebook newsfeed about matters weighty and trivial- Ferguson, Trayvon Martin, Duck Dynasty, Starbucks, Chick-Fil-A, Hobby Lobby, Syrian Refugees, Planned Parenthood fetal tissue videos, various Duggars, ISIS, Paris, Boston... But so far, no one has squeaked loud enough for Facebook to bring our heartbreaking concern for the victims of the Colorado Springs shooting to my attention. 

So, I'm taking a moment to use my tiny voice to declare that the attack and siege of a Planned Parenthood clinic, and the murder of 3 individuals, is an absolutely horrible and terrifying thing. No one should have to fear for their lives coming in the form of vigilante "justice". Regardless of my stance on abortion, my heart is broken for the lives lost and the families affected. I pray for the coworkers and patients who will go back to the clinic and can never forget the tragedy that happened there. I believe what happens there every day is a tragedy, but I also weep for the lives lost as a result of the attack. 

As Trevin Wax states in the article linked above, "Because all human life is sacred, we oppose the violent outburst against Planned Parenthood last Friday, as well as the violence that goes on against helpless victims every day their doors are open."

Also, if you're interested in the question "Why Don't Pro-Life Christians Kill Abortionists?" there's a very detailed response here: http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/you-asked-why-dont-pro-life-christians-kill-abortionists.

Deacon Jeong

Shin is a deacon at our church now. This is a great honor and I didn't want to forget this day and the love that filled my heart when I looked out at our church family. We love Gateway and ask that the Lord would continue to give us His eyes to see, His hands to serve, and His feet to obey. 

Also, we had lunch after church with our SS class and had a great time. ND was tired and made it challenging, but I love seeing, and being a part of, friends who gather as family. 

Friendsgiving

We had a great day yesterday with Eunice, Joel, Laher, and Wei. Then, we continued in our Jeongsgiving tradition of Wal-Mart Black Thursday evening shopping by getting in and out quickly with a great deal on a new TV. We have traveled the last 2 years over thanksgiving. Though I miss my grandparents, it's nice to have such quiet time at home. I got almost all the Christmas decorations put up already. Doing a little bit over 2 days- so nice to have the time for it. We also had a lovely time at Gold Star Park this morning and Hyde Park this afternoon. 

"Helping" daddy

 

Do-Gooders

I haven't read the book this interview refers to, but I was struck by the implications of the topic for Christians.

"They don't feel that they have a choice about whether they should help others or not." Those are words which should be used to describe every single Christ-follower. Every Christ-follower should be known as a do-gooder in some way. Clearly God calls each of us to look and walk differently, but a love of Christ and love for others should be a fairly defining characteristic to the world.

Help In Time of Need

Just saw this article: http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2015/10/06/446380693/hospitals-still-dont-give-moms-enough-support-for-breast-feeding

I was overwhelmed with the reminder of how helpful and supportive the lactation consultants at Baptist East were for Noah and I. This free service from qualified, kind, and dedicated women meant so much to us in Noah's first weeks and months. I hope to write more about this on my blog sometime so I don't forget the experience I had, but basically we had a very rough start and, miracle of miracles, he's almost 18mos and still nursing a few times a day.

Thankful for the services and support we were provided from our hospital, pediatrician, and family and friends.

Story Time

We went to story time for toddlers at the Lowder library on Bell Road today. Loved it! Will definitely be going back next week. They danced and sang, library lady read The Black Rabbit with great energy, they danced and sang again, then colored a sheet with an R for rabbit. There were probably 10 kids there with an adult for each. Very sweet time for making little friends and mommy connections. Unfortunately, I only got one photo. Noah didn't really get too into anything without me holding him. I hope to get better pics when he warms up to the scene.

Baby, You Can Drive My Car

Despite the look of this grump face, Noah LOVES sitting in the car. He loves to sit in the front seat and play at the wheel and tap all the buttons. Car doesn't have to be on. He just likes to feel in control. :-)

17 mos

17 mos old today! 10 teeth. Lots of climbing. Not much eating (plums, cheese, and rice are hits!), loves milk. Loves Wheels on the Bus, mommy, daddy, and "kiki". Hates to be alone. Loves blocks and being outside. Screams, hits, and throws when mad but slowly improving on this... mommy's not great at blogging these days, but hates to imagine that one day this bundle of energy will be a distant memory.

Fear

I'm struck by how much fear is the motivation and basis of human life.

 

This man who wrote a book to his son on black fear.

 

African prostitution and sex slavery based in fear.

 

I read a review of a book by a baby-boomer that said the #1 fear of baby boomers is loosing their minds (not death) which is described as the "fear of the worried well".

 

Do not be anxious about anything but in everything present your requests to God in prayer, supplication, and thanksgiving and the peace that surpasses all understanding will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus. Phil. 4:6-7

 

Increasingly, the mark of the Christian is evident in how s/he handles worry and fear.

Alive and Kicking

So, when I finished school, I (apparently) never wanted to write ever again... but, I've recovered and can update once more. Noah and I flew to AR and met my sister, mom, stepdad, and stepsister there along with UCA friends, other members of my stepfamilies, and my in-laws. We had a great trip and if I were moderately wealthy, I would seriously fly everywhere with that kid. It's so much easier than driving! Valerie and I came home with Noah via car in time for me to graduate on May 16. Then I had 2 weeks to focus on training for my second triathlon.
My dad and stepmom drove down and got in just before midnight Friday night. Then we were up at 5:30am on May 30th for the race! The swim was great, the bike went well, but the run uphill in the sun and heat was brutal. I was glad I finished, but did not beat my 2013 time.
Now I'm spending summer chilling with Noah and working on strengthening my core (hopefully to be a faster runner), as well as learning Korean.
We will visit Korea at the end of July for Noah's first trip!

I'm doing a second post about Noah's developments.

YAAAAAY

I just submitted my very last assignment for my Master's of Public Administration. Woot! Very excited that after 4 years, I will have my degree. :-) So extremely grateful for my husband, who has always and continues to support me. He has maintained his love through the mood swings of finals, semester after semester, and is still pushing me to follow my dreams. He and Valerie have been critical to my ability to manage my time and responsibilities this past year with Noah, work,  tutoring,  church,  etc. I don't say these things to sound busy, but to point out how much of a team effort this year has been.

So proud of Valerie for graduating summa cum laude last Saturday with her BS in Psychology! We did it! She, unfortunately, had much less help from me than she gave to me. What a champ.

Hooray! School's out for summer. School's out forever! (Or, at least the forseeable future) :-)

Valerie Plays Soccer

Noah has a rash and is teething so I felt it unwise to punish the nursery workers tonight with his presence. We went to Aunt Wow's soccer game (close loss 5-4) and the outdoors seemed to perk him up/distract him quite a bit. Little hard to see our star in these pics, but the sunset was obviously lovely.

Catching Up - Easter 2015

Noah's second Easter. He had his first Easter egg hunt (pretty anti-climactic, but fun for him to get a couple eggs), we went to the sunrise service, Sunday School, and church. It was a long day that he wrapped up playing at a friend's house. Little guy did great!

 

Catching Up - December 2014

Christmas Gifts from Aunt Wow

Ha Family Christmas



Meeting Auntie Jules

UCA BCM - Where Shin & I met

Seefeld Family Christmas

New Year's Eve - Zoo Lights

Catching Up - Spring Break 2015

Dinner in Perdido Key

Playing in the Sand

We went to NAS Pensacola last month with dad, Christine, Holly, and Hannah. We only stayed one night, but it was a lovely getaway. Noah's first trip to the beach when he actually enjoyed the water and sand! He didn't sleep at all on the beach (which is all he had ever done when we went to Biloxi or PCB). Shin and I also got to visit the free naval air museum with dad. Lots of neat planes!

Catching up - Months

September 14

October 14

7 months - November 14

Noah Videos

I figured out how to upload to YouTube from my phone!
 

3/24/15
 

4/9/15
 

4/10/15

10 & 11

Ladies and Gentleman, As of this week Noah has his first tooth! There's a tiny, sharp bugger on the bottom row that he won't let us see, but we can definitely feel. :-) He has also started taking 1 to 2 tiny steps before he plops to the ground. We're basically minutes away from a toddler.

Blessed Be the Name of the Lord

This seems like a random reason to update the blog after going cold for a spell, but I've had a real-life application to Job and that doesn't happen often.

So, I had a boil develop in my nose last week. It felt like a zit in my nose that was getting worse, then my lymph node started swelling so I thought I'd check on this zit, turned out it involved a lot of pus and it did not improve with draining. (That's as graphic as I'll get.) Lots of discomfort, tension headaches caused by my teeth gritting and brow furrowing, and complaining to my dear family ensued.

I'm on antiobiotics now, swelling has reduced,  and I have ibuprofen for pain. Still, there's been a secondary infection site and I had the thought "man! If I had a potsherd that fit in my nose, I would totally be scraping this thing out!". I looked up the verses below bc I wanted to text my friend a Job-boil joke (a relatively untapped sector of humor). Instead I was utterly convicted.

I have definitely been sinning with my lips and my heart as I dealt with a myriad of emotions and the few symptoms related to this tiny thing. Seriously, at no point through the infection could you even tell by looking at me that something was wrong- it is small! I was convicted by Job's example in his situation that was SO MUCH WORSE. So, instead of a joke, I'm reminded that the Lord gives and takes, blessed be the name of the Lord.

Job 2:7-10 NASB
Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. And he took a potsherd to scrape himself while he was sitting among the ashes. Then his wife said to him, "Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!" But he said to her, "You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?" In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

9 Month Check Up

This guy weighed 22 lbs, 29 in long, and a big ol' head (97% at 18.75). No shots today. One finger prick and blood counts all looked great. Thankful for ALLKids for insurance and Dr. Simon and nurses at Pediatric Healthcare.

Happy new year

I started off today by saying, "no means no!" So, looks like I've turned into my mother. Not a bad thing, just the first time I've said that phrase in my life to my son. I assume I have at least another 20 years of saying it. Hopefully 2015 will be shaped by as many yesses as possible and only saying no when it means no! Also, I plan to December recap, but will have to do that later.