Nathaniel's New Job

Nathaniel got the job! He found out right away. He went this morning to the corporat office to do the drug testing, background check, etc. Once all that is complete, he will have training, and then be an official Community Manager! Next week he's going to start temping there and in the meantime, he's going to continue temping where he's at right now. So it all works out nicely. Except for the fact that we wil be breaking our current lease, which isn't up until August, but maybe we can work something out. Hopefully.

On top of salary, we get free rent and utilities. Medical insurance for $10/pay period. I'm not quite sure on the details of that, like if or how I would be covered. An additional $10? Full price? I have possible coverage I'm not even using at work. My boss will cover a portion. I don't have a lot of motivation to search for a plan when I have a pretty good, free one through my mom. Even though i'm not a dependent, so i really should get my own.

There's been some confusion about what the apartment is, because Nathaniel's friend used to work/live there, and said it'sa 3bdrm. His boss called it a 2 with a walk-in closet. We have it figured out that the latter is correct, but the closet has been converted into a bedroom. I don't know how that works, but I don't care. Our current place is a spacious 1bdrm with a walk-in closet and i've gotten really attached and don't want to go back to a broom closet.

We can have pets here! There is a white cat that has been following Nathaniel around at the property he's currently at. He says that he's been getting complaints from the residents about it meowing at their doors all the time. He keeps asking if he can keep it. I'm down as long as he is POSITIVE it doesn't belong to anyone. How sad would that be if we took someone else's pet. He says he is sure it's a stray/abandoned. I also want to go to the pet store and see if this one beautiful gray Lynx/Siamese cat named Kiki is still there. We were there looking at rats and didn't even know there was a cat shelter there, but there he was, staring at us with his big blue eyes and it was love at first site. We are also going to get a rat, which i'm most excited about. ;)

So i'm not sure when we are moving in, just some time next month. Once that happens, our only regular expenses would be gas and groceries. We are going to upgrade our car insurance from the state minimum, but besides that, we'll still be trying to live frugally to build up savings because we have no emergency funds or anything. Although we know that if something were to happen, the Lord will provide, and we have a spare credit card. ^__^

Praise Him

I've been a little brat. The economy is spiraling and here we are, still doing fine. Yet we read Scriptures together for the first time in months the other day, and we already missed last night! I've never been good about a personal daily devotion, but i used to have a little morning routine. Then i slacked off and i've been so bad about even gettin up at a reasonable time for work. I don't even eat cereal anymore, but just grab a bagel or muffin (that Nathaniel toasts) for the car! Not only do we both have full-time jobs (he's a temp and was getting no work for a while, and was unemployed before that), but he gets overtime, i have vacation and sick pay, got a bonus this week, and my salary (also a blessing to be off of hourly because now i get paid holidays) is up for review for an increase next month.

PLUS Nathaniel has an interview this afternoon for position as manager with the company he has regularly been sent to. He made friends with the manager at another property, who help the person who is quitting get her job! So when this opened up, he faxed Nathaniel's resume to his boss, who is going to Nathaniel at work today. So not only does he have an interview, but he is getting PAID for it. This job would be great because it's a free apartment on top of salary plus insurance and benefits.

So dude. It's not like we aren't grateful, but i feel we aren't grateful enough. I feel like we better make sure we aren't materialistic and remember to rely on Him or God will take it all away and force us to. Not that by relying on Him we are somehow earning any of this. It's all solely by His grace that we have anything but death.

So that's where i'm at. How are YOU doing economically and/or spiritually?

Making My Home a Haven

First, I forgot to post this follow-up to the post "Bye-bye Hanukkah"

Thanks for the post about the camera on your blog.  We found it!  It was in my duffel bag...which I looked in twice and Fred once...found it on the fourth search after asking St. Anthony for help.  By the way, it was Uncle Ken and Uncle Dave, neither had it.  Now there are pictures of Grandma's view and some funny Annabelle/magnifying  pictures on the camera. - Auntie M

And

After finding such a prized object there was much rejoicing! - Steven

ANYWAY

I've been having the blogging itch but in between work (and how tired it makes me), a web design project, and keeping the house somewhat in order, I haven't had much time, although i've been reading here and there. Mostly skimming for deals. Hey, now that the economy's down, i'm not so crazy, am i? I've got things to do tonight also, but it's so hot i'm going to wait until the sun goes down. It was 97 in Long Beach. I seriously felt like i was going to pass out at work. Is it fall yet?

I'm working harder on trying to save money, but, believe it or not, I'm not very disciplined for that. Pretty much, our budget is "don't spend." I started using Quicken Online, and set goals based on average. I went over in groceries already but I'm hoping that I stocked up pretty good and have enough so that we don't have to eat out (not so much with me, but Nathaniel is a big fast food grabber). I made a bunch of burritos, only to find out that Nathaniel doesn't like the texture of the celery in them. Yet i'm happy to report i think they cost about thirty cents each. Tina's are $0.25 but they are smaller and not as good. I got 10lbs of ground beef for $7.98 at Staters. ^__^

Neither creamer nor milk has been quite hitting the spot for me in coffee, so I tried soy milk and i think I found a winner! Esp since I got a 64oz carton of 8th Continent for $2.75, which spit out a $2 off for Silk at the register. Then I got a 12oz can of Don Francisco's for $4.99. So even though i spent nearly a hundred, I saved over $40 and am pretty stockpiled. So it was a good trip. Even though i couldn't find spring roll wrappers. Which blows my mind, considering that i live in Little Saigon.

Morning Routine: Make coffee & get ready. That's all i have time for. Nathaniel takes care of breakfast and lunch since he leaves after me and is faster at getting ready.

Bedtime: It's supposed to be 10p to read Scriptures, but the internet is distracting so we've been ignoring the alarms Nathaniel set on his phone and going to bed at 12 or 1a. Also skipping reading...yeah, so not good. We gotta pick up on that. I hope he doesn't get home too late tonight. He's at some sort of planning meeting with the worship team leaders at church.

Choosing Love: I have been trying to be organized and prioritize so that i'm not working on a website for hours and making Nathaniel do the dishes all the time. I pass on onions, pork, and other foods he doesn't like in recipes. I'm keeping my eyes open for times when i don't choose love.

Evening Routine: Clean up kitchen, shower, read the Bible. Not sure how much to count as evening. Everything from getting home? Make dinner, eat it while watching tv, internet time. As long as we don't spend to long on the internet, it's okay for me to browse Facebook and read blogs while Nathaniel looks at lolcats, comics, and guns/boats/apartments/whatever his main interest is that week. That's what we do, but is that a routine? I don't think we need to set one. I think as long as we make sure the dishes are done before doing anything else, we are accomplished. I used to think one must never rest, but I eventually learned that a little R&R is good for the body. A time to replenish energy for the next day. I just wish i could do more with that energy than just go to work, but at least it brings in money and i have my weekends. I don't dislike work. It's a good job and i have more energy in general than i did at Knott's.

Waking Up: This is where we struggle. I used to not have a problem getting up (i'm a morning person) but Nathaniel's fondness for sleep has rubbed off on me. I too have realized how comfy a pillow is in the morning. Not a good thing! It takes three alarms with all snoozes to get us up. I like to get up at 6:30a. I try and try but then just end up dreaming about it instead. I need something to get me up...you know how fast a person can bolt if they are late or going somewhere exciting? I just have to think about not being stressed because of rushing. Hmm...not enough. I need to set my personal time with the Lord in the morning. That will get me up. I hope. Marriage has been a blessing because we can help each other get ready in the morning by splitting up tasks. So why is it still taking so long to get out the door? Probably because before i never drank coffee daily or ate breakfast and i hardly ever made my lunch. I think i was a morning person at some point...just so long ago i can't remember. I need to get up when i wake up!

Americans: You Are Michael Scott

On the latest episode of The Office (Spoiler Alert?), Michael was being really subordinate, immature, and completely ignoring the chain of command. You don't do that in the real world. You report to your superior, who reports to theirs, etc. I learned that firsthand once at Knott's. I was upset with my shift leader when he made me stay past when I was supposed to get off. I knew it was busy and they needed me, but I also knew I needed to study or I wasn't going to pass my midterm that night. I complained to a supervisor, who just told me to talk it through with the shift leader. >.< That's how things are to be done though. You don't go skipping levels until things are settled in the normal manner.

So while it seems cool that the White House is doing that "Open for Questions" things, it's not really anything great. People are saying that the president should be listening to what we have to say. There is a system in place for that though. Our representatives, they are supposed to represent us. Thousands of questions were submitted and millions of votes were cast for this online town hall. How many people bother to write their representatives? Go through the system if you want to be heard. It's all about people and fame. Obama is in the spotlight, representatives are nobodies until they are caught in a scandal. Plus everyone wants to see their name in lights, so to speak. Obviously the chat moderators are only going to pick questions Obama wants to answer and that will make him look good and people cheer. Anyone pay attention on Leno (When, btw, Obama made a total barackary/obamockery of the office of president, imho)? He finally asks a decent question and they cut to a commercial break so Obama can consult his advisors or PR or whoever.

Even so, I still submitted two questions and 89 votes. I'm American too, you know.

Topic: Small Business Votes: 2 Yes, 0 No
"Mr. President, one can look to China, Cuba, Vietnam, and other countries to see that socialism does not work. This country was built on small businesses & capitalism. Please stop tearing our country down with bailouts and regulations. Free markets!"

Topic: Education Votes: 1 Yes, 1 No
"Mr. President, public schools indoctrinate kids with Marxism. Too many private schools produce kids who favor Starbursts over history. Families raise kids, not the government. What are you doing to protect SANE parents' right to educate their kids?"

I have yet to watch the video.

Bye-bye Hanukkah

Okay i failed miserably.  I had planned to write all the entries ahead of time and schedule them to post at sundown each day.  I got behind in writing and then all of a sudden i missed a day.  At that point, i didn't care because it was Christmas Eve, and i had a sick husband and full schedule.  We didn't go to his family function that night, so we had to squeeze in a short visit in between Christmas morning at home and Christmas afternoon at my mom's.  We were going to get there at 1, but then i changed it to three so we could have lunch, but i forgot Nathaniel parents were going to my mom's for dessert.  So we skipped lunch (just stopped by and said hi at his uncle's house), but still ended up getting to my mom's at three because of traffic and leaving our house late.  I got Nathaniel Halo 3 laser tag, and of course we had to try it out. 

Friday we went to my grandma's and saw my aunts, uncles, and

 cousins.  There were latkes there, so i still had some, but i never got around to making them. I bought the mix that same day. Not sure how i thought i would make some before Hanukkah ended anyway. Oh, and let me see if i remember this all: has anyone seen a camera?  It was last seen at uncle Kevin's, but maybe uncle Joe's.  It could be in the parking lot, but it's NOT in the car.  Dang it, i think i got the uncle's names wrong, but let me know if you find it, okay?  There is a picture of Lizzie before her winter formal on there.

This weekend we went to San Diego because Nathaniel won a hotel stay at a banquet last year (didn't think he'd be using it). It expired today so we had to use it.  It was for Ayres, most of which are in our area.  The only one any significant drive away was in Alpine, 30 minutes outside of  SD.  So we stayed there and went to the Rueben H. Fleet and Aerospace museums.  That was a lot of fun, except at the end of the second one, because there was a Star Trek exhibit (costs extra, and we aren't fans) next to the Great War exhibit, so there was this annoying tinkling sound while i was trying to read about the Red Baron.  Didn't quite fit the mood.

Yesterday i had to work, and didn't leave until 6:15p, at which point Hanukkah was over.   So there are my excuses.  Right now Nathaniel is at a test for a job.  Hopefully he gets it because then not only will we have a 2nd steady income, but also health insurance!  Yeah, we have some now, but each through our parents, so it could be taken away anytime.  That reminds me, i need to work on adding him to my auto insurance.  The people are slow to respond to email, and this is the only day i have to call during business hours.  I always forget/don't have time during lunch.

In addition to laser tag, we also got a couple party games and a PS2 for Christmas, so i think we need to have a gamenight soon.

The Gospel Call

The Gospel, or Outward, Call is the outward proclamation of the Gospel. It is for all, regardless of nationality, gender, class, etc. It is not to be confused with the Effectual, or Inward, Call, which we will talk about on Day 4. A person can hear the gospel call, yet never hear the effectual call. A person cannot hear the inward call without first hearing the outward call.

Essentially, the goesepl call consists of establishing the truth of man's fallen nature, of telling the existence of a savior in Jesus's perfect life, death on a cross, and resurrection, and a request to repent. God uses men to carry forth the gospel call, but that doesn't mean man has any hand in salvation, since a person can hear the Gospel (many times, even) and never be saved.

Well, i sort of already talked about this in the introduction and i've been really busy, so today's post is going to be really short, but here is a recipe for potato latkes. I never got around to making them the other day.

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)
2 cups peeled and shredded potatoes
1 tablespoon grated onion
3 eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup peanut oil

DIRECTIONS

1. Place the potatoes in a cheesecloth and wring, extracting as much moisture as possible.
2. In a medium bowl stir the potatoes, onion, eggs, flour and salt together.
3. In a large heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until hot. Place large spoonfuls of the potato mixture into the hot oil, pressing down on them to form 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick patties. Brown on one side, turn and brown on the other. Let drain on paper towels. Serve hot!

For further study, please listen to Our World Fallen and Our World Redeemed by Flame.

(Happy Hanukkah!) Election/Predestination

I'm going to try my hand at potato latkes tonight.  I saw a box mix at the store and might just end up going that route.  I don't really have the time required to make them from scratch.  >.<  Cheaper this way.  Even easier, but definitely not cheaper OR healthier and probably not kosher, would be to go ot Krispy Kreme.  Doughnuts (soufganiot) are another traditional Hanukkah food, believe it or not!  Everything's fried, because it's all about the oil.  Oh, now you're interested.  ;)

I normally find election and predestination separated in Ordo Salutises, but that gives me nine parts, and I only need eight.  They've always seemed like synonyms to me anyway.

God created the universe world and man.  Man sinned.  God sent His Son to live a perfect life and die for those sins, blameless Himself.  By grace, some are awoken from their sin and called to repentence.  They then repent, believe, and are granted eternal life.  This is not the work of the human at all, but completely grace and the work of God.  Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  No one goes to the Father except through Him.  (John 14:6)  This means understanding man's fallen nature and the need for a savior, what Jesus did, and repenting of one's own sins and following Jesus.  Only then can one have assurance of eternity in Heaven.  The best part?  The assurance.  Since it's all God's work and all grace, you don't need to freak out about how bad your were, thinking you can lose your salvation.  Instead, you repent and ask for grace.  Sin isn't something that is going to go away in this life.

I'm not bunny trailing.  It's great because when God is immutable, or unchanging.  When He decides He wants to do something, He does it.  So He decided He wanted to save some from Hell.  Many people have a problem with this, that God only saves some and not all, even going as far to say it isn't fair.  You want fair?  Try Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."  God is just, so fair is to punish sin with its due punishment: death.  Christ paid that debt.  But not for all!  He only elected some.  Why some and not all, we don't know, but we should be thankful that it is ANY.  Some people get sad about this (although I bet the same people wouldn't mind Hitler, Hussein, and their least favorite high school classmate going to Hell), but it would be diminushing God's deity if He let some slip in a "side door" in Heaven because they never heard the gospel even though they have unpunished sins.  When someone is saved, they are covered with the blood of Christ and deemed righteous, worthy of eternal Life, but only because they are in Christ.  It is nothing they themselves did.  So it isn't a pride thing, because if someone is "proud" to be a believer and develops an us vs them mindset, then maybe they aren't really saved, but it's more of a culture thing.

I promise I'm on the same track as the post title tells.  I mentioned election.  Now what about predestination?  Well, God determined all events before the beginning of time.  He doesn't change His mind and He doesn't wait for advice from us, the clay.  This is what i was getting at by saying God is immutable.  He decided He was going to do this, and it was and will be done.  Many people think that Jesus died for ALL and is waiting for them to accept Him.  If this is the case, then salvation is possible for all but definite for none, as oppososed to the fact that it is definite for the elect.  It is only logical that all will be saved or the elect will be saved.  We've already seen that Jesus is the only way to Heaven, so the former is clearly not the case.

You can see shadows of this in the Old Testament.

• Only Noah, his family, and select animals were saved when God flooded the earth.
  
• When the high priest offered the "big sacrifice," it was still only for the 12 tribes of Israel.
• Israel was God's chosen people out of all the world.  This was the physical people group of Israel.  With Christ's Atonement, it has been limited to only the spiritual Israel, but also extended to the entire physical world.
• At Passover, only those with blood on their doors and following the other guidelines were spared the death of their firstborn son.

Here are plenty of examples of limited atonement in the Old Testament that nobody (not literal, because i don't know) is contesting.  Yet when this concept is fulfilled in the New Covenant, all of a sudden everybody has a problem with it.  It doesn't sit right, but at the same time, it's wonderful if you focus on the free gift God gives out of love.  If you are saved, you can understand this.  It...makes you speechless when you stop and really try to comprehend what it means for God to save a wretched sinner.  Sin and depravity must really be understood first before grace can be understood.  Without that, election and predestination does seem like foolishness.  It's not, though, and to say so is just showing the foolishness of your own heart.

Okay, so i did not go in the direction I had intended.  So sue me, it's a blog, i never promised any groundbreaking theological essays.  I'm just finding my own way to celebrate Hanukkah.

For further study, please check out the following resources:

• Mongerism
  
• Studies in the Atonement
• Penelope Judd
• Predestination

Now go be festive and deep fry something, kay?