Status Report: January

I’ve decided to copy Lisa’s monthly status report again. Who knows? Maybe I’ll make it a regular thing.

Sitting
…on the sofa in the livingroom, listening to the quiet and looking at the dark.

Drinking
…coffee, black, French-pressed. I broke my drip coffee maker a few weeks ago and I’ve decided not to replace it.

Thinking
…about the day ahead. So many plans, so little time. And so many anticipated interruptions.

Loving
…cuddling the warm pup as he lies beside me.

Anticipating
…warmer weather. I’ve become a weather wimp in my old age.

Dreading
…January. It used to be my favorite month of the year, but I no longer find cold and dark so attractive.

Starting
…a little after-Christmas cleaning and rearranging. And a spending diet.

Reading
…The Reason for God by Tim Keller and Always Ready by Greg Bahnsen. Do you sense a theme?

Liking
…candles. Scented candles, floating candles, tea candles. They’re my way of cursing the darkness and lack of good fresh flowers in January.

Ordering
…nothing. See the bit about the spending diet above.

Nervous
…about nothing. Not much makes me nervous anymore. That’s one of the good things about getting older.

Planning
…to stay at home today to work on projects. I’ve had too much away-from-home lately.

Wondering
…if a pup could be any cuter than the one beside me. And if I really must leave the sofa.

Sunday's Hymn

May the Mind of Christ, My Savior

May the mind of Christ, my Savior,
Live in me from day to day,
By His love and power controlling
All I do and say.

May the Word of God dwell richly
In my heart from hour to hour,
So that all may see I triumph
Only through His power.

May the peace of God my Father
Rule my life in everything,
That I may be calm to comfort
Sick and sorrowing.

May the love of Jesus fill me
As the waters fill the sea;
Him exalting, self abasing,
This is victory.

May I run the race before me,
Strong and brave to face the foe,
Looking only unto Jesus
As I onward go.

May His beauty rest upon me,
As I seek the lost to win,
And may they forget the channel,
Seeing only Him.

—Kate Wilkinson

Other hymns, worship songs, sermons etc. posted today:

• I With Thee Would Begin at The Happy Wonderer
• Lord’s Day 1, 2010 at The Thirsty Theologian
• He Leadeth Me at Whatever Is Good
• Thee We Adore, Eternal Lord at Hiraeth
• Heart Aflame - January 3rd at The Upward Call
• Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise at Field Stone Cottage
• We Three Kings of Orient Are at Conjubilant with Song
• Standing at the Portal at Whatever Things
• Your Weekly Dose of Spurgeon at Pyromaniacs: The Presence of God Is the Best Privilege of His Church
• Update: Holy, Holy, Holy at Random Thoughts From a Cluttered Mind

Have you posted a hymn (or sermon, sermon notes, prayer, etc.) today and I missed it? Let me know by leaving a link in the comments or by emailing me at the address in the sidebar and I’ll add your post to the list.

Round the Sphere Again

Planning
Here are a few things I plan to do this month:

• Set up my sewing room the way I want it.
• Make some new covers for the pillows in the livingroom.
• Start one of the blouses or dresses for which I have patterns and fabric.
• Finish up and review The Reason for God by Tim Keller.
• Start cataloging the rest of the books in the church library and decide which ones to discard to free up shelf space

What’s on your list of things to accomplish during the coming month or year?

• Kim plans to read through Calvin’s Institutes and you are invited to join her. (Hiraeth)
• You could also do these: Five Ideas for 2010 (Pyromaniacs)
• Make sure you put “enter Noel Piper’s contest” on your list of things to do. And hurry! The contest closes January 6. (Noel Piper)
• Here’s a Bible plan for people like me who seem to fall hopelessly behind when using reading plans: Bible Reading Plan for Shirkers and Slackers. (Justin Taylor)
• And there’s a new blog with daily readings from D. A. Carson’s For the Love of God.

  For the Love of God is a daily devotional designed to walk a person through the Bible in a year while assisting the reader in discovering the riches of God’s Word. Originally published by Crossway Books (volume 1 in 1998 and volume 2 in 1999), this “blog” is really not a blog at all, but a free digital version of the devotional provided by TGC and Crossway. Our hope is that this daily devotional will deepen your understanding and appreciation of God’s Word—for the love of God.

Unwinding
Because your life can’t be all work.

• Nothing’s more exciting that a quiz: Ben & Jerry’s Flavor or Pottery Barn Paint Color? (mental_floss Blog).
• For some of you today is Palindrome Day. The rest will have to wait until February 1 to celebrate. But either way, I bet you’ll enjoy these palindromic theological musings. (Thinking Christian)
• The Thirsty Theologian has a little fun with Sheik Spear.
• And then there’s The Missing Moosehead Mystery, where you’ll learn, among other things, that while the hospital food in your territory might taste like road kill, in the Yukon, it might be road kill. (Whitehorse Star)