The Deadliest Monster, Prologue & Ch. 1

In preparation for the upcoming school year, I am currently reading the book The Deadliest Monster by J.F. Baldwin. This book is an introduction to worldviews and utilizes the novels Dr. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson to illustrate the two main positions that people hold on mans' condition. In the prologue he gives a brief synopsis of the two stories and then in Chapter 1 he asks the question, which monster do we see when we look in the mirror. Either Shelley or Stevenson are right, but both cannot be. Either man is good and can save himself or he is sinful and in need of a savior. Christianity recognizes that the good news starts with the bad and thus recognizes sin and the need of the savior. Also in chapter 1, Mr. Baldwin presents a survey of the 10 most influential non-christian worldviews in hopes that it will enable the reader to be more prepared to fulfill the Great Commision found in Mathew 28:19 - 20. So far I am finding this book very engaging and thought provoking.

Scattered Thoughts and Attentions

Once again I have left this blog to itself for a very long time. I have had my attentions elsewhere and unfortunately have not stayed focused on any one thing long enough to make real progress in any area. I have spent time trying to learn enough html to do a simple webpage for my family history, got a bit frustrated and didn't finish. Then the little bit I had finished caught the attention of a cousin in another state and that has provided me with the new motivation that I needed. I even fell off of the menu planning wagon and although we have had decent meals in spite of it, I really need to get back to being organized in this area. I have been working on school planning, which involves more teacher training and pre-reading of books. Currently, the teacher training involves rewatching the Teaching Writing Structure and Style DVDs from IEW and discussing them on the e-loop for said program and prereading The Deadliest Monster by Baldwin. I have one son who will graduate next year and so I am trying to figure out what items I feel he still needs before he leaves our nest. In addition to our soon to be senior, we also have one son starting highschool and one going into 7th grade. Another area that has captured my attention is our yard. There is pruning and weeding and planting of new flowers. Summer is finally bringing in some warmth and so my attention moves outside. And lastly, with rising gas prices pinching our budget, I looked for ways to earn a few pennys to help stretch the budget. I have been experimenting with doing online surveys and have had varying success, it is definately not going to make us wealthy, but it brings in a little to supplement the gas budget. I hope to expand on each of these areas in later posts over the next few weeks as things progress in each of the areas.