I usually try to post a review of my Proverbs 365 project on the first day of each month -- but I'm only now getting around to posting August's review (not to mention the fact that I never managed to post a review for July!).  In any event, I'm now two-thirds of the way through this adventure in which I'm taking a Proverb for each day of the year and then considering it and applying it for 21st Century living.  It's been a significant challenge to keep up with posting, especially in the midst of a busy work season with lots of travel -- but I'm glad to say that I'm still going!  That being said, I'm highlighting three of my personal favorites from the past month (always withthe hope that I might encourage some cross-over readership).  So here are my top three from August:

One of the interesting evolutions in the Proverbs 365 project has been the shift more and more towards short-form fiction as exposition of Scripture (as opposed to more standard devotional writing or essays, which had dominated the earliest entries in the project).  One example of this approach to the Proverbs can be seen in the post entitled P2213 - Lions Outside.  It's a character sketch based on Proverbs 22:13, which says, "The sluggard says, "There is a lion outside! or, "I will be murdered in the streets!" So I took this Proverb and created a story about an old man who's shut himself into his house, out of fear for the dangers of the modern world.  Perhaps you've met someone like this old man and can relate to the piece on that level.  Or even better, maybe you might benefit from considering the implications of such a scenario for your own life.

It just so happens that I know a lot of people who are getting married very soon, or who have just recently gotten married -- and, of course, I know a lot of people who are single, too.  Thus when I read Proverbs 18:22 -- "He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the LORD" -- I was challenged to consider its meaning both for newlyweds and for singles (I believe, by the way, that the verse is not just written for newlyweds).  After meditating on the Proverb for awhile, I wrote my reflections in an essay entitled P1822 - Finding What is Good.  It proved to be a very valuable reminder for my own life, and I would submit that it's good stuff for anyone to think about, regardless of marital status.

And then there was an Ohio-inspired entry.  While visiting my home state, of course it's natural that I would have reflected upon the Proverbs in that context.  Even so, I especially enjoyed the opportunity to interact with my grandfather-in-law, who shared some wisdom from his decades of farming and working the land, which helped to illuminate Proverbs 12:3 - "A man cannot be established through wickedness, but the righteous cannot be uprooted." I wrote about the interaction in P1203 - The Lesson of the Wind-Strengthened Tree.  And if I do say so myself, it offers some great insight into the development of character.

For a more comprehensive listing of August's content, here are the titles of all 31 entries, along with direct links to the rest of the content.

• P117 - Not-So-Secret Agents
• P221 - Land Issues
• P324 - Sweet Dreams
• P403 - Teaching Our Kids the Really Important Stuff
• P501 - Talking about the Birds and the Bees
• P630 - A Human Thing, Not Just an American Thing
• P726 - Cliches and Throngs
• P824 - Better than Water
• P910 - The Beginning of Wisdom
• P1009 - The Tell-Tale Heart
• P1112 - Tongue-Hold
• P1203 - The Lesson of the Wind-Strengthened Tree
• P1316 - Lost in Folly
• P1401 - A Seven-Year-Old's Perspective on Home Remodeling
• P1501 - Teaching the Snippers a Thing or Two
• P1610 - Beware of Nostril-Sized Alligators
• P1709 - To Repeat or Not to Repeat
• P1822 - Finding What is Good
• P1917 - Hundreds and Hundreds of Little I.O.U. Notes Scrawled by the Hand of God
• P2026 - Leadership Lessons from the Zaanse Schans
• P2116 - The Way, the Truth, the Resurrection, and the Life
• P2213 - Lions Outside
• P2315 - How We Really Should Be, Do, and Believe
• P2417 - Sports as a Window to the Human Soul
• P2507 - Eyes and Intuitions
• P2610 - Cupid Gone Postal
• P2709 - The Oasis of Earnest Counsel
• P2817 - Fugitive's Freedom
• P2905 - To the Readers of FlashFantasyFiction.Blogspot.Com
• P3004 - Job and Jesus
• P3102 - Caught in the Juxtaposition

I feel like I've finally made it over the hump in my Proverbs 365 project -- that it's really starting to become more and more realistic that I will complete the full project!  I'm excited about that idea, but even more excited to think about the possibilities for pursuing further publication beyond the end of the blogging project.  Check it out for yourself at http://proverbs365.ericasp.com. Please feel free to spread the word, too... One of the distinct advantages of the Proverbs is that it's easy to tune into them, whenever one might so choose. It's not like if you missed the first six months, then you're "behind" or anything like that. The Proverbs are just like these little power pellets that can be consumed and digested immediately. It's never too late to start enjoying them!

Happy Birthday, Treaker!

Did you know that you're the only kid in our family who actually invented his own nickname (and a reciprocal nickname, at that!)?  It seems to me that this says something about you... With your brother and sister, it was just random, silly trial-and-error:  "Can I call you Floogy Scrooter?" or "Can I call you the Mishawaka Matador?"  And only after several silly attempts over the course of several years -- only after so many suggestions had been denied without any alternatives offered -- were we able to settle on Charlie Bogantz and My Little Chippy Chuppy.  But with you, Cor, it was so different!  You were still just learning to talk when I asked if I could call you some totally nonsensical name, and you immediately said no.  But when I asked my standard follow-up question -- "Well, what should I call you, then?" -- you didn't just shrug it off or state your birth-certificate name.  Instead, you confidently replied, "Treaker."  And when I went into your room to wake you up the following morning, you greeted me from your crib by saying, "Hello, Treaker!"  And in that moment, I knew that we had discovered the perfect nickname for you, and indeed for each other.

So at any rate, from one Treaker to the other, I wish you a very Happy Birthday!

You've really come into your own, over the course of the last year -- your third year of life.  It's not just dictating your own terms for nicknames, either.  In all different kinds of ways, you've learned to assert yourself as the wonderful person you are.  I can imagine that it's something of a survival skill for a third-born kid like you.  You tend to push back, when you get jostled around.  You tend to yell out-loud, when someone tries to pull something over on you.  And you tend to hold your opinions, even in the face of the most persuasive arguments.  You're your own person.  You're not just a little kid.  You're not just "Elliot's brother" or "Olivia's brother."  You're not just some little blond kid in the crowd.  You're Cor William Asp, and you stand on your own two feet.  You're strong and tough, even though you're still small in stature.  And I respect that about you.  I appreciate that about you.

But I will say that you need to be careful with such strength, Cor.  Use it wisely!  As time goes on, you'll see that you can use such strength and toughness to push others away and distance yourself, or to throw yourself headlong into the thick of things -- to become an embracer and wrestler and protector of others.  You can use it for your own glory or for the glory of God.  You can use it for folly or for wisdom.  Your mother and I are doing our best to teach you the ways of wisdom, so please listen well!  Like wise King Solomon instructed his little boy:  "Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you" (Proverbs 2:11)... "Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil" (Proverbs 3:7)... "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight" (Proverbs 3:5-6).  I know that I'm slipping into preacher-mode here, a little bit, but I'm just saying:  I recognize great power in you, Cor -- even at the tender age of three -- but I also recognize a great need for guidance in the application of such power.  I've been reading and meditating on the Proverbs a lot this year, usually just before that beautiful moment (one of my favorite moments of the day!) when I come into your room to wake you up in the morning; and it's occurred to me on multiple occasions that the Proverbs have a lot to offer you, Cor, as you grow older and stronger.  I pray that, in time, you will adapt the wisdom of the Proverbs as your own -- adding your strength to it and channeling it well.

But enough of this seriousness!  This is your birthday, and a time for celebration!  We need to play some Michael Jackson songs -- maybe "Beat It" or "The Way You Make Me Feel" -- and let you show us how to feel the music and enjoy the moment.  You're a fun kid, Cor.  Wherever you go, there seems to be laughter and music and dancing.  You bring such passion and conviction to your music -- whether it's on the computer, playing your guitar on the brown chair, or belting out the theme to the Muppet Show from your crib after you've been put in bed for the night.  Your joy gives us joy, and I'm glad to say that there seems to be a lot of that to go around these days.

I love you, Cor!  I love you more than words could ever say.  I'm proud to have you as my boy -- and it's abundantly clear that Olivia, Elliot, and Mommy feel the same way.  Thank you for being my Treaker-Boy.  I hope you know that I am and will forever be...

Lovingly,

Your Treaker-Daddy

Our church is just getting ready to start a 12-week series on the Book of Galatians.  Different people from our church will be tag-teaming on the teaching part of things... But we’re hoping to make this something more than a once-a-week sermon thing, too.  We’re asking our church’s life groups and communities to focus on studying Galatians during the fall, in addition to the stuff that we’re doing on Sunday afternoons.  And even beyond organized activities, we’re encouraging everyone in the church to be reading and studying and meditating on Galatians, individually.  The idea with all of this is that if we can approach things from this multi-level perspective, it will create a much richer learning environment.

But anyway -- one of the more unusual things that we've developed to support this particular series is to set up a Facebook discussion on-line, to allow for others to participate in -- or at least observe -- the teaching process, even as it’s unfolding.  It's supposed to be a sort of "open source" approach to biblical teaching.  We've never done it before, so I'm honestly not sure how it's going to work out (or if it's going to work out at all)... It's certainly different than how the Apostle Paul did things way back in the day!

At any rate, the discussion is open to anyone.  You don't have to be a member of our church community to participate -- and you don't even have to have a Facebook account.  You can just go to http://www.facebook.com/amsterdam50, and join in from there.  I'd be curious to hear if anyone has any experience with "open source teaching," like this -- and if any advice could be offered for how to best avoid pitfalls and maximize the educational benefits of such an approach to Scripture...

Ik ben weer nat... en ik ben het zat.

A week-and-a-half into my re-immersion in Amsterdam, and I'm still feeling the effects of the transition pretty heavily.

The weather has been absolutely atrocious.  It's like we left Ohio in the dog days of summer -- mid-August heat and humidity, sunburns, sweat, and mosquitoes -- and landed in Amsterdam to experience late-October / early-November conditions:  skies of battleship gray, buckets and buckets of rain, high winds, and cold fingers.  The only contants, as it turns out, are the mosquitoes and the humidity.  Absolutely every surface here seems to be immediately susceptible to mold, mildew, must, and moss.  Our basement has flooded twice since we've been back (once likely from the weather, once from plumbing problems).  Shoes and jackets are perpetually stinky.  It's simply inescapable... this morning, and seemingly every morning.

Ik ben weer nat... en ik ben het zat.

The summer is officially over.  Elliot and Olivia went back to school today.  Buckets and buckets of rain soaked us on the way from home, but we made it.

Cor doesn't actually start pre-school until next month (which, I'm sure, will warrant its own post), but he wanted to put on a backpack and join in the photographic fun.

Olivia is now in Group 3 (1st grade), and Elliot is in Group 5 (3rd grade).  It's absolute lunacy to see how quickly time flies.