So... What are YOU doing? - Part 7

[tango]

My wife is out with a couple of friends, so I took the time to wrap a few presents I managed to convince her don't exist. Then got to lifting a floorboard. It's remarkably difficult to lift a tongue-and-groove floorboard that is pressed hard up against a concrete block wall. In the end all I could do was use an oscillating tool to cut between it and the adjacent board to remove the tongue, then pry it out of place. It was a nasty job, but now I've managed to get access to the ends of the supporting joists that rest in holes in the concrete block walls, and spray foam into the spaces around the joists. I'm really hoping this will help stop it from getting so cold in the room below. I still need to gut and rebuild the room below, I just want to stop as much cold air as possible from getting into everything.

It's a little while before my wife gets back so I might take to cutting out some more of the featherboards from around the ceiling. Once those are out of the way I can think about building a frame to fit against the brickwork, that will let me do nice stuff (like fitting insulation, and having space for electrical back boxes without chiseling lumps out of the exterior wall).

 

[Naiwen]

Good morning all, had about 12 hours sleep last night, enjoying cereal and milk for breakfast and my morning coffee.

 

[tango]

Got a bit more of my featherboard removed, and a bit more of the scraps of drywall still stuck to featherboards. This is the bit where I need to work more slowly so I don't wreck the ceiling. It would be so much quicker if I could just get busy with my big wrecking bar. This evening I think I'm going to get on with some coding. I've got a piece of work I decided to do as an experiment to see if it would work, and so far it seems to be working pretty well. There's some tidying up that needs to be done but in principle I think I'm onto something good here.

 

[Naiwen]

Good night all, been doing about an hour aroma therapy and music therapy, fiddling with my phone till dinner and heading to sleep tonight.

 

[Lamb]

Singing Away in a Manger with the seasonal choir today at church. It's such a pretty rendition and I have to leave soon to go rehearse with them.

 

[tango]

Yesterday I got the rest of my featherboards ripped off the wall. I managed to burn my thumb along the way - one of the nails refused to come out of the concrete, and using my 3-foot wrecking bar just ripped the head off the nail. I needed the nail removed so put a carbide blade in my oscillating tool to cut it off. That was when I found the blade was dull, and when I tried to break the last part of the nail away it burned the end of my thumb. It stang pretty badly for a while. Now I've just got a patch of hard skin there.

Thankfully I had a fresh carbide blade, which made short work of the nail. After church today I'm cleaned up so don't feel like hammering at brickwork and working with the fine dust of cement and mortar. Maybe tomorrow I'll get busy with my masonry chisel and deal with a few of the gaps in the wall. The nastiest ones are filled, on the inside at least. There are a few more that need attention but nothing truly hideous. Mostly it's just about cleaning up a shoddy initial job.

 

[Naiwen]

Good morning all, had about 12 hours sleep last night, having a peanut butter sandwich for breakfast and my morning coffee.

 

[Michael]

I went to Sunday School and worship this morning at the church I have been visiting for the last three weeks.

@jsimms 435

Hi brother, saw your post on the Book of Judges. Still banned from that section of the Forum, but I wanted to share an interesting truth we find concerning Jephthah in the Scripture.

Yes, that is a very hard account to read about. You will find some commentators who believe that she was not actually killed, but had to remain a virgin here entire life. Personally, I do not find that explanation in the Scripture.
Regardless, even though I agree with you that this was a ‘foolish vow’, in the Letter to the Hebrews we find Jephthah listed among the “heroes of faith”, that those men in the Old Testament who proved their faith by their righteous actions -

“By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days. 31 By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace.
32 And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: 33 who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises…” – Heb 11:30-33

Now, I struggle with this when it comes to Jephthah as much as most others, and I do not have an answer. But, as with all else in the written Word, we must look at the whole picture concerning individuals and doctrinal beliefs. And if Hebrews mentions him as one to emulate for his faith, then there must be more to the story then we know. As well, he is listed among those God used to “deliver” His people and give them safety.

“Then they cried out to the Lord, and said, ‘We have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord and served the Baals and Ashtoreths; but now deliver us from the hand of our enemies, and we will serve You.’ 11 And the Lord sent Jerubbaal, Bedan, Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side; and you dwelt in safety.” – 1Sam 12:10-11

So yes, hard to understand. May the One who has been given to “guide us into all Truth” the Holy Spirit, reveal whatever the Lord God would have us glean from this account concerning Jephthah. For truly it is in God’s Word for a purpose. Amen.

 

[Naiwen]

Good afternoon all, having an iced coffee and a hot cappuccino. Having leftovers with green tea for lunch today. Doing aroma therapy and music therapy till dinner and off to bed tonight.

 

[NewCreation435]

the church I am attending had their Christmas cantata today, so no preaching this morning.
Now I'm watching The Cowboys and Eagles play

 

[Michael]

Just Skyped here from SoCal with my Dad in Niagara Falls and a couple siblings in MO & NY to wish Dad a Happy Birthday (84-years-old) and a Merry Christmas!

And while we were chatting, the Bus Driver for my Special Needs 8-year-old son, along with his wife, surprised us with a visit and brought some gifts for our little boy! A retired Vietnam Vet, George has been a wonderful bus driver who we've enjoyed chatting with each morning, even if for only a minute or two when he comes to pick up our boy. Totally unexpected, but grateful for his stop by to see our family.

Thank You, Lord for the blessing of family and friends!



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[Naiwen]

Good night all, been doing half an hour aroma therapy and music therapy, playing with my phone till dinner and falling asleep tonight.

 

[Lamb]

Getting groceries for the holiday week.

 

[Naiwen]

Good morning all, had about 13 hours sleep last night, enjoying my usual breakfast and my morning coffee.

 

[Lamb]

My daughter will be here soon and we're baking and decorating a gingerbread house.

 

[psalms 91]

Made deviled eggs and a Jewish apple cake and going to Christmas Eve service tonight

 

[Naiwen]

Good morning all, had about 13 hours sleep last night, breakfasting on my usual and my morning coffee.

 

[tango]

Managed to get a walk in the woods, the first one in a month or more. Mostly it was good but parts of it were a bit hairy. On one stage of the path I slipped on ice and fell on my butt. Thankfully I'm still in good enough shape that it hurt my pride more than my body, but I might be a bit sore tomorrow. I skinned a couple of fingers, so by the time I got back to the car they looked pretty ugly. It just took a bit of water to clean it all up when I got home - from the overall lack of pain I figured it was nothing serious.

Tonight is a service at church. I kinda have to be there, I'm working the sound desk.

 

[Naiwen]

Good afternoon all, enjoying an iced coffee and hot mokacino. Lunch is leftovers with green tea. Meditating till dinner and to bed tonight.

 

[Lamb]

Got a short walk in before lunch. We'll wait for dinner time to actually make our Christmas dinner since we still have leftover pizza from last night for lunch! Having Ravioli, meatballs and garlic bread today. Had a great time opening gifts this morning. Hoping to hear good feedback about the portraits I made for gifts for family members.