Women in the Ark ~ A Lesson in Prayer and Preparedness

"But with thee will I establish my covenant;

and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons,

and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee."

~ Genesis 5:18

The women in the ark have a special place in my heart as the unsung heroines of the Bible. What can we say about them that is actually written? We can focus on this truth, these women were believers or they would not have been spared from the flood.

God warned them of the trials that would be coming. They would be boarding an ark and beginning life anew (from scratch!)! What do you think they did until that final and fatal moment? My guess is that they prepared diligently with their hands and prayed with all their hearts. They learned skills. They were virtuous women. They were of the lineage that could have inspired the Proverbs 31 woman!

The Dove Returning to the Ark (Used with Permission) by Mary Jane Q Cross

They undoubtedly possessed (or acquired from older women like Noah's wife), knowledge in sewing, gardening, animal husbandry and food preservation. They must have been educated in the uses of herbs and plants for medicinal purposes. Let us not forget the art of making oil from olives, creating pottery for dishes and weaving for clothing.  These women must have been intelligent and skilled for didn't their very lives and loved one's depend upon it for survival?

Let us glean what we can from these godly women. Though little is said, much is known! Hard times were on the way and they were prepared. And we, dear reader, are placed in a similar position. Our future as His return comes closer, is actually likened unto the days of Noah and we are warned of intense times by the Master himself:

"But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." 

~ Matthew 24:37-39

"For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows." 

~ Matthew 24:7-8 (The list goes on...)

"This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth." 

~ 2 Timothy 3:1-7

No matter now "near" we think His coming is, these signs are already present in some degree.

Angel on My Shoulder by Mary Jane Q Cross

Are we prepared both spiritually and physically? Daily we hear of natural disasters, heartbreaking sickness, disturbing criminal behavior, tragedies, acts of terror, immorality, high rates of unemployment and so forth. Are we grounded in the Scriptures and diligent in prayer to stand strong when calamaties come and test our faith? Are we prepared in a practical sense to some extent in our homes (i.e., at least a few week's supply of food and water, a first aid kit with basic knowledge of application, alternative sources of cooking and washing in case of emergency, and so forth)?

The Dove is Home with Us (Used with Permission) by Mary Jane Q Cross

In recent history, we can learn from the matriarchs who lived during the Great Depression. Many of the women were living modern lives at that point, relying on the cities and stores to provide their needs. But, when hard times came, they were able to put their tucked away skills to use. They planted victory gardens, preserved the bounty, brought small live-stock back into their decorative yards, fashioned clothing for their children out of feed sacks, and patched, scrimped, remade and repurposed. We don't know what the future holds for any of us but the woman who is prayerful, prepared, skilled and works willingly with her hands, "has no fear for her household" (Proverbs 31:21 NIV).

"She is clothed with strength and dignity;

she can laugh at the days to come."

~ Proverbs 31:24 NIV

Noah's Daughter-in-Law in the Dovecote (Used with Permission) by Mary Jane Q Cross

"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear;

but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."

~ 2 Timothy 1:7

Dear reader, my purpose is not to scare you but to inspire you to embrace the lost arts and skills of the homemaker (and to develop a "sound mind"). We never know when this knowledge may prove useful and be a blessing to our loved one's in these uncertain times. I am not saying to abandon your peaceful lifestyle and prepare yourself into a frenzy, but to take time in those little moments to learn (or do things differently). Perhaps, instead of watching a trivial television show, watch a historical reenactment and glean the old ways. Instead of picking up that novel in your spare time, dive into a do-it-yourself book.  Instead of planting a flower garden, plant a medicinal herb garden. Instead of adding more clothing to your closet, add more food into your pantry. Or make an effort to learn one new skill every year such as canning, fermenting and other methods of food preservation, gardening, sewing, natural healing and so forth. This can all be done gently and sensibly, if done purposefully and prayerfully.

"The heart of the prudent acquires knowledge..."

~ Proverbs 18:15a

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Roses of Inspiration, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, From the Farm Blog Hop, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.  This article has been adapted from our original one here. Also, the paintings by Mary Jane Q. Cross in this post have been fingerprinted! To hear more about her incredible art, visit our interview {here}.

How to Make a {Vitamin C-Rich} Rose Hip Syrup

"In Britain, during World War II, wild rose hips were harvested to make a vitamin C supplement for children."

~ The Complete Illustrated Book of Herbs by Reader's Digest

Rose hip syrup sounded so old fashioned that I could not wait to prepare some (I imagine that Marilla had bottles lined up neatly in her pantry).  Of course, the vitamin C boost in the winter months was also an obvious reason! Immune building foods are wonderful to incorporate into your daily routine and who doesn't like a sweet syrup?  

You will need:

• 2 c. fresh or frozen rose hips (if using dried, 1 cup should work)
• 2 c. water
• 1/2 c. sugar  * (approx. depending on final liquid amount)
• 5 cloves (optional)
• 1 cinnamon stick (optional)

This yields approximately 1/2 cup so you will want to double the recipe for a larger amount. We have found this floral syrup to be very sweet so a little does goes a long way!

*Note: If you are going to refrigerate the syrup right away, you can use half the amount of sugar called for in the recipe - or you could use honey, maple syrup or any other sweetener of choice.

To begin, crush the rose hips slightly and place in a small sauce pan (mine were frozen so I just let them be without crushing). Add the 2 cups of water (and spices if you are going to use them). Simmer this for 20 minutes, uncovered.

The next step is to strain the liquid into a glass measuring cup (you should have about 1/2 cup). Now you need to add the same amount of sugar as there is liquid back into the sauce pan. Stir ingredients together until dissolved and bring it back to a boil. Finally, simmer this for 10 minutes. 

Your syrup is almost finished! All you need to do is filter it one more time into the container of your choice:

• If you are going to use it right away, store it in a glass jar in the refrigerator for a week or so.

• If you are going to make larger batches for the pantry, simply sterilize some bottles (the dishwasher can do this for you or simmer them in boiling water for 10 minutes) and place a cork on them (the cork will keep the bottle from exploding if the product ferments a bit). This syrup will keep unopened in your pantry for one year.

This recipe was inspired by James Wong of Grow Your Own Drugs.  He recommends giving children 2 tsp. a day by using it in place of maple syrup or mixing with water. You can also stir this into teas to sweeten and enrich them.  Our favorite way to use rose hip syrup is to drizzle some into sparkling water for a vitamin C-rich herbal soda. One tsp. per 8 oz. glass of sparkling water and 2 tsp. for a nice tall glass works great!

If you are interested in learning how to forage, harvest and preserve rose hips yourself, visit here! We will be sharing more recipes shortly as a part of our "Home Apothecary Series". We also hope to have you share your recipes when we host our "rose hips link up" within the next month or so. 

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Roses of Inspiration, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, From the Farm Blog Hop, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.

"Give Thanks" Vintage Bookmark Set ~ Free Printable

These "give thanks" bookmarks would be a sweet gift to anyone and of any age this fall. 

They would also make a nice favor for an autumn place setting.

Tuck one into a letter for a far away friend.

Use it as a gift tag for a thoughtful hostess gift.

Include a beautiful book (some favorites below) and you will delight a child.

"In every thing give thanks:

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."

~ 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Simply download your free set by clicking HERE. They are best printed on a thicker card-stock. For extra fun, punch a hole at the top of the bookmark and attach some pretty ribbon. And finally, a special thank you to the The Graphics Fairy for the lovely clip art!

       

                                                                

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Roses of Inspiration, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, From the Farm Blog Hop, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.  The pertaining links above are affiliate links. If you were to purchase something through our links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. This greatly helps to support our site so thank you in advance!

The Tower of Babel and The Ice Age ~ History of the World Study

"And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech."

~ Genesis 11:1

In the last post of our "History of the World" homeschool study series, we left off on Noah and the World Wide Flood.  What major events comes next? Unfortunately, that is quite controversial. However, we believe that the earth is young and follow a literal account of Genesis in our home. Therefore, the next major event in history would be the Tower of Babel, followed by the infamous Ice Age. It is actually very fascinating to study this and put the pieces together in history which bring light to science and the Scriptures. Also keep in mind that studying this early in history makes for some guess work in timeline dates but we did our best.

To begin, we placed all our paperwork for this unit behind the "Tower of Babel/Ice Age" tab in our History of the World Student Work Binder (which is the divider section behind "Noah and the World Wide Flood"). We are making our own set of encyclopedias this way!

                            

{Here is some clip art to copy and paste into your "Timeline Binder".}

We also pasted down two entries into our timeline notebook at approx. 3500-3000 B.C. for the Tower of Babel and 3500-2500 B.C. for the Ice Age (you will find more information on our timeline notebooks here) (world history, Bible).  You could either type in a description of the Tower of Babel and the Ice Age and paste it underneath your timeline picture or simply write in "Tower of Babel"  and "The Ice Age" underneath each illustration. We chose to place a small summary (typing practice) underneath each one of our timeline entry clip arts so that we could go back in time and remember each event more vividly by our descriptions.

"All humans are descendants of Noah's three sons. After the flood, God commanded Noah's family to spread out and fill the Earth. Some of Noah's descendants disobeyed God's command. Under the leadership of a man named Nimrod, they banded together and built a tower that reached into the sky. God responded by causing groups of people to speak a different language. This was the beginning of many different nations."

~ Draw and Write through History Book (Creation Through Jonah)

The first item on the list was to link the last two time periods together in the mind of the student. We commenced with copy work found in the Draw and Write through History Book (Creation Through Jonah) and followed it by the drawing assignment of the Tower of Babel (Bible, art, language arts, world history).

Once that was established, we read the account of the Tower of Babel in Genesis (Bible, history). We also watched this short video clip about Babel from the Creation Museum DVD series (warning: it might scare toddlers). Doing a picture study on a painting of the Tower of Babel is also a nice addition. Here we show Pieter Bruegel the Elder - The Tower of Babel (art history).

This is also an excellent opportunity to share how the different people groups came to be. The Tower of Babel plays an important role in this. I recommend watching Only One Race by Answers in Genesis. Note: This movie is geared toward a more older audience.

We didn't have much resources on the Tower of Babel so once these activities were completed, we spent the remaining time on the major historical event that followed next, "The Ice Age".

"The flood was not just a local flood. It covered the whole earth... causing a dramatic climate change all over the world. In some areas there was an ice age. Wooly mammoths may have lived at this time. Scientists have found frozen wooly mammoths so well preserved that they could even tell what they had eaten!"

~ Draw and Write through History Book (Creation Through Jonah)

To begin the Ice Age Study, we drew pictures of the woolly mammoth for our notebooks and included the copy work shared above (art, language arts, world history, science).

Life in the Great Ice Age by Micheal and Beverly Oard was an excellent resource for this study and we used it as our read aloud title. I am not scientific minded so this book really simplified the Ice Age through a beautifully illustrated story (language arts, Bible, science, world history) and with a biblical perspective. Something we do splurge on is purchasing these types of books for our home library because this isn't something you will find in your local library.

We made a list of ice-age animals. You could also have your older students alphabetize this list when they are finished (science, basic skills).

We created a map based from the information from Life in the Great Ice Age which indicated where Ice Age fossils were found (geography).

Next we drew "cave men and women", using the Draw and Write Through History Series. We also did the corresponding copywork that these books provide (art, Bible, language arts). Cave men and women or the "Stone Age" people we learn about can simply be the malnourished people who lacked sunlight and fresh food during the challenging Ice Age.  Life in the Great Ice Age by Micheal and Beverly Oard goes into more detail on this. Very interesting topic!

"There are more references to cold, snow, ice, and frost in the Book of Job than any other book in the Bible. Is is possible that Job and his friends had heard tales of the glacial sheets bounding the northern lands even though they had not seen them."

~ Dr Henry Morris, The Remarkable Record of Job

We did some bible verse copy work from the Book of Job that corresponded with Ice Age weather. We used Job 37:9-10 and  Job 38:29-30 (Bible, language arts, science).

For a picture study concerning the Ice Age, you can study the Columbian Mammoth by the Victorian Era artist, Charles R. Knight (fine art).

We also made up poems about the Ice Age for some language arts fun.

Lastly, we found this song about the Tower of Babel and this song about being One Blood that your children may enjoy by Buddy Davis (from Answers in Genesis). You can download it and incorporate it into your study (Bible, history, music). It would be fun to play while the children are drawing or coloring. We enjoy learning through songs in our homeschool. Songs stick!

One field trip we recommend when studying Genesis topics is the Creation Museum. Jonathan Park Audio Adventures are also a fun way to learn Creation Science in general. And if you would like more scientific information which is tied to the Scriptures, then I recommend visiting the Answers in Genesis website.

Though on the shorter side, this was a very fascinating study and opened up a lot of ideas of how history could have taken place with scientifically sound information and a Biblical worldview.  Ah, the joys of home education!

History of the World Notebook Study/Part 1 (Introduction)

History of the World Notebook Study/Part 2 (Recommended Ages and Such)

History of the World Notebook Study/Part 3 (How to Conduct One)

History of the World Notebook Study/Part 4 (Practical Ideas)

History of the World Notebook Study/Part 5 (Preparation and Binder Printable)

Creation Study ~ History of the World (Study 1)

Noah's Ark & The World Wide Flood ~ History of the World (Study 2)
The Tower of Babel and The Ice Age ~ History of the World (Study 3)

Next in our "History of the World Timeline/Notebook" Series:

Ancient Egypt

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Roses of Inspiration, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, From the Farm Blog Hop, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these. This post contains affiliate links.