TaylorWest

A Defiled Nation

2012-01-22T13:23:00.005-07:00

“Demons are willing to send millions of babies to heaven, if they can make millions of murderers on earth.” Psalm 106:37-39

Yesterday I read the above quote by Piper.

Here is the text Piper is referring to:

"They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons; they poured out innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was polluted with blood. 39 Thus they became unclean by their acts, and played the whore in their deeds. "

In all my years of following and writing about the pro-life movement, I have somehow missed the gravity of verse 39: “Thus they became unclean by their acts.”

After reading Piper’s quote last night, God’s providence had it that our sermon in church this morning was making the same point. Abortion defiles our nation. Abortion sears our consciences. Abortion makes us no longer able to value what God values above the rest of His creation--the creatures made in His image. Abortion causes us to rot inside.

At the closing of the movie, The Mission, the Cardinal Altamirano finds out about the mass slaughter of thousands of tribal people living in the mountains of Brazil, that had just happened because of a political decision he felt forced into. These tribal people had been transformed by the message of Jesus, and refused to leave their church when ordered by the Portugese. In a letter to the Pope, Cardinal Altamirano writes:

“So, your Holiness, now your priests are dead, and I am left alive. But in truth it is I who am dead, and they who live. For as always, your holiness, the spirit of the dead will survive in the memory of the living.”

Last year's post on abortion.

Karis' Choir Concert

2011-12-12T08:18:00.007-07:00

Karis all ready for the concert:

I apologize for the quality. The concert itself was breath-takingly beautiful, but the camera I was recording with not a real video camera, just a camera for taking pictures which also happens to take some video.

Also, there was a head in front of me that kept moving, and I didn't have a tripod, which is why the video is so shaky.

Continuity in Our Confession of Faith

2011-11-11T14:51:00.001-07:00

In Acts 24, Paul makes a good confession of his faith beforeFelix. In fact, it’s not just a confession of his faith, but of the faith of ‘TheWay.’ That is, it is the common confession of faith for all those who callthemselves Christians. For Paul says,

“This I confess to you, that accordingto the way, … I worshipthe God of our fathers, …” (Acts 24:14a)

Paul claims that the way he worships the God of Abraham is inaccordance with the teachings of ‘The Way.’ So what does true worship consistof? What is our common confession of faith?

1. There is a complete trustin what God has revealed in his word[PAST]:

“Believingeverything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets.” (Acts 24:14b)

2. There is a great hopein the resurrection to come [FUTURE]:

“Havinga hope in God, …that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and theunrighteous” (Acts 24:15)

3. Therefore it is essential to live a godly life [PRESENT]:

“SoI always take pains to have a clearconscience toward God and man.” (Acts 24:16)

This is the common confession of faith that can be foundthroughout the Old and New Testaments. Because God has shown us how he wants us to live in his word and told us we will be judged accordingly, we seek to obey. While I don’t have time right now to researchhow often this pattern plays out in the New Testament, the whole epistle of 2Peter is structured around these truths (The Word, 2 Peter 1:19-21; TheResurrection, 2 Peter 2:4-10; and Godliness, 2 Peter 3:11-15 – see the wholeletter really!).

Now there is something quite striking, if not scary, with thisconfession. Namely, where is Christ? How is this any different than what theJews (or at least the Pharisees) would have taught? First, I think it is safeto assume that Luke may not have given us the complete transcript of Paul confession.He may have been focused on the continuity with what faithful Jews have beenteaching all along.

But more importantly, it is necessary to look a few verses laterin the chapter to see the missing link. After Felix was finished with Paul, heput him back in jail, only to bring him out periodically to hear more about thisJesus.

“After some days Felix … sent for Pauland heard him speak about faith inChrist Jesus.” (Acts 24:24)

Notice now that the content of Paul’s message is explicitlyChristian. There is no question now that Paul is expounding for Felix the faiththat has landed him in jail. So then, what does this faith in Christ Jesus consist of?

“And as he reasoned about righteousness and self-controland the coming judgment, Felixbecame terrified …” (Acts 24:25)

This is quite revealing. Paul is now evangelizing, or preaching the gospel to Felix. And here too we have two of the key componentsfrom Paul’s initial confession of faith, namely the belief in ‘the resurrection of the righteous and theunrighteous’ (i.e., ‘the coming judgment’ [FUTURE]), and the concomitant need to ‘alwaystake pains to have a clear conscience toward God’ (i.e., ‘righteousness and self-control’ [PRESENT]). This is what it means to have ‘faith in Christ Jesus.’

To be clear, the consistent teaching of the New Testament is this:belief in the perfect work of Christ, in his living the godly life which accords with the scriptures and his suffering the just wrath of God for our sins, putsus in a blessed state whereby Jesus can pour out his Spirit upon us, so that wetoo might be able to obey his commands and live a godly life in the presentage. Faith in Christ Jesus is demonstrated by becoming holy. Or as Jesus puts it, "If you love me, keep my commandments."

Season's Cravings & Culture Wars

2011-11-03T05:17:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I'm not big on culture wars. I worked for a company that was often on what they thought was the front lines of many battles. I didn't fit in. I didn't think that it was a wise use of scarce resources to fight against the culture in which you live and move and have your being.

For my part, I've been more interested in having the church address faith and obedience among it's own members. If the Lord chooses to bless such a body, who knows, it may grow large enough to influence a culture, but that to me is secondary.

I think I now have proof that fighting at the corporate level is insane.On my way to work this morning a ordered a coffee from McDonald's. What I received was a cultural bombshell.

---

"Celebrate Season's Cravings"

My Moment to Unwind:

It's these moments I crave.

My time to indulge myself.

With the rich aroma from the

100% Arabica beans, it's time to

cozy up with my favorite McCafe(R).

My moment to celebrate.

I'm loving it(R)

---

So, I for one, am reaffirmed that it is insane to fight culture wars. The other side understands the minds of those they are marketing to. They can pull the right strings and say the right things. And the things they say resonate in the hearts and minds of the culture.

So, back to the church. Preach the Word. Who knows, maybe the Lord will see fit to save a few.

Topple-Gate: Who's Next?

2011-10-21T10:54:00.002-07:00

As I lay awake last night, thinking about the events of the day, namely thebrutal murder of Libya’s President, and the role that the U.S. played in hisdeath, I couldn't help but compare it with the events of the past decade inIraq.

Then this thought came to mind, 'What if Russia, China, etc. decide that the U.S. is nolonger trustworthy or predictable?'

First, it appears that Bush went to war without just cause. That said, he seems to have tried to abide by the lawonce he began his engagement. Yes, Saddam was executed, but only after aprolonged trial where all the evidence was presented. In a strained sense, justicewas served according to due process.

But now, Obama goes to war (or should I say 'has the audacityto assassinate the President of another country in broad daylight'), withoutjust cause, at no cost to the U.S., and without any plan to restore law andorder after the death of Gaddafi.

Once upon a time Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, etccould expect America to play hardball, but at least we played by the rules andtried to be good boy scouts afterwards by leaving the campsite better than howwe found it. Now, there are no reliable rules, and therefore our enemies don’t really know what to expect.

Neither men nor nations act rationally when they areafraid and don’t know what to expect.

I hope I'm just naiveand uninformed, but I wonder if this will prove to be a significant turningpoint in international relations.

iPhone My iDol (No More!)

2011-10-20T18:56:00.001-07:00

Over the past few years, I've had three different iPhones. This past summer, in a fit of rage (repentance really), I smashed my little idol to pieces. Initially, I felt the pain of separation every time I had a legitimate reason to have had such a smart phone. Just last week Leslie and I were looking for the new Indian restaurant in Elizabeth and I thought how easy it would have been to find it if I had that powerful little phone. By the way, the five extra minutes searching was worth it! Today, I sometimes find myself thinking, "Once I learn self-control, I might be strong enough to own such a phone again." Until such time, I'm back to working on self-control.

With this background, you can see why I found this article so interesting. No, I wasn't thinking Thoreau-ic thoughts like this man, but I do find myself enjoying my family more. I'm also finding more time to read, and it looks like I might even begin posting some thoughts on this blog again.

Pretty fun really.

Concerning Egalitarians and Cessationists

2011-10-18T14:03:00.000-07:00

During a recent interview, Pastor Mark Driscoll said to Pastor Doug Wilson that there is a similar hermeneutic being used by those who support female pastors, with those who support a cessationist reading of the New Testament.

It seems to me that Pastor Driscoll has made a profound observation. Both groups take explicit commands from the New Testament and argue that the commands no longer pertain to our modern context.

What is even more fascinating to me, is the fact that both groups use the same hermeneutic on the exact same passage of scripture, even though these two groups do not like how the other group handles the very passage in question.

Egalitarian groups like the First Assembly of God, explain away 1 Cor. 14:33b-35:

“As in all the churches of the saints, 34 the women must keep quiet in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law also says. 35 If there is anything they desire to learn, they must ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.”

Cessationist groups like many Presbyterians, explain away 1 Cor. 14:39-40:

So, my brothers, earnestly desire to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues. 40 But all things should be done decently and in order.

Both sides would do well to heed the command found between these texts in 1 Cor. 14:36-38:

“Or was it from you that the word of God came? Or are you the only ones it has reached? 37 If anyone thinks that he is a prophet, or spiritual, he must acknowledge that the things I am writing to you are a command of the Lord. 38 If anyone does not recognize this, he must not be recognized.

Please Note: Red Bold and Underlined indicates an imperative in the Greek (i.e., a command).

Deacons Per Capita?

2011-10-12T05:38:00.003-07:00

I'm reading through The Acts of the Apostles these days. If nothing else, Luke tells us that the church was growing in that day.

2:41 "... and there were added that day about three thousand souls."
2:47 "... and the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved."
4:4 "... many ... believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand."
5:14 "... more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women."
6:1 "... in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, ..."
6:7 "... and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly ..."

I have no idea how large the church is by the time Acts 6 comes to pass, but I think it's safe to say that it's somewhere between seven and ten thousand.

When the church got above five thousand, the apostles began to lose track of who was getting cared for, and who wasn't. They needed help 'serving tables.' But also interesting is the fact that they felt they only needed seven deacons.

This would not work in our churches these days, but it appears that they set up a 1:1000 ratio of deacons per members. Maybe if we'd set up the same standards for the deacons as to whom they were to take care of, 'the burden on the church' might be eased.

But that would also mean that family members would need to step up and actually care for their own. (see 1 Timothy 5 for further reflection)

Marketing Fail

2011-05-22T06:51:00.001-07:00

Honey Bunches of Oats is using the back of their cereal box to market the new bitbop TV App.

I have an iPhone, so I thought, cool, I'll see how it works. The only trouble is, it doesn't work on an iPhone.

But look at the ad again, if that's not an iPhone ...

- Posted using BlogPress for iPhone

Strangers

2011-04-28T18:51:00.010-07:00

"Remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world." Eph. 2:11,12

Those words: separated, alienated, and strangers are words that I once quickly read over without much thought, but now I linger over. They are concepts that I turn around in my head as I go through my day. I feel them much deeper than I ever have before.

I am traveling through a little hiccup in my life. I have left behind close family members and I had a tight-knit, loving church family. Combined with a long period of not finding a church, I am experiencing only a taste of what it would mean to be to be a true stranger, a true alien, and separated from the covenants of promise.

Wandering from church to church feels a little like being homeless.

I may be experiencing some small amount of sorrow in the big scheme of things, but it is helping me to identify with the man of sorrows.

I may feel like an outsider, but he was despised and rejected by men.

I sit and bemoan having no one to go to coffee with, but he was so disliked that he was "one from whom men hide their faces." I haven't had anyone do that yet when I walked up to them.

I am apt to complain about being in a new place, but when he was oppressed and afflicted, he opened not his mouth.

By oppression and judgment, he was taken away.

I may feel the pain of not having many people who know me well yet, but he was so misunderstood that he was numbered with the transgressors.

I feel alienation because my family is far away, but he had to deal with the rejection of his very own Father: "Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; He has put him to grief."

I may feel cut off from all the people I love who are far away, and yet he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of his people.

"And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near." I understand that more clearly now.

"So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God!" I hear this through the eyes of a stranger now. You belong not only to a city (citizens) but to a family, God is saying. Being a stranger in a city and separated by distance from your family, makes this promise the more beautiful.

This is the gospel, that strangers have become citizens with the saints and aliens have become members of the household of God!

Ephesians 2

Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called "the uncircumcision" by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

Isaiah 53
Who has believed what he has heard from us?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
For he grew up before him like a young plant,
and like a root out of dry ground;
he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by men;
a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
But he was wounded for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he opened not his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
By oppression and judgment he was taken away;
and as for his generation, who considered
that he was cut off out of the land of the living,
stricken for the transgression of my people?
And they made his grave with the wicked
and with a rich man in his death,
although he had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in his mouth.
Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;
he has put him to grief;
when his soul makes an offering for guilt,
he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,
make many to be accounted righteous,
and he shall bear their iniquities.
Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,
and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,
because he poured out his soul to death
and was numbered with the transgressors;
yet he bore the sin of many,
and makes intercession for the transgressors.

Becoming Kuntry

2011-04-10T18:30:00.006-07:00

Notice Chris rota-tilling our giant garden:

2011-04-10T11:48:00.001-07:00

Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl: Wide Eyed Wonder in God's Spoken World by N.D. Wilson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is an Ecclesiastes-type project. In some ways, you could say it comes to the same conclusions as Ecclesiastes. There is nothing better than to simply enjoy life, says the sage. Woven throughout this delightful commentary on the world in which we find ourselves living, runs the same thread of truth. This world is full of enough mystery and wonder to fill infinite life times; so wake up and discover it. Don't become numb to the inescapable miracles everywhere you look.

With wit and humor, you will find yourself agreeing that humanism and materialism are the most bazaar and ridiculous of all philosophies. They are too inane to even warrant serious discussion. N.T. Wilson says the only way to deal with someone like Nietzche: "I want to ruffle his hair. I want to take the poor Lutheran boy's head in my hands and kiss his creased forehead." This is perhaps a good illustration of this book's intentions. Wilson ruffles the hair of all philosophies which turn deaf ears to the noise that all creation is loudly proclaiming, that there is a creator.

One can almost imagine a serious-minded humanist bursting into laughter while reading this and realizing how deliberately closed-minded he has been all his life.

But Wilson not only opens our eyes to the wonders of God's design in creation, but tackles the mysteries of suffering, pain, and hell head on. He does not try to sum it all up for us as much as to simply stare reality in the face. You will not find any sugar-coating in this book. An atheist once asked Wilson, "So do you really think I'm going to hell?" Wilson promptly answered, "Don't you want to? You won't have to be with God there. Whereas you would have to be with God all the time in heaven." In the end, Wilson concludes, everyone will get what he truly desires.

This is light reading, much like the book of Ecclesiastes, and at times, could be categorized with the stream-of-consciousness genre. But it was enjoyable, humorous, and most of all starkly truthful. You will be enlightened and refreshed!

View all my reviews

Decorating

2011-03-17T14:49:00.003-07:00

Over the last 10 days, I had my sister Robyn visiting and we were able to do some decorating together. For me, decorating is a slow process. I've had pieces of art sitting around for weeks now and couldn't decide where to put them. Part of it is that for me to feel creative, I have to be relaxed. If I am distracted by the basics of life and organizing, it's hard for me to make creative decisions. But I am finally organized to the point where I feel ready to get decorating. It also helped to have another set of eyes to bounce ideas off of.

The picture above is of the eating area in our kitchen. We looked on various decorating blogs and through many magazines, until I got an idea of what I wanted for curtains. In the past, I have shied away from any patterns and been drawn towards only solid colors. But now I am starting to realize that I don't mind patterns in moderation. My sisters and I love to look at decorating magazines from the 80's and howl at a floral couch with dark floral wall paper behind it and and floral curtains and checked throw pillows and a patterned carpet. You almost feel dizzy looking at it. That is what I've tried to avoid.

I plan on still doing solid curtains for our living room, since there are three windows needing curtains and six patterned curtains would be too much for my taste. But for the dining area, I felt like a subtle pattern would compliment the space well since I have no other patterns around.

Here's a closer-up photo to give you a better idea of what the fabric looks like.

(Note, I haven't sewed these curtains yet, I just picked up the fabric today, but stuck them up to see how they'd look.)

Robyn also helped me design this little nook here. It is one of the first things you see when you walk in the door. I had this table in the living room, but she put it there with the pot and the flowers to see how I'd like it. I loved it. We found this chalk board and World Market. I had been looking for one to help me make sure I always plan my meals.

Robyn also helped me arrange this shelf and the painting, as well as the other painting you see in the dining area.

She printed out these prints for me and helped me arrange them in the hall:

The fireplace mantel is a work in progress. I keep changing my mind about what picture I want above it. I may end up with this one but change the matte to white. Teal does not work well in my living room. Down the road, I want the mantel white and I want to cover up the purple tile with white wood (Robyn was showing me a do-it-yourself cheap blog idea about how to do it.) But that is down the road. For now, it's not terrible.

Below are some throw pillows that Robyn made for me. I was having a hard time finding the right colors to go with the orange hue in the leather. We found placemats at World market for $3 each. Robyn cut open a small seam, we stuffed it with stuffing and sewed them back together. I love them!

I wanted to add more green to the room, so I found some greenery and this vase on sale at Jo-ann's. I have always loved green so it makes me so happy every time I look at this!

Here's my advice about decorating: if you are insecure about your ability to decorate, don't shy away from copying others' ideas from magazines and blogs, especially at first. Find pictures of what you like, and then try to incorporate those ideas into your home. Visit Goodwill and flea markets and find items you can spray paint to look like Pottery Barn items. Once you start getting comfortable with your own style, you will move away from copying others' ideas into making up your own, but that takes time. Certain pictures will give you a good feeling but you might not know why at first. The more pictures you find that you like, the more you will begin to understand about what you are drawn to. You may start to notice that all the pictures you like have a lot of white in them, or maybe they all incorporate light blue yellow, or maybe they all have accents of red.

Also, take your time decorating. Don't go on a one-day spree and buy a ton of stuff. Do it little by little. The reason I am giving this advice is because I'm not the kind of person who just whips up amazing rooms and I have no idea how I did it. It takes me a lot of time and effort and mistakes before I am happy with the end result.

Classical Conversations

2011-03-16T09:22:00.006-07:00

A friend recently asked me what curriculum I would recommend she uses for her daughter who is entering kindergarten in the fall and she wanted to know what I thought of Classical Conversations. I decided to post this response here for others to read as well.

I have been meaning to write about Classical Conversations for several weeks anyway. Although they have a website, I did not feel it had nearly enough information on it. When I was first looking into the program, I found myself googling Classical Conversations and trying to find blog posts like the one I am writing now. So I hope others will find this information helpful.

First, a note about home schooling in general: I truly believe in my heart of hearts, that the most difficult part of home schooling is not figuring out when to do your grocery shopping, it’s not what to tell your relatives and neighbors, it’s not the problem of socialization, it’s not finding time to scrub those grubby toilets, or nurse and diaper that darling insatiable baby, or what to do with that mess-making toddler while you try to educate the older ones (Naomi mostly got into the spice cabinet while we were trying to do school.)

The very hardest thing about home schooling is….. (drumroll please)….figuring out what in tarnation home school curriculum you are going to use!!!

Furthermore, knowing where to start in gathering information can make your situation seem even more hopeless. Visiting a gargantuan vendor hall at one of those nifty home school conferences is perhaps that worst thing that an aspiring mommy teacher could possibly do to herself. And perhaps a close second is gathering a variety of home school moms into a room together and having them go around in a circle and say what they use. If you’re looking for an easy answer, these situations can be quite terrifying. I’ve literally had one mom tell me she absolutely hated a particular curriculum only to have another mom tell me minutes later that she absolutely loved said curriculum. What’s a mom to do?

To make matters worse, it’s not just a question of what particular curriculum to use, but what philosophy of education you are going to ascribe to. Are you going to educate them text-book style (Abeka, Bob Jones), learning through literature (Sonlight), hands-on approach (Konos), Charlotte Mason-style? There are also web-based schools (K12) and there are a gazillion all-in-one packages available. Last but not least, there is the rapidly-growing Classical Approach, which has a world of variety in itself. So I ask the question again: what’s a mom to do?

Like we all do with any decision we are making, we try to gather as much information as we can before making a decision. But the problem quickly becomes information overload. Furthermore, many of us do not have a good reference point through which to sift through the abundance of information. I know of a few younger moms who were home schooled themselves, and they have a tremendous advantage. But for the rest of us, we simply don’t know where to start.

I have written all this so far simply to say this: if you are thinking of starting home schooling and you are feeling overwhelmed, you are completely normal.

Now it’s time to cut to the chase and get opinionated. I’ve tried “it all” (at least as much as you can in 9 years) and I’m sold-out classical. I mentioned that there is quite a variety within the classical movement, and I still firmly believe that some within the movement are advocating an approach that is way overboard in the amount of time it requires. We are not classical on steroids, but we are classical.

For those interested, here is a post I wrote a couple of years ago summarizing the classical model of education. And here is a personal note about the approach.

And now about Classical Conversations: I have been attempting to do the classical thing at home on my own for years now, but it wasn’t until joining the group recently that I realized how little understanding I’ve had about how to implement it. But who can blame me? The public schools that I attended were actually quite good as public schools go, but they were not classical. In fact, I have yet to meet a home school mom who was educated classically herself. It is very difficult to know how to implement something you were never modeled.

This is the beauty of Classical Conversations. It is a program that understands that moms do not come to home schooling remotely prepared for what’s ahead of them. Furthermore, we are low on time and energy to begin equipping ourselves. By the time our youngest reaches kindergarten, we are usually steeped in diapers, laundry, and grocery shopping. Embarking on a philosophy of education pilgrimage is not usually feasible. We need to be mentored and given direction.

At your weekly meeting, you will be able to join with other families who are all following the same curriculum at home. A tutor will model for you how you and your children will be able to commit large amounts of material to memory. But most importantly, the curriculum will give you a frame-work to follow at home.

The accountability has been huge for us since joining. I have had difficulty in the past motivating my son to do his work well, but if he has the prospect of competition with other boys his age, it is a different story all together. All of the sudden he’s ready to memorize everything, write the longest paper, recite the most Bible verses, etc. The second week we were there, there was an assignment given to see who could use the most vocabulary words in their writing assignment. Since we had just joined, he wasn’t familiar with any of the words, while the rest of the class had been learning them all year. But still, he managed to get all 52 into his paper, and used correctly, and so tied for first with another boy. I could have never gotten him to do that at home! If he was a perfect son, he would do everything well because it is the right thing to do and because his mother told him to. But I have to admit something to you. I do not have a perfect son. Competition with other boys is everything for him.

Another thing I love about the program is that it is organized so that everyone in the family is learning together. This is a huge headache-saver for big families! Someone has done all the hard work for me of planning out the basics of what my family should be memorizing. I am amazed. I wish we had done this from the beginning.

The junior high and high school program is another post altogether, so I’ll save that for another day. For now I’ll just suffice it to say I am very impressed and we are planning on participating in both next year. Classical Conversations’ website has more information (click here to learn about Challenge). Also, many campuses are hosting open houses this time of year so look on the website for a contact in your area. The best way to know if the program is right for you is to visit one.

For those of you who do not have a program in your area, starting one is very, very easy if you can find a few other families to join with you. Everything is completely planned out for you, and each state has a director who will help every step of the way.

Lastly, because I found the CC website not nearly in-depth enough for me, feel free to leave comments with more questions and I will try to answer them as best I am able. Blessings on your home schooling endeavors!

Rachel Weeping

2011-01-22T10:27:00.006-07:00

"A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more." Jeremiah 31:15

One of the saddest things I have ever seen is video footage from the March For Life in Washington, D.C., where thousands of women pass by, for blocks and blocks and blocks, all carrying black signs that read, "I regret my abortion."

They are women who refuse to be comforted. Everyday they are weeping. They are weeping because their children are no more.

Today marks the black anniversary of our nation, where our laws failed the women throughout our borders.

Today is an anniversary of death. The Grim Reaper was given legal protection under our laws, a license to kill, the approval of the federal government to snuff out unwanted life. Every unwanted child a dead child.

This marks the day of the failure of the men in our nation: the failure of fathers to be protectors of their unwed daughters and their failure to teach them the blessings of marriage and family. The failure of young men to treat women with respect and to take responsibility for their own tiny children.

Today is the day that marks our nation’s reaping of everything it has sown: a rejection of marriage in favor of casual sex, the despising of men as leaders and providers and protectors in return for immature loafers who lack responsibility; a generation of parents who farmed their children's training on sexuality to the public school, to the T.V. set, to the movie theater, to magazines, and to a media steeped in rebellion against God.

Today is the day where "might makes right" became the law of the land. Today is the day where our laws failed those who needed the most protection. Today is the day of despising the little ones, the poorest among us, and the beautiful.

Today is the day of despising the image of God. Today marks a day where any and every whim of convenience is more precious, more treasured, and more to be desired than the loveliness and mystery of tiny human life.

For as long as this nation shall exist on this earth, this great blight, this insidious leprosy, this fantastic show of cowardice, shall be remembered in history. Wherever history books are written of the great nation, the land of the free and the brave, the land of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, the land that welcomes the poor and destitute from other nations, the land where freedom rings, the story will also be told of this nation's decent into the darkest deeds.

There is generation of men and women, the oldest of whom should be turning 38 this year, who are gone forever and we will never get them back. They are people who needed us. They are people who were given life at an inconvenient time. They are people who needed our care and protection, and we as a nation failed them. We failed the citizens in our borders miserably.

There is a generation of mothers for whom a day does not go by that they do not think about what might have been. Our nation has failed these women by not protecting them from predatory abortion doctors intent on making an easy buck. We have allowed money-hungry board-certified "experts" to lie to a woman's face about what will make her happy. We have allowed women who were vulnerable, scared, alone, shaken to be taken advantage of by institutions who regularly deceive women about the scientific facts surrounding the little one in their womb, in the effort to make a profit. We have given our vulnerable women to these places, and we have oftentimes not stepped in.

O Lord, God of vengeance, O God of vengeance, shine forth! Rise up, O judge of the earth; repay to the proud what they deserve! O Lord, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked exult?

They pour out their arrogant words; all the evildoers boast. They crush your people, O LORD, and afflict your heritage. They kill the widow and the sojourner, and murder the fatherless; and they say, "The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob does not perceive."

Understand, O dullest of the people! Fools, when will you be wise? He who planted the ear, does he not hear? He who formed the eye, does he not see? He who disciplines the nations, does he not rebuke? He who teaches man knowledge--the LORD--knows the thoughts of man, that they are but a breath.

Blessed is the man whom you discipline, O LORD, and whom you teach out of your law, to give him rest from days of trouble, until a pit is dug for the wicked.

For the LORD will not forsake his people; he will not abandon his heritage; for justice will return to the righteous, and all the upright in heart will follow it!

Who rises up for me against the wicked? Who stands up for me against evildoers? [cries the unborn]

If the LORD had not been my help, my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence. When I thought, "My foot slips," your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up. When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.

Can wicked rulers be allied with you, those who frame injustice by statute?

They band together against the life of the righteous and condemn the innocent to death. But the LORD has become my stronghold, and my God the rock of my refuge.

He will bring back on them their iniquity and wipe them out for their wickedness; the LORD our God will wipe them out.

Psalm 94

Too Much To Say

2010-11-01T21:20:00.008-07:00

Here's a picture of what my home school looks like lately:

It's hard to believe I've hardly written anything in the last 3 months, mainly because my life has produced a perfect potpourri of potential writing topics. Just think of all the possibilities! For instance: Selling a House in the Worst Market in our Lifetime in a Thousand Words or Less. Or how about this one: Long Distance Relationships After Marriage--Why cohabitation still remains the most popular living arrangement for today's married couples.

Now here's a topic I could not only write a great essay on, I could probably swing a seminar or two as well: The Homeschooling Hobo--so your homeschool room is packed up in a storage unit, you have some stuff scattered throughout your parents' house, and some other stuff at your staged house 45 minutes away, and you have no time to oversee your children's education, here's exactly how NOT to go about it.

But this is one I'm really itching to write: A Failure's Guide to House Buying--Three Pitfalls to Avoid.

Pitfall #1: Do not fall in love with "The Red House." The Red House will pose as "the one." It will lure you in with its charms and its lovely little 5 acres, its many bedrooms and abundant square footage, and incredibly low price, but don't be deceived! All the while it pretends to court you, really it is writing a contract with another buyer.

Pitfall #2: Watch out for the likes of the Bent Creek house. Quaint? Yes. Spacious? Very. Quiet little cul-de-sac with countryside behind? Check. But the real nature of this house is just when you think you have, it will go behind your back and find another family! The nerve!

Pitfall #3: Beware of the Chalet house. Just when all other houses are removed from reach, this one suddenly disappears from the market, refusing to return. If only we could have perceived the insidious nature of such houses!

This essay could be interesting: Phone Fathers--Parenting Toddlers over the Phone, How One Dad does it. (I'll let Chris write that one.)

Confessions of Disorganized Mom Living in Transition--believe me you don't want to read this one, neither do I want to write it. Particularly because I have this split personality thing going on. My own house has vacuum lines on all the carpets, the ceiling fan could pass a white glove test, and the bathroom fixtures all sparkle. The lawn is so green it doesn't belong in Colorado, the flower gardens have received a record-breaking amount of miracle grow, and every tiny weedling gets sprayed with Round Up to oblivian. I even went so far as to chase down and spray every last ant on the driveway one day. (We wouldn't want to have a showing and have a buyer see an ant on the driveway. They might change their mind about buying the house. Yes, the market is that bad!)

And then there's the bedroom that I'm staying in at my parents'. Let's just say that all my cleaning energies are being funneled in one direction. Abigail and Naomi assembly-lined sundry doll paraphernalia from the playroom into said bedroom just the other day, and this got mixed up with various half-unpacked items, including a slew of obsolete loan paperwork, a memento from aforementioned Bent Creek betrayal-house, and in the end, a pathway through the wreckage would have been nice.

I could write an essay about: Seven Kids and One Austistic Brother Under the Same Roof--Learning to Embrace Noise (of course my kids are most of the noise.)

Actually, my autistic brother has been doing quite well ever since 6 more people came to invade his space. It's just that the very first night we were here, my parents had gone for the weekend, something they almost never get to do without him, ("let's go on a date," he'll say to my parents. Going on a date is three people for them,) and he was quite distraught.

So about 10 at night he started doing this banshee screaming thing he does; it sounds kind of like he's being murdered. My sister and I weren't sure where to put him since my neices were sleeping downstairs and my kids were upstairs. We finally decided to put him in the garage to keep him from waking everyone, until he calmed down.

We were lucky the cops didn't come. The immediate neighbors all know the situation but sometimes his screams can be heard for blocks and people don't know what's going on.

But sometimes it's a little humorous when the cops do come. One day, just as an officer was stepping in the front door, Buzz came running down the stairs, which end directly next to the door, screaming on the top of his lungs. It didn't take long for the officer to realize that 1) this individual is "special" and 2) he is not screaming because anyone is hurting him. In the brief moments of silence between deafening screeches, he was heard saying, "Just wanted to make sure everything is okay here!" and quickly excused himself from the scene. Really? Are you sure you don't want to stay for some coffee?

Well I'm sure I could go on for a very long time thinking of writing topics that the last few months of my life have generated, but who wants to write when there's so much to write about? I think I enjoy writing more when I have nothing much to say.

PAINT CARPET AND A LOT OF ELBOW GREASE: Before and After--On a Shoe String

2010-09-01T20:20:00.048-07:00

I know I did this on the blog a couple of years ago when we finished our first wave of renovations, but I just couldn't resist another round of Before and After, because of a few more things we did to get our house ready to sell.

Also, thank you to many family and friends who helped with these projects (you know who you are.)

Please keep in mind we did these projects on a limited budget. If you're expecting dentil molding and granite countertops, you'll be disappointed. But if you look at these pictures realizing that we, for example, spent less than $2,000 to redo our whole kitchen top to bottom including appliances, you'll appreciate this a little more.

The front of the house BEFORE:

AFTER:

The kitchen BEFORE:

AFTER:

The Living Room BEFORE:

DURING (taking down two walls to open it up):

AFTER:

The upstairs bath BEFORE:

(I just couldn't resist putting in many pictures to show just how bad it was!)

Upstairs Bath AFTER:

Master Bedroom BEFORE:

AFTER:

Fireplace Room BEFORE:

AFTER:

Downstairs Bathroom BEFORE:

AFTER:

Abby and Naomi's room BEFORE:

We dropped wall parallel to the one you see on the left to form another bedroom:

AFTER:

Isaiah's Room BEFORE:

AFTER:

Garage BEFORE:

Then we turned it into a playroom and a bedroom:

Next time you see Chris, give him a great big pat on the back for all his hard work (well not too hard, all these home projects have his back hurting lately...)

On Becoming Southern

2010-09-01T10:03:00.003-07:00

I'm moving to the south soon and I have a confession to make: I've never actually made an apple pie from scratch. And that's not all. When someone begins telling me about their terrible day, the phrase, "Well bless you heart" --it's not even in my vocabulary. And worse still, I can't stand the movie Gone with the Wind. (No amount of lovely southern scenery can make up for the fact that Scarlett O'hara is portraying one of the most despicable characters in all of literature who spends her time wrecking everyone's life she comes into contact with and don't even get me started about the unredemptive ending, but I digress.)

But surely worst of all it the fact that my knowledge of the civil war is sorely lacking. In fact, I only know essentially three things about the civil war. First, that there was a civil war. Second, that the war was about states' rights. And third, that the north, aka the union, won the war (maybe I should consider leaving the last bit off from now on.) It just occurred to me that I may do well familiarizing my kids with the merits of General Robert E Lee.

And then there's the whole entertaining thing I have to worry about. Having any southern belle over for dinner is tantamount to having Martha Stewart over. When I go to her house, I am going to be greeted by mounds of roasted pork, piles of mashed potates swimming in gravy, homemade buttermilk biscuits, two kinds of garden vegetables, and a large selection of those amazing pies made from scratch. Dinner at my house is usually a dish where the starch, meat and vegetables are all served together so I only have to dirty one pan. I may pick up some store-bought ice cream if you're lucky.

And there's the little things I have to worry about, like remembering to wave every time I drive past a neighbor. Most likely I'm going to imagine that I'm going out of my way to be polite and friendly, and all the while my manner will seem to them those of a hard-hearted yankee.

But there's one thing I can be sure of: whatever they think of my store-bought pastries, my one-pot-meals, my civil-war ignorance, my restrained neighborly affection, my disdain for Gone with the Wind, and any of my other odd Yankee ways that I'm not even aware of--at least I know that they will be far too polite to say anything.

Southern hospitality covers a multitude of northern ways...

Y'all come and visit me some time. (How did that sound?)

Augustine--starving for spiritual food

2010-07-11T15:49:00.005-07:00

John 6:35 Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst."

The following Quote is from Chapter 3 from Augustine's Confessions. It struck me because of the vivid language he uses to describe how he was trying to fill a spiritual emptiness with worldly pleasures, that in turn defiled him.

I came to Carthage, and a frying pan of sinful loves was spitting all about me. I was not yet in love, but I was in love with love; such was my inner need that I hated myself for not being more in need. I was looking for something to love, in love with love and hating the safety of a path free from pitfalls; for inside I was starving for lack of inner food--you, my God--and yet starving as I was, I felt no hunger. I felt no lack of the foods that do not perish, not because I was full of them, but because the more empty I was, the more nauseating I found them. For this reason my soul was sick; covered with sores (Lk 16:20), it turned itself outwards, pathetically eager to scratch itself with the touch of sensible objects. But if these objects had no soul, they would not be loveable. Loving and being loved was sweeter to me if I could also enjoy my lover's body. So it was that I defiled the well of friendship with the filth of concupiscience, and clouded its clear light with the infernal fog of lust; crude and boorish as I was, my vanity was so excessive that I longed to be smart and sophisticated. I rushed headlong into love, seeking to be swallowed up in it. O God ever merciful to me, what gall you in your goodness smeared over my sophisticated pleasures; for I was loved in return, and came secretly to know the chains of carnal enjoyment. Gladly I was enmeshed in those bonds of woe, and let myself be beaten with iron rods blazing with jealousy and suspicions, with fears, anger and quarrels.

Barr Camp

2010-07-05T09:48:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, Leslie, Isaiah and I made it up to Barr Camp. I saw my former boss, Rob Huntrods, on the way up. This is a seven mile hike up the trail that leads to the summit of Pikes Peak. The elevation gain is about 3,800 feet. Believe it or not, the hike back down was the most painful.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Russell Moore on Adoption

2010-07-02T20:03:00.001-07:00

Abba Changes Everything

Why every Christian is called to rescue orphans.

Russell D. Moore | posted 7/02/2010 08:59AM

The creepiest sound I have ever heard was nothing at all. My wife, Maria, and I stood in the hallway of an orphanage somewhere in the former Soviet Union, on the first of two trips required for our petition to adopt. Orphanage staff led us down a hallway to greet the two 1-year-olds we hoped would become our sons. The horror wasn't the squalor and the stench, although we at times stifled the urge to vomit and weep. The horror was the quiet of it all. The place was more silent than a funeral home by night.

I stopped and pulled on Maria's elbow. "Why is it so quiet? The place is filled with babies." Both of us compared the stillness with the buzz and punctuated squeals that came from our church nursery back home. Here, if we listened carefully enough, we could hear babies rocking themselves back and forth, the crib slats gently bumping against the walls. These children did not cry, because infants eventually learn to stop crying if no one ever responds to their calls for food, for comfort, for love. No one ever responded to these children. So they stopped.

The silence continued as we entered the boys' room. Little Sergei (now Timothy) smiled at us, dancing up and down while holding the side of his crib. Little Maxim (now Benjamin) stood straight at attention, regal and czar-like. But neither boy made a sound. We read them books filled with words they couldn't understand, about saying goodnight to the moon and cows jumping over the same. But there were no cries, no squeals, no groans. Every day we left at the appointed time in the same way we had entered: in silence.

On the last day of the trip, Maria and I arrived at the moment we had dreaded since the minute we received our adoption referral. We had to tell the boys goodbye, as by law we had to return to the United States and wait for the legal paperwork to be completed before returning to pick them up for good. After hugging and kissing them, we walked out into the quiet hallway as Maria shook with tears.

And that's when we heard the scream.

Little Maxim fell back in his crib and let out a guttural yell. It seemed he knew, maybe for the first time, that he would be heard. On some primal level, he knew he had a father and mother now. I will never forget how the hairs on my arms stood up as I heard the yell. I was struck, maybe for the first time, by the force of the Abba cry passages in the New Testament, ones I had memorized in Vacation Bible School. And I was surprised by how little I had gotten it until now.

Read the rest of the article here.

Naomi's Third Birthday

2010-06-18T13:58:00.010-07:00

We did the same thing as last year: a gloriously messy party for Naomi.

First, the girls got to decorate their own cupcakes (16 seconds):

Then the girls got to dig for gummy worms in spaghetti (14 sec):

Next the girls got to paint with shaving cream (16 sec):

And then their was a shaving cream fight(9 sec):

Next the girls got to dig for M & M's in pudding. Mmmmmmmm (35 sec)

Here was our "sticking cheerios on the face" contest (14 sec):

This is Cheerio monster going down the pudding-covered slide (2 sec):

And here goes birthday girl (5 sec):

Quote from Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

2010-06-09T21:28:00.002-07:00

The serious Christian, set down for the first time in a Christian community, is likely to bring with him a very definite idea of what Christian life together should be and try to realize it. But God’s grace speedily shatters such dreams. Just surely as God desires to lead us to knowledge of genuine Christian fellowship, so surely must we be overwhelmed by a great disillusionment with others, with Christians in general, and if we are fortunate, with ourselves.

By sheer grace, God will not permit us to live even for a brief period in a dream world. He does not abandon us to those rapturous experiences and lofty moods that come over us like a dream. God is not a God of the emotions but the God of truth. Only that fellowship which faces such disillusionment, with all its unhappy and ugly aspects, begins to be what it should be in God’s sight, begins to grasp in faith the promise that is given to it. The sooner this shock of disillusionment comes to an individual and to a community the better for both. A community which cannot bear and cannot survive such a crisis, which insists upon keeping its illusion when it should be shattered, permanently loses in that moment the promise of Christian community. Sooner or later it will collapse. Every human wish dream that is injected into the Christian community is a hindrance to genuine community and must be banished if genuine community is to survive. He who loves his dream of a community more that the Christian community itself becomes a destroyer of the latter, even though his personal intentions may be ever so honest and earnest and sacrificial.

Ah, Holy Jesus

2010-06-04T16:51:00.008-07:00

Quest For More Part 5--God Helps us in Trouble

2010-05-12T21:57:00.005-07:00

(Saturday morning session 3--Last Sesssion)

Main point: Our personal holiness, that is accomplished through hardships, is God's purpose for us. Because it is God's purpose, He will not abandon us in His purpose, but will help the trial actually produce the fruit of the spirit in our lives.

Left to ourselves, life's hardships would not produce any holiness in us, but bitterness towards God--an angry fist shaken toward heaven.

The key to allowing each moment in life to produce holiness in us, is understanding who we are in Christ, and reminding ourselves of this in the little moments of life.

No one has as much influence over you--as you do. This means the things that you say to yourself in your head, the things that you believe, are what really control your life, not other people.

As humans, we are constantly measuring our potential, and this can lead to discouragement and a failure to try. If we're measuring our potential by our track record and the size of the problem we're facing, that means we've forgotten who we are.

Galatians 2:17-21

"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me."

The effectiveness of Jesus' work on the cross means that my potential is Christ. For any given trouble I am facing today, be it large or small, I have the ability to allow Christ to live at that moment.

This is where we "influence ourselves." This is where what we believe and understand about our salvation takes over. We don't have the willpower or the strength or the goodness in ourselves to overcome all temptations to vent or to pout or to yell or to give the cold shoulder or to scowl or to roll our eyes or to swear or to stew or do whatever the combination of our sinful personality bent and the particular annoying or obnoxious person or circumstance would usually make.

But with Christ living in me, with me facing something hard and saying to myself: "Wait--it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me..." the hardship I am facing suddenly transforms me a little. It suddenly purifies my faith a little, make it a little more sparkly and bright. Realizing that my potential to overcome sinful habits and ruts is Christ Himself, I see that the sky is limitless in how I can change.

But why can't I just hear this message once and never sin again?

Because the refining process is slow. I can say I believe this truth, but living it moment by moment is different. This Tripp can promise us, we will fail in our trials. We will not, from this conference on, always rely on the infinite power of Christ to overcome any temptation.

But the question is: are we slowly, day by day, moment by moment, learning a little more what it means to tap into Christ's power to overcome temptation?

Slow progress may be hard to notice from week to week, but are we less prickly than we were a year ago? Are we less likely to fly off the handle and have a meltdown because of some small circumstance? Are we quicker to repent in our relationships, quicker to see our own faults, than we used to be?

2 Peter 1:8 tells us that it is possible to be a Christian but be unfruitful, unproductive, carnal.

8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

If Peter is instructing us on avoiding unfruitfulness, we can assume that it is possible to be a true Christian, but to not be experiencing new levels of conquering sin.

But if the virtues Peter mentions in verses 6 and 7 are what rules our hearts:

and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.

than our responses will be fruitful. We will no longer be thorn bushes, prickly and harsh. We will show love and joy and peace even when things are tough.

Whenever the scriptures speak of God's people being fruitful, it is always referring to the condition of our heart which produces a lovely response. I used to think of fruitful in a more one-dimensional sense. I thought it was synonymous with the word productive, so that a fruitful person would have many outward triumphs to show for his faith. He would be able to point to programs at church, people he had led to Christ, mission boards founded, and other "spiritual accomplishments." But now I understand that the scriptures have a much bigger conquest in mind when they talk of making a person fruitful. You see, a person could do all of those things, and yet still have a wayward heart. The most difficult thing for anyone to change is not his habits and his outward behavior, but his heart.

This is where a willpower religion leads to defeat. Only Christ's power can change the heart. We needed a drastic rescue.

God delivered that rescue. God's greatest gift to me is Himself. By giving me Himself, He is saving me from myself.

Only Christ can change the heart. A changed heart leads to the fruit of the spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control, and gentleness. (Galatians 5:22-23)

Vs. 9 tells us: don't have identity amnesia, it's keeps you from having a mature faith:

9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.

It is possible to be a true believer, but to forget in the small moments of life, who you really are, and that your potential to overcome sin, is to have Christ live through you.

And verse 3 tells us what our identity is:

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence

"Has granted" is in the past perfect tense, meaning it has continuing significance. This is the "now-ism" of the gospel. Right now, His divine power has granted us all we need to live godly lives. We don't need to look to our past failures to measure our potential. We don't get our identity from sins passed down, any longer. We don't live under psychology diagnoses: passive-aggressive, alcoholic, manic-depressive, obsessive-compulsive, pathological liar, neurotic. We are not bound to more subtle sins either. It is no longer we who live but Christ who lives in us.

Our Christian life is a life of repenting of the ways we continue to live by our willpower. It is a life of asking God each day to show us how to allow Christ to live in us. It is telling ourselves constantly that His divine power is always available to us in any trial we face.

The hardships of life are helping us to realize why we feel the ache to be on a quest for more. We ache for more because we long to see God and were created for Him. Nothing in this earth can satisfy us but Him. He gives us trials so that we will have "the holiness without which, no one will see the Lord." (Hebrews 12:14)

Quest For More Part 4--Why things go wrong in life

2010-05-12T21:18:00.006-07:00

(Sat. morning session 2)

Q: Why do things go wrong?

A: God's agenda is personal heart and life holiness, not our happiness.

In 1 Peter 1:3-9 we are told the reason why things do not go perfect for us, just because we are Christians. Peter speaks of "various" trials. This could be anything in your life that you wish were different. It could be something extremely grievous and painful, or something dull that drags on for years and years. Think about what Peter's saying:

3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Are you single but you wish you were married? Are you married but your marriage has grievances and sorrows you did not expect? Are you in a job that is not secure, or is boring, or you have a difficult boss? Do you wish you could have children and haven't been able to? Do you have many children but find this parenthood job is so much harder than what you expected? Do you have difficult family members? Are you struggling to make enough money to pay the bills? Are you a single parent trying to discipline all alone? Is it hard for you to make close friends? Do you feel like you are always out of place? Do you fail at most things you try? Do you struggle with your weight? Do you live with health problems and chronic pain? Are there painful memories and secrets that haunt you? Do you live in fear? Is everything going wrong all at once?

These are the kinds of things that can make our faith something pure and beautiful. Unpurified gold is not pleasant to look at. Neither is an immature faith that has never remained strong through any hardships. A beautiful faith is one that grows stronger and flourishes when life gets tough.

The reason I didn't mention any terrible tragedies above--like death of family member or martyr-type persecution, is because that is where our minds normally go when we hear the word trial. Of course those drastic things are included. But often we "check out" when it comes to viewing the smaller inconveniences of life under the refining perspective. But Tripp kept speaking of how our life is lived mainly in the smaller moments. It's in these small things where we must see God's hand refining us, as well as in the big, obvious hardships.

If we unconsciously believe that God's primary purpose is to make us happy, we will start to feel like He is not very good at His job. We will start to think: I would make a much better god.

But that is not God's first purpose. His first purpose is to make us Holy in this life. We will be infinitely happy with Him in heaven. But as long as we live here on this planet, God's first interest will be in leading us to holiness. Holiness, by the way, is the only way to be truly happy.

Uncomfortable Grace: this is when God is gracious enough to not leave us in a state of sloppy, immature faith, but gives us something irritating or frustrating in our life, that causes us to forsake putting our hope in this world, causes us to cling to the goodness of God despite it appearing He is neglectful of us, causes us to search the scriptures to understand His purposes rather than floating in sea of our own thoughts and ideas, shows those around us that we don't praise God just because he is our vending machine (what Satan said of Job), causes us to despair of our own abilities to live righteously by will power alone.

In your deepest heart of hearts, what kind of messiah do you really want?

Do you want a vending machine in the sky--pray it, get it?

Or a faithful, patient, perseverant redeemer, who is transforming you into His holy image, and in whose image is found all happiness and joy, that the world can never take away, because it is not found in the things of the world?

Quest For More Part 3

2010-04-25T22:18:00.004-07:00

Sat. Morning, Session 1

The created, physical world was never meant to be a spiritual refuge.

Often we respond to our spiritual problems, such as broken relationships, a longing to be free from sin, guilt we feel from real sin, or a yearning for heaven, by seeking refuge in this physical world rather than running to God in prayer. It may be more blatant things like alcohol, smoking, or pornography. But often it is the subtle things as well: taking refuge in food, shopping, gossiping, lashing out in anger, retreating from the world, novels, magazines, T.V., movies, work, you name it (not intended to be an exhaustive list.) For the second list, many of the things mentioned may be good things in and of themselves. Work and food are certainly good; there’s nothing inherently wrong with a novel. But they will never satisfy us when we look to them to be our spiritual refuge.

Our default human nature is to just that, though. Our autopilot, is to run to something in this world to find meaning and to salve the pain caused by living in a broken world.

But instead of taking refuge in the above things, God beckons us to run to Him with everything. He wants us to daily experience the cleansing waters of forgiveness that comes from fervent confession when we are disappointed with our failures yet again—instead of finding something mind-numbing to do that will help us forget our day.

He wants us to come to Him with praise and adoration when we are disappointed with something in our lives, instead of comforting ourselves with food and a movie only. When we worship Him, we get a perspective on how petty our disappointments are.

He wants us to intercede for a brother in Christ when we have a broken relationship and ask Him to show us where we’ve been wrong. So many of our problems are spiritual but we are believing that something physical will make it all better. We are hoping in a job, a relationship, a car, a house, or something that will finally take away this ache in our souls. But Christ is offering us Living Water.

Our lives are shaped by a war between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of self.

A. Sin causes us to shrink our world

B. Sin is selfishness

C.But I’m not in this battle by myself. The cross liberates me from my biggest danger to myself which is myself. The sin of selfishness is so entangling, that Jesus had to die to free me.

We live our life in a series of little moments, not just big, significant moments.

How to Live for Christ not Self

1. Living for Christ in Our Words

Paul told a story about taking his kids to an amusement park for the day and how they began to fight over a can of pop before they had even gotten into the park.

Paul describes an irritating situation like this as God’s grace. It is God’s grace because it is a time that is exposing us as parents to our children’s sin. As a parent, it is a prime example to point your children to their need for Christ.

But often, it is also God’s grace to a parent to expose the sin our hearts as well. That day, God showed Paul that his heart was really concerned about himself and having a day off, and not looking for opportunities to be God’s instrument in his children’s life. Paul said: I felt like I deserved to have a day with self-parenting children. He wasn’t concerned over how his children’s sin was grieving God. He was concerned about how annoying their sin was. He was angry because they were inconveniencing him on his day off.

“Life was about My Wants, My Needs, My Feelings”

Others’ sins bring out sin in our own hearts.

Our words are never neutral, but they always serve some glory—self-flattery, self-exaltation, condemning others, or exalting God. What glory do your words serve?

Eph 4:29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. (Eph 4:29 ESV)

Wholesome: means others-oriented, representing God’s purpose, considerate of the work God is doing in the other person’s life.

2. Living For Christ in What We Treasure

Matthew 6

1. Everyone lives for some kind of treasure

2. The thing that is your treasure controls your heart

3. Whatever controls your heart, controls your behavior

Jesus is telling us that true life can never be found in material possessions.

3. Living For Christ by Battling Anger:

In this battle against self, don’t give way to anger:

30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. (Eph 4:30-31 ESV)

Anger is from desiring things in this world and allowing them to be more important than people.

What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, "He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us"?

(Jam 4:1-5 ESV)

4. Living For Christ in our sexual Lives

I Co. 6 tells us to:
1. Flee sexual immorality—sex must not be driven by my pleasure alone

2. So glorify God in your body (vs. 20). God is concerned about the purity of our sexual lives because that is a way we glorify Him or dishonor Him.

Conclusion: Living for something bigger than you is intensely practical!

Quest For More Part 2--Jesus Came

2010-04-25T19:10:00.007-07:00

Friday Night Session 2

Jesus Came

"And he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised." (2 Co 5:15)
Sin causes us to shrink our lives into the size of a claustrophobic little world of self, when we were created to enjoy the wide open skies of God’s glory.

We all migrate to the center of our world, the one place we were never meant to be.

The DNA of sin is selfishness. It denies God His glory.

Here Tripp tells about a birthday party held at school where a girl had an inordinate pile of presents in front of her and the other kids sat there with pathetic little “goodie” bags. One boy was particularly unhappy about the situation. He was pouting as he combed through his pile of plastic nothings and kept glancing over at birthday girl’s loot. Finally, one of the moms came over to him and said: “Honey, it’s not your party.”

The sooner we figure out that this world is not our party, the better. We think we were born for everyone to continually praise us and make life about us. But this universe is a party celebrating God, not us. His glory is everywhere. It’s His party because He’s worthy.

But our happiness and our joy is found in embracing this fundamental truth and in praising the Worthy One. As long as we continue to live like it’s all about us, we will be as miserable as the non-birthday boy.

It’s the Same Old Bag of Tricks from Genesis 3

Two lies Satan told in the garden and continually tells us today:

1. Lie of Autonomy—my life belongs to me and I can do what I want with it. I decide!

2. Lie of Self-sufficiency—I have everything within myself to make myself happy. I don’t need God to complete me.

How this looks:

1. We’re focused on ME AND MINE

2. Everything is about my wants and “needs” (needs used liberally)

3. We’re focused on the physical and material: the sign not the spiritual reality

4. Focused on Entitlements and Rights

The lie is that we’re getting more fulfillment when settling for physical fulfillments, when in fact we’re getting less. If Satan can make us believe that we will get more by doing things his way, then he’s won us over. The battle is seeing how Christ is so much more than anything this world can offer!
God's Grace is that He does not say to us: you want to live for that? Fine, go for it (when we try to fine fulfillment in a sign that is supposed to point to Him--a car, a house, a career, marriage, family, any relationship, or any material thing.) Instead, His grace is showing us the emptiness in this world without Him and our desperate need for Him.
So Jesus came and died so that those who live, would no longer live for themselves but live for Him instead.

Quest For More Part 1

2010-04-25T18:58:00.004-07:00

Some who were not able to make the Quest For More Conference with Paul Tripp wanted some notes, so I'll post them here. I'll be posting the rest over the next few days. In this post in particular, everything I wrote is straight from Paul

Friday Night Part 1 : Tripps points are in bold. My elaboration is in plain text.

Main point: This side of heaven, it’s hard to remember what’s ultimately most important, and not to constantly make smaller things the most important things in our daily moments.

Here Tripp tells the story about how a few years back he finally got the first car in his life that he actually enjoyed driving. He was taking his nephew for a ride, they had had tons of food to eat, and then the boy started throwing up in the car, everywhere, and just kept going and going. This car had some fancy ventilated seats with little holes where you sit…you get the point. So Tripp says, “And I said to him two things that I really didn’t mean. First: it’s okay. Second: I love you more than the car.” Tripp said, isn’t it funny how we attribute meaning to things that we never supposed to give us meaning? A car is supposed to be a utilitarian object that transports us from point A to point B. But it quickly can become something that we prize because it gives us a sense of meaning or importance.

We have been hardwired for Glory. This can be seen in our love of competition. Even a kindergartner seeks to exalt himself over his classmates. We love when our sports team wins and when someone praise us. But ultimately, we have been hardwired to love God’s glory.

There is woven inside all of us, the desire to be part of something bigger. However, we seek to fill that desire in material things that cannot satisfy, and not in God.

In John 6, the crowd wants to make Jesus king by force because of how he turned a small lunch into thousands of loaves. The crowd is thinking “free bread for all!” (The ultimate welfare state)

But Jesus is interested in healing hearts, so He says to the crowd: “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.” The bread that Jesus made was a sign to point to the ultimate bread, himself, the bread of life.

"Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

This is one of the most moving passages in all of scripture, in my mind.

The hunger that we feel for bread and the sustenance that it gives us is a picture to us of what Jesus is to our souls, our true selves. Without Him, we spiritually starve. There is NO true life apart from Him.

Every physical glory is a sign to point you to the only glory that will ever satisfy!

Tripp said, what if I packed up my family and told them we were going to Disney World, but then when we were about 100 miles away and saw our first sign, we got out of the car and had our vacation around the sign? Is the sign any place to stay? The thing the sign is pointing toward is so much more than the sign. The sign gives us a small picture, a small idea of what the reality is like.

Everything in this world that gives us a fleeting sense of pleasure or purpose is sign to point us to the ultimate fulfillment, Christ Himself.

Reign of Terror and Realm of Peace

2010-04-21T13:43:00.007-07:00

(Standing on the Promises Part 6)

I finally came upon it! It's the "Reign of Terror" passage in Standing on the Promises that we have so often referred to over the years. I'm simply going to quote it. But I want to say first, that the point of a reign of terror is to achieve a realm of peace. It is the way to have a light-hearted home, and affectionate, peaceful and well-ordered home.

"The standard for a godly home is simply this--prompt and cheerful obedience. This standard, if it is to have any meaning at all, must be enforced whenever there is a violation of the standard. Now the thing that keeps many parents from enforcing such a standard is really their unbelief. They do not believe that discipline will really alter how the kids act around the house. But it does. I have seen parents who were constantly frazzled by their children fighting, squabbling, quarreling, hitting, moaning, and carrying-on, and who put up with it for years on end, when they could put a complete stop to it in three days. All that is needed, to use a phrase my wife and I had, is a short little "reign of terror." This would occur when every infraction was dealt with painfully, every time. The kids catch on.

The objection is that busy parents do not have time to discipline every ten minutes for their rest of their lives. This is where our unbelief is seen. The rest of our lives? Such discipline would be applied for just a few days, and then the home would be transformed. Discipline works. It is used by God to remove folly from the heart of the child. For those parents who seek to be wiser than God, rejecting discipline, nothing awaits their children but a wrenching series of sharp punishments, culminating in the final punishment from the hand of the Lord. Those who refuse to understand discipline hate their children. The choice is clear--discipline now or punishment them." (emphasis is the author's)

What I believe—The Bottom Line

2010-03-28T09:01:00.004-07:00

Note: The following piece is my attempt to express the very heart of what I believe about everything, in a few pages. My reason for doing this is not to write anything unique or better-expressed than others have already done. I have done this primarily for myself. I may fine-tune this over the years, but I doubt it will ever change significantly. Jesus said to Martha: only one thing is really important. This is my attempt to write about that one thing. Everyone should do this at some point in their lives. Send me a link and I’ll read it.

Yahweh said to Moses, “I am who I am.” (Exodus 3:14)

Faith is all about reconciling ourselves to what is. There’s a book out right now called God Is. I haven’t read it but I love the title. The book is a response to well-known atheist Christopher Hitchens’s popular book God is Not Great. Hitchens doesn’t like God. Hitchens feels that he would run the world better than this deity he’s tired of hearing about.

But there’s one problem with that: God is.

There is a reality out there that is not dependent upon our approval. God is who He is. We are not God. We cannot make Him into who we think He ought to be. He simply IS.

The more we learn about God, the more surprising He becomes. He is great; we are not.

“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:9

The epitome of all foolishness in the world is to say in one’s heart, there is no God. (Ps 14:1, Ps. 53:1)

One may be wise in the way he deals with his money, investing and avoiding debt. One may be wise in the way he organizes his time, or takes care of his body. But if he does not have the wisdom to be reconciled to The God Who Is, all his efforts are like planting a garden while a nuclear bomb is on route to his city. Everything will soon come to nothing. Denying reality will do no good.

All the reality that we need to reconcile ourselves to is contained in the Bible. There will be a judgment. It is coming even if we stick our fingers in our ears and go la, la, la, la, la. We do not have the power to shape reality into what we want. We can only pretend for a short amount of time.

In Revelation we are told the whole story of everything that is and will be. We are told that there is someone who is so frighteningly real that the peoples of the earth will wish for mountains to crush them, rather than face His terror.

“Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” Revelation 6:15-17

His brightness is so terrible, that no one can look on his unmasked glory, and live. (Ex 33:20)

And yet we insist upon making our way in life without Him, and pretending He’s not there.

When we do acknowledge Him, we often do it in hopes that we can get Him on our side to help us in our quest to be the center of our universe. There’s something deep in our hearts that say, “I’ll say a little prayer to you God and do time at church, if you’ll just help me become great and give me what I want.”

We have the desire to be gods without the ability to control our world. This can lead to depression: “I’m so terribly important yet no one else seems to get that. I have tried and tried to make everything go my way, and dang it, it’s just not working. I don’t want to try anymore, if I can’t have my way.”

We have a discontent about being under the rule of God and having the unpleasant and inevitable consequences of living apart from His law. Have you ever noticed that He doesn’t give a pass to those who deny His existence, when they disobey? It’s not like: well he doesn’t believe in me and doesn’t believe it’s wrong to sleep around, so I’ll just keep him from getting a disease.

We want to do what we feel like, when we feel like, and we sure don’t want some outside law interfering with our own ideas of what’s right for us at the moment. Darn it, we want to make up the rules.

In our hearts we say: “This so-called “Great One,” what can He do for me? I don’t really want to think much about Him except if He’ll help me in my quest to be the center of everything and make my life go my way. What?! I didn’t get what I wanted? I prayed and did my painful church duty and now I don’t get what I want? Why did I bother with you? I thought you were on my side. I say the terms, you obey. Listen, would you just listen to me and all my wisdom? Why isn’t the world revolving around me properly? It’s so frustrating to be the greatest and have no one notice. It’s not going my way so I’ll just stew. What use is God? He won’t even do what I ask. The nerve!”

“And all this talk about God being concerned with His own glory and His name, about Him being exalted above every name, about myriads of angels, as far as the eye can see, singing deafening music to His beauty, about every knee in heaven and on earth and under the earth bowing to the lamb, about every tongue confessing His infinite worth—it’s all so boring. It’s such a yawn. I mean, what’s in it for me?”

When our heart is filled up with our self, hearing about the unfathomable glories of God has the same effect on us as someone talking to us during the Super Bowl. We hear someone talking, we might even discern some of the words, but our attention is entirely on something else. The ideas behind the words mean nothing. In our natural state, any thoughts of God’s greatness have nothing to resonate with inside of us.

The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Corinthians 2:14)

But something happens in us when we are born again. We actually wake up from a spiritual stupor and come to life. When God said, “On the day you eat of the fruit, you were surely die,” He meant it. We were spiritually dead in our sins (Eph. 2:1).

But the miracle is that we see for the first time the foolishness of our life apart from the Glorious One.

We see how ridiculous it was when we sat there with our arms folded on our chests and said, “Eh, who knows if there’s a God,” while our hearts continued pumping blood and our lungs took in air, and everything continued in its miraculous design by which we had no control over. The electron continued to spin around the proton even when we didn’t acknowledge the one who holds the universe in place.

“And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” Colossians 1:17

Part of this awakening is that we have an interest in things we never did before. If you go to a bar and stand on a chair and yell, “Come over here if you want to hear about the Holy One, Ruler of the Universe.” Would you get a crowd? But what if you yelled, “Come over here if you want to see someone undress.” Now that would get some attention.

But suddenly, we do find interest in Him. We begin to find Him satisfying in a way the world never was.

“You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Ps. 16:11

We start to see that going through life without Him is like a Bride going on an exotic honeymoon…but without her groom. All the things that would have brought her joy only magnify her loneliness. The pool, the snorkeling, the 5 star hotel, the banquet feasts each day, are empty without her lover to share them with. Likewise, the greatest pleasures this world can offer leave us hollow and aching without our creator with us. She begins to feel that she would rather be anywhere as long as she could be with him. So, we begin to see that as long as we have Him, we do not need the fleeting pleasures of this world.

A boy, who has an absentee father, may throw down the toy the father mailed him since he could not be there for his birthday. The boy does not want another toy; he wants a relationship with his father. Nothing else will satisfy.

Every time we have longed for a lover to share our lives with, or a Father to protect and provide for us, we have longed for Him. The shadows help us to understand the reality.

In the reality, we will be with Him and we will feast. In the reality, the lamb who took the fearsome and terrible wrath of God against our sins upon His own body, will be exalted high above every person, ruler, king, above everything in all the Universe; high, lifted up, blinding, terrible and there will be no folding our arms and denying He exists. The pretending game will be over. Playing god will be over.

All folly will be shown for what it is.

Has His blood covered your sin?

His wrath and might are fearsome and beyond comprehension, but His mercy to us in His Son is also abounding, unsearchable, grace upon grace.

"Kiss [pay homage to] the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him." (Psalm 2:12)

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” Acts 16:31

Find out now, what is…

Finding meaning in Exodus and Leviticus

2010-03-07T15:33:00.010-07:00

During my sporadic following of my two-year Bible reading plan, I’ve been determined to find meaning in every section that I study. Exodus and Leviticus probably aren’t the first places that most people turn when they are choosing what to read each day, but that’s why reading plans are good. They force us to read the parts of the Bible we would otherwise neglect.

So, as my reading plan has brought me to unfrequented chapters of the Bible, I’ve found myself asking: why did God spend so many chapters of the Bible giving directions about the tabernacle?

I’m sure there are numerous answers to why God wrote what He did. The ones I’m coming up with may not even be the central reasons. If anyone else has some insights, I’d love to hear them.

Do we believe in “The Force?”

One insight that we can gain from reading chapter after chapter about tabernacle details, is that God is very unlike “The Force.”

Now I know few Bible-believing Christians would ever admit that they believe God is anything like The Force. We all learned in Sunday School 101 that God is a person and therefore has a distinct personality. And yet, being able to parrot that truth back is not the same as internalizing it. The Force view of God is not thinking that is relegated only to Star Wars, but is innate within human nature. After all, The Force is very appealing. The Force doesn’t have any opinions about anything, it’s just power that you tap into that makes you into a little god. It doesn’t need to be obeyed; it can be wielded to obey you.

But as we read through the passages of scripture, we find ourselves becoming acquainted with God’s personality in a way that merely giving lip service to a belief in His personality, could never replace.

A Detail-Oriented God

In Exodus 26, we read directions about what God wants the curtains of the Tabernacle to look like:

“Moreover, you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twisted linen and blue and purple and scarlet yarns; you shall make them with cherubim skillfully worked into them. ..You shall make loops of blue on the edge…fifty loops you shall make on one curtain… and you shall make fifty clamps of gold…” Ex 26: 1,4,6

God could have said anything to us in Exodus chapter 26, but what He ordained that we would be reading thousands of years later, is the colors and patterns He desired to have on the tabernacle curtain.

Reading this chapter can either be a real yawner, or it can put chills up your spine. When it starts to dawn on us how distinct God’s personality is, and how zealous He is that He be worshiped in the exact way that He has prescribed, and not any willy-nilly way that fancies us, it ceases to be boring. It suddenly becomes an insight into what is near to His heart, and what we should be zealous about as well.

God’s not a micromanager, per se. There are not instructions on how the Israelites were to decorate their own houses and what color their curtains had to be. But when it comes to how He is worshiped, we see that God has very strong opinions, or maybe I should say commands.

As to what the Priests’ robes looked like, they were to have gold bells and blue, purple and scarlet pomegranates around the hem of the robe (Ex. 28:33). This verse should get our attention. God doesn't want pears on the priests' robes. He doesn't want apples. He doesn't want oranges. He could have said fruit. But He wants pomegranates on the robes. Doesn't this just perk your interest? Doesn't it surprise you? Doesn't this cause you to wonder? It should at least make us smile as we're reading along. It should also cause us to ask questions. I wonder why pomegranates?

Worship is a Priority to God

Reading through these chapters, you almost get the impression that God becomes “caught up” in His descriptions of the worship of the tabernacle. It reminds me of what King Solomon may have been like brain-storming with his chief architects about his palace plans. “Let’s have a fountain over here, surrounded by gardens and a pavilion here, some flowering trees…” and he starts to get more and more excited and the scribe is sketching as furiously as he can. Similarly, God shows us a portion of the richness of His personality in His instructions of how He wants to be worshiped. You get to know a little more about a person when you visit them in their home. We get to know more of God when we read about His tabernacle.

The Center of Israelite Culture

In Exodus, we learn that God commanded His center of worship to be constructed from the most precious materials on earth. Gold, the finest wood, and many different jewels were necessary. This required sacrifice on the part of the Israelites, because it meant that each family had to donate to make this happen. But we learn from this that God wanted the tabernacle to be the very center of Israelite culture.

A people group that does not have a cultural center are considered primitive or tribal. Having a pinnacle of culture sets a society apart and makes them advanced. God desired that His worship be everything to His people. He didn’t want them to have some cutting-edge palace for their king, while the tabernacle, the place of worship and sacrifice, was some lousy, tacky hut made of pine wood and boring curtains. Everything in the tabernacle had to be made glorious because God is glorious. He was to be treated as the center of the Israelites existence, because He is the center of everything. He’s not afraid to let us know that.

The center of the whole tabernacle was the altar where sacrifices took place. Many chapters are devoted to the descriptions of how and why and when to sacrifice. We see the centrality that the forgiveness of sins had to play for God to dwell with the Israelites.

Understanding this for Today

In the New Testament, we see the centrality of Christ’s death in everything we do. It’s not something that we believe only in the beginning of our faith and move on from, but something that is central to our walk every day. Paul could teach on many subjects, and yet say to the Ephesians, “For I decided to know nothing among you except Christ and Him crucified.” (1 Cor. 2:2)

Furthermore, the temple is now us, the people of God (Eph 2:21.) And God is still just as concerned about our worship as He was back then. He still desires our worship of Him to be the center of our lives.

The shallowness of our modern day T. V. shows, paperbacks, and magazines predisposes us to struggle to understand most of the Bible. But the effort will always reward us.

Finally, here is an excellent quote by David Powlison from his book Suffering and the Soveignty of God, about how to read the Bible:

I don’t know how you read Scripture. But there is a way to read Scripture that leaves you wishing God had said a whole lot more. How did Satan become evil? Why does Chronicles add zeros to the numbers in Samuel and Kings? How did Jonah avoid asphyxiation? Who wrote the book of Hebrews? And those aren’t even the questions that most often divide and perplex the church. Wouldn’t it have been great if the Lord had slipped in one killer verse that pinned down the eschatological timetable; that resolved once and for all every question about baptism; that specifically told us how to organize church leadership and government; that told us exactly what sort of music to use in worship; that explained how God’s absolute sovereignty neatly dovetails with full human responsibility? Only one more verse! And think what he could have told us with an extra paragraph or chapter! If only the Lord had shortened the genealogies, omitted mention of a few villages in the land distribution, and condensed the spec sheet for the temple’s dimensions, dishware, décor, and duties. Our Bible would be exactly the same length—even shorter—but a hundred of our questions could have been anticipated and definitively answered. Somehow, God in his providence didn’t choose to do that.

It comes down to what you are looking for as you read and listen. When you get to what most matters, to life-and-death issues, what more can he say than to you he has said? Betrayal by someone you trusted? Aggressive, incurable cancer? Your most persistent sin? A disfiguring disability? The meaning and purpose of your life? Good and evil? Love and hate? Truth and lie? Hope in the face of death? Mercy in the face of sin? Justice in the face of unfairness? The character of God? The dynamics of the human heart?

What more can he say than to you he has said? Listen well. There is nothing more that he needed to say.

[You can read Powlinson's book for free if you click the title above.]

History + Meaning = Doctrine

2010-03-06T20:32:00.003-07:00

I'll be teaching on Mark 5:21-43 tomorrow morning. While reviewing the lesson, this passage from J. Gresham Machen stood out to me again, so I'm sharing it with all who stop by.

The primitive Church was concerned not merely with what Jesus had said, but also, and primarily, with what Jesus had done. The world was to be redeemed through the proclamation of an event. And with the event went the meaning of the event; and the setting forth of the event with the meaning of the event was doctrine. These two elements are always combined in the Christian message.

The narration of the facts is history; the narration of the facts with the meaning of the facts is doctrine.

"Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried"--that is history.

"He loved me and gave Himself for me"--that is doctrine.

Such was the Christianity of the primitive Church.

Standing on the Promises Part 5

2010-03-02T15:09:00.008-07:00

A Curve Ball (or so it seems to my puny mind)

I had to reread this sentence a few times and I don't yet fully understand it:

As discussed above, the promises of God never rest upon our performance of our duty in any way. Rather, the performance of our duty rests upon the faithfulness of God. Indeed, the godly performance in one of the things promised. (emphasis from author) Pg. 39

And then this:

As parents, we must not do our duty in order to earn our way into the promises. The promises of God are freely given in Christ to all parents who believe them. And how can we recognize who they are who so believe? They are the ones who believe the promises in such a way that it results in a glad, joyful, evangelical performance of their parental duties--which in turn results in the promised fruit. Pg. 40

Clear as mud?

I don't know why I'm having such a hard time catching on. Wilson goes on to scare the socks off us all by stating:

God does not call us to a job of parenting that is somehow "in the ballpark." He calls us to covenantal faithfulness. As we look at these requirements, it will be borne in on us yet again that we are all sinners, and that we all need the forgiveness of Christ constantly. At the same time, by the grace of God, covenantal faithfulness remains within reach--even for forgiven sinners. Pg. 40

Wouldn't you have rather read that a ballpark range is fine?

These things seem so hard to understand, and yet understanding is the precursor to believing which leads to obedience. I hope that I am growing in my understanding, belief and therefore obedience more and more.

As I was thinking about all this more today, my mind kept doing these circles: so we believe the promises and that makes them true, but they're only true when that belief shows itself by obedience, but that obedience doesn't earn the promise, and the promise is nothing without obedience, but the promise works through our obedience, and faith is the condition, obedience is the fruit, but faith is never without fruit. Did I get it?

Then it occurred to me that maybe I'm making this all more complicated that it needs to be. Maybe I'm over analyzing everything, trying to think it through until I've ironed out every wrinkle. Maybe I shouldn't try to understand it in such a mathematical way. Imagine this: I just need to believe it whether or not it fits my understanding of "makes perfect sense." When I read God's promises in scripture, I just need to trust that they are true. It's just like the old song goes: trust and obey, there is no other way, to be happy in Jesus, than to trust and obey. Scripture is full of seemingly paradoxes. And as we've all heard so many times from our beloved Chesterton: "Consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds."

I'm sorry to say, but this realization may not keep me from writing a part 6.

Standing on the Promises Part 4

2010-03-02T15:02:00.005-07:00

Faithful Families

Wilson demonstrates through scripture God's intention that children follow in their parents' faith. God has promised that in the New Testament, through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, there will be whole families where parents, children and grandchildren all follow after the Lord. Every family that we each have known where this is true, is a fulfillment of God's promise to do this (Ez 37:24-26). We all know families where this has not been shown true. Does this mean that God has not come through on His promise to some families? No. God has simply promised that there will be families with faithful Christians for generation after generation. Whether or not our family will be a fulfillment of God's promise to be a God to us and to our children and to their children after them, (Gen. 17:7) is dependent on us believing God's promises and that belief being shown by faithful obedience.

Wilson quotes Psalm 103:17-18

But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, and His righteousness to children's children, to such a keep His covenant, and to those who remember His commandments to do them." The promise in this passage is clear. But three elements of parental responsibility also need to be mentioned--keeping the covenant, remembering His commandments, and doing His commandments. (author's emphasis)

Standing on the Promises Part 3

2010-03-02T14:59:00.005-07:00

Resting in the Promises Produces Work

God's gracious promises are the principle on which all our parental work rests. If God didn’t come through for us and bless our efforts with our children, our work would be entirely pointless. But because He promises to take our meager, fumbling efforts at daily obedience and multiply them, like He did with the loaves and fish, we have great confidence in teaching our children.

Wilson explains it best in this paragraph on the relationship between promises and work:

Now the scriptures are equally clear that the heart of covenant-keeping is promise-believing. This is why the Bible, from beginning to end, teaches the centrality of faith. But as it was with Abraham, promise-believing, or faith, without works is dead. Nowhere is this more important to understand than in the arduous task of bringing up our children in the Lord. To keep us from being overwhelmed by our responsibilities as parents, we must turn first to the promises of God that apply to us as parents. It is a tragedy of monumental proportions that most modern Christian parents are not aware of the wonderful promises that God has made in His Word on the subject of child-rearing. But as we come to understand these promises, we will then rest in them, and that evangelical rest will result in godly, trusting, faithful parental work. Pg. 23, 24 (emphasis from author)

I am understanding Wilson to mean that when we put faith in God's promises to prosper our work of teaching our children about Him, that faith will demonstrate itself by us doing the teaching--the hard work.

Standing on the Promises Part 2

2010-03-02T14:55:00.007-07:00

Promises To Parents

Wilson has been talking about the promises of God that apply to parents who keep God’s covenant. My husband made the pertinent point all of God’s promises have conditions. God promises the resurrection to life to those who by faith allow His son’s blood to cover their guilt. God does not promise it will go well with all of the Israelites but with those who honor their father and mother.

So it is with God’s promise to bless the children of believers. It is not a blanket promise to all believers, but the condition is that the believing parents must be careful to keep his covenant and to diligently teach their children. If both parents are believers but they are not careful in the way they raise and teach their children, and they are not careful that their own personal life is characterized by obedience, then they have no reason to claim the promise.

But What About Grace?

At this point I used to think: “Doesn’t a promise having a condition make that works righteousness? Are you saying that we earn things from God? I thought it was all by grace?” It is most certainly all by grace, but allow me to explain.

Someone once said it like this: say you’re a poor kid in high school with no special academic or athletic abilities and a person you’d never met came up to you and said: “I want to pay for 100% of your college expenses. You can go to any college in the entire world that you want, but there’s one condition. You have to graduate from high school.” Now if you are able to graduate from high school therefore meeting the condition, does that mean you somehow earned this generous gift? Of course not. It’s entirely undeserved and totally free.

So it is with God’s lavish promises to us concerning our children. When He promises to bless a thousand generations after us if only we will keep covenant by carefully following Him, and teach our children about Him, this is none other than lavish grace. We could never teach them well enough, or model well enough to affect such an extensive generational legacy all on our own. It would be preposterous to imagine being that influential. But this is something that God promises to make happen. We see here His character; He is in no way miserly in His grace towards us. When it comes to fulfilling a promise, he is extravagant.

Dusting off the Mind-Cobwebs: Towards a biblical understanding of Promises and Covenants

2010-02-23T22:01:00.008-07:00

Standing on the Promises Part 1

Sin seems to have a cobweb effect on my heart and mind that keeps me from understanding the breadth of spiritual truths. However, the first sign that some light might be making its way in there is when I start to realize there’s a lot more to a truth than I currently understand. That’s how I feel when studying covenants and promises. I’ve been seeing a tiny bit of ice sticking out of the water, but there’s something huge underwater that I know very little about.

It was ten years ago that Chris and I first read Douglas Wilson’s book Standing on the Promises. The main things I took from it back then were: Wow, this author actually know his Bible. Wow, there’s a lot I don’t know about in the Bible. And then just: Wow! I’ve been found recommending it ever since: “You should read it, because: wow!” It wasn’t perhaps the most articulate explanation.

Now we’re reading the book again and after having been in churches that teach covenant theology, I’m beginning to absorb a little more from the weighty book. And yet, I still find myself scratching my head and going, “How does a covenant work again?” I’m finding, I have a lot more to learn.

Covenants are foreign concepts to the American mind, someone astutely pointed out to me recently. And when you add in the spiritual brain fog that sin effects in us all, it’s no wonder we struggle to understand them. However, it’s fun to catch things that I missed ten years ago. Here are my feeble attempts to forge ahead and understand some foreign and weighty concepts.

Of Gardens and Bank Accounts

Wilson frequently talks about keeping covenant with our God. In the old days, my understanding of keeping a covenant was similar to keeping a bank account. This time around, I see keeping covenant more similar to keeping a garden.

When you walk into your bank to make a deposit, you cross a pristine floor and are greeted by an immaculate countertop on which stands one lone container, filled with pens. You hand the banker your deposit, and your balance goes up accordingly. The whole process is so simple that my four year old can understand it.

But keeping a garden is an entirely different sort of task. Everyone has a bank account, but very few people have success with a garden. It takes a certain level of dedication. The tasks involved in caring for a garden are varied. The soil needs preparation, different plants need to be planted at different times, you have to water, prune, protect from frost, ward off pests, weed frequently, fertilize, mulch, deal with disease, and much more. If you want a large garden and want to tend it well, it’s a daily task.

When we are trapped in a small-minded view of covenants, we imagine that we can keep covenant in a bank-account kind of way. We scan the Bible (and parenting books) for what transactions are required of us. We come up with a tidy little list and imagine a recipe that goes like this: baptism plus church attendance plus tithing equals (ka-ching!) we are bona fide covenant keepers. We did it.

But Deuteronomy 5:32,33 leaves us no such room for this narrow thinking. “You shall be careful therefore to do as the Lord your God has commanded you. You shall not turn aside to the right or to the left.” For us to take care to live exactly how God has commanded, and not stray slightly, is not a task that can be boiled down to a simple equation. It requires daily examination. It reminds me of a garden. In a heat spell in Colorado, I could go just two days without watering and the plants would be scorched. I have to be careful with that garden, to do everything that 500 page gardening encyclopedia says.

The bent of the human mind is to take something rich and complex and varied and try to reduce it and make it easier on us. Following a formula never requires careful attention. Formulas can be performed while watching T.V. You punch in some numbers and the formula does the rest.

God's Grace to Fail

2010-02-12T11:03:00.003-07:00

Not many know of Dr. Moore, but he's one of my favorites. I don't think I've ever heard a sermon or read an article of his that was not worth my time. This one in particular is applicable to me. I would recommend it to everyone, but it seems to be particularly helpful for those in ministry: ministry in the church or ministry in a family.

Advice on Preparing for Another Little One

2010-02-03T21:53:00.008-07:00

A friend asked me this question:

Pass on some advice of how you prepared for your fourth child or maybe what you wish you would have done or prepared for after adding the 4th child. Anything that made the transition a little smoother? Maybe things you trained the older kids to do, or anything you did to organize a little better. Any verses that encouraged you along the way?

Here was my response:

I’m so glad you’re asking for advice because I feel like we moms do a lot of reinventing the wheel. Everything I say here is just a suggestion and what I did, not supposed to be a step-by-step plan to follow.

When I went from having 2 to 3 kids, I had way too many activities going on and that made life stressful for everyone. We went to story time at the library each week, MOPS, women’s bible study at church, play groups, and eveentually joined a home school co-op. Every day of the week we had something.

But when I was pregnant with my fourth, I decided that I was not going to repeat that experience. One thing that was helpful was that we moved to Colorado half way through my pregnancy, which meant that I was automatically removed from all commitments. But I still had to resolve to stay out of any new ones. The home school co-op was one thing I knew for sure I didn’t want to continue. We loved it for many reasons, but the prep time was heavy for me.

I think women’s Bible studies are wonderful, but they are for certain seasons of life. MOPS is another great idea but it is undermining what it is trying to accomplish if it is stressing you out.

Basically, my philosophy was to have absolutely no daytime commitments after the baby was born. I figured I could always add any back in after I felt capable, but to start with nothing. This was wonderful and made life so simple for us.

We should view all of the little things we do as service to God. It’s not only that going to the women’s Bible study is a spiritual thing to do, but nursing a baby, changing 12 diapers a day, bathing a baby, washing spit-up clothes, all those things are also good and spiritual.

We need the Word every day, but we have to learn to read the Word in a way that fits with the stage of life God has called us. It will mean things like having the Bible open during each meal, to catch a verse here and there while you eat. Or reading while breastfeeding, (after it’s established at least.) And don’t forget to share with the little one’s around you what you are reading. Putting it in words that they can understand benefits our understanding as well.

A few years back, I read a post somewhere (can’t remember where) about incorporating the Bible into our daily lives as mothers and about allowing our children to share in what we are learning. The writer said something along the lines of: “If you toddler wanders into your bedroom where you’re trying to have your quiet time, instead of acting all annoyed that your precious time has been spoiled, act excited to see them, bring them up on your lap, and enthusiastically explain what you are reading about.”

After reading this, Abigail, who was 2 at the time, came in while I was reading about Moses and I told her the story in her own words.

After this day, Abigail would ask to hear the story over and over, so I would often tell it to her when we were driving in the car. It got to be a habit that as soon as we got in the car, Abigail would say, “Tell me the story of Moses.”

Naomi had heard me telling them the story so often, that from the time she was 1, she could fill in some of the details. I would start by saying, “Once upon a time there was a young woman named…” and Naomi, barely able to talk, would chime in: “Jachabed.”

I tried to highlight the themes of the story, not just the details. Things like: “Jachabed was so scared that the soldiers might hurt her little boy, so she had to put her faith in God as she prepared a basket for her baby.” And: “Look how God provided for Moses. Do you think it was an accident that the princess came down to the water at just that moment?” I felt like I was just beginning to understand the verse: “Bring up your children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.”

To this day, the story of Moses is their very favorite story (next to the birth of Jesus.) Nearly every day Abigail and Naomi climb into a basket or box, pull a blanket over them, and play Moses. One of them is supposed to be Miriam watching over the one in the basket. (Naomi isn’t always the sweetest Miriam, she’s usually dumping the basket over and yelling, “My turn to be Moses.” )

All that to say, don’t feel bad about having to miss out on Bible studies, but incorporate it into your home more instead.

As far as chores go, after trying numerous different charts and plans, I finally found a system that I like. I have each child that is old enough, be in charge of a room of the house in addition to their bedroom. A child of 5 or 6 is capable of going around the living room, picking up toys and putting board books back on the shelf, straightening throw pillows, etc.

I like to keep each child on their “designated area,” as we call it, for several months. It takes at least a week of training before they are actually good at it and independent. I have found I have to be patient with the training process and not shoot for perfection. If we are having people over, I have to redo some of the work, but that’s not really the point. The point is training them to be good cleaners and responsible for their work.

One thing I like about them having separate rooms is that I know who to come to if the work is shoddy. Furthermore, when I tell three kids to go clean the playroom, I constantly hear, “So and so isn’t working, I’m having to do it all.” But I found that my children work better when they alone are responsible for the outcome.

Meal planning and list making are essential to running a big family with a new baby. I have found that I do best when I have a time set aside to do my meal planning each week. For example, every Friday afternoon, plan while kids nap. There was a time that I repeated the same menu every two weeks. This made shopping and cooking real easy. Some husbands may object, but I think that most men care much more about having a wife that is relaxed and a happy baby, than they do in having a varied meal plan.

Don’t be afraid to excuse yourself from service temporarily. I was so thankful that Chris was not teaching Sunday school and we weren’t on any leadership roles after both Abigail and Naomi were born. This was temporary: now we are involved in many things, but it was a good to step back for a season.

Here are some Organizing Toy Tips.

God bless you as you serve him in your care of His little ones.

Piper on C.S. Lewis

2010-02-03T14:53:00.006-07:00

For all you iLovers out there

2010-01-28T13:59:00.001-07:00

The iPad - watch more funny videos

The Best Homemade Play Dough Recipe

2010-01-25T13:43:00.003-07:00

We've tried many and this one make amazing play dough. I like the texture much better than store bought play dough. It is squishier and more pliable:

2 cups flour

1 cup salt

1 tsp cream of tartar

2 Tbl oil

1 tsp. food coloring (I like to leave this out)

2 cups water

Mix all ingredients in saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until dough leaves sides of pan. Remove from pan and when cool to touch, knead for a few minutes.

Gianna Jessen

2010-01-21T22:56:00.007-07:00

She was born alive after her birth mother went in for a saline abortion, 7 ½ months pregnant.

In Gianna’s words, “They didn’t know who they were trying to kill.” Gianna’s a survivor and a voice for many more who aren’t.

I’m just home from a powerful message on this dark eve, the eve of Roe v. Wade.

When I say powerful, I don’t mean in the artificial sense. I don’t mean Gianna was poised, or used fancy rhetoric, or was eloquent beyond description. Her tone was very conversational and not at all polished. I liked it because I felt each sentence was genuine and from her heart. But what made it powerful was her words of truth.

First: what is a saline abortion?

In a saline abortion, a salt solution is injected into a pregnant woman’s uterus, causing the amniotic fluid to become poisonous. As the unborn child drinks the amniotic fluid, the salt begins to burn him to death inside and out. Labor is induced, and the woman gives birth to a dead baby about 20 hours later. Gianna was born alive after being burned for 18 hours. She suffers from cerebral palsy because of the saline abortion.

Before the Born Alive Infant Protection Act of 2002, the tiny survivor from a saline abortion was normally either suffocated or left to die. The abortion doctor was not on duty when Gianna was born alive and nobody else stepped up to kill her. Later, the abortionist who had tried to kill her has his name on her birth certificate. Gianna was given up for adoption.

Redemption

Gianna’s birth mother showed up unannounced at an event that Gianna was speaking at three years ago. Gianna, whose difficulties with cerebral palsy daily remind her of her mother’s attempt to kill her, was able to tell that woman that she has forgiven her from her heart. Only by the love of Jesus of Nazareth, was she able to forgive.

Gianna has forgiven the abortion doctor, whose name she has to carry around with her on her birth certificate.

Gianna told a story of being at a dinner event and sitting next to a former abortion doctor who had repented, quit his practice, and become an advocate for life. Gianna thought nothing of it, because she really believes that in Christ, this man had been forgiven. But she said that others at the table didn’t know what to make of it: a young woman who had been nearly killed and maimed for life sitting next to a man that used to kill and maim. Everyone felt awkward until Gianna warmly engaged him in conversation and broke the ice. Later, the group was walking down the windy street and Gianna sometimes has difficulty walking because of her cerebral palsy, so she asked the man if she could hold his elbow. He offered it to her and off they went arm in arm. Gianna’s sister was walking behind them and began bawling her eyes out because she couldn’t believe what a beautiful picture the two were: the killer and the almost killed, the lion lying down with the lamb, the oppressed forgiving the oppressor.

Gianna made it obvious that she had a very strong will to live and to stand up for what she believes in. She said often before she gets up to speak, someone will say to her, “Now Gianna, we love your message and your story, but you don’t really need to say so much about Jesus.” She goes on to mention Jesus quite a few times.

I just wrote about what a strong will Naomi has and how that made her so difficult at first. There was something about Gianna that reminds me so much of Naomi. Gianna said that she was the strongest-willed child ever. I whispered to Isaiah, “But she doesn’t know about Naomi.” It gave me hope for little Naomi that if her strong will can be channeled in the right direction, God can use that in mighty ways.

Another demonstration on Gianna's courage was when she looked out at the crowd and said, "How dare you, you who are healthy, look at someone with a disability and tell them that they should not live. The arrogance of healthy people to look down on those with down's syndrome, or cerebral palsy, or any other disability as though they were less important or valuable than normal people, is appalling." I'll add to that, I'm glad there's not a test for autism in the womb, or they would be disappearing like Down's children are. Looking around the room, I saw an adorable little down's syndrome blond girl of about 8 or 9, and the president of Life Network with his disabled son of about the same age, living out their message.

Gianna mentioned meeting George W. Bush when he signed into law the Born Alive Infant Protection Act. She told about what a profound effect meeting him had on her life. All she had heard about him was how stupid he was, how inarticulate, fumbling, etc. But as she stood there, quaking in her shoes nervously, and awkwardly holding out her hand, he said, “Are you nervous?” She said, “I’m so nervous I could die.” He said, “I’ll give you a hug then.” He gave her not an awkward, politician hug, but a genuine hug. They talked more and she could not believe what an amazing person he is. The reason she told this part was to drive home the point of how much we will be hated for doing what’s right. She asked us the question: are we willing to be slandered and maligned for doing what we think is the right thing as well?

Finally, she ended by reading a quote from Hitler. The quote said that the people need to be fed a few simple slogans. They cannot understand anything deep, but campaigns should get them to repeat mantras. She said, isn’t it strange that thinking people with numerous scientific arguments about when life begins, about the ethical implications about abortion, arguments about the psychological effects on women who’ve had abortion, about the amount of pain a tiny baby can feel witnessed by grimaces, are called stupid and closed-minded? But those arguments are often returned with empty and poorly-researched slogans.

The ignorance surrounding adoption is a good example. Numerous pro-choice people I’ve talked to think that there are more babies in America waiting to be adopted than parents wanting to adopt. The extreme opposite is true. Significantly more parents are waiting to adopt than there are babies available. The media doesn't want you to know this because it puts abortion in a bad light. Chris and I have friends who have been waiting for 10 years to adopt domestically. Sometimes people will point out how many children are in our foster care system without realizing that many foster children are not able to be adopted because their living parents’ have not consented.

Another example of poor arguments: when talking to people who do not believe human life begins at conception, I have yet to meet one that has even the foggiest notion of when they do believe it begins. They give no plausible alternatives.

Finally, Gianna referred to her disability as the gift of cerebral palsy. If Christ were to stand in front of her and ask her if she wanted to be healed, she would say no. She has seen how Christ has used it to refine her and change her.

All in all, it was a moving, memorable speech. If you ever want to hear her, she is also on YouTube telling her story.

Tales from the Toddler Trenches

2010-01-20T21:18:00.008-07:00

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us…” Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities

This has not often been quoted in relation to mothering, but something about it rings true in relation to mothering toddlers.

Often throughout the day, we are convinced that our little child is the cutest and smartest little darling ever to grace the earth and that we have the very best job that exists, the privilege of taking care of her. But within moments, we are saying to ourselves that there has never been a toddler so difficult, so conniving, so willful and stubborn as the little rebel living within our home.

I’m happy to say that most of every day is sweet bliss with my two-year-old now, but there was a time when I started to feel as if the Grinch had been reincarnated.

I couldn’t understand, about half a year ago, how my precious sweetheart could be so terribly naughty. One thing Naomi, in her height of toddler terror, used to love to do was to smack her darling big sister. Now I don’t think you understand, this big sister of hers is truly the sweetest thing ever. This is the child who, when asked to do something by her mother, springs to her feet and says in the most delightful voice possible, “Oh, yes ma’am.” She sounds like a southern belle from the 1950’s. We have no idea where she got this.

Anyhow, this little angel would be sitting demurely upon the floor, wrapping her baby Jesus in swaddling clothes, and along would come little miss mad-at-the-world and smack her upside the head. Abigail, being far too delicate to retaliate, would sit there sobbing in a pathetic little heap because the baby tyrant, who had just learned to walk, had beat her up again.

Sometimes the tyrant tot had wanted to play with whatever Abigail had. But often she didn’t even try to take it away, she was just mad that she didn’t have it already. Other times it seemed she was mad that someone else was having so much fun and wanted to put a stop to that.

These were the times that I wondered what on earth I had created. Often, I felt immense gratitude that she was not my first child, because I may have come to the conclusion that I made her that way. Having had four already, I knew she was different and I hadn’t done anything differently.

Once when we were visiting family, a boy cousin of Naomi’s who is the same age as her, was enjoying looking out of a sliding glass door. She spotted him having fun and was off on a mission to stop him. She ran up to where he was looking out, pushed in front of him, and then spread her arms as wide as she could up against the glass to block him. Being the good natured fellow that he was, he simply shrugged and moved to the other glass door. But of course she did the same thing on that door. So he moved back and forth from door to door, and each time she blocked him. There were two doors and they could have each looked out one, but her goal was simply to spoil his fun. When I went over and told her she must stop doing that, she folded her arms and put on her signature pout face, which seemed to say, “Mom, you’re so mean, not letting ruin my cousin’s fun.” She was 17 months old.

The hardest part about her terrible ones was her iron will to be the boss. Her default attitude day in and day out was, “I’m the boss and why hasn’t anyone around here caught on to that yet?” This was manifested in ways such as standing up in her high chair. “Naomi sit down.” She doesn’t sit. Spanking. Cry. Hug and tell her I love her. Put her in her high chair. 30 seconds later she’s standing up again. “Naomi sit down, that’s dangerous. Mommy doesn’t want you to crack your head open.” She doesn’t sit. Spanking. Repeat times 10 every meal for 6 months. Not joking. All kids are wired to think that they’re the boss, but most take only a few battles to get the memo. For Abigail, all you have to do is look at her: “Okay, okay, you’re the boss.”

But, I have to say that Naomi has turned a very big corner. After over 10 battles a day for over a year, that’s over 3,000 battles she's lost, she is a new kid and sweet as can be. She does occasionally put on a little pout, after all she was nearly born with it on. But it no longer means, “Why does no one see that the world revolves around me? I’m not giving up till they get it!” Now it means, “That’s not how I was hoping things would go...but…I’m…over it!” And within seconds the pouts gone and she’s accepted her place in the world. She has even been known to crack a smile beneath one of those pouts.

My point in writing all this is not to strike mortal terror into prospective parents and confirm their long-held suspicion that raising a toddler is a fate worse than death. The truth is, I guess I don't know why I wrote this. Maybe to remind myself how far she's come. Maybe to wallow in the relief that those hard days are over (for now.) Parenting is not for the faint of heart.

Planning Meals and Staying Organized

2010-01-14T22:12:00.001-07:00

It’s that time of year again—that New Year’s resolution time. If you missed that January 1 mark, it’s not too late to make a few. Maybe one about making weekly meal plans?

Planning meals is something you do for yourself, not something you do because it’s what the “good” homemakers do. It is not like resolving to mop your kitchen floor every week or vacuum more. When you plan your meals, it gives you extra time to do the things that you really want to do. It gives you a sense of order instead of panic, as the dinner hour approaches.

Do you just love driving to the grocery store every other day, parking, waiting in line, driving home and then realizing that you forgot something? Unless that is an activity that gives you joy, make your life easier by a little planning. Here are some tips.

· Try to have a set day that you’ll plan your meals. If you typically shop on Saturdays, plan your meals and write up your list on Friday.

· Get in the habit of immediately writing down anything you are getting low of during the week. Keep a magnetic pad on your fridge with the list and constantly add to it. Don’t wait till you’ve used up every last drop of laundry detergent to buy more. If you think there might be a chance that something won’t last you through the week, buy more of it.

· If you have your cookbooks out and you feel motivated to come up with more that one week of meals, by all means, plan the whole month if you want.

· Organize your list by aisle: produce, canned, frozen, cereal aisle, etc. This will allow you to zip in and out in a hurry.

· Keep a list of your family’s favorite meals with the cookbook name and page number posted in your kitchen. I have mine taped to the inside of my pantry door. This triggers my memory and keeps me from forgetting about our favorite meals over time.

· Come up with a weekly pattern. For instance, we like Mexican so each week I plan on doing one Mexican meal. The actual meal rotates between tacos, black beans and rice, quesadillas, nachos. In the winter we’ll have a soup night, an Italian night, a Mexican night, a leftover night, and a chicken night. In the summer I might do a salad instead of soup each week.

· Come up with a list of common things you need, print it out, and tape it inside a kitchen cabinet. My list has things like eggs, milk, butter, shampoo, Kleenex, dishwasher detergent, pull-ups, jelly, flour,etc. As I’m making my grocery list, I scan over that as a trigger to my memory. This week I was about to forget coffee, but scanning my list, I saw coffee and wrote it down. I still use the pad on the fridge as well because my common list is not meant to be exhaustive. You wouldn’t want to have every last spice written on there. I needed cardamom and turmeric this past week. But between the two systems, the list on the fridge and the common list, you should be able to go to the grocery once and only once most weeks.

Teaching Children to Read

2010-01-06T09:33:00.003-07:00

I wrote this in response to a question from a friend recently and thought it might be helpful for others as well.

I did a book with all my kids called Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. My three oldest all learned to read with this book but at varying paces. My oldest just zipped right through it and by lesson 70 or so just started reading chapter books. My second took a little longer to finish but still made it through well.

My third had a hard time and so I did it a little different. We would do every lesson twice; some lessons we did even three times, because that's how many times it took her to master the lesson. I would also supplement the lessons with Bob Books. She did well going at a slow pace and I made sure to keep it positive and give her a good feeling about learning. I don't think she ever realized that she was "slower" than the other two or that it took her longer to learn to read. I praised her for whatever progress she made.

I am currently going through the book with my fourth child right now, who's four. It was her idea to do it; she kept begging me to teach her to read. We are once again going at a very slow pace, often doing only half a lesson a day. I ask her if she's tired and wants to stop and I let her if she's had enough half way through. I also repeat the lessons a lot.

All in all, I think the book is a great tool to have, but can sometimes moves at too fast a pace depending on the child. I would highly recommend giving it a try and tailoring it to your situation.

I think any teaching time greatly benefits from giving your children a good feeling about learning and about their abilities. If you can go through the book with him at a time when no one else is around and it is a special time for just you and him, he may come to really look forward to it. Encourage any progress he makes as the miracle that learning to read is. Anytime he struggles and shows frustration, just put the material aside and say, we'll try again tomorrow.

Cheerfulness in Parenting

2010-01-04T10:40:00.004-07:00

Excerpts taken from this article written by Michael Pearl.

"There are three qualities parents must possess in order to produce well trained and disciplined young adults: cheerfulness, authoritative command, and consistency.

Of these three, the greatest of these is cheerfulness. It is the first and most important quality a child trainer must possess. Young parents may not possess authoritative command or consistency when their first child comes along, but they can make a good beginning if they are cheerful. All other skills will come in time.

I say again, there is one indispensable quality you must possess—cheerfulness. It is the easiest to come by and does not require maturity or wisdom. The Bible word is “joy.” It takes a lifetime to become a library of wisdom, but God can make you completely joyful in an instant. Joy/cheerfulness is the byproduct of thankfulness and love.

I said joy is the one indispensable. It is the fertile ground of all good child training—of all good relationships. In my DVD The Joy of Training, I said, “A joyless parent can no more raise good kids than a skunk can raise skunklets that smell good.” And again, “Training without joy is tyranny.”

A young parent that is full of good cheer has 75 percent of what it takes to be a successful child trainer. Everyone is attracted to joy. Children will do anything for one who enjoys them. Once they get in the joy zone, they never want to do anything that might jeopardize that relationship.

A parent of good cheer can deliver a more effective rebuke in less time and without damaging the relationship than a legalistic grump could do with a thousand Bible verses and a hundred spankings.

If you are cheerful in the Lord Jesus Christ you will be a dynamic child trainer. You will be to children what a flower is to a bee. "

Three Assignments for the New Year

2010-01-02T10:14:00.005-07:00

From Doug Phillips of Vision Forum Ministries from here.

Dear Friends:

Life moves fast. If we don’t take the time to chronicle the providences of God, we forget them. If we don’t take the time to say thank you to those who have invested in our lives, we actually cultivate a spirit of ingratitude in our own hearts. If we don’t stop and make sure that we have a spirit of forgiveness toward others, we grow bitter, we lose the capacity to move victoriously into the future, and our prayers are hindered.

Here is a little practice that I was taught and would like to share with you. Each year, during the last week of December, I would encourage you to do the following things.

I. Outline and Chronicle the Many Providences of God

Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. (Hab. 33:2)
First, using simple bullet points, outline the key events for every week of every month of the year. Take the time to do the research which will help jog your memory and allow you to make an accurate record. I find that reviewing bills, blogs, journals, newspaper headlines, letters, and even organizing my photographs chronologically are enormously helpful tools. Those individuals who were faithful to journal or keep a diary will have little problem reconstructing key events. Give yourself a good week to reconstruct your own outline of the year. Also, by making this a family project, you will not only build your list with greater speed and precision, but (in the hands of a loving patriarch) the very act of chronicling the providences of God in your life is a blessed tool for family discipleship.

Every family will have a different set of priorities directing what they should record. In addition to recording the key events and providences of the year chronologically, I try to take the time with my family to record some of the following information on separate bullet lists:

Where did I/we travel?
What were the most important sermons I heard this year?
What books/articles did I write?
What significant household projects did we accomplish in 2009?
What were the most important meetings of the year?
What special friendships were made this year?
Which children lost teeth, and how many?
Who grew in physical stature, and how much did they grow?
Who learned to read this year?
What diet and physical exercise regimen did I maintain to honor “my temple”?
What books did I read? Did we read as a family? Did my children read?
What Scriptures did my family memorize?
What loved ones died this year?
What were the great personal/ministry/national tragedies and losses of the year?
What were the great personal/ministry/national blessings of the year?
What were my most significant failures/sins for the year 2009?
What commitments have I made to overcome sin in 2010?
What significant spiritual and practical victories did I experience?
In what tangible ways did I communicate gratitude to those who have blessed me and invested in my life?
What are the top ten themes of 2009 for my family?

II. Say ‘Thank You’ to Those Who Have Invested in Your Life

[I] cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers. (Eph. 1:16)

Whatever happened to the man who first opened to you the words of life from the Scripture? Where is the comrade, coach, or instructor who believed in you and helped you to accomplish a great goal? What about the Bible teacher whose careful handling of the Word opened up new vistas of understanding? Where is the friend who stood with you through thick and thin? Most importantly, what have you communicated to the mother who carried you in her womb, loved and nurtured you, or the father who labored to provide for and shepherd you?

When was the last time you responded to their investment in your life with gratitude, blessings, and even money? Jesus reminds us of those ungrateful recipients of blessing who simply went their way without demonstrating gratitude (Luke 17).

Before the year ends, make a list of two types of people: The first list are the names of people whose life, ministry, or personal investment in you have deeply touched you and changed your life. (In my case, the list includes parents, pastors, and even some teachers from the early years of my Christian walk that I did not meet until much later in my life, but whose books and tapes were crucial to my personal discipleship as a young Christian.) The second list should include those people who played the most significant role in your life in 2009.

Write a brief, meaningful letter to each of them. Be specific in your gratitude. Explain what they did for you and why it was important to you. Show them how they were God’s instrument of blessing in your own life. Pray over each letter, asking God to grant you rich insights on the character qualities of each individual and on the way those qualities changed your own life. Where appropriate, include a check or special token of appreciation that reflects your desire to show them, tangibly, that you recognize that you are in their debt. You cannot imagine the joy this will give to someone from your past who may think you have forgotten them. Give generously and without concern for getting a tax deduction. I strongly recommend sending money to your parents. Keep in mind that you will never be able to return their personal and financial investment in your life, except through your testimony of faithfulness, covenant keeping, and honor to the Lord.

Also, your children need to know the people who have blessed their parents. They need to see that Mom and Dad are grateful and generous. Share your letters with them. In our household, we ask our children to write to some of the people who have blessed Mommy and Daddy, because our children are the indirect recipients of these blessings on their parents.

This will take a day or two to complete. You may have twenty letters to write, but you will never regret saying “thank you.”

One last thought: One reason why Christians are often limited in vision, energy, and blessings is that, contrary to the Lord’s command, we are ungrateful, unforgiving, and bitter. Far too many who profess the name of Christ spend more time obsessing on those who have wronged them than rejoicing in those who have blessed them. Letters and tangible expressions of gratitude are not only pleasing to Christ, but an antidote to heart-sickness.

III. Forgive Those Who Have Wronged You

Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

(Romans 12:19-21)

In the course of a year, it is possible to build up many offenses and personal grievances at others. Left unaddressed, these grievances fester and grow. They turn the heart black and the body weak. They foster a spirit of vengeance and misguided self-righteousness. The short of it is this: Unforgiveness leads to bitterness. Bitterness curdles the mind and the spirit.

Fresh starts and new years should begin with forgiveness for others. Having a genuine spirit of forgiveness towards those who have wronged us is a mark of biblical Christianity. It is an evidence that we have been redeemed, and that we are praying lawfully: “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors” (Matthew 6:12).

Successful Christians are men and women who are free from bitterness. They have learned the principle modeled by our Lord Jesus Christ who, while suffering death at the hands of people he had never wronged, was able to say “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:24).

I have a dear preacher friend with a sterling reputation who was once grievously slandered. When asked about the wicked actions of the slanderers, he replied something to this effect:

Oh you don’t understand — I am far, far worse than my detractors realize. They may have gotten a lot of the specific facts wrong, but I am just thankful they don’t know how bad my heart truly is. God have mercy on me a sinner.
This man had victory over bitterness.

My father is another man who always appeared to have victory over bitterness. In fact, from my earliest days to the present, I have watched lesser men “twist the truths [he’s] spoken to make a trap for fools.” [i]

Early in my life when I was still in government schools, I would listen to my own teachers criticize before my class the work my father was doing for the President to dismantle a government agency which was at war with the family. I read untruthful articles and saw derogatory comics on the pages of the Washington Post picturing him as a caveman for his “prehistoric” views. When my father was a leader in the Republican Party in Massachusetts, a gangster repeatedly threatened the life of his family. I remember being a boy and having my father shield me from homosexual picketers and protesters that would follow him and our family around at public locations.

Most painful and difficult for many to forgive is betrayal and dishonor. But that is a mistake. Betrayal and dishonor probably exist in the lives of most men. And why should any Christian be denied in their lives what past generations of Christians — and our Lord and Savior Himself — patiently endured? To our shame, most of us have been on both sides of that coin. From a son’s perspective, however, it is highly instructive to watch a father act honorably in the midst of such conflict. It has been a great blessing in my own life to observe my father nobly respond even in the face of barbs from former allies and friends, once loved and nurtured by him.

Eternally optimistic, Dad would always say: “Never be bitter. Life is too short. Thank God for your blessings. Press on!”

Bitterness comes from being unwilling to forgive. Bitter people are small people. They are unsuccessful people. They are people who cannot move forward. They are people who believe that the personal wrongs against them are so great that they — the offended — are entitled to do to their offenders what they pray the Lord Jesus Christ will never do to them: refuse to forgive.

Here is my recommendation: Think through every grief, minor and major, caused by others to you in the year 2009. Now add to the list any other personal offenses that continue to linger from past years. Write these down as bullets on a sheet of paper.

The first thing you will likely realize is just how many offenses are polluting your thought life and, probably, your spirit. This is a sign of latent bitterness. Bitterness will kill you. It renders you completely ineffective.

Now prayerfully walk through the list — bullet, by bullet. With each offense, remind yourself that the most despicable action taken against you by another utterly (and infinitely) pales in comparison to the least of your offenses against the Lord Jesus Christ.

And yet He has forgiven you.

Before 2010 begins, adopt a spirit of forgiveness towards your insensitive friends as well as your hateful enemies. Forgive your imperfect father for whatever it is you need to forgive him for (and pray to the Lord that your own children someday forgive you for your failures). Quit devoting untold precious hours to commiseration, mental replay of the wrongs done, and thoughts about just how badly you were wronged. Stop blaming everybody but you for your problems. Look to yourself. Once you start chronicling your own sinful attitudes and crimes against God and man, you simply won’t have time to worry about the wrongs done to you. You will stop being bitter, and you will start being thankful.

Wipe the slate clean. “Press on.” Forgive.

Conclusion

As 2009 comes to a close, take time to remember and to say “thank you.” Take time to examine yourself for bitterness. Forgive others. Finally, as you love God with all your heart, soul and might, trust Him, too. Really trust him. Trust God with all your heart, your soul and might. You and I can not solve every problem. What we can do is be kind, forgiving, and patient before the Lord. We can not “fix” everything that is broken. Only God can do that. In His time and His way, the Lord can not only bring peace, but He can give you the very desires of your heart as you seek Him with integrity. He can redeem the years the locusts have eaten, and He delights in blessing his faithful children. “The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it” (Proverbs 10:22).

It is appropriate that we stop and thank God at the birth of a new year. Remember that God gave man the stars on Day Four in part so that he could order and structure his life based on a clock/calendar system of days, seasons, and years (Genesis 1). He tells us to “remember” acts and to “number” our days. In Scripture, the formal act of remembering providences of God in our life is linked to hope, honor, and generational success (e.g., Psalms 44, 78, etc.). By February 2010, the year 2009 will be a distant memory. Strike now while the iron is hot. The opportunity to remember and to say “thank you” may never come again. And can you afford even one more day in which your prayers are hindered — because you were refusing to forgive? Trust the Lord. He is in charge: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5).

Persevero,

Doug Phillips
President, Vision Forum Ministries

Extremely Moderate Interpretations

2009-12-17T15:37:00.004-07:00

While listening to an interview on a Bloomberg on the Economy podcast this week, I heard a Mr. Herrmann say, "I have an extremely moderate take on [the data]."

Only in an age of extremes, can you have 'extremely moderate' interpretations.

Normally, when we think of a continuum, we have a straight line with two extremes on either end, but in this case, I think we would need to have a bowed line to highlight how extreme the moderate position is.

On the other hand, when working with the Bible, moderate interpretations (which I take to mean, faithful interpretations), often seem extreme. So, maybe 'extremely moderate' interpretations are not all that bad.

Silent in the Congregation?

2009-12-11T21:54:00.004-07:00

I've been trying to think through 1 Cor 14 recently and I'm posting some initial thoughts.

There are at least two things that we moderns must struggle with when we come across a text like 1 Cor 14:34-35. First, we have to ascertain what the author is saying and second we have to ascertain the significance of what has been said in our day. In this case, we must first ask the question, “What did St. Paul really say?”

Paul wrote, “The women must keep silent in the congregation, for they are not permitted to speak, but are required to subject themselves just as the law says.” As you can see, I’m wrestling with the third person active imperatives behind the phrases ‘must keep silent’ and ‘are required to subject’. Here is one area I’m especially unhappy with the King James Version. ‘Let your women keep silence’ is far too weak to communicate the imperatival force here (and just about everywhere else the third person imperative is used). ‘Let’ has a permissive connotation in modern English. ‘Let them eat cake!’ Are we allowed to eat cake, or are we commanded to eat cake? Paul is not saying that the women are allowed to keep silent, he is commanding that the keep silent.

At this point, many modern readers jump to the question of ‘why’ Paul would say such a thing. Scholars begin looking at the larger context of the letter, the context of Paul’s other epistles, the context of the New Testament in general (with special emphasis on the Gospels), and even at the context of the first century cultures themselves. As they begin weighing and configuring all the relevant data into a coherent mosaic, they are able to come up with a reasonable framework within which to interpret what St. Paul has said.

However, I’ve never seen an egalitarian scholar actually wrestle with the immediate context of this commandment (I can’t keep up with their writings, but I have read a whole lot on this).

Specifically, I think there are two very important items to consider in the immediate context that need to be considered when determining what St. Paul is saying. These are the words ‘speak’ and ‘silent.’ It should go without saying that these two concepts, in the midst of the congregation, are the main things that Paul is addressing in the context. And besides these two items, there are also the themes of ‘prophecy’ and ‘subjection’ that need to be considered.

On Speaking in the Congregation:

1 Cor 14:23 - If therefore the whole church should assemble together and all speak in tongues
1 Cor 14:27 - If anyone speaks in a tongue, …
1 Cor 14:28 – he must speak to himself and to God.
1 Cor 14:29 - And two or three prophets must speak, …

On Keeping Silent in the Congregation:

1 Cor 14:28 – if there is no interpreter, he must keep silent in the church
1 Cor 14:30 – the first must keep silent

So we see that Paul is giving the church a series of commands about when to speak up and to keep silent in the church. In each of these cases, there is a very specific circumstance surrounding the exhortation. In other words, Paul outlines the conditions that must be met for each of his commands to make sense. ‘If’ this is the case, ‘then’ do thus.

When we get to verses 34 and 35, we see the same concepts passing through, and even a similar structure, but there is a very important difference. Though Paul is addressing the concepts of ‘speaking’ and of ‘silence’, he does not give circumstantial conditions. He does not say, ‘If the women get bored and begin speaking so loudly that they begin disturbing those that are trying to listen, then they must keep silent.’

Rather, Paul grounds the command for women to keep silent in the congregation in the commands of the law! To miss this structural change is to miss the whole point of the passage.

As for the relationship between 1 Cor 14 and 1 Cor 11, I think we need to fall back on the age old interpretive methods of the Reformers, 1) scripture must interpret scripture and 2) the clearer passages inform the less clear.

In this case, 1 Cor 14 is clearly speaking about how men and women are to conduct themselves in the congregation with special reference to speaking and prophesying. 1 Cor 11 however, seems to be speaking more generally about how men and women are to pray and prophesy outside of the congregation.

While I know that many good Christians would disagree with me here, the context leading up to the head-covering passage is about how we conduct ourselves in public. It is only after Paul has addressed how men and women are to pray/prophesy that he moves to a discussion about the Lord’s Supper. At the very least, this is a contested passage (unclear) and therefore we should seek the help of 1 Cor 14 to make sense of it.

For my part, I take the clear command of 1 Cor 14 (women must not speak in the congregation) and use it as a prism through which I understand 1 Cor 11. Therefore, I’m inclined to see 1 Cor 11 as 1) a transitional passage, bridging the instructional content of 1 Cor 10 on public conduct with the instructions on the conduct of the congregation that follows it, 2) and therefore I see the specific instructions about a woman’s praying and prophesying with her head covered as instructions that are fit for religious life both inside and outside of the congregation.

Well, enough said. After I think on this some more, I'll take up the significance of what St. Paul has said. Be well.

Son of Man or Human Being?

2009-11-28T16:46:00.002-07:00

I just finished the Barry Joslin’s article, “’Son of Man’ or ‘Human Beings’? Hebrews 2:5-9 and a Response to Craig Blomberg” recently published in The Journal for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (Fall 2009). From my perspective it is the best article in the volume and made this year’s subscription worth it.

Although the article deals with the exegetical issues surrounding a proper interpretation of Hebrews 2:5-9 and delves a bit into problems involved with gender-neutral translation, ultimately the article is a well reasoned argument for why Bible translators should avoid venturing too far into the realms of interpretation when in the act of translating.

In this article, Dr. Joslin interacts with Craig Blomberg’s defense of the TNIV’s handling of Hebrews 2:5-9. Though I have not had the chance to read Dr. Blomberg’s paper, it is apparent that Blomberg not only finds the TNIV’s approach with this passage acceptable, but preferable.

For his part, Joslin does an excellent job of demonstrating from the context of the epistle, as well as the broader context of the New Testament and the majority of biblical interpreters throughout church history, that the TNIV actually undermines the predominate interpretation of the passage.

Ultimately, Joslin argues that, when a passage is ambiguous enough to reasonably permit multiple ways of interpreting it, it is the obligation of a good Bible translator to leave the text as close to the original as possible without prejudicing the reader one way or the other.

In my opinion, this short article is a must read for all Bible translators. It is balanced and very persuasive.

2009-11-10T00:28:00.004-07:00

Psalm 1: A Meditation

Lord, everyone wants to live a life full of blessings and not sorrows, but often we forget how to find that way. But you tell us that the abundant life comes only when we refuse to live by any wicked advice, any advice that contradicts your Word; when we will not stand around and watch evil, but flee; and when we will not sit around mocking and scoffing at others. (1)

Real life is found only in delighting in your perfect law—so much that our thoughts constantly turn back to it day and night. (2)

The life-giving power of your Word is so great that when we are fed by it, we know with certainty that nothing can ever shake us and make us wither. It is just like how most plants wither when there’s a drought, but the trees by a stream do not wither for they have a never ending supply of water. Such a tree will always bear fruit when the season is right. Wherever life takes me, I know that I will prosper because of your living water. (3)

But the lives of those who refuse your Word, who wickedly reject your living water and insist on living on their own resources and creating their own meaning apart from you—their lives will come to nothing. Because they relied on themselves and not you, nothing will sustain them and keep them from withering up, dying and being blown away like dust.

No one who followed his own inclinations and refused to look to you for life, will be able to stand before you after death. One day, all those who looked to Christ in life and put on His righteousness, will come together for a great and joyful assembly. But no one will be present there who clung to his sin instead of Christ. (5)

For, although you are a great and mighty God, you are intimately acquainted with all who live by repentance and righteousness. But those who make themselves their own god, will soon perish by their own devices. (6)

On Homemaking

2009-10-28T22:03:00.004-07:00

One of my favorite quotes, by Francois Fenelon, writing in the late 1600’s:

“The most insignificant actions cease to be such, and become good, as soon as one performs them with the intention of conforming one’s self in them to the will of God. They are often better and purer than certain actions that appear more virtuous:

First, because they are less of our own choice and more in the order of Providence when one is obliged to perform them.

Second, because they are simpler and less exposed to vain self-gratification.

Third, because if one yields to them with moderation, one finds in them more of death to one’s inclinations than in certain acts of fervor in which self-love mingles.

Finally, because these little occasions occur more frequently, and furnish a secret occasion for continually making every moment profitable.”

[I do not know which of Fenelon’s books this quote is from. I found the quote in a book called Stepping Heavenward by Elizabeth Prentiss, a classic work on the Christian life written in 1880. Apparently back then people did not feel the need to footnote.]

Retreat Recap 2009

2009-10-27T21:33:00.003-07:00

If you weren’t able to make the women’s retreat this year, reading someone’s blog notes about it is almost as good, right? Not by a long shot, of course. You missed the collegiate peaks, the Mt. Princeton hot springs, laughter, fellowship, hot coffee, delicious meals, and hearing the eloquent Gwen Westerlund deliver the talk herself. Need I say more? But allow me to reconstruct the talk based on what I learned, more for my own memory that anything else.

We are addicted to justification by works.
Yes, it’s true. Even died-in-the-wool, Westminster-catechized, reformation-celebrating protestants find our hearts misunderstanding the gospel at times, even if it’s our 50th year of walking in the faith. Gwen started by explaining how most of us understood justification by faith for the moment of our salvation, but struggle to understand its role in the rest of our Christian faith.

As we grow as Christians, both our understanding of our own sin will grow and so will our understanding of God’s holy law. At this point, it is the default of the human heart to want to do good works in order to salve our consciences and help God out. What God wants from us instead, is to grow in an awareness of Christ’s atonement on the cross: of all He paid for there. In a nutshell, He wants us to grow in our awareness of His grace, resting more and more on Him.

This magnifies Him and His mercy. But we want to add something and contribute. We understand that we came to Christ by His mercy, but now we want to stay in His favor through works.

The irony here is that obedience to Christ flows naturally from a heart that understands grace, whereas a heart that is trying to earn God’s favor through works will struggle with obedience. Here’s an illustration. What if you were walking along one day and your little child fell into a rushing river. What if a total stranger jumped in and saved your child for you. Is there anything you would not do for that stranger or for his family? Would he not have your undivided devotion? Would you send him a thank-you card every year on your child’s birthday out of slavish devotion and guilt, or with a heart overflowing with gratitude? When someone does something heroic for us that is totally undeserving, selfless, and unexpected, our hearts become devoted to them in gratitude.

The first of Luther’s 95 Thesis states that the Christian life is a life of continual repentance. Gwen exhorted us to not only repent of sins, but to repent of everything we have done with the motive of earning God’s favor or adding to Christ’s work. She listed a number of different masks we can wear in order to atone for our sinful hearts. We could trust in legalism righteousness, Christian-freedom righteousness, doctrinal righteousness, schedule righteousness, money-management righteousness, over-achieving righteousness, mercy-ministry righteousness, etc. Anything that is good and right, when combined with a heart that has forgotten grace, will turn into a resume designed to impress God and make Him feel like he got a good deal out of saving me.

A heart that understands grace not only has obedience and loyalty flowing from it, it is also ready to show grace to those around. Whether to a husband, children, neighbors, or church-members, grace causes us to have patience with the failings of others. A heart that is bound up in works-righteousness constantly sees the faults in others. Most often, we pick a kind of righteousness that comes most natural to us. If we are naturally bookish, we pick doctrinal-righteousness. If we are naturally compassionate we pick mercy-ministry righteousness. As soon as we someone who isn’t doing as much as we’re doing in our righteousness of choice, we are quick to judge them.

Ephesians 1 is the ultimate works-righteousness buster.
It would have been a lot if Christ had only redeemed us from our slavery to sin (v. 7). He’s done that and he’s forgiven all our sins as well (also v. 7) But He has gone beyond both of those marvelous acts and actually adopted us into His very own family and secured to us an inheritance as sons (v. 5, 11). [Sons is intentional here. Both men and women will be treated as sons in that both men and women will receive the inheritance that a son would receive.] And even more than that, we’ve been given the Holy Spirit as a down-payment, or a taste of what is to come (v. 14).

Our deepest spiritual need, whether we’ve been a Christian for one week or 60 years, is to dwell, focus, meditate, understand, grasp, realize, digest, and believe all that Christ has secured for us on the cross by his substitutionary death, his resurrection, and the sending of His Spirit. And after that, to repent of any good things we have done out of a motive to impress God. And finally, to funnel our gratitude and the joy of our salvation into a life of joyful service, knowing that we can never do enough to earn God’s favor, and that’s okay—we already have it.

Note: This isn't meant to be an exact copy of Gwen's notes. It's only a recap of what I learned. Here is a recap of last year's retreat.

Psalm 23 Revisited

2009-10-15T20:21:00.002-07:00

Psalm 23

Lord, you keep constant watch over my soul, just like a shepherd diligently protects his sheep from any danger (verse 1). You know my physical needs, that I need nourishment and rest, and so you lead me to where I can find them. As long as I follow after you, I shall never be in need.(2) And yet, Lord you know that I am more than just a physical body; that I need spiritual nourishment as well. And so as I follow your leading, you take me to the still waters, which is Christ, who gives me living water. By Him is my soul revived. (3a)

Lord, if you weren’t leading me, I would have no idea of how to live righteously and would constantly find myself on the wrong path. But with you ahead of me, I learn how live justly and righteously. You show me the right way, not so I can boast to others and make them notice how wise I am. No—for your name’s sake you lead me. When others see how you care for me and teach me, they will know what a righteous God you and that you are a Person to be feared. (3b)

But in this world, life is not always lying down in a peaceful pasture! Sometimes, my chief enemy death casts such a formidable shadow over my life that I can scarcely remember what it was like to dwell in the pleasantness of a quiet green meadow. All is dark and I cannot see my way out of here. It is then that I stay closest to you. As I do, I find that I am not at all afraid of the darkness. All I have to do is look at you, and my fear melts away. I see your strength and your authority and that gives me comfort. (4)

You are such a strong protector that I can even sit down peacefully to eat a feast that you prepared for me when enemies are lurking, and enjoy the food. You lavish so many blessings on me, that I can’t possibly contain them all. (5)

One thing I am certain about: that no matter what happens to me, your goodness and mercy will be my constant companions for the rest of my life. Your presence will sustain me through any circumstance and therefore I can look forward to your blessings in every day that you give me for the rest of my life. In fact, I will never be taken from your presence but will dwell with you both in this life and in the life to come. (6)

NOTE: The point of the exercise is not to “improve” upon the text. This, of course, is not possible, as the ultimate author of scripture, God, stated it exactly how He wanted it. But instead, the point is to make the text personal. It is not meant to be another translation or paraphrase, but a prayer based on the thoughts found in scripture. If you try this, I suggest you not read any commentaries or study notes but see how much you can get out of it yourself first. Then if you are really struggling with a verse, you could refer to a commentary. I first wrote verse 5 two different ways and couldn’t decide which one was correct. I then went to a commentary and that helped me figure it out. It’s a good discipline to discover scripture for ourselves.

Psalm 119 Revisited

2009-09-30T20:58:00.007-07:00

For a Bible study, I was given the assignment to pick a group of verses from Psalm 119 and put them in my own words as a prayer to God. Praying the psalms is so important because often we don't even know how to pray or what to pray. I loved this exercise because it took my thoughts off of myself and directed them to God. I ended up staying pretty close to the text. Since I haven't had much time to write lately, I thought I'd post this since it is something I had to write anyway. (The verses are in parenthesis.)

Dear Lord, I know that the greatest blessing in all the world is found in living according to your commands, in seeking you with all my heart, and keeping from doing any evil. (1-3) This is a greater blessing than all the money in the world, or anything the world can offer: houses, cars, vacations, relationships, power and prestige; and yet, anyone can have it. (72) You have told us that we must make a careful effort to follow your ways diligently, but how I need your help to do this! (5)

If I have my eyes fixed firmly on obeying you and not on the distractions of this world, then you'll take care of the rest and I do not have to worry about anything else. (6) Then I will be able to praise you freely, with a heart that is pure, when I have learned how true your rules really are. (7) I am committing myself now to work with all my heart to keep your statutes. And yet, I still feel such distress from living in this world. Please do not forsake me, for I desperately need your presence. (8)

There are temptations and sin everywhere I look, how can any young person possibly follow after you in this culture? But you have told us the answer; it is in carefully examining your word, and in using it as a guide book that guards everything we do. (9) With my whole heart I desire to be close to you and to follow you, and yet I am still in the flesh and I need your help to keep me from wandering from your commandments. My heart is so prone to wander. (10) But I have read your words over and over, and I have pondered their meaning. I have poured over your words and believed them, so that now I know them by heart. This constant thinking on your word will keep me from sinning against you. (11)

Lord, I am overcome by your greatness and majesty and splendor. Teach me how I can be pure like you. (12) I love your rules so much that I can't keep silent about them, so I talk about them all the time, everywhere I go. I have more interest in your laws than in politics, the weather, sports, the economy, or in riches. Your law thrills my soul. (14) All day long I think over what you have written and keep turning my attention to right living. (15)
I find my greatest joy and delight in reading what you have written to me in your word. It is the goal of my life to never forget what you say. More than anything else, I want to understand your law. But I can't do that unless you open my eyes and help me to see all the wonders hidden in there just for me. (18) This place called earth is not my true home. I don't belong here and am just a stranger who longs for my heavenly home where you are. Sometimes I feel so alone here. Sometimes I feel like the meaning of your words is hidden from me; uncover them so that I can I know you. My soul longs for a right understanding of what you have written so much that it is all I think about all day long. (20)

This exercise taught me how much I need scripture to teach me what to think on, what to hope for, and what to pray.

Calvin and Hobbes Isaiah

2009-09-15T06:50:00.005-07:00

Isaiah asked to be home schooled this year and we agreed to give it a shot. In fact, I decided to take out the big guns. Isaiah is now ten years old and he has the mind of a theologian, so as a part of his reading program, I have assigned Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion (1,520 pages in two volumes). Since he is young, and I didn’t want to overwhelm him, I’m only assigning him a chapter a day (generally, 10 to 15 pages). During each reading, he writes down some of the key items from the chapter.

Below, I’m posting from Isaiah’s journal on Calvin. I’m pretty happy with his work so far, but I was even happier when, at breakfast this morning, Isaiah corrected Leslie and me about what it means to fear the Lord, “Well, Calvin actually says that the reason the fear of the Lord helps us obey, is not so much because we fear his judgment, but because we don’t want to displease him.” See below (Isaiah’s notes on II:8) how Isaiah took the two concepts of 1) not judgment and 2) but love, and put them together to say, Calvin says, “we don’t want to displease him.” It’s so good to see that the reading is already paying off and that this is not just some abstract assignment.

Isaiah’s Words (uncorrected):

Chapter I (35-39)

1. To know God you must know yourself. You were made in God’s image.
2. To know your self you must know God. After all, God knows you more than you know your self.
3. Comparing yourself to God really bring out the dirt. A pure white blanket compared to a blanket that was rolled in mud.

Chapter II (39-43): What it is to know God

1. know there is a God
2. realize the benefits of knowing him
3. having piety for God is essentiall for knowing him what’s the use of knowing a God who (you think) doesn’t care about you?
4. We must have a want/need to seek him and nothing else before we can know him
5. Until we realize that we owe everything to God, that he nourishes us in his fatherly care, and that he is the author of our every good, we will not serve him whole heartedly.
6. Our knowledge (of God) should teach us fear and reverence, and, with it as our guide, should learn to seek every good from him, and having received it, credit it to him.
7. The pious mind does not dream up any god it pleases, but sticks with the one true God and doesn’t try to add anything to him.
8. A pious mind restrains itself from sinning, not in the fear of judgement, but because it loves and reveres God as father.

Chapter III (43-47)

1. The human mind can sense divinity.
2. To keep anyone from being ignorant, God has implanted a certain understanding of him.
3. It is stupid to say religion is something invented to keep people under control.
4. Everyone who says he is an atheist ultimately shudders at a God he doesn’t think exists.
5. The impious mind cannot turn himself loose from the fear of God.
6. The world tries to cast away all knowledge of God.
7. When there is no religion in a man’s life, he is no wiser than animals.

Chapter IV

1. God has sown a seed of religion in all men. But very few men let the seed prosper.
2. No real piety remains in the world.
3. Stupid men measure God with there own judgement
4. Men do not accept God as he is, they make him whatever they want him to be
5. David’s statement that fools feel in their hearts that there is no God is limited to those who purposfully repel away fiercely all rememberance of God
6. When sinning, the wicked persuade themselves that God does not see, and end up congradulating their own wrong doing.
7. Although they are compelled to recognize some god, they strip him of glory by taking away his power.
8. We are not to fashion God according to our own whim
9. Fools never consider God at all unless compelled to

Chapter V

1. God reveals himself to us, so we have no excuse for being ignorant
2. There is no place in the universe that does not show at least some sparks of God’s glory
3. The universe is a mirror in which we can contemplate God
4. What we need to know about God has been disclosed to us, for one and all gaze on his invisible nature
5. Man is one of the best proofs for God
6. God blesses men and they get puffed up with pride and turn from him
7. Men mistake creature for creator
8. When me study our own nature, always remeber your creator
9. Though God is kindly and beneficiant to all, he still proclames forgiveness to the godly and severity to the ungodly
10. In your desperate straits, God will suddenly and wonderfully rescue you.

NIV1978 – NIV1984 – TNIV2005 – NIV2011

2009-09-03T15:47:00.006-07:00

Zondervan and Biblica have recently issued a press release indicating that the Committee on Bible Translation (CBT) has begun revising the (T)NIV with the goal of publishing a new edition of the NIV in 2011. Here are my early observations:

Observations from reading the press release:

1) This is going to be a revision, not of the TNIV, published in 2005, but the NIV, first released in 1984, but last updated in 1997.

“The global board of Biblica today announced its intention to update the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible, the first time it has been revised since 1984.”

I'm not sure there is any other clear way to understand the phrase, "the first time it has been revised since 1984." According to the press release, this is a revision of text of 1984.

2) On the other hand, the CBT wants us to understand that:

“The 2011 NIV will represent the latest expression of the CBT's translation work. Previous expressions included the 1978 and 1984 editions of the NIV and the 2005 TNIV.”

Since in the second statement it is not clear how these various 'expressions of the CBT's translation work' relate to each other, I think I’m reading the press statement correctly by representing the relationship between the various editions as represented by the graphic on the lower right and not on the lower left.

That being said, it is also clear that the CBT is not going to ignore all the work they did on the TNIV for this revision. That is to say, even though they seem to be indicating that the base text for this revision is the text of the NIV of 1984, they are going to utilize the TNIV in this process. As Dr. Doug Moo, the Chairman of the CBT, says in an interview that took place after the press release was distributed,

And we are also seeking input from anyone who wants to make a suggestion about how the 2011 NIV might be improved over the latest published version of the work of CBT, the TNIV.

So, even though the 2011 NIV will be a revision of the 1984 text, the CBT would like feedback on the TNIV 2005 text. Here, it seems the way this is being communicated has become a little fuzzy, even though Dr. Moo states,

“As we have made clear in the press release, Biblica and Zondervan are taking the initiative to state clearly and publicly their plans for this new Bible — within two weeks of the final decision being made!”

That sounds good, but what is this ‘final decision’ that was made two weeks ago? Since it is clear that it relates to the plans as outlined by the press release, namely to revise the NIV of the 1984 text, what are we to make of the following statements?

It has been 25 years since the NIV was revised — mainly because the International Bible Society, in response to severe criticism, “froze” the text of the NIV in 1997. The current CEO of Biblica (the new name for the International Bible Society) has admitted that that decision was a mistake. They have determined to return to the language of the CBT charter, which calls on the NIV to be revised periodically to reflect the current state of biblical scholarship and contemporary English.

…

We have been meeting annually to revise the text, but that process must be accelerated over the next year. In our meeting in June, we assigned a number of tasks to members to be working on before our next meeting in the summer of 2010 — including, as I have indicated, a thorough review of every gender change since the 1984 NIV.

There are simply too many contradictions to keep up. The text could not have been ‘frozen’ since 1997 and at the same time have been revised annually. Per the CBT, the only text that has been revised annually has been the text of the TNIV.

So what do I make of all this?

It’s clear that the text of the NIV released in 1984 has been laying dormant for some time. It’s clear that the TNIV has been updated annually. I think it is clear that members of the CBT were tasked with reviewing every aspect of the TNIV in June. It is also clear that plans were made to release a major revision in mid-August that would carry the name of the NIV again and that the TNIV name would be laid aside.

What’s not so clear is why the press release seems to indicate that the NIV2011 will be based on the NIV1984.

I hope, any honest reader, looking to read me fairly up until this point, will recognize that I’ve not tried to pass judgment in this account. I’ve merely tried to make sense of the statements coming out of Zondervan, Biblica and the CBT.

With that said though, I do wonder about motives at this point. Given that the TNIV was so contentious with its use of gender-neutral language, and the poor sales performance of the TNIV, and the fact that the NIV has remained a best-seller even after the introduction of the TNIV, and the fact that American Bible buyers are for the most part oblivious to all the intricacies of modern translation theory, it sure would be easy and in Zondervan’s best interest to simply drop the TNIV title, drop the NIV1984 text, and slap the old NIV title on the ‘newly-revised’ TNIV text.

This way, they will save the cost of maintaining two separate translations, drop the contentious ‘T’, and legitimize their annual revision process. For my part, that’s all fine, but if the idea is to state clearly what is happening, I’m afraid the goal is not being met. To be clear, I really don't know which model from the graphic above fits. Maybe neither.

The Obedience of Faith - Part Three

2009-08-31T11:37:00.001-07:00

A quick follow-up on Paul's conception of obedience in relation to faith as understood by one of my former profs. In commenting on Romans 16:26, Thomas Schreiner says:

The words "for the obedience of faith to all the nations" recall the words of the introduction (1:5). This phrase designates God's purpose or goal in making known the gospel. Gentiles participate in the Abrahamic blessing through the obedience that flows from faith. Paul never conceived of salvation taking root among the nations without a change of behavior. The gospel that takes hold of human beings changes them so that they become servants of righteousness. Such new behavior, however, has its roots in faith, in trusting God for strength and power to live a new life. The gospel does not summon people to exercise their own moral virtue. It calls them to put their trust in God, who raised Jesus from the dead. By trusting him they will be filled with the power to live fruitful lives.

I should mention however, that Schreiner points out that this was not the ultimate goal of Paul's life and letter, just the penultimate goal. The ultimate goal is God's glory. This goal is also found in both the prologue and the benediction:

to bring about ... for the sake of his [Christ] name ... (Rom 1:5)

Now to him who ... to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ. (Rom 16:26-27)

Paul is and always will be, Christ-centered.

The Obedience of Faith – Part Two

2009-08-30T16:51:00.006-07:00

It’s been over two years since I posted part one of The Obedience of Faith. In that post, I pointed to Thomas Watson’s teaching on obedience in his book, The Ten Commandments. To be honest, I have no idea if I had other parts planned for that post, but I was reminded this morning of the importance of this teaching as we finished up our study of the book of Romans in Sunday school.

If asked before this study what Paul’s main objective was in writing this letter to the Romans, I might have answered something like, “to instruct the church on the true nature of saving faith.” However, I saw something this morning allows me to get much more specific now.

Paul’s purpose in writing to the Romans is “to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his [Jesus’] name among all the nations” (Rom 1:5). The phrase ‘the obedience of faith’ has stuck in my mind ever since hearing a sermon by Doug O’Donnell back in Wheaton many years ago. My guess is, that Doug actually taught on this back then, but as is often the case with me, I have to relearn these things every few years, or I forget.

In context, this letter to the Romans begins:

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ, To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

(Rom 1:1-7 ESV)

Here, in his introduction to his letter, Paul gives a foretaste of what is to come in the rest of his letter. That is, he gives us the purpose statement of his whole life, which is also the purpose statement of the letter. At the time, I was inclined to keep an eye out for how these concepts worked themselves out over the rest of the letter to the Romans.

Back to our last lesson on Romans this morning. If there was any question concerning the key role that the purpose statement of 1:5 plays for the rest of the letter, it is at least reiterated as to its importance in Paul’s benediction at the end of Romans:

Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith—to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.

(Rom 16:25-27 ESV)

So now that I’m convinced that this is truly the purpose statement of Paul’s letter to the Romans, I’m going to go back and see how the concept plays out over the length of the book. As it may take a lot of time, it may be a few more years before I get to follow up on this post again.

NB: The image above was created by a friend at work for the new Radio Theatre production: The Screwtape Letters, to be released this Fall by Tyndale House. The image is actually an ambigram, meaning it reads the same when you turn it over.

The Launching of TaylorWest Academy

2009-08-25T13:55:00.010-07:00

[Note: this is a work in progress, a rough draft, and will be revised many times during the year. It is a place to start.]

TaylorWest Academy:

That we may present everyone mature in Christ.
(Col. 1:28)

Mascot: The Pioneers

TaylorWest Academy Mission Statement:

TaylorWest Academy exists to train its students towards maturity in Jesus Christ by teaching them to bring all areas of life and knowledge under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We seek to do this through daily instruction in the following areas: the scriptures, personal responsibility, domestic work, sibling relationships, academics, and family roles.

Additional Purposes of TaylorWest Academy:

Committed to Wisdom: We take Proverbs 9:10 literally when it tells us that “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” Conversely, the greatest foolishness in the entire world is the person who says in his heart there is no God. (Psa. 14:1) In everything we teach, we seek to turn the attention of our students back to God in reverence and fear. Every child is born thinking he is the center of the universe and needs daily reminders that God IS.

Life Skills: Since no child is born knowing how to be responsible, and since life skills form the foundation for any mature person, we are committed to training in all areas of household chores including: yard work, laundry, dishes, bathrooms, floors, as well as organization of one’s own possessions.

Critical Thinkers: We seek to produce students that are equipped to think analytically in all areas of life. We want them to have the ability to understand and evaluate arguments, identify logical fallacies, and succinctly formulate ideas of their own. This is in order to be well-equipped for the kingdom, and never for puffing up in pride.

Love of Learning: We seek to produce lifelong learners by making education as fun and interesting as possible. This need not interfere with teaching children discipline. For instance, all children will have to learn the times table whether or not they think it is fun. However, we will seek creative ways to teach the times table, especially to a child who is struggling.

Foundational Knowledge: Our first priority in academics is to produce strong readers through phonics instruction, excellent writers, and proficient mathematicians. Next we seek to have students who understand the big picture of history, beginning with creation and the flood. The foundation we are seeking to lay in science is an understanding of the beauty of the creator’s mind as we study his creatures and his natural laws as well as learn objectivity in our study of the scientific method.

Evaluating Belief Systems**: In 2 Corinthians 10:5, Paul tells us: “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.” At TaylorWest Academy, we are not afraid of exposing our students to the various lofty opinions that have been raised against the knowledge of God in the past, and are being raised today. As the students mature, they will interact with evolution, feminism, Nazism, fascism, communism, atheism, modernism, postmodernism, and more. We are not afraid to study these systems of beliefs, or their outcomes on individual lives and civilizations.

** Most schools refer to this as worldview training. We think the term “belief system” is more biblical, because the Bible emphasizes that it is our beliefs, not our views, that impact our behavior. We can understand an idea or a viewpoint, without actually believing in it.

Philosophy of Education:

At TaylorWest Academy, we embrace many aspects of the classical model of education while incorporating other methods of teaching that have stood the test of time. We hold loosely to the three classical stages—the grammar, dialectic, and rhetoric stage—while understanding that these were intended to be viewed as guidelines only. Our focus in the early grades is primarily on teaching reading, handwriting and math. This is the foundation on which all the other subjects will rest.

We embrace a teacher-directed model of education. This means that the teacher, not the student, is best able to discern areas of study will be most useful later in life, while taking into consideration the students' academic strengths, weakness, and interests. As a student matures, he will be given more and more freedom over the direction and particulars of his education.

The two teachers at TaylorWest Academy seek to pass on to their students a contagious love for learning modeled by enthusiasm and curiosity. Furthermore, the teachers seek to motivate each student to be a good steward of the faculties given to him by his creator through challenging him to meet high standards in discipline, organizational skills, and study habits.

We understand that students do not learn well in the presence of conflict or ill feelings. This leads us to deal with any interpersonal conflicts between teacher or siblings before any education can continue. We seek to proactive in our character training, not reactive.

Note on my philosophy of education:
Chris does not prefer the term philosophy of education and wants us to have a theology of education instead. However, this dilemma came up between us the other night when we were both too tired to have a good discussion. So I haven't had the time to hear him out and incorporate his thoughts on this. But the reason I went ahead and posted what I have written even though it will be revised, is that the change may be interesting. For Chris, everything we do in school is a result of theology, what we believe about God. This I understand but wasn't sure how to incorporate into why we do phonics and not whole language. More to come later.

Home schooling post soon to come (some already written just need some cleaning up):
Avoiding pitfall
Setting objectives
Goals for the first 3 years
Vision casting
The home schooler and Chores
A road to help you think through if home school is for you

For more posts on home schooling see the home schooling tab.

One of the Best Pieces of Home School Advice

2009-08-24T20:29:00.003-07:00

A homeschooling mother of 9, Anne Wegener, once told me she always begins her homeschooling day having the older kids doing an activity that requires no attention from her. Even a kindergartner or first grader can trace handwriting, color or do something independent. She then devotes a whole hour of her time to the preschool set, first thing. She calls this "filling up their love tanks." Once the little ones have started the day with some undivided love and fun from their mom, they are much less whiny when mommy is giving her attention to an older kid. If their time were to come later in the morning, to them it may feel like its never going to come. Preschoolers don't have a good concept of time. They feel left out to see mom helping the rest of the family with school work and sometimes they're not sure what to do with themselves. When they are given attention first, they will often spend the rest of the morning content and secure of their place of importance in the family and in their mother's heart.

I have this worked into my schedule for the year. Some of the time I will do fun and messy projects with Abby and Naomi. Other days, I will let them pick and activity: dolls, reading, doll house, block tower, etc.

Our Curriculum Plan

2009-08-17T21:03:00.012-07:00

I'm always curious what materials other home school moms have found helpful and so I want to share what I'm using this fall for my kids and why.

Math:

I am a huge fan of the old standby Saxon Math. My three school-age children have varying degrees of natural math ability and different learning styles, yet this program has produced three children who excel in math. Here's one helpful aspect of the program: beginning in 4th grade, you can purchase a companion CD ROM called a DIVE CD. This is not made by the publisher, but by a home school dad who's a Christian and an excellent math teacher. He presents the math lesson for the students each day as they watch him writing it on the computer as if they were watching a chalk board (a great alternative to a talking head). Now, I love math, majored in it in college and can perform Calculus in my sleep (well...) but I simply don't have time to teach 3 separate math lessons everyday. This program is a home school mom's best friend.

Science:

There is one science curriculum that stands head and shoulders above the rest in my opinion: Apologia. It is everything that I want in a science curriculum. First and most importantly, it is Christian and creation-based. In my mind, it is unthinkable to study science without continually giving reverence to the Creator, His wisdom, His glory, all show-cased in the might of His creatures, His natural laws, the rhythms of nature, the intricacy of the cell, the enormity of the solar system. Apologia does an excellent job of pointing the student to appreciate the Creator.

Second, it's designed for the student to work independently. (Bonus!) I simply would not be able to home school if I had to be involved in all of my children's work.

Third, it's top-notch academically. Although we teach young-earth, flood-theory science, we want to carefully evaluate all arguments. We require that all scientific theories are supported with evidence and look to honor the scientific method. Apologia will not disappoint the discerning parent.

Last year Karis did Zoology 2: Swimming Creatures of the Fifth Day. She loved it and learned a lot about zoology. This year Gloria is doing Zoology 1: Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day. Isaiah is doing Exploring Creation with Astronomy, and Karis is doing Exploring Creation with General Science. I'm so thankful for the amazing resources God has provided for us to educate our children!

Of course, we are continuing our creation/evolution debate skills by listening to the Jonathan Park series.

Language Arts:

I love Shurley Grammar and think it's the best grammar program on the planet. Gloria is going to do Shurley 3. Karis and Isaiah know Shurley grammar so well that they could give a teacher training session on it. Now, I wasn't totally serious about doing calculus in my sleep, but I am serious about this--any student who completes several levels of Shurley Grammar will be able to do grammar in their sleep.

Since Isaiah and Karis have "graduated" from Shurley, in a sense, we are trying something new this year called Learning Language Arts through Literature. I haven't tried it yet so I can't comment on whether I'll like it or not. I will tell you the reason I picked it: it has all the different elements of Language Arts, spelling, grammar, writing, etc in one program. We will use classic literature as the base for learning. At the end of the year, I'll write a review.

Spelling:

Gloria is doing a program specifically for younger students (again, Karis and Isaiah have graduated, it's that good) called Riggs. I can't recommend it highly enough. If I had oodles of time, I'd sing its praises for page after page. It can be a little difficult to teach so some genius came up with a stellar program called the Phonics Road to Spelling and Reading to make the Riggs (aka as Spalding) method more home-school mom friendly.

The basic idea behind the method is that a woman named Romalda Spalding divided the English language into 70 phonograms. (A phonogram is a letter or group of letters that make a single sound. The letters P and H when put together make a phonogram, the single sound /f/. ) Children memorize the different sounds that each phonogram can make and learn spelling lists revolving around the sounds. The letters E and A when put together can make 3 different sounds in the English language: /ee/ as is each, /e/ as in bread, /ay/ as in break. (I hope I didn't just scare off everyone in the world by this complicated explanation.)

Really, all you have to do as a mom is hold up a flash card and say what's written on the back. It's amazing but kids memorize these cards readily. My three school-age kids have varying degrees of natural spelling aptitude--one with no innate spelling skill whatsoever, and the result of the Riggs/Spalding method have been amazing.

I've tried other stuff that just hasn't measure up. That's why I write these posts.

History:

For third grade, Gloria is doing an American History program that I really enjoyed doing with Karis and Isaiah when they were younger. It is a history through literature program called Early American History Primary Level put out by Beautiful Feet Books. The literature used is by the D'Aulaires who wrote at the beginning of the 1900's. The books are beautifully illustrated and well-written. They are ones that would be worth owning, but are in the library if you are in a financial pinch. They bring history alive for the elementary student and make reading aloud a joy for the parent.

Karis and Isaiah are studying the Mystery of History this fall. I have not used this book yet, so I won't comment too much about it. However, one of the reasons I chose it is that it seeks to use the perfect history set forth in the Bible as a framework with which to study all history. I was quite disappointed that Susan Wise Bauer, in her Story of the World, mentioned neither creation, the fall of man, the tower of Babel with its world-changing effects, nor the world-wide flood in her well-written and popular series. Her world history begins by talking about hunter-gatherers who wandered for centuries before becoming farmers. Adam was a farmer of sorts, because the Lord cursed him by saying it would now be difficult to farm. After the fall, Cain farmed; he didn't just "gather berries." But I digress...

To me this is unthinkable. Studying world history without touching on these events is like studying American history and leaving out the war of Independence and the Civil War. We have to be careful. Not everything with the name Christian is written from a Christian belief-system. The Mystery of History claims allegiance to the accurate, infallible, inerrant Word of God, both in word and in practice. That won me over.

What have you used that you found helpful or disappointing?

Addiction: A Banquet in the Grave

2009-08-08T10:23:00.006-07:00

I’m reading an excellent book right now called Addictions: A Banquet in the Grave, Finding Hope in the Power of the Gospel by Edward Welch. The author is a redeemed ex-heroine addict and has been a Christian counselor and seminary professor for almost 30 years. It is written explicitly for both people who are addicts or recovering and also family members. I’ll try to whet your appetite by sharing what I’ve learned so far.

The Dry Drunk

The book opens by describing what Welch calls a dry drunk. It is a man that he meets with who has managed to stay sober for a year now, through meetings, etc, but displays all the same thought patterns and habits that led him to drink in the first place. Welch describes the conversation as “Jim” complaining that God gave him this disease that he has to struggle with. He’s frustrated that his church doesn’t speak to his alcoholism more, and that his family doesn’t understand his “fight.” Although staying sober for a year has been a great victory, one feels uncertain as to if he might go back to it at any moment. Welch believes that just staying sober is not the true answer to alcoholism and other addictions, but addressing the heart issues that led to the drinking in the first place. To address that, Welch builds a theology of addiction from scripture.

Addiction is sin

Welch’s first point is that the problem of addiction is the age-old problem of sin. Addiction is a very obvious, enslaving, and destructive type of sin, but it is still, at its root, sin, and not a disease. He draws some parallels between the sin of addiction and other types of sin. Addiction may be enslaving and deceptive, but so is pride, so is greed. When we sin, we are saying that God is not providing me with what I need to overcome my problems, He is not my help, I am going to find help for myself. (He defines an addiction as something that gives a mind and body-altering experience that is immediate.) It is a turning from God to something else in order to forget the past, punish yourself or others, avoid emotional pain, fill holes in one’s self-image, manage emotions, prove to yourself that you can do what you want (no one can tell you what to do), keep loneliness at bay, etc. You believe that a substance will empower you to become your own God. You will save yourself through alcohol because no one else (God) is helping you. These are the beliefs that need to change for alcohol to lose its power.

Addiction is not a disease

Welch next explains that part of the reason why the disease model of addiction (and depression as well) have such a following, is that when one is caught in the clutches of sin, it feels like a disease that one is powerless to overcome. But this is true of all sin, not just addictions. John 8:34 says that sin is like a cruel taskmaster, sin victimizes and controls. Galations 1:6 says it captures and overtakes. Paul says in Romans 7:15 and 17 “I do what I do not want to do, but what I hate I do…As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.” This is the human experience, that sin enslaves us. But a paradox that he points out is that all sin is voluntary slavery. The infection of sin has spread to our very heart so that we even desire sin and want it. Only Christ changes us from the inside out, breaking the bondage of sin and changing our heart to give us new desires.

What is addiction?

Here Welch gives his precise definition of addiction: “Addiction is bondage to the rule of a substance, activity, or state of mind, which them becomes the center of life, defending itself from the truth so that even bad consequences don’t bring repentance, and leading to further estrangement from God.” In summary, he then adds, think of addiction of a specific kind of sin that is both self-conscious disobedience and victimizing slavery.

Addict as victim

The victim aspect is real in the sense that Satan is like a razor blade hid in a slice of cake you are about to bite into. He is hiding behind the scenes of addictions. In Proverbs, when the young man walks into the house of the wayward woman, he thought he came for pleasure only, but he gets something extra from Satan: death. That is why the subtitle is “A Banquet in the Grave.” It’s from Proverbs 9:18: “But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of the grave.” The alcohol promises comfort from your sorrows and pain, in a sense, it promises life. But it delivers just the opposite.

The power behind Idols

But such it is with all idolatry, Welch argues. Idolatry is the unrelenting theme of the Old Testament, and the New Testament authors make it clear that although we no longer have statues, idolatry is still the core of our problems. Why are idols such an allure? Welch argues that the purpose of the idol is to use it to get what we want. We don’t want to be ruled by the idol, we want to rule the idol. We have rejected God’s rule. We want to rule and this idol will help us do that. We don’t want to be ruled by alcohol, drugs, food, gambling. No, we want these things to give us what we want: good feelings, escape, a sense of control, or whatever our heart is craving. Idols, however, do not cooperate. They will control us while making us think all the while that we are in control. How do the idols control us so? Behind every idol lies the quiet presence of Satan, with his will to dominate and deceive. We are powerless to fight him when we are refusing God’s strength.

The most destructive idols

So far, this applies to every human being. So what is the difference between idols that are satisfied with by a big paycheck, respect, power, and idols that are satisfied by mind-altering or physical sensations? The answer is that some idols hook our bodily passions and desires. Satan loves this arena because he has a special interest in exploiting the body’s natural (and good) needs and desires and turning them into monsters. His purpose is to distort and oppose and malign and destroy all of God’s purposes. Satan has special power over us when we two things work together against us: our heart is determined to find satisfaction apart from God and our physical body receives an immediate and gratifying pleasure. The idols of money and power destroy lives and lead us away from God, but they don’t exert quite the same level of destruction and inordinate slavery as the bodily variety.

One addict writes:

“For the addict, dope is God. It is the supreme being, the Higher Power, in the junkie’s life. He is subjugated to its will. He follows its commandments. The drug is the definition of happiness, and gives the meaning to love. Each shot of junk in his veins is a shot of divine love, and it makes the addict feel resplendent with the grace of God.”

And yet, as scary as that sounds, the addict is deceived and will tell you he is in control and can stop anytime he wants.

This all sounds horribly gloomy but this is the reality of sin. Welch writes: “As a result of spiritual oppression, drug worshipper may be very intelligent, but they can be oblivious to the destruction and slavery associated with drug (alcohol) abuse. They need the power of God (1 Cor. 1:18), the message of Christ crucified and risen. Other therapies can offer sobriety, but only this good news is powerful enough to liberate the soul.”

Scripture Speaks to Addictions

Other themes of scripture that speak to addiction are found in the Bible. Proverbs speaks of addiction when it talks of the human predicament of foolishness. Folly is characterized by thoughtless decisions to pursue a course that is briefly pleasurable but ultimately painful. The scripture speaks to addiction when it describes Satan as a prowling lion, waiting for someone to devour. At first glance, the beast is alcohol. But a close look reveals that enemy of our souls. Finally, although the disease model of addiction is flawed, scripture does use sickness as an analogy for sin. Sin is like sickness in that it is painful, it leads to death, it is absolutely tragic. But sin and therefore addiction are unlike a disease in that it is something we do and not unwittingly catch, we confess it rather than treat it, the disease is our hearts rather than our bodies, and only the forgiveness and cleansing found in the blood of the Great Physician is sufficient to bring thorough healing.

Chapter 4 describes the decent into addiction

People don’t just become addicts one day; there are common steps that lead to it. Usually, the decent to addiction begins without fanfare. “Rather than a huge, noticeable leap of rebellion, addiction is marked by small steps of spiritual casualness or indifference, and a lack of sensitivity to right and wrong.” Next, there comes a time when truth parts way with the addict’s experience. The self-deception begins. They think of the idol more often while thinking that everything is fine. They can’t see clearly enough to judge for something has begun to satisfy the desire of their hearts.

Next is the infatuation stage. At this point the relationship with the idol starts to ruin relationships and work, but reason does not reign and bad consequences are not enough. The addict may notice that things aren’t really going that well, but everything bad becomes the fault of other people. Blame starts kicking into high gear.

Welch writes: “Drinkers begin to hide alcohol. Toilet tanks are a favorite place.”

“When an addict is caught, excuses are masterful. They are offered immediately, without hesitation. They are bold, without averted eyes or a hint of “I just got found out.” Inevitably, they will somehow make friends and loved ones feel guilty.”

The next stage is love and betrayal where the addict now turns to alcohol as a treatment for everything. Welch writes:

“Whatever the emotion, the answer is found in the addictive behavior. It can vent anger, alleviate depression, temporarily quiet the emptiness of loss or failure, dilute guilt, and so on.”

“If families are aware of the problem, they are preoccupied with it. The addiction dominates them. They hide car keys, drive around town looking for the drinker’s car, and dilute the bottles of alcohol in the house.”

“Family and friends will go through every emotion possible. Sometimes they feel like they are going crazy: “Maybe it is my problem after all.” Other times they think everything is fine. They can feel angry, afraid, controlled, threatened, betrayed, jealous, and hopeless. Life has become unpredictable for them. They are never sure what is going to happen next. Unless they are skilled at turning to the Lord, learning how to cry out to Him, they will obsess about ways to curb the addictive behavior.”

The final stage is Worship. “You used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness.” (Rom. 6:19 Again, the problem of addiction is the problem of sin.) The downward spiral has come to rest at slavery. The idol originally promised you freedom, to be at your disposal, to do your bidding. It promised life, camaraderie, and pleasure, but it has delivered slavery. In this stage nothing comes before alcohol. But to the dependant one, denial reigns to the point of self-deception. The addict has become a fool, without insight into the relationship between the drug and its consequences. And yet, the addict still feels guilty for hurting others, broken relationships, and rebelling against a Holy God. But the only way they know how to deal with that guilt is…(you guessed it) more alcohol. They see no other way out. Welch writes: “The grief of those who love addicts who descended deeply cannot be overstated.”

This is as far as I have gotten in the book. But the rest of the book is about how God heals us from all sins, even addiction. Some upcoming chapters are: knowing the Lord, fearing the Lord, turning from lies, being part of the body, and more. I may write more, but the actual book is much better than my summary.

The Anti-Psalm

2009-07-25T10:39:00.003-07:00

Very Powerful: Found this at http://theologica.blogspot.com/2009/07/antipsalm-23-vs-psalm-23.html [From Chris]

Antipsalm 23 vs. Psalm 23

David Powlison writes an Antipsalm 23:

I'm on my own.
No one looks out for me or protects me.
I experience a continual sense of need. Nothing's quite right.
I'm always restless. I'm easily frustrated and often disappointed.
It's a jungle — I feel overwhelmed. It's a desert — I'm thirsty.
My soul feels broken, twisted, and stuck. I can't fix myself.
I stumble down some dark paths.
Still, I insist: I want to do what I want, when I want, how I want.
But life's confusing. Why don't things ever really work out?
I'm haunted by emptiness and futility — shadows of death.
I fear the big hurt and final loss.
Death is waiting for me at the end of every road,
but I'd rather not think about that.
I spend my life protecting myself. Bad things can happen.
I find no lasting comfort.
I'm alone ... facing everything that could hurt me.
Are my friends really friends?
Other people use me for their own ends.
I can't really trust anyone. No one has my back.
No one is really for me — except me.
And I'm so much all about ME, sometimes it's sickening.
I belong to no one except myself.
My cup is never quite full enough. I'm left empty.
Disappointment follows me all the days of my life.
Will I just be obliterated into nothingness?
Will I be alone forever, homeless, free-falling into void?
Sartre said, "Hell is other people."
I have to add, "Hell is also myself."
It's a living death,
and then I die.

Powlison writes:

The antipsalm tells what life feels like and looks like whenever God vanishes from sight. As we hear about Garrett and the others, each story lives too much inside the antipsalm. The "I'm-all-alone-in-the-universe" experience maps onto each one of them. The antipsalm captures the driven-ness and pointlessness of life-purposes that are petty and self-defeating. It expresses the fears and silent despair that cannot find a voice because there's no one to really talk to.

. . . Something bad gets last say when whatever you live for is not God.

And when you're caught up in the antipsalm, it doesn't help when you're labeled a "disorder," a "syndrome" or a "case." The problem is much more serious: The disorder is "my life." The syndrome is "I'm on my own." The case is "Who am I and what am I living for?" when too clearly I am the center of my story.

But, he says, the antipsalm needn't tell the final story.

It only becomes your reality when you construct your reality from a lie. In reality, someone else is the center of the story. Nobody can make Jesus go away. The I AM was, is and will be, whether or not people acknowledge that.

When you awaken, when you see who Jesus actually is, everything changes. You see the Person whose care and ability you can trust. You experience His care. You see the Person whose glory you are meant to worship. You love Him who loves you. The real Psalm 23 captures what life feels like and looks like when Jesus Christ puts his hand on your shoulder.

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside quiet waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me.
Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil.
My cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Powlison continues:

Can you taste the difference?

You might want to read both antipsalm and psalm again, slowly. Maybe even read out loud. The psalm is sweet, not bitter. It's full, not empty. You aren't trying to grab the wind with your bare hands. Someone else takes you in His hands. You are not alone. Jesus Christ actually plays two roles in this most tender psalm. First, He walked this Himself. He is a man who looked to the Lord. He said these very words, and means what He says. He entered our predicament. He walked the valley of the shadow of death. He faced every evil. He felt the threat of the antipsalm, of our soul's need to be restored. He looked to his Father's care when He was cast down — for us — into the darkest shadow of death. And God's goodness and mercy followed Him and carried Him. Life won.

Second, Jesus is also this Lord to whom we look. He is the living shepherd to whom we call. He restores your soul. He leads you in paths of righteousness. Why? Because of who He is: "for His name's sake."

You, too, can walk Psalm 23. You can say these words and mean what you say. God's goodness and mercy is true, and all He promises will come true. The King is at home in his universe.

Jesus puts it this way, "It is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12:32). He delights to walk with you.The snippet was taken from the following article: http://www.boundless.org/2005/articles/a0001827.cfm

Why I Do These "Don't Waste Your Summer" Posts

2009-07-01T19:30:00.004-07:00

This quote from Nancy Wilson's book The Fruit of Her Hands explains it well:

Christian wives tend to leave the "fat books" and theology to their husbands. While this may look "submissive" to some, it is actually disobedience. It is not enough that we know Proverbs 31, Ephesian 5, 1 Peter 3 and 1 Corinthians 1 and 14. We have to know more than how to be a good a wife. After all, our first calling is to be good Christians; and if we are good Christians, we will be good wives and mothers, as I
mentioned earlier. We musn't be afraid to study topics other than those which directly deal with being a wife and mother. We see in scripture that women became
disciples along with men. What is a disciple? It is not a mindless follower. A disciple is a student--someone enrolled in the class.

It is clear from the rest of the book that Nancy does not frown down upon older women teaching the younger women how to love their husbands and children as well as homemaking skill--in fact that is what she spends the rest of the book doing. But she does want to make the point that a woman should not limit herself to only learning those things--with a few Christian romance novels swirled in the mix.

Don't Waste Your Summer Part 3

2009-06-28T19:45:00.003-07:00

This week I want to take a break from the biographies and turn your attention to this excellent interview by Pastor and professor Russell Moore on adoption. Russell Moore is the dean of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY and one of Chris and I's favorite speakers and preachers. He recently wrote a book called Adopted For Life and Justin Taylor (no relation of ours) interviews him about his book.

I think you will find this interview both informational and moving, whether or not you are adopted, have adopted children or even considered it. Many of our close friends from church as well as extended family members on Chris' side have adopted so this issue is important to us.

Teaser:
In the beginning of the interview, Dr. Moore describes walking into the orphanage in Russia which was lined with cribs filled with children and hearing total silence. The children had learned that no one ever came when they cried, so they no longer tried any longer. He and his wife were able to spend an hour each day with their two one-year-old boys for about a week before they were able to take them home. On the very last day before the boys would become theirs, Dr. Moore laid his hands on the boys and blessed them. He told them that he would not leave them as orphans, but that he would come back for them and bring them home soon. As he started to leave, one of the boys cried out to him. This was an exceptionally moving moment for Dr. Moore and his wife as they understood this to mean that his boy's crying to him meant that he had identified with him as a father figure--someone who he could cry to. Dr. Moore's says it was at that moment that he understand the scripture that says:
"You have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" (Rom　8:15)

This is just one example of how he uses illustrations from adoption to explain spiritual realities. Hearing the interview will make you want to read the book.

Along those lines, Moore just wrote a post called Orphan Care and the Great Commission Resurgence about how the Southern Baptist Convention has adopted Moore's resolution to encourage churches and families to take care of the orphan.