The Power of a Loving Husband

Even if I live to be very old, I will never be able to pay back my husband for his inexpressible kindness to me. I have often thought over the years that husbands have no idea what intense loyalty and deep love they reap from their wives when they sow goodness and mercy. How wonderful it would be if they all understood this.

My husband is a fix-it man and wherever we have lived, our home has been better when we left it than when we came. Some men spend their entire lives destroying what is whole and good—crushing and stomping out the last light of hope in the hearts of their wives. I have a husband that reaches down when something is broken and lovingly repairs it. Whether it is one of our children’s toys or my own broken heart at times, Tom restores it in his own quiet way by giving his time and his full attention to the object in need of repair.

One of the most precious gifts Tom gives is understanding. A wife at times desperately needs someone to just listen and commiserate, especially when something can’t be quickly fixed. Knowing that she has her husband’s sympathy can be a healing balm in itself. What also can be said about a man who has never spoken an angry word to me? Every marriage has moments of frustration, but how do I put into words what it means to a wife to not have had angry and bitter accusations hurled at those moments?

It has been said that because of the oneness of God’s union of marriage, each time a man mistreats his wife, he takes a hammer to his own head. Too many Christian husbands walk around today with marital headaches and yet they can’t figure out why they are in pain. It all goes back to the simple word, kindness.

I want to tell you what a kind husband creates in the heart of his wife. He creates a loyalty that endures a lifetime. Such a husband checks the tongue of his own wife by the sheer power of love. What kind of a monster could lash out verbally at a husband who has done nothing but good to her all her days? The tongue I have struggled to conquer all my life falls into submission with Tom because respect is so firmly rooted in my heart for this husband that God gave me. In short, such men make it easy to obey God’s commands. They make it a delight.

Lastly, my kind husband brings music. My husband literally is a musician and nothing will ever bring such joy to me as seeing him with his trumpet in an orchestra or standing by a powerful organ, with that soaring sound that lifts the hearts of all who hear it. But there’s a kind of music such husbands bring to their wives that has the touch of eternity to it. A loving bridegroom is a picture of Christ. When our husbands love us as Christ loves us, we are given a foretaste of that great day when we will greet our heavenly Bridegroom at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. Also, the music that swells in the heart of a wife who is truly loved is heard by her whole household. The offspring of such husbands are the blessed recipients of their father’s love. There are generational consequences.

This Valentine’s Day, discard the cheap and gauzy romantic notions spun by Hollywood, and seek after the self-giving love of our Savior. If you are a husband reading this, realize the power that you wield and use it wisely.

’’How to handle a woman, mark me well, I will tell you sir! The way to handle a woman,
Is to love her, simply love her,
Merely love her, love her,
Love her!
—King Arthur, from the musical Camelot

by: Ingrid Schlueter
Distributed by www.ChristianWorldviewNetwork.com 6 years ago

This is an interesting article from the Christian worldview network.com. I thought I’d share it here.

Truth Is a Strange Sort of Fiction
by: Gregory Koukl
Part 1

Knowledge and Truth

Would you die for truth? Of course you would. Multitudes do everyday. Or more precisely, they die because they don’t have truth.

People don’t believe their doctor’s warnings. They die for the truth of cancer. People underestimate the impact of a couple of drinks. They die for the truth of drunk driving. A pedestrian doesn’t look both ways before crossing the street. He dies for the truth of inertia, mass, and Mack trucks.

People die for truth all the time. They die as a result of false beliefs about important things. They get it wrong. They’re dead.

Truth, then, is often a life and death matter. Whether or not you live or die depends on getting some things right every single day.

This is just as applicable to eternal matters as to temporal ones. Jesus made specific claims about the world. These claims are either true or false. If Jesus was wrong, He—and those who follow Him—can be safely ignored. If He was right, though, that changes everything.

Given the gravity of this matter, it seems odd that so many—both outside the church and inside—are convinced there either is no such thing as truth, or that our understandings of truth have to be so radically altered they’re unrecognizable.

Ambassadors

In light of this trend, we have a challenge: How do Christian ambassadors talk effectively about the One who said He was the truth when much of our culture considers distinctions like true and false completely superfluous? How do we reach people with what we think is truth when many deny truth even exists?

The apostle Paul, the most successful missionary in the early church, had some insight on this. He gave a general guideline, then a warning of danger, and finally an antidote to the danger.

First the guideline: Contextualize the Gospel. Adapt it to culture in every way you can that does not compromise the message. Paul called this becoming “all things to all men” (1 Cor. 9:19-22). As much as possible, be like those you’re trying to reach. Blend in. Be one of them. Incarnate. If something gets in the way, get rid of it.

Paul warned of a danger, however:

See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. (Colossians 2:8)

Beware the deadly ideas. When trying to adapt the Gospel, take care you do not adopt the culture’s deceptive ideas and thus destroy the very foundation of our message.

The antidote? Go on the offensive against the false ideas. Paul said, “We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).

We must aggressively challenge current ideas that, in J. Gresham Machen’s words, “prevent Christianity from being regarded as anything more than a harmless delusion.”[i]

Here is my concern for the church in a postmodern era. In seeking to be “missional,” adapting our message to an emerging culture, we are in danger instead of adopting the culture’s dangerous ideas.

This is precisely what I think happens in segments of what has come to be known as the “emerging church.” Instead of adjusting their method, some have been, in my opinion, “taken captive through philosophy and empty deception,” sacrificing the message in the process.

This concern is so critical for ambassadors for Christ I am devoting three articles to exploring the ideas of the emerging culture and its influence on the emerging church.

At the heart of this debate are questions about the nature of truth and knowledge. I will address these first. So here is my first question: What is knowledge?

Knowledge

When you think about it, there seem to be three types of knowledge. The first is knowledge of facts. We can know about things. This is also called propositional knowledge, or simply “knowing that.” The second kind of knowledge is knowledge by acquaintance. This is an experiential knowledge based on personal encounter. This is how we know our friends and loved ones, or how we’re acquainted with places we’ve been to, a “knowing who” or “knowing of.” Knowing how to drive a car or write a sentence is yet a different kind of knowledge. This might be called skill knowledge, or know how.

It may have occurred to you that Christianity involves all three. There are certain facts or truths (know that) that when believed properly lead us into a personal relationship with God (know who), after which we grow in personal skill at living called “sanctification” (know how).

Here is something else you may have noticed. The first kind of knowledge is very important to Christianity—indeed vital. Yet it is inadequate to any deep spiritual purpose when it stands alone.

Consider the kinds of things that Christianity (or any religion, for that matter) deals with: who God is, what the world is like, what’s the best way for man to live, and how to fix it when we don’t live the way we should. Isn’t it obvious that the particulars here are important? Do you see that if you don’t get your basic information right, then your relationship with God and your skill at spiritual living is going to be off to a bad start?[ii]

It should also be clear, however, that propositional knowledge on its own is not enough. Christianity is much more than statements of fact. Facts alone, even if you believe them, will not help you (more on this later).

For now I want to focus on the first type of knowledge, propositional knowledge, for two reasons. The first reason is that propositional knowledge is the foundation that the other two kinds of knowledge are built upon. The second reason is that this is the kind of knowledge being questioned in this postmodern era.[iii]

Belief

Think for a moment, about what you mean when you say you “know” something (in the first sense of knowledge).

The first element that propositional knowledge involves, it seems, is belief. When you say you know something you mean at least that you believe it. It would be odd to say, for example, that you knew your car was red, but you didn’t believe it was red. Knowledge involves belief. All the facts you think you know are facts you also believe.

So, what is a belief? Well, minimally a belief is a kind of thought. Since all thoughts are about something (philosophers call this “intentionality”), it’s always appropriate to ask of any belief, “What is this belief about?” What is it you are thinking about when you say you believe something?

The answer is easy when you consider what you mean when you say you believe. A belief is a kind of thought in which you hold that something (the thing you are thinking about) is a certain way. If you believe grass is green, your belief is about grass, and the content of your belief is that grass is a certain color, green, in this case. Simple enough, you say, and you’d be right. But there is actually something quite profound in this simple observation.

Here it is: Whenever you say you believe something, you mean that you think that what you believe is actually so (grass really is green). Put another way, when you say you believe something, you are also saying that what you believe is true. When people say, “That’s unbelievable,” they mean that it’s hard to imagine it could be true.

Why is this so profound? Because there is a tendency today, especially on religious or moral issues, for people to say, “I have a belief, but I’m not saying it’s true.” This is very odd because you cannot have a belief and at the same to deny that what you believe is true. You may not know it to be true. You could be mistaken even, but your belief is that it is true, nevertheless. Indeed, if you didn’t believe your belief was true, you wouldn’t believe what you believe in the first place. You’d believe something else.

Wouldn’t it be odd to hear, “I believe that Washington D.C. is the capitol of the United States, but I’m not saying you’re wrong for believing New York city is the capital”? But that’s the kind of thing people say all the time when it comes to spiritual matters.

Here is the thought I want you to keep in mind when it comes to belief: Everyone thinks he’s right in what he believes, otherwise he wouldn’t believe it. Nobody’s neutral.

Here’s another question: Can we be wrong in our beliefs? Of course we can. Simply believing something can’t make it true? Another way of putting it is belief is not a truth-maker. If belief alone could make something true, there would be no difference between believe and make-believe, fantasy and reality. If belief is not the truth-maker, what is? That depends on the definition of our next word: truth.

Truth

What is truth? This term has been the source of a massive amount of confusion lately. But the confusion is unnecessary because there is nothing mysterious about the meaning of this word. When my philosopher friend Frank Beckwith is asked “What is truth,” he simply responds, “Do you want the true answer or the false one?”

Frank’s response is clever because it shows that no degree in philosophy is necessary to answer the question. We already know the answer: Truth is when things are the way we think they are. When our thinking matches up accurately to what we’re thinking about—when our beliefs are correct—we say they are true.[iv]

Aristotle put it this way: If you say that it is and it is, or you say that it isn’t and it isn’t, that’s true. If you say that it isn’t and it is, or you say that it is and it isn’t, that’s false.

But you already knew this because you use the word “truth” (or one of its derivatives) all the time, and this is exactly what you mean. This is the garden variety definition of truth. It’s what most people mean when we use the word.

We all know what a lie is. We also know that truth is just the opposite. The Bible uses the word “truth” in this way all the time. Paul said, “I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying” (Romans 9:1). John writes, “No lie is of the truth” 1 John 2:21. Sometimes the contrast is between truth and error (e.g., 1 John 4:6), which is basically the same thing.

This brings us back to our earlier question: If belief is not the truth-maker, what is? Answering this question is now quite a bit easier because we have our definition of truth in clear focus. If truth is when things are the way we think they are, then “things”—objects in the world—are what make our beliefs true. Facts of the world are truth-makers.

A true proposition describes a fact. If this is the case, then if there is no truth, there are no facts. When people say there is no truth, this is actually what they’re implying, even if they don’t realize it. Doesn’t this seem strange?

Justification

We have already established that whenever we say we believe something, we are also saying that what we believe is true. But what gives us the confidence we’re right? This question introduces our next concept: justification.

People believe things for reasons. Reasons are our “justification,” our evidence or proof. Usually we believe things because we think our reasons for them are good. If we don’t have good reasons for our beliefs, it doesn’t make sense to say we know them. Without justification our beliefs may be right, but only because we got lucky. That’s why if we have no evidence for our view people say, “You don’t know that. You’re just guessing.” Guessing is not knowledge.

Justification comes in degrees. Sometimes our commitment to a belief is not very strong because we know our evidence (our justification) is not strong. The better our reasons, the stronger our confidence. As our evidence grows, the way we describe our level of confidence changes from probable (over 50%), to likely, to beyond a reasonable doubt, to obvious. The final level, the highest level of psychological confidence, is certainty.

Here’s our next question: Since justification comes in degrees, when does it seem right to say we have enough justification for knowledge? When is enough enough? Is mere probability, 51%, enough for knowledge? No, this does not seem to be sufficient. Does knowledge require absolute certainty? That’s nice when we have it, but it does not seem to be necessary for knowledge. Certainty is too demanding a standard for knowledge.

In criminal law the level of confidence adequate to deprive an offender of his liberty or, in some cases, even his life is “beyond a reasonable doubt.” This seems right. The threshold for justification adequate for knowledge is somewhere between mere probability and absolute certainty. When the evidence gives us confidence beyond a reasonable doubt, it seems fair to say we have knowledge.

Of course, there’s always the skeptic who will say, “But if you don’t have absolute certainty, then it’s always possible you could be mistaken.” That’s correct, but just because it’s possible to be mistaken doesn’t mean it’s reasonable to think I am mistaken.

This is the skeptic’s error. Wisdom, careful thinking, common sense always sides with the odds-on favorite. When the weight of evidence is significantly in our favor, it’s fair to say we have knowledge, even though it’s possible we may be mistaken. Knowledge does not require certainty that is incorrigible, infallible, indubitable, invincible, or absolute. If it didn’t, we wouldn’t be able to know very much

So far we’ve established that to have a belief is to hold that something is true—that it fits the world as it really is—and when our belief does fit, our belief actually is true.

Our justification—our reasons or evidence—give us confidence that we’re right. When our justification rises to a certain level—not necessarily certainty, but more than mere probability—we can claim to have knowledge. That threshold seems to be when we have evidence that gives us confidence beyond a reasonable doubt.

When talking about knowledge, then, we have both truth and belief joined together, and the glue that holds them together is evidence, our justification.[v]

With this foundation in place I want to show you why each of these is absolutely vital to our message and, therefore, crucial for every one of Jesus’ ambassadors.

This I will do in the next issue of Solid Ground.

Putting Your Knowledge into Action

· When you encounter someone who says there is no truth, ask them what they mean by “truth.”

· If they don’t think that what they believe is actually true, ask them why they believe it, then.

·[etc.]

[i] J. Gresham Machen, What Is Christianity? (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1951), 162, as quoted in William Dembski and James Kushiner, Signs of Intelligence (Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2001), 59.

[ii] This isn’t true in everything (you can make great toast even if you know nothing about how toasters work), but when it comes to religion, facts are essential.

[iii] Note: When I say that propositional knowledge is the foundation, I am not referring to foundationalism, which is a theory of epistemic justification. At this point I am not saying anything about how beliefs are justified. I’m simply using the word “foundation” in the sense of “logically prior.”

[iv] Put another way, “truth” is when a statement, idea, or point of view actually fits—corresponds to—the way the world is. This is why philosophers call this the “correspondence” view of truth.

[v] If you’re a philosophy student, you might recognize the standard K = JTB formula: Knowledge = Justified True Belief.

Distributed by www.ChristianWorldviewNetwork.com 6 years ago

“then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. He is
” ‘the stone you builders rejected,
which has become the capstone.’ Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
Acts 4:10-12 7 years ago

From the highest of heights to the depths of the sea
Creation’s revealing Your majesty
From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring
Every creature unique in the song that it sings
All exclaiming

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God

Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go
Or seen heavenly storehouses laden with snow
Who imagined the sun and gives source to its light
Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night
None can fathom

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
You are amazing God

“since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”

—Romans 1:19,20

And here is the rest of that chapter, because it’s very enlightening as well:

21For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

26Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

“Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.“

What is your church approving of these days? 7 years ago

Sometimes it gets frustrating. Jesus told us to love, this is true. But we are not to love to the point that we love sin. We are not to tolerate to the point that the message we send is ‘it’s ok, go ahead and do that and don’t feel bad about it.’ Sometimes love means standing up for what is right, shedding light on the truth, and exposing lies for what they are. What frustrates me the most today is that Christians are confusing love with acceptance of sin and false doctrines that are clearly condemned in God’s word.

Imagine a tray with two glasses full of whatever you like. You know that one has been laced with poison. Your best friend appears, thirsty and dehydrated, and quickly reaches for the tainted glass. What do you do? Do you let your friend drink because you love your friend and want their thirst to be quenched? Or do you try to warn them and stop them from doing something that is going to harm them, and maybe cost them their life? 7 years ago

Mary had a little lamb,
His fleece was white as snow.
And everywhere that Mary went,
The Lamb was sure to go.

He followed her to school each day,
T’wasn’t even in the rule.
It made the children laugh and play,
To have a Lamb at school.

And then the rules all changed one day,
Illegal it became;
To bring the Lamb of God to school,
Or even speak His Name.

Every day got worse and worse,
And days turned into years.
Instead of hearing children laugh,
We heard gun shots and tears.

What must we do to stop the crime,
That’s in our schools today?
Let’s let the Lamb come back to school,
And teach our kids to pray!

~ Author Unknown ~ 7 years ago

This is an article that I received from a friend…

When we think of Samson, probably the first thing that comes to mind is his incredible strength. He is one of the most interesting and controversial guys that God ever put His hand on, a man with incredible potential that he largely wasted.
Samson could have been one of the greatest leaders in the history of Israel, but instead, his life tragically became an example of how not to live. His life was one of squandered resources and wasted potential and ability. He threw it all away because he made some subtle but serious mistakes. While his story stands as a warning of what not to do, it is also a story that speaks of second chances.

As is typical of someone trapped in sin, Samson ignored the warnings of those around him, believing that no one understood-until he woke up one day, and it was too late. The Bible tells us, “the Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza. They bound him with bronze fetters, and he became a grinder in the prison” (Judges 16:21 NKJV).
That is what sin does. It blinds you. It finds you. And then it grinds you.
First of all, it blinds you. Sin causes people to do completely irrational things. We all know the story: men and women leave loving spouses and precious children to go have their so-called fling. Then they come to regret it one day. I’ve seen it so many times. Don’t be deceived by sin. If it comes knocking on your door, don’t answer. It is a lie. You’re being blinded.
Next, sin finds you. There might be an almost euphoric excitement the first time you cross the line, whether it’s that first sexual encounter, the first time you steal that item, the first time you get away with that lie, the first time you have that drink, the first time you try that drug, and so on. You take the bait and then think you’re getting away with it. But the Bible says, “Be sure your sin will find you out” (Num. 32:23 NKJV). Sin is going to find you.
And then sin grinds you. You eventually pay the miserable price. Your marriage is broken. A trust is betrayed. Your witness is damaged. Your reputation goes down the tubes. Your children are devastated, carrying deep wounds, most likely, for the rest of their lives. Perhaps there is the diagnosis of AIDS or a sexually transmitted disease. Depending upon what you have done, there even may be jail time.
Don’t be blinded by sin. It will blind you. It will find you. And it will grind you. If you don’t believe me, just look at Samson. Once a man of superhuman strength, taking out Philistines like there was no tomorrow, he became entertainment for the Philistines as he was grinding away.
But there is hope, because we serve a God of second chances. The Bible tells us that “the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaven” (Judges 16:22 NKJV). As Samson’s hair began to grow, his strength began to return. One night, as the Philistines were having a drunken feast to their false god, Dagon, someone came up with the idea of dragging out the sightless Samson so they could make fun of him. Samson was guided by a servant to the foundational pillars of the temple, and in a final act of vengeance, he asked for strength from God and pushed the pillars apart. The temple collapsed, and Samson killed more Philistines in one moment than he had killed in his entire lifetime.
You may think, “Way to go, Samson!” Yes, Samson did have the last word, so to speak, but he also died with his enemies. Did God give him a second chance? Yes. Was it a sad ending? Yes. Could it have been better? Yes-much better. But thank God that He still pardons us when we sin. That doesn’t mean we won’t reap the consequences of what we have done. Samson did, after all.
Still, God gives second chances. We all will have our failures and sins. But the question is, can we learn from our mistakes? Can we “fail forward” and not fall into the same trap again?
Are you squandering your life right now on someone or something that has a spiritually destructive effect on you? Are you flirting with sin? Watch out, and learn the lesson of Samson.
_{~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}

(By the way, the title of the article is Are You Flirting With Sin? and it is by Greg Laurie) 7 years ago

“So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.”
_{~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}

When we give in to the temptation of sin, it is easier for us to give in to it the next time the temptation arises. This can lead to the eventual hardening of our hearts. Paul, here, is insisting that we not live our lives in this manner! We must do everything we can to live our lives in accordance with God’s will and not give in to temptation! When we do stumble, we should be quick to recognize our mistakes and take the necessary precautions so that we don’t do it again! (And with God’s help, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!!!) Don’t give in to sin, ask God to help you overcome it!
~_{~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}

“You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”
~_{~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}

Here again we are shown an important truth. Yes, we are imperfect people, full of sin, and yes Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient to cover our sins, but does that grace give us the excuse to continue to allow sin to rule our thoughts and actions? Paul tells us that that is our former way of life! We are to put off the old self, and be made new! The new self, it says, it “created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” That certainly doesn’t lend itself to the idea that we are powerless over the sin in our lives! In fact, just the opposite!
~_{~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}

“Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.”
~_{~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}~

The truth is, when we sin, we are giving the devil a foothold into our lives. Yes, we stumble and fall in our walk with the Lord. Yes, the blood that Christ shed is sufficient to cover every sin in our lives. But yes, sin gives the devil a foothold. So don’t accept sin! Draw close to God, and strive to live the life He wants you to live!

“*Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.“

—Ephesians 4:17-27; 5:15-17* 7 years ago

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
—Ephesians 2:8-107 years ago

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

Are you keeping yourself from being polluted by the world? What are you willingly watching, reading, listening to…? Are they things that you would invite Jesus to do with you? Would you lend him that book or movie or cd?

We know when we are doing something that God disapproves of. But when those moments of decision arise, what decision will you make? Will you continue to watch that show that makes crude jokes and glorifies ungodly sexuality? Will you continue to listen to that song that glorifies violence? If so, can you honestly answer that you are keeping yourself from being polluted by the world? Or rather, are you indulging yourself in it? 7 years ago

I do hope that the following passage of scripture grabs your attention. I hope that you’ll read it, and consider the application of it in your own life.

“If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge his people.” It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.—Hebrews 10:26-31

So what have you been doing since you “received the knowledge of the truth”? Are there any things that you are doing, listening to, watching, associating yourself with that you know are inconsistent with God’s word and how you should be conducting your life? If so, I certainly hope that you will be in prayer to God as well as be actively working to root these things out of your life, because the scripture clearly says, “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.”

I’m not writing this to sound scary, or gloomy, just to open your eyes. Our Christian faith is not something to be taken lightly, that we can put on the backburner of our lives and turn on and off at will whenever it suits our purposes. We must be willing to turn away from sin and embrace God’s purposes. We have to be obedient.

Hebrews 10 ends this way: “So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while, “He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.”But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.”—Hebrews 10:35-39

That is my hope for you as well…that you will not shrink back; that you will believe and be saved! 7 years ago

SECULAR REASONS WHY AMERICA SHOULD BE UNDER GOD
By William J. Federer

PART I. RIGHTS
“With a proper sense of your dependence on God, nobly defend those rights which Heaven gave and no man ought to take from us.” -Massachusetts Provincial Congress Resolution, 1774

Do you like having rights the government cannot take away? If you do, then those rights must come to you from a power “higher” than government.

The Declaration states “all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.”

Dwight D. Eisenhower, in an article printed in the Episcopal Churchnews Magazine, stated: “The founding fathers had to refer to the Creator in order to make their revolutionary experiment make sense; it was because ‘all men are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights’ that men could dare to be free.”

WHY GOVERNMENT EXISTS?

The Declaration states: “All Men…are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men”

In other words, your rights come from God and government exits to protect your rights.

Clarence E. Manion, Professor of Constitutional Law and dean of the Notre Dame College of Law, was quoted in Verne Paul Kaub’s book, “Collectivism Challenges Christianity,” 1946: “Look closely at these self-evident truths, these imperishable articles of American Faith upon which all our government is firmly based.

“First and foremost is the existence of God.

“Next comes the truth that all men are equal in the sight of God.

“Third is the fact of God’s great gift of unalienable rights to every person on earth.

“Then follows the true and single purpose of all American Government, namely, to preserve and protect these God-made rights of God-made man.”

GIFT OF GOD

In 1781, Thomas Jefferson’s statement in Query XVIII of his Notes on the State of Virginia, is engraved on the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.: “God who gave us life gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are of the Gift of God?

“That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed, I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that His justice cannot sleep forever.”

In February of 1775, in “The Farmer Refuted,” Alexander Hamilton wrote: “The sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged for among old parchments or musty records. They are written, as with a sunbeam, in the whole volume of human nature, by the Hand of the Divinity itself, and can never be erased or obscured by mortal power.”

President Calvin Coolidge, unveiling the Equestrian Statue of Bishop Francis Asbury, Washington, D.C., October 15, 1924, stated: “Our government rests upon religion. It is from that source that we derive our reverence for truth and justice, for equality and liberty, and for the rights of mankind.

“Unless the people believe in these principles they cannot believe in our government.”

IF NO GOD?

If there is no God, where do your rights come from?

In his Inaugural Address, 1961, President John F. Kennedy stated: “The rights of man come not from the generosity of the state, but from the hand of God.”

If there is no God, your rights cannot come from anywhere else except from the “generosity of the State.” The State, then, becomes the new god. And what the State “giveth,” the State can “taketh awayeth.”

This was espoused by German philosopher Hegel, who influenced Marx and Hitler. Hegel did not believe in the existence of God and thought the closest anyone could come to attaining “eternal life” was to create a government that would exist after their death. Thus Communism teaches that citizens exist for Government’s benefit; whereas America’s founders believed that Government existed for the citizens’ benefit.

Without God government transitions from being the policeman protecting your property to a police state owning your property.

Without God, government transitions from being your servant to your master.

President Harry S Truman addressed the Attorney General’s Conference, 1950: “The fundamental basis of this nation’s laws was given to Moses on the Mount.

“The fundamental basis of our Bill of Rights comes from the teachings we get from Exodus and St. Matthew, from Isaiah and St. Paul. I don’t think we emphasize that enough these days.

“If we don’t have a proper fundamental moral background, we will finally end up with a totalitarian government which does not believe in rights for anybody except the State.”

Samuel Adams, known as the Father of the American Revolution, wrote in his “Rights of the Colonist as Subjects,” November 20, 1772: “Government has no right to absolute, arbitrary power over the lives and fortunes of the people; nor can mortals assume a prerogative not only too high for men, but for angels, and therefore reserved for the exercise of the Deity alone.”

Warren Gamaliel Harding, November 12, 1921, opening the Conference in the Continental Memorial Hall, Washington, D.C., stated: “Inherent rights are of God, and the tragedies of the world originate in their attempted denial.”

CONCLUSION

Benjamin Franklin stated: “A nation of well informed men who have been taught to know and prize the rights which God has given them cannot be enslaved. It is in the region of ignorance that tyranny begins.”

If you like having rights the government cannot take away, than you need your rights to come from a power higher than the government. America’s founders, in the Declaration of Independence, said that power was the “Creator.”

Distributed by www.ChristianWorldviewNetwork.com7 years ago

Why do we insist on making things more difficult than they really are? Why do we let our feelings and emotions guide us instead of trusting in God? Our feelings are not trustworthy. They may be based upon false information. They may be a selfish, narrow-minded reaction to a problem that we’ve ignorantly blown all out of proportion. Or maybe we’re reacting out of fear…But why?

This is my hope:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.—Romans 15:137 years ago

”...New Year’s Day is a day of new beginnings. It is a day when we put behind all that transpired in the old year and commence on a new, fresh,unspoiled year.

But what can keep this new year fresh and unspoiled? We had the same hopes and dreams at the beginning of last year—and the year before that and the year before that. How can we make this year truly different?

The prophet Isaiah gives us a vivid clue…Light. To make this new year truly God’s year, we must walk in the light of the presence of God. We must let the light of the Holy Spirit illumine our lives and our efforts. We must let the light of the glory of Christ shine not just on us but from us as Christ dwells within us.

“Ah,” you might be saying. “Isaiah’s words are not about us but about nations and kings.” Correct. But nations and their leaders can walk in the light only as the people of those nations walk in that light. The Scriptures point out again and again taht God seldom illuminates those in high places, but that more often than not God makes God’s self manifest to the meek and lowly. And these in turn transform the world in which all live.

Do you want a New Year’s resolution? Resolve to consciously, intentionally, deliberately walk in the light of the presence of God this moment, this day, this year. “Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).
—John P. Gilbert

(Again, this came from the back of today’s church bulletin. I think I should’ve started reading these a long time ago! What a blessing they’ve been to me lately! 7 years ago

“Does the debtor in jail love the friend who unexpectedly and undeservedly pays all his debts, supplies him with fresh capital and takes him into partnership with himself? Does the prisoner in war love the man who, at the risk of his own life, breaks the enemies’ lines, rescues him and set him free? Does the drowning sailor love the man who plunges into the sea, dives after him, catches him by the hair of the head and by a mighty effort saves him from a watery grave? In the same way, and upon the same principle, a true Christian loves Jesus Christ.”
—J.C. Ryle
[Taken from Daily Readings from Four Gospels, J.C. Ryle, December 22] 7 years ago

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas celebration today, and I truly hope that you had a chance to focus on Jesus, because he is the reason for our joy and celebration today! If it weren’t for his birth into this world, we wouldn’t be celebrating. We might have temporary happiness, but we wouldn’t have everlasting peace and joy in our hearts.

Merry Christmas, everyone, and may this coming year be one in which we all accomplish many things on our lists! lol:) 7 years ago

The dispute is already decided. The victor has already been named. It is not my fight. And I have to convince no one. It isn’t up to me. I must call it as it is and spread the good news (and yes, it is good news!) and the outcome…but I don’t have to convince anyone. The decision is theirs to believe it or not. They can weigh the facts (or ignore them) for themselves. But remember, the victor has already been named… 7 years ago

I find that I am never content with simply knowing what I know. I have a desire within that constantly calls me to know more, to find out more about my faith, my God, and my purpose. It is the most beautiful feeling I’ve ever experienced. 7 years ago

Anyone who claims that Christianity is oppressive to women clearly has not read the Bible. And any man who claims to be a Christian, yet uses his authority to rule over a woman and mistreat her had better take a closer look at what he is claiming and then change his ways. You cannot reconcile the two:

“Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.”

—Yep, we’ve all heard that. And women have complained about that word, ‘submit’. But you need to read a little further before you start complaining…

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.”

—Remember later in the Bible when Jesus died after being tortured (unfairly, by the way, because he was falsely accused.) Husbands are to love their wives as Christ loves the church, and Jesus gave up his life because he loves the church so much! And notice why he did it: to make her holy, cleansed, radiant, without wrinkles or blemishes! How can anyone honestly say that is oppressive??? And how many women want to be without wrinkles and blemishes???!!!

“In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies.”

—Woah! Husbands love their wives as their own bodies? Surely you wouldn’t be abusive to your own body!

“He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church—for we are members of his body. “

—Read that again, if you like:)

”’For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.”

—I, for one, am thankful that I am the wife of a Christian man! I am deeply in love with my husband, and he spoils me to no end! lol. Submission is easy, when your husband is living as the Bible tells him to.

Oh, no, the ‘S’ word! Listen, submission doesn’t mean being a slave to your husband. It doesn’t mean being treated unfairly (or worse.) Submission is being a partner with your husband, giving him your input into the matters before you, discussing things in an open manner, and then trusting that he will make the best decision for you and your family. It works, it really does. And it works even better when he has a wife who has confidence in him, who loves and cares for him, who respects him, and who prays for him. When you both pray, God will show you which way to turn. Why don’t you try it?

Oh, by the way, the Scripture text comes from Ephesians 5:22-337 years ago

“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God”

—This is what we, as Christians are called to do. If we do not, can we truly call ourselves Christian?

“But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.”

—Pretty self explanitory, I think.

“For this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person-such a man is an idolater-has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. THEREFORE DO NOT BE PARTNERS WITH THEM.”

—You can probably figure all that out, too!

“For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said:

“Wake up, O sleeper,
rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”

-We are called to “find out what pleases the Lord”. We can’t just sit back and say, ‘oh yes, I’m a Christian but I’m not going to go to church or read the Bible. I’ll just live my life in a way that I* think is good enough’...Humans are forgetful. We need to refresh our memories-often—of what is pleasing to the Lord.
Another thing that this tells us to do is *expose the fruitless deeds of darkness. As Christians, we can’t just sit back and say, ‘well, I’m a Christian, so I shouldn’t get involved and speak out when something is contrary to God’s word. I should just let things take their course’...but is that what Jesus did? Did he sit back when he saw something contrary to God’s laws and truths and just let it happen? NO! He took action! He overturned tables and threw the money changers out of the temple! Remember the words that this chapter opens with, “Be imitators of God”.

“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.

—“Understand what the Lord’s will is.”

“Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.”

—That would be, the Holy Spirit.

Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

—Always.

“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”

—What beautiful words to start my day with:) Ephesians 5:1-217 years ago

Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands!
Serve the LORD with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.
Know that the LORD, He is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
For the LORD is good;
His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.

Psalm 100:1-57 years ago

THOUGHTS ON HOW TO OBSERVE THANKSGIVING

Count your blessings instead of your crosses;
Count your gains instead of your losses.
Count your joys instead of your woes;
Count your friends instead of your foes.
Count your smiles instead of your tears;
Count your courage instead of your fears.
Count your full years instead of your lean;
Count your kind deeds instead of your mean.
Count your health instead of your wealth;
Count on God instead of yourself.
—Anonymous

I found this poem on the Presidential Prayer Team’s website.
www.presidentialprayerteam.org 7 years ago

Bible reading (Heb. 4:12)—A verse that never made sense before suddenly speaks volumes to your character flaws or relationship difficulties.

Bible meditation (Josh. 1:8)—Picture a scene from Scripture and live in it for a quiet moments. For example, How am I a lost sheep? or, Who is the lost sheep I’m called to find? What would it mean to have the joyful heart of this shepherd?

Prayer—Besides asking for things, “wait” on God (Ps. 38:15; 130:5; Isa. 30:18; 64:4, etc.) See what “themes” appear from Bible reading and prayer. Try asking God questions during prayer (Why am I so fearful? What do I need to know about an upcoming situation?), then listen throughout the day.

Sermons (Acts 2:22-37)—After a sermon, always ask yourself, What was the one most important thing God was probably trying to say to me today?

Community (2 Sam. 12:1-7)—The words of friends, colleagues, or even (yes) difficult people may resonate with us and agree with what Scripture has been saying to us.

Finding God in the mundane (Exod. 3:2-6)—As you get skilled at listening to His voice, participate in God’s presence in various situations. While exercising, running errands, working in the yard, or talking to a friend, keep your mind free to “hear” God.

Has God spoken to you before in any of the ways described above? Explain your answer.

What is needed to read the Bible with a heart that listens to God?

In what sort of mundane places do “listening people” hear God’s warnings?

What do you think are the most common obstacles to listening to God?

This was the topic of our Sunday school lesson yesterday. Our study text was Jeremiah 25:1-7; 26:12,13. This is from the David C. Cook Adult Teacher’s Guide :) 7 years ago

This was on the back of our church bulletin yesterday. I hope that all who take the time to read it are blessed:)

Today is All Saints Sunday. It is the day when we honor the saints of the church, both those of the ancient church and those of the contemporary church.

But just what is a saint?

An old, old story tells of a small boy who went with his father to visit a huge cathedral. The lad was awestruck by the beauty and majesty of the nave, the chancel, the transepts, the high pulpit, the ornate alter. But the child gazed especially at the stained glass windows that lined the nave and allowed the afternoon sunshine to stream into the church. The little boy studied the windows carefully, noting that each window had as part of its design the figures of persons—some biblical characters, some from the history of Christianity.

Finally, the child asked his father, “Daddy, who are the people in the window?”

His father looked at the stained glass images and answered, “Those are the saints.”

When the child and his father arrived home, the little boy’s mother asked him about his trip. “What did you see?” she inquired. “I saw the saints!” was his enthusiastic reply. “And what is a saint?” the lad’s mother wanted to know.

The little boy answered: “A saint is a person the light shines through.”

You are sitting in church this morning because the light of God’s love has shone through someone onto you. It may have been a parent, a grandparent, another relative, or a friend. It may have been a Sunday school teacher or even a casual acquaintance. But the light shone through someone onto you; and for you, that person, those individuals, are true saints.

What about you? Are you a saint? Are you allowing the light of God’s love to shine through you onto someone else? Are you illuminating the pathway to God for another? Is the light shining through you today?

—John P. Gilbert 7 years ago

http://www.family.org/webextras/a0023908.cfm 7 years ago

“Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience. We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to take pride in us, so that you can answer those who take pride in what is seen rather than in what is in the heart.

If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you.

For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

—2 Corinthians 5:11-217 years ago

I need to concentrate on this.

When I get upset or angry, I have the tendency to clam up and avoid conflict. I’m quiet, introverted, and have always had to work through things alone, simply because other people haven’t been around. If someone pushes me too far trying to get me to open up and talk about it…it’s not a pretty scene.

I need to take control of my emotions. I need to be calm and gentle. I need to rejoice in finding a solution rather than sulk in my negative emotions.

I need to not be discouraged by the feeling that this is going to be nearly impossible. Replace that thought with positive. I can do this. With God, all things are possible. 7 years ago

I heard a rumor that love will make you crazy
Well is it true?
Well that’s no rumor, look at the crazy things that love made Jesus do
The friends he chose were thought to be outrageous
And you could even find him touching the contagious
And the craziest is how he chose to save us
He gave his life away
Then he had to go and say
“Gotta love the same way that I love you!”

Love like crazy
We gotta love like crazy
We gotta love like crazy
The way he loves you and me
‘Cause if the world’s ever gonna change
We gotta love like crazy

What the world needs now is for love to spread
As fast as the rumors do
But to make it, we gotta take this thing from another whole point of view
We can start by keeping our vows, and not breakin’ promises
And bring hope to the women at the well, and the doubting Thomases
And you kids, you gotta cheerfully do what your pops and your mama sez
He gave his life away
Then he had to go and say
“Gotta love the same way that I love you!”

CHORUS

Well I’m tellin’ you boy, you got a lot to learn
I think you’re crazy all right to love for nothin’ in return
You’ve lost your marbles, got a few loose screws
And if you count your cards I’ll bet you got less than fifty-two
But now you got me thinkin’, you sorta planted a seed
‘Cause you know this might be just the kind of love that I need
Naw, your train’s off the track, you’re from the loony bin
You know that brain you ordered? Well it never came in
Or else you’ve fallen on your head and all your brains leaked out
‘Cause your lights are on, but ain’t nobody in your house
Your elevator doesn’t quite reach the top floor
I think you’re out in left field, and I could say a lot more
But you don’t care what I think, it doesn’t matter what I’m tellin’ you
You got the love of Jesus, and he’s the one compellin’ you to love
Like he does
You gotta love like he does
You gotta love like he does

‘Cause if the world’s ever gonna change
We gotta love like crazy
We gotta love like crazy
We gotta love like crazy
The way he loves you and me
‘Cause if the world’s ever gonna change (3x’s)

Chris Rice is one of my favorite artists ever. This song is on his new album, Amusing. 7 years ago

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

This was the scripture passage that our pastor spoke about today. I feel like God’s trying to get my attention with this one. 7 years ago