We were talking tonight about how nothing is a surprise anymore with what goes on in this Nation. Freedom can't exist when there is no Christianity in a country. It is only in Christ we are fully free, but in politics, there is no reason for freedom without God. Tyranny is in the heart of man, and the heart is naturally not good. We know from Scripture the heart is deceitful and desperately wicked.
We can look to Russia for how injustice rules in a nation devoid of God...people hauled off being wrongly accused of 'crimes', being found 'guilty' in a so-called court of law never to be seen again or thrown in jail for long periods of time.
It is not hard to see how in this nation this can happen, and for a while people will go along with it until they are the wrongfully accused. Tyranny isn't new and it's methods aren't new. The duped act just like they have always acted. Excited for hope and change, but having no clue what that is meaning or will mean until the tables are turned on them, which eventually they will be.
I can look out on the horizon and see America looking like so many other horrible nations throughout history. I can see martial law, our guns being confiscated, manufactured crisis' that strike fear in to the ignorant so more control is granted, mandatory indoctrination centers for our children since freedom of thought and being truly educated is the enemy of the tyrannical, liberal, democratic ideology plaguing this nation...I can see how they hate Christians and what we stand for; how their intolerance of our view of homosexuality is hated.
When I see these things, I can only do one thing, pray for Christ to return and recall Him saying, "If they hate you, remember they hated me first." (paraphrase)
What Drives Your School?
I've been laboring over a decision about school next year. Why it first began is rather predictable, but why it's ensued isn't. I think I'm getting to the bottom of it, because I've spent a ridiculous amount of time thinking on it and talking to trusted friends and my husband about it. I need a break from our usual routine, and I am starting to think the reason is that I want to be driving our school next year rather than any program. I'm a firm believer if you do a program, you need to DO it, and when you've been in one for a long time, it's going to have to be done because that is how we're trained. We don't just go and show up to anything, we prepare, we invest, we're committed. But next year I really don't want to be driven by externals that much, at least not as much as we have been.
Psalm 28:7
New American Standard Bible (©1995)
The LORD is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, And with my song I shall thank Him.
The LORD is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, And with my song I shall thank Him.
Such a Mom Moment
My 9 yr old and I were out shopping tonight for various items for my oldest's birthday and baby items for a family member. We had a good Chick-Fil-A coupon, so at nearly 9 pm, headed over. My daughter pointed out two people climbing all over each other in the car next to where we parked ours, in the very empty lot. Horrified, I banged on the glass and angrily yelled at them to cut it out. I also told them my 9 yr old daughter saw what they were doing. As if that weren't enough, I told them I could call the police!
I felt a lot like my mom, or at least people from her generation. If you could only imagine how vigorously the knocking on the window had to be in order for them to realize I was talking to THEM!
Sex outside of marriage is still wrong, for the record. If you think you are a Christian and are OK with this, you should really re-read your New Testament.
I felt a lot like my mom, or at least people from her generation. If you could only imagine how vigorously the knocking on the window had to be in order for them to realize I was talking to THEM!
Sex outside of marriage is still wrong, for the record. If you think you are a Christian and are OK with this, you should really re-read your New Testament.
Doctrine or Community?
I was talking to my hubby about one downfall of churches focusing too much on community within the church (first question, can a pastor/church focus too much on this?). Of course we need fellowship and encouragement, but one concern when this is something really implemented heavily is that church can become a social gathering need-filler, and those who aren't saved might never get saved because they are just comfortable in the casual, need-filling environment. If the mentality is that kids leave the church because they don't feel enough sense of community within the church, I think it's a bit of a risk to focus too much on entertainment.
Do we want people to be more loyal to the community than Biblical truth and accuracy? Adults who value the wrong thing teach their kids to do the same. A key for people to really explore is this: what is the ministry philosophy of your church. If you've left a church that got too worldly, what was their philosophy? Finding a church similar to your 'old church' before it got way off track might be a sure way to experience history repeating itself. Churches have ideological views and ministry opinions, and they realize change must be gradual. As believers, we really need to be educated on what God says the church is for, and not be afraid to stand for that. Maturity in anything means being willing and able to break away if necessary. Yet in today's world, a community mentality is always there to help woo and keep people, whether it be home school groups, church, sports teams...we all want to belong. It's critical, however, that we belong to God and His truth first and foremost, and teach our children to enter through the narrow gate. We need to be careful to not subvert the way the Gospel has always been effective. The Word is enough and kids can subtly get the message it isn't enough when the church isn't focused on serious doctrine.
Psalm 46:10 Be still and know that I am God.
Do we want people to be more loyal to the community than Biblical truth and accuracy? Adults who value the wrong thing teach their kids to do the same. A key for people to really explore is this: what is the ministry philosophy of your church. If you've left a church that got too worldly, what was their philosophy? Finding a church similar to your 'old church' before it got way off track might be a sure way to experience history repeating itself. Churches have ideological views and ministry opinions, and they realize change must be gradual. As believers, we really need to be educated on what God says the church is for, and not be afraid to stand for that. Maturity in anything means being willing and able to break away if necessary. Yet in today's world, a community mentality is always there to help woo and keep people, whether it be home school groups, church, sports teams...we all want to belong. It's critical, however, that we belong to God and His truth first and foremost, and teach our children to enter through the narrow gate. We need to be careful to not subvert the way the Gospel has always been effective. The Word is enough and kids can subtly get the message it isn't enough when the church isn't focused on serious doctrine.
Psalm 46:10 Be still and know that I am God.
Because Abortion is a Choice Women Should Have?
This is a story you must read regardless of what side of the abortion debate you are on.
http://cnsnews.com/news/article/gosnell-trial-witness-baby-abortion-survivor-was-swimming-toilet-trying-get-out
I really think trying to act complacent in order to not offend is a sin when it comes to this issue.
There is a Hell, people. A place of eternal separation from God. A place that burns with an eternal fire.
http://cnsnews.com/news/article/gosnell-trial-witness-baby-abortion-survivor-was-swimming-toilet-trying-get-out
I really think trying to act complacent in order to not offend is a sin when it comes to this issue.
There is a Hell, people. A place of eternal separation from God. A place that burns with an eternal fire.
Graduating From Classical Conversations
4/20/13
The past two weeks have been rather full for us compared to our usual. Last week, our daughters enjoyed 2 days of lab intensives with Landry Academy about an hour from home. Soon I'll upload our one daughter's assessment that she wrote as a prerequisite for a writing class for next year.
During the labs, I traveled to a neighboring state to attend my uncle's viewing but returned home that same night. He bravely battled Lou Gehrig's disease for a year and a half.
A day home was had where we had schooling to do and work for a class next year, then we loaded the van and headed to my oldest sister's house 3 hrs away to prepare for our middle sister's baby shower. It was held last Saturday and was a huge success! We planned it for 6 months and I'm so thankful it all went well.
Back home for two days and we headed off to Great Wolf Lodge to celebrate the work our 3 kids put in to achieving Memory Master this year. A day home, baking lasagnas, grocery shopping, doing some school, making final school decisions for next year, and we headed in to today...which brings me to this post.
I've known this day would come when we started CC 5 years ago. It just seemed like it was so far off. Our daughter was 7 and bright, bubbly and eager to learn more. Over the years she was blessed with some of the finest tutors our campus has had, and the final 2 years she had the same tutor. This one is a person I hope will continue to be a part of my daughter's life--godly, older, submissive women, who are committed to their family and married to godly men are hard to come by.
So today came, and after my husband traveled to see his sister who is having some pregnancy complications in the hospital, he and our son headed to baseball. They were awaiting my call that tonight's year end ceremony was about to commence. I alerted him that dinner was going fast but never got to tell him it was time to head over. As I went to my phone, our daughter said they were already there, dressed and ready. You see, tonight was not just the usual Memory Master awards, slide shows, class presentations and graduate ceremony. It was our daughter's graduation ceremony. It was her slide show with the wonderful students she's been with the last 4-5 years, which may not sound like a lot, but when you home school classically, finding common ground like we do in CC makes the relationships really strong. My daughter has made us so proud with her achievements in CC, but also in her choice of friends. She has finished Foundations with 2 girls that I'm proud to say are her bosom buddies. Godly girls from good homes and families that strive to achieve high goals and are hard working. Seeing all of their pictures from birth to now was so moving; it was not like just watching some one else's kids, these are kids I really care about and hope my daughter knows the rest of her life. The boys weren't much different--boys I have enjoyed watching grow and who I am so thankful to have known. Both were in a literature group I led here years ago and until a year ago, we attended church with them for 6 years.
Tonight was the best end of year ceremony I can remember. Not just because it was our girl's turn, but the order of events, the simplicity, the succinctness...it all lent itself to a thoughtfully sweet night. No one was haggard, we all have had a lot going on, and we all found time to come together to bless these kids as they head in to a new phase of maturity. I'm so thankful for our CC community. Nothing has blessed and encouraged our home school success like CC--the materials, the accountability, the praying friends, the love--it has shaped our family.
Seeing this time come has been much harder than I ever thought it would be. We're not moving on to Challenge as we'd initially planned so many years ago, and while we are all certain it is God's leading, it is sad to change courses tonight. I know it will be better in the days to come, but sometimes just a short while to feel sad is OK. So on this night of graduation for our oldest, I've got a lot to reflect on.
The past two weeks have been rather full for us compared to our usual. Last week, our daughters enjoyed 2 days of lab intensives with Landry Academy about an hour from home. Soon I'll upload our one daughter's assessment that she wrote as a prerequisite for a writing class for next year.
During the labs, I traveled to a neighboring state to attend my uncle's viewing but returned home that same night. He bravely battled Lou Gehrig's disease for a year and a half.
A day home was had where we had schooling to do and work for a class next year, then we loaded the van and headed to my oldest sister's house 3 hrs away to prepare for our middle sister's baby shower. It was held last Saturday and was a huge success! We planned it for 6 months and I'm so thankful it all went well.
Back home for two days and we headed off to Great Wolf Lodge to celebrate the work our 3 kids put in to achieving Memory Master this year. A day home, baking lasagnas, grocery shopping, doing some school, making final school decisions for next year, and we headed in to today...which brings me to this post.
I've known this day would come when we started CC 5 years ago. It just seemed like it was so far off. Our daughter was 7 and bright, bubbly and eager to learn more. Over the years she was blessed with some of the finest tutors our campus has had, and the final 2 years she had the same tutor. This one is a person I hope will continue to be a part of my daughter's life--godly, older, submissive women, who are committed to their family and married to godly men are hard to come by.
So today came, and after my husband traveled to see his sister who is having some pregnancy complications in the hospital, he and our son headed to baseball. They were awaiting my call that tonight's year end ceremony was about to commence. I alerted him that dinner was going fast but never got to tell him it was time to head over. As I went to my phone, our daughter said they were already there, dressed and ready. You see, tonight was not just the usual Memory Master awards, slide shows, class presentations and graduate ceremony. It was our daughter's graduation ceremony. It was her slide show with the wonderful students she's been with the last 4-5 years, which may not sound like a lot, but when you home school classically, finding common ground like we do in CC makes the relationships really strong. My daughter has made us so proud with her achievements in CC, but also in her choice of friends. She has finished Foundations with 2 girls that I'm proud to say are her bosom buddies. Godly girls from good homes and families that strive to achieve high goals and are hard working. Seeing all of their pictures from birth to now was so moving; it was not like just watching some one else's kids, these are kids I really care about and hope my daughter knows the rest of her life. The boys weren't much different--boys I have enjoyed watching grow and who I am so thankful to have known. Both were in a literature group I led here years ago and until a year ago, we attended church with them for 6 years.
Tonight was the best end of year ceremony I can remember. Not just because it was our girl's turn, but the order of events, the simplicity, the succinctness...it all lent itself to a thoughtfully sweet night. No one was haggard, we all have had a lot going on, and we all found time to come together to bless these kids as they head in to a new phase of maturity. I'm so thankful for our CC community. Nothing has blessed and encouraged our home school success like CC--the materials, the accountability, the praying friends, the love--it has shaped our family.
Seeing this time come has been much harder than I ever thought it would be. We're not moving on to Challenge as we'd initially planned so many years ago, and while we are all certain it is God's leading, it is sad to change courses tonight. I know it will be better in the days to come, but sometimes just a short while to feel sad is OK. So on this night of graduation for our oldest, I've got a lot to reflect on.
Disk Burning Errors--How to Avoid
I'm breaking one suggested rule by burning in the background, but just wanted to spare others some of the headaches that can be encountered while burning CD's.
DVD Burning Tips: How to Avoid the Top Five Disc-Burning Mistakes
Common Core is Disastrous
Please call your two U.S. senators and urge them to stop the Common Core Curriculum
Dear HSLDA Members and Friends:HSLDA President Mike Smith has been an advocate of homeschooling for more than 30 years |
Thankfully, Senator Chuck Grassley (Iowa) understands the problems with the Common Core, and is urging his fellow senators to oppose the federal government’s funding and support of this nationalized curriculum. He is circulating a letter to senators urging them to sign onto the letter to stop the federal government’s funding of the Common Core.
Please call your two U.S. senators and ask them to sign onto Senator Grassley’s letter to end federal funding for the Common Core. You can reach your senators at the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121, or visit this page to find your senators and to email them. Since the Common Core impacts all parents, there is no need to identify yourself as a homeschooler.
Your message can be as simple as: “Please sign onto Senator Grassley’s letter urging Congress to defund the Common Core Curriculum Standards Initiative. The federal government should not be using tax-payer dollars to pressure the states into adopting educational goals and curriculum which should be decided by local parents, teachers, and schools.”
Here is the text of Senator Grassley’s letter:
We ask that the Fiscal Year 2014 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Bill include language to restore state decision-making and accountability with respect to state academic content standards. The decision about what students should be taught and when it should be taught has enormous consequences for our children. Therefore, parents ought to have a straight line of accountability to those who are making such decisions. State legislatures, which are directly accountable to the citizens of their states, are the appropriate place for those decisions to be made, free from any pressure from the U.S. Department of Education.Thank you for standing with us for liberty.
While the Common Core State Standards Initiative was initially billed as a voluntary effort between states, federal incentives have clouded the picture. Current federal law makes clear that the U.S. Department of Education may not be involved in setting specific content standards or determining the content of state assessments. Nevertheless, the selection criteria designed by the U.S. Department of Education for the Race to the Top Program provided that for a state to have any chance to compete for funding, it must commit to adopting a “common set of K–12 standards” matching the description of the Common Core. The U.S. Department of Education also made adoption of “college- and career-ready standards” meeting the description of the Common Core a condition to receive a state waiver under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Race to the Top funds were also used to fund two consortiums to develop assessments aligned to the Common Core and the Department is now in the process of evaluating these assessments.
We ask that you eliminate further interference by the U.S. Department of Education with respect to state decisions on academic content standards by including the following language in the Fiscal Year 2014 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Bill:
Sec. __. (a) Funds appropriated under this Act or any prior Act shall not be used by the Secretary of Education—(b) Nothing in subsection (a) shall be construed to limit the discretion of an individual State to use funds provided through a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement for any uses that are authorized under the grant, contract, or cooperative agreement, if the State so chooses.
(1) to directly develop, implement, or evaluate multi-State or other specified standards (defined in this section as any set of academic content standards common to multiple States, including the Common Core State Standards developed by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and the Council of Chief State School Officers, or any other specified set or type of academic content standards selected by the Secretary) or assessments aligned with such standards;
(2) to award any grant, contract, or cooperative agreement that requires or specifically authorizes the development, implementation, or evaluation of multi-State or other specified standards, or assessments aligned with such standards;
(3) to condition any award of funds to a State on the adoption of multi-State or other specified standards, or to include, as a component of an application for Federal funds, a requirement or preference related to multi-State or other specified standards; or
(4) to enforce any provision of a waiver issued by such Secretary under section 9401 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7861) related to the adoption of multi-State or other specified standards.
Sincerely yours,
J. Michael Smith, Esq.
President, HSLDA
Boston
I know I'm not alone in feeling disbelief at the terror attack in Boston today. My uncle has run in the Boston Marathon, and to think of the greatness of the race and this dreadful day is just unreal.
America has embraced ideologies that are against freedom as we welcome in Muslims and keep our borders unsecured. We have not stood for national security nor our Christian heritage. People today don't even know what our true heritage is. We've accepted ludicrous health care that is going to leave far more people without insurance and will put businesses out of business. We've embraced killing the unborn at warp speed and legalizing relationships God abhors. America as it once was, is dead. And people who are evil and motivated by Satan are celebrating. All beliefs are not equal. All cultural ways are not valid.
God bless those suffering in Boston tonight and may Christ's healing power be offered to each family impacted.
America has embraced ideologies that are against freedom as we welcome in Muslims and keep our borders unsecured. We have not stood for national security nor our Christian heritage. People today don't even know what our true heritage is. We've accepted ludicrous health care that is going to leave far more people without insurance and will put businesses out of business. We've embraced killing the unborn at warp speed and legalizing relationships God abhors. America as it once was, is dead. And people who are evil and motivated by Satan are celebrating. All beliefs are not equal. All cultural ways are not valid.
God bless those suffering in Boston tonight and may Christ's healing power be offered to each family impacted.
More on Harris-Perry
Copied from Glenn Beck's site, not my words, just copied and pasted. I don't follow Glenn these days, but what he says here is true. Harris-Perry is absolutely misled.
------------------
Well, Melissa Harris-Perry decided to double down on her comments claiming that American’s needed to break away from the idea that kids belong to the family and need to embrace a collective attitude towards children. Glenn played the latest audio on radio this morning along with another cable news host who is showing the true colors of the progressives.
Harris-Perry said, “I can see that some people are generally upset about what I actually said, especially this phrase: We have to break through our private idea that kids belong to their parents or kids belong to their families. So let me just say that this, I stand by that statement. Families have first and primary responsibility for their children. The private sphere of our homes and families deserves a great deference in policy and in practice only in the most extreme circumstances of violence or deprivation should institutions remove children from families. But I believe our children are not our private property. They are not just extensions of ourselves. They are independent individual beings. Allow me to quote the poet Khalil Gibran: ‘Our children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of life’s longing for itself. They come through you but not from you. And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.’”
She continued, “Listen, this is an existential argument. People can disagree and one which has been more influential in poetry than in policy. And honestly remote philosophical debate rarely drives relentless news cycles. Unless, unless it is the core philosophical issue of our entire history, the balance between individual rights and collective responsibilities. And that is my bet about what is happening. This isn’t about me wanting to take your kids. And this isn’t even about whether children are property. This is about whether we as a society expressing our collective will through our public institutions, including our government, have a right to impinge on individual freedoms in order to advance a common good.”
Glenn told audiences not to dismiss this as a clever apology, but to recognize that she is doubling down on her radical comments.
“Don’t dismiss this as a clever way to apologize. Don’t dismiss this as a clever way to get out of what she said. She is telling you exactly what she believes. ’I believe that the family belongs to the collective.’”
He explained that Harris-Perry only claimed that in “extreme” cases would government interfere, yet for months conservative values and view points have been portrayed as extreme.
“Remember, you’re a TEA Party member, you’re an extremist; you believe in the Second Amendment, you’re an extremist; you believe in the Bible, you’re an extremist; you’re a Christian, you’re extremist. Unless you redefine the word “extremist,” which they already are doing. And then it’s only in the cases of extremism that we would ever want to break up those families. As long as you teach them exactly what’s good for the collective, as long as you teach them everything that those of us who have power in the collective, we’re not going to break you up. Why? You’re doing our job for us. You’re teaching them that they ‑‑ this is the collective, that they don’t have really any rights, that they don’t have anything given from God, that they have all of these things given to them by the government. Why should we break that little system up? Only in the case if they’re with some extremists.”
Efffects of Obamacare
I doubt anyone who actually pays attention to facts still thinks the Affordable Care Act is going to help people have more health coverage, but just in case, here is a story to help you out.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/04/15/nation-biggest-movie-theater-chain-cuts-workweek-blaming-obamacare/?intcmp=trending
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/04/15/nation-biggest-movie-theater-chain-cuts-workweek-blaming-obamacare/?intcmp=trending
Blessings by Laura Story
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGniRk_GcLs&w=420&h=315]
Beautiful song.
Do not be afraid to claim the truth of the Bible. Taking God at His word isn't prideful or arrogant, it is a humble heart that realizes we are lost in our own sin and can do nothing to fix it ourselves. We must throw ourselves at our Creator's feet, the same that dripped with blood after being unrighteously nailed to a wooden cross nearly 2000 years ago. This world is turning everything upside down, calling good, bad and bad, good. But God knows the Truth and He sets the standard on holiness.
Do not be afraid, God will not be mocked. The time is coming when they will persecute those who hold the Word of God higher than anything else, but they which destroy the body cannot take your soul. Walking with Jesus, whether here or in glory, is far better than anything this sinful, subjective world can offer.
Beautiful song.
Do not be afraid to claim the truth of the Bible. Taking God at His word isn't prideful or arrogant, it is a humble heart that realizes we are lost in our own sin and can do nothing to fix it ourselves. We must throw ourselves at our Creator's feet, the same that dripped with blood after being unrighteously nailed to a wooden cross nearly 2000 years ago. This world is turning everything upside down, calling good, bad and bad, good. But God knows the Truth and He sets the standard on holiness.
Do not be afraid, God will not be mocked. The time is coming when they will persecute those who hold the Word of God higher than anything else, but they which destroy the body cannot take your soul. Walking with Jesus, whether here or in glory, is far better than anything this sinful, subjective world can offer.
It Takes a Village to Raise a Child? Not ...
Perry's thoughts are wicked. I know people feel as she does and it is clear evidence of people being utterly deceived by Satan and satanic ideologies. God entrusted children to their parents. Logic will not win the battle against this sort of lunacy. The battle we fight is against the spiritual forces of darkness. I pray the Lord returns before more like Perry start speaking out and acting on their ill-conceived notions.
What is Church?
Below this entry I've got an awesome sermon posted from John MacArthur about the topic, "What is the church?" It's entitled, "Doing 'Jesus Is?'" He goes in to the election thing from the perspective of one who is 'reformed' as we say, but it doesn't bother me. I can listen and believe that the elect are who are saved by faith and then are regenerated. The thing to listen to and NOT MISS is the beautiful accuracy of what the church is...and what it is not. It is not bringing a group of unbelievers together and giving them what they want and calling it church. As MacArthur eloquently states, along with the book of Acts, the church is a group of believers. Unbelievers should not feel comfortable in church, they should see the beauty of transformed lives that are different from their own. Anyway, that is a bit of paraphrasing. It's a great sermon.
Doing 'Jesus Is?'
Are You Thinking About Summer?
About this time of year, thinking about summer and the lack of school work to do is top on my list. Somehow, even with home educating, I always long for more lazy days with my children...to read, take walks, study Scripture. I'll think, "This summer we'll snuggle in bed and read, and play more games, and visit all the Civil War battlefields!" Yet, tons of activities beckon for our time and energy before June is halfway over.
Well, this year there is a solid plan of how to not be overly busy.
Here it is:
This may not sound astronomical, but if you garden, you know how much time it takes. If you belong to an expensive pool, the drive to go often is also apparent. I hope we find this summer feels longer than ever and that I don't give in to the urge to be outside working in the yard like I frequently do, or get caught up in heavy organizing. I'm thinking to forgo my big photograph-resurrection project I'd planned to tackle this year (haven't printed photos since 2005 and want to get them printed and in books that I'll rarely look at since it is depressing to me).
Well, this year there is a solid plan of how to not be overly busy.
Here it is:
- No fruit or vegetable gardening
- Not joining a pool
- Purpose to get up earlier and get to bed earlier (these two clearly complement each other)
- Ask the kids how they want their summer to go, have each list 2 things they really want to do
- Pray now for a meaningful summer together
This may not sound astronomical, but if you garden, you know how much time it takes. If you belong to an expensive pool, the drive to go often is also apparent. I hope we find this summer feels longer than ever and that I don't give in to the urge to be outside working in the yard like I frequently do, or get caught up in heavy organizing. I'm thinking to forgo my big photograph-resurrection project I'd planned to tackle this year (haven't printed photos since 2005 and want to get them printed and in books that I'll rarely look at since it is depressing to me).
As an aside, do you ever admire those groups who
1. don't take photographs, and
2. don't have mirrors around?
That is good radical living if you ask me! :)
Quitting Track & Field
Each year after Christmas it's time to evaluate and pray about what we will do the following year. Co-ops, CC, art classes, dance classes, music lessons, service with church etc. get fresh consideration. Only God knows what the year will hold, so it's really something I feel has to be put before Him.
In talking to my oldest about one particular decision I'm on the fence about, it occurred to me that an activity is always most pleasant when it is richly relational. It can be difficult to maintain satisfaction if something was relational but morphs more into just a business situation and thus, not something emotionally satisfying. Next thing you know, I'm recalling high school...
I love how God reminds us of past decisions we've made to make a point. Years and years ago I ran track, but only in 9th and 10th grade. Why did I quit? My best, and only friend on the team, graduated at the end of my 10th grade year. Ruth is still my bosom buddy and well, if we were running on a team even now and she quit, and I had no other friends, I'd probably want to quit all over again. That said, I'm not so sure I can lead with my emotions on bigger decisions as an adult! Even my oldest recognized that this particular decision I'm struggling with could be a growing opportunity.
How about you? Do you find it hard to be involved with something that is really just business? Us people-persons run on the closeness of it all, but I guess old dogs can learn new tricks when it's for the greater good.
In talking to my oldest about one particular decision I'm on the fence about, it occurred to me that an activity is always most pleasant when it is richly relational. It can be difficult to maintain satisfaction if something was relational but morphs more into just a business situation and thus, not something emotionally satisfying. Next thing you know, I'm recalling high school...
I love how God reminds us of past decisions we've made to make a point. Years and years ago I ran track, but only in 9th and 10th grade. Why did I quit? My best, and only friend on the team, graduated at the end of my 10th grade year. Ruth is still my bosom buddy and well, if we were running on a team even now and she quit, and I had no other friends, I'd probably want to quit all over again. That said, I'm not so sure I can lead with my emotions on bigger decisions as an adult! Even my oldest recognized that this particular decision I'm struggling with could be a growing opportunity.
How about you? Do you find it hard to be involved with something that is really just business? Us people-persons run on the closeness of it all, but I guess old dogs can learn new tricks when it's for the greater good.
Is Your Church Next?
Reading this has brought tears to my eyes. Someone else who sees what is happening in the Baptist denomination. We have left the SBC and have returned to fundamental independent Baptist, which isn't perfect (thankfully ours isn't KJV only), but it is a continual breath of fresh air with it's messages being solidly from the Word of God. It is heartbreaking to see the concern of community in the church rise above Biblical truth and literacy; entertainment and outreach rise above being encouraged to enter through the narrow gate; conversion come secondary to numbers. When a church's top priority is bringing in the lost, or believing Christianity needs a radical face lift, it is on the road downhill. What about serious discipling of all the members? What about making sure we aren't bringing in hoards of chaff? The game has changed in too many of today's churches. It is hard to stay the course; it's discouraging to realize how many do not want Christ. But we can't 'fix' it by changing the message and adding a bunch of psychology to ease the hurting; they aren't getting the gospel. When labyrinths come, run.
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