Are you Dabbling with Mysticism?

It is a sad reality that many who think they are sound in Christ employ mysticism as an ancient Christian practice. Mysticism is not a part of biblical soundness and wise doctrine, it is something that has been around for a long time and is rearing it's head today, repackaged within the Christian community. It aids in selling a counterfeit Christianity that focuses on experiencing God rather than studying and obeying His word. "Hearing" His voice reveals more intimacy with Him than doctrine, for instance.

Today there are many counseling centers that endorse contemplative prayer, which can be an indicator that the center leans in the direction of mysticism. We need to take the time to research what people believe...where is the line drawn? Is Yoga OK? How about labyrinth walking? Spiritual retreats where silence is focused on? In my view, these practices should ring bells of warning to a believer. If feeling better and being happy is the goal of counseling or Christianity, we are missing what God designed us for. The Bible does not tell us to do breath prayers or to meditate on one word while breathing deeply, even if that word is 'Christ'; it isn't how we are taught to pray. In sum, positive psychology or secular wisdom should not be a part of Christian counseling.

Soft-selling these issues as a matter of opinion is very dangerous, yet we all tend to struggle in this culture with wanting to have our own beliefs and act like there is not absolute truth. All beliefs and views are not equal, in other words, all messages are not the truth. The message of the Gospel and who God is gets easily blurred, and if people do not understand the Truth, they can miss being truly 'set free'. As Christians, we should love God enough to defend Him.

May the Holy Spirit work in the hearts and minds of those reading, revealing the warning and Gospel according to God Almighty.

http://www.gty.org/resources/sermons/61-1/facing-the-modern-deceivers

http://mikeratliff.wordpress.com/2013/05/21/spiritual-formation-or-biblical-sanctification/

http://www.worldviewweekend.com/search/site/mysticism

How is contemplative spirituality entering the church?

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/othercategories.htm

Understanding Reiki

Reiki is something Christians should be wary of. Our goal is to bring glory to God, not muddy the waters of our testimony with questionable occult practices. Why do Christians insist on getting as close to the occult as possible? I think we take our freedom in Christ to a place it should never go. The ends do not always justify the means. Shouldn't we always take inventory of what we engage in?

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/reiki.htm

How To Discern the Times

I wish there were a simple formula to explain how to see what is going on in the church today. In reading chapters 10 and 11 of Bonhoeffer, it's apparent God enabled Dietrich to see things that others simply were not seeing. This is the plight of those God shows what is happening...being accused of being narrow-minded, making quick or simplistic judgments, or being a heretic hunter is par for the course. It can be hard to not shout out from the rooftops for people to wake up and take the time to research. Sadly, however, I think the key to discernment is something many believers are simply unwilling to do, so they stick with their mantras of shutting out what they don't want to see or don't want to believe. It takes time, prayer, and discipline...not to mention a dose of courage, to explore what the post-modern church is embracing. Bonhoeffer was a courageous man, unafraid to stand alone on the gospel and racial equality, particularly in the church.

So many of us can remember a "I'm OK! You're OK!" past of yesteryear, and the 'niceness' of not worrying about what others believe because so many are well-meaning or are 'close enough'. If only this were true! People are changing the gospel and changing Jesus, but the words surrounding it are so loving and kind, it gets missed. We all want to get along (can't we just hear the imploring voice, "Can't we all just get along?") When the veracity of Scripture and the true personality and holiness of Christ are being compromised, I answer with a resounding, "No!".

Jesus doesn't have more faith in me than I have in Him. Christianity is not here to make my life better and luring people in to church so that their life will improve just isn't a theme I see in the Word. The early church members came together as committed followers, dying to self and worshiping, they didn't bring in droves of people through good works only to wait to slowly seep in the good news of Christ. There was a divide between believers and unbelievers and people could see it, that is why it was unbelievers who first called people Christian. There was a difference, a clear line of being set apart.

Today it seems few would disagree that the world is wrought with evil, perhaps moreso than these days of the early church, at least there are far more venues for the spread of evil...yet we try to walk so much closer to the world. We want to look so much like the world so we don't make the lost uncomfortable, but this technique isn't seen in Scripture either. Jesus said for people to take up their cross and follow Him. He said that family members would be divided because of some having faith and others not...the gospel separates because there is no similarity with light and darkness.

But  not in 2013--it's unpopular to tell people they are sinners who offend God and that without Christ they will spend eternity in Hell. In 2013 it is judgmental to say that drawing circles and praying in them is not Christian and should be avoided. In 2013 we welcome in homosexuals and many church leaders like Rick Warren join with other so-called evangelicals proclaiming people living in a lifestyle of sin go to Heaven. In Scripture we see a message of turning from sin in order to follow Jesus. But now, because we think we're more loving than God, we lie to people to avoid hurting their feelings and tell them they can continue to engage in something that is an abomination to God.

It is a world of no absolutes, except of course for the absolute that says you can't say there are absolutes. The "logic" is dizzying. Books that promote heretical ideas are swept under the rug or read by believers because on some level they think it's worthwhile to mix truth with error, all the while not looking deeper in to what the philosophy of the author is...not realizing what 'remaking Christianity' really means. Human nature has all but been forgotten and we play as though we're not rebels wanting to cast off some shackle, real or imagined. We flirt with ideas that are unscriptural because we get bored with tradition and are undisciplined in general. Exciting titles pull us in...

But....we have to be discerning. There are ministries that give insight to what is happening today in the church.  I'm not saying these folks are 100% right all the time, that would be ridiculous, but if we're praying for discernment and are passionate about truth, we'll have eyes to see.

Some places to start:

• read the Bible very often
• ask God to show you what He sees in the church today, ask for discernment
• read The Truth War by John MacArthur
• read Faith Undone by Roger Oakland
• Apprising Ministries

Read classic, historic Christians for perspective...George Whitefield, Chesterton, Augustine (not that I'm endorsing everyone's theology or philosophy, but we can gain a lot of understanding of how far the church has gone in to worldliness as the world has gotten more worldly.)

I know many think it's a downer to pay attention to negative things, but if you are a Christian reading this, don't you think we have a responsibility to represent the truth in this dark age? Isn't it reasonable that we could be misled if we aren't vigilant to understand the speak of the day?

I know for a while I was really getting caught into the false humility of attitude which said I really didn't understand this or that about the Bible and so I comfortably avoided confrontation or seeming narrow. I see this now as one of the many ways the church is being weakened because there is quite a lot we can and should know. It's easy to be influenced by the world and wrong thinking if we aren't careful, but be ready, you will be considered a trouble maker or someone who just isn't interested in unity. Because pointing out error in leaders or ministries is completely out of fashion in 2013. I would rather stand alone for truth than come together with people promoting things damaging to the Bible's veracity just because they call themselves Christian. The definitions of the words matter, perhaps moreso today than ever.

The Circle Maker

We just returned from a wonderful week away to the mountains. It was one of those vacations without internet or a schedule, we just played games, read, studied, and watched TV. Before leaving, I sent a note to some close friends warning them about a new book that is out, The Circle Maker. I'd stumbled upon an EZC blog post regarding it and was glad to have done so.

While on vacation, I didn't think about things back home. I did spend a lot of time in the Word and reading. I'm still working through Studies in the Sermon on the Mount by D. Martyn-Lloyd Jones, but also began reading John MacArthur's The Truth War and read the first two books in Bodie and Brock Theone's Zion Covenant Series. I loved the Zion Chronicles...it was a wonderful time to refresh and recommit to the Lord.

So we get home and what does my husband find upon reading the current newsletter for our former church? The pastor is recommending the very book I warned people about last week. The newsletter came out while we were gone.

I'm thankful and amazed with how God works. He led me to the review and then put it on my heart who to send the warning to.  Had I seen the newsletter from our former church first, I wouldn't have sent the warning to the people I sent it to. May God pierce the hearts of those leading churches in to this new wave of pseudo-Christianity.

To God be the Glory

Is Contemplative Prayer OK?

When you hear the phrase 'contemplative prayer', do you realize what that means?

With contemplative prayer:

1. One purposefully allows or puts oneself into an altered state of consciousness.  They are opening themselves up to spiritual deception and evil spirits.  It is the practice of Zen Buddhism or Hinduism, Transcendental Meditation.  It is not Christianity. It is not meditating on the word of God to better understand it.  It is something else.  It is not Biblical prayer.

2. It denies the sufficiency of the Bible.  We need something else to hear from God.  The Bible is not sufficient by itself.

3. Underlying is the presumption that people have divinity within themselves inherently and not only through being born again.

4. People end up taking their own thoughts and calling them the Word of God. Everybody is having revelations, so-called.

5. It is an embrace of the pietism and monasticism historically found in the Roman Catholic Church.

6. It is fully entangled with pop-culture, positive psychology, self-esteem, and eastern mysticism which are completely devoid of the gospel and the things of God.

7. In the name of religion it doesn't lead people to Christ.

More thorough information on the dangers of Contemplative Prayer and what that actually means can be found on this site.

http://solasisters.blogspot.com/2012/05/dangers-of-contemplative-prayer.html#

Christians promoting unbiblical, mystical activities like Labyrinth walking and contemplative prayer are not far away...here is a 'Christian' retreat that encourages this in Lexington, VA:
http://www.strengthforthejourneyretreats.com/uploads/1/2/9/8/12989240/retreat_brochure_bellfry_dec__2012.pdf

More information regarding the Emergent Church:
[http://www.ericbarger.com/errors.emergent.htm] http://www.ericbarger.com/errors.emergent.htm

Letting Go, A Little At A Time

2/5/13

I love home schooling. When the journey began, I envisioned long skirts, long hair, all of us around the table working together in a harmonious unity. Thoughts of co-ops or online schools never entered my mind. We were going to grow and learn on this journey together. I felt Mom could surely teach everything effectively. That was about 9 years ago.

Now that we're looking at a rising 7th grader, 5th grader, and 3rd grader, my perspective has changed quite significantly. While I think it is possible for Mom to teach and do far better than the hedonistic public school curriculum, balancing all the variables we believe are important while doing so, is a tall order for this Mom. We strive to classically educate, which brings in aspects of learning that we didn't know existed as we worked with our budding 3 year old so long ago.

Classical education is a terrific fit for our family. The memory work has proven invaluable for teaching them how to retain information. All three of our children have excelled in this department while we've been in a Classical Conversations community. CC has brought to light how much children can memorize, and through the years as our confidence has grown (each of ours!), we've seen the fruit of what they have accomplished in other areas of life.

All of this said, what Classical Ed. brings to the table are classes beyond our ability. In theory, we could take the time to learn every subject well enough to teach it, but the time and energy that would take is more than we're willing to spend. Many other things we're not willing to sacrifice like an organized sanctuary to dwell in, would have to fall off the table. Some subjects take a lot of preparation and learning...Logic and Latin, for example. Rudimentary levels can be learned with Mom or even DVD's, but neither of these is a substitute for a master instructor. Logic is so important in today's world~so few people know how to think rightly (of course without God, that won't happen no matter how much educating one has). There is so much more to a thorough classical education now than when classical ed. was predominate (look at all the advances with mathematics and science, for example).

Throughout history, master instructors or tutors have been tasked with bringing along the next generation. As our children age, the areas we feel a master teacher is needed, grow. Since we are selective about a teacher's worldview, online schools have been a good route. The teacher has some influence, but not too much, and there are schools whose beliefs are spelled out pretty well. I feel with this approach, the teacher has opportunity for input beyond the class material, but not more than I'm comfortable handing over to a grown-up I don't truly know.

Let the reader please realize, a public school teacher and many private teachers are not masters of their field. The useful idiots of Communism were people who really believed in the cause and that they were making a helpful difference, yet they were just pawns in a much larger, far more sinister game...I think the same goes for many public school educators today. They go along with what they are told, doing a poor job of educating, yet believing it is superior to what a parent could do or what teachers have done in the past. Student's aren't taught at a high level, nor are they taught to think. In the USA most teachers are from the lower percentages grade-wise (I've heard they are in the lower 40% to the lower 10%). Bottom line, teachers and society 'think' they are the brightest of the bright, but the statistics and results we see across the board in this nation tell a different story.

In sum, choosing online classes with teachers who have a Biblical worldview, as best we can, is what I consider a terrific solution to many of the challenges home educators face. Learning to manage a schedule, having deadlines, taking real quizzes  and tests, and answering to someone other than Mom for assignments, helps students mature and take ownership of their education.

In today's world of mysticism infiltrating the church, we have to be careful who we'll entrust with our children for long lengths of time. One rule of thumb I try to employ is to look at the church a person attends, and their own family and children to see if I like what I see. This goes for if I'm interested in modeling what someone else is doing as well, which usually, I'm not.

For the record, just because a parent has realized they should have done some things differently with their children, they aren't automatically  qualified to 'do it a different way' with your children. How can you know the root of their mistaken path before has now landed in the right place? Do you want to take the risk now with your kids to see if their 'great awakening' is on the  money?

Keep doing what you think is best as you home educate, with the resources God has provided. If online classes are out of reach, seek the Lord on what His best option is for your family. Pretty much anything will be better than public school, and probably many private. If you are convinced online classes are impersonal, sit in on one sometime. We've found them to be very helpful for educating, while still sheltering to a degree. Be confident in how you are raising your family. If you aren't, make changes!