Suffering...

	YE ARE NOT YOUR OWN
"Know ye not that . . ye are not your own?" 1 Corinthians 6:19 There is no such thing as a private life - "a world within the world" - for a man or woman who is brought into fellowship with Jesus Christ's sufferings. God breaks up the private life of His saints, and makes it a thoroughfare for the world on the one hand and for Himself on the other. No human being can stand that unless he is identified with Jesus Christ. We are not sanctified for ourselves, we are called into the fellowship of the Gospel, and things happen which have nothing to do with us, God is getting us into fellowship with Himself. Let Him have His way, if you do not, instead of being of the slightest use to God in His Redemptive work in the world, you will be a hindrance and a clog. The first thing God does with us is to get us based on rugged Reality until we do not care what becomes of us individually as long as He gets His way for the purpose of His Redemption. Why shouldn't we go through heartbreaks? Through those doorways God is opening up ways of fellowship with His Son. Most of us fall and collapse at the first grip of pain; we sit down on the threshold of God's purpose and die away of self-pity, and all so called Christian sympathy will aid us to our death bed. But God will not. He comes with the grip of the pierced hand of His Son, and says - "Enter into fellowship with Me; arise and shine." If through a broken heart God can bring His purposes to pass in the world, then thank Him for breaking your heart.

Oswald Chambers
My Utmost for His Highest

Content.....

Be content to live unknown for a little while, and to walk your weary way through the fields of poverty, or up the hills of affliction; for by-and-by you shall reign with Christ, for He has "made us kings and priests unto God, and we shall reign for ever and ever." 

C.H. Spurgeon

On a mission....

Two members of our church family are currently in Vietnam. Please take a minute to say a prayer for them. Here is a link to the blog if you'd like to follow along. Going Back With God

Be on guard against false teaching.....

“Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!” says the LORD.
Jeremiah 23:1 NKJV

No minor details...

April 15th.
	THE RELAPSE OF CONCENTRATION
"But the high places were not taken away out of Israel; nevertheless the heart of Asa was perfect all his days." 2 Chronicles 15:17 Asa was incomplete in his external obedience, he was right in the main but not entirely right. Beware of the thing of which you say - "Oh, that does not matter much." The fact that it does not matter much to you may mean that it matters a very great deal to God. Nothing is a light matter with a child of God. How much longer are some of us going to keep God trying to teach us one thing? He never loses patience. You say - "I know I am right with God"; but still the "high places" remain, there is something over which you have not obeyed. Are you protesting that your heart is right with God, and yet is there something in your life about which He has caused you to doubt? Whenever there is doubt, quit immediately, no matter what it is. Nothing is a mere detail. Are there some things in connection with your bodily life, your intellectual life, upon which you are not concentrating at all? You are all right in the main but you are slipshod; there is a relapse on the line of concentration. You no more need a holiday from spiritual concentration than your heart needs a holiday from beating. You cannot have a moral holiday and remain moral, nor can you have a spiritual holiday and remain spiritual. God wants you to be entirely His, and this means that you have to watch to keep yourself fit. It takes a tremendous amount of time. Some of us expect to "clear the numberless ascensions" in about two minutes. Oswald Chambers My Utmost for His Highest

Judge not....

The First Stone

April 10, 2010

 

"For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not." (Ecclesiastes 7:20)

 

When the self-righteous men in the crowd surrounding the woman caught in the act of adultery were about to stone the woman (apparently indifferent to the man with whom she had been caught!), the Lord Jesus turned them all away with His suggestion that the privilege of casting the first stone should go to one who was without sin of his own (John 8:7). They realized that He knew the condition of their sinful hearts, and "being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one" (John 8:9).

 

This incident is a perpetual reminder that "the Father . . . hath committed all judgment unto the Son" (John 5:22), not to any one of us. We are not qualified to judge others, since we ourselves are also sinners--saved sinners, perhaps, but sinners.

 

One of the most certain doctrines of Scripture is the universality of sin in human experience. "There is none that doeth good, no, not one," the Scripture says (Romans 3:12). "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). "Death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned" (Romans 5:12). "The Scripture hath concluded all under sin" (Galatians 3:22). "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin" (James 4:17). "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all" (James 2:10). These and many other Scriptures tell us clearly that, while we urgently need to judge sin in ourselves, we are not qualified to condemn others, at least not on a personal level.

 

Only the Lord Jesus Christ, being Himself sinless (1 Peter 2:22), can judge a sinner. Thus it is only He who could be made sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21) and thereby forgive sins and bring salvation. HMM
 
Days of Praise
Institute for Creation Research

Be on guard....

"Whenever a man is about to stab religion, he usually professes very great reverence for it. Let me beware of the sleek-faced hypocrisy which is armour-bearer to heresy and infidelity." 

From this morning's Spurgeon devotion.

so true...

..."when you come to the most beautiful places you are often too anxious and hurried to appreciate them"

C.S. Lewis
The Horse and His Boy

Master ambition?

March 17th.
	THE WORKER'S RULING PASSION
"Wherefore we labour that . . we may be accepted of Him." 2 Corinthians 5:9 "Wherefore we labour . . . ." It is arduous work to keep the master ambition in front. It means holding one's self to the high ideal year in and year out, not being ambitious to win souls or to establish churches or to have revivals, but being ambitious only to be "accepted of Him." It is not lack of spiritual experience that leads to failure, but lack of labouring to keep the ideal right. Once a week at least take stock before God and see whether you are keeping your life up to the standard He wishes. Paul is like a musician who does not heed the approval of the audience if he can catch the look of approval from his Master. Any ambition which is in the tiniest degree away from this central one of being "approved unto God" may end in our being castaways. Learn to discern where the ambition leads, and you will see why it is so necessary to live facing the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul says - "Lest my body should make me take another line, I am constantly watching so that I may bring it into subjection and keep it under." (1 Cor. 9:27.) I have to learn to relate everything to the master ambition, and to maintain it without any cessation. My worth to God in public is what I am in private. Is my master ambition to please Him and be acceptable to Him, or is it something less, no matter how noble?

Oswald Chambers

Ready for spring.....

Can you pick and choose?

 No. But many people are doing just that. That is, taking certain parts of scripture and conforming it to man's ideas. If we believe that Jesus died for our sins should we not also believe the rest of the Bible? The text below is from The Institute for Creation Research. We dishonor God by not believing all of His Word.

The Beginning of the Creation

March 13, 2010

"But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female." (Mark 10:6)

These words of the Lord Jesus Christ ought to settle once and for all, for those who take His words seriously, the controversial question of the age of the earth. The earth was created essentially at the same time, He said, as the creation of Adam and Eve. Christ was quoting from Genesis 1:27: "male and female created He them." This greatest of God's creative works was "from the beginning of the creation," not 18 billion years after the beginning of the creation, as modern old-earth advocates allege.

One can understand why atheists believe in evolution and an almost infinitely old universe, for they really have no other alternative. One who believes in a personal God, on the other hand, only dishonors God if he believes such humanistic speculations rather than God's Word. God is omniscient and omnipotent, as well as loving and merciful, and He would never do anything like this. The great ages assumed by evolutionary geologists supposedly involved billions of years of suffering and dying by billions of animals before man ever evolved. Surely this would have been the most inefficient, wasteful, and cruel method that ever could have been devised for "creating" human beings. Since man's creation was God's main purpose, there is no conceivable reason why He would waste billions of years in such a meaningless charade as this before getting to the point.

In fact, the only reason He took six days instead of an instant of time was to serve as a pattern for man's work week (Exodus 20:8-11). In fact, the Lord Jesus Christ was not only a creationist, but was Himself the Creator of all things (John 1:3; Colossians 1:16; etc.). Therefore, He is the best possible witness as to when He created man and woman, and He said it was "from the beginning of the creation!" HMM

Institute for Creation Research  March 13th, 2010

Are you a good person?

The Good Person Test

Are you complacent?

com·pla·cen·cy

–noun,plural-cies.

1.

a feeling of quiet pleasure or security, often while unaware of some potential danger, defect, or the like; self-satisfaction or smug satisfaction with an existing situation, condition, etc.

May we never  find ourselves here. But I think that for many of us this is exactly where we are. It is a dangerous place to be and one with eternal consequences. Really think about this. Are you satisfied with the way things are, with the way society is? What about yourself and those you love? Have you given into the  "that's just the way it is" mentality?

 

Take some time....

Please take a moment to look at the Joshua project for today. Please pray for unreached people everyday. This group is from Sydney's home province of Guizhou China. If you click on the sidebar it will take to the home page where you can learn more about this group and their beautiful country.

Blessings,
Sandy

Too much?

I think not.....

Deuteronomy 6:7
"And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up." KJV


We can never have too much of God - our problem is not having enough....

A bad eye?

"What does the bad eye refer to in Matthew 20:15? It refers to an eye that cannot see the beauty of grace. It cannot see the brightness of generosity. It cannot see unexpected blessing to others as a precious treasure. It is an eye that is blind to what is truly beautiful and bright and precious and God-like. It is a worldly eye. It sees money and material reward as more to be desired than a beautiful display of free, gracious, God-like generosity."


(from John Piper - Desiring God)

See the full article here.

Wordless Wednesday.....

 

 

 

Walking in the darkness....

We've all been there - stumbling around in the dark, trying to find our way through. Eventually though, our eyes become accustomed to the dark and we begin to feel pretty sure of ourselves. Pretty soon we feel confident walking in the dark - we don't even bother to turn the light on.

That's how it is spiritually - we've grown used to the darkness. It's become the new normal. We've walked around in the "dark" for so long we don't even bother with the Light. We need God's word to guide our way. Don't stumble your way through life in the "dark".

"Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path"
Psalm 119:105 NKJV

Blessings,
Sandy

Kitchen helper.....

I have several kitchen helpers - some are more eager to help than others. This particular day it  was Bert's turn to "clean" the peanut butter jar! You know how you just can't get that last little bit and I hate to waste it, so my helpers take care of that! After wards they all have a new toy to share - for a little while at least!

Happy Birthday Sydney!

Sydney turned 6 Feb. 9th! She has grown so much since she came home but in many ways is still the same little toddler.....She had a great birthday with lots of surprises! We love you, Syd!

Happy Birthday!

Today is Sydney's birthday! She shares her birthday with another sweet girl - Romy.  This picture was taken taken in December of 2006. My how everyone has changed! Happy birthday to both of you. Haley was SO excited.....

New friends....

The  numerous cardinals have taken up residence here! And of course, God has shown me another similarity between us and the birds. It's amazing how God teaches us if we will only listen! The birds realize that they have shelter here. They have food and water and an occasional treat. Once they realized this, they decided to stay - they like it here. The more time spent in their new sanctuary the less likely they are to leave. They have found a safe place. And so it is with us and God. The more time we spend with Him, the more we want to stay with Him. The more time we spend with Him, the more we come to know Him. Have you found a home with God or has He just become an occasional place to stop if you need something? Take time today and everyday to be with God. Set aside time - make time. Start your day with God. After all, He is the One that gave it to you. Spend time with your creator, find sanctuary in Him.

Blessings,
Sandy

Where have you fallen?

"And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it."
Luke 8:7 NKJV

We must guard ourselves against the thorns of this world. We must be careful how we spend our time. Are we spending it glorifying and worshiping God as we were created to do? Or have we found ourselves caught up in other things? Where does your time spent with God compare with your time spent watching TV or the internet? I would venture to say that many secular Christians spend more time picking out what they'll wear to church than they do reading God's word. There are thorns all around us, be careful not to let them choke out your time spent with God.

Happy Birthday Haley!

Haley "Bean" turned 8 Jan. 22nd! She had a great birthday with friends and family! The turtle cake  was her cute idea! How sweet! We love you Haley!

Fine feathered friends....

The ducks found themselves with a frozen pond this morning and decided to venture out to the creek. So, it's with a heavy heart that we say farewell - the dogs killed ALL 3 ducks and my sweet Neil is broken hearted .......

Do not worry.........

A wonderful devotion for today and always!

Chip In for Asher!

Happy Birthday Cole!

Cole turned 9 on January 3rd! What a privilege to be this boy's mommy! I've been blessed beyond measure. We love you Cole Parker!

Early Light Devotional - In Touch Ministries - Dr. Charles Stanley 2010

Early Light Devotional - In Touch Ministries - Dr. Charles Stanley 2010

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A Gift.....

When a man is born again, he knows that it is because he has received something as a gift from Almighty God and not because of his own decision.

Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest

The name...

It's been snowing here for the past few days. The other day while looking out the kitchen window I was struck by the most beautiful sight of a cardinal in the snow. The snow was coming down hard and all I could see was this beautiful bird. It came to me through this stark contrast that Jesus has saved me. By HIS blood - I am a new creation made white as snow. Hence the new name. It's still snowing and I'm finding more and more parallels with the birds in the snow and our lives. Whether we realize it or not we are looking for shelter, a safe place to go and be. We have that shelter through Christ and while we must endure the storms of life, God will not leave us, for we find our shelter in Him through Christ. One more thought that came to mind was the fact that like the "cardinal" in the snow, we should be seen. We should we set apart from the world. If we look and do as the world then we cannot look and do as Christ. We are called to be set apart - we should be "different" from the world.

By the blood....

of Christ we are made white as snow.......

New year, new name.....

As we have officially outgrown our "clown car",  I thought a new name was fitting - for now anyway......

Merry Christmas!

In Christ,
Sandy

sunset......

Thankful........

for everything we have! This week we've been learning about the 1st Thanksgiving and have done several cute projects. This was the favorite! I found this cute edible craft over at econobusters. These are Pilgrim's hats - the photo doesn't do them justice - I got a little too close.

The eyes have it.....

I love close up shots of eyes!

 

 

 

 

Roosters and chickens and EGGS! OH MY!

Neil's hens have started laying eggs!

 

 

 

 

Ducks in the pond!

 

 

Cousin It!

 

 

Crazy hair day!

This is what homeschoolers do after a Science lesson on hair.....

 

 

 

 

You thought the title was a joke?

 

 

 

Our new puppy Ceily!

 

Cole's 8th birthday!

 

Lainey Beth!

 

Haley's 7th birthday!

 

Snow cream!

One of my favorite things about winter! The kids love it too! Notice that Sydney isn't in any of the photos? She does NOT like the snow or the cold but she did like the snow cream(eaten inside of course!).
These are from our last snow(a few weeks before Christmas)