tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48362563300407905582024-03-05T15:23:31.513-05:00My thoughts on display, that I may not fear.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-28289620949733736722011-06-10T13:48:00.002-04:002011-06-10T14:06:22.167-04:00Why I think I would enjoy smokingClarification: I have never smoked. anything. Nor do I plan on starting. Or even trying. But there are things about smoking that I find appealing that I think I would enjoy. <div><br /></div><div><ol><li><i>Outside time</i>. Smokers have a reason they have to go sit outside in any and all weather. When it is really cold or really hot, I am not going to go sit outside just for kicks. But I would hate and be glad of having a reason I had to.</li><li><i>Hand gestures and fiddling. </i>I like having things to do with my hands. I am generally doodling or knitting or playing with the rings or hair bands or jewelry I have on my person. Having something to hold and flick would be amusing.</li><li><i>Breathing exercises. </i>I like having things to do with my breath. I sometimes hold my breath just to see how long I can, and whenever I am in a car going though a tunnel, I hold my breath all the way through (if possible). I will also sometimes change the speed of my breathing intentionally. </li><li><i>Community of smokers</i>. You can't ask strangers for random items on a general basis, but you can ask strangers for a light or a cigarette. Automatic in, socially speaking, if you both are sitting in the same place for a smoking break. </li></ol><div>So, I plan not to try smoking, because I think I would enjoy it. </div></div>LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-85436005328163155002011-05-29T12:54:00.000-04:002011-06-10T13:05:41.249-04:00Why I am glad the May 21 rapture discussion happenedOverall, I was not pleased with Harold Camping's prediction that the rapture would happen. It was contrary to what the Bible teaches about the church, knowledge we as Christians have access to, and he used faulty interpretation methods. <div><br /></div><div>However, waking up that morning, with Christ's return on my mind, knowing that I was honestly praying "Lord, come quickly," and "Lord, tarry, that none may perish,"was great. </div><div><br /></div><div>While I don't want there to be more faulty theology, being reminded that Christ is returning someday, was good. </div><div><br /></div><div>I also found it funny actually figuring out what Camping thought. As a Christian, in a church, I was still condemned, because the age of the church is over, according to him. </div><div><br /></div><div>Now, actually, according to him, no one else can be saved. That was the result of the May 21st non-rapture. So, in theory, he should just be quiet from here on out. Because according to his own beliefs, nothing he can say can have any eternal significance for the rest of the world. </div><div><br /></div><div>Come, Lord Jesus, come. </div><div><br /></div>LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-29834677946409393532011-03-11T08:27:00.005-05:002011-03-11T08:46:28.237-05:00Metro book club, we are at it again!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKBNPEW_jEUHcWhuDa6B8m-sf_kMsnYqANPj2YwDywrFGZSZUIxfV0EgDPzp2KuSl2IXq3sN82K1-aPCciBSHxaarvTCzFMjPwoDqKCmsaM6cxpqulTdEBPhVxghheIF_acx5ns5UF6tw/s1600/imgres-1.jpeg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 178px; height: 283px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKBNPEW_jEUHcWhuDa6B8m-sf_kMsnYqANPj2YwDywrFGZSZUIxfV0EgDPzp2KuSl2IXq3sN82K1-aPCciBSHxaarvTCzFMjPwoDqKCmsaM6cxpqulTdEBPhVxghheIF_acx5ns5UF6tw/s320/imgres-1.jpeg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5582817885726154018" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx_lo8OBWr90iZLIZzfV_WoMYINeUVEnAl7F4SzD-t0FxydGUOBceygwAP0tP6jrbEJ33OfGY7ybDBpiVq9ywTKVbWK_3_QVsRbvZBtyzchLmX-DyJCdw91FTl6_k6KMVEYDKwr6vkxfg/s1600/imgres.jpeg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 181px; height: 279px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx_lo8OBWr90iZLIZzfV_WoMYINeUVEnAl7F4SzD-t0FxydGUOBceygwAP0tP6jrbEJ33OfGY7ybDBpiVq9ywTKVbWK_3_QVsRbvZBtyzchLmX-DyJCdw91FTl6_k6KMVEYDKwr6vkxfg/s320/imgres.jpeg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5582817878633050082" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I was reading<i> 'Fundamentalism' and the Word of God</i> by J. I. Packer on a metrobus, and an old, kinda toothless man got on the bus and sat a couple seats away from me. <div><br /></div><div>He said, "You look like you are reading a very interesting book." He then precedes to hand me a the book he is reading, which was about a way pioneered by some Eastern religious guy. He looks over my book while I look over his, and then he asks me if I have ever been out of the country. </div><div><br /></div><div>"Yes, I have been to Mexico, France and the United Kingdom," I reply. </div><div>He asks me, "Have you ever considered going to India? I think you would benefit greatly from a trip to India. Awaken spiritually to things you never have seen before." </div><div><br /></div><div>We talking about learning, and I say that I would probably learn a lot about myself and the world if I went to India, but that I did not think I would find the big spiritual way that he seemed to want me to find because I already believe I found truth. I told him that Jesus said "I am the way, the truth, and the life." </div><div><br /></div><div>He was all, "Fine, if you think you already know what you need..." He seemed really offended that I was not going to hop on a plane to India and discover a path to spiritual enlightenment. </div></div>LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-34797798630688252562010-09-30T19:21:00.002-04:002010-09-30T19:21:59.876-04:00Important Issues 2--The Predominence of Scripture in the Life of a Christian<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib_O8S5x8t14fcLp4Nbqlb8SGNT2_chspo5tP4T2tOzd-6_nAMIzCvNSq9LeUyEzCMwVnbo_n_XXQiwh0OAc75HDSFp575Yg4R86fdTLdhF92SlKtcbOGQ2V53ezTJ6K3c954wPMyx6_g/s1600/n7412094_32419438_2755.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib_O8S5x8t14fcLp4Nbqlb8SGNT2_chspo5tP4T2tOzd-6_nAMIzCvNSq9LeUyEzCMwVnbo_n_XXQiwh0OAc75HDSFp575Yg4R86fdTLdhF92SlKtcbOGQ2V53ezTJ6K3c954wPMyx6_g/s320/n7412094_32419438_2755.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509821740428118546" border="0" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><span style="font-size:78%;">This photo shows cultural view vs. Christian view. The Elephant<br />has a thought bubble to explain it is an elephant. We are not left<br />to guess what it is to be an elephant.<br /></span> </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><br /></span></div><blockquote></blockquote>A common thought in our culture is that different religions are just different ways of looking at God, but they all amount to the same thing. It is like blind men feeling an elephant, telling each other what it is they think they are near. One man feels the tail and thinks its a brush. One man hugs a leg and thinks its a tree. One man finds the trunk and thinks its a snake. One man finds its side and thinks its a wall, and so on. <div><br /></div><div>That is not what Christians believe. We understand that God (or in the case above, the elephant), told us who he is through the Bible. Christians are not inherently smarter than anyone else, we just have access to God's revelation of himself to us. We know are looking at an elephant, not a fan, rock, seagull, or car, because the elephant told us it is an elephant. (Thanks to <a href="http://lamppostinthewoods.blogspot.com/">JG</a> for the illustration). <div></div></div><div><br /></div><div>Thus the Bible is crucial. It is God's primary way of revealing himself to his people today. <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+5:24&version=NIV">John 5:24</a>, <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians+1:13&version=NIV">Ephesians 1:13</a>, and <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Thessalonians+2:13&version=NIV">1 Thessalonians 2:13</a> to name a few all portray hearing the word of God as the means of salvation. This is primarily through scripture. </div><div><br /></div><div>Now, can God communicate through means other than text written thousands of years ago? He is omnipotent, he may do as he pleases. God can use other means, but his word is sufficient and primary. God's word fulfills multiple roles in a Christian's Life. As <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Timothy+3&version=NKJV">2 Timothy 3</a> says:</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Charis SIL',charis,Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><sup class="versenum" id="en-NKJV-29866" style="font-size: 0.65em; line-height: normal; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: text-top;"></sup><blockquote><sup class="versenum" id="en-NKJV-29866" style="font-size: 0.65em; line-height: normal; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: text-top;">6</sup> All Scripture <i>is</i> given by inspiration of God, and <i>is</i> profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, <sup class="versenum" id="en-NKJV-29867" style="font-size: 0.65em; line-height: normal; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: text-top;">17</sup> that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.</blockquote></span></div><div>Another version of this passages describes scripture as God-breathed. Christians are people of the book. Christians do not need to search for other ways to discern how God wants us to live and what we need to know about him. His word, the preaching of his word, and people living according to his word are the many ways God is revealed, but it all hinges on God's word.<br /></div><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Can we use our reason or intuition to know things about God instead, or perhaps in addition to the Bible? </span>That is dangerous thinking. God gave us our reason and it is a good thing, but it is insufficient. We should use the reason God gave us to help us interpret the Bible and the world around us, but we should not value it above the Bible.<br /><br />When what our reason tells us and what the Bible tells us conflicts, our reason should yield to scripture, not the other way around. I will mitigate this by saying that at times, many passages in the Bible can be confusing and we may not be sure what applies to questions we have. This is a reason for us to be in a local church where we are taught the Bible, not just left to interpret the Bible on our own (hence why I wrote a <a href="http://acupotea.blogspot.com/2010/08/important-issues-1-presence-of-local.html">post</a> on churches).<br /><br />I will write more on this in another post when I have more time, and possibly a computer.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-63619554550072515542010-08-31T09:18:00.003-04:002010-08-31T09:21:49.209-04:00A Thought for Today<blockquote>"Happy storm that wrecks a man on such a rock as this! O blessed hurricane that drives the soul to God and God alone!"</blockquote><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>C.H. Spurgeon, <i>Morning and Evening</i>, Morning, 31 August </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-31875766690018047332010-08-20T22:12:00.006-04:002010-08-21T00:09:02.258-04:00Important Issues 1--The Presence of a Local Church in the Life of a ChristianAre churches full of sinners? Of course. As my pastor often reminds us, the church is full of sinners who realize they need a Savior.<br /><br />Are churches full of hypocrites, who talk of loving their neighbors but then ignore suffering around them, judging too quickly while ignoring their own sin? Sadly, yes. Can these churchgoers hurt those around them? Again, yes. Is that heartbreaking? Yes.<br /><br />Is this an reason for us to abandon church? No. It may be an excuse, but it is not a reason.<br /><br />The church is full of sinners and often viewed by outsiders as corrupt televangelists. Many have been hurt by individuals in churches or worse, hurt by local churches themselves that have misused authority.<br /><br />However, the misuse of authority by a congregation does not mean that all congregations lose their authority. That one congregation caused more harm than good does not negate the purpose purpose for congregations to exist.<br /><br />It is like the relationship between the parent and a child. Some parents abuse their children, misusing their God-given roles and authority, and the outcome can be devastating. Parents like this have not earned the right to be parents. However, this does not discredit parenthood and the authority that many parents use to wisely shepherd their children by keeping them safe and instructing them.<br /><br />The fact that bad churches, like bad parents, exist does not discredit the need for wise and loving churches and parents in the lives of a believer and child.<br /><br />Why do I need the authority of a church over me?<br /><br />The Bible Says So.<br /><br />Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.<br /><br /><em>Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some</em> in the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">NKJV</span>. Part of the reason we gather in churches is to spur one another toward love and good deeds. Can you do this with people outside of the church? Yes, but this is one of the reasons churches exist.<br /><br />Also, check out Matthew 16:16-19. Christ is the one building His church on the foundation that He is Lord. That whole thing about "what is bound and loosed in earth and heaven" is about churches having authority. See also 1 Corinthians 5 for why this is important. Also <a href="http://www.9marks.org/what-are-the-9marks/membership">here</a> for more reasons. <br /><br />The procedure that Jesus describes in Matthew 18:15-20 cannot take place if Christians are not in a local church with other Christians who know them well. Our sanctification is largely through the local church where we have other believers to hold us accountable, especially when we do not think we are sinning. If I were involved in a serious unrepentant sin, for the good of my soul, i am glad I go to a church where my friends and eventually the whole church, would try to correct me. More reasons <a href="http://www.9marks.org/what-are-the-9marks/discipline">here</a>. <br /><br />John MacArthur's <a href="http://www.biblebb.com/files/macqa/1359-7.htm">website</a> says "No Christian is a law unto himself, just autonomous running around." We are meant to be under authority. Heb 13:17<br /><br />Now the authority of the church is not a pastor telling the congregation a position on some theologically issue/real life application and saying that we have to believe him because he says so. If I grew convicted that my church was wrong on something, if it was not a core issue, I would be welcome to disagree. For example, I am welcome to have <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">any view</span> of eschatology that fit within scripture and still be at my church. We are welcome to disagree about whether deacons need to be married. <br /><br />I seek the authority of my church leaders because I want to be under wise, well-studied individuals who will remind me of the gospel and will teach me about the Bible. And yes, I can read the Bible and good books about the Bible and reason for myself, but my pastors spend hours laboring on their sermons each week. I reap the benefits of their labors. <br /><br />If I initially disagree, or at least question, a conclusion they come to, I will not just close myself off to their ideas. I will meditate on and study the word, and observe people at my church who live according to those ideas. A couple at at my church did not particularly want children, but then after a few years of sitting under teaching that valued parenthood and children, and spending time with church members who lived out those teachings, they grew to desire children, and they consider their daughters a blessing from God. <br /><br />It's true that you can learn things from spending time about all sorts of people. You do not need to be in a church to learn how to do nice things and to be encouraged to do nice things for people around you. You can even learn to recognize attributes of God in non-Christians around you. A lady that goes to my church met a woman with six children and noticed how the gentle way she protected her child from harm was like the way God protects his children. <br /><br />However, as a Christian your life is changed by Christ's work on the cross. You learn to live according to that change by living your life with and around other believers. You cannot learn what it looks like to be changed by the gospel by hanging out with good people, only by spending time with those who have been changed by the gospel. <br /><br />Other reasons that I don't want to delve into now because this post is already very long:<br /><ul><li>Hearing God's word preached is a means of grace--a good church will give you ample and regular opportunities to hear God's word preached.</li><li>A community of believers is a sweet place of fellowship, stability, <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">accountability</span>, friendship, iron sharping iron, and so much more.</li><li>The church provides a context for diverse people to grow in unity in their faith in Christ.</li></ul><p>The church and church membership is a gift from God. No amount of distortion and abuse of this gift stops it from being a good gift. If a Christian would neglect or avoid a gift from God, I think they need to reevaluate their spiritual life... <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">preferable</span> in a context of other believers...like maybe a local church. </p>More resources:<br /><a href="http://www.9marks.org/">www.9marks.org</a>, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Why-Love-Church-Institutions-Organized/dp/0802458378/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1282360900&sr=8-2"><em>Why We Love the Church</em> </a>by Kevin <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">DeYoung</span> and Ted <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Kluck</span>, <em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Nine-Marks-Healthy-Church-Dever/dp/158134631X/ref=pd_sim_b_4">Nine Marks of a Healthy Church</a></em> or <em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Stop-Dating-Church-Family-Lifechange/dp/1590523652/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1282361121&sr=1-1">What is a Healthy Church</a> </em>by Mark <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Dever</span>, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Stop-Dating-Church-Family-Lifechange/dp/1590523652/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1282361121&sr=1-1"><em>Stop Dating the Church</em> </a>by Joshua HarrisLexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-59688609782962440632010-08-18T10:11:00.004-04:002010-08-31T09:24:07.338-04:00Last post from summer camp... summer is over :(Random kid: "Where do frogs sit? on toadstools."<br />Gabriel: "That takes my breath away!"<br /><br />Gabriel: "My cracker has a crack in it. is that why they are called crackers?"LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-15229463249028702862010-08-03T21:30:00.005-04:002010-08-04T22:05:49.404-04:00Fun from the summer! Kids just take everything so seriously... I think they are confused when we laugh at themGabriel: "My grandmother guards the house against ants, but they still get in and she kills them with a bug spray."<br /><br />Gabriel: "Thanks Mrs. Dude!" <span style="font-style: italic;">Generally he just calls me Miss Laura.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Teddy is carrying a basketball over his head and drops it on himself. Teachers ask him if he is okay, he says he is fine then he says, </span>"It gived me a shower."<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">I brought the kids outside to color with chalk and a couple of the boys were no longer interested in the chalk and found a window where they could watch the 6-7 year old kids play a sport. They started commentating. </span>"Red team has it again." "Wow Number 4 has the ball!"<br /><br />Me: "It is getting too loud in here. Hummingbirds, please use your inside voices."<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">They quiet down, then blocks fall on the floor. </span><br />Gabriel: "The blocks don't know they are supposed to use their inside voices."<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">I put sparkly star stickers by my eyes after a craft."<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span>Max: "I like the treasures on your face!"<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">There was a kid wearing green face paint from another class.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span></span></span>Reuben: "Well, he looks like a wicked witch."<span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span></span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span>Gabriel: "Wicked witches don't exist..." <span style="font-style: italic;">With a question in his voice.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span>Teacher: "Theodore."<br />Me: "Theodore doesn't exist." <span style="font-style: italic;">Because he moved to a different class.</span><br />Gabriel: "Did THeodore die?"<br />Me: "No."<br />Gabriel: "But if he doesn't exist that means he dies."<br />Unfortunately, we don't cover meaning, existence, life and death in summer camp.<br /><br />Me: "Once I was sledding and I went under a fence and into the middle of a street by accident."<br />Gabriel: "Did you die?"<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><br /></span>LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-66334600083265220372010-07-30T21:56:00.002-04:002010-07-30T22:03:07.345-04:00Kids are still funnyNelson: "Miss Laura, today is my last day of camp."<br />Nelson, an hour later: "Miss Laura, today is my last day of camp."<br />Nelson, two hours after that: "Miss Laura, today is my last day of camp."<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The next day</span><br />Me: "Oh, Nelson won't be here today because yesterday was his last day. Wouldn't it be funny if he showed up anyway today because he was confused about when he was leaving for vacation?"<br />Mr. Tom: "Haha."<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Two minutes later...</span><br />Nelson walks in. <br />Nelson: "Good morning Miss Laura."<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Tom and I start laughing. </span><br />Me: "What are you doing here Nelson?"<br />Nelson: "I forgot that today was my last day." <br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Nelson preceded to tell me several times that today was really his last day of camp for the summer throughout the day. </span>LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-30983747125204827642010-06-24T18:25:00.006-04:002010-08-03T23:57:32.028-04:00I work at a day camp... and kids are too funnyI will call my group the Hummingbirds for the purpose of this. They are all 4 or 5 years old.<br /><br />Me: Hummingbirds, time to line up!<br />Teddy: I'm not a hummingbird, I'm a person.<br />Me: But you are in the hummingbird group.<br />Teddy: Why?<br />Another time he told another teacher that he is a teddy, not a hummingbird.<br /><br />The teacher taking attendance: Is Christian here? <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />He points to a student named Reuben.</span><br />Teacher: Are you Christian?<br />Reuben: No, I'm Jewish.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">All the teacher start laughing. </span><br /><br />Me: Do your mother's take you swimming in the pools or the ocean sometimes?<br />Gabriel: Well...Well.... I think the ocean is too dangerous for children.<br /><br />Priceless.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-61506681473755908452010-02-19T20:32:00.002-05:002010-02-19T20:39:46.935-05:00To remember about battling sin... It is not within your own power<blockquote>Only the motive of grace--trust in the undeserved favor of God--can inspire us to pursue holiness free from fear and shame.<br />-- Joshua Harris, <span style="font-style: italic;">Sex is Not the Problem (Lust Is)</span></blockquote><br /><br />My book order came in!<br /><br />I actually have already read both of the books I ordered before. Several times. I figured it was about time I owned them. <br /><br />Today was payday, so I may order more books.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-60185360933450515822010-02-13T08:40:00.003-05:002010-02-13T08:59:50.952-05:00Not Be Shaken<span style="font-style: italic;">I have set the Lord always before me, because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken</span>. Psalm 16:8<br /><br />This verse has been instrumental in my past couple of weeks. I found it challenging when studying Psalms 16 because the idea that we are not shaken when we center on the Lord is huge. <br /><br />Then, last weekend when my travel plans changed because of the snowpocalypse, this verse reminded me that I will not be disappointed if my focus is Christ instead of my own desires. <br /><br />Then at small group Monday night, we read Acts 2, where Peter preaches from this passage. Peter draws the connection between the Holy One who will not see corruption in Psalms 16 and Christ who is greater than David. David focused on God to not be shaken, looking ahead to the promised Messiah to reign on his throne forever. <br /><br />This morning, another implication of Psalm 16:8 came to light. Nahum is a book of the Bible about how God will punish Nineveh. Nahum 3:12 says, "All your fortresses are like fig trees with first-ripe figs---if shaken they fall into the mouth of the eater." Set the Lord always before you, and you shall not be shaken. If the Lord is not before you, you lose your fruit. You are vunerable to attacks that would not phase you otherwise. You can be shaken.<br /><br />By focusing on the Lord, I have protection from the outside and from my own disappointment. <br />How great is our God!LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-73728165250763770352010-02-05T23:52:00.004-05:002010-02-06T00:23:42.544-05:00My favorite songs in general and how they affect me todayMy favorite hymns:<br /><br />God Moves in a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0AgENR1FhM">Mysterious</a> <a href="http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/g/m/gmovesmw.htm">Way</a>--always super amused by the humerous ringtone like song on the last site, but the lyrics are just so rich. This is what I need to remember as the weather changes my plans. <br /><br />Lessons from the song that I need to remember right now: <br /><ul><li>He plants His footsteps on the sea and rides upon the storm</li><li>The clouds will break with blessings on your head</li><li>Though the bud is bitter, the flower is sweet</li><li>God will make His word plain as we search it with faith</li><li>Frowning providence=smiling face</li></ul><br />This song I just really like and cannot think about too much. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGrf5cvpr_g">Hark</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuMTyR-vQDk">I Hear the</a> <a href="http://eric.langborgh.com/?p=978">Harps Eternal</a> (third link has lyrics)<br /><ul><li>Need to say Hallelujah</li><li>What is coming: Land of perfect rest, mansions of the blessed</li><li>Glory to the great I AM</li><li>Soul fades, our inheritance though Christ does not</li><li>We go there to worship God, not for hedonistic reasons</li><li>This is important now, and worth meditating on, now and forever </li><li>This song always makes me thing of the Grey Havens at the end of Lord of the Rings, which is partly why I like it so much. The image of crossing over the water... love it. <br /></li></ul>The changes in my plans fit into God's plans, and God's way has an incomparable result.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-55458530277369728142010-01-30T20:51:00.005-05:002010-01-30T20:58:19.732-05:00Snow CreamSnow cream<br /><br />When it snowed several inches back home in the suburbs of Denver, we would go outside, get a big bowl of snow and make snow cream. <br /><br />Sometimes, we would just sprinkle jello powder on it, other times we would really make snow cream. <br /><br />Snow cream: <br />1 bowl of fresh snow (clean, away from streets and pets)<br />vanilla<br />sugar<br />milk<br /><br />Mix all ingredients, adding milk until it reaches the consistency of ice cream. Eat. <br /><br />Today, my Hawaiian roommate and I made snow cream and it brought me back to my childhood. Such a simple taste, but so good.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-54336079833368687822010-01-05T12:50:00.004-05:002010-01-05T13:15:38.059-05:00So my blogging plan...Obviously did not continue as much as I wanted it to. <br /><br />My laptop would would no longer start, so I need to use the family computer until I go back to school. For some reason, they want to use the computer as well, so I don't have as much time to be on the computer. <br /><br />But I will list the other days Chambers's writings were incredibly insightful and encouraging over this past year. <br /><br />Here they are in no particular order:<br /><br />September 16<br />October 1<br />December 8<br />December 11<br />December 31<br />October 28<br />December 21<br />June 14-15<br />June 24<br />August 12<br />October 18<br /><br />This upcoming year I will read Morning and Evening by C.H. Spurgeon. Yay!LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-12323844392804176812009-12-24T11:40:00.004-05:002009-12-24T12:31:14.228-05:00A right view of salvationInstead of starting with a quote that will not encapsulate the fullness of the devotion for 21 November, I will <a href="http://www.myutmost.org/11/1121.html">link to it</a>. <br /><br />There is just so much truth in this passage. <br /><br />Does God love His children? Yes. However, our forgiveness did not come about because we are loved. There is nothing great about us that earns merit with God. God is holy and cannot stand sin. Christ had to become our sin for us and die for us to be forgiven because the result of sin is death. <br /><br />Jesus did not come to die a martyr for a cause or to be a good example or to spread love and then death sort of surprised Him. He came to die. He came to glorify the Father by showing God's mercy. <br /><br />It is also not mean Old Testament God vs. Christ who came to save us. They were not fighting over how to save the humans. God had this plan from before the beginning and Christ submitted to the Father in perfect love. Our entire purpose is to glorify God. <br /><br />Basically, I think all Christians should read this day of Chamber's devotional to be reminded of what salvation really is.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-31692747366919694552009-12-23T11:41:00.004-05:002009-12-23T15:11:27.823-05:00peace from obedience<blockquote>As long as we try to serve two ends, ourselves and God, there is perplexity. The attitude must be one of complete reliance on God...Whenever you obey God, His seal is always that of peace, the witness of an unfathomable peace, which is not natural, but the peace of Jesus. Whenever peace does not come, tarry till it does or findout the reason why it does not.</blockquote> - 14 December, <span style="font-style: italic;">My Utmost for His Highest<span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></span></span><span><span><span><br /></span><br />I had trouble picking a quote from this day, because it really progresses through the whole passage.<br /><br />If you disobey God to serve yourself, this causes you to lose sight of God and His peace that passes all understanding but when we obey God, regardless of what problems face us, we shall not worry.<br /></span></span>LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-21072690236147385172009-12-22T14:01:00.003-05:002009-12-22T14:22:34.824-05:00Worth, poverty, Kingdom of Heaven<blockquote>At the basis of Jesus Christ's Kingdom is the unaffected loveliness of the commonplace. The thing I am blessed in is my poverty. </blockquote> --August 21st, <span style="font-style: italic;">My Utmost for His Highest</span><br /><br />We do not enter the kingdom of heaven on our own merit, but on the fact that we have nothing to offer so Christ makes the way for us. <br /><br />Once we are part of the kingdom, we are to praise God in everything we do . I think that is why I like this quote. I love the phrase "loveliness of the commonplace." It makes me think of Curdie in <span style="font-style: italic;">The Princess and the Curdie</span> by George MacDonald who was scolded for taking what is common for granted. He needed to learn to love what was common around him andto take pleasure in the love of his parents, the breakfast he ate, and the ability to work. <br /><br />It is good to take pleasure in God's good gifts to us, but first we need the realize the poverty in our spiritual lives to know that we need Christ.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-35298918174406412582009-12-20T00:23:00.004-05:002009-12-20T00:53:45.580-05:00In the still quiet place I have yet to find...<blockquote style="font-style: italic;">Jesus did not say--Dream about thy Father in secret, but <span style="font-weight: bold;">pray</span> to your Father in secret... The great battle in private prayer is the overcoming of mental woolgathering. We have to discipline our minds and concentrate on willful prayer. </blockquote> -- August 23, <span style="font-style: italic;">My Utmost for His Highest</span><br /><br /><br />Prayer has often been a struggle for me. I started reading the Bible when I was ten, I enjoyed singing praise and worship songs, loved church and learning about God, but prayer was always hard. When I did try to pray, I would either give God a wish list or I would distract myself. Disciplining myself to pray is hard, and a good reminder that I am not able to reach God without His grace.<br /><br />Having a secret place, not just a closet or the front seat of my car (though both of those are very useful for praying), what I need is a secret place inside myself--A part of my soul, dedicated to communing with God from when I awake till I sleep. Sometimes more of my soul can focus on prayer, but that is something I need to cultivate.<br /><br />Last night, I got to a Christmas party about ten minutes early, so instead of going inside, I prayed for about 15 minutes, out loud in my car. It was a sweet time, lifting up prayer requests, praising God for His forethought and His mercy and His creation.<br /><br />Goal: To learn to better cultivate prayer.<br /><br />What I have going for me: Church directory to pray through (tangibility), the Bible and other books full of encouragement, examples, and descriptions of what I need to praise God for. And the Holy Spirit can guide my prayers, and can give me the focus to remember to pray.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-25261059525259829712009-12-18T12:54:00.006-05:002009-12-20T00:52:42.102-05:00That Little Judgmental Voice inside...<span style="font-style: italic;"></span><blockquote><span style="font-style: italic;">If I see a mote in your eye. it means I have a beam in my own. Every wrong thing that I see in you, God locates in me. Every time I judge, I condemn myself.</span></blockquote> -June 17th, <span style="font-style: italic;">My Utmost for His Highest</span><br /><br />There are times where I find it easy to judge other people. The awful thing is, I judge the people who are most like me. As a Christian, I do not find it hard, generally, to respect the people I disagree with.<br /><br />People I have met at university who have differing views on morality, religion, or politics who are not Christians, or who come from a very different background than me, I find easy to respect and love as part of the human race. I have had very fruitful conversations with people that support sex before marriage, abortion, or the idea that religious plurality will get you to heaven. I disagree with all these positions, but I can respect the people that hold them. I do not expect people without Christ to agree with me on issues like these.<br /><br />The people I have trouble loving are the people almost like me. Sometimes I will meet someone who was sheltered homeschooler (like me), and I have this desire to open their minds, and I quickly judge them as ignorant for believing what I would have believed.<br /><br />For example, I am not a Marxist. I have read Marx a couple times for class, and I see the value in some of his ideas and I see how some of his assessments of capitalism have merit, but I don't think his ideas will work. I have had conversations with non-christian friends about why I am not a Marxist. But if someone from my high school said that they hated Marxism or that socialism was stupid or something, I would start defending these ideas. I would not say that they were correct, but I would say how Marx did point out problems in capitalism and how his ideas are enlightening to understand a very influential worldview.<br /><br />I have the same reaction when Christians try to say that some discovery disproved evolution or people try to define how Christian must view homosexuality. Now, I may actually agree with them on some of their points, but I almost don't want to agree with them. Part of me wants to be liberal, because it seems more open-minded, to separate myself from the person I would be if I never went to public school or a liberal university. <br /><br />I am quick to judge fellow followers of Christ for their often correct beliefs, when I need to love them. I judge them for holding to seven day creation and the young earth theory (which I believe are possible) or other issues that are just not as important. <br /><br />We are called to love our neighbors as ourselves, and conservative Christians are also our neighbors.<br /><br />I judge them for their beliefs, when they may actually judge people who disagree with them less than I judge them. So that is a plank in my eye...<br /><br />Goal: Love as God loves me, especially those who are what I would be.<br /><br /><br />Follow-up from Saturday, 19 Dec.: Last night at the Christmas party, there was a guy who epitomizes the Christian conservative beliefs that I struggle to love. He spoke like evolution was obviously dumb, Congress would be perfected if we only elected believers and could reprove Senate with Bible verses, and all my professors must obviously be trying to convert me to liberalism anti-Christian viewpoints at school.<br /><br /> It was good to remember that he loves the Lord. I may have shown off opinions and knowledge developed in classes and from living in DC, but it was kind of the Lord to remind me that I need to love, even those who make me want to be a liberal.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-85804076589682581762009-12-18T11:13:00.002-05:002009-12-18T11:19:37.048-05:00A plan to actually blogThis past year, I have been reading Oswald Chambers, <a href="http://www.myutmost.org/">My Utmost for His Highest</a>. The days that I found most encouraging or powerful, I marked, and now that school is out, I intend to spend sometime over the next couple weeks looking at the days that moved me. This is also a test to see if I really can blog consistently for a while.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-33626401432593934202009-12-05T21:08:00.003-05:002009-12-05T21:15:10.998-05:00We have a weird but awesome friendship...My roommate and I were talking about her emotional constipation (her emotions are constipated because she doesn't deal with things). <br /><br />I said that she should start dealing with smaller things because when something really big happens, she won't be able to deal with it if she doesn't deal with smaller things first. <br /><br />It is like yoga. People do yoga to stretch and so when they fall they don't get hurt as badly as if they didn't do yoga. Caring about people can hurt like stretching when you are not used to it, but it is worth it. By dealing with small things instead of just ignoring them, you are better able to deal with the large things that would rock your world otherwise.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-84293902301367256452009-08-09T20:21:00.004-04:002009-08-09T20:35:10.171-04:00Oh how I love Victorian era British children stories...<blockquote>"Don't you think it's rather nice to think that we're in a book that God's writing? If I were writing a book, I might make mistakes. But God knows how to make the story end just right--in the way that's best for us."</blockquote><div style="text-align: center;">--Edith Nesbit <span style="font-style: italic;">The Railway Children</span> page 224<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">I love Victorian children stories because they often speak truth even when the author's life was filled with situations not for children stories. Also, unlike stories of today, the parents are usually good, wise people who care for their children and are smarter than parents in modern books.<br /><br /><br />My other favorite quote is from the first page:<br /><blockquote>Roberta was the eldest. Of course, Mothers never have favorites, but if their Mother <span style="font-style: italic;">had </span>had a favorite, it might have been Roberta. </blockquote><br /><br />Haha!!! I am the eldest in my family, and this is totally true. I am not my mom's favorite, but my siblings think I am just because I have a lot more freedom and get the benefits that come with the responsibility that I receive. I can understand my mom better than they can and I get along with her better. We don't fight because any rules she would put I me I would already put on myself. I am not her favorite, but if she had a favorite, I might have been.<br /><br /><br /><blockquote></blockquote><br /></div></div>LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-67468624426787942042009-06-12T01:39:00.002-04:002009-06-12T01:50:43.284-04:00My new music playlist!I love music.<br /><br />My friend Bethany told me about this <a href="http://www.playlist.com/">website</a> where you can create playlists of all sorts of music. I really had wanted to listen to some hymns, and I was a bit disappointed when I could not find all the hymns I wanted. But I still made a couple of lists, one of mostly <a href="http://www.playlist.com/playlist/16568279307">praise music</a>, which can sometimes be so encouraging to hear. <br /><br />On this playlist, there are a lot of songs put up by Church of Christ churches. Theologically, I disagree with the Church of Christ on several somewhat major issues, but I can't deny the talent that comes with singing everything A capella. Some of the best hymns on the list were by Church of Christ, and some of the other versions of the hymns I wanted sounded too commercial.LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4836256330040790558.post-51053683658566418552009-05-23T01:08:00.004-04:002009-06-12T01:54:35.345-04:00quotes from D.A. Carson's bookD.A. Carson on how faith is connected to being reasonable and rational:<br /><br />But on what basis do they come to faith? Is this merely an existential leap? Far from it. [John 20:29] is integrally related to verses 30-31: "Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name." In other words, later generations come to faith by means of the historical witness of the first generation, the generation that included Thomas. He saw, and he believed, and these things have been written so that we may believe too. Here, then, is emphasis not only on the truth of Jesus' resurrection, but on the historical nature of the truth and the need for reliable witnesses to that truth and for faithful recording of that truth in written form." <span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br />D.A. Carson, Becoming Conversant with the Emerging Church</span>, 215LexLaurahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08733565855458825927noreply@blogger.com0