Happy Birthday to my son Anthony who turns 30 today. You have been my joy, my love, and a precious gift. I’ll never get over how God allowed me to be your mom but I am forever grateful to Him for you. Enjoy your day my love!
If any of you are inclined to celebrate this day with Anthony, he has asked for no gifts this year but for everyone to contribute $30 to Charity Water a worthwhile endeavor. Here’s the link to read all about it!
Did your mom ever get you a birthday card that you thought was lame? Did she call you at a friend’s house and tell you that you had to come home? Well these kids decided to sue their mom for such atrocities.
Have you seen this show on television? I had not ever watched it before until a friend suggested it to me. At first glance this is a crazy mess of mothers who want to relive their wedding fantasies. I sat there stunned as mothers said to their daughters that the dress of their daughter’s dreams were not as important as the dress of the mother’s dream. In other words, I thought, you’ll get to pick the dress you want when your daughter gets married.
Then you see the daughters who have not fallen far from the mother’s tree. The mothers have clearly spelled out the budget. The daughters could clearly care less. “I know what she said”, one daughter exclaimed, “but I know that I’m the only daughter and I usually get my way.”
Thus begins the war. It’s such a complicated relationship with a mother and daughter. You must know when to speak up and when to be quiet. I admit I am not good at this as it was recently pointed out, I’m trying to do better now! Watching just a few episodes of this show made me wonder if I should just begin praying for wisdom when it comes to my daughters getting married. Maybe I should even begin praying for a muzzle?
One thing was for sure, it’s important for a daughter to receive her mother’s approval ultimately. At at the end of each show, whether the right dress was found or not, there was a bond between these two women that goes beyond love. Every time I saw a daughter come out of that dressing room beaming in the, no I mean “the” dress, the mother teared up and their eyes would meet. Suddenly all the squabbling subsided and hugs abounded. I realized even though it’s difficult I prefer my daughter’s happiness over my opinion. Yes, it’s hard to say, but it’s the truth of my heart and I believe it’s the truth of any mother’s heart.
There are some people who are anti-church, anti-pastors. That’s cool with me, they are free to think as they please, but please speak in knowledge rather than in ignorance. I recently heard of one of these people saying Jesus never preached in a church so that he could be the example of why church is not necessary. For the sake of not belaboring a point, I did not quote all the scriptures that talk of Jesus preaching in a temple but just a few. Here is the truth:
Mark 1:21 They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach.22 The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law.
Luke 4:42 At daybreak Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them. 43 But he said, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.” 44 And he kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea.
Luke 19:47 Every day he was teaching at the temple. But the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the leaders among the people were trying to kill him.
NIV
Jesus was Jewish. Of course he was dedicated into his faith. He sat at the feet of temple scholars at a very early age:
Luke 2:41 Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. 42 When he was twelve years old, they went up to the Feast, according to the custom. 43 After the Feast was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. 44 Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. 45 When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. 46 After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47 Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48 When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.” 49 “Why were you searching for me?” he asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”
I understand people have their beliefs but if you’re going to use the bible for your argument make sure it’s really in there.
I heard a Pastor say that when storms come they take out the trees that are not deeply rooted.
Colossians 2:2 I want you woven into a tapestry of love, in touch with everything there is to know of God. Then you will have minds confident and at rest, focused on Christ, God’s great mystery. 3 All the richest treasures of wisdom and knowledge are embedded in that mystery and nowhere else. And we’ve been shown the mystery!
I heard a teaching once that God blesses with an open hand. Rain comes to the just and the unjust, just as sunshine, children, jobs and paychecks. But for those who seek relationship with him, for those who willingly place their hand in his, there in his fist is wisdom. The Proverbs say wisdom is crying in the street. Those who choose to answer the call are rewarded.
4 I’m telling you this because I don’t want anyone leading you off on some wild-goose chase, after other so-called mysteries, or “the Secret.” 5 I’m a long way off, true, and you may never lay eyes on me, but believe me, I’m on your side, right beside you. I am delighted to hear of the careful and orderly ways you conduct your affairs, and impressed with the solid substance of your faith in Christ. 6 My counsel for you is simple and straightforward: Just go ahead with what you’ve been given. You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live him. 7 You’re deeply rooted in him. You’re well constructed upon him. You know your way around the faith. Now do what you’ve been taught. School’s out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving. 8 Watch out for people who try to dazzle you with big words and intellectual double-talk. They want to drag you off into endless arguments that never amount to anything. They spread their ideas through the empty traditions of human beings and the empty superstitions of spirit beings. But that’s not the way of Christ. 9 Everything of God gets expressed in him, so you can see and hear him clearly. You don’t need a telescope, a microscope, or a horoscope to realize the fullness of Christ, and the emptiness of the universe without him. 10 When you come to him, that fullness comes together for you, too. His power extends over everything. 11 Entering into this fullness is not something you figure out or achieve. It’s not a matter of being circumcised or keeping a long list of laws. No, you’re already in – insiders – not through some secretive initiation rite but rather through what Christ has already gone through for you, destroying the power of sin. 12 If it’s an initiation ritual you’re after, you’ve already been through it by submitting to baptism. Going under the water was a burial of your old life; coming up out of it was a resurrection, God raising you from the dead as he did Christ.
The question that then follows is are we Sunday church attenders or are we answering the call? Do we seek the relationship which grants wisdom or are following the empty traditions of man and the empty superstition of spirit beings? I spoke to a new believer on Sunday. He said he sits and reads his bible one hour a day when he gets up in the morning, he says he becomes so engrossed in it, that he’s been late for work because he says he tells himself, “okay just one more page” then one turns to two. Funny thing is happening though. He is getting some pretty heavy revelation. I mean God is moving him at warp speed. He excites me with his knowledge because he’s asking deep questions and I am amazed at his wisdom.
But then
maybe I’m notbecause he’s heard wisdom’s cry
and has decided to answer the call.
The question then is are we deeply rooted in Christ? Or will we be swayed with the wind, off on those wild-goose chases trying to understand “the secret”? Will the storms of life come and uproot our delicate root system? Will we be able to stand when the world is quaking around us? I pray we are beloved. I pray we are learning, seeking, praying and most of all I pray that we have taken up the Lord’s promise to give wisdom to those who seek it and are living it out! Be someone who lives it and experiences Christ. Not someone who stands on the sidelines and watches. Be deeply rooted and know whose you are and what you’ve been called to! I pray that we woven into that tapestry of love.
A question posed by a reader goes like this:
Message: A female friend of mine had a brief affair with another member of the church. My friend sang in the choir with the man and his wife. The couple were longtime members with extended family members. My friend is single. The affair was exposed and everyone in the church was aware. My friend was asked to find another church by the pastor. She was upset that she was asked to leave, but I couldn’t understand why she wanted to continue attending services there. Was the pastor wrong? Just wondering. Addition: her sister recently moved in with her and plans on attending the same church and sing in the choir. This is a small community church just several blocks from their residence. This all seems pretty bizarre to me and asking for friction.
This breaks my heart for the congregation that is dealing with the fallout of this. It just goes to show that although sin is personal, it’s never private as it affects many and in this case it affects an entire church. It’s impossible for me, and maybe for you, to know what the details of this case are within the church.
Biblically we are supposed to try and restore a brother/sister caught in a fall. Then there’s the Corinthian church in the New Testament, where the son was having an affair with his stepmother and when he was asked to stop he refused, so they put him out of the church until he repented. I guess the question would be then, was there repentance? If there was repentance was there an attempt to restoration?
So let’s say the Pastor is really trying to do his job biblically. Did perhaps your friend not fully understand the ramifications of her action and therefore was put out of the church because there was no repentance? Obviously she’d have to step down from her ministry of worship and submit to the restoration process. Was this done willingly by your friend? If the husband wasn’t asked to leave was it because he showed true repentance and has submitted to the restoration process? The pastor and the church must consider that people who looked up to your friend as a member of her church family and even those in the community as the talk spreads but the details don’t, are affected by the hearts and actions of those involved.
One thing is for sure, the sister who has moved to town and wants to attend the church shouldn’t be penalized for her sister’s actions. I think in a small community church this actually could be hard on her since some may judge her by her sister’s action. Hopefully this group is more matured than that. I agree with you that it seems easier to find another church and avoid the mess altogether. Could it be that the sisters are a certain denomination and this church may be their only option to practice their faith?
Sorry I can’t be more helpful. I sincerely hope that everyone stay focused on Jesus right now and that you all continue to pray for your friend as well as the couple who all have repairs to make, not only internally, to each other, to the congregation and to their faith and God ultimately.
Thank you for reading and if you have further questions I will do my best to answer.
Do you want to reap love in your marriage? Then you have to sow time. My husband is my best friend. He’s the one I tell my secrets to. He’s the one whose hand I love to feel in mine. He’s the one who I love to cuddle with at night. He’s the one I love to kiss and he still gives me goosebumps when he calls this California girl, Darlin’ in his Louisiana accent.
One thing I can tell you as a wife of many years is you have to keep dating each other to make sure this love lasts. You’ve got to sow some time into your marriage. You’ve got to date each other. Marriage doesn’t mean we take each other for granted. Marriage doesn’t mean we no longer work to look good for each other.
It doesn’t have to be extravagant dating either. Tonight we sat across the dinner table together. A beautiful table setting, placemats, chargers, and are you ready for it? Taco Bell. Yes, a taco from Taco Bell, just me and my love. We talked about heading out on vacation with the kids this week. We talked about how nice it would be to get away from it all for a few days. Then he looked at me and said, “Thanks for dinner.” His smile was really nice. I answered, “You’re welcome. I slaved for you because I love you and knew you’d be hungry.” We laughed together and went to go pack our suitcases.
Marriage doesn’t mean it’s over, it means it’s just beginning. If you’re in a rut, change it. Put on a pretty smile and remember what you loved about him before the cares of life hit. Then be that woman for him. If you haven’t done this in awhile he may look shocked, but I promise he’ll come around.
I know that women tend to balk at this type of post on the blog. “Why should I have to put on a pretty smile?” “Why should I have to be the one who tries?” “Why should I have to put on makeup for him?” “He’s gotten fat and lazy too.” To all of this my answer is, you didn’t win him by wearing sweats everyday, but you can lose each other with this type of thinking. If you don’t think he’s going anywhere look around at your countless friends whose marriages have broken over their lack of care. I’m tired of defending my position and don’t really feel led to say a whole lot more here today. Suffice it to say that when I take the time to be the wife my husband married, he smiles more, he compliments more, he helps me more, he’s more of a friend to me. He’ll actually stop his video game playing when I come home from bible study night and attentively listen to me. If this isn’t enough, then I don’t know what women want and that’s a whole other post.
I have to admit when I heard that Francis Chan had written a book called Erasing Hell, I sucked in my breath. I mean the title is ambiguous and this book coming off the recent Rob Bell controversy, where he dismisses the Christian view of hell, was a little unsettling to say the least. I loved Forgotten God and wondered if Francis Chan would also drink the punch and attempt to erase hell? Say it ain’t so, I thought. So I bought the book and brought it home.
My husband, Doug and I sat down to read the book together over an afternoon. At first, Doug’s exasperated comment was, “What are we reading?” , in a tone that was displeased at my selection. Then we began to dive in. We read, keeping an open mind as was suggested in the book. We allowed questions that maybe we had squashed deep in our soul, to rise to the forefront of our mind. Granted, somehow it just seemed wrong to ever question why God chose to do things the way he does, but Chan’s transparency allowed us to at least form the question in a tangible way. Had the church today, pointing directly at ourselves, preached the palatable parts of the bible and neglected the very thing people really needed to hear?
Where Francis Chan hit a nerve with me was when he asked if the street corner preachers who are screaming about hell were actually doing more than I was? After all, I cringe when I see them and have said out loud that I think they do more harm than good to the faith. Yet, I couldn’t deny that what they were saying was true. Yikes, what an ugly feeling I had about my responsibility to humanity.
I loved that the book took the time to study out what Jesus said about hell, in the context of his Jewish faith and in the time he lived out his time on earth. I am a person who studies with an open concordance, dictionary, lexicons and commentaries so this appealed to me. Doug was eerily quiet through our reading. It wasn’t until the conclusion that we breathed a sigh of relief at the outcome of the study and then discussed where we felt we were at in the whole process.
We both concluded that this book deserves a read and a frank conversation. The bottom line is people are dying with a lot of different ideas which have no basis in fact and like it or not, we have a responsibility to at least take a chance and speak up.
Taking a ride on a train in Napa, we sat across from a woman who was wearing three necklaces. The first was a cross, the second was rabbit’s foot and the third was a buddha. Doug asked her what the significance of the necklaces were and she answered him sincerely, “I’m covering all my bases.” Admittedly that’s as far as the conversation went. The conversations of mercy and grace are easy, but it doesn’t negate the conversations about where people will spend eternity and that, my friends, is what we should be about. A million thanks to Francis Chan for boldly asking questions that demand soul searching answers.
Buy the book read it, if you’re like us, you’ll finish the entire thing in a few hours and search your heart. Where do you stand? What do you believe? It’s important to know.
Pastor Susan 