Gaither (Church in the wildwood) - The Peasall sisters

I heard this song a few days ago and found it a wonderful comfort. "Father along, we'll understand it. Farther along, we'll understand why." These lines resonated with me for a couple different reasons; the first being that at the beginning of this semester I was crying to the Lord "What have You let me do?!" I had registered for what I thought was the pediatrics floor of a hospital but was in reality was a "rehab" facility. It was a facility full of children in varying states of mental awareness, tracheostomies, and wheel chairs. In essence a unit full of heart-breaker children. I could not understand how God could permit me to sign up for a facility I was sure I could not work at because I was certain I would have a breakdown each day. The beautiful thing was that once I started work there I loved it: the children, the staff, my instructor, and the tasks. I loved them all. God used that time to teach me that He had wired me to do things I had never dreamed myself capable of.

On the other hand I am still waiting to see why He had me fired. It was a job I held for four years and now I must start the search again without a reference to aid me. I do not understand it. However, I have learned through many things that often God shows me why He had me do one thing or another; yet I also realize that I may not ever understand it on this side of the veil.

Awesome Autumn Giveaway!!

Two lovely giveaways to be found at A Corner Pillar from September 22-30

Here's giveaway number one

Here's giveaway number two:

Homemaker's Journal: Long-Suffering

The hardest part of showing long-suffering is …………. actually having it

The most rewarding part of showing long-suffering is ……….. the knowledge that I was for a moment able to be a positive representative of Christ

The one kind situation that I have the most trouble showing long-suffering in is ……… when people are being what I consider to be stupid/foolish - at work when I have already explained something fully yet the person still gets upset when given what they asked for or ask about what I just told them

I see how kindness goes hand in hand with long-suffering because ………. I generally show kindness to the person/people that are requiring long-suffering from me

I want others to show long-suffering to me when ……… I'm confused/lost in regards to how something is done, particularly when there is no way for me to easily find out on my own

God shows long-suffering to me in these ways ……….. every element of my life - no matter what I do and how good I may think it is at first, in comparison to Him it is nothing.  Yet He loves me.

Ephesians 4:1-4 says ….. 

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—

This week I will begin to ask God to ……….. soften my heart so that I will have love for the person which will help me have long-suffering

Daughters of His Story

If only there were models out there to show young girls about Biblical femininity, modesty, and wet an appetite for learning history... THERE IS!!!  Daughters of His Story is a line of paper dolls that are of wonderful historical women (Abigail Adams, Sarah Edwards, Katharina von Bora, Idelette Calvin, Pocahontas, and Priscilla Mullins) that will encourage use of the imagination in minds of the little ones.  To make a good thing better, through August 27th, Simply Vintage Girl is having a giveaway which you can enter for the opportunity to win the first copy of the new project and Bundle One, which is the entire collection of dolls.

You can enter here

Surprise! Doubt you knew this about Islam

Part of me would like to recommend watching the whole clip on Youtube. However, some comments about the Bible and Torah make me slightly hesitant. So instead, I'd recommend listening to the whole thing August 12 - it's just that Todd rambles a bit but if you have a moment be sure to listen to the whole 15 minute clip from Wretched.  Last resort would be to watch the full video here.

Bye-bye civil rights!

If this was a one time thing, it would be scary but at least unprecedented. Unfortunately it seems to be increasingly popular to arrest Christians proclaiming the Truth.

VBS 2011.... ALREADY?! part 2

More have released preview info, remember to check the teachings before cooing over the sparkley themes

Day	Baptist Press: Rev It Up!	Concordia House: Big Jungle Adventure	Bogard Press: Treasure Quest	Standard Publishing: Inside out & Upside Down on Main Street
1	Welcome to the Team: Jesus Calls Disciples – Join Jesus	Baby Moses Rescued – God takes care of us through Christ	Treasure of Salvation: Lydia Found of the Savior – learn how to believe on the Christ	Gratitude – Parable of the Whiny Workers (workers in the vineyard)
2	Learn from the Best: Jesus Shows His Power – God’s power helps us run the race	Crossing the Red Sea – Jesus rescues us from our enemies (sin, death, & devil)	Treasure of Prayer: The Church Prayed for Peter – how to pray when in need	Compassion – Parable of the Roadside Rescue (Good Samaritan)
3	Run up the Caution Flag: Who is the Greatest? Jesus first place in your life	Sermon Mount -Jesus is the light of life that we share with others	Treasure of Fellowship: The Church Focused on Fellowship – learn importance of Church membership	Forgiveness – Parable of the Shocking Servant (unmerciful servant)
4	Jesus is in the Winner’s Circle: Jesus is the Victor – His victory over sin	Peter and John run to empty tomb - Jesus rose from the dead to save us	Treasure of Scripture: the Bereans Searched the Scriptures Daily – learn to read Bible daily	Grace – parable of the Warmest Welcome (prodigal son)
5	Full Speed Ahead: Peter and John Carry On – Serve God	Heaven – Jesus, our Savior, prepares our heavenly home	Treasure of Soul- Winning: Soul winning in Gadara – How to share the Gospel	Faithfulness – Parables of the Master’s Money (ten talents)

Rev It Up:  Wow, the Gospel on Day 1?!  There is a bit of a twist from the usual VBS timeline, but at least this promotes a proper understanding of good works and prayer (We do good works out of love for God and He answers the prayers of His children).  I would certainly hope that the Gospel is presented soundly considering who the publisher is... So it appears to be fine as far as programs go - certainly better than some of the big name publishers (Group and Standard Publishing).  Wouldn't it be nice if this VBS got many saved and revved up ^_~ for God, evangelism, and the Bible?

Big Jungle Adventure:  I am a touch confused at the moment... In some ways it appears that, as with Rev It Up, Big Jungle Adventure is presenting the Gospel with each day.  If so, WONDERFUL, assuming that it is properly given. On the other hand, with the Scriptures provided for each lesson it seems to be toeing the waters that PandaMania dove into - promising things only meant for Believers to all...  Hopefully their curriculum will be present at "VBS Day"...

Treasure Quest: Ok even I have to admit the theme's look leaves a lot to be desired.  But when it comes to lessons, it looks to be AMAZING!  The Gospel is presented on Day 1 with the rest of the week being Christianity 101; the basics that every lamb of the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ, needs to know.  So while the excitability factor may need work, the lessons appear solid - and ultimately that is what is important as well as a jewel among many rough VBS programs.

Inside Out and Upside Down:  I read that it received praise from 'Christianity Today', that Standard Publishing is known for their Biblical content, and for the final cherry on top: they produced Hero Headquarters; is it a bad thing that this caused me to gag?  Harsh? Maybe, but probably not.  Last VBS day I was appalled when I watched the preview clip for it and horrified when I looked through the lesson plan.  Did it pull out some lesser known Biblical accounts? Yep.  With moralism as the main course and a heaping helping of normal VBS silliness for better and worse... To make it worse, they produced "Studio Go", which left a bad taste in my mouth when my church did it.  Call me a pessimist if you wish, but when I look over the lessons and see "Kids will explore one of Jesus' parables in a variety of interactive ways and take a new look at what the Bible says about gratitude, compassion, forgiveness, grace, and faithfulness" coupled with the daily Bible passages it makes me quake with fear for all the churches that choose to use this program. Why? Because it SCREAMS moralism.  The company's motto is "VBS CHANGES LIVES!"  By the look of their programs, I would say it sure does - producing another generation of kids who see Christ as a merely man who taught others to be nice.  I guess it does not help that the theme reminds me of Sesame Street meets Animaniacs with a touch of acid...
In attempt to be fair to the lessons themselves: Day 1's parable really is a lesson in gratitude if you are in the twilight years of life... in the dawn it would seem more of an excuse to "live it up" and get saved later.  Compassion, it is a good thing to have and the Good Samaritan parable is a beautiful lesson in that everyone is the "neighbor" that we are to love as ourselves.  But without Christ this lesson is a moralistic tale to be compassionate to all around.  Day 3, forgiveness, my issue with it is pretty much the same as Day 2: good in and of itself but is pure moralism whenever Christ is taken out of the picture.    Someone dear to me reminded me that this is a beautiful parable illustrating salvation, it is true that the parable is.  My concern is that there will be abundant "ask Jesus into your heart" along with "so that Jesus will clean up your life and make it better".  Day 5, are they really gonna talk about staying strong in the faith and that there are no backsliders, only false converts?  I would be throughly stunned in a good way if that is the point.  For over half the week the VBS takes the plan of several others - moralism, moralism. moralism and then finish off with the Gospel - this is putting the cart before the horse.

So what will installment 3 hold?  Lord willing: Go Fish, David Cook, Apostle's Publishing,  Augsburg Fortress, VBS Reachout Ministries, and Word Action.  Until then, go serve your King!