TSA Inspiration

What are you doing for Halloween?

We don't do it. Usually we hide in the basement, lights off out front, gate closed to the porch, eating candy and watching a clean movie! This year we had planned to host a Reformation celebration, talk about Luthers 95 thesis and eat good German food. However, my husband is working. We were invited to a bonfire out in the country where noone but God and those invited know where we are! So, we may do that or we may do the usual. Either way we have a strong conviction that light and darkness have no fellowship together. Before we had children we would pass out candy and tracks. No more. We do not even frequent the stores that are decorated. We have been known to not go into certain stores for the entire month of October. Instead I would drive a little further to pick up whatever we needed.

Our almost 5yo son has a birthday this Thursday. Last year we went shopping for fun plates for his party. Where do you think we went? Yep, to the dreaded, fully decorated, Party City! I wasn't even thinking about the fact that it too would be decorated (I had already driven 10 minutes pass the store we were boycotting due to their decorations). We took a step in the door and a human sized half zombie-half man yard ornament "spoke" to my then 3 yo son. I covered my sons face, turned around and hurried from the store. My son has talked about it for an entire year!

We need to be aware of to what we are exposing our children. For us, it is not enough to "play down" Halloween. We just have to call it what it is and do something else. I understand the shying away from the "what are you going to be" or "do you want to hear my best witch laugh?" UGH. Umm, no thank you and Jesus loves you!

Tim Hawkins - The Government Can

So that we remember.

Deuteronomy 8:18 (NIV)

¹⁸ But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today.

Throughout scripture we are told to remember. I write this today in order to remember that my Lord is faithful to speak...when I am willing to listen.

Every once in a while something happens in your life that will be a memory to share with your grandchildren. In my case the something that happened will be retold to my children and to my children's children in order to glorify my Father in heaven. For the past two years Peter and I have felt the urge to move from our home and settle in a place where the children can run, our family can continue to grow and we can afford to live a simple life. God has always spoken to us about debt as well. We purchased cars we could afford with cash that we had saved for this purpose. If we use the credit card then we pay it off, in full, when the bill arrives. We always make sure we have the money in the bank before making any purchase. We use the cash system for groceries and clothing and when it is gone, it is gone. We do not put something on credit in order to have it right now. So, we do not have any debt...or do we?

We have a mortgage. For years we have not seen our house as debt. According to culture it is a tax write-off. "You don't want to pay off your house because it's a tax shelter." But this is worldly advice, not Biblical advice. God was speaking to us about this, but we were not positive about what we should do. So, we fasted and prayed. We fell on our faces before the Living God and asked for guidance. God is so good! He answered before we even had a chance to ask! We have been reading through the Bible with the children this year and this is where God had us for the day of our fast...His timing is perfect. His will is perfect.

His answer to our question of whether we should sell our house was this:

Nehemiah 5:1-5
Now the men and their wives raised a great outcry against their Jewish brothers. Some were saying, "We and our sons and daughters are numerous; in order for us to eat and stay alive, we must get grain."
Others were saying, "We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards and our homes to get grain during the famine."
Still others were saying, "We have had to borrow money to pay the king's tax on our fields and vineyards. Although we are of the same flesh and blood as our countrymen and though our sons are as good as theirs, yet we have to subject our sons and daughters to slavery. Some of our daughters have already been enslaved, but we are powerless, because our fields and our vineyards belong to others."

We know this sounds ridiculous to many people. But God spoke so very clearly to us through this passage. He knew that this would be our reading for that day. He knew we would be fasting, seeking Him. He knows the plans He has for us. Are we hurting for money? No. Are we able to feed the kids? Yes. Can we pay the mortgage? Yes. God has blessed Peter with an incredible job! But He also spoke very clearly to us to sell our house as "our fields and vineyards belong to others." So, our house is up for sale. We do not have a sign in the yard. We have not listed it with an agent. We have not put it in the paper. But it is for sale and should someone come knocking on our door asking us if we would like to sell our house, then the answer is yes. Because God told us to. By the way, the sign will go in when we have the house ready to show.

If there is something that the Lord has been talking to you about but you are not totally ready to hear. Please consider fasting and praying and really listening to His voice so that it may go well with you too!

Semper Reformanda!

From fabulous lectures and tours to meeting like-minded families, Reformation 500 exceeded our expectations! We were blessed to make new friends and look forward to having time with them over the years as we make every effort to attend every conference that Vision Forum offers.

The conference focused on celebrating the reformers such as John Calvin, John Knox and Martin Luther and what they did for us as Christians as well as focusing on what we could learn from them and how to apply that knowledge to our lives in order to shape the future.

The speakers we were privileged to hear included Doug Phillips, Scott Brown, Kevin Swanson, Dr. Joseph Morecraft, Geoffrey Botkin and Col. John Eidsmore. There were so many lectures we missed that we decided to purchase the entire lecture and tour recording.

Vision Forum does an excellent job is making their conferences come to life through the speakers. This time they included reformers from the past who "came to life" in order for us to learn their stories. There were 40 live reformers who told their stories as the children swarmed around them to get their autographs. Once the children had 30 autographs they could earn money towards a variety of items, one including a silver coin that was specifically made to celebrate this occasion. My boys chose swords and my girls chose money off at Behemoth.

We returned home with minds full of history and hearts desiring to apply what we learned in order to plan our vision for the future. Our desire is for our children to learn from the past as well so that they may apply it to the now and to help shape the future for the glory of God.

Peter surprised us with a limo ride to our hotel.
We didn't have to take our car seats as a limo is considered public transportation!

Ashley and Moma in the limo.

Funny kids in the limo.

We arrived at the hotel at 11am and they let us check in. What a blessing! Vision Forum brought in an exact replica on the Liberty Bell and displayed it in the foyer of the hotel. On July 4th we all gathered around as it was rung 13 times in honor of the original 13 colonies.
It was loud and so cool!

Fanny Crosby autographs the children's books while she sings a few of the
songs which she wrote many years ago.

We gather in Boston Public Gardens (adjacent to the famous Boston Commons) for the children's parade of 2009 on July 4th.
The boys use their new swords while they await the line up for the parade.

Our little colonists.

President Washington leads the parade.

The parade is over and we are tired.

Our prayer for you is that you would be
Semper Reformanda
within your family and your community.
Do not be comfortable with the simple Christianity in which you may be living.
Believe the Sola Scriptura and live it!

No Compromise

With every thought and deed I am an example. I can be an example of what to do or what not to do. Whether my actions glorify my Father in heaven, or whether they come from selfish indulgence, I am an example. What do my children see? Do they see their Moma living a life of white lies, bad character, disobedience and strife...or do they see their Moma living her life to the glory of her Father in heaven? It is easy to let little things slip. It is easy to say, "Tell them I am not home" in order to avoid a call or "Just say you are only 11" in order to skip paying the adult price on a ticket. But to what end? Why compromise? If you haven't read the 10 Commandments in a while, here they are, from Bible Gateway, for your review. Read them, consider them. As for me, I want to be light for my children. I will not call evil good and good evil. I will not compromise.

Exodus 20

The Ten Commandments

¹ And God spoke all these words:

² "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

³ "You shall have no other gods before ^a]">[a] me.

⁴ "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. ⁵ You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, ⁶ but showing love to a thousand {generations} of those who love me and keep my commandments.

⁷ "You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

⁸ "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. ⁹ Six days you shall labor and do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. ¹¹ For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

¹² "Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.

¹³ "You shall not murder.

¹⁴ "You shall not commit adultery.

¹⁵ "You shall not steal.

¹⁶ "You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

¹⁷ "You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor."

¹⁸ When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance ¹⁹ and said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die."

²⁰ Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning."

Abortion Speech

Wow! Whether or not you agree with what she has to say, this little 12 year old girl put on a great speech.

Bible in a year

As part of our family's "new year resolution" we decided to read through the Bible in a year. We have completed Genesis and Exodus. Just yesterday we began Leviticus. We gather together after breakfast or before bedtime and I read aloud to the children. When Peter is home he facilitates our reading time. It has been enlightening for all involved. This week was the first time we missed a day. The day completely got away from us and I was disappointed that we allowed that to happen. The next day Daniel was walking with me to do a load of laundry. He stopped and said (remember he is only 4 and you need to read this in a 4yo voice), "Mom, we forgot to read the Bible yesterday." I said, "I know, I am disappointed that we missed it." Daniel questioned, "Are we gonna go to Heaven now???" Me: "Yes, Sweet Boy, we are gonna go to Heaven. God wants us to read His Word, but He won't keep us out of Heaven because of missing a day. We have to believe that Jesus came, died for our sins and rose again in order to go to Heaven." Daniel: "Oh, okay Mom. But why did Jesus have to die on the cross for our sins?" "Because He had to reconcile us to the Father and it could only be done through His death on the cross. Now we can go to Heaven." Then, today while reading the sacrifices in Leviticus we were able to discuss that without blood there is no remission for sin. Jesus blood was the final sacrifice; the final blood sacrifice needed to reconcile us to himself. How wonderful to get to discuss these things with my children! God is so cool. He orders our days so perfectly.

March for Life

The annual Pro-Life march is tomorrow in Washington, DC. Hubby and I will be taking the kids. I didn't get around to making my "Adoption is an Option" signs today.

Yesterday was very educational for the children. My kids were able to witness the swearing in of the first half-black, half-white President. I say that because it gets so tiring to hear everyone only comment about his being black. It neglects half of him. It was a monumental day and so exciting to tell the children that they can be anything...even President. We do not agree with Obama's stance on pretty much every issue. However, we will pray for him as he leads our nation. We do not want the change that he will probably bring as it is not the kind that we think our country needs. However, we will pray for him. Our country needs to acknowledge the true King, the Lord of heaven and earth. Obama is not "messiah." Messiah has come, was crucified, dead, buried and rose again. He is seated at the right hand of the Father.

Tomorrow will once again prove to be an educational experience for my children. They will see the harsh reality of the pain of abortion. They will be grateful to be a part of our family. They will be grateful they were not aborted as 1/3 of their generation have been. Pray for those attending the march tomorrow. Pray that Obama would see that people still care about this issue. Pray that his heart would be open to the One who sets the captives free. Pray that Obama would not be captive to his current ideas.

HPV Vaccination follow-up

Readers:
I love your comments! Thank you for your encouragement and the links to information I had not previously read (I am assuming that "Kim" was my wonderful cousin who is always on the ball with this kind of info!). I am posting the comments below for your information. I hope that more concerned women will speak up and that we are able to keep this conversation going. I am sure that many of you have seen the proposal to make this vaccine mandatory for public school. This could have serious implications. I am grateful to have the opportunity to homeschool my children and only have to deal with telling our Doctor, "No thanks." Scripture speaks to God's plan for our bodies in 1 Corinthians 6:9-7:40. It is a long read, but do it! Read what God had Paul write to the church in Corinth about immorality and the freedom in the gift of marriage.

Marianne said:
Besides the obvious of putting a dangerous chemical into our young daughter's bodies. We are saying ( in my humble opinion) that our daughters WILL be promiscuous. Where is our trust in God and in the power of the Holy Spirit that He will lead them down the right path.
In our house our daughters are being taught what Jesus says about promiscuity. Prayfully and with the knowledge that both parents walked down the isle wearing white-- Married at 36 yrs and 38 yrs old.

Justme27 said:
That is terrible! I still can't believe that people vaccinate 10 year olds against STDs.
Stand firm. :)

Kim said:
Vaccines are full of poisons, animal viruses, and when they don't use African green monkey kidneys, they are often manufactured using aborted fetuses. Hpv vaccine only effective against small percentage of cancer-causing viruses.
See Barbara Loe Fischer's Vaccine Information Clearinghouse for more info; especially, the very serious side effects produced by this new vaccine in some of the young girls who were given the shots.

HPV vaccine

Article on HPV vaccine

How do you feel about the new HPV vaccine?

Our Dr. talked to me about giving this vaccine to our 10 year old daughter. When she realized that she was 10 she shrugged it off and said we could talk about it next year. I had the other children with me and decided to not address this issue in front of them. My discussion will bring up our foundational belief in Jesus Christ and His Word and how that relates to our views on promiscuity and being chaste.

Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts!

Expelled

Peter and I went to see Ben Steins Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed on Monday evening. We had the theater to ourselves and although we liked the freedom, we were disappointed that the theater wasn't packed. Now, of course we did go to the 4:20 showing on a Monday afternoon...I know, I know, that explains a lot!

We really liked the film. You already know from my blog that we are Christians. We love the Lord and we know that Jesus came to die for our sins, was buried and resurrected three days later. We believe He is seated with the Father in heaven and that the Father, Jesus and Holy Spirit are one. We believe in the hypostatic union (that Jesus is both fully God and fully man and is in no way inferior to God).

All that being said, we loved this movie! We were watching it from a Christian perspective, but Mr. Stein is Jewish and he doesn't focus on religion, nor does he argue his points with the scientists whom he interviews. He asks plain and simple questions and gets some extremely interesting answers. Go see the movie!!! If you are a Christian, go see the movie. If you are Jewish, go see the movie. If you are Agnostic, go see the movie. If you are a Humanist, go see the movie. If you are Muslim, go see the movie. If you are Hindu, go see the movie. Ok, stopping here. I do not mean to leave out a particular group of people, I just don't want to get dull. Besides, this is not a politically correct blog. So, basically, if you are alive, breathing, have a few bucks for a movie (face it, you can forgo the popcorn no matter how great it smells) and are AT ALL curious why scientists are choosing to totally ignore intelligent design as an option for how we began (except for aliens placing their seed here of course), then GO SEE THIS MOVIE! Now I do warn you, it's a documentary. However, Ben Stein is creative, makes you think, makes interesting correlations between the Berlin wall and lack of ID in science and really put himself on the line to bring this movie to the public.



Ben Stein interviewed on Fox:

Jesus and Oprah...Opposite Directions

Jesus is the ONLY way, the ONLY Truth and the ONLY Life.

You may have heard of Oprah's new online study.
Watch the video to see it in her own words.