The Manner in Which I Think.

A Lesson in Grief

2011-04-11T22:10:00.011-05:00

Grief is like a finger print... It's unique to each person. Each of us have unique personalities, and our relationship to the deceased is unique. When a person dies it affects multiple people, but each of their relationships were different. It stands to reason that no two people will grieve the same way. This is important to remember. When you encounter a grieving person, please do not expect them to grieve in the same way you did. Here are a few tips for those of us who know someone grieving, and a few for those of us that are currently grieving a loss.

1. The first and foremost rule has already been mentioned. Do not expect that your loved one's grief will play out the same as yours... even if you are grieving over the same person. One may grieve for months and another for much, much longer. Unfortunately there is no formula.

2. Please don't avoid the grieving. Maybe you have not grieved over a deep loss and you are uncomfortable around those in mourning because you don't know what to say. A person may be grieving, but they can tell when they are being avoided. You don't have to say much. Just offer a hug and a smile and see where it goes from there.

3. What NOT to say...

"You need to be strong!" or "Snap out of it!" - You know, it is okay to be down. If we didn't love we wouldn't grieve. Being truthful about our grief is the first step to healing. Let us feel however we feel.

"They are in a better place." - We know that, but it doesn't help us hurt any less now.

"God needed another angel." - Really? So we could be lonely down here? I don't think so.

"You know, I haven't seen you cry. You just need a good cry!" - What you don't know is that we go home and cry all night long. Just because we are not crying in public doesn't mean we are not processing our grief!

"God never gives you more than you can handle." or worse yet, "it was God's will."

4. We know you are trying to help, but it's better just to stay quiet and listen to what the grieving person has to say. Saying the wrong thing can often cause more hurt than good. If you don't know what to say... just don't...

5. Things TO say to a grieving person... because there are no words... keep it simple.

"I’m so sorry to hear about your loss."

"I can’t imagine what you are going through. It must be unbearable."
"Sit down and tell me all about it."
"I don’t know what to say, but I’ll be glad to listen."
"How are you really feeling?"
"What can I do to help?"

6. Don't misuse scripture. Some of the most beautiful and reassuring verses can be misused. Always remember the context in which the verse was written. Romans 8:28 is often misquoted here. "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." That verse is for living believers in THIS life. This verse makes the grieving feel guilty for grieving, and it doesn't seem that our loved one's death is "good". This type of misuse just makes us feel conflicted.

Ok, so now for those who are grieving...

It's important to remember that if you do find yourself being "consoled" by one of these inconsiderate people from tip #3. Please extend grace and forgiveness. Most of the time they really want to help you. They feel compelled to say something; anything to help. They have probably not grieved as you have, or believe your grief should look like theirs. It is ignorance plain and simple. Holding on to bitterness of the things said to you will NOT help you move through your grief. In fact, it will hinder your progress. It is easier to forgive and let it just roll off.

Now, sometimes these rude people DID intend to hurt your feelings. In this case, you need to remember that they too must be hurting, and "hurting people tend to hurt people." We need to let go of bitterness and forgive them as well. If you find yourself in one of these uncomfortable situations, it is okay to let the person know that they have offended you. You may sternly, yet politely let them know why their statement has hurt you. If it was extremely hurtful, you may want to cool off for a bit before you confront them. If this person didn't mean to be insensitive they will probably be glad know so they do not say it to someone else. Let them know you have forgiven them.

When people ask how you are doing, be honest. Keep it short and honest. If you say, "Fine." People will take you at your word. Feel free to say, "Today is a good day," or "I've felt better, but I'm going to be okay."

Grieving is messy because life is messy. Here are the steps in the journey from mourning to joy. The steps are not always linear. Sometimes we may have a good day or two, then something will trigger us to take a step back (a song, a smell, etc.). The important thing to remember is to let yourself feel whatever you are feeling.

Stage One: From Denial and Isolation to Candor: Honesty with Myself

Stage Two: From Anger and Resentment to Complaint/Lament: Honesty with God

Stage Three: From Bargaining and Works to Crying Out to God: Asking God for Help

Stage Four: From Depression and Alienation to Comfort: Receiving God’s Help

Stage Five: From Regrouping to Waiting: Trusting with Faith

Stage Six: From Deadening to Wailing: Groaning with Hope

Stage Seven: From Despairing and Doubting to Weaving: Perceiving with Grace

Stage Eight: From Digging Cisterns to Worshipping: Engaging with Love

Journaling helps to process your thoughts and feelings. It's also a nice tool for you to go back to, to check on your progress.

For more information, please check out www.griefshare.org

You can join a GriefShare group near you to learn more about the journey.

If you have more questions ask me. I'm always happy to listen and help. Check out my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/KarinMartinJohnson and message me!

In Him we Live, Breathe, and Serve!

Karin Johnson

Truth, as God sees it.

2011-03-30T15:06:00.003-05:00

You know, two weeks ago, our Bible study group completed lesson 9 in the Truth Project. We've enjoyed all the lessons, but for some reason this one struck a chord with just about everyone in our class. The discussion that ensued was varied yet marvelous.

We have been exploring several different social spheres over the past few weeks. These social sphere's make up what is considered God's "social order". We discussed the sphere of the church, of family, and the relational sphere that exists between God and man. Later we will move on to talk about the sphere of community and also labor.

For now, let's talk about the State. Not as in, Texas... as in the State or governing body. What is the role of the State? Dr. Del Tacket would say that under optimal conditions, the government should be set up for the purpose of helping it's people by punishing evil and condoning good. When they step out of their own sphere and deny the sovereignty of the other social spheres (family, church, community, etc.) we begin to see a problem. When the state quits looking to God and tries to take on His role as well as the role of the other spheres or institutions, we see a shift in the balance of power from God to man (State). This is the situation I believe many countries, including the US are in right now.

The Law's purpose within the State is to help and not harm. However, we can all think of instances where the law has purposefully been changed for very wrong reasons, according to a Christian worldview. We see abuse of power all over the world. All the worst regimes in history have had this shift in power. Marx said that to get rid of capitalism, you must first get rid of God. These leaders understood something very profound. When we quit looking to God as our savior, we will begin to look to the government. Today's society expects the government to pay for our homes, our food, and our healthcare, and now they are rallying for the State to pay for our education. We have a government that spends 8 billion more in a day than we take in. How can this go on? It can't. We need to place our focus back where it belongs. On Christ. When we put Him back in his rightful place, we may still have to pay some consequences of our actions, but we will be a much healthier State. This raises some questions... Are we, as Christians, doing our part to make sure things run smoothly? Are we giving our time and money to help others in need, true need? What can we do to turn the tide around?

repost from a few years ago- still just as important

2010-10-22T15:29:00.003-05:00

I have been doing some research for funsies. I have found some interesting articles and would like to share on the subject of apologetics. For those of you who have not heard this term before, it is the branch of theology concerned with the defense or proof of Christianity. There are a few things that upset me about today's culture and one of those things is TOLERANCE. Today there are so many people who claim to be open-minded and tolerant of other people views but it can be argued that these "enlightened" people are completely intolerant of Christian views and standards. I would like to share with you a few excerpts from articles that can help explain more succinctly than I, this strange epidemic that is sweeping the Western culture. The following is an excerpt from an article I was linked to from www.answersingenesis.com. Its a data base of articles relating to a whole slew of sujbejcts from aliens to the existance of God.

Liberal tolerance is grounded in relativism, the view that no one point of view on moral and religious knowledge is objectively correct for every person in every time and place. This notion, as understood and embraced in popular culture, feeds on the fact of pluralism, the reality of a plurality of different and contrary opinions on religious and moral matters. Against this backdrop, many in our culture conclude that one cannot say that one's view on religious and moral matters is better than anyone else's view. They assert that it is a mistake to claim that one's religious beliefs are exclusively correct and that believers of other faiths, no matter how sincere or devoted, hold false beliefs. Thus, religious inclusivism is the correct position to hold.

Relativism, pluralism, and religious inclusivism are the planks in a creed that does not tolerate any rivals. Its high-minded commitment to "openness" prohibits the possibility that anything is absolutely good, true, and beautiful. This was the central thesis of Alan Bloom's 1987 best seller, The Closing of the American Mind. Bloom writes: "The relativity of truth [for college students in American culture] is not a theoretical insight but a moral postulate, the condition of a free society, or so they see it." The point is not to correct the mistakes and really be right; rather it is not to think you are right at all. The students, of course, cannot defend their opinion. It is something with which they have been indoctrinated.

According to Bloom, by dogmatically maintaining there is no truth, people who are relativists have become close-minded to the possibility of knowing the truth, if in fact it does exist. Some may say there are many truths but if you get down to it, not all can be true. To understand what Bloom means, consider the following dialogue (based loosely on a real-life exchange) between a high school teacher and her student, Elizabeth.

Teacher: Welcome, students. Since this is the first day of class, I want to lay down some ground rules. First, since no one has the truth, you should be open-minded to the opinions of your fellow students. Second....Elizabeth, do you have a question?

Elizabeth: Yes, I do. If nobody has the truth, isn't that a good reason for me not to listen to my fellow students? After all, if nobody has the truth, why should I waste my time listening to other people and their opinions. What would be the point? Only if somebody has the truth does it make sense to be open-minded. Don't you agree?

Teacher: No, I don't. Are you claiming to know the truth? Isn't that a bit arrogant and dogmatic?

Elizabeth: Not at all. Rather, I think it's dogmatic, as well as arrogant, to assert that there is not one person on earth who knows the truth. After all, have you met every person in the world and quizzed them exhaustively? If not, how can you make such a claim? Also, I believe it is actually the opposite of arrogance to say that I will alter my opinions to fit the truth whenever and wherever I find it. And if I happen to think that I have good reason to believe I do know the truth and would like to share it with you, why won't you listen to me? Why would you automatically discredit my opinion before it is even uttered? I thought we were supposed to listen to everyone's opinion. (Beckwith, Francis. Deconstructing Liberal Tolerance)

In the modern Western world, ethical relativism poses a challenge to the biblical basis for ethics. Relativism affirms that moral right and wrong are only socially and individually determined. Ethics is split off from any objective moral order. Cultural norms of morality are relative to particular societies, individuals, and historical periods. What is "right for you" may not be "right for me." What is wrong today may not be wrong tomorrow. When the idea of moral law is held in disrespect, the notion of sin softens and then dissolves. If all is relative, absolute evil is impossible. If sin is nonsense, then the notion of a Savior from sin is absurd. There is nothing from which to be saved.

Because of its denial of abiding ethical standards and of sin against a holy God, relativism is a roadblock to effective evangelism .. besides undercutting values essential for a healthy society. But the key arguments for relativism are fatally flawed.

1. Relativists often argue that a society that honors free speech and freedom of religion must relinquish any notion of absolute truth or morality because this stifles the free exchange of ideas. Dogmatism and moralism are unwelcome in the pluralistic public square. Relativism is seen as required for a democracy of ideas and norms.

But this is flatly false. One may believe there are moral absolutes and also believe that the best way to reach ethical conclusions is through open discussion, dialogue, and debate. Freedom of religion and speech does not necessitate that there can be no objectively true religion or morality. A free society guarantees your right to be right .. and your right to be wrong! I can try to persuade you of the truth of my convictions without using coercion. In fact, I may take it as a moral absolute that I should not coerce those I believe to be absolutely wrong.

The relativist has abandoned the very concept of objective moral truth. It is all a matter of opinion because everything is relative. There is, therefore, nothing objective to argue about and no good reason to believe one thing over another. This is hardly what the American founders envisioned for a free society. It more resembles anarchism and nihilism (i.e., rejection of all values) than a "marketplace of ideas."

2. The sheer diversity of moral and religious ideas within and between societies is invoked as evidence for relativism. With so many options before us, who is to say what is true or false, right or wrong? We are left with relativism.

Here again, the facts do not deliver the conclusion. A diversity of ethical and religious beliefs hardly insures that they are all somehow true. A tribal culture may be scientifically wrong in thinking that the sun revolves around a flat earth. Why can't the same culture be ethically wrong for practicing head-hunting? If you say that abortion is right and I say it is wrong, how can we both be correct when we contradict each other? Ethical relativism eliminates the notion of a moral mistake. But this is just as fallacious as saying that every answer on a multiple-choice test is correct because there is a diversity of answers.

There may also be less diversity between cultures than is often thought. Every culture has taboos against stealing. Yet a desert culture may penalize the theft of water much more highly than would a tropical culture. The diversity of moral codes does not rule out a basic agreement on deeper ethical principles. In an appendix to his excellent book against relativism, The Abolition of Man, C. S. Lewis listed common moral principles spanning thousands of years from diverse religions and civilizations. As Paul tells us in Romans 1-2, God has endowed with a conscience all those created in His own image, however much we efface or neglect it.

Relativism also leads to absurd conclusions which undermine its credibility. If there is no true moral law that applies transculturally, then there is no basis for one culture to condemn actions in another. Surely any morally sane person must ethically condemn Nazi atrocities as evil and praise the heroes who resisted the Reich by saving Jews from extermination. But relativism cannot permit such judgments. The morality of everything is relative .. even genocide.

If we can reveal flaws in the case for relativism, we can further argue that the moral law is best understood as flowing from the moral lawgiver of the universe. God, as our Creator, knows what is best for us and calls us to obey Him for our own good and for His glory. Yet, as Paul said, "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 6:23). The universal fact of guilt and shame testifies to that, whatever the cultural setting might be.

But the good news is that the Lawgiver is also the Redeemer of those who lament over their lawlessness and trust in Jesus Christ as their Savior. Those who cry out, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner" (Luke 18:13), can find mercy and eternal life. But the unrepentant relativist must face the absolute justice of a holy God who admits no interpretation other than His own. In the end everything is relative, but it is relative to God's absolute standards, not ours. (Groothuis, Douglass. Confronting the Challenge of Ethical Relativism)

I have to admit, that this is a subject that I am very passionate about. I got all fired up just reading these articles. Of course you can look them up and read the whole article if you wish. I feel that as a Christian, my rights are being slowly taken away by this way of thinking. If this is a free country, why is it that I cannot pray in school but Muslim children can take time out of their school day to pray to Allah? My hollidays have been disguised by pagan symbols and consumerism. Christians, I am calling you to stand up for what you believe. Be proud of who you are in Christ! We have to be vocal about our rights. This doesn't mean that we have to force our views on others. We can show them who we are just by living in the light of Christ and share when asked or the time is right. But if we are to remain in our freedom of religion, we must take action. Its faster becoming that everything is tolerated but Christianity. The Bible says that we will be persecuted and that we should be thankful in doing so, but that doesn't mean that we can't stand up for what is ours. I know I want my children and grandchildren to have the same freedoms that I have had. I will get off my soapbox for now but would love to hear feedback from you no matter what your belief.

Love in Christ,
Karin

Read more:http://www.myspace.com/karinrmartin/blog?page=2#ixzz137WoTVqP

Late Night...again... lol!

2010-10-16T00:23:00.002-05:00

I can't seem to make myself go to sleep early, even if I know I have an early, big day the next day. I guess 8 years of working the night shift doesn't wear off that easily. ;-) What can I say; I just enjoy the quiet time alone where I can read my Bible or a good book. Maybe even watch a movie. Tonight I watched a Star Trek movie with Josh and Matt before retiring to the tub for some warm suds and James Patterson.

My cat is invading my comfort zone just now. She is demanding food and a proper petting. I should mention that she went to see Marsha at the Barker Shop the other day, and this white Persian is now sporting a black mohawk with an orange poof on her tail. She's ready for Halloween! Love her. Maybe one of these days we'll have children, but for now she fills in quite nicely. I know I should be in bed, but I just can't quit thinking about stuff.

It's just stuff in general; like how I'm so glad my dad is still with us. He just had a stint put in his leg yesterday. Problem is, he's already had a by-pass in that same leg years ago. Then there's the matter of him coding in the doctor's office back in '04. They had to revive him with the paddles. He had a quadruple by-pass and a valve repaired. He's had other issues crop up now and again. However, I just can't stop thinking about how fleeting life is. I work at a funeral home and run GriefShare. I see death all the time. Although you never get used to it, it gets easier to deal with. However, when it's your loved one that's ill, it is completely different. I did get to talk to my dad today, who is back home and in great spirits. He sounded so chipper on the phone. He couldn't help praising God himself. Our prayer had been that a stint would be all he would need, and for now... it is!

I'm so thankful that God has continued to answer our prayers, and I no longer take my family for granted. I try to enjoy them while they are here. I can't help but see the hand of God continually guiding us, even in the smallest of details. He is the only reason I make it through the day, even a good one. I have no doubt that I will see many hard days in my lifetime, but I will be held up by a faithful, and loving Sustainer.

The Undeclared War (my first sermon; from March '09)

2010-09-09T14:05:00.004-05:00

The Undeclared War

Many of us have heard the term "spiritual warfare" before, especially if we are Christian. Yet, how many of us take that seriously? We should and I'll give you some scriptural reasons why. In his letter to the church at Ephesus, Paul, had much to say about it. Many have heard this scripture before...

Ephesisans 6:10-18 (The Armor of God)

“10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”

These verses are just as important today as when Paul wrote them back in the first century. I know you know what I'm talking about. Marriages and churches are under attack, people struggling with habitual sins, our nation as a whole is moving away from Christian values, and I feel we are rotting to the core. This warfare stuff is so important that Paul repeats himself again in 2 Cor 10:4 “4The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.”

Again we see this warlike imagery in Romans 12:13 “12The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.”

What is Spiritual Warfare

So.... What's with all this armor and weapon imagery? Why does Paul feel the need to bring it up over and over again? The term “Spiritual Warfare “ refers to an ongoing battle in the heavenlies as evil forces continue to wage war against our Creator and try to defeat Christ's church.

I realize that Spiritual warfare is not something that many people like to talk about. Especially in churches. In fact some of you may actually be squirming in your seats right now just thinking about it. You may be thinking, “oh great, here she goes with the old hell, fire, and brimstone routine!" However, that's not my intention.

It's uncomfortable for Christians to talk about war because we follow the Prince of Peace. Why do we need to know of warfare? I'll tell you why; it's Biblical! The scripture uses warfare language and it would be wrong of us to reject it for exactly what it is. Which is why I feel it's very important to talk about.

Many of us would like to believe that if we just ignore Satan he'll go away. Even more sadly, many of us may not even believe he exists at all. Let me assure you that just because you can't see him doesn't mean he's not there, and just because we are Christian, doesn't mean we cannot be affected by him in one way or another. The Bible is crystal clear about the struggle. Satan and his demons played a significant role in Jesus ministry and Jesus didn't ignore them. So why do we?

The Battlefield is in the Mind

Now, if we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, then our fate has been sealed. We have been bought with the blood of Christ, and belong to Him. However, Satan is still out to hinder our relationship with God. He knows that this deeply wounds Him. It hurts God to see his children pried away by their sins, anger, lust, sadness, and hate. All God wants from us is a personal relationship, but for many of us, it's easy for us to be dissuaded and distracted. The battle is for our mind. Satan wants your mind.

Listen to the song by Casting Crowns entitled “Slow Fade”. It's been around for a while now. The band hits the spiritual nail on the head with this song. Casting Crowns shows us how Satan works. Satan tells us lies, and finds our weak spots. Little by little we give ourselves over to the impure. Since it is just a little bit at a time, it is easy for us to miss the fact that we are sinking. He de-sensitizes us. What used to seem so sinful, is now, not so bad after all.

“It's a slow fade when you give yourself away.
It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid.

When you give yourself away.
People never crumble in a day.
It's a slow fade”

The song also says, “The journey from your mind to your hands is shorter than your thinking, be careful if you think you stand. You just might be sinking.”

See it's not always so obvious. We are desensitized and lied to in our schools, on TV, in books, magazines, music, and in movies.

It may not be the rated R movie God's worried about us watching. It might be that PG movie with a hidden anti-Christian agenda. Satan might have us thinking, "at least I'm not cheating on my spouse, it's just pictures." Or how about, "I'm just going to try this stuff one time to see what it's like. It's not like I'm an addict."

This is the kind of stuff Satan lets us believe, and he uses society to do it. Our morals have become so gray we don't have a clear picture of anything anymore. We're being desensitized to a new norm all the time!

Satan doesn't need to be a mindreader to know our weaknesses. He can observe by our actions where our weaknesses are. Our actions are an extension of our thoughts. Satan will tell us that we are not good enough, not talented enough, not loved enough, not skinny enough, not pretty enough, that we aren't worthy, that we aren't worth saving, or that we should just give up. He will also lie to us about others, and how they feel about us.

Satan loves to take God's truth and pervert it...distort it. I have been in at the bottom of the pit, and I know for a fact that the only way out is with Jesus. Satan will try and tell us there is another way, that you can fill the hole in your heart with other things, but it's just not true.

Another thing that pulls us away from God so easily is materialism. Satan knows that the more conveniences, and the more "stuff" we have the less we rely on Christ. I am reminded of two mission trips I went on. The first was to Zambia, Africa. The people there were living in poverty and had nothing, by worldly standards. Yet by the end of our trip we had about 2,400 people indicate that they had accepted Christ. These people knew that God was their only hope, their only provider, their only physician. They had no reason NOT to believe. Many of the jobless have plenty of time to sit and read the Bible if they can, or hear it preached at local church. The next summer I went to Taiwan. I was stationed in Kaohsiung, the second largest city in the country besides Taipei. This was a huge city that very much resembled any major city in America. They have great doctors. Also, most people (at the time) had decent paying jobs in a stable economy. They are well educated. Materialism is just as rampant there, as it is here. Satan has given them the same false securities we have here, and these people didn't think they needed Jesus. They were all doing just fine on their own. All of our teams combine had about 75 people come to know the Lord. Such a huge difference from Africa. This is one of the sneakiest ways Satan works, it's also one of his favorite. He knows that if we are self reliant that our pride gets in the way, and we don't need God.

Peter felt spiritual warfare is such an important point that he said in 1 Peter 5:8-9, “8Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.”

We need supernatural power to fight a supernatural battle. Thankfully we've got God on our side. How wonderful that he's promised to guide us and give us the tools we need!

Increasing Our Spiritual Welfare

So what do we do? I would like to suggest that we beef up our spiritual welfare. It is our best defense against what ails us. Read, study, pray, and obey. John 10:4-5 says 'But they will never follow a stranger, in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a strangers voice.” How comforting those words are to me. This verse is promising that the more time we spend with him, the more we know his voice.

The more we train to listen, the more recognizable his voice and truth are! You see if we are immersed in Him, then there is little room for anything else.

Our discernment comes from the Holy Spirit. It's not based on knowledge or how much we read. It's not based on education, but rather, on our intimacy and relationship with Jesus. Thank goodness we don't all have to be scholars!

I mentioned the Sword of the Spirit earlier, God's Word.

Notice that the sword of the Spirit is the only offensive piece of equipment in that whole section. The rest are defensive. If we know the scripture it's much easier to do battle when evil thoughts invade our minds. Jesus gave us the perfect example when he was tempted by Satan in the desert. He used scripture to fight back.

See, God's not going to allow us to go through something without giving us a way out. God promises to preserve his children though his Holy Spirit but we have to seek him and ask him for help. We have to pursue the relationship with Christ. All Christians are called to submit to God and resist the enemy.

It is our job to be mindful and be careful of what we allow into our mind. We need to ask the Holy Spirit to show us where we are weak and ask for help in those areas. He will be faithful to show us.

It is our job to read, study, pray and obey. This is how we increase our Spiritual Welfare. The whole point of this is that God loves you. He loves you so much that it grieves him when we put him on the back burner. He wants us to know his character. All he wants is some one on one time with us. And this one on one time is what refreshes the Holy Spirit in us. People can see in us, when the Spirit is fresh. They can tell when you're genuinely in love with Jesus. The Holy Spirit has a way of changing our physical and spiritual countenance. Folks, it's going to take each of us to be the salt and light in our community to make them want what we've got. We could be the closest thing to Jesus some people ever see. How's your Spiritual Welfare these days?

We Need to Wake Up!

2010-09-02T13:38:00.002-05:00

I saw this on a podcast this morning and it gave me chills. I'm all for freedom of religion, but the problem is that Islam is not just a religion. It is a whole political ideology, and they are slowly taking away all types of freedoms in other areas of the world. If we do not wise up, we will soon be under Sharia law. We will have no freedoms left to practice our own religion. Those things that we hold dear, and which made this country great will no longer exist. Watch this video and see if this doesn't freak you out.

Islamization of Paris

Revelation Lecture Series... Coming Soon!

2010-08-15T14:20:00.006-05:00

Attention Childress Folks!

I am pleased to announce that we will begin a new Bible study on Tuesdays, beginning September 7th. It will be held in the Fellowship Hall at First United Methodist Church at 6pm.

It will be the new Beth Moore DVD series. It's entitled, "Here and Now... There and Then: A Lecture Series on Revelation" It is wonderful!

For those of you who think you do not have time for a Beth Moore Study, let me assure you that this is a "Lecture Series", not her usual, involved "Bible study". If you are familiar with her format, you know that there is usually about 5 days worth of homework, and about 2 hours at church each week as we review and talk about the homework, then watch the video.

Since this is a lecture series, there is only a very thin book for note taking and maybe one day's worth of personal reflection. There will be no discussion, since there is no homework, other than personal reflection. So, this will cut down on about 45 min of our time. (Unless people would like to stay after and talk about what we just heard.)

Here is what her website says about it.... "Here and Now...There and Then by Beth Moore is a lecture series on the book of Revelation. Beth presents many points of view, allowing people to decide for themselves when the interpretation varies among scholars. She teaches that God is as specific about what He does reveal as He is about what He does not reveal. Each of the 11 sessions is approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes. The set includes 11 DVDs and one listening guide with light homework."

Also, we are opening this study up for men too! After all, everyone needs a fresh revelation! Although, it's true, Beth's studies are geared toward women, I have watched the entire series, and there is nothing really gender specific in it. There is no reason to exclude our men! Josh is the one who gave me the idea for this. He's signed up along with his father, Chris. We also have a few other men signed up so far. So, ladies, bring your man! Let's have the Lord reveal Himself to us together!

No excuses! My vision is to bring people of all denominations together to study the Word as One Body of Christ, in order to unite our community. What better way, than to come to this inter-denominational study!

So if you really want to get pumped up, watch the promo video here. This is going to be awesome!

If you are interested, let me know so I can order you a book!

In Christ, we Live, Breathe, and Serve,

Karin Johnson

GriefShare update....

2010-08-15T14:07:00.002-05:00

Hi Folks!

I just wanted to let everyone know that we will begin Volunteer "Boot Camp" Training this Thurs, Aug. 19th in Education Rm A at CRMC at 5:30pm. This training will go for 4 Thursdays in a row, ending with Sept 9th. I can't wait for us to learn how to put all of our thoughts and ideas into action! We will begin with our first real GriefShare program on Sept 16th. If you know of anyone who would like to attend meetings, and would benefit from this program, please start inviting them to come on the 16th of Sept!

For those of you who are pastors on this list, please include this information on your bulletins, and mention it from the pulpit. I believe that word of mouth will be our best advertisement! Also, the Index will be running an interest piece on us shortly, so be looking for that as well.

I think that sums up everything we have going on in the GriefShare community. Help me to spread the word. This is really going to happen, finally! Ooh, almost forgot... Also, if you know of anyone who would like to be a prayer warrior for our team (they do not have to attend meetings) take their name and bring it with you to the meeting along with their phone # and email, so we can keep them updated on prayer requests. Let them know the dates and times of meetings so that we can be covered in prayer!

If you have any questions or concerns, please email or call me. Thanks to each of you. Without you, none of this would be possible!

In Christ, we Live, Breathe, and Serve,

Karin Johnson

cell-585.7417

work-937.3646

GriefShare Volunteer Meeting!

2010-08-04T18:49:00.001-05:00

Mark your Calendar! GriefShare Volunteer Meeting, Thurs., Aug 12th @ 5:30pm at CRMC in Education Rm A. Please bring your calendar as we map out our schedule together, and learn more about what it takes to be a leader!

Batesville Bound

2010-07-28T11:12:00.002-05:00

So, today we are packing up to go to Batesville, Indiana. Batesville is a great casket company. We sell their products at JFH. Our casket rep is flying us out to see the factory. Up there, we will be staying on a farm. It sounds like it will be a fun adventure, plus we'll be learning more about the products we sell and why they are the best. Who knew I'd ever take a business trip to tour a casket factory! I never dreamed that would be a part of my life. I mean, back in high school when a teacher asks you what you think you'll be doing in 10 years, funeral directing was not even a thought.

I suppose many think it's morosely strange that I would actually enjoy my work at the funeral home. I have to tell you it is bitter-sweet. However, I love helping the grieving families. My job allows me to do one last thing for a person; pay one last tribute to a life. It's not about the death, but the life lived, and how I can do my best to hold a meaningful service where they are honored. It is about treating each family like they are a part of my own. It is about ministering to hurting hearts, and showing the love of Jesus to each person I meet.

I'm so blessed I get to work with my husband. I'm so blessed to be where God has called me to affectively minister to people!

GriefShare

2010-06-09T12:24:00.000-05:00

Hi folks! I wanted to share a little about a new ministry I'm involved in. We are launching a new grief recovery program here in Childress, GriefShare!

What is GriefShare?

GriefShare is a friendly, caring group of people who will walk alongside you through one of life’s most difficult experiences. You don’t have to go through the grieving process alone.

GriefShare seminars and support groups are led by people who understand what you are going through and want to help. You’ll gain access to valuable GriefShare resources to help you recover from your loss and look forward to rebuilding your life.

How GriefShare Works...

It may be hard for you to feel optimistic about the future right now. If you’ve lost a spouse, child, family member or friend, you’ve probably found there are not many people who understand the deep hurt you feel.

This can be a confusing time when you feel isolated and have many questions about things you’ve never faced before.

GriefShare groups meet weekly to help you face these challenges and move toward rebuilding your life. Each GriefShare session has three distinct elements:

Video Seminar With Experts...

Each week your GriefShare group will watch a video seminar featuring top experts on grief and recovery subjects. These videos are produced in an interesting-to-watch television magazine format featuring expert interviews, real-life case studies, dramatic reenactments and on-location video.

Support Group Discussion With Focus...

After viewing the video, you and the other group members will spend time as a support group, discussing what was presented in that week’s video seminar and what is going on in your lives.

Workbook-Based Personal Study and Reflection

During the week you will have the opportunity to use your workbook for further personal study of the grieving process and to help sort out your emotions through journaling. Your group will spend time discussing questions and comments from the workbook study.

First Things First

Before we can launch GriefShare, we need a team of volunteers who are willing to help in our group. Tomorrow, Thursday, June 10, at 5:30 in the CRMC Education Room, we will be holding our first volunteer meeting. We will discuss as a group how and when we want to make GriefShare available to the public. The idea for tomorrow's meeting is to see how many volunteers we have, and collectively come up with a schedule. We will also be watching two short training videos that will further explain what it mean to be a volunteer. If you can't make it, we will be holding another training class soon, so let me know if you are interested.

When?

Team meeting at 5:30 on June 10, 2010 at the hospital in Education room A We are currently putting a team together and hope to launch our first share group in June, but we need your help. Please join us at the meeting to find out more.

How Can I Help? Volunteer! GriefShare makes it easy for you to help bereaved people through the church. You can be a part of a comprehensive, Christ-centered, video- based, grief recovery ministry—even if you have no prior ministry training! You don’t have to be a pastor or counselor to help others.

Ministry GriefShare is a wonderful way to help spread the love and healing of Jesus Christ through our community to others who may otherwise never have been introduced to him. Help lead others to Christ!

One More Thing

Even if this ministry is not for you, please tell others about it. Someone you know may have a heart to help, or even need to attend our meetings as soon as we get them started. (Hopefully by the fall we will hold our first meetings!) This ministry is going to change lives, and I'm so excited about what God is going to do through it. Please Pray for us and the ministry! I can't emphasize this enough. Wherever God is doing great things, Satan is going to work overtime to attempt to foil the plan. We can't do this without prayer warriors on our side.

Thank you.

Contact Karin Johnson for more info

Phone - 940.585.7417

Work - 940.937.3646

email - karinrjohnson@yahoo.com

facebook - http://www.facebook.com/KarinMartinJohnson

(Much of the information on this page has been used by the GriefShare website http://www.griefshare.org/)

Tuckered Out

2009-08-24T14:08:00.000-05:00

Ok, I'm defeated.... for today. I'm such a city girl. I was NOT built for the outdoors. I have the day off so this morning I thought, "I'd better get to the gym, then I'll come home and begin homework for my last semester of school." So I did. I went to the gym. It was arm day. Then, on the way home after a great workout I somehow decided that I can't stand the grass growing in our flower beds. I also noticed that the lawn guy hasn't been getting the side of the house. I asked Josh why, and he told the lawn man not to because there were wild flowers planted over there.

There were. Now it's just weeds, stickers and mess. I got the hair-brained idea that I would attempt to remedy the situation myself by weed whacking it all down. I've never used a weed whacker and I got my loving hubby teach me how to put gas in it and start it. Mind you, it's 12:30. Gettin' pretty hot out there and that thing is heavy and my arms are tired!

An hour and a half later, I barely put a dent in this small 8 by 20 area, and I'm feeling a bit faint. I over heated big time and I did the only thing I could do. I gave up. There are goat head stickers all over me. I had to stand outside by the dumpster and nearly surgically remove them from myself. DON'T weed whack stickers!!! I'm sure all you smart people already knew that. I have to learn the hard way. However, to give myself a break I didn't really know there were stickers in that grass till it was too late.

I guess I'll get to that homework now. (after a cold shower of course) I don't think I'll be weed whacking anything again any time soon. I will have to get the lawn mower out when it cools off a bit to get the rest of it. Come to think about it, I may just wait till someone else decides to do it. I'm tuckered out!

For Such a Time as This....

2009-08-22T13:52:00.000-05:00

Ladies of Childress, I will be hosting the new Beth Moore Bible study, Esther, beginning on Monday, Sept 14, at 6pm. We will be meeting on Mondays in the Methodist Fellowship Hall. I'd love to see ladies of all denominations in this class. If you are interested, let me know by Sept 1st so I can order books for everyone. This is going to be so exciting.

Beth Moore's newest Bible study is Esther: It's Tough Being a Woman. Going up against heavyweights bent on her destruction, Esther trusted God and landed a blow that saved her people. The Old Testament story of Esther is a profile in courage and contains many modern parallels for today's woman. Esther's destiny can be yours as you know more deeply the God who is in your corner.

Join Beth in an in-depth and very personal examination of this great story of threat and deliverance. She peels back the layers of history and shows how very contemporary and applicable the story of Esther is to our lives. If you've ever felt inadequate, threatened, or pushed into situations that seemed overpowering, this is the study for you. Just as it was tough being a woman in Esther's day, it's tough today. This portion of God's Word contains treasures to aid us in our hurried, harried, and pressured lives.

email me at karinrjohnson@yahoo.com or call me at 585.7417

Hope to see ya'll there!

Kiss My Astroturf! Healthcare Reform or Just Another Move Toward Socialism?

2009-08-08T20:07:00.000-05:00

Let me start by saying that most of the people protesting the Healthcare Reform Bill are conservatives, but there is also a healthy dose of Dems in the mix that feel swindled. What is it that we don't like? We don't like the idea of a government that can't manage Social Security, Medicaid/Medicare, the Postal Service, or a cash for clunker program in charge of our healthcare. They also really screwed up Fanny Pack! (oops! I'm mean Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac) Or, it could be that we just think we need a smaller government. Seems like they want control over everything, from banks, car dealers, housing, and now our health!

I know Obama said that you can keep your old health care plan, but did you know that you'll be penalized if you do? Yep, Obama wants to tax your insurance payout. Let's say you have to have surgery that cost $10,000 and your insurance will only pay $5,000. You not only have to come up with the other $5,000 to pay for it, but they want to tax you on the 5 grand your insurance paid like income! The idea is to make it so difficult to keep insurance that you inevitably have to switch over to the government's plan. In one of Obama's speeches, he specifically states that he invisions a single pay government insurance within another 10-15 years.

Of course we're frustrated that our tax dollars will go to those who already take advantage of our government programs, but most of us are really outraged that our tax dollars will go toward funding abortions as well. What? That's right. Our tax dollars would fund abortions. Right now there is nothing in the bill to keep them from using our money in that fashion. You can read the bill yourself. The Dems will tell you that there is no language that specifically says the government will use your money for abortion. This may be true, but there is no language in the bill that prohibits them using your money for it either. Any lawyer will tell you that's a "fishy" loophole. They intentionally left it out so that they can say, "See, we aren't going to do this?" and then later turn around and do just what they said they wouldn't all while saying, "there is nothing in the bill that says we can't." The American Center for Law and Justice is working overtime on Capitol Hill trying to fight this now before it passes. You can sign a petition at https://www.aclj.org/Petition/Default.aspx?sc=3466&ac=1&Zip=*Zip They want to make sure the bill has specific language stating that this money will not go towards abortion.

Now, maybe you are pro-choice and you don't mind your hard earned money being spent this way. That's fine, but don't expect me to go along with it and pay for it. Don't I have rights and a choice too? I choose not to agree. I want that bill to clearly express that tax dollars may not be used to fund abortion. Call me crazy, but I don't see how anything in this bill is good for our nation.

Now all the bill specifics aside, I'm sure you've all seen the "angry mobs" that have turned out at town hall meetings filling your television screen. These people are mad and they are exercising their First Amendment Rights to freedom of speech and right to assemble. I have to say I'm appalled at the remarks Obama and speaker, Nancy Pelosi have given about the public's outrage. They are saying that the GOP is calling on Republicans everywhere to protest. This isn't true. I've been a member of the GOP for a long time and I've never gotten an email or letter urging me to do this. They are calling it "manufactured anger" and Pelosi said we were like "the Astroturf of the grassroots movement!" They want to insenuate that the public isn't really all that mad and that a majority of people are for this. What? As if we need someone to tell us to get mad and protest. As if we can't make decisions on our own? Um no, we REALLY are mad. All on our own! And believe it or not, it's a LOT of people.

It's not really in our conservative blood to rally and protest. That's always been reserved for the lefties, and seems to be one of their strong suits. Yet, finally we have something we feel is important enough for us to protest about and they are calling us crazy! Sheesh. We had to listen to the libs prattle on about how horrible Bush was, and we watched them rally and protest for 8 years. Give us some slack now that the tides have turned. This is complete hipocrasy. So now speaking up and protesting is only allowed by the left?

Final thing for me to rant about tonight; our freedom of speech. Our president is saying that there is a lot of "disinformation" going around about this Healthcare Reform Bill. He's getting scarily old East Germany on us. The White House blog specifically says, "If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov." They want names and email addresses. What are they going to do with this information? Put me on some crazy radicals black list and screen everything I do? Do it! It's not going to stop me from expressing my opinion.

Out with Capitalism, in with Terrorism

2009-07-19T14:26:00.000-05:00

Read up... This is totally scary. Do people need to see more attacks on American soil before they wake up? How is this sort of stuff even going on here? It's taking place in Obama's back yard, Chicago. I'm fed up! There is a reason these people are banned from many countries. They are even banned from Arab countries because of their ties with terrorists. -Karin

Group Reportedly Linked to Al Qaeda Holds First U.S. ConferenceSunday, July 19, 2009

YouTube
The Khilafah Conference 2009 is scheduled to be held July 19, 2009 at the Hilton Oak Lawn hotel.

Protesters gathered outside a Chicago area hotel Sunday as an Islamic extremist group reportedly linked to Al Qaeda held its first official conference on U.S. soil in an attempt to step up Western recruitment efforts. Members of Hizb ut-Tahrir — a global Sunni network with reported ties to confessed 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Al Qaeda in Iraq's onetime leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi — met Sunday inside a Hilton hotel to host a conference, "The Fall of Capitalism and the Rise of Islam. "Hizb ut-Tahrir insists that it does not engage in terrorism, and it is not recognized by the State Department as a known terror group.

But some terrorism experts say it may be even more dangerous than many groups that are on the terror list. "Hizb ut-Tahrir is one of the oldest, largest indoctrinating organizations for the ideology known as jihadism," Walid Phares, director of the Future of Terrorism Project at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told FOXNews.com. Phares said that Hizb ut-Tahrir, rather than training members to carry out terrorist acts like Al Qaeda, focuses instead on indoctrinating youths between ages of 9 and 18 to absorb the ideology that calls for the formation of an empire — or "khilafah" — that will rule according to Islamic law and condones any means to achieve it, including militant jihad.Hizb ut-Tahrir often says that its indoctrination "prepares the infantry" that groups like Al Qaeda take into battle, Phares said. "It's like a middle school that prepares them to be recruited by the high school, which is Al Qaeda," he said. "One would compare them to Hitler youth. ... It's an extremely dangerous organization. "Phares said Hizb ut-Tahrir has strongholds in Western countries, including Britain, France and Spain, and clearly is looking to strengthen its base in the U.S.

"The aim of this conference is to recruit within the Muslim community in America," he said. "The Middle East governments go after them, but in the U.S. they are protected, so having a base here is going to help their cells around the world. "Representatives of Hizb ut-Tahrir declined to comment when contacted by FOXNews.com. Oren Segal, director of Islamic Affairs for the Anti-Defamation League, said the conference is cause for concern. "While they're not, for the most part, engaging in violent activities, and they publicly say that they're against violence, there have been examples around the world where people who have spun off of this group have engaged in violent activity," Segal told FOXNews.com. "That's why they're banned in several Arab and Central Asian countries, as well as Germany and Russia."Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is one of the group's most famous alumni, New Statesman journalist Shiv Malik reported, citing intelligence sources.

In addition to plotting the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, he also is implicated in the World Trade Center bombing of 1993, the Bali nightclub bombings and the murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.Malik's report, the public policy institute the Nixon Center and the counter-extremism think tank the Quilliam Foundation agree that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq until he was killed in June 2006, also was once a member of Hizb ut-Tahrir. They say other former members include Asif Muhammad Hanif, a British man who blew himself up outside a bar in Tel Aviv, killing four people (including himself) and wounding more than 50; and Omar Bakri Mohammed, a radical cleric currently banned from Britain who praised the 9/11 attacks, raised funds for Hezbollah and Hamas and called for attacks on the Dublin airport because U.S. troops transfered there on their way to Iraq.

Segal said Hizb ut-Tahrir is becoming more active online in the U.S. — particularly on social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace — and now it may be able to add a significant number of Americans to its ranks. But one place the group will likely not be recruiting is a local Islamic school that backed out of hosting the conference. The non-profit Aqsa school in Bridgeview said Hizb ut-Tahrir had deceptively portrayed the conference as a bazaar-type event where traditional food and clothing would be sold. "They misrepresented themselves and the event. We don't want to be in the middle of something like that," the school's business manager Rana Jaber, told CBS News. The conference's new venue doesn't seem to mind. Hilton Oak Lawn General Manager Rick Harmon said Hizb ut-Tahrir used its own name when it reserved the room for the conference, but the hotel was not aware of the content of the event, which includes lectures entitled "Capitalism is Doomed to Fail," "The Global Rise of Islam," and the "Role of Muslims in America," until after the contract was signed.

Still, Harmon said the hotel is open to all kinds of meetings, that don't necessarily reflect its position or beliefs."We're United States citizens and an American business — if it's legal, we're able to host it, as long as it's nothing that disrupts our other guests' privacy and security," Harmon told FOXNews.com. According to the Khilafah Conference 2009 Web site, the group aims to do neither. "Hizb-ut-Tahrir is convinced that change must start in the minds of people, and therefore does not accept for people, or societies, to be forced to change by means of violence and terror," it reads.The site, which includes a promotional YouTube video, says the group "does not work in the West to change the system of government, but works to project a positive image of Islam to Western society. "But former member Ishtiaq Hussain said Hizb ut-Tahrir is repackaging itself as a moderate organization as a tactic, while in reality it is "extremist."

"They don't recognize countries like Israel, for example; they don’t believe Israel should exist," Hussain, now a trainer for the Quilliam Foundation, told FOXNews.com. "Some of their leaders have denied the Holocaust, and they believe homosexuals should be thrown off the highest building. ... It's actually a very dangerous group."

Hizb ut-Tahrir itself has also published writings that seem to contradict its tenet of non-violence. In his book, "How the Khilafah Was Destroyed," Sheikh Abdul Qadeem Zalloom, the former global leader of Hizb ut-Tahrir, says anyone who rules by a non-Islamic system should "either retract or be killed ... even if this led to several years of fighting and even if it led to the killing of millions of Muslims and to the martyrdom of millions of believers. "Hizb ut-Tahrir's official ruling on the permissibility of hijacking planes says, "If the plane belongs to a country at war with Muslims, like Israel, it is allowed to hijack it, for there is no sanctity for Israel nor for the Jews in it."

And one of the organization's more recent leaflets, published in March, calls for the declaration of "a state of war against America. "Click here to read the leaflet.But, despite these threats and calls to action, Hizb ut-Tahrir remains off the State Department's terror watch list, and it is free to host the Khilafah Conference and any other event like it. "In other parts of the world where they're really very active, they've drawn tens of thousands of people to some of their events," Segal said."It'll be interesting to see to what degree they'll be welcomed here."FOXNews.com's Diane Macedo contributed to this report.

Adopted kitty gets re-adopted

2009-06-23T21:54:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago I brought home a starving little orange kitten that had been hovering around my mother-in-law, Nita's house. Of course he had to be an outside kitty since my indoor kitty is so used to being an only child. Another reason is because she has feline leukemia and it is transmittable to other cats through body fluids and the sharing of food, water, and litter boxes. I didn't want this new kitty to contract it. So, we had been keeping him in the back yard and I made sure to go out and play with him several times a day and feed and water him.
I hadn't had time to take him to the vet for shots yet. I was going to do that this week when we got back from our trip.

We went to Arkansas for a few days and my dad came over only to feed him once a day. He must have gotten lonely. When we got back my dad said that he hadn't' seen the cat in a two days and I was a little sad, but hoped that he had been taken in by someone since he is such a loving little guy.

Well, the night after we got back I was out watering the veggies when this little orange kitty came running over to me. I could see the excitement on his face. He was so happy I was back. He jumped on me and started purring right away. I noticed a pink flea collar on him with the name Dexter written in marker. I couldn't help but laugh. As it turns out, our neighbor took him in, which is just as well. They have a gray cat that he has befriended. I've seen them cuddling and cleaning each other. Also, they have kids and let him inside, which he can't do here. So, all in all it's for the best. He still comes over when we are working outside and plays with us. He hops in my lap if I'm sitting down. I love the little guy, but he's found a new home. I took all the food I'd bought him next door so they could feed him. Marylin couldn't eat it anyway. She's on a prescription diet. They thought it was kinda funny too. At least he's not so far I never see him. Just a good leap over the fence away.

Marriage...

2009-05-01T15:23:00.000-05:00

I have to post about a friend's blog. She is spot on with her concern for the state of marriages today. Visit Cowgirl's newest blog here.

I'll post my response to her blog here, but you should really check it out. She's doing an awesome giveaway for those who participate. Hooray for free stuff!

Here's what I have to say on the subject...

"Well, I have been praying for marriages too. I feel as though Satan is really working overtime these days in marriages, churches, and relationships in general.

The best advice I can think of is work hard at communication. Always let your partner know how much they mean to you, and don't take them for granted. Always pray for your spouse every day, even if you're mad. Ask God to help you love them in the way they need to be loved, be patient, sit back, and watch God move.

I'd have to agree with Amanda that it really helps if you marry your best friend, but if that's not the case, you can make it happen. You have to actively work at spending time with and communicating with your partner. Keep God first in your marriage.

I've been really blessed and pray for continued blessings in my marriage but I also realize that Satan is always around, and that a broken marriage could happen to anyone. This is why it is so important to pray for your spouse and marriage even when things are going well. It is important to put on the armor of God and stick that shield of faith up every single day."

Pop goes the Gaga...

2009-04-26T16:23:00.000-05:00

It seems that I only feel the need to blog when I'm concerned or irritated about something. So hear goes my latest rant....

Ok, so most of you know that I am completely out of touch with the real world and don't know much about pop culture, by choice, mind you. We don't have cable or even bunny ears for the TV. I usually get my daily dose of news on the web. I don't listen to local radio or anything. I do peruse myspace and the web a bit just to keep up with some current stuff. I'm telling you this because you need to know that I am not a reliable source of "what's hot." I get perplexed easily when it comes to things mainstream.

So, lately I've seen these advertisements for Lady Gaga, and I know that some of you have added her as a friend on one of the social networking sites or have put her songs on your profiles, so I would like to know what it is people like about her. I just don't get it.

I decided to see what the hype was all about and I listened to her songs and watched some of her videos earlier. She's kinda creepy.

No, she's real creepy...

Did I understand her lyrics correctly? Does she "want to take a ride on your disco stick?"

What the heck? Really? I suppose she'll never be known for her profundity with song titles like, "eh, eh", "Kaboom", "Shake Your Kitty" and "I Like it Rough".

I was actually disgusted and even more shocked and appalled at the videos. What a freak show. She's not selling music... I can tell ya that right now. I have to admit was a bit embarrassed for her and I felt really sorry for her. How lost....

This is why I stay as free and clear from pop music as I possibly can. It just puts me in a bad mood. I know I'm getting old when I'm asking questions like, "what is this world coming to?"

So, I'm sorry if I just bashed one of your favorite new songs or "artists", (if you can call her that). I just don't see any talent other than possibly her impressive flexibility.

But seriously, if there is something that some one really likes about her, comment back to let me know. I would truly love to hear it....

The Money Pit

2009-04-18T11:34:00.000-05:00

Today Josh and I wanted to take care of some of the stuff around out house, and all we could think about was that old movie with Tom Hanks, "Money Pit." He and his wife bought this big nice house, and it turns out that everything kept falling apart and needed repair. It's a really funny movie.

Josh and I were just joking about that a few minutes ago. Being the wonderful little handy-man that he is, Josh grabbed his wrenches and other tools and set out to fix the guest bathroom sink. We had noticed some corrosion on the pipe underneath, and we would like to repair the leaky valves. As soon as Josh put pressure to loosen the pipe, it just crumbled fell apart. It was corroded all the way through! Now, we'll have to have new pipe run under the house. I wonder how the rest of our pipes look. We might as well replace it all in the older part of the house. Sheesh!

Since we'll have to call a plumber for that, we decided to trouble shoot our air conditioner instead; also in the older part of the house. It hasn't been working for a while. We had called someone to come look at it, but that was almost a month ago and they haven't even called us or come by. The blower comes on just to re-circ the air that's already in the house, but the compressor kicks on for a few seconds only to turn right back off. No cool air. We worked on that for a while to no avail. I guess we'll have to call Villards back and tell them we need them pronto. It's been kinda hard to sleep in the heat. At least it's not summer yet. It could be way worse.

To top it off, my bathroom and our living room are still sitting halfway done. We planed to have that finished by now, but funds had to be re-routed to pay for a leaky new roof that had just been replaced before we moved in, and we had to pay good ol' Uncle Sam.

Lets see. We had to replace the dish washer, and have our entire house re-plumbed for gas due to a huge gas leak. At least we got those things repaired. We are now saving money due to gas not escaping into the back yard anymore. Come to think of it, we're saving money by not being able to run the air conditioner too. We need to have Josh's sink valves fixed also due to leakage. The list just goes on.

Oh, we had to have the ancient wiring re-done, so that we could plug in cords with a ground. None of the older part of the house was grounded at all. That's safe! We also still need to have our drooping eves and gutters repaired. My, my, how it all adds up.

I always heard that as a homeowner, the repairs would never stop. There would always be something, but we really had no idea the extent of it. We're just a little frustrated today. Everything that has needed to be done, seems to be just out of the reach of mine or Josh's expertise which is sad, since we both spent the last 8-10 years as maintenance technicians. We just fixed different kinds of equipment.

Now that all my frustrations have been laid out, I think that I should say that I'm not a bit sorry that we bought this house. I love it. I'm trying to keep in mind how it will be when we get it where most everything works. In fact, I love to see how far we've already come with it! I'd just like to have air, running water, and my two rooms where you can walk in them and not get hurt. Is it too much to ask? I know there are so many out there who do not have any of those things. Man I'm spoiled. God's really taken care of us. Even if this house falls in around us, we'll be okay. We're still blessed beyond measure.

God can do what He says He can do!

2009-03-16T14:22:00.000-05:00

So, Friday at lunch, I got a call from my mom saying that my dad was in the hospital and on a ventalator. He was not breathing on his own. After I freaked out right there in the restaurant, I went home and packed my stuff and came straight to Louisiana, where I am now typing on my parents "speedy" dial-up connection.

Let me start at the beginning...My mom has had the flu, and been sick for a while. So my dad, at the first signs of feeling crummy, went to the doctor Friday morning and got two shots. He'd had both meds before, so they gave him some prescriptions and sent him on his way. Well, he went to the local K & S drug store and noticed his palms icthing and noticed that he was having a hard time breathing. He was having a severe allergic reaction to the shots they's given him. The pharmacist asked if he was okay and needed help. The last thing my dad remembers before collapsing, was saying "something's wrong with me..." Somebody shot him up with adrenaline and they called the ambulance. My dad woke up in the hospital with a tube down his throat.

Now, those of you who know what happened several years ago to my dad when his heart stopped remember that he had a quadrouple bypass and he swore he never wanted to be on a ventalator again. Imagine waking up with that dang tube down your throat. I'm sure he was scared and thought he'd has some more heart issues. As it turns out, his heart is still doing just fine. Dr Tom had to explain to my father that this was reversable, and that if he'd needed it to sustain life, he would not have intibated him. Dad, with this tube in his throat, shook his head that he understood what was happening and decided to get better right there.

My mom and grandma had been praying over him since this happened. Meanwhile, I'm making the 10 hour drive in the rain to try and get there as fast as possible without having an accident myself. Well, dad started breathing on his own and they got to extibate him that afternoon before I even got there. I didn't get in till about midnight. I was so happy to see my dad sitting up in that hospital bed that I just started crying right there. Dad and I prayed together and I came home to see mom and grandma, who'd left to try and get a little rest.

They let my dad out the next evening (Saturday). Haleluja!

Dad was bound and determined to go to church the next morning. They regularly attend the early service which starts at 8:30am! I certainly didn't feel like getting up, but I wasn't about to deny my father his request. He just couldn't pass up the opportunity to praise God.

Now, every service there is a chance to offer up prayer requests, or you can just share your joys and praise. Before the pastor could finish his sentence asking if anyone had a joy to share, my daddy hops up out of his seat and commences to praising God for watching out for him. He mentioned that he could have had that allergic reaction anywhere, where no one would have noticed. He could have had it at home or in the car. If it had happened there, he would be dead!

Praise God for having him exactly where he was. The pharmacist had the adrenaline he needed!

Rewind a few years ago... Dad just happened to die at the hospital. He'd been fine; just went in for a check up when his heart decided to quit. They had to revive him with the paddles! God has had his hand on my father (and all of us really). I don't understand why we have to go through this junk, but it sure has increased our faith in the Father. We are all closer to Him as a result.

Some may want to say that my dad's had a run of good luck, but honey, I don't believe in luck. God's got it under control, and even if my dad hadn't lived through either one of those situations, God would still be getting praise and glory from my family. I can't express to you how awesome it's been to see my dad become even closer to the Lord through all this. His admiration and love for Christ is more than just about anyone I know. (Well, my mom's up there with him too.) I have to say thanks to them for teaching me what being a Christian really is. A follower of Christ. They truly get it, and I'm so thankful I have them as examples. I won't have them around forever, so I have to learn all I can now, and soak it up like a sponge. Thank you mom and dad, I love you more than life, and thank you Christ, without you, I'd be nothing.

almost the weekend and I'm feeling random

2009-03-05T20:06:00.000-06:00

After a long week, I finally got to take off a day and get some stuff done around the house. I spent all day doing laundry and cleaning. How do two people create so much clutter and laundry? I just don't get it.

So, I went to Amarillo for the first time ever yesterday. Josh and I had a burial service, and once that was over we went to eat at Carino's. Yummy. Anyway, I didn't really feel like shopping. I have felt fatigued lately and I just didn't want to shop. We spent about 20 min in Dillard's, we got a few things in Sam's, and then made a really quick run through Home Depot. That was fruitless. I can't seem to find the right light fixtures. I'm probably over analyzing what I want or just being too picky. So, Amarillo wasn't exactly what I thought it would be. I had dust in my eyes all day continuously followed by the faint smell of cow poo. I think I'll stick to Dallas shopping unless I have to go there. I'm really not trying to be hateful, that's just how I feel.

Anyway, I'm finally starting to feel a little more caught up and just a little bit less stressed. I still have two more assignments to complete before heading to Dallas tomorrow. I'm really excited about spending some time with my friend Tamara and her daughters. We're going to have girl's night! Dinner and lot's of talking and catching up... maybe a movie or two. Yippie! I can't wait to relax even thought I should stay home and take care of stuff here.

Josh and I are currently watching Eagle Eye and laughing all the way through so far. It's pretty funny. Who knew it was going to be a comedy? I've never been a huge believer of Big Brother. I'm not saying the government can't watch what we're doing to a certain extent, but this movie is just unbelievable. So far, they've controlled cranes, traffic lights, everything! Oh, just now they shot themselves up with some crazy experimental drug to lower their heart rates, therefore reducing their need for oxygen. Hehe. Funny stuff I tell ya. This movie actually reminds me of a mixture of the movie "The Game" with Michael Douglas, Kubrik's "2001 Space Odessy" and the book 1984. I like Shia le "what's his nuts" but this movie is just plain silly. It's almost as bad as Indiana Jones. I know, it's just an action movie, meant to be entertaining, but it's not my style.

Hope I don't sound like too much of a nay sayer tonight, but that's all I got for the evening. I think I'm gonna go do some homework and pack. Hope everyone has a good weekend. I know I plan on it.

Stressed to the max

2009-02-21T09:29:00.000-06:00

I haven't had time to blog lately. I haven't even logged in to read what others have written in a while. I feel like I'm stuck in first gear just spinning my wheels and going no where.

I used to be so good with keeping up with everything in my life. I have always been good at time management. Until now! I'm behind on my school work. I missed one quiz and was supposed to turn in an assignment last night. Well, we didn't get back from Dallas until midnight and I went to bed. So, homework still hasn't been done. I'll get points counted off for sure, if they even let me turn it in.

What the heck happened? I've been working a lot, I guess. My house is a wreck and needs to be cleaned, but I can't find time to do that, because I'm never home and when I am, I just want to sleep. I have clean folded laundry on the floor of the living room that has needed to be put away for almost a week. I'm behind on my Bible study by two days! I'm the leader of the study. Not good.

I don't have time to get to the gym anymore either so I feel huge. Pretty much, I'm feeling horrible about myself lately. Never felt like that before as much as I do now. How do people with kids do it? I can't even take care of myself and my husband so I suppose I should never procreate.

I think I have a bad habit of over committing myself which has to stop.

Ok, so I think I'm done venting for now. It's only 9:30 and I'm already stressed and off to a bad start. Maybe I'm just hormonal and this will pass. I sure hope so. I could use all the prayer I can get to make it through the weekend. Thanks for listening to my "out of normal character ranting and raving." I hate Murphy and his stupid law!

"How Now Shall We Live" - a book review by yours truly

2009-01-08T14:13:00.000-06:00

How Now Shall We Live is one of my favorite books. I have just read it for the second time and couldn't help but share about it. I hope this would encourage some to go out and buy it. So, without further ado, here is my book review....

How Now Shall We Live is one of the most brilliant and exciting books I have ever read. It accomplishes every purpose behind its writing by sparking a fire of interest and motivation deep within your heart. I found myself absorbed in every word. Charles Colson keeps the book moving forward by telling moving stories to get his point across. This is one thing that sets it apart from other books of the same nature.

Colson starts off with a great story about a man who started a prison fellowship to get you hooked. Then he proceeds to explain his purpose for the story in the next chapter. He makes some very bold, yet Biblical statements. The reader is taught why it is important to know about other worldviews. It is imperative for Christians to be able to relate to unbelievers so that we can stand our ground when debating very important worldviews. He talks about where some Christians have gone wrong in reducing our beliefs to “little more than private feelings and experience.” When we understand that our religion is much more that just beliefs; we will be able to make a great change in the course of world history.

Colson introduces three questions to ask when analyzing any worldview. This will become very important though out the rest of the book. We are to ask about Creation; “where did we come from and who are we?”, the Fall; “what has gone wrong with the world?”, and Redemption; “what can we do to fix it?” These will help us dissect any view and tell us how rational and functional they are in the world.

In the beginning, he attacks the Naturalist and Postmodernist worldview. Colson describes in convincing detail how humans were created in God’s image for His purpose. He explains how evolution is impossible and all scientific information actually points to Creationism no matter what major textbooks say. He goes on to explain how Intelligent Design works and how for many years scientist have been fudging their data to prove otherwise. However we are seeing a slow moving trend in the right direction which only proves that God will prevail in the end.

Since people are believed to be good at birth, Utopianism in various forms has been very popular yet proven over and over again to be a fallacy. It is ludicrous that these worldviews have led to no absolutes. “Tolerance has become so important that no exception is tolerated,” making it the only absolute. No matter what the worldview, there is no explanation for right and wrong, which is leading the word into a chaotic order. It has made it very difficult for our court systems to make judgments because of this. If right and wrong is a personal opinion, then judges can make up laws and change rulings to suit there own agenda’s. This is a whole different subject presented later on in the book. Colson’s story about a real Florida cult really drove the Utopian idea home and explained how things go wrong.

Socialism is derived from this Utopian ideology and the Utopian idea completely contradicts what we know to be true from personal experience. Colson explains that people are not born pure, but into sin, causing bad things to happen in this life. People continue to look for circumstances that make people bad instead of seeing it as a problem with the soul. This means there is no need for redemption. These are not new problems the world faces. There are many different worldviews that share these same twisted ideas in one way or another. The same issues we see today were seen in the Garden of Eden, which is the cause of it all: the Fall.

Colson attacks many important issues that almost every unbeliever asks. He explains why suffering happens if God loves us so much. Suffering comes from the Fall and the fact that we have free will. All of His creation was affected because of it. Since God is perfect, He made a perfect world with perfect free creatures. These perfect creatures have used their freedom to do wrong. He goes on to say that we would not be fully human if God hadn’t given us this freedom. We would be no different from any other creature. We would be just like the cogs of a machine as the Naturalists believe.

This takes care of two of our three questions; creation, and the fall. What about Redemption? Colson says that it is a logical conclusion that since God is perfect and loving that He would provide us with a way out of despair. He would even give His life and bear the punishment His creatures deserve since he is the only one who could overcome it. People naturally have a longing to believe in something and to be redeemed by something. That is why every other worldview offers both. Even if the belief is in nothing there are still a variety of products on the market aimed at meeting our “needs.” Some people believe that science is the way to salvation while others go so far as to believe that sex liberates them. There are even some strange ideas about how our genes are like little gods and they have created us. After we’ve died, our genes will live on, ever evolving. Christianity has the only answer to sin; Redemption.

Once these main three points have been made about Christianity, Colson continues on with picking apart today’s society. He warns readers about the dangers of the New Age movement and how many of its philosophies are inter-weaved into our everyday lives and our schools. He warns that it is just another “Escalator Myth,” designed to make people feel good about themselves. Society has become scarily selfish and that has caused major problems in our public and private school systems because we put more emphasis on feelings instead of academics. In the context of schools, children are never made to feel wrong. Too often we do not teach our children the difference between right and wrong and then lovingly correct them when they mess up. Other countries are outsmarting Americans in academics because of this “enlightened” idea. It is a new way of thinking and it is our duty as Christians to stand up against these false ideologies and restore God’s idea of learning.

After a story about a converted convict who went on to be a chaplain in his old prison, Colson changes gear again. He explains why it is important for Christians to scatter out and start making changes in every walk of life. Restoration to our higher calling and purpose is prominently stressed from here on out. As redeemed creatures we are free to fulfill our purpose. Colson urges us to “bring all things under the lordship of Christ.” It is important to display and apply our Christian values at work and home as well as at church. It will take Christians of all races and backgrounds to make the point of impact and feel the power of the gospel worldwide.

He goes on to say that it’s good and right for us to take the blame for our own mistakes. Today’s society is full of people who are all too quick to point a finger in any direction since there are no moral absolutes. We must be held accountable and remain humble. Most of today’s problems are a result of moral choices but most people do not want to admit this fact. Once again, it is our duty to point out false teachings and set records straight by showing that we are not tolerant of the way things are going. The story about a police officer on Brooklyn streets is a perfect example of how we can make a difference. It will take determination and involvement but it can be done.

Colson continues on with several different scenarios and real life stories that really help to instill his point of making Christianity a way of life and not just a set of rules to be followed on Sunday. He gives the reader specific people to look up to and demonstrates how one person can make a difference in every area of our lives. He talks about crime prevention and the government with fervor. He explains the broken window theory and how we can restore our neighborhoods and instill community values in them. Colson then ties in how even our workplace can and should be used for God’s purpose.

I believe one of my favorite chapters is toward the end. It is about popular culture. He compares it to junk food. A little will not hurt you but a sordid diet of it will ruin your appetite for learning about God. He even goes on to explain how it actually depraves the mind of thinking. He teaches us how to recognize anti-Christian bits of culture that sneak into our lives and how to stand against it. We can win back our culture one song and painting at a time.

With all of this said, I will definitely read this book for a third time, or until its thoughts are thoroughly engrained in my mind. In my experience as a reader, I have found it very common to disagree with at lease a few points made in this type of book. However, there was only one point that I did not completely agree with. That was one sentence which stated that Colson has been known to “bribe” his grandchildren into not watching television. I am not sure what he meant by this statement but keeping children unaware of what is going on around them could be dangerous. To be prepared and aware are the reasons Colson wrote this book. People who are sheltered and unprepared to tackle the issues of the day are the people Charles Colson wrote this book for.

I must say that this book has caused me to look at almost every aspect of my life in a different light. I view work, television, music, art and even the way I will raise my future children differently. I have a better understanding of my own religion. I think this is a book that should be used in every church across the globe for bible study groups. It really gives a challenge to society and I feel that if we each take the time and effort to stand firm, we can truly make a difference and help lead our world toward victory in Christ.

Scattered Sunday Thoughts

2009-01-04T16:13:00.000-06:00

So, I haven't been on blogger in quite a while. We've been so busy lately and when we're not busy, I don't feel like being on the computer. I just like to chill with Josh. I guess I should fill in where I left off last blog.

We had an excellent holiday. It was so nice to have both my parents and his parents together for Christmas. I hated that my parents had to go back to Louisiana. I wish they'd just suck it up and move up here. We also enjoyed watching the niece and nephew open presents. They are so cute. I love watching them with the twinkle in their eyes and excitement all over their faces. They get so worked up over each present and they are so innocent. Who knows, maybe kids are in our future, but for now we'll just keep enjoying everyone else's.

New Years Eve was pretty fun. Ryan and Marci had us and Matt over and we played Catchphrase until we started to get the same words over again. That's really a fun game, but you'd think they would have more words and phrases in the memory. I mean, you could probably fit thousands of words on what little memory that chip has, but we only played for about 4 hours and we started getting the same words again. Cheap! Seriously.

Today Josh and I went to church and Tom talked about the Apostle's Creed. He spoke about how we should not make saying that each Sunday just another liturgy, but make sure we mean it and understand what we're quoting. I've always tried to really pay attention to the words and let them come from the heart so that it's not empty worship. I've also done a few studies in the past on the Apostle's Creed, but Tom made some excellent points this morning. He talked about how in the creed it states that "we believe IN" not "we believe THAT". There is a difference between believing that God exists, but believing IN Him implies relationship and that we rely on Him.

There is a difference in "knowing" something like being able to quote churchy answers, and actually believing. I mean, I "know" God loves me and wants to help me when I'm down, but sometimes we have a hard time "believing". If we really believe then we walk in his light and really live our lives to glorify Him. True belief leads to change.

So, being Methodist is new to me. All this liturgy stuff has really been an adjustment. I'm not knocking it, but it just not how I roll. I'm used to my old non-denominational church. We said the Apostle's Creed sometimes, but not every Sunday like now. I guess that's why there are different flavors of denominations. People are different and like to worship in different ways. I think I'm starting to get used to all this liturgy a bit more. I'm growing to find more meaning in the words. God's been showing me to really step out of what's comfortable and adjust to make this new way of worship special to me. I do miss praise and worship songs though. Music is my favorite way to worship and I'm not used to the older hymns. I like them, but I still miss the other stuff. I guess it's just what one is used to.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to hearing the rest of Tom's series on the Creed. I'd like to know why the Methodists leave out one of the lines. Maybe he'll touch on that one week.

Well, that's all the randomness I have right now. I gotta get back to church. I've started helping with the youth. I love those kids. They are great and most of them have a deep desire to know Christ more. I love seeing that in them. It gives me hope for our future generations. It's getting harder and harder to be Christian, especially with the peer pressures on teens.

Dallas outings.

2008-12-18T09:59:00.001-06:00

Well, Josh and I had a full weekend and I have to say that I'm glad to be back home. It was a weekend for friends and Christmas shopping, but I can't stand not sleeping in my own bed. I actually slept more than a few hours last night. I feel like a champ today!

We went to Dallas on Friday and went out to dinner at one of Josh's fave Italian restaurants and then had a few drinks later with some friends we hadn't seen in a long time. It's always good to catch up but we stayed up late chatting and playing catchphrase for ever!

Well, on Saturday I went to the mall to get some Christmas shopping done. (notice I said "I". Josh likes shopping even less than I do.) I also spent an obscene amount of money at Mardel books and gifts. Everything was on sale! I got new CD's for just $5.99. What a deal. I think we got everyone's presents out of the way now. I think back to last year and realize that I was done Christmas shopping by Halloween. I get anxious at malls during the holiday season. People are mean and everything is so crowded. It brings out the worst in me as well. It's just not pleasant.... at all.

Sat night we watched movies at Mike and Matt's apartment until I got sleepy, then we woke up on Sunday to check into the Hyatt Regency in DFW airport for our old company's Christmas party. Josh worked there for 10 years and I worked there for 8 until we got "let go" back in June. Well, this is going to be their last Christmas party ever, because the Frenchy's that run it are closing down all the American sites and shipping jobs to Singapore. (we all know what kind of quality comes from that side of the world) When we found out they were closing the company doors, Josh and I requested that we be the first to be laid off, so it wasn't under bad circumstances. Anywho, we really had a good time with all of our old friends at the party that evening. It was kind of sad because once they had the raffle, most people left and it was really a boring party, except for our little crew of people. We kept it going for a while and hardly noticed that the place was dead. The food was great, the music was just okay, but we had fun reminiscing and dancing the night away. Good times! I love this time of year because it reminds me of what is important. Family and friends. We got to see most of the people we wanted to see while we were in Dallas, but not all of them.

We were supposed to help our friend Matt pack up a moving truck on Monday and come back to Childress on Tues, but we got iced in. Many of the roads in the metro-plex were closed down due to icy conditions so we just stayed at our good friend's Christen and Gilbert's house with their two cute little ones Monday and Tuesday night. We were so pleased that they let us stay with them out in Little Elm. It was just to unsafe to drive anywhere. It took us 3 hours just to get from Arlington to their house due to all the wreckage, so once we were there we didn't want to leave until it was safe. People in the city DO NOT know how to drive in icy weather. They just keep driving in a hurry like they always do and then wonder how the heck it happened when they wreck. Sheesh.

We are very proud to announce that our good friend Matt has moved up to Childress officially as of today. He is moving his stuff in to his new apartment right now. He has been a friend to Josh and I for years and years. I look at him like a brother, and we are so glad to have him here in town, close to us. If you see him, be sure to say hello, and take some time to get to know him. He's a great person.

Well, that pretty much sums up my busy yet fun super extra long weekend. Pretty random I know, but it's all I got right now. It's getting close to the weekend again already and I hope everyone enjoys it. Love and appreciate your family and your friends...that's an order!

Randomness...

2008-12-09T16:46:00.000-06:00

I just finished taking my final exam for my Contemporary Funeral Practices class. I got a 94. Not too shabby if I say so myself. I decided to give my brain a rest and blog for a bit before I have to put my head back in the books to study for History of Funeral Directing. Sheesh! At least I'll be done with school in roughly a year. As the semester ends, it feels as though it just started so perhaps it won't seem so long before I'm done. In fact it still feels like we just moved to Childress even though we've been here since August. Time just goes by faster each year.

Lately I've been keeping myself busy with school, remodeling our house, and working. I haven't had much life outside of those things, but I try to read everyday (besides school books). I love to read. I've been hitting the Ted Dekker books pretty hard lately. I think I've read about 9 or so books since September, but yesterday I picked up a publication sent to me by the Alliance Defense Fund. They are a group that provides legal defense to Christians. They defend cases that deal with the issues of religious freedom, the sanctity of human life, and protecting family values. The article I read had to do with a lawsuit against a school in Mount Juliet, a suburb of Nashville. The suit was filed by the "most dangerous people in America"; the dreaded ACLU.

It seems that an organization of parents were in the spotlight. The Praying Parents met at the school's cafeteria in the mornings to pray for students, teachers and many other issues that plague our world today. They would receive prayer requests from teachers and students alike and would quietly pray together while classes were being held. There is no law that keeps parent or student led ministries from praying. Prayer just can't be conducted by school personnel. Well, of course the ACLU sees things differently. They want freedom FROM religion, not freedom OF religion.

The ACLU, which has a nearly limitless supply of funding was seeking to accomplish five objectives in this suit. "One: to get rid of the National Day of Prayer, Two: to disallow "See you at the Pole" from happening on school grounds, Three: to keep the Praying Parents from meeting on school campus, Four: to change Thanksgiving completely- you could teach about Thanksgiving, but in your teaching could never mention God or prayer, which is critical to the whole historical meaning of the holiday. Five: as far as a Christmas program, it had to be entirely secular- no Christian reference whatsoever."

Miraculously, the Alliance Defense Fund, stepped in and offered free legal counsel to those involved. The school would not have had a chance otherwise. On each of these five counts, the ACLU lost! Most Christians never even knew how close we were to losing our sacred freedoms that our forefathers worked so hard to provide for us. It scares me to think that this stuff is even an issue. The Bible tells us that Christians will be persecuted and this is one of many perfect examples. After reading this and other articles like it, I have decided to donate to the ADF. This is the only way they are funded and able to provide these amazing services. They are the only ones big enough to stand up against the ACLU. I thank God there are still lawyers and people with heart to provide this kind of counsel. The ACLU wants to remove God from everything in this country and I'm not going to stand for it.

I refuse to bend when the majority of our country still professes to be Christian. I don't see how we just sit back and let the minority win us over. It's disgusting and obscene. Apathy is killing the Body of Christ! Of course God saw this coming a long time ago, which is why one of the major recurring themes in the Bible is to warn us about standing firm and "fighting the good fight". It's only going to get worse folks, so strap in, gear up, and start praying. It's the only hope we've got.

Thanksgiving!

2008-11-27T14:48:00.000-06:00

So this is my first time on blogspot. I've never really thought about blogging before but here goes nothing. I'm taking a break right now. I've been preparing foods for Thanksgiving for the past couple of days and we just finished eating. Boy am I stuffed. Why do our holidays revolve around food? Never could figure that one out, but I have to admit that I like it. It just seems odd that we slave for so long over such things. It's a good thing I enjoy cooking.

Lets see, I've baked two sweet potato pies, a huge pan of momma's cornbread dressing, fresh green beans, a sweet potato dish and some other stuff. My parents helped me out which was nice and Nita cooked the turkey at her place. I'm so thankful on this holiday to have family that love me and whom I love and appreciate very much. A few years ago my mom and I ate Thanksgiving diner at St. Luke's hospital in Houston while waiting to see if my dad would live through his quadruple by-pass surgery. His heart had stopped and he was clinically dead for a while. He spent a long time out cold in ICU. I am so grateful that he is here with me today and that he even helped me cook. I'm treasuring every moment I have with my parents.

My parents are staying at my in-laws guest house so it's been really nice to have everyone together. It's even more of a blessing that everyone gets along so well. It's like we've been family forever. I wish my parents didn't have to leave but I think they'll be back for Christmas. I'm also thankful for my husband who loves me no matter what and his parents who are just as awesome as mine. I'm also thankful for our new house, my new job, a country where I'm free to believe what I want to believe and for the soldiers who fight for those freedoms.

On that note, I think I'll head back over to my family's house now. We're going to set up some Christmas decor this afternoon! Gotta love the holidays. I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and pray that everyone is as fat and full as I am right now.