Rachel's Reflections

Spend Time With God in Nature

2009-08-04T11:12:00.000-07:00

One great way to stay connected to our Bible is by getting out in nature and enjoying the God-breathed things that we have in our lives. It is amazing to me to think about people in Old Testament times and that many of the things in their nature we still have in ours. They looked upon skies, mountains, rivers, oceans, trees, and grasslands just as we do today.

I find the most peace when I am camping next to a lake and I can sit out under the stars and listen to the water lapping on the shore, the insects singing, and the birds chirping. I have also picked up a photography hobby and I love to shoot things in nature. It never fails that when I focus on a beautiful shot I think of God and how he shows us how awesome He is.

It is on my “to-do” list to go through my photos and to match some of them with scriptures that make me feel the same way the picture does. I did find a website that has just that, pictures of nature with scriptures included. Take a look at: http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/207135362fNqVgS if you would like to see.

Even if you are in the city and busy working take time when you are outside to look at a tree or plant and think of the nature gifts that God has given us.

Paul's Journey with biblestudyforkids.com

2009-05-06T10:49:00.000-07:00

Linda Shanks, creator and head of Biblestudyforkids.com is a wonderful lady who has created a very detailed and fun program that is designed to help a person study the travels of Paul. It is a series of lessons that can teach and strengthen people from all walks of life.

Linda has been doing this curriculum with our church. There are activities for all ages. The children have coloring and activity pages and the adults have a detailed study of the scripture accounting Paul's tales. The study also does a really good job of going through what the lands that were traveled look like and who lives there today.

The reason for the creation of this series is Linda is taking a once in a lifetime trip later this month. She is traveling with Mark Moore and Mark Scott, both with Ozark Chritian College in Joplin, Missouri, to Turkey, Greece, and Italy to see first hand where Paul traveled and spread the news of Jesus.

It is going to be a wonderful trip and Linda plans on keeping a blog and streaming some video while she is there. I invite and encourage you to visit www.biblestudyforkids.com and follow the link on the left side of the page to enter the exciting world of Paul's travels.

Good Friday

2009-04-10T09:10:00.000-07:00

This year the Easter cantata that we are singing at my church tells us in one of the pieces that, "He grew the tree that He knew would be used to make the Old Rugged Cross." What a powerful thing to think about. I don't know how many of you have children but imagine planning, before they were born, to sacrifice them when they turn 30. Now imagine 30 years before they were born planting the seed that would someday grow to be the cross your child would hang on. God's divine plan is something that we cannot ignore and His sacrifice often brings up painful emotions in us of inadequacy. It should and then we need to train ourselves to immediately turn to God with prayers of THANKSGIVING.

Picture a great chasm with the earth on one side and hell on the other. There is a bridge between the two places and Jesus is standing on the Earth side trying to get people to turn around. Every person who will get on that bridge has to push Jesus out of the way to do so. This is a perfect picture of how a person goes to hell. The gift of eternal life with Christ is free. Repent, be baptised, and spread the word. Those things may cost pride and cause self-reflection but there is no cost compared to the price that has already been paid for all of us. We just need to pray and accept the gift.

It is extremely important that we think today about the day Satan lost and Jesus won. The day that all of our repented sins were washed clean. Call on this sacrifice made for you and let it take over your thoughts.

Sunday we rejoice, Friday we mourn.

Making Connections in Behavior

2009-03-21T12:14:00.000-07:00

I am always amazed when I hear people say that they don't read and/or believe the Bible because it has no relevance to their lives. I am constantly reminded that our God is timeless when I open the Word and read through scripture. I have no problem making continuous connections to my own life.

One of the most explicit examples of this connection is in Galatians where Paul is telling us that we need to live by the Spirit. He doesn't just leave it there but gives us very specific examples of what to do AND what not to do.

Galatians 5:16-26 - NIV (http://www.biblegateway.com)

So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.

The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

Each of the things listed as fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control) are things that are involved in our daily lives. I find the line following the list incredibly relevant, "Against such things there is no law." This is completely true of our government today. Our justice system is set up to protect and promote these fruit.

Paul also gives us a specific list of the things that will keep us away from God and therefore come between ourselves and heaven. He lists: "sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like." Although there are not laws against all of these things, they are seen as incorrect and bad in our society today. Impurity and debauchery (corruption) are thing that are running rampant. I find it interesting that dissensions and factions are on this list. I had never thought about the back-stabbing and clicks that form in our adolescence and sadly, sometimes in adulthood as being something that is listed as bad in the Bible. But there they are. Jealousy and selfishness are things that every person can work on.

I could spend months discussing the relevance of each of the things (good and bad) listed in this tiny passage out of The New Testament to the lives of Christians today. Whether you are someone who feels that reading the Bible is irrelevant to your life or someone who believes in the power of the Word I challenge you to spend a little time this week with this passage.

Are you gathering fruit? Building walls between you and God?

What good things to concentrate on each day.

Give it Up to God!!

2009-03-10T12:52:00.000-07:00

Sitting in church a couple weeks ago I noticed in the announcements that the women's reading group/Bible study that I used to attend was starting a new book. It just so happens that due to some unexpected changes in my schedule that my schedule is newly free at the time that they meet. God shook me that day in church and I knew that I needed to go fellowship with these Christian women that I miss spending time with, even though my brain said, "You don't have time to add another thing."

I knew I would have a great time but what I didn't know was that it was the book that I needed to see just as much as the ladies.

The book we are studying is, "The Chosen Path of the Beatitudes" by Cliff Hulling. The book starts out with an introduction discussing that the beatitudes are not only a great list of guidelines for us to follow but a linear process that we should do in order. I had never thought about this before.

Before we start with the first, "Blessed are the poor in spirit" (Matthew 5:3), the author spends a couple chapters discussing things that can stand in the way to Christ and take our minds from where they need to be. So far we have only covered: love of the world, following bad Christian examples, and pride.

Each of these chapters has given me things to think about changing or praying about. It has also given me some fulfillment in knowing that even though I feel far away from God some days that He is with me and helping me to stand firm in my Christian life. I have only been back in this group two weeks and I know exactly why I was God-grabbed and lead to this book.

The whole moral of the story is to listen to God. He speaks when we are expecting it and more often when we are not. He leads us where we need to go even when we think we were supposed to be going in the other direction. Whether you feel certain or unsure, daily give up your life to our creator who sent his perfect sacrifice to save our souls. He will take you where you were meant to go.

Have a great day!

Nitty Gritty Bible Study by Mark Moore

2008-10-21T11:43:00.001-07:00

I began teaching the high school sunday school class at our church at the beginning of this month. They were studying Acts, which is a book that I really like, so I decicded to continue this study.

A friend of mine turned me onto an excellent professor at Ozark Christian College, Mark Moore, who has posted his lectures online (www.markmoore.org) and he has a course on Acts. Mr. Moore has so much knowledge, including interpretations of the original greek words, his lectures are incredibly interesting.

I was afraid that the high schoolers in my class would not want to listen to a college course for their sunday school lessons. Not only do they enjoy listening, they voted to start at the beginning of the study instead of picking up at chapter 8 where the teacher before me had left off. We are really enjoying this lecture series and each week I am amazed at the level of knowledge Mr. Moore has on his subject area. He makes studying the Bible fun even at a nitty gritty level. Often he will spend many minutes on one passage or even one word in the book. He goes to great length to discuss how we can be certain that Luke is the author of both Luke and Acts. Also, Moore stresses that the importance of studying this book for Americans is huge because it is the book that concerns salvation for Gentiles which most of us are.

If you have a chance, download some of these MP3 files from www.markmoore.org under resources and enjoy learning the Bible in a really in depth unique way.

Find a church that fits!

2008-10-14T08:04:00.000-07:00

For a couple years right after our daughter was born my husband and I quit going to church. My hometown church, from when I was little, had disbanded and the church that I tried next was not inviting or good for my spirit.

I knew that I would not settle for a church that didn't feel like a family, the way that the one I grew up in did. Also, it is really easy to get into the habit of sleeping in on Sunday mornings. While I was not attending anywhere I could feel the void in my life. My comfortable conversations with God happened less and less. I knew that I was not setting a good example for my husband (who did not grow up in the church)or the children. The Holy Spirit nagged at me and told me every Sunday that I needed a church.

God stepped in and took over in only the important way that He can. He used my best friend, Leah. Leah and I were very close in every aspect of our lives except for religion. She was raised Lutheran and had attended a local church in Des Moines that she and her mother had gone to since Leah was younger. She knew I was a minister's daughter and in fact, my dad had married her and her husband. She called me about the Bible only when she had questions like, "Does it really say this?" One day she recieved a letter from her church telling her that they had cancelled her membership because she had not met her giving pledge for the year. She called me in tears and we talked about how I didn't feel that was a very Christian thing to do and that no, not all churches operated like that. We sort of bonded over our personal definitions of what it means to be a Christian and what one looks for in a church.

I told her how I had been feeling that I needed to get my kids in church because it was weighing heavy on my heart that I was not making that a manditory part of their lives. We decided that we would look for a church together. We tried a few and settled on Franklin Avenue Christian Church in Des Moines. In that church body we found exactly what I was looking for, a family. Leah and I started attending just the two of us and all the kids (together there were 8 of them). Soon, our husbands (who are also best friends) began attending with us and getting involved.

That was over six years ago and now Leah's and my families are completly entrenched in the life at our church. The payoff for getting back in the regular church life is that I have great spiritual people to lean on and learn from, an extended family, prayer warriors who love to pray for me, and very importantly my children are being molded into strong Christian people. My heart almost expolded the other day when my 10 and 11 year old had to write thier definition of what it meant to be smart. They both came up with detailed descriptions of what it means to be wise in the Lord. In this day and age kids of all ages seem to have a sense of entitlement to whatever they want whenever they want it. This flies in the face of Jesus's teachings.

So today my prayer for you is that if you are not regularly attending church that you keep looking until you find one that is a fit for you. Even if you won't do it for yourself, do it for your children!

Making Connections in Differences

2008-10-07T08:44:00.000-07:00

I find it easy to get down on myself with thoughts that I am not doing enough or doing things well enough. I have a father who has been a minister and grandparents that were missionaries to Japan for 50 years and somewhat of a legend in their circles. I will sometimes find myself doubting that I made the right decisions in life because I did not follow directly in their footsteps. My path in life led me to find that I have a talent for math and statistics. I have also discovered that I have a passion and a talent for education. I am one of the rare people who get to say that they love their job. Because I enjoy what I do, does not mean that I have made a wrong choice in life. There are passages in the Bible that tell people like me that it is okay to have different talents.

1 Corinthians 12:4-6 (NIV) says:

"There are different kids of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men."

I find great comfort in this verse because it quiets the doubt that arises within me sometimes. Self doubt can be paralyzing and can cause us to go backwards or just not go anywhere at all. The Bible shows us that we all have different gifts but if we rely on the one and only Lord we can be glorifying Him in whatever we do.

So, no matter where your talents lie, take Him with you; to the office, the sports team, or the gym. Let God shine through your daily activities. Use your gifts, just make sure that you recognize who they come from!

Traveling, traveling

2008-03-12T07:34:00.000-07:00

I usually fly somewhere about once every two years and this last two weeks I spent 11 days away from home. This required 8 take-offs and landings and multiple time changes.

I have an uncle who does this kind of travel on a regular basis and I have a new appreciation for how hard it is to be living on the move. While I was gone and was getting weary I thought of how the apostles must have felt as they traveled across two continents spreading the word of Jesus's sacrifice for us and nurturing new churches.

I was interested to find that in the book of Acts alone the word travel or some form of it appears 15 times. There was a bunch of traveling going on back then and to think that they did it on foot or on animals just blows my mind. It was a lot easier to perservere through my weak times on the road knowing that I had it really easy compared to those who started Christianity that lives on in my time today.

I encourage you to reflect on what is making you weary this week and look for strength in the Word. The Holy Spirit gives me peace when I turn to the right sources for this strength. God is so good1!!

(This is really my post from last week as I am a little behind getting things typed up.)

Cabin Fever in Your Christian Life

2008-02-13T11:26:00.000-08:00

At this time in the year (especially after a long hard winter) it is easy to tell that the lack of fresh air is getting to most living things. My plants are all frozen and covered in snow (if they are outside) and droopy and sad-looking if they are inside. My dogs have begun trying to dig holes in the wood floors and have become experts at sighing. My cats meow to go out and then come right back in meowing even more and I am convinced that they are complaining to me about how beautiful the sun looks and how it is just a mirage that it looks warm outside. My children can't go five minutes without arguing with each other and they have started finding outside activities (like basketball) that they try to do indoors. Not to mention the fact that all of the inside activities are getting worn out because there have been so many days, weeks, and months that they have been stranded inside for most of the time. In Iowa we call this cabin fever. Keeping a good attitude in these times every year requires endurance.

This same type of endurance is required in our Christian walk. I am struck by how many times the authors of the New Testament scriptures mention this. In fact, I find it to be the major theme in 2 Timothy. The list goes on and on but I am going to give the ones that keep me moving. Since there are so many I encourage you to jot them down and use them for motivation and meditation as you are working on your own walk with Christ.

Luke 21:19
1 Cor. 10:13
2 Cor. 1:6, 6:4-10
1 Peter 2:20
2 Timothy 2:11-13, 3:10-14, 4:5
2 Thess. 1:4-7
James 1:2-4
Revelation 2:3

Just like finding ways to squash the feeling of cabin fever in my home helps everyone survive long winters, studying the scriptures, learing more about our Lord, and enduring through the hard times with a Christ-like attitude will strengthen us in Christ and make our walk worth while.

This week my favorite verse from above is this:

"Here is a trustworthy saying:

If we died with him,
we will also live with him;
if we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will disown us;
if we are faithless,
he will remain faithful,
for he cannot disown himself."

2 Timothy 2:11-13

Take this little ditty, stick it in your heart and let its words strengthen you and help you stay away from getting cabin fever in your Christian life!!

God Bless

"Mom, You Have Wrinkles"

2008-02-11T10:30:00.000-08:00

One thing about stressing honesty with your children is that you will get it in the good times and the bad. I can count on my kids to tell me the absolute truth about my weight, my looks, and yes, even my skin.

The other day my youngest was sitting on my lap putting in my earings when she looked at my face, got a puzzled look on her face and said, "Mom, you have wrinkles."
I am just over thirty so this is a new one for me. I knew they were there but I am more used to dealing with the fat issue not the wrinkles issue. Usually, I don't mind getting older because there is an element of respect that comes with age but the whole body falling apart thing bothers me. I want to live to see 100 so I think it's only right that I should not have to show signs of wear and tear until I am at least 50, right? Hah!!

As it turns out people in Jesus's time had these same issues and there is a passage that helps me deal with this aging body. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 says, "Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

How perfect is that? So, put this little ditty in your scripture arsenal and the next time your friend offers to take you to get your mustache waxed you can whip it out and say, "Maybe next time."

Have a wonderful week!!

You Can't See With Your Eyes Shut - Part Three

2008-01-30T10:55:00.000-08:00

**adapted from a sermon by Chad Whitmore (minister of Franklin Avenue Christian Church, Des Moines, Iowa).

Motivating scripture: Ephesians 1:18-19 NIV
"I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength,"

Introduction

As Christians our actions in our relationship with God are often done out of "habituation." This means that we get caught up in the motions of things and want them to be the same as they have always been. We want to go to the same kind of church service, we listen to the same type of sermons, we pray the same prayer at the same time every day and not many other times, just to name a few. We usually have no problem with accepting that God is all powerful but do we think enough about how God feels about us? For me, this was one of those slight changes in thinking that was really profound to me because I realized I didn't often think of how God truly feels about me and what gifts I have from him that make me special.

This week I would like you to think about the POWER of God.

Our God is omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent. Omniscient means "all-knowing" and I think that this is the most common description of God's power. Omnipresent means "ever-present" in all ways. Omnipotent means "all-powerful" or that He can do ANYTHING. He spoke the earth into existence, healed many illnesses including those that still have no cure, made a virgin pregnant, and raised the dead. There are countless current stories about the miracles that are still happening through prayer and Christian intervention.

This power is the driving force behind the first two of hope and worth. Because God is so powerful we can stand firm in our faith and continue to better ourselves through Christ.

Two thousand years ago Paul wrote to the Christians in Ephesus and gave great emphasis to this point. They, just like us today, had forgotten about this great power and that it was in God that we can take refuge.

This is the point that I think falls the most under the "habituation" category for us. We blindly accept that God is "all-powerful" and we go on about our business. The Bible tells us that we are to focus on this fact and that it should be one of the bases for our faith.

I pray that you all can find comfort in the fact that there is no problem too big for God to take care of. I have seen it in my life and I know that if you pray and watch you will see it too!!!

Have a great week!

You Can't See With Your Eyes Shut - Part Two

2008-01-23T12:46:00.001-08:00

**adapted from a sermon by Chad Whitmore (minister of Franklin Avenue Christian Church, Des Moines, Iowa).

Motivating scripture: Ephesians 1:18-19 NIV
"I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the workin gof his mighty strength,"

Introduction

As Christians our actions in our relationship with God are often done out of "habituation." This means that we get caught up in the motions of things and want them to be the same as they have always been. We want to go to the same kind of church service, we listen to the same type of sermons, we pray the same prayer at the same time every day and not many other times, just to name a few. We usually have no problem with accepting that God is all powerful but do we think enough about how God feels about us? For me, this was one of those slight changes in thinking that was really profound to me because I realized I didn't often think of how God truly feels about me and what gifts I have from him that make me special.

This week I want you to think about the WORTH that we have to our God.

I believe that so much of our lives are spent thinking about what God is to us that we don't take the time to think about the relationship the other direction. What are we to God? You are WORTH something to God. Not just something but you are something precious to God. That is hard to swallow for me but that is something that we need to focus on for us to really understand our realationship with God. We, Christians, are God's inheritance. He wants us to come to Him. He formed us to have a special relationship with Him. He wants ALL who can to know Him. He will not send Jesus to us until there is not one more heart to be turned.

Luke 12:6-7 tell us that He remembers each of our sorrows and he cares so much about us that he counts the hairs on our heads. This caring that God does for us goes beyond how I feel for my children and how my parents felt for me. Again, this doesn't sit easy with me. How can anyone love me more than my parents or more than I love my children? It seems impossible. But that's where God trumps everything. He makes the impossible possible. He loves you more than you can imagine.

Matthew 13:45-46 also illustrates how God feels for us. In that scripture we see that God gave up everything for us. He sent us Jesus his only son to do what no other man has been able to do or will ever be able to do again, be the perfect sacrifice for all who believe. Jesus was sinless and blameless and was slaughtered for the sake of all mankind. That really hits me at a part in my heart that is hard for me to look at because I always struggle with the thought of giving up a child. The thought of losing one of my own is enough to almost give me physical pain. My heart goes out to those who have lost a child and I pray I never have to experience that. But could one give up their child even as a sacrifice to save another? God did that for me and all others. That is so huge my mind has trouble grasping it.

This subject never ceases to amaze me. While I do believe that I am worth something priceless to God it seems that it is not often a part of my thoughts. I don't really see a reason why we shouldn't think on it every day. What a great reminder of what we are doing here!

My prayer this week is that you rely on the fact that you are worth something great to God to give you peace and feelings of self worth.

If you don't know the Lord all you have to do is pray and ask Him into your life. That is what He is waiting and longing for.

Have a wonderful week!!

You Can't See With Your Eyes Shut - Part One

2008-01-16T11:19:00.000-08:00

**adapted from a sermon by Chad Whitmore (minister of Franklin Avenue Christian Church, Des Moines, Iowa).

Motivating scripture: Ephesians 1:18-19 NIV
"I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the workin gof his mighty strength,"

Introduction

As Christians our actions in our relationship with God are often done out of "habituation." This means that we get caught up in the motions of things and want them to be the same as they have always been. We want to go to the same kind of church service, we listen to the same type of sermons, we pray the same prayer at the same time every day and not many other times, just to name a few. We usually have no problem with accepting that God is all powerful but do we think enough about how God feels about us? For me, this was one of those slight changes in thinking that was really profound to me because I realized I didn't often think of how God truly feels about me and what gifts I have from him that make me special.

Today I want you to think about the HOPE that we get from God.

This HOPE is that we, as Christians, have the promise of a life beyond this life which means that this is not all there is. A major part of our Christian beliefs is that heaven awaits those who truly believe that Jesus died on the cross as a sacrifice for your sins. We should then live our lives with that on our heart. We have a hard time believing that we are important enough for an innocent man to die for our sins but that is exactly the wrong way to think. If we were important enough to God why can we not be important to ourselves? We need to take ownership of this hope as if it is our home or our car with our name on the title.

Titus 3:4-7 says that through Jesus we have the hope of eternal life.

1 Timothy 4:10 tells us that the we should labor and strive for full acceptance of the message and for hope. The word labor is included because it is hard work to make this a cornerstone in our lives.

Titus 1:1-2 tells us that this hope has been around since the beginning of time. God planned for this to be an asset to us.

1 Peter 1:3-4 reminds us that we are given a living hope through Jesus Christ. One that gets stronger and never dies.

Put up sticky notes on your mirror, front door, or office computer if you have to but please lets try to make a conscious effort to think of this wonderful gift of hope that was given to us by God through belief in his one and only son who He sacrificed to save us.

Go with God and remember how important you are to HIM!!!

Back to Start the New Year!!!

2008-01-16T10:16:00.000-08:00

I have had a crazy last couple months and when things are so crazy it effects how I think, act and write. I have needed a little time off from everything to just repair my soul. God is great and has brought my family through another amazing year!!

I have been preparring a series of three posts that I will be composing entitled "You Can't See With Your Eyes Shut!!" This is a sermon that I heard from my minister, Chad Whitmore, at Franklin Avenue Christian Church in Des Moines, Iowa that really spoke to me. He had adapted his sermon from a speaker at the 2007 Iowa Christian Convention, to give credit where credit is due.

I will be posting the first of this series today.

I thank you for spending time reading my thoughts on God.

Thoughts to Ponder

2007-10-24T10:14:00.000-07:00

This post is going to be short on text because I have a couple things that I have found bring me closer to God when I think about them on a regular basis. Try it out and see what you think!

1. Everything we've done in the past shapes the Christian that we are today.

2. There isn't ONE thing in your past that God cannot use to make you a better Christian.

He wants us to repent and start over no matter how terrible we have been. You are putting limits on God if you think that He cannot use you!

Are you consistently giving your past to the Lord? Or are you putting them in your worldly closet and keeping them hidden?

Be Still

2007-10-16T20:45:00.000-07:00

One of my firm beliefs about life as a Christian is that my walk HAS TO BE a daily renewal of a commitment to be more Christ-like. I try to consistently remind myself that I may do a better job at some things than I did in the past but in no way shape or form am I ever close to achieving the level where I can quit trying to be a better, more Christ-like person.

I found a verse in my night Bible readings that really threw this in my face.

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 says:

“Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.”

There are so many Christian women I know, including myself that have serious issues in these areas. I often think, “Wow, that woman is addicted to drama.” I’ve always thought that this was not a good way to be, but I had no idea that it was addressed this specifically in scripture.

Lead a quiet life and mind your own business is just as relevant today as it was back then. We need no extra visualization to tie this to our own lives. Women must have been gossipy beings ready to spew any information they had about anyone that people may want to hear even back two thousand years ago! I like to talk and so sometimes I find myself talking about other people. I am praying about and trying to train myself to be aware when these conversations go beyond what I would be comfortable discussing in front of the person in question AND my grandmother. Just prayer for awareness has started to change. Gossip feels different when you are conscious of the fact you are directed to stay away from it in this passage and others in the Bible.

Work with your hands can mean be productive, you can say that you are valuable until the cows come home but until you earn the respect of your peers in any situation you will not truly be independent or have the appreciation that you want and deserve.

My prayer for you this week is that you take this verse to heart and actively think about times when Jesus would tell you, “Be still.” Be it your mouth or your mind, I hope you are thinking daily about how you can be a better Christian.

Keep storing gifts for yourself in heaven sisters and brothers, and we will celebrate together some day!

Creation in Action

2007-10-03T20:48:00.000-07:00

I want to dedicate as many posts as I can to my personal experiences with our products. As the education director I feel that it is my duty to try out the material that I put in the product. One main goal that we have for BSFK is to give new ways to teach and to have ways that the children can teach themselves.

I wanted my Sunday school class to experience all that goes into preparing a good lesson. They are 4th to 6th graders and can all read. We are blessed to have been able to scrape together enough archaic equipment to have a computer lab in our church. I had eight regulars in my class so I put them in groups of two and had one group for each of the weeks’ lesson.

I did the activity over a whole quarter (three months) so that saved the church money on educational resources and allowed me to have the students complete many tasks.

The tasks that I had each group complete were:
• Making a task list
• Choosing their lesson material from the teachers guide
• Typing up a script
• Photocopying their activities and worksheets
• Teaching one week’s lesson

Task List
The first week we had a guided discussion of what pieces there are to a lesson each week and how a teacher has to plan for those things. I took notes as we discussed and at the end of the lesson we had a good list of tasks for them to complete before their presentation days.

Lesson Material from Teacher’s Guide
The teacher’s guide has more information than they could cover in one lesson’s time so I had them choose what they were going to cover and who was going to cover it. Some of the groups typed their script right out of the material while others chose to hand write a list of what they were going to say and type from that.

Typing up the Script
I didn’t feel that my students would be able to present from just an outline, so I had them type a full script. I showed them how to put the name first followed by a colon and then what they would say after that. An example is below:

Sarah: God said, “Let there be light”

Ian: We know light as coming from the sun but this was God’s light. The sun had not been created yet.

It took them several weeks to get this done. Some of the groups finished before the others so I let those students explore some of the suggested activities in the teacher’s guide.

Photocopying Activities and Worksheets
This was the last step before they presented. They had to make enough copies for the class and a key for each of the presenters/teachers. They all thought it was neat to get to go to the office and use the copier.

Teaching
I brought my laptop each week for their presentation. We used the manual advance version of the Creation lesson. One of the presenters advanced the slides and the other held the script. They were a little slow because I didn’t have a good rehearsal week. That would be something that I would do differently next time.

The kids had a great time with this unit. They learned a lot about their content area and also that there is a lot that goes into presenting a lesson. When they were getting weary I reminded them that their Sunday school teachers had to do this every week and that their school teachers had to do it five times a week!

This was a wonderful experience for the students and I both. We all really enjoyed the new approach to Sunday school. They had to do a lot of problem solving and collaborating. I also feel that the more presenting children do at a young age the better they will do at speaking when they are adults.

This week’s reflection verse is 1 Samuel 12:23. It says, “As for me, far be it for me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right.”

This is how we should feel about any of the children whose lives we touch by teaching them. It touched my heart and sums up how I feel about all of you educators who take the time to read my reflections and visit our site!

No Wrong Place to Teach

2007-09-26T10:23:00.000-07:00

When I think about having a Bible study with my children my first reaction is always that we will never find time when we are all there to do this on a regular basis. Well, a verse in Deuteronomy has inspired me to think outside the planner.

In Deuteronomy Chapter 11, Moses is telling his people how to faithfully obey the commandments of the Lord. Verse 19 (NIV) says, "Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."

Wow, I am always amazed at how suitable the Bible is for people in any time. What other book is so timeless? There is none. Sure we now drive along the road but as for the rest there isn't anything that doesn't directly apply to our lives.

The challenge that I made for myself and that may be relevant in your life is this, I want to use the times of day that are usually considered for getting ready or getting to someplace to teach the word of the Lord to my family.

Here are some easy ways that this can be done (even while your hands are full!!)

Listen to the Bible on tape or CD in the car.
Have your children who can read, read to the rest of the family from the Bible.
Make memory verse flash cards for yourself and your children and practice them in the car.
Instead of reading library or school books before bed time pull out the Bible and tell a story from there.
Sing your favorite worship songs as you get ready for your day or ready for bed.

These are just a few!!

There is no wrong place to teach the Word to your family. I pray that God interrupt my thoughts with ideas to better serve Him. Thinking about and talking to God are the only activities that will never make your schedule unbearable. No matter how busy I am it all seems easier to cope with if I have more God in my thoughts.

With God NOTHING is impossible!

Making Bible Connections with Your Kids!!

2007-09-19T11:47:00.001-07:00

One of the jobs of a Christian parent is to build strong biblical foundations in our children. This can be made fun if you handle your Bible stories correctly. I propose setting a set Bible Study time for you and your children. Then your job as teacher-parent is to find ways to make connections with your children so that this will be a time that they look forward to as much as watching television or playing video games. Let’s face it, if your schedule is anything like mine your children are probably dying for some one-on-one attention.

There are multiple stories in the Bible that you could use to excite the minds of the youth. The Bible is not lacking in mystery and adventure, friendship and love, all things that my children look for in a good story. If making connections from Bible stories to kids of today is not easy for you, then I have a couple examples below to help you.

Sampson – Super hero. He had super-human strength, power given to him by God.

Jeremiah – Super hero. He was able to prophesy, what kid doesn’t like stories about seeing the future!

Noah – The story of Noah is one that is familiar to many kids, but if you put a peer pressure swing on things it can make them think of it like never before. Have you ever thought about the pressure he must have felt from those around him? Perseverance through peer pressure is never a bad lesson!

Esther – In America we still have few women in power. This is one huge similarity that we have to people in the Bible. Esther was a strong woman of God who was also in power. She makes for a great Bible story for children.

Paul – One man who turned his life away from evil and took on a whole continent of people to spread the word of God. What more empowering adventure do you want!

Alright now, having the stories is only half the battle. As the designer of your own Bible study you have to do a little more than read the stories and tell the kids it relates to them. Here are some pointers on how to make your lessons give the message that you want. Remember: Only you know your children and their experiences in the most personal way!

Be prepared. (Study the story and pray about its message. Do this ahead of time.)
Make connections. (Be thinking of how the story pertains to your life experiences and those of your children.)
Take notes. (We have so many ideas that we forget if they aren’t written down.)
Ask questions. (Have prepared thought provoking questions so that you can have a feeling for how effective your story was in connecting to your children.)

With these few ideas you can be well on your way to providing a rich environment of learning from the Bible that your kids will never forget!

A Bright Thought for a Bad Day at Work!

2007-09-12T11:09:00.001-07:00

I don’t know too many people who can say that they love their job. On the other hand, I can think of many who say that they hate their’s. I too have had jobs that I despised but am now at a fortunate time in my life where I am doing a job that I love, teaching and learning. Praise God! Through a long process God has shown me that this is where my gifts are and also where my heart lies.

I have had many jobs in the past, as I always find myself working at least three of them at time, so I have had hundreds of co-workers. Some people are unhappy 90% of the time and others, although in my experience very few, are content 90% of the time even if the task at hand is unpleasant. I lie somewhere in the middle of these. I am cheery and fun most of the time but I have a fiery temper so once it’s flared up I must admit that I can be one of those unhappy people too.

Well, for those of you that suffer from any sort of dislike or bad attitude at work, have I got the passage for you (and me!).

Colossians 3:23-25 (NIV) says:
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism.”

This passage gives me peace. The next time I let a manager, co-worker, or boss start pushing my buttons I am going to try and remember that God is my real boss. If the person is doing something wrong it’s not up to me to get mad about it. As long as I am trying to be more Christ-like every day the awful things that humans can do to mess up interactions at work won’t bother me so much.

Having a fiery temper, I like to find thoughts, ideas, and processes that I can train myself to use to defuse my anger when it flares. Breathing is all good but you have to calm down first. If I use tools like the one that Paul gives us in his letter I will not only help myself in the workplace but also help secure an extraordinarily lovely place for myself in heaven! It doesn’t get any better than that!

Let's Get Finished!

2007-09-05T09:57:00.000-07:00

If you are at all like me, you can start a million projects but getting any one of them finished is a chore. Unfortunately, I still haven't found a job where that is a quality that they look for so, instead I have to pray. Pray that I can finish things.

Sitting here at my friend's house today I see that she must have the same thoughts because taped to the side of the computer is a sign listing 2 Cor. 8:11-12:

"Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means. For if willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have."

Paul is telling us here that we are to finish with the vigor with which we started. If you are willing to work it all the way through you will be judged on your work, not what someone thought you would do.

Sitting here at my computer I pray for the strength and willpower to finish my assignments and projects with the willingness with which I started them.

The Lord is Good!!

Have a wonderful week!