Monthly Archive for June, 2007

Gracious Goodness

Published by on June 30, 2007 in Fruit of the Spirit. 3 Comments

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness….”

Goodness is virtuous, kind, pure, generous, excellent, benevolent. It is moral excellence.

What’s the opposite of goodness? Badness.

God is abounding and overflowing in goodness.

Exodus 34:6-7a And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.

Psalm 27:13 I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Psalm 31:19 Oh, how great is Your goodness, which you have laid up for those who fear You, which You have prepared for those who trust in You in the presence of the sons of men.

Psalm 52:1b The goodness of God endures continually.

Romans 2:4 Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? Continue reading ‘Gracious Goodness’

A Little Spurgeon in the A.M.

Published by on June 29, 2007 in Practical Christian Living. 2 Comments

It is ever the Holy Spirit’s work to turn our eyes away from self to Jesus; but Satan’s work is just the opposite of this, for he is constantly trying to make us regard ourselves instead of Christ. He insuinuates, “Your sins are too great for pardon; you have no faith; you do not repent enough; you will never be able to continue to the end; you have not the joy of HIs children; you have such a wavering hold of Jeus.” All these are thoughts about self, and we shall never find comfort or assurance by looking within. But the Holy Spirit turns our eyes entirely away from self: He tells us that we are nothing, but that “Christ is all in all.” Remember, therefore, it is not thy hold of Christ that saves thee — it is Christ; it is not thy joy in Christ that saves thee — it is Christ; it is not even faith in Christ, though Continue reading ‘A Little Spurgeon in the A.M.’

Glory and Guilt

Published by on June 25, 2007 in Unmarried Sisters. 6 Comments

Married women have needs; unmarried women have needs. Little girls have needs, teenage young ladies have needs. There is no escaping it. I dare say men have needs too. God created us to be in fellowship with Him, and this is what puts us fundamentally right so that we are able and enabled to minister to one another. We are designed to live in community and God gives us the privilege of blessing one another, loving one another, forgiving one another, and living sacrificially for one another. Living in this way by the grace of God is what makes us well-adjusted or secure or whole people.Unmarried women are hungering for that close community that is only found in marriage. They can enjoy the fact that they live in community, but they want more. God has put this hunger in them and it is good by definition. The central thing I enjoyed about Debbi Maken’s book (Getting Serious About Getting Married) was the way she addressed the worldview problems in the church about marriage: mainstream evangelicalism has a nasty habit of labeling singleness as a “gift.” Now I suppose that it is a Continue reading ‘Glory and Guilt’

Unmet Needs

Published by on June 24, 2007 in Marriage. 15 Comments

Many years ago I read a book by Walter Trobisch on marriage, and I think the title was something like I Loved a Girl. I remember very well a quote of his. It went something like this: “There is not a man on earth who can satisfy the heart of a woman.” I reflected on that quite a bit, and I am pretty sure it is true, true, true. A mere man who is made of flesh and blood simply does not have the capacity to satisfy the heart of a woman. It is impossible. A woman’s heart is created by God, and it is a mysterious thing (a real piece of work). So it makes sense that only He, the Creator God, can really fill, satisfy, complete, and meet the needs of a woman’s heart. This is important for women in all stations of life to chew on.The unmarried woman must realize that even though a husband is a tremendous gift from God, she cannot expect a husband to meet her deepest needs (whatever they are). Only God can do that, and He does it whether she is married or not. Continue reading ‘Unmet Needs’

Heading Home

Published by on June 23, 2007 in From Me. 1 Comment

This is the first time I’ve tried to write in an airport, though my husband does it quite capably all the time. We’ve had a very blessed time in Virginia and then in Atlanta at the ACCS conference. It is a real pleasure to see our out-of-town friends. Quite a bit of mutual encouragement and catching up happens at these get togethers. One of the encouraging things is hearing (and seeing) what God is doing around the country. Though we can know this all the time, still, seeing it first hand is another thing. Many good folks are seeing God bless their labors in wonderful ways.
So we are headed home. It is time, and past time, to get home. Hopefully I will have something to write when I have waded through the laundry. Have a good Lord’s Day tomorrow!

Crazy Kids

Published by on June 18, 2007 in Mothering. 17 Comments

While we’ve been here in Virginia, one of the women asked me a very good question that made me ponder. She asked me what I did as a mother that made my children turn out to be so creative. First I had to think about my children in terms of that word, creative. (I had previously thought they were just crazy, but creative describes them much better.)Yes, they are a creative bunch. Bekah designs and sews clothes, paints, and no big project intimidates her (like designing and laying a mosaic kitchen floor); Nate writes wonderful stories and designs and builds things (like the third story on his house); Rachel is a decorator, floral designer, caterer, poet, and project manager. Where did all this craziness come from?
The obvious first answer is that it is all a glorious gift from God. He has given my children talents which they are eagerly using, and the best of parents can’t put in what God left out. But God uses means to nurture these gift-laden children, and I suppose that is where I came in as their mother. Though I may not have always been aware of it at the time, I can see how God used some very simple things to encourage my children along the way. Here is a quick overview.
When Bekah was in high school, she began designing clothes. I had taught her how to sew when she was little, but by high school she wanted to sew without the benefit of a pattern. I remember wondering if I was wasting money buying all that fabric, because she seldom actually wore any of her creations. But I made a deliberate decision to keep buying the fabric because I saw it as an investment in her, not in her wardrobe. She spent hours Continue reading ‘Crazy Kids’