Author: lizziejank

Washed in the Blood

By lizziejank | Filed under Christian Living

I am sure that most of you are well acquainted with the Planned Parenthood sting videos by now.  And while there are so many things that I keep meaning to write about, this subject is just so heavy right now that it seems silly to write about anything else.

So here I am again, wanting to express how deeply grateful I am for this opportunity. So thankful for the heaviness. For the angry responses we see from friends who don’t agree with us. So thankful for the mercy of this opportunity. Thankful to see other Christians emboldened to speak out. To name this wickedness for what it is , an offense against a Holy God. Read More

Tender Mercies

By lizziejank | Filed under Christian Living

In the wake of the grotesque video that just came out (you know – salad, wine, and baby parts for sale), one of the very natural and appropriate responses is to feel totally overwhelmed at the vastness of the problem. It is easy to turn from this to a lot of frantic anger at everyone – the pro-choice people for thinking this was a good idea, your Christian friend who is not wound up enough about it, politicians who maybe could do something but aren’t even trying. I wanted to take a moment though to reflect on another emotion that we need to give voice to. Gratitude. Read More

Strong Testimony, Weak Argument

By lizziejank | Filed under Uncategorized | Tags:

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When I was a little girl my Dad’s office was in the back room of Crossroads Bookstore, which was run by my Grandpa. My Grandpa was and is an avid evangelist, the bookstore was full of christian books, my Dad was a pastor, and I was generally surrounded on all sides by stories of faith and conversions. Back in those days there was also a series of books for kids that I think I read at home but also in the bookstore. They were illustrated in very pastel colors and always seemed a little sad somehow. If my memory serves me correctly, I think they heavily featured weeping willows and kids feeling lonely or angry or hurt somehow.

Well in one of these books I got to the last page and it was a conversion moment of sorts. I cannot remember the specifics, but I think it was something about Jesus being a true friend to me when I am lonely, so I will stay with him forever. I remember sitting there staring at it and thinking back to other books and testimonies I had heard. There was the one about some poor kid that was with the wise men and had no gift so he gave his heart. Then there were people I had heard who were afraid of death, who were sick of sin, who were sad, or whatever. I myself prayed officially because I was afraid of the dark – where does that fit in? Well I gathered myself up in what were probably my high-watered corduroy pants and went to find Dad. Just what does this all mean? What is the real way to become a Christian? Which one of these things is right?! Read More

Funner, Part 4, Mess Investments

By lizziejank | Filed under Uncategorized | Tags:

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Our children are in the middle of what is well and truthfully known as the “formative years.” This is the time in their lives when it is still hard to tell the difference between nature and nurture. They are learning all the important lessons about God, love,  family, life, purpose, joy , and sacrifice right now – and they will carry these things with them for life. We know this to be true! How many of us spend years trying to unlearn things that were taught to us incidentally when we were children?

Even though we know this, we think that our children will hear what we say and learn from that – and never think through what kind of belief system we are acting out for them. They learn far more from our behavior than they do from our words – and ideally those two things act as one. Read More

Give Away! Nature Friend Magazine!

By lizziejank | Filed under Uncategorized | Tags:

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The fun news today is that I have 4 subscriptions to Nature Friend Magazine give away! They are one-year subscriptions, 12 issues each. To enter the drawing, you only need to leave a comment here. You have the option of entering twice if you share it on Facebook, and come back to say so here. Otherwise, please only comment once!

I love this magazine! The subtitle is “Helping Families Explore the Wonders of God’s Creation” – and that right there is what I love. You can see how much use these see in our home by all the wrinkly covers – and apparently even our dog is attracted to them. Well, she is a bird dog after all, so maybe that makes sense.

This is the only magazine that we get for our kids, and they enjoy it so much. My mom subscribed me when I was little, and I went so far as to write a letter to the editor about my Grandma seeing bear cubs, going to great pains to use the word astonishing. Since my kids have been old enough to read, it has been a constant in our home, and there is always great rejoicing when we find one in the mailbox. So much to learn, things to draw, interesting animals to find out about, beautiful pictures – it really is a delight.

I will do the drawing next Tuesday for four different winners. Nature Friend has been so kind as to offer a coupon for our readers who don’t win but want to get the magazine all the same. You can see that info on their website, here.

They are also offering a deal right now where every subscription gets you entered in a drawing for a pair of $300 binoculars – one pair for every 50 subscriptions, so your chances of winning are pretty good! You can find out more about that on their website – when you go to sign up, which you totally should!I am sure your kids will enjoy it as much as mine!