..The story of the Titanic has incredibly close parallels to the biblical plan of salvation. Just as the great pleasure ship struck an iceberg and sank, this great world - with all its inhabitants - is slowly sinking into the cold grip of death. As with the Titanic, where only those passengers who believed that they were in impending danger looked to the lifeboats, so only those who believe that they are in mortal danger will look to the Lifeboat of the Savior, Jesus Christ. The great "iceberg" that will take the world to an icy grave is the Moral Law - the Ten Commandments.
..Here is the evidence that we are sinking: Jesus said that if we look with lust, we commit adultery in our heart. No one who has had sex out of marriage, or any liar, or any thief will enter into heaven. The Bible says that if we hate someone, we are guilty of murder. We fail to put God first. We make a god in our image. We break all the Commandments. If we stay with the "ship" we will perish on the Day of Judgment, when all of our sins come out as evidence of our guilt. God, however, is rich in mercy and doesn't want anyone to go to hell. He made a way for us to be saved, Jesus Christ, the One whom the Bible calls the "Captain of our salvation," gave His life so that we could have a place in the lifeboat. He took our punishment upon Himself, suffering on the cross for us. We broke God's Law, but He paid our fine. Then He rose from the dead, defeating death. The moment we repent and trust in Him alone for our eternal salvation, God will forgive us and grant us the gift of eternal life.
..Don't hesitate. You may wait until it's too late! It was reported that some of the lifeboats that left the Titanic early were only half full. Many more on board could have been saved, but they refused to believe that the great "unsinkable" ship was sinking. They perished because their faith was misguided. Don't be like them. Believe the gospel. Repent and trust Jesus Christ today and God will never let you down. *
Isn't it just so amazing that we don't have to go down with the ship? We have a lifeboat in the Lord, Jesus Christ. How blessed we are, that He would reach out His hand to us, take our hand, and lead us to safety. I cannot think of anyone else that I would rather trust in and lean on in my life.
My heart aches for the millions of people in this world that do not know the forgiveness that is available through Jesus Christ. Thinking of those who are swept into hell by the cold, cruel hand of death, discovering to their horror, the darkness, the torment, the eternal damnation. How can our hearts not cry out in agony for these lost souls? How can we sit by and let souls slip into this everlasting punishment? Whatever we are doing to tell others about Christ, is it enough? With all He has to offer, how can we not be singing His praises to all that we meet?
"Each person we meet on a daily basis who does not know Christ is hell-bound. That may make some folks bristle - but it's a fact. When we refuse to warn people that their actions and lifestyles have eternal consequences, we're not doing them any favors. If everybody feels good about his or her sin, why would anyone repent?" by Franklin Graham
*quoted from the SBE
Monday, November 06, 2006
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
As Little Children
My friend, I stand in judgment now,
And feel that you're to blame somehow.
On earth I walked with you by day,
And never did you show the way.
You knew the Savior in truth and glory,
But never did you tell the story.
My knowledge then was very dim.
You could have led me safe to Him.
Though we lived together, here on earth,
You never told me of the second birth.
And now I stand before eternal hell,
Because of heaven's glory you did not tell
~~Anonymous~~
Today in school we have been discussing how important it is to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and why Peter left his job as a fisherman and followed Jesus. As Ian put it, "I think Peter did the right thing. People need to know about our Savior, and they need to know the Word of God" Such smart words from such a young person.
And said "Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven" Matthew 18:3
And feel that you're to blame somehow.
On earth I walked with you by day,
And never did you show the way.
You knew the Savior in truth and glory,
But never did you tell the story.
My knowledge then was very dim.
You could have led me safe to Him.
Though we lived together, here on earth,
You never told me of the second birth.
And now I stand before eternal hell,
Because of heaven's glory you did not tell
~~Anonymous~~
Today in school we have been discussing how important it is to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and why Peter left his job as a fisherman and followed Jesus. As Ian put it, "I think Peter did the right thing. People need to know about our Savior, and they need to know the Word of God" Such smart words from such a young person.
And said "Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven" Matthew 18:3
Monday, October 30, 2006
Take Us The Foxes...
“Take us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines.”
Song of Solomon 2:15
A little thorn may cause much suffering. A little cloud may hide the sun. Little foxes spoil the vines; and little sins do mischief to the tender heart. These little sins burrow in the soul, and make it so full of that which is hateful to Christ, that he will hold no comfortable fellowship and communion with us. A great sin cannot destroy a Christian, but a little sin can make him miserable. Jesus will not walk with his people unless they drive out every known sin. He says, “If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love, even as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.” Some Christians very seldom enjoy their Saviour’s presence. How is this? Surely it must be an affliction for a tender child to be separated from his father. Art thou a child of God, and yet satisfied to go on without seeing thy Father’s face? What! thou the spouse of Christ, and yet content without his company! Surely, thou hast fallen into a sad state, for the chaste spouse of Christ mourns like a dove without her mate, when he has left her. Ask, then, the question, what has driven Christ from thee? He hides his face behind the wall of thy sins. That wall may be built up of little pebbles, as easily as of great stones. The sea is made of drops; the rocks are made of grains: and the sea which divides thee from Christ may be filled with the drops of thy little sins; and the rock which has well nigh wrecked thy barque, may have been made by the daily working of the coral insects of thy little sins. If thou wouldst live with Christ, and walk with Christ, and see Christ, and have fellowship with Christ, take heed of “the little foxes that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes.” Jesus invites you to go with him and take them. He will surely, like Samson, take the foxes at once and easily. Go with him to the hunting.
The previous was, I believe, a message from Charles Spurgeon.
After reading the above message I started thinking about all the "little" sins in our lives. Our "pet sins" Whether it is something like making something else our god, like our jobs, or coveting our neighbor's new car, or telling 'little white lies'. All of our sins, no matter how small we think they are, are still sins. They still seperate us from a perfect GOD, and we are just so incredibly blessed to have access to HIM, all through the incredible love of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
"For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God" John 3:17-18
"And this is the condemnation, 'that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than the light, because their deeds were evil" John 3:19
Song of Solomon 2:15
A little thorn may cause much suffering. A little cloud may hide the sun. Little foxes spoil the vines; and little sins do mischief to the tender heart. These little sins burrow in the soul, and make it so full of that which is hateful to Christ, that he will hold no comfortable fellowship and communion with us. A great sin cannot destroy a Christian, but a little sin can make him miserable. Jesus will not walk with his people unless they drive out every known sin. He says, “If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love, even as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.” Some Christians very seldom enjoy their Saviour’s presence. How is this? Surely it must be an affliction for a tender child to be separated from his father. Art thou a child of God, and yet satisfied to go on without seeing thy Father’s face? What! thou the spouse of Christ, and yet content without his company! Surely, thou hast fallen into a sad state, for the chaste spouse of Christ mourns like a dove without her mate, when he has left her. Ask, then, the question, what has driven Christ from thee? He hides his face behind the wall of thy sins. That wall may be built up of little pebbles, as easily as of great stones. The sea is made of drops; the rocks are made of grains: and the sea which divides thee from Christ may be filled with the drops of thy little sins; and the rock which has well nigh wrecked thy barque, may have been made by the daily working of the coral insects of thy little sins. If thou wouldst live with Christ, and walk with Christ, and see Christ, and have fellowship with Christ, take heed of “the little foxes that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes.” Jesus invites you to go with him and take them. He will surely, like Samson, take the foxes at once and easily. Go with him to the hunting.
The previous was, I believe, a message from Charles Spurgeon.
After reading the above message I started thinking about all the "little" sins in our lives. Our "pet sins" Whether it is something like making something else our god, like our jobs, or coveting our neighbor's new car, or telling 'little white lies'. All of our sins, no matter how small we think they are, are still sins. They still seperate us from a perfect GOD, and we are just so incredibly blessed to have access to HIM, all through the incredible love of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
"For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God" John 3:17-18
"And this is the condemnation, 'that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than the light, because their deeds were evil" John 3:19
Commitment
Yesterday I was asked by 3 mothers (two of them homeschoolers) why I had decided to homeschool. Personally, we made this decision for two main reasons, the first being a religous conviction, the second based on the public school environment.
Even though we feel led by God to educate our children at home, there are days when I feel like I have been tapped dry and just cannot get motivated to do one more assignment. So, then why do I continue? Wouldn't it be easier to just put them in the local school and let someone else take over? Those are the questions I ask myself. Then God calms my heart and reminds me that these are my children. They are my gift from my heavenly Father. They are mine, and I am completely and totally commited to them.
As a family, we must have a commitment, to our family members, to our values and beliefs and we must have a commitment to our children’s future. When we began home schooling we made a commitment to our children’s future. We decided that we would take this massive responsibility into our own hands and educate our children in the way we felt we were being led to teach them. We did not enter into this commitment lightly and it shows in the fact that we have been doing this for several years now. Commitment is a pledge to do something. I made a commitment to Jim when I married him. I made a commitment to my children when they were conceived. I made a commitment to follow Christ when I became a Christian. As a family, we are committed to one another. We have made both verbal and silent pledges to each other. We, as parents, are committed to the teaching of our children. Not just school-based teaching, but to teaching them how to live their lives in a godly manner. We are committed to teaching them biblical truths, morals, values, and how to relate with others, just to name a few.
We are commited to providing our children with a Bible-based education. We are commited to teaching them at home, because no other teacher they could have will love them, cherish them, or be more concerned about the adults they will become than the 2 parents that God gave them.
"And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up" Dueteronomy 6:7
Even though we feel led by God to educate our children at home, there are days when I feel like I have been tapped dry and just cannot get motivated to do one more assignment. So, then why do I continue? Wouldn't it be easier to just put them in the local school and let someone else take over? Those are the questions I ask myself. Then God calms my heart and reminds me that these are my children. They are my gift from my heavenly Father. They are mine, and I am completely and totally commited to them.
As a family, we must have a commitment, to our family members, to our values and beliefs and we must have a commitment to our children’s future. When we began home schooling we made a commitment to our children’s future. We decided that we would take this massive responsibility into our own hands and educate our children in the way we felt we were being led to teach them. We did not enter into this commitment lightly and it shows in the fact that we have been doing this for several years now. Commitment is a pledge to do something. I made a commitment to Jim when I married him. I made a commitment to my children when they were conceived. I made a commitment to follow Christ when I became a Christian. As a family, we are committed to one another. We have made both verbal and silent pledges to each other. We, as parents, are committed to the teaching of our children. Not just school-based teaching, but to teaching them how to live their lives in a godly manner. We are committed to teaching them biblical truths, morals, values, and how to relate with others, just to name a few.
We are commited to providing our children with a Bible-based education. We are commited to teaching them at home, because no other teacher they could have will love them, cherish them, or be more concerned about the adults they will become than the 2 parents that God gave them.
"And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up" Dueteronomy 6:7
Saturday, September 09, 2006
School Days
We started our new curriculum this week. The first day left a very bad taste in my mouth. After spending 2+ hrs. on the phone with tech support I was finally able to get it all installed. The first day we used the curriculum it took us nearly 9 hrs to get all 3 boys through the courses. Needless to say, that wasn't going to work. We had to come up with a new way to make it work, before I started having serious regrets in our purchase. We have now worked out a new system and I think this will be such a great experience for the boys this year.
My boys, Jim and grandpa are away on a camping trip now and will be gone until the 13th of Sept. Although I miss them, I think it's just so cool that they get to go camping in the U.P. (that's waaaay northern Michigan for those of you that aren't from here) Ryan has an interest in hunting and received a bear license this year, apparently they are kind of hard to come by and you have to be on a waiting list to even get one. However, since he applied for a youth license and he could actually take the time off to go, he was thrilled when the DNR actually called him to tell him he had received it. While Ry is hunting, the others get to enjoy camping, fishing and all that fun stuff one last time before it gets too cold.
God has answered another prayer, so now we need more prayers. My brother, Michael, was just invited to a conference for possibly joining the mission board. I can't believe my little brother is going to be traveling overseas in just a few short months and will have the honor of telling other nations about our Lord Jesus Christ. This is just such a wonderful blessing, and he will be such an amazing witness for Christ.
"First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers; Making request, if by any means at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you." Romans 1:8-10
My boys, Jim and grandpa are away on a camping trip now and will be gone until the 13th of Sept. Although I miss them, I think it's just so cool that they get to go camping in the U.P. (that's waaaay northern Michigan for those of you that aren't from here) Ryan has an interest in hunting and received a bear license this year, apparently they are kind of hard to come by and you have to be on a waiting list to even get one. However, since he applied for a youth license and he could actually take the time off to go, he was thrilled when the DNR actually called him to tell him he had received it. While Ry is hunting, the others get to enjoy camping, fishing and all that fun stuff one last time before it gets too cold.
God has answered another prayer, so now we need more prayers. My brother, Michael, was just invited to a conference for possibly joining the mission board. I can't believe my little brother is going to be traveling overseas in just a few short months and will have the honor of telling other nations about our Lord Jesus Christ. This is just such a wonderful blessing, and he will be such an amazing witness for Christ.
"First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers; Making request, if by any means at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you." Romans 1:8-10
Friday, September 01, 2006
RIZ Homeschool
We are so excited to be starting our 5th year of homeschooling.
I love homeschooling and as a homeschooler I have been asked many times why we do this. Actually, not just why we homeschool, but there seems to be a list of questions that automatically pop into someone’s mind when they hear that you homeschool.
Questions like: Why would you want to do that? What about socialization? What about Chemistry? How can you teach them as well as a “real” teacher? How do they learn to deal with people that are different from them? The list goes on and on. Normally I enjoy answering questions on the subject, but occasionally I just feel like I cannot field one more “Aren’t you concerned that they are missing out on all the advantages of public school?”
Homeschoolers are showing up everywhere now. It is so exciting to see so many other families are taking a step and taking control of their children’s education. It wasn’t long ago and homeschoolers were labeled as fanatics, now it is becoming mainstream. No longer is socialization a concern because support groups are prevalent. Children that have been educated at home have excelled in S.A.T’s, in college, in the work force and more. We are educating our own children better than they can be educated in America’s schools.
Homeschool makes people curious. It makes them ask questions. As a homeschool mom, I love that. Questions are something I encourage in my children. I want them to ask whatever comes to mind when something interests them.
A very common question is “What exactly is homeschooling? What do you do?” Basically, homeschooling is parent directed education. In short, the parents take full responsibility for the education of their children. It’s that simple. Part two of that question asks what do you do. There are many ways to homeschool, and it means different things to different families. Some families recreate a school setting at home, complete with desks, chalkboards, textbooks and report cards. Other families choose Unschooling, which is more like child-led learning, where the children pursue their own goals and interests. Then there is everything in between. There are as many ways to approach homeschooling as there are families that do it. The wonderful thing about all this is that there are companies that supply all the materials you could possibly need for whatever method you choose for your family.
This year we are looking forward to some changes that we have made in our curriculum, and look forward to sharing our year with other homeschoolers and family members that don't live close enough to see what is happening in our home on a daily basis.
"And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as fontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates" Deuteronomy 6:7-9
I love homeschooling and as a homeschooler I have been asked many times why we do this. Actually, not just why we homeschool, but there seems to be a list of questions that automatically pop into someone’s mind when they hear that you homeschool.
Questions like: Why would you want to do that? What about socialization? What about Chemistry? How can you teach them as well as a “real” teacher? How do they learn to deal with people that are different from them? The list goes on and on. Normally I enjoy answering questions on the subject, but occasionally I just feel like I cannot field one more “Aren’t you concerned that they are missing out on all the advantages of public school?”
Homeschoolers are showing up everywhere now. It is so exciting to see so many other families are taking a step and taking control of their children’s education. It wasn’t long ago and homeschoolers were labeled as fanatics, now it is becoming mainstream. No longer is socialization a concern because support groups are prevalent. Children that have been educated at home have excelled in S.A.T’s, in college, in the work force and more. We are educating our own children better than they can be educated in America’s schools.
Homeschool makes people curious. It makes them ask questions. As a homeschool mom, I love that. Questions are something I encourage in my children. I want them to ask whatever comes to mind when something interests them.
A very common question is “What exactly is homeschooling? What do you do?” Basically, homeschooling is parent directed education. In short, the parents take full responsibility for the education of their children. It’s that simple. Part two of that question asks what do you do. There are many ways to homeschool, and it means different things to different families. Some families recreate a school setting at home, complete with desks, chalkboards, textbooks and report cards. Other families choose Unschooling, which is more like child-led learning, where the children pursue their own goals and interests. Then there is everything in between. There are as many ways to approach homeschooling as there are families that do it. The wonderful thing about all this is that there are companies that supply all the materials you could possibly need for whatever method you choose for your family.
This year we are looking forward to some changes that we have made in our curriculum, and look forward to sharing our year with other homeschoolers and family members that don't live close enough to see what is happening in our home on a daily basis.
"And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as fontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates" Deuteronomy 6:7-9
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