Quotable Spurgeon

“If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our dead bodies. And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring them to stay. If Hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for.”   - Charles H. Spurgeon

Might we fight daily to rescue sinners!

Application of Motherhood

I was encouraged by this blog post today. Here is an excerpt:

Imagine yourself in your kitchen trying to make dinner for a group of little kids who are tired and should have eaten a half hour ago. Imagine that things are going wrong beyond that — maybe you are out of something you assumed you had, children are fussing with one another, and maybe your littlest is still at the age where they come stand on your feet and pull on your pant leg. Bonus points if you are wearing maternity pants and this little person is actually capable of pulling your pants down. You are hot, you are tired, and you are sick of it.

This is no time for a gospel presentation. There isn’t time. There isn’t anyone to lead the discussion around the felt board, because you are still scrambling to figure out dinner. This isn’t a time for a gospel presentation because it is a time for gospel application. This is a time to take the grace that God has extended to you, and feed your children with it. Apply what you believe about God’s mercy and kindness and long suffering towards us, and pour it out to them — in a form they can believe in.

Unwanted

There was a ceremony yesterday, where hundreds of Indian girls named Nakusa or Nakushi (meaning "unwanted" in Hindi) got to choose new names for themselves, according to an article in Fox News.

And yet the real hope...the Hope that is carried beyond this world's names still lies out of reach for many of these young women.

from Isaiah 62 -

1 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,

and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not be quiet,
until her righteousness goes forth as brightness,
and her salvation as a burning torch.

2 The nations shall see your righteousness,
and all the kings your glory,
and you shall be called by a new name
that the mouth of the LORD will give.

3You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD,
and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.

4 You shall no more be termed Forsaken,
and your land shall no more be termed Desolate,
but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her,
and your land Married;
for the LORD delights in you,
and your land shall be married.

5For as a young man marries a young woman,
so shall your sons marry you,
and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
so shall your God rejoice over you.

Excerpts: Bloomability

"At about four o'clock in the morning, this is what I decided: I hadn't had to struggle for those skis. Someone had given them to me out of their own generosity, without my having struggled for them, without my having earned them.

I thought maybe I should give them back and tell Aunt Sandy and Uncle Max that first I'd better earn the money for them. I'd wash floors and windows and chop wood and do all the laundry and all the cooking. What a struggle!

But in the end, I decided that it was Christmas and people liked to be generous at Christmas, and maybe I ought to just accept this struggle-free gift. It might be hard to do -- wait! That would be my struggle. I would struggle to accept their generosity. Yes I would."

So I consider how free the gift of grace is, and how I keep going back to trying to earn it now that it's been given to me.

Bloomability, Sharon Creech, chapter 19

Beautiful Feet

My sister-in-law forwarded some thoughts on how to make yourself beautiful through your actions. (for attractive lips, speak words of kindness, and the like)

This got me to thinking about Romans 10:15 "...how beautiful are the feet of him who brings good news." I've done a Bible study on this passage twice, and never before have I understood what this would have meant for the immediate hearers.

Beautiful feet was an oxymoron in Biblical times. Feet were dirty, grimy, smelly and certainly never beautiful. You'll recall this was the coup de grace for the disciples - that Jesus, the Christ, would wash their feet.

How beautiful are the feet of him who brings good news. Read Isaiah 52. It only gets more beautiful.

A Freudian Link

Some great thoughts on mothering from a blog that linked to a blog. (Thanks, Megan.)

Free Sunday Brunch

When I peeked in my breakfast drive-thru Chick-fil-a bag, I saw a card that read, "Free Sunday Brunch". My first thought:

Oh no. Chick-fil-a has gone the way of the world.

Then I saw that it was a pamphlet from a local church. My next thought:

If we had all the money and people that they did, we could do that, too.

My third thought:

Oh no. I've gone the way of the world.

As I flipped through the pamphlet, which detailed the fall events at the church, my conscience rebuked me again and again. Yes, it was a shiny, attractive listing of all of the "free" things that the church offered. I wavered between indignation and humility. Humility won, praise the Lord.

Together, we are the body of Christ. Large or small, God is at work in us and through us.

God has called us to be where we are, serving one another, loving one another, serving Him and loving Him.

Hope?

"the Universe in its abundant grace will provide for you and carry you and your family through this challenging path. All the love, peace, and joy that exists are yours and exist inside you... just be in the moments and try not to judge them."

I read this attempt at encouragement today from one person to another. I'm still processing its implications. I had begun to write my thoughts about it, but they were just going all over the place. I'm just going to let stand on it's own for now.

Came and Went

This is a quote from a Fox News article regarding the recent Camping "came and went".

"The globe will be completely destroyed in five months, he (Camping) said, when the apocalypse comes. But because God's judgment and salvation were completed on Saturday, there's no point in continuing to warn people about it, so his network will now just play Christian music and programs until the final end on Oct. 21."

May we never stop preaching the Good News of Christ!

Every Sunday

I ran across this thought this morning, and it rings true: Every Sunday is a weekly Easter.

True Humility

Tim Challies hsd a book review on his website today. In talking about battling envy, he paraphrased the author's assessment of Charles Wesley, "To delight in the superiority of another. There is humility." It occurred to me that while this works horizontally, with our relationships with others, this should describe our relationship with God. We should delight in His superiority, not trying to master or control our situations, but rely on him alone. This is, indeed, humility.

No Record of Wrongs

Love keeps no record of wrongs.

I would advocate keeping this to the forefront of your mind when reading your e-mail. It may just be the right thing to do to hit the delete button. No need to read it later. Or forward it for discussion.

Holy Sonnet

I prayed some of these lines for a non-believer today.

This was my prayer: "Batter her heart, three-personed God. Take her to you, imprison her, for she, except you enthrall her never shall be free, nor ever chaste, except you ravish her."

I love this sonnet.

Batter my heart, three-person'd God, for you
As yet but knock, breathe, shine, and seek to mend;
That I may rise and stand, o'erthrow me, and bend
Your force to break, blow, burn, and make me new.
I, like an usurp'd town to another due,
Labor to admit you, but oh, to no end;
Reason, your viceroy in me, me should defend,
But is captiv'd, and proves weak or untrue.
Yet dearly I love you, and would be lov'd fain,
But am betroth'd unto your enemy;
Divorce me, untie or break that knot again,
Take me to you, imprison me, for I,
Except you enthrall me, never shall be free,
Nor ever chaste, except you ravish me.

John Donne

Helpful Counsel in Counsel

Succinct. Counsel. Good.

Read Ed Welsh's thoughts.

Guardians of Time

Here is a thought-provoking, challenging and extremely helpful post on guarding our children's time and raising them to be worshippers of God. Thanks to the husband for forwarding this one.

The Great Physician

One stanza of a myriad, by George Herbert.

Now heal thyself, Physician; now come down.
Alas! I do so, when I left my crown
And Father's smile for you, to feel his frown:
Was ever grief like mine?

Successful Parenting

Ed Welch of CCEF posted this the other day, and I found it encouraging. Well, as encouraging as something can be when you realize that you haven't "arrived".

I was challenged in contemplating the question, "What are you learning about Jesus?"

What am I learning about Jesus?

And if I can't come up with something, then get in the Word!

Control of Birth Control

Al Mohler has a timely commentary on The Pill.

Bird Song

Normally background noise with their twitters, cheeps and chirps, I understood the birds I sat outside while dawn broke this Resurrection morning.

Alto started, Cardinal constant in Cheerfulness. Bass resonated, Dove full of Sorrow, unmatched in his Grief. Soprano joined with her descant, Chickadee with reminders of Hope. Tenor, it seemed, had forgotten his part.

It was fully morning. The dawn had broken. The birds went back to their twittering.

Yet Tenor had not forgotten, was not late, as Owl, when all was silent for a moment, reverberated his part, declaring Truth.

The choir was joined by a part not written, a rogue line in the music, Flicker mocking.

Then all was silent.

I waited for Owl to reverberate Truth. I waited, knowing that Truth was the answer, the next line. But Owl was silent.

Instead, after the mocker, Grief came again, Dove resonating.

And they began their song anew.

Joy. Sorrow. Hope. Truth.

Search Me, O God

In self-righteousness, I protest, "But what about all those other things that I do?"

This in response to, "Why didn't you remember to do this? And how could you forget to do that? And that other thing...I can't believe you didn't do it!"

The bottom line is that those things that I have been "called out on"...the things I didn't do...I should have done. Self-righteousness has no place protesting against neglecting to exhibit love and gratitude. While I recognize that I cannot do it all, surely there are things that I overlook or neglect that are to my shame when I do not do them.

"Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.

See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting. " Psalm 139:23-24