Faith Booster

Hebrews 11 is called the "Hall of Faith" by many because of the heroes that are listed and described for their walk of faith in the Lord. I've been chronicling my own heroes in the faith on this blog that God has brought into my life by way of books that I've read and through social media. The most recent hero that has touched my life, caused me to draw deeper in love with Jesus, impacted my prayer life in a unique way, and has grown my faith leaps and bounds, is the Asa family. The hero isn't just one person, it instead is encompassed by an entire family.

A few years ago I was blessed to hear Heidi St. John speak at a homeschool conference and she inspired my walk with Christ and my journey of homeschooling in various ways. As I've followed her on social media, I received word one day just a few weeks ago that her nephew, Bobby Asa, had been in a tragic accident that the doctors initially told them would leave him a vegetable and without use of his limbs. The story of Bobby's life that unfolded after the accident has touched so many lives not because he was miraculously healed overnight and is up walking and talking today, but it's the faith of his family that has moved and inspired believers and unbelievers to wonder and stand in awe of the God that this family honors, glorifies, and serves.

As of the writing of this blog, Bobby is still in the hospital and not fully (for a recent up on Bobby go here for the facebook page and here for the blog update). He is showing signs of movement and responsiveness on cue which is a tremendous blessing. The unwavering faith of the family of this young boy in God alone is amazing. Regardless of when and how God heals Bobby, this family has expressed an undying commitment and faith and trust in God. They trust what God has allowed to happen to Bobby and they trust the outcome and this attitude of faith simply leaves me speechless.

Though from the world's perspective the life of this family has been "wrecked" by an accident, their faith and testimony has been built up in amazing proportions because of how God has worked in their hearts. I've watched them pray and turn to God when the doctors have relayed discouraging health reports, they've sung praises when Bobby has laid in the hospital in a coma, and they've read and meditated on God's Word in the midst of it all. What a faithful God we serve who truly DOES work everything for good for those who are called according to His purpose.

If you need a boost in your faith, go to the hall of faith in Hebrews 11 and look at the examples of other believers that are truly living out their faith with hope, joy, and expectancy of what God can do.

May the Lord heal and restore Bobby and continue to glorify Himself in this family's life!

Letting the Time Fly By

Wow! How time flies!

The Jordan gang finished up a third year of homeschooling in May and have been enjoying some time away from our usual day-to-day school routine. Don’t we all need a time of refreshment?

One of the most fulfilling activities that I’ve been able to do more of since May is spend more concentrated time in God’s Word. Soaking up God’s truth day after day and letting His Word with the aide of the Holy Spirit being our guide is one way to retain joy day after day.

Even in the midst of tests, trials, and struggles in life, what hope we can find and peace that surpasses all understanding in the Bible. Opening His Word, sitting before Him, confessing sin, drinking in His words, and then meditating on what we’ve learned is where we are truly filled.

Let the time fly by simply being in His Word.

Your Body, What You Think!

Maintaining a lifetime of fitness is extremely hard work. It's challenging because it takes a disciplined mind to commit yourself to exercising on a continual basis. Even if your level of fitness is made up of recreational activities (i.e., basketball, tennis, skiing, etc.), while these activities are enjoyable and entertaining, in order to benefit from them for fitness benefits you've got to get up and do them!

Doing the work is tough because you just don't feel like doing the work everyday or several days a week. How do you motivate yourself on a regular basis?

Change your perspective on fitness. Don't allow your exercise regimen to be an optional thing. Brushing your teeth and showering is something that you do everyday; they are not optional. Reframe your outlook on fitness in this same way. As you change your mind set in this way you will re-program your thinking and this will lead to your  body responding in action.

Change the way that you think and your body will be motivated to follow!

Where the Search Begins & Ends

My 12-year old asked her Father and I when we were her age if we had a cell phone, texted, and used facebook. I had to educate her on the reality that when we were her age technology wasn't as advanced as it is now. When I purchased my first phone I was a newly married lady and the thought of carrying around a cell phone was so foreign to me that if I left it at home it was no huge deal. Fast forward to 2017. If I leave my phone there is a chance that I will turn around and go back home to get it. We use technology for more than just contacting someone in case of emergency. We use it to take pictures, balance our checking account, typing up blog entries, and staying in contact with friends and family.

It's the latter reason on my list of technology uses that brings me to my own phone to write this blog entry. While I was a Facebook user in the past and currently am an instagram user I have a certain level of familiarity with how social media is used today. I've witnessed that there's a blessing in being able to connect with family and friends that one may not be able to see on a regular basis. Users can experience joy as they celebrate on social media forums, seeing pictures from events and "liking" them and leaving well wishes in their comments. You can drop lines of encouragement  and uplift the people in your life by tweeting them.

While the ability to connect with others in this way is useful and brings enjoyment, it can impact an area within us that we may not even realize. Day in and day out social media calls out to us. Our eyes want to see who's getting engaged,  married, or having a baby. We want to stay abreast of the latest news and statuses of the people that interest us. Our flesh enjoys the feelings we experience when we see old friends and how they're living since we last saw them. In return we have a sense of joy when other people commend us when they see our own personal experiences. Accumulating a lot of "likes" makes us feel good and gives a sense of acceptance and fulfillment to know that someone has noticed us. The downside in all of this is as we experience these feel-good sensations from social media, we're constantly feeding our minds with a reality that may not all together be truth. We take in countless scenes of what seems to be blissfully, amazingly happy people. As we daily gaze at smiling, exuberant faces of people that we know, we are constantly feeding our minds a false reality of life. Our desires to be in-the-know with twittering comments, statements, and opinions can easily bombard and rule our thoughts.

The truth is real life is not filled with a constant onslaught of laughter, joy, and perfectly orchestrated moments. Although it may not be the intention of the people that you view each day to send a message that they are completely content in life without problems, as your mind takes in these images on a continual basis it will impact your thoughts and thoughts impact our behaviors. As we take to our cell phones and the internet and enter this false reality of life, in many ways we are escaping to a world that may make us feel better about our true life situations as we see the "likes" or we're emotionally uplifted by the sense of happiness that we see depicted in the life of our friends and family by what they choose to highlight through pictures and tweets.

We may also feel a sense of defeat or discouragement when we view what seems to be perfectly happy people while our current situation has us in a place of hopelessness. We may find ourselves comparing our own lives to theirs and end up feeling as worse off than when we tuned into their life. As we're inundated with tweets regarding the latest news and current events our thoughts are shaped and influenced by the world. The happy glimpses that we get into other people's lives should not be our escape from our own realities and the overwhelming load of information that we receive from the internet should not be what shapes our thoughts and emotions.

For the believer our escape should be to the throne of grace and the main influence of our mind and heart should be the Word of God. There we'll find a true picture of joy, peace, and happiness and our mind, flesh, and spirit will be completely satisfied. Because we're shaped by the things that we see with our eyes and hear with our ears, we have to remain cautious of what we allow ourselves to focus on day after day. We have to guard and protect our hearts, being careful what we take in.

Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life.

(Proverbs 4:23)

I am guilty of being tempted to give into the pull and draw that social media can have on the flesh to be "in-the-know" and once you're surfing in this world it's difficult to pull yourself back into reality and gain a Godly perspective on life. As much as we surf out in the virtual world, we need to measure how it impacts the time we spend in God's Word. We're told to meditate day and night on the Word.

This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.

(Joshua 1:8)

Writing on this has challenged me to monitor the time I spend perusing and using social media. If I were to avoid it all together it would make it difficult to fulfill God's challenge to me when He tells us to be a light in the world. I can't be a light in a place if I'm totally devoid of it. No, the answer isn't to live in a bubble. We can use our links into social media to share God's Word and hopefully impact others for Christ.

We have to remember daily that the Bible is reality. There we find truth and a true illustration of man. God just doesn't show us the happy illustrations of life. We're not deceived by God's Word to think more highly of others or of ourselves. Instead it's a picture of how we can mature and grow deeper into Christ-likeness. While social media can bring us temporal feelings of joy, it can never complete us. If we were to solely go to it for satisfaction we would always end up with a void, wanting more and never being content. God on the other hand, is enough. When you seek Him with all of your heart you need not look for anything else in life to fulfill you. The search begins and ends with Christ.

In Search of a Name

God, in His sovereignty, gave me two divine appointments to study His names. God's name(s) isn't like our name. We typically have a first, middle, and last name. He has a bountiful number of names because they each capture an aspect of His character. Our name is used to identify us. It is used to get our attention and single us out when we're needed. God's names paint a picture of His glory, power, and unique nature.

The first time that I went through the study, "Lord, I Want to Know You" by Kay Arthur, I left the last class with an appreciation that I had learned that God is identified thoughout the Bible with varying titles and those names brought me to a closer level of intimacy, knowing my Lord at a deeper level that I hadn't known before.

When I was invited to lead the class after I had just finished it as a student, I didn't realize how much more I would learn about my God. Although I had a level of familiarity with the material, I didn't let that discourage me in a second pass through the study. Instead, I challenged myself to commit the names and their meanings to memory. Once they were sealed in my mind I started reciting back God's names to Him in prayer.

I now address Him as Elohim, my creator and designer of all creation. I speak to Him now as El Elyon, sovereign ruler of the universe and over every aspect of my life. I am humbled by Adonai, my Lord. I now remember that whenever I have feelings of abandonement, He is El Shaddai, my all sufficient God. Though this world attempts to offer me completeness, I can find everything that I need in my El Shaddai.

My God exists all on His own. He is Jehovah, the self-existent one. All my needs are provided for in Jehovah-Jireh and His power to heal me is found in Jehovah-Rapha. As Jehovah-Tsidkenu He declares me righteous and sanctifies me as Jehovah-Mekoddishkem. I have peace in Jehovah-Shalom and a guide for life from Jehovah-Raah, my Shepherd. I have victory in every circumstance because the Lord is Jehovah-Nissi and I can have peace over evil, both seen and unseen as I rest in the truth that God is Jehovah-Sabaoth. The last name covered in the study that will forever stay with me is the fact that He's there. He was with His chosen people in the days of old, He appeared as a man in Jesus Christ, He's in me through the Holy Spirit, and one day He will return again to a holy city that will be called Jehovah-Shammah.

He can forever be in you if you bow your knee to Him, acknowledging Him as Lord in your life. I can't promise that life will be any easier or that you won't experience difficulties in life, but in knowing God's character I can promise that you'll have a friend for life and unexplainable peace and joy.

If you don't know His name, just pick one and start digging!

From a Friend of a Friend

Have you ever bought something that you heard about from a friend of a friend of a friend? Word of mouth is definitely the most effective method in marketing a product, isn't it? Whenever I hear about an interesting book, my ears perk up. While attending a bridal shower for a blushing, young bride, some word of mouth advertising was going on as we laughed, cried, and ate cake to celebrate the approaching nuptials. One of the gifts that was opened was the book, "The Excellent Wife", by Martha Peace. The gift giver shared how priceless the book had been as she weathered married life over the years. This moved me to order my own copy and I will admit in just the few short days of reading it, I have not been able to put it down.

I will get right to the point and say that this is not a typical marriage book that will fuel a woman's flesh by telling her that married life is all about being happy and it entails doing what she wants, when she wants, whenever she wants. Instead it provides a biblical perspective on God's calling for a wife. Sound, biblical  instruction is given on how to deal with conflict, communication, and how to ultimately honor Christ as a wife in the joyous times and difficult moments in marriage.

I appreciated how the book's scope reaches beyond the realm of the attitude of a wife's heart and speaks about what scripture outlines about a Christian woman's heart in general. How should we handle conflict, sin, feelings of bitterness, forgiveness, and idols? These are all the challenges a woman will face in life and within the confines of marriage there are two people battling these areas. Without a sound understanding of scripture our marriages are in danger of falling astray if we're not equipped with a clear understanding of scriptue. Marriage is work and it's HARD, yet its beautiful as the Lord molds and shapes two imperfect, sinful people into His image as they yield to Him.

Where has this book been the past 16 years of my life?

I read this book thinking how maybe I could have avoided some pitfalls that I walked right into in the past, and then I was reminded that God's timing is perfect and He never makes mistakes. Had I not gone through those experiences the clarity that I now have in certain areas of scripture may not have had the same impact that they do on me today as I look back on where God has brought me.  As I continually examine my heart with scripture I realize there is more and more refining that my heart and mind needs as scripture refines me.

Whether you're a lady in waiting, a newlywed, or an old married lady like me, there is much to learn as God glorifies Himself through a wife in marriage. As long as you have life and breathe within you, may you seek to know what God expects of you and be willing to walk in obedience.

This book is a great find ladies!!

Evangelizing a Child: Experiencing the Joy

As a Mother, I truly have no greater joy, no greater hope, no greater aspiration in my calling as a Mother than to hear that my children walk in truth. The truth being, that Jesus Christ died for their sins and in response they are to acknowledge Christ as Lord of their life. People may wonder why I don’t treasure them attaining to a noble, highly desired profession or becoming wealthy citizens over this desire of them knowing Christ as Savior. The truth is, knowing Christ and being a disciple of His is a matter of life and death. To know Him as Lord is to have eternal life with Him in Heaven, and to not know Him is to live perpetually separated from His presence.  It’s a serious matter. While I have found the task of evangelizing my children one that should not be taken lightly, I have discovered an absolute joy and thrill in the process of the Lord drawing my children to Himself and witnessing the transformation of their heart. God is fulfilling the hope that I have in my journey as a Mother.

God places the responsibility of teaching and rearing a child in His Word on the parents. It is not the primary responsibility of the Sunday School teacher, Pastor, or school teacher to evangelize our children. While they play a vital role in presenting and teaching God’s Word, it is not their primary responsibility. In Deuteronomy 11:19, God instructs His people on how they were to teach His commandments,

You shall teach them to your son, talking of them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you rise up. (Deuteronomy 11:19)

God’s Word should be discussed in the home at the dinner table, in car, at night, during the day, anytime it becomes appropriate. We’re given a promise in Proverbs 22:6, Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it. Since parents are charged with training their children in the way He should go according to God’s Word, we need to seek wisdom from the Lord on how to accomplish this task.

The first aspect of evangelizing our children is to educate ourselves on the message so that we can present it clearly to them.

1) God is holy, perfect, and just. (Exodus 34:6-7, Psalm 25:8, James 1:17, Psalm 145:17, 1 Samuel 2:2, Isaiah 6:3, Psalm 139:7-10, Psalm 147:5, Hebrews 4:13, Psalm 145:17, Colossians 1:15-17)

2) Man does not seek after God and is born a sinner. (Romans 6:23, Ecclesiastes 7:20, John 8:44, Galatians 5:19-21, John 8:34, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Romans 3:11)

3) Jesus Christ was born, crucified, buried, and resurrected to glorify Himself through the salvation of sinners. (1 Corinthians 15:4, Romans 5:8, 1 Timothy 1:15, Ephesians 2:8-9, Acts 4:12)

4) Man is called to repent and seek forgiveness in what Christ did on the Cross. (Mark 1:15, Acts 2:38, Matthew 3:2, Matthew 3:8, Isaiah 30:15, Acts 3:19, Hebrews 9:27)

5) Man is given a new heart when they believe in the Lord Jesus as Savior and will live eternally with Him in Heaven. (Ezekiel 36:26, Jeremiah 24:7, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Revelation 21:4, Isaiah 65:17-25, Revelation 21:1-8)

We have a magnificent message of the gospel to present and teach our children, beginning at a very young age and we need to have the wisdom ourselves before we attempt to teach it to our children. 

We first need to illustrate to our children who God is. This can be expressed even in the toddler years. As you ride in the car or play outdoors you can point out the aspects of nature that are created by a holy and perfect God. The sun, the moon, the stars, all created by our Heavenly Father. You can express God’s love for His creation as you tuck them in at night, sharing with your child how much more God loves and cares for them.

As your child grows you will have ample opportunity to talk with them about their sinful nature. Take note that you will never have to have a teaching session with them on how not to share, disobey, lie, pout, whine, or cry when they don’t get their way. As you observe your child’s sinful nature, point out to them exactly what their flesh is doing. When you discipline them, explain that when they disobey Mommy and Daddy they are sinning against God and their disobedience deserves punishment. Day after day, moment after moment, as God in His sovereignty brings these aspects of His gospel message to your mind, talk with your child about what is happening within their heart and how Jesus Christ came to earth to save and forgive sinners.

As your child grows and matures in their understanding of God’s Word and you see them struggling to behave when their flesh wants them to do otherwise, encourage them to repent and seek the Lord for His forgiveness once and for all.

I recall when my oldest daughter, who is also my strong-willed child, was around the age of 6 and she found herself yet again having a moment of disobedience. Given her normally uncompromising nature, she seemed to find herself having to be disciplined on an almost daily basis. As we had regular conversations with her about a person’s sin nature, she resolved within herself that she was “too bad” for God to save her. When she voiced this to me I was shocked to think that she could ever think that she could ever be too terrible for Christ to save her, but after putting myself in her shoes and trying to imagine what it’s like to constantly struggle with trying to behave I could sympathize with how she could have come to consider this. Adults struggle with the same thought. At times when we’re caught up in the practice of sin and we’re so deeply entrenched in what we know we shouldn’t be doing we can be tempted to think that we can never be good enough to be saved. The truth is, there is no good in us and we don’t deserve to be saved. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8) This moment, when my daughter struggled with her disobedience, gave me an opportunity to share truth from the Bible with her. Though she felt discouraged over her sin, I was able to share with her the joy there is in knowing Christ as Savior and how He wiped away her sins past, present, and future by His death on the Cross. The reality is she would continue to sin because she is human with a sin nature, but salvation removes the power that sin has over her.

While no one knows the day or moment when the Lord will draw a person to Himself to be His child (see John 3:8), we are challenged to share the gospel and as parents our primary witnessing battleground begins at home. If you missed out on the opportunity to proactively teach and share the gospel with your child in their younger years, its never too late to start! No matter the age. Evangelizing and disciplining our own children can be one of the greatest joys of our Christian journey. To experience the Lord God Himself drawing your children to Himself as they over time understand their sinful nature and then finding hope in what Christ did on the Cross is indescribable.  

So you study and learn the gospel message yourself and then share, discuss, rebuke when necessary, share, talk, and then talk some more with your child as the Lord uses you as an instrument in His Hand for saving your child out of darkness, into His most marvelous light. Be committed to also praying that God would soften your child’s heart to the gospel.  According to God’s sovereign plan and in His timing, as you are obedient to proclaiming His truth, if your child responds in faith and obedience to His Word you will experience the joy of the Lord bringing your child into His eternal family.

Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.  (Mark 10:14)

Mission Accomplished.

Winter Break.

#onemanshow

Expore More Children's Museum 

Mission Accomplished.

A 365 Day Challenge

It's quite common that with the coming of a new year people make resolutions, but do not follow through with them day after day till the end of the year. So, why make them? I considered this myself as I pondered over whether or not to make a resolution for 2017. I wouldn't want to make a resolution that I knew that I'd have a hard time sticking with throughout the year.

At the 2016 homeschool convention I was challenged by one speaker to make a commitment to establishing a daily devotional time. Up until the convention I will confess that my daily time with the Lord wasn't consistent. Instead of hanging my head in shame and pouting about my half-hearted attempts of daily time with the Lord, I recommitted myself to making the time. As 2017 has arrived, I encourage my blog readers to also make the time with the Lord on a daily basis.

The next question you might ask is, "What shall I do during this time?"

My brother gave me an idea for my daily devotional time that will help one stay disciplined on a daily basis by keeping it simple and worthwhile.

First, keep your daily time with Lord simple. If you place upon yourself a long list of written assignments and activities every day for your devotional time, before too long you may find yourself feeling overburdened, making it challenging to keep up with it all.

On a daily basis try out the following: make time daily for prayer, reading God’s Word (both New Testament and Old Testament passages), and write a daily journal entry of what you’ve done with the Lord for the day.

While the Bible teaches that we should remain in prayer with the Lord all day, talking with Him, praising Him for every aspect of our day, I encourage you to set aside a dedicated moment to spend in prayer with the Lord praising Him, confessing sin, thanking Him, and petitioning Him with the concerns and issues of your heart. This time will refresh your spirit. You may find that doing this as soon as you awake in the morning primes your heart and mind, setting you off on your day with your mind first set on the Lord who woke you up and in His sovereignty is caring for every care and concern of your heart.  

During your devotional time, spend time reading God’s Word. It is His way of communicating to us who He is and what He expects of His children. As you read and learn about the Lord you gain wisdom and insight to mature into Christ-likeness and it equips you to teach and disciple others.

Lastly, a new method of study that I’ve added to my devotional time is journaling. One way of journaling during devotional time is to record what you’ve accomplished during your time with the Lord. A daily journal entry might looks like this,

January 1, 2017

- I awoke this morning and thanked the Lord for His grace and mercy for a new day.
- Old Testament reading: Read and meditated on Psalm 1; the Lord reminded me as I read this Psalm 1 of the blessings that come from meditating on His law day and night.
- New Testament reading: Read and meditated on Colossians 1
- What a blessing it is to see a new year.

Adding the technique of journaling to my daily devotional provided a level of structure to my devotional time that was missing in the past.

I pray that with these few simple actions of prayer, reading, and journaling each day will become a new practice for you that will energize and revive your time with the Lord. If you don’t have a regular routine I challenge you to commit to it... just for the next 365 days!