Tried With Fire

The Lord in Zion reigns, And will his people keep; 'Tis he the universe sustains, And well secures his sheep. Though with afflictions sore He may them exercise; Yet still his hand they shall adore And still his love shall prize. Should poverty, and loss Of every kind of good, Conspire to make our weighty cross, Our helper still is God. May we forever trust And glory in his name; Jesus, the faithful, true, and just, Forever is the same! (Author is listed as Adams, but no other information given)

of Don't Call It a Comeback is.... Congratulations, Ryan!!! Thanks to everyone who entered this month. Stay tuned for more giveaways.

This week's list: A break from the heat. Low 90's seem cool by comparison. An easing of my work load. It's a huge relief to be getting out of the dictation hole. I'm also thankful for the break for my hands. A little belated birthday party for my daughter.  My baby is growing up, and I thank God for the work He has done and is doing in her life. Having friends over for dinner who will be moving in a couple weeks. :( It's sad to see them go, but I'm thankful for the time God has given us. Ties in the body of Christ cannot be broken. Practical applications from the book of James. Not "what it means to me", but how will this text change me? Hermeneutic crash course tomorrow night.  The format will be similar to how 3rd world or persecuted believers would gather for intense study of the Word. Hope you are giving thanks to God, too!

For most of my life, I was plagued with sinful fear. On paper I would say that God was all powerful. But in my mind, that power could only extend to the point where it came in contact with the free will of man or the plans of the devil. This mind-set is used to bail out God when it comes to the problem of evil, but it's cold comfort at best, particularly when you think you are at the mercy of man - not God. Now that I'm on this side of the doctrines of grace, sinful fear still rears its ugly head. The underlying sin of unbelief is hard to stamp out because all it takes is one little thought, "Has God said?".  However, I intend to fight it by God's grace one thought at a time. Here is encouragement on this subject from the pen of one of my favorite Puritans. I hope to post more from this book in the days ahead. [W]e are ignorant of God. We do not know (or, at least, we do not fully consider) His almighty power, vigilant care; unspotted faithfulness, and how th...

Who but the soul that's led to know How just and holy is the law Will to the cross of Christ repair And seek salvation only there? Jesus, my soul's compelled to flee From all its wrath and curse to thee; Though oft, thro' pride, my stubborn will To Sinai feels a cleaving still. Sinner, if thou art taught to see How great thy guilt and misery, In every thought and act impure The blood of Christ thy soul can cure. Daily to feel thyself undone, Will make thee haste to kiss the Son, And on thy knees for pardon sue, And praise, and bless, and love him too. To feel thy shame and nakedness, Will make thee love that glorious dress That sets from condemnation free, And from the curse delivers thee. Without a seam this garment's wove, Bequeathed in everlasting love; Ere time began, designed to be A royal robe to cover thee. We seek no other blood or name, To cleanse our guilt and hide our shame, But that wrought out by Christ the Son, Which God imputes and faith puts on. ...

I't s going to be another hot one today.  I was driving home last night and saw one sign that stated the temperature was 107 at 7 PM. Even Costco was practically deserted, which is unheard of on a Friday night.  I nearly melted getting gas in the heat.  Not very green of me, but a near empty gas tank trumps the ozone layer. Every morning this week, I've noticed a little Eastern cottontail enjoying the weeds grass in the backyard. Today I was rewarded with this sight through the kitchen window. click the pic for a closer look I hope they stay safe.  There are red tails in the area as well as the roaming neighborhood cats and the occasional dog on the loose. After 5 months, the practice manager and I agreed that my workload was more than even a full-time person could handle.  It would take 10-12 hours for a day's worth of dictation, which is more than I bargained for. Plus as independent as my daughter is with her schooling, I need to be there for her. ...

This week's thankful list: ~ There's an excessive heat warning through Saturday. I'm thankful for refrigeration and working AC in the house and the car. ~ I'm thankful for the means of communicating with believers near and far.  Though a former skeptic, I will admit that FB can be very useful. ~ I'm thankful that God is a good God. I'm thankful He does not change. I will never fully understand the why's of His dealings with mankind, but I can still bank on His character even when I don't understand His ways.

The sooner you repent, the fewer sins you will have to answer for. From The Doctrine of Repentance , Thomas Watson, Banner of Truth, pg. 87.

First, you do what you want to do, even though you "know God's decree that those who practice such things deserve to die." and only then do you "give approval to those who practice them" (Rom. 1:32).  You start to see yourself as either special or as hopeless, and thus the normal boundaries don't seem to apply. It might be that you are involved in certain patterns right now and that you would, if asked, be able to tell me exactly why these are morally and ethically wrong. It's not that you are deficient in cognitive ability to diagnose the situation.  It's instead that you slowly grow to believe that your situation is exceptional ("I am a god"), and thus you find all kinds of reasons why this technically isn't theft or envy or hatred or fornication or abuse of power or whatever ("I am able to discern good and evil"). Or you believe that you are powerless before what you want ("I am an animal") and therefore escape ...

I'll be giving away a copy of Don't Call It a Comeback this month.  Subtitled Old Faith for a New Day , this book seeks to "introduce young Christians, new Christians, and underdiscipled Christians to the most important articles of our faith and what it looks like to live out this faith in real life." Foundational truths such as the doctrine of God, the inerrancy and infallibility of scripture, justification, sanctification, the exclusive nature of salvation through Jesus Christ alone are covered as well practical issues such as vocation, social justice, gender issues, abortion, the church, missions, and worship. It's a very accessible book given these weighty topics. Even if you aren't in the target audience, this would be a great read-together with a teen or young adult in your life.  More info from the publisher . To enter the giveaway, fill out the form below.  U.S. addresses only please.  The providential winner will be selected July 29. <p>...

Hail, sovereign love, that first began The scheme to rescue fallen man! Hail, matchless, free, eternal grace, That gave my soul a hiding-place! Against the God who rules the sky I fought with hand uplifted high; Despised the mention of his grace, Too proud to seek a hiding-place. But thus the eternal counsel ran: "Almighty love, arrest that man!" I felt the arrows of distress, And found I had no hiding-place. Indignant Justice stood in view; To Sinai's fiery mount I flew; But Justice cried, with frowning face, "This mountain is no hiding place!" Ere long a heavenly voice I heard, And Mercy's angel-form appeared; She led me on with placid pace, To Jesus, as my Hiding-place. Should storms of seven-fold thunder roll, And shake the globe from pole to pole, No flaming bolt could daunt my face, For Jesus is my Hiding-place. On him almighty vengeance fell, That must have sunk a world to hell; He bore it for a chosen race, And thus became their Hiding-place. ...

Elizabethan Three Little Pigs ...

This week's list of thanksgivings: Welcome relief from the heat.  The last few days have been near 100 with high humidity.  A thunderstorm rolled through last night bringing blessedly cool air. Male goldfinch enjoying his breakfast Reminders of God's creation. I finally put out the thistle feeder and was quickly rewarded.  It took hardly any time for the goldfinches and house finches to find it. God's providence over car tires, visitation adjustments, work load, and a pregnant cat. My daughter's eagerness to pitch in with the household chores. Lately I've been grieving over the state of the church at large, the agendas of men, and the wounded sheep.  But these verses give me comfort and hope: Husbands love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or an...

Suffer the continued work of exhortation. It is your duty to labour to maintain Christian freedom. It was dearly purchased for you and mercifully bestowed on you, and therefore should not be weakly lost. Nor should it be maintained in a willful way. It was given in mercy and must be kept in judgment.  We must use the judgment of discretion in rejecting or embracing doctrines.  We are neither blindly to subject ourselves to them, no matter how holy and learned they may be who teach them, nor are we to reject them perversely. The True Bounds of Christian Freedom , Samuel Bolton, Banner of Truth Trust, page 222.

The English language is strange.  Perhaps it's because the words originate from so many other languages, new words have been coined over the years, and they've all been thrown into one big vocabulary pot. Take for example the prefix "dis" which is added to the front of a word to form its opposite. Examples would be disarm and arm, disappear and appear, etc. But what do you do with comfit and discomfit? A  comfit is a confection consisting of a piece of fruit, a root, or a seed coated and preserved with sugar.  So does one discomfit someone by forbidding the consumption of sugar-coated roots?  No, discomfit is to defeat in battle, frustrate plans, or thwart. Also there's discombobulate , which means to upset and confuse.Yet one does not  combobulate to bring order or clarity to a situation.  However, it might be the perfect text to send to your friend Robert who is tardy. :)

Righteousness to the believer Freely given, comes from heaven, God himself the giver. Christ has wrought this mighty wonder; God and man by him can  Meet, and never sunder. All the law in human nature He fulfilled; reconciled Creature and Creator. Every one, without exemption, That believes, now receives Absolute redemption. Robes of righteousness imputed, White and whole, clothe the soul, Each exactly suited. 'Tis a way of God's own finding; 'Tis his act, and the pact Cannot but be binding. Here is no prevarication; Justice stands and demands Full and free salvation. Joseph Hart (1712-1768)

Turk's cap, Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii I'm thankful for: Safety.  Last Friday we were stopped at a light on one of the main roads in Newport News during rush hour.  Suddenly we heard a crash as the van behind us was rear-ended.  It was the last car in 4-car chain reaction. The smaller car immediately behind the van appeared to have sustained the most damage as it was squashed between two vehicles. Thankfully there was enough space between our car and the van which kept us from being car #5. A bit more sleep.  I'm still catching up on lost sleep from when my daughter was away, so I'm thankful for a solid 7 hours a night. Everyday, uneventful life.  I'm thankful for steady, routine, even boring days.  I'm getting too old for hectic and stressful excitement. The pleasure of watching the backyard birds.  I spied a male goldfinch eating the seeds from our black-eyed susans. I'm hoping to see more humming birds now that the turk's caps...

Church sign: D. A Carson: So now God comes to us and says, "I love you"? What does he mean? Does he mean something like this? "You mean everything to me. I can't live without you. Your personality, your witty conversation, our beauty, your smile - everything about you transfixes me.  Heaven would be boring without you. I love you!"  That, after all, is pretty close to what some therapeutic approaches to the love of God spell out. We must be pretty wonderful because God loves us. And dear old God is pretty vulnerable, finding himself in a dreadful state unless we say yes.  Suddenly serious Christians unite and rightly cry, "Bring back impassibility!" When he says he loves us, does not God rather mean something like the following? "Morally speaking, you are the people of the halitosis, the bulbous nose, the greasy hair, the disjointed knees, the abominable personality.  Your sins have made you disgustingly ugly.  But I love you anyway, not becaus...

Happy belated 4th.  The computer has been off due to the thunderstorms this week-end, so here's a catch-up post on life. We've been kitty sitting for our friends.  I've never had felines, so this was a new experience.  They really do sit at an open door and make you wait while they decide whether to come in or not.  While I enjoy other people's cats and dogs, I think I'll stick to my beloved lagomorphs. Due to a busy week, I was scrambling to finish a birthday present the day of the party. :( Here's a pic of the latest blanket for a special 1-year-old. Two down and at least 4 more blankets to go for this year.   The birthday girl, mommy, and blankie Sunday was a full day between church and a pool party/cookout in the afternoon.  Hope to post more on the sermon on James 1:5-8 this week.  I've been writing out the book of James which has been good for scripture meditation as well as improving my penmanship. Severe thunderstorms rolled in yester...

Ah! but for free and sovereign grace, I still had lived estranged from God, Till hell had proved the destined place Of my deserved but dread abode. But O, amazed, I see the hand That stopped me in my wild career; A miracle of grace I stand; The Lord has taught by heart to fear. To fear his name, to trust his grace, To learn his will be my employ; Till I shall see him face to face, Himself my heaven, himself my joy. Henry Paice (1798)