Tried With Fire

Sovereign Commander of the Universe, I am sadly harassed by doubts, fears, unbelief,     in a felt spiritual darkness. My heart is full of evil surmisings and disquietude,     and I cannot act faith at all. My heavenly Pilot has disappeard,     and I have lost my hold on the Rock of Ages; I sink in deep mire beneath storms and waves,     in horror and distress unutterable. Help me, O Lord,     to throw myself absolutely and wholly on thee,     for better, for worse, without comfort, and all but hopeless. Give me peace of soul, confidence, enlargement of mind,    morning joy that comes after night heaviness; Water my soul with divine blessings; Grant that I may welcome that humbling in private    so that I might enjoy thee in public; Give me a mountain top as high as the valley is low. Thy grace can melt the worst sinner, and I am as vile as he; Yet thou hast made me a monument of...

ht:  Grammarly  on FB ht:  Sarah Scribbles  on FB

Having started on February 1, I am attempting to  read the entire Bible in 90 days . It has been challenging, and I am already a little bit behind. But so far, it's been very good. I am still trying to find the optimal time of day to read, which varies from day to day, but the main goal is  to read . I would not recommend this as the  only  method of Bible reading because it's not possible to do in-depth study at this pace. However, this is a great way to get the Bible's big picture. With less than a month under my belt, here are a few lessons I've learned so far... Read the rest of the post here .

Lord God Almighty, I ask not to be enrolled amongst the earthly great and rich,    but to be numbered with the spiritually blessed. Make it my present, supreme, persevering concern    to obtain those blessings which are          spiritual in their nature,          eternal in their continuance,          satisfying in their possession. Preserve me from a false estimate of the whole or a part of my character; May I pay regard to my principles as well as my conduct,                      my motives as well as my actions. Help me never to mistake the excitement of my passions    for the renewing of the Holy Spirit,           never to judge my religion by occasional impressions and                 impulses, but by my constant and prevailing disposition. ...

If Star Wars was written by Shakespeare... ht: Debbie on FB

The Jewel of the Solar System I am thankful for: - The recent sermon series on the Doctrine of God . I've been convicted of where my thoughts of God were too small. I've been challenged to realize how other He is. I am rather sad that this series has ended, but it doesn't mean that I can't continue to dig into theology proper. - God as Creator. The complexity of creation makes perfect sense when you realize that its Creator is an infinite God. My daughter and I have had numerous discussions about particle physics in the light of Christ holding all things together by the word of His power. We've gotten teary eyed over the wonders of the heavens that declare the glory of God. The study of the sciences takes on fresh meaning when each new discovery is God's common grace in pulling back the curtain to reveal more of what He has made. - God's impassibility. I am so thankful that God is not a responder to or bound by man's actions. He is pure act. H...

O HOLY FATHER, thou hast freely given thy Son, O DIVINE SON, thou hast freely paid my debt, O ETERNAL SPIRIT, thou hast freely bid me come, O TRIUNE GOD, thou dost freely grace me with salvation. Prayers and tears could not suffice to pardon my sins,     nor anything less than atoning blood,     but my believing is my receiving,     for a thankful acceptance is no paying of the debt. What didst thou see in me?     that I a poor, diseased, despised sinner         should be clothed in thy bright glory?     that a creeping worm         should be advanced to this high state?     that one lately groaning, weeping, dying,         should be as full of joy as my heart can hold?     that a being of dust and darkness        should be taken like Mordecai from captivity,             and set ...

"It's clear from the Scriptures that sinless perfection is impossible in this life. ( 1 John 1:8-10 , 2:1-2 ) We will battle indwelling sin until we die or Jesus returns, which is why Christians need the gospel just as much as those who have yet to enter the Kingdom of God. But what about mistakes? What about those silly, careless things that crop up now and then?  Life would be easier if I would always get it right. Life would be even easier if everyone else would get it right, too. For example, can you imagine how this would transform shopping at Walmart? What would it be like if there were always enough cashiers? And cashiers who were efficient? What if everyone counted their purchases so no one had too many items in the express lane? Think of how pleasant that experience would be. But I will not always get it right no matter how hard I try and neither will you or the folks at Walmart." Read the rest of the post at Out of the Ordinary.

Nearly a year ago, I wrote a post on the Just World Phenomena and its relation to victim blaming. In the light of the Abedini situation and other cases of abuse that have come to light, this theory is worth revisiting. In a nutshell, we assume the world is a just system that runs according to a set of rules. Therefore if we follow the rules correctly, we will achieve the desired outcome and get what we deserve. But what happens when the system fails? How do we respond when we witness injustice and in particular, when we witness people getting what they do  not deserve? 1 According to this theory. injustice causes the victim to suffer. But it also causes a sense of suffering in the viewer. To alleviate our discomfort, we can go to the aid of the victim or we can revise our opinion of the victim to maintain our belief that the world is "just." 2  If condition A prevents consequence B, but B happened to the victim, then she did not follow the rules. She brought it on hers...

At first glance, this video is an over-the-top parody of traditionalist ideas from the 1950's, but it may be closer to the truth than we would like to believe: It was widely believed in the nineteenth century that "while sinful man was controlled by his brain, delicate woman was controlled by her reproductive organs." Women had wombs that were used for physical creation; men had brains that were used for mental creation... From this belief derived not only the notion of woman's irrational, unpredictable, and mysterious "feminine" nature, but also the idea that childbearing was every woman's ultimate fulfillment while intellectual pursuits were the fulfillment of the masculine nature. A woman who pursued intellectual activities therefore assumed for herself a masculine nature, such women of the nineteenth century were often accused of being "hermaphrodites in mind." Much was made of the supposed smaller size of the female brain and the ...

O GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT; That which I know not, teach thou me, Keep me a humble disciple in the school of Christ,    learning daily there what I am in myself,        a fallen sinful creature,    justly deserving everlasting destruction; O let me never lose sight of my need of a Saviour, or forget that apart from him I am nothing, and can do nothing. Open my understanding to know the Holy Scriptures; Reveal to my soul the counsels and works of the blessed Trinity; Instil into my dark mind the saving knowledge of Jesus; Make me acquainted with his covenant undertakings    and his perfect fulfilment of them,    that by resting on his finished work    I may find the Father’s love in the Son,    his Father, my Father,    and may be brought through thy influence    to have fellowship with the Three in One. O lead me into all truth, thou Spirit of wisdom...

How Star Wars Characters Eat Their Food...

There has been much commentary since Naghmeh Abedini went public about the domestic violence she endured in her marriage. Many are supporting her but others do not. Some question the truthfulness of her claim. Others question the need to disclose so private a matter. Either way, this situation reveals, in my opinion, misunderstanding and misinformation about domestic abuse in Christian circles. I have a more detailed post in progress, but the writing has been difficult because my heart is so heavy. In the meantime, here is a timely quote on the danger of remaining ignorant about abuse. For the record, I believe Naghmeh Abedini. I stand with abuse victims. Especially in "marriage issues," people don't like to take sides. God names horrendous sins in the Bible, and abuse is among them, perpetrated by those who disguise themselves as good religious leaders. But when we realize that this situation is in our own churches, it can turn our comfortable world upside down. Eit...