Tried With Fire

ht: Charles Purrrrgeon

I am thankful for: - Fun and fellowship at a baby shower for three moms-to-be. I'm also thankful I was able to finish sewing the baby blankets in time. - The Tuesday night ladies' group. We've had some great discussions, and the prayer support has been invaluable. These ladies have also challenged me to consider carefully what I read. On first reading, it's easy to get caught up in an author's idealism and not think critically. I'm grateful for constructive pushback from a different perspective. - God's grace during some recent emotional upheavals. - Lies and misunderstanding coming to the light and being laid to rest. - Truth of God's character. He is infinite. He does not have limited resources. He does not run out of love and care for His children. He does not change. He is not less just on this side of Calvary. He is no respecter of persons. - Perfect love that casts out fear.

O LORD OF THE OCEANS, My little bark sails on a restless sea, Grant that Jesus may sit at the helm and steer me safely; Suffer no adverse currents to divert my heavenward course; Let not my faith be wrecked amid storms and shoals; Bring me to harbor with flying pennants,                                         hull unbreached,                                         cargo unspoiled. I ask great things,   expect great things,   shall receive great things. I venture on Thee wholly, fully,    my wind, sunshine, anchor, defence. The voyage is long, the waves high, the storms pitiless,     but my helm is held steady,     thy Word secures sage passage,     the grace wafts me onward,     my haven is guaranteed. Thi...

ht: WEBS on FB

I had gotten Dr. Langberg's book thinking it would arm me for my fight against domestic violence and help others. But I assumed I was further down the road in my survivorhood than I really was. I am still very much in the process of healing, and I needed to read this: Returning to relationship after the shattering of trauma starts with the person we tell our story to. When we speak, we are heard. We are heard by someone who seeks to understand and feel with us. We are no longer isolated and alone in our suffering. However, we must eventually choose whether we will love again, care again, reach for another human being again. Trauma took away choice. Surviving and then telling our story returns that to us. We must choose what we will do with humans. We can hide, hate, or run from them, but then the trauma still has mastery.  Every act of kindness, every act of helpfulness, every act of forgiveness, and every act of love defies the trauma... Perpetrators of violence destroy trust...

HEAVENLY FATHER, My faith is in thee, My expectation is from thee, My love goes out toward thee, I believe thee,   accept thy Word,   acquiesce in thy will,   rely on thy promises,   trust thy providence. I bless thee that the court of conscience proves me to be thine. I do not need signs and wonders to believe,    for thy Word is sure truth. I have cast my anchor in the port of peace,    knowing that present and future are in nail-pierced hands. Thou art so good, wise, just holy,    that no mistake is possible to thee. Thou art fountain and source of all law;    what thou commandest is mine to obey. I yield to thy sovereignty all that I am and have;    do thou with me as thou wilt. Thou hast given me silence in my heart    in place of murmurings and complaints. Keep my wishes from growing into willings,          my willings from becoming fault-fin...

I applaud Dr. David Murray for tackling the subject of spiritual abuse in reformed circles . If we hold to a robust view of sin and holiness, it mocks our Lord and the truths we hold dear when leaders within the loosely reformed camp are characterized by pride, control, and bullying of anyone who disagrees with them. These things ought not to be. After reading Dr. Murray's post , this excerpt from Dr. Diane Langberg's latest book may shed some light on why we have this problem. I affirm the doctrines of grace and believe them to be biblically true, but rather than humbling me, I can become proud in my "rightness" and spiritual superiority. We joke about cage-stage Calvinism, and thankfully, it usually wears off in time. Or it may not, and that is a grave danger. As the verse says, "Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall." Prov. 16:18 (KJV) A second possible scenario can be found when a group is not depressed and hungry but r...