Church Ladies and Their Bikinis

Received this from my wife who received it from a good friend.  Please read the blog entry and watch the video.  I echo the sentiments here.

http://ryanvisconti.com/all-gods-daughters-wear-bikinis/

Keep the faith!

Me Monster

From the sermon last week, as promised.

Beware the me monster!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vymaDgJ7KLg

How It Is

Had a friend send this to me on Facebook and asked if I could relate.  I can on most of these.  There are a couple where I stray (I'm not a mama's boy and I do like watching a game), but there are many points on which I would say, "Yes, that's exactly how it is."  Maybe this will give some insight into the life of a minister.


http://marklovefurniture.com/blog/2013/07/06/eleven-things-you-might-not-understand-about-your-minister/

Good Question

When the Bible says we will be accountable for all of our actions, does that include sins that we've already been forgiven for?

Response is from RC Sproul.  Some deep thoughts here.

I think so. Some people will be quick to point out that the Bible says, "As far as the east is from the west, so far has God removed our transgressions from us" and that he has cast them into the sea of forgetfulness. When God forgives us of our sins, he forgets them. He remembers them no more against us. So it would seem that we could conclude from those passages that once we are forgiven of a sin, that's the absolute end of it and we never have to be held accountable for it.

When we are forgiven by God for a sin, there are two things we have to understand. First of all, when the Bible speaks of God's forgetting our sins, we have to be careful how far we push that. That does not mean that suddenly the eternal God, very God of very God, who is omniscient and immutable, suddenly undergoes a memory lapse and that that which he once knew intimately he suddenly becomes ignorant of. If we push that, it would give us a ghastly view of God. Rather, the Bible is using this kind of language to say that he doesn't hold it against us anymore. He treats us without raising the issue in terms of delivering a punishment. The just punishment for any sin would be eternal separation from God. When we are forgiven, we are relieved of all eternal guilt and punishment so that we don't have to worry about going to hell because we have sinned.

At the same time, the New Testament tells us at least twenty-five times that the distribution of rewards in heaven will be done according to our relative degree of obedience or the works that we perform. We are told frequently by Jesus that on the last day all things will be brought into the light. Those things we have done in secret will be made manifest; every idle word will come into the judgment. I don't think that means that I'm going to be punished for those sins that I've confessed and have had forgiven. Those are covered by the righteousness of Christ and by my Mediator. But I will have to stand before God for a full and complete evaluation of my obedience as a Christian.

Whether or not at that time of evaluation he will mention the complete track record or just say, "Here's the bottom line, you'll get so many rewards"—I don't know how that's going to work. But I am going to be brought into a final accounting, and certainly in God's mind every detail of my life will be there. Even though I am forgiven and I am not punished, any sin still means that I will receive less reward than if I had been obedient.

What to do when you may or may not be a control freak

Excellent post from Mark Buchanan sent to me from my wife.  Great thoughts and a challenge.  This is one of those posts that I kept saying, "Ya, I can totally relate!" 

 

"Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control."  Proverbs 25:28

 

I was in a coffee shop the other day and a mom announced to her little guy – maybe 2 and a half years old – that it was time to leave.

Little Guy didn’t want to leave.

At first he ignored her, then he defied her, then he assailed her.

To her credit, she remained calm.

She spoke quietly. She stood her ground. She didn’t bargain.

In the end, magnificently composed, she carried Little Guy out the door, a wild banshee of a boy, thrashing and wailing as he went.

It got me thinking about the difference between control and self-control.

These two things – control and self-control – stand at opposite ends of the maturity spectrum.

The toddler was a live-action reel of a fierce effort to control his mother.

And he was a spectacle of immaturity.

 

The mom was a breathtaking portrait of impeccable self-control.  And she was the epitome of maturity.

Toddlers brim with the impulse to control (even as they bungle the execution). A 3-year-old will resort to wild-eyed tantrums, incessant whining, ear-piercing screams, coy manipulation, and flat-out demand to try to get their way: to control their parent, or sibling, or playmate, or the situation at hand.

But as the toddler’s attempts to control things escalate, his ability to control himself deteriorates. His need to be in control makes him more and more out-of-control. The results are not pretty.

This all looks different in adults – usually.

Of course, we’ve all met 28- or 33- or 59-year olds (sometimes in the mirror) who, in an increasingly desperate effort to control people or situations, throw tantrums, power up, make threats, emotionally blackmail, withdraw into icy silence, and so on.

But most of us, by age 19 or so, have an epiphany of sorts: that the louder we shout, the less others listen.

 

That the more we manipulate, the further others back away.

That the more we toss a fit, the more others look at us and think, “What a sad strange little man,” or, “What a drama queen.”

That's the epiphany.

But what we do with it matters a great deal. It determines whether we really grow up or not.
The truly wise become deeply humble.  They realize that the only kind of control the Bible endorses -- indeed, commands -- is self-control.

 

The New Testament has 16 separate exhortations to be self-controlled.  It's a major theme.

 

So the wise heed that, and work with the Holy Spirit to get a grip on themselves. They receive the comfort, the rebuke, the strength, and the instruction of God himself to discipline their thoughts, emotions, attitudes, and actions.

They give up trying to control others and step up being in control of themselves.

 

The lovely irony is that the self-controlled exert wide influence. People listen to them. Heed them. Seek them. Follow them.

In other words, the self-controlled accomplish the very thing the controlling desperately want but only ever sabotage.

Here’s what I’ve learned: Every impulse to seize control — is the Holy Spirit’s invitation to practice self-control.

Every nerve jolt to freak out, melt down, start yelling, fly into rage or panic is a divine cue to slow down, breathe deep, start praying, and lean into God.

Every instinct to control something is God's nudge to control myself.

 

I don’t always get it right. When I don’t, I not only lose self-control: I lose influence. I lose respect. I lose dignity.

When I do get it right, I gain all around.

Lord, help me get a grip on myself.