Homemade Laundry Detergent

INGREDIENTS:


1 bar of Fels Naptha Laundry Bar Soap
Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
Borax
A Clean Bucket


DIRECTIONS:
1/3 bar of Fels Naptha, grated
Put in pot with 6 cups water
Heat on low until soap melts
Do not boil!!!
Add 1/2 cup Borax & 1/2 cup Washing Soda
Stir until mixture is as thick as honey
Remove from heat
Add 4 cups hot tap water to bucket. Add soap mixture to bucket & stir
Add 1 gallon hot tap water plus 6 cups & stir
Let sit overnight
Blend and pour into containers


I doubled the recipe and ended up with a little over 4 gallons of detergent.  My store bought detergent was 1.25 gallons for $7.  I spent about $10 on the ingredients to make this and still have PLENTY left to make more!!!

Some of My Favorite Christmas Songs

Casting Crowns has a great Christmas cd.  Here are a few of my favorites from it.







I also love John Berry's version of O, Holy night.



And Light Has Come by the Barlow Girls

My Favorite Christmas CD

My very favorite Christmas cd is Chris Tomlin's Glory in the Highest.  I bought it Christmas 2010 and have listened to it at least once a month since.  I just love it!

Born That We May Have Life


Light Of The World


Joy To The Wold (Unspeakable Joy)


My Soul Magnifies The Lord


Hark The Herald Angels Sing


Emmanuel (Hallowed Manger Ground)


Angels We Have Heard on High


O, Come All Ye Faithful


This is not Chris Tomlin, but it is on the same cd.  
Come Thou Long Expected Jesus, by Christy Nockels

Merry Christmas

And the word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. 

John 1:14

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  

Isaiah 9:6

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.  And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!"

Luke 2:11-14

Wishing you a very blessed Christmas,
Missylou

Christmas Grace

"There are times, while seeking to follow God faithfully, we find ourselves in a desperate moment, forced to a place we would not choose to go.  It's then we must remember; we're not our own.  Our lives and circumstances are not ultimately about us.  They are about Jesus Christ.  The Father has purposes for us and our hardships that extend far beyond us.  And often what appears like a misfortune or a lack of provision in the moment later proves to be a means of great mercy.

So maybe what we need most this Christmas is not less turmoil, but more trust.  For God chooses stables of desperation as the birthplaces of his overwhelming grace."

John Piper
The Joseph Trilogy, Part 2
http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/the-joseph-trilogy-part-2?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DGBlog+%28DG+Blog%29

Worry, Anxiety, and the Kingdom of Christ

I was a teenage Satanist. No, I’ve never stood in a pentagram of blood and I’ve never joined a coven. The signs of my Satanism are yellow highlights in an old King James Bible my grandmother gave me when I was twelve. I looked through that Bible not long ago, and I could almost immediately identify by every highlighted text what was going on in my life at the time.

The highlight over “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Phil. 4:13) was there because I worried that I’d never pass geometry. I passed, barely, but, despite the presence of Christ, I still can’t tell you the difference between a trapezoid and a polygon. Plus, I misunderstood that verse, which speaks of contentment in all circumstances (including a Mississippi public school math classroom) rather than a “you can do it” encouragement.

When I see the highlight over the verse “Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that I will do” (Jn. 14:13), I know that then I was praying for God to cause that girl in my homeroom class to pay attention to me. I would ask for this and then I would repeat the clause “in Jesus’ name…in Jesus’ name…in Jesus’ name” as though this would bind God to his promise. He didn’t grant me this, and, man, am I glad.

The highlight over 1 Samuel 16:7 (”Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature…for the Lord seeth not as man seeth, but the Lord looketh on the heart”) was because I was then, and am now, a little cricket of a man, and I was hoping to grow tall enough if not to be considered for the basketball team then at least to be taller than that girl in homeroom. That didn’t happen either.

Click here to read the rest of Dr. Moore's article.

12 Reasons for Christmas

1.  "For this I was born and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth."   John 18:37

2.  "The reason the Son of God was to destroy the works of the devil."  1 John 3:8, Hebrews 2:14-15

3.  "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I came not to call the righteous, but sinners."  Mark 2:17

4.  "The Son of man came to seek and to save the lost."  Luke 19:10

5.  "The Son of man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."  Mark 10:45

6.  "God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons."  Galatians 4:5

Click here to read the remaining six reasons for Christmas.

31 Reasons Why Believers Should Give Thanks (5-9)

5.  Because His name is good.

With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you; I will give thanks to your name, O Lord, for it is good.Psalm 54:6

6.  Because thanksgiving magnifies God.

I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving.Psalm 69:30

7.  Because God is near to us.

We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks, for your name is near.  We recount your wondrous deeds.Psalm 75:1

8.  Because God will ultimately deliver His people from their enemies.

But we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will give thanks to your forever; from generation to generation we will recount your praise. Psalm 79:13

9.  Because it is a good thing to do.

It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High.Psalm 92:1

Quick & Easy Shrimp Boil Soup

1 stick of butter

1/4 cup chopped onions

1/4 cup chopped bell pepper

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 cans cream of mushroom soup

2 cans cream of potato soup

2 cans whole kernel corn

2 cans evaporated milk

1 cup half and half

2 pounds boiled shrimp

2 cans of crab meat

1 to 2 caps of liquid crab boil 

Melt butter, add veggies and saute'. 

Add soups, blend.

Add milks and corn, blend.

Add shrimp and crab meat, cook about 5 minutes.

Add crab boil.

Cover and cook 5 minutes.

Save An Extra 20% Through November 19!!!

31 Reasons Why Believers Should Give Thanks

3.  Because the Lord helps us.


The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped, my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.
Psalm 28:7


4.  Because thanksgiving glorifies God.


"The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; the one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!"  
Psalm 50:23

31 Reasons Why Believers Should Give Thanks

1.  Because God is good.  

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!
1 Chronicles 16:34

2.  Because it is a correct response to God's righteousness.

I will give to the Lord the thanks due to his righteousness, and I will sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.
Psalm 7:17

The Most Important Revolution of the Twentieth Century

"The most important revolution of the twentieth century has been the sexual revolution... Contraception replaced conception.  Pleasure was separated from responsibility.  It was as if a license was given out, legitimizing the bending of every part of our lives around serving ourselves.  Since that time, divorce, remarriage, abortion, premarital sex, and extramarital sex, as well as homosexuality have been accepted by increasing percentages of the public.  Pornography is huge business.  This is not just a problem with society out there.  Many churches have found their members plagued by failed marriages and illicit affairs, by so-called private sins that turn into public disgraces, some of which are known, some of which are not yet known."  Mark Dever

Be appalled, O heavens, at this: be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the LORD, for my people have committed two evils:  they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hered out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.
Jeremiah 2:12-13

Ten Ways To Love

1.  Listen without interrupting.  
A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion. 
Proverbs 18


2.  Speak without accusing.  
Know this , my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger...
James 1:19


3.  Give without sparing.
All day long he craves and craves, but the righteous gives and does not hold back.
Proverbs 21:26


4.  Pray without ceasing.
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding...
Colossians 1:9


5.  Answer without arguing.
Better s a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting with strife.
Proverbs 17:1


6.  Share without pretending.
Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the heard, into Christ...
Ephesians 4:15


7.  Enjoy without complaint.
Do all things without grumpling or questioning
Philippians 2:14


8.  Trust without wavering.
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Corinthians 13:7


9.  Forgive without punishing.
...bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.
Colossians 3:13


10. Promise without forgetting.
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
Proverbs 13:12

Purses and Shoes!

$60.00 purses on clearance for $5.00!

Yes, I bought all they had, which was 6.

Add a cute monogram and they'll make

 great Christmas or birthday gifts.

$60.00 shoes on clearance for $10!  

And sooooo cute!

I just need to find something to 

wear with them.

Another $60.00 pair on clearance for $10.00

Wore them yesterday to church. Super 

comfy, felt like I had nothing on :)

So, what would have cost me $480.00 

only cost me $50!!!!  My kind of deal :)

I LOVE BELK!

The Essence of Sin

"The essence of sin:  Man substitutes himself for God.  Man asserts himself against God and puts himself where only God deserves to be.  

 

The essence of salvation:  God substitutes Himself for man.  God sacrifices Himself for man and puts Himself where only man deserves to be."

David Platt

Are You A Bell Sheep?

A few weeks ago I started reading Elizabeth George's book, Raising a Daughter After God's Own Heart.  In the very first chapter she refers to mothers as being the bell sheep for their daughters.   I confess, I had never heard of a bell sheep until that moment.  Maybe some of you haven't either.  Let me explain.  When a shepherd noticed a sheep who willingly followed him and stayed near him, he hung a bell around the neck of that sheep so the flock would follow the bell sheep...who, in turn, was following the shepherd.  Of course, we are the sheep and Christ is the Shepherd.  Now that we know what a bell sheep is let's explore three questions.  Are you a bell sheep, how to be a bell sheep and why should we be a bell sheep.

Are you a bell sheep?  
I can't answer that question for you.  Examine yourself, your actions, your motives, and your heart.  Are you loving the things of this world (1 John 2:15) when you should be loving the things of God (Deut. 6:5)?  Are we teaching our daughters, by example and by words?

How to be a bell sheep?  
Instructing her in God's ways
Have daily Bible time with her
Encouraging her to have a quiet time
Pray for her
ABOVE ALL:  Live a life that brings honor and glory to God

Why should we be a bell sheep?
The answer is to point our daughters to Christ.  Is it not our desire for our daughters to grow into godly women. Women who will love the Lord with all their hearts, minds, and souls. (Matt.22:37)  Women who will be godly wives and mothers.  Women who's lives will glorify God and be a testimony to lost world.
Ladies, let's be that bell sheep, let's lead our daughters to Jesus and teach them His ways for the furtherance of God's kingdom.

Do not love the world or the things in the world.  If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
1 John 2:15

You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
Deuteronomy 6:5

And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
Matthew 22:37

And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.
Deuteronomy 6:6-7

What A New Study Says About Christian Education

A recent study out of Cardus, a Christian think-tank based in Ontario, has exciting results for the hard work, financial sacrifice, and conviction displayed by homeschooling and Christian school parents whose paychecks have gone to curriculum and tuition payments while they vacation in state parks and drive used cars with six-digit mileage. Here’s the good news: the popular stereotypes of those receiving a Christian education (you know: socially fragmented, anti-intellectual, and militantly right-winged) bear no statistical weight in reality.

Even better, this comprehensive study reveals this about students graduating from the home school or Christian school setting:

Click here to read the rest of the article.

The Slow Disappearance of the American Working Man

"While unemployment is an ordeal for anyone, it still appears to be more traumatic for men. Men without jobs are more likely to commit crimes and go to prison. They are less likely to wed, more likely to divorce, and more likely to father a child out of wedlock. Ironically, unemployed men tend to do even less housework than men with jobs and often retreat from family life, says W. Bradford Wilcox, director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia."  To read the entire article, follow the link below. 

 http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/the-slow-disappearance-of-the-american-working-man-08242011_page_2.html

For further insight on this matter, I highly recommend Dr. Albert Mohler's podcast.  Dr. Mohler serves as president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.  

http://www.albertmohler.com/2011/09/01/the-briefing-09-01-11/

Are Your Christmas Lights Plugged In?

Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy drunkenness, orgies, and things like these.  I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control; against such things there is no law.  And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.  Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

Galatians 5:19-26.

In Galatians 5:22-23, the apostle Paul list these "gracious habits" - "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."  All 9 fruit stand together and make up our walk with God.  They are like a string of Christmas lights - there is one string with many lights that all light up at once when plugged into the electrical socket.  But if one bulb goes out, then the entire string goes out.  That's how God's fruit is borne out in our lives.  Not one of them can be missing, and all must be evident - lit up - to be God's fruit.  As you recall your actions today, were any of these spiritual habits missing?  What must you do to get "plugged into God,"  the power source again?




Elizabeth George,
A Young Woman's Walk With God:
Growing More Like Jesus

What is God's Plan For Me as a Wife? (Part 3)

For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.
Ephesians 5:23

Have I ever agreed with God that my husband is my spiritual head?

Do I allow my husband to lead me, or do I resist his leadership, making it difficult for him to fulfill his God-given responsibility?

However, let each one of you live his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.
Ephesians 5:33

Does my husband feel that I reverence and respect him?

Do others know that I reverence my husband?

By my words, example, and counsel, do I encourage other women to reverence their husbands?

The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband.  for the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does.  Likewise, the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does.
1 Corinthians 7:3-4

Do I reserve intimate communication, looks, words, and touch for my husband?

Am I giving of myself to meet my husband's sexual needs?

If there is anything they desire to learn, let them ask their husbands at home.  For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.
1 Corinthians 14:35

Do I motivate my husband to grow spiritually by seeking his counsel, input, and direction, or am I quick to run to my pastor or another counselor for answers to my questions and problems?

Does my husband feel that I value and respect his input and counsel




Biblical Portrait of Womanhood,
Nancy Leigh DeMoss

What is God's Plan For Me as a Wife? (Part 2)

So when the woman say that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.
Genesis 3:6

Is my life setting a godly example to my husband, children, and friends?

By my words or example, do I ever encourage others to act in a way that is contrary to the Word of God?

Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.
Ephesians 5:24

Do I respond to my husband's leadership in the same way that the church is to respond to Christ as its head?

Am I submissive to my husband in my actions, as well as in my attitude?

Does my response to my husband demonstrate to the world the beauty and blessings of submissions to Christ?




Biblical Portrait of Womanhood
Nancy Leigh DeMoss

Why Was I Created As A Woman, Part 3

For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God, but woman is the glory of man.  I Corinthians 11:7

In the way I talk to and about men, do I show their God-created worth and value?

Am I a responder (rather than an initiator) in my relationship with men?

Do I make it easy for men to fulfill their God-given calling to lead in the home, the church, and society?

Do I respond to men in ways that communicate appropriate respect and affirmation of their manhood?

Do I seek to protect and preserve God-created distinctions between men and woman in the way I conduct myself, in my dress, and in my various roles as a woman?

Biblical Portrait of Womanhood,

Nancy Leigh DeMoss

What is God's Plan For Me as a Wife?

The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain.
Pr. 31:11

Can my husband trust me to walk with God on a consistent basis and to respond to life's circumstances with praise, gratitude, and faith?

Can my husband trust me to be loyal and morally faithful to him?

Am I completely trustworthy in every area of my life--in my relationships with other men?  in my spending habits?  in the way I talk about my husband to others?

She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.
Pr. 31:12

Am I committed to support my husband in every way possible and to always act in his best interests?

Does my husband know beyond the shadow of a doubt that I am committed to him for life, no matter what?

Am I committed unconditionally to bless and serve my husband?




Biblical Portrait of Womanhood
Nancy Leigh DeMoss

How Does a Woman of God Conduct Herself?

And now, may daughter, do not fear.  I will do for you all that you ask, for all my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy woman.
Ruth 3:11

Do I have a reputation for being a woman of moral virtue and godly character?

Do I keep myself pure from all influences that could defile my heart, thoughts, or actions?

She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
Proverbs 31:26

Do I bless my family, friends, and acquaintances by speaking words that are kind and wise?

Do I study and meditate on the Word of God so that I can know how to speak wise words?

Am I able to point people to specific Scriptures that apply to their lives and need?

With patience a ruler may be persuaded, and a soft tongue will break a bone.
Proverbs 25:15

Am I willing to wait quietly for God to change the heart of an authority that I feel is wrong, rather than pushing, manipulating, or nagging?

Do I seek to influence others by means of gentle words, rather that controlling or intimidating them with harsh words?

Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness.
1 Timothy 2:11

Do I have a teachable spirit?

Do I receive instruction with a meek, obedient spirit?

It is better to live in a desert land than with a quarrelsome and fretful woman.
Proverbs 21:19

Does my spirit make it easy for those I live or work with to be around me?

Do I frustrate others or make them want to stay away from me because of an argumentative or angry spirit?





Biblical Portrait of Womanhood,
Nancy Leigh DeMoss

How to Walk with God

To walk with God is to walk in the light of God’s countenance; to live as people who remember that all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we walk, that the darkness is no darkness with Him, and remembering this, to aim at never thinking or saying or doing anything we should be ashamed of in the presence of the great Searcher of hearts. To walk with God is to walk after the Spirit–to look to the Holy Spirit as our Teacher, to lean on Him for strength, to put no confidence in the flesh, to set our affections on things above, to wean them from things on earth, and to be spiritually-minded.

~ J.C. Ryle

Can We Really Trust Our Feelings?

My feelings are not God.  God is God.  My feelings do not define truth.  God's word defines truth.  My feelings are echoes and responses to what my mind perceives.  And sometimes - many times - my feelings are out of sync with the truth.  When that happens - and it happens every day in some measure - I try not to bend the truth to justify my imperfect feelings, but rather, I plead with God:  Purify my perceptions of your truth and transform my feelings so that they are in sync with the truth.


John Piper (Finally Alive)

Five Reasons to Memorize Scripture

Earlier this year at Passion in Fort Worth, TX, Pastor John spoke to a group of young leaders about the value of Scripture memorization. He gives five reasons why it matters:

1. Conformity to Christ
2. Comfort for yourself and others
3. Conflict with sin
4. Communicating the gospel
5. Communion with God

Stream or download the message.

Godly Character

Godly character should always be the focus for every Christian and even more so for the Christian family.

Character is what a man is in the dark.  

--D.L. Moody

A man should be like tea;
his real strength appearing when he gets in hot water.  

--Unknown

If I take care of my character,
my reputation will take care of me.  

--D.L. Moody

He is rich or poor according to what he is,
not according to what he has.  

--Henry Ward Beecher

We choose what attitudes we have right now.
And it's a continuing choice.

--John C. Maxwell

Only God Himself fully appreciates the influence of a Christian mother
in the molding of character in her children. 

--Billy Graham

Character is always lost when a high ideal
is sacrificed on the altar of conformity and popularity.

--Charles Spurgeon

A good character is the best tombstone.
Those who loved you and were helped by you will remember you when forget-me-nots have withered.
Carve your name on hearts... not on marble.  

--Charles Spurgeon

Here are some characteristics of a godly woman--check off the ones that describe you:

• Gracious
• Virtuous
• Sober
• Chaste
• Prudent
• Discreet
• Peaceable
• Patient
• Kind
• Faithful
• Joyful
• Good
• Merciful
• Pleasant
• Ready
• Honorable
• Benevolent
• Keeper at Home
• In Subjection
• Quiet Spirit
• Modest
• Obedient
• Loves husband and children
• Teaching the younger women

Now before you get discouraged, understand this--

I know that we fail in different areas on this list from day to day (a very real reason for our need for Christ) but we should NOT look at this list as a reminder of our failures but instead with HOPE, OPTIMISM and ANTICIPATION of what we have to look forward to. He will help us to become these things. We cannot do all of this in our own strength. It is only because of Him that this can take place and we must remember that God has not finished his work in us yet!

Be encouraged ladies, as you look and pray over these characteristics.  Be sure to thank Him for the work He is about to do in your life as He helps you daily to become more like the godly woman described above.

Theology Thursday

SADOTHEISM

‘[say''-doe-thee''-iz-um]

The theistic belief that God, if he exists, is a sadist who enjoys to inflict pain and suffering on those who do not have the power to fight back. This is normally associated with the problem of evil in which the assertion is made that if God was all-good and all-powerful, he would eradicate evil from the world. Since evil is not eradicated, the sadotheist denies his goodness replacing it with a sadistic attribute.

EGALITARIANISM

[ih-gal''-ih-tayr''-ee-uh-niz''-um] (French egal, “equal”)

Theological position held by many Christians (contra complementarianism) believing the Bible does not teach that women are in any sense, functionally or ontologically, subservient to men. Women and men hold positions in society, ministry, and the family according to their gifts, not their gender. The principle of mutual submission teaches that husbands and wives are to submit to each other equally. Prominent egalitarians include Doug Groothuis, Ruth Tucker, William Webb, Gorden Fee, and Linda Belleville.

MESSIANIC SECRET

The “Messianic Secret” is a phrase that seeks to explain a common theme among the Gospel writers (especially Mark), where Christ seems to desire his identity to remain hidden. For example, in Mark 8:27-30 after Peter confesses that Christ is the Messiah, Christ “sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.” Explanations for this vary, but most conservative scholars believe that Christ was not hiding his identity per se, but simply revealing himself selectively and progressively to those who would be his followers and would carry his message once his identity had been vindicated by the resurrection.

SEEKER-SENSITIVE CHURCHES

This refers to the method of conducting a Sunday morning church service where all the events surrounding the service are tailored with the unchurched in mind. The goal of this model is to attempt to make the “seeker” feel comfortable by making the service understandable and enjoyable. In this sense, the church is attempting to build a bridge with the unbeliever with the ultimate goal that they will hear the Gospel and be saved. The preaching model in the seeker churches follows suit. Every sermon is simply another way to present the Gospel. Deeper learning, fellowship, and discipleship are encouraged but are not normally part of the Sunday service. They are commonly found in mid-week small groups and studies. Opponents of the seeker model will argue that the Sunday service is not meant to be for the unbelievers, but for believers. There is a wide range within the spectrum of how seeker-sensitive a church might be. One end might be thought of as “seeker-friendly” and the other “seeker-driven.” Rick Warren and Bill Hybels are often thought of as the modern day “fathers” of this model. It is primarily found in evangelical churches.

REASONED ECLECTICISM

A method of textual criticism (reconstructing the original text of Scripture) which believes that the most accurate reading of the Scripture comes from an approach that takes into account all the evidence. It deals with each variant (differences in the manuscripts) by examining them on a case-by-case basis, believing that the variant that best accounts for all the others represents the best or the preferred reading. This method is to be distinguished from those which one look to one text-type as the standard. Also known as genuine or moderate eclecticism.

ANABAPTISTS

(Greek ana, “again” + Greek baptizo, “baptize”)

The Anabaptists were a sect of Christians in the “Radical Reformation” of the sixteenth century that sought to bring further reform the church beyond that of Luther, Zwingli, Calvin and the other mainline reformers. In doing so they rejected all tradition as man-made, rejected any relationship between the government and the church, and instructed those who had been baptized as infants to be baptized again as believers. Because of their increasingly radical views, the Anabaptists were persecuted by both Protestants and Roman Catholics. Descendants of the Anabaptists include Amish, Hutterites, Mennonites, Church of the Brethren, and Brethren in Christ.

TRADUCIANISM

[truh-doo''-shuh-niz''-um] (Latin tradux, “a shoot” or “a sprout”)

The theological position in anthropology which argues that God creates the soul indirectly through the parents as he does the body. Trudicianists believe that there is a distinction between the material (body) and immaterial (soul/spirit), but they do not believe that they are created through two separate acts of creation. They believe that the immaterial is created in and with the material. Therefore, for the traducianist, there is never a time when the body is without a soul. Traducianists argue against “anthropological creationism”which asserts that God creates the immaterial (soul/spirit) directly and then places it in the material body at or sometime after conception. Traducianists believe that God ceased from ex nihilo (“out of nothing”) creation on the sixth day and since then all creation is done indirectly. Traducianists also argue that a belief in “anthropological creationism” evidences gnostic or dualistic leanings, implying that the body is a lesser entity than the soul.

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What Makes A Beautiful Woman, Part 5

...likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire...1 Timothy 2:9

Do I avoid extreme or excessive fashions (hair, clothing, jewelry, make-up) that could call attention to myself or cause people to be distracted from focusing on the Lord?

Do I avoid extravagant jewelry or clothing that could flaunt my wealth or cause others to be envious?

Do my wardrobe and outward appearance portray a spirit of moderation, sobriety, purity , and reverence?






Biblical Portrait of Womanhood,
Nancy Leigh DeMoss

What Makes A Beautiful Woman, Part 4

...likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire...1 Timothy 2:9

Do I dress modestly?

Do my clothing styles encourage men to think pure thoughts, rather than stimulating them to have sensual thoughts or desires?

Do I dress in such a way as to draw attention to the herat and spirit of Jesus within me, rather than to my physical body?

Biblical Portrait of Womanhood,

Nancy Leigh DeMoss

Theology Thursday

NATURAL EVIL

Any evil that comes about that cannot be attributed to a personal agent such as man or God. Natural evils included weather disasters, cancer, and starvation. They stand in direct contrast to “moral evils” which are attributed to the volition of man. Sometimes natural evils are known as “surd evils.” Surd is the Latin translation of the Greek alogos meaning “without reason” since they do not seem to have any apparent mitigating good.

MORAL EVIL

Any evil that happens which can be attributed to the volition of a personal agent, whether God, angels, or man. Moral evils are those which have an intent or reason, often without benevolence, but sometimes with a benevolent “greater good” in mind. Murder and killing in a just war are both moral evils, but not to the same degree. Moral evils stand in contrast to natural evils which are those events, such as weather disasters, that come about without a personal agency and without any apparent reason.

MORAL LAW

A term used to distinguish between the types of representative laws in biblical and systematic theology as well as philosophy. In biblical theology, the moral law represents the laws of the Mosaic Law that transcend both cultural and temporal barriers such as murder, adultery, lying, and stealing. This is to be distinguished from both the civil and ceremonial laws which are relative to the theocratic government of Israel and dissolved when the theocracy ended. In systematic theology, the moral law applies broadly to the entire moral code of ethics which is inherently represented in all of humanity. These include but are not limited to the moral laws of the Old Testament. In philosophy, the moral law is associated with the “Categorical Imperative” of Immanuel Kant.

RATIONALISM

[rash‘-uh-nuh-liz’-um] (Latin rationalis, “reason”)

The theory of epistemology (the study of knowledge) which limits knowledge to that which is intuitively known without regard to experience (contra empiricism). Rene Descartes is often referred to as the father of rationalism, believing that all knowledge must be justified by innate intellectual deduction. John Locke and David Hume challenged the rationalistic assumption.

OPEN THEISM

Open Theism, also referred to as “free will theism” and “openness theology,” is the belief that God does not exercise meticulous control of the universe but leaves it “open” for humans to make significant free will choices that impact their relationships with God and others. A corollary of this is that God has not predetermined the future. Open Theists further believe that this would imply that God does not know the future exhaustively.Among proponents of this view are Gregory Boyd, John Sanders, and Clark Pinnock.

Credit: www.relaimingthemind.com