A Love So Great” is the first song by Hatton Allen and Deb Hibbard!

audio lecture in ladies’ class.

How often do we as mothers blame ourselves for the mistakes of our children? There may be times when we are to blame, but Christian mothers are focused on providing good biblical counsel for their children.

Everyone has free will; no matter how much we teach our children, some are just going to go against their teaching. When that happens, we look to ourselves and ask, “How did I fail? What could I have done differently?”

The same thing happens in teaching the gospel. A preacher can present a lesson with numerous passages, and the unsaved will still sit in the pew and make no effort to repent. We conduct Bible studies with individuals; we show book, chapter, and verse for the plan of salvation, and the student still rejects the truth. We ask, “What could I have done differently? How did he/she not understand what I was trying to say? I should have done more.”

Our biggest problem is that we get stuck in the problem. We become focused on ourselves and take the blame for something we can’t help.

I have been reading a book written by Teresa Hampton called “Leading Ladies.”  She addresses this very point with two perfect examples from Scripture. The first is found in First Samuel 8.The people of Israel wanted a king. They complained that they wanted to be like the nations around them. Teresa says “they wanted a strong, visual presence as they lived among other nations.” What a silly, rebellious people they were. They had a king, God. They had a direct line of communication with Him through the prophets. Sadly, they wanted a fallible human being to be over them; no matter what warning Samuel gave them, they insisted on a king.

When God told Samuel that he was to appoint Saul as their king, Samuel was devastated. He took the responsibility on himself.  Samuel felt rejected, but it was God the people had rejected. God had to help Samuel redirect his mission. He still had work to do, and he could not focus on the mistake Israel was making.

You would think Samuel would learn from this error, but he didn’t. Later, when God rejected Saul as king, Samuel cried all night. Finally, God had to tell him to let go of his grief. He gave him instructions to go anoint a new king for Israel. Once again, there was work to be done.

The second example is Elijah. The prophet was well known but without favor with Ahab and Jezebel. He had just proven the idol, Baal, to be a fake god; and he killed the 450 prophets who served Baal. When Jezebel found out what Elijah had done, she threatened his life; and Elijah ran away. In the mountains, God brought him to a realization that the evil that existed in Israel was not his fault. It resulted from sin among God’s people. Elijah was so caught up in himself that he believed he was the only one still faithful to God, but God informed him that there were 7,000 that had not bowed to Baal.

God did the same thing with Elijah that He did with Samuel. He told him to get his focus off himself and concentrate on the work yet to be done.

Many of us will allow ourselves to retreat into a state of pity or self-blame for the difficulties that plague our lives. We allow those things to pull us away from serving God. We need to learn to rely on the Lord even more during times of trouble. We need to not get stuck in the problem, but rely on God to put us back to work.

Sandra Oliver

“We might as well just call everything ‘buttercups!’” wailed my friend, as she threw her hands up in despair.

She went on, conjuring up an imagined line of conversation. “What kind of iris is that?” “Well, it’s yellow, so I call it a buttercup iris.”

“How about that lily?” “Buttercup lily.”

“What about that tall grass?” “Buttercup grass.”

“What is that lovely tree in your yard?” “My prized buttercup tree.”

This rant, which had me holding my sides laughing, was precipitated by a discussion of the purple Torenia in my garden. It’s also called “monkey flower,” but that moniker has also been used to describe a totally different species as well.

We commiserated about the tendency to use ambiguous terminology. The worst offender was the nickname “buttercup.” Then came the tirade that might have sounded like we were on the set of “The Princess Bride” as we exclaimed “Buttercup!”

“And this is why we like using Latin names for plants,” she ended, as I dried my tears and composed myself.

Three distinctly different plant species are known as “buttercups;” ranunculus, narcissus, and oenothera. Maybe more.

I share a passion for using botanical names to identify the plants we love.

How else will we know to plant the “spider lily” Lycoris two inches deep, and expect only the foliage in the spring and only blooms in the fall? If we mistook it for “spider lily” Cleome, we might plant it too shallowly at 1/8 inch, and expect to replant it after the winter.

The same goes for Biblical terminology.

At the tender age of 11 months, my husband had somebody pour water on his head, and then gave his parents a “Certificate of Baptism.”

This questionable certification just passed into his hands recently, as his mother had carefully saved it all these years. Does it give him the rights and privileges of salvation, as 1 Peter 3:21 describes?

To answer that, we must first ask which type of “baptism” is correct; sprinkling, pouring, or immersion?

This is where we need to translate the word baptize instead of transliterating it, as they did for King James.

Most of us are aware of three distinctly different modes of baptism. Sprinkling, pouring, and immersion have all been called “baptism.”

Unlike “buttercup,” which is more descriptive of a culinary dish than a plant, the words baptizo and baptisma do have a definition. Baptizo is defined in any Greek lexicon as to dip, plunge, or immerse. Baptisma is the noun form of that word.

In one of my classes at Bear Valley Bible Institute, one of the instructors posed what we considered a trick question on a test. “How do we know that the Ethiopian treasurer in Acts 8 was immersed in water?”

Many of the answers given were taken directly from Scripture. “Because he went down into the water.” Or, “Because if sprinkling were allowed, there surely would have been water in the chariot; but they got out.”

While these answers have merit, they were marked wrong. The teacher explained.” The obvious answer — and the only one necessary — is that the word that the Holy Spirit used meant ‘immersion’ and nothing else.”

This made an impression on the class. When God speaks, he means what he says.

We know what baptism meant in Bible days. It means the same now. We cannot assign a new meaning to it just because of our traditions or preferences, any more than we can plant a buttercup tree.

“He that has believed and has been baptized shall be saved…” (Mark 16:16a, NASB).

Christine (Tina) Berglund

Daniel 2:27-28a “The secret which the king has demanded, the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, and the soothsayers cannot declare to the king. But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets.”

Faithfulness runs throughout Scripture as a common theme. The stories of the many men and women who relied wholly on the Great I Am come to life within the pages of our Bibles. One of these superheroes of faith was Daniel.

Young Daniel was snatched from his life and groomed in service to a foreign king, yet Daniel remained faithful to the Great I Am. So when King Nebuchadnezzar demanded his wise men reveal the secrets of his dream or die, Daniel felt no panic. Instead, Daniel turned to God, the keeper of all secrets.

Daniel boldly approached King Nebuchadnezzar and brought it to the king’s attention that the secret he demanded could never be divulged by humans. Then Daniel uttered one small word and the impossible turned into all things possible – “BUT.”

Yes, the king had demanded the impossible, “BUT, there is a God in heaven,” Daniel said as he stood before the throne.

Those three little letters, B-U-T held the power to turn the story around and rewrite the ending.

What the king would learn was that the impossible just happens to be God’s everyday routine. So God through Daniel revealed the king’s secrets. Then with all assurance, Daniel said, “The great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this. The dream is certain and its interpretation is sure.” Daniel 2:45

If Daniel were onstage before an audience, he could have ended this speech with a mic-drop and a standing ovation exit. Mighty God was so certain and sure, Daniel was willing to stake his life on it.

It is easy to stand in awe of what God did for Daniel, but friend never doubt the same God in heaven remains certain and sure in our lives also.

When hurtful words and deeds strain precious relationships and leave us broken, remember there is a God in heaven. He holds the power to change our hearts, redeem our souls, and heal our wounds.

When feelings of insecurity consume us, when self-esteem doubts creep in, and when anxiousness leaves us paralyzed, remember there is a God in heaven. His immeasurable love for us was evidenced when he was nailed to the cross. Yes, we are precious to Him.

And as was seen in the story of Daniel, when our future feels scary and we cannot see what lies ahead, remember there is a God in heaven who holds our destiny in His hands and promises to direct our path.

So friend, when you, like the king, seek answers, there is a God in heaven. He remains certain and sure. Another mic-drop!

Father God, help us never doubt you to show up in our lives.

Blessings,

Rita Cochrane

Thanksgiving: When you say grace, say this!

It’s Thanksgiving week as you read. I hope it is the beginning of a holiday season that will bless your heart with warm memories for many years. For some, though, the holidays will bring painful memories of abuse or loss of a loved one or long days of mental torture or longer nights of physical pain. Even with the challenges that come to all people in a fallen world, the church of God, the redeemed, have constant cause for joy and thanksgiving. We are gathered around his banquet table every day of every year as we walk in His light.

Psalm 103 is a great place to go on this Thanksgiving week to be reminded of the depth of the Lord’s mercies on His spiritual Israel. Here is David’s list of the blessings, from that chapter, showered by the Father on the Old Testament nation. How many of these are just as real to the church, the people of God, today? I challenge you to go down this list and check off the ones that are applicable to you, personally. How many of these are very real and tangible in your own life in 2023? As I made this list, I realized, at once, the inconceivable worth of His blessings and my own worthlessness. There is some realm or area of my life and of His mercies in which I can check off each one! Here’s the list:

• Forgiveness of iniquities
• Healing of diseases
• Redemption from destruction
• A crown of lovingkindness and mercy
• A mouth satisfied with good things
• Renewed youth
• Execution of judgement for oppressed
• Ways made know to Moses
• Acts made known to Israel
• Mercy
• Grace
• Slowness to anger
• Dealing NOT according to sins
• Removal far from transgressions
• Pity like a Father
• Remembrance that we are dust
• Everlasting mercy
• Righteousness to grandchildren
• A prepared throne
• A kingdom that rules
• Angels that excel in strength

I love to contemplate every one of these. But the one I love the most is that He deals not with people (me) according to their sins. There are no words for the gratitude that swells in me when I understand that he will not treat me as I deserve to be treated. He will look on me and not see sin in its blackness. He will reach to me and not touch the filth of sin. He will listen to me and never hear the wretched voice of sin that anguishes in my pleas. He will savor the sweet smell of my worship and not smell the stench of guilt. Surely if David could extol His mercies and claim his deliverance in the days of animal sacrifices, how much more can I bask in the blessings of forgiveness; living, as His child in the shadow of the cross! “Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless His holy name” (Psalm 103:1)

Cindy Colley

Judges 2:10b-12a “. . . another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done for Israel. Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served the Baals; and they forsook the Lord God. . .”

My family admits to being dressing-snobs, meaning we tend to turn their noses up at all Thanksgiving dressing and stuffing except our family’s own, unique recipe. I am at least a third generation dressing snob who raised a fourth generation of snobs, with a fifth generation emerging.

It is believed our Mama Watts crafted the recipe, but who knows. Perhaps she received it from a relative hanging high on our family tree. What we do know is if the generations to follow are to enjoy Mama Watts’ dressing, the intricate process of adding just the right amount of sage and balancing the ratio of cornbread to white bread must be handed down. Otherwise, the recipe will be lost and those coming after us will be destined to “take-out” stuffing.

Scripture speaks of passing down to the next generation something much more precious than a recipe. Throughout the life of Joshua, God’s loud voice and strong arm had been ever present. But following Joshua’s death, a new generation appeared who knew nothing of God, nor His mighty works and loving protection. Consider Israel’s epic failure when it came to teaching the next generation.

• They failed to share the story of creation, so the next generation knew nothing of God’s power and forethought.
• They never told of Noah, so there was no understanding of the importance of faithfulness to God.
• The story of the Tower of Babel was not uttered, so there was no awareness of how God detests prideful hearts.
• They never heard of Moses, the Egyptian bondage, the ten plagues, nor the parting of the Red Sea, so an understanding of God’s love and covenant fell by the wayside.
• They spoke nothing of Joseph’s unwavering faith in God, nor his generous forgiveness.
• They had no knowledge of Rahab who bore evidence of God’s desire to redeem broken lives.

Because of this, scripture records, “They did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done for Israel. . .They forsook the Lord God” (Judges 2:10).

Friend, if we fail to teach the next generation the stories of our holy, sovereign, and loving God, history will repeat itself. Then sadly, a new generation will rise who knows nothing of our Lord (nor how to make Mama Watts’ Thanksgiving dressing).

Father God may our faith run deep and may we share you through all the moments of our life.

Blessings,

Rita Cochrane

Mark 4:19 “These are the ones who hear the Word, but the worries of this life, the false appeal of wealth, and the desire for more things break in and choke the word, and it bears no fruit.”

The arena hosting the conference filled with participants all anxious to hear the highly acclaimed keynote speaker and be filled with spiritual encouragement. I arrived early, prepared with my Bible, a large notepad, my favorite pen, and even a snack in case I got hungry. I settled in, excited for this opportunity. But as the speaker took the stage, I realized I needed Chapstick.

I rummaged in my bag, but no sign of it in the front or back pockets, nor main compartment. Not in my jacket either. By this point, everyone around me was spellbound and intent in notetaking. Not me. I was searching for Chapstick. I fought the urge to shout out, “Wait a moment. I can’t hear you. My lips are chapped!” Suddenly, what had been so paramount took second place. It was all about my lips!

Oh, the weakness of the human spirit. It takes so very little to distract us from what is truly important. I suspect we all have something (perhaps not chapped lips) that draws our attention away from God. Mark 4:19 lists these diversions as the worries of life, the glitter of wealth, and the quest for material possessions. Each prevents us from rooting our hearts in the Word and becoming godly fruit-bearers.

Many worldly concerns separate us from God’s desire for our lives. In the pursuit of a promotion at work, do we close the door to God’s spirit living within us? As we rush from ballfield to drive-thru dinner, from overseeing homework to bedtime tucking, do we fail to incorporate the goodness of God into discussions with our children? In our local congregations, are we content to be pew-sitters, turning down involvement opportunities because they would detract from our weekly activities? It seems the gospel writer, Mark, was right on point with the ease of smaller things distracting us from those of eternal importance.

In case you are wondering, no, I never located my Chapstick that day. My focus was diverted from what was most important. But if I can find anything positive in my unfortunate example, it is that I am forever grateful the clothing tag in the neckline of the woman sitting in front of me was not sticking up from the back of her shirt. Had it been, I simply would not have heard a single word!

Father God, help us to realize our worldly pursuits are secondary to our pursuit of Your Spirit.

Blessings,

Rita Cochrane