Tag Archive | Redeeming the time

I didn’t hold back what scourging was, and explained in terms she could understand.

Jun14

While teaching the trial of Jesus, a young lady asked me if Jesus sinned during His life…..I told her no, and took her back to Scripture.  She then wanted to know about sacrifices under the Jewish law.  I taught her about Jesus,  His perfect sacrifice for man’s sins, and the Jewish Law which was meant only for them.  I told her Jewish law was an imperfect law, but Jesus came and nailed the old law to the cross, and now we are under the new law.  A perfect law for all mankind.  Jews and Gentiles alike.

“For there is no difference between Jew and the Greek;  for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon Him.”    Romans 10:12

“Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His cross; . . . .”   Colossians 2:14

“For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”    Hebrews 4:15

When we came to *flogging*, the (scourging) of Jesus, she asked about it as well.  I didn’t hold back what scourging was, and explained in terms she could understand.  She winced as she looked at the graphic on the page of the lesson she had.  One of the questions asked in the lesson had to do with the repentance of Judas.  I taught her Judas had a worldly repentance, not a Godly repentance.

“For Godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of:  but the sorrow of the world worketh death.”    II Corinthians 7:10

“The Son of man goeth as it is written of Him; but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed!  it had been good for that man if he had not been born.  Then Judas, which betrayed Him, answered and said, Master, is it I?  He said unto him, Thou hast said.”    Matthew 26:24

Children must be encouraged to read and study their Bibles.  They cannot learn in 45 minutes in a Bible class all they will need to carry them through life.  They are filled with many questions.  Seize the moments to teach them.  Habits formed now will pay off in eternity when we teach our children to live by His Word.

“Sow a thought, and you reap an act;
Sow an act, and you reap a habit;
Sow a habit, and you reap a character;
sow a character, and you reap a destiny.”  ~ Samuel Smiles

Scripture must be taught in the home, if we are going to be effective parents.  We are training them for their future homes, and future leaders of the Lord’s church.  Let us ground them well in sound doctrine. We do not have them long.  They quickly leave and form lives of their own.  It is imperative we teach them, and let them see us study His Word and pray.  Setting a Biblical example before our children will do more good for the Lord’s church than any program designed for them.  God gave parents this duty.

“If you desire your children to be kind, appreciative, and pleasant, those qualities should be taught – not hoped for.”     ~ Dobson

“And ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath:  but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.”    Ephesians 6:4

The habits we form today, will be the habits we have tomorrow.

“Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”    Ephesians 5:15-16

“Those who control what young people are taught, and what they experience – what they see, hear, think, and believe – will  determine the future course for the nation.”
~ Dobson

Eileen Light

TEACHING OUR CHILDREN TO KNOW GOD

Aug25

When should we begin to teach our children to know God? It is good to start working on the process before we become parents. The more we have cleansed the love of the world out of our hearts, so that we love the Lord with more of our hearts by the time we become parents, the better chance we have to be able to effectively teach our children to love God with all their hearts.

Recent research has shown that even in the womb, babies begin learning language from their mothers. “The mother has first dibs on influencing the child’s brain,” said Patricia Kuhl, co-author and co-director of the Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences at the University of Washington. “The vowel sounds in her speech are the loudest units and the fetus locks onto them.” (http://www.washington.edu/news/2013/01/02/while-in-womb-babies-begin-learning-language-from-their-mothers/).

Recent research led by Christine Moon, a professor of psychology at Pacific Lutheran University, also shows that infants, only hours old, showed marked interest for the vowels of a language that was not their mother tongue. “We have known for over 30 years that we begin learning prenatally by listening to the sound of our mother talking,” Moon said. “This is the first study that shows we learn about the particular speech sounds of our mother’s language before we are born. Previous studies indicate that the fetus seems to remember musical rhythms,” she said. “They now seem to be able to learn language partially.” (http://www.plu.edu/marcom/news/2012/12/01/language-learning-begins-in-utero-new-study-finds/).

Mary Elizabeth Dallas, HealthDay Reporter says that rhymes reveal evidence of learning in the womb. By third trimester, unborn babies respond to rhymes recited by their mothers. (WebMD News from HealthDay http://www.webmd.com/baby/news/20140725/rhymes-reveal-evidence-of-learning-in-the-womb).

Charlene Krueger, nursing researcher and associate professor in the University of Florida’s College of Nursing, said in a university news release, “Babies seem to learn even before they’re born. By the time women are 34 weeks pregnant, their unborn babies can respond to the sound of their mother’s voice reciting a familiar nursery rhyme. The mother’s voice is the predominant source of sensory stimulation in the developing fetus. This research highlights just how sophisticated the third trimester fetus really is and suggests that a mother’s voice is involved in the development of early learning and memory capabilities. This could potentially affect how we approach the care and stimulation of the preterm infant. This study helped us understand more about how early a fetus could learn a passage of speech and whether the passage could be remembered weeks later even without daily exposure to it. This could have implications to those preterm infants who are born before 37 weeks of age and the impact an intervention such as their mother’s voice may have on influencing better outcomes in this high-risk population.” (http://www.webmd.com/baby/news/20140725/rhymes-reveal-evidence-of-learning-in-the-womb

So all this is talking about a mother reading and singing ordinary things to her baby while it is still in the womb. Research says the baby can and will learn those things. Could the Christian mother also read Bible story books or passages from Scripture and sing hymns to that same baby as well as the infant or toddler on her lap? Which would be better for the babies to learn—the things of the world or the things of God? “Redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:16).

—Beth Johnson, Bible Studies for Women: Muliebral Studies; Muliebral Viewpoint; Articles and Books by Beth Johnson

Making the most of your time, Ephesians 5:15, 16

Dec16

The primary purpose of a stepping stone is to provide the prudent gardener a place to put his or her foot. Today as I was working in a four-foot wide bed, I was visually reminded of this.

As I stepped back to the ample landing space of the lawn, I looked back in horror to see four very deep footprints marring the level humus of the newly prepared bed.

The light soil, so ready to sprout seeds in a hospitable environment, had been compacted back into what was likely to turn into the consistency of bricks.

“Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise; making the most of your time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15, 16 NASB).

Now, some of the stepping stones in my gardens are more decorative than functional.

The wrought iron butterfly stepping stone has been taken over by the weeds that grow between the generous and hospitable metal veins of its ornamental wings.

The lightweight compass stepping stone by the front walk, given to me by the Garden Club a long time ago, is too fragile to actually be walked upon.

In other places, the smaller step stones have been overgrown by sneaky creeping plants such as Verbena or various sedums. They seem to cover the stone overnight.

Before you know it, you literally have to “tiptoe through the tulips” because there is not enough space to put your whole foot down without crushing some very pretty creeping plants.

Then there are the substantial eighteen inch concrete walkway stones leading from the driveway to the back porch. Ahh! Now there’s a good place to plant my feet, even when they are not visible through armfuls of grocery sacks.

Yes, we must be wary how we walk.

While watering my hostas and iris two summers ago, I made a misstep and broke an ankle and dislocated my kneecap.

You see, we can do more than just damage what we step on, we can damage ourselves. We are to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called” (Ephesians 4:1).

Jesus certainly put a high value on us, so we should then guard our souls by watching our own Christian walk. That is what is meant by “worthy.”

It certainly does not mean we create our own worth, or overestimate it. Our worth is determined by the high price paid for us, the blood of God’s beloved Son. We must walk in the way we have been called.

So I gingerly step around my dormant perennial plants, so as not to crush an unremarkable twig that could have turned into a blossom-laden branch.

We walk carefully when we “walk in love,” as Ephesians 5:2 suggests. The chapter outlines how to walk in love, and most of it deals with pure living, as the next chapter delves into our relationships to others.

I was watchful today not to step on the Allium that was emerging demurely from the mulch near the front pathway. I had placed a marker on the Autumn Glory Sedum that had accidentally seeded itself in the middle of the pathway in my “back 40” garden, and my clumsy feet thankfully missed crushing the tender shoots.

I wish I could say I was as careful with the feelings and sensitivities of the people around me. My cautious and convoluted walk through the sprouting garden of the late winter is a good reminder of the care I should take in my Christian walk.

Are we watching our step?

— by Christine Berglund @ www.forthright.net