A New Blog

My dear Mother recently started a blog! Though it is mostly addressed to Mothers, we young ladies can greatly benefit from her insight. God has given her much wisdom and I am sure you will see how blessed I am to have been taught by her! :-) So without further ado, please visit: Preachers At Home
(I am sure she would love to hear from you all :)

Newsy Things

We had a wonderful day on Thursday spending time with my Grandma and some friends. We really do not celebrate Christmas because of it's pagan origins, but we do enjoy spending time with family.
It turned out to be a beautiful day with the sun shining and the snow sparkling like diamonds. My Dad took this picture in the morning, I love it!

Yesterday, my Mom, brother and I went cross-country skiing down our gravel, now snow covered road. We had a blast. The temperature had risen to hover around the freezing point, making lighter jackets the garments of choice. Since the temps have been around zero and below for some time, this warmer spell feels pretty nice.

Tomorrow Lord willing I will be heading out to stay with a family who just had a baby (remember Jesaias?) and need help with their two other children. I will be gone for a week or more, depending on how things go. So, I will probably not be posting at all next week, (unless I can get to a computer, which is unlikely).

I am so thankful for this opportunity to serve the Lord and to obtain some more experience with small children. What a blessing! Children are so precious and are gifts from God, it is very sobering to think of how easily they can be influenced. Oh, that I might point them to Christ! Their minds are like sponges and they learn so quickly, things that will stay with them the rest of their lives. What a responsibility is given to anyone who is around small children. Yes, the Father and Mother have the most responsibility, but those who are around them are also responsible before God how they act and talk.

I remember when my brother and I were very young, my Mother would march with us around and around the house reading a chapter of the Bible over and over again. Soon we began to repeat after her and within a couple of weeks we knew the whole chapter. In this way we memorized (chapters) Proverbs 1-8 and Psalms 1-9 . My dear Mother was instilling within us the word of God at that tender age where memorization comes easily. Small children love to repeat things over and over and memorize things so quickly, why not have them memorize the Bible? I still remember how fun those times were and the scripture has helped me so much and though I cannot now recite verbatim because I did not keep it up, yet it is "in there" and the principles are there. I am so thankful for that!
My mother would all throughout the day point us to the Creator, she would show us flowers and exclaim how beautifully God had made them and lead us to thank Him for what He has done. At home and every where we went, we heard the praises of God. Everything was in the context of 'Look what God made and how it works, isn't He wonderful? Let us thank Him!' I praise God that my formative years were spent learning about my Lord Jesus. There is nothing better to teach a child! My family claimed the verse: "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." (Matthew 6:33)
And do you know what? God IS Faithful! When we put Him first and learned about Him first, He added all the other academic and social skills needed.
Remember:

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones." (Proverbs 3:5-8)

Let us keep on seeking the Lord. Difficulties come and things get in the way, but who and what is most important?

"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light." (Matthew 6:19-22)

"If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth..." (Colossians 3:1-5)

Have a blessed week and New Year!

(I get to say is again :) Announcing...

The birth of my dear friends baby boy:

Jesaias Kaven !

Born: December 17, 2008 at 9:02am

Weight: 8lbs 12.8 oz

Height: 20.5"

Jesaias is pronounced: ja-si-yas (short "a" both start and finish; long "i")

Here is the explanation for his name, in his father Steve's own words:

We wanted a name that was biblical, meaningful, and family significant. His first name, except the "J" is the greek from of the prophet "Isaiah". In the King James Version of the bible, Isaiah is written as "Esaias". Note Matthew 3:3

For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

"Isaiah" is meaningful to us because on March 4, 2004 I read Isaiah 1:16-17 and the Lord opened my eyes to see the salvation found only in Jesus Christ. The name "Isaiah" was too common for us so we went with the King James version of "Isaiah", thus "Esaias". However, we really didn't like how Esaias sounded but we did like how it sounded with a "J" in front, plus we can call him "JJ". Esaias means either "God saves" or "The salvation of the Lord". We'll say it means "JESUS SAVES" since we put the "J" in front!

The middle name "Kaven" is a mixture of Ken (my dad's first name) and Dave (Tina's dad's name).

I am so excited for them! They have two darling little girls and now have a son!

My Mom and I visited them yesterday and got to hold little Jesaias, ooooh he is sooo precious!

Thank you Lord Jesus!

Many, O LORD my God, are your wonderful works which you have done, and your thoughts which are toward us: they cannot be recounted in order unto you: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered. (Psalms 40:5)

Let it Snow!

We have snow! A snow storm blew through yesterday, dumping seven or eight inches of snow on us. It is hard to tell how much we actually have because the wind was blowing pretty hard, causing the snow to drift.

We also had my sister's four children here for the weekend, who caused our ordinarily quite home to buzz. We all enjoyed each others company, working together, playing games, telling Bible stories, etc. This morning the temperature stayed under zero degrees, which combined with a stiff breeze made forays to the out of doors short lived.

Ashley

Brittany shoveling our driveway

Ashley and I

Ashley's shadow!

It really does not seem like a lot of snow to me, compared to years past but I am glad that it is finally here! As I have often been heard to say, "If it is going to be cold, there might as well be snow and lots of it!"

And because I couldn't resist...

Does any one else love snow?

On the Glory of God

The other night we watched a Moody Science video entitled: "Journey to the Edge of Creation: Our Solar System". It was incredible to see the immensity of the cosmos, in which earth is less than a tiny speck. It is mind boggling and wonderful, making our hearts and minds soar to the Creator of all this. Psalms 19:1 says: "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork." Also: The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory. (Psalms 97:6)

And yet, with all the glories of the heavens, Psalms 113:4-6 says: "The LORD is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens. Who is like unto the LORD our God, who dwelleth on high, Who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth!"

As glorious as the heavens are with all the galaxies upon galaxies, God's glory is greater and He humbles Himself to even look at those things! Wow!

Click on the images for larger views.

Eagle Nebula

Star cluster

Galaxies. I cannot wrap my mind around the immensity of it. Each one, how many light years away from the others? And light years is the distance traveled at the speed of light in 365 days!

When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? (Psalms 8:3-4)

Take a look at....

This: Sinner Gets Saved !

Thanksgiving weekend

What a wonderful extended weekend we have had!

For Thanksgiving we went to my Grandma's in Michigan and had a good visit with her. My sister Bonnie and her four children were planning to come with us, but came down with the flu the night before, so we missed having them. We had made eight pies which is our family's Thanksgiving tradition, but with only five people to eat them, we wondered what to do. That dilemma was resolved very satisfactorily when we called some friends who live in the area and arranged to have desert with them. They have six children still at home and also had a family with ten children visiting from out of town, and some other friends stopped by. We had a wonderful time! After eating lots of pie, we gathered for a time of fellowship and singing as we worshipped the Lord. It was a great blessing as God opened several hearts to share salvation testimonies and at times, many in the room were weeping. We are praising God for the work He is doing in the lives of His people!

We came home late Thursday night, rejoicing in the Lord. We had planned to leave early Friday morning for a trip to Illinois, but ended up leaving around noon. We arrived at my Uncle Del and Aunt Charis's home and spent three nights there, enjoying visiting family. Aunt Charis is so much fun and we really enjoyed hanging out with her and helping her with her cleaning jobs. We also spent time with my cousins Renee' and Villa & Rob and also my Aunt Anne.

On Saturday we spent an hour holding signs in front of an abortion clinic in Des Plains. The police came by, responding to a complaint against us. They said that we were in our legal rights to stand on the public sidewalk we were on, but they did not like us using the pictures of aborted babies. My Mom explained to them that when the holocaust was going on, no one knew about it until the pictures were shown. Abortion is an American holocaust that needs to be exposed and even though we do not like little children to see the pictures, we would rather they see them than be them. She also told them that we have had reports of people changing their minds about an abortion when they saw those pictures. The police listened politely, then left. We praise God for this opportunity to stand up and proclaim what God's word says, "Thou shalt not murder".

The highlight of the trip was spending Sunday with my Brother Dan and his wife Basia (who is just like a sister) and their two sons, Kristofer and Noah. I had not met the boys yet and it was such a blessing to be with them!

A very happy Aunt!

And a doting Uncle!

And what can be said of a Grandmother's joy?

:-)

Michael's first time holding a baby! See the amazement?
This quickly turned to smiles.

Kristofer loved Abby and she liked him!

Boo!

What a sweet darling baby Noah!

We also visited my Aunt Pam and cousin Danielle and had a wonderful visit.

It was such a blessing to see so many family members and we thank God for the good traveling weather He gave us and the wonderful visits!

On giving thanks

I probably will not be around until next week, so...

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Let us remember to give thanks to God, specifically naming what we are thankful for.

On Loving God

As I was praying this morning, I thought that it would be good to be more specific than just saying, "I love you" to God. So I began to list the things I love about Him.

I love that He created everything, the time He took and the wisdom and complexity He used. I love His hatred of sin and that He is angry at the wicked every day. I love His justice and mercy when He overthrew the earth with water, yet saved Noah and family alive. I love His promises and His Law. I love His righteousness. I love that He abhors all that is evil and loves all that is good and that all that is good comes from Him. I love His beauty and I love that He loves to get glory for Himself.
I love His way of salvation and that He planned it before the world began. I love that He humbled Himself to become a man and I love that He did no sin, though He was tempted like us. I love the way He healed people and I love the parables He told. I love how He taught His disciples and I love how He prayed in the garden, "not my will, but Thine be done." I love His obedience to the Father in His death on the cross, bearing my sins. I love the Father's justice in crushing His own Son when He became sin in my place. I love that Jesus arose from the dead and showed Himself to five hundred. I love that He said, "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." I love that He ascended into heaven and that He sits at the right hand of the Father, interceding for us.
I love His Holy Spirit which He sent to teach us. I love His Word. I love His people, His church. I love the way He saves His people and that it is His work and that He uses us. I love that He convicts the heart of sin and grants repentance unto life. I love the way He changes lives and turns hearts to Himself and I love that he protects and keeps His own. I love that He calls His people to holiness when He said, "be ye Holy as I am Holy." I love the preaching of His word and the singing of His praise and I love that everything is by Him, to Him and for Him. I love His glory. I love His wrath and the fear of the Lord. I love His wisdom and His mercy and grace and His power and justice, judgment, longsuffering, His jealousy and His love. I love that He is coming again to claim His bride and to destroy the earth and to judge both small and great. I absolutely love that He is Holy, Holy, Holy!

Yes, I love God.

Then I have to stop and think, where does that love come from? Some of the things listed are not natural to love. Did I really say that I love His wrath? Yes, because I do, but why? Why would I love that He is angry with the wicked every day? I know the answer. It is because He has caused me to fall so in love with Himself that I love everything about Him. He has kindled a love in my heart that will not be quenched but will only grow brighter with the passing of time. I love His character and attributes, He is so beautiful, so good, faithful, just and right. Oh, what a great God He is, there is no one like Him! It is no wonder that one great theme of the scriptures is for us to praise Him!

Let us Praise Him!

"Praise ye the LORD. Praise, O ye servants of the LORD, praise the name of the LORD. Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time forth and for evermore. From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD'S name is to be praised. The LORD is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens. Who is like unto the LORD our God, who dwelleth on high, Who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth! ... Praise ye the LORD." ! (Psalms 113:1-6)

Please write what you especially love about God. I know that there are many things that I did not mention that we can love about God. Does anything come to mind? please leave a comment with it!

My sweet puppy dog

What is there to write about when one has been sitting around, sick?

Your dog of course!

So I introduce to you....

Abigail vom Heiligen Schutz

or as we call her, Abby.

She is a one year old, ddr East German Shepherd Dog, which is actually the original intent of the German Shepherd Dog breed. When Germany split in 1949, Socialist Communists took control of East Germany. They took over the GSD breeding program and bred only the dogs that were fit for work. When the wall came down, the world found a GSD stock which had been kept pure. Instead of the breeding for show which had gone on in other countries, here were dogs that could work. A few have struggled to keep the strain pure and Abby is a descendant of that line.

My brother and I own a small kennel called Fisher Creek Kennel, where we breed these dogs. We have a male named Scout and had a female named Honor, they had puppies in 2006. Today is the puppies birthday.

On January 17th, Honor was hit and killed by a truck and oh my, did that one hit our hearts. God has been so good to us and has taught me to say, "The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name of the Lord."

Then God brought Abby into our lives and she has been a great blessing! I know that dogs are just dogs, but God does give them to us for a reason and He has taught me so much through them.

The journey we took to start our kennel may interest you, so if you would like to read about it please visit our website Fisher Creek Kennel and click on About Us. The website has not been updated since last year and has nothing about Abby on it yet, we are working on it. Also, I can not keep up with the spam on the Blog page, I don't read it and wouldn't recommend it.

A few random things:

Abby and Scout's color is called black sable.

My briliant older brother Dan made our website for us!
And one more picture:

Sickness

I have been pretty sick the last couple of days. Last year at this time I came down with pneumonia which kept me down for about eight weeks and I ended up in the hospital for a day with an iv. So when a little cold I had this week went into my chest and began acting like it was turning into pneumonia, my parents were concerned. My Mom has been so sweet taking care of me and I am feeling better now, though I am not up and around yet.

It is times like these that make you realize, once again, HOW much your family loves you.

Thank you Lord Jesus for my family!

Can you believe it?

Another baby was saved from abortion yesterday morning!

We have gone months without any baby saves that we know of and now there are four in three weeks! This seems to closely tie into the fact that three weeks ago we began to use scripture more often, when talking with the mothers... Hmmm. : )

There were thirteen that went into the abortion clinic to kill their precious children yesterday and there was some hostility as one lady, going in, took some literature from my Mom, ripped it in half and threw it in her face, then laughed with her friends.

One young lady who had escorted her friend into that place of death, came out and I was able to talk with her briefly. I asked if she realized that the baby is a person. She said "I know".

"Then if you kill that baby, you are killing a person."

"I know, I know, but Jesus died for my sins and forgives. We all sin every day."

A little bit stunned I said, "Jesus is also the Judge, He does not JUST forgive."

"Yes, Jesus will judge me, not you." She answered, then walked away.

People do not fear God, they do not fear Jesus, but they desperately need to!

We are praising God for Ashley though! She was in a hurry to leave (Yea!) and only spoke with us briefly, saying that she had one child already and when she was in the clinic to abort this baby she "just couldn't do it". Praise God!

Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life.

(Psalms 54:4)

When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan. (Proverbs 29:2)

Last night I watched and photographed a large electrical thunderstorm. It reminded me of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, whose power far surpasses any power that any other ruler has. In fact, the power which they seem to have is only by God allowing them to have it. The very life that they and we have, is given and maintained only by the mercy of God.

The Mighty One, God the LORD, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.

Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth. Our God comes; he does not keep silence; before him is a devouring fire, around him a mighty tempest.

He calls to the heavens above and to the earth, that he may judge his people: "Gather to me my faithful ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!"

The heavens declare his righteousness, for God himself is judge! Selah (Psalms 50:1-6)

Let us still Praise Him!

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

Another baby save, on Election day!

We were out at the abortion clinic this morning and there was more of a hostile atmosphere this time. First thing, a group of drunks gathered near us and began to make loud noises, laughing and talking, which is pretty distracting when you are trying to pray. One of them who called himself a "Gnostic" tried to argue with us about the gospel, calling the book of John "hogwash". We praise the Lord that Michael and Josh were able to give him good answers and questions which we pray will cause him to think.

One of the men taking his girlfriend into the building to kill their child, became very angry when told to fear God. He said "my god has horns" and many other wicked things.

Still, we were able to sing, pray and read aloud the scriptures and speak to each of the eleven mothers who carried their children in there.

I was able to walk with and talk to one young mother for the length of over a block. She listened and I pray that God used those words.

After we left, one of the Side walk Councilors, Matt, stayed for a time. A couple came out of the building and Matt asked them if they had changed their minds, they said, "Yes"!

Praise God!

We don't have any details on it yet, as to which couple they were, but we are praising the Lord. There were also a couple of other woman who came out early, but we do not know why. God does, and we leave that before Him.

Today was a beautiful day with temps rising almost to 70 degrees!
I am trying to soak up all the warmth before the cold hits.

Now, I know the elections are on all of our minds and I just want to encourage all of us to praise the Lord no matter what the outcome. He said to praise Him in all things!
Our country deserves grave judgment from the Lord and it is amazing that he has given us so much mercy. We cannot expect His mercy to continue though, just look at all the innocent blood that is being shed in our nation daily and remember what He did to Israel for doing those things. His mercy may be long, but His justice will not wait forever.
I am praying that we, His redeem, will be ready for what is coming.

God is merciful!

Last week on Tuesday we were able to help some friends move. Michael helped with the actual manual work while I was the official babysitter for their two little girls. I would ordinarily say that I had the best job of all, and don't get me wrong it was fun, but the Lord gave my Mom an incredible task as He used her to save the lives of two babies!

You see, the abortion clinic was open on Tuesday morning.

My Mom dropped me off to watch the children, then went (with Michael for a short time before he left to help with the moving,) to plead for the lives of the unborn. About fourteen mothers went into the place to destroy their child and each were asked not to do that terrible thing. God gave my Mom scripture to use and she told many of them: "Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born, I sanctified you. That is what God says." Also exclaiming, "Don't do this, Fear God!"

When all the mothers were in, the Sidewalk Councilors (SCs) gathered around to pray. Just then, a couple came out of the building holding hands and smiling, (this is always encouraging). They were asked, "Did you change your mind?" they answered "Yes"! They received many hugs and gifts and they gave their phone number saying that we can probably hold the baby when he or she is born. They are a married couple and already have two children. My Mom asked the man "What was it that caused you to change your mind?" He answered, "It was all that 'fear God' stuff, it really gets to you."!

Praise God!

But wait, that's not all!

After that couple had taken their leave and the SCs had given heartfelt thanks to God, my Mom began to talk to a young lady who had come out of the clinic to smoke. There is a fence in front of the court yard where we cannot go because it is privately owned, so we have to raise our voices to be heard at the door where this girl was located.
Below is a view of the Building for Woman, the side walk with us SCers standing around and the fence.


As my Mom talked, the girl was smoking up a storm and finally walked over to the fence asking, "What was that you said?" She was shown pictures of her unborn child at almost twelve weeks along and was told what abortion would do to her little one. She said that she had never seen or heard those things before. She then began to say how stressed she was because she had locked her keys in her car and didn't know what to do. Long story short, they were able to get her car unlocked and she went out to coffee with my Mom and another SC. My Mom was able to give Dana the gospel and to get her contact info. We are praying that the Lord will allow us to continue to have a part in her life.

So, we are rejoicing! Praise God for what He has done and is doing!

On our normal end of life...um what is normal anymore?

We have been preparing our yard and home for winter, which includes, cleaning up the yard, cleaning off and partially turning the garden hills, canning some more, cutting, chopping and stacking fire wood, butchering some nuisance guinea hens...

and more.

It all ends up to be more than enough to keep us very busy.

And....

My brother got his drivers license! Yikes, look out world!

For your enjoyment, here are some pictures form the past month.

These two are views from my Dad's work on the North Shore of Lake Superior

Sunset

This is The Old Fort that my brother and I made when we were little.

Now our leaves are all gone from the trees and we await the arrival of... snow?!

Abortion Survivor

This is an incredible talk given by abortion survivor Gianna Jessen. It takes about 20 minutes, but is well worth the time and I think you will want your family to hear this as well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPF1FhCMPuQ You will need to click on Part 2 to hear the rest of it.

Gianna gave this speech at Queen’s Hall, Parliament House, Victoria. Australia, on September 8 2008. This was the eve of the debate on "Abortion Law Reform Bill 2008" which would decriminalize abortion in Australia. Sadly the bill did pass even after the politicians listened to this witness.

Sober Thoughts

Surprisingly, I have not dropped off the face of the earth but rather have been very busy! : )

This was my first year to can salsa, jelly and catsup! They turned out well, so I hope to do more of the same next year.

Lately the Lord has been helping me to examine myself, to see if I am truly saved. (2 Corinthians 13:5)

I have been raised in a Christian home and by that I do not mean a typical "Christian" home. I know the Bible, I have been taught how to live and how to seek the Lord. I know these things, but are they just in my mind, do I just know them by knowledge? Or, do I know Him? For Real?

Oh, it is easy to fool other people into thinking that you are saved, many people do that, but I have never thought that I was deceiving people. This then brings the question, can a person deceive themselves? The answer is sobering. Look at what Jesus said: "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." (Matthew 7:21) This is a serious thing! Read the same chapter through verse 23, Many will say Lord, Lord we did this and that in your name but Jesus will say to them, "I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." So, is this saying that many who think they are saved and think that God is working through them, are still under the wrath of an angry God? I think it is and the question that makes me tremble is; am I like that?

A person who is deceived does not know they are deceived. Think about Paul when he was persecuting Jesus' disciples. If you could have asked him what he thought about his standing with God, would he not have told you something like this: "God is very pleased with me, look at all the good he is doing through me. See how zealous I am for his Holy name." Paul was not looking for salvation on the road to Damascus! He thought that he was just fine. It was only the incredible mercy of God that revealed to him his need for the Saviour.

How many are in such a state? How many are going along in life, calling Him Lord, yet they do not know Him?

It is only the mercy of God... and that of an angry God, that will bring us to salvation. Can we say this is unfair? Read Romans 9, especially verses 14-29.

1 John gives some wonderful tests for the professing believer to examine themselves with, and it says, These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. (1 John 5:13)

So, I have been looking at these things and asking, do I have the fruit of the Spirit? Galatians 5:22-25, John 15:2 and vs. 16

*Have I repented of sin and continue to repent? Do I hate my sin and turn away from it, crying out to God to help me? Luke 5:32, Acts 11:18, Romans 2:4, 2 Corinthians 7:10, 2 Timothy 2:25, 2 Peter 3:9

*Do I love God and His people? Do I keep God's commandments? 1 John 5:1-3, ch. 2:3-6 1 John 3:18

*Where and what are my thoughts? 2 Corinthians 10:5

*Do I love the world? 1 John 2:15

*Who or what do I talk about most? James 1:26

*Do I walk in darkness? 1 John 1:5-7

*Do I have fellowship with God through His Spirit? 1 John 1:2

.......and more.

As all this has been going on, I have come to realize that I am not what I thought I was. I was deceiving myself in thinking higher of myself than I ought to think. (Romans 12:3) Now when I look at my life, it is with grief and sorrow for all the ways I have disobeyed my Lord. But...when seeing my depravity, I see that the fruit which does show forth cannot possibly come from myself, it must be Him.

"But, oh Lord, look how great my sin is."

"No, look at Me, see how much greater I am."

For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. (Romans 5:6)

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. (Romans 5:8-9)

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. (John 15:4)

Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. (John 15:16)

As a side note of proclamation: It is snowing right now!

On being a good witness

In these days that we live in, we hear so much about God's love, mercy, forgiveness and compassion. Phrases are used, such as: "accept Jesus into your heart", "just believe", "Jesus is knocking on your heart's door, won't you let Him in?" and many other sayings.

While it is very true that God is love (1 John 4:8), that He is full of mercy, forgiveness and compassion, (Psalms 145:8-9) (Isaiah 63:7), He is also a Holy God (1 Peter 1:15-16) (Revelation 4:8), a just judge (Jeremiah 23:5) (Deuteronomy 32:4) (1 Peter 4:5) (Romans 2:16), an angry God (Psalms 7:11), full of fury (Nahum 1:2) (Isaiah 59:18) (Isaiah 63:3-4) (Isaiah 66:15-16) (Ezekiel 8:18), and wrath (John 3:36) (Romans 2:5-6) (Revelation 6:16-17) (Revelation 19:15) (Colossians 3:6) (Ephesians 2:3).

We are vile, sinful, evil and wicked. (Isaiah 59:2) (Romans 3:23) (Philippians 3:21) (Psalms 38:4) (Psalms 90:7-8). We cannot make ourselves clean; "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." (Isaiah 64:6)

How many times did Adam and Eve sin before they were cast out of the garden? God's standard is absolute perfection, Himself. Can we be like God? If even our righteousness is as filthy rags before Him, where does that leave us? We cannot even pay off our debt of sin by doing good, even our best works are abominable in His sight. Imagine a thief who repents and stops stealing. Is his debt now paid off, just because he is not stealing anymore? We are commanded to do good, so doing good won't pay for our past debt. We must conclude that we are utterly doomed and deserve to be crushed under the wrath of the One and Only Omnipotent God, Creator of heaven and earth, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and that we are completely cast upon His mercy.

Oh but "He's a pretty forgiving guy isn't He?" (I have actually been asked that). Well...no, have you ever read the Old Testament? He is the same God now as He was then. God is not obligated to save us, it is of His own choosing to redeem us. There is nothing in you or I that would cause God to want to save us. "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid. For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will? Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory, Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles? (Romans 9:14-24)

God does not need us, He is complete in Himself; "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last." (Revelation 22:13) His aim is to get glory for His own name; "For my name's sake will I defer mine anger, and for my praise will I refrain for thee, that I cut thee not off. Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction. For mine own sake, even for mine own sake, will I do it: for how should my name be polluted? and I will not give my glory unto another." (Isaiah 48:9-11)

Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD. (Jeremiah 9:23-24)

Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy; (Psalms 33:18)We are commanded to fear the Lord; "Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God; him shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by his name. He is thy praise, and he is thy God, that hath done for thee these great and terrible things, which thine eyes have seen." (Deuteronomy 10:20-21)

This is why God's mercy is so very incredible! He, the Holy just judge, is willing to pardon wicked vile sinners? And at what price?

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5)

Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. (Isaiah 53:10-11)

Jesus Christ, God's Son, took the fierce wrath of God on Himself, in our place. He drank of the cup of wrath from God's hand and when He was finished there was nothing left against us. "For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more." (Hebrews 8:12) Jesus Christ rose again from the dead and has ascended into Heaven. He has promised to come again: "And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city." (Revelation 22:12-14)

It is the work of God to save a soul but He has commanded us to preach the gospel. We must be careful to give the gospel that is in the whole Bible and not just one that has been fitted to make everyone feel good.

For more (really good) discussion on this topic please visit: http://fruit-of-her-hands.blogspot.com/2008/10/handmaiden-of-lord-post-2.html

Salvation!

There is something I have been wanting to share with you all, but I had to first make sure that all our friends who read this blog knew about it first.

On Tuesday September 30, 2008, my brother Michael was saved!

We are rejoicing!

At the age of seven he had such a fear of going to hell that he prayed and asked God to save him. He made a confession of faith through baptism and as life went on he became very passionate for righteousness. He could pray wonderful prayers and talk knowledgably about the Bible, those who knew him outside our immediate family did not question his salvation.

But...on that particular Tuesday we were packing chickens and we all wanted something to listen to, so I put on a sermon by Paul Washer entitled: "Examine Yourself" based on 2 Corinthians 13:5,

"Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?"

In 1 John, there are tests that we can give ourselves to see if we really are in the faith.

Michael began to examine himself and realized that he was not saved. 1 John 1:5-7 struck him hard:

"This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin."

Michael fell on his knees and cried out to God to have mercy on his soul and save him. God answered mightily! All of a sudden Michael was quiet and then said in amazement, "I'm saved. Praise God, I'm saved! He did it, He saved me!" Can you imagine the joy, excitement and rejoicing that we all had?

Now I have a new brother, he is completely changed, old things have passed away behold all things have become new! He is different! What used to be controlled by emotion and passion is now led by the Spirit of the living God and there is a big difference! Praise God!

This last Sunday, the 5th, as some friends looked on, Michael made a true confession of faith through baptism, in cold Lake Superior!

Can we trust our flesh?

I have been studying Philippians 3 recently and something that struck me is the phrase in verse three "and have no confidence in the flesh"

How often do we forget and begin trusting in our own abilities and what we can do for the Lord, or how we can overcome some temptation? We think we can do many things and forget that it is God doing a work through us. Sometimes we may think that it is our faith and belief that save us, when in reality it is the grace and mercy of God, who gives us faith as a gift (Ephesians 2:4-9) and out of goodness grants us repentance (Romans 2:4).

There is nothing in us that is trustworthy, our hearts are deceitful above all things and desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9). We are told not to lean on our own understanding or be wise in our own eyes (Proverbs 3:5-7).

Paul goes on to say that if anyone should be able to have confidence in the flesh it would be him, because of all the things he lists, but those things he counts as dung, they are nothing compared to Christ. The things of the flesh can not save us, the law can not save us (Galatians 2:21), in verse nine Paul reveals that he does not want to stand in his own righteousness. Remember that all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6), the best we can offer is disgusting and abominable before our Holy God. (Romans 10:3) Our only hope is found in the righteousness of Christ Jesus which he imputes (Romans 4:24) to unworthy us (2 Corinthians 5:21)(those who have been saved).

God does not look at others and then at us and say, 'you are doing very well'. He looks at Himself, at His Son and do we think that we can even begin to compare with Him? Without His righteousness covering us we are lost. (Romans 5:17-18) (2 Peter 3:13)

For more discussion on topics like this go to: http://fruit-of-her-hands.blogspot.com/ and look for posts labeled "A Handmaiden of the Lord"

Bayfield Apple Festival

Friday and Saturday were amazing days for us!

My Mom, my brother Michael and a brother in the Lord Josh and I, went to the Bayfield Apple Festival in Bayfield Wisconsin to hold gospel signs and give the gospel.

This event is huge, with around 60,000 people attending. There are many many booths and tents set up with people selling their wares, mostly hand crafted items and tons of food. All crammed into a couple of city blocks, so the crowds are incredible.

On Friday we were not sure how we would be welcomed by the many police which patrolled the area, so we began on a sidewalk with one sign and handed out gospel tracts.

Even though many officers walked past us, they never said a word, so we went to a more prominent sidewalk. Then we moved into the middle of the street among all the people and again, not a word. So...we brought out another of the signs and began walking around on the streets through the crowds, handing out gospel tracts and giving the gospel to anyone who asked.

A couple from a Church with heretical teachings talked to my Mom for close to an hour. They objected to the sign that includes the words "stop sinning." They believe that once you are saved, you can continue living a lifestyle of sin. They teach that you do not have to repent, you can even become an atheist after you are "saved" and still go to heaven! Oh yes, it is good to stop sinning, but you don't have to and some people just can't stop sinning. We finally came to the conclusion that they deny the power of God. There are so many scriptures that point to the power of God to change a life completely around.

Here are a few:

Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!-- assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. (Ephesians 4:17-24)

Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: (Colossians 3:9-10) and all of Col. 3

A couple of young ladies said that they had never read anything like what was on our signs, they were very excited to be given pocket New Testaments.

Michael confronted a man at an Obama booth and was able to give him the gospel.

Saturday, Michael was not able to come but my Mom and I went with Josh again and this time we brought three signs. The streets were packed shoulder to shoulder and we walked among the crowds with the gospel signs just above their heads. People would crane their necks to read the signs and many young people shouted out what they read with a question in their voice, "Fear God(?)" and "Everything you ever Did, Said, Thought will be judged(?)" "what I think will be judged?"

Of course there were many sneers and jeers and many laughed, but the name of Jesus Christ was proclaimed on the streets and we pray that God will use the seeds planted in people's hearts to turn them to Himself.

One lady asked us for a tract because for the last five days she had been trying to find out who Jesus is! She listened as my Mom gave her the gospel and said she would continue to read the Bible.

At one point a small crowd gathered around us to listen in as we gave the gospel to a few. One lady asked me "How do you get saved?" Wow, what a sobering question! I told her to cry out to God for mercy and explained what Jesus did on the cross. She listened and had questions asking, (as she held a can of beer and a cigarette), "Is drinking and smoking sin?" She had never read the Bible and was very sincere in her questions, Praise God! By His grace I was able to answer her from the Bible. God knows what He will do with that seed planted, I pray that it will bring forth fruit.

Several professing to be Christians, told us that they felt our signs were turning people away from the Bible. We explained that Jesus, Paul, Peter and others preached out on the streets.

An example is found here:

Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols. So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there. (Acts 17:16-17)

These truly were full days and we praise God for the opportunities and for all the people that read the signs, may He use it for His glory.

Sunday night we went to a pro-life event were Michael played the piano and a friend of his played the violin. They did very well. Then we listened to the guest speaker Star Parker who had a very good message.

It has been a busy, but good weekend.