Tell Your Children...

July 10

Evening "Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation." Joel 1:3   In this simple way, by God's grace, a living testimony for truth is always to be kept alive in the land--the beloved of the Lord are to hand down their witness for the gospel, and the covenant to their heirs, and these again to their next descendants. This is our first duty, we are to begin at the family hearth: he is a bad preacher who does not commence his ministry at home. The heathen are to be sought by all means, and the highways and hedges are to be searched, but home has a prior claim, and woe unto those who reverse the order of the Lord's arrangements. To teach our children is a personal duty; we cannot delegate it to Sunday school teachers, or other friendly aids; these can assist us, but cannot deliver us from the sacred obligation; proxies and sponsors are wicked devices in this case: mothers and fathers must, like Abraham, command their households in the fear of God, and talk with their offspring concerning the wondrous works of the Most High. Parental teaching is a natural duty--who so fit to look to the child's well-being as those who are the authors of his actual being? To neglect the instruction of our offspring is worse than brutish. Family religion is necessary for the nation, for the family itself, and for the church of God. By a thousand plots Popery is covertly advancing in our land, and one of the most effectual means for resisting its inroads is left almost neglected, namely, the instruction of children in the faith. Would that parents would awaken to a sense of the importance of this matter. It is a pleasant duty to talk of Jesus to our sons and daughters, and the more so because it has often proved to be an accepted work, for God has saved the children through the parents' prayers and admonitions. May every house into which this volume shall come honour the Lord and receive his smile. (taken from July 11 Evening reading in Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon) Too many Christian parents are naive when it comes to the dangers facing their children when they go to school or off to college. We must prepare our children to grow up and live godly. The Bible is very clear about the father's responsibility to his children. (See Deuteronomy 6:6-7, Psalm 78, Proverbs 4, Ephesians 6:1-4). The faith cannot be assumed, we must be intentional in passing it on to the next generation.  They must have real faith, they must know what they believe and why. You had better believe that the devil and the world are going to be intentional in trying to lead your child down the wrong path. "The reality is that when you now come to America’s colleges you have to know who you are or else someone will tell you who you are. There is so much pressure on students to drop certain beliefs, and it is very difficult to stop dropping other beliefs once you give in."  Don't let your kids go into battle unequipped!  Sunday religion will not get the job done. Come on Dad, get in the battle. Your kids are worth fighting for! Soli Deo Gloria, allan

THREE CHORDS & THE TRUTH: WAITIN' ON A WOMAN

"Country Music is three chords and the truth." - Harlan Howard

 

 

WAITIN' ON A WOMAN
Writer: Wynn Varble and Don Sampson

Sittin' on a bench at West Town Mall
He sat down in his overalls and asked me
You waitin' on a woman
I nodded yeah and said how 'bout you
He said son since nineteen fifty-two I've been
Waitin' on a woman

When I picked her up for our first date
I told her I'd be there at eight
And she came down the stairs at eight-thirty
She said I'm sorry that I took so long
Didn't like a thing that I tried on
But let me tell you son she sure looked pretty
Yeah she'll take her time but I don't mind
Waitin' on a woman

He said the wedding took a year to plan
You talk about an anxious man, I was nervous
Waitin' on a woman
And then he nudged my arm like old men do
And said, I'll say this about the honeymoon, it was worth it
Waitin' on a woman

And I don't guess we've been anywhere
She hasn't made us late I swear
Sometimes she does it just 'cause she can do it
Boy it's just a fact of life
It'll be the same with your young wife
Might as well go on and get used to it
She'll take her time 'cause you don't mind
Waitin' on a woman

I've read somewhere statistics show
The man's always the first to go
And that makes sense 'cause I know she won't be ready
So when it finally comes my time
And I get to the other side
I'll find myself a bench, if they've got any
I hope she takes her time, 'cause I don't mind
Waitin' on a woman

Honey, take your time, cause I don't mind
Waitin' on a woman
_________________________________________

Thankful for my wife and daughter!

I am so blessed!!

"Honey, take your time, cause I don't mind Waitin' on a Woman!"

Soli Deo Gloria,
allan

THINGS NEEDFUL

Thou Eternal Source,

Author of all created being and happiness,

I adore thee for making man capable

of religion,

that he may be taught to say:

‘Where is God, my Maker, who giveth

songs in the night?’

But degeneracy has spread over our

human race,

turning glory into shame,

rendering us forgetful of thee.

We know it is thy power alone

that can recall wandering children,

can impress on them a sense of divine things,

and can render that sense lasting and effectual;

From thee proceed all good purposes and desires,

and the diffusing of piety and happiness.

Thou hast knowledge of my soul’s secret

principles,

and art aware of my desire to spread the gospel.

Make me an almoner to give thy

bounties to the indigent,

comfort to the mentally ill,

restoration to the sin-diseased,

hope to the despairing,

joy to the sorrowing,

love to the prodigals.

Blow away the ashes of unbelief by

thy Spirit’s breath

and give me light, fire, and warmth of love.

I need spiritual comforts

that are gentle, peaceful, mild, refreshing,

that will melt me into conscious lowliness

before thee,

that will make me feel and rest in thee

as my All.

Fill the garden of my soul with the wind of love,

that the scents of the Christian life may be

wafted to others;

then come and gather fruits to thy glory.

So shall I fulfil the great end of my being –

to glorify thee and be a blessing to men.

from The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions

REDEEMED, HOW I LOVE TO PROCLAIM IT!

1 Peter 1:18-19 (HCSB)
¹⁸ For you know that you were redeemed from your empty way of life inherited from the fathers, not with perishable things like silver or gold,
¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish.

Words by Fanny J. Crosby

Redeemed—how I love to proclaim it!
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed through His infinite mercy,
His child, and forever, I am.

 

Chorus:

Redeemed, redeemed,
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed, redeemed,
His child, and forever, I am.

Redeemed and so happy in Jesus,
No language my rapture can tell;
I know that the light of His presence
With me doth continually dwell.

I think of my blessed Redeemer,
I think of Him all the day long;
I sing, for I cannot be silent;
His love is the theme of my song.

I know I shall see in His beauty
The King in whose way I delight;
Who lovingly guardeth my footsteps,
And giveth me songs in the night

 

____________

"All my theology is reduced to this narrow compass - Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners." - Archibald Alexander 

 

Redeem - to buy back or to free from what distresses or harms. Man has been separated from God by sin.  Christ paid the penalty for our sin to satisfy divine justice.  He has freed us from the shackles of sin's bondage and God's eternal wrath. A realization of this redemption causes the ransomed to want to sing! "Redeemed, How I Love To Proclaim It! Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb..."

^"Let the redeemed of the LORD proclaim that He has redeemed them from the hand of the foe "

Psalm 107:2

Soli Deo Gloria
ah



NOTHING BUT THE BLOOD

Hebrews 9:22b (ESV)  ... without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.

Words and Music by Robert Lowery

What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
What can make me whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Refrain

Oh! precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow;
No other fount I know,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

 

For my pardon, this I see,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
For my cleansing this my plea,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Refrain

 

Nothing can for sin atone,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
Naught of good that I have done,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Refrain

 

This is all my hope and peace,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
This is all my righteousness,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Refrain

 

Now by this I’ll overcome—
Nothing but the blood of Jesus,
Now by this I’ll reach my home—
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

 

Refrain

Glory! Glory! This I sing—
Nothing but the blood of Jesus,
All my praise for this I bring—
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

 

Refrain

 

 

 

________

 

The Bible is very clear concerning the forgiveness of man's sin. Only a perfect blood sacrifice would satisfy the Father's requirement. The gift of salvation required Jesus blood. No other sacrifuce would do.  "Oh! precious is the flow that  makes me white as snow. No other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus."  Thank you Jesus for your precious blood that You shed for me on Calvary! Now when God looks at me He sees Christ's shed blood and declares me righteous for Jesus sake!

 

Soli Deo Gloria,

ah

From or Out Of: God Always Delivers His People

January 24

Morning

"Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler."Psalm 91:3

God delivers his people from the snare of the fowler in two senses. From, and out of. First, he delivers them from the snare--does not let them enter it; and secondly, if they should be caught therein, he delivers them out of it. The first promise is the most precious to some; the second is the best to others.
"He shall deliver thee from the snare." How? Trouble is often the means whereby God delivers us. God knows that our backsliding will soon end in our destruction, and he in mercy sends the rod. We say, "Lord, why is this?" not knowing that our trouble has been the means of delivering us from far greater evil. Many have been thus saved from ruin by their sorrows and their crosses; these have frightened the birds from the net. At other times, God keeps his people from the snare of the fowler by giving them great spiritual strength, so that when they are tempted to do evil they say, "How can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?" But what a blessed thing it is that if the believer shall, in an evil hour, come into the net, yet God will bring him out of it! O backslider, be cast down, but do not despair. Wanderer though thou hast been, hear what thy Redeemer saith--"Return, O backsliding children; I will have mercy upon you." But you say you cannot return, for you are a captive. Then listen to the promise--"Surely he shall deliver thee out of the snare of the fowler." Thou shalt yet be brought out of all evil into which thou hast fallen, and though thou shalt never cease to repent of thy ways, yet he that hath loved thee will not cast thee away; he will receive thee, and give thee joy and gladness, that the bones which he has broken may rejoice. No bird of paradise shall die in the fowler's net.

(taken from January 24 Morning reading in Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon)

The snare of the fowler metaphor represents the plots and schemes that come against the believer. We are foolish and weak like poor helpless birds that are easily lured into the fowler's snare. God is watching out for us. He is our deliverer and our protector.  Some  will be protected from the snare and some will be delivered out of the snare. As believers we have reason for confidence in God's protection. He is in complete control. He always comes through with just what we need no matter what the dangers or fears of life that we may be facing.

Soli Deo Gloria,
ah

From the Womb To the Tomb (Sanctity of Human Life)

 
Today is the 40th Anniversary  of the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision. Since January 22, 1973 over 50 million unborn babies have been killed legally in the United States of America.

Over 50 million unborn babies. Let that number sink in: over 50 million.  Heartbreaking!

That is more the eight times the number people who died in the Holocaust.

Look at the number of people we have lost to war casualties in America:

AMERICAN WAR CASUALTIES (from US Army Military History Institute)
Revolutionary War               25,000
War Between the States   ~625,000
World War I                       116,516
World War II                      405,399
Korean                                  36,516
Vietnam                                58,209
Afghanistan                            2,145 (thru 11/2012)
Iraq                                         4,486
War on Unborn           52,008,717+ (10/1/2010 from Bethlehem Baptist Church)
 


"Imagining a concrete picture can bring abstract truth to life. To help us understand what this month's 40th anniversary of legalized abortion in the United States means, one Care Net website offers this picture:  
    [I]magine Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Lambeau Field in Green Bay, and Miller Park in Milwaukee filled with fans. Now consider this: to host more than 55 million people, all three of these stadiums would need to fill to capacity 290 separate times!"

The sanctity of life refers to the idea that all life is sacred. God is the creator of life and any attack on life is an attack on His authority and His worthiness to be worshiped, be it abortion, physician assisted suicide, euthanasia, embryonic stem-cell research etc. Human life is precious to God. (Genesis 9:5-6)  Life is sacred and should be valued and treasured from conception to natural death (from the womb to the tomb).

God is our creator (Genesis 1:1; 1:26-27; 2:7) so He has authority to rule and govern our lives.
We know that Jesus came to save, restore and renew life. (John 3:16-17; 10:10b)

Satan comes to steal, kill and destroy. (John 8:44; 10:10a)

The birth of Moses and Jesus saw a massive slaughter of innocent children. (See Exodus 1:15-22, Matthew 2:13-18)

Pagan worship in the Old Testament often involved child sacrifice (Jeremiah 19:4-5; Psalm 106:36-38)

Satan is still attacking God using abortion & euthanasia to destroy His image-bearers. "To murder a person is to attack one who is the image-bearer or God." R.C. Sproul

Proverbs 8:36b (ESV) ³⁶   all who hate me love death.”


3801 Lancaster is a documentary film about Dr. Kermit Gosnell - an infamous abortionist who got rich selling abortion services to poor minority women in west Philadelphia.  It is difficult to watch but we do not need to turn our eyes away from the evil of abortion.

Further reading:

We Know They Are Killing Children - All of Us Know by John Piper


Anniversary Pictures: Remembering Roe vs. Wade by Kathleen Neilson  What should we do?

1. Remember  2. Pray  3. Offer Gospel Hope  4. Add Concrete Action


Abortion and the Gospel by Russell Moore


We have a responsibility to speak out for life from the womb to the tomb! (Proverbs 31:8-9)

Soli Deo Gloria,
ah

A Prayer for the New Year

2013
 

NEW YEAR

O Lord,

Length of days does not profit me except the days are passed

in Thy presence, in Thy service, to Thy glory.

Give me a grace that precedes, follows, guides, sustains,

sanctifies, aids every hour,
that I may not be one moment apart from Thee,
but may rely on Thy Spirit
to supply every thought,
speak in every word,
direct every step,
prosper every work,
build up every mote of faith,
and give me a desire
to show forth Thy praise;
testify Thy love,
advance Thy kingdom.

I launch my bark on the unknown waters of this year,
with Thee, O Father as my harbour,
Thee, O Son, at my helm,
Thee O Holy Spirit, filling my sails.
Guide me to heaven with my loins girt,
my lamp burning,
my ear open to Thy calls,
my heart full of love,
my soul free.

Give me Thy grace to sanctify me,
Thy comforts to cheer,
Thy wisdom to teach,
Thy right hand to guide,
Thy counsel to instruct,
Thy law to judge,
Thy presence to stabilize.
May Thy fear be my awe,
Thy triumphs my joy.

From The Valley of Vision page 112.

_____
What a great old prayer from The Valley of Vision as we start this new year.  In 2013 may we all "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen." (2 Peter 3:18 ESV)

Soli Deo Gloria
ah