A Net in Time

Curriculum and book reviews, faith, homeschooling and more!

faith

Memory of Sin

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So I went to bible study this morning where we are studying No Other Gods by Kelly Minter.   Today’s lesson was based on the life of Leah and Rachel being married to Jacob.  What a messed up family relationship stuff that was.   Laban cheating his son-in-law, love and unlove in the same household, sisters having to share a man, babies/no babies.  What a total mess.   Anyways, as we walked through the lesson learning about how to handle sin, and jealousy, envy and anger one of the ladies commented that the memory of her sin makes her feel guilty, even after she repents, and what should she do with that?  The memory of sin created guilt.  

Memory of sin

Go: Memory of sin

I remember it,
Clear as a bell,
That day I walked out of the store.
Grabbing some pop I didn’t pay for.

Immediately as I left I felt the sting
Conviction of wrong-doing
There, I did it again.
I didn’t go back.

Over time that sin
It weighed me down
Conviction encouraging me
To make it all right.

Finally driven
Back to the store
I paid for a pop,
But I left it at the door.

Conviction assuaded,
I knew I did right.
But the guilt of the day
Kept me up at night.

What do I do?
How can I make it right?
I ALREADY DID IT!
I made it ALRIGHT!!!

Til finally God
When I cried out again
Said Leave it my child
at the cross once again.

Forgiveness you sought.
Freely given it was.
You made it alright with
The place you stole from.

Leave it with me.
It’s covered you see.
Don’t let old memories
Drive you away from me.

And then I remembered
The difference between
Guilt and conviction,
It’s not always easy to see.

Conviction drive you
To repair what is wrong.
Guilt causes a wedge
It’s not where you belong.

Leave the past to the past
Once forgiveness is given.
Tell the guilt now
Good riddance.

Stop

Another poem in this years write 31 days challenge.   Have you been having fun?  I hope so!  

Things We Shouldn’t Practice

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Practice makes perfect or so the say, practice, practice, it’ll be better another day.  And there are many things in life to practice, good behaviour, new skills, kindness, patience, faith and more.   So many good things to practice, but what about the things we shouldn’t practice?

Things we shouldn't practice

Go: Things We Shouldn’t Practice

All quotes are from the NIV.

You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their practices.   Leviticus 18:3

9 When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. 10 Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, 11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. 12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord; because of these same detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you. 13 You must be blameless before the Lord your God.   Deut. 18:9-13

No one who practices deceit will dwell in my house; no one who speaks falsely will stand in my presence.  Psalm 101:7

For fools speak folly, their hearts are bent on evil: They practice ungodliness and spread error concerning the Lord; the hungry they leave empty and from the thirsty they withhold water. Is. 32:6

“‘Because you did not remember the days of your youth but enraged me with all these things, I will surely bring down on your head what you have done, declares the Sovereign Lord. Did you not add lewdness to all your other detestable practices?  Ezekiel 16:43

But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.  Matt. 7:26

“Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” “The poison of vipers is on their lips.”  Romans 3:13

But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”  Rev. 21:8

Stop

write 31

Today’s write 31 days challenge is the word practice.  Are you taking part?   

Tests of a Christian

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Test… It means different things to different folks.  Electrical, school work, Character, even the tests of a Christian…

In our life recently, test has meant it seems like ENDLESS hours of a hard-working man tracking down an electrical problem in our 2005 Silverado.  Testing circuits to see if they work, looking hard to find a broken wire. 

My son has been studying his science lately in preparation for taking a test or two.  He’s happy there are no tests in history, just papers and finishing assignments (and answering questions from his mom!).  🙂  A happy report from him with a 20/21 on his in school course test.

It’s left me thinking what I can write on for the word test.  This morning’s sermon in church gave me the answer to that.  The tests of a Christian. 

Tests of the christian

Go: Tests of a Christian

In 1 Thessalonians these words we read:
We give thanks to God
Always for you….
Remembering….
Your work of faith and
Labour of Love and
Steadfastness of Hope
In our Lord Jesus Christ.

Test One
Your work of faith.
This struck me hard.
That faith, this belief we have
in an unseen God.
We need to hold it.
Holding is a work you know?
Believing in something we can’t quite see.
And what we see is like a dim mirror.
Yet, this unseen thing, changes our lives
In ways we don’t always understand.
The continued trust we have is
Our work of faith.

Test two
Labour of love.
Christ loves us.
We love Christ.
This intertwined love
Causes us to do
Acts of service.
A way of worship
Living out love.

Test Three
Steadfastness of hope.
Because of faith we know
This thing to be true.
Spoken out in Revelations.
Shown the spoiler that
Christ has won the battle.
So we have this hope,
A hope that is steadfast because
Our faith is sure.
So anything we face here,
Can’t shine a light on
What awaits us.
A better future.
Pain, suffering, agony.
It will fade in
The light of what awaits.

Stop

write 31

This is part of the Write 31 days challenge.  Check out the writers here. 

Your Need I will Answer

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Starting a few years back (in my teens to be precise) God started to meet a need in my life that I didn’t hitherto think was an issue.   He took me out of myself.  It’s still a hard fought battle many days, but a need met indeed.   He reminds me daily that “your need I will answer”.

Need

Go: Your Need I will answer

16 years old
In Haiti I was
Serving with Missions Impossible.

God spoke quietly
“Child of mine, listen.
This thing you do.
It needs to stop.”

I shrugged and tried to
Block that notion out.
My life was fine.
Living inside my head.
Incorporating all that happened
In real time to the story within.

It mattered not to me that
Others thought me odd.
I always knew I was different
than all else around.

Yet God continued
This thing must end
No more living inside your head.

He gave me music.
Showed me verse.
Friends to laugh with.
My heart slowly began to listen.

Now I know in times of stress
To welcome a song
Calling me to rise
Getting my day off to
a healthy start.

I’d like say
it’s all smooth sailing
That music and verse
Keep me out of my head.

But I’ve been known to fight
Determined to stay.
To make my world safe
In my head I’ll delay.

But over and over
God says to me
“Mind me child,
This need I will meet.
Remember this verse

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, 
a holy nation, God’s special possession,
that you may declare the praises of him
who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light”.

Remember and heed your calling.
Your need I will answer.

Stop

This post is part of the write 31 Days Challenge.  Have you joined it?

First, biblical answers

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I admittedly was lacking in inspiration for the word first. I looked up the definition but that didn’t help like it often does.  Then I thought, what if I looked for biblical inspiration.  Would that have the answers?

I found the following, when looking for a definition:

An adjective… like first in line, first prize, first slot, highest priority.

Or it can be an adverb.  It’s a word of action.  First do this, then do that.

It could even be a noun.  Like grade A beef, it’s the best level. 

First, biblical answers

An Adjective

Genesis 1:5
 
God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
 
Deuteronomy 10:2
 
I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. Then you are to put them in the ark.”
 
1 Corinthians 14:30
 
And if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop.

An adverb

Luke 6:42

“Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.

Mark 4:28

“The soil produces crops by itself; first the blade, then the head, then the mature grain in the head.
 
1 Chronicles 16:7
 
That day David first appointed Asaph and his associates to give praise to the Lord in this manner:

A noun

Matthew 20:16

“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
 
Isaiah 48:12
 
“Listen to me, Jacob, Israel, whom I have called: I am he; I am the first and I am the last.
 
Romans 8:29
 
For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.
31 days of free writes

Taking part in the Write 31 Days Challenge.  Today’s word is first, and I simply thought to go to the bible for answers.  

Deep runs the well

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The well runs deep or you could say Deep runs the well….

I’ve pondered this word for much the week.
Wondering how to talk about a well run deep.
Figuring out.
The words to say.
Thinking I’d wait for a more alert day.

This week I showed my lad a gift.
From the church we attend.
RightNow Media, biblical teaching
In video form.
Chan, Wallace, Strickland and more.

The lad was intrigued.
Can I listen too?
Old phone, now his own.
Loaded. Lad listens.
Asks “Can I have my own account?”

A mother’s heart smiles.
This lad loves to learn more
Drinking deep at HIS well.
Seeing God more clearly.
Growing in faith.

And so I think
As imperfect as I am.
Not as stringent as many moms
With a believing Dad.
Somehow, this lad knows.

He sees God.
He talks and prays.
He listens and
Of his own accord WANTS to
Drink deep from the well.

And I am thankful.

Deep runs the well

It took a while for the words of this poem to run through my head, and even so, then ran poorly for a while. 🙂   I managed to stay within five minutes though it was much broken up over the morning.   I’m taking part in a write 31 days challenge, I hope you’ve been enjoying the run!  🙂   OH!  I”m going to include this as part of the #abcblogging post as well!  🙂  Letter D this week, are you blogging for them as well?  Or what would you choose for your letter D?

The Other

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Currently I’m listening to a story where a dad has to make a choice. Fulfill the treaty as he AUGHT to with his oldest, obedient daughter, or send off his youngster, a girl who was prone to cause no end of trouble. I haven’t reached the point in the story where he makes that choice, but I’m tending to think (given the nature of the book and the author) that he’ll send off his troublesome one. That he will strongly consider giving “the other”.

The story is causing me to pause in my thoughts.

Other

Understanding The Other

Lately I’ve been reading the devotional My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers. Chambers challenges us to think about what it means to give our utmost for the Lord. It’s not always as easy a decision as we think it is.

Today’s reading gave me this challenge “Worship is giving God the best that He has given you.”

When I get something that is a blessing to me… a card from my hubby, a compliment from my son, a monetary gift from someone, my inclination is two-fold.

1. to thank them and
2. to keep it my own.

Oswald though says “Whenever you get a blessing from God, give it back to Him as a love gift. take time to meditate before God and offering the blessing back to Him in a deliberate act of worship.”

Deliberate. Giving back. Doing the OTHER.
So not just saying Thanks God that was awesome and then hoarding it in.

But taking the time to genuinely praise and worship him and offering it back. Therefore if God blesses me with plentiful rain and an abundant harvest I need to THANK him for it. Not take it for granted. I need to take that abundant harvest and allow him to use it.   If he blesses me with good health, then I need to use that good health as a praise offering to him.   Not just merely going about my business without giving him a thought.

It’s a deliberate act on my part.  To consider those blessings given, praise him for it, and offer them back to him as worship. 

It’s an outside focus.  A focus that is non-worldly, not self-centered 

It’s The Other.

31 days of free writes

This post is part of the Write 31 days Challenge.