A Net in Time

Curriculum and book reviews, faith, homeschooling and more!

Write31Challenge

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. 

Wait

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I saw this word wait and I was immediately transported back in time when I hollered wait, and waiting happened. The joy that transpired.  It’s an old memory, but a good one. 🙂

Wait, a poem

WAIT!

The command slipped out of my mouth.
To my joy he stopped.
Heart-pounding joy,
My son stopped.

This crazy tow-headed lad
Shrieking with delight
Running away from his mom.

I saw the road
The car moving along
And my heart about stopped in my chest.

And I hollered
WAIT!
And my lad stopped and turned.

My heart continued to beat
I laughed and told my lad
“You run so fast”

And “Good boy for listening”
“Good boy for hearing mommy yell wait”.
And all was good.

I wanted to holler at him for running
For making my heart about stop.
But he listened.

And a momma has to praise
a lad for obedience.
She has to see the good.

Because you know
God sees the good too.
And this I need my lad to see.

To understand the grace God gives me
A momma can hand over to her lad.
Showing him grace, within his obedience.

write 31

Another write 31 days challenge, and again a poem.  Poems are the joy of my heart!  🙂  Join us over at Kate’s won’t you?

Some Days Run Different

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Sometimes you think “different” that will be easy to write on.  My original plan was to include this word in different ways to study history.  But I changed that to Fantastic Ways to Study History.  So then I though oh, I have two many tabs open in my browser so I can do “Closing out Different tabs”, but well, when I sat down tonight this poem started running through my head and so here it is.  🙂  Some days run different than planned

Different Days

Today went different than I thought.
Rushing out the door.
“I’m late! I’m late!” T’was my only thought.
Calling a friend to let her know,
She said “We’re not meeting today,
Don’t you know?”

10 minutes from home
Relief flooded my bones.
“I’m not late.
and I’m tired.
I get to go home!!!”

Home a tired hubby does arise
“You’re home?” he commented with surprise.
Hugs and time to spend together
Then a boy home from school,
All the better.

Chatter I love it
Twixt a boy and a man
Talking about the things
In the land
Politics, war, men of faith too
Mothers’ heart listens
Pops in a word or two.

Later that day
Work all do.
Dad at the mill,
Lad at his schooling.
Mom blogs, and there’s gardening too!

At the end of the day
Tired muscles sit,
This went much different
Than I did anticipate.
So the lad prayed
O’er our evening meal.
Helping mom out err the food grow cold.

write 31

This post is part of the Write 31 Days Challenge.   Some days run different don’t they?   Have you had days like this lately?

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?

The Senses of Fall

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I have to say, this isn’t some of my best work.  At least in my sleep-deprived, mind all over the place frame of being, that’s what I think!  So anyways, we are in the throes of a south-western Ontario fall.  Fall means different things to folks, perhaps you can pick out some of what fall means to me. 🙂

This post is part of the write 31 days challenge.

The senses of Fall

Go: The Senses of Fall

Can you?
Sense it…
That feeling in the air.

Would it be snow?
Frost tonight maybe
or perhaps just a good solid blow?

Stop and just listen
Feel the breeze
Or lack thereof.

Listen, are the geese calling?
Encouraging the flock in forward motion
The squirrels chattering, protecting stores.

Breath in deep
Does the cold go down to your belly?
Breath, tasting, knowing.

The taste of fall
Coming through with each breathe.
The last tomatoes, ripe pumpkins, Corn.

Watch full well.
Those leaves scattering across the ground.
The clouds, are there even clouds?

No clouds means that deep cold
will bring frost.
Clouds, more likely snow.

Fuzzy caterpillars
Moving quickly, find a place
to call their own.

Can you smell it?
The damp earth, gathering water
Preparing the ground
for slithering snakes to find refuge.

Sweet smelling leaves from
Sugar maples gathering into compost.
Musky-sweet in the Indian summer sun.

Let your senses run
Bringing memories
Settling deep within your mind.

All the Senses of Fall
Smells, sounds, tastes and sights.
And mind the softness of a caterpillar
crawling out of sight.

Stop