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The Sufficiency of Scripture Conference
16 years ago
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Heat Wave
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Make Me to Know Mine End
"My heart was hot within me, while I was musing the fire burned:
then spake I with my tongue, LORD, make me to know mine end,
and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am.
Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth;
and mine age is as nothing before thee:
verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah."
then spake I with my tongue, LORD, make me to know mine end,
and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am.
Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth;
and mine age is as nothing before thee:
verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah."
Psalm 39:3-5
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
A Thoughtful Response - Purposeful Childlessnes is a Hatred of Life
I was surprised to discover that my earlier post on the Time Magazine cover article was linked to in a blog post of a friend of the author of that cover article. Not only a friend, he introduced the author to the family that was pictured on the cover. Needless to say I was rather surprised that my mini post was chosen as the one to link to! If the discussion is going to go that way though, more needs to be said.
There is a lot more to the discussion of family size than simply, finances, happiness, ease of life, and/or "faith." As Doug Phillips has so well said, there is literally a war going on behind the scenes. It is a war against God. Therefore, discussions on family size actually must start at the very base level - who is your God and whose happiness are you here for? In reality, this question is always answered - even if is not written down or spoken out loud. It determines everything else in the discussion. If God is God, then that is where the discussion starts. If man is god, then man's happiness and ease is the highest goal. And this is the center of the war. Is God God or is man God?
I believe that God is God and that defines how I look at this. Purposeful childlessness in marriage is a hatred of life because it is a rebellion against the commands of God to be fruitful and multiply and it is contrary to sound wisdom. Wisdom cries out, "But he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate me love death." Prov. 8:36.
So how should we as Christians look at the issue of fruitfulness? Starting at the beginning: God created the world and He created it for a purpose: to be inhabited. Isaiah 45:18. Not only did God make life, He created man in His image for His glory and He created marriage. One of the reasons for marriage was to bring forth a godly seed: Malachi 2:15. From the very beginning, the one who is the enemy of God, Lucifer or Satan, has been at war with those made in God's own image, seeking their complete destruction - the last thing he wants is a godly seed! The last thing he wants is large, dominion taking families that think multigenerationally. From seeking to tempt man to rebel against God in the Garden by saying that they would become gods and not die, to working to encourage men to rebel against the command to fill the earth after the flood (when men built the tower of babel and were scattered over the earth after the Lord confused their languages), to advancing religions that involved child sacrifice, to seeking to kill the son of God Himself in Bethlehem, and yes, to seeking the eradication of the next generation through the destructive work of abortion and birth control - the devil is at war with God and with man, who is made in the image of God.
Children must then be viewed as God views them not as Satan wants us to view them. They must be seen as a blessing. I.e. When times get tough, have more not less! Ok, back to the point, the blessed man has many children around his table. Psalm 128:3. The blessed nation has fruitful wives: Deuteronomy 7:14. Children are the heritage of the Lord and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate. Psalm 127:3-5. We cannnot view children in any other way for any other view is to have a mind conformed to this world and not to the mind of Christ. Suffer the Little children to come to me, says Christ, for of such is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 19:14.
Let's consider the blessing of children from a purely practical standpoint. In the Time article, children were viewed as a financial burden. The author states she is amazed that anyone can afford a second child, "forget about a third." This is however extremely short cited and a result of our materialistic, self-centered society. Rather than saying, children are a blessing and they should, as God gives them ability, be able to be an economically viable part of the home, the world says that we must not let them work, we must send them to every game they can be involved in, we must let them watch TV for hours every week, we must let them go to movies, we must let them play computer games all day... We end up raising seriously expensive, economically disastrous, potentially lazy children. The solution isn't stop having them. The answer is raise them up in the way they should go so that when they are old they will not deaprt from it. You raise a computer game addict and he will play games when he is 30. You raise a hard working, Godly young man or woman and they will be hard working when they leave the home. The issue is the training and the value of the training and example we give our children will be the value of what we get out. The world, autimatically looking at things from the wrong foot sees children as seriously expensive. But they don't have to be if we stick with God's economy. Get them out of sports, computer games, entertainments, and TV and give them a vision for real life. We say that youth should lay around because they are kids, God says "Go to the ant thou sluggard."
Then there is the generational impact of one child. One plus one now equals one instead of 10, 12, or 14 like a lot of my ancestors had. In every generation, you shrink your population. And while you shrink the population, you get a larger and larger number of elderly until the point comes that the society collapses. It can no longer support itself. Watch the Demographic Bomb or Demographic Winter. That day of economic reckoning is coming and recession is already on us.
Finally, consider the generational strength of a large family. Statistically, if I have 10 children, and each of those 10 children, and each of those have 10 children, My line of direct descendants will be at 1,000 in the third generation. 10,000 in the fourth. 100,000 in the fifth. At the same time, one child families will be half in overall number every generation. The combined economic worth (raw material, knowledge, means of production, monetary value, etc.) of a family that is 100,000 strong is far greater than the economic worth of a whole line of single child families. Having one child by choice is very short sighted because it does not consider the future fruit of its decision and will result in the destruction of a society if it becomes the dominate viewpoint.
As I said in a previous post, God says that He will curse a wicked nation in the fruit of their womb by causing them to destroy their own seed in order that they may know He is God. "Because they had not executed my judgments, but had despised my statutes, and had polluted my sabbaths, and their eyes were after their fathers' idols. Wherefore I gave them also statutes that were not good, and judgments whereby they should not live; And I polluted them in their own gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire all that openeth the womb, that I might make them desolate, to the end that they might know that I am the LORD." Consider well then that the Lord, He is God and the nation which has a low birth rate is under His curse and not His blessing. Children truly are the heritage of the Lord and the fruit of the womb is His reward. Go have as many as the Lord will bless you with and raise them in the fear of God!
There is a lot more to the discussion of family size than simply, finances, happiness, ease of life, and/or "faith." As Doug Phillips has so well said, there is literally a war going on behind the scenes. It is a war against God. Therefore, discussions on family size actually must start at the very base level - who is your God and whose happiness are you here for? In reality, this question is always answered - even if is not written down or spoken out loud. It determines everything else in the discussion. If God is God, then that is where the discussion starts. If man is god, then man's happiness and ease is the highest goal. And this is the center of the war. Is God God or is man God?
I believe that God is God and that defines how I look at this. Purposeful childlessness in marriage is a hatred of life because it is a rebellion against the commands of God to be fruitful and multiply and it is contrary to sound wisdom. Wisdom cries out, "But he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate me love death." Prov. 8:36.
So how should we as Christians look at the issue of fruitfulness? Starting at the beginning: God created the world and He created it for a purpose: to be inhabited. Isaiah 45:18. Not only did God make life, He created man in His image for His glory and He created marriage. One of the reasons for marriage was to bring forth a godly seed: Malachi 2:15. From the very beginning, the one who is the enemy of God, Lucifer or Satan, has been at war with those made in God's own image, seeking their complete destruction - the last thing he wants is a godly seed! The last thing he wants is large, dominion taking families that think multigenerationally. From seeking to tempt man to rebel against God in the Garden by saying that they would become gods and not die, to working to encourage men to rebel against the command to fill the earth after the flood (when men built the tower of babel and were scattered over the earth after the Lord confused their languages), to advancing religions that involved child sacrifice, to seeking to kill the son of God Himself in Bethlehem, and yes, to seeking the eradication of the next generation through the destructive work of abortion and birth control - the devil is at war with God and with man, who is made in the image of God.
Children must then be viewed as God views them not as Satan wants us to view them. They must be seen as a blessing. I.e. When times get tough, have more not less! Ok, back to the point, the blessed man has many children around his table. Psalm 128:3. The blessed nation has fruitful wives: Deuteronomy 7:14. Children are the heritage of the Lord and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate. Psalm 127:3-5. We cannnot view children in any other way for any other view is to have a mind conformed to this world and not to the mind of Christ. Suffer the Little children to come to me, says Christ, for of such is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 19:14.
Let's consider the blessing of children from a purely practical standpoint. In the Time article, children were viewed as a financial burden. The author states she is amazed that anyone can afford a second child, "forget about a third." This is however extremely short cited and a result of our materialistic, self-centered society. Rather than saying, children are a blessing and they should, as God gives them ability, be able to be an economically viable part of the home, the world says that we must not let them work, we must send them to every game they can be involved in, we must let them watch TV for hours every week, we must let them go to movies, we must let them play computer games all day... We end up raising seriously expensive, economically disastrous, potentially lazy children. The solution isn't stop having them. The answer is raise them up in the way they should go so that when they are old they will not deaprt from it. You raise a computer game addict and he will play games when he is 30. You raise a hard working, Godly young man or woman and they will be hard working when they leave the home. The issue is the training and the value of the training and example we give our children will be the value of what we get out. The world, autimatically looking at things from the wrong foot sees children as seriously expensive. But they don't have to be if we stick with God's economy. Get them out of sports, computer games, entertainments, and TV and give them a vision for real life. We say that youth should lay around because they are kids, God says "Go to the ant thou sluggard."
Then there is the generational impact of one child. One plus one now equals one instead of 10, 12, or 14 like a lot of my ancestors had. In every generation, you shrink your population. And while you shrink the population, you get a larger and larger number of elderly until the point comes that the society collapses. It can no longer support itself. Watch the Demographic Bomb or Demographic Winter. That day of economic reckoning is coming and recession is already on us.
Finally, consider the generational strength of a large family. Statistically, if I have 10 children, and each of those 10 children, and each of those have 10 children, My line of direct descendants will be at 1,000 in the third generation. 10,000 in the fourth. 100,000 in the fifth. At the same time, one child families will be half in overall number every generation. The combined economic worth (raw material, knowledge, means of production, monetary value, etc.) of a family that is 100,000 strong is far greater than the economic worth of a whole line of single child families. Having one child by choice is very short sighted because it does not consider the future fruit of its decision and will result in the destruction of a society if it becomes the dominate viewpoint.
As I said in a previous post, God says that He will curse a wicked nation in the fruit of their womb by causing them to destroy their own seed in order that they may know He is God. "Because they had not executed my judgments, but had despised my statutes, and had polluted my sabbaths, and their eyes were after their fathers' idols. Wherefore I gave them also statutes that were not good, and judgments whereby they should not live; And I polluted them in their own gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire all that openeth the womb, that I might make them desolate, to the end that they might know that I am the LORD." Consider well then that the Lord, He is God and the nation which has a low birth rate is under His curse and not His blessing. Children truly are the heritage of the Lord and the fruit of the womb is His reward. Go have as many as the Lord will bless you with and raise them in the fear of God!
Sunday, July 18, 2010
A Baptism!
Today I had the great pleasure to be at the baptism of Marissa Espinoza, the daughter of my good friends Abraham and Marissa Espinoza.
Sometimes it is fun to just hold a camera out and snap away and then see later what the results were. Here is a shot of three of my road trip companions, David Brown and Nick and Juan Ruiz. On the right are members of one of our church's largest families (expecting number 13).
A crowd begins to form in the sprinkles of a passing storm.
Marissa shares her testimony.
Mr. Espinoza shares.
Petra watches from her father's shoulders.
"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:"
"Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection."
Marissa, Abraham, Marissa, and Abraham. (Not to hard to remember names in the older members of this family!)
The Lord's blessings Espinozas!
Marissa shares her testimony.
"Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection."
The Lord's blessings Espinozas!
Definition of a Martyr
"One who has become an instrument of God, who has lost his will in the will of God, not lost it but found it, for he has found freedom in submission to God. The martyr no longer desires anything for himself, not even the glory of martyrdom." T.S. Eliot, Murder in the Cathedral
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Lowering Bills
I am all for lowering my utility bills. It has been very hot here lately so I decided to make an investment today in a rather inexpensive solution to keeping those bills low: A fan.
For some reason, the house I am in has no ceiling fans. I guess the builder wanted to go cheap. However, 83 degrees feels much more tolerable when a fan is moving that hot air around than when it is just still.
For some reason, the house I am in has no ceiling fans. I guess the builder wanted to go cheap. However, 83 degrees feels much more tolerable when a fan is moving that hot air around than when it is just still.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
I'm Home!
Praising the Lord here for a safe and successful journey around the country. With 6 weeks and 13,000 miles now completed, I was in no accidents and had no tickets... Not say I couldn't have gotten one, but the Lord planed my mistakes so no officers were there when I made them! Like when I was driving the RV in San Antonio and failed to see a red light until I was going through the intersection already. Oops...
So here is the list of states I was in:
North Carolina
Virginia
Maryland
Delaware
New Jersey
New York
Connecticut
Rhode Island
Massachusetts
Maine
New Hampshire
Vermont
Michigan
Indiana
Illinois
Wisconsin
Iowa
Minnesota
South Dakota
Wyoming
Montana
Idaho
Washinton
Oregon
California
Arizona
New Mexico
Texas
Oklahoma
Arkansas
Louisiana
Mississippi
Tennessee
Alabama
Georgia
Florida
South Carolina
I think that is 37. I just narrowly missed PA unfortunately.
I put my hand in the Atlantic, spent time in Canada, put my hand in the Pacific, put my hand in the Gulf and visited every single border state but Ohio and North Dakota - in one trip. That is probably a once in a lifetime experience. I praise the Lord that He let me actually do this.
I was able also to visit some amazing churches and families around the country, visit great locations like Acadia National Park, Niagara Falls, Mount Rushmore, Yosemite National Park, the Grand Canyon, and the Alamo.
And to top off the trip, the Baby Conference. I will be posting some notes from this conference over the next couple days, the Lord willing.
Until next time,
O love the LORD, all ye his saints: for the LORD preserveth the faithful, and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer. Psalm 31:23
So here is the list of states I was in:
North Carolina
Virginia
Maryland
Delaware
New Jersey
New York
Connecticut
Rhode Island
Massachusetts
Maine
New Hampshire
Vermont
Michigan
Indiana
Illinois
Wisconsin
Iowa
Minnesota
South Dakota
Wyoming
Montana
Idaho
Washinton
Oregon
California
Arizona
New Mexico
Texas
Oklahoma
Arkansas
Louisiana
Mississippi
Tennessee
Alabama
Georgia
Florida
South Carolina
I think that is 37. I just narrowly missed PA unfortunately.
I put my hand in the Atlantic, spent time in Canada, put my hand in the Pacific, put my hand in the Gulf and visited every single border state but Ohio and North Dakota - in one trip. That is probably a once in a lifetime experience. I praise the Lord that He let me actually do this.
I was able also to visit some amazing churches and families around the country, visit great locations like Acadia National Park, Niagara Falls, Mount Rushmore, Yosemite National Park, the Grand Canyon, and the Alamo.
And to top off the trip, the Baby Conference. I will be posting some notes from this conference over the next couple days, the Lord willing.
Until next time,
O love the LORD, all ye his saints: for the LORD preserveth the faithful, and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer. Psalm 31:23
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Time Magazine Current Issue: The Only Child Myth
In a very timely cover article, the Time Magazine July 19th issue cover article was titled The Only Child: Debunking the Myths. The fact that this came out during the Baby Conference does not seem to be a coincidence, but rather the hand of God revealing the difference between a biblical and anti-biblical worldview. With over 1,400 people gathering together at the Baby Conference to celebrate life and the blessings of children, it provides a stark contrast to the views of the world. The following is a small excerpt from the Time article:
Please see my later post on this delving a little more into a biblical vs. worldly perspective on life and children.
"It's a conversation I have most weeks — if not most days. This time, it happens when my 2-year-old daughter and I are buying milk at the supermarket. The cashiers fawn over her pink cheeks, and then I endure the usual dialogue.In stark contrast to the above viewpoint, one of the most touching things at the Baby Conference was the honoring of Michelle Duggar with the 2010 Mother of the Year award. With 19 children, the Duggar family has completely embraced without reserve the vision of the Scriptures that children are the heritage of the Lord and the fruit of the womb is his reward. Praise the Lord for families who want to throw off the culture of death to embrace the culture of life.
"Your first?"
"Yup."
"Another one coming soon?"
"Nope — it might be just this one."
"You'll have more. You'll see."
I offer no retort, but if I did, I'd start by asking these young minimum-wage earners to consider the following: The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that the average child in the U.S. costs his or her parents about $286,050 — before college. Those costs have risen during the recession. It's a marvel to me these days that anyone can manage a second kid — forget about a third." Read more.
Please see my later post on this delving a little more into a biblical vs. worldly perspective on life and children.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Trust in the Lord
He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered. ~ Proverbs 28:26
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Greetings form the Alamo - The National Council of La Raza and the Reign of Christ
Right now I am sitting in a McDonald's that had free WiFi just down the street from the Menger Hotel and the Alamo. It's so hard to believe that a major battle took place here so many years ago. The battle is not over though as darkness seeks again to swallow Texas in is tyrannical grip. In the same building as the Baby Conference, the National Council of La Raza is holding its 2010 National Conference. This is the War of the Worldviews as one group meets to celebrate the kingdom of God and the gift of children who are given for its advancement and the other advocates socialism, the takeover of America for Mexico, racist ideology, and celebrates the gift of life for the conquering of a free people.
We know though which worldview will win out in the end for Christ is the Ruler of the Kings of the Earth and one day righteousness will cover the earth as waters cover the sea.
We know though which worldview will win out in the end for Christ is the Ruler of the Kings of the Earth and one day righteousness will cover the earth as waters cover the sea.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Back Again - More Pictures
The Dallas family in Georgia had a real 1874 howitzer.
Loading the gun.
Fire in the Hole!
Well, that's all.
"Better is the poor that walketh in his uprightness, than he that is perverse in his ways, though he be rich." Pro. 28:6
More pictures - Tulsa to Atlanta to San Antonio
Greetings from the Vision Forum Offices in San Antonio. This is the first time I have ever been to the offices here though the second time to San Antonio. I was blessed with attending the 2009 Film Festival with Scott Brown in January of 09.
Well, my host is telling me that he is about ready to leave, so one picture only out of this set:
Group shot in Claremore, OK before everyone but Juan Ruiz and I leaves for Paducah, Kentucky.
Until next time...
Well, my host is telling me that he is about ready to leave, so one picture only out of this set:
Group shot in Claremore, OK before everyone but Juan Ruiz and I leaves for Paducah, Kentucky.
Until next time...
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Flashback - Arizona Part 2
This petrified log was at a campground we stayed at. It was nearly 5 feet in diameter and 12 feet in length.
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