Clean Hands and a Pure Heart

Taken from Pat Sczebel's sermon notes at Worship God 09:

A gap is a break in continuity, a break or a hole in an object. How do we recognize the gap we feel with our relationship with God? Here are the symptoms: "Knowledgeable but impersonal walk with God, a struggle with material things, and a definite lack of personal growth. Something is wrong with this harvest; it contradicts the faith that is supposed to be its source." Timothy Lane, Paul Tripp (How People Change pg. 3)

How do we remedy the gap? Look at Psalm 73:1. God is truly good to Israel and is made most clear to us through the work of Christ. We know God is good because "the Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God." Romans 8:16

Consider these quotes from John Piper's book, Desiring God: "Saving faith is the cry of a new creation in Christ. And the newness of the new creature is that it has a new taste. What was once distasteful or bland is now craved. Saving faith is the confidence that if you sell all you have, and forsake all sinful pleasures, the hidden treasure of holy joy will satisfy your deepest desires."

This is easy to say with our lips, but deny the truth in our hearts when temptation comes and we sin. We envy the wicked who seem to prosper and increase in wisdom and riches. We then become angry or irritated with God. David did. Look at Psalm 73 verses 3-15.

Paul David Tripp says this: "The world is so attractive to our eyes and so seductive to our hearts. The creation can seem so much more real than the Creator. The sights, sounds, touches, and tastes of the world can make us more alive than the purposes, promises, presence and provisions of a God who can neither be seen nor heard. This is a battle you do not win once. It is a battle that you must face every day."

I like what Milton Vincent says in his book, The Gospel Primer: "Though saved, I am daily beset by a sinful flesh that always craves those things that are contrary to the Spirit. These fleshly lusts are vicious enemies, constantly waging war against the good of my soul. Yet they promise me fullness, and their promises are deliciously sweet that I often find myself giving into them as if they were friends that have my best interests at heart. On the most basic of levels, I desire fullness, and fleshly lusts seduce me by attaching themselves to this basic desire. They exploit the empty spaces in me, and they promise that fullness will be mine if I give into their demands. When my soul sits empty and is aching for something to fill it, such deceptive promises are difficult to resist."

So, where is our triumph? Again, God's Word provides the answers. Read Psalm 73:16-28.
When I go into the sanctuary, I echo David's words, "it is good to be near God."

What happens to my appetite for sin when I am filled with Christ? My hunger for sin diminishes and the lies of lust simply lose their appeal. "In the gospel I experience a God who glorifies Himself by filling me with His fullness." Milton Vincent

Here are practical applications that will help us bridge the gap.

• Recognize the extent of your own sin. Don't minimize sin and temptation and simply "brush it off". Sin resides in the heart and when we accept the bad news of our condition, the good news of the gospel can have its full affect.
  
• Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God. Practice confessing specific sins before God and confessing specific sins before others. God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.
  
• Turn your eyes towards Christ again. Stop the routine that doesn't satisfy. He made an end to ALL our sin. Our sin has been removed for a reason. In Him is everything we need. He stands and knocks wanting to commune. Schedule times throughout your day to refocus your gaze.
• Daily remind yourself of God's grace and goodness. His Word will help us do this. Preach the gospel to yourself everyday. This will fill our hearts with gratefulness, when we see what we deserve vs. what we received. Joy should overflow from a grateful heart.
  
• Daily remind others of His grace and goodness. Move out of your devotion time keeping Christ on your mind onto your lips. Look for ways to talk about Him with others throughout the day. You'll find your soul full with Christ and fleshly lusts losing their appeal. Be mindful of His work in you and in others throughout the day and draw attention to his work.
  

H1N1 and Common Sense

I won't lie, I don't want to get the flu and think about it a lot when in public. I'm a little bit of a germaphobe anyway, but this cold and flu season has increased my desire to be extra careful.

My friend, Jennifer, sent this to me and I wanted to share with you. In the end, I do trust God to be our Healer and Great Physician, should we get sick.

Dr. Vinay Goyal is an MBBS,DRM,DNB (Intensivist and Thyroid specialist) having clinical experience of over 20 years. The following message given by him.

The only portals of entry are the nostrils and mouth/throat. In a global epidemic of this nature, it's almost impossible to avoid coming into contact with H1N1 in spite of all precautions. Contact with H1N1 is not so much of a problem as proliferation is.

While you are still healthy and not showing any symptoms of H1N1 infection, in order to prevent proliferation, aggravation of symptoms and development of secondary infections, some very simple steps, not fully highlighted in most official communications, can be practiced (instead of focusing on how to stock N95 or Tamiflu):

1. Frequent hand-washing (well highlighted in all official communications).

2. "Hands-off-the-face" approach. Resist all temptations to touch any part of face (it is impolite to do in public anyway).

3. *Gargle twice a day with warm salt water (use Listerine if you don't trust salt). *H1N1 takes 2-3 days after initial infection in the throat/ nasal cavity to proliferate and show characteristic symptoms. Simple gargling prevents proliferation. In a way, gargling with salt water has the same effect on a healthy individual that Tamiflu has on an infected one. Don't underestimate this simple, inexpensive and powerful preventative method.

4. Similar to 3 above, *clean your nostrils at least once every day with warm salt water. *Blowing the nose hard once a day and swabbing both nostrils with cotton buds dipped in warm salt water is very effective in bringing down viral population.*

5. *Boost your natural immunity with foods that are rich in Vitamin C (Amla and other citrus fruits). *If you have to supplement with Vitamin C tablets, make sure that it also has Zinc to boost absorption.

6. *Drink as much of warm liquids (tea, coffee, etc) as you can. *Drinking warm liquids has the same effect as gargling, but in the reverse direction. They wash off proliferating viruses from the throat into the stomach where they cannot survive, proliferate or do any harm.

10 Weeks Till Christmas: Start (or finish!) Your Gift Shopping

Here's another great post from one of my favorite blogs: Simple Mom. It's hard to believe that Christmas is only 10 weeks away. And, those ten weeks are going to fly by-as usual. Before you read the article (which I hope you do-great stuff), I thought I'd share what we decided to do a couple of years ago concerning Christmas presents.

Each family is certainly different and this is not intended to make you feel bad about what you do, or make it seem that we have the best plan. This is what works for us and if it can encourage anyone out there wondering how to purge the lists and decrees the stress, I'm more than happy to share.

Two major problems come with Christmas and Christians. In the hub-bub of gift-giving we a) miss out on the true meaning of Christmas and b) add more stuff to already full houses. I can even add a third. We feed our kids and ourselves with the never-ending desire to have more. The ugly, "ALL ABOUT ME" disease rears its ugly head in the weeks, days and morning of Christmas.

First, let me paint a picture of our family situation. I live next door to my husband's brother and family and next to them is Doug's parents. My mom lived with us up until a few days ago. But, she didn't go far-only two houses down to live with Mom and Dad. We truly are a compound and I love it!! My sister and her family live only 30 minutes away. Depending on the year, we get to celebrate with Doug's sister who lives two hours away. With all this family around, we could potentially be buying gifts for 28 people! Assuming we spend $20 per gift, that's $560! AND, that means we've only purchased one gift per kid and doesn't include any friends.

I don't need to tell you that the family budget can go out the window during Christmas and I'm sure you have your own dilemma when trying to figure out what to buy and whom to buy for.

We have gone from drawing names, to buying for adults only, to homemade gifts only and the last, buying for our immediate families only. This has proven to work great in the last few years. Not only is it easier on the budget, but we can control what our kids own. And, the most important is that we can make much of Christ. When we finish opening gifts at our own home, our kids know we are heading to Grammy and Big Papa's, not to open more gifts, but to celebrate the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. My desire is that our kids see the truth that God became flesh to redeem a people for His name. We felt we could do this much easier if we decreased the amount of gifts our kids received.

I will say this wasn't easy at first for some real gift-givers in our family. The solution: shower your love on birthdays. Christmas is about Jesus. Let's focus on Him. Birthdays are a day to thank God for life, so give away. For our kids, we ask that they receive no toys, only educational gifts. My kids have never been disappointed in receiving new crayons and a coloring book. Obviously, this is age-dependent, but the idea is to give them things that encourage their hobbies and talents-not fill their toy boxes.

One last thing. We also do a major purge before I even think about shopping for my kids. If they haven't played with the dollhouse, it's gone. If they are into their dolls, I'll perhaps add to their doll wardrobe. I want to teach my kids how to de-clutter and be charitable with what God had given.

Okay, to the article. I love the practical tips she provides leading up to Christmas.

Enjoy!


10 Weeks Till Christmas: Start (or finish!) Your Gift Shopping

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life=risk

"If you haven't failed, you haven't lived".

Family Time

After suggesting we actually spend some quality time with our kids, Doug pulls out the ultimate surprise. Camping indoors. The kids were thrilled.

The Best-Kept Secret to a Clean Home

Nothing new, but a great reminder!

The Best-Kept Secret to a Clean Home

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The Authenticity of our Faith

I can completely and totally relate to this video. My words said one thing, but my actions revealed the reality of my heart. The object of my faith was a prayer, a ritual and a delusional view of the christian walk. I compared myself to others, and even mimicked what they said. My heart was deceived and I was on a fast track to hell.

But, praise be to our Everlasting Father, who sought me and plucked me out of this darkness. My testimony was ripped to shreds in light of scripture. He revealed Himself to me and I crumbled under the weight of lies I was living under. I ran to the Savior.

Watch this video and evaluate what your faith is in. Is it in an idea, an action, a prayer? Are you suppressing the truth-fearful of what others might say?

Jeremiah 17:9 says our hearts are deceitful above all else and desperately sick or wicked. Don't be fooled, God will not be mocked. See God as who He is: Holy. See yourself as who you really are: destitute and full of all kinds of wickedness. Then, see the Savior: the One who lived the life we were suppose to live and received the punishment we should have received.

Amazing grace.