SHEPHERD'S HILL

| | | | | | | | | |

A Separated Life

Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And I will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

2 Corinthians 6:17 - 18

Contents of this page:

Ollie Ollie Oxen Free (New)

The Rush To Wickedness
Meat Ye Know Not Of
No Passion, No Lord, No Chronicles
Headcoverings
Different Results come from Different Actions
Christians And Television
Getting Started

Ollie Ollie Oxen Free!

I am the youngest child in a family of 5 siblings. I have three older brothers: John (Duke), Allen and David and one sister Tracy (now living in Heaven with our Lord!). Duke and Allen were 10 and 8 years older than me respectively, so most of my memories of them are as older BIG brothers. David and Tracy and I were closer in age and so my memories of play when I was a little one are with them. When we were children we played outside mostly. In those days, it was a punishment to have to stay inside. Around dusk in the evening we loved to be outside catching fireflies and when it got dark, we would play games like “freeze-tag”, “sling the statue” or best of all – HideNGo Seek. I wrote that with no spaces between the words because that is the way we said it “HideNGo”. We shoved all the words together in one breath.

If you have ever had the thrill of playing HideNGo Seek then you probably will understand most of what I will be talking of in this article. As with any game, there are rules, terminology and even some tricks to help you win. This particular game involved someone being “IT”. I hated to be IT. Now that I look back on things, I reckon everyone hated being IT. We all wanted to be hiders. Well, IT had to stand against a tree or car with their head down and eyes closed and count out loud to 100 by 5’s. While the counting was going on everyone else ran to hide. There were boundaries that we couldn’t go beyond of course, but most importantly there was BASE. Usually BASE was wherever IT had stood to count – a tree or car or stump or something prominent. Being the youngest child in the group it seemed my entire goal of childhood was to get to BASE. That was the place of safety and refuge and IT (whoever that was at the moment) could never get me once I touched BASE. One of the greatest achievements was when you safely arrived and called out as loud as possible “BASE!!” I still feel the ripple of excitement when I think back on those glorious, terrifying, mad dashes to get there.

Today I had a flash of memory flood over my mind and my heart of a time when we were enjoying one of those excellent summer afternoons. Tracy, David, and several other kids in our neighborhood were outside. We had already had supper and the sky was getting dark. The tree frogs were thunderously loud and lightening bugs were sparkling everywhere. Our streetlight was at the end of our little driveway and so it was the gathering place. We would sit on the pavement and watch the bats start coming out to swoop around and catch bugs. Of course, whenever one got close we would cover our heads so that they wouldn’t get tangled in our hair and lay their eggs. Every self-respecting southern kid knew that if a bat laid their eggs in your hair you would go crazy. J

In our small yard there was a concrete birdbath and that was generally BASE everytime we played a game outside because it was in the center of the yard. On this particular night my brother David was IT and I was excited because I got to hide. I wasn’t as fast as everyone else, so whenever I had to be IT, I usually was for several rounds ‘cause I couldn’t catch anyone. But this time I got to hide. I could hear David counting “5, 10, 15, 20, 25 . . .” and my heart was racing. Tracy was already in the best spot behind Daddy’s car. Michelle was under the bushes near the porch. Everyone had already taken the best spots and I went into shear panic. The only place I could think of was behind the tree where the rope swing was and that was within about 10 feet of BASE where David was counting. “85, 90, 95, 100! Ready or not, here I come!!!” he yelled. My thought was that if he went toward Daddy’s car then I could run up behind and tag BASE and be safe before he ever turned around. Sure enough, that is just what he did, but Tracy came flying out from her spot and heading toward base before I could move my lead feet. She was safe. Then one by one he spotted the other kids –and each one somehow made it to safety. But I was frozen and he still hadn’t seen where I was; then came that most dreadful sound “Ollie Ollie Oxen Free!” My heart crumbled to pieces. That meant that I HAD to come out from my spot and try to get to BASE before he tagged me. Everyone else had been dealt with and I was the last one. There were no more possibilities of distractions that would give me the chance to sneak out. His eyes, his efforts, his movements were all going to be focused on getting me before I was safe. Oh, the sweet torture of it all. ;-)

Well, I came out. I saw everybody watching me and laughing because they all knew that I was never going to make it. Here I was face to face with my big brother and he had no intention of being IT again. I felt the heat rising in my face and I took off with everything I had. David took off toward me – I was screaming – he was laughing and just before he got me, he tripped on the root of an old tree and tumbled over. I was running so hard and so fast that I nearly fell into the birdbath before I could stop and yelled out with the greatest joy in the world, “SAFE!!!” I was safe. I had made it and as silly as it may sound, I can still feel the relief in my mind almost 40 years later. Amazing how long it takes to write out something like this and yet it is just an instant long when it goes through your mind.

As I remembered this, the Lord used it to show me something very important and that is what I want to share with you. We are all progressing through this life one step at a time. Some folks walk in sadness. Some walk in joy. Some walk in victory. Some walk in defeat. Some walk in fear. Some walk in peace. We all experience these things at different times and most of us, through maturity, learn to maintain a balance in our lives. But the goal for each and every one of us is the same, happiness – BASE! We want to reach that place where we are safe and the enemy cannot get us. There is an inner knowing in each of us that there is a place of peace. But so many are like I was in this memory – so afraid of failing, so afraid of making the wrong move, so afraid that I wasn’t going to make it all the way that I was frozen in fear and doubt. My hiding place in the darkness protected me. The probability that I would be found wasn’t important because I was mistakenly confident that I had hidden myself so well. I watched everyone else emerge and conquer. I envied them. I was thrilled when they made it. But my heart was so uncertain of the outcome that my hiding place was where I really wanted to stay.

There finally came a moment when I was forced to make a decision. I was no longer allowed to just stay back and hide in the false security of the darkness. Finally I was commanded to reveal myself. I had to make a change. The probability of failure was no longer the most important factor. The possibility of success became my motivation. I was not instantly safe, just because I made the decision to move out. I still had to run the race and I had to run to win. There was every reason to believe that I was going to fail. Those around watching me, believed that I would be defeated. But that had to be secondary to the goal. I HAD to succeed. In my mind, there was no way that I could have foreseen the situation that would insure my victory. No one could. Would I have made it if David had not tripped? I have no idea. What matters is that a little girl with little obvious ability was able to conquer her fear, her situation.

Every single day of our lives we have an enemy waiting to defeat us. He plans his attacks against us with knowledge of our weaknesses and fears and shortcomings. Often times we hide and try to avoid dealing with those attacks because even though we know the victory would be wonderful, we really don’t want to have to run the race to get there and risk failure. We think, if we just don’t step out then we won’t have to face the challenge. Staying back in the darkness seems to be the easiest way. But dear ones, the day comes in all of our lives when we are called to account. The moment inevitably arrives when we are no longer offered the option of hiding. It is time to make a decision. Will you run the race or will you quit and throw up your hands and give up?

Today I was talking with my daughter Sarah and she said, “Mother, why do people think that the walk with the Lord is going to be so easy? Why do they think that things should work smoothly for them once they obey? It doesn’t show that anywhere in scripture?” My response was not very satisfactory I am sorry to say. I didn’t know why. I don’t know where the idea came from that the Christian walk; especially the truly committed Christian walk – you know the real one where you actually do what God says when He says it – is supposed to be just a nice buggy ride on the carousel of life. He promised us that it would be right the opposite. He also promised us that when we walked through the fire we would not be burned. He didn’t say we wouldn’t ever feel the heat. This walk is H*A*R*D! It is for everyone. But! If we stick with it, if we set our face like a flint, if we determine that we will stay the course, then we will have peace and we will reach BASE! I don’t just mean Heaven; I mean that sweet place of surety. That internal place of knowing in your spirit, in your mind, in your heart that everything is going to be fine and that the enemy is defeated no matter what your circumstances are telling you.

So if you are hearing “Ollie, Ollie, Oxen Free” in your spirit then it is time for you to come out from hiding. Step into the light and get moving! God Himself is calling you forth.

“For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.” Isaiah 50:7

“When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.” Isaiah 43:2

The Rush to Wickedness

In the last three weeks we have had somewhat of an ordeal here with our cats. Now you may ask yourself, what in the world does a bunch of cats have to do with the title of this article, but hang in there with me.

We have three adult cats: two females and a male. One female, Snickers, is not really pretty but is as gentle and loving as you could ever want a pet to be. The other female, Cowboy (don’t ask J) is beautiful, but very unfriendly and aloof. The male, Vincent, is beautiful and friendly but a typical Tom Cat. We have had these adult cats for many, many years. Well, as happens every spring, our two momma cats each blessed us with a litter of kittens – 9 kittens in all. Normally, I am not really taken much with the kittens – they are for mousing and that is about all I want from them, but this year I was very drawn to them. The girls love every litter that is born.

Each morning I ventured out the back door to sit for awhile and nuzzle and talk to each of the little ones. Now the girls all love the kittens and so they had already named each and everyone and petted them and loved on them. They were used to being petted so they came right up to us everytime we went out the door. In other words, my heart was taken by all these precious little creatures: Butterscotch, Milo, Cuddles, Cooper, Grimmy (Grimalkin), Mary Palacious, Milky Way, Buckie and Chloe.

About 2 weeks ago I had to go to my doctor and when I returned home, the girls told me that the kittens were gone. All nine were no where to be found. Living on a farm there are many places that a bunch of kittens can go so we scoured every building and all the property but they were no where in site. The friendly momma cat, Snickers, was right there in her usual spot obviously not happy that her babies were gone. The kittens were still nursing and she was filled with milk. The other momma and the male cat were no where to be seen. So we surmised that she and he had taken the babies off somewhere.

By the next evening we were getting pretty concerned. There was still no sign of the babies or Cowboy or Vincent. Our prayers were constant. We began calling and calling and the girls decided to go into the neighborhood and ask some of the neighbors if they had seen them. Again, these were nursing kittens and we knew they wouldn’t last much longer without help. Finally the other cat came running from across the neighbor’s field. It was too dark for us to go out looking so we planned to get up early the next morning to go look in that area.

At about 6:00 the next morning, we all loaded up in the van with a cage, Snickers, water and food and set out across the field to look for the babies – praying the whole time. It didn’t take but a couple of minutes to find them. They were deep in some heavy brush on the far side of the field. They slowly came to the girls who had climbed their way into the briars and thicket. As the girls began to count we found 6 babies – three were still missing. The kittens drank from the water for a full fifteen minutes. We got them in the cage and got them back home. Snickers nursed them for an hour and then they ate food. We were so thankful but still concerned about the other three. But we had to leave them to the Lord because they were not in the area where we found the others.

We wanted to get rid of the mother who had led them off but Paul said not to because she would know where the babies were and hopefully she could care for just the three and then lead them back home. It was 2 days later before she did just that. The last three were home and we were so happy and thankful. This lasted for about 5 days. Then one morning as I went out to check on them, they were all gone again. But this time my heart was different. I was neither in panic nor fear. There was a peace about the entire thing.

I sat down on the step and began to pray for them. Our Lord loves each little creature and as He says in His Word, He watches out for them and knows everything that happens to them. As I sat there with Snickers rubbing all over my legs, again filled with milk and wanting her babies, the Holy Spirit began to speak to my heart. It is so incredibly amazing how quickly, we as humans, rush toward wickedness. Just as the kittens had rushed off with this cat who was leading them to a place of danger and possibly death.

The first time it is out of ignorance, really placing trust in the wrong place, but the second time it is from foolishness. I remember an old saying, “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.” The immaturity of the kittens caused me great concern because I knew they were not ready to be left to their own devices to survive. We had to make every effort as good stewards of what God has given us to bring them back until they could grow healthy and be able to fend for themselves. But the second time, it was by choice of will. They were not led astray, they went willingly. You might be saying that I have placed too much importance on a bunch of cats running off, but this is how the Lord shows me things. He uses simple things to teach me. I am thankful that He does.

Our modern society has created a lust and hunger for adventure, excitement and even a desire to tempt death. Movies, television, modern novels, sports events, theme parks and I dare-say church services (all hype and pep-rallies) have caused such a false need for the adrenaline rush that contentedness and a simple life have been thrown out as wasteful and lazy. Recently in a conversation with someone about contentedness, the person, one who has been a church-going Christian since childhood, commented that they felt that God didn’t really mean for us to be content with our lives because that would be completely non-progressive and unambitious and God wants us to “on the move”. The fruit of this person’s life is full evidence of the damage that being “on the move” has caused them and their family.

Why is it better to be comfortable with the world’s ways as a Christian? Shouldn’t we shudder at the things the world enjoys? Shouldn’t we be uncomfortable around the things that are pleasing to the sinful flesh? Shouldn’t we abhor the works of the devil and shun those things that compromise our Christian walk? Why do so many in the church feel that our “freedom in Christ” is freedom to pursue every carnal lust that they can come up with? This past Sunday our family enjoyed a tape by a pastor friend in Virginia, called “Do You Bear the Evidence”. It was so encouraging and uplifting, but I had to ask myself, in what ways do I know bear the evidence of a changed life. If I was a monkey and I changed into a human but I still ate bananas at every meal and hung in the trees all day, wouldn’t it be clear that I was no different really. Jesus ate with the sinners and fellowshipped with the unbelievers, yes, but did he partake in their sin so that they would be happy to fellowship with Him. NO! NO! NO! They desired His company because He offered them something that all their drinking, carousing, gambling, whoring did not fulfill. He did not participate in it – He gave them a clear option!!! And they LOVED HIM FOR IT!!! It was the corrupt church that didn’t love Him.

Our kittens are at home today – happy, full-tummies, ready to be petted and rubbed and loved on, cool water to refresh them. They will grow stronger and stronger and thrive. But one day each one will make a decision to stay or go. They will choose what they want more. And there will be little we can do about it. But we hope that through our love and care they will chose to stay and be part of the home we have for them. Some will leave and find new homes, some will die on the road or in the woods or in a fight with other animals and we will never know what has happened to them. But we will love them and pray that God’s hand will protect them, even if they chose the path that leads to their utter destruction. But when they are grown and mature we will not go after them.

There is a great harvest of the lost and dying in this world. It is our duty, desire and calling to reach out to them and succor them and compel them to come into the Kingdom. We will go into the briars and brambles to bring them out and show them the way home. We will feed them, clothe them and give them drink. We will sacrifice time, money, energy and even our lives if necessary to bring them the precious love of a Risen Savior.

But we will not participate in their sin so that they will feel comfortable enough to join us in the Kingdom.

As for our brothers and sisters in the Lord, we will do all the Lord leads us to do to strengthen them, to nourish them, to encourage them, to uplift them and to help them along their way. But we will not condone efforts to make fleshly desires appetizing to the church. We will not lesson our efforts to walk uprightly before God and man so that they will want to be our buddy. We will not compromise the Word of God because He “wasn’t specific” on certain things. A child of God knows His Father’s heart and should have discernment about what is pleasing to Him and what is not.

Lastly, let me say, there has never been a moment in time when we felt that we had it “all together”. There are so many areas where we are lacking and falling short in our walk with the Lord. The sadness and sorrow that we have everytime we kneel to pray over the things we have not yet gained victory is almost unbearable at times. HOWEVER, we persevere. The Grace of God and the Mercy of God are there for the Born-again believer as well as the unsaved one, but does that give us the freedom to do whatever we feel like because of it. No, I think His desire is for us to daily take up our cross and follow Him; To seek to show His love and victory to others so that they will desire to follow Him as well; To walk circumspectly –

“See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,” Ephesians 5:15

“Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather even reprove them.” Ephesians 5: 11

No Passion, No Lord and No Chronicles

   Isn’t it amazing how animals follow someone who has food, even if the food isn’t good for them? Take our sheep for example. Every time I walk into the field with an item, they always assume it’s for them. They get sweet feed regularly in the winter and even if they’ve already had it for the day, they want more. If we try and get a few feed sacks of chicken feed to the barn stall where we store it, they will knock you down to tear into it. It doesn’t matter that the food isn’t for them. All they know is that the package looks like sweet feed.

   One day, I was walking around the field that the sheep were in. I opened a bag and started poisoning fire ant beds. If you’ve haven’t lived in the south, then you don’t know how bad (and dangerous) those ants can be. I sprinkled a small amount of poison on top of the bed and all of a sudden, Reuben the ram was having lunch! When he did, all of the flock came running over to have a bite. I had to spread it around with my foot to keep them out of it.

   Well, people are a lot like that. That’s not really surprising because it’s just human nature. But when I see Christians doing it, it bothers me. We are supposed to be different than the world. I was thinking about all the latest movies that have come out and Christians flock to. It seems that people can not wait for the next big thing to come out. They will see it without ever questioning if it would be a good thing or not. There is not the least caution or discussion if it could be wrong.

   Let me start with the Passion of the Christ. We have not seen it nor will we. Angie and I did some intense studying to try and determine whether or not it would be good for us. We cautiously read every evaluation on the context, about the actor’s character (yes, that counts too) and about how we felt it would benefit us. We gave it unanimous thumbs down. We even waited to see if it made any changes in anyone’s life that we knew or met- you know, the fruit of it. To this day, we’ve never seen one person that said it made a significant difference in them. Nor have we met one person that was saved after watching it.

   This was a major event for most of the church in America. Churches bought up tickets to bring people in. Not one person that we knew said they would not see it. I began to ask myself, “What did God reveal in His Word?” He clearly tells that Jesus was crucified. It’s spelled out. But what I realized was that it is not as graphic as Mel Gibson wanted us to see. I am already moved to tears when we have Communion. Just thinking about my Lord on that cross is more than I can bear. How could I handle more?

    And if seeing the brutality that Christ endured was supposed to change people, why is our nation still the same? If you compare the percent of people in America that saw it compared to the number of born again Christians I assure you that the numbers don’t agree. Maybe seeing isn’t believing, huh?

When we studied the actors of the film, we found that they were not of the highest character. If you search them out on the internet, be cautious of what will come up. Make sure there are no children with you. This is another reason we didn’t watch along with the masses. Foreign porn stars and lesbians. Was Mr. Gibson somehow limited as to who he could use?

   Then we studied the producer, Mel Gibson. While he may have some religious appearance, he definitely doesn’t believe that Christ is the only way to Heaven! Look at this excerpt of an interview with him.

On the ABCNEWS' Primetime, on Monday, February 16, 2004 with Diane Sawyer, he said all people will eventually get to heaven:

DIANE SAWYER (ABC NEWS) -- "... when we talked with Gibson

and his actors, we wondered, does his traditionalist view bar the

door to Heaven for Jews, Protestants, Muslims?

MEL GIBSON -- "That's not the case at all. Absolutely not.

It is possible for people who are not even Christian to get into the

Kingdom of Heaven. It's just easier for -and I have to say that because

that's what I believe."

Doesn’t that surprise you after making a movie about the crucifixion? It should. Think about this; God sends His only son to be brutally tortured and killed in our place. When we stand before Him, He will ask if we stand on what Christ has done. If we do, we’ll enter Heaven. Does Mel think that others who brush off Christ will be winked at by God? Do we suppose that a person just has to believe in something, no matter what it is? Will God say,” That’s alright, you can come in too!”?

   The next “big thing” that we saw people viewing was Lord of the Rings. This is a fantasy trilogy that is said to depict the gospel. We’ve read some of the books and did not find any evidence of that. It didn’t take us long to give thumbs down to this, also. We saw no parallel in the two and have no desire to watch it. So good triumphs over evil, huh? I’m sure that you could find a similar parallel in Star Wars. Still there are those that think it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread. I am still waiting to see good fruit from the viewing. Psalm 11:5 says The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth. This story is full of violence. Do you really enjoy that after reading how God feels?

And finally, the Chronicles of Narnia have come to the movies. It was written by a man who is acclaimed to be a brilliant theologian. His books are truly deep and thought provoking. While I haven’t read all of the “Chronicles”, I have read enough to make a judgment for my family. I choose to not indulge in something with a witch and magic that claims to be another parallel to the gospel. I’ve already seen warnings that young children shouldn’t watch it because it has intense scenes that aren’t suitable for them. If you study C.S. Lewis you will find that he was deeply into mythology, even after his “conversion”. He debated Christianity with a beer in his hand and smoking a cigar. You might want to read this article if you think that I’m exaggerating.

http://www.charityministries.org/theremnant/2006/January/theremnant-January2006-cslewis.cfm

What is my point in telling you all this? First, be careful in what you allow in your life. Be extra careful in what you allow in your children’s lives. Once something is viewed, it’s a part of you for the rest of your life. If you’re sitting in a movie theater and a questionable scene passes by, it will be over before you can get up and out of the theater. Your children will be impressed by what they see, either positively or negatively.

Second, if you are going to allow these “Bible parallels” into your life, you need to make sure that you give more time to study of the Bible itself. There are no modern writings that are God’s word, only the original! It was a finished and complete work two-thousand years ago. Study it with your children and not some fantasy story if you want your children to see the Gospel! And I’m not speaking about them attending church three times a week. How many hours a week do you spend in Bible study with them? Is it less than the hours that you watch television or movies? Something isn’t right there.

All three of these movies should change the world if they are the examples of the Gospel that people claim. But somehow, I don’t see the world becoming more like Christ. Question everything. Just because Reuben is eating it, that doesn’t mean it’s safe for the flock.

“Walk circumspectly…”Ephesians 5: 6-17 “Whatsoever things..”Phil 4:8

Meat Ye Know Not Of

Hello to all who walk under the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are going to look at the Word concerning Fasting. Please turn with me to Acts chapter 10. Here we find the historical account of how God opened up the gospel to others besides the Jews. Up until this point, the early church was going by what they perceived as total truth. The message was only given at Jewish Synagogues and to the Hebrew people. There was a man at this time named Cornelius who was a Gentile. He sought God through righteous living. In verse 2, it says he prayed to God always. We know that there is power in prayer. Today I want to focus on another attribute of righteousness that Cornelius practiced; the act of Fasting.

I don’t know if you’ve considered fasting as part of your walk with the Lord, but there is much to it. I believe it is one of the untapped nuggets of spiritual gold in which we as believers may partake. Look in verse 30. There you will see that Cornelius says he has been fasting and at the ninth hour of the day (3:00 PM) he prayed. This seems to indicate that when the scripture says he prayed always (v 2) it is including the time he prayed and fasted. Also you may note that Peter was fasting as well (v 10).

Now, since my focus today is not that others may know Christ besides the Jews; I am not going to cover this story verse by verse. Instead I want to point to the repetition of using fasting in the Bible. There are a lot of things that people read in the Word that they judge “for today” or not. Some say that musical instruments shouldn’t be used because they aren’t mentioned in the New Testament. Others believe that speaking in tongues was only for the early church. Some say that headcoverings were a cultural agenda for the day and that they don’t have to be worn by women. All of these things must be decided on by you as you read the Bible.

As for prayer and fasting, it is indisputable as an act of the Christian’s walk with God. I believe it is just one more thing that the devil wants to keep us ignorant about. Let us consider another passage. Turn to Matthew 17. In verse 14 we see that a man brings his demon possessed son to Jesus. He tells Him that he took the boy to the disciples but they couldn’t cure him (v 16). Jesus promptly rebukes the devil and the boy is healed. In verse 19 the disciples are puzzled as to why they could not cast the devil out.

Now stop and think for a moment as to what you think Jesus might answer. He might have told them it was because He was the Son of God and that they weren’t. He might have told them that they needed to do it in His Name for results. But what He says is that they must have faith (v 20) and that this kind of demon only leaves by prayer and fasting (v 21).

Now, I’m not here today to necessarily present a case for using the King James Bible. It’s the one I use and the only one I need. I once used the NIV among other translations. I was willingly ignorant (2 Peter 3:5) until the “gender neutral” version came out. That got me studying and noticing where the translations came from. Verse 21 is not in the NIV and I believe that there is a reason. I believe God’s Word is complete word for word. I don’t believe that it went hundreds of years being inaccurate and that now we have a more accurate version. In 1^st Peter 1:25 it says that the Word of the Lord will last forever. In Matthew 24:35 Jesus says that His word would not pass away.

According to the allies of the newer translations, they say that these come from “older” manuscripts which have different text. These manuscripts have only been found in modern times. This text doesn’t include verse 21 (as well as many other verses). However, the proponents of the new translations say that since these are older manuscripts they are more accurate and somehow we now have the real Bible. Now, do we suppose that God’s Word was hundreds of years lost as far as accuracy and that only in modern times do we have the accurate thing?

On the contrary, I believe the opposite is true. If you compare what was left out of the modern translations you will see nothing that disagrees with the rest of the Bible. It only strengthens precepts that are already laid down. Prayer and fasting is mentioned end to end in the Bible.

Getting back to what Jesus said, He gives us insight that shows that there is power in prayer and fasting. So what is this fasting and why does it work? Where did the Bible first mention fasting? Who in the Bible is said to have fasted?

Moses is the first person that I find who fasted. Check Exodus 24:18 and 34:28 for the reference. Israel fasted many times according to scripture during times of sincerely seeking the Lord. But David gives us a clue as to a benefit of fasting. Psalm 35:13 says he humbled his soul with fasting. Fasting is part of crucifying our flesh. If you think about how often we loose control of our appetite we see that it is really hard to control. I understand that the television has many commercials in which weight-loss is the sales pitch. There is truly a weight problem in our culture. However, this goes beyond the physical. There is a spiritual obesity as well. There is spiritual strength in fasting!

In 2nd Corinthians 12:10 Paul says that when he is weak- he is made strong. That sounds like an oxymoron unless you read the verse. Look at it in its entirety.

Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Now, that can only mean that when he is weak physically is he strong spiritually. When our bodies are in need, we better know we need God.

The second thing that fasting does is keeping our focus on God during a time of prayer. If I decide to fast and pray during a particular period of time, I usually have the regular things of life to do. My job goes on or someone comes by to visit. My praying cannot continue 24 hours a day but my fasting can. That’s what Cornelius says in Acts. He said that he was fasting until the hour he met Peter. He also says that he prayed at the ninth hour.

You might ask how a person fasts. There are basically four ways to fast that I find mentioned in the Bible. The first is abstinence of food only. Doctors say our bodies can go 40 days without food. Isn’t that interesting that 40 days is the longest anyone was mentioned fasting in the Bible? During this type of fast, liquids are still consumed. There are many examples of people fasting food for up to 40 days.

The second is a total fast. This would be no food and water. Esther called for this type of fast in Esther chapter 4. Note that they fasted three days in this manner. Doctors tell us that we can go three days without liquid. Coincidence? I think not!

The third is a selective fast. This fasting is only certain foods or drinks which are abstained from. This could be certain meals also. In Daniel we see where only vegetables and water are eaten in chapter 1. In chapter 10 we see where Daniel ate no meat or wine.

The final example is given in 1 Corinthians 7:3-6. Husbands and wives may choose to temporarily deprive themselves of physical intimacy and devote the time to prayer and seeking God.

Let me say that I believe in fasting. I have seen great benefit in my life from it. It is not a hunger strike to God! I liken it to the anticipation of something wonderful! If you are in the waiting room of a hospital before a baby is born, you might joyfully go without food. You don’t stop eating in order to bring the baby into the world. You simply have something more on your mind.

There are some rules that you should follow. First, don’t start with a 40 day fast! If you have never fasted before and you go without food for a long time, you will be sick. Let the Holy Spirit tell you how long to fast. Try one meal at first.

Second, when you fast don’t make a big deal about it. Jesus said that when you fast (not if) do not put on a face to show the world that you are suffering for God - Matt 6:16-18. It should be a private thing that is toward God and not for the world’s view.

Third, don’t come under condemnation that if you don’t fast (or can’t medically) that God is not pleased with you. There are other ways of depriving your flesh. For example, if you are diabetic and can’t go without a meal without getting sick, you could cut out meat for a season.

The fourth rule is to use wisdom. I met a lady once who tried to fast for 40 days. She made it for 38 days and found herself eating a bowl of soup before she thought about it. She was devastated! I could not understand it as I was impressed by her 38 days. She had gone for a visit to a friend’s home and they were all having soup and she picked up the bowl and began to eat before she realized what she was doing. Your digestive system will shut down after an extended fast and you should eat slowly upon returning. Soup is probably just what she needed.

Oh, there’s one more rule. Don’t go grocery shopping while you are fasting! If you are the grocery shopper for your family, time your fast so that you don’t have to go to the store while you are hungry. There is no need to add temptation to your life.

Jesus got busy ministering to the woman at the well in John chapter 4. His disciples were off getting food as it was around noon. When they returned they tried to get Him to eat something. He said to them” I have meat to eat that ye know not of”. I think we should realize that there is a table set for us in the wilderness! We need to focus on the real food that God has for us and not the temporary food we eat. I encourage you to seek God and study His word on this matter. Try fasting and see what God will do in you!

Headcoverings

Let me begin by saying that Angie and I were not raised as “plain-dressed” Christians but were mainstream, modern and denominational in every way. I was saved in a Baptist church and later went to a Pentecostal church. Angie was born Catholic and later saved in a Baptist church. After that, she went to a Charismatic church. Within the last five years, we’ve become saddened at the worldliness of churches.

We began to study what the early church did and we also studied stable, devout Christian denominations. We decided that we would back away from all the teaching that we’d had and see what God’s Word had to say. After all, we’d been taught so many different things. We figured the Holy Spirit would lead us into truth through the Holy Scripture. When we studied the Amish, Mennonite and other plain people, we found a lot of stability. I personally wondered at these differences. The issue of headcoverings was actually a catalyst that moved us into the realization of how far we were from truth.

The scripture passage that is commonly quoted is 1 Corinthians 11:1-16. I actually read this with the attitude that I would prove these simple people wrong in what they believed. I set out to get my facts so that I could set the record straight. We had never even met anyone that wore a headcovering.

My first thought was the fact that almost no women wear headcoverings today. It seemed to me that the majority must be right. When I was first saved, my pastor taught me to never build a doctrine around a single verse. For instance, one could take the verse in Timothy as taking a little wine for your stomach to say that Christians could drink alcohol. “Ah Ha!” I thought! I can end this argument now! But when I saw that there was a half a chapter written on headcovering, I decided that I’d better read on.

When I read the footnotes in my study Bible, it said that it was a cultural thing that women did in the Middle East. As I pondered on this a while, I asked myself, “When did women stop wearing a headcovering”? I thought about every picture I’d ever seen in Sunday School. Those women always had a veil on their heads. Then I thought of paintings of woman in medieval times. Those women usually had coverings. They were different, but they were covered. And even in the Colonial period, Martha Washington certainly wore one as well as many of the women in the images of the western expansion. Sure it was called a prairie bonnet. But they were still covered. I thought about my childhood when boys always took their hats off inside but no one ever asked a woman to remove hers. No one even questioned why.

I began to be confused about this subject. After all, I was trying to prove the issue wrong! I decided that I’d better go back to scripture. After all, the Lord would make it clear. So I read the first few verses. I noticed that in verse two, Paul says he is reminding us of the ordinances of the church. I knew of the commonly accepted ordinance of Baptism. I also knew of Communion. We sometimes even had foot washings as an ordinance. But headcoverings?! So Paul continues with the issue and in the second half of the chapter he talks about Communion. This didn’t sound too good for my case. It appeared that Paul could have been implying headcoverings were an ordinance. I read further.

“Maybe, ” I thought, “Paul was talking about a woman’s hair!” These next few verses seemed to be saying something about hair. Eureka! I just loved Angie’s waist length hair! How wonderful to think that the scripture was going to please my flesh! Oooops! I was quickly shot down again when I substituted the word hair with the word covering. If I did this, verse 6 would say, “For if the woman doesn’t have hair, let her have her head shaved, but if it’s a shame for her to shave her head, let her have hair”. Hmmm. Doesn’t seem to fit. In verse 15 it did seem to say that God had given her hair as a covering. But when I pondered further, it made sense that the Lord had merely given a woman hair from a natural standpoint to show us the truth. Anyway, most modern women cut their hair short so they obviously do not believe that the hair is their covering.

Then I read a verse that was just mysterious. I mean, it’s one of those verses that I don’t think we’ll understand this side of Heaven. Verse 10 says that it’s because of the Angels that women should pray covered. To me, this is stating that it is a supernatural thing.

I was quickly being moved to the “other side” so I decided that I should look for a loophole! I needed something to get me out of this. Ah ha! I realized that it says that a woman should not pray or prophesy with her head uncovered (verse 5). So, it seemed to me, that if it truly was an ordinance, it only technically had to be worn in church and only then if a woman is praying or prophesying. But 1 Thessalonians 5:17 tells us to “Pray without ceasing.”

I finally admitted the truth. Having my wife and daughters wear a cloth on their heads was going against my flesh and my carnal man was fighting against it. It seemed that I would have to address my family with the issue. Meanwhile, back at the ranch (as they say in the westerns!) Angie and the girls were all studying it as well. About 2 weeks had gone by since we had begun our quest for the truth on this matter. When I brought the conclusion to them, they were excited! I could hardly believe their willingness to do this. In fact, they asked if they could wear them immediately!

I was flabbergasted! I asked what they meant and found they were all prepared to wear bandanas to Wal-Mart that morning. “Well” I thought, “that’s not so bad”. Besides, it says “Taste and see that the Lord is good!” I have always found the Lord to be willing to allow me to try new steps and make sure that I wasn’t going off the deep end. So off to Wal-mart we went.

On the way, we saw a yard sale sign. We stopped and looked around. The lady there looked at me and said “Excuse me sir. Can you tell me what your faith is?” I asked her what she meant and she said “I know that you’re Christians, but what belief are you?” I spent about 10 minutes telling her what we believed. When we got back in the van, I must have had a strange look. Angie asked me what was wrong.

I told her that God was telling me something. That in our obedience to scripture, things were different. For the remainder of the day, I separated myself from my family and watched the reaction of people around. I was shocked! I saw people’s attitudes change when my wife and daughters came near. I saw people ask them what they believed. And they gladly told them.

Here’s the bottom line on the matter. Folks sometimes ask us if they have to do this to be saved. Works does not save us, but we will be obedient to scripture if we are truly saved. Baptism doesn’t save us, but most agree that we are to be baptized if we are born again. While we truly believe that this is what the scripture is saying about headcoverings, others will disagree. Some say that a woman’s long hair is her covering. Others say that it was a cultural custom of the past. I believe that women stopped doing it only during the “woman’s movement” and that it was always an ordinance of the church. Only in the past 150 years has it slowly been un-practiced.

In our obedience to God’s ordinance of headcoverings and plain and modest dress, God constantly draws people to us in stores and restaurants. We are asked everywhere we go what we believe. We have open doors to tell people about Jesus. If wearing a simple cloth can do that, isn’t that supernatural? It seems to have been answered for us. Permanently and without question in our lives.

If we are wrong about this, on judgment day the Lord will say to us, “You really didn’t have to do that”. But if others are wrong, He will ask “Why didn’t you obey?” I pray that you would find truth in this matter.

Brother Paul

Different Results come from Different Actions

I had to stop this evening and write this. It’s burning a hole in my soul like money used to do in my pocket when I was younger. I’ve had a long day that ended with shearing one of the rams. He was in bad need of shearing and I could not put it off any longer. Just like this article.

We continue to get two responses from people regarding our family. I don’t understand why there is no logic in figuring out that we live differently for a reason. Whenever new people meet us for the first time they notice that our children are not like other children. They make statements like “I can’t believe that she’s so mature”, “my child would not have responded like your child does” and “these girls are so different!”

Let me first tell you that these daughters are not perfect. They still have a long way to go to perfection. Let me also say that we are not prideful of their actions but blessed with the Grace of God and humbled that He has done so much in our un-worthy lives. But our obedience to Him has made a difference.

Just suppose that an insurance company finds a client that has driven for 50 years without a single accident. They decide that this man is worth studying to find out how he did it. After finding out his habits they begin to ask him questions that make no sense to the man.

The first agent asks “Why do you always keep both hands on the steering wheel? No one else on the road does that. Sir, you need to relax!” Another agent says, “I don’t understand why you never drive over the speed limit! Don’t you know that the police will allow you another 10 mph before you’d possibly get a ticket?” A third agent says, “ I really don’t understand why you wear your seatbelt. Why, you haven’t had a wreck your entire life!”

They seem to not be able to see the forest because all the trees are in the way!

You can see the foolishness of this little story. But it happens to us all the time. We get people that admire and respect our family. They say that we’re doing it right. We’re told that all the time. But the exact same people make statements like this: “Why don’t you allow your children to watch television? There’s nothing wrong with it!” –“Why aren’t your children allowed to wear more modern clothes and date? How do you think they will ever find husbands? “ And also “I could never do what you’re doing. I’ve got to be who I am. After all, God made me this way!!!”

Let me tell you this. Family’s today are in a sad state of affairs. Churches tell families to just come as you are. They are never challenged to live differently. They are never told that once you are born again, you change and you can no longer be yourself. If God wanted us to just be ourselves then why do we need Jesus? The problem is, we are led to believe that we can join a church, say a prayer of repentance and never do anything differently. After all, works doesn’t save us, they say. But James says that works and not just faith save us. That faith without works is dead.

My point is this; we live differently so that we can be different. We are not satisfied with the divorce rate- so we live differently. We refuse to risk our daughters ending up pregnant out of wedlock, so we don’t allow them to participate in an un-Christian and ungodly system called dating. We believe that our Lord wants us separated from the influences of the world so we do not have cablevision or satellite TV. We believe that the order of the home should be followed as scripture dictates so; I (after Christ) am the head of my household. My wife and daughters also wear headcoverings to indicate this.

The problem seems to be that many in the church follow their flesh because they see others doing it. They think it’s ok to listen to worldly music, watch immoral entertainment and participate in any thing that has a “Christian” label. We’ve been fooled into believing that there is such a thing as "Christian" Rock music. Youth groups are going to wrestling matches, and senior adult classes are actually taking the church bus to Biloxi, Mississippi on a gambling trip once a month. Deacons and Pastors allow their children to come to church scantily dressed or even with tattoos and body piercing. And they said - "Well, at least they aren't on drugs and they are IN church."

My friend, we are to live differently than the world. Jesus said that we are a light to the world and a city on a hill. Have you ever thought that lights and cities are known by viewing them and not by talking to them? I mean, we keep being told, “It’s what’s inside that counts. You don’t have to look any differently.”

Let me finish this rather long article by saying that we don’t feel any more Godly by dressing plain. We are constantly humbled by the dress. Our flesh is constantly being put down. And we are glad. It is our desire that this flesh be crucified and that at some point it only function throught the spirit. But as long as it is given any leeway to do as it wants then it will not die.

Christians and Television

I am amazed at what Christians allow in their lives, only to wonder why they suffer so much temptation. I guess I shouldn’t be too amazed since I used to do these things too! I’m talking about television and worldly entertainment. We all know that we are to be separated from the world. We just don’t always know what we are supposed to be separated from. Most Christians use the democratic process in what they allow in their lives. If most people are doing it, they figure it must be right. Today, I want you to reconsider how you live.

We began studying stable Christian groups a few years ago, seeing that much of what we had built our lives on wasn’t Christ. Angie and I wanted our home to be as rock solid as Christ Himself. We home-schooled, as we found it was the absolute best way to “Train up a child in the way he should go”. You’ll notice that it doesn’t say have someone train them, but rather the Word leaves the responsibility to parents. It allowed us to better control the worldly influences that the children had. Remembering the peer pressures that we’d both had as children, and seeing that they would get a better education also contributed to the decision. Sarah was actually told that she couldn’t silently pray over her lunch. This was the last straw in public education for our children.

But home schooling with worldly influence is still a mixed philosophy. If you eat a diet of healthy food and then mix in junk food, you’ll never get ahead. It’s the same logic as eating a cream-filled donut and drinking a diet cola so that it counteracts the sugar! No, my friends, we must be as totally separated from the world as possible.

Television is just such an influence. We started by becoming more discriminating than we had been. We just simply stated that some shows that we had watched before might be on the hit list. I printed out Phillipians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things [are] honest, whatsoever things [are] just, whatsoever things [are] pure, whatsoever things [are] lovely, whatsoever things [are] of good report; if [there be] any virtue, and if [there be] any praise, think on these things.”

I put this scripture on our entertainment center right beside our television. It was large enough to see from the other side of the room. I asked everyone to change the channel if they were watching a show that didn’t meet all of these requirements. Do you know that within one week the girls all came to the same conclusion? “Dad,” they said, “there is nothing that we can watch”! I realized that even the news did not meet the “good report” standard. We decided to take the box out. We did have some withdrawals though. You know, when you’re steeped in something, it takes time to get the stain out. We still have a television and VCR but they aren’t connected to an antenna or cable. It stays in the schoolroom as we have some Algebra courses on tape. Every so often we get it out and watch an old movie. But we are very discriminating.

Now, what about the fruit? After all, if it really is God’s will for you to do something, you’ll reap benefits if you obey, right? The first thing that we all noticed was just how much influence television shows had on us. The children used to constantly quote from movies after just seeing them one time. It was as if they had the script imbedded in their memory. I realized that I did it, too. The music stuck in my head days after seeing a movie.

The obvious smut that we no longer had feeding us, was removed. It made a huge difference in battling temptation. Just imagine a person that wants to lose weight but decides to go sit in the restaurant every afternoon just to smell the food! That’s what we were, “almost partakers”. With the influences of the left wing agenda removed we could not be so pulled between the two worlds of spirit and flesh.

And then we realized an equal benefit. We were no longer watching commercials and being made to want something that we didn’t already know that we needed. If you need something (a newer vehicle, clothes, etc) no one has to tell you. You can then decide what you want without a carefully designed marketing technique to get you confused.

And have you noticed what they usually use to sell their products? That’s right! On most car commercials you see more of the female model (more than Christians should see) than you do the car that they are selling. How could any Christian watch broadcast television and think it’s ok? The phrase “What would Jesus do” makes you wonder if Jesus would watch any television. I don’t think that He would, do you?

And lastly there was the time spent watching. We had to do something different in the evenings. We decided to read, do hobbies, spend time as a family playing games and talking. It brought us closer together as a family. We now have to make the children put down books (including the Bible) to go to bed.

Besides television, we considered going out to movies. We don’t completely denounce them, but there is hardly anything that comes out that’s worth our time. We carefully look up the movie review on sources such as pluggedinonline.com before we decide to go.

Friend, how much are you willing to make investments of sacrifice for your family that will pay eternal rewards? Are you willing to give up that favorite show? Are you willing to spend your time doing something more rewarding than sitting for hours and being misled? If you’ll just stop and consider what you are participating in, I think that you’ll see that there is very little that a Christian should be viewing.

One final thought. The world’s view is to do things (however wrong) in control. All of the beer companies tell you to drink responsibly. Those of the free love movement say to practice safe sex. Television is the same way. Why not say don’t drink, don’t have any sex outside of marriage and don’t watch television? This is what we follow and it has made all the difference!

Psalm 101:3 I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; [it] shall not cleave to me.

Getting Started (updated September 2008)

Pray first! Ask God what His plan is. Oftentimes we really don’t want to know what God’s plan is, we just want Him to confirm our plans!! Big mistake.

God does not argue nor explain. He is ALL wise, ALL-powerful, ALL knowing. He doesn’t need a plan B. So, wouldn’t it make sense to ask Him what He wants instead of TELLING Him what you want?

Paul and I went through long hours of prayer and searching the scripture. We began to see that the success the world portrayed was not success at all. Large home, new car, new fashionable clothing, the newest electronic equipment, children in every activity possible, nice fat bank account, membership in the largest, most active church in the community – this was the worldly Christian success – Oh, let me not forget Gatlinburg in the fall and Panama City in the summer, newest restaurant, mall and the movies on Friday night were a given.

This, precious friend, is not the GOOD LIFE! It is the bondage, the false God that Satan has lured a sleepy, apathetic church into.

1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

When you align your standard to God’s then you have it. For us the answer was simple. To seek the Father and to strive to walk in His holiness. To minister to those God brings into our lives; not about finances or prosperity, but about serving Jesus Christ. To raise our children to live a life that is as basic and as close to God’s original plan as possible. To need the world's system less and Jesus more;

for our desires and goals to decrease and Jesus to increase!!!

As we strive to do these things and establish this in our family we pray to help others who feel the same need. There are some who would question certain aspects of our life:

“Why does Paul work away from the home in a secular job?”

“Why do we have cars, internet, and other modern conveniences?”

“Why do Haley and Erin work outside the home?”

“Why aren’t ya'll totally separated from the world?”

I am going to answer these as best I can.

“Why does Paul work away from the home in a secular job?”

Since we came to this understanding in our late 30's, we were not prepared in any way to do anything except what the world had shown us to do. I have always been a stay-at-home mother and homeschooled the children. But the self-sufficient (God-sufficient) lifestyle was totally foreign to us. Both of us had been taught, for years, the prosperity gospel. Just ask (no matter the motive) and God will give. What a false doctrine! Mind you, we lacked for nothing in the physical at the time we began this search. Paul has always been an excellent provider - God through Paul!

We do not have a vast bank account and massive assets that we could draw from to supply us with everything we need to support our family until we have our farm in full working capacity. We do pray that the Lord will help us become less and less dependent on Paul’s secular job. And through hard work and some real concrete decisions on what truly matters, we see the light at the end of the tunnel.

“Why do we have cars, internet, and other modern conveniences?”

Each step of the way we have asked Father God to show us, “What next?” What areas do we need to change? At this time, we have rid ourselves of many modern conveniences which I will talk about throughout the website. God has shown us His alternatives in every one of these. Our car is necessary at this time for Paul’s work and the other things we must do. We do not see the vehicle as an evil in itself. Although it is clear that having vehicles is an obvious way for Satan to keep families separated. Truly though, I can’t wait for my horses and wagon!!!! Someday!!!

The Internet has been a reason for much prayer. We have sought God quite a few times over whether or not we should keep it in our home. At this time, we have peace, that this is one of the ways that God is teaching us. I cannot tell you the information that we have needed that He has shown us through the Internet. Everything from how to save one of our nanny goats from toxemia – and be able to deliver healthy twins – to which woodstove was the most efficient – to finding a place to order the wheat grinder I needed for making flour.

It has also been the "backyard fence" where I have been able to meet and share our lives with so many like-hearted folks. Because we do not live in a plain community, we lack the fellowship that would be so good for us. But Father God has given us a surrogate family online.

The day may come when Father God tells us to disconnect and when He does, we will without hesitation. Lastly, on this subject, there are many things that I know we will be ridding ourselves of in the near future. But each one will be with the Lord’s leading and not to make some “false sacrifice”.

“Why do some of the girls work outside the home?”

We do believe that a woman’s place is in the home. Two of our daughters are working out of the home for specific reasons at this time. Haley works as the Program Manager for missions facility. This is her ministry and thankfully the Lord has seen fit to bless her with monetary blessings with it. She is also an Asthmatic with severe allergies – her medication costs are very high and this position gives her the income she needs to provide medical insurance. God knows what He is doing!!! But we don’t believe that a girl working for the sake of having money to “run around” on is Godly nor scriptural.

Erin is the Food Services Manager for a missions facility. She serves meals to Christian brothers and sisters from all over the world. Her position is as supervisor over a kitchen that feeds thousands of people every year and with each meal she prays and speaks the truth of God's Word.

When the day comes that the Lord sends the girl's their husbands, they will quit their secular jobs and begin their God given job of being helpmeet to him. I am confident that they are well trained in the art of homemaking.

“Why aren’t ya’ll totally separated from the world?” (That is the southern way to put it!!)

We see In 2 Corinthians Chapter 6, where we are told to separate ourselves “Wherefore come out from among them”, and while we do not believe the Lord wants us to become hermits and live alone on a mountain somewhere – He does want us to come away from the practices, lifestyle, entertainments, pleasures that the world seeks after.

It is a process, and honestly, we don’t understand as yet, which of the things that are necessary to separate from and which are not. Each day on our knees and in our hearts, we ask Father God to reveal every area that is not pleasing to Him. The television was easy! OUT! There is no way a child of God can scripturally justify watching regular television. Just put this scripture on a piece of paper and hang it next to your TV screen. Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

If you can’t line your show up to these things then just cut it off. Your TV won’t last 10 minutes under this criteria. What surprises me is the number of women who desire to rid themselves of the television but their husbands refuse. I suspect that these men do not realize that God will hold them accountable for the garbage that they are allowing their families to feed upon.

In no way do we try to tell anyone that we have all the answers to all of this. Some things are obvious- some are not. But, one thing is for sure. God will not MAKE you give up anything. He will not blow up your TV so you will quit watching it – not make your favorite sports team all drop dead of some strange illness. Nope, He will just quietly speak to your heart and love you enough to let you decide. Will you love Him enough to say – “Whatever you want Father – that is what I am willing to do.”? Chances are if you get angry at the thought of having to give up watching football, or not going to see every new movie on opening night, or missing your table on Friday night at the steak house, then your flesh is alive and well and having a good time. If your response is “Well, God never said I couldn’t go to the movies!!!” you are right. I have never told my children that they couldn't play with road kill either. :-))

We ask you to pray for us as we walk this walk. With each and every step we see how truly far we have to go. Seems like the older we get the greater the realization that we have barely tapped the surface of what it means to walk in His Holiness. But, oh, how we truly desire to walk in holiness! Help us Lord!