Monday, July 25, 2011
Monday, July 18, 2011
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Surprise!!! You got Mail!!
Today (Saturday) the girls had a box delivered by my grandma and mother, all the way from Maryville TN.. Their Great- Uncle sent them a box of wonderful things inside... lots of memories will be made, and passed down with stories of years past...The girls feel very honored and so so very thankful that a Great-Uncle would think so much of them to share some of himself with them. Not only because of the gift that was sent, but also of his stories.. He is such a gifted writer, a diamond in the rough if you may... He sent a book along that I nor the girls had ever read and now Shania and Kelsey are done with it and Kaitlyn has started it, it is a MUST read and I plan to share it with fellow home-schoolers as well as church youth groups . I will post a link soon that you can purchase a copy yourself, along with my review on it.
It is so hard to find GOOD reading material, and we were in need to add to our reading for this school year, the idea was to find something that had depth, Christian based, and to build on both in vocabulary and in depth discussions such stories would stimulate. THANK THE LORD for an answered prayer, that came in the form of an Uncle with a heart for the Lord and serving others. I am excited to see these stories shared with others, this is stuff that teens need access too.. and YES there ARE youth out there that are interested in GOOD GODLY and PURE material, that has NOTHING to do with the junk of this world... we are honored to be apart of such a group of awesome people!!
I will post pictures of the girls with their goodies as soon as i get them uploaded to the computer.
SO thank you Uncle Lloyd for investing into our lives, it does matter, and is much appreciated!!!
It is so hard to find GOOD reading material, and we were in need to add to our reading for this school year, the idea was to find something that had depth, Christian based, and to build on both in vocabulary and in depth discussions such stories would stimulate. THANK THE LORD for an answered prayer, that came in the form of an Uncle with a heart for the Lord and serving others. I am excited to see these stories shared with others, this is stuff that teens need access too.. and YES there ARE youth out there that are interested in GOOD GODLY and PURE material, that has NOTHING to do with the junk of this world... we are honored to be apart of such a group of awesome people!!
I will post pictures of the girls with their goodies as soon as i get them uploaded to the computer.
SO thank you Uncle Lloyd for investing into our lives, it does matter, and is much appreciated!!!
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Part ONE- of an undetermined amount of rambling posts
So, part one of me actually BLOGGING more than articles, video's, or short snippets of surface things....
Several years ago I could blog in my personality without fear or worry of what anyone thought.. for the most part...
All I cared about was being who God created me to be...
When I got saved in December of 2006, I remember asking God to restore my child like faith. I know we all pray that to some degree... but this was a major deal for me, for many reasons... one of which was because of what had led me to backslide in the first place and all that took place while out in DEEEP darkness of sin. as with everyone else, I was in NEED , DESPERATE need of restoration and MAJOR healing.
God did grant that and began that work in me... ( I will be all over the place with my thoughts so if you can keep up great, if not, least will make for a good read)
As I started growing in Christ I began to change, and I KNEW this change was ONLY from Jesus making me a new creation.. but because of major insecurities( yes I admit it, bout time someone does, because we ALL deal with them if you are honest about it) I took things people would say to me VERY personally...
Examples would include but not limited to: I still wear short sleeves, I wore skirts either to long or to short, wore skirts with slits in them, Christian music I listened too, Christian movies, and list could go on..
Than I would find that I wasn't alone in the crowd, my mistake was being who I was all the time and not hiding it.. Someone forgot to tell me to do that..
I would share with my husband of things like this and He would encourage me to just keep my hearts intent pure and STOP looking at people and keep my eyes on Jesus.
than of course anything I had to say was not right, people would want me to act like my crazy personality is and laugh along with me, yet talk about how inappropriate it was... INSANITY...
So because I am human I would pray and ask the Lord to help me to change if I was a stumbling block to others.
I take GODS WORD serious, and want to serve HIM with a pure heart... NOTHING I did, no matter HOW MANY TIMES I would try and tame my personality, was never ENOUGH.
SO after awhile of this, I started clamming up again... did not want to bring a bad light to my testimony for Christ that lived in me, or my family.
YET that went against my personal belief of being who you are NO MATTER wherever or whomever you may be around. I also knew I had three girls, whom are becoming young ladies looking on.
SO on top of all the stress life brings, drama that was around us( that we had no control over at the time) so on so forth... made my stress level go up that much more...
So when we moved into this house that GOD brought to us through a friend, I thought... YES, life will calm down... WRONG... little did we know the road that laid ahead..
FIRST I WANT TO SAY GOD IS GOOD AND KNOWS ALL THINGS AND DOETH THEM WELL!!!
Now having said that, trials of course come with life... but where it got rough was when Dad Wiseman passed into Heaven.
Dad died in December of 2009, Some hurtful things were happening in January of 2010, our worst nightmare came to life in the end of January and rocked our world to the core, and to wrap those few months up, I suffered a MAJOR heart attack on February 20th 2010 @ 3am in our bathroom
I KNEW it was bad ( know a lil something about medicine) looked in the mirror and in that moment knew even 911 possibly couldn't get there fast enough to prevent death..
Steve was asleep in bed, he had to get up for work in a few hours...
I couldn't get a blood pressure on myself( we have cuffs here at home) and started praying( all happened within minuets) I said " Lord, we have been here before.
I don't think I am going to make it out of this one.
If your will is for me to live, I praise you, if you take me home, PLEASE have mercy and give MUCH grace to Steve and the girls, I trust you Lord, and I ask ya to help me, my desire is to live".
I was sitting on the toilet lid, stood up leaning over the counter and was trying to make it back to the bed and was going to wake Steve up...
I was still in pain I could not describe in words... laid down on the bed, reached over and laid my hand on Steve, and said again"Lord your will be done" and I went to sleep!!
Yes I know that sounds unbelievable, but it DID happen...
I can not explain it, other than God's will was being done..
just remember laying there with as much faith as I had, and felt God so so so very real and so so so very close.
The rest of 2010 was...... I don't have a word for it at the moment...
I was in and out of the hospital SO MANY TIMES ...
over several times a month and each time was a hospital stay, not just an ER visit..
the ER visits where I did get to come home had to do with my back issue.
Had a HUGE answer to prayer with my back in the summer of 2010, disks that had been gone and needed surgery to replace, suddenly grew back on their own( as the DR put it) I said NO GOD TOUCHED ME!!!
In that same visit though, we were told I had a tumor on my spine, and unless it grew was to risky to do anything to it, but would be painful..
that was the truth... makes me go paralyzed one side or the other from my neck down, very painful, very unsettling, but God is in control of that..
So dealing with the heart rates of 130-190's were starting to take its toll on my body and emotions..
YET again, GOD was so good to come and help every time..
One night I was heading to church on a Thursday night, and went into an episode, Steve took me to a different hospital, we were praying for a DR that would be willing to DO SOMETHING with my heart problem..
Dr.Haas was brought on my case along with LOTS of other DR's...
Ended up having a Cardio Vert( the electrical current in my heart had been flipped backwards due to the heart attack) to correct the electrical current, and an Electrophysiology Study done( mapping my heart and so on so forth looking for the "problem causers" and a Cardiac Ablation on the right side of my heart. Upon the findings of that, I have the same problem on the left side of my heart, they cannot and will NOT operate on it due to its location in my heart, it would kill me upon that attempt.
SO if God sees fit to heal me, PRAISE HIS NAME, or if HE chooses to give me the grace to live with it, PRAISE HIS NAME. Either way it is up to HIM.
I explained that part because sadly, there are things that have come back to us that no one believes what happened.
And also just the way people act, ya tell the story over and over again and they keep asking over and over again what the problem is, or why this or why that..
Gets very discouraging.. but let something happen in their life and oh boy stop the presses its tragic..
guess the old saying is true, unless it hits home, there is no understanding.
It keeps a person on their knees for sure.. either you will become resentful over the hurt, or you give it to God and be willing to be misunderstood and pushed out of some places...
Well I CHOOSE to be misunderstood, and GOD is so good, HE brought into our life some very wonderful people that ministered to us and loved us, brought us meals, send cards... just showed the love of Christ!!
So moving into September of 2010, Kelsey fell here in the house and got 4 fractures in one knee, we had no insurance, and after MUCH prayer, and MANY tears crying out to GOD... GOD showed up in a BIG BIG way, and now Kelsey has had surgery(2 months after my heart surgery) and is healing very well.. There are MANY HUGE praise testimonies to give out of this situation, and maybe one day if the Lord would permit, we will give the details.
So 4 months later, God is STILL good, and is STILL taking care of us..
Our Families on both sides have been such a HUGE support system to us and we are so thankful for them.
SO if you are reading this, and you made it to this point..
NOW YOU KNOW the story
and if you would be so kind, don't act like ya don't the next time you see us and need us to tell it AGAIN..
Common sense would apply here..
Don't mean to sound rude, but seriously... if you are in our life, you KNOW the trials we have and are facing.
All that to say, there IS a reason I am not what I use to be, that I can not jump at every phone call needing me to do this or that...
I realize that I "appear" to be ok, that is ONLY because the LORD works in me to handle stress, and pain differently than you..
Don't mistake that for weakness, or a cover up.
Ya really find out QUICK who your real friends are when the rubber meets the road, this we have found to be true.
BUT God promised to be everything we need, He fills every void, every longing, and gives such peace.
And it is not over.. Steve's mom has Some health issues going on,and that is very painful to know and not be with her.
BUT God is working in this too, how I wish to help take care of mama, but GOD is and will continue to work HIS perfect will.
If ya would please pray for us all, as the future is so uncertain.
I realize we all have trials and heartaches on every turn, we pray for so many of you, we truly care and hurt for our family members on both sides and friends.
We are not self absorbed , we care and we love you!
Hope this post does not leave you to think we can not see outside of our own pain.
In Our own pain,God has used to help us to be compassionate and be able to understand others who are hurting..
We praise GOD for this!!!
Several years ago I could blog in my personality without fear or worry of what anyone thought.. for the most part...
All I cared about was being who God created me to be...
When I got saved in December of 2006, I remember asking God to restore my child like faith. I know we all pray that to some degree... but this was a major deal for me, for many reasons... one of which was because of what had led me to backslide in the first place and all that took place while out in DEEEP darkness of sin. as with everyone else, I was in NEED , DESPERATE need of restoration and MAJOR healing.
God did grant that and began that work in me... ( I will be all over the place with my thoughts so if you can keep up great, if not, least will make for a good read)
As I started growing in Christ I began to change, and I KNEW this change was ONLY from Jesus making me a new creation.. but because of major insecurities( yes I admit it, bout time someone does, because we ALL deal with them if you are honest about it) I took things people would say to me VERY personally...
Examples would include but not limited to: I still wear short sleeves, I wore skirts either to long or to short, wore skirts with slits in them, Christian music I listened too, Christian movies, and list could go on..
Than I would find that I wasn't alone in the crowd, my mistake was being who I was all the time and not hiding it.. Someone forgot to tell me to do that..
I would share with my husband of things like this and He would encourage me to just keep my hearts intent pure and STOP looking at people and keep my eyes on Jesus.
than of course anything I had to say was not right, people would want me to act like my crazy personality is and laugh along with me, yet talk about how inappropriate it was... INSANITY...
So because I am human I would pray and ask the Lord to help me to change if I was a stumbling block to others.
I take GODS WORD serious, and want to serve HIM with a pure heart... NOTHING I did, no matter HOW MANY TIMES I would try and tame my personality, was never ENOUGH.
SO after awhile of this, I started clamming up again... did not want to bring a bad light to my testimony for Christ that lived in me, or my family.
YET that went against my personal belief of being who you are NO MATTER wherever or whomever you may be around. I also knew I had three girls, whom are becoming young ladies looking on.
SO on top of all the stress life brings, drama that was around us( that we had no control over at the time) so on so forth... made my stress level go up that much more...
So when we moved into this house that GOD brought to us through a friend, I thought... YES, life will calm down... WRONG... little did we know the road that laid ahead..
FIRST I WANT TO SAY GOD IS GOOD AND KNOWS ALL THINGS AND DOETH THEM WELL!!!
Now having said that, trials of course come with life... but where it got rough was when Dad Wiseman passed into Heaven.
Dad died in December of 2009, Some hurtful things were happening in January of 2010, our worst nightmare came to life in the end of January and rocked our world to the core, and to wrap those few months up, I suffered a MAJOR heart attack on February 20th 2010 @ 3am in our bathroom
I KNEW it was bad ( know a lil something about medicine) looked in the mirror and in that moment knew even 911 possibly couldn't get there fast enough to prevent death..
Steve was asleep in bed, he had to get up for work in a few hours...
I couldn't get a blood pressure on myself( we have cuffs here at home) and started praying( all happened within minuets) I said " Lord, we have been here before.
I don't think I am going to make it out of this one.
If your will is for me to live, I praise you, if you take me home, PLEASE have mercy and give MUCH grace to Steve and the girls, I trust you Lord, and I ask ya to help me, my desire is to live".
I was sitting on the toilet lid, stood up leaning over the counter and was trying to make it back to the bed and was going to wake Steve up...
I was still in pain I could not describe in words... laid down on the bed, reached over and laid my hand on Steve, and said again"Lord your will be done" and I went to sleep!!
Yes I know that sounds unbelievable, but it DID happen...
I can not explain it, other than God's will was being done..
just remember laying there with as much faith as I had, and felt God so so so very real and so so so very close.
The rest of 2010 was...... I don't have a word for it at the moment...
I was in and out of the hospital SO MANY TIMES ...
over several times a month and each time was a hospital stay, not just an ER visit..
the ER visits where I did get to come home had to do with my back issue.
Had a HUGE answer to prayer with my back in the summer of 2010, disks that had been gone and needed surgery to replace, suddenly grew back on their own( as the DR put it) I said NO GOD TOUCHED ME!!!
In that same visit though, we were told I had a tumor on my spine, and unless it grew was to risky to do anything to it, but would be painful..
that was the truth... makes me go paralyzed one side or the other from my neck down, very painful, very unsettling, but God is in control of that..
So dealing with the heart rates of 130-190's were starting to take its toll on my body and emotions..
YET again, GOD was so good to come and help every time..
One night I was heading to church on a Thursday night, and went into an episode, Steve took me to a different hospital, we were praying for a DR that would be willing to DO SOMETHING with my heart problem..
Dr.Haas was brought on my case along with LOTS of other DR's...
Ended up having a Cardio Vert( the electrical current in my heart had been flipped backwards due to the heart attack) to correct the electrical current, and an Electrophysiology Study done( mapping my heart and so on so forth looking for the "problem causers" and a Cardiac Ablation on the right side of my heart. Upon the findings of that, I have the same problem on the left side of my heart, they cannot and will NOT operate on it due to its location in my heart, it would kill me upon that attempt.
SO if God sees fit to heal me, PRAISE HIS NAME, or if HE chooses to give me the grace to live with it, PRAISE HIS NAME. Either way it is up to HIM.
I explained that part because sadly, there are things that have come back to us that no one believes what happened.
And also just the way people act, ya tell the story over and over again and they keep asking over and over again what the problem is, or why this or why that..
Gets very discouraging.. but let something happen in their life and oh boy stop the presses its tragic..
guess the old saying is true, unless it hits home, there is no understanding.
It keeps a person on their knees for sure.. either you will become resentful over the hurt, or you give it to God and be willing to be misunderstood and pushed out of some places...
Well I CHOOSE to be misunderstood, and GOD is so good, HE brought into our life some very wonderful people that ministered to us and loved us, brought us meals, send cards... just showed the love of Christ!!
So moving into September of 2010, Kelsey fell here in the house and got 4 fractures in one knee, we had no insurance, and after MUCH prayer, and MANY tears crying out to GOD... GOD showed up in a BIG BIG way, and now Kelsey has had surgery(2 months after my heart surgery) and is healing very well.. There are MANY HUGE praise testimonies to give out of this situation, and maybe one day if the Lord would permit, we will give the details.
So 4 months later, God is STILL good, and is STILL taking care of us..
Our Families on both sides have been such a HUGE support system to us and we are so thankful for them.
SO if you are reading this, and you made it to this point..
NOW YOU KNOW the story
and if you would be so kind, don't act like ya don't the next time you see us and need us to tell it AGAIN..
Common sense would apply here..
Don't mean to sound rude, but seriously... if you are in our life, you KNOW the trials we have and are facing.
All that to say, there IS a reason I am not what I use to be, that I can not jump at every phone call needing me to do this or that...
I realize that I "appear" to be ok, that is ONLY because the LORD works in me to handle stress, and pain differently than you..
Don't mistake that for weakness, or a cover up.
Ya really find out QUICK who your real friends are when the rubber meets the road, this we have found to be true.
BUT God promised to be everything we need, He fills every void, every longing, and gives such peace.
And it is not over.. Steve's mom has Some health issues going on,and that is very painful to know and not be with her.
BUT God is working in this too, how I wish to help take care of mama, but GOD is and will continue to work HIS perfect will.
If ya would please pray for us all, as the future is so uncertain.
I realize we all have trials and heartaches on every turn, we pray for so many of you, we truly care and hurt for our family members on both sides and friends.
We are not self absorbed , we care and we love you!
Hope this post does not leave you to think we can not see outside of our own pain.
In Our own pain,God has used to help us to be compassionate and be able to understand others who are hurting..
We praise GOD for this!!!
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Deep Parenting
Bro.Cary Schmidt
Do you understand your children? Do you know how to interpret their behavior? Do you see and understand early warning signs of future problems?
In Hebrews 5:12–14 we read a challenge to believers to be skillful in the Word and discernment, “For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”
The word discern speaks of judicial estimation—wisdom, insight, and accurate perspective. This ability is something we should desire in every area of life, but especially with nurturing our children. Too many parents never get beyond the surface in parenting. They only care if their kids are “staying out of trouble.” But discerning parents go deeper. They see beneath the surface and seek to understand what’s going on in the heart. Why is “deep parenting” so important?
The heart is where biblical values are formed. This is the only way to know if your child’s faith is representative of an authentic relationship with God or merely an outward, temporary show.
The heart is where questions are contemplated. Every child has questions, and when parents are out of touch, Satan is good at exploiting these questions and providing false answers. Parents who get into the heart, unearth those questions so they can provide biblical answers. “And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32).
The heart is where real relationships are cultivated. Like the root system of a tree or healthy plant, the heart is beneath the surface. A strong relationship and authentic closeness is built face-to-face, eye-to-eye, and heart-to-heart.
The heart is where the spiritual battle is fought. The devil is going after our kids’ hearts. He wants their emotions, their beliefs, and their attitudes. If we’re going to win the spiritual battle, we must fight for the heart.
A discerning parent is constantly on a sacred pursuit of their child’s heart. Let’s examine ten keys to developing parental discernment with our children:
1. Understand God’s Word. The primary way that any of us grow in discernment is by studying the Word of God. First Peter 2:2 tells us, “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.” The principles of God’s Word provide a foundation for all parental decision making. If you will become a discerning parent, you must become a student of God’s Word and of good parenting books that expound God’s Word.
2. Ask for God’s Wisdom. One of God’s great promises is given to us in James 1—He will give wisdom to anyone who will ask in faith. Wisdom is the ability to see the real needs and know how to respond. It is the ability to see your children as God sees them and to respond as He would.
3. Pray with and for Your Children. Nothing will help you understand where the heart is like prayer. Make it your priority to pray with them each night before bed. Sense their heart toward you, toward the Lord, and toward the challenges of life. This brief time of prayer will accomplish spiritually what weeks and weeks of human effort could never accomplish.
4. Accept and Obey the Holy Spirit’s Promptings. God gives every Christian parent an internal warning system. We can choose to accept or deny those warnings. The times I have neglected these warnings, I have eventually come to regret it. The times I have heeded them, I have always discovered something that needed parental intervention. Wise parents accept God’s internal promptings, even if they don’t fully understand them or can’t explain them.
5. Be a Team Player with Your Spouse. Think and talk about your children together with your spouse. Pray for them together. When talking together, God will give you collective insight and the wisdom to create a biblical approach to dealing with the situations your children face. When parents are a team, they heed each other’s cautions, listen to each other’s insight, and respond with unified hearts. This is a great gift to any child!
6. Spend Quantity Time with Your Children. Discernment takes study, and study takes time. Time with them will help you be able to sort through what is a normal part of their personality, what is a spiritual struggle, and what is the expression of a heart need. This time should be connected time when you are communicating—not tv or movie time, and not time shared with other friends. Try to spend one-on-one time with each child each week. You may miss some weeks, but if every week is your goal, you stand a good chance of staying on course.
7. Choose to Look Beyond the Surface. Don’t focus merely on behavior. Ask where the behavior is coming from. Consider the reasoning, the logic, and the emotions that produce the decisions and behavior of your child. Behaviors come from the heart. “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23).
8. Respond with Biblical Principles. Target the heart and pursue the transformation of the heart. Teach and transfer biblical principles and constantly be sensitive to whether the heart is open to those principles or whether there is merely outward conformity. Always point them to the highest authority—the Heavenly Father. If you’re not sure what to say or how to say it, then get help and seek advice. At all costs, point your child to God’s truth as the answer for every life problem. Always show them how your discipline connects to God and His ultimate authority in life.
9. Respond with Appropriate Authority. A variety of behaviors requires a variety of responses. As parents, we can’t answer everything with a heavy hammer. Strong discipline should be but one of many tools in your parental toolbox. It doesn’t make sense to kill a mosquito with an atomic bomb, but many parents use the atomic bomb for everything. That’s unwise. Ask the Lord to guide your responses and to make them appropriate to the need. Sometimes our children need reproof, other times rebuke, and other times exhortation. “...reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:2).
10. Respond with Compassion. No matter how firmly you deal with a situation, always rest your parenting on the firm foundation of compassion. This is the compassionate parenting found in Ephesians 6:4, “And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.”
Begin and end with compassionate nurture, even if firmness is needed in between. If your child will hug you, pray with you, or respond to you, then the heart is open. If not, then the heart is closed. Whatever you do, don’t rest until your child’s heart is open to you.
Other than the Holy Spirit, my best teacher on becoming an insightful parent has been my wife. Dana is the most discerning parent I know. God has given her a tremendous sense for our children’s needs and the direction of their hearts. It has been our constant commitment to stay united as a parenting team.
We’re still in the middle of our parenting journey, and we’re loving every moment of it. One thing is for sure—every child is uniquely special by God’s design. That uniqueness should compel us to constantly rely upon the leading of the Holy Spirit in the moment-by-moment details of parenting.
By God’s grace and power seek to become an insightful parent. Seek to get beneath the surface and reach deep into the heart. Constantly ask the Lord for wisdom and guidance. He will answer, and your kids will thank you one day! I love parenting! What life work could we do of any greater value?
In Hebrews 5:12–14 we read a challenge to believers to be skillful in the Word and discernment, “For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”
The word discern speaks of judicial estimation—wisdom, insight, and accurate perspective. This ability is something we should desire in every area of life, but especially with nurturing our children. Too many parents never get beyond the surface in parenting. They only care if their kids are “staying out of trouble.” But discerning parents go deeper. They see beneath the surface and seek to understand what’s going on in the heart. Why is “deep parenting” so important?
The heart is where biblical values are formed. This is the only way to know if your child’s faith is representative of an authentic relationship with God or merely an outward, temporary show.
The heart is where questions are contemplated. Every child has questions, and when parents are out of touch, Satan is good at exploiting these questions and providing false answers. Parents who get into the heart, unearth those questions so they can provide biblical answers. “And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32).
The heart is where real relationships are cultivated. Like the root system of a tree or healthy plant, the heart is beneath the surface. A strong relationship and authentic closeness is built face-to-face, eye-to-eye, and heart-to-heart.
The heart is where the spiritual battle is fought. The devil is going after our kids’ hearts. He wants their emotions, their beliefs, and their attitudes. If we’re going to win the spiritual battle, we must fight for the heart.
A discerning parent is constantly on a sacred pursuit of their child’s heart. Let’s examine ten keys to developing parental discernment with our children:
1. Understand God’s Word. The primary way that any of us grow in discernment is by studying the Word of God. First Peter 2:2 tells us, “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.” The principles of God’s Word provide a foundation for all parental decision making. If you will become a discerning parent, you must become a student of God’s Word and of good parenting books that expound God’s Word.
2. Ask for God’s Wisdom. One of God’s great promises is given to us in James 1—He will give wisdom to anyone who will ask in faith. Wisdom is the ability to see the real needs and know how to respond. It is the ability to see your children as God sees them and to respond as He would.
3. Pray with and for Your Children. Nothing will help you understand where the heart is like prayer. Make it your priority to pray with them each night before bed. Sense their heart toward you, toward the Lord, and toward the challenges of life. This brief time of prayer will accomplish spiritually what weeks and weeks of human effort could never accomplish.
4. Accept and Obey the Holy Spirit’s Promptings. God gives every Christian parent an internal warning system. We can choose to accept or deny those warnings. The times I have neglected these warnings, I have eventually come to regret it. The times I have heeded them, I have always discovered something that needed parental intervention. Wise parents accept God’s internal promptings, even if they don’t fully understand them or can’t explain them.
5. Be a Team Player with Your Spouse. Think and talk about your children together with your spouse. Pray for them together. When talking together, God will give you collective insight and the wisdom to create a biblical approach to dealing with the situations your children face. When parents are a team, they heed each other’s cautions, listen to each other’s insight, and respond with unified hearts. This is a great gift to any child!
6. Spend Quantity Time with Your Children. Discernment takes study, and study takes time. Time with them will help you be able to sort through what is a normal part of their personality, what is a spiritual struggle, and what is the expression of a heart need. This time should be connected time when you are communicating—not tv or movie time, and not time shared with other friends. Try to spend one-on-one time with each child each week. You may miss some weeks, but if every week is your goal, you stand a good chance of staying on course.
7. Choose to Look Beyond the Surface. Don’t focus merely on behavior. Ask where the behavior is coming from. Consider the reasoning, the logic, and the emotions that produce the decisions and behavior of your child. Behaviors come from the heart. “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23).
8. Respond with Biblical Principles. Target the heart and pursue the transformation of the heart. Teach and transfer biblical principles and constantly be sensitive to whether the heart is open to those principles or whether there is merely outward conformity. Always point them to the highest authority—the Heavenly Father. If you’re not sure what to say or how to say it, then get help and seek advice. At all costs, point your child to God’s truth as the answer for every life problem. Always show them how your discipline connects to God and His ultimate authority in life.
9. Respond with Appropriate Authority. A variety of behaviors requires a variety of responses. As parents, we can’t answer everything with a heavy hammer. Strong discipline should be but one of many tools in your parental toolbox. It doesn’t make sense to kill a mosquito with an atomic bomb, but many parents use the atomic bomb for everything. That’s unwise. Ask the Lord to guide your responses and to make them appropriate to the need. Sometimes our children need reproof, other times rebuke, and other times exhortation. “...reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:2).
10. Respond with Compassion. No matter how firmly you deal with a situation, always rest your parenting on the firm foundation of compassion. This is the compassionate parenting found in Ephesians 6:4, “And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.”
Begin and end with compassionate nurture, even if firmness is needed in between. If your child will hug you, pray with you, or respond to you, then the heart is open. If not, then the heart is closed. Whatever you do, don’t rest until your child’s heart is open to you.
Other than the Holy Spirit, my best teacher on becoming an insightful parent has been my wife. Dana is the most discerning parent I know. God has given her a tremendous sense for our children’s needs and the direction of their hearts. It has been our constant commitment to stay united as a parenting team.
We’re still in the middle of our parenting journey, and we’re loving every moment of it. One thing is for sure—every child is uniquely special by God’s design. That uniqueness should compel us to constantly rely upon the leading of the Holy Spirit in the moment-by-moment details of parenting.
By God’s grace and power seek to become an insightful parent. Seek to get beneath the surface and reach deep into the heart. Constantly ask the Lord for wisdom and guidance. He will answer, and your kids will thank you one day! I love parenting! What life work could we do of any greater value?
Spiritual Leadership Conference Live Stream
July 8, 2011 by Paul Chappell 
Good news for those unable to attend this year’s Spiritual Leadership Conference! We will be live streaming the evening services and all of the daytime sessions taking place in the main auditorium. Additionally, there will be some special features and interviews broadcasted before and after the evening services. (These will begin thirty minutes before the services.)
The live stream is available at lbclive.tv. I pray that it is a blessing to friends around the world who are not able to be in Lancaster during the conference.
I’m looking forward to this conference and am praying that the Lord will use these services and sessions—here in Lancaster and via live stream—to do a great work in all of our lives and ministries!
Below is a schedule for the live stream (times given are Pacific Time):
Sunday
9:00am – Morning Service
10:30am – Morning Service
5:30pm – Evening Service, with 25th anniversary video
Monday
7:00pm – Evening Service
Tuesday
8:45am – Morning Service
11:00am – Morning Session (Pastor Chappell—Growing Through Adversity)
1:30pm – Workshop (Scott Tewell—The Preaching of Paul)
2:30pm – Workshop (Troy Dorrell—Protecting the Priorities and Person of the Preacher)
7:00pm – Evening Service
Wednesday
8:45am – Morning Service
11:00am – Morning Session (Pastor Chappell—Strengthening the Things that Remain)
1:30pm – Workshop (John Goetsch—Ideas for Growing Your Preaching and Teaching Skills)
2:30pm – Workshop (Don Sisk—Walking with God before Men)
7:00pm – Evening Service
Thursday
8:45am – Morning Service
11:00am – Morning Session (Pastor Chappell—2:2 Ministry)
1:30pm – Workshop (Rick Martin—Seven Qualities of a Servant Leader)
2:30pm – Workshop (John Goetsch—Avoiding the Trends of Contemporary Compromise)
7:00pm – Evening Service
Good news for those unable to attend this year’s Spiritual Leadership Conference! We will be live streaming the evening services and all of the daytime sessions taking place in the main auditorium. Additionally, there will be some special features and interviews broadcasted before and after the evening services. (These will begin thirty minutes before the services.)
The live stream is available at lbclive.tv. I pray that it is a blessing to friends around the world who are not able to be in Lancaster during the conference.
I’m looking forward to this conference and am praying that the Lord will use these services and sessions—here in Lancaster and via live stream—to do a great work in all of our lives and ministries!
Below is a schedule for the live stream (times given are Pacific Time):
Sunday
9:00am – Morning Service
10:30am – Morning Service
5:30pm – Evening Service, with 25th anniversary video
Monday
7:00pm – Evening Service
Tuesday
8:45am – Morning Service
11:00am – Morning Session (Pastor Chappell—Growing Through Adversity)
1:30pm – Workshop (Scott Tewell—The Preaching of Paul)
2:30pm – Workshop (Troy Dorrell—Protecting the Priorities and Person of the Preacher)
7:00pm – Evening Service
Wednesday
8:45am – Morning Service
11:00am – Morning Session (Pastor Chappell—Strengthening the Things that Remain)
1:30pm – Workshop (John Goetsch—Ideas for Growing Your Preaching and Teaching Skills)
2:30pm – Workshop (Don Sisk—Walking with God before Men)
7:00pm – Evening Service
Thursday
8:45am – Morning Service
11:00am – Morning Session (Pastor Chappell—2:2 Ministry)
1:30pm – Workshop (Rick Martin—Seven Qualities of a Servant Leader)
2:30pm – Workshop (John Goetsch—Avoiding the Trends of Contemporary Compromise)
7:00pm – Evening Service
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
“Trust Me” by Charles R. Swindoll
1 Samuel 17:48–51
All David had was a sling and a stone as he took on a giant wearing two hundred pounds of armor. It may seem silly, but that's the way God operates. In the final analysis, there was a whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—one stone flew through the air, and that's all there was to it. Goliath fell like a sack full of sand. Got any more giants?
I don't know what your intimidating giant is today. It may relate to your job, your roommate, or your school. Maybe it is a person, a lawsuit, unemployment, a disaster . . . maybe even your own partner in life. Perhaps it is some fear that is lurking around the corner, sucking your energy and draining your faith. God is saying to you right now, "All I ask of you is five smooth stones and a sling of faith. I'll take it from there. You don't have to wear somebody else's armor. You just trust Me. And I'll strip you down to nothing but faith, and then I'll accomplish a victory where I'll get the glory. But as for you . . . you trust Me."
Perhaps you don't know what lies across the valley. Maybe you can't get a handle on what that giant is; but it's there, haunting you. That uncertainty alone is a giant. But look at that worry in comparison to the Lord God Himself, and say, by faith, "The battle is Yours, Lord. It is Your battle. I lean on You. I give You all my weapons, all my skills, and I stand before You, trusting You."
It is God's love for us that causes Him to bring us to an end of our own strength. He sees our need to trust Him, and His love is so great that He will not let us live another day without surrendering our arms to Him, giving Him our fears, our worries, even our confusion, so that nothing becomes more significant to us than our Father.
Never, ever forget it: the battle is the Lord's!
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Repost—How to Discern God’s Will
June 20, 2011
My Dad originally sent me this excerpt from the life story of George Mueller. I decided to repost it because it is powerful, timeless, and frankly, it speaks very personally to me in continuing to discover God’s will for my own future. This is how Mueller discerned the will of God. Don’t rush through this—take time to think deeply about each point and personalize them.
Mueller listed the following steps he believed were necessary in determining God’s will regarding any decision. I thought they might be helpful to others:
- “I get my heart into such a state that it has no will of its own in regard to any particular matter.”
- “I do not leave the result to feelings or simple impressions. That can make one open to great delusions.”
- “I seek God’s will through, or in connection with, His Word. If you look to the Spirit without the Word, you open yourself to delusion.”
- “I consider providential [God-controlled] circumstances.”
- “I ask God in prayer to reveal His will to me.”
- “I make sure I have a clear conscience before God and man.”
- “Every time I listened to men instead of God, I made serious mistakes.”
- “I act only when I am at peace, after much prayer, waiting on God with faith.”
“For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counsellors there is safety.” (Proverbs 24:6)
God's Comfort
By Dr Paul Chappell
"And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us."
1 John 3:23Ð24
God wants you to lean upon Him and His strength during your weakness
There are times in all of our lives when we need the Lord's comforting. Whether it is because of a problem, a struggle, or when we feel alone, we need God's comfort in our life.
One way God comforts us is by abiding with us. John 15;10, "If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. When we abide with Christ each day by reading His Word and speaking to Him through prayer, He will comfort us. God is our Heavenly Father, and He knows when we are hurting. Yet, He cannot comfort us if we do not come to Him, abide in Him, and seek His help.
We can also find comfort in the Holy Spirit. Christ sent the Holy Spirit to comfort us during times of sadness and hurt. John 14:16-17 says, "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
When we are going through doubt, discouragement, or even loss, the Holy Spirit is there to help us. God knows that there will be times when we feel alone or hurt and He wants to help us. He wants us to come to Him and seek His help.
Once during Queen Victoria's reign, she heard that the wife of a common laborer had lost her baby. Having experienced deep sorrow herself, she felt moved to express her sympathy. So she called on the bereaved woman one day and spent some time with her. After she left, the neighbors asked what the queen had said. "Nothing," replied the grieving mother. "She simply put her hands on mine, and we silently wept together."
Friend, God wants to help you through your time of sorrow or hurt. He wants you to know that He loves you and cares for you. God wants you to lean upon Him and His strength during your weakness. He wants you to abide with Him and to seek the comfort of the Holy Spirit.
Are you going through a tough time in your life? Do you need God's comfort today? Take time today to seek God's comfort by abiding with Him. Spend time reading His Word and praying to Him. Let Him comfort you by spending time with you. Also let the Holy Spirit comfort you as you go about your day. Lean on Christ and let Him help sustain you in your time of hurt.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Thankful!
Thank you Jesus!! For WHO you are, and how you love us, forgive us, never give up on us, lead us, protect us, provide for us, heal us, and you're not done with us yet!! I praise you today Lord, I thank you, I LOVE YOU!!! You mean more to me than ANYTHING or ANYONE... You hold ALL of my today's and tomorrow's!! Sold out for you, for the old fashioned way, your holiness, your salvation, sanctification, keeping power!! You are our Holy, Almighty, and our VERY SOON coming KING!!!
Friday, July 1, 2011
Daily Renewal
Friday, July 1, 2011
by Dr. Paul Chappell
"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds."
Hebrews 12:2-3
We can live in constant joy when we daily renew our life in Christ.
As we go about our lives, we are easily worn down. Day after day can become monotonous, and our lives can soon become dull. As Christians, we are to have vibrant, joyful lives, but it can be hard to maintain joy in the world in which we live! How can you come into each day with peace and joy? By daily renewing your life in Christ.
There are certain areas of our lives that we should renew every day. The first one is our focus. We can soon become distracted by all that this world offers. Whether it's the media, sports, or even just work, our focus sometimes shifts. While none of these are necessarily bad, if we focus on these things more than we focus on Christ, they become a distraction in our lives. We must reset our focus on Christ each day.
We also need to renew our faith. Isaiah 40:31 says, "But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." We need to make sure that we trust God to get us through each day. The missionary Hudson Taylor once said, "It doesn't matter how great the pressure is. What really matters is where the pressure lies, whether it comes between me and God or whether it presses me nearer His heart." The devil will try to pull you away from God by testing your faith in Him daily. We must not let our faith get weary, but we must renew it through God's Word.
We must also renew our fervency. Webster defines fervency as "very hot, glowing" or "marked by great intensity or feeling." Having fervency in the Christian life means having a great intensity in telling others of Christ. Do you see each person you meet as someone needing the Gospel, or do you hurry away from them? Do you take time to let others know what Christ has done for you, or would you rather not bother? Fervency entails your being so in love with God that you want everyone around you to meet Him and to experience the same kind of relationship with Him.
How are you doing today? Has your focus shifted to something other than God? Has your faith been tested recently? Is your fervency what it ought to be? It is so easy for us to lack in these areas! We must come to Christ each day with a prayer for renewal. What do you need to renew today?