New Year’s Eve was fast approaching, and I wanted to have my list of resolutions ready for the big day. Busy scribbling away at my agenda, I thought of the verse,

“The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.” -Proverbs 16:9 (ESV)

“Winter” by Jean Léon Gérôme

This has held true throughout my life, and I’m sure you can relate! The resolutions I wrote at the end of 2008 look very different than what was actually accomplished in 2009.

And while I have plans and hopes and dreams for 2010, I’m sure God will be changing them according to His plan and purpose, which is always much better than my own.

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.”
- Proverbs 3:5-6 (ESV)

In John 1:35-37, John the Baptist has just watched Jesus walk past him. John says to two of his disciples, “Behold the Lamb of God!” the One whom John has been preaching about throughout his whole ministry.

This moment is what John the Baptist has been preparing his disciples for. Andrew and, mostly likely, John (who never identifies himself in the book of John), recognize Jesus as the Messiah and, leaving John the Baptist, follow the Son of God.

“Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, ‘What are you seeking?’ And they said to Him, ‘Rabbi, . . . where are you staying?’” -John 1:38 (ESV)

Notice that Jesus doesn’t audibly assume they are following Him by asking Whom are you seeking, but what are you seeking. In this morning’s sermon, Pastor Jeff said, “All men, by nature, are seekers. Jesus reveals this in His question.” Men (and women) seek all kinds of things - status, image, money, entertainment, power, etc.

But Andrew and John answer with another question that reveals that they not only are seeking Jesus, but want to pursue a relationship with the Son of God. “Teacher, where do you live?” implies that the one who seeks to learn wants to be near the teacher, around him as often as he can be, to spend time with Him.

In verse 39, we find that it is about 10:00 in the morning, and Andrew and John spend the whole day with Jesus.

Do I seek to spend my whole days with Jesus, or just the mornings? How about you - Is your relationship with Jesus at the top of your list?

.:. .:. .:.

And the word of the Lord came to me and said,
“Jeremiah, what do you see?”
And I said, “I see an almond branch.”
Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over My word to perform it.”
(In the ESV it says that “almond” sounds like “watching.” What a beautiful reminder of the Lord’s provision.)

-Jeremiah 1:11-12

Thus says the Lord, “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.”

-Jeremiah 9:23-24

These verses have been holding me together this morning. I have a few butterflies: Emily and I have been invited to a meeting this afternoon to give our testimonies, and talk about home education, art and “our futures.” It begins around 12:00pm, and if you think of us, prayers are most welcomed.  :)

.:. .:. .:.

Update (3:33pm): Thank you all for your support! Everything went really smooth and we were warmly received. The people were very kind and supportive, and we enjoyed visiting with them all. Thanks again for your payers - it was a blessing.  :)

We’ve had to stay up late a few nights, and that makes for a flurry and boggy foggy and blurry Bre in the morning. Mornings start to look kind of like this:

Sunshine is always welcome to help us wake up…

…especially if it’s my favorite cereal, Honey Sunshine. But most time I have home-ground wheat bread, toasted, with organic peanut butter and raw honey. Yummm!

Quiet time in God’s Word is always important, and I’ve recently started a prayer journal (why didn’t I start sooner?). I highly recommend the practice of recording your prayers. I’m currently reading through II Corinthians and Desiring God.

And then (after checking my blog and email) I’m in focus and ready to get to work!

“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of Him everywhere.” - II Cor. 2:14

One of my favorite verses (Mal. 4:6) shows God’s abundant grace, and we have reason to hope and rejoice in His promise (notice the last line):

“And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.” - Malachi 4:6

.:. .:. .:.

Oh Lord, continue to have mercy on Your people as You turn our hearts toward You and your plan for the biblical family. Let us find our strength in You, let us inherit the land, and exalt in You for generations. (Psalm 37)

{I wrote this piece to read aloud after our family dinner at Granny’s today.}

“God’s Glorious Sky” – Photo by Emily Rose.

The prophecies of His coming spanned over hundreds of years, saying that He would come. They said the Son of God would actually come to earth, and that He would die for a reason. Some who heard believed, and they all looked, waited, and longed for the day when He would appear.

The very first prophecy was spoken in the Garden of Eden. When God made Adam and Eve, He placed them in the garden and would visit them in the cool in the evening and talk with them.

But one day, they used their will to rebel against the order God set up for their happiness. God told them to completely avoid the Tree, and even though they had a whole garden to reap from, they were tempted by Satan and chose to actually eat of this Tree. It was the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. And as soon as they ate, they knew they had done wrong. Shame and horror filled them as they realized they had committed a crime in a prefect world. And for the very first time, the birds stopped singing.

A deadly hush crept through the branches as guilt snuck up behind them. It laid hold of their shoulders and its vile stench would not let them go. They searched for a place to hide and cover themselves, and bitter, angry whispers rasped between them, and before they could even realize what their choice entailed, they saw Him enter the Garden. And God could see their guilt.

While they frantically blamed each other for their fall, God told them of the consequences - labor pains, envy for power, cursing of the ground with sweat and thistles, and a death of returning to dust. And even though the pain and death of their bodies would come, more terrifying than that was the separation. They had been severed from their relationship with God.

Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden forever, but God in His love for mankind had a plan for rescuing them (and all mankind) from eternal death and cleansing them from their guilt. But it would take Blood. Perfect blood. Thus came the first prophecy when He said His Son would come and destroy the tempter (Satan) and eternal death. “He shall bruise [Satan's] head, and [Satan] shall bruise His heal.”

We can move forward into history and see just how God began to work His plan. He chose a nation named Israel, to whom He gave His law. He also gave them His temple where, where through a holy priest and the offering of sacrifices (spotless sheep or cattle, with no blemish), they could receive forgiveness for their sins. When Israel lived by His law and rejoiced in it, God richly blessed them and it grew into a strong nation. But after awhile the people turned away from God, and followed the practices of the heathen nations around them.

The pictures of sacrifice they saw year by year was just that - a picture. The ultimate sacrifice was Jesus, the One prophesied to come. God, in His overwhelming love for mankind, made a way for His children to be permanently redeemed from their sin and guilt - bought back and rescued from the consequences. But to buy us back it would take Perfect Blood. And so He chose to send His Son Jesus to earth as a man so that He might suffer and die on our behalf.

While He was on earth, He lived a life free from sin. When He was handed over to be tried and executed for claiming to be God, they refused to believe Him - His very own people, the Jews who had been told so many times and had been given so many signs that He was The One - and so killed Him like a criminal. His execution was gruesome as He was stripped and beaten with fists and whips until He bled.

With His body nailed to the wood, His perfect Blood flowed from His punctured wrists and feet, while the ugliness and weight of our guilt covered Him. And while Jesus never once disobeyed any of God’s commands, God could not look at His Son any more. He could not look upon even one “little” sin with approval, and so He turned away. He had to turn His back on His only Son with whom He shared the greatest fellowship. Jesus’ lasts moments were spent in the torment of knowing that His Father had rejected Him. This was the final sacrifice for our sins, Spotless Lamb of God.

The prophet Isaiah, hundreds of years before He was born, foretold His suffering and sacrifice:

“He was wounded for our transgressions;
He was crushed for our iniquities;
upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with His stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on Him
the iniquity of us all.

…like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
…although He had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in His mouth.

Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush Him;
He has put Him to grief;
when His soul makes an offering for guilt,…
He poured out His soul to death
and was numbered with the transgressors;
yet He bore the sin of many,
and makes intercession for the transgressors.”
(Portions from Isaiah 53:5-12)

All this for for love. Because He loved His people so much, He took on this suffering so that we might be with Him in everlasting life and eternal joy. But this would be such a sad, pathetic story if this was the end. “God came to earth and died. The end.” But its not the end!

The Sunday morning after He died, He rose from the dead and left an empty tomb. And that is why we are celebrating Easter Sunday today. God was pleased with the sacrifice of His Son’s perfect Blood, and now He reigns victorious over death.

2 Timothy 1:10 “…And which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”

Romans 6:4 “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”

.:. .:. .:.

Revelation 5:11-13 “Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, ‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!’ And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, ‘To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!’”

{For photos of the Father Daughter Retreat, visit my sister’s blog here and scroll down.}

I deeply appreciated Scott Brown’s talk on “Nurturing a Daughter’s Vision of Home”. In the introduction he stated, “The father is to teach the Biblical doctrine of Family, Home, and Church, and fan these affections to a white heat.” He presented a definition, example and illustration of what the Home is to be.

Definition: The home is to be. . .

• The foundation of culture (Genesis 1:28).
• A conduit (a passage) of the Gospel, and a microcosm of the Church whereby leaders of the Church are qualified (Titus 1:5-9).
• A fountain of life (Gen. 12:1-3) and a refuge to those in need (Rom. 12:13). God has been so hospitable to us in this world - we should reflect its beauty and delight.
• It is also to have an economy for provision (Prov. 31). Entertainment has replaced industry in the home, destroying home economics.
• A school for instruction (Deut. 6 and Eph. 6:1-4). As daughters, we need to acquire wisdom and knowledge so that we may teach our children.
• A place for reaping rewards from the Lord - children! (Psalm 127-128) The devil wants to destroy the home, making it a picture of the world rather than the City of God, using means such as drawing women out of the homes into the workforce, public education, welfare, feminizing men, and a myriad of other temptations akin to our fleshly bent.

.:.

Example: The Biblical Illustration of Family Life is described in Ephesians 5-6. There is. . .

• A loving, guiding Husband (5:25-33)
• A submissive and reverent Wife (5:22-24, 33)
• Honoring Children (6:1-4)
• A productive servant (6:5-8)

.:.

Do we have dishonoring thoughts toward our fathers? Do we resist them? Or are we gracious, pure and obedient in our thoughts? Proverbs 4:23 says, “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” (Keep: to adhere strictly; not to neglect or deviate from. . . to continue to advance. . . not to cease. Vigilance: watchfulness; circumspection; attention of the mind in discovering and guarding against danger, or providing for safety.) It is hard to keep our hearts and thoughts pure, so we need the help of our parents to guard them.

.:.

Illustration: Mr. Brown showed us the Jonathan Edwards family as an illustration for what ultimate devotion to Christ in a family looks like. They had their quirks and issues like every one else, but even as an earthly example, the Edwards family has left us with much to ponder and imitate. Here, in 15 points, is what Mr. Brown shared with us:

• The “uncommon union” and whole family was born out of love and admiration of God.
• Their home was full of children.
• It produced highly educated women.
• The daughters were spunky!
• Biblical womanhood was central.
• There was a unified, loving marriage - Sarah ordered her life and cleared the way for her husband’s success.
• There was happy home life - In their letters to each other, the daughters referred to their father as “my honored father”. Constant joyful fellowship existed between them all.
• The children grew up during a time of revival. Mr. Brown encouraged us to “Get all the awakening you can in your family!”
• They were industrious and rode out hard economic times.
• There were principled marriages.
• There was Beautiful Sisterhood - the sisters wrote wonderful letters to each other, and were discouraged at the lack of other young ladies who could discuss anything deep or theological.
• Mentoring and accountability was crucial to their relationships with each other.
• Love for music - Sarah said that music is, “the purest way to communicate between human beings.”
• They were disciplined - It was said that they rose early in the morning because Christ rose from the grave early.
• They were a real family with real tastes and real problems - Mr. Edwards especially liked his chocolates and fancy wigs. One time he bought for Sarah an expensive locket that the congregation thought too elaborate. She proudly wore it in public as much as she could.

.:.

Can you imagine what legacy Jonathan Edwards would have left if he had an unsupportive wife or rebellious daughters? What a beautiful picture they instead have left for us!

How can you help in your father’s house? Ask your father if there are projects he’d like you to do or books he’d like you to read. Are there more responsibilities you could help your mother with? God specifically designed us all to fit into our families. Use these young energetic years to help further your father’s vision, study the Biblical doctrine of Family, Home, and Church, and fan your love for the Lord to a white heat!

What a whirlwind adventure we’ve had traveling to and fro to conferences! So here I sit, finally landed back in my nest and out of breath, wondering how I’ll ever share with you all the wisdom I’ve been gleaning.

First of all, God has been so good in keeping us safe. With two trips down to Georgia and two to Indy, our car has run smoothly, and no one became terribly ill. We’ve met so many like-minded families, and enjoyed many hours of beautiful fellowship.

Our first trip to GA was for the Crossroads conference with the Botkins (I’ve already posted a few conference notes). Three weeks after that, Dad attended the Men’s Leadership Summit in Indy. All of the messages were excellent, and I’m so glad we have the recordings (I plan on listening to them again and taking lots of notes). Then just two weeks ago we headed back down to the Callaway Gardens in GA for the Father Daughter Retreat, and last weekend was spent at the IAHE convention!

So in the past two months we’ve heard from the whole Botkin family, Doug Phillips, Voddie Baucham, Kevin Swanson, Ken Ham, Chris Klicka, Scott Brown, Dr. Brian Ray, and a few others. The Father Daughter Retreat was the most applicable at this point in my life, so I’ll share the bits of wisdom I’ve gleaned that may encourage you as well.

“Be hardy girls and live a full life for Jesus,” Doug Phillips said. “Devote your life to the cultivation of your love for Jesus and your family. Your spiritual legacy will initially manifest itself in those relationships, especially in that of honoring and serving your father as you are training to be help-meets and raise godly children. Faithful, well-trained daughters are ornaments of glory to Christian fathers.”

Have you noticed that when God speaks of young women, they are not autonomous “girls” independent of legacy and history? They are “daughters” of fathers, families and heritage, instrumental and vital persons of great potential and worth in their families and the Kingdom of God. We are the daughters of Zion!

“No matter our age, Gods commands that we have godly relationships, not emancipation to autonomy.” Mr. Phillips listed five commitments a father needs to make to his daughter, and three points for the daughter in response to his leadership.

The Father’s commitments to his daughter: I will faithfully pray for you and your future. I will walk beside you. I will provide you with godly opportunities to encourage your success as a virtuous woman of God. I will relentlessly protect you, provide for you and prophesy before you, and I will offer my blessing to you.

The Daughter’s commitments to her father: I will give you my heart and trust you with it until you entrust it to another. I will serve you as unto the Lord, recognizing that I have a high calling to ultimately do the will of our Heavenly Father, and I will honor and reverence you as my head.

So what is honor, anyway? A good description is “a deep-seated and abiding reverence.” Also, the Webster’s 1828 Dictionary states it is, “to revere; to respect; to treat with deference and submission, and perform relative duties to. . . to manifest the highest veneration for, in words and actions; to entertain the the most exalted thoughts of. . . to adore” (emphasis mine).

As I listened to all of the talks that weekend, conviction was an understatement, as I am definitely still a work in progress. I would encourage all of you daughters to examine your hearts as well - have you found your heart irreverent or let your thoughts wander away from home? Have you avoided talking with your father and sharing your heart with him? Correcting these issues will be hard, but as we seek the Lord and our fathers’ council, we will see the furtherance of God’s Kingdom as He turns the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children’s hearts to their fathers.

I am a very reserved person, and used to be very shy. And even now, outside of my family and very closest of friends, I don’t like to share most of my thoughts or opinions. I think that’s one reason I enjoy talkative people so much; they don’t require much from me other than smiling and listening. But that’s only the good part.

Sometime ago it lead to a pride issue, thinking that, because I knew how to hold my tongue so well, I was obviously much more mature than those around me. But even then, I wasn’t as good a listener or encourager as I should have been. And there were so many conversations I could have turned to the better, but complacently let wander down the wrong path. But God wasn’t finished with me yet…

Through a series of situations, books I’ve read, and relationships, God has shown me that refraining from exhorting others and praising Him is selfish behavior.

“How could this be?” I wondered. “You made me quiet, and I like it this way! Besides, everyone thinks I’m so ladylike!” But what was God’s opinion of my quietness? Did He really want me to be so quiet and Victorian to the point where I didn’t even talk about Him?

I was around some very dear young ladies recently, and I noticed that they went out of their way to speak of God’s goodness in their lives with gentle boldness. By their example He showed me that my selfish and prideful - not “modest” and “humble” - mindset of hiding myself away is not what God has planned for His children. He has a much vaster plan for our lives than silence.

I am not my own. I was bought with a price. I naturally (read: selfishly) don’t want to think of myself as a gift to others. “And how vain!” I tell myself. But God has placed me in my family and circle of friends for a reason - to selflessly minister to them in Christ’s name. “…Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God with your body.” (1 Cor. 6:19-20). I have nothing good about me to offer the world, but it is Christ’s goodness that reaches through me and blesses others (2 Cor 4:5-7).

So what is it that we young ladies can do that would “be a blessing to others”? Among the many deeds in Scripture we are exhorted to do, we must also use our voices to praise the Lord. Psalm 32:11-33:1 says, “Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart! Shout for joy in the Lord, O you righteous! Praise befits the upright.” The command is pretty clear, and there’s no use arguing with it. We have so much to be thankful for!

Now, there is nothing wrong with having a reserved personality. Yes, we may keep our familiar, pleasant and curious thoughts tucked inside, and this is good if they are accompanied by scripture and turn us to Christ (Phil. 4:8). And it’s an excellent thing to hold your tongue when you feel like saying something spiteful. But to be purposefully cold and silent when you could be a bright and joyful light praising Jesus? That is where we go wrong.

All of our words start out as thoughts in our hearts, and must first be taken captive to the obedience of Christ. Is our lack of praise and encouragement evidence of a cold and ungrateful heart? We can begin to turn our hearts to Christ only by His strength if we ask Him to touch our hearts and put a song of praise on our lips.

“For what we proclaim is not of ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your sevants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the Face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” - 2 Cor 4:5-7