NEW BLOG gospel filled

I have begun a NEW blog.
This blog is dedicated to proclaiming the gospel to the lost. It is intended for all who might fit under that category including the 'religious'. I've had it for about a month (though I've tried to hide it) and might make some more changes (as it's not exactly how I want it, but I'll get over it).
Please consider linking this blog (make bumper sticks even, who knows)as a blog not filled with a lot of Church language, nor will I personalize it with pics and the like, nor will I seek to proclaim anything that would fall under secondary issues.
Be on the lookout for testimonies as well, I plan to (time permitting) post a plethora of diverse testimonies (including the 'I thought I was saved but......')
As well as pointing out things like 'What Christianity is NOT......' (including health/wealth, Catholic and other perversions).
It is my understanding that such a blog is quite rare, and so I saw the need.
www.authenticbelief.com

grace and peace

Child #7. ultrasound report

Currently we have been blessed with 6 boys and now the ultrasound revealed that the Lord has seen fit to bless us with ...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................Another BOY!!!
Looks like we're going to need lots of coffee and energy drinks to keep up with this wild bunch!

Marital sex is a beautiful thing to be enjoyed!!

The only reluctance I have to such a subject is to stay incredibly clear of perverse and wordly treatments concerning the subject like Mark D, who defiled his bed by spilling intimate details about his wife-which she stated was something she had to get used to! MEN I purposely point out this selfish act because your WIFE should NEVER have to get 'used to' you sharing intimate details,

Martial sex is a beautiful thing to be enjoyed!!

Sex within marriage is ordained of God and that even before the fall. The Lord has created us in such a way that we would find immense pleasure in such a union with our spouses. Let none think it strange to desire their spouse and that often, let none think it pious to restrain themselves because they wrongly perceive that such pleasure must be fleshly.



The only reluctance I have to such a subject is to stay incredibly clear of perverse and wordly treatments concerning the subject like Mark D, who defiled his bed by spilling intimate details about his wife-which she stated was something she had to get used to! MEN I purposely point out this selfish act because your WIFE should NEVER have to get 'used to' you sharing intimate details about the marriage bed!



Husbands! Wives!

Let this one rule PREVAIL in your intimate relations, SEEK TO PLEASE YOUR SPOUSE!!!

That means putting effort into understanding what pleases your spouse, that means paying attention to their body language and not being afraid to speak about sex (though it may seem uncomfortable). This is all ordained of God for you, and since it's of God, it's also perfectly acceptable to ACTUALLY pray for help in this area!



As with marriage as a whole, we must seek to put our spouse before self, we will find our greatest joy in our service to one another. This also means not withholding intercourse from one another because we're offended by something the other spouse doesn't even realise. We must seek reconciliation and seek to maintain a DESIRE to please and serve one another (in all things).

However this union is a SACRED union and being so it's also a PRIVATE union, that means it's NEVER acceptable for a spouse to act like a wicked teenager by spilling details to their friends or even making jokes about their spouse (I was almost tempted to say Men don't do this, but for those clueless on the issus some women ALSO spill details).


grace and peace

The second generation, Al Martin -must hear 4 Parents, children 8pts

I beg every parent, teacher, leader, AND able child to listen to this gem of a series from Pastor Albert Martin.
This series is a rare find, because it deals specifically with the unique struggles that second generation Christians may come against. This series would be a great means of equipping, warning, and encouragement for every CHristian parent and every child (even grown-up ones)raised by Christian parents! ESPECIALLY 'good' parents!


The Means of Saving Grace 1

Loving, Biblically Framed Nurture 2

Struggles with Assurance of Salvation

Damning Delusion of Presumption 4

Danger of Neglect and Hardness of Heart 5

Struggling with the Spirit of Pharisaism 6

Struggling with the Spirit of Legalism 7

Struggling with the Spirit of Materialism 8

ELDERS!!! Sheep are Led! Tozer

Forget attempting to become a great conference speaker, a distinguished scholar, a Youtube sensation, a superstar blogger, a facebook idol, a megachurch CEO, rather why not seek that which is most needed: A qualified and touchable minister who can actually lead the sheep!


A.W. Tozer says it like this:
Cattle are driven; sheep are led; and our Lord compares His people to sheep, not to cattle.
It is especially important that Christian ministers know the law of the leader--that he can lead others only as far as he himself has gone....
The minister must experience what he would teach or he will find himself in the impossible position of trying to drive sheep. For this reason he should seek to cultivate his own heart before he attempts to preach to the hearts of others....
If he tries to bring them into a heart knowledge of truth which he has not actually experienced he will surely fail. In his frustration he may attempt to drive them; and scarcely anything is so disheartening as the sight of a vexed and confused shepherd using the lash on his bewildered flock in a vain attempt to persuade them to go on beyond the point to which he himself has attained....
The law of the leader tells us who are preachers that it is better to cultivate our souls than our voices. It is better to polish our hearts than our pulpit manners, though if the first has been done well and successfully it may be profitable for us to do the second. We cannot take our people beyond where we ourselves have been, and it thus becomes vitally important that we be men of God in the last and highest sense of that term.

Don't despise 'holiness'

What does it mean to be 'holy'? I don't mean what does it mean for God to be holy, nor do I mean what does it mean for us to be declared 'holy' by the cross work of Christ.
The question I pose is what comes to mind when you hear the call to 'holiness'? I believe from simply observing reactions over the years that for many the word conjures up thoughts of suffocating legalism. This is not limited to those apostates who merely make a profession of faith but truly pervert the grace of God in a license to sin, but even some mature believers.
Practical holiness is usually something accepted as a subject in a systematic theology, or something that is welcomed when it's preached through dead men. It's always amazing to witness people who say they enjoy reading and listening to dead men who were not afraid to apply the word to the daily lives of their hearers, yet the same people that like these Luthers, Puritans, Spurgeons, Ravenhills, DON'T enjoy that 'kind' of preaching from the living.
As many have avoided all teaching concerning the Holy Spirit because of abuses, likewise because of LEGALISM many are shying away from speaking about personal holiness.
Such a situation should be quite frightening since practical holiness is not a minor subject, it's not something which the scripture gives little attention to.
But first, let's get something perfectly clear, I don't know what you mean when you say 'holiness' but as I understand it, it is this:
From God's perspective-It is God conforming you to the likeness of Christ.
From our perspective- It is a continual pursuit of God and His glory in all we do.

Though we must never forget that all the 'work' we do, all the 'effort' we put into seeking after God, He alone gets the glory! Let me ask, am I already making you cringe, is this not what the scriptures teach:
1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am..........I worked harder...not I, but the grace of God that is with me.
Paul 'fought', 'ran', 'strived', 'pressed after', etc... but behind all that it was God who was working through him. Though we are unable to penetrate the divide between our effort and God's sovereign working, we still need to emphasize those things which the Lord demands from us all.
In order to properly exegete the scriptures, we have to believe that God is a better physician then us, that He is not in need of our assistance. That means, though we see believers struggling with doubt, depression, and discouragement we have no right to shy away from teaching what the scriptures teach.
The scriptures call believers to 'obedience', to 'fight', to 'put off; things, to 'put on' things, to 'pursue' things, to 'forsake' things, to be 'separate', to be 'faithful', to 'please Him' etc.. These aren't truths we can't ignore because we have seen or experienced legalism.
Let us also keep in mind that believers are also judged according to their works or the 'quality' of it for that matter, and that faithfulness has rewards!
There is a danger in being zealous to defend against false teaching, and that's throw all we can to tip the scales into the other direction. We should rather fight false doctrine with balance, with truth, in other words if the scriptures have been 'twisted' don't cut the cord, untwist it!
If the cord is cut in an effort to eradicate 'legalism' then the effects will diminish if not create animosity toward the promises and warnings of God concerning believers!

How much worse do public schools get before they are labeled so??

May I speak hoping that you have not lived under a cave or that you suffer from amnesia?!

Then I wonder for those who encourage children to be sent to public schools:

How bad does it need to get before you pull them out?
How dangerous?
How many shootings before you would pull them out?
How many rapes before you would pull them out?
How many sexual abuse cover-ups before you would pull them out?
How graphic and aggressive would sex class (including homosexuality) need to get before you pull them out? (If you like research and are having trouble forcing yourself to THROW-UP then look up some of the things being taught or about to be, in schools even elementary school)
How anti-Christian and pro-heresy before you pull them out?
How poor do the education results need be (this is probably the ONLY one truly considered by many-the god of education/credentials) before you pull them out?
How intense does the pressure of temptation need be before you pull them out?

In addition to THAT, how much time (hrs a day) do you devote to WASHING out that filth and pouring into them the truths which GOd commands you to teach your children??

May I also be so bold to ask, if you have such 'faith' and you truly are using your children as a light in a dark place (given they've OBVIOUSLY shown yrs of saving evidence) then do you ALLOW (send them) them to go to similar places?? Similar places I say? Yes given the 'school' environment:
Other similar places would be clubs, house parties, street corners at night, even visiting (with 'friends' of course) JW's temples, going to MASS, Buddhist temples, etc.. Oh is that different? Are such places less safe? Less endoctrinating? Less influential?
Or is it that those places are simply not 'accepted' places, and there isn't the illusion of good intentions and safety?

Public Schools?? here's Voddie Baucham

Here is a post from Voddie Baucham Ministries, worth considering:

More from the “Our School Has Christian Teachers” File
Friday, March 5, 2010


As I continue to post The Continuing Collapse each month on this blog, there is a steady stream of public school defenders who insist that, although TCC has been finding and publishing evidence of widespread corruption, under-achievement, radical Gramscian marxism, violence, fraud and more in the American education establishment from coast-to-coast, this has no impact on these people’s educational choice because (altogether now) “their schools are different!” Of course, the main difference is the presence of Christian teachers.
Of course any attempt to point out the lack of biblical worldview of most professing Christians in America, the socialist/neo-marxist leanings of the curricula to which these “Christian teachers” are forced to adhere, and the Gramscian residue that clings to an education degree as relentlessly as dirt clings to fallen snow, is met with blank stares and incredulity. Not to mention the fact that these “Christian teachers” were trained in institutions that bathed them in the worst the left has to offer; and that includes Christian colleges. In a recent Town Hall article, Sandy Rios exposed one of these institutions. Writing about the prestigious Wheaton College, Rios wrote:
So imagine the dismay of many to learn that, in an effort to educate its students, Wheaton has moved to the left, so much so that in a survey by the Wheaton Record, 60 percent of its faculty voted for President Barack Obama, the most pro-abortion, pro-homosexual agenda, spiritually confused president the nation has ever elected.
Beyond this general lunge to the left, the philosophy that has overtaken the school of education is particularly troubling. Rios continues:
In the current document known as the “conceptual framework” of the education department at Wheaton College which must be endorsed by each of its faculty, the thinkers cited include among others, the father of the social justice movement, Brazilian Marxist, Paulo Freire and former Weather Underground terrorist Bill Ayers. Just a glimpse at Freire’s foundational treatise “Pedagogy of the Oppressed” will clearly display his sources: Marx, Lenin and revolutionary murderers Mao Tse Tung, Fidel Castro and Che Guevera (see, “Pedagogy of the Oppressor,” March 28, 2009, in National Review by Sol Stern).
Amazing! If these teachers had been forced to endorse the London Baptist Confession, or the Westminster Confession of Faith there would have been a revolt. However, they endorse the “Conceptual Framework” and parents who are paying obscene amounts of money for an education degree from Wheaton (nearly $40,000.00 per academic year for tuition and more than $50,000 total cost) haven’t heard or made a peep. All of this in the name of “open minded” academia:
Dr. Jillian Lederhouse, chairman of the department of education defended the conceptual framework by saying “we don’t teach our students to be afraid on an ideology as long as we give them a critical perspective. We do not have a list of people we do not read. Our goal is to produce a thinking Christian teacher.” And that is as it should be in an institution of higher learning, except for one thing. Lederhouse went on to admit that the people who were foundational to Wheaton’s conceptual framework were all on the far left.
Isn’t it interesting how real “thinking” always requires one’s mind being open to the Gramscian left? Christ and his Kingdom = closed-minded fundamentalist teacher. Marx and his kingdom (Paulo Friere and Che Guevera) = “thinking Christian teacher.”
Wheaton is not alone in this matter. Christian colleges across the country have been co-opted by the marxist, socialist educational establishment, and the teachers they are producing are the most dangerous of them all. Unlike the teachers coming out of Stanford, Wisconsin, or Columbia, the teachers coming out of the Wheaton’s of the world have instant credibility among unsuspecting Christian parents in both public and private schools who believe that a teacher who professes faith in Christ and has credentials from a Christian college MUST BE the real deal. Who better to send your children to for their education?
For years I have tried to communicate the reality that there are few Christian schools in the country worthy of the title. Almost without exception, Christian colleges and universities in this country are Christian in name only. Perhaps they have a historic connection to a religious founder, a nominal connection to a Christian denomination, or a public acknowledgement of a broad, sweeping, shallow confession of faith. However, most lack the courage and/or conviction to uphold the aforementioned commitments in their hiring practices, or in the development and implementation of their curriculum.
Moreover, these realities are not about to change. As long as schools like Wheaton can “push the envelope” in the name of open-minded “Social Justice,” and still fill their dorms with students whose families are more than happy to pay the $40,000.00 per year price tag we will not see a revival of God-honoring, Kingdom-minded, Christ-exalting, culture-transforming Christian education.
Here are a few predictions:
1)There will be no outcry over this issue (unless you count the outcry against anyone who would dare to question the Christian commitment of Wheaton and other Christian colleges).
2)Those who expose this issue will be vilified as narrow-minded “fundamentalists” while the marxists are heralded as broadminded defenders of education and free expression.
3)Students in the program (and those who’ve graduated) will insist that this is all blown out of proportion, and the education faculty at Wheaton (who supported Obama overwhelmingly) are wonderful, committed Christians who “believe and teach the Bible” (even though they endorse the “conceptual framework” which is completely inconsistent with the Bible).
4)Parents will continue to pay the obscene tuition for the prestige of a Wheaton degree.
5)Wheaton, and other Christian colleges like it, will continue to surge to the left in search of “friendship with the world,” and recognition as a prestigious university.
Nothing would make me happier than to be wrong on this. However, the key here is the tuition. Universities don’t charge $40,000.00 a year unless they can fill their dorms at that price. Any school that can demand that kind of money doesn’t do so because they offer sound biblical education. There is not enough demand for that (which is the primary reason we don’t have an abundance of sound Christian colleges). Parents don’t pay $40,000.00 a year for their children to be trained in godliness; they pay that kind of money for prestige and upward mobility. The bottom line is quite simple: We worship the god of education and status, not the God of the Bible.
The good news is there are schools out there where something like this would never have happened. I would be shocked, for example, to learn that New St. Andrews University (about $9,000.00 per year tuition), Grove City College (about $13,000.00 per year tuition), or The Master’s College (about $25,000 per year tuition), asked their professors to endorse the “conceptual framework.” And none of these schools takes a back seat to Wheaton academically!
Does this mean that Wheaton is the antichrist and the other schools I mentioned are without sin? Absolutely not. I’m sure there are good people at Wheaton who abhor the fact that the school of education has taken such a stance. Nor is every professor at NSA, GCC, or TMC perfect. Don’t miss the point here. This is a serious matter that cannot be ignored. We should all expect more from Wheaton
VB

What is Juvenile Jail ministry like?

I have been involved with a Juvenile Jail (perhaps I'll cover the adult County Jail another time)ministry for about 7yrs, which I became apart of through a church I was going to (an Assemblies of God church). Unfortunately this church only named this ministry as one of 'their' ministries, but when my wife and I left the church, so did the ministry.

The 'service' is more like 2-20 teens who sit around a table within their cell block (which means that we hear all radio calls, interrupted by guests or the nurse, and also have the 'privilege' of being in the same room where the toilets are (which thankfully contains a partial door). If all things go well the time given is 45mins, which usually means 30-35 mins of actual teaching time.

These teens are usually never there for more than a couple of months, some just days, this is the FIRST place the teens have to go.

They do have access to bibles, and they can take them into their rooms.

For the most part the guards control the mood, which means you have very inconsistent oversight, some wishing to be looked at as 'cool', others who have obvious power trips, and a few who really maintain control. There was a time where one guard in particular who was clearly opposed to the gospel, would stall me for 10, 15, even 20mins before bringing the teens for service, and then would make it a point to close the service just a couple mins early (even cutting off a closing prayer), this was absolutely one of the most trying times because I so wanted to do something or say something, not to mention trying to calm teens who would get incredibly angry at such interruptions.

Due to the varying nature of each service and due to the reality that most of the teens are hearing me for the first time, any pattern I follow will consist of small progression through certain passages with a LOT of reviewing/reminding and seeking to press the Gospel each and every week!

One MAJOR problem is the 'type' of ministry they are or have received. A separate ministry comes on a weekday and this group sticks strictly to the four spiritual laws, when I say 'strictly' I mean just that, they go over it every single week. Though I typically go alone to my section (and if accompanied by others it's quite clear that it's my section) there are other days where the teens may be exposed to Word of Faith filth or wild and wacky Charismatic doctrine.

The other sections are constantly bombarded by such faulty teachings, and a great number of them have been deceived into thinking God has saved them and only wants to make them feel good about themselves and to keep them out of prison.

There is one other chaplain who comes frequently that I can say is solid and recently there are a group of brothers who have been coming who actually label themselves 'Anabaptists', in my brief conversations with them they seem to be stuck on pointing out things like 'denominations' and mentioning little things like 'the church met in homes...'. Granted they could be quite legit, but I do wonder, though when they spoke of the Gospel the one brother mentioned the way Ray Comfort preaches the gospel, so if they do likewise I can still rejoice, that the gospel is preached.

As you may have detected the oversight is quite loose, so loose that several yrs back we had a lady who was a 'christian Scientist' who was able to go with our group for several months without ever being confronted, except by me and my wife. I assume that she decided to leave because my wife and I did NOT give her room to spread her poison (though she tried to desperately) at least in the 'girls' section.

Generally girls are the more violent and the more outspoken in their wickedness. We have witnessed several fights, prevented some (though we can't do much), and have even seen one girl enter our service grab the hair of another girl and start punching her in the face during the preaching!

I had a time where I was put into a horrible situation by a reckless chaplain who thought it a good idea to bring communion elements for those who might want it during the service. So the announcement was made before I started, the elements were left on the table beside me and the lady left to go to another section. Well I explained to the girls with all I could how fearful such a thing is, what it signified and why I wasn't going to distribute. Of course I had that ONE girl who demanded it, constantly interrupting me and even walking to the table to get it herself, this problem took the whole service to address. Though the girls have separate sleeping areas, lesbianism is rampant (however most wouldn't claim to be such, even though they may have participated in lesbian acts). It's such a problem that some girls have to be separated because they want to hold hands under their desks (among other things) DURING service!

It is very rare to see these teens again, though sometimes you do and rarely do they wish to talk of Christ, even though some will want to talk to you. One problem is that there isn't a way to communicate with these teens beyond the service, we are not able to find out where they go or how to contact them.

Yes there have been times where a small few have showed some fruit and have made it a point to thank us for proclaiming the gospel to them.
In a sense it's HARDCORE ministry, because you never know what to expect and if you are able to hear of the situations they live in or what they have seen or done it will absolutely crush you.
We have met teens who have been forced by mothers to have abortions, even through violence. We have met little girls even boys involved in prostitution. Met runaways who are in dangerous homes who as a means of survival try to get to that 'safe' relative (and if you're thinking, 'well just tell the authorities' then you must live in a nice world, but that's not really how it works). We have met teens who because shelters or group homes are overcrowded, they are mixed with teens who are criminals and treated as such. We have met teens who have killed, who have parents who have killed, who have seen their parents killed, who have had parents who have committed suicide etc.. So when I say HARDCORE I mean, I don't attempt to 'build relationships' or make them think I'm cool or funny or try to be 'edgy', I don't lower the standards of the gospel nor throw out holiness for the sake of 'reaching the unreached', I lovingly and unflinchingly PREACH the gospel to them and that sometimes shaking, sometimes weeping, sometimes YELLING because some of those teens are literally walking on the edge of death. Though that may seem EXTREME to some, many of these teens are convinced that I care even though they reject the gospel.
However I must say that such things are NOT the biggest hurdle, as any minister would testify the most difficult aspect, the most discouraging is the lack of laborers, the lack of people lifting up such things in prayer, the lack of concern shown in the casual attitude of those who ask about such a ministry for a conversation starter (I mean the type who aren't looking for details, just chit-chat).

Do numbers and popularity mean the BLESSING of God??

It seems odd to pose such a question, because so many Christians say that 'just because a ministry is small doesn't mean God is not blessing them' and they also say 'just because a church is big doesn't mean God is blessing them', yet that's such a difficult statement to believe, when in 'practice' many believers respond quite differently.
How could such a belief exist among those who only read, listen and reference mega-ministries/ministers???
How could such a belief exist among leaders (in conferences and seminaries) who only invite men who have 'achieved' some sort of status through bestselling books, large ministries, and/or a 'one of the fastest/largest ......churches' status???

As A.W. Tozer rightly spoke:
In Christian circles today, the church that can show an impressive quantitative growth is frankly envied and imitated by other ambitious churches. Numbers, size and amounts seem to be very nearly all that matter-with a corresponding lack of emphasis on quality! This is the age of the Laodiceans. The great goddess, Numbers, is worshiped with fervent devotion and all things religious are brought before her for examination. Her Old Testament is the financial report and her New Testament is the membership roll. To these she appeals as the test of spiritual growth and the proof of success or failure in most Christian endeavors. A little acquaintance with the Bible should show this up for the heresy it is. To judge anything spiritual by statistics is to judge by another than scriptural judgment. Yet this is being done every day by ministers, church boards and denominational leaders. And hardly anyone seems to notice the deep and dangerous error!

The sad reality is that such a mindset is NOT limited to the mainstream churches, but is quite common among Reformed/Reforming churches. Such superstars then reach a place where anything questionable in their ministries or lives is 'overruled' by the 'OBVIOUS fruit' that they are producing (NUMBERS).

What's the danger?? (a short list)

• Divisive hero worship as seen in the Church at Corinth.
• Faithful ministers and churches who by the pleasure of God have not grown large and are looked down upon and who may indeed struggle with their faithfulness (though they are more faithful).
• Smaller churches being burdened because they can't possibly do nor afford the things they are being told is 'necessary'.

Souls are NEVER test-dummies, children, lost crowds, inmates, homeless etc

One of the most frustrating things to watch is the attitude given towards less glamourous aspects of gospel ministry. These less glamourous ministries are the ones which numerous amts of 'volunteers' are thrown into without any concern to their qualifications. Such ministries are seen as 'stepping stones' to the bigger and better things, you know the 'real ministries' like pulpit preaching.
In otherwords you will find many people recruited for street witnessing, for children's teachers, for prison ministry, for teen church, for missions work etc who take very lightly their responsibility to those souls. The standards for such 'workers' within the average church is as low as possible and that's not to mention the abscence of anyone actually monitoring what's being taught in those situations. Even for those who wholeheartedly support para-church ministries and age-segregation in the church (nursery, toddlers, childrens church, junior high church, high school church, young adults etc) treat those 'special' pastors as less then 'real'. Have you ever watched what happens when someone says "I'm a youth pastor" or a "children's pastor" the reply is usually a degrading 'oh really, that's nice' in otherwords 'well keep at it and one day you'll do REAL ministry'. Doesn't sound like a belief in age-segregation, nor does the loose attitude to who's chosen to perform such ministries.
Regardless of your view of such ministries, one thing is essential: the handling of souls should NEVER be taken lightly. Whether it's children, teens, adults, rescue mission people, prisoners, and so on, we are never given the right to treat anyone as a test-dummie.

Voddie on DESPISING of children

Voddie Baucham says this:

In our culture, in America for the first time, our birth rate is below replacement rate.
Replacement rate is 2.1 children per family. We are at 1.9. Now we are not as bad as
much of the industrialized world. For example in France I think they are around 1.5
children per family. In Italy they are somewhere around 1.1 children per family.
Now, in case you don’t understand what that means, what that means is we are not having
enough children for our culture to continue to survive. Our culture is dying one
generation at a time.
Now, let me put skin on that for you. France, they have a birth rate of about 1.5.
However, there are North African Muslims and Arab Muslims who have emigrated into
France and we saw some unrest because of those folks. Their birthrate is about six
children per family which means in two generations France will be a Muslim nation by
sheer numbers alone. Why? Because they want prosperity more than they want

children. And it is the same for us.
Now let me put these two pieces of statistical information together. At two children per
family, Southern Baptists, because we are no better than the rest of the culture on this,
our attitude towards children is a boy for me and a girl for you and praise the Lord we are
finally through. Amen. It is an unwritten rule that you can only have two kids.
However, there is one exception to the unwritten rule where you can have a third child
and that is if your first two children were the same sex you get to try one more time for
the other. That is the unwritten rule.
We despise children in our culture. We despise children in the Southern Baptist
Convention.
You don’t believe me? Find a woman with six or seven kids and follow her into a
Southern Baptist Church and watch the way we mock her. Watch the way people who
don’t even know her

RANTING and RAVING??? I think not, in fact as a father of 6 boys and a keen observer of reactions to other families I can say this is absolutely the norm in the majority of churches. I bless and wish to encourage every family that desires to have many blessings (children), but be forewarned once you get to the third (+) pregnancy (past the accepted norm) regardless of all the talk you hear, you will see a clear change in the attitudes of many.
One great reason of this common attitude towards children is the REALITY that they are little sinners that take MUCH attention and energy. Such sacrifice in todays selfish society does not seem to be worth it, and so children are seen as a nousiance to be shunned. 'Out of sight, out of mind' or 'Seen but not heard' are the mission statements of the day, as is seen in things like daycares, church nursery, 'childrens' church, backseat dvd players for long trips, supermarket daycares, video shopping carts, individual I-pods for every kid and so on.
HELP?? For those who don't understand let me paint it a little better, all the offers for help almost cease upon the third pregnancy (or the next), I don't mean the financial help, but people that actually want to be around those households or join in the discipling process . It's unfortunate how some large families who are desperate for fellowship and encouragement move or travel accross the country to find it, and more unfortunate are those who wind up going to extremes because they joined some group for support which had no biblical oversight and encouraged divisiveness!

Wouldn't it be wonderful to see the church moving as one big family that is actually involved in the lives of each other. A family that isn't trying to impress one another, but actually has a united goal of growing together in Christ. A family that can actually influence the growth of each other, through accountability, honesty, and humility!

Before you preach, ANSWER THIS QUESTION

Let me ask every preacher and would-be preacher this qualifying question:
Do you even CARE if the people respond?

Under the guise of false-piety we can talk all day about our concern for the glory of God and our trust in His Sovereignty, but heartless preaching is preaching Christ knew NOTHING of.
Matthew 9:36
36 When he saw the crowds, he felt sorry for them because they were hurting and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
We desperately need more passionately bold preachers, and less cold-hearted men throwing temper tantrums in the pulpit!

So many Timothys, very few Pauls (ladies included)

Conrad Mbewe at the True Church Conference 2010, gave the excellent advice that young men should be seeking a Paul. That elders should be looking for Timothys to pour into.
This is in accordance with the biblical mandate for the older to teach the younger. This is perhaps the GREATEST lack within the church today (a large majority). This is the danger of so many young people coming to reformed truths, and young couples wrestling things like, wives desiring to be homemakers, homeschooling, catechizing among other things.
Why is this such a problem?? It's such a problem because so many young people are trying to figure out things which others have already lived and so they attempt to do these things without oversight and for the most part they fall into a myriad of extremes.
This TOO is why many have turned to websites, blogs, and online sermons, because they desperately long to learn from older saints. Likewise there are plenty of young men, men in Seminary who have NEVER had close oversight, never attended a healthy church and so they continue in their studies believing that at the end they will be fully equipped for service. However the truth is that they are in great need of close oversight, and practical service with humbling correction and direction. I have met my share of brothers who are in seminary or have recently graduated who have a lot of zeal, a lot of ideas, and thoughts but who seem to lack the humility to seek honest advice from others, lacking the desiring to submit themselves (because they have never had to). The best thing these brothers could do is to find oversight and if that means leaving school to join a church where their character will grow then praise God because the people they will one day shepherd will be most thankful.
Concerning the ladies, my wife made the point that in a previous church which was very large and did have a wide spectrum of age groups, that the problem was that almost ALL the older women worked (ones who were VERY well off). This of course limited even the POSSIBILITY of those who could and SHOULD being helping older teens and young wives/mothers to learn how to do so in accordance with the scriptures. If this was being done within the local church family then there would also be the God-ordained oversight of leaders who would be there to protect such women from extremes (including legalism).
Dear saint if you have already raised a family, if you have decades upon decades of walking with God then surely you have much to give. If you are mature in the faith then others desperately need to hear from your victories and losses.

Photo of US at TRUE CHURCH CONF 2010

Here we are on the last day of the conference, it was blessed! AND a pic of the boys @ LOOKOUT mountain (Chattanoga, TN)

Prayerlessness is Hyper-Calvinism, CONRAD MBEWE

Conrad Mbewe at the True Church Conference made a very succinct comment concerning the subtle forms of hyper-Calvinism when it comes to us loving sinners.

Conrad Mbewe make the point that one way to spot hyper-Calvinism in the church is to look at it's PRAYER MEETING. He pointed out that any church which claims to be evangelistic but has a dead prayer meeting is hyper-Calvinistic. Likewise he said that any preacher who claims to have evangelistic preaching who's prayer closet is empty is a hyper-Calvinist.

Accurate? I think so!
Prayer is a means of grace which God has chosen to use in the salvation of souls
Prayer is also a means of grace to cause the believer to have more love towards the lost
Prayer is an expression of faith, especially to perform a miracle such as conversion
Prayer is also an expression of our true desires, we pray most for what we care about most
Prayer is also a united and unifying expression of the local church
Prayer is a means of deflecting glory from us and exalting God's grace

What are you crying for??

In asking myself this question, I wish to ask you as well.
When it comes to persistent and pleading prayer, what is it that you are CURRENTLY praying for?? Are you pleading with the Father for a specific miracle, something which has gripped your heart for days/weeks/months/years???
I don't mean the honorable mentions, you know the grocery list prayer mentions.
If you're like me, then when you hear someone say 'I'm praying for you' you don't get too excited because you don't expect that to mean they are losing sleep over you.
I speak of those things which consume your thoughts, your affections.
It could be:

• For a specific breakthrough or direction in ministry.
• Someone you are longing to see saved.
• What about a fellow believer who you are pleading for (some sort of deliverance or need to be meet).
• Personal sanctification (more of a burden for the lost, more love towards the brethren, more patience, more humility etc...) perhaps something that has pierced you under God blessed preaching.

Something is QUITE wrong if we are NOT pleading for something. Certainly in this area we all have the same amt of access, the difference lies in the USE of what's available. Dear believer give yourself to going OFTEN before the THRONE OF GRACE. We should live in the reality that the VEIL is torn!

True church conference 2010 is ON

We are having a wonderful time this year at the True Church Conference, my wife and the oldest four boys.
The preaching, the worship, the resources, the testimonies, and the fellowship is very edifying.
Unfortunately it's not as well attended as it has been in the past. Which may be due to a number of reasons:
Economy
The subject of hyper-Calvinism (we don't need to address that??)
Preacher Worship--Paul Washer NOT being there

Well for those who are not here, YOU ARE MISSING OUT!
What makes this conference UNUSUAL is the ACCESSIBILITY to godly leaders who have DILIGENTLY fought to see reformation in the church, men who ARE reaching out to the lost and seeking to see the body of Christ purified!

Notes are being blogged at the website http://www.anchoredintruth.org/blog

hypocritical external standards of MEN and HUSBANDS

Nothing to deep here, but I hope if this applies to you that you would seek to fix the problem.
If I was asked what's one of the most important principles regarding marriage? I would answer 'To spend much time concentrating on YOURSELF' as the norm would be to FIX your spouse!
One area that seems to be QUITE problematic is the view of 'looking attractive' WITHIN your marriage. I know this could be hit from many angles but let's stick to this one:
Typically it goes something like this,
Men care about the way they look WHEN they are trying to GET the girl, but ONCE you are MARRIED why workout? why dress nice (i didn't say expensive, but NICE)? Why shower? Why get a haircut? Why shave? Why bother with cologne? YET at the same time, many of these men HYPOCRITICALLY demand/expect (expressed or not) such of their wives!!!
That's QUITE a selfish standard! Why not LOOK in the mirror now and then before you look down upon your wife!

Here's a tip: Get a treadmill, an ab cruncher, and a pull up bar!

As far as the style goes, brother Voddie Baucham has a q&a section so ask him OR find a brother who's a brother (black man), I'm HALF so I might also be some help.