failure to pray

The following quote hit me hard Sunday morning...

"When you fail to pray you are saying, 'God I do not need you'." - Pastor Don Elbourne Jr.

Tricks to memorizing scripture

I came across this post Sunday and it could not have come at a better time. In this post Demian Farnworth gives a list of 18 tricks to help with the memorization of scripture. There are a few in this list that I have never tried, but may give a whirl in the coming months.

Here are just a few examples. Check out Fallen and Flawed for the complete list and explanations on each technique.

Visualize while you are reading.
Create anchor Words
Recognize Patterns
Stagger

My niece, Kailey

I must post a few pictures of my little niece. She will make one in May. I've only seen her 2 times since she was born. I wish it could be a whole lot more! For Christmas I gave her an LSU outfit. It took her a little while to grow into the suit but now that she's a bit bigger, my sister just shared the pictures with me. Unfortunately LSU has the same colors as the Minnesota Vikings so she has some explaining to do in Packer country, but that's all good. I will try to make this little Wisconsinite into a die hard LSU fan.

She's learning to sit up on her own, falling over is funny.

All Moved in!

I moved into my little home a couple weeks ago. I failed to post about the move for multiple reasons...but I will say that I am completely thrilled! I finally got everything moved out of the camper and into my new place. I will post a few pictures of the completed inside once I get everything put away. But here's a few pictures of the working in progress

This is some of my favorite girls, Jayme and Liz, working on the tile in the loft. Another favorite, Allison also did a great deal of work with Liz laying and grouting tile. Thanks ladies!

Painting and hook up electrical
A look up into the loft

Big thanks to all the volunteers that helped with every step of the way. And an even bigger thanks to Lakeshore Baptist Church for building this great place for me to stay while I am serving in Lakeshore.

supremacy of man vs. supremacy of Christ

spiritual depression and Psalm 4

John Piper speaking from Psalm 42 on Spiritual depression and the gospel. He's got good things to say on speaking to yourself in this short sermon clip.

Lord willing, soon I will have a few original posts, but until then be encouraged by this.

Gospel in 6 minutes

I know most of my posts lately have not been original as of late, but I've set out to focus on the gospel for many reasons. This particular posts I found very helpful from the Desiring God website

What's the Gospel?

What’s the gospel? I’ll put it in a sentence.

The Gospel is the news that Jesus Christ, the Righteous One, died for our sins and rose again, eternally triumphant over all his enemies, so that there is now no condemnation for those who believe, but only everlasting joy.

That’s the gospel.

You Can't Outgrow the Gospel

You never, never, never outgrow your need for it. Don’t ever think of the gospel as, “That’s the way you get saved, and then you get strong by leaving it and doing something else.”

No! We are strengthened by God through the gospel every day, till the day we drop.

You never outgrow the need to preach to yourself the gospel.

How the Gospel Strengthens

Here’s an illustration, and I use it not because it’s any big deal to speak from my life, but because it’s what I walked through and where I most pointedly in the last year experienced the power of the gospel to make me strong. (Many of you are walking through things much heavier than prostate cancer—much heavier.)

Do you remember the verses that I shared with you back in February that were almighty for me? It was that moment right after the doctor says, “I think we need to do a biopsy,” when this stab of fear comes. It didn’t last long, mercifully.

And then came—what? 1Thessalonians 5:9-10. It’s just as pure gospel as you can get.

God has not destined you for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,who died for you so that whether you wake or sleep you will live with him.

Settled. Peace like a river.

The Gospel Is Perfect for Your Needs

That’s just gospel—perfectly timed, perfectly applied, perfectly suited to my need. That’s why the Bible is so thick—because there are so many different needs that you have. And there are suitable places where the gospel is unfolded for you, so that if you immerse yourself in the whole book, always with an eye for what Christ has wrought for you and purchased for you in this thick, glorious history of God’s interaction with people, he will give you what you need.

Therefore, everything in me says, and I hope to say until the day I die, “Now, to him who is able to strengthen me, according to Paul’s gospel, to him—to that God—be glory forever and ever.”

God came into history in Jesus Christ; he died in order to destroy the power of hell and death and Satan and sin; and he did it through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

A Plea to Believe

I know that there are people reading this who are not trusting Jesus Christ, and therefore can only expect condemnation. So I’m just going to plead with you here at the end, lay down that rebellion. Lay it down. And simply embrace the gospel that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Righteous One, died for your sins. He was raised on the third day, triumphant over all his enemies. He reigns until he puts all of his enemies under his feet. Forgiveness of sins and a right standing with God comes freely through him alone, by faith alone.

I plead with you, don’t try to be strong in your own strength; it will not be there when you need it. Only one strength will be there—the strength that God gives according to the gospel.

Don’t put it off.

The Gospel and Mercy Ministry

Pastor Don brought the word from 1 Peter last night and touched on a topic he's preached a lot over the past couple years, that being mercy ministry. The following little clip is Don explaining mercy ministry and the gospel.

Can't get enough of the gospel

I just can't get enough of the gospel. The gospel that saves and justifies man from sin when he responds in faith is the same gospel that encourages, challenges, reminds, and sanctifies believers. Here's the gospel message from the words of Jeremiah Burroughs and found on monergism.com

The gospel of Christ in general is this: It is the good tidings that God has revealed concerning Christ. More largely it is this: As all mankind was lost in Adam and became the children of wrath, put under the sentence of death, God, though He left His fallen angels and has reserved them in the chains of eternal darkness, yet He has thought upon the children of men and has provided a way of atonement to reconcile them to Himself again...Namely, the second person of the Trinity takes man's nature upon Himself, and becomes the Head of a second covenant, standing charged with sin. He answers for it by suffering what the law and divine justice required, and by making satisfaction by keeping the law perfectly, which satisfaction and righteousness He tenders up to the Father as a sweet savor of rest for the souls that are given to Him...And now this mediation of Christ is, by the appointment of the Father, preached to the children of men, of whatever nation or rank, freely offering this atonement unto sinners for atonement, requiring them to believe in Him and, upon believing, promising not only a discharge of all their former sins, but that they shall not enter into condemnation, that none of their sins or unworthiness shall ever hinder the peace of God with them, but that they shall through Him be received into the number of those who shall have the image of God again to be renewed unto them, and they they shall be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation.

Humbling - the theology of suffering

I am humbled each time I hear Joni Eareckson Tada speak, this brief presentation is no different.

Her presentation begins about 5 minutes in.

Free Don Whitney book

Each month Christianaudio.com gives away a free audiobook. This month they are offering Don Whitney's book Spiritual Disciplines of the Christian Life. To get the free download type MAR2009 into the coupon box.