-
Parental Sin: Modeling Repentance for Your Children
I must admit the idea of generational sin has made me both angry and terrified. First, angry because I didn’t want to be responsible for anyone else’s sin, and second, terrified because of the overwhelming guilt I would feel causing someone else to sin. The truth is that we all sin and our children are often witnesses to our sin. They also remember our sins quite clearly! I can attest to that as a parent of adult children. But they also remember our repentance. About ten years ago, I was in the store with my kids who were around nine and 12 years old at the time. The week had…
-
Broken, Stubborn and Unworthy: Responding to God’s Call
I recently read through Exodus and Jonah, one on my read-through the Bible in a year project and another as a study my sister led. Reflecting upon both, I was struck by how much I resonated with Moses and Jonah. When God finally called on Moses to deliver his people out of slavery, he found him as a fugitive shepherd having wandered in the wilderness for 40 years after he had murdered an Egyptian. Moses did not exactly have a stellar past. Moses was also shy and awkward in public speaking (Exodus 4:10-12) and not charismatic in nature. Rather than let Moses get out of the call, God provided a…
-
Working Geniuses and God-Given Talents
Take a Look at 6 Working Geniuses and Your Natural Talents A genius by no means am I! However, I wanted to reflect on an exercise we did last fall at our annual planning retreat for work. I sell real estate, aid in running our construction business, homeschool and am a contributor to this blog. In preparing for our retreat, we took an assessment that reviewed our 6 working geniuses by The Table Group. The Table Group states that everyone has natural, God-given talents when it comes to work (and my guess is…life in general). After answering a number of questions, you are provided with your results. Although there are…
-
A Tribute to Mother’s Day
Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.” Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates. Proverbs 31:25-31 Mothers play…
-
A Devotional for the Anxious Heart: 1 Peter 5:6-7
Scripture: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him because he cares for you.” (ESV) Thought: Our pride, or refusal to depend on God and be subject to him) often is the root of my anxiety. Pride keeps us captive to worry, anxiety, and dread because we are constantly trying to be “enough”. We are not enough on our own—never have been, never will be. Only through the power of the Holy Spirit are we made whole, new creations in Christ. Application: What do you do with worry? Are you humble enough to…
-
A Review of The Jesus Revolution Movie
My husband and I recently watched the new movie The Jesus Revolution. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t exactly sure what the movie was about before we watched it. We were bored on a Saturday night and looking for something to do. For those of you who haven’t seen or heard of the movie, the movie portrays the rise of the Jesus Movement in the early 1970s from the perspective of the pastor and members of the Calvary Chapel church in Costa Mesa, CA. The movie is based on true events and the lives of Pastor Chuck Smith, street preacher Lonnie Frisbee, and member and future pastor/evangelist Greg Laurie. It covers a…
-
What is the importance of relationships and the vulnerability in your faith journey?
I have spent much of my faith journey traveling alone and didn’t realize it. And, I am now realizing how harmful that has been in limiting my spiritual growth. I know, it doesn’t sound like it makes much sense, but let me explain a bit more. For those of you who have been with us for a while, you know that I have been a life-long believer in Jesus Christ. I really don’t remember a time when I didn’t know him or believe in him. I have always been a member of a church and usually very active, with ebbs and flows depending on my life circumstances. I also grew…
-
A Multi-generational Bible Study Review
What is the Impact of Relationship on Spiritual Growth? In the fall of last year, my mom and sisters and I embarked on a weekly bible study. Sometimes, my daughter also joins. It took me a while to realize that we had started a multi-generational bible study. It took me even longer to realize the significance of what a multi-generational bible study meant. The first book we decided to walk through was “How People Grow” by Henry Cloud and John Townsend. The book walks through the importance of relationship in growing spiritually. What we have found in doing the study together is that they are right, relationships are key to…
-
Easter Blessings Are Here — “He Is Risen”
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 What significance this verse has on Easter. God loved us so much that he gave up his son’s life so that we could have eternal life with him (that is for whoever believes in him). On this very important Christian holiday, we celebrate Jesus’s resurrection and being raised from the dead. How wonderful it is to know that he paid the price our sins. That should in itself be enough to never want to sin again, yet we fall short. O but my dear…
-
A Devotional for the Anxious Heart: Proverbs 3:5-6
Scripture: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on you own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” (ESV) Thought: How often have you sought understanding through the world or your feelings? Is all your anxiety connected to a real and present danger? Often the condition of heart reflects the insecurities we take on from the expectations of the world, the flesh, and the devil. When we act upon these fears, we often make our situation even more difficult. We add fuel to the fire, rather than cooling the flames with the truth of God’s love and guidance. …
-
The Five-Minute Trade Off of Time
Choosing a Different Rabbit Trail–Social Media Vs. Biblical Study A minute here, a swipe there. All so innocent, right? Or maybe not. Most days a person that engages in social media spends an average of 147 minutes per day viewing different social media platforms. Yes…you are spot on with your math…. that is 2 hours and 27 minutes!! This is something I struggle with at times. I justify taking a look for work…LOL! Yes….I say what if I have a new message from a potential client? What if I have new likes or comments that need a response? I am continually told in my industry that response time is the…
-
Spring Cleaning and Spiritual Cleaning
What comes to mind when you think about spring cleaning? Perhaps it is cleaning windows, dusting, washing the bed sheets, and so on. Maybe it is going through closets and cupboards and getting rid of excess stuff we no longer use or need. The feeling of getting our spring cleaning done is one of energy and a sense of renewal and ready for what comes. Have you ever added to your spring-cleaning list a spiritual cleaning. What does spiritual cleaning look like. The bible tells us to draw near to God and cleanse ourselves from within. Let’s take a look at Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O…
-
Spiritual Growth:
Identify feelings and behaviors that are holding you back Depending upon what you are reading, people have different names for the feelings and behaviors that hold us back from growing spiritually. Some people call them sins. Some roadblocks. Others, character defects. I tend to like the term character defects or patterns of sin. The feelings and behaviors that hold us back are not one-offs, but usually patterns of behavior or emotional reactions that we have developed over time to make sense of life, cope with life, or get what we want. The important thing about character defects is that what once may have been helpful creates problems in our lives…
-
Find the Misery and Make a Rule
I recently listened to a podcast from Dr. Henry Cloud, where he presented a simple but powerful idea. When things aren’t going well in life, if we are struggling with feeling depressed or directionless, perhaps finding the source of the misery and making a rule about it is the best advice we can get. Let me give you an example from my own life. I had a period of feeling anxious and overwhelmed this fall. I felt hopeless, fatigued, and generally depressed about much of life. I admit I spent more time being in this funk than I did doing anything about it. I almost wore it like a warm…
-
A Devotional for the Anxious Heart: Psalm 23:4
Scripture: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff comfort me.” (ESV) Thought: Psalm 23 paints a picture of a shepherd watching over his flock. As believers, we are part of this flock. Because of David’s relationship with God, he experiences rest, renewal, righteousness, comfort, blessing, mercy, and a place in God’s house. In the entire of this psalm, God is the giver and David is the receiver. Because of God’s graciousness and love, David lacks nothing. We lack nothing. Application: We are the recipients of God’s grace, mercy, and goodness.…
-
Review: The James Method of Bible Study
The Bible holds a vast amount of knowledge, and there are many ways to study that knowledge. I have used a variety of methods over the years. In some cases, the method chosen has been dictated by purpose. I use academic exegetical analysis methods if I am engaging in academic work. For my everyday bible study, I have used the SOAP (scripture, observation, application, prayer) method or prewritten bible studies on specific texts or topics. Recently, I decided to undertake a series of biblical topics using the James Method. The James Method incorporates several components, including: Overall, I am enjoying the process. I love words, so the verse mapping component…
-
Sunday School–Part 3: The Shortcomings of Application in Today’s World
Moving Forward So far, we have touched on how Sunday School started and how churches are teaching it today. Unfortunately, we continue to see the decline of churches and congregations everywhere. We see churches allowing things that do not reflect what God tells us in the Bible. All of this causes us sinners to further question our faith and where we can find leaders, pastors, churches and fellow believers that truly follow the words of the Bible. We now live in a time where we are seeing not one, not two, but three and four generations of people who have not grown up reading the word. They have no understanding…
-
Sunday School–Part 2: Where We Are Today
Watered Down Teachings I have attended Sunday School since I was a child and have continued as an adult. Yet, as I do Bible studies, attend Sunday school, and read my Bible, I still encounter moments that I don’t know the next step or wonder if I have always had it wrong. I have ventured into being a homeschool mom in the last couple of years and it has opened me to view learning through a different lens. I look at each part of our curriculum as to how to present and what the outcome will be. It has brought me to look at how we teach and learn about…
-
Sunday School–Part 1: History & Establishment
Childlike Faith I have come to write this article as a reflection of thoughts and perceptions in my personal life. I have a highly sensitive son that struggles with the chaos and unpredictability of Sunday School. We have tried and tried again and not found it to be a comfortable atmosphere for him. By the time he may get adjusted, class has ended for the day or the year. In going through the attempts of getting him to go each year, I have struggled as a mom with the thought that he is missing out. Therefore, I asked myself…“missing out on what?” This is a three part series on Sunday…
-
Magical Thinking: Does God have a magic wand?
So far, we have reviewed the sin, truth, and experiential models of human growth. Finally, the supernatural model, while it has lots of variations, focuses on a type of magical healing and deliverance—the Holy Spirit will make things change if you just believe. I like to refer to this model as the magical thinking “poofing” model! It wasn’t until recently, and a bit before we started the How People Grow (Cloud & Townsend, 2001) Bible study, that I recognized how much magical or fairy tale thinking I have relied on during my life. I loved to read as a kid, anything and everything. Most of the books in my house…
-
The Experiential Model: I am my experience.
Last week we discussed the truth model of human growth, as discussed in How People Grow (Cloud & Townsend, 2001). This week we will cover the experiential model. The experiential model urges you to find the pain in your life and deal with it. When I think of this model, I picture laying on a fainting couch and having Sigmund Freud hypnotize me to find long-buried memories of how my parents or loved ones tormented me in my youth and past. While this isn’t quite what this model espouses, much of the model does rest in rooting out pain and resentment and processing it out of the body. Again, as…
-
The Truth Model: The Truth Will Set You Free
Last week we discussed the sin model of human growth, as discussed in How People Grow (Cloud & Townsend, 2001). This week we will cover the truth model. The truth model argues that if we just understand truth, we will be set free from sin and struggle. The underlying premise behind the truth model is that if you don’t experience “freedom in Christ,” you lack or don’t understand the “truth”. The solution? Read, study, and memorize scripture. If you do this enough, eventually, you will be set free and know the truth not just in your mind but also in your heart (Cloud & Townsend, 2001). I can see this…
-
The Sin Model: The limits of confessing sin.
My mother, sisters, and I have recently started a bible study together. I ran across a study called How We Grow by Henry Cloud and John Townsend (2001). I have previously worked with and used materials related to boundaries created by this duo and was interested in reading more of their information. As licensed psychologists and believers, their work focuses on bringing biblical truth to light regarding personal and relational issues. The study, so far, has been enlightening, and I plan on sharing a few of our insights from the study over the next few weeks and months. The first enlightenment I received was four different models of how people…
-
January Devotional
Scripture: “I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.” Psalm 3:5 Thought: This verse is part of a psalm of David where he cries out to God for safety as he flees from his son Absalom. Imagine the state David might have been in, overwhelmed by his enemies, including his own flesh and blood. Whom could he trust? Where could he turn? How could he find rest for his spirit and body? Verse five of this psalm says that he lay down and slept. Imagine the trust David had to lay down and rest despite the danger around him. Action: In what area of life…
-
Welcoming a New Year
“For we are only of yesterday and know nothing, because our days on earth are as a shadow.” Job 8:9 As we close 2022 and look to 2023, may we be reminded of that each day is a blessing. We hope that you have enjoyed the many perspectives, thoughts and direction that we have provided to you this year. We have amazing things planned for 2023 and can’t wait for you to join us on the journey. Blessings, The Ladies of Rhubarb & Rubbish–Jessica Clemens, Liz Hunt & Carrie Guthmiller
-
Christmas Devotional
Scripture: “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14 Thought: Immanuel means “God with us.” Stop for just a moment and think about the significance of that meaning. God with us. God isn’t somewhere out there. He is here, now, in this moment. Can you feel Him? Do you hear Him? Application: So often, among the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, we find ourselves without time to “be” with God. We are doing a lot, but not being a lot. We might have those brief moments of connection, a Christmas…
-
Singing Together During the Holidays: Musicians Make It “Singable”
I am a huge music lover. I have played piano since I was five and am a decent amateur church pianist. I look forward every year to hearing the sounds of traditional holiday music, both church and some secular. For years, I played with the church praise and worship team. One of my essential requirements for playing with a team was that the team chose songs with meaning and songs that the rest of the congregation could easily sing. What does this eliminate? Most of the radio versions of popular Christian music. Why does this eliminate them? Because most of the songs on the radio aren’t singable by average churchgoers…
-
Preparation and Prayer: The Advent of Our Lord
Today I am home waiting out a winter storm that may bring us up to 18 inches of white fluffy snow. As I sit looking out the window, my mind has been absently thinking about the details of the upcoming holiday season. Have I ordered this? I should start working on that. Hmm, I wonder if so and so is going to stop by? As a woman and mother, planning is a big part of my life. And, I tend to over plan! However, this year my planning is taking a somewhat different perspective. I’ve been thinking more and more about advent. Christmas gets most of the attention, and for…
-
December Devotional–The Book of Luke
The Book of Luke “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice.” Luke 11:28 “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need.” Luke 12:31 It is important to spend time in the word every day. Some days are busy and just more challenging to get that accomplished, but that doesn’t mean on those busier days we can’t just spend more time in prayer. As we are in the beginning of December it is sometimes so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. This is the time…
-
Sunday School–Part 3: The Shortcomings of Application in Today’s World
Moving Forward So far, we have touched on how Sunday School started and how churches are teaching it today. Unfortunately, we continue to see the decline of churches and congregations everywhere. We see churches allowing things that do not reflect what God tells us in the Bible. All of this causes us sinners to further question our faith and where we can find leaders, pastors, churches and fellow believers that truly follow the words of the Bible. We now live in a time where we are seeing not one, not two, but three and four generations of people who have not grown up reading the word. They have no understanding…
