'A Faithful Woman' Book Club

DGW - Chapter 10-11 - Marriage and Singlness

2010-12-10T11:56:00.000+10:30

Hi all

Just some notes from our last discussion regarding Chapters 11 and 12.

Chapter 11 - the Discipline of Singleness
We noted that you do not often get the message these days that it is better to be single. We certainly are easily "indoctrinated" by our culture, as Barbara states on pg 133 "indoctrinated by our relationship and sex-worshiping culture".
It was also interesting to note how Barbara talks about being content with where you are in life - with the place, whether single or married, that God has placed you. p 134. She goes on to say that "singleness is not always a permanent state" p 135, and we noted with this, that marriage is not always a permanent state either. That at some point many married people will again be single with the death of their partner. So, again, how important it is to be content and serving God whichever state we are in.
A big part of our discussion centred on bringing up our children, and particularly little girls to not be too focused on marriage/romance. This included the idea of training them to be good single people, and not just good married people (in the sense that they need to have the skills to look after themselves and learn to be able to occupy themselves for the Lord, whilst unmarried).

Chapter 12 - the Discipline of Marriage
We were struck by the story Barbara shares of her own parents and their marriage. It certainly isn't the typical picture of a successful and delightful marriage, but it is so lovely to see that simple picture of a wife sticking by her husband (as that is what she is called to do) and much blessing being passed on to the family as a result, pg 142-144.
We also discussed the importance of traditional vows (as opposed to homemade vows, p 145) because they are reflective of the Bibles' teaching about husbands and wives.
A lot of our discussion also focussed on our culture in this chapter - we discussed how our culture has such a minimal and poor view of marriage, ie. they want divorce to be easy, they want homosexual marriage to take place. We also realised how central true and proper marriage is to a good and godly society. In basic family units, how important it is that men and women play out their roles in marriage according to God's laws and directions.
The woman's role of submission is addressed by Barbara on pg 147-148. It is counter cultural to understand that this role is not demeaning. Society wants to tell us that being in submission is demeaning for women.
The other role of helper is discussed on pg 150-152, and we learnt that as a helper, we must encourage our husbands.
pg 153-154 speaks about the importance of respecting your husband. We discussed that when we don't respect our husbands in marriage it can spill out into so many other areas. Respect is a very important part of our role and we must seek to maintain it, even if we don't feel like giving it "It's respect that is given because it's the Lord who requires that respect be given".
Finally, Barbara's goal as a wife stirred us all, and inspires us to also seek such a goal as wives with our husbands. "One day I want to hear God say to Kent, "Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Master." As Kent's helper in this life, those words will be my joy" (pg 158)

Next week we will cover Ch 13 in our last Book Club for the year. =)

by Mary Wall

DGW - Chapter 10, The Church

2010-11-18T11:26:00.001+10:30

The Church Ch 10

This chapter really reminded us of how important the body of Christ is, and
how interconnected we are. If one of us suffers spiritually or physically,
it does affect the rest. We truly all have a part to play and no matter how
small it may seem, we are a network, a body, a family for the Lord.
It also struck us that being part of the church is a commitment. We should
commit not just to attending church for a certain time on a Sunday, but
should make and invest time into fellowship (and quality fellowship) with
one another.

How wonderful that we are family, children of God and will be a family
together for eternity.

We felt Barbara's section on a woman's role in the church (pg 126-129) was a
good summary and stated what the Bible does say as well as what it does not
say "What is prohibited is preaching, such as is enjoined in Paul's charge
to Timothy, "Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season;
correct, rebuke and encourage - with great patience and careful instruction"
(2 Tim 4:2) " (p 127)

How did you feel about this chapter? We'd love to hear your view...

Thanks again Mary!!!....

DGW - Chapter 9, Persaverance

2010-11-18T11:25:00.001+10:30

Hi Girls... I was unable to attend the last few book club meetings, but Mary has kindly put together these points of discussion:

Thanks Mary!

We'd love to hear your thoughts on this chapter... here's ours:

Discipline of Perseverance Ch 9

We discussed how perseverance is a decision that we make. Pg 103 - the
pastor and his wife described in the sad story about their children dying,
show this clearly. In that situation they could have sunk under what God had
delivered to them, or they could trust God through it, though it was so very
hard.

We also discussed TRUST - how we can put our trust in God in hard times, not
that WE will persevere in and of ourselves, but that we trust God provides
all we need to persevere, and that He Himself will keep us.

One observation on perseverance that was mentioned was how God prepares us for the BIG things we will face in our lives by teaching us to persevere in
the little things day by day.

Sometimes it can be harder to persevere in the little things (especially
when we seek to do them in our own strength). Often it is in the big things
that come into our lives that we draw closest to, and rely on God fully,
because it shows us clearly our reliance and dependence on Him to get
through.

We found it an encouragement on p 106 that Christ prays for us, and this can
comfort us to persevere.

Pg 106 - the description of Nancy's "5 years in the sifter" shows that
trials can be ongoing and there may be no end in sight and sometimes we may not feel like God is with us through them, but we must 'hang in there'.
"give thanks in all things" "rejoice in the Lord always" - reminds us how
our attitudes to trials can be a wonderful means of witnessing to God's
goodness in hard times.

We discussed how perseverance means knowing you are completely submitted and at rest in God's circumstances He has placed in our life. We do not persevere in the hope that things will change, but persevere through the trials because it is the way God moulds us and causes us to grow in grace.
Spiritually we will grow, though physically at times, we may continue to
suffer.

Thank you Mary!...

DGW - Chapter 7 and 8, Contentment and Propriety

2010-10-20T11:34:00.001+10:30

Last night we met to discuss chapters 7 (Contentment) and Chapter 8 (Propriety). We'd love to hear what you learned from these chapters.
Here are some of the points we discussed:

CONTENTMENT
Why must godly contentment be independent of circumstances and conditions?
We recognised that are human hearts can never be satisfied by worldly goods and material things, yet that is what man kind is constantly trying to do. We fill up our life with material things and relationships in an effort to achieve contentment. Forever seeking and never finding... which is the exact opposite of the gospel " So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you." Luke 11:4-14 If we seek the Lord we will find him.
"We were made to know God! the knowledge of God is where satisfaction and pleasure are found. Here's a wise word: "Laughter and gladness are where joy, contentment and gratitude overflow. But in an odd turn, these things proceed from an understanding of the truths of man's utter depravity and the salvation of the Lord." Contentment is found in the knowledge of God!" Page 84
If contentment was born out of the abundance of our circumstances and conditions, then we all should be the most contented people of all time, as we have much more and better living conditions than any people in history. But the fact is depression, Anxiety, Sadness, dissatisfaction and discontent are everywhere. Why? How can we know God? ... Study Gods word...

PROPRIETY
WORDS: We also enjoyed the anecdote from John Wesley's life:

'"Once while John Wesley was preaching, he noticed a woman in the audience who was known for critical attitude. All through the service she sat and stared at his new tie. When the meeting ended, she came up to him and said very sharply, "Mr. Wesley, the strings on your tie are much too long. It's an offense to me!" He asked if any of the women present happened to have a pair of scissors in their purses. When the scissors were handed to him, he gave them to his critic and asked her to trim the streamers to her liking.

After she clipped them off near the collar, he said, "are you sure they're all right now?"

"Yes that's much better."

"Then let me have those shears a moment," said Wesley. "I'm sure you wouldn't mind if I also gave you a bit of correction. I must tell you, madam, that your tongue is an offense to me – it's too long! Please stick it out... I'd like to take some off." 'DRESS: It was encouraging to read that we should dress in a way that is feminine as well as appropriate and modest. It is apropriate to dress like women and celebrate our differences. "The Word of God addresses what women wear precisely because it values girls. Celebrating gender differences highlights a woman's value. Modesty is intrinsically elevating." But modesty doesn't mean that we..."react to the pressure by donning oversized, baggy, mannish clothing ... " page 92 and 93

"Does your apparel reflect your desire for modesty and appropriate femininity? Does your outward appearance reflect your 'new life' as a believer?" Page 102
We noted that we find it difficult to find clothing for our girls in the shops that are modest and appropriate... A business idea to create a girls fashion range that is age appropriate, modest and femanine?
ATTITUDE
"Because pride is so close to our hearts, it's especially difficult to discern this attitude. How does spending time with God help you see your self with appropriate humility? Would you consider your attitude before God one of "reverent submission"? page 102

DGW - Chapter 5: Discipline of Worship

2010-09-23T12:42:00.000+09:30

Because of the Way Barbara has structured her book, I thought it might be a good idea to use her 'RENEW YOUR MIND' section to frame the discussion.

Discussion points: Page 63

Explain why it is possible to feel worshipful and not truly be worshiping?

How is our obedience an act of worship? See 1 Samuel 15:22; Romans 12:1

What does it mean to worship God "in spirit and in truth"? See John 4:21-24; 17:17

How can you worship Chris in all of life? See Romans 12:1-2.

Understanding that worship must be Christ-centered (since He is at once our sacrifice, priest, and temple), how should we conduct our prayers, singing, and preaching?

What could you (and your family) do to be spiritually prepared for Sunday morning worship? Make a list, share it with your husband and children, and work together at implementing you plan.

We'd love to hear any other thoughts you have about this chapter...

Disciplines of a Godly Woman

2010-09-23T12:41:00.000+09:30

HI girrls.

Well my posting is a little bit behind! I think this book about 'discipline' will be helpful...

We are currently reading 'Disciplines of a Godly Woman' by Barbara Hughes.

' For many of us, the word alone evokes dread. It's not that we dont want to be disciplined physically, mentally, and spiritually. The challenge seems too hard, and the motivation more about duty than desire. When it comes to our Christian walk, we don't want to be legalistic and just follow some set of rules. That's not what it's all about, right?

Barbara Hughes answers with this encouraging reality: The true heart of spiritual discipline is a relationship with God. As you grow in that relationship, embracing your heavenly Father and his ways, you discover that discipline is your lifeline to Him. It is how He gives meaningful shape to all the days of your life.

The "dread" of a disciplined life will be replaced with desire and anticipation as you find that there is no greater purpose than loving Him in every moment, every activity, and every thoughts. Using poignant stories and faithful reminders, Barbara opens her own heart to help you find the joy of full surrender. Her honest and encouraging look at the Word of God reveals the keys to living a truly godly life. And to strengthen your walk day to day, she offers hymns and praise psalms for your devotional times, a long list of recommended books that will lift your spirits, and Bible study helps to remind you that you're not alone.'

If your reading along with us, please feel free to share your thoughts with us all.

Respectable Sins: Chapters 7 & 8

2009-09-30T22:19:00.001+09:30

We almost had a full house this week for bookclub. It was nice. :)

Here’s a snippet of our discussion:

UNGODLINESS:

How do you live each day? Do you live like God really exists? Of course you’d never so that you live like He doesn’t. But this chapter was quite confronting about the very fact that we really do live like he’s not a part of the little details. We have our devotions in the morning and then get on with life, and forget about Him for the rest of the day.

How ungodly are you? Quite a confronting question but as Jerry puts it… “If you followed my reasoning this far, you can see that no Christian is totally godly, and to the extent we are not, there is still some degree of ungodliness in us. The question we should honestly and humbly ask is, How ungodly am I? How much of my life do I live without any regard for God? How much of my daily activities do I go through without any reference to God? Page 58

Do you live ALL of life as if God is relevant or irrelevant?

It reminded us of a discussion we had whilst reading ‘Loving God with All Your Mind’ by Elizabeth George. She encourages us to get into the habit of using the down times, when our mind is often not engaged, ie. Doing dishes and mundane tasks, to train our minds. To think on Him. She suggests some practical things like, memorizing scripture whilst you do the dishes, or vacuuming. While walking or driving. Fill your mind with the Word of God.

As we discussed Gods Moral Will that we live lives that please God, we recognized that in many ways we are God’s representatives to the world. Do we live our lives as advertisements for Christ? When people see the way we live, behave, act and interact, is God glorified, or are we just like them. Do they see any in us? We should treat every meeting with others as ‘divine appointments’ and make every interaction with others as positive as it can be. We should seek to be and influence for good. We never know what’s going on in the lives of people around us. They may be having a terrible time, and even that smile, or encouraging word, may be an opportunity to bless them.

ANXIETY

Who else found this a challenging chapter? Had you ever truly acknowledged that your anxiety and worry was sin? In our worrying we are displaying our lack of Trust in God. When Paul says in Philippians 4:6 “Do not be anxious about anything”….
‘ “Don’t be anxious,” it has the force of a moral command. In other words, it is the moral will of God that we not be anxious. Or to say it more explicitly, anxiety is sin.’ Page 64

Sometimes our first reaction is fear and anxiety, and its often involuntary. We didn’t feel that this was necessarily wrong but that we should then step back and remember the Lord is in control, rather than indulge it. We must not let our emotions control us.

We loved the anecdote about Gods Agenda versus our on page 65. “Anxiety is a sin also because it is a lack of acceptance of God’s providence in our lives” page 64. As reformed people, we own the belief that God is Sovereign and in control of every detail of our lives. But do we really live like we believe it? Do we accept that when things don’t go according to our plans, that it is because God has a different plan? Even the little plans? Even the printer not working?

I pray that God would help us to see these little trials and frustrations as opportunities to grow in godliness rather than hurdles and obstacles. “Some believers have difficulty accepting the fact that God does in fact orchestrate all events and circumstances, and even those of us who do believe it often lose sight of this glorious truth. Instead we tend to focus on the immediate causes of our anxiety rather than remember that those immediate causes are under the sovereign control of God.” Page 65

Well there is so much more to be said… but I think my post is long enough.

Share with us your thoughts on these chapters… we’re anxious to hear your thoughts!

P.S. I've also started a face book page for the book club, as some of you were having difficulty getting online to post comments, so if you want to follow along on facebook, follow this link to the page. those of you who would like to do this but are not on facebook yet, let me know and I'll send you a facebook invitation.

Respectable Sins: 4,5,6

2009-09-21T21:41:00.001+09:30

Hi Girls

Well, I’m running late on this post… sorry. Thought I’d better post it before we discuss the next chapters tomorrow!

We did meet to discuss Chapters 4, 5, & 6. And here are a few of the thoughts we discussed.

Preach the Gospel to yourself every day: We were reminded once again, how important it is to preach the gospel to ourselves every day. In doing so we recognize how sinful we are, and appreciate and love his great Mercy all the more. But it also helps us to refocus on the Lord, and remember that His work is accomplished, That Christ has the victory and we will overcome. It helps us put all our trust in Him as we try to put to death sin in us. Through Christ’s work we are freed from its Guilt and its power “… Christ, in His work for us and in us, saves us not only from the penalty of sin but also from its dominion or reigning power in our lives. This twofold aspect of Chris’s great work is beautifully captured in Augustus Toplady’s great hymn “Rock of Ages,” with the words,

Let the water and the blood,
From the riven side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure,
Cleanse me from its guilt and power.
Page 33

“Stepping forward to accept my place as a sinner in need of the gospel each day drives a dagger into my self-righteous heart and prepares me to face up to and accept the reality of the sin that still dwells within me.” Page 34

I think its so useful in fact, to Preach the Gospel to yourself daily, that I decided to put it into the monthly planner this year to help us do just that.

Will you preach the gospel to yourself every day?

The Work of the Holy Spirit: What an encouragement it is to know that the Holy Spirit works in us to change us. That He transforms us. “… That is, Paul urges us to work in the confidence that God is at work in us. Though Paul refers to God, presumable God the Father, as the One at work, we have already seen that God works through the Holy Spirit as the transforming agent in our lives.’ Page 43

The Beauty of Trials: Can trials be beautiful? Can we look at our trials and see and opportunity to put to death certain sins? Do we recognize that often our trials give us great blessings through the lessons God teaches us. They cause us to truly trust in the Lord, and to sense our great dependency on Him.
“… It is obvious that we can deal with the activity of our subtle sins only as the circumstances we encounter expose them.” Page 44

What are trials? Are the always the big things? Circumstances that bring us to tears? Or do we face little trials every day? We should accept even the little daily trials as opportunity to put to death sin? We should focus on our sins, and concentrate on putting them to death when opportunity to sin arises? And, Not only Not committing certain sin in each trial, but actively practicing the fruits of the spirit in our daily response to our circumstances.

Respectable Sins: 1,2,3

2009-09-01T22:24:00.002+09:30

Well, Tuesday we got together again to discussed the first 3 chapters of Respectable sins. Here’s snippet of what we discussed:

The terribleness of sin and the depth of Gods Grace: How did you feel reading it? Most of us felt it was depressing to be reminded just how sinful we are and how terrible sin really is. It feels like we fight against those ‘acceptable sins’ all the time…. The cold hard truth. You can’t dress it up!

It definitely catches us up short when we realize that we do all at some time display ‘conduct unbecoming a saint’ as he discussed on page 15.

“Conduct unbecoming an officer” that expression covered anything from minor offenses resulting in a reprimand to major ones requiring a court martial… it was a statement that the conduct was inconsistent with that expected of a military officer. The officer so described had failed to live up to his responsibility to act as an officer should act.

Perhaps we might do well to adopt a similar expression for believers: “conduct unbecoming a saint” Such an expression would pull us up short, wouldn’t it? When we gossip, become impatient or get angry, we could remind ourselves that our conduct is unbecoming a saint. We are in principle, if not in degree, acting like the Corinthians. We are living inconsistently with our calling.’ Page 15-16

‘Sin is sin… It is unbecoming a saint.’ Page 16

Is our conduct inconsistent with that expected of a Christian? …Sadly I think we all know the answer.

But it is also beautiful in that in being shown the depth of our depravity, The horribleness and malignancy of Sin, we are truly reminded of the depth of Gods Grace and how amazing it truly is.

How can anyone truly understand the Gospel, without first understanding how terrible sin is. If sin is not that terrible, then we don’t really need a saviour.

The watering down of words: We found the statements about the watering down of the language of sin to be very true. Jerry concluded that… ‘the whole idea of sin has virtually disappeared from our culture’ page 18. How true this is. Once upon a time the names for sin sounded terrible and everyone new it was sin, but today we interchange the words, so they no longer have the negative connotations, and even sometimes seem positive.

Adultery has become ‘an affair’, Fornication has become ‘sleeping with someone’ or ‘living with someone’ a viable alternative to marriage, ‘Murder’ has become ‘termination’. And these are only the most obvious sins. Society has made industries out of Gossip and made greed a virtue.

But worst still it is clear the ‘church’ is also guilty of softening the blow.

It was interesting how sermons have changed since the puritan era (see list of titles on page 25), and how many now have difficulty communicating what sin is. “… the language frequently cushions the listeners from their impact as it employs a variety of softening rhetorical devices.” Page 18 “indeed, strong biblical words for sin have been excised from our vocabulary. People no longer commit adultery; instead they have an affair. Corporate executives do not steal; they commit fraud.” Page 19

Compare ourselves to the word not to each other: We thought it was good to be reminded not to compare ourselves with others around us, but rather to compare ourselves with the Word. As Jerry said on page 24 ‘We who are believers tend to evaluate our character and conduct relative to the moral culture in which we live. Since we usually live at a higher moral standard than society at large, it is easy for us to feel good about ourselves and to assume that God feels that way also. We fail to reckon with the reality of sin still dwelling within us.’

Well, now that we’ve been crushed by the weight of our sins. And seen how terrible, infectious, and deadly the disease of sin is… we look forward to the next chapters we’ll be reading…
‘The Remedy for Sin’, ‘The Power of the Holy Spirit’ and ‘Directions for Dealing with Sins’

Look forward to hearing your thoughts…

Late start!

2009-08-17T14:16:00.002+09:30

Hi girls

well the books have finally arrived, and I'll get them too you as soon as I can. Some of you already have them :)

We will meet on the 25th of August and discuss Chapters 1, 2 & 3, as they are short and go together. In all 12 pages.

So we'll read
Chapter 1 : Ordinary Saints
Chapter 2: The Disappearance of Sin
Chapter 3: The Malignancy of Sin

Look forward to discussing it with you soon.

Amy

Planner time again!

2009-07-29T14:49:00.006+09:30

to find out more email afaithfulwoman@splitpantsproductions.com.au

New Book Club Book Chosen!

2009-07-29T14:17:00.002+09:30

Hi Girls,

Welcome back after a long break.

We all got a bit tired with our last book, and various commitments and trials lead to us taking a break for a while.

However we're back on, and last night we got together (some of us...;) ) over tea and scones and decided which book we are going to read this term.

We chose this book... Made For His Pleasure by Alistair Begg.... However I just checked with koorong and they only have 2 left in the country and no new orders coming in...

Therfore I think we’ll have to go with #2 on our list... Respectable Sins by Jerry Bridges.

If you’d like to read along with us and would like me to order a book for you, let me know by emailing afaithfulwoman@splitpantsproductions.com by Sunday, so that I can order it in time for next week. There are 6 available in Koorong Adelaide if you’d like to go in yourselves and get it.

Hope you've all had a good break. I look forward to reading with you all again.

Recommended books for Children

2009-03-11T14:23:00.003+10:30

In our last discussion these books were recommended as useful tools in teaching our children scripture and values:

'My 1st Book of Christian Values' by Carine Mackenzie

Excellent for short devotions on Christian values.

'My 1st Book of Memory Verses' by Carine MacKenzie

'My 1st Book of Questions and Answers' by Carine MacKenzie

For those of you have been looking unsuccessfully for the 'Prove it Catechism' that I've recommended on this website this would be a great alternative.

This is the Recommendation by Douglas F. Kelly:

"As evangelicals, we have analysed the harmful cultural influences on our children bu have been less effective in offering positive solutions to the problem. It is a joy, therefore, to recommend very highly Carine MacKenzie's new Catechism for children.

Here is something that Christian parents, grandparents and friends can do for the character developement and wholsome spiritual growth of the young generation: teach them this catechism!

It is Biblically sound throughout; a fine and clear summation of the structure of Reformed Theology. It is both comprehensive and comprehensible. Written in very plain and current English, it wastes no words and keeps to the point at issue in each question, and is organized so that theological concepts follow each other in proper order, much like its model, the Westminster Shorter Catechism.

It presents profound turth as simply as possible. As a father of five, I deem it to be happily accessible to children. It conveys a spirit of uplifting devotion.

This catechism could make a great difference in the lives of those who learn it. May prayer is that it may be widely read.'

All these books are available at Koorong, and probably most christian book stores.

Path Through Trials - Section 3

2009-03-11T14:12:00.002+10:30

This week we discussed Section 3 pages 101 to 135.

Staying in our trials: We discussed staying in our trials. Do we need to? Often there are ways we could avoid the trial but some times the right thing to do is to face them head on. Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego for example, could have avoided their trial. They could have said to themselves ‘well God knows my heart, and that I’m not really worshiping the Golden statue’ They could have bowed in order to avoid the aweful punishment, knowing that in their hearts they still worshiped the true God. But they didn’t. They didn’t compromise. They decided to face their trial. What kinds of trials do we face? Do we compromise even with the every day tests and trials? Could we easily avoid the trial by compromising? What is the right way to respond to each trial, rather than the easy way?

Elizabeth gave us examples of people who stayed in their trials, who chose to go through them rather than avoid them. Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, Abed-Nego, Abraham, and even Christ. “In all of these instances… It was 100 percent Him [God] and not the skills, knowledge, abilities, smooth talking, and clever manipulations of humans that ended these tests. Those involved only had to do three things: step into their test, stay in their test and wait on and trust in God.” page 140

It is good to remember some of those listed in Hebrew ‘Hall of Faith’ failed just like us, but God still honored them. Sarah tried to manipulate her circumstance to bring her trial to an end. She failed, with disastrous consequences, but she became stronger through her trial.

Weakness: The world tells us that to get through difficulties we need to be strong. Find our inner strength and get on with it.

But the bible says that when we are weak we are strong. We need to be at peace with our weakness so that we can trust God for His strength. We should not let pride get the better of us. We should be honest about our weakness. As Elizabeth said on pg 127 ‘Let God use others to assist you as you make your way through your trial. This shows your maturity and lest God work through the other person.’

When facing trials we should look to God for strength and Grace to endure. 'And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am week, then I am strong.' 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

Our weakness emphasizes God’s strength.

The purpose of Trials: ‘God works through trials in our lives to ‘perfect’ and mature us.’ page 136. We thought that in the world today, and in the circumstance in which we live it is difficult for people to see the purpose of trials. We live in a shallow world with often an artificial peace and happiness. In a world that is always seeking to fulfill pleasure, and perpetual happiness, it is difficult to see the need for trials. It is hard for people to see that suffering is necessary to make us stronger, and that on the other side of trials there is blessing.

We were reminded that having nice children is not good enough. We need to help our children develop character and maturity, and sometimes this means allowing them to face a difficult situation rather than stepping in to help them. ‘… maturity and usefulness are the overarching outcomes of trials endured and seen through to the end.’ Pg 143

To Sum up: We all enjoyed this anonymous poem. We thought it a beautiful illustration of how God lovingly teaches us in ways we don’t expect and how we are blessed because of His wisdom.

'I asked God for strength that I might achieve,
I was made weak that I might learn to humbly obey.

I asked for help that I might do greater things,
I was given infirmity that I might do better things.

I asked for riches that I might be happy,
I was given poverty that I might be wise.

I asked for power that I might have the praise of men,
I was given weakness so that I might feel the need of God.

I asked for all things that I might enjoy life,
I was given life that I might enjoy all things.

I got nothing that I asked for but everything I had hoped for.
I am among all men, most richly blessed.'

Page 144-145

“Let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” James 1:4

Recapping Section 1 & 2

2009-02-25T10:15:00.001+10:30

Hi Everyone

We started book club again on Wednesday after a long break, so we thought we’d recap the chapters we’d already read to refresh our memories. Here’s a few of the things we discussed.

Elizabeth’s Challenge: Did you do the ‘assignment’ from page 39? “For one week keep a journal of your trials. Then evaluate them from God’s perspective, choose to count them as all joy, and record the positive results that come from making this godly choice. Choose to follow God’s beautiful and practical path through your tials! He has carefully laid out the stepping-stones fro you, the first one being a joyful attitude.”

Most of us didn’t literally keep a journal but we did take mental notes. We realized that it’s the little everyday trials that we failed to count as Joy. Not the big ones. It’s the little troubles that shape our character. It was a good exercise to do and we realized that if we are not learning from the little trials it’s a scary thought that God my need to use big ones to get through to us!

I actually didn’t do the ‘assignment’ when we originally read it. However recently I spent the night in hospital with both my boys, and a dear ‘book club’ friend told me over the phone to ‘remember to count it as joy’. It was a great encouragement and as I lay on the very uncomfortable trundle bed in between my boys, I was meditating on James 1:2 ‘My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials.’, and it really helped me to put the whole episode into perspective. And in a way I was able to count it joy. I could see that the Lord was teaching me about myself, my attitudes my emotions, impatience. I’m very grateful for the reminder and remembering that it is all part of Gods purposes really encouraged me.

We discussed tiredness: On page 80, Elizabeth says “Tiredness is never an excuse. In fact, it’s a test. If tiredness is our excuse, we have failed the test, and we’ll have to go right back into the Refiner’s fire (Zechariah 13:9). We must deal with this weakness. We must purge it from our lives. Stable women don’t give into tiredness. Instead they fight it. They remain constant and keep on keeping on… no matter what.” The context of this was in relation to our commitments and responsibilities.

How do you feel about that statement? It seemed rather strong, however we though that there were many lessons to learn. If we are too tired, maybe we have committed ourselves to too many things and need to re examine our priorities. If we’re too tired to be effective wives and mothers then maybe we need to commit ourselves to less.

Giants of the faith: We thought it was good to remember “Gods Hall of faith” in Hebrews 11, which Elizabeth discusses on page 96.

I thought I’d leave you with these thoughts from page 97:

“What can you trust Jesus for today? Right this minute, what challenge is standing in your path? Are the little ones driving you crazy? Do you feel trapped? Useless? Remember, you walk with the giants of the faith.

Are you nursing your heal… or a broken heart… or a loved one with cancer? Are you suffering unjustly because of slander of gossip? Are you going without a home, sufficient finances, a husband, or children? Remember, you walk with the giants of the faith.

Realise that just as God was honoured by the faith and fortitude of those incredible saints of old, He will be honored as you trust Him when you suffer.

No matter what God is asking of you, no matter what the size of it, ask Him to give you the grace to take even a small step of trusting obedience in whatever He requires of you. That one small step will put you on God’s path through your trials There you will experience His gracious help and provision, enabling you to stand alongside His giants of genuine faith in your times of testing.”

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-16T15:02:00.000+10:30

First term next year we will begin our discussions with Chapters 9, 10, 11 and 12; Becoming a mature woman. Hope you can join us.

My new years resolution is to be more ‘faithful’ to my commitment of posting to the book club. ☺

I’m praying by then my morning sickness will be over, and it won’t feel like so much of an effort.

I hope you all have a wonderful time with your families over the Christmas holidays, and look forward to reading along with you again next year!

lots of love

Amy

Gods Path Through Your Trials - Section 2

2008-12-16T14:59:00.001+10:30

Becoming a Sable Women

This week we discussed Chapters 5, 6, 7 and 8 about becoming a Stable Woman.

We noticed that our weekly sermons at church seem to be running parallel to what we’re reading in book club… maybe God is telling us something.

This fortnight, Some of us took up Elizabeth’s challenge on page 39 “For one week keep a journal of your trials. Then evaluate them from God’s perspective, choose to count them as all joy, and record the positive results that come from making this godly choice…”

Some of us realised that we didn’t even think about the little trials in our life as being lessons, or counting them as joy… we just got on with it. It was a worthwhile exercise to help us step back, refocus and recognise the reality that God is active in all our trials, no matter how small. That there is something to learn in every little (and big) trial we face. There is always a purpose in every hardship we encounter and that it is to make us stronger… perseverance.

It took us back to the beautiful picture in Jerry Bridges ‘Discipline of Grace’ of God as the loving father guiding, leading and training us with sometimes painful but necessary lessons, to help us become the woman that He wants us to be.

On page 79-82 Elizabeth discusses a harvest of virtues. We felt that Elizabeth often speaks in absolutes, but situational context and perspective helps. For example, she discusses pain, sickness and tiredness, as being no excuse and we should just press on. Whilst it is true that we should always seek to remain faithful to our commitments, we also recognise that there are times when it is very difficult and we may need to ask for help, or take that pain killer but that this is not ‘giving up’. Sometimes the lesson to learn is asking for help, or being honest about your circumstances.

The encouragement to remain faithful in our commitments is however a timely exhortation given what we are seeing of ‘Generation Y’ as they take their place in the workforce and society. Many of this generation seem not to have been taught faithfulness, selfcontrol or commitment.

Gods Path Through Your Trials - Section 1

2008-12-02T13:15:00.002+10:30

Hi Everyone

I know we've already started the book, and I'm very late with my posts. Sorry... morning sickness is keeping me from my computer!

In the first two meetings we discussed the first section 'Becoming a Joyful Woman'.
I've enjoyed it, but we decided to read 4 chapters at a time, as after reading 'The Discipline of Grace' we found this book a lot lighter reading.

following are a few quotes that I found helpful... would love to hear what you all thought.

"I have learned several things about this "counting". First, counting a trial as joy is done with the mind... not the emotions. It is a matter of faith, not of feelings. It is a mental discipline and it is a matter of sheer obedience." page 16

"How strong is you faith and trust in God? Your trials and difficulties are a golden opportunity for joy. You can face your problems with a positive outlook! You can be joyful even when your whole world seems to be falling apart! How? You know the answer by now: Count it all joy. This puts you on God's path through your trials." Page 29

Sounds like a good time to do a bible study on James!

a faithful woman Monthly Planner 2009

2008-10-13T15:05:00.016+10:30

a faithful woman Monthly Planner 2009
This year's planner has a new look!
And it still has all your favourite sections including:

CALENDER
• Monthly Menu Planner
• Monthly Calander
• Week to page opening
• Dates for next year
• Schedule Planner

QUIET TIME
• Quiet times calendar
• Month to page opening

THINGS TO REMEMBER
• Parents prayer program
• inspiring articles

BOOK CLUB
• Reading record
• Book club notes

We’ve also added scripture to inspire you on every page!

If you would like to find out more, or how to order please email Amy at afaithfulwoman@splitpantsproductions.com.au for an info sheet.

Orders close November 14th. Delivery will be in the first two weeks of December.

The Discipline of Choices - Chapter 11

2008-09-15T10:54:00.002+09:30

Well, this chapter seems to have dragged on… this term there has been a lot of illness and numbers have been down, so we haven’t discussed much.

Last week we did however discuss the kind of ‘one-another’ relationships that Jerry talks about in this chapter.

On page 202 Jerry spoke about having friends who can help us in out struggle against sin. “Because mortification is a difficult work, aimed at subduing strong desires and deeply ingrained habits, we need the help of one or two friends to engage in the struggle with us. These friends should be believers who share our commitment to the pursuit of holiness and who are also willing to be mutually open with us about their own struggles”

How did you feel reading this? It would certainly be a humbling experience. My emotions feel torn on this point. On one hand my heart longs for help in the battle against refined sins of thought and deed, but dreads, even fears the thought of revealing my sins. My heart wants to hold them close and deal with them on my own. In discussion we agreed that Jerry probably does not remain revealing all the horrible and specific details as this would in some cases go against other scriptures where the bible warns us not to speak about some things, especially immorality. But it would still involve tearing down of the nice crisp image of ourselves we like to portray to others, and it would mean we’d have to forsake our pride and let that person see who we really are.

Jerry went on to say… “In the battle of putting sin to death, we need the mutual encouragement, challenge, and prayer support of one another. That is why spiritual synergism is so often taught in the New Testament. For example, we are to admonish one another (Colossians 3:16), encourage one another (Hebrews 3:13), confess our sins to one another (James 5:16), bear one another’s burdens (Galations 6:2), and pray for one another (James 5:16).’ Page 202.

Even given the fear we feel in revealing our sins to someone, the ability to share, encourage and pray for one another in our pursuit of holiness is a powerful encouragement and reminder, that we always need Gods help in the battle. We are all sinful, and none of us have it ‘right’. With such friendships we can no only confess our sins, but encourage and spur each other on to godliness. Do you have a friend like this? Will you pray as the Puritans did for a friend like this, a ‘bosom friend’? For a friendship where you are both committed to helping and receiving help?

2008-08-06T10:13:00.002+09:30

The next book we will be reading in Book Club is Finding God's Path Through your Trials by Elizabeth George

'From bestselling author Elizabeth George (nearly 4 million books sold) comes a book born of her desire to help others through difficult times. "Finding God's Path Through Your Trials" acknowledges the hard times we all face and reveals how people can ?count it all joy, ? including: understanding trials are not punishment realizing God's grace is sufficient to get them through trials knowing the benefits brought by trials?patience, endurance, empathy experiencing deeper faith as they depend on God through trials trusting God to use everything for His glory Emphasizing God is always with them and will help them every step of the way, Elizabeth reminds readers they will not be given trials they cannot bear without including a way of escape. She encourages people to turn to Jesus, where they will find hope, joy, and meaning in the journey, no matter how bumpy it seems. ' Publishers Description

Chapter 10: The Discipline of Convictions

2008-08-06T09:57:00.002+09:30

Some of the things that stood out to us this week where:

Absolute Truth: How familiar does this sound? “every man did which was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25, KJV) As Jerry points out, this is they way our society is today. But not the church? Surely?... “What should disturb us, however, is that evangelicals are moving in the same direction. 'Four out of 10 people who call themselves evangelicals don’t believe there is such a thing as absolute truth, according to a Barna Research Group poll.' If this means that these 40 percent decide for themselves what is right and wrong instead of going to the Bible, then it is no wonder there is often little difference between the ethical views and behavior of professing Christians and those who have nothing to do with Christianity. Morality becomes merely a matter of ones’s personal opinion. In fact, I am aware of situations where Christians were confronted about sin in their lives and responded, “that’s just your opinion.” Page 165-166

But Jerry goes even further …, of those evangelicals who do believe in absolute truth (including ourselves), do we let our belief in the truth of the bible effect our behavior or change our character? Are we being transformed by the bible? Do we let the bible teach us change us and humble us? Are we living according to the biblical standard or do we just conform to the moral consensus in our own church or circle of friends. Let us live like we truly believe, that the bible is absolute truth. Let the Word’s standards be ours. 'One thing we can be sure of: If we do not actively seek to come under the influence of God’s Word, we will come under the influence of sinful society around us’. Page 171

Hidden Treasure: 'The question we must ask ourselves is this: What value do we place upon the Word of God? Do we search it as if we were seeking for hidden treasures, or do we read it and study it only because we know it is something we should do?' Page 176

When my husband and I first came across ‘reformed’ theology it was life changing. We realised that almost everything we had believed and been taught was full of errors. It was not biblical Christianity. We literally had to discard everything we had learned before and start again from the bible. At that time we really did search through the bible like it contained hidden treasure. We were excited about it and spent as much of our time as we could reading it, and searching through even familiar passages and learning things that we’d never seen there before. Reading the above quote drew my memory back to that stage of my Christian walk and I realised that whilst I still love the word of God, the intensity of my search through it has diminished. It was quite a challenge to me. Maybe, I have, as Jerry has talked about so often in this book, reached a point where I feel comfortable, and set cruise control, even with my time in the word of God. Is the word of God like treasure to you? Do you search it to find the truth? … 'We need to approach the Bible with the deep, settled conviction that it accurately expresses the mind of God and the will of God as to how we are to live.' Page 174. If we really believe this surely we should be desperate to seek out its treasure. 'Ask God to remove any doubts you might have and give you a settled convition that the Bible is indeed God’s Word, that it is complete and authoritative, and that it is absolute truth.' Page 174… as we study it let us follow Jerry’s advice… '... as you approach the reading or study of the Bible, don’t do so just to buttress your own previously held opinions or to affirm you favourite doctrines. Rather ask the Holy Spirit to teach you.' Page 175

Memorising Scripture: We all acknowledged that this is something we need to do more of. I certainly feel that I have not done enough, and am challenged by this chapter to increase my efforts in this area.

We also discussed different ways of memorising scripture. Some of us grew up memorising scripture as a family and learning whole books and passages together. This can be very helpful so that we not only remember the scriptures, but also their context and setting. Maybe this is something we could help our children with.

Music can also be very helpful. Some of us have found listening to scripture in music to be very helpful for memorizing. Some of the artists that have been recommended are:
- Sons of Korah.
- Jason Coghill
- Scripture in Song (Not sure if this link is to the same 'scripture in song' we all sung in Sunday school growing up. Looks like it may be an updated edition. Hopefully they are. Searching through blogs on the internet, people seem to be having trouble finding the audio but are able to get the books on Amazon and websites like that.)

In looking for a link for each of the above I found this website which might be helpful in finding good Christian music and scripture in song.

Chapter 9: The Discipline of Commitment

2008-07-09T10:48:00.001+09:30

A few things we discussed from Chapter 9: The Discipline of Commitment

Avoiding Cruise Control:

‘As believers we need to be careful that we do not make a similar mistake. We can be committed to a set of Christian values or to a lifestyle of discipleship without being committed to God Himself. But Paul said, offer yourselves to God, and in doing that commit yourselves to the pursuit of holiness in order to please Him.’ Page 149

We thought this was quite a challenge. It is easy to slip into ‘Cruise control’, as mentioned in chapter 7. Its easy to hold to a set of Christian values, or uphold a certain level of ‘Christian lifestyle’, or conform to the Christian culture around us or in our church, without truly being committed to God himself and pleasing Him. What level of holiness does God require? What is our motive for seeking holiness? Are we offering ourselves as living sacrifices as Romans 12:1 calls for ‘Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship.’ We should not let the peer pressure of our particular Christian culture hold us back from pursuing holiness and committing ourselves to God, Even if it means challenging the status quo.

Put on Christian Virtues:
‘If we want to be like Christ in his character we must commit ourselves to putting on His virtues’. Page 154 We often work and pray for Gods help in putting off our sins, but do we pray for him to help us put on the fruits of the spirit? Maybe we are unbalanced in concentrating on the ‘do not’s’ whilst neglecting the ‘dos’. ‘And just as we need to make a commitment to deal with all sin in our lives without exception, so we need to make a commitment to be just as diligent in putting on the fruit of the spirit.’ Page 154

This attitude should effect our whole lives. ‘The truth is, though, God knows I am a Christian and He knows I work for a Christian organization. If I would be ashamed to have a tourist identify my impatient driving with a Christian, how much more should I be ashamed before God. After all, He is the one I have committed myself to, to seek to please in all my thoughts and words and actions. So our commitment to pursue holiness must embrace every area of life and must include both the significant and the seemingly insignificant things we do.’ Page 155 As Jerry said ‘This principle applies to the way a student approaches his or her studies, to the way we do our shopping and buying, to the way we compete in games and athletics to the way we decorate our houses and keep our lawns, and even to the way we drive.’ Page 155 We should intend to live every area of our lives in such a way that it glorifies God.

What Model do we present?:
This also leads us to think about our lives at home, and how we live before our children. What model do we present to our children in the way we live our lives? Are we living before our children with integrity in a way that pleases God? Do we walk humbly before our children, so that whilst they see that we sin, they see that it is not our intention to sin. We should try to help our children see that the standard we are reaching for and teaching them is not ‘our’ standard but it is Gods perfect standard.

The importance of the Gospel of grace:
‘So we see once again the relationship of grace and discipline. A loving response to God’s grace and mercy is the only motive acceptable to God for the commitment Paul called for. And it is the continual reminding ourselves of His grace and mercy that provides the only enduring motivation to sustain such a commitment and keep it from becoming oppressive. That is why we must preach the gospel to ourselves every day.’ Page 162 A right understanding of the gospel is so important in our Christian lives. Believing that you chose Christ; that it was your work in choosing to accept the offer of salvation that saved you, does not produce the gratitude in our heart that we feel when we understand that salvation was all the work of God’s grace and mercy alone. If we believe we chose Him we feel that we had some part in our own salvation, and we are partly grateful to ourselves for accepting it, not just to God for offering it. Understanding Grace changes our motives, we are grateful because we understand that without Gods grace and mercy we could not be saved, we could not save ourselves. We try to please God because we love Him and are grateful that he showed us such amazing mercy and grace. We pursue holiness, not because we think it will make us closer to Him or keep us from ‘back sliding’ or even because it is the ‘right’ way for a ‘Christian’ to behave, but because we want to.

“So an all-out, unreserved, nothing-held-back commitment to the pursuit of holiness may be exhausting, but it will not be oppressive it is grounded in grace. But to be grounded in grace it must be continually referred back to the gospel.” Page 162

“God not only asks us to commit ourselves to the pursuit of holiness, but provides the grace to enable us to do it.” Page 162

‘Run, John, run. The law commands
But gives neither feet nor hands
Better news the gospel brings;
It bids me fly and gives me wings.’ Page 94

2008-07-03T16:19:00.003+09:30

In our disussions this week, this book was recommended.

Publishers notes:

RARE JEWEL OF CHRISTIAN CONTENTMENT
by Jeremiah Burroughs

Jeremiah Burroughs was a preacher to the great congregations of England in the 17th century. This classic book of his is concerned with promoting the often elusive jewel of peace and contentment in the heart of the believer. 228 pages, from Banner of Truth.

'We live our lives in a discontented world and it is all too easy for the Christian to share its spirit. This book remedies this spiritual disease in practical biblical ways. '

Chapter 8: Dependant Discipline

2008-07-03T16:05:00.002+09:30

They say better late than never...
So here are a couple of points we discussed on Chapter 8: Dependant Discipline.

To Pray and Do
As I read through this chapter, again I felt some familiarity with my time in ‘Charismatic Christianity’. On reflection, maybe I was the ‘spiritual’ person Jerry spoke about on page 132. “Today, we would tend to divide into two camps. The more ‘spiritual’ people would call an all-night prayer meeting. To them, posting a guard would be depending on human effort instead of God.” I often prayed the prayer on page 134 “We often use the expression “Let the Lord live His life through me.” I am personally uncomfortable with this expression because it suggests a passivity on our part. He does not live His life through me. Rather as I depend on Him, He enables Me to live a life pleasing to Him.”

I had even heard people suggest in certain circumstances (especially healing) that it would be a lack of faith, or not trusting God if you did anything other than pray and wait. We sang songs and prayed prayers that pleaded with God to ‘Use me’, ‘Fill me’, ‘Send me’, ‘Make me’. We had ‘faith’ that God would do it. But though we never said it, I think we often thought (or hoped), that he would do it miraculously. That something amazing would happen and we could say ‘It was all God’. “It is the idea that we can do nothing but trust that is particularly troubling to me. I believe that the psalmist – and Nehemiah and Paul – would say, “Man’s part is to trust and work. God’s part is to enable the man or woman to do the work.” … God’s work does not make our effort unnecessary, but rather makes it effective. Paul did not say, “Christ show contentment through me.” Rather he said, “I have learned to be content through Him who give me strength.” Page 135

In the beauty of hindsight I see that God did answer our prayers but the answers usually came through people who were living out their faith, not just praying about it and waiting for God to act.

The results are the Lords
This chapter was a lovely reminder that we must trust and work. It also reminded us through the analogy of the Farmer List of 'must do’s' and 'can’t do’s' that even with all our hard work and obedience, all the results are the Lords. Like the farmers crop, only God can make us grow.
“There are six things farmers must do and only two things they cannot do. They can even to a degree circumvent the weather by irrigating in case of drought. But the one thing they absolutely cannot do is the most critical of all. Without the life that makes things grow, all their disciplines of farming are useless... They will put all their confidence in the performance of their duties, not in God, who makes things grow. As far as they are concerned, their success depends on themselves.
As in the cases of farming, God has ordained certain disciplines or practices that are necessary in order to grow in holiness. We must observe these or we will not grow, just as farmers will not produce a crop if they do not perform their duties. There is only one thing, however we cannot do. We cannot make ourselves grow.” Page 138

Do you take for granted the spiritual life that makes you grow? Is your confidence in God or your own observance of the necessary disciplines and practices or the christian life? We need to be disiplined and dependant.

"Being sensible that I am unable to do any thing without God's help, I do humbly entreat him, by his grace, to enable me to keep these Resolutions, so far as they are agreeable to his will, for Christs sake" Jonathan Edwards

Chapter 7 - Obeying the Great Commandment

2008-06-12T09:05:00.003+09:30

Unfortunately quite a few people have been ill over the last few weeks, and the last two meetings there have only been three of us so we haven't discussed chapter 7. We have however decided to move on. So next meeting we will be discussing Chapter 8.

I really enjoyed this chapter and found some of it quite challenging. I particularly related to the analogy of the driver on page 119

" To continue the driving analogy, we press the accelerator pedal of obedience until we have brought our behavior up to a certain level or "speed." The level of obedience is most often determined by the behavior standard of other Christians around us. We don't want to lag behind them because we want to be as spiritual as they are. At the same time, we're not eager to forge ahead of them because we wouldn't want to be different. We want to just comfortably blend in with the level of obedience of those around us.
Once we have arrived at this comfortable level of obedience, we push the "cruise-control" button in our hearts, ease back, and relax. Our particular Christian culture then takes over and keeps us going at the accepted level of conduct. We don't have to watch the speed-limit signs in God's Word, and we certainly don't have to experience the fatigue that comes with seeking to obey Him with all our heart, soul, and mind. This then is what I call "cruise-control' obedience, and I fear it is descriptive of any of us much if not all, of the time."

I'm sure I've been guilty of pressing the cruise control button at times, and I found this a challenge to be reminded to be more like the racing car driver

"Race-car drivers are totally focused on their driving. Their foot is always on the accelerator as they try to push their car to the outer limits of its mechanical ability and endurance. Their eye is always on the track as they press to its limit their own skill in negotiating the turns on the track and the hazards of other cars around them. They are driving with all their heart soul, and mind.
This is what it means to love God with all our heart and soul and mind. It means to obey Him with all our heart and soul and mind. It means, in the words of Hebrews 12:14 to ' make every effort... to be holy'. Page 119

It was also a great reminder to remember that are whole lives are worship, not just Sunday morning, and as Jerry said on page 120 "God is not impressed with our worship on Sunday morning at church if we are practicing 'cruise-control' obedience the rest of the week. You may sing with reverent zest or great emotional fervor, but your worship is only as pleasing to God as the obedience that accompanies it."

As Christian friends let us encourage each other to switch cruise control off. Let us stir each other up to run the race as described by Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. Let us run with all our hear mind and soul. For as it says in 1 John 5:3 'This is love for God: to obey his commands'.

Chapter 6 - Transformed into His Likeness

2008-05-14T22:29:00.002+09:30

Here are just a few of the things we discussed this week about Chapter 6.

The Christian struggle and pursuit of holiness: The picture of sin as waging a guerrilla war on page 106 was particularly helpful to us in helping to understand how sin has been defeated be yet still troubles us. ‘Sin is like a defeated army in a civil war that, instead of surrendering and laying down its arms, simply fades into the countryside, from which it continues to wage guerrilla war of harassment and sabotage against the government forces. Sin as a reigning power is defeated in the life of the believer, but it will never surrender. It will continue to harass us and seek to sabotage our Christian lives as long as we live…. If we are going to pursue holiness, we must accept the fact that there will be continual tension with us between our desires and our performance. As British theologian J.I. Packer so often says, our reach will always exceed our grasp.' We all felt that we could relate to the passage in Romans 7:14-25 when Paul laments that ‘When I want to do good, evil is right there with me'.

The doctrine of election: We discussed how as reformed believers we often find ourselves thinking that we need to apologise for the doctrine of election (click here for a brief explanation) . We can understand why its been said that the doctrine of election is a doctrine for believers. People often think that it paints a picture of God, as uncaring and choosing to send multitudes of people to hell, It doesn’t fit into their understanding of a God of love. But when we truly understand sin to be ‘… a rebellion against Gods authority, a despising of his person and a defiance of his commands’ page101… and deserving of judgement, then it changes the whole picture. It reveals Him to be more loving than we suspect. We no longer look on Him as tyrant sending men to their death, but as an incredible loving and merciful God who, though his people are completely deserving of hell and judgement, has chosen to deliver them, reached out to them personally and drawn them out of the fire. It highlights how important it is to start with sin and its offence to God. Why do we hate sin? As Jerry says on page 101 ‘We often hate the consequences of sin (even if it seems to be no more than the guilt feelings that follow sin, but I suspect we seldom hate sin as sin.’ Do you really hate sin? Even the sins that others don’t see in you?

Some of us recalled that in our previous understanding of Christianity, we believed that Christ died potentially for the whole world. We didn’t realise at the time how impersonal this really is. However when we understand biblically the doctrine of election, and that God chose those whom he would save, we realise that Christ’s relationship to us is far more intimate. When Christ was dying on the cross he knew my name, he knew when he was dying that he was dieing for me. His sacrifice didn’t merely make salvation possible, but it actually saved everyone whom the father had given Him. (John 17:9-20, Rom 8:28-39, Eph 1:3-14, John 10:15-18) None whom he died for that day will be lost! Every one of those whom he died for will be saved. He died personally for every person whom the father had given him before time, and His sacrifice is complete. Talk about a real personal relationship with Jesus…

Justification and sanctification in reverse: It is interesting to compare the Charismatic or Pentecostal experience of justification in sanctification to that we read about on page 99 ‘In justification we rely on what Christ did for us on the cross. In sanctification, we rely on Christ to work in us by His Holy Spirit. In justification, as well as regeneration, God acts alone. In sanctification He works in us but elicits our response to cooperate with Him.’

Some of our discussion group have had Charismatic and Pentecostal upbringings, and remember that whilst we were not necessarily taught it, our experience was the reverse of what Jerry stated. We considered Justification and salvation, as something in which we co-operated with God. God was willing to save us and had made salvation possible through Christs sacrifice but He was helpless to actually save us unless we chose Christ (rather than him first choosing us. 1 John 4:19). Belief was a work on our part. God could not save us with out our co-operation. Grace then becomes the reward for our faith or our work of believing in the gospel (salvation by works). But when it came to sanctification and holiness we trusted that God would do all the work in changing our hearts.

Chapter 5 - Disciplined by Grace

2008-04-12T21:46:00.003+09:30

We had an excellent discussion on Thursday. Here are some of the things that we talked about:

Reassuring and sobering – 'God never saves people and leaves them alone to continue in their immaturity and sinful lifestyles. Those whom he saves he disciplines.’ Page 82 The circumstances and trial in our lives are not ‘random’ events, but that they are part of Gods ‘firm but loving care for our souls.’ Isn’t this reassuring. I loved the picture that was painted in this chapter of God as the loving father training, admonishing, correcting and disciplining his children in order to cultivate spiritual growth and godly Character.

Left to ourselves, we would either be overwhelmed with our utter sinfulness, and not know where to begin the changes needed to make our lives and character godly, or we would not even see the hidden sinfulness of our heart and continue along in our sinful and self righteous ways.

Once again Grace takes the focus off our ability (or rather inability) to achieve godliness, and brings us back to the truth. That we can’t fulfill the call to godliness with our own will-power and that we need to trust God even to guide us in our spiritual Growth.

The slide of the church – ‘One has only to look around at Christendom, particularly the United States, to see that there is a vast multitude of people who claim to have trusted Christ at some time but do not seem to have experienced any of the discipline of grace. They may have walked an aisle, signed a card, or even prayed a prayer, but grace is not teaching them to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions, let alone to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives. Essentially, their lives are no different today than they were before they professed to have trusted Christ.’ Page 83. This lead us to discuss the ‘church’. Some of us could relate that we have encountered ‘Christians’ who don’t appear to be any different to the world. Allowing their beliefs on issues such as morality, sobriety, honesty, marriage, the role of women etc, to slide away from the biblical standard. It has been said that the average life of a true church is only 30 years or one generation. Why does this happen? Why has the ‘church’ slid so far? We felt that at the root of this must be a lack of biblical teaching, an undermining of the authority of scripture and complacency. Could it be true that the next generation has never had to fight for what they believe, stand up for it and work it out for themselves. Sometimes truth is taken for Granted.

A friend who was an elder in a reformed congregation once related to us, that in Sunday school he asked the older students what the acronym T. U. L. I. P. stood for (This being a simple acronym to help them remember the ‘doctrines of grace’). None of the children knew so he sent them home to ask their parents and come back with the answer the following week. None of the parents knew either. This was a wake up call, as they realised that as a congregation they had become complacent and had taken for granted that everyone knew why they where reformed and what it stood for. It was a reminder to re-focus their teaching.

How can we prevent this from happening to us? We thought that it may be helpful to learn biblical truth systematically. We had came up with a few suggestions:

we could teach our children the Catechism (a small printed version is available called 'Childrens "Prove it" Catechism' published by Truth for Eternity Ministries
Remember to preach the gospel to ourselves (chapter 3)
Teach our children as much as we can whilst they are still open
Memorise scripture. It is our responsibility to know the word of God and be ready to give an answer 2 Tim 4:12
Read through the confession of faith, or maybe use it as a bible study guide.
We need to help our children think about the truth so that they can own it themselves.

But in doing the above we need to be careful not to fall into the way of thinking that Jerry describes on page 81. ‘No one actually told me that God’s approval of me was based on my performance. Still I developed a vague but real impression that God’s smile or frown depended on whether or not I did my spiritual exercises. … If we fail to teach that discipline is by grace, people will assume, as I did, that it is by performance.

Legalism: What is legalism? In my previous life, as a charismatic, I thought a church was legalistic if it was ‘traditional’ or ‘conservative’, played hymns instead of modern worship songs, and had ordered services. I vaguely thought that this was some kind of adherence to a set of outward rules, and not ‘allowing the Spirit to move’. I realise now that this view came about because of ignorance of what the bible teaches about worship and the life of the church. What do you think legalism is? On page 81 we read the story of a young man who was very diligent in the practice of his daily quiet time. ‘My friend asked the student why he was so rigid in his practice, and the young man responded, “so nothing bad will happen to me.” He was not being disciplined by grace but by legalism’. Page 81 Why do you do your devotions? Are you being disciplines by grace or legalism?

Sorry

2008-03-25T15:16:00.003+10:30

Hi Everyone

To those of you who are following along with the book club, I'm sorry for not posting comments on chapter 4 - 'We died to sin'.

Unfortunately our move happened much quicker than anticipated, and my broadband connection was delayed, so was unable to post.

We did however have a lovely meeting, and we all enjoyed the chapter.

I look forward to our discussions on the next chapter.

I personally found great encouragement in learning that through Christ we have been furnished... 'with all the resources we need to become in fact what we have become in status.' That God has not only ordained our salvation but he has also ordained our good works, our living out of our faith. So let us "'Live out in [our] lives the reality of the gospel. Take advantage of and put to use all the provisions of grace God has given you in Christ'" pg 75

The Discipline of Grace – Chapter 3

2008-02-29T11:19:00.003+10:30

Preach the Gospel to Yourself

These are few points we discussed this week:

What is the Gospel?
As reformed Christians, we have tended to shy away from ‘methods’ of sharing the gospel, such as the wordless book, or the coloured beads, for fear of it leading someone just saying praying the ‘sinners prayer’ and believing that that is enough to guarantee their salvation. But we recognised that given the number of Christians that have difficulty articulating what the ‘gospel’ means that some of these tools could be useful. And we could use them to help explain the gospel.

The Gospel is for believers too.
‘I [Jerry] believe part of the problem is our tendency to give an unbeliever just enough of the gospel to get him or her to pray a prayer to receive Christ. Then we immediately put the gospel on the shelf, so to speak, and go on to the duties of discipleship. As a result, Christians are not instructed in the gospel. And because they do not fully understand the riches and glory of the gospel, they cannot preach it to themselves, not live by it in their daily lives.’ pg 46.

I think this describes the climate of most of the Christian world today. It was certainly the experience of church that I grew up in. We discussed how a poor understanding of the Gospel and of Grace, effects the way we live our Christian lives. As Jerry says ‘The gospel is not only the most important message in all history; it is the only essential message in all of history. Yet we allow thousands of professing Christians to live their entire lives without clearly understanding it and experiencing the joy of living by it.’ Page 46

Why do we act as though we can live lives acceptable to God?
Sadly I think this is true of most of us, even ‘reformed’ Christians. ‘We readily acknowledge that we can never through our own obedience attain a righteousness that is sufficient for salvation. But then as believers we act as if we can live lives acceptable to God. pg 48 This is one reason why we need to preach the gospel to ourselves daily to remind ourselves that our obedience to God is not what keeps us saved, but it is Christs righteousness, imputed to us. As Jerry puts it when expounding Romans 3: 19-26. ‘Because we cannot attain a sufficient righteousness on our own, God has provided it for us. This righteousness from God is non other than the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ, who through His sinless life and His death in obedience to the Father’s will, perfectly fulfilled the law of God.’ Pg 49

Faith is not a verb.
We were surprised to learn that … ‘The word faith is a noun and has no verbal form in English. Instead the word believe is used.’ Pg 51. In many Christian circles today faith has become a verb. In some cases where people are ill it has been said that they are ill because they don’t have enough faith, or that they don’t have the answer to their prayers because they don’t have enough faith. It has also become a ‘magical’ formula; if you can produce enough faith, or believe in something enough, then God will answer your prayers. But this way of thinking is offensive to God. It makes the action of faith the conduit of blessing. It makes God powerless to overcome our lack of faith. Faith becomes a work.

This is also true of how many view salvation, as though salvation is due to our own ability to produce enough faith to believe in God. This is not the Gospel. Jerry puts it very well on page 51 ‘Jesus Himself is always to be the object of our faith. We sometimes say we are saved by faith alone, meaning apart from works. That expression, however can be somewhat misleading, as though faith itself has some virtue that God respects. It is more accurate to say we are saved by God’s grace through faith. Faith, again, is merely the hand that receives the gift of God, and God through His Spirit even opens our hand to receive the gift.’ There is no action on our behalf, we do not have enough faith to receive grace. Grace is not a reward for faith. But we are saved by Grace, through the free gift of faith. We should be careful, not to make ‘Faith’ a work. But remember that it is a gift. Ephesians 2:8-9 ‘For by grace you have been saved, through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.’

Christ was thinking of me on the cross.
We discussed one of the biblical doctrines of grace, Particular Redemption. How knowing that Christ died particularly for his chosen people, the elect, is much more personal than the idea of a universal potential atonement. Whilst on the cross, Christ was thinking of ‘me’ (and you), not just some vague idea of those who might accept him. It also shows how powerful God is in that he has already accomplished the salvation of all his people, even those who have not been born yet. And he has also accomplished for them righteousness, and he is powerful enough to uphold them till the end. Amazing Grace! Christ death was absolutely perfect and none whom he died for will be lost. If we believe that he only died potentially for all men, then we devalue the sacrifice he made. We imply that his sacrifice was not enough, because it was not able to cover the sin of unbelief, and he was not powerful enough to overcome our lack of faith.

2008-02-18T09:53:00.001+10:30

This book was recommended by Deb in our book discussions on 'The Displine of Grace', as an excellent book for all those tough questions.

From the Publisher: 'R. C. Sproul, a distinguished theologian and educator, addresses doctrinal points and contemporary issues such as euthanasia, evolution, and abortion.

The Discipline of Grace - Chapter 2

2008-02-16T10:50:00.002+10:30

The Pharisee and the Tax Collector

We all found this chapter very challenging. It made us look into our own hearts and see what secret sins reside there…

Here are a few things we discussed:

Refined sins:
If we are honest with ourselves we can all see refined sins in our hearts that have gone unchecked and untamed for years. Maybe we have subconsciously justified them because as Jerry suggests ‘These are sins of nice people, sins that we can regularly commit and still retain our positions as elders, deacons, Sunday school teachers, Bible study leaders, and yes, even full-time Christian workers’ pg 33 We can go about our Christian lives with all the right, and Godly actions, and still commit these sins in our hearts; nobody sees… but God sees.

The chapter on refined sins beginning on page 33 was very challenging. I personally identified with Jerry Bridges when he said 'As I looked at my own life, one of the first [refined sins] that came to mind was the tendency to judge others and to speak critically of them to other people. That this sin came to mind so quickly surprised me, because I don’t think of myself as a critical or judgemental person. Perhaps that is part of the problem. This seems to be such and acceptable vice among believers that we don’t even recognize it unless it is flagrant – and always in someone else.’ page 33. I started to think of occasions when I have thought this way. When I have looked at another’s beliefs, philosophy or even parenting, and spoken of them to others. Even when I havn’t spoken about them, I have judged them in my heart. We felt convicted when we read that... ‘We are simply not to say anything about someone else that we wouldn’t want to eventually reach that person’s ear. Even criticism addressed to someone should be given only with the goal of benefiting that person.’ Page 35. Is our critisism really benefiting that person? We are to defend the truth, and speak to people about the truth, but it needs to be motivated by love and tempered with kindness. Is our motive to help them, rather than make ourselves feel superior? Are we motivated by love? Do we walk in the fruits of the spirit?

The Seriousness of Sin
We know sin is very serious. Of course we believe that all sin offends Gods. We acknowledged that we certainly give verbal assent to this. But when we tolerate these refined sins in our own hearts are we not saying ‘this little sin isn’t so bad’. ‘We forget or perhaps have never learned, how seriously God regards all sin.’ Pg 36. ‘Again, the seriousness of sin is not simply measured by its consequences, but by the authority of the One who gives the command.’ Page 37

In light of the fact that often these ‘refined sins’ are hidden from others, and we are not challenged to change by those around us, how do we recognise our sin. Meditating and studying Gods Word, shows us our sin in James 1:23-25 we see Gods Word as a mirror revealing to us our true character and showing us our need of Grace. Psalm 119:11 says ‘Your Word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.’ Psalm 119:105 ‘Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path’. I’m sure there are many other scriptures you could find to show us how important it is to spend time in and meditate on Gods word, so that we recognise sin, and hate it for what it is.

Realising that these sins are so ingrain in us as humans only magnifies the glory of Gods Grace and shows us that without the gift of faith it is impossible to please God. We loved the quote he gave from a Puritan preacher ‘Even our tears of repentance need to be washed in the blood of the Lamb’ pg 44. Even our most holy acts are sinful.

Complacency
Since we have been saved by Grace; that is a free unmerited gift of God, to sinners. Shouldn't we be excited and willing to share it with others!? Lets not be afraid to share the Gospel. Let us not be ashamed or fearful.

Guidance and the Voice of God by Philip Jensen

2008-02-12T08:03:00.002+10:30

This book was recommended at our last Book Club to help give us a true biblical understanding of the voice of God and how He speaks to us today through his Word.

Publishers Description : "Guidance and the Voice of God has recently been added to Matthias Media's new series: Guidebooks for Life. As the series unfolds, it will deal with the important nuts-and-bolts topics that Christians need to know about as we walk each day with our Master.

How do I know what God wants me to do?
How can I make decisions which are in line with his will?
If God still speaks, will I recognize his voice?

These are important questions, and many Christians grapple with them.

Guidance and the Voice of God charts a way through these often confusing issues, and shows how for those who have ears to hear, God is still speaking loud and clear through his Son."

Decision Making and the Will of God

2008-02-04T09:31:00.000+10:30

Decision Making and the Will of God by Garry Frieson

I'm adding this book to our recommended reading list. It was recommended in our last book club meeting by Deb to aid us in our understanding of the Will of God.

A few years back our church held a camp at which we focused on the Will of God. It was very helpful in clarifying my understanding of Gods will and how he guides us. Understanding that God has given us the tools and the guidelines through his Word to help us follow God Will in every decision of our lives was like being set free. The lectures where given by John Paterson, who also recommended this book.

Publishers Description: 'Does God have a perfect will for each Christian? Can you be absolutely sure you’ve found God’s individual will for your life? Garry Friesen examines the traditional view of God’s will, then sets forth a different view that more accurately reflects biblical teaching. This new edition of Decision Making takes up the practical issues of choosing a mate, picking a career, giving of one’s resources, and areas of disagreement between Christians to give readers a new approach to knowing the will of God. Mr. Friesen also addresses many of the arguments that have surfaced since the original printing of this book over twenty-four years ago. Does God Have a Perfect Will for Your Life? Does God have a perfect will for each Christian? Can you be absolutely certain of God’s specific will for your life? In this expanded twenty-fifth anniversary edition of his highly acclaimed work, Garry Friesen examines the prevalent view on God’s will today and provides a sound biblical alternative to the traditional teaching of how God guides us. This new edition includes these helpful resources: Study guide for small groups Responses to Frequently Asked Questions Guide to painless Scripture memorization Friesen tackles the very practical issues of choosing a mate, picking a career, and giving in this fresh and liberating approach to decision making and the will of God.'

Story Behind the Book: Most Christians have been taught how to find God’s will, yet many are still unsure whether they’ve found it. God does guide His people, but the question is, How does He guide? After putting out a fleece to decide which college to attend, Garry Friesen began pondering why it was so hard to find God’s will when he had so sincerely sought it. Was he the only one who did not have 100 percent clarity for every decision? Then a new possibility struck-perhaps his understanding of the nature of Gods will was biblically deficient. Maybe there was a better way to understand HOW God guides.

Book Discussions: The Discipline of Grace

2008-02-01T10:00:00.000+10:30

Welcome back to the book club for another year!

We had a first book club meeting last night, and we’ve begun reading Jerry Bridges Book, The Discipline of Grace. Some of us had read the first chapter, but others hadn’t so our discussion revolved mainly around grace, and some of the points in the first chapter.

In our discussions, we recognised again, how important Grace is and how an understanding of the ‘Doctrines of Grace’ is both liberating and motivating in our walk with God. Liberating because we realise that our salvation is not linked to our ‘performance’ as Christians. We know that God will preserve us, and that he didn’t choose us because of our ‘performance’. Grace is also motivating because we understand the magnitude and glory of what Christ has done for us, and that he did it while we were still sinners, it spurs us on to live a life that glorifies and pleases Him. Preaching the gospel to ourselves daily keeps grace in our sights and leads us to an even greater love for our Saviour.

For those of our readers who have not heard or understood the biblical doctrines of grace click here. This link sumarises the doctrines, as well as their corresponding errors. The link also provides biblical supports for the Doctrines of Grace.

When grace is not properly understood, our motivation for pursuing holiness and doing good becomes distorted. Rather than being obedient and living holy lives to glorify God and please Him, we do it to keep our salvation (though we barely recognise that this is what we are doing). We try keep ourselves in a good relationship with God and prevent ourselves from ‘backsliding’ through doing good. The problem is of course, that our good can never be good enough.

‘We need to continue to hear the gospel ever day of our Christian lives. Only a continuous reminder of the gospel of God’s grace through Christ will keep us from falling into good-day – bad-day thinking, wherein we think our daily relationship with God is based on how good we’ve been.’
It is only the joy of hearing the gospel and being reminded that our sins are forgiven in Christ that will keep the demands of discipleship from becoming drudgery. It is only gratitude and love to God that comes from knowing that He no longer counts our sins against us (Romans 4:8) that provides the proper motive for responding to the claims of discipleship.’ Pg 21

At the next meeting on the 14th of February we will be discussing Chapter 1: How Good is Good Enough? and Chapter 2: The Pharisee and the Tax Collector

Merry Christmas

2007-12-17T14:37:00.001+10:30

Thank you to everyone who encouraged me to continue with the online book club this year, and for your feedback.

I pray you all have a wonderful Christmas and New Year.

I look forward to seeing some of you comment next year.

lots of love

Amy

Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God - Chapter 5 - Helen Roseveare

2007-12-17T14:23:00.000+10:30

I know I’ve missed the last two chapters that we read from ‘Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God’. Sorry to those of you who are reading along with us. Things have been quite busy the last few weeks and I even missed a book club my self.

I did however enjoy reading the chapters, and I hope you found them encouraging and challenging.

Chapter 5: Helen Roseveare – Faithful in Loss

I’d like to share with you a few of the things we discussed in our book club meeting.

Beginnings: Some of us where surprised that Helen found such Godly companions in university who lead her to a deeper relationship with the Lord. Page 143-145. Some including myself had understood university to be a godless place, but on discussing this point we found that those of us who had attended university did not find it to be a godless place and had themselves found Godly friends and teachers.

Peaks and Valleys: I could relate to her description of the peaks and valleys in her life, as it reminded me of my own view of spiritual life when I was still a Charismatic Pentecostal. Though the language was different. We said we ‘felt dry’ or in the ‘wilderness’.

“I found frequently that I climbed in glorious sunshine… my face set determinedly for the nearest peak I could see. As I reached it, I revelled in the sense of achievement and victory and in the glorious view…” pg 147 We noted that the ‘the sense of achievement’ she describes suggests that the spiritual heights and ‘peaks’ where the result of her own effort. The peaks and valleys she described where from her perspective; how she felt she was doing in her walk with the Lord. In reality, this high feeling may be self righteousness, and the low points when she felt a sense of failure… “As I went down from the present peak into the valley between the mountains, I was often shadowed by the very peak I had been enjoying. This I interpreted in a sense of failure and this often led to despair…” May in fact, from Gods perspective have been the times when she was closest to the Lord and realised that she needed Christ more. Maybe God brings us low in to the valleys, to show us that our effort alone is not satisfactory to bring us into a right relationship with God, but that it is all Christ. What we see as valleys, may be the peaks God sees.

It is easy to fall into a sense of self righteous achievement. Sometimes even when we try to do the right thing, by spending more time in the word, getting up early to pray and have devotions, and do lots of good things for others, we feel like we’re doing really well it can be spoiled by our ‘revelling in our own sense of achievement’ rather than remembering that it is God’s achievement. It reminds me a bit of Mary and Martha.

Learning from her African brethren: The Africans she was there to minister to and along side taught her a lot about the Lord that she could not have learned at home in England. They exhibited a very Christ like love to her that she hadn’t seen before. I also found it interesting how the colour of her skin effected her. Page 159 “Pastor Ndugu… leaned toward me. “Helen… why can’t you forget for a moment that you are white? You’ve helped so many Africans to find cleansing and filling and joy in the Holy Spirit through the blood of Jesus Christ. Why don’t you let Him do for you what He has done for so many others?”
He … opened up to me hidden areas in my heart that I had hardly even suspected, particular this one of race prejudice. I was horrified…” She came to teach them, and yet it was they who taught her so much.

Gods Answers prayers:
How amazing was Gods answer to prayer on page 157. The providence of God is truly amazing as God answered the prayer 7 months earlier before the need had arisen or the words of the prayer were even spoken. What an impact such a specific answer to prayer must have been for the little girl who prayed. We should not be surprised.

Suffering: It is difficult to read about the things she suffered at the hands of the Guerrilla’s (Simbas) as I found myself thinking ‘why didn't God have protect her’. We discussed how ‘Gods Best’ is not always what we expect or want. When we read in Romans 8:28 "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” we often think of Gods ‘good’ as our physical protection, but it is not always so. We talked about the very personal example of one of our friends who’s cousin was in a car accident and left brain damaged. Everyone prayed that he would get well if it was the Lords will, but he did not. Most thought that his recovery or healing was best. But 'Gods best' was the conversion of the young mans family due to the accident and the injury. God's best; End result, the salvation of others.

God didn’t protect Helen from rape, abuse and beating, but he used her “They’re not attacking you. They are attacking me. I’m just using your body to show myself to the people around you.” Page 166. Because of what she’d been through she was able to help a young nun “One young nun had been raped and felt as if she’d betrayed God and her promises to God. Because of her similar experience, Helen was able to break through the woman’s despairing barrier, as no one else could.” Page 166. She was also able to 'protect some fo the other women from undergoing a new trauma they might posssibly have escaped so far.' page 167

It was also encouraging as it shows us that we can suffer terrible trauma and survive. In fact it often changes our perspective an forces us to look toward heaven.

Philippians 3:10 “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death”

Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God - Chapter 2 - Lilias Trotter

2007-11-10T21:26:00.000+10:30

We had much to discuss about Lilias. She was an amazing and determined woman, who did her best for her God.

The Higher life movement

Lilias attended her first Higher life movement meeting when she was 19 and it seems this movement had a great influence on her life. page 43

The Higher Life movement seemed unknown to us all so I thought I’d find out about it.

Whilst reading this chapter the term ‘Higher Life’ seemed to sit at the very edge of my memory as somehow familiar and I wondered whether there was any connection to my past Christian experience in the Pentecostal/Charismatic Movement. On further research, the memories came flooding back.

This statement about the higher life movement from Wikepedia sums up much of what I was taught whilst a Pentecostal. “The main idea of the Higher Life movement is that the Christian should move on from his initial conversion experience to also experience a second work of God in his life. This work of God is called “entire sanctification,” “the second blessing,” “the second touch,” “being filled with the Holy Spirit,” and various other terms. Higher Life teachers promoted the idea that Christians who had received this blessing from God could live a more holy, that is less sinful or even a sinless, life. This teaching has its roots in John Wesley’s doctrine of Christian perfection.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_Life_movement

The Higher Life Movement was one of the precursors to the modern Pentecostal movement. ‘Another predecessor to Pentecostalism was the Keswick "Higher Life" movement which flourished in England after 1875. Led at first by American holiness teachers such as Hannah Whitall Smith and William E. Boardman, the Keswick teachers soon changed the goal and content of the "second blessing" from the Wesleyan emphasis on "heart purity" to that of an "enduement of spiritual power for service." Thus, by the time of the Pentecostal outbreak in America in 1901, there had been at least a century of movements emphasizing a second blessing called the "baptism in the Holy Spirit" with various interpretations concerning the content and results of the experience. In America, such Keswick teachers as A.B. Simpson and A.J. Gordon also added to the movement at large an emphasis on divine healing "as in the atonement" and the premillenial rapture of the church.’
Oral Roberts University http://www.oru.edu/university/library/holyspirit/pentorg1.html

I personally have found it difficult not to let this information prejudice my view of the missions work done by Lilias Trotter. I have forced myself to remember, as we discussed, that regardless of the underpinning theology that sent Lilies Trotter and her fellow missionaries out, their motive to go out into all the world and spread the gospel was a good one. Their message to the people of Algeria was simple. In the face of language difficulties, cultural barriers, illiteracy, and the foreign concept of a loving and forgiving God they used the simple but powerful message of the ‘wordless book’ page 44 . Their simple message showed the people their sins, gave them hope and lead them to believe in the Lord Jesus as their Saviour.

Links about the Higher Life Movement:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_Life_movement
http://www.frontlinemin.org/higherlife.asp
http://www.oru.edu/university/library/holyspirit/pentorg1.html
http://www.webedelic.com/church/synan.htm

The wordless book

We also discussed the 'wordless book' mentioned on page 44. I remember as a child being taught the Gospel in Sunday School with it.

Read this link to find out more about it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wordless_Book Apparently it was originally designed by Charles Spurgeon.

Go out into all the world

Mary mentioned, that at the universities, it appears that ‘God is also bringing all the world to us’ to hear the gospel. Foreign students are coming to Australia to study, and are very open to discuss the word of God and open to the gospel, which is contrasted by the hostility to the gospel shown by many Aussies.

Sometimes whilst reading about missionaries and the marvellous work for Christ they do, you can’t help but feel that we should be going out to the ‘mission field’. What are we doing for Christ?

It is good to remember that the ‘mission field’ is all around us. Despite the wealth and prosperity, comfortable living and peace that we experience here in Australia, it does not mean that the other mothers at playgroup, our neighbours, or family are any less ‘lost’ than the hidden Muslim women that Lilias ministered to in Algeria. In fact they are just as lost and in danger of hell. May God help us as and give us wisdom as we go out into all the world.

Jonathan Edwards

2007-10-29T13:38:00.002+10:30

For further reading after discussing Sarah Edwards I'd like to recommend this biography of Jonathan Edwards by Iain H Murray.

Description: "This outstanding biography serves as a classic illustration of how the church today can and should learn from its past history. Edwards theology is set in the proper context of his everyday life, and we are able to follow him in public and private - as pastor in the days of the Great Awakening as well as in the wilderness years in the outpost of Stockbridge."

Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God - Chapter 1 - Sarah Edwards

2007-10-29T13:24:00.000+10:30

Last week we discussed Chapter 1: Sarah Edwards, Faithful in the Mundane

I was amazed at how young they were and how much they had achieved at such an early age. Page 16 'In 1723 at age nineteen, Jonathan had already graduated from Yale and had been a pastor in New York for a year.’ They met in 1723 when Sarah was 13 (pg 17), by 1725 Sarah was 15 when they were engaged (pg 18), and they were married in 1727 (pg 18), she was 17 years old.

A Faithful Wife: Sarah reminded us very much of Luther’s Katie. Like Katie, she managed the whole household, whilst allowing her husband to fucus on his duties and studies. Jonathan seemed similar to Luther ‘I have had very affecting views of hole mind in a kind of loud weeping… so that I have often been forced to shut myself up.’ Page 21. But she adapted to his needs and supported him in such a way that he could do all he needed without any encumbrance.

Like the Proverbs 31 woman ‘she spared no pains in conforming to his inclination and rendering everything in the family agreeable and pleasant.’ Page 21, as Samuel Hopkins observed… 'Edwards found at home one who was in every sense a help mate for him, one who made their common dwelling the abode of order and neatness, or peace and comfort, of harmony and love, to all its inmates, and of kindness and hospitality to the friend the visitant and the stranger.' Page 26.

Do we support and help our husbands as faithfully?

The Mother: Sarah was careful in the training of her children, Samel Hopkins observed ‘She had an excellent way of governing her children; she knew how to make them regard and obey her cheerfully, without loud angry words, much less heavy blows… If any correction was necessary, she did not administer it in a passion, and when she had occasion to reprove and rebuke she would do it in a few words, without warmth [that is vehemence] and noise…Her system of discipline was begun at a very early age and it was her rule to resist the first, as well as every subsequent exhibition of temper or disobedience in the child… wisely reflecting that until a child will obey his parents he can never be brought to obey God.’ Page 24.

In today’s politically correct world that tells us that physical chastisement and careful discipline will squash our children’s personality and damage them emotionally it was encouraging to read that ‘ Their Children were eleven different people, proving that her discipline did not squash their personalities.’ Page 24

Sarah prayed for her children and was concerned for their spiritual well being… ‘for her children she constantly and earnestly prayed and bore them on her heart before God… and that even before they were born’. Page 24. She also endevoured to be a good example and role model to her children ‘she made it her rule to speak well of all, so far she could with truth and justice to herself and others.' Page 26.
Are we careful of the role model we set for our children?

We also saw that they spoke to their children about very serious matters that is very uncommon today. ‘When Jonathan wrote to his children, he often reminded them not morbidly, but almost as a matter of fact – how close death might be. For Jonathan, the reality of death led automatically to the need for eternal life. He wrote to their ten year old Jonathan Jr. about the death of a playmate. “This is a loud call of god to you to prepare for death…Never give yourself any rest unless you have good evidence that you are converted and become a new creature” ’. Page 33. The ever-present sense of death and eternity is foreign to us today, and yet, just as real… we may not face the threats they did, but we could still be hit by a car tomorrow.

It is amazing to think of the far reaching effects of Sarah’s faithfulness down throw the generations. As we see on page 22 the achievements of her descendants.

Sarah’s Experience: Having experienced the Charismatic and Pentecostal movements, reading about Sarah’s experience was a little uncomfortable, but I felt that Noels comments about it were insightful, and I think we can err on both sides, we can say that it was merely a mental breakdown, or that it was “enthusiasm” to use Edwards own expression. But the way it changed Sarah seems to indicate a true spiritual encounter, rather than the superficial experience often seen in the Charismatic/Pentecostal movement, which in many cases does not effect much change in the person. Page 31 ‘Sarah’s life was different after these weeks – different in the ways you would expect after God has specially visited someone. Jesus said “you will recognise them by their fruits”.’ Mat 7:46.’

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter... I look forward to hearing your thoughts on it.

A Faithul Woman Monthly Planner 2008

2007-10-12T11:47:00.000+09:30

Hi Ladies

Its planner time again. I can’t believe the year has gone by so fast!

Thank you to everyone who helped me by filling out the survey. It was very helpful as it enabled me to find out how I could improve the planner to make it more useful. Based on your feedback I’ve made some changes and additions which you can view on the sample attached:

Important Information:
• added Passport and License numbers
• more spaces to record your Birthdays
Month to Page
• the size of the boxes have been increased to give you more room to write in each day
• the public holidays are in the days, rather than just indicating when they were with a dot
Week to Page
• the space you have to write in each day has been increased
• ‘People to email’ added
• public holiday in the day space rather than at the top of the page
• a page is included to write important dates for next year
Quiet Times
• more space for prayer requests for each other and family
• a place to record prayer points from the prayer meeting,
• a place to record points to pray about from the weekly sermon
Things to Remember
• a new, contributed by Alison Philips. A Parents Prayer Program. Which is design to help give you ideas and inspiration to pray for your children’s spiritual development and salvation.

If you would like to know more about the monthly planner, or how to order, please email amy at afaithfulwoman@splitpantsproductions.com.au.

Orders close 19th November 2007

Look forward to hearing from you soon!

Luther the Movie

2007-09-12T16:56:00.000+09:30

So we read the book now we've seen the Movie!
Luther, starring Joseph Fiennes as Luther.

check it out at www.lutherthemovie.com.au

The Final Chapters

2007-08-31T08:37:00.000+09:30

Well, once again we come to the end of a book!

I know I missed a couple of posts along the way but I just wanted to share a couple of things that we discussed from the last few chapters.

Luther & Katie's Marriage: in reading this book you get a picture of a happy marriage.
Luther often speaks of Katie in his letters in very affectionate language, and speaks of her as a pious wife and precious gift. pg 63 'His 'dear rib' was 'gentle, obedient and kind in all things far beyond my hopes. I would not exchange my poverty with her for all the riches of Croesus with out her... I would not part from my Katie, no not to gain all France and Venice... '

It also appears that Katie fit the pattern of a 'proverbs 31' women too. Luther also says on pg 63 He thanked God for a 'pious and faithful wife' to whom he could safely trust his heart. Like the the husband in Provers 31:11 Luther's heart could safely trust his wife. She also is a very industrious women, managing the house, the garden, the children, guests and their finances. I love the way Luther describes Katie hiding the vase he intended to give away! pg 72

It seems whilst Katie was obedient she also spoke her mind and took charge, Luther affectionately refers to her as his lord pg 69 'He called her 'my lord Katie' or on occasion pronounced her name Kette, German for 'chain'. He said that if he wanted an obedient wife he would have to carve one for himself out of stone.'

Scripture alone: Luthers struggle gives new meaning to the term 'scripture alone'. For him it truly was scripture alone. Being the man God used to bring scripture and truth to light in his dark age, he didn't have the benefit of the mountains of literature and biblical scholors and theologians we have today. People looked to him and trusted him to get it right. Doubt assailed him pg 78 with this question, 'Are you alone right?... what if you are wrong and misleading others? The conclusion; that scripture must be at the root of all we believe. pg 80 'So in final analysis he must be rooted in the scripture' Scripture alone.

Understanding the depths of sin: Today we find christianity often focusing on the 'love' of God, much more than his righteousness, judgment and justice. Unfortunately tipping the scales to only see his 'Love' with out the balance of Gods other attributes means that we can't understand hell. How could a loving God send people to hell?

People think hell is harsh because the don't see the depths of our sin. If we understood more the depths of our sin, and how it offends God, we'd love God more, and appreciate his merciful salvation. We would see how glorious God grace is, and how wonderful the gift of salvation!

Invisible Hand by RC Sproul

2007-07-28T10:32:00.001+09:30

This book was recommended in our last book club:

Invisible Hand by RC Sproul

"Covers all aspects of divine providence. Written for all who face the hard questions of providence in the concrete arena of faith. "Every woman who has delivered a stillborn baby knows the devastation it brings to the heart," write R. C. Sproul. "Who can experience such a thing without crying to heaven and asking, ‘Why?’ It is normal to wonder where God is in such circumstances. It is where the rubber of human anguish meets the road of divine providence."

"This book is an effort to face those issues and questions that arise with regard to God’s providence," Sproul writes. "It is designed to look at the question of providence, not only from a doctrinal viewpoint, but chiefly from an examination of concrete experiences of the flesh-and-blood people whose lives and struggles are recorded for us in sacred Scripture."

Sproul concludes: "The Providence of God is our fortress, our shield, and our very great reward. It is what provides courage and perseverance for His saints." All who read The Invisible Hand will find themselves praising God for his mercy and loving kindness.

“Not since I read one of Sproul’s earlier books, The Holiness of God, has a book simultaneously shaken my soul and comforted it with the presence of God. . . . This is theology at its finest. It is truth for living.”
—Rob Taylor (Emmaus Journal) from Monergism.com

Luther and His Katie - Chapters 3-5

2007-07-28T10:29:00.000+09:30

This week we discussed Chapters 3-5 of Luther and his Katie. These chapters provided so much to talk about, but here are just a few thoughts we discussed.

Excitement: Chapter 4 : Catherine was particularly exciting. The author did an excellent job at creating a sense of excitement over the events surrounding Luther. You find your imagination wondering at the way information would have filtered into the convent, rumours, and whispers of revolutionary events taking place outside the walls of their ‘prison’ pg 49. It also demonstrates the rippling effect that Luther’s actions had across Germany and Europe

Awakening: You get the feeling of a world cloaked by darkness, suppressed by superstition, fear, and despair, highlighting the consequence of works based religion, leaving people miserable without hope. Then they are awakened, the light of truth driving away the darkness, and freeing people from the fear of the church and giving them hope in Christ. They began to see the institutions like convents and monasteries for what they really where, and realised “God could be served as well outside the convent as in!” pg 44

The escape: The escape from the nunnery contains all the intrigue of a movie, secrecy, escape, danger, thrill of the chase. The escape of the nuns was sensational. Imagine hearing the whisperings of Luther whilst in the nunnery and then, upon escaping having the man himself endeavour to secure your protection by finding for you accommodation and marriage partners. You get a hint at how vulnerable it was for unmarried women of the time. Marriage was not only for love, but protection and survival.

Providence: We were reminded of God’s amazing providence! It is truly amazing that the very instruments God used to preserve the scriptures, were those that had corrupted true religion, and reduced Christianity to a works based religion of fear.

Other inventions coincided with the reformation such as the printing press, which helped to spread the news. Gods timing is always perfect.

We were challenged to remember Gods providence in our prayers and praise Him, and thank Him for it.

I hope you enjoyed these chapters… I certainly did.
Please share your thoughts with us.

Luther and His Katies - Chapters 1-2

2007-07-06T13:11:00.000+09:30

I must confess that for this book club, I was very slack and didn’t read the whole 2 chapters we were discussing,. I Promise to make up for it next week!

In our discussions we discovered, we had all heard of the 95 Theses but none of us actually knew what Luther’s 95 Theses were. So, I thought I’d find out. Check out this link to view and English translation of Luther's 95 Theses

Having now finally read the chapters… what struck me the most was the depth of Luther’s despair (Pg 27) and (page 26) His diligence in trying to save himself through sacraments, ordinances and penance. How wonderful and amazing grace must have been when he realised that Gods gift of grace was free!

I have had some heavy discussions with relatives about ‘hearing the voice of God’ I also found the statement of Luther’s Father on page 24 very relevant to today’s situation for many charismatic’s. ‘You learned scholars, have you not read in the Scriptures that you should honour your father and your mother? And here you have left me and your dear mother to fend for ourselves in our old age’. Scripture should always take precedence over experience. And yet so often people let their experience rule them rather than the scriptures. As his father says ‘God grant that it was not an apparition of the devil!’ page 25, if we allow ourselves to be dictated by our experience, how do we know if the ‘message’ we receive is truly God’s or the devils? It appears the words of his father troubled Luther greatly until he realised that Gods commandments take precedence. Luthers intial response, seems to be how many respond today… ‘however firmly I closed my mind against them yet in my heart of hearts I have never been able to forget them’ Page 25. I pray that my friends and family will also eventually come to the realisation that Luther did…. ‘God’s Commandment must take precedence.’ Page 25

Please share your thoughts on these chapters with me…

Beautiful in Gods Eyes

2007-05-28T19:40:00.001+09:30

I've just finished this excellent book. Beautiful in God's Eyes by Elizabeth George.

I highly recommend it! This study of the 'Proverbs 31' woman is challenging, practical and Inspiring. I actually felt 'I can do this'. The 'proverbs 31 woman' become real, not some unrealistic picture of a perfect woman. She became someone you could make your mentor.

I will definately be reading this one again!

Blurb: "Beauty is more than skin deep - it starts in the hear and works outward.

Exploring the timesless wisdom of Proverbs 31, Bible teacher Elizaveth George reveals how you can become a woman of true beauty - a woman who desires to honor God in all that she says and does. Beaugiful in God's Eyes helps you make each day immensely meaningful as you delight in God and discover how to...
• experience intant progress toward personal goals
• manage daily life more effectively
• tap into unlimited energy
• apply biblical principles to enhance relationships
• move from the ordinary to the extraordinary.

You can experience a richer, more exciting sprititual walk as you embrace God's design for true beauty in your life."

Mary Magdalene: Delivered from Darkness

2007-05-20T15:35:00.000+09:30

A few thoughts we discussed this week:

Mary Magdelene Myths: It was interesting to note how many of us had been influenced by the story’s about Mary that have been popular without realising that they were groundless, like her being a prostitute and the woman caught in adultery, or that she was the woman who washed Jesus feet with her hair.

Why has Mary Magdelene become such a popular figure and the subject of Myths? How many people today do believe or want to believe the myths revived by the Da Vinci Code? Whilst working I was often told by unbelieving friends that I should read the Da Vinci Code; that it would challenge my faith. Having read it, it amazes me that people can believe it to be fact, and yet they do.

How merciful of God to omit the details of Mary’s past pg 175 “Scripture Deliberately and Mercifuly omits the macabre details of her dreadful demon possession.” The bible only tells us what we need to know. That Mary had a lot to be thankful for. It was also noted that the women caught in adultery has also been protected, due to the fact that people have attributed her acts to Mary.

Pg 187 “We can be certain that whatever travelling arrangements were made for the group, Jesus’ name (as well as the reputations of all the mend and women in the group) were carefully guarded from anything that might hint at any reproach. After all, Jesus’ enemies were looking desperately for reasons to accuse Him. If there had been any way whatsoever for them to drum up doubts about the propriety of Jesus’ relationships with women, that issue would have been raised.” Surely if there had been any inappropriate relationship between Mary and Christ , as is suggested by the myths surrounding Mary, this would have been something that would have been used to accuse Him, as they sought to have him killed.

Mary’s love for Christ: I was moved by the devotion and love of Mary as she followed Christ pg 181. From the site of his execution, to his burial and then to the tomb in the early hours of the morning. She loved him so much. Don’t we have just as much to love him for? He has saved us from Hell! How devoted are we?

Recommended Reading:
There were a few books recommended during our discussion

Does God Believe in Atheists by John Blanchard
The Sufficiency of Scripture by Noel Weeks
Breakfast On The Beach : Empty Tomb And Subsequent Glory by Trumper Peter.

False Start

2007-05-13T16:07:00.000+09:30

Well girls we had a bit of a false start this term. There was only three of us at our last meeting so we thought we'd just have coffee and a natter instead. Which we enjoyed immensly, but this week we're starting again.

We will be discussing Mary Magadalene. And this time I promise to post the notes on Friday!

So if you have any thoughts you'd like to jump start with about Mary, please fill us in here. I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

The Samaritan Women: Finding the Water of Life

2007-03-29T14:53:00.000+09:30

Sorry ladies for my late post. I’ve had a very hectic week and haven’t had a chance to get on-line. However I’ve caught up now…well, until tomorrow anyway. :)

Here are just a few things we discussed at our book club meeting last week:

The Jews and the Samaritans: In our discussion of the Samaritan women, a couple mentioned that we had wanted to do a little research on the Samaritans, and find out a bit more about them and wether they still existed today. I found a couple of links, and learned that the Samaritans do still exist and still have their own priesthood. Different sources have different figures but there are apparently around 500 to 1000 Samaritans. A couple of links are below:

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Samaritanism&oldid=110479782.
http://www.dangoor.com/70029.html
http://www.everyculture.com/Africa-Middle-East/Samaritans.html

The Jews’ hatred of the Samaritans: Whilst we had all of course heard the story before, it still seems amazing how much the Jews hated the Samaritans, apparently going to such lengths to avoid going anywhere near them. ‘A look at any map reveals that the most direct route goes straight through Samaria. But in Jesus’ time, any self respecting Jew would always travel a different way. The preferred route went east of the Jordan River, then north through Decapolis before crossing the Jordan again into Galilee. This alternate route went many miles out of the way, but it bypassed Samaria, and that was the whole point.’ Pg 143. Presumably the extra distance required for this alternative route, would have cost more in provisions and time. The fact that Jews would abandon such an important historical site as the burial place of Joseph, and spend more money food and effort to avoid them highlights their strong dislike of the Samaritans.

The Samarians believed: It seems amazing that the Samaritans, brought up in a corrupt religion, believed after only hearing the woman’s testimony. ”The immediate impact of this woman’s testimony on the city of Sychar was profound. John wrote, ‘Many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, ‘He told me all that I ever did’” (v.39 NKJV)” pg 151. Yet the Jews, despite their religious heritage, the prophecies of the Old Testament, and all the miracles Jesus performed still did not believe. This seems similar to our experience today when it comes to sharing the gospel. It is often easier to talk to those who have no or little ‘religious’ background about the things of God, than to those unbelievers who have been brought up in the churches, or attended Christian schools.

Of course, there was a lot more to talk about in this chapter. Please share some of your thoughts on the Samaritan woman.

A wake up call to the church

2007-03-17T13:17:00.000+10:30

This week I heard a sermon, which was inspiring, challenging and very thought provoking for every Christian in the western world today. It was a sermon delivered to 5000 young Americans in a conference which would be equivalent to Youth Alive, or Hillsong here in Australia, by Paul Washer.

Paul’s message was passionate and brave, challenging every listener to examine their own hearts. He confronted them and the western church in general about the liberal state of the church, its relaxed morals, how ‘Christians’ behave, what ‘Christians’ listen too, what ‘Christians’ watch, how ‘Christians’ speak. Does the church really display biblical Christianity to the world? Do you display biblical Christianity? Are you different from the world?

Unfortunately Paul Washer was never invited to speak at the conference again. I pray that God would raise up more men like him to speak to the church in Australia.

This sermon is well worth listening to or reading, visit http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?sermonID=52906154239

Book Club: 8th March 2007 - Anna: The Faithful Witness

2007-03-13T21:58:00.000+10:30

In this weeks discussion of this chapter, we agreed that there are a lot of ‘Maybe’s in this chapter. JM has drawn a lot out of these three verses, and has made a lot of assumptions, that whilst they may be true, it is impossible to know.

Anna hid the scripture in her heart: ‘She had evidently spend a lifetime hiding God’s Word in her heart. Naturally, that was the substance of what she usually had to say. So when Luke called her “prophetess,” he gave insight into her character and a clue about what occupied her mind and her conversation.” Page 134
and Luke 2:38 “And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem”

Godly Women treasuring the word of God in their hearts seems to be a common thread of all or most of the women we’ve read about. I am finding it a challenge to think about what occupies my mind and conversation. Is it the word of God, as it should be or is it other things? Work? Politics? TV shows? News? What do I talk about? I am reminded that what we speak gives away what is in out hearts…“Not what goes into the moth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.” Matt 15:11

Prophetess: JM spent a good amount of time pointing out that Anna did not hold a ‘Prophetic Office’. Some of us felt that this may have been a little unnecessary, though we could understand possible reasons why he may have felt a need to do this, given the climate of the church in this day and age.

Enduring Witness: By worldly standards of the day, Anna would not have had much to commend her as important. She was a woman with no family, was not a mother, was a widow, elderly and lead a seemingly unimportant but devoted life. Yet God allowed her a long life and obviously one that touched many people for Luke to record her as he did. And now she is an enduring witness to the coming of the Messiah!

Providence: The Providence of God is amazing, isn’t it? We see Anna, arriving at that instant, just in time to hear and observe the answer to her prayers! What a faithful God we have! “And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem” Luke 2:38

Please share with us your thoughts...

Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God by Noel Piper

2007-03-02T08:45:00.000+10:30

Ok, so I know we havn't finished 12 Extraordinary Women yet, and we havn't even started Luther and his Katie,
but I thought I'd let you know the book we'll be reading after that, so that you can get prepared. Like Luther and his Katie, I ordered it before Christmas and didn't get it until early February. So you may need to check out its availability at your book shop now.

In this book, Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God by Noel Piper, we are going to be reading about more ordinary women who with Gods help did extraordinary things, but these women are not biblical figures.

The publishers description is:

"Modern Christian women need an introduction to the intelligent, capable, godly women of the past. The faith and exploits of such women will encourage and challenge today's women to make a difference for Christ in their families, in the church, and throughout the world.

Noel Piper shares five biographies of Christian women God used to do extraordinary things. She uses excerpts from letters and journals to add rich detail to each woman's amazing story. These women include Sarah Edwards, wife of one of America's most renowned preachers, Jonathan Edwards; and Gladys Aylward, pioneer missionary to China." - Publisher.

Book Club: 22nd February 2007 - Mary: Blessed Among Women

2007-02-25T17:30:00.000+10:30

This fortnight in the book club we were discussing chapter 6: Mary: Mother of God

Mary Worship: Mary is different to the other women we have discussed so far because JM had to deal with Mary worship which is so prevalent today, given that Catholicism is the largest religion in the world. Because of the need to dispel the myths and inaccuracy surrounding her he spent a good deal of the chapter talking about the errors of Mary worship and the Catholic view of her. Which meant we didn’t get as in-depth a look at Mary as we have of the other women, which was a little disappointing.

Mary’s knowledge of scripture: We noted how full of scripture Mary’s prayer was (pg 115 – 119). Mary apparently new the scriptures very well, despite being very young.

We also saw that Mary seemed so calm about the announcement that she was going to be the mother of the Son of God. Especially given the circumstances and the culture in which she lived. Being an unwed women, in a time when adulterers and fornicators could be stoned. Was it because of her knowledge of the scriptures and the prophesied Messiah?

We also wondered at how much Mary actually grasped when she stood watching her son dieing at the crucifixion. She must have felt the fulfilment of Simeon’s words ‘yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also’… Luke 2:35.

Christ; God and Man: It is difficult for us to comprehend the truth of Christ being truly God and Man, even with the benefit of the scriptures. It must have been a difficult thing for Mary too. How do you keep sight of him being God when your making his bed, changing his nappy (or whatever they did back then), feeding him, and teaching him how to be a person?

Sometimes it is easy to loose sight as Christ as a real man, but it is good to be reminded. Luke is a great read, to remind us of Christ’s life.

The perfect Son: Jesus provided for his mothers future, even as he was dying on the cross John 19:25-27. It was suggested that some believe that Jesus may have given her to John’s care rather than his brothers because they were unbelievers. However by pentacost it appears they were believers. If this was the case maybe the events of the crucifixion and resurrection confirmed to them all that he had said when they were growing up with him?

These are just a few of our thoughts on the chapter, please share yours with us…

What are we reading next?

2007-02-16T13:58:00.000+10:30

Well, we're now half way through 12 Extraordinary Women by John MacArthur,
so its time to look at what we'll be reading next so that you can get hold of the book.

I ordered my copy of these
two books before Christmas
and didn't get them till the
beginning of February as they were not in stock, so it may be worthwhile checking your book store for availability now.

Next we'll be reading Luther and his Katie by Dolina Cuish. The description says:

"The Influence of Luther's wife on his ministry
Every churchgoer knows about Martin Luther, the rumbustuous leader of the Reformation, but few realise the influence that his wife had on his ministry.

Early in his personal reformation Luther became convinced that there was no reason why parish priests should not marry, if they preferred it, but he did not feel inclined to break his clerical oath himself.

That was until he met Catherine von Bora. Catherine was the Leaer of a daring breakout from a convent reserved for nuns of noble birth. At first Luther was a little afraid of her but they married two years later on the 13th of June 1525.

She prolonged Luther's life by protecting him from the reckless overwork to which he subjected himself. She made the garden of the unfinished Augustinian convent that was their home, profitable - keeping pigs, cows and chickens. She took over three other gardens and planted fruit trees and started small scale farming.

She made the home a haven of rest for the storm tossed man that was her husband. Luther once said, 'Next to God's Word, the world has not more presious treasure than holy matrmony. God's best gift is a pious, cheerful, God-fearing, wife, with whom you may live peacefully, to whom you may entrust your goods, your body and life.'"

Book Club: 8th February 2007 - Hannah: A Portrait of Feminine Grace

2007-02-09T19:45:00.000+10:30

This week we had our first book club meeting for 2007. We discussed chapter 5, Hannah: A Portrait of Feminine Grace. A few of the things that we discussed were:

• Hannah’s difficult trial. It must be a difficult thing to share your husband with another man. Can you imagine the kind of nastiness that could go on between to women fighting to win the affection of the same man? We know how horrible women can be to each other over petty things, let alone the love of a man. Samuel says it was a great trial to Hannah. ‘And her rival provoked her severely, to make her miserable, because the Lord had closed her womb’ 1 Samuel 1:6-7. So much so that she didn’t eat. You know that feeling of being so upset about somthing that it makes you sick to the stomach. It is clear that Elkanah loved Hannah dearly. JM suggests on page 94 that he took his second wife because of Hannah’s Barrenness. If this was the case it must have made her trial even more bitter. This would also have been a difficult thing for Peninnah; not winning Elkanah’s love despite bearing him children. I was reminded of the rivalry between Rachel and Leah.

• Motherhood the highest calling. ‘Motherhood the highest calling any woman could ever be summoned to.’ Page 93. We are reminded that we need to be thankful that God has given us the gift of children. Conceiving is often very difficult for many women who long to be a mother. Even in our day and age where intervention is available, if our principals allow it. For those of us who have children it is often easy to forget what a privilege we have been given. We should never take motherhood for granted, and should be thankful always that God has given us children.

In today’s world we are often made to feel that being a mum at home is not as important as going out to work or having a ‘career’, but nothing could be further from the truth. As JM puts it ‘She [Hannah] is a reminder that mothers are the makers of men and the architects of the next generation’. Page 94.

• Our example ‘What you communicate to your children through your marital relationship will stay with them for the rest of their lives.’ Page 95. It is important to remember that little eyes and ears are always watching, listening and learning, and the way we interact with our husbands is teaching them some of the most fundamental lessons of life. A sobering thought.

• Hannah trusted God and was faithful. Given Eli’s record as a father and a priest, it must have been a very difficult thing to leave a toddler in his care. It shows how much she trusted the Lord. I cannot imagine parting with my children, or willingly giving them into someone else’s care, especially someone who had himself produced wicked sons. Despite the difficulty of such a decision, Hannah was faithful concerning her vow.

• Hannah left her troubles with the Lord. 1 Samuel 1:18 says that once Hannah had poured her heart out to God, she went away and ate and was no longer sad. Despite the sorrow of her prayers, she was able to leave it in Gods hands. How many of us do this? Do we really leave it with the lord, or do we take it away with us? ‘Hannah truly laid her troubles in the lap of the Lord, totally confident that He would answer her in accord for what was best for her. There’s real humility in that kind of faith, as the apostle Peter noted: “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:6-7) Page 100

• Teaching our children while they're young. We talked about John Newton. During a terrible time in his life he was able to recall the scriptures his mother had taught him, despite her dying when he was very young. It is good thing to teach our children about the Lord when they are young and help them to memorise scripture. They seem to retain much more than we think they are able, and there are many instances of people recalling the scriptures they were taught whilst young, during the darkest trials of their life.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this chapter...

Welcome Back

2007-02-04T19:36:00.000+10:30

Welcome back to the book club!

I hope you all had a lovely break over Christmas and New Year, and are now ready to join in the book club again. This week we will be having our first meeting for 2007 on Thursday the 8th.

We will be starting where we left off, reading chapter 5 of 12 Extraordinary Women, which is 'Hannah: A Portrait of Feminine Grace'.

I will be posting notes once a fortnight on Friday and I look forward to hearing all of your thoughts as we read together.

Happy reading!

Congratulations Mary!

2007-01-25T16:27:00.002+10:30

Congratulations Mary on being first to recommend a book on our book club blog!

Mary said:

"I have been reading a good non-fiction book over the holidays.
I would definitely recommend it.

"Through Gates of Splendor" by Elizabeth Elliot.

This is the story of five missionaries in Equador who died when trying to reach a previously unreached Indian tribe, the Aucas.
I found this book interesting and also challenging, especially as it sets forth the great desire these men had for the gospel to be heard where it had never been heard before."

Has anyone else read this book? Why not share your thoughts on it with us.

Blogging Challenge

2007-01-19T10:07:00.000+10:30

As a member of the Business Mums Network, I have taken up the blogging challenge. The idea is to help us get our blogs moving and to encourage us to keep them updated and to give them a bit of a kick start as we start the new year!

I know this is not specific to the book club, but I'm hoping that it will motivate me to post more often for you girls, and I plan to post other articles that are book related on a more regular basis.

The first challenge is to let everyone know that I am taking up the challenge... and now its done. Wish me luck :)

The following BMN members are taking part:
Anne Maybus - http://thetallpoppy.blogspot.com/
Gina Rahmel - http://moshimoshibaby.blogspot.com/
Michele Elmas - www.mumsbusiness.wordpress.com and www.michelee.wordpress.com
Justine Barsley - http://olibdesigns.blogspot.com/
Michelle Sweeney - http://tonicgifts.typepad.com/
Shelli Crane - http://rusticluxury.blogspot.com/
Kylie Short - www.shortyville.com/blog
Amanda Cox - www.realmums.com.au/diaryofamadcow
Kerrie Ptolemy - http://kezs-blog.blogspot.com/
Sarah - http://quiltfabricdelights.blogspot.com/
Melissa Khalinsky - http://www.melissakhalinsky.com/blog/

If you have a blog of your own, why not join the challenge! I'll keep you posted :)

Reformed Theology Rescources

2006-12-31T16:15:00.000+10:30

I know most of the members of the book club come from reformed churches of different denominations.

For the benefit of other members who are currently looking into reformed theology, it would be great if you could recommend books that you found particularly useful, when you where learning about the 'Doctrines of Grace', or struggling to work out what you believed.

I have recently recommended to a friend R C Sprowl's, 'Heart of Reformed Theology', as I had found it useful, however it does assume a level of knowledge of Christian terms, that is not common to those from Pentacostal or Charismatic backgrounds, and I'm hoping for some recommendations that may be simpler, or at least explain things in a way that is easy to understand.

Business Mums Network

2006-12-20T13:52:00.000+10:30

In recent discussions with some of you we have been talking about working from home and I have mentioned the Business Mums Network.

I thought that I'd briefly tell you all about it. I've been a silver member of the business mums network now for about a year, and I've found it very helpful. It is an excellent resource, for business ideas and support on how to start and run your own business.

I've particularly enjoyed the Message Board where I've met a lot of the other mums, and found some lovely mums who sell all sorts of products. I even did some of my christmas shopping online, through different stores owned by mums from the network. It was very helpful whilst I was putting together the monthly planner this year, as I learned from other business mums what the copyright laws required, and they gave me links to ther relevant sites to help me find out exactly what I needed to do.

If your considering finding avenues to work from home, I highly recommend a visit to www.businessmums.com

A Faithful Woman Monthly Planners 2007

2006-12-05T20:55:00.000+10:30

The 'A Faithful Woman Monthly Planner 2007' was inspired by the ladies in our book club, and has been designed with busy christian women in mind. The format of the planner has been influenced by our reading of Elizabeth Georges books.

You can personalise your planner with your own photograph or design your own hand crafted fabric cover and it is available hole punched for a ring binder or spiral bound.

The planner is tab divided into 4 sections:

Monthly Planner, including week to a page, month to page, meal planner for each month, and a schedule planner.

Quiet Times; monthly quiet times journal.

Things to remember; a space to write down special things to remember, includes inspiring and encouraging quotes.

Book Club; reading record and book club notes.

I would like to say a special thankyou to all the book club girls for their support and suggestions for the planner.

I have already had enquires from people interested in a copy of the planner, so I have decided to offer another print run in January. If you know anyone who would like a planner, or you missed out on this print run, please comment on this post or send an email to afaithfulwoman@splitpantsproductions.com.au to receive an information sheet and order form. Orders close 19th January.

For those who orderd by 15th of November, the planners are now ready and will be delivered by Friday the 15th of December.

Book Club: 14th December 2006 - Final for 2006

2006-12-02T22:19:00.000+10:30

This fortnight we are reading the Chapter on 'Ruth: Loyalty & Love' pages 69-85 of '12 Extraordinary Woman'

This will be our final book club meeting of the year. We will Start again in the new year, so be sure to visit again in late January. I will keep you all posted by email.

Why not use the break to read a good book you can recommend to us all!

Please post your comments here..

Book Club: 30th November 2006

2006-11-17T11:46:00.000+10:30

This fortnight we are reading the Chapter on 'Rahab: A Horrible Life Redeemed' Pages 51-67 of '12 Extraordinary Woman'

Please post your comments here...

Book Club: 16th November 2006

2006-11-12T15:21:00.000+10:30

This fortnight we are reading the Chapter on 'Sarah: Hoping Agains Hope' Pages 27-50 of '12 Extraordinary Woman'

Please post your comments here...

Book Recommendations: Non-Fiction

2006-11-09T08:51:00.000+10:30

Recommend your non-fiction book here.

Book Recommendations: Fiction

2006-11-09T08:48:00.000+10:30

If you would like to recommend a fiction book please comment here.

Introductions...

2006-10-30T12:45:00.000+10:30

This is a place to get to know each other.

Please post a brief message about yourself so that other members can get to know you. Don't be too specific though, don't post your address or phone number here. If you want to get in touch with people privately, email enquries@splitpantsproductions and amy will help you get in touch.

Looking forward to meeting you all!....

Book Club: 2nd November 2006

2006-10-30T12:44:00.000+10:30

This fortnight we are reading the Chapter on 'Eve: Mother of all Living' Pages 1 - 26

Please post your comments here...

I'm Here....

2006-10-30T09:38:00.000+10:30

Hi Friends,
Looking forward to sharing with you. Gotta love the internet! Speak to you soon.
Loads of Love,
Taryn

'Twelve Extraordinary Women' by John McArthur

2006-10-29T21:38:00.000+10:30

The book we are reading at the Moment is Twelve Extraordinary Women, by John McArthur.

Blurb: 'Celebrated for their courage, vision, hospitality, and spiritual giftedness, it's no wonder women were so important to God's plan revealed in the Old and New Testaments. It wasn't their natural qualities that made these women extraordinary but the power of the one true God whom they worshiped...'

Welcome to Our Women's Book Club

2006-10-29T20:25:00.000+10:30

Welcome to 'Our Women's Book Club'

I have found it difficult to find good christian books to read. Walking through rows and rows of books I find myself overwhelmed, with the choices, made more difficult because I didn't know who was a good author; Who was sound and biblical; who was going to encourage me in good theology.

Our book club has been a great encouragement as other women have recommended good christian books that have both challenged and encouraged me. And I thought this space would be a good place to share that with others.

So if you are not part of a book club, but would like to be, join our women's book club and share your thoughts on the books we're reading.