I've been enjoying Isaiah.  There's a lot to learn.

Matt has klout, so we get a Gieco gecko.

"Accountability is fighting sin together."

"If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all." Isaiah 8:9

Things I'm Learning...

God-reliance and seeking Him.

Acceptable Sins of Christians: Bitterness

Acceptable Sins of Christians: Bitterness (http://www.northridgerochester.com/Sermons/Details/237)

Bitterness

• Hebrews 12:15: See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.
• "Bitterness is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die."
• Bitterness bears sinful fruit.
• The bitter person often ends up looking like the person they are bitter against.
• When you are keeping bitterness in your heart you are keeping yourself from the grace God wants to give us.
• Ephesians 4:22-24, 31-32
• Put off an old sinful habit, think differently about the issue/solution, and put on a new righteous habit
• Put off bitterness and put on kindness and compassion, forgiving each other like Christ forgave you.
• Our feelings always follow our actions
• Kindness ends up drawing repentance from the one who hurt you
• "Hurt people hurt people." - Don't be a hurt person who hurts people
• Forgiveness
• Is not: endorsement of behavior, exemption of consequences, restoration of trust
• You're only commanded to trust God.  Trust is earned from anyone else.
• Bitterness = unforgiveness
• Judicial Forgiveness
• We give to everyone
• An issue of my heart
• Entrusting it to God's justice
• Let it go to God and not hold it in our heart and life
• It's not our job to make them pay for what they've done
• Relational Forgiveness
• Given to anyone who asks for it
• An issue of relationship
• Is making promises to the offender
• I won't bring the matter up to you, others or myself
• The best way to overcome bitterness is to be others centered
• 1 John 1:9

The High Cost of Forgiveness

The High Cost of Forgiveness: http://www.northridgerochester.com/Sermons/Details/54

• What you promise when you forgive:
• You will not bring it up to the person
• You will not bring it up to others
• You will not bring it up to yourself
• Judicial vs Relational
• judicial - you give to everyone (Mark)
• relational - you only give when asked for (Luke)
•  You've forgiven them, but you keep thinking about/feel the hurt.  What to do?
• Remind yourself you've forgiven them
• Their debt is indeed cancelled because you've already decided that before and declared it.
• Get busy, so you don't just sit and dwell on it
• A good way is doing good for others
• Ask God for help
• "It is for that very sin Christ died."
• Live like you've forgiven them.  Declare and live out the gospel.
• Forgiveness is an event and a process (the declaration of forgiveness and living out the forgiveness)

"Lord, there is no one like you to help the powerless against the mighty." 2 Chronicles 14:11

"I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity."  1 Chronicles 29:17

"[God] cannot change for the better for He is already perfect; and being perfect, He cannot change for the worse." ~A. W. Pink

If you are encountering traps from evildoers and find yourself tempted to respond wickedly in their kind, you should read Psalm 141.  I think it's cool.

I made dinner the last 3 nights.  I must be in my second trimester!

Multivax

Matt and I recently read this interesting short story by Isaac Asimov: http://www.multivax.com/last_question.html

Commentaries like this about what the future could be like are interesting to me.  This one in particular makes me glad for God.  God is the ultimate answer/has all the answers and we need a God to save us.  However, we can't make a god though we try whether it's the golden calf or super computers.  I'm glad I know my future in Christ, and I don't have to worry about this stuff, but instead trust/follow a God who is completely in control and never has "insufficient data".

I love haircuts with Jill.  Great convo's, fun atmosphere and great results!

Psalm 112:1, 5, 7-8 NIV

"Blessed are those who fear the Lord, who find great delight in his commands... Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely, who conduct their affairs with justice... They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord. Their hearts are secure, they will have no fear; in the end they will look in triumph on their foes."

"You were to Israel a forgiving God, though you punished their misdeeds." Psalm 99:8

"Though the wicked spring up like grass and all evildoers flourish, they will be forever destroyed." Psalm 92:7

"There once was an oyster whose story I tell,
Who found that sand had got under his shell;
Just one little grain, but it gave him much pain,
For oysters have feelings although they're so plain.
Now, did he berate the working of Fate,
Which had led him to such a deplorable state?
Did he curse out the government, call for an election?
No; as he lay on the shelf, he said to himself:
'If I cannot remove it, I'll try to improve it.'
So the years rolled by as the years always do,
And he came to his ultimate destiny- stew.
And this small grain of sand which had bothered him so,
Was a beautiful pearl, all richly aglow.
Now this tale has a moral- for it isn't grand
What an oyster can do with a morsel of sand?
What couldn't we do if we'd only begin
With all of the things that get under our skin?"
~James S. Hewett

"Give it to God." ~Elizabeth Elliot

Both taken from today's chapter in Coffee Break with God.

"Ernest Hemingway eventually retold one of Park's stories.  Park was lost and alone in the African desert and had resigned himself to die.  Then he saw it: a beautiful moss-flower.  The plant was only as big as one of his fingers, but he was overcome with admiration for its symmetry.

"Encountering this wonder in the middle of his crisis, he reflected, 'Can the Being who planted, watered, and brought to perfection, in this obscure part of the world, a thing which appears of so small importance, look with unconcern upon the situation and suffering of creatures formed after His own image?' he asked. 'Surely not.'"

~Coffee Break with God

"Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds." Psalm 72:18

"Locusts have no king, yet they advance together in ranks." Proverbs 30:27

"Every word of God is flawless; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him.  Do not add to His words, or He will rebuke you and prove you a liar." Proverbs 30:5-6

I feel like people who try to make things out of God's word that isn't there, like Harold Camping, missed this memo.

"Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe." Proverbs 29:25

"As water reflects a face, so a man's heart reflects the man." Proverbs 27:19

"A quarrelsome wife is like a constant dripping on a rainy day; restraining her is like restraining the wind or grasping oil with the hand." Proverbs 27:15-16

While playing catch phrase:

Belinda - "Where we put dead people"
Matt - "Jail?"

Murder mystery dinner tonight!!

"For though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again, but the wicked are brought down by calamity.

Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when he stumbles, do not let your heart rejoice, or the Lord will see and disapprove and turn His wrath away from him." Proverbs 24:16-18

"Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord.  There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off." Proverbs 23:17-18

"Do not make friends with a hot-tempered man, do not associate with one easily angered, or you may learn his ways and get yourself ensnared." Proverbs 22:24-25

"Hmmm.  And we always thought that men were just lazy and insensitive to our needs.  What a relief to know it's only brain damage!" ~Brenda Stoeker

Quoted out of context from Every Heart Restored.

Platitude: the attitude of a platypus

"If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and not be answered." Proverbs 21:13

"Better to live on a corner of the roof than share a house with a quarrelsome wife." Proverbs 21:9

"Better to live in a desert than with a quarrelsome and ill-tempered wife." Proverbs 21:19

Something tells me I shouldn't be a quarrelsome wife...

I like the sun and sounds of birds chirping in the morning.

"Food gained by fraud tastes sweet to a man, but he ends up with a mouth full of gravel." Proverbs 20:17

Bam!

"When I am afraid, I will trust in You.  In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid.  What can mortal man do to me?" Psalm 56:3-4

"A hot-tempered man must pay the penalty; if you rescue him, you will have to do it again." Proverbs 19:19

"Discipline your son, for in that there is hope; do not be a willing part to his death." Proverbs 19:18

"Houses and wealth are inherited from parents, but a prudent wife is from the Lord." Proverbs 19:14

"A foolish son is his father's ruin, and a quarrelsome wife is like a constant dripping." Proverbs 19:13

Gary to his wife Therese:

"Honey, I think you understand that I need some kind of release fairly often, but I don't think you understand that it goes much deeper than that.  My drives and hormones don't have a brain and therefore can't think for themselves.  They simply cause me to realize I have a need for intimacy.  When I seek you out to make love, I am not just looking for a release of some pent-up sexual frustrations.  I have a deep desire to connect with you.
When you consistently ignore my advances and put me off, I get frustrated.  I miss you."

~Every Heart Restored

"Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall." Psalm 55:22

"He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord." Proverbs 18:22

Isn't matt lucky? ;-)

"Before his downfall a man's heart is proud, but humility comes before honor." Proverbs 18:12

Be quick to listen: "he who answers before listening- that is his folly and his shame." Proverbs 18:13

"A man of knowledge uses words with restraint, and a man of understanding is even-tempered." Proverbs 17:27

"Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam; so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out." Proverbs 17:14

"If you want to build a strong marriage, it is vital that you treat your differences with great respect." Fred Stoeker

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God." 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

"God's promise is that He will never put us in a situation where we have no choice but to sin.  He either will relieve the intensity of the temptation or He will give us grace to trust and obey in hardship.  This promise means that depression can't coerce you to sin." E. Welch

"The fear of the Lord teaches a man wisdom, and humility comes before honor." Proverbs 15:33

"The Lord tears down the proud man's house, but He keeps the widow's boundaries intact." Proverbs 15:25

More about being slow to anger: "A hot-tempered man stirs up dissension, but a patient man calms a quarrel." Proverbs 15:18

"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise." Psalm 51:17

Repentance

"He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God." Proverbs 14:31

"Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, and call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor Me." Psalm 50:14-15

"Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice." Proverbs 13:10

"He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin." Proverbs 13:3 Another good reason to be slow to speak.

"Better to be a nobody and yet have a servant than pretend to be somebody and have no food." Proverbs 12:9

"A wife of noble character is her husband's crown, but a disgraceful wife is like decay in his bones." Proverbs 12:4

"A fool shows his annoyance at once, but a prudent man overlooks an insult." Proverbs 12:16

"Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid." Proverbs 12:1

I have been found to be stupid and a fool, thanks to a sobering time in Proverbs.

Matt: I'm picking up what you're dishing out.
Belinda: You're smelling what I'm pooping!
Matt: ...no
Belinda: oh.... OH!  You're smelling what I'm cooking?

"It's not small group if I don't cry." ~Christina

"Like a gold ring in a pig's snout is a beautiful woman who shows no discretion." Proverbs 11:22 ...ugh, I don't want to be her.

While playing catch phrase:
Belinda: "the holy..."
Matt: "Grail!"
Belinda: "...."
Matt: "...uh Spirit"

"A rule of thumb in confession is to keep at it until you have inklings of hope or joy.  Confession is not a time to grovel.  It is a time to trust in God who delights in forgiving because it brings Him glory.  Don't forget the story of the joy the shepherd takes in the one lost sheep that is found...  Yes, you wander off, but focus on the happiness of the shepherd.  It isn't what you expected." ~E. Welch

"When you are lukewarm toward God, or when you are not fixing your eyes on Jesus, then you can be sure that idolatry has taken root.  If you are not worshipping the true God, you are worshipping something else." ~E. Welch

"This isn't to say that wanting respect, love and other things we get from relationships is wrong.  Idolatry is usually a good thing that has gone haywire.  You can tell that something has gone wrong when you move from the goal of God's glory to your own.  Remember, we want to make it about us, but it's not." ~E. Welch

"You become a servant to whatever you trust in." ~E. Welch

"We don't want to experience failure and shame; we don't choose that.  But we do choose to trust in other people and their judgements.  It comes down once again to the deepest question of all: who will you trust?" ~E. Welch

You're never too old to enjoy the strong museum of play!

"When a wicked man dies, his hope perishes; all he expected from his power comes to nothing." Proverbs 11:7