Sad

I read a news article yesterday that began with "America remains a nation of believers, but a new survey finds most Americans don't feel their religion is the only way to eternal life — even if their faith tradition teaches otherwise. " Hmm... interesting. We are a nation of believers, but we really don't believe what we say we believe. So what do we believe? Well, according to this survey of 35,000 American adults 57 percent of evangelical church attenders said they believe many religions can lead to eternal life, in conflict with traditional evangelical teaching.
By many measures, Americans are strongly religious: 92 percent believe in God, 74 percent believe in life after death and 63 percent say their respective scriptures are the word of God.
But deeper investigation found that more than one in four Roman Catholics, mainline Protestants and Orthodox Christians expressed some doubts about God's existence, as did six in ten Jews.
Here is the one that disturbs me the least, I think:
Another finding almost defies explanation: 21 percent of self-identified atheists said they believe in God or a universal spirit, with 8 percent "absolutely certain" of it. So let me get this straight: 25% of people who call themselves "Christian" doubt that God exists, along with a whopping 60% of Jewish people, but 21% of atheists believe in God or something out there. Say whaaaaat?!!?!?!?
Here is one I find really disturbing:
Nearly across the board, the majority of religious Americans believe many religions can lead to eternal life: mainline Protestants (83 percent), members of historic black Protestant churches (59 percent), Roman Catholics (79 percent), Jews (82 percent) and Muslims (56 percent).
What are our Protestant churches teaching? Oh, that's right a lot of them aren't teaching. Some people might say to me "Now Kelli, what do you think we are doing in our multi-million dollar buildings, with our purpose driven/seeker friendly/multimedia presentations? " Well, I'll tell you-I think you are dropping the ball, spiritually speaking. The way that many churches do business is malarkey. We have "lessons" that are more or less pep talks about how "special" we are and how much God "values" us.* To be truthful, I think that some of our "church services" are a stench in God's nose. (Nor shall their sacrifices be pleasing to Him. It shall be like bread of mourners to them; All who eat it shall be defiled. For their bread shall be for their own life; It shall not come into the house of the LORD. Hosea 9:4) We have GOT to get back to teaching doctrinal truths in our churches and in our homes. We are losing younger generations because what they see out of church is that it is a place to go and play ball and hang out with friends. One last thing from that article: "The survey shows religion in America is, indeed, 3,000 miles wide and only three inches deep," said D. Michael Lindsay, a Rice University sociologist of religion. I couldn't agree with him more.

* yes, I am aware of the fact that all people are special and valuable to God. I am just saying that if all we ever talk about is "you are special, God loves you, God values you...." We can mislead people into thinking that they are good. (See Romans 10:3-As it is written: “ There is none righteous, no, not one) We tend to use the verse "All have sinned...." Romans 3:23, as an excuse. It was written as a condemnation, not a crutch. If all people hear is how special they are they tend not believe that they are sinful and have a need for a Savior. I feel like that is a BIG contributor to the "more than One Way" belief.

HOME AGAIN!!

Hooray!!! Superdad made it home from California!!!!!!!! The kids were so funny. They were break dancing across the living room for about 30 minutes. Even Mr. Conservative Nathaniel was in on the action!!! Mark had a great trip. He said it was amazing to hear the preaching that he did. He said it is sooo different from the fluff we usually hear around here. Which brings me to a sad point: We live in Alabama {aka: the Buckle of The Bible Belt} and he has to go California {ahem-gay marriage state} to hear powerful preaching. The state of our churches is really sad and seeming only to get worse. We go to a Southern Baptist Church. Now, hear me out, I love my church. I really feel like God is the only reason we are here. This is not a church we would have picked, it was picked for us. I do think there are Southern Baptist Churches across America that are God centered, worship-filled places. However, when you look at the Key Leadership stances, as well as the things taught in SB seminaries, it can get a bit depressing. Before Samuel was born Mark and I were planning to enroll in a Seminary to become church planters. (for those who do not know what that is it just means someone whose job is to start a church in an area where is not one). We were planning to serve on the North American Mission Board. Then, SURPRISE!!! pregnant again. Since going to Seminary would mean an out of state move (along with several other major changes) our plans fell through. Anyway, looking over the courses we would be required to take looked more like we were going to pursue a business management degree rather than a Divinity Degree. The main focus of the SBC is more about nickels and noses rather than souls. How to get more people and their money in instead of how to help people grow in their relationship toward God and pursue a life of holiness. I predict that Mark is eventually going to stop getting offers to serve in Baptist churches because of his Reformed beliefs. (that plus the fact that he does not have a business administration, uh, I mean Seminary Degree) Oh well, we will deal with that when it comes. But for now, I am going to sit back and enjoy my husband who is back from California refreshed, rejuvenated and on fire for God.

TB Or Not TB????

I got a call Saturday saying that my Grandpa has tuberculosis. Bad disease. Really contagious. All the little kids in the family were alerted to be tested. Researching on the internet says not just children but elderly, pregnant women (not me, a cousin), and people with weak immune systems. Mark has been a bit sickly, so everytime he is around someone sick, he gets it too. Well, Mark has been on the other side of the country. Not much he could do. He still had to come home. If he told the airline people he had been exposed, they might not have let him fly. So I chose not to say anything to him. No reason to spoil his fun. So today I called the Health Department to set up an appointment for our family to get tested. They took my name, number and all that and told me to come in tomorrow. Then later I get a call saying the lab people got Grandpa's results mixed up with someone else's. So after most of the family has already been tested and received their negative results, we find out there is no need. Wow, hope we never have true medical emergency.

Happy(?) Father's Day!!

Mark just before leaving for the airport


This Father's Day, the man I love most in this world is not with the people who love him most. He headed out Friday morning to fly from Alabama to California for a conference that John MacArthur is hosting. While he is super excited about going and seeing his favorite author/pastor in person, he sounded awfully upset last night about not seeing the boys today. A lot of men think the perfect Father's Day gift is time away from the wife and kids-my hubby thinks that is the downside to his whole trip.


It is kind of weird how this trip came to be. A few years ago a guy that Mark worked with convinced him to start a profile on myspace. You can visit him at www.myspace.com/revmegdad He started writing blogs about faith and Bible lessons. He was checking out the top blogs list for religion and stumbled across a profile name that caught his eye: Dad(and Mom) of Eleven. So he goes and checks this profile out. Long story short: the guy is like an older version of Mark (with more kids, we stopped at three) So anyway, they got to know each other over the past few years, his wife helped us get started homeschooling, they are really nice people. So the dad sends Mark an e-mail one day asking if Mark would like to go to this conference. The guy offered to pay his entire way!!! He even sent Mark a check to cover any expenses that he might encounter!!! I know what you might you be thinking "Is it a good idea to fly across the country to meet someone from myspace? Don't people get raped and killed doing that?" Well, yes, when teenagers or perverts go to meet each other bad things can occur. They usually do not use the cover of "hey wanna come hear your favorite preacher?"

So, today at church everybody was asking if I had talked to Mark, was he alright, did he make it to the conference? Yes he did. Our pastor preached a sermon today that really made me quite sad. He talked about how men are supposed to be the spiritual leaders of their families, but so many of them are falling down on the job and it is the mothers who are bringing the kids to church alone. {ok, technically I was there alone with our kids, but not because Mark just refuses to go to church, he was out of town on ministry-related business} We have so many in our church who have to get their kids up and bring them alone. The message that it sends to young boys as they grow is that the church is a place for women and children. So, when they get to certain ages they feel they do not have to keep coming. I know this is not a problem exclusive to my home church; it happens in churches all across America.

So, that brings me to the real point of this post. I have a wonderful husband. He may not be perfect, but that is ok. I'm not either. He has set an example of serving the Lord to our boys. He does not show them that being a real man means being a bully. He shows them that studying the Bible is important. He sets a good example of what being a faithful husband is. Rather than going out with guys every weekend, he is with us. (I had to convince him that going to this conference was good, he did not want to be away from the fam that long) Rather than spending money on drinking, gambling or smoking he works to provide us with our wants and needs. He could have gotten out to California and run wild. His first stop? A Book Store. Yeah, he's a nerd. But he is my nerd and I love him. Happy Father's Day, Marko!!!

The Best Day of My Almost 11 Years....

That is what Nathaniel said about getting to go to Take Your Child To Work Day. Did I mention this was at the Marshall Space Flight Center which is a division of NASA??? A very sweet lady we go to church with works there and asked if he could go with her. Could I really say no??? He got to see a mission control room, an astronaut training area, ooh, and a gift shop where he got TWO 4-D puzzles that are models of space craft. They even got to make their own security badges. He has even worn his around the house. Too cute!!!


He got to take this picture while there.

The rest of us kind of took it easy for the day. We had a loaf of bread that got squished on the way home from the store, so we decided to feed some local wildlife.


Notice how fearless Samuel is going right up to the ducks and cautious Benjamin is standing back!!



This duck was asleep when we first got there, but quickly woke up when we opened the bread!!!


My handsome guys!!!


Every time we tried to throw bread to the baby ducks, one of the bigger ducks would snatch it up. Samuel became determined to make SURE that the babies got some. He tore up several pieces into tiny bits then threw it piece by piece very quickly so that even if the bigger ones were faster there would be some for the babies, too.


We even met a friendly squirrel. We called him Pattertwig.


Peek-a-boo!!!


The boys decided they wanted to pick up some shells. Benjamin thought Nathaniel might be sad if he did not have shells while Benjamin and Samuel did, so he gathered up an extra handful for Nathaniel. He is such a sweety!!!

OPEN LETTER TO MOTHERS OF DAUGHTERS

Dear Mothers of Daughters(MODs) :
This is a sincere plea on behalf of Mothers Of Sons(MOSs) everywhere. PLEASE- give your little girls Godly instructions as they are growing up. When they are whining for indecent clothing "because everyone else wears short skirts/ skimpy tops/ sexy bikinis etc... remember that you are not expected to be their best friend at each and every moment. Sometimes you have to be the bad guy and say "No". Sometimes just because something is fashionable or in style does not mean that it should be worn by an adult, much less a child or a teenager. Too often lately all I see are girls who look as if they are being trained to be living the life of a prostitute, rather than a lady.
Secondly dear MODs it is very important to not only have them dress the part of a nice girl, but teach them also to BE a "nice" girl. Is your daughter always getting into conflicts with others? Does she have a new best every week only to be in a squabble with the old one? Does she speak kind words to those around her? Or does she say things that would have gotten your mouth washed out with soap? Teach her that other people have feelings that can hurt just as easily as hers. Show her that Jesus teaches to pray for our enemies and not to repay evil for evil. Sure, she is going to be made fun of. Much the same way she is going to be made fun of over not walking around with her thong hanging out the back of her pants, or not wearing shirts that everyone can see through. That type of teasing will eventually pass.
Last, but definately not least, teach her some manners. Show her when to say "please, thank you, you're welcome, yes or no ma'am or sir". Teach her to sit with her legs closed. Let her know that burping, while everyone does it occasionaly, is not something to be proud of and show off. Let her know that "you're such a girl" is not an insult. She was designed by God to different from boys. That it is not a bad thing to act "like a girl"
You may be wondering why we MOSs are even concerned with h0w you raise your daughters. Well, the truth is we have every right to be concerned. You see, one day our sons are going to grow up. They are probably going to want to get married and have little sons and daughters of their own. And who might they expect to mother those little bundles of joy? Your daughters of course!! We do not want our grandchildren being raised by the generation of Brittney and Paris and Mylie Cyrus disciples. We would like to see our sons marry women who have been raised with morals. So MODs everywhere, please raise your girls to be ladies. I promise as a MOS, to do my best to give you a great son in law. Will do your part to give me a good daughter in law?