Bible Study

I have really been praying and thinking about my Bible study and the motives behind it. My original plan for this year was to read the Bible through in a year. I had never done that before and thought it to be a good goal. As I got into it though, I didn't really feel satisfied. It was much like eating a very light meal, when you're really hungry; at the end of the meal, you still want more. I also felt I was doing it out of obligation. I would think, "I need to get my 7 chapters in or I will be behind." While Gene was gone I prayed about it and decided that I would pick one book a week and study it. My plan is to read it through each day and to add study materials such as concordances and commentaries. I will also take notes on what sticks out to me.

This week I am going through the book of Titus and many things are really resonating with me. In verse one Paul describes himself as a bondservant of God. A bondservant was one of the most menial of positions yet he proclaimed that title with gladness, not with shame, or remorse. In 2:9-10 Paul begins to describe what a good bondservant is and is not. In verse 9 he says he's obedient, the question I ask myself is, "Am I being obedient to what the Lord has given me to do?" He then says we are to be "well pleasing in all things." Does everything I do please the Lord? If not, should I be doing it, and making excuses for it? Then he says a good bondservant doesn't answer back. How often do I argue with God over the things I know He wants from me? How often do I say in my heart, "I know this is wrong, but it's not that big of a thing."? A good bondservant also shows fidelity, or loyalty. Am I being loyal when I do what He hates, and don't do what is most important to Him? Then he says we are to "adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things," in other words we should look & act differently than the world.

Titus talks so much about how we should live our lives, and it shouldn't be for ourselves or our desires. While Gene was gone to Vegas, God really did some things in my heart deepening my desire for Him, and the things that are important to Him. One of the things that is repeatedly hitting me is the need to evangelize the lost. Many people say things such as, "That's your ministry.", "That's what God has called your family to do.", "God hasn't called us to do that." I'm going to be very blunt here... HOGWASH!!! When Christ put out the Great Commission, he gave it to all who are His, not just the 12 disciples. If you believe that as a Christian you have to be called to evangelize, then you are believing a lie! If you believe that to be true, take this as a challenge to prove it. Also, if you believe that your lifestyle is the mode in which your evangelism should take, I challenge you to prove that also. If you look at what the disciples did, you will not see that to be the case. Paul wasn't thrown in jail because he was a nice person, and taught Sunday School. He was thrown in jail for boldly proclaiming the name of Christ.

These quotes by Charles Spurgeon sum it up best.

Have you no wish for others to be saved? Then you are not saved yourself, be sure of that.


If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our bodies. If they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees. Let no one GO there UNWARNED and UNPRAYED for.


Answering a student's question, 'Will the heathen who have not heard the Gospel be saved?' thus, 'It is more a question with me whether we, who have the Gospel and fail to give it to those who have not, can be saved.


We are not called to proclaim philosophy and metaphysics, but the simple gospel.

Sermon of the Week

While Gene was gone to Las Vegas, I spent my time in a great deal of prayer, & work around the house. While I worked I listened to some really great sermons by a man named, Paul Washer. He has a ministry, HeartCry Missionary Society, which helps missionaries around the world. His sermons are hard hitting, and right on target. He's known for not being asked back to places because many "Christians" don't want to hear the truth of his message. Some of his messages send me down on my face; they are so convicting. My plan is to link to one each week, and I hope that you will take the time to listen to them, and allow God to work through them. I'd love to hear your feedback afterwards.

The sermon this week is: Regeneration & Self-Denial

In a Flurry

There has been a flurry of activity in our family since my last post. On the 5th we went on our weekly evangelism jaunt. We met early that night and had dinner together, having a wonderful time of fellowship. Two of the families on our team were leaving on the 9th to go to the Philippines to become missionaries; so we had prayer with them and said all of our good-byes. The prayer was filled with tears of both sadness and joy. We will miss both families greatly, but we are overjoyed at their dedication and service to the Lord. We heard from them earlier this week, and they seem to be settling in to their new lives.

On the 6th we put on another one day training class, which went quite well. We had about 30 attendees and about 15 of them went out witnessing with us afterwards. It was exhilarating to see so many people excitedly sharing their faith. I especially love to be around people who are excited to see what God is going to do when we are obedient to his command to share our faith. The students were even able to see Gene get busted by the police...again. No, they didn't arrest him, but they did tell him to stop witnessing...or else.

On the 10th Gene spoke at Baytown Christian Academy during the chapel services. He was able to present the gospel to about 250 kids & their teachers, while also encouraging them to share their faith. We were able to give all of the kids a tract before they left, which we also encouraged them to share.

On the morning of the 17th Gene flew out to Las Vegas for 5 days of evangelism. The first night they had a banquet with Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort. Before the banquet they were all in the lobby of Circus Circus talking and Gene called his sister. He asked to talk to Brittany, her 16 year old daughter, and then he put Kirk on the phone with her. Brittany has watched Kirk her whole life on Growing Pains, and talking to him on the phone was very special for her. I think it took her a little while to start breathing again.

Yesterday they preached at UNLV and last night they hit the strip preaching. They were on the strip all day today after they spent a morning in prayer. Please continue to pray for them as they spread the light of the gospel in the darkness of Las Vegas.

Looking Forward

The holiday season is now behind us and now with the new year ahead I am looking forward. This past year has been amazing; I can't believe how quickly it passed. It has made me aware of how fleeting our days are, and how we truly need to set our focus on the things of God, not wasting a minute.

When I think back to all of the wasted minutes, time wasted on things of no eternal value, it spurs me on to make changes in my life. I think of how much time and money we spend on entertainment and pleasure, which really convicts me. I know that there is a balance; but it seems that those shouting to keep everything in balance, are often doing little to serve the Lord. I know that sounds like a harsh statement, but over the past year I have seen it time and again. We often get criticized for our evangelism, and our "method" from people who are not evangelizing at all. The phrase we have begun to use with these people is, "You don't like what I'm doing, more than what you are not doing."

As we all look back at the past year and ahead to the coming year, we should prayerfully consider the changes the Lord is laying on our hearts. One of the changes He is laying on mine is to read the Bible more. Like Cindy I would like to read my Bible before touching my computer. I failed at that today, and when I read that she had the same thought, it made me more determined to press toward that mark.

The Lord has blessed us immensely over this last year; not materially, but spiritually. Yes, compared to the rest of the world, we live like kings. But, that is truly not important. What is important is teaching my children to love the Lord their God more than anything, and to teach them to yearn to reach those who are perishing. Even among Christians we tend to teach our children more about how to make and keep the almighty dollar, than how to sacrificially serve our Lord.

It is no wonder that today's Christian teens and young adults act and behave just like the world. They are being taught by the mainstream church to be as much like the world as they possibly can. They have pastors like Joel Osteen telling them to "get their best life now." That is not the life Christ called us to. He called us to take up our crosses and follow Him. His cross wasn't padded and comfortable like the seats at Lakewood. His cross was full of splinters, it was heavy and hard to carry, there were times he felt the weight of it was too much to bear. We are called to emulate Him, not someone who's telling us to get all we can, while we can.

I hope and pray that my focus in the coming year will continue to shift more from me and toward Him. My goal for this blog is to direct people toward Him, and I pray I do that more each day. We can serve Him more by being better wives, mothers and evangelists. What a blessing it will be to our children for them to have a mother who enthusiastically, compassionately, and fervently shares the glorious true gospel of Christ. I pray that through this humble blog, I may in some way encourage you in these areas.