Category: Family

With Your Sons and Daughters

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Exodus 10-11

When I was a teenager I was afraid of little babies. I didn’t know how to handle them and I worried that I’d hurt them or something. I wanted to adopt all my children so I could get them when they were say about 2 or 3 years old, already potty trained and talking.

Now as a mom of four – including one who was adopted as a 6-month-old – I see the incredible value of the training that happens even in those first two years. Even the youngest child is learning how the world works. They are learning that their parents love them and take care of them – or not. They are learning that they are not the center of the world – or they are. They are learning to be patient, obedient, and quiet – or not.

I am certain that God has a plan and purpose in having new babies born helpless and needy. God could’ve designed new lives to begin already grown and wise, but He didn’t. God intentionally places children into families for the good of the children … and the parents.

So, it’s no surprise that Pharaoh doesn’t want the Hebrew children to go worship with their parents, and it’s no surprise that Moses insists that they must.

So Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh. And he said to them,
“Go, serve the LORD your God.
But which ones are to go?”

Moses said, “We will go with
our young and our old.
We will go with our sons and daughters and with our flocks and herds,
for we must hold a feast to the LORD.”

Exodus 10:8-9 ESV

Don’t underestimate the importance of taking your children to church, of leading them in worship at home, and of including them in your family holiday celebrations. Your toddlers and preschoolers are learning more than you may realize.

Heavenly Father, we pray that we would be faithful stewards of the children that You have entrusted to us. I pray that we would train them up in the way that they should go and that when they are old they will not depart from it. Help us as parents to have obedient hearts, obeying You rather than the world. Lord, You love children and You have placed them into families on purpose. Help us to include them in our family’s worship at home and at church. Help us not to underestimate what our children are learning and the eternal impact that these young ones can have for Your kingdom. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, Amen.

My children reciting Psalm 139 from memory

Deuteronomy 31:10-13 ESV — And Moses commanded them, “At the end of every seven years, at the set time in the year of release, at the Feast of Booths, when all Israel comes to appear before the LORD your God at the place that he will choose, you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. Assemble the people, men, women, and little ones, and the sojourner within your towns, that they may hear and learn to fear the LORD your God, and be careful to do all the words of this law, and that their children, who have not known it, may hear and learn to fear the LORD your God, as long as you live in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.”

Psalm 148:12-13 ESV — Young men and maidens together, old men and children! Let them praise the name of the LORD, for his name alone is exalted; his majesty is above earth and heaven.

Proverbs 22:6 ESV — Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.

Deuteronomy 6:6-7 ESV — And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.

Psalm 78:2-7 ESV — I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings from of old, things that we have heard and known, that our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the LORD, and his might, and the wonders that he has done. He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers to teach to their children, that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments;

Praying for Both Moms – Birth Moms and Adoptive Moms

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Read Through the Bible in 2 Years: Exodus 2

As an adoptive mom, the story of Moses has always had particular interest for me. The idea of Moses’s first mom, the mom who gave birth to him, was willing to risk her own life by hiding him for three months, and then to place him among the reeds in hopes that he would be rescued by an Egyptian, reminds of my son’s first mom, the mom who gave birth to him.

I will be forever indebted to her. Though I don’t know the circumstances surrounding my son’s conception or what she went through to bring him to birth, I know it couldn’t have been easy.

So, I’d like to pray for all those first moms out there, the moms who have birth to a child they’re not raising. But I’d also like to pray for all of us adoptive moms who are raising children they didn’t birth. Both moms face unique pains and joys and both moms need our prayers.

Heavenly Father, I pray right now for the mom who has given birth to a child she isn’t raising, a child who is under someone else’s care. I pray that You will encourage her. Help her to trust in You and seek for You with all her heart. I pray that she will someday see in Heaven that child she carried in her womb. I pray that she will know that You are the God of redemption and restoration and second chances, and that it’s never too late to turn to You. I pray that she knows that You are the God who hears and remembers and sees and knows. Truly, You are the God of all comfort. In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

And Heavenly Father, I also pray for the adoptive mom who is raising a child birthed by another, who deeply loves a child that You have entrusted into her care. I pray that You will heal the broken places in her heart with the healing balm of Your love. Help her to cast all her cares on you, knowing that You care for her and You care for that little boy or girl, too. I pray that she will remember that You are the God of redemption and restoration and second chances, and that is never too late to turn to You. May she know that You are the God who hears and remembers and sees and knows. Truly, You are the God of all comfort. In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

The Spreading Power of Persecution

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Exodus 1

But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad.

Exodus 1:12a

I recently read a quote that went something like, “When the authorities loosen their grip, the gospel spreads … and when the authorities tighten their grip, the church is trained and becomes more disciplined … but always we are in God’s hands.”

Today in reading the story of the persecution of the young Hebrew nation in Exodus 1, I saw the Lord’s hand in both spreading and training His people, but in this case, persecution is actually what caused the people to spread abroad.

Isn’t that what happened in the dispersion of the new disciples of Jesus Christ who were persecuted for their faith? And how about what happened when God confused the people’s languages at the tower of Babel in Genesis 11? God’s people were dispersed over the face of all the earth as a result of their suffering and hardship, but all the time they were in God’s hands.

I am reminded again and again as I read through the scriptures that my ways are not God’s ways. So often the very thing that seems straight from the pit of hell is exactly what God uses for His glory and my good – if I only keep my eyes open to it. No matter what, I can trust that I am in God’s hands.

Let’s pray.

Heavenly Father, Help us to trust You no matter what. Help us to believe that You are in control even when life feels out of control. You are always on Your throne. You are working all things together for good. Let us not be ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God for salvation for all who believe, both the Jew and the Gentile. Help us to want for the good even of those who persecute us and shame us and say all kinds of evil about us falsely on Your account. We love You and we trust You. Increase our faith, Father. In the matchless name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

Well done, Good and Faithful Servant

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Matthew 25

The Lord blessed our family with four children over a span of eleven and a half years. I was a busy homeschooling mom trying my best to manage a very busy household. One way that I did this was with “chore charts” assigning various chores to each child in our household.

My oldest daughter was responsible for so many tasks around the home from cooking and cleaning to helping with her younger siblings. My youngest son had much smaller jobs like feeding the dog or putting away the silverware.

Were their jobs unequal? Definitely! Was it unjust? Absolutely not. They were different people and given correspondingly different jobs. They were equally praised for a job well done, and equally reprimanded for a job poorly done – regardless of whether they were supposed to clean the entire hall bathroom or merely empty the hall bath’s trash can.

Likewise, our perfectly wise Lord gives different people different portions of talents, but equal praise. To the one who invested well his five talents and the one who invested well his two, the Lord says, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.” (Matthew 25:20, 22) The one who invested well his five talents did not receive greater praise, nor did the one who invested well his two talents receive lesser praise.

The Lord is angry with the worthless servant, not because he only had one talent, but because he did not invest his one talent well. The one who received only one talent chose to hide it in the ground, saying that he knew that the master was a hard man, “reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you scattered no seed,” (Matthew 25:24) Surely this man doesn’t know the true character of his Master, for if he did he would never utter such words.

Good servants know the true character of their Master, that He is good and generous in giving His servants talents with which to serve Him. I speak from the perspective of someone who was once an atheist, living a life devoid of lasting purpose. As a follower of Jesus Christ, it is a priceless gift to know that your life has meaning and purpose. It is good news to be God’s “workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10)

What talents has the Lord entrusted to you?

Has He blessed you with children, a house, a skill, a passion, a testimony – or all of the above?

How can you put them to good use for your master?

Heavenly Father, You are a good Father who delights in giving good gifts to Your children and You are a good Master in giving us, Your servants, fruitful tasks to accomplish. It is a joy for our lives to have meaning and purpose. It is a joy to serve you here on earth and it is a joy to look forward to that day we will enter into Your kingdom and hear the words we long to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” In the Name of our Gracious Master Jesus Christ we pray, Amen.

Seeing yourself as a steward of your time, talents, treasures, and testimony

Loving the Lord More Than Anyone or Anything

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Matthew 10

 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." Matthew 10:34-39 ESV

What do I love more than Jesus? Sleep? Chocolate cake? My phone?

Who do I love more than Jesus? My mom and dad? My friends? My kids? My husband?

Who is on the throne of my heart? Who rules over my thoughts and my actions? Who am I living my life for?

It’s a lot to think about. Let’s pray

Lord, help me to love you more than anything, more than anyone. Make me willing to lose what I love for Your name. Show me today what that looks like. In the name of Jesus Christ, the only worthy One, Amen.

Fear and Faith in the Storms of Life

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Matthew 8

In Matthew 8 we read about Jesus healing the leper and the centurion’s servant and then Peter’s own mother-in-law, but when the disciples find themselves in about in the middle of a great storm, they struggle with fear and faith.

And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.”
And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?”
Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying,
“What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”

Matthew 8:25-27 ESV

On the one hand, the disciples showed faith because they did go to Jesus and ask him to save them. Let’s be real – if you and I were together in a boat that is sinking, I’m quite sure you would not come to me and say, “Save me, Kim, I’m perishing!”

And yet Jesus scolds them because they are so afraid. Jesus knows their thoughts. He knows their hearts. He knows they lack the full breadth and width and depth of faith that they need to live lives free of fear. They still have much to learn about the greatness of His power!

This is just what I needed to hear as my area has endured horrific acts of violence and countless tornadoes with more ever on the horizon. How about you? What storms are you facing today?

Will you pray with me?

Heavenly Father, help me not to be afraid about all the health stuff, weather stuff, and family stuff, the daily fears of my life. Help me to fully trust You to lead me, save me, and protect me. I know that You are able. I know that You have all authority in heaven and on earth. Anything that You allow into my life or send into my life, I trust is ultimately for Your glory, for the good of Your kingdom, and for my good.

If I die it’s for Your glory and for my good, because I get to be with You for all eternity. If I suffer, it’s for Your glory and for my good because I can know You more fully. If I am, richly blessed with every earthly blessing – honor and wealth and wisdom – that too is for Your glory and for my good that I may declare Your appraises and majesty and honor.

In the name of our Almighty King Jesus I pray, Amen

Temptation

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Matthew 4

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit
into the wilderness
to be tempted by the devil.

Matthew 4:1

It struck me that it was the Spirit that led Jesus to go into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. Why? Why would God want Jesus to be tempted? I found the answer in the Word, in Hebrews.

"Therefore [Jesus] had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted." Hebrews 2:17-18 ESV
"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." Hebrews 4:15-16 ESV

Jesus experienced the very human experience of temptation, yet He resisted the devil by His will and by the Word, and so can we. Like 1 Corinthians 10:13 says, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

James 1:13-15 ESV

So … What should we do when we face temptation?

  • Take every thought captive to obey Christ. (See 2 Corinthians 10:5) The battle against temptation is won and lost in your thoughts. If you want to resist temptation, you need to “think about what you’re thinking about!” As soon as you’re tempted, capture that thought and get rid of it. Then, replace it with the truth of God’s Word. After 40 days of fasting, I’m sure Jesus was so so so hungry! I know how I feel after fasting for 12 hours. Jesus overcame temptation with God’s Word, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes in the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4 – Look at Deuteronomy 8:3 for it’s original use) The more of God’s Word you have stored in your heart, the more equipped you’ll be to replace those wrong thoughts with the right ones!
  • Resist the devil. Ask yourself this question, “Who am I resisting, God or the devil?” All too often we are resisting God and submitting to the devil. 😩 We’ve got it all wrong! And if we want to resist the devil, we have to keep our eyes open to his temptations and schemes. If you knew you were in the lion’s den, you’d keep alert for a lion, wouldn’t you? Listen carefully to the words of 1 Peter 5:8-9, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.”
  • Submit to God. In those tough moments, remember that God is your commanding officer. He has every right to give you your matching orders, and He expects you to obey them. Read what James has to say about this. “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.” (James 4:7-8a ESV) When you’re struggling with temptation, no matter what it is, turn to God and obey Him in faith. Trust that He is good and that His plans are for your good.

Let’s pray.

Heavenly Father, Each and every day the temptations that come our way are many. Some temptations are stronger than others, but all of them can be overcome by Your Spirit and Your Word. He who is in me is greater than he who is in the world. Your Word is my sword by which I can resist the devil’s schemes. Please help me to resist the devil and submit to you. You are my commanding officer. I am no longer a slave to sin. I am no longer a slave to my flash. I am no longer a child of Satan and the world. I am a child of God, by the blood of Jesus. I am a soldier in the army of the Lord. I have been bought with a price and now I want to serve You with my body. I am a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to You, my Lord and Captain and King. In the holy and almighty name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

He Will Save His People from their Sins

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Matthew 1

The Book of Matthew begins with the genealogy of Jesus Christ. The first verse is a brief genealogy. Jesus descended from David who descended from Abraham, but then we get a father to son heritage from Abraham all the way to Jesus’s earthly father, Joseph. You might feel tempted to skip this, but I hope you won’t. I want to point out a few things.

  • The genealogy begins with Abraham, not Adam. Abraham was the father of the Jewish nation. Jesus was a Jew.
  • There are several women mentioned in this account, but every one of them has something that tarnishes their reputation. Look up the stories of Tamar (Genesis 38:1-26), Rahab (Joshua 2:1-3 and Joshua 6:17-25), and Ruth (Ruth 1:4).
  • Bathsheba isn’t mentioned by name as the mother of Solomon, but rather is referred to as “the wife of Uriah,” not because of her sin but because of David’s. You can read about the story of Uriah’s death and Solomon’s birth in 2 Samuel 11-12, but 1 Kings 15:5 says “David did what was right in the eyes of the LORD and did not turn aside from anything that he commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.”

Matthew didn’t try to hide the thread of sin which is woven through the background of the ancestors of Jesus, son of David. Rather, these words help to prepare the reader for the words of the angel —

Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son and
you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.

Matthew 1:20-21

Joseph, too, is a son of David, a good man but not a perfect man. God has chosen Mary, a good woman but not a perfect woman to bear His son, a perfect Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit. This Son will save His people from their sins.

Joseph and Mary needed saving and so do we. Let’s pray.

Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Your only begotten Son to save me from my sins. I am Your child and You are my Father. Thank you for showing us that we don’t have to have a sinless lineage to be children of Your Perfect Son. Thank You for my earthly father and mother who did their best to raise me right. I pray that You would bless them with everything that they need for life and godliness by the power of Your Holy Spirit and Your Word. I pray that You would make me a woman after your own heart, treasuring Your word in my heart that I would not sin against you. In the Holy, Blessed name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

I Serve a Risen Savior

Now My Eye Sees You

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Read Through the Bible in 2 Years: Job 40-42

“And the LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning.
And he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. He had also seven sons and three daughters.”

Job 42:12-13 ESV

In Job 1, we read that Job had 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen and 500 female donkeys. Here at the end of his life, Job has twice as many of these animals. Yet in Job 1, we read that Job had seven sons and three daughters and now at the end of his life, he once again is given seven sons and three daughters. Why was the number of his children not doubled?

Let me share with you my thoughts: When Job’s first animals were wiped out and he got new animals, he no longer counted the ones he had earlier in his life … but children, they are different. Our children are made in God’s image and are given eternal souls. Our children are irreplaceable. If your child passes away, they remain your child. I have two children who have gone to heaven before me and I have four children here on earth, therefore I have six children.

Job began his life with ten children and he ended his life with twenty. The Lord had indeed given him a double portion.

The pain of losing all of your animals is great, but the pain of losing all of your children is immeasurably greater. But may I encourage you with this word: the pain is great because your love is great.

Job was a righteous man with a deep love for God, but Job grew to know and love God more intimately and personally as a result of his great pain – and so can we. Earlier we read the words of Job, “Behold, my eye has seen all this, my ear has heard and understood it.” (Job 13:1 ESV) But now at the end of this book, Job says, “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you;” (Job 42:5 ESV)

I remember all too well how much the Lord grew and transformed me through the pain of losing a baby. I pray that whatever trial you are going through now or have gone through in the past, that you will keep your eyes wide open to see God as He walks with you through this dark valley.

Heavenly Father, please grow our faith. Help us to see Your hand guiding us and blessing us every step of the way as we walk through this valley. You are always good and always right. You are all-knowing and all-powerful. We need You every hour. We pray that we will know how deep and high and long and wide is Your love toward us as Your children. We pray that we will see You in our lives and see You in Your living and active Word because we know that You are there. In the Name of Christ Jesus our Lord we pray, Amen.

Watch my testimony for more on how I came to see God more clearly after losing a baby

“Were You There?” and The Importance of Studying Creation Science

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Read Through the Bible in 2 Years: Job 38-39

"Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: "Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me. Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding." - Job 38:1-4 ESV

“Were you there?” is a question that young earth creation scientist Ken Ham encourages people to ask when discussing the theory of evolution. The reality is that no man has witnessed the evolution of molecules to man, because it didn’t happen.

Yet, no man witnessed God creating the earth, sun, moon, and stars. I wasn’t there and neither were you. But there was someone who was there: God. And God has given us an account of the events of creation in the Holy Scriptures.

God’s Word is true and it is trustworthy. I hope you will put your faith in God and in every word that He has preserved for us. Take some time to study the science behind the creationist worldview. The Christian young earth creationist worldview is scientifically reasonable and defendable. Studying it will strengthen your faith and help you to be prepared to give a reason for the hope that is in you!

For those of you who are parents, please invest the efforts necessary to teach your children about creation science. Young minds are impressionable. They will either be shaped by a godless culture or a god-centered one. If you’re afraid to indoctrinate your children into the Christian faith, just know that the world is busy indoctrinating them for you. I know. I was there.

Will you pray with me?

Heavenly Father, You were there when the foundations of the earth were laid by the power of Your Word. You were there when the sea burst forth for the first time. You were there when the sun, moon, and stars were hung in the vast space of our universe. Before the beginning of time, You were there. Thank You, Father, for preserving Your Word for all of these years, so that we could know You. Thank You for speaking to Job and for speaking to us. You know all things and by Your will they have come into being. Help us to trust You in all things – in the daily stresses of life and in training up our children in the way they should go. In the powerful name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

Suggested Creation Science Resources:

Creatures that Defy Evolution video – This is just the first video of a series.

It Couldn’t Just Happen book – Aimed at ages 10-14, but I found it so profitable for me, too.

Answers in Genesis – A website full of great creation information.

Creation – This link is especially for Answers in Genesis’ Creation specific info.

Jonathan Park Audio Dramas – My kids grew up on these!

Creation Museum – A great place to visit and learn in person! Our family went over ten years ago – I think it’s time to go again!

Noah’s Ark Replica – This is located near the creation museum. It wasn’t built yet when we went to the creation museum. Like I said, we need to go again!

Creation Website in Chinese – For all my Chinese speaking friends!

The Case for Faith by Lee Strobel – For me as an atheist, faith in an invisible God was harder than faith in Jesus as God’s Son. The Case for Faith was instrumental in growing my faith. I also love More than a Carpenter by Josh McDowell, but it isn’t so focused on creation.

Ken Ham – Bill Nye Debate – Sometimes how you speak is almost as important as what you say. The Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome, but patient and kind. Pay attention not only to what is spoken, but how. The ultimate goal isn’t to win the debate. The ultimate goal is to win the soul and ultimately this is in God’s hands. Trust Him.