Filed under: Biblical Femininity, Christian Living, Community, Counseling, current issues, Discipleship, Friends, Good Advice, Lessons Learned, Life, My life, Questions, role models, school days, tmc
Enter friend #3 who was faithful to speak into my life. While chatting with a coworker/friend one day about how I thought I was antisocial, she said,
“Jenn, why do you feel like you don’t do well in social gatherings? How come you think you aren’t social?”
“I don’t know how to end conversations and I can’t talk to everyone in the room.”
“Do you have to talk to everyone in the room? Sometimes is it good to continue that conversation with that one person? I think you set up rules and standards for yourself.”
She was right. I did set up laws for myself. When I sets up rules, standards, and laws for myself and I failed, my law had been violated and now someone needed to pay or there needed to be some atonement. That left me with two options: punishment or run.
Filed under: Community, Cooking, Friends, FUN!, Hospitality, Questions, Quirky, These are a few of my favorite things...
Is it weird that waking up to this messy kitchen makes me happy? That messy kitchen means friends, fellowship, and laughter. I’d rather have people over, enjoy their company, and finish up the clean up in the morning, than not have them over or clean the entire time they are there. I smiled as I came down to this mess this morning.
Filed under: Christian Living, Community, Cool Finds, Discipleship, Good Advice, Lessons Learned, Life, Questions, tmc, work
Q & A Sessions are always one of the best parts of the conference if you have good speakers and a good moderator. We had both at the 2010 Truth and Life conference, so I thought I would share some highlights even though it is months later.
How do we have fellowship and unity with fellow believers who differ theologically with us? Here are some answers from Mark Dever, Ligon Duncan, and Philip DeCourcy.
“We don’t ignore our differences, we debate them, but given what we are unified in our shared commitments and convictions, it would be wrong for us not to find ways to work together.”
I thought it was very cool that one conference speaker could say of the other speaker, “He knows my arguments for my position on the areas we differ, as well as I do.”
“We have unity, but not because of setting theology aside to be focused on a mission ( when people do this they are either slipping their position under the door without checking it or setting aside truth).”
“These men may think some of the beliefs I hold are heretical, but they are more my brothers than someone who agrees with me on everything, but doesn’t know why they believe what they believe. The first believes in the supremacy of the Scriptures, the second is just a liberal.”
I can’t wait for TLC 2011.
Happy first day of classes! If you are interested in the four kinds of students described in the Talmud, click here. What kind are you?
Who sells the other 97% of the world’s best coffee beans?
Filed under: Cooking, Cool Finds, Friends, FUN!, Hospitality, My life, Questions, Quirky, recipes
I’ve been on a homemade pizza kick. It’s fun to have friends over to make them with you or to take to a church gathering. Here are a few new combos I’ve been enjoying:
marinara, cheese, apple, bacon, cayenne, sliced mini heirloom tomatoes – sweet, spicy, savory deliciousness
alfredo, cheese, ham, tangerines, crumbled feta – intriguing, but good
marinara, ham, kalatma olives, onions – classic
What would you put on your pizza?
Filed under: Biblical Femininity, Books, Christian Living, Cool Finds, Discipleship, Lessons Learned from Reading, Life, missions, My life, Questions, These are a few of my favorite things..., tmc, work
I enjoyed The Narnian so much that I have been intending to write a series of lengthy posts on it. Now I don’t need to. Because these two guys recommend it. Their recommendation speaks volumes.
For work, I also recently read several chapters of this fascinating book. Justin Taylor also speaks about this book here.
I recently finished this biography for a class. The title and cover may lead you to believe it is a romance novel or a flowery, women’s ministry book, but it isn’t. Because of the way it was written and the subject matter, it is a quick read. It isn’t easy to put it down. It is also a worthwhile read. It will make you question your comfortable life in America as a follower of Christ. It will also provoke you to ask, “What do I hold more dear than God’s glory?”
Filed under: Christian Living, Friends, Good Advice, Lessons Learned, Life, Questions, tmc
Since the Bible says that out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks, that means every time someone speaks to you they are opening their heart to you. JPK recently said this at a speaking engagement and it really made me think. I don’t listen with this in mind and I don’t ask follow up questions with this in mind. Realizing the significance of other’s comments could place so much pressure on me that I freeze, but Joe said something else that helps with this as well. He said that we are bound to be bad at asking questions in the beginning. We will be sitting there trying to think of the next question to ask instead of listening. We might have awkward pauses or ask sub-par questions, but we will improve. Here is a tip for learning to ask better questions to help you get to someones heart and get to know them instead of learning about them…
When someone is talking, think “What do I not know about what they just said?” and then follow up with a question about that.
Said by a terrorist involved in a plot to blow up Los Angeles:
“… It’s too bad about all the dead movie stars.”
Sarcastic response of his cohort:
“Yes, what will we do without their razor sharp political advice?!”
Filed under: Christian Living, current issues, Lessons Learned from Reading, Life, Questions
Let’s let Scripture speak for itself.
Genesis 9:6 “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image…” – spoken by God Himself in His Holy Word
