Visiting Lixia

On December 15-18th, I visited my friend Lixia in New York City.  She lives in Queens with her husband Chenghui and daugther, XinXin.  She was converted two years ago and I am very excited about her growing faith in Christ.  Here are some photos I took on my journey:

  

I Was Glad...

Jesus, I'd rather spend one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere.  I was glad when they said unto me, enter into the house of the Lord on Sunday, December 25th!

Peanut Sesame Noodles

I made peanut sesame noodles, adapted from Nigella Lawson's recipe.  Modifications: nixed the beansprouts, fresh coriander/cilantro and garlic oil, sauteed the vegetables with olive oil and crushed garlic, used crunchy peanut butter and green onions instead of spring onions, a tiny bit of ground coriander, frozen cilantro, and measured everything by eye.  I got great deals on the ingredients from Grand Asia Market and Trader Joes.  Next time I will try julienned green beans instead of snow peas.

Gospel-Centered Marriages for a Glorious Church, 4/4

Hope Baptist Elder, Dan Horn spoke on the role of romance and emotions.  The message was intertwined with great historical context – Reformation, Scholasticism - “the mind is not fallen” [NOT], Romanticism and more.  Here are points from this talk:

• The purpose of every righteous courtship is to find God's will and prescription for marriage.
• Man acting in a heroic way is what it means to be romantic NOT “how will he swoon over me??!!!1111" Romantic scenes – 1 Samuel 18:25-27; Joshua 15:16-17
• Jesus Christ was about big things, don't let your marriage be about small things.
• Desires can be evil: Colossians 3:5  / Desires can be good: 2 Tim. 3:12, Luke 22:15
• James 1:13-16 – fight against the perversion of a desire into something unrighteous; be careful about the violating the 10th commandment
• God is not weak, weeping... “I love you so much!!!” [I'm crazzzy for you!] He said conquer, come along beside me minister.
• Jesus came and died to do his Father's will, [and rose] to glorify.
• Jeremiah 12:5 - self-control; 1 Corinthians 7:9; Jeremiah 29
• "GROW UP!" 

Here are points from his talk on unequal yoking:

• Deuteronomy 22:10; Romans 8:28
• Process of courtship: understand who God would match together to do work for the service of God
• Equal yoking in the context of dominion, furthering the work of God  – 1 Cor. 22:7; 1 Cor. 7:8-9
• More worthy – “I will give my life for you to spend.”
• Marriage – no aggravation, but covering of weaknesses, not just matching strengths
• Theology (agree on the majors) & How to determine major or minor: Can you overlook it?
• Is this a match that glorifies the Kingdom of Heaven?

There you have it!  These conclude my notes from Gospel-Centered Marriages for a Glorious Church.  There were around 30 messages presented there.  A set of MP3s or CDs from the conference can be purchased here.

Gospel-Centered Marriages for a Glorious Church, 3/4

Paul Washer spoke at a session called “Principles of Courtship.”  The complete message is available for download at Sermon Audio.

Here are some points from the talk:

• We are living in a culture where everyone is encouraged to do what is right in their own eyes (Judges 17:6)
• Do you believe the Bible is sufficient and inerrant for every aspect of life?
• Live to the glory of God; study God's will revealed in the scriptures and seek to submit every aspect of life to them.
• In courtship for singles: Elders can take the place of neglectful parents.
• Recreational dating meets self-centered, selfish desires
• Timing of courtship: when a young person awakens to desire the opposite sex, it is not time to participate, but to prepare.
• Sign of male maturity – unaided devotion to God; moral fortitude (Jeremiah 12:5)
• Sign of female maturity – could I manage a home?
• “Society is falling is apart because the family has become a sitcom.”

Principles:

• Relationship is initiated by the man: trust in prayer & sovereignty of God
• Carefully examine/evaluate motives - are you attracted to Biblical beauty or sexuality? To virtue or winsome personality?
• 1 Timothy 3 / Titus 1 – mature man

Simple Meals

I was looking through some old photos recently and came across a picture that brought back such warm memories of hospitality.  In 2006, I spent five weeks in Panajachel, Guatemala with the Ramirez Family as a part of a study abroad experience. Doña Juanita prepared simple and delicious meals for me, her husband, Don Rodolfo and their three young children.

Breakfast: hot tea, homemade salsa, boiled eggs and homemade corn tortilla.

Gospel-Centered Marriages for a Glorious Church, 2/4

Joel Beeke gave a great historical overview on Puritan marriage at the Gospel Centered Marriages for a Glorious Church conference. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a Puritan as “a member of a 16th and 17th century Protestant group in England and New England opposing as unscriptural the ceremonial worship and the prelacy of the Church of England.”

Thanks to high school literary curriculum and historical revisionism, my view of the Puritans before the faith came was skewed. I still have some unlearning to do, and I look forward to learning more about their belief that Scripture was sufficient for every area of life.

Beeke talked about the Puritans' positive attitude toward families and marriage. He read the Anglican and Puritan marriage vows. Both vows are wonderfully scriptural, but they are ordered differently. He pointed out that the Puritan vows list “marriage for the mutual help and comfort” (according to Malachi 2:15 and 1 Corinthians 7:3) first, while the Anglican vows place it last.

Beeke mentioned a Puritan author by the name of William Gouge. I was seated beside my friends Chuck and Sarah during the talk. They have been married for two years and they shared that Gouge's book, Of Domestical Duties, has been a great help to them.

Puritan Marriage Procedures:

1. Getting to know/like/love each other under supervision
2. Contract of espousal [engagement]
3. Contract formally announced for three successive Sundays
4. Public solemnization of vows
5. Civil celebration
6. Feasting, tasteful riddles
7. Consummation (when marriage is considered official)

Puritan Criteria for Suitable Mates:

• Wisdom in walking in Christ
• Leadership skills, demeanor
• Submission
• Mature & properly motivated
• Fairly equal in class & cultural resources
• Somewhat attractive to each other

The minimum Puritan marriage age was 12 for girls, 14 for boys - in the 16^th and 17^th century they were attending Yale, Harvard and/or had full-time jobs by age 9. The average age people actually married was 17 to 21; life expectancy at that time was 45 years.

Other Points:

• Husbands love absolutely, purposefully, realistically & sacrificially
• Mutual duties - love, fidelity, joy
• Understood the covenantal principle/covenant theology [would there be as many divorces, or even marriages, if people truly understood and took covenants seriously today?]
• 1 Timothy 4:1-3 prophesies one of the many fallacies of Catholic doctrine (forbidding priests to marry)
• A wife: a helpmeet in business, troubles, sickness, content with husband's work, social standing and financial status, always joy to see him, thrifty without being miserly, sober, modest
• Children were viewed as gifts of God
• Children brought up early on in the nurture and admonition of the Word
• Everyday singing in home up to the glory of God - Psalm 118:15

In Everything Give Thanks

Superficial Evangelism

I was reading through the essential convictions of HeartCry Missionary Society and wanted to share one in particular:

Superficial Evangelism is one of the Great Obstacles to Missions. Non-theological preaching, entertaining skits, and Gospel films are no substitute for the biblical exposition of the Gospel. Inviting men to raise their hands and pray a prayer is no substitute for the biblical call to repentance, faith, and personal discipleship. Biblical assurance of salvation does not flow from a past decision or a prayer, but from the examination of one’s enduring lifestyle in the light of Scripture.

Gospel-Centered Marriages for a Glorious Church, 1/4

From October 27th to the 29th, I attended the Gospel-Centered Marriages for a Glorious Church Conference in Asheville, North Carolina. I plan to do a series of four posts based on my notes from some of the messages I heard, with this being the first.

Scott Brown, an Elder at the Church I have been attending since August, spoke on Ephesians 5:14-33:

• The longest statement in the New Testament about marriage
• The classic foundational text on the roles of husbands and wives
• Gives us language to help us understand marriage and the mystery of Christ and the Church
• Shows how to prepare for marriage
• Shows what it means to be filled with the Holy Spirit 

Text of Ephesians 5:14-33 (NASB): 
^/14 For this reason ^[a]it says,
   “Awake, sleeper,
And arise from the dead,
And Christ will shine on you.”
 ¹⁵ Therefore ^[b]be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, ^{16 [c]}making the most of your time, because the days are evil. ¹⁷ So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. ¹⁸ And do not get drunk with wine, ^[d]for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, ¹⁹ speaking to ^[e]one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; ²⁰ always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to ^[f]God, even the Father; ^{21 [g]}and be subject to one another in the ^[h]fear of Christ.
 ²² Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.   For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. ²⁴ But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.
 ²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, ²⁶ so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, ²⁷ that He might present to Himself the church ^[i]in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. ²⁸ So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; ²⁹ for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, ³⁰ because we are members of His body. ³¹ FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND SHALL BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH. ³² This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. ³³ Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that she ^[j]respects her husband./

Three reasons for submission:

• The husband is the head of the wife
• To understand creation order
• To understand the Fall

DESIRE to submit to the Lord is the prerequisite to being a submissive wife.  Studying ecclesiology, which is the theological study of the Christian church, will help you understand what it means to be the Bride of Christ.

Other great points:

• A wife has perfect commands to follow [Holy Scripture], but the Church is the imperfect model [until the Great Day].
• Marriage is not about finding the perfect match, but reflecting the likeness of Jesus Christ.
• Know how to talk to one another without getting into provocation mode.
• A husbands sins are a part of a wife's sanctification and cleansing.
• Communication is enormously important; men must be wordsmiths, they must talk.

William Gouge Quote:
"A husband accepts what she is willing and able to do; takes notice of her goodness; cares where she lives..."

I really appreciated Elder Brown's remark that espousal and marriage is Biblical, while courtship is a convention [that will get people to the point of espousal, or not, in a God-honoring way].

Black Bean, Corn & Tomato Salad

I put together an easy and flavorful black bean, corn and tomato salad. 

Rinse and drain three cans of black beans, drain a bit of liquid from one can of corn and slice three to five small tomatoes.  After combining those ingredients in a shallow bowl, add special things to give the salad flavor and a little heat.  I added Trader Joe's wonderful Corn and Chile Salsa and pieces of fresh cilantro to my salad.

A Simple Greek Salad

On Saturday, I stopped by the State Farmer's Market to purchase ripe tomatoes, cucumbers, and a big red onion.  Using those items with food I already had in the pantry and in the fridge, I made a big Greek salad for the fellowship meal at church.  The salad consisted of romaine lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, black olives, feta cheese, bulgur wheat, dill, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil with a dash of salt and pepper.  I was pleased how flavorful and colorful it was.  I used the leftover ingredients to make a couple of salads for myself this week. 

Charo Washer's Testimony

A Pensive Walk

I went for a peaceful, pensive hour-long walk in Historic Oakwood Cemetery today.  I have wanted to visit there for a while.  Although many great oak trees were uprooted by the April tornadoes, I still enjoyed the beauty of the hilly landscape.  Oakwood appears to be one of the oldest and largest cemeteries in North Carolina, dating back to 1867 with more than 1,500 graves from the Civil War and about 20,000 graves total.

Seeing the inscription: "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they will see God," was both sobering and uplifting.  After my life imploded last month, just the thought that I will have the privilege of seeing God in the Last Day brought tears to my eyes.  His mercies are new every morning and his grace is sufficient for me.  [Note: Just realized that the first inscription was actually an amalgamation of Matthew 5:6 & Matthew 5:8]

I came across another tombstone with the last name FREED and "Jesus said: I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die." inscribed under it.  What a testimony!

I saw another tombstone engraved with a cross and the name "Liu" in English and Chinese. Flowers were planted round the grave.  Two scriptures came to mind: "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus,"  and "All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever." 

Even if you are not a sports fan, it is impossible to graduate from NC State University without hearing the name of legendary basketball coach, Jimmy Valvano.  I spotted the grave of the late Valvano and was amazed that there was no mention of "NC State" or "championship" or "basketball" on his tombstone, but that he  simply wanted to be remembered as "devoted husband and loving father" who recommends to posterity, "take time every day to laugh, to think, to cry." 

I conclude this post with a moving inscription that I recorded.  It was dedicated to the late John W. Pike (d. 1919) from his wife Etta Pike (d. 1937): "True to His God, pure in heart, a devoted husband, a loving father, a true neighbor.  Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord.  Gone but not forgotten, we shall meet again."

"Be faithful unto death and I will give thee the crown of life."

Scripture references: Matthew 5:6, Matthew 5:8, John 11:25-26, Galatians 3:28, 1 Peter 1:24-25, Revelation 2:10

Consistency

I just want to start off this post with a praise report, Hallelujah Jesus!  At the eleventh hour, I found a place to live for the summer that meets my needs.  Still trusting the Lord for so much, after reading and listening to Proverbs 16 repeatedly, I realize that I need to trust Him for everything.  For the past two weeks especially, everyday has been a struggle to renew my mind.  I desire to define myself by God's standards revealed in the Bible alone.  I have to seek the scriptures daily to find out what that practically means so that I can truly treasure the word in my heart.

Scripture References: Romans 12:2, Proverbs 16, Psalm 119:11

Lessons Learned This Week

• When God is doubted, a hasty plan is made therewith comes ruin and lamentation.
• Examine every possible decision in light of scripture, be mindful not to passively "co-sign" on things God hates.
• There is rescue from despair and a future hope, just keep looking onwards and upwards - DON'T LOOK BACK!

Scripture references: Proverbs 21:5, Proverbs 19:2, 1 Corinthians 5:11, Luke 9:62, Luke 17:32

Biblical Counseling on Self-Esteem

"We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ." ~2 Corinthians 10:5

The audio link below is a two-minute excerpt from a message called the "Life Verses of Paul Washer."  It is a great primer on how to handle moments when our daily thought lives rise up against the knowledge of God.
Biblical Counseling on Self-Esteem by Paul Washer

Awakened: The Disconnect Between Action and Belief

This week, after actual sincere prayers, I have awakened to the disconnect between action and belief in areas of my life.  I desire to marry and be a keeper at home with children through childbirth and/or adoption.  This is a desire I truly did not have as a girl or young woman, and I believe it is God given.  In forsaking the pursuit of yet another degree program this week in an effort to conform to my aforementioned desire, I felt as though I was a failure by the world's standard.  Henceforth, rather than languish in sorrow, I have no choice but to rely upon God's standard of success. 

In meanwhile, I continue to work, hoping to transform my work experience into something that builds on my innate talents and stretches me on a personal level.  In my journal I wrote "there is no turning back, I cannot neglect to let God order my day starting in the early morning."  Really believing Matthew 6:33, following Jesus' example, and experiencing the fruit that it has borne this week is at the root of that statement.

How can God order my day?  Well, besides upholding all things by the Word of his power, it was impressed upon me while I was reading 1 Corinthians 2, that through obedience to the Spirit of God and his revealed will (The Bible) that I can have the mind of Christ.

Other scripture references: Mark 1, Hebrews 1:3

Lord of the Nations

On Saturday, I had the opportunity to hear from some African pastors.  I learned of the top five keys of revival in West Africa:
(1) Simplicity of the Gospel.
(2) People cannot depend on the system (government,police, fire dept., hospital) there is 100% dependence on the sovereignty of God.
(3) They understand spiritual warfare - they know how to pray.
(4) There is preaching on sanctification.
(5) There is preaching the Gospel with the power of the Holy Spirit, not the wisdom of man. (i.e. 1 Corinthians 2:4-5)

R E V I V A L

"Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life." John 6:68