A Mighty Fortress Is Our God

Here is today's sermon on Psalm 46. As we get closer to the 500th anniversary of the beginning of the Reformation, we look back at the Psalm that inspired Martin Luther's famous hymn, "A Mighty Fortress is our God."

"The LORD of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress."
(Psalm 46:11)

#reformation500 #lordsday

~Peter

Patrick of Ireland, 5th Century

"...I know for certain, that...I was like a stone lying in deep mire, and he that is mighty came and in his mercy raised me up and, indeed, lifted me high up and placed me on top of the wall. And from there I ought to shout out in gratitude to the Lord for his great favors in this world and forever, that the mind of man cannot measure." -Patrick of Ireland (5th century)  

Sometime around AD 405, a sixteen year-old boy strolling the English seaside was attacked by pirates. They kidnapped him and sold him on the slave market to a chieftain in Northern Ireland who forced him to herd pigs. The young man endured filth, the elements, separation from family, and years of servitude....Read More

A vision of freedom and world-transformation | American Vision

americanvision.org

"The life of St. Patrick displays the type of faith that Christians sorely need today: it is a faith that is not merely private. It is a faith lived out, that has great vision, big goals, that confronts tyrants, gives people hope, and transforms the world around it." 
He made converts. He baptized thousands, ordained clergy, founded churches and monasteries. Eventually he converted rulers, confronted pagan Druids and witches, changed the laws of the kingdoms he influenced, and according to legend performed healings and miracles. He was often in peril: he was imprisoned several times by rival clans, and threatened with death by the pagan leaders he opposed; yet he was always rescued. The monasteries he founded trained the missionaries who would carry the gospel back to England and to much of the greater Western world.
-Joel McDurmon

Why Are Some Believers Converting To Roman Catholicism?

As a Protestant missionary, I recognize that while we have serious differences and disagreements, there is also common ground, which both Protestants and Roman Catholics can agree on. We wholeheartedly endorse and believe The Apostles Creed, The Nicean Creed and The Athanasian Creed as foundational statements, which all Christians must accept if they are to be called Christians at all. Additionally, we look to the Church fathers, including Augustine, Tertullian, Origen, Cyprian, Athanasius and Polycarp. In fact, the Reformers respected, quoted from, referred to and accepted the Church fathers as their own.

In addition, many of the saints and heroes recognized by the Roman Catholic church are also loved by Protestants as our own heroes of the Faith, including the great missionaries: Patrick, Boniface, Francis of Assissi, and many others as examples of dedicated Christians who are an inspiration to us all.

As Protestants we oppose Catholicism, but we are not anti-the-Catholic-people. In fact, it must be admitted that shamefully many so-called Protestants do not even hold to the basic minimum standards which all true Christians worldwide, through the centuries, have accepted, such as the doctrine of the Trinity, the Bible as the infallible Word of God, the doctrine of Eternal Judgment in hell, and much more.

Roman Catholics frequently are our allies in the pro-life, pro-family, pro-moral movements, standing up for pre-born babies against the violence of abortion, opposing homosexual attempts to pervert the very definition of marriage and the fight against pornography and prostitution and a host of other social and ethical issues.

Reformation Weekend

 Curtains

 Regina

 Reformation Hymn Sing

 Brass

A Delightful Young Man

 A grandmother's Gazebo

 Bountiful table

Ca. Tropics

Table Back Down to Size 

 Traditional Goodbye 

 Three Families  
Good Cooks 
Precious Hospitality

An Improvised Greenhouse 

The Hardening-off shelf 

Real bananas give several harvests a year! 

Checking Pineapple Guavas 

 Pineapple Guavas Drop when Ripe

Mom 

 Garden View

Goats

Special Flower 

Josiah 

 Two

Teams

Playing

Ultimate 

Frisbee 

 Two "Mark" Coaches, 

Elder and Choir Director

Melody sang in the choir.

 Reformer's Library

 Goodbyes

 Concerns about Kim Riddlebarger's 
Two Kingdom Theology

 Jackie

 Uncle John:  
"You want this goat for a wedding roast?"

Preparing two-year-old, Lili's Room 

 A new cousin is on his way.

Uncle John has two unborn grandchildren. 

Some wore period costumes
on Reformation Night
We enjoyed a candle light dinner
and a King James movie.

Oct. 31 Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses  
1. "When our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ, said 'Repent,' 

He called for the entire life of believers to be one of repentance..."

on the door at Wittenberg on the eve of All Saints Day when there was sure to be a lively discussion on the topics of concern. 

 Andrew said, "I can preach."

Sisters & Friends

Scott Brown on Defining Issues of the Reformation -- Marriage and Womanhood

Scott Brown on the Defining Issues of the Reformation from Vision Forum on Vimeo.

Reformation 500 Celebration in Boston

Children's Parade

Rebecca Serven

Rebecca Serven, as Idalette, wife of John Calvin



More Celebration at:

http://servenclan.blogspot.com/

Reformers of Our Own Day


Andrew Serven

Courtesy of Jason Kent
Joshua Phillips and Anna Sofia Botkin

Elizabeth Botkin

Ben Botkin has a dynamic music and soundtrack blog:

www.BenBotkin.com

Anna Sofia Botkin

A kiss from Mom

Liberty Phillips

Bill Potter as Charles Darwin

The Debate

Most photos courtesy of Doug's blog:

http://www.visionforum.com/hottopics/blogs/dwp/

Many More Fun Pictures:

http://granda3.blogspot.com/