Doug's Special Field Report: Haiti’s Orphans Held Hostage

Special Field Report: Haiti's Orphans Held Hostage from Douglas Phillips on Vimeo.

At a time when orphan babies are dying, and the children of Haiti are in the single greatest need in the history of this nation, UNICEF has worked to shut down all international adoptions.

Now in this important field report from Port Au Prince, Doug Phillips examines the present battle to rescue Haiti’s children in the context of UNICEF’s anti-adoptin efforts vs. the work of the Christian community to encourage the Haitian government to cut through the red tape and open the door for legitimate, qualified American adoptions.

Biblical Principles for Girls in Difficult Situations

1. Don’t Become Bitter and Compromise
We need to stay strong in the faith that His precepts, instructions and directions are right, and that He “preserveth the faithful.” (Psalm 31:23)
“But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear Him, and His righteousness unto children’s children; to such as keep His covenant, and to those that remember His commandments to do them. (Psalm 103:17,18)

2. Don’t Judge Others and Assume that They are Judging You
This is good fuel for discontentment and excuse-making. When we measure, say, our fathers, against what we imagine other girls have, they’re always going to come up short.
The biggest fault we often want to level at those “privileged” girls is that they’re hoity-toity snoots looking down on us for not being them – for (gasp) JUDGING US.

3. Don’t Break the 10th Commandment

But try replacing “your neighbor’s ox” with “your neighbor’s perfect hair,” “your neighbor’s designer clothes,” “your neighbor’s visionary father,” “your neighbor’s like-minded friends,” “your neighbor’s perfect, non-aggravating family,” “your neighbor’s engagement ring,” or anything else you resented another girl’s having that you didn’t.

Don’t begrudge others the fruits of God’s blessing and their hard work – get out there and work towards those for yourself.

“Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.” (James 4:2,3) Conclusion

In the same way that God designed all of creation in its undeniable perfection and beauty, He handcrafted each girl’s situation with exquisite precision. He chose the exact parents, position, and opportunities that would best fulfill His purposes for her life and bring Him glory.

God does promise some things to girls in difficult situations. In His loving mercy, He promises that He will be “a Father to the fatherless, and a Judge of the widows” (Psalm 68:5). He promises that He makes “all things work together for good to them that love God, and to them who are the are called according to His purpose” (Rom. 8:28). He promises that if we “seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness… all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matt. 6:33). And He promises that if we “do not be weary in well doing,” “in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” (Gal. 6:9)

Select samples from VisionaaryDaughters.com

http://visionarydaughters.com/2010/02/what-about-me

Christ lays claim to more than men's souls.

He lays claim to entire civilizations.

He lays claim to all the earth.

~Gary North

Jesus said,

"All power is given to me in heaven and in the earth..."

~Matthew 28:18

Men’s Mentoring Session 6 – Courtship

Prayer

Father in heaven we come in humility asking that you teach and be with us. I ask that you comfort these men that you are their leader. We ask that you use the most ignorant, corrupted men, like Mr. Botkin here, to learn and raise us up.

We want to talk about the reformation of a broken civilization. Men need to learn how to think like free men.

A 1626 German farmer decided to build a home on the foundations of his grandfather’s house. Digging around the stone foundation, he discovered a secret compartment. Down deep he found a treasure: a book wrapped in waxed paper, perfectly preserved. He knew the book’s story. By edict of emperor Rudolphus, anyone owning a copy of Cololquia Mensalia would be executed. It is estimated that storm troopers burned 80,000 copies of this popular book and it was forgotten. The farmer sent it to an English captain, asked that it be published ‘for the glory of God.’ The captain did not have time before he was arrested and sent to the tower of London for 10 years. His wife supplied the ink, paper and books. It took the captain five years to translate the book.

The book was this: Young men wanted to know how Luther’s mind worked and how it was that Luther could think and then act as other men could not. Luther was creative, decisive and Biblical in how he thought. Young men spent time at Luther’s dinner table recording nearly every word as Luther gave simple opinions on astrology, lawyers, universities the the Pope, the bureaucracy, ghosts, bad theology, religious ceremony, hypocrisy, superstition, astrology, literature, marriage… It was Luther’s Q &A.

The disciplines of informed thought in action are necessary to the reformation of a broken world.

Luther had a lot of opinions. What intrigued young men was that Luther started his thoughts with scripture.

I want to thank you for your questions. You are thinking biblically. We do not have a pope breathing down our necks, but today we are captive to wrong thinking in a corrupt Hollywood culture, a corrupt dating culture. Some of you are sending in very personal questions trying to think biblically.

We want to be like reformers by teaching other men how to think.

Courtship is a good topic of study because it embraces parenthood, the kingdom of God, the dominion mandate, the errors of pop culture, the realities of guy-girl attraction, gender design and the doctrine of the family. All these need careful reformation.

I can only give you principles of what the Bible says. Marriage is in Bible; courtship is not. Fathers need wisdom, discretion. I will dive into other topics.

Q: How have you worked within your own church to spread the vision of Biblical Christian courtship and marriage? We have a great church which has a reasonable handle on Christian marriage but is not self-consciously engaged with true dominion thinking in this area.

A: Most common concern I get is: ‘Mr. B, the church is hurting our family.’ I will not be giving you formulas.

You may be an accomplice in, as John Calvin said, ‘an illegal assembly.’ You need to be in churches where you have respect as men. This does not mean you need to be officers in church, but where the men are shepherding and leading, not going along blindly. You have a duty and obligation, in submission to elders, to exercise your gifts, talents and abilities.

You have a duty in the culture of your home. I try to be in churches where I can encourage, “Lets help young people to have purposeful relationships and kingdom conversation.” Otherwise, we are led by Christian radio. How can we create cultures in our churches where old people are valued, babies are valued?

We need mature behavior, not giddy about who is courting who. We need healthy brother sister interaction going on all the time. End man centered marriage. Old women say to little ones, ‘do you have a girlfriend?’ Stop these silly comments. I also discourage snickering; I encourage healthy conversation about men and work. Marriage is to serve God together.

We need to build a culture of healthy conversations between brothers and sisters in Christ, so that they are gaining knowledge about one another in healthy family environments, where young people can know a lot about one another without being in a romantic relationship.

Q: What are the phases of courtship? Friendship > Fellowship > Romance > Marriage

A: Here is a disclaimer. This is NOT formulaic. This question came in during the last session, right after I said I could give no formula. No situation, courtship will ever be ideal. We have a corrupt dating culture that is in all our minds. We are trying to create a culture of marriage, not a culture of courtship. Here are principles that I find helpful:

1 Parents train children for responsible marriage from a young age, from what ever age they are. Start at age 2, 3, 4.

2 Children take responsibility at a young age to prepare themselves for marriage. Take the responsibility to be mature, to grow to be a decisive Christian husband or wife.

3 Fathers learn about their sons and daughters minds and preferences. A father will not give good advice if he does not know their mind and preference. Spend time with your children, learning about them. Know her heart.

4 Sons make aggressive plans to start their own dynasties. Think about marriage as something important and good from a young age. One father told me he talks to his sons about how to build their house. He said, ‘I’d love them to go into marriage with at least $1,000 of passive income per month from investments they made while young.’ As a result, his sons are thinking at age 9, 10, 11 years how to invest wisely. He is helping his sons envision plans, praying about their future wife, thinking about talents and gifts.

5 Sons should never presume that the system is so broken they cannot have an intelligent and productive relationship with the fathers of eligible girls. In churches with a culture of snickering, he can’t hold door open for her without getting the wrong attention. Sons need to start friendships with men. You need to be walking with wise men. Stand with men who are talking about big issues of the community. Men observe how you solve problems.

6 The older men set a culture of friendly family interaction and lots of FRIENDLY brotherly and sisterly conversations between young people as a healthy culture distinctive of Christian civilization.

7 Sons take initiative with fathers. I know fathers who make recommendations. I don’t do that. I like it when they come to me and ask, ‘I’m limited in knowledge, can you advise me? What books can I read? Your daughter impresses me. I don’t know much about her, I think she will make someone a wonderful wife. Can I have some time to get to know her better?’ Not ‘I’ve been getting visions from God that she is to be my wife.’ What if fathers are not reasonable? Appeal to him. Talk to others. Young men, take initiative. Don’t assume fathers will be so foolish to jump to the instant romance conclusion.

8 Fathers evaluate potential candidates for courtship. ‘Sir would you consider me as a candidate for courtship? Young men need to be asking this. Fathers need to be honoring a young man’s time. ‘I will pray and talk about this, let me get back to you tomorrow.’ Is this man suitable for my daughter? Be decisive, evaluate, honoring time. ‘You have great taste in young women. I don’t think it would work; you are like this and she is like this so different.’ Another answer, ‘You have great taste, but you are probably a couple years away from marriage because of these character deficiencies, would you consider letting me help you prepare?’

Q: A young man approached me. My daughter was not interested. Can I mentor a young man my daughter will not marry? Yes. Voddie says we are going to have to create these young men by discipling them. This is a great opportunity. I told one young man, “I commend you for honoring this jurisdiction. I don’t think it would work. I invite you to hang out here at our home. You are a friend of the family. We can have a brother and sister relationship. Come over to spend time with me and the family, drop in for dinner. It was not awkward. It really helped him. Yes, fathers can be doing that and help prepare him for marriage to another girl. It was not long before he came to get advice about marriage to another young lady. I so respected this young man for the way he conducted himself. I loved to see him growing in his trust, asking advice of me. He learned wonderful things that have helped him.

9 Fathers determine the daughter’s interest. Some families think differently. This is not a hard and fast formula for marriage. You can think differently. Some fathers do not mention things to her. I have talked to my daughters and they can keep a cool head. I spend time with my girls about these interests. Talk about men we know. Have you notice how this one is rising up and leading? What do you think about him? Then I know what they esteem and respect in men they know. So I have a pretty good idea of what my girls think. When one comes, I say, ‘I respect you, I’d be happy to have you as my son-in-law. Let me go to my daughter; I want to check with her, pray about this, I’ll let you know what we think tomorrow.’

Or ‘My daughter does not know you very well. It’s going to be a real long shot, a few months for me to get to know you well. Do you want to invest this time? I’m giving you the most honest answer I can.’ The young man can make decision and maybe pray about a different young lady. Honor a young man’s time and your daughter’s preferences.

10 Fathers can create an informal ‘family friendship’ or ‘correspondence’ season to help the parties involved. You don’t need a courtship; it is not in the Bible. ‘We live 6 states away. Let’s have an informal season. You can e-mail my daughter; copy me on e-mails. Get to know each other. See how it goes. If either of you see that you want to close things off, we can stop it then.

11 Fathers approve/clear/endorse the young man for marriage before any official courtship begins. This may take 6 hours or 6 months or 16 months. He needs to be comfortable with the young man marrying his daughter. A successful courtship is not necessarily marriage. Once courtship begins, there are emotions, risks. There are places on the internet where you can get 100 questions for a young man. Some ask him to write a paper on what is important to you, like the significance of 5 Solas. A young man will do this to help a father sign him off if he thinks your daughter is worth fighting for. He’ll say, “Ask me anything about my past…”

12 If it is wise to proceed; fathers set guidelines. “I know you are honorable. Here are guidelines for courtship to proceed.” Here are principles but young adults need guidelines. This is not a time to steal each others’ hearts; this is an honest dispassionate evaluation. You are working a reasonable conclusion soon.

13 Courtship begins.

14 Fathers shepherd the process and help the parties maintain objectivity. They are going to lose some objectivity. You don’t want your daughter to come to you later and say, ‘Daddy, why didn’t you didn’t protect me better? I don’t even know if he is really a Christian.’ This is happening. It is a tragedy.

If they are losing objectivity, you can say ‘let’s take a little breather, till feet you get back on the ground. If young man and your daughter are honorable they will accept this.

15 The couple maintains objectivity and emotional purity and stewards time and investment of all parties. Ask questions. Your daughter needs to ask these questions. She will give form to his life. What do you think abut birthdays? Sports? Vaccinations? TV in the home? Food? Diet?

16 The couple comes to a decision as soon as possible about compatibility, and the wisdom of marriage to one another.

17 The couple gets council.

18 They decide it is God’s will for them to be joined in a holy mission for Christ.

19 Engagement and covenant terms are defined and discussed. What is betrothal? Now is the time to express affection and love.

20 Short engagement/betrothal commences. Most reformers agreed: make it short. What about the big production? You might want to pass on the helicopter, the limo, the camera crew, the blimp and get on with the mission.

21 Have a public marriage with witnesses, covenant and consummation.

Q: How long should a courtship last? Is there such a thing as lasting too long? If a young man is in college, is a protected courtship of say 2-3 years ok?

A: I can see where there might be a reason. But if you determine in a courtship that you should be together, shouldn’t she join his endeavor and be there to help him? Why is she interested in a guy in college, anyway? Mainly, with very few exceptions, college is a place for losers to get a document to be a wage slave. Most don’t know how to teach themselves. If he does have vision, and knows his vision, she might need to be with him.

Q: I am aware where a potential father-in-law makes unreasonable demands.

A: If young lady is worth fighting for, go to her dad, not around him. Appeal to him. If her dad says, ‘Can you come stay with us for two weeks, so we can get to know you better.’ If she is worth it, do that. Courtship often starts with no idea of what guidelines are. Ask him, “I’d like to have your blessing to marry your daughter. I’d like to be sure you are satisfied with me as a future son-in-law. Because once this starts, I want to know you are completely comfortable with me before that.”

Q: I have a stay-at-home vocation that I think will be good for a family. However, it is not economically viable yet. Should I wait to marry until it is viable or should I find something else outside of the home that is more viable? I am 30-years-old, but different advisors have told me that it is better to get married sooner than later.

A: What is financially viable? The world says it is so expensive. Maybe this business is not economically viable because you do not have a wife to help you.

Q: I have a daughter in her late 20’s who is finishing her degree at home, desiring to be married. We have found it difficult to find like minded people in our area. Do you have suggestions?

A: Patrick Henry had 17 children, including lots of daughters. He moved to the city where they were able to marry. Pieces of real estate pale in comparison to starting a godly dynasty. You may need to move out of the country to do this. The Botkin family did this. Help your sons and daughters find godly mates. [or travel there]

Q: Are birthdays in the Bible and do we make them special in our children’s lives?

A: The reformers asked these questions. Do we sit down for dinner? Do we gobble up food before we sit down? The word ‘Gospel’ means ‘birth announcement of the divine savior king.’ It was also used to describe Caesar’s decrees and laws edicts. The scripture tells of feast days on days of weaning and circumcision. You can make a godly big deal out of a birthday. “One thing, on birthdays, make sure your children really honor their mother. This was the day of great risk and sacrifice for [her].

Q: Can a father disciple a young man who is still under his father’s roof?

A: Is it alright to mentor a young man with authorities over him? We have young men come spend time with us all the time. Get the blessing and clearance of his Dad. When do sons leave their fathers roof? From what I understand from scripture, sons can leave to establish their business. A young man needs to be out there preparing their field. Some sons do better at home working with their family. Fathers need to be ready to emancipate their sons at any time. The goal is building the kingdom of God, so that they can be the good decisive leaders they need to be.

Steel Building Construction

Inside the Wall

Pitch 'em in.

Future roof vents need finer mesh to keep insects out.

We have the ultimate skylight, for now.

Melody

Skillful Workmen

Are a Blessing

What Mom Prizes More than Pearls

Fishing Bear

Anticancer_a new way of life

Ron Paul Warns of Social Unrest and Martial Law

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqWtiAtSvg0

Psalm Singers

Elisabeth Elliot said she has nothing against the praise songs but it is the hymns that get you through the night. We could say the same of the Psalms.
~

Singing psalms and hymns: they convict sin, help in memorizing the scripture, are joyful and victorious too! I am thankful for the Serven family for putting these together. All five of their CD’s are wonderful.

http://www.genevanfoundation.com/products.html

Leviticus 26:40-42

‘But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers, with their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, and that they also have walked contrary to Me, and that I also have walked contrary to them and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if their uncircumcised hearts are humbled, and they accept their guilt–– then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham I will remember; I will remember the land.

Longevity

10% of longevity is dictated by genes; 90% is dictated by lifestyle. People interviewed who were over 100 years old had a strong sense of purpose, had lifestyles that nudge them into physical activity, tend to have a garden, ate beans and nuts, were religious and their rates of western killer diseases were much lower. Out of 270 super-centenarians interviewed, only 6 did not believe in God.

Brain Typing

ABC's "The Pulse" from Brain Typing on Vimeo.

God designed us differently

so that we all need each other

to work together as the body of Christ.

Jordan & Melissa

Jordan Niednagel & Melissa Thomas Niednagel

Willy on the Walk

Notes from Geoffrey Botkin Webinar 5

What will your estate look like in 2030? What will your family, maturity look like in 20 years? Men in Middle East have unique challenges. American men, what will you be able to contribute to your family, church and churches you will start? One of the greatest tests of the Christian man: Does he truly love his wife as Christ loves the church? How does he love her? If he does not, there is something missing in his life, in his disciple making.

Most American churches do not receive Christ’s loving sanctification. Most wives do not either. We share the blame for the weakness of the church.

Doctrine of Simper Reformanda – always reforming. Many of you are finding and rediscovering Biblical Ecclesiology. The Lord Jesus is very blunt with His church. Many American wives love the world a lot more than they love their husbands.

Men in a church were discussing protecting their families in case of depression/civil disorder. Do we want all our roots in this city if things become unstable? They talked in a responsible way. When the men went back to their wives, they came back sheepish. Wives don’t want to talk about possibility of difficulty and trouble.

Will we be leaders, disciple makers? How can we disciple anyone if we cannot disciple the one with whom we are one flesh? They are the ones commissioned to help us with the impossible mission.

Men who see the issues at stake in the building of the kingdom move forward in their responsibly to love their wives. How do we disciple our wives? I’ve been talking to women, asking what they think. One told me that she must want to be worthy of her husband. One of the greatest errors I make every week is thinking my wife can read my mind. I have to show her what Christ is teaching me. When I do, she loves it. When I don’t she feels left out, knows she is missing something.

It’s less what we do It’s more who we are. I can’t give you a formula. There are two great attributes of manhood that good women respect: Showing the courage to fight bravely for what is right and showing the courage to admonish through relationships. We are not good at relationships. It is hard work, not just making up the rules of the house on a whim. We cannot be arbitrary. We have to show our wives that we are submitted to the complete law of God. If we want to inspire our wives to obey scripture, we must submit ourselves.

Many men have written and asked if my wife can have a course like this for their wives. Yes. We would like to start one in a few weeks. Poll shows Monday evening is preferred. We want it in the evening so you can help with the children.

Mrs. Botkin’s Webinar: How to Help Your Husband Love His Wife.

Titus 2 says to be discreet, chaste, obedient to their own husbands.

Men, some of our prayers are not being answered because we are not living with our wives in an understanding way.

Women who have been able to spend time with my dear wife going back 20 years are still thanking her.

One of the purposes of your marriage is preparing your sons and daughters for their own marriage.

Understanding courtship will help your wife understand your mind, and help you both understand the purpose of your own marriage in ways that will give you a stronger more joyful marriage. Start teaching your children about romance young. Society tells them it is fine to be immature, increasing the size and expense of toys. The Christian home says we were created for maturity, that home and children are wonderful.

My daughter said, “Daddy I remember when I was sitting in my high chair and you told me what to do if a boy came up and kissed me.” Children have a capacity to learn and remember.

Some principles to discuss early in your marriage:

Uniting of dynasties; two families come together.

Men and women are complimentary.

Estates can and must glorify God and take dominion.

Bride & Groom need unity of purpose and vision. One woman told me, “Sometimes I wonder if the only legacy we will leave is a question mark.” The Dominion Mandate is given to couples.

Sons and daughters old enough to be married, may not be ready. Many ask me for the courtship formula. You must begin preparing your children very young to be a properly righteousness husband, wife who can submit joyfully. Affections must be guided carefully or your daughter will want to marry Edward Cullen or Clark Gable. Wisdom and discernment must be built into your children. They are born with foolishness.

Vision must be biblical and long term; one dad asked his children to write down names for their children. It turned their minds to the future. They began writing down 7, 8 children, then 10-11. When you give them a home where there is harmony, not backbiting, they will want a big family. Children must know what is worthy of esteem. You don’t want your son to want a girl who is a pretty face, but is a bimbo, a gorgeous girl who is an empty head. They learn by what you say at home. When I meet a man or woman I admire, I say what it is that I admire to my family. I try to conform what I esteem to scripture.

What is in the bible regarding courtship? There is no one strict formula for courtship, wooing or weddings. Marriage is in the Bible, but courtship is a convention that developed to assist families in the religious yoking of children in contractual unions.

If we used one Bible story in exclusion of all others we would end up with something very problematic.

Courtship is a convention between families to assist in the formation of dominion oriented marriages.

Without that, we have dating [or betrothal which could be]: ‘She’s cute; I’m cute; we make a cute couple.’ Sampson said, “She looks good. Get her for me.” Let’s not adopt Sampson’s courtship [betrothal] model.

A man and woman are yoked well in a wise purpose. Fathers have a God given responsibility to well prepare daughters. A strict courtship formula is not a simple solution to the challenges of marrying well. In ideal situations, courtship is not necessary, if two families have grown up together, same church, know each other well, and understand each other’s convictions. A lengthy courtship may not be necessary. Homeschool culture is in a transition time of trying to find each other. Courtship of some kind can be wise and can become a healthy multigenerational tradition. Some courtships [or betrothals] have worked very well. Some have failed and have divided families. That is a tragedy and a mistake.

Problems I have seen:

1 There is a confusion of terms which has produced strife. You must define all the terms carefully: marriage, betrothal, engagement, courtship, contract, covenant, binding engagement, parental approval, yoked, romance, theology, prenuptial agreement, engagement period, physical affection, debt, divorce, personality, wedding, marry , bride, groom, take a wife , give a daughter, dowry, protect, touch, kiss, caress, embrace, defraud, grandchildren and compatibility. No two families are on the same page on these. These must be talked about when you start down this road.

2 “Cowardly fathers” shrink away from; do not prepare sons and daughters. They just let it happen.

3 The “Officious father” tends to abuse the responsibility/authority makes unreasonable demands or string the young man along. Men are put through a ringer. I try to respect their time. Not ‘Now I get to play the role of the guardian dad.’ This could waste a year of a young man’s life.

4 The “Fearful Mother;” wants wealthy lifestyles for their daughter.

5 The “Timid Girl” wants the fairy tale romance with no risks. She has false expectations of romance or is fearful to get close enough to a man to discern what his mission and heart are in life. There is always a risk involved. A courtship can end and not lead to marriage if the two discern as quickly as possible, if not, end in friendship with a man who will be someone else’s husband. Courtships last as long as it needs to, not dawdling, writing romantic things to each other. Engagement should be short.

6 The “Defeated Young Man” grows cynical about the whole thing. He did not know what was allowed or expected to do. Parents are not always clear. These men are trying to do their duty to get married. My advice is to not give up and I will continue to hit dads over the head with this. I tell dads to disciple men and help them. You will never get a perfect young man. We do need to discern his heart. If it does not work with your daughter, give him advice. Recommend another girl that he might be good with.

Courtship is complex and so is the failed dating scene. The purpose of the courtship custom that developed in Western civilization was adequate in many nations. It was a simple due diligence period for both families on the assumption that the consent of the young people, especially the girl was to decide if she could follow this man’s mission.

We can improve on this custom if we understand the principle purposes behind it, according to the custom to hold off on early romance. We should be patient and cautious even when the right mate comes along. Let your wife see you training your children in the duties of marriage, especially with girls. These ideas are already in a two-year-old’s head. We need to guide, protect and lead.

Duties of marriage: Be fruitful with wise children and strong families. Gen 1.28 Enculturate all creation Genesis 3:23 Col. 1 20-29 Significant concepts and words to study: Betrothal, engagement, Covenants, Dowry/bride price…

Christian Courtship is an advanced cultural custom of a disciplined, Christian civilization society that protects the covenantal institution of marriage by providing a short period of time for a girl to objectively determine her willingness.

Q How do you define a “Christian nation?’ What does it look like? How will your posterity know they have arrived?

A If we really believed Christ’s last commission, we need to know what a Christian nation is. A Christian nation recognizes the sovereign Christ as king and His law as sovereign, higher law and disciples other nations to be Christian nations. Psalm 2: Kiss the son lest he be angry. All kings must give homage to Christ.

Psalm 66:3 How awesome are your works, enemies will give feigned obedience.

1754 American Scientists sent a pamphlet to England “Atheism is unknown infidelity rare and secret so that persons may live to a great age in that country without having their piety shocked by meeting with either an Atheist or and Infidel. And the Devine Being seems…pleased to favor the whole country.” Even unbelievers taught bible verses to their children, chastised them. There is good peer pressure in a Christian country. Develop an appreciation for biblical law in the gates. The Christian worldview is dominant in most families in a Christian culture. A Christian culture has qualified magistrates, growing, multiplying churches with qualified leaders.

Q: Doesn’t every army need both generals and foot soldiers? Should we ever be content and is there any nobility to be a foot soldier or is every man destined to be a general?

A: Scripture uses military analogies. Generals are nothing more than foot soldiers who are wiser, who have developed wisdom to know. Engaged armies have casualties.

Steven Ambrose Band of Brothers: Boys trained to drop into very first drop their commander was killed. They were surrounded by enemies. Seeing fellows die, rising in rank. They never tried to get rank, but so took care of them in winter and looked after the men.

This is how the Christian soldier will think. One man, private Webster, was determined not to rise in rank. My sons do not understand this.

What I pray for you is that you would rise to positions of great influence in the Lord’s army.

I’m not afraid for one of my daughters to marry a “private” if he is on track. I have raised my daughters to be married to generals. They know the history, theology. I want to see how this man has disciples his younger brothers and sisters, younger men around him. Yes, I am looking for a guy like that.

Would it be a deal breaker if a young man was part of the US military? Or another military? A: It would be if he could not get out if he got an illegal order. Officers can resign. You need to think ahead before making this commitment.

Courtship – when a son desires an apostate Christian woman. It is okay for him to go to the father? That is very risky. You need to see a track record. In our theology we cannot convince people.

There are very wise men, thinkers I’d love to have on my side, who are not believers. I pray for them, but do not look to marry one. Please do not let your heart be enamored by a girl who is not a Christian. How much time to we invest in the unreformable? Paul commands Timothy to teach others what he was entrusted with.

Traits to look for in a young lady: a gentle and quiet spirit, a track record of faithfulness. Please do not invest your heart, time, emotions in a girl who is not saved. Pray for them.

Many children were not in or of the Christian faith but were discipled to trust in secular theologies. Weak men have two allies in their treasonous activity toward God and their wives and children: The Bureaucratic Church, The Security State (police state.) The state needs to keep men from thinking. The church has bought into this. These promote a permanent underclass which keeps men from thinking. They are quick to provide counselors to neutralize men from action, to be ineffective.

What are the most effective actions we can take to begin to take?

Geneva was a small city-state. William Ferrell and John Calvin were leaders.

Geographical closeness

1 Recovering Biblical Orthodoxy and orthopraxy

2 Networking through web sites and conferences, getting to know other families

3 Contemplating in the state of the Union, God’s judgment on America – which sins bring what kinds of judgments.

4 Thinking like pioneers. And our most heroic ancestors

5 Thinking like shepherds who can preserve a remnant.

Lev. 26, Deut. 28 If America turns its back on the law of God it will be judged in stages. We need to be thinking like our heroic ancestors who were willing to leave for their families. If things get bad in the big cities, can those of us in the county take in others. We should not be fear mongers. We can see from Scripture, if there is no repentance.

I know about a brave entrepreneurial missionary in Congo. He later acquired an airplane and learned to fly. In 1950s people in UN decided they wanted that nation. They plotted to kill Christians. A man who was able to transport many Christian families. Those who did not were killed. He transferred to Brazil, doing the same thing.

On Titus 2 course how to help your husband love his wife? Anyone can listen. My wife will be teaching women, not exercising authority over a man. We will be e-mailing details.

Thank you for not using excuses to be immature, pressing forward to serve Christ.

Debt as a Form of Covetousness

We are to pray, “Forgive our debts, as we forgive (or, have forgiven) our debtors.” In other words, the Lord grants us our Jubilee only insofar as we are a Jubilee to others, i.e. insofar as we bring them atonement or Salvation through Christ, the cancellation of debts and restoration.

The believer is required to be a free man (I Cor. 7:23), because Christ’s salvation is freedom (John 8:36).

Debt living is thus a form of covetousness, and is practical atheism. Covetousness is forbidden to believers (and all men) by God’s law (Ex. 20:17; Luke 12:15; Rom. 13:9; etc.) Covetousness leads to debt; it’s results are always evil (Prov. 15:27, 28:20; I Tim. 6:9; etc.)

Debt becomes a form of karma, a past which governs the present and the future and produces a society with a closed future. The slavery of debt blinds men to the worst of their past; their debt-living cripples their present and help determine and limit their future.

From Dr. R.J. Rushdoony’s Sermon on the Mount, pages: 68, 69, 70

I have seen young men, couples literally courted by credit card companies, charge up the card and cause themselves huge problems. We hope that thinking through this ahead will save young people from that burden.

But for those already in debt, aspire to gain freedom.

We are working toward Dad being able to be free of his state job. It is hard work for all of us and does not happen overnight. We all go from where we are.

My parents went into debt to buy their first home, but paid it off as soon as possible. It is amazing how God provides, when you have a goal and put everything toward it.

Jesus said, Look at the lilies. Consider the birds of the air.

I think David did the right thing. He proposed, and then put his savings down on a house. The scripture instructs that debt not be for more than six years. God gives us this model where freedom is the ideal. It is a worthy goal.

In Hebrew there was no word for debtor, only one for creditor. Debt was expected to be a temporary situation.

Our culture is materialistic and debt based. Our money is debt in itself; it is a loan from the private Federal Reserve Bank.

Young people are encouraged to go into debt for everything. Every department store has their own credit card. This is a major friction in many marriages, where one or both charge up the cards. Then the patriarchal state delivers with a zillion kinds of welfare, so we look to the state as “Big Daddy.”

The scripture warns us not to be surety for a debt. If we strive toward freedom, then we will be better able to help our brothers. Loans could be private, instead of to an impersonal state or bank. And we would be in better shape to minister like help each other with medical expenses or adopt children. Samaritan Ministries has a great concept going: share medical expenses instead of providing big money to insurance companies to invest.

Yes, we all have different backgrounds. My parents have laid down their lives to give us a better, hopefully more biblical background than they had.

Staying out of debt creates a different mindset of putting off what we want till God has provided for it. It is not easy because we may have to put up with old small vehicles or equipment or mud where we need gravel or pavement but eventually God gives those things.