By Grace Alone

ABC's and 123's

2012-05-01T20:10:00.001-05:00

Is it just a mama thing to think this is terribly cute?

Be Diligent…

2012-04-28T21:01:00.001-05:00

Would you like to possess more faith? Do you find believing so pleasant, that you would like to believe more? Then take heed that you are diligent in the use of every means of grace—diligent in your private communion with God—diligent in your daily watchfulness over time, temper, and tongue—diligent in your private Bible reading—diligent in your own private prayers. It is vain to expect spiritual prosperity, when we are careless about these things. Let those who will, call it excessively precise and legal to be particular about these things. I only reply, that there never was an eminent saint who neglected them.

~ J.C. Ryle

Sunday Hymns - How Deep the Fathers Love for Us

2012-04-01T07:06:00.002-05:00

How deep the Father's love for us

How vast beyond all measure

That He should give His only Son

To make a wretch His treasure

How great the pain of searing loss

The Father turns His face away

As wounds which mar the Chosen One

Bring many sons to glory

Behold the Man upon the cross

My sin upon His shoulders

Ashamed to hear my mocking voice

Call out among the scoffers

It was my sin that kept Him there

Until it was accomplished

His dying breath has brought me life

I know that it is finished

I will not boast in anything

No gifts, no power, no wisdom

But I will boast in Jesus Christ

His death and resurrection

Why should I gain from His reward?

I cannot give an answer

But this I know with all my heart

His wounds have paid my ransom

Adventures in Toddlerhood

2012-03-26T16:13:00.003-05:00

Don’t be fooled – behind those smiley eyes lies a real little rascal. A rascal who has figured out that when mommy is nursing baby brother she can’t reach him quite so quickly.

Today’s antics included pushing down his diaper, peeing on the floor, and then splashing in the puddle.

Then, just when I thought I had everything under control, he flushed baby brother’s socks down the toilet.

Great fun was had by all.

And yet, all these things just make me love him more. He brings so much joy to my days.

My Heart is Full

2012-03-22T19:56:00.000-05:00

I am blessed beyond measure. The last few weeks at home with my boys has been wonderful. Bear Cub seems to have grown up overnight and is a great big brother.

He loves to give baby brother gentle kisses and is always trying to share his favorite toys with him.

We are enjoying a very early spring here in Minnesota. Being able to get out in the sunshine is such a blessing.

Theses boys fill this Mama's heart with joy.

Baby boy has arrived!

2012-02-29T10:50:00.000-06:00

James Robert was born yesterday at 5:59 PM via C-section. He's a healthy 6lbs 11oz and 19 3/4 inches. Both of us are doing well.

I'll post more later when I'm feeling better and have a better internet connection.

Thankful Thursday

2012-02-23T19:28:00.001-06:00

This was taken on Saturday (37 weeks) just before a wonderful dinner alone with my husband. It was my first day with no bed rest at all and it was SO nice to get out and spend some time with him before the new baby is born. We had a lovely dinner at Outback while Nana and Papa watched Bear Cub.

I had a good visit with my OB today. Despite the chubbiness in my face in the picture above, I've only gained 13 lbs - which is fine with me. Less to lose later! ***GROSS FEMALE DETAILS*** I'm 50% effaced and dilated to 1.5, which makes me very, very happy.

Though we are going through a very difficult time with the Teen, I'm so thankful for a wonderful husband who has been handling some of the toughest things and making decisions that I just can't make. It is so reassuring to know that God is sovereign over all of these things, and that my job is to pray for and submit to my husband, and that I can trust God to work through him.

******

Colossians 3:15
King James Version (KJV)
¹⁵And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

Thankful Thursday

2012-02-09T13:53:00.001-06:00

*This little guy is a healthy 5lbs 10 oz now.

*I will be 36 weeks pregnant on Saturday and will be allowed some light activity then. After 8 weeks of bed rest, just getting my haircut will seem like a wonderful adventure.

*My wonderful mother came over yesterday and helped me sort through baby clothes. Its so nice to have a drawer full of clean newborn size clothes ready for the baby.

*I've been reading Jesus+Nothing=Everything by Tullian Tchividjian this week. I've been so blessed by his insight into the necessity of understanding the implications of the gospel in our day-to-day lives.

*I've gotten many hugs and kisses from Bear Cub this week. Each one brightens my day.

******

1Chronicles 16:34 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever

The Informed Conscience

2012-01-21T13:39:00.002-06:00

Over the last few days Bear Cub has started saying "No, no, no..." just before doing things that he knows he shouldn't. This is both very cute and quite helpful.

This morning he was heading for the toilet with his toothbrush in hand saying "No, no, no, no..." He knows that he is not to throw things in the toilet - Mommy and Daddy have taught him so. His conscience was clearly telling him that throwing his toothbrush in the toilet was NOT OK, though he was also about to ignore it.

God has given us all a conscience, and we do well to heed it. But more than that, we need to inform it. A well fed conscience will guide us and make us increasingly aware of our sin. The more we come to know God through availing ourselves of the means of grace, the more attuned we will be to our own sinfulness. The more we know God, the more we are able to please Him - and the more we will be grieved by our own sin. Study Gods Word - truly meditate on it (in the mind-filling sense, not the mind-emptying sense) and hide it in your heart and your conscience will be fed. A weak and starved conscience does little to keep us on the path of righteousness.

Does that mean we will not sin? Of course not. And we will have times when we ignore our conscience, just as Bear Cub did this morning. But as long as we find ourselves saying with the Apostle Paul:

Romans 7:24
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
²⁴ What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this dying body?

We can know that we are indeed growing in grace and the knowledge of God. And we can also be assured:

1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness

Friday Favs

2012-01-20T07:07:00.001-06:00

Image Source

*Some great thoughts on feminism and the church:
http://andreamomm.blogspot.com/2012/01/feminism-and-church.html

*Ingrid Schlueter on Daddies and Daughters:
http://ingridschlueter.wordpress.com/2012/01/17/daddies-and-daughters/

*An excellent explanation of supralapsarianism and infralapsarianism by Phil Johnson :
http://www.spurgeon.org/~phil/articles/sup_infr.htm

*And the most upsetting tweet of the week:
https://twitter.com/#!/JohnPiper/status/159953341177282560

Blessings Abound

2012-01-16T06:45:00.002-06:00

* I'm now 32 weeks and still pregnant - thank you for all of your prayers. I will continue on full bed rest for now.

* Though it's not the same as being with my church family, watching MacArthur's church service streamed live on Sunday morning is such a blessing to me.

* My husband has been able to take a FMLA leave to care for me and Bear Cub. He is working part time from home and going in to work one day a week, but mostly he is free to take care of our needs.

* He has done a wonderful job of learning "mommy things" and is enjoying spending more time with Bear Cub.

* Bear Cub and I have found new ways to have "mommy time":

* And he's found plenty of ways to entertain himself while Daddy tries to work:

* I have been really blessed by reading "The World Tilting Gospel" by Dan Philips and "John" by RC Sproul.

* I have wonderful parents and in laws who have been helping out when my husband needs to go to the office.

* I know I haven't blogged about this, but I didn't know where the Teen was for awhile. I now know that he is safe and staying with a Christian family - what a wonderful answer to prayer. That situation is only temporary, but at least I know he is safe for now.

*****

Lamentations 3:22-23

22 Because of the LORD’s faithful love we do not perish, for His mercies never end.

23 They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness!

Friday Sunday Favs

2012-01-08T13:07:00.001-06:00

Godliness with Contentment:
http://www.theologyforwomen.org/2012/01/godliness-with-contentment.html

A Gentle Mother:
http://www.agentlemother.blogspot.com/2011/11/if-i-could-only-be-like-her.html

An Excellent Family Technology Policy:
http://www.beckypliego.com/2011/12/family-technology-policy-by-wendy.html

Something seem strange about John Piper lately?

BETH MOORE AND JOHN PIPER LEAD LECTIO DIVINA-LITE AT PASSION 2012

***Please note that by posting this I'm not saying that all of Piper's teachings must be dismissed. He has made some very valuable contributions to the Church and as with everything, we must use discernment and be Bereans.

Brothers

2011-12-30T20:39:00.000-06:00

I had an ultrasound today (30 weeks) and I was amazed how much this baby looks like Bear Cub. The new baby is on the left and Bear Cub is on the right.

Isn't God's handiwork amazing?

The Word Became Flesh

2011-12-24T09:57:00.001-06:00

Image Source: Google Images

John 1

1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

2The same was in the beginning with God.

3All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

4In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

5And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

6There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

7The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.

8He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

9That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

10He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.

11He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

12But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

13Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

14And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

*****

I wish you all a very blessed Christmas as we remember and celebrate the glorious Incarnation.

Pray for the Sproul Family

2011-12-18T15:01:00.001-06:00

Denise Sproul, wife of RC Sproul Jr and mother of 8 has gone to be with Jesus.

From the Ligonier blog:

Denise, enjoying the blessed vision of our God and Father, is at home with the Lord. Cancer no longer afflicts her, and every tear has been dried away. The Queen of Orlando casts her crown at her Savior’s feet, and together, they dance.

Image Source

Whate'er My God Ordains Is Right

2011-12-17T11:41:00.002-06:00

Whate'er My God Ordains Is Right

1. Whate’er my God ordains is right,

Holy His will abideth.

I will be still whate’er He does,

And follow where He guideth.

He is my God,

Though dark my road.

He holds me that I shall not fall

Wherefore to Him I leave it all

********

The words of this wonderful hymn have been in my head and on my heart this week.

Its been a long and hard week, yet I can trust that God is fully in control of all the circumstances of my life, and all that happens does so in accordance with His providential will.

My husbands aunt, who was a lovely sister in Christ, went to be with Jesus last weekend. Though we are deeply grieving her absence here, we are glad to know the she is home with the Lord. The true gospel was clearly preached at her funeral and we are praying that the predominantly catholic family that was there will carefully consider what they heard.

On Sunday I was sent to the hospital with preterm contractions. It took much longer to stop them than is usual for, but I am very grateful that they did eventually subside with only minimal cervical change. I had to return to the hospital on Wednesday because of an adverse reaction to the meds they sent me home with on Monday, but I am feeling much better now. I am on partial bed rest, which is difficult with a busy 15 month old at home, but we are making the best of it and reading lots of books. It does look like my husband will be able to take a medical leave to be home with us - a HUGE answer to prayer. I'm so thankful that he has a good job with great benefits during a time when so many are out of work and uninsured.

******

Friday Favs 12.9.11

2011-12-09T07:50:00.001-06:00

Here are a few of my favorite posts this week, enjoy!

* Encouraging Our Children to Feast on The Word

* The Simple Logic of Limited Atonement

* An Amazing Video Depicting and Unborn Baby's Full Development

* "Judge not, that ye be not judged." (Matthew 7:1) John MacArthur speaks about judging salvation and a profession of faith. (very short video)

I Make My Life a Prayer to You - Keith Green

2011-12-08T10:30:00.001-06:00

Click here for the video if reading in an email or RSS reader.

Repost: Thankful Thursday - Thanksgiving Edition

2011-11-24T08:08:00.000-06:00

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

What am I most thankful for?

That the Creator of the universe would look upon sinful man and make a way for us to be reconciled to Him.

That He sent His own Son to be born of a virgin, live a sinless life, suffer the agony of death on a cross, and rise again on the third day so that all who repent and put their trust in him will be saved.

I'm thankful that He softened my hard heart and granted me repentance, and that He continues His good work in me, all for His own glory.

I'm thankful that though man may remember my sinful past I know that God looks on me and sees Christ's righteousness.

Romans 8

Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

5 Gospel Warnings

2011-11-18T18:12:00.000-06:00

1. Substitute anything for Christ, and the Gospel is totally spoiled!

2. Add anything to Christ, and the Gospel ceases to be a pure Gospel!

3. Put anything between a person and Christ, and that person will neglect Christ for that very thing!

4. Spoil the proportions of Christ's Gospel, and you spoil its efficacy!

5. Evangelical religion must be the Gospel, the whole Gospel and nothing but the Gospel.

~ J.C. Ryle

Tract: Evangelical Religion

*Source

Updates

2011-11-15T10:00:00.001-06:00

Since it's been a month since my last post I though I would start back with a few updates.

First, the baby is a boy!

I'm currently 23 weeks pregnant and getting bigger. I'm enjoying the feel of this precious little baby kicking and moving and growing - what a wonderful blessing. I've been VERY tired, but I'm thankful to have discovered the reason for that - anemia. Bear Cub is completely weaned now and I've been taking iron supplements in addition to the prenatal vitamins, so I'm hoping to feel better soon. The morning sickness is lingering, as it usually does for me. I'm very happy to not be on bed rest yet, and I hope it stays that way. I started bed rest with Bear Cub at 24 weeks and it was at 28 weeks with the Teen, so I'm quickly approaching the time when I usually start having trouble with preterm contractions/labor.

Bear Cub is 14 months old now and is walking well, saying more words everyday and is getting into EVERYTHING. This video was almost a month ago, so he's walking even better now - but I'll share it anyway.

Psalm 127:3-5

³Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.

⁴As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth.

⁵Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.

*Click here to few the video if viewing in an email or RSS reader

Repost: Comfort

2011-10-14T14:24:00.001-05:00

Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.

They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.

I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him."

The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him,
to the one who seeks him;

-Lamentations 3:22-25

These words were penned by the prophet Jeremiah after the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC. For forty years he had warned the people of coming judgment and was scorned by those who heard him. That judgment finally came and Nebuchadnezzar took the Israelites captive and utterly destroyed Jerusalem and burned the temple.

Yet while looking upon the ruins of his beloved city, the prophet was able to say "Great is your faithfulness" and patiently wait upon the Lord.

It seems that there are so many people suffering right now. Health problems, marriage problems, the loss of a job, death of loved ones, the list goes on and on.

In these very difficult times, it is my prayer that all of us will be able to say "Great is Your faithfulness" and patiently wait upon the Lord. His compassions are new every morning and take comfort, the Lord IS good to those whose hope is in Him.

Have a blessed weekend.

Perspective

2011-10-14T08:49:00.000-05:00

These truly are wonders.

Thankful Thursday 10.13.11

2011-10-13T08:01:00.000-05:00

Deuteronomy 31:6

⁶ Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.

******

What a wonderful promise of God. How quickly fears vanish when we remember that He who orders all things, and knows the end from the beginning, is in control of every situation and will never forsake us.

What a wonderful, blessed truth to keep in mind when life is hard.

******

Happy Thankful Thursday!

Thank you to Lynn for hosting Thankful Thursday this month.

Sunday Scriptures 10.9.11

2011-10-09T06:41:00.001-05:00

Teach me Your way, O LORD;
I will walk in Your truth;
Unite my heart to fear Your name.
I will give thanks to You, O Lord my God, with all my heart,
And will glorify Your name forever.
For Your lovingkindness toward me is great,
And You have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.

-Psalm 86:11-13

By Grace Alone

ABC's and 123's

Be Diligent…

Sunday Hymns - How Deep the Fathers Love for Us

Adventures in Toddlerhood

My Heart is Full

Baby boy has arrived!

Thankful Thursday

Colossians 3:15King James Version (KJV) 15And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

Colossians 3:15

Thankful Thursday

The Informed Conscience

Romans 7:24

Friday Favs

Blessings Abound

Friday Sunday Favs

BETH MOORE AND JOHN PIPER LEAD LECTIO DIVINA-LITE AT PASSION 2012

Brothers

The Word Became Flesh

Pray for the Sproul Family

Whate'er My God Ordains Is Right

Friday Favs 12.9.11

I Make My Life a Prayer to You - Keith Green

Repost: Thankful Thursday - Thanksgiving Edition

5 Gospel Warnings

Updates

Psalm 127:3-5

Repost: Comfort

Perspective

Thankful Thursday 10.13.11

Deuteronomy 31:6

6 Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.

Sunday Scriptures 10.9.11

Colossians 3:15
King James Version (KJV)
¹⁵And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

⁶ Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.