How we pray and what we pray for has a massive impact on our lives. So often we pray for what we want. Maybe we want a new job. So we pray and pray “Please Please Please Lord, let me get this new position at work.” We pray fervently for what we want. We think we know what we want and need. We also ask for things we think we have to have, like new cars, new house, and new stuff. The problem is not necessarily that we don’t need those things; the problem is often with our own contentment. So we pray selfishly for the things we think we need, because we have convinced ourselves that what we have is not sufficient. Often we have what we need but not always what we want. Prayer becomes a completely acceptable way to get what we want. » Read more: The Horror of Getting What You Want
The Horror of Getting What You Want
October 11th, 2009 by Keri No comments »Why I Write
October 1st, 2009 by Keri 2 comments »Since this is a new website I thought I should republish my history and how I got started writing. I know some of you already know but for those who don’t, here you go…
There has been some curiosity from friends as to why I write, so I figured I would give the explanation. I have never considered myself to be a writer. I started writing out of what I perceived to be necessity.
I paid only slight attention a couple years ago when a group of college homosexual activists were visiting conservative religious universities. It was no surprise that they came to Bob Jones and it didn’t really bother me. If they want to protest, be my guest.
I became very upset though, when I saw Christian people out protesting and preaching against the homosexual group. They were yelling in megaphones, had sandwich boards on that said “you’re going to hell”, and were in general giving a very poor impression of Christ. I was annoyed by this, but still unmotivated to say something. » Read more: Why I Write
New website, Same me
September 28th, 2009 by Keri 6 comments »My blog has a new address, a new look, and a new name but it’s still me.
Welcome to the Grace Post.
In the past few months I’ve been staying busy doing some book reviews. This has changed my needs for a website. I wanted to be able to separate them from my actual blog. I also have a page that will be dedicated to resources I use in my own studies.
If you have any ideas that could make the Grace post better post a comment and I’ll see what I can do. You can also shoot me an e-mail keri@thegracepost.com
I hope you enjoy reading the Grace post. I look forward to getting to know some of you better!
.
The Blame Game
September 22nd, 2009 by Keri 3 comments »The other night I was sitting at the table with my Mom and the boys and we had out the game Aggravation. As usual this game is a lot of fun but can be quite, well, aggravating. I don’t know if any of you have ever played that game but it has marbles and a dice and you move your colored marble around the board.
The boys each had insisted on bringing a stuffed animal to the table so Furry and Puppy Bear were also joining us for this event. Ethan has now reached an age where he can actually play this game. So we started a game and were letting Micah “play”. I told Micah “do not move the marbles around just roll the dice.”
For the first few rounds he very intently rolled the dice and was doing just right but then he started messing around with his own marbles and then moved on to the marbles which were actually being used in the game. My mom looked right at him and said “Micah, no-no, don’t mess up the marbles.” Without missing a beat Micah replied “Puppy Bear did it.”
We dealt with the situation and told him not to blame “Puppy Bear” but it brought to mind Adam and Eve. Their first sin was pride and disobedience to God. Then when they are confronted with their sin they start the blame game. Just like I did not teach Micah to place blame on someone else for his disobedience, no one taught Adam and Eve to blame each other for what they had done wrong. It is sometimes the natural reaction when we are faced with our own shortcomings.
I think as adults we often think we are more sophisticated than Micah or Adam and Eve. It is easy to tell ourselves that we aren’t blaming anyone for our shortcomings when we actually are.
Have you ever been sitting in your office at work and there has been some type of malfunction and the boss comes in angry wondering what went wrong? Isn’t one of the first things to go through the mind “who’s fault is this?” In our pride we want to blame someone else even if we are responsible. Our hearts might even deceive us into believing it is someone else’s fault.
All too often instead of asking the Lord and our brothers and sister’s in Christ to forgive our wrong doing we think of someone else to blame.
The Lord took the blame for us. If we confess our sin he is faithful and just to forgive us our sin. So don’t play the blame game. Repent and be grateful for what the Lord has done.
Search me O God and see if there be any wicked way in me.
The Prodigal Son: A story of pride and humility
September 10th, 2009 by Keri 2 comments »I am studying the book Humility: True Greatness
Rebellious Pride
The younger son who asks his father for his inheritance is showing his pride. He wants to be on his own he does not want to wait until his father is near death. He wants his money now and he wants to be on his own. We often see this type of pride manifest itself in rebellion in young children. From what we can tell from this story it seems as though the father is loving to his children. Yet he wants his independence. He wants to be footloose and fancy free. So his father grants his wish and the son leaves.
The young son goes out and the Bible tells us that he “squandered his property in reckless living.” This young man is enjoying the freedom to have lots of fun that instant wealth can bring. Yet when a famine strikes the land and all his money is gone he is left feeding pigs. This young man experienced the natural consequences of his rebellion. His pride and rebellion led him to destruction.
Repentance to Humility
So as the son is sitting with the pigs he begins to think of his father. His heart is softened by his circumstances and he decides to go home and beg his father to let him be a servant in his house. His father treats servants better than his is living now. He is broken and humbled. It takes humility to say you are wrong. It takes real humility to go back to the person you wronged and ask them for anything. A truly proud heart would stay in the pig pen where at least they were “on their own.” He knows he needs help and so he takes a chance at repentance to his father. He has been suffered because of his pride but once broken has changed his heart toward humility.
Real Humility
As the son comes home his father sees him from a distance. He runs to his son! This type of act for middle eastern men would have been unheard of. Most men would scorn their son which is why this young man was going with the intention of begging his father to let him be a slave. He expected resistance to his repentance but he was instead met with arms open wide. The father loves his son and is so thankful for his repentance. He does not put a stone wall up against the one he loves.
As the son begins to ask for forgiveness the father doesn’t even seem to hear, He simply calls for the best robe and a celebration to be held because his son has come home.
This father gives us a picture of what Christ did for us. He humbled himself and took suffered on the cross. He gave up His Glory to reach down to us. He runs to us when we come to us. He does not hold our wickedness against us forever. He banishes it as far as the east is from the west. He grants forgiveness. He allows us to spend eternity with Him. Heaven will be unbelieveable to our minds. He does not give this gift begrudgingly, He wants us to be with Him. Why else would He have humbled himself and come to earth? He did it because he wants our repentant and humble hearts.
We as sinners must are also sitting in the pig pen of our own sin. We must come to the Lord with humble and repentant hearts and believe on Him. Humility is something we cannot ignore.
So the party begins for the repentant and now humble younger son. Joy has filled this father’s heart. His son is home.
Repressed Pride
Everyone is not happy at the repentance and return of the young son. No, in fact anger is brewing in the heart of his older brother. This brother did everything right. He had stayed and done what he was supposed to do. His father should have liked him better. He should be having a party because he has been faithful to his father through his actions.
This son reminds me of Jonah, he doesn’t want the Ninevites to be saved he wants justice. That is what this older son wants for this younger son; justice. As Christians I think this type of pride is often our downfall. It is the pride that we deserve Christ because of our service to Him. we are serving him. When a “real sinner” comes back to Christ this type of pride manifests itself in an unforgiving spirit.
It seems from this passage that sometimes pride is not as flagrant as that of the younger son. The pride is present but we conceal it. This type of pride is buried deep within our hearts but just like the Bible tells us “as a man thinks in his heart so is he” is so true. You might be able to hide your pride from those around you but that doesn’t make it any less real. Eventually that sin will be exposed.
Reflections on humility
At the end of this I feel conviction. Often I’m a person with repressed pride. Since we know all people are sinners I think it is safe to say that we all struggle with pride in some form. What is necessary is to ask the Spirit to probe our hearts and point us toward repentance in areas where we are proud and don’t even realize it.
Once we are aware of pride in our own hearts we can ask the Spirit to help us change. We can then grow in humility.
Truly, we have nothing to be proud about in our own lives. It is because of Christ that we will live.
