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Sallie Schaaf Borrink

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Answered Prayer – Fawns

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentAnswered Prayer – Fawns

Last year we had a brief glimpse of a fawn in the woods, but never saw one come out into our yard where we could see it clearly. Caroline greatly desired to see some fawns on a more regular basis. (Okay, I did too!) I told her that we should start praying about it because the Lord could certainly bring it to pass. We started praying in the winter and prayed about it off and on through the spring and summer.

There was a clearly pregnant doe coming daily this summer who we named Cornelia. Cornelia would sometimes rest on the edge of the woods and our lawn. She then stopped coming around so we hoped she would come back with her babies. (We’ve observed all the various deer so regularly we can readily distinguish most of them from the others.)

In the end, the Lord didn’t just bring us one fawn. He brought three.

There is one singleton and a set of twins. In the picture above, you can see the twins. The singleton is just out of the camera range off to the right, but all three were here together that evening a number of weeks ago.

We see the singleton every day right now with her mother. The twins we see off and on.

This is another reminder in my life that God truly cares about the little things that matter to us.

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The Power of the Name of Jesus Christ

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentThe Power of the Name of Jesus Christ

A few weeks ago the Lord started impressing on me the importance of the name of Jesus Christ. Have you gone through something similar where God starts putting the same point or doctrine in front of you from various different sources? It’s a sign that He wants you to pay close attention to something.

There was some background leading up to this. I’ve discussed at length for many months that we’re in a significant spiritual war right now and so I had already been thinking more about spiritual warfare. I shared Michael Knowles and the Very Rev. Daniel Reehil Discussion back in late March. I had also been thinking about a video Shelly had done about Shadow Men, “Ghosts,” and Demonic Activity: My Personal Experiences. In particular, in that video she mentioned that these things all happened to her and her family before she was a Christian. After she became a Christian (as an adult), it all stopped.

I believe God has been impressing on me just recently that the name of Jesus Christ is part of the weaponry God the Father gives us in this war.

The big change started when I was doing some reading about the new Christian movie Nefarious. I won’t get into all the details, but one of the reviews I watched by a self-described non-Christian mentioned how the demon in the movie called Jesus Christ “the carpenter” and would not use His name. I’ve heard this fact before in other contexts, but this time the Lord impressed upon me the importance of using the name of Jesus Christ out loud more regularly.

So a few weeks ago I started doing some things differently in our home. We always have a peaceful home. The television is almost never on. If we play music, it tends to me quiet or classical music. Usually the music has no words, even if it is Christian. I thought about how even though it is peaceful music or might even be Christian music, there is no proclamation of the name of Jesus Christ.

So I started singing out loud songs specifically that name Jesus Christ such as:

Praise the name of Jesus Christ

Praise the name of Jesus Christ

He’s our Rock. He’s our Fortress.

He’s our Deliverer. In Him we will trust.

Praise the name of Jesus Christ

I started praying out loud in my home that this family belongs to Jesus Christ. This house belongs to Jesus Christ. Each person in this home belongs to Jesus Christ.

When we did the kitchen rearrangement last week, we moved the under-the-counter radio/CD player to my zone. We rarely turn the radio on, but I felt led to start using it. I had David program in a few stations for me. Specifically I asked him to put on there the station that plays very traditional Christian music and has lots of sermons. I started turning it on whenever I was in the kitchen. Even if was just for a few minutes, I turned it on and listened to the name of Jesus Christ being broadcast into our home whether through music that specifically names him or Scripture being read aloud.

I didn’t mention what I was doing to David or Caroline. I simply did it.

Within 48 hours of singing and praying out loud there was a noticeable change in our home. I can’t fully describe it other than to say the entire home felt more peaceful. Each of us was more peaceful. We were sleeping better. It continues to be noticeable.

I shared this experience with a friend Thursday evening and Friday I was led by the Lord to a particular video that popped up in my YouTube feed. I wrote about it on my other site in a post called What Is The Biblical Response To Aliens, Demons, and UFOs? What does that have to do with the name of Jesus Christ? A great deal as they discussed the power of the name of Jesus Christ in part of that video. It was yet another confirmation I was on the right track.

This morning I was making breakfast and I turned on the radio. A sermon was on and I almost turned it off. In fact, I did turn it off. But something told me to turn it back on. In retrospect, I’m sure it was the Holy Spirit.

The sermon had already started. I could tell it was older and fairly quickly I determined it was probably from Chicago so probably Moody Church. However, I didn’t immediately recognize the voice because I haven’t listened to sermons from the past in a long time. At the end, I found out it was Moody Church and it was Warren Wiersbe preaching. I laughed out loud. It made sense that the Lord would use Warren Wiersbe to reach me again.

What was the sermon about? Wiersbe was preaching about the power of the name of Jesus Christ. I missed the first few minutes, but what I heard was more than enough. His four points were that the name of Jesus Christ is:

  • Effective – The name of Jesus gets things done, including restoring a man’s sight.
  • Exalted –  It is the name above all names. There is no one on earth we can know with a greater name.
  • Exclusive – There is no other name given for salvation. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
  • Exciting – Those who know Jesus are excited to share Him.

Wiersbe probably gave this sermon in the early 1970s, around the time I started kindergarten. God used it today when I am well into my fifties. That alone is something to ponder in terms of how God will keep using us over and over again.

If you are struggling to find peace in your home, I hope this gives you something to think about. We’re in the midst of an epic spiritual battle. God has given us tools. In addition to the tools I’ll include below, our Heavenly Father has given us the name of Jesus Christ. There is power in the name. Use it. Fill your home with it. If Jesus Christ is your Savior, He is there for you and your loved ones.

Ephesians 6:10-20

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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Finding Refuge Under His Wings – Psalm 91

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentFinding Refuge Under His Wings – Psalm 91

I have read Psalm 91 more times than I can count in recent months. In fact, I’ve read the Psalms more in the past nine months or so than I ever have at any point in my life. I repeatedly pray for God to cover our little family in the shadow of His wings.

This is not the first time God has used Psalm 91 at a pivotal point in my life. In my NIV Study Bible, Psalm 91:14-16 is dated 8/28/96.

Psalm 91:14-16

“Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.

With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”

This was in reference to David making significant life decisions regarding whether he would leave his spiritually abusive church and we would marry. I can still remember walking around outside during recess duty on a warm, sunny early fall afternoon while I was teaching, reading those verses that God had given to me in a small Bible. God has abundantly answered that promise in the many years since.

Now, 25 years later, God has led me back to Psalm 91 for an entirely different set of circumstances. Not one that is purely personal, but one that permeates every aspect of the world around me – and you.

I encourage you to spend some time praying through Psalm 91 which I’ve included at the end of this post.

I also encourage you to spend time each morning deliberately and thoughtfully putting on the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18). I know some people prefer not to think about such things, but there is an intense spiritual battle raging around us. If you aren’t prepared to stand against it, then you and your loved ones are easy prey.

And have no doubt. Our adversary is seeking and finding plenty of easy prey right now.

Ephesians 6:10-18

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.

Put on the full armor of God, so that you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this world’s darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Therefore take up the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you will be able to stand your ground, and having done everything, to stand.

Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness arrayed,

and with your feet fitted with the readiness of the gospel of peace.

In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

These are challenging words, but they are truthful words. Find refuge in God and His Word. Use all the tools He has provided for His children. He has done so for our good.

Psalm 91

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say to the LORD, “You are my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

Surely He will deliver you
from the snare of the fowler,
and from the deadly plague.

He will cover you with His feathers;
under His wings you will find refuge;
His faithfulness is a shield and rampart.

You will not fear the terror of the night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,

nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the calamity that destroys at noon.

Though a thousand may fall at your side,
and ten thousand at your right hand,
no harm will come near you.

You will only see it with your eyes|
and witness the punishment of the wicked.

Because you have made the LORD your dwelling—
my refuge, the Most High—

no evil will befall you,
no plague will approach your tent.

For He will command His angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways.

They will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

You will tread on the lion and cobra;
you will trample the young lion and serpent.

“Because he loves Me, I will deliver him;
because he knows My name, I will protect him.

When he calls out to Me,
I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble.
I will deliver him and honor him.

With long life I will satisfy him
and show him My salvation.”

The Holy Bible, Berean Study Bible, BSB
Copyright ©2016, 2020 by Bible Hub
Used by Permission. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

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Shining Your Light in a Dark World

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentShining Your Light in a Dark World

These are dark and difficult days in the world. We’re living through historic events, some of which I believe are not what they seem. But whatever is unfolding, these are times that deeply trouble and unnerve men, women, and children. These are confusing times that don’t make sense, at least on the surface.

The only people who have the truthful answers to these fears are those who belong to Christ and are guided by the Holy Spirit. There are no ultimate answers beyond the Light that Christ offers. We are given that light to share with others.

Luke 11:33-36

“No one lights a lamp and puts it in a cellar or under a basket. Instead, he sets it on a stand, so those who enter can see the light.

Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are bad, your body is full of darkness. Be careful, then, that the light within you is not darkness. So if your whole body is full of light, with no part of it in darkness, you will be radiant, as though a lamp were shining on you.”

During these dark times, find the balance between understanding the truth of what is transpiring around you and filling your eyes with light. This can be a difficult balancing act. Neither extreme is healthy. It’s not good to spend all of your time absorbing heart-wrenching and difficult details. But it’s also not wise to ignore all that is going on. Do not neglect God’s Word. In fact, read it more.

At the very least, we should seek to pray specifically as we are aware of specific needs. I encourage you to ask the Holy Spirit how you should pray. Ask Him to bring to mind specific people and situations for which you should pray.

Matthew 5:14-16

“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they set it on a stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

You are called to be a light to the world. As people stumble without hope along a dark path, you have the truth. You know the Light of the World who has called you to be the light of the world.

Let your light shine in whatever way you can. Write something. Say something. Post something. Shine the light of Christ and the hope He offers through salvation. Even if all you have the courage to do is share a meme online with a verse calling people to repentance and salvation in Christ, shine your light.

People are desperate for the Light, even if they don’t realize or accept that they are. Pray for the Holy Spirit to send a massive awakening across our land so that people will see their need to repent and come to Christ.

Philippians 2:12-14

Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who works in you to will and to act on behalf of His good purpose.

Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine as lights in the world as you hold forth the word of life, in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.

Be a light from your home and in your home. Let the light of the goodness of Christ that dwells in you shine everywhere. Let it shine with joy on your children and loved ones. Fill your home with joy and light for their sakes. Cultivate light and joy.

Every one of us is called to shine the light of Christ and the truth in different ways. We each have a role to play whether it is big or small.

As you go forward today, be a light. Shine your light. As you look at the people around you, remember that most of them are stumbling lost in the darkness. You are the lantern of Christ’s light crossing their path today. Be a light.

The Holy Bible, Berean Study Bible, BSB
Copyright ©2016, 2020 by Bible Hub
Used by Permission. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

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O’Sullivan’s First Law Applied to the Christian Life

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentO’Sullivan’s First Law Applied to the Christian Life

David and I spent a number of years studying in-depth the issue of women in the church. If you’ve been around here for some time, you know I had another (now closed) website where I shared my research. There are a few posts on this site related to it including Why I’m Not a Christian Feminist (and What I Am). It was a big part of my life for a number of years.

There were readers at that time who were very upset with me when I started asking these questions. They automatically assumed asking questions would lead to false teaching, heresy, and departing from the faith. In many cases, this is correct. However, David and I did not lose our faith. We are still what would be called conservative biblical Christians. Why is that?

While I was researching these topics, I got to know from a distance who the movers and shakers were in these circles on both sides of the argument. I read what they wrote and had a fairly comprehensive knowledge of the big controversies that developed. But I never ran in either of those circles for a variety of reasons. I was really more of an observer which was fine because there were fundamental differences in the way we approached the questions compared to both camps.

In this post, I want to focus on the women who were promoting the egalitarian or liberal view of the role of women in the church. As I watch more and more of these women depart from the historic Christian faith, I’ve come to see that O’Sullivan’s First Law describes the difference between where I have ended up and where they have ended up.

Conservapedia describes O’Sullivan’s First Law this way:

O’Sullivan’s First Law describes the leftward drift of many politicians, leaders, and organizations. First coined by John O’Sullivan in 1989, it states: “All organizations that are not actually right-wing will over time become left-wing.”

Here is how I would rephrase it for this particular situation:

All people searching for God and Christian truth who are not fervently committed to the core tenets of the historic Christian faith will over time deny the historic Christian faith.

When David and I were working out our theology in this area, there were certain truths that hemmed in our study. They included:

  • God is good.
  • God is sovereign.
  • The Bible is God’s revealed Word and is infallible and inerrant.

We always went back to “what do the Scriptures say.” We asked lots of questions because God is fine with us asking questions if the goal is to know and follow Him better. God knows if we earnestly desire to submit to Him and are honestly seeking answers. He’s not bothered by our genuine desire to know the truth. Our approach was, “Lord, we want to understand this and follow you. Help us to figure this out and do the right thing.”

The difference is that those who are walking in all kinds of error did not maintain those same boundaries. There were several ways it happened, but it all goes back to the same deception in the Garden of Eden. “Did God really say?” Once you no longer trust the Word of God, you are toast. You really are. Once you start pulling at this thread and that thread, the entire thing unravels because there is no way to stop it. If you can explain away or disregard things you don’t like, it never ends.

Once you no longer trust God’s Word or God Himself, there is only one logical end. And that’s a steady shift toward liberalism, leftism, and often leaving Christianity altogether.

I think there are a few reasons for this among the people I have observed. Today, I’m simply going to list them and not try to explore them in depth because I want to write this and post it. (I’m focusing on doing more writing a post and publishing it rather than thinking everything must be thorough and lengthy.)

Reasons why people go left and fall off the rails.

  • They are imposing their 21st century grid on the past.
  • They are ruled and motivated by their feelings above everything else.
  • They either are unable or choose not to deal with the challenging passages in Scripture.
  • They devalue the Old Testament because it makes people today uncomfortable.
  • They are arrogant and believe they know better than the unenlightened people in the past.
  • They fear man more than they fear God.
  • They were never actually one of the Lord’s sheep to begin with.

There are others, but these are the ones I have observed most regularly.

Why am I writing this today? To remind all of us that we must get up every day and purpose in our hearts to trust God, be in His Word, be in prayer, and keep our focus on the truth He has revealed to us in His Word. There is no middle road. There never really was, but it was easy to drift along in our culture.

Not any longer.

If you aren’t taking every thought captive, you will drift left. If you aren’t purposefully filling your mind with truth every day, you will drift left. History is replete with examples. Look at how Charles Spurgeon had to fight the Downgrade Controversy late in his life. Read about J. Gresham Machen’s fight against liberalism in the early twentieth century. These men fought against the spread of liberalism at great personal cost. Time has proved them both correct. There is nothing new under the sun. Those who deny the historic biblical faith today are doomed to repeat the same mistakes.

In the lowest moments of my Christian walk, I often reminded myself of this truth: Many who have gone before me have found the Lord to be faithful. For centuries now Christians have walked with the Lord, learned from His Word, and known His love and care. Even though my life might have seemed all wrong at the moment, I could take comfort in the fact that my Christian brothers and sisters had set an example of faith for me. Knowing I was connected with those who came before me was always a comfort and strengthened my resolve to continue walking in faith.

Every day we are either drawing closer to the Lord or allowing ourselves to slowly drift left into apostasy. There is no other option. There is nothing new under the sun and it is the height of arrogance to think we can avoid the enemy’s trap that so many others have fallen prey to over the centuries. We aren’t special exceptions to the reality of life.

Make the deliberate choice this day and every day who you will serve.

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Trust Amid the Silence – Streams in the Desert

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentTrust Amid the Silence – Streams in the Desert

“He answered her not a word” (Matt. 15:23)

“He will be silent in his love” (Zeph. 3:17)

It may be a child of God is reading these words who has had some great crushing sorrow, some bitter disappointment, some heart-breaking blow from a totally unexpected quarter. You are longing for your Master’s voice bidding you “Be of good cheer,” but only silence and a sense of mystery and misery meet you–“He answered her not a word.”

God’s tender heart must often ache listening to all the sad, complaining cries which arise from our weak, impatient hearts, because we do not see that for our own sakes He answers not at all or otherwise than seems best to our tear-blinded, short-sighted eyes.

The silences of Jesus are as eloquent as His speech and may be a sign, not of His disapproval, but of His approval and of a deep purpose of blessing for you.

“Why art thou cast down, O…soul?” Thou shalt yet praise Him, yes, even for His silence. Listen to an old and beautiful story of how one Christian dreamed that she saw three others at prayer. As they knelt the Master drew near to them.

As He approached the first of the three, He bent over her in tenderness and grace, with smiles full of radiant love and spoke to her in accents of purest, sweetest music.

Leaving her, He came to the next, but only placed His hand upon her bowed bead, and gave her one look of loving approval.

The third woman He passed almost abruptly without stopping for a word or glance. The woman in her dream said to herself, “How greatly He must love the first one, to the second He gave His approval, but none of the special demonstrations of love He gave the first; and the third must have grieved Him deeply, for He gave her no word at all and not even a passing look.

“I wonder what she has done, and why He made so much difference between them?” As she tried to account for the action of her Lord, He Himself stood by her and said: “O woman! how wrongly hast thou interpreted Me. The first kneeling woman needs all the weight of My tenderness and care to keep her feet in My narrow way. She needs My love, thought and help every moment of the day. Without it she would fail and fall.

“The second has stronger faith and deeper love, and I can trust her to trust Me however things may go and whatever people do.

“The third, whom I seemed not to notice, and even to neglect, has faith and love of the finest quality, and her I am training by quick and drastic processes for the highest and holiest service.

“She knows Me so intimately, and trusts Me so utterly, that she is independent of words or looks or any outward intimation of My approval. She is not dismayed nor discouraged by any circumstances through which I arrange that she shall pass; she trusts Me when sense and reason and every finer instinct of the natural heart would rebel;–because she knows that I am working in her for eternity, and that what I do, though she knows not the explanation now, she will understand hereafter.

“I am silent in My love because I love beyond the power of words to express, or of human hearts to understand, and also for your sakes that you may learn to love and trust Me in Spirit-taught, spontaneous response to My love, without the spur of anything outward to call it forth.”

He “will do marvels” if you will learn the mystery of His silence, and praise Him, for every time He withdraws His gifts that you may better know and love the Giver. –Selected

From Streams in the Desert

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Open Our Eyes, That We May See – Streams in the Desert

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentOpen Our Eyes, That We May See – Streams in the Desert

“Elisha prayed, and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see” (2 Kings 6:17).

This is the prayer we need to pray for ourselves and for one another, “Lord, open our eyes that we may see”; for the world all around us, as well as around the prophet, is full of God’s horses and chariots, waiting to carry us to places of glorious victory. And when our eyes are thus opened, we shall see in all events of life, whether great or small, whether joyful or sad, a “chariot” for our souls.

Everything that comes to us becomes a chariot the moment we treat it as such; and, on the other hand, even the smallest trial may be a Juggernaut car to crush us into misery or despair if we consider it.

It lies with each of us to choose which they shall be. It all depends, not upon what these events are, but upon how we take them. If we lie down under them, and let them roll over us and crush us, they become Juggernaut cars, but if we climb up into them, as into a car of victory, and make them carry us triumphantly onward and upward, they become the chariots of God. –Hannah Whitall Smith

The Lord cannot do much with a crushed soul, hence the adversary’s attempt to push the Lord’s people into despair and hopelessness over the condition of themselves, or of the church. It has often been said that a dispirited army goes forth to battle with the certainty of being beaten. We heard a missionary say recently that she had been invalided home purely because her spirit had fainted, with the consequence that her body sunk also. We need to understand more of these attacks of the enemy upon our spirits and how to resist them. If the enemy can dislodge us from our position, then he seeks to “wear us out” (Daniel 7:25) by a prolonged siege, so that at last we, out of sheer weakness, let go the cry of victory.

From Streams in the Desert

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