Laminin

You are fearfully and wonderfully made.

I dare you to watch this!

"For by Him (Christ) all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.

All things were created through Him and for Him, and He is before all things, and in Him all things are held together."

~ Colossians 1:21

FIREPROOF

There is a new movie coming out September 26 I hope you'll make an effort to see. It's called FIREPROOF.

FIREPROOF is the third feature film from Sherwood Pictures the creators of FACING THE GIANTS and FLYWHEEL. Described as a hope-filled, heartfelt storytelling from the moviemaking ministry of Sherwood Baptist Church.

Here's a glimpse of the plot:

At work, inside burning buildings, Capt. Caleb Holt lives by the old firefighter's adage: Never leave your partner behind. At home, in the cooling embers of his marriage, he lives by his own rules.

Growing up, Catherine Holt always dreamed of marrying a loving, brave firefighter...just like her daddy. Now, after seven years of marriage, Catherine wonders when she stopped being "good enough" for her husband.

Regular arguments over jobs, finances, housework, and outside interests have readied them both to move on to something with more sparks.

As the couple prepares to enter divorce proceedings, Caleb's father challenges his son to commit to a 40-day experiment: "The Love Dare."

Wondering if it's even worth the effort, Caleb agrees-for his father's sake more than for his marriage. When Caleb discovers the book's daily challenges are tied into his parents' newfound faith, his already limited interest is further dampened.

You can visit their web site to view the trailer...and here's a great article from Family Life's Dennis Rainey "Nine Steps To Fireproof Your Marriage."

Vitamins For Your Marriage

I really had to laugh when I read Beth Moore's oldest daughter Amanda describe this book as being "like vitamins for your marriage", but it's so true!

I too, highly recommend "Devotions For A Sacred Marriage" by Gary Thomas.

Here's a marriage vitamin for your day:

"Personal worship is an absolute necessity for a strong marriage. It comes down to this: If I stop receiving from God, I start demanding from others.

Instead of appreciating and loving and serving others, I become disappointed in them. Instead of cherishing my husband, I become aware of his shortcomings. I take out my frustrations with a less-than-perfect life and somehow blame him for my lack of fulfillment.

But when my heart gets filled by God's love and acceptance, I'm set free to love instead of worrying about being loved. I'm motivated to serve instead of becoming obsessed about whether I'm being served. I'm moved to cherish instead of feeling unappreciated."

A Soul Filled With God - Pg 9

P.S. I'm looking forward to an afternoon seminar by Gary Thomas at my Church - Bellingham CTK - on October 12.

His Bigness...My Smallness

I've been following Dr Del Tackett's trip to the Grand Canyon on his personal blog. He traveled there with other scholars and professionals to examine the geographical evidence as it relates to the Great Flood. It is a fascinating read.

Having spent some time in the canyons these past two summers I have truly enjoyed following his experiences and insights.

He recently posted his "final reflections" and this was his closing comment.

"I learned a lot of lessons in the Canyon. The biggest was my smallness…the ultimate smallness of man in the face of an infinite, holy and just God. The unthinkable might and power of God as He uses the physical elements of His creation in contrast to my own personal smallness and weakness.

Jesus said that apart from Him, we can do nothing…we are nothing.

Funny, isn’t it? It was there in the book all the time."

So true! I have felt it.

As the Hurricane Approaches

By: Jon Bloom

Like many of you, we have relatives and friends that live directly in the path of this storm. Events like this remind us that “here we have no lasting city” (Heb. 13:14). Everything can shake. Everything can be destroyed. We are very small and not in control.

The Lord wants us to remember those in distress and pray for them. He loves to answer prayer. We don’t want to fail in doing that.

And he also wants us to take shelter in his massive sovereignty. Here is what I wrote this morning to a dear friend who lives in the path of the storm’s eye:

The Lord of every storm and every rain drop and every wind gust and every house and every street and every tree and every power line and every car and every life will “never leave you nor forsake you. Therefore we can confidently say, ‘The Lord is my helper, I will not fear, what can man [or nature] do to me’” (Heb 13:5-6).

For I am sure that neither tribulation nor distress nor persecution nor famine nor nakedness nor sword nor death nor life nor angels nor rulers nor things present nor things to come nor powers nor height nor depth nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus (Rom. 8:35, 38-39).

Ike is no match for Jesus Christ. Even the winds and water obey his commands (Luke 8:25). All his disciples are safe in his boat, even as the winds rage and the waves slap over the sides.

Spiritual Stirrups

The quote I have pondered today:

"Luther said the devil doesn't care which side of the horse we fall off of—as long as we don't stay in the saddle. A saddle has two stirrups. To stay in the saddle, the church needs to mount the horse with one foot solidly in the stirrup of truth, and the other solidly in the stirrup of grace."

From Randy Alcorn's "The Grace And Truth Paradox"