CJ Mahaney: The Mystery of Election

Paul Washer: The Lost Doctrine of Regeneration

A Quote

“Discernment is not simply a matter of telling the difference between what is right and wrong; rather it is the difference between right and almost right.”

"Long before time began or space was created, God had written upon His heart the names of His elect people, had predestinated them to be conformed unto the image of His Son, and ordained them heirs of all the fullness of His love, His grace, and His glory. What comfort is here! Having loved us for so long, will the Lord then reject us? He knew how stiff-necked we would be, He understood that our hearts were evil, and yet He made the choice.

Our Savior is no fickle lover. He does not feel enchanted for awhile with some gleams of beauty from His Church's eye and then afterwards reject her because of her unfaithfulness. No, He married her in old eternity; and He hates divorce! The eternal choice is a bond upon our gratitude and upon His faithfulness, which neither can disown."

-Charles Haddon Spurgeon

German Chocolate Cupcakes!

1 pkg. (4 oz.) German Sweet Chocolate
1/2 cup water
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs, separated
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup buttermilk

PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Line your muffin pan with cupcake papers and set aside. Microwave chocolate and water in large microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1-1/2 to 2 min. or until chocolate is almost melted, stirring after 1 min. Stir until chocolate is completely melted.

MIX flour, baking soda and salt; set aside. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in melted chocolate and the vanilla. Add flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk, beating until well blended after each addition.

BEAT egg whites in small bowl with electric mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form. Gently stir into batter. Pour evenly into prepared pans.

BAKE 15-20 min. or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Remove cupcakes from pan and let them cool. Spread Coconut-Pecan Filling on top!

Coconut-Pecan Frosting

1 cup evaporated milk
1-1/2 Tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup white sugar
3 egg yolk, beaten with 1 teaspoon water
1/2 cup margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped toasted pecans (preheat oven to 350, in a flat pan, spread out the pecans with dabs of butter over top. Cook for 15-20 minutes)
1 cup flaked toasted coconut (preheat oven to 350, and spread the coconut evenly on the pan. Cook for 10 minutes or until slightly brown.)

In a large saucepan combine evaporated milk, sugar, egg yolks, margarine and vanilla. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thick. Remove from heat and stir in pecans and coconut. Spread on cake while still warm but not hot.

ENJOY!!

What He Must Be...if he wants to marry my daughter

It was a cold winter night. Jack was sitting in front of the fire carefully lining up the pieces from his gun cleaning kit. He had cleaned his guns before, but tonight was different; tonight the cleaning had a dual purpose. One purpose was to see that his weapons were all in working order; the other was to scare the living daylights out of the sixteen-year-old young man who was scheduled to arrive at his door in the next half hour.

Jack was a tall, athletic man who kept himself in good shape. He often joked that he worked out constantly in preparation for this moment. He knew the day would come when a young man would come calling. that day had finally arrived. Jack's mind flooded with images. He smiled as he remembered the day he brought her home. No man had ever been happier or more proud. Now, in just the blink of an eye, young men had begun to come knocking.

At 6:59 the doorbell rang. It was Scott. He was right on time. Jack opened the door and greeted the young man, who had to wipe the sweat from his palms before shaking Jack's hand. "Come in," Jack said. There was more bass in his voice than usual. "Can I offer you something to drink?" Jack asked as he pointed to the chair across the room from his work station. "No thanks, I'm fine," Scott replied as he looked nervously at the assortment of firearms lying on the table in front of him.

Jack sat down, picked up his two-tone Kimber Custom .45 caliber semiautomatic pistol, and proceeded to field-strip and clean the weapon. As he ran his bore snake through the steel, matchgrade barrel, he asked Scott, "Do you have any idea how much she means to me?" Scott, mouth hanging wide open and eyes as wide as saucers, could only manage to nod his head. "Good," Jack continued. "I just want to make sure we're on the same page." Scott shook his head more vigorously. "Do you remember what time I told you to have her back?" "Yes, sir- 11:30," Scott blurted out, finally able to produce audible sounds. "Don't worry, sir. I'll take good care of her and get her back long before that."

Jack stood up, walked up the stairs and disappeared. Moments later he reappeared. This was the moment Jack had waited for. He could barely contain himself. Resolved that he had done everything he could do to impress upon this young man the importance of taking freat care and showing the utmost respect for his baby, Jack turned around, reached into his pocket, and handed the young man the keys to his brand new 6.5 liter, 12 cylinder All Wheel Drive, $354,000 Lamborghini Mucielago. "I want her back without as much as a scratch," he said as the young man started toward the garage.

Of course, the story above is completely absurd. Who, you ask, would give the keys to a brand-new Lamborghini Mucielago to a sixteen-year-old young man? Well, I have a better question. Who would be foolish enough to think their daughter was worth less than any car? It should be unthinkable for us to turn our daughters over to this young man as it is to contemplate giving him a depreciating piece of metal. However, we have come to prize sports cars much more highly than we do daughters these days.

I believe modern dating is no more than glorified divorce practice.

an excerpt from Voddie Baucham's newest book "What He Must Be...if he wants to marry my daughter"

I urge all parents to read this book!

For your viewing pleasure

My boys love this and want to share it with you.

I saw this and thought it was hilarious!

A Valentine's Day Recap

My life is anything but dull.

The kids woke up to chocolates that were quickly devoured. There is nothing quite like chocolates before breakfast!

The day was like many others....but with many added hugs and kisses from my boys!

John went out that afternoon to pick up some last minute preparations for the evening, and I played Uno with Nolan, Gideon and Haddon.

I had no idea what John was planning, so I thought nothing of giving the kids quick haircuts at 5pm.

Probably not a good idea considering he was going to make me dinner and needed to start getting that ready.

Thankfully, I cut the kid's hair quickly and gave them dinner and got them all in bed by 6:30pm.

I was banished to the living room and not allowed to look into the kitchen.

I could smell chocolate baking, but other than that...knew nothing.

Now, many of you know that I have been under the weather for the past week and a half. I have had bronchitis and some other -itis, complete with coughing, fever, and a chronic headache that wouldn't subside.

I decided to take some Lortab.

I had taken it that morning with breakfast and it actually took the edge off! I would like to enjoy tonight, so why not take another one?

Public Service Announcement....Never take Lortab on an empty stomach!

I figured I would be eating soon and that I would be okay.

Wrong!

As John lit a candle on the table....and presented me with a caesar salad, grilled steak and shrimp, and a baked potato...he even asked me if I wanted a glass of wine...good thing I declined!

I felt like my head was in a cloud.

I felt sleepy.

I felt out of it.

Then I began to feel nauseaus.

I apologized and told him that I just couldn't eat any more food. He understood. I got up and said that I really didn't feel well....

and proceeded to throw up into the kitchen sink.

If you ever want to make Valentine's night memorable....throw up dinner, I guarantee you you'll never forget it!

Trust me, the food was great, and I was able to reheat it the next day for lunch.

I did have room for dessert too. After an hour, I felt much better...

John had baked homeade brownies, cut up some fresh pineapple, strawberries and apples...and gave me a chocolate melting pot! Yum!

All in all it was a great night...with a few mishaps!

I felt so bad over what had happened....but we laughed through it, and I love him all the more for it!

Recreational Dating

Young guys listen to me. There is no such thing as biblical dating. If you're dating, I don't care who you're dating, you're out of God's will. If you're a young man and you're dating, you're out of God's will. Period. You can come talk to me about it later, you can be mad if you want. But that's just the truth. There's no such thing as recreational dating. There is biblical courtship, there is no recreational dating. Number 1.

Number 2, guys ask me, 'When can I start thinking about someone of the opposite sex?' Well you can start thinking whenever the thought comes to you, the question is when you can start acting... When then can we start even courtship? I said, first of all, the only time you ever think about being with a girl is because you feel like the Lord is leading you into marriage with that girl.

Number 1, Recreational dating is unbiblical... Another thing. This is when you can first begin to initiate the dealings that lead to a relationship. This is when you can begin: When as a young man you can biblically lead a girl as a spiritual leader. Until that moment, you cannot be with anyone of the opposite sex.

Number 2. Emotionally you can care for her - that means you're willing to make a life-long commitment and not test the waters with any other person. Financially you can care for her: if dad's still paying the insurance on your car, forget about it.... And physically protect her - that doesn't mean you can whoop every guy in the county, but it does mean you will be whooped by every guy in the county before you allow anyone to pass, that you have enough moral fortitude and courage to draw a line in the sand and say, 'Over my cold, dead, blue, deformed body will you do that.'

...I love hunting and...I have some Wikki(sp?) Eskimo broad-heads at home. They're very, very sharp, they're two-bladed, so they have to be very, very sharp. And I have a little wrench that I use to put those broad-heads onto the arrow shaft, because you don't even want to put your hand on the side of them because if you slip, they'll slice your finger off. Now, I have a 3 year old boy and I built a hickory bow for him. He's got a little arrow that he shoots and it has a blunt, wooden tip on the end of it - wont penetrate much. Except his little brother's eye, but... Sometimes I'll be those arrow-heads off and on and my little boy Ian will come up there and he'll want to touch the arrows, and I'll say, No son, you can't. These arrows that your dad can handle - they'll kill you. Now one day, son, you'll be man enough to handle these arrows, and you can hunt like a big boy. You can hunt like a man. But you've got a lot of growing before you can do that. One of the greatest problems, young men, that we have today, is that a lot of young men are wanting to play with big boy toys. And yet they're still little boys.
You see, we don't want to pay the price of becoming a man in order to do men things. The bible says, Become a man, and God will lead you into the ways of a man.

-Paul Washer

Click here to listen to the whole sermon!

Matt Chandler: Silly Myths

Matt Chandler on "A Shepherd and His Unregenerate Sheep". From the 2009 Desiring God Conference for Pastors, February 3, 2009

I urge you to listen to his entire sermon: here

The Experiment

Every now and then, you hear of a small child who saved their mother's life because she collapsed and the child called 9-1-1.

This is not my child.

A few weeks ago, I did an experiement.

I collapsed on the kitchen floor and was unresponsive to any and all poking and prodding.

My children thought it was a game and they climbed all over me. They didn't care that I didn't even respond to my name or to their climbing.

I did this again today with the same result.

If you ever hear about the mother who was found unconscious while her children used her lifeless body as a jungle gym...that would be me.

Taking Cain and Abel to a more personal level

Last night, we were reading the story of Cain and Abel during our family devotions.

The kids agreed that it was very sinful for Cain to pick up a rock and kill his brother with it.

Then the discussion began....

"If I picked up a rock this big (spreading his arms really wide) then that would kill Haddon!" Gideon said, continuing..."We have rocks that big in the backyard! I could throw it!"

Haddon then solemnly looked at me..."Mommy, please don't kill me with a rock."

There was a need to once again go over the rules:

NOBODY IS TO THROW ROCKS AT ANYONE AT ANY TIME....UNDERSTOOD?!?

Hooded Towels

I decided to try my hand at making some nice hooded towels for my Etsy shop that has yet to open :)

I purchased the towels and got to work!

I was very pleased with the final product. It's 100% cotton and very soft and plush.

Gideon was my model...and immediately asked if he could have one too!

I made four more tonight, two in orange (one goes to Haddon), and two in blue (one goes to Jamison).

This one, of course, is Paysie's!

What's wrong with the world today....a Voddie Baucham sermon jam

"What is wrong with the world?" - Voddie Baucham Sermon Jam from Wretched Sinner on Vimeo.

(there are a few spelling errors, if you can past those, you're good!)

Happy Birthday Nolan!

It was a special night as we snuggled tonight on the couch. You were able to stay up extra late to watch the Superbowl!

You glanced at the clock and saw that it was two hours until your birthday, and you said to me:

"Mommy, you know what happens at twelve o'clock?"
"What happens?" I answered....
"That's when I start to grow, cause it'll be my birthday!"

You are too cute, my dear!

I remember your birthday like it was yesterday. Here is what I wrote in your baby book:

Mommy was due to have you on January 29, 2002. That day came and passed and there was still no sign of you. On February 1st, Mommy and Auntie Erin went to a baby shower for Baby Denver who was born a few weeks earlier. We spoke for a very long time and didn't get home til 12:30am on February 2nd.

Mommy didn't think you would ever get here! Daddy was waiting for us when we got home after the baby shower. At 1:30am, Mommy went upstairs to brush her teeth. As she stood at the sink brushing her teeth, she had her first contraction!

Daddy was already asleep in bed, and Auntie Erin, Cosette and Mark were sleeping across the hall. Mommy started timing her contractions and they were already 5 minutes apart and it was barely 2:00am!

Mommy took a shower, woke up Daddy, and told Auntie Erin that we were going to go to the hospital! Mommy called Gramma and Grampa in Maine to tell them that you were on your way. Our son was finally coming!

We arrived at Sycamore Shoals Hospital at 3:30am. We were quickly admitted and Mommy was brought to her room. Her contractions were coming every 4-5 minutes and were starting to get painful. At first Mommy didn't want any kind of pain medications, but as time went on she changed her mind.

When the nurses checked Mommy, they told her she was 2cm dilated. Mommy and Daddy thought that it would go quickly, but they soon learned that you would take your time! By 11:30am, Mommy was still only 3cm. She decided to walk the halls for an hour to help things progress. After 45 minutes of walking, Mommy was in too much pain to continue. The nurses checked her again, and things had barely progressed! By this time, Mommy wanted drugs!

Around 4pm, Mommy had finally made it to 4cm and was able to get an epidural. But the Dr who was going to give it to her was busy, so she ended up waiting until 6pm. Mommy was very happy when the Dr finally arrived!

Auntie Erin, Cosette and Mark showed up around 7pm and Grammy and Grandpa Jordan were in the waiting room with them. Auntie Erin came to be with Mommy in her room. Mommy felt a lot better when there was no pain! The nurse decided to give her some pitocin to help you get here faster. By 9pm, Mommy was fully dilated and was ready to push!

Gramma and Grampa in Maine were on the phone while Mommy pushed so they could hear you arrive! Mommy pushed and pushed and at 10:03pm on February 2, 2002.....Nolan Donald Jordan was born!!! You weighed 6 pounds 11 ounces and measured 21 inches long!

Where did that little baby go?

When I look back over the last 7 years, I see a little toddler who would throw the meanest tantrums...and I also see a little boy who sings praises to Jesus. I see a 3 year old who had a will so strong that he would bang his head against the wall just to spite his mother....and a 7 year old who is quick to apologize and ask forgiveness as soon as he has done something wrong.

I thank God for the work He has done in your life and I thank Him for the work that He continues to do. You are a special boy and I love you so very much!

Happy Birthday Nolan!

Love,
Mommy