I started out this series thinking I would recap the week chronologically but that didn’t happen; I got ahead of myself talking about the seminars. For those keeping track at home, I’m planning on at least 3 more entries. I’ve been putting off my recap of and response to the last seminar because it affected me the most in my current circumstances and what God has been showing me about Himself lately. The seminar message actually coincided with my last non-camp entry (Life Lessons). I want to do it justice so it may take some time before I feel I’ve adequately covered it. And I want to dedicate an entry to highlighting the purely fun times too. But for today, it’s back to Wednesday night at camp and the large group message. It’ll take another entry at least to finish up the large group teaching.
Moving from the broad message in Genesis of God separating the light from the darkness to how that is accomplished in Christ to how that manifests in our lives, we again went to different passages from all over the Bible. Pastor Welzien started in John 12, verses 44-50 which say “And Jesus cried out and said, ‘Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. And whoever sees me sees him who sent me. I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness. If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day. For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.’”
Jesus came so people don’t have to remain in darkness; they/we already stand in judgment and darkness and must be saved to escape. To drive home the point of how much we transgress, we looked at the list of blessing and curses in Deuteronomy 28. The Law has been broken by every person except Christ. The Law has been kept perfectly by only One who deserves the blessings listed, yet Christ took the curse of Law-breaking on Himself and gave us the blessings only He deserved!
We also looked back to Exodus, at the plagues listed in chapter 10 which include total darkness over Egypt but not where the Israelites live, and then in chapter 12, where the only salvation is offered in the sacrifice of the spotless lamb. In Chapter 14, verses 19 and following, the presence of God is manifested in the pillar of fire/pillar of cloud, and in this passage, moves to separate the Israelites from the forces of Egypt. Egypt is cast into darkness by God, while Israel is in light. All these chapters have such a clear picture foreshadowing what Christ would do for His people to save them from darkness.
Mark 15:33ff talks about the darkness that fell over the land as Jesus was being crucified. Darkness is clearly symbolic of judgment throughout the Old Testament and reiterated in the New Testament, and here shows the judgment of God moving on to Jesus. Matthew 8:12 talks about the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, the judgment of being cast out from God’s blessings. The book of Jude speaks in poetical, vivid terms of those that are rejecters of the truth, and in particular verse 13, which speaks of them as “wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever.” Jesus is the light and our way out of it.
That last verse really stood out to me and in our small group discussion that night my group had a good talk about that thought. I’m going to venture to say that everyone I know has been left out by someone or a group of people at some point in their lives, and universally, it’s a horrible feeling. It’s hurtful, embarrassing, shaming, and it’s what hell is. Being left out of God’s family, and His blessings… forever.
Coming up: Delighting in obedience.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Saturday, July 2, 2011
RYC, part 4
The morning large group lesson on Wednesday morning was on spiritual warfare. The main text was 2 Corinthians 4:1-6, “Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”
Pastor Welzien went through some of the names/descriptions of Satan from the Bible: a roaring lion seeking to devour, a fierce dragon, Destruction, the Destroyer, the prince of the power of the air, the god of this world. Even so, we’re not sentenced to live in the darkness. Satan is a deceiver and a blinder, but Christ is our light.
Galatians 3:10 and 13-14 states “For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, ‘Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them’… Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’— so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.”
The righteous live by faith, only because of the work that Jesus Christ accomplished. It is the only way to overcome.
2 Corinthians 6:2 states “For he says,
‘In a favorable time I listened to you,
and in a day of salvation I have helped you.’
Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”
Today is the day. What side are you on?
Coming up: Escaping the darkness.
Pastor Welzien went through some of the names/descriptions of Satan from the Bible: a roaring lion seeking to devour, a fierce dragon, Destruction, the Destroyer, the prince of the power of the air, the god of this world. Even so, we’re not sentenced to live in the darkness. Satan is a deceiver and a blinder, but Christ is our light.
Galatians 3:10 and 13-14 states “For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, ‘Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them’… Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’— so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.”
The righteous live by faith, only because of the work that Jesus Christ accomplished. It is the only way to overcome.
2 Corinthians 6:2 states “For he says,
‘In a favorable time I listened to you,
and in a day of salvation I have helped you.’
Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”
Today is the day. What side are you on?
Coming up: Escaping the darkness.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
RYC, part 3
Each morning at large group we started out with a dance to get everyone awake. It was pretty fantastic. The first one was to Istanbul (Not Constantinople)by They Might Be Giants, then there was 500 Miles by the Proclaimers, Walk the Dinosaur, and Star Trekkin'. The last night at camp was a mini-dance party, with all those songs plus Kryptonite by 3 Doors Down. There wasn't a dance for this song, but Sweet Caroline quickly became the theme of camp. Tim played it while we were walking in for large group one night, and after that it was being sung all over camp. You could at any point sing out "Sweet Caroline..." and be answered with "bah bah bahhhh."
The afternoon game on Tuesday was a crazy match of Capture the Flag; I got a little beat up but our team did awesome. That night's activity was a giant slip'n'slide.
The teaching Tuesday evening was based on I John 1:5-10: "This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." The emphasis was on practicing the truth: what does that mean and what does it look like? Pastor Welzien then went back to Genesis 1-3. This coincided with Dan's seminar teaching from the morning on creation. Those first few chapters are necessary to explain our plight and purpose. He also emphasized that God is reality, and we need to recognize what He says about us. I thought that perspective was so convicting: what better source to search for what humanity is about than what the Author of life gave us? How often do I try to muddle through on my own instead of running to God's Word?
Then we looked at Ephesians 2:1ff, (go read it!) and Ephesians 4:17-18 which states "Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart." The application was to have teachable hearts, and to question ourselves if we were really serious about walking uprightly, participating in spiritual warfare, having a prayer life.
To close, we looked at Romans 1:18ff (read it!). V. 25 especially, which says "they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen." is a challenge not to put our own abilities, ideas, philosophies, above what God Himself has given to us in His Word. God give us the truth; why would we give it back? One of the last thoughts I wrote down from what Pastor Welzien said was that God's word is always there for us to refresh ourselves with. It's what keeps us walking in His light.
The seminar my small group went to Wednesday morning was led by the OPC missionaries to Haiti, a family with 4 kids, talking about how they were called to Haiti, what they gave up to go there, what they gained in going, the challenges of their ministry there, and how God is at work in the church. The previous OP missionary to Haiti died in a motorcycle accident and there was an article about his ministry in the magazine the OPC publishes. They each read the article and individually they felt the call to go, and decided if at the next GA (I think... it might have just been a presbytery meeting) someone asked him specifically to go to Haiti, they would say yes. Someone did. They went. During the seminar we saw some videos of what life and ministry is like for them in Haiti. It was a neat opportunity to get a better glimpse of what the OPC is doing around the globe in His name.
The next day's seminar, taught by my hubby, was on loving Christ and the Church and the importance of observing the Sabbath in attending church. The main texts for this were Ephesians 2 and Hebrews 12,emphasizing that we are saved into the kingdom and family of God, to be a part of His church. Ignoring corporate life is to ignore what we are saved to. The means of grace given to us, the preaching of the word and the sacraments, are only legitimately available in the church.
Coming up: spiritual warfare.
The afternoon game on Tuesday was a crazy match of Capture the Flag; I got a little beat up but our team did awesome. That night's activity was a giant slip'n'slide.
The teaching Tuesday evening was based on I John 1:5-10: "This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." The emphasis was on practicing the truth: what does that mean and what does it look like? Pastor Welzien then went back to Genesis 1-3. This coincided with Dan's seminar teaching from the morning on creation. Those first few chapters are necessary to explain our plight and purpose. He also emphasized that God is reality, and we need to recognize what He says about us. I thought that perspective was so convicting: what better source to search for what humanity is about than what the Author of life gave us? How often do I try to muddle through on my own instead of running to God's Word?
Then we looked at Ephesians 2:1ff, (go read it!) and Ephesians 4:17-18 which states "Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart." The application was to have teachable hearts, and to question ourselves if we were really serious about walking uprightly, participating in spiritual warfare, having a prayer life.
To close, we looked at Romans 1:18ff (read it!). V. 25 especially, which says "they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen." is a challenge not to put our own abilities, ideas, philosophies, above what God Himself has given to us in His Word. God give us the truth; why would we give it back? One of the last thoughts I wrote down from what Pastor Welzien said was that God's word is always there for us to refresh ourselves with. It's what keeps us walking in His light.
The seminar my small group went to Wednesday morning was led by the OPC missionaries to Haiti, a family with 4 kids, talking about how they were called to Haiti, what they gave up to go there, what they gained in going, the challenges of their ministry there, and how God is at work in the church. The previous OP missionary to Haiti died in a motorcycle accident and there was an article about his ministry in the magazine the OPC publishes. They each read the article and individually they felt the call to go, and decided if at the next GA (I think... it might have just been a presbytery meeting) someone asked him specifically to go to Haiti, they would say yes. Someone did. They went. During the seminar we saw some videos of what life and ministry is like for them in Haiti. It was a neat opportunity to get a better glimpse of what the OPC is doing around the globe in His name.
The next day's seminar, taught by my hubby, was on loving Christ and the Church and the importance of observing the Sabbath in attending church. The main texts for this were Ephesians 2 and Hebrews 12,emphasizing that we are saved into the kingdom and family of God, to be a part of His church. Ignoring corporate life is to ignore what we are saved to. The means of grace given to us, the preaching of the word and the sacraments, are only legitimately available in the church.
Coming up: spiritual warfare.
Monday, June 27, 2011
RYC, part 2
I’ve been trying to think of a way to describe the atmosphere of camp. The best way I can put it is it’s like a family reunion where everyone is excited to see each other, except in my case I was meeting almost everyone for the first time. And the gem about that is, it IS family. I got to meet brothers and sisters I didn’t know I had. Some of you know about my family drama, and this week was like a pat on the head from God and a reminder that my family in Him is bigger and more loving than I can even comprehend. So humbling.
So, part of the fun was a trip down memory lane about old Contemporary Christian bands I hadn’t given thought to for over a decade. This was in part brought about because the worship leader had us singing the chorus of “In The Light” as recorded by DCTalk, which I believe is a cover of Charlie Peacock. (Not that that last bit matters, I just feel proud of myself for knowing it. I like obscure facts; I can’t help it.) It took me back to trips to Lakeland, with my friends and I piling into the van, driven by my dad, who very graciously without fail agreed to take us to whatever show was in town, and we would go to Steak and Shake first, then go stake out our place in the crowd for the general admission seats. William likes to harass me about my CCM collection. There are so many memories linked to those bands though, and now new ones from new friends at RYC.
William and I have a long running joke that there is always a Roebke you don’t know about popping up (also you shouldn’t get water on them or feed them after midnight, and if you know that cultural reference, you are awesome.) And guess what? There was a new-to-me Roebke at camp.
My last entry had a summary of the first night’s teaching. The first morning had us looking at John 3:16-21 which says “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”
And Hebrews 1:1-3 and 11:1-3 which state “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high” and “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.”
One of the points that stood out to me from Pastor Welzien’s preaching is the falsity of the phrase “blind faith” which people use to criticize Christianity. Our faith is not blind; it is built on God’s word, and our hearts and minds are illuminated by the Creator of the universe. Also, in the John passage, the idea that the light came into the world and it was judgment jumped out to me. The world already stands condemned, and when Christ came, He brought the way of salvation, His light to lead us from darkness, but it was also a seal of doom for those that hold on to the dark. Pastor Welzien took us to the original sin of Adam and Eve, where Satan plants seeds of doubt and then direct contradiction against God’s Word. That’s where this all started; not believing God means what He says. Then Adam and Eve tried to cover their own sin with fig leaves which was the start of humanity inventing religion and morality to try to bridge the gap and take ourselves up to God, which is impossible. When the fig leaves didn’t work, they then cowered in the darkness, trying to hide from God, which is also impossible.
Correlated to believing what God says was the first seminar of the week for my group, which was on creation and dinosaurs, taught by Dan Burns. He took us on a trip through scripture looking at the words for different animals in Genesis, and the descriptions of the Leviathan and Behemoth, which showed that at the time of the writings, there were big ol’ creatures that were well-known culturally. Also very interesting was the use of the English word “cattle” in some places which in Hebrew doesn’t actually mean “cattle;” it’s more like a word for a big beast that has no obvious correlation in English. Dan had a fossil collection from digs he’d been on, and some of the more memorable ones were dinosaur poop and dinosaur skin. The fossil record points to a single catastrophic event, and he mentioned that the dinosaur skin fossils really send evolutionary theorists into a tizzy because it can’t exist if the time periods that they hold to are real. (My paraphrase. Dan said it much more eloquently than that.) He also threw down the challenge that if Genesis 1-3 isn’t real, if Adam and Even aren’t real, and the Garden isn’t real, then what’s the point? It was really refreshing to hear such a strong reminder that you can’t pick and choose, randomly deciding certain things are poetry and not literal and certain things are to fit whatever earthly filter you are putting on the Word of God.
On a completely different tack: RYC is known for messy games. I was a little concerned about them, and wasn’t sure about playing, but jumped in anyway. The first messy game was like Steal the Bacon, except the bacon was a watermelon coated in Crisco, places on a tarp covered in water and slime. SO MUCH FLIPPIN FUN! After the game it was much easier to talk to people; nothing breaks down walls like sliding all over the ground scrabbling for lard-covered melon.
Coming up: Teachable hearts, loving Christ and the Church, and assorted fun times.
So, part of the fun was a trip down memory lane about old Contemporary Christian bands I hadn’t given thought to for over a decade. This was in part brought about because the worship leader had us singing the chorus of “In The Light” as recorded by DCTalk, which I believe is a cover of Charlie Peacock. (Not that that last bit matters, I just feel proud of myself for knowing it. I like obscure facts; I can’t help it.) It took me back to trips to Lakeland, with my friends and I piling into the van, driven by my dad, who very graciously without fail agreed to take us to whatever show was in town, and we would go to Steak and Shake first, then go stake out our place in the crowd for the general admission seats. William likes to harass me about my CCM collection. There are so many memories linked to those bands though, and now new ones from new friends at RYC.
William and I have a long running joke that there is always a Roebke you don’t know about popping up (also you shouldn’t get water on them or feed them after midnight, and if you know that cultural reference, you are awesome.) And guess what? There was a new-to-me Roebke at camp.
My last entry had a summary of the first night’s teaching. The first morning had us looking at John 3:16-21 which says “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”
And Hebrews 1:1-3 and 11:1-3 which state “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high” and “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.”
One of the points that stood out to me from Pastor Welzien’s preaching is the falsity of the phrase “blind faith” which people use to criticize Christianity. Our faith is not blind; it is built on God’s word, and our hearts and minds are illuminated by the Creator of the universe. Also, in the John passage, the idea that the light came into the world and it was judgment jumped out to me. The world already stands condemned, and when Christ came, He brought the way of salvation, His light to lead us from darkness, but it was also a seal of doom for those that hold on to the dark. Pastor Welzien took us to the original sin of Adam and Eve, where Satan plants seeds of doubt and then direct contradiction against God’s Word. That’s where this all started; not believing God means what He says. Then Adam and Eve tried to cover their own sin with fig leaves which was the start of humanity inventing religion and morality to try to bridge the gap and take ourselves up to God, which is impossible. When the fig leaves didn’t work, they then cowered in the darkness, trying to hide from God, which is also impossible.
Correlated to believing what God says was the first seminar of the week for my group, which was on creation and dinosaurs, taught by Dan Burns. He took us on a trip through scripture looking at the words for different animals in Genesis, and the descriptions of the Leviathan and Behemoth, which showed that at the time of the writings, there were big ol’ creatures that were well-known culturally. Also very interesting was the use of the English word “cattle” in some places which in Hebrew doesn’t actually mean “cattle;” it’s more like a word for a big beast that has no obvious correlation in English. Dan had a fossil collection from digs he’d been on, and some of the more memorable ones were dinosaur poop and dinosaur skin. The fossil record points to a single catastrophic event, and he mentioned that the dinosaur skin fossils really send evolutionary theorists into a tizzy because it can’t exist if the time periods that they hold to are real. (My paraphrase. Dan said it much more eloquently than that.) He also threw down the challenge that if Genesis 1-3 isn’t real, if Adam and Even aren’t real, and the Garden isn’t real, then what’s the point? It was really refreshing to hear such a strong reminder that you can’t pick and choose, randomly deciding certain things are poetry and not literal and certain things are to fit whatever earthly filter you are putting on the Word of God.
On a completely different tack: RYC is known for messy games. I was a little concerned about them, and wasn’t sure about playing, but jumped in anyway. The first messy game was like Steal the Bacon, except the bacon was a watermelon coated in Crisco, places on a tarp covered in water and slime. SO MUCH FLIPPIN FUN! After the game it was much easier to talk to people; nothing breaks down walls like sliding all over the ground scrabbling for lard-covered melon.
Coming up: Teachable hearts, loving Christ and the Church, and assorted fun times.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
RYC, part 1
Before RYC (my denomination’s church camp for middle and high school that meets just outside of central Florida) I had some trepidation because it was turning into a huge ordeal for us to go, or at least that’s what it felt like, and it was going to be the longest I’ve ever been away from my son. It crossed my mind a time or two to just not go. Boy am I glad I didn’t let that thought take root.
One of my favorite moments out of all the amazing things that went on happened the first night, and I knew this was where I was supposed to be that week. It was time for our first evening large group, with worship songs led by Danny Iverson and preaching by Pastor Bill Welzien. We finished singing a song and Danny started to lead us in “Be Thou My Vision”. The slide with the lyrics wasn’t up yet but it didn’t matter because everyone knew it by heart. For the first verse, everyone sang it without the words up and sang it loud. There were less than 100 people in the room but it sounded like several hundred voices lifted up in worship of our God and Savior. It was so moving, and I kept thinking as we sang how much Satan must hate it and of our Father listening, smiling, at His children. I will never forget that moment.
The preaching came next. The theme for camp was Breaching the Darkness and all the messages in our morning and evening large group sessions were on this idea, starting with Genesis 1 where God separates the light and the darkness. Pastor Welzien took us from there all through the scriptures on how that is God’s purpose throughout time, until the final judgment, and what it means to be in the light, and at many examples of light and dark imagery in the Bible. He pointed out that the scripture doesn’t give time to trying to give proofs that God exists; it’s assumed to be self-evident, and you either accept it or you don’t, and it remains the truth regardless.
In preparation for instruction from God’s Word, he took us to Psalm 32:8-9, which says “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;I will counsel you with my eye upon you. Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you.”
Proverbs 30:1-4 which says
“The words of Agur son of Jakeh. The oracle.
The man declares, I am weary, O God; I am weary, O God, and worn out. Surely I am too stupid to be a man. I have not the understanding of a man. I have not learned wisdom, nor have I knowledge of the Holy One. Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in his fists? Who has wrapped up the waters in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son's name? Surely you know!”
And lastly Psalm 33:4-9 “For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness. He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord. By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host. He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap; he puts the deeps in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him! For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.”
The challenge was to recognize that God is God, and He is orderly, careful, wise, personal, deliberate, and good. What He makes is good, what He says is good, what He does is good, and by rejecting His word we choose to remain stupid and in the dark.
After that we looked at Psalm 119:104-105 and 130 which say, “Through your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way. Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path… The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.” And then Proverbs 4:18 which says “But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day.” The contrast to that is the wicked, who are in deep darkness. The next morning we went to the New Testament, in John 3, and Christ entering the world to bring judgment, but I will write about that in another entry. Coming soon: fig leaves, dinosaur skin, and CCM. Oh, and Crisco. Stay tuned!
One of my favorite moments out of all the amazing things that went on happened the first night, and I knew this was where I was supposed to be that week. It was time for our first evening large group, with worship songs led by Danny Iverson and preaching by Pastor Bill Welzien. We finished singing a song and Danny started to lead us in “Be Thou My Vision”. The slide with the lyrics wasn’t up yet but it didn’t matter because everyone knew it by heart. For the first verse, everyone sang it without the words up and sang it loud. There were less than 100 people in the room but it sounded like several hundred voices lifted up in worship of our God and Savior. It was so moving, and I kept thinking as we sang how much Satan must hate it and of our Father listening, smiling, at His children. I will never forget that moment.
The preaching came next. The theme for camp was Breaching the Darkness and all the messages in our morning and evening large group sessions were on this idea, starting with Genesis 1 where God separates the light and the darkness. Pastor Welzien took us from there all through the scriptures on how that is God’s purpose throughout time, until the final judgment, and what it means to be in the light, and at many examples of light and dark imagery in the Bible. He pointed out that the scripture doesn’t give time to trying to give proofs that God exists; it’s assumed to be self-evident, and you either accept it or you don’t, and it remains the truth regardless.
In preparation for instruction from God’s Word, he took us to Psalm 32:8-9, which says “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;I will counsel you with my eye upon you. Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you.”
Proverbs 30:1-4 which says
“The words of Agur son of Jakeh. The oracle.
The man declares, I am weary, O God; I am weary, O God, and worn out. Surely I am too stupid to be a man. I have not the understanding of a man. I have not learned wisdom, nor have I knowledge of the Holy One. Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in his fists? Who has wrapped up the waters in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son's name? Surely you know!”
And lastly Psalm 33:4-9 “For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness. He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord. By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host. He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap; he puts the deeps in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him! For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.”
The challenge was to recognize that God is God, and He is orderly, careful, wise, personal, deliberate, and good. What He makes is good, what He says is good, what He does is good, and by rejecting His word we choose to remain stupid and in the dark.
After that we looked at Psalm 119:104-105 and 130 which say, “Through your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way. Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path… The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.” And then Proverbs 4:18 which says “But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day.” The contrast to that is the wicked, who are in deep darkness. The next morning we went to the New Testament, in John 3, and Christ entering the world to bring judgment, but I will write about that in another entry. Coming soon: fig leaves, dinosaur skin, and CCM. Oh, and Crisco. Stay tuned!
Monday, May 16, 2011
Life lessons.
I haven’t blogged in awhile. My last couple entries weren’t even my words. The last was a hymn that I was clinging to because of what I was going through at the time. So much has happened since then, and I keep thinking I need to write, but I haven’t had the time or the heart. There were also too many things I wanted to blog about.
There is one thing, though, that keeps coming back to my mind, and it’s mostly related to the hard times. Several years ago, after my Grandma’s funeral, a friend asked me if it gave me closure. I don’t remember what I said because that time is kind of a blur, but I’m sure I wasn’t honest. Closure means to bring to an end or close the door on, and I have come to learn that’s impossible after loss. I hated the word then, and I hate it now, and even in my pain I think I was polite enough not to tell my friend that. (I remember who it was but they probably aren’t reading this. So if by some crazy chance that person is reading this and remembers saying that to me… that’s awkward. Sorry.)
When someone dies, a grandparent, parent, your child, a friend… or someone wanders out of your life, or suddenly and painfully leaves your life, you don’t get to close the door on it, because for the rest of your own life that person isn’t there. I guess it gets easier with time, sort of but not really, but it becomes an indelible mark on your heart that that person is missing. As you go on with the milestones of life, someone isn’t there that ought to be, and it’s unpredictable when that sharp sense of emptiness is going to smack you in the face.
A few months ago something happened that felt like God took my life, turned it upside down, and gave it a good shake. I haven’t landed yet. And it’s never going to not have happened. It’s never going to not affect me. Thank God He blessed me with amazing friends who held me up with prayer, scripture, and love. I think part of the sense of never having closure is that we’re never done learning about God’s character. Everything happens for His glory; I truly believe that, even if I don’t always understand it.
The other day I was talking to a mom at school whom I’ve known for several years now, and we were semi-joking about the lessons in life we get from God, when He reminds us that He’s in control and we’re not, and how sometimes it’s like “I GOT IT! I’M NOT IN CONTROL! CAN WE END THE LESSON NOW?” But it’s about more than that.
When those painful moments come, I remember that God is my refuge and my strength; an ever present help in trouble; the LORD of Hosts is with me. The God of Jacob is my fortress. I still have my Job moments though, of wondering why these things happen when I didn’t do anything wrong. While God has spared me the fury of His answer to Job, He does remind me that the world is a fallen, wicked place, and terrible things happen. But He is sovereign. He is good. He is love. He is mercy. He is my savior, every day. And I don’t want to close the door on that.
There is one thing, though, that keeps coming back to my mind, and it’s mostly related to the hard times. Several years ago, after my Grandma’s funeral, a friend asked me if it gave me closure. I don’t remember what I said because that time is kind of a blur, but I’m sure I wasn’t honest. Closure means to bring to an end or close the door on, and I have come to learn that’s impossible after loss. I hated the word then, and I hate it now, and even in my pain I think I was polite enough not to tell my friend that. (I remember who it was but they probably aren’t reading this. So if by some crazy chance that person is reading this and remembers saying that to me… that’s awkward. Sorry.)
When someone dies, a grandparent, parent, your child, a friend… or someone wanders out of your life, or suddenly and painfully leaves your life, you don’t get to close the door on it, because for the rest of your own life that person isn’t there. I guess it gets easier with time, sort of but not really, but it becomes an indelible mark on your heart that that person is missing. As you go on with the milestones of life, someone isn’t there that ought to be, and it’s unpredictable when that sharp sense of emptiness is going to smack you in the face.
A few months ago something happened that felt like God took my life, turned it upside down, and gave it a good shake. I haven’t landed yet. And it’s never going to not have happened. It’s never going to not affect me. Thank God He blessed me with amazing friends who held me up with prayer, scripture, and love. I think part of the sense of never having closure is that we’re never done learning about God’s character. Everything happens for His glory; I truly believe that, even if I don’t always understand it.
The other day I was talking to a mom at school whom I’ve known for several years now, and we were semi-joking about the lessons in life we get from God, when He reminds us that He’s in control and we’re not, and how sometimes it’s like “I GOT IT! I’M NOT IN CONTROL! CAN WE END THE LESSON NOW?” But it’s about more than that.
When those painful moments come, I remember that God is my refuge and my strength; an ever present help in trouble; the LORD of Hosts is with me. The God of Jacob is my fortress. I still have my Job moments though, of wondering why these things happen when I didn’t do anything wrong. While God has spared me the fury of His answer to Job, He does remind me that the world is a fallen, wicked place, and terrible things happen. But He is sovereign. He is good. He is love. He is mercy. He is my savior, every day. And I don’t want to close the door on that.
Friday, February 18, 2011
hymn for the moment
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
2. Whate’er my God ordains is right,
He never will deceive me
He leads me by the proper path,
I know He will not leave me
I take, content,
What He hath sent
His hand can turn my griefs away
And patiently I wait His day
3. Whate’er my God ordains is right,
Though now this cup in drinking
May bitter seem to my faint heart,
I take it all unshrinking
My God is true,
Each morn anew
Sweet comfort yet shall fill my heart
And pain and sorrow shall depart
4. Whate’er my God ordains is right,
Here shall my stand be taken
Though sorrow, need, or death be mine,
Yet I am not forsaken
My Father’s care
Is round me there
He holds me that I shall not fall
And so to Him I leave it all
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
2. Whate’er my God ordains is right,
He never will deceive me
He leads me by the proper path,
I know He will not leave me
I take, content,
What He hath sent
His hand can turn my griefs away
And patiently I wait His day
3. Whate’er my God ordains is right,
Though now this cup in drinking
May bitter seem to my faint heart,
I take it all unshrinking
My God is true,
Each morn anew
Sweet comfort yet shall fill my heart
And pain and sorrow shall depart
4. Whate’er my God ordains is right,
Here shall my stand be taken
Though sorrow, need, or death be mine,
Yet I am not forsaken
My Father’s care
Is round me there
He holds me that I shall not fall
And so to Him I leave it all
Monday, February 14, 2011
True love.
1 Corinthians 13
1 If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
1 John 4
1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.
4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit[a] of truth and the spirit of falsehood.
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
13 This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. 16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 17 This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
19 We love because he first loved us. 20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. 21 And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.
1 If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
1 John 4
1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.
4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit[a] of truth and the spirit of falsehood.
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
13 This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. 16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 17 This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
19 We love because he first loved us. 20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. 21 And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
food for thought
There are days I don’t feel like cooking dinner. I know this might shock some of you ;) When it’s one of those days, I like to have meals in the freezer (and I’m talking meals I didn’t make) since take-out isn’t an option most of the time. Freezer brands tend to be hit and miss on flavor and value, so if you’re like me and want to have emergency frozen dinners on hand, here’s a rundown on some of my favorite, plus a brand I will never ever buy again.
Wanchai Ferry frozen (not the instant box stuff): Every type but the sweet and sour chicken has been really good, and the only reason I don’t like the sweet and sour chicken is because it has pineapple chunks, and the sauce has pineapple flavor. Here is how much I don’t like pineapple: one time at the grocery store I tried a free sample of yogurt smoothie. I picked up the cup, threw it back like a shot, and had to exercise incredible self-control not to spew it all over the free sample lady because all I could taste was pineapple. So the point of that story is, if you like pineapple, the sweet and sour chicken will be just fine. The veggies are slightly soggy but edible. If it’s on sale or I have stackable coupons I’ll buy it, but I wouldn’t buy it full price for any reason. I also make extra rice to stretch the bag of food out further. The pouch that comes with the bag is pretty skimpy (and frozen instant rice is gross anyway.)
Birdseye Steamfresh Vegetables and/or Pasta with sauce: I am really skeptical of frozen veggies. I like my vegetables to be barely cooked so they still have all the crunch unless it’s in soup. I got some Steamfresh bags for free with coupons, otherwise I never would have bought them. They were surprisingly good! The veggies were actually firm, and they weren’t drowning in the sauce. My one complaint is the bag drips because of the steam ventilation system, and my microwave is in a different room from my kitchen, so I left a trail across my kitchen floor the first time I used this product. Next time I will hopefully remember to put the bag in a bowl or on a plate before microwaving.
PF Chang’s: In a word: DELICIOUS! Coupons are rare, but it’s cheaper and easier than takeout, if you’re in the mood for Chinese. The first time I made a bag, I also made extra rice because of past experience with the Wanchai Ferry. It was totally unnecessary. I’d look for sales and stock up on these, but it’s the best flavor and most amount of food of any frozen dinner I’ve tried. If I was under budget on other items I’d buy this full price (and I NEVER pay full price.)
Macaroni Grill: Very good flavor and quality. I would stock up on these if they were ever on BO/GO.
And last, and absolutely least: Contessa Shrimp dinners. I bought two on a BO/GO and was extremely disappointed. I got the Dragon Tail shrimp and the Balsamic Glazed shrimp. The bag claims to serve 2. I microwaved the bag, opened it up, and there were 7, count them 7, shrimp. And they were little ones. If they’d been giant tiger shrimp maybe it would have been ok, but these were smaller than cocktail shrimp. A bag is $6 or $7, I can’t recall exactly, but I only bought it because it was BO/GO. I can buy a pound of shrimp for $5 at my seafood counter. My verdict: TOTAL RIP OFF. And how are 2 people supposed to split 7 shrimp anyway? Stupid.
Wanchai Ferry frozen (not the instant box stuff): Every type but the sweet and sour chicken has been really good, and the only reason I don’t like the sweet and sour chicken is because it has pineapple chunks, and the sauce has pineapple flavor. Here is how much I don’t like pineapple: one time at the grocery store I tried a free sample of yogurt smoothie. I picked up the cup, threw it back like a shot, and had to exercise incredible self-control not to spew it all over the free sample lady because all I could taste was pineapple. So the point of that story is, if you like pineapple, the sweet and sour chicken will be just fine. The veggies are slightly soggy but edible. If it’s on sale or I have stackable coupons I’ll buy it, but I wouldn’t buy it full price for any reason. I also make extra rice to stretch the bag of food out further. The pouch that comes with the bag is pretty skimpy (and frozen instant rice is gross anyway.)
Birdseye Steamfresh Vegetables and/or Pasta with sauce: I am really skeptical of frozen veggies. I like my vegetables to be barely cooked so they still have all the crunch unless it’s in soup. I got some Steamfresh bags for free with coupons, otherwise I never would have bought them. They were surprisingly good! The veggies were actually firm, and they weren’t drowning in the sauce. My one complaint is the bag drips because of the steam ventilation system, and my microwave is in a different room from my kitchen, so I left a trail across my kitchen floor the first time I used this product. Next time I will hopefully remember to put the bag in a bowl or on a plate before microwaving.
PF Chang’s: In a word: DELICIOUS! Coupons are rare, but it’s cheaper and easier than takeout, if you’re in the mood for Chinese. The first time I made a bag, I also made extra rice because of past experience with the Wanchai Ferry. It was totally unnecessary. I’d look for sales and stock up on these, but it’s the best flavor and most amount of food of any frozen dinner I’ve tried. If I was under budget on other items I’d buy this full price (and I NEVER pay full price.)
Macaroni Grill: Very good flavor and quality. I would stock up on these if they were ever on BO/GO.
And last, and absolutely least: Contessa Shrimp dinners. I bought two on a BO/GO and was extremely disappointed. I got the Dragon Tail shrimp and the Balsamic Glazed shrimp. The bag claims to serve 2. I microwaved the bag, opened it up, and there were 7, count them 7, shrimp. And they were little ones. If they’d been giant tiger shrimp maybe it would have been ok, but these were smaller than cocktail shrimp. A bag is $6 or $7, I can’t recall exactly, but I only bought it because it was BO/GO. I can buy a pound of shrimp for $5 at my seafood counter. My verdict: TOTAL RIP OFF. And how are 2 people supposed to split 7 shrimp anyway? Stupid.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Coupons!
Before I go into the tips and strategies that work for me, I want to point out that hip2save.com, which first got me into couponing, and iheartpublix.com, which my local Publix manager told me about, are fantastic places to check for deals and links to specific coupons. This entry is just what works for me.
I do pretty much all my grocery shopping at Publix, except for one trip a month to Sam’s and every couple months I might wander into Whole Foods, and I do pretty much all my toiletry/household shopping at Target, with the occasional side trip to Ulta. It keeps it simple. I’m not going to drive 5 different places on one of my 2 days off during the week, toddler in tow, to save a couple bucks. I occasionally hear people say that Publix is too expensive but I have never found that to be true. I’ve also heard people say it’s not worth the time to coupon. To be completely honest, it does take time and effort to plan around deals but it’s worth it. Case in point: I bought $112 worth of groceries today for $57. I will sacrifice some time to get half my groceries for free, thanks.
My first piece of advice would be to find out your store’s coupon policy. Each Publix has the right to establish their own policy. Mine accepts Target, Albertson’s, Winn Dixie, Walgreen’s, CVS, and I think one other store’s coupons, but they don’t accept Whole Foods as a competitor. They allow a maximum of one Publix coupon, a competitor coupon, and a manufacturer coupon per one item. (I used to get super cheap formula this way, among other things.) They also allow one coupon for each item on a buy one get one free, for example today I bought Fresh Express bagged salad BOGO, and I had two 50 cents off one bag coupons, so I paid $3 for $8 worth of bagged salad. And with the acceptance of competitor coupons, I used an Albertson’s coupon for buy one, get 2 free racks of ribs, which all went into the freezer.
Come up with a filing system that works for you. The first website I mentioned above uses a system of sticking coupons in baseball card style sleeves so you can see each one and taking it with you when you shop. That would drive me crazy. I have an accordion file labeled according to categories, and a couple times a month I clip and organize my coupons, pulling out expired ones, and filing the new ones, and I only take the coupons I plan on using to the store, paper clipped to my list.
Utilize the internet! My mom saves the coupon circulars from the Sunday paper and after she clips her coupons, passes them on to me because I don’t get the paper, and in the meantime I can print them off various sites. The best site out there, in my opinion, is coupons.com. Also, I do Swagbucks, and they recently added a coupon option that is powered by coupons.com, so it’s a win-win. Since my Publix accepts Target coupons, I print coupons off their website (note: sometimes they are manufacturer’s coupons not store coupons, and the only way to find out is to print it.) Every so often, Target will have $1 off produce coupons, which I snatch up. Usually they only print twice per computer, but we have 2 computers, so I maximize savings that way. I currently have several pasta coupons, just waiting for a BO/GO so it’ll all be free. Many companies offer coupons on their facebook sites or for signing up for email newsletters. Redplum.com is also good, as is mambosprouts.com which has natural food product coupons. The Whole Foods website has coupons to print, and I find that it is great for things like Thai Kitchen products, of which Whole Foods has a better variety than Publix.
I clip any coupon I think I might want to use. When the Publix ad comes out, I read through it, write down what’s on sale or bo/go that I want to get, and then go through my coupons to match what I can. If I don’t have a match on a bo/go I’ll go online and see if I can find any coupons to go with the sales. I do the same when I need makeup, face cream, shampoo, etc. before going to Target. Again, I only take the coupons I plan on using, to avoid the trap of buying something just because I have a coupon. If it’s not on my list, I don’t buy it. If it’s not on sale (and it’s not a necessity) I don’t buy it. I don’t buy snack food like crackers unless they’re on a BO/GO, (last time I bought Wheat Thins on BO/GO and I had a Target $1 off purchase of 2 to stack with a manufacturer of the same, so I paid a dollar for 2 boxes) or recently I stocked up on Goldfish for Edward because they were 10 for $10 at Publix. There are occasions I will buy something if it’s not on sale if I have a coupon, but only for a select few items. I love Muir Glen tinned tomatoes, and right now I have some coupons for them. I’m hoping there will be a sale, but if not I’ll go ahead and buy them before the coupons expire because they are so much better than any other brand I’ve tried. (Great for soup, sauces, etc.)
You can’t be brand-loyal on most things, or if you are, be willing to wait til it goes on sale. Fortunately none of us are picky. Everyone eats what I fix, end of story, and we don’t have food allergies, so I don’t have those kinds of considerations to make.
Many people have asked me about my couponing, so I hope this was helpful. What are your best money-saving tips? Do you have more questions about what I do to save money?
I do pretty much all my grocery shopping at Publix, except for one trip a month to Sam’s and every couple months I might wander into Whole Foods, and I do pretty much all my toiletry/household shopping at Target, with the occasional side trip to Ulta. It keeps it simple. I’m not going to drive 5 different places on one of my 2 days off during the week, toddler in tow, to save a couple bucks. I occasionally hear people say that Publix is too expensive but I have never found that to be true. I’ve also heard people say it’s not worth the time to coupon. To be completely honest, it does take time and effort to plan around deals but it’s worth it. Case in point: I bought $112 worth of groceries today for $57. I will sacrifice some time to get half my groceries for free, thanks.
My first piece of advice would be to find out your store’s coupon policy. Each Publix has the right to establish their own policy. Mine accepts Target, Albertson’s, Winn Dixie, Walgreen’s, CVS, and I think one other store’s coupons, but they don’t accept Whole Foods as a competitor. They allow a maximum of one Publix coupon, a competitor coupon, and a manufacturer coupon per one item. (I used to get super cheap formula this way, among other things.) They also allow one coupon for each item on a buy one get one free, for example today I bought Fresh Express bagged salad BOGO, and I had two 50 cents off one bag coupons, so I paid $3 for $8 worth of bagged salad. And with the acceptance of competitor coupons, I used an Albertson’s coupon for buy one, get 2 free racks of ribs, which all went into the freezer.
Come up with a filing system that works for you. The first website I mentioned above uses a system of sticking coupons in baseball card style sleeves so you can see each one and taking it with you when you shop. That would drive me crazy. I have an accordion file labeled according to categories, and a couple times a month I clip and organize my coupons, pulling out expired ones, and filing the new ones, and I only take the coupons I plan on using to the store, paper clipped to my list.
Utilize the internet! My mom saves the coupon circulars from the Sunday paper and after she clips her coupons, passes them on to me because I don’t get the paper, and in the meantime I can print them off various sites. The best site out there, in my opinion, is coupons.com. Also, I do Swagbucks, and they recently added a coupon option that is powered by coupons.com, so it’s a win-win. Since my Publix accepts Target coupons, I print coupons off their website (note: sometimes they are manufacturer’s coupons not store coupons, and the only way to find out is to print it.) Every so often, Target will have $1 off produce coupons, which I snatch up. Usually they only print twice per computer, but we have 2 computers, so I maximize savings that way. I currently have several pasta coupons, just waiting for a BO/GO so it’ll all be free. Many companies offer coupons on their facebook sites or for signing up for email newsletters. Redplum.com is also good, as is mambosprouts.com which has natural food product coupons. The Whole Foods website has coupons to print, and I find that it is great for things like Thai Kitchen products, of which Whole Foods has a better variety than Publix.
I clip any coupon I think I might want to use. When the Publix ad comes out, I read through it, write down what’s on sale or bo/go that I want to get, and then go through my coupons to match what I can. If I don’t have a match on a bo/go I’ll go online and see if I can find any coupons to go with the sales. I do the same when I need makeup, face cream, shampoo, etc. before going to Target. Again, I only take the coupons I plan on using, to avoid the trap of buying something just because I have a coupon. If it’s not on my list, I don’t buy it. If it’s not on sale (and it’s not a necessity) I don’t buy it. I don’t buy snack food like crackers unless they’re on a BO/GO, (last time I bought Wheat Thins on BO/GO and I had a Target $1 off purchase of 2 to stack with a manufacturer of the same, so I paid a dollar for 2 boxes) or recently I stocked up on Goldfish for Edward because they were 10 for $10 at Publix. There are occasions I will buy something if it’s not on sale if I have a coupon, but only for a select few items. I love Muir Glen tinned tomatoes, and right now I have some coupons for them. I’m hoping there will be a sale, but if not I’ll go ahead and buy them before the coupons expire because they are so much better than any other brand I’ve tried. (Great for soup, sauces, etc.)
You can’t be brand-loyal on most things, or if you are, be willing to wait til it goes on sale. Fortunately none of us are picky. Everyone eats what I fix, end of story, and we don’t have food allergies, so I don’t have those kinds of considerations to make.
Many people have asked me about my couponing, so I hope this was helpful. What are your best money-saving tips? Do you have more questions about what I do to save money?
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
A penny saved is a penny earned, or, how Dave Ramsey changed my life.
When William and I had been married for four months, we lost our jobs from the school where we’d been teaching at the time. The person we worked for promised us severance pay and then didn’t give it to us. (That is the really short version of the unethical ineptitude of our previous boss.) We thought about suing after this person refused our repeated requests for Christian mediation, but eventually decided we just needed to move on with our lives. So here we were, newlyweds, with me just finishing up seminary and William in the middle of it, with no major income. One of the families from the school hired me to tutor/babysit, and I was babysitting for others, so I had some money coming in, and William tried his best to find work, but there wasn’t much to be had. This was in February of 2006. We racked up debt, went through our savings, racked up debt, I cashed in my very small investment funds so we could pay rent in August, because we were literally down to our last $100, and oh, did I mention we racked up debt?
When we were quite literally broke, that was William’s first week at ICS, and I had a job offer out of nowhere to work in TFA’s home school program. (I’m grateful I had a job. I’ll leave it at that.) In October, I was also hired at ICS, so I was working 2 part time jobs, William was working 1 part time job, and we were making ends meet. Because of the debt built up from 7 months of very little income, with needing to pay rent and eat, my view toward using credit cards was along the lines of “we’re in it so deep another $20 isn’t going to matter.” At this point in life, I knew how to cook but not really how to shop. I’d plan my meals and buy ingredients, and be happy if what I needed happened to be on sale.
Fast forward to October of 2008. Happy 3rd anniversary to us, we found out we were expecting, shortly after having a discussion about how we were going to start trying in the fall of ’09. William and I were both working full time, but we were without health insurance, so the out of pocket doctor bills were manageable, but there was no extra, and we still had looming debt. And I had a Target habit. And William had a Woot.com habit.
Jump to December 2009. My very wise mom gave us Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover book for Christmas. (Hint, hint, much, mom? Lol.) I sat and read it start to finish, because I have issues and I hate reading books in pieces, and thought it made a lot of sense. William read it too, but he had been trying to get me to listen to Ramsey’s radio program and I wouldn’t, because I HATE TALK RADIO. Ramsey’s principles are simple. Stop using credit cards. Now. If you have lots of money in savings, and lots of debt, that money in your savings isn’t yours. That probably struck the biggest chord with me because we had by this point, with job stability and stable income, built a good savings account. If you are familiar with his plan, you know what comes next. Make a budget based on what you know your income will be and you know what your expenses are. Then, baby step one: Save $1000 fast for your emergency fund. We had above that, but we also had a lot of debt. Not unmanageable, because we always paid the minimum, and sometimes well above, on all our payments, plus we had cable, were able to eat out, etc. We weren’t living hand to mouth, but we weren’t really getting anywhere on the debt. So, next is baby step two: Debt Snowball. Pay off your smallest debt first. Take all debts down to the minimum, except for the smallest, and get rid of it. Then the next smallest. Again, made total sense. But here is where the rubber met the road: we had to take our savings down to $1000 and keep it there, and throw everything else at debt. William and I talked about, prayed about it, and then I took a bold step. I looked up the total balance for 2 credit card accounts I had, which totaled a few hundred dollars, I transferred the exact amount from savings to checking, paid off those cards, canceled them, cut them into pieces, and threw them in the trash. I took all my other credit cards out of my wallet and hid them. This was at the beginning of 2010. I thought I was going to puke, but at the same time it was hugely liberating.
With our new set budget, no using credit cards, and our debt snowball, which by now is a debt BLIZZARD, our life is so different. I grocery shop knowing I have a set amount of money for the week, I clothes shop knowing I have a set amount for the month, etc., and when the money’s gone it’s gone. If something extra comes up, it comes out of another category, not on the credit card. But I had a new challenge of getting as much bang for my buck as I could. This is another topic for another day, but I am a coupon queen now and I love it. I save 40 to 60% off my grocery bill on a regular basis by looking at what’s on sale, matching coupons to the sales, and planning my menu off that, rather than the other way around as I had previously done. It sounds so simple now, and we eat like kings for very little money.
Something I had to adjust to this whole past year was having the emergency fund so you could pay cash for emergencies. Dave Ramsey promises in his book that if you commit to this plan, something crazy WILL HAPPEN to test your mettle, and uses the example of the alternator in your car going out. Well in early spring, my alternator went out. And for what may have been the first time ever, I paid cash for the repairs instead of charging them. Then William had to have an emergency appendectomy and was hospitalized for a weekend. Most of that was covered through state programs, but that was another test. About halfway through the year, William’s car died completely, mine had more trouble, we were blessed with the money to buy William another car, which recently also died, I had to replace a tire on mine, and on and on. There were several times I cried over these events, but we were able to pay for these things with cash, not put it on credit. A few months ago I paid off my last credit card, forever. We have one last debt to pay off. This was the progress we made in one year, from almost 10 different creditors to one. The end is in sight, and then the money we make will truly be ours. Because of all the unexpected car trouble we didn't have as much as we would have liked to have spent for Christmas for people, but oh well. There's next year.
This sounds corny but it’s true, it’s like chains have fallen off of us. I used to check our bank account every day and stress about money. Now I check it once a month or so, because I know exactly what we make and exactly where every last dollar is going. If something comes up, it’s ok. We just go back to minimum payment until our emergency fund is back up to where it needs to be.
I have a much easier time getting rid of things now too. We just sold a few hundred books and a couple bookshelves, I’m dropping off some clothes and shoes and other random stuff for a worthy cause this weekend, and we are still able to go out with friends and enjoy life, without having debt lording it over us.
I keep hearing of Dave Ramsey FPU classes coming up. If you can, TAKE IT. It’ll change your life.
When we were quite literally broke, that was William’s first week at ICS, and I had a job offer out of nowhere to work in TFA’s home school program. (I’m grateful I had a job. I’ll leave it at that.) In October, I was also hired at ICS, so I was working 2 part time jobs, William was working 1 part time job, and we were making ends meet. Because of the debt built up from 7 months of very little income, with needing to pay rent and eat, my view toward using credit cards was along the lines of “we’re in it so deep another $20 isn’t going to matter.” At this point in life, I knew how to cook but not really how to shop. I’d plan my meals and buy ingredients, and be happy if what I needed happened to be on sale.
Fast forward to October of 2008. Happy 3rd anniversary to us, we found out we were expecting, shortly after having a discussion about how we were going to start trying in the fall of ’09. William and I were both working full time, but we were without health insurance, so the out of pocket doctor bills were manageable, but there was no extra, and we still had looming debt. And I had a Target habit. And William had a Woot.com habit.
Jump to December 2009. My very wise mom gave us Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover book for Christmas. (Hint, hint, much, mom? Lol.) I sat and read it start to finish, because I have issues and I hate reading books in pieces, and thought it made a lot of sense. William read it too, but he had been trying to get me to listen to Ramsey’s radio program and I wouldn’t, because I HATE TALK RADIO. Ramsey’s principles are simple. Stop using credit cards. Now. If you have lots of money in savings, and lots of debt, that money in your savings isn’t yours. That probably struck the biggest chord with me because we had by this point, with job stability and stable income, built a good savings account. If you are familiar with his plan, you know what comes next. Make a budget based on what you know your income will be and you know what your expenses are. Then, baby step one: Save $1000 fast for your emergency fund. We had above that, but we also had a lot of debt. Not unmanageable, because we always paid the minimum, and sometimes well above, on all our payments, plus we had cable, were able to eat out, etc. We weren’t living hand to mouth, but we weren’t really getting anywhere on the debt. So, next is baby step two: Debt Snowball. Pay off your smallest debt first. Take all debts down to the minimum, except for the smallest, and get rid of it. Then the next smallest. Again, made total sense. But here is where the rubber met the road: we had to take our savings down to $1000 and keep it there, and throw everything else at debt. William and I talked about, prayed about it, and then I took a bold step. I looked up the total balance for 2 credit card accounts I had, which totaled a few hundred dollars, I transferred the exact amount from savings to checking, paid off those cards, canceled them, cut them into pieces, and threw them in the trash. I took all my other credit cards out of my wallet and hid them. This was at the beginning of 2010. I thought I was going to puke, but at the same time it was hugely liberating.
With our new set budget, no using credit cards, and our debt snowball, which by now is a debt BLIZZARD, our life is so different. I grocery shop knowing I have a set amount of money for the week, I clothes shop knowing I have a set amount for the month, etc., and when the money’s gone it’s gone. If something extra comes up, it comes out of another category, not on the credit card. But I had a new challenge of getting as much bang for my buck as I could. This is another topic for another day, but I am a coupon queen now and I love it. I save 40 to 60% off my grocery bill on a regular basis by looking at what’s on sale, matching coupons to the sales, and planning my menu off that, rather than the other way around as I had previously done. It sounds so simple now, and we eat like kings for very little money.
Something I had to adjust to this whole past year was having the emergency fund so you could pay cash for emergencies. Dave Ramsey promises in his book that if you commit to this plan, something crazy WILL HAPPEN to test your mettle, and uses the example of the alternator in your car going out. Well in early spring, my alternator went out. And for what may have been the first time ever, I paid cash for the repairs instead of charging them. Then William had to have an emergency appendectomy and was hospitalized for a weekend. Most of that was covered through state programs, but that was another test. About halfway through the year, William’s car died completely, mine had more trouble, we were blessed with the money to buy William another car, which recently also died, I had to replace a tire on mine, and on and on. There were several times I cried over these events, but we were able to pay for these things with cash, not put it on credit. A few months ago I paid off my last credit card, forever. We have one last debt to pay off. This was the progress we made in one year, from almost 10 different creditors to one. The end is in sight, and then the money we make will truly be ours. Because of all the unexpected car trouble we didn't have as much as we would have liked to have spent for Christmas for people, but oh well. There's next year.
This sounds corny but it’s true, it’s like chains have fallen off of us. I used to check our bank account every day and stress about money. Now I check it once a month or so, because I know exactly what we make and exactly where every last dollar is going. If something comes up, it’s ok. We just go back to minimum payment until our emergency fund is back up to where it needs to be.
I have a much easier time getting rid of things now too. We just sold a few hundred books and a couple bookshelves, I’m dropping off some clothes and shoes and other random stuff for a worthy cause this weekend, and we are still able to go out with friends and enjoy life, without having debt lording it over us.
I keep hearing of Dave Ramsey FPU classes coming up. If you can, TAKE IT. It’ll change your life.
Friday, January 7, 2011
Does anyone else have this problem?
When I go to get rid of stuff, clothes in particular, it always turns into a battle between my flesh wanting to hold on to possessions and my spirit knowing there's no reason to keep that 6 year old sweater vest I haven't worn in 5... Please tell me I'm not the only one. I'm never more selfish than when I'm trying to weed out my belongings.
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