A Chronological Bible Reading-20 Noah's Vineyard and Drunkenness

Genesis 9:20-21

 Genesis 9:22-27 Curse of Ham

Being that I am a parent I have a different perspective on this section of verses. The actions of a parent can effect their children for generations. This is a very good example of that. Noah's action of getting drunk and then getting naked had a long effect on his son Ham. We still see the results today.

I need to be aware of what I am doing because my children need me to make right choices. They are watching me.

What I want to know is where was Noah's wife? Why didn't she take care of her husband?

I have heard Ham get the blame for this curse but I think that Noah and his wife need to take some of the responsibility  for their actions. If Noah had not been drunk, Ham may not have been cursed.

Just a thought.




Would you like to start at the beginning of this discussion? Click here!

Reese, Edward. The Reese Chronological Bible. Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 1980. Print

A Chronological Bible Reading 9 Descendants Part 1

Genealogy of Righteousness
I Chronicles 1:1; Genesis 4:25; 5:3, Birth of Seth

Genesis 4:26; 5:6, Once Enos was born people turned toward God.

Genesis 5:9, Birth of Cainan

I Chronicles 1:2; Genesis 5:12, Birth of Mahalaleel

Genesis 5:15, Birth of Jared

Genesis 5:18 Birth of Enoch

Why weren't people looking toward God? What was particular about Enos that people started to turn toward God after he was born?

Were Adam and Eve still fussing about being kicked out of the Garden? Did they pass that discontentment down to their children?

The Bible doesn't say. We may never know until we get to heaven.

A Chronological Bible Reading 10 Descendants Part 2


Would you like to start at the beginning of this discussion? Click here!

Reese, Edward. The Reese Chronological Bible. Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 1980. Print.

A Letter to Mrs. Duggard

Dear Mrs. Duggar,

First of all, I can't imagine how you must be coping with everything about your family being broadcasted for everyone to see and feel that they have to give their opinion on how they would have done it. It is so much easier when things are going good and we can share Jesus with the good we are doing. When things happen that shame Jesus we may feel like we are useless to His cause and we can never be in the fold again. Those feelings are hard to get past. But they will pass.

I have prayed that my children would get caught when they are doing things wrong. I want them to feel like they cannot get away with anything. I am glad that your son got caught and had to admit that he was doing wrong. If allowed to keep going unnoticed it really could have been so much worse. He really was a hypocrite and living a lie. God said enough. God still has a plan for your son and his family if he is willing to make some drastic changing. It will take some time, healing and mending of trust but God can do it.

To watch our children go through hardship is very difficult. Watching them go through hardship when it is self inflicted has got to be torturous. Knowing that it was their choice to do wrong. That this did not have to happen. Feelings of helplessness are hard to get away from.

I think some day your family may recover from this but I think it may be in quiet undocumented ways. Ways that you can reach out to other mothers who have children that greatly disappoint. How do the parents go on? There is a mourning process, how long does that last? The trust that is lost, how do you give the child chances to rebuild? Is there more that needs to be dealt with before it is exposed to the world? Such difficult questions without clear answers.

Mrs. Duggar, please stay on your knees and stay in your Bible. The Bible will heal, cleanse and give wisdom. We have to remember that no matter how devastating our circumstances are that God is still on the throne. Since your son is a Christian than he is in God's hands. So he is in good hands.

I have to say that some would blame the wife for not taking care of her man that made him turn to the internet and other women to be satisfied but I completely disagree. Your daughter in law is most likely a very good woman who would have done anything for a loving and caring husband.  Your son is the one who is responsible for this mess not her. I just wanted to make my stance clear on that.

Finally, we are all just one choice away from being caught doing wrong. Most of us will never have to experience our deeds good or bad being played out on the news. I hope this makes your stand for God stronger and not weaker. I hope you discover who your true friends are through this trial. I hope you get to know God on a deeper level as you seek him in prayer. Stay strong for God. Your other children need you.



Respectfully,

Terri-Ann

The Weakest Link

"Parents of gay or transgendered children are the weakest link in the church."

Well, that is what Kathy Baldock author of "Walking the Bridgeless Canyon" said to me during her discussion at Truckee Meadows Community College in the Spring of 2015. She was invited to speak for about an hour on her book. She wants to help build a bridge between the church and the LGBT community. She gave some history about how the church has treated the LGBT community over the last several hundred years and how it has changed so much in the last couple of decades. The church is still very far behind the world's view.

I thought at first that maybe this could happen but it really can't. It is not that the church is against the LGBT community but it is one group that says die to the flesh and live for God and the other says be true to yourself and you should be able to express how you truly feel. One group says, "less of me and more of Jesus" and the other group says. "I have the right to do what ever I want and you have to accept that."

It is a bridgeless canyon for a reason. There is not meant to be a bridge built by man from one side  to the another. The bridge is Jesus and what he has done on the cross. You can see and then use that bridge when you accept Jesus Christ as your personal Saviour.

What Ms. Baldock said at the end of discussion when I pressed her about the different bibles she was using was that it wasn't about the bible. Well if it is not about the bible then how can a profitable discussion occur about God's love and mercy to mankind. That is a Christian's guide and source of wisdom. It is not antiquated, it is the living book that God uses to speak to us.

She also said that the weakest link in the church is the parent of a gay child. That statement caught my attention. It took me a while to process that. So I am weak. Hmm...really. It made me instantly think of the verses about being weak.

"To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak:

I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some."

I Corn. 9:22 KJV

Is God putting me in this position for a bigger reason? Can I be a help to other Christian parents that have a gay or transgender child? How can I be blessing? I do not have the answer to those questions yet. I know through prayer and searching the scriptures the answers will come.

"Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities,

in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong."

II Corn. 12:10 KJV

 

 

Is it just me or do you find that when someone says something negative about you, you make a choice of determined effort not to be that? Well, I knew for sure that I was not going to be weak and I for sure was not going to be the weakest link when it came to supporting God's Word in the church house.

 

I have a lot to process about these verses. I will leave you with verses that have been such an encouragement to me since I left that meeting.

 

 

2 Corinthians 12:9 KJV

"And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me."

 

I Corinthians 1:25 KJV

 

"Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men."

Consequenses

I  chose to make a very difficult decision in my home a couple of weeks ago. It seemed  that it hurt me more than it did the child. It actually broke my heart. I felt like I was in mourning about it for several days. But I know that I did the right thing. I hate making the hard choices. I hate calling out one of my kids. I hate being the enforcer. I want to be the good guy too however that is not what I am called to do. I want children that know that there are consequences. That there is a price to pay for your actions. I want my children to learn that while they are here at home where it is safe instead of when they are older and out in the world where there is no safety net.

I pray for wisdom and God's word says it will be given liberally to me however at times I think that if this is my with wisdom than I can't believe how completely inadequate I would be with out it. I need God all the time. Every day and every moment.

I have doubts. Isn't that part of being a good parent? Making sure you are going in the right direction. Seeking wisdom and counsel so that you stay on track. It is not easy being a parent. No one can parent my children better than me. I am the best parent for them. Even when it is hard. Especially when it is hard.

Pride Festival Experience

Today I agreed to take my son to the Pride Festival at Wingfield Park in downtown Reno. I had some trepidations about it but I did not want him to go alone. When ever I talk to people about going to events like this they seem to wonder why I am nervous. They act like it is no big deal. It doesn't matter if I am talking to Christians or not. However, I still have concerns. Maybe rightfully so.

As we arrived parking wasn't that bad and a nice bonus, it was free. As we got closer to the event we saw quite a few people wearing rainbow attire and or flags and such. We saw the first entrance was blocked by a gate with a sign that read exit. There was a person there opening the gate and letting people out.

When we got to the entrance they were collecting a $5 suggested donation. It just did not seem like a suggestion when you got to the front of the line. I told them I was not expecting to pay and only had $3, one young man said he could swipe my credit card. I declined the offer. Then they said the $3 was close enough. I thought that was weird because through all the advertising I read, even on the website it did not mention this "suggested" donation.

I let my son lead the way and we approached the area we saw a sign. Adult side to the left and Family side to the right. Of course he wanted to go to the left but because of what was implied I said we may have to leave sooner if we did that. So we went to the right.

The first space we came to was a spot for "free speech." It was empty. My son said, "So in America if I wanted to speak my mind I could only do it there?" I replied that if you disagreed with this festival you were free to do it right there.

The next booth was religious booth that had rainbow stickers with the words "God loves you" on them.  This booth and the free speech spot were both located out side of the circle of booths that we were about to walk into. I found that interesting. As we walked past the booth some one hollered my name. It was from the religious booth. A man from my work was in the both. I stepped over and introduced my son and he introduced the other people in the booth. I asked how he was doing and he responded that he was doing well. Then the conversation just dropped. He did not explain what his booth was or what they were doing there. It was a little awkward. So I said I would see him later and to have a good day.

Then I noticed some other booths that were there. The TMCC Compass group was  there. That group is a LGBT group from the college. There was also TMCC and UNR. There was another college there but the name escapes me now. Washoe Legal Service, Wells Fargo, JCPenny's, Martini radio and 106.3 were there as well. There were a couple of other churches there but they were in the inner circle if you will and not with the first one we came across. They just let us walk by and did not engage with us. There were maybe a dozen booths there in total. No one engaging us as we walked by.

I met up with the Smith's from work. They were looking at the Greyhound dogs that were there. They were dressed in matching rainbow shirts and had been apart of the parade that had started the event. They were having so much fun. We exchanged hello's and they explained that they were very interested in getting dog but not for another year. Their young girls were still afraid of dogs. Little did they know that having a dog would be like having a third child. Anyway, we said our goodbyes and headed on our way.

There was nothing really left to do and it had only been about 10 minutes to walk around and see the booths. So my son suggested we go to the Adult side. I warned him that I was sure that it was not a good idea for me. He was not an adult and so he should not go over there and I WAS an adult and I know I should not go over there. So he in his great teenage wisdom suggests that he go over there by himself and walk around for just 10 minutes. I said no, like as in N to the O, no. If he wanted to go over there then I was going to go with him. Does that sound like fun? He said sure! What is wrong with that boy?

We start walking into the area and it was behind a wall so you really can't see what is going on until you get over there. You can hear that they are doing a karaoke contest but what I hear as we come around the corner is my son saying,"Mom turn around, don't look!"

I have to pause right here and say that when I raised my kids I tried to protect their eyes and their ears from the things I thought would not be good for them. There is a children's song that goes "Oh be careful little eyes what you see...oh be careful little ears what you hear...The Father up above is looking down in love...oh be careful little eyes what you see."  So very often as we were in the mall or I would be driving them down the street I would see something inappropriate I would instruct them to look down until we passed by. So my son has some idea of what would be inappropriate for me and really for him to be seeing.

Back to the festival. So my son has to say this to me a couple more times. "Mom, look over hear for a minute. Stand right here or just keep walking." He did not seem to be enjoying himself. You might say, "Well of course not, his mother is with him!" However, I still think he would have felt uncomfortable there. I will tell you why.

With all the talk of how the LGBT community is just like everyone else. They just want the freedom to be themselves. Society just needs to accept them for who they are. They give the impression that they are like the Family side of this festival with the churches represented and the business and health care providers. Nice and kid friendly.

But really it was the Adult side that showed who they are and what they want to be doing. The Adult side was not kid friendly what so ever. They had adult booths there. They had an individual walking around in a male body part costume. My son even commented, "Who would want to dress up like that and walk around in public?" There were some men there dressed in over the top drag, like the diva type you may see on TV. There were other men there half dressed with their upper bodies painted. There was the all gay men's choir booth and other booths along that line. We walked through this side much quicker than the Family side.

As I briefly looked around it amazed me what they were celebrating because it was not the lasted supreme court battle that was won about same-sex marriage. They were not celebrating monogamy, they were celebrating the flesh and all that it wants to fulfill. They were viewing each other like a peace of meat and how they wanted to prepare it before they feasted on it. Even the talented singer that was scheduled to show up was treated like a slab of meat. Who could get their hands on him first?

As my son and I were standing there getting ready to leave the area I saw a man walking in dressed like a woman. He had a wig on and a dress that looked very matronly. He looked to be in his forties. His hands were clasping a clutch purse right in front of him. He did not look comfortable. He looked scared and fragile. Not in a feminine way but in a way that made me think he was nervous about being here. Afraid to be seen by someone he may know.

On the way out we met up with an old friend from church. He was with a friend. They talked about looking forward to meeting the singer Lance who was arriving shortly for a meet and greet. Our friend could not wait to meet him and could care less about Lance having a husband. We said our goodbyes and then I ran into Cathy who is an author. She wrote a book seemly about building a bridge between the church and the LBGT community. It wasn't quite like that but we greeted each other and then went on our way.

We were done with the event in less than 45 minutes. It seemed to me that my son was disappointed. It wasn't about fun and freedom like he had expected. The event was boring unless you wanted to engage yourself with the atmosphere on the Adult side.

My son  saw a few people from school there but he did not speak to them. We did stop at the Hillary for president booth. We just wanted a sticker. She wanted us to sign up for a  reminder about voting. So we did. Well, my son did. Still no sticker. Then she wanted him to register to vote. I said no thank you, we just wanted a sticker. She reluctantly gave us each one. My son commented that he wanted to study up on the issue first and then make a choice. He then commented how he wanted to talk to me about the subject Adult 101. What?! He said he meant about voting, and other responsibilities of being an adult. You will have to read another blog to find out what he needed to know for passing the Adult 101 class from this mother/teacher.

I think the LGBT community is pulling the wool over the eyes of society. They are trying to make believe it is all about the "Family side" when in reality it is about the "Adult side." No one cared about what services where being offered on the Family side. The straight families that were there were alone on the Family side. The LGBT community was on the Adult side doing what ever they wanted. Is that why they want to be accepted? To act inappropriate in public? Is that why they want equality because they want to bring out what they do in the dark into the light? Is that supposed to be ok with everyone? I do not think when we stand up for a gay person being bullied that this is what we are agreeing to. I think we are agreeing to peaceful living not public display of lusting after the flesh.

The event showed me that
1. I must love people. That is what God would want me to do. No matter who they are.
2. I must lead by example. My kids are going to go do what they are going to do. I need to be right here in this spot when they return. They will need to know where to find me.
3. Stay on the family side. I never want to qualify as an Adult.

Farewell Speech - Day 14

Deuteronomy 8:1 - Deuteronomy 23:11

"Understand therefore this day, that the Lord thy God is he which goeth over before thee; as a consuming fire he shall destroy them, and he shall bring them down before thy face: so shalt thou drive them out, and destroy them quickly, as the Lord hath said unto thee."  Deut. 9:3

         This section of reading reminds me of when I would be sending my children off to camp. The night before and the morning they would leave, I would be reminding them of things that they need to make sure they did and caution them of things they should not do. 

            "Don't forget to brush your teeth, or don't drink to much before you go to bed."

         "If you eat too much sugar, you know how you will get. Don't forget to tell the counselor that you have allergies."

          And then my final request, " If you need anything, call me."

"Speak not thou in thine heart, after that the Lord thy God hath cast them out from before thee, saying, For my righteousness the Lord hath brought me in to possess this land: but for the wickedness of these nations the Lord doth drive them out from before thee." Duet. 9:4

          Moses is not going with them over to the promised land. He is telling them all that the Lord is going to do for them. God is reminding them that it is not because they are righteous but because He hates sin that He is going before them and clearing the land.

"For the Lord your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you." Duet. 20:4

          It's like we are reading Moses's  farewell speech to the children of Israel. He really wants them to do well and obey God.

          As a parent, every day is filled with lessons to teach my children to stay close to God and obey his Word.They will disobey but God is there with forgiveness. One day my children will move out and be on their own. I need to do all I can to prepare them to serve Him.

Child-like Faith

    

          A friend of mine announced that one of their children accepted Christ as her Saviour. It made me remember when my children made that step of faith. As a parent I plant seeds of faith for my children over the years. As they are amerced in the ways of the Lord, I would always wonder that when the time came that they would realize that they needed to get saved, would I know that it was “real” or was it something they felt was expected of them. I did not want to do it wrong. I think that was just a tool of Satan. Of course, God took care of everything and I am very thankful that my children came to that decision early in their lives.

          I have led adults to the Lord and sometimes it has been so difficult. Adults ask so many questions about God and why he allows bad things to happen like death and disease. They also may not understand that there is nothing in their life that they have done or will do that will keep God from them. To me the most difficult part of sharing the gospel is convincing adults that God loves them. Children believe easier that God loves them. Children are so easy. They want to trust Jesus and they want to go to heaven.

          By the time we grow up we may have learned that people are not trustworthy and those feelings may transfer to God. We may wonder what we have to do or what it will cost to go to heaven. What’s the catch? We may wonder why God would even bother with us anyway. But we need to keep telling people that God loves them. It does not matter what they have done.

          I am so thankful for God’s gift of Salvation. I accepted Jesus Christ as my Saviour when I was nine years old. I was attending a vacation bible school that my church was sponsoring. I am so glad I made that decision. It truly was the best decision I have ever made.

I am blessed to know my children are saved.

I praise the Lord for my friend’s news. It is so wonderful.

The Written Word

I would like to share with you what I have learned these past months. When I first started on this journey, I never imagined the lessons would be so plentiful like fruit on a tree ready for the picking.

            One lesson I learned was writing letters and notes to my children. At the time, I did not realize it was part of a lesson. I felt compelled to express my love to my children by writing them notes. I didn’t say anything profound. Just that I loved them and I will be praying for them. I wrote them my thoughts about specific character traits that I was proud of or areas in their life I know that they are working on to improve. I wanted my children to know that I noticed them. I want them to know that their life and how they are responding to their life is important to me. I did not wait until there were problems. I have done this for years but I did not see the results of that decision until just recently, when my daughter Emily found a stack of letters and notes I had given her a while ago. She was reading them over and it made her cry. She shared them with me and asked me to read them to her. We both cried together. We got her a special box to keep those special treasures in. I learned that writing notes to my children will become a precious treasure to them in the years to come. Over these past months I had given my children lots of notes. I had put notes secretly in their lunches or in their backpacks for school.  Since our children have two homes, I will be sending them letters in the mail that they will get when it is their week with their dad.
            Our heavenly Father has done the same thing when he provided us with His written Word. First, God used the words of the Bible to guide us and tell us of his love for us. Then, when the Word became flesh in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, God was able to express his ultimate love for us by giving his Son to pay the penalty due for our sins. We have our King James Bible to remind us of God’s love, mercy and forgiveness because if you are anything like me, we will forget. We need to read our Bibles, God’s love letter to us, every day so as to keep His thoughts of us fresh in our minds.

Here are some ideas you could do for you children:

Now a days you could send your kids an email that they will receive the next time they check it.

Leave notes in the refrigerator when they go to look for a snack or a drink.

Put notes in their shoes.

In their books or bible, who know when they will stumble across it!

Do you have any ideas to add? Leave them in the comment area.

Train up a Child ~ Day 83

Today's reading Galatians 3:26 - Colossians 4:18

"Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged." Colossians 3:21 KJB

All these verses about righteousness in Jesus Christ and not the law. The law is a curse. There is no hope in the law. Our only hope is Jesus.

More verses about loving one another and how to get along and to be kind. Fathers to not provoke their children to anger. Well, I can only speak as a mother that in one area I have seen recently where children were provoked to anger and boy, was it ever discouraging.

As I take my children pretty much every were I go they hear me talk and are listening to me even when I do not think they are. If I give the impression through my words or my actions that someone is undesirable then my children will be hesitant and withdrawn toward them.

After a couple of months of being gone, we went back to our old stomping grounds and my children went running into the building excited. I was so proud of them as they went in looking for friends we had not seen in a while. But by the time we got back into the car they were less cheerful and what was suppose to be a glad reunion instead had the feeling that they had not been missed at all.

We provoke our children to anger by shunning people and not being kind. We provoke our children to anger by one day speaking to a family and then the next running from them at the store.

Heaven may be a little awkward for some when they see who got in but I want to raise my children to be greeters at heaven's door, thankful for who ever is coming in. That thought process will have to start here when my children are young. As my children watch how I treat people I need to be very careful.

O be careful little ears what you hear...

Japhthah, a Mighty Man of Valor

I was recently talking to a friend about our upbringing and the difficulties we had to deal with as very young children. Her story stayed with me for a while and during my bible reading today God brought this man’s story to my attention.

In Judges 11:1 we find Japhthah being described by God. First of all, how awesome is that. It makes me think, hmmm, how would God describe me? Anyway, back to Japhthah. God describes him as a Gileadite, a mighty man of valor, the son of Gilead, and, oh yeah, a son of a harlot. According to the bible Japhthah is run out of town by his own family because of who his mother was. They did not want anything to do with him. How tragic to be paying the price for your parents sins. Japhthah did not have a say in the matter just like so many children today do not have a say in how they come into this world. They are born into the most horrendous circumstances and are made to pay for their parents’ poor choices.

As the story goes on, the children of Ammon come and make war with Israel. Well, the elders of Gilead go and find Japhthah and not only do they want his help, they offer him a leadership role in this war. (vs6) Long story short Japhthah ends up going to war and with the Lord's help Israel defeats the Ammonites. (vs.32) Yeah!

What struck me about this story was the way Japhthah was brought into this world and how God used him in spite of his lineage. The fact that Japhthah’s mother was a harlot is not something to be taken lightly. I see this as hope for us that have been born in to unfavorable circumstances and through Christ we can be victorious. I was encouraged by Japhthah’s story because it illustrates God’s mercy and grace on our lives. God can use us if we are willing no matter what we have been dealt with in life.