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Categories What's on Your Nightstand?

Nightstand (July 2010)

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On last month’s nightstand:

On my nightstandOn my nightstand

What I actually read this month was…
(Click on the titles to see my reviews.)

Fiction

Nonfiction

Juvenile

  • Children’s Picture Books author ARNOLD-ASBURY (42 titles)
    including two books without words by Jose Aruego
  • The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
  • The Secret Panel by Franklin Dixon

Currently in the middle of…

On my nightstand

Nonfiction

  • American Gospel: God, the Founding Fathers, and the Making of a Nation by Jon Meacham
    Read some quotes from the introduction. I’m currently about halfway through and am definitely enjoying this title.
  • The Cross of Christ by John Stott
    I expect to be done with this title by the end of the week. Be sure to check out my notes on chapters 1-9.
  • Dug Down Deep by Joshua Harris
    My ladies’ book club is still moving slowly through this title.
  • Inside The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by Bell, Pykkonen, and Washington
    Reading this as part of Carrie’s Chronicles of Narnia Reading Challenge. Carrie doesn’t like the “For Dummies” titles, but this book reminds me of the “Dummies” genre–except that it’s intended as an introduction to The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe for younger readers (late elementary school, probably?)
  • The Myth of a Christian Nation by Greg Boyd
    Still working on this with my Monday night book club. We’ve had some AMAZING discussion so far.

On this month’s nightstand:

On my nightstand

Fiction

  • Love Comes Softly by Janette Oke
  • Love’s Enduring Promise by Janette Oke
  • The Quest by Nancy Moser
  • Second Time Around by Nancy Moser

Nonfiction

  • Founding Faith by Steven Waldman
  • The Narnian by Alan Jacobs
  • See What I’m Saying: The Extraordinary Powers of our Five Senses by Lawrence D. Rosenblum
  • Dozens of craft/decorating books

Juvenile

  • Children’s Picture Books author ASCH-?
  • The Animal Shelter Mystery created by Gertrude Chandler Warner
  • Beyond the Wardrobe: The Official Guide to Narnia
  • C.S. Lewis: The Chronicler of Narnia by Mary Dodson Wade
  • The Phantom Freighter by Franklin W. Dixon
  • The Thief Lord by Carnelia Funke

Drop by 5 Minutes 4 Books to see what others are reading.
What's on Your Nightstand?

Categories Book Notes, Theology

Taking on the devil

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Notes on John Stott’s
The Cross of Christ
Chapter 9: The Conquest of Evil

A friend attended a teen conference at which the speaker urged the youth to “take on the devil.” With rash words and brash self-confidence, he practically dared the devil to attack, insisting that the youth would whup him when he did. My friend was appalled by this foolhardy behavior, as was I when the story was recounted to me.

I couldn’t help but think of my friend’s experience as I read Stott’s description of triumphalism vs. defeatism.

“Some are triumphalists, who see only the decisive victory of Jesus Christ and overlook the apostolic warnings against the powers of darkness. Others are defeatists, who see only the fearsome malice of the devil and overlook the victory over him which Christ has already won. The tension is part of the Christian dilemma between the ‘already’ and the ‘not yet’.”

The truth is that Christ has defeated Satan. He is a conquered foe. Yet, although the crushing blow has been delivered, the enemy has not been eradicated. He still has power within this world. To nonchalantly taunt the enemy is foolhardy and unbiblical. Jude 9 states that even the archangel did not dare to bring an accusation against the devil, but said “The Lord rebuke you.”

Some will assert that we have been given authority over demons, citing Luke 9 and 10. A careful reader will see that this is an occasion in which Christ specifically gives the twelve and the seventy authority over demons. This cannot necessarily be transferred directly to all believers. But even if that authority is transferable, we should take to heart Jesus’ caution in Luke 10:17

“Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”

It is worthwhile for us to develop a healthy Biblical view of satan–a view that sees him as a formidable foe, but as one who has ultimately been defeated at the cross. Keeping these two thoughts in mind can keep us from running in fear of the enemy as the defeatists do, and from rushing heedlessly into battle as the triumphalists do. Instead, these two realizations help us to put into action the call of God in spiritual warfare: to stand, to resist the devil, and to proclaim Christ.

“First, we are told to resist the devil…We are not to be afraid of him. Much of his show of power is bluff, since he was overthrown at te cross, and we need the courage to call his bluff. Clad in the full armour of God, we can take our stand against him. We are not to flee from him, but on the contrary to resist him so that he flees from us. Our own feeble voice, however is not sufficiently authoritative to dismiss him….

Secondly, we are told to proclaim Jesus Christ. The preaching of the cross is still the power of God. It is by proclaiming Christ crucified and risen that we shall turn people ‘from darkness to light and from the power of satan to God’, and so the kingdom of satan will retreat before the advancing kingdom of God.”

~John Stott, The Cross of Christ

(See more of my notes on The Cross of Christ.)

Categories The Week in Words

WiW: On men and pigs

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The Week in Words

I’m gonna be short today, since I’ve got kids coming over and I expect to be busy with them all day…

C.S. Lewis on slavery, via Justin Taylor

“Aristotle said that some people were only fit to be slaves. I do not contradict him. But I reject slavery because I see no men fit to be masters.”

From Michael Hyatt on wrestling with pigs:

“Don’t wrestle with pigs. You both get dirty and the pigs like it.”

Wise words.

Collect more quotes from throughout the week with Barbara H’s meme “The Week in Words”.

Categories Family & Friends, Following Christ

Missing Mommy

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Little John misses his mom. I sit him on my lap until he feels he can function again. He ventures away to play. I move on to new tasks. I hear a couple of deeply drawn breaths and ask my compatriot whether she’d heard a cry coming on. She hadn’t, but when John starts crying again, she looks at me and suggests that I’m telepathic. I’m not. I’m just attune to his sorrow.

Jarell misses his mommy too–but my lap isn’t enough to calm this little fellow. He wraps his arms around my chest and buries his head in my shoulder. He wants to be as close as he can be. I understand the feeling. I hold him close and let him take comfort in my nearness. It takes him almost half an hour, but eventually, he is ready to move forward, returning every so often to remind himself that I’m still here.

Cooper is generally stoic, playing happily with the other children. Today, he plays almost as usual, except that he periodically turns to me to say “I miss my mommy.” His little lower lip quivers as I respond: “I know. It’s hard missing someone.” I know.

McKenna asks me if her mommy will be back soon. I tell her it will be a while. A couple minutes later, she’ll be back to ask me again. She misses her mother, she wants her back. She cannot comprehend the scale I see, the hands of the clock ticking away the minutes. “I know it’s hard,” I tell her, “but trust me. She’ll be back.”

I am McKenna, Cooper, Jarell, and John–sometimes almost unaffected, sometimes incapacitated by the pain. I don’t understand what’s going on outside the walls of my nursery. “Where is my mommy? What is she doing? When will she be back?”

God, omniscient, knows what’s going on even when I don’t. He watches the clock, knowing the time when my suffering will end. “I know it’s hard,” He says, “but trust Me. It won’t be long.” Still, every few minutes I ask when the pain will be gone.

Does He feel my pain as I feel theirs?

Certainly He knows of me what I know of them–that this present suffering is only momentary.

And thus He calls me to rest, to trust, and to enjoy the place I’m at right now.

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
~II Corinthians 4:16-18 (NIV)

Categories Recap

Recap (July 18-24)

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On bekahcubed

Book Reviews:

  • Fallen Founder: The Life of Aaron Burr by Nancy Isenberg

    “How much do you know about Aaron Burr? A month ago, I would have answered “Very little.” I knew that he’d fought a duel.

    Now, after having listened to Nancy Isenberg’s Fallen Founder: The Life of Aaron Burr, I know a great deal about the events of Burr’s life–but I still feel that I know very little about the man himself.”

    Read the rest of my review

Photo Albums:

On the web

Thought-provoking posts:

  • Does our current dating advice lead girls to just give up?

    “Once there was a good Christian girl who dreamed of growing up, getting married, and having children. She read all the right books and did all the right things….

    The Christians who seemed to have all the answers, told her, “You’re young, there’s plenty of time, and you need to learn patience.”

    ….And the knowing ones shook their heads and said, “You’re too picky.”

    …And the knowing ones shook their heads and said, “You’re spending too much time just being friends with guys. They need to know you’re romantically interested.”

    …And the knowing ones shook their heads and said, “Watch it, you’re being too forward. Let the man pursue you. They don’t like it when you do the pursuing.”

    …And the knowing ones heard, and shook their heads, and said, “That Jane Austen craze put ideas in your head. You just want a Mr. Darcy to come sweep you off your feet. Why can’t you just marry a nice man whether you love him or not? Who says you have to have feelings for him?”

    … And the girl grew tired.

    …So she ran off with the first non-Christian man who showed some interest, asked her out, and treated her with respect. And the knowing ones shook their heads and said, “What happened to her? She used to be a good Christian girl.“

    I’d really love to hear your thoughts on this “modern day fable”. Do you think all the “advice” about dating (or even just the idea that there’s one “right” way to date) is ultimately counterproductive?

Videos worth seeing:

  • A library-fied take off of the Old Spice commercials.

    HT: Barbara H.
Categories Family & Friends

My Special Olympian

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After church last Sunday, I was chatting with a man who worked at the Glenwood Resource Center and had helped out with the Special Olympics in years past. He told me that it was a great opportunity, and that I should really plan on seeing an event or two.

“I’ll have to do that,” I answered. I hadn’t even considered attending an event before–I’d been more concerned with staying out of prime traffic areas when visitors might be swarming. Campus tends to be a zoo when we host events like this. But attending an event…that sounded like a nice diversion.

Daniel Griggs

I mused almost to myself at dinner whether my former coworker Daniel might be competing in the power lifting competition. When we were working together, he’d gone to Beijing to compete–so I knew he took part in the Special Olympics.

I wasn’t expecting a response from anyone, but Dad answered me anyway. Yes, Daniel would be competing.

I asked if Dad had a schedule of events. He said he didn’t–at least not a specific schedule. I made a mental note, hoping to look it up.

I forgot.

But this morning Dad texted me a web address where they were live streaming the power lifting events.

I sat in my chair in front of my computer with my embroidery in hand and watched the event until my internet connection went wonky.

“I’ll just go out,” I thought. It isn’t that far and I was planning on riding with Joanna today anyway. Maybe she wouldn’t mind making that our destination.

Joanna being amenable, we rode to UNL’s Kimball Hall and sat and talked (about liturgy and church calendars and altar cloths–of all things) until the program was to start. It turned out the award ceremony was later than I thought I’d heard the announcer say (I had a bit of difficulty understanding her thick Southern accent), so Joanna had to leave before the ceremony.

Daniel Griggs

But I was able to sit and cheer for Daniel and others from far and wide as they collected their medals. Daniel won four gold medals and one silver–and set a personal best record on the bench press! Go, Daniel!

Whether it was just excitement over his day’s successes or true pleasure in seeing me, I got a giant hug from Daniel once I managed to break through the crowd to congratulate him afterward.

It was so nice to cheer and to support Daniel, who for a couple of years was my head dish-man and still holds a special place in my heart. My church informant was absolutely right–the Special Olympics are a blast!

Categories Book Notes, Theology

God Revealed in the Cross

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Notes on John Stott’s
The Cross of Christ
Chapter 8: The Revelation of God

The cross not only accomplished our salvation–it also revealed God’s nature.

In the cross, God demonstrated His justice: His wrath poured out on sin.

In the cross, God demonstrated His love: His mercy in dying for us.

In the cross, God demonstrates His wisdom and power: using the world’s foolish cross and the Son’s human weakness to accomplish the greatest miracle ever–our salvation.

“So when we look at the cross, we see the justice, love, wisdom, and power of God. It is not easy to decide which is the most luminously revealed, whether the justice of God in judging sin, or the love of God in bearing the judgment in our place, or the wisdom of God in perfectly combining the two, or the power of God in saving those who believer. For the cross is equally an act, and therefore a demonstration, of God’s justice, love, wisdom, and power. The cross assures us that this God is the reality within, behind, and beyond the universe.”
~John Stott, The Cross of Christ

(See more of my notes on The Cross of Christ.)

Categories Thankful Thursday

Thankful Thursday: Blessings upon blessings

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Sometimes I struggle to find something to be thankful for and find only one source of hope and joy amidst the trials of life. Sometimes I can only be thankful that God is unmovable, omniscient, omnipotent within what seems like darkness.

And then there are days like these when the clouds roll back, and while the storm isn’t over, I see the world about me illumined. On these days, I have much to be thankful for–all springing out of that same thing. My God is the giver of good gifts–even the trials are good. But some days I can see in addition to believing. Today is one of those days. Thank you, Lord, for allowing me to see through the eyes of faith today.

Today I’m thankful…

…for a well-stocked fridge (and the beginnings of an appetite to eat it–I ate three whole meals plus a smoothie from McDonald’s yesterday, mostly without having to force myself.)

…for the brothers who mercilessly tease me–and who care about what’s going on in my life

…for an early night with no tossing and turning

…for an easy awakening after a restful night of sleep

…for pantyhose that didn’t run and a suit jacket that lay flat

…for a good interview with no questions that stumped me (except the one about how much teaching experience I’ve had at church–I don’t know, 10 years, maybe?)

…for a chance to see some of the gals from my internship (I briefly interned at the office I interviewed in–and one of the women on the search committee was a fellow intern and current Ph.D. student at the university.)

…for a delightful hour and a half of yard work with Erin. She always encourages me so much–and it felt great to get my body moving (even if the sun was a bit warm!)

…for the joy I see in my friend’s eye as she recounts knowing that God has her and her husband exactly where He wants them–even if that means they have no idea what the next step is

…for Jonah’s request for “Rebekah to come inside the house and play with us.” Even if I didn’t end up going inside to play with them, it’s nice to be loved by children.

…for extra quarters for my meter thanks to my father

…for another good meal and conversation on our weekly Daddy-Daughter date

…for the ambitious personality God has given me, though it occasionally leads to disappointments, it also allows me to accomplish much

…for air conditioning in my car

…for a soft chair at the library and the luxury of enjoying it

…for getting the wedding pictures I took all processed and up today (Check ’em out: Preparation and Dressing, Prewedding Photos, Ceremony, Receiving Line and Getaway, Reception, Dance. )

…for an unexpected phone call and two delightful kids to stay the day with me on Monday. (This might necessitate another visit to the library–and possibly to my folks’ house for some toys. Not that Abigail and Joseph aren’t capable of entertaining themselves–but I do want my home to be at least mostly in one piece once the day is out!)

For this and so much more, O Lord, I give you thanks!

Thankful Thursday banner

Categories Reading My Library

Books without words

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I think I’m going to have to stop saying I’m not a fan of things–’cause it seems the moment I do, I find something to disprove whatever I just said.

Take my dislike for picture books with little to no text.

I’m not a picture person. The written word is my heart language. Illustrations are nice but I rarely do more than glance over them. I’m not a fan of picture books that don’t include text.

And then I read these two titles from Jose Aruego.

Children's books

Look What I Can Do contains five words, repeated twice (incidentally, they are the same words that comprise the title.) Nevertheless, the illustrations manage to successfully tell the story of two young water buffalo who take turns showing off and copying one another–only to find themselves in a predicament they definitely hadn’t bargain with.

The water buffalo learn their lesson, and so will your kids, in this cute pictorial representation of the age-old question: “If everybody was jumping off a cliff, would you do it too?”

The Last Laugh has even fewer words–and no sentences. Hiss. Quack. Hee-hee. A snake takes great pleasure in hissing at every animal he encounters, enjoying seeing them quake in fright. But when one little duck’s fright sends him straight into the snake’s mouth, he discovers something that makes HIM quake in fright.

The ducks get the last laugh in this little tale: Quack!

Reading My Library

While I still think I prefer text to pictures, these stories are definitely an exception to the rule. You should TOTALLY check them out!

For more comments on children’s books, see the rest of my Reading My Library posts or check out Carrie’s blog Reading My Library, which chronicles her and her children’s trip through the children’s section of their local library.


Categories Book Notes, Theology

Salvation: a home view

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Notes on John Stott’s
The Cross of Christ
Chapter 7: The Salvation of Sinners

Reconciliation. The elimination of enmity. The bringing together of two parties who had been estranged. The restoration of right relationship. Reconciliation is the story of the gospel.

We’ve taken a peek at the temple view of salvation: Propitiation.
We’ve glimpsed salvation in the marketplace: Redemption.
We’ve discussed our legal salvation: Justification.
And now we can look at the end result of each of those: Reconciliation.

When Adam sinned, the relationship between God and man was broken. Man rebelled, turning his back on God. God’s wrath upon sin forced the separation. Now, because of Christ’s death, God’s holiness and justice was satisfied, the ransom paid, man made righteous–making way for reconciliation between God and man.

“For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.”
Romans 5:10-11

What’s more, throughout the ages, there has been a separation, an enmity between two races: Jews and Gentiles. The chosen nation and the rest of the world. Yet Christ’s blood also made the way for reconciliation between the two–the grafting in of the Gentile into the righteous root of David.

“Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands— that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”
Ephesians 2:11-13

Now we who have been reconciled, brought into the family of God, partakers of the covenant of promise, have a special role, a task as a member of the family. We are to be ambassadors of reconciliation.

“Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.”
II Corinthians 5:18-20

God is the author of our reconciliation, having made a way through Christ. Now we who have been reconciled to God and to the body of Christ, we are ambassadors of reconciliation–calling out far and near that others be reconciled to God just as we are.

(See more notes on The Cross of Christ here.)

For those interested in exploring reconciliation a bit more, Timothy Keller’s Prodigal God (link is to my review) gives a wonderful description of salvation, especially of reconciliation, as seen through the parable of the Prodigal Son. I highly recommend it.