Guilt versus Shame

"I am finding myself at a crossroads. How do I let go of this fear that I've always known? I have cried gut wrenching sobs this weekend over so many disappointments. How do I stop fear and begin trusting in a Sovereign God...who seems like someone I thought I knew but maybe I don't ? In my personal writing... I see fear is not the point, but Jesus is; how I respond and trust Christ in the midst of these hard places is where I will find grace."

So my first gestalt this week was on fear and faith. I am learning they are identical in that they are both based on the unknown and the future. I never saw them as similar before. So when we have a "fear" response from an event we could train ourselves to have a "faith" response to the same fear-inducing event.  Does this mean  it's not threatening? No. It's whether or not we feel God is capable (only capable not "will he") of working in the situation.  So then my thoughts went the way yours did. "In the back of my mind I hear a hurtful voice saying 'you can ask all you want but God will do what he's going to do and he always uses pain'". Then it makes me think why bother praying." This is where the second gestalt comes in. My husband has been teaching recently on shame and guilt. If I could bottle these teachings and sell them, I'd make a fortune, if I could get folks to swig the tonic. "It'll cure what ails ya!"

I may destroy the beauty of the way he taught this by going straight to the point. Guilt is necessary to bring us to repentance and says "I have done wrong". Shame is language that is from the devil and says "I am wrong." .....Ok. So here's a story. A man goes to the store and the cashier misses ringing up a pricey item. The man notices, says nothing. Deliberates about what to do. Drives away with unpaid item. Starts feeling guilt. Repents. Goes back to pay.......enter shame......He tells the clerk "when I checked my receipt I noticed I didn't pay for this item." He hears "Thank you for being so honest. We appreciate customers with integrity". He pays and leaves. Guilt worked. He repented. Corrected the wrong. But SHAME tells him he was still wrong because he told a lie. The wrong was righted. He was forgiven.  The devil then begins his work on finding something to torture the man with.  Right. This message isn't for those with a seared conscience. This message is for God's people who struggle with "God doesn't love me because I keep making mistakes. We can only help those who love God and want to be pleasing to him. There are many who struggle with "God is trying to destroy me because I keep making mistakes." Shame leads us to one side or the other of these extreme and paired responses.
Superiority or Inferiority
Control or Passivity
Perfectionism or Defeatism
Blame others or Blame self
Silence (no talk rule to hide shame) or Tell-all (excessive confession)
Distrust/suspicion of others or Can't trust self
As well as Embarrassment, humiliation, fear, and anger.

All these are pendulum swing responses of one extreme or the other to deal with or hide internal shame.

Satan's purpose for using shame (his tool that works) is to separate us from God. Like Adam in the garden. When he listened to shame ("you are naked") he hid himself from God.....Adam and Eve didn't hide themselves because they felt guilt. They were shamed by the devil. Nakedness wasn't a problem before. They didn't see someone with clothes on and find out they didn't have any. They couldn't blame their shame on being raised by dysfunctional parents--they had the best Father imaginable.  Their shame caused them to hide from God.  Satan won.

When we feel guilt for a specific action, we repent. If we continue to deal with it after repentance, that is shame. If we know to not do something and we do it, we then should allow God to bring about repentance--listen to the guilt which leads to repentance.
If it's not a wrong action and we struggle with it, that's shame. That's the devil's way of separating us from God. The devil is a false accuser. A slanderer. His sole purpose is to separate us from God using any tool that works. Shame keeps us feeling the guilt even though we repented and corrected the situation.

Negative self talk is still the devil. Not us. If we hear negative things in our head or repeat them, we are listening to and repeating the devil's words. The devil makes us hate things. He would make us hate God if he could. Shame causes FEAR which is the devil's weapon of choice because it works so well. Shame makes us run from God because we fear His punishment. But God LOVES us and simply desires us to trust Him. He doesn't whack-a-mole us.

If we struggle with either of those extremes on the list -- which I do--we all do to an extent-- then we struggle with shame which means we struggle with the temptation to listen to the devil and allow the devil to interpret what God is doing in our lives. On the earlier list of responses, some may tend toward one response and some the other.  Both are listening to the devil. The controllers and perfectionists hide their shame by covering it up. The passivists and victims deal with their shame by exposing it. Both are listening to the devil. If we are feeling badly about something and can't point to a specific action that is making us feel that guilt, then that is most likely shame. Those foggy feelings of "does God even care?"  That is shame.

We can define shame as "I'm listening to and repeating the devil".
God accepts us. He loves us. He is thrilled when we return to Him.  He is glad when we repent and do the right thing. The devil would have us believe that God would respond like "well, yeah, you paid for the item. But I'm still mad. You will probably do it again. I don't believe you have it in you. You'll fail again."

Action plan: we have to stop listening to the devil.

This world is not our home. Our only hope is in Christ and in eternally dwelling with him. If things go well on earth, great. If we expect to choose Christ and live In a bubble protected from life from that point on, we are in false doctrine. We are believing prosperity trash. God does not inflict pain. The devil inflicts pain. We choose to cause ourselves pain. We surround ourselves with people and choices that cause pain. People are blessed when they obey God's principles. When they have wisdom. When they seem to escape the trials of life. But not everyone who is an awesome Christian escapes the trials of life. Dietrich Bonhoeffer? Corrie Ten Boom? Her sister? Present day martyrs who are dying for the name of Christ? Can we look at some of those pillars and say "I must be a better Christian because I have my health and my house and my money."  ???
There were awesome believers who were burned at the stake. And there are satan spawn who are richer than Croesus.

The Ministry of Dashed Hopes and Unmet Expectations

Many years ago, about fourth grade, I had asked my mom for a watch for Christmas.  I didn't bother to ask for a particular watch, she knew me and knew what I would like.  Or so I thought.  Christmas morning came and as my gift was handed to me, my expectation soared.  It was the right size to be a watch box.  I knew it was going to be great.  Sure enough, it said "Timex" on the box.  It was a watch.  But when I opened it, boy was I disappointed.  It had to be the ugliest watch Timex ever made.  Plain white and functional with a boring, ugly leather band.  Even the glass was thick and ugly.  The numbers were ugly. There was nothing pretty or feminine about this watch.

My hopes were dashed and my childlike expectations were completely unmet and it tainted my whole Christmas experience. Or whatever I thought I deserved as far as "Christmas experiences" go. Am I alone in experiencing these sort of dashed hopes?

But perhaps your hope was not immaturely placed in getting the right gift at Christmas as mine was. I grew up and found my hope was later placed in getting married.  I unfairly laid all my hopes and dreams on my soon-to-be husband and what I thought he would provide for me.  Maybe I'm not the only one who does that.  For those who have done that alongside me, I think we set those expectations too high. We've seen the picture perfect marriages from the outside and are convinced that is what God has planned for us.

Or perhaps we believe our hopes will be met by the new job, the new location, the new church, the new whatever. And then life happens and our hopes seem unfairly dashed.  What happened?  We know the word says in Proverbs 13:12, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick…but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life." What happened? Why did God allow this suffering?  Why did we trust in this false hope? The job loss? The failed marriage? The sick child?

I have written in some notes "Dashed hopes make us recoil from dreaming big, it causes us to lower our life's expectations so that we'll never feel disappointment like that again."  Should that be our response?  Is that a knee-jerk response?  At minimum, it seems to be our safety valve.  "Y'all ain't gonna hurt me again.  I'll just peck 'round here on the ground with chickens rather than soar in hope with eagles."

And just where do these unmet expectations come from?  Is it possible we look around us, establish what we "need" and therefore must have?  So when we compare ourselves to others, establish what we think we should be, or what we think we should have, or what we believe we deserve, are we setting ourselves up to covet and then be disappointed?  2 Cor 10:12 states "We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise."  (Paul is talking about his ministry but this favorite verse of mine keeps me in check...when I remember it.) 

If what Paul said wasn't targeted enough, C.S. Lewis also said, "Comparison is the thief of joy." So evidently I cannot allow false hopes to alight on what others receive or what others may think.

So about the time I feel like a martyr in having these unmet expectations, is it possible that I have ever dashed someone else’s  hopes and expectations? I'm thinking yes.

I am also learning  that whenever hope is misplaced, disappointment soon follows. One mom put it as the "Big Let Down".  The BLD.  So when the inevitable happens, when our hopes are dashed,  when we experience the BLD, we need to learn to handle disappointment correctly.  

So what are we placing our hope in? By placing our hope and expectations in the people we love we literally risk the health and life of our relationships. Before we knew Jesus, our hopes were dependent on what was going on in our lives at the moment.   What would today bring? Will work be good today or bad? If I'm happy what will happen to make me sad? If I'm sad, what will happen to make me happy? The answer was dependent upon the object of my hope—my job, my friends, my appearance, my relationships…..As believers, do we sometimes revert back to those things as the source of our hope?  Have we misplaced our hope for happiness, life, security, or contentment, in everything the world has to offer? 

Are we placing our expectations for our future in someone or something other than Jesus?

Do we just know about Jesus, or do we truly know Jesus? 

Do we know Him as the comforter? (Or does someone else comfort us?) 

The savior? (Or do we call someone else when we need help?)

The redeemer? (Or do we rely on someone else to "redeem" or add value to us.)

The provider? (Or do we rely on someone else to provide for our needs?)

The healer? (Or do we jump to medications, doctors or other medical advice first?)

The friend who sticks closer than a brother? ( or does someone else meet our need for deep friendship?)

The ministry of our experiences with dashed hopes is that the unwanted "gift" can serve as a tangible reminder that our hopes are not to be placed in things in this world.  This world can disappoint.  People can disappoint.  As long as we are trusting in these things to be our hope and bring the joy and contentment we seek we will always be disappointed.  So when we meet that disappointment, whatever it is, big or small, can we let it serve as a reminder that in Christ alone our hope is found?

However, in the real world, when we are looking those dashed hopes square in the face, we need to address our initial attitudes.  1) We need to be thankful.  Look for the good and praise it.  Go all Pollyanna and find the thing to be thankful about.  2) We need to realize things aren't always as they appear. Sometimes we are given what we need and not what we want because what we want may not be God's best for us.  3) And ultimately, we need to realize that it's not all about us and our desires. We may just need to get over ourselves. 

As a reminder of Jesus being our only true hope in a hopeless world, I looked again at Psalm 23. 

The Lord is my shepherd;

I shall not want. 

(He provides everything I need)

He makes me to lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside the still waters. 

(He gives me peace and comfortable surroundings when I need it.)

He restores my soul;

(He has saved me from judgment by salvation and given me hope of eternity)

He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.

(He gives me instruction and helps me to do right  so I won’t make disastrous mistakes.)

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil;

(He is my hope when all is frightening and scary and I feel alone and terrified for my future)

For You are with me; 

(He will always be a part of my life….)

Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

(The rod protects and corrects us.  We are subject to his most careful, intimate and firsthand examination…..the staff pulls us from danger.)

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;

(Our provisions are given to us in this world)

You anoint my head with oil;

(We are blessed and anointed to rule and reign with Him in heaven)

My cup runs over.

(We are blessed over and above what we can hold or what we deserve)

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

All the days of my life;

(We experience God’s goodness daily as well as his mercy in forgiving us of our sins.)

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

(Heaven…..)

Do Men Have Abortion Rights?

I am avidly pro-life, and vehemently opposed to abortion as I feel nothing warrants the taking of an innocent baby's life.  Killing a baby through abortion is the most selfish act a person can do.  The arguments framed defending the woman's right to kill a baby are so egregious that, typical of all philosophies that are an affront to morality, the terminology has been changed  drastically so the true intent is hidden by using the wrong words.  Those in defiance of God are skilled in this.

But, in playing devil's advocate here, and assuming there are "rights" to killing your baby and aborting your parenthood, I have a few questions regarding the rights of the daddy.

A woman has a "right" to NOT become a mother, but a man has NO RIGHT to NOT become a father and will be compelled to pay for years. Only women have the right to kill?

If a woman has a “right” to terminate a pregnancy by paying money to an abortion clinic, then why doesn’t the “father” have the right to terminate his paternity by paying a sum to an agency? Why are only women given the right to end their parenthood?

Can a father end his paternity through a "paternal abortion agency" if a mother can end her maternity with physically aborting her baby?

How does a pro-abortion person frame an argument when a mother wants to keep the baby and the father doesn't?

Do men have abortion rights?

On the Burning of Books

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is an intriguing apocalyptic story about censorship, and while it has some liberal thoughts, I found a portion of Bradbury's coda at the end of the book very interesting.  He mentions:

"Two weeks ago my mountain of mail delivered forth a pipsqueak mouse of a letter from a well-known publishing house that wanted to reprint my story "The Fog Horn" in a high school reader.  In my story, I had described a lighthouse as having, late at night, an illumination coming from it that was a 'God-light.' Looking up at it from the viewpoint of any sea-creature one would have felt that one was in 'the Presence.'  The editors had deleted 'God-light' and 'in the Presence.'"

Wow, to censor Ray Bradbury, the author who foretold of censorship.  And it's not that he comes across from a Christian point of view either.  Fascinating.

He then writes more about the editing of yet another "literature anthology" for school readers.  He asserts:

"How do you cram 400 (count 'em) short stories.....by Twain, Irving, Poe, Maupassant and Bierce into one book?  Simplicity itself.  Skin, debone, demarrow, scarify, melt, render down and destroy.  Every adjective that counted, every verb that moved, every metaphor that weighed more than a mosquito--out!  Every simile that would have made a sub-moron's mouth twitch--gone!  Any aside that explained the two-bit philosophy of a first-rate writer--lost!  Every story, slenderized, starved, bluepenciled, leeched and bled white, resembled every other story. Twain read like Poe read like Shakespeare read like Dostoevsky read like--Edgar Guest.  Every word of more than three syllables had been razored.  Every image that demanded so much as one instant's attention--shot dead.....the point is obvious.  There is more than one way to burn a book."

So what does this mean for homeschoolers?  Of course, I could ask, what does this mean for anyone, but the ones who really seem to care would be those who choose to home educate their children.  Do your best to avoid those watered down literature anthologies or pre-filtered abridged versions of, some of the best literature that is chosen by you for your children to read.  Allow them to be challenged by lengthy sentences, high-minded thoughts, tedious or challenging words.  Encourage them to read broadly and express their opinions freely about what they read.  I do not mean trashy stuff, I mean a wide variety with an eye to challenge and provoke them to grow into their own perspective on society, culture, worldview and ultimately to challenge them in their Christ-like walk in this age, above all not neglecting to absorb the Word of God with voracious appetite, knowing that possibly, someday, it could be abridged, filtered or burned as well.

Motherhood is a Calling (And Where Your Children Rank)

(I'm working on the article below.....it looked perfect on my computer until a dear friend showed me what it looked like on hers! YIKES!!!!! Hopefully this explanation is readable. I'm obviously not a tech-y)

by Rachel Jankovic

Reprinted from www.desiringGod.org Copyright 2011 Rachel Jankovic. Used by permission.


A few years ago, when I just had four children and when the oldest was still three, I loaded them all up to go on a walk. After the final sippy cup had found a place and we were ready to go, my two-year-old turned to me and said, “Wow! You have your hands full!”

She could have just as well said, “Don’t you know what causes that?” or “Are they all yours?!”

Everywhere you go, people want to talk about your children. Why you shouldn’t have had them, how you could have prevented them, and why they would never do what you have done. They want to make sure you know that you won’t be smiling anymore when they are teenagers. All this at the grocery store, in line, while your children listen.

A Rock-Bottom Job?


The truth is that years ago, before this generation of mothers was even born, our society decided where children rank in the list of important things. When abortion was legalized, we wrote it into law.

Children rank way below college. Below world travel for sure. Below the ability to go out at night at your leisure. Below honing your body at the gym. Below any job you may have or hope to get. In fact, children rate below your desire to sit around and pick your toes, if that is what you want to do. Below everything. Children are the last thing you should ever spend your time doing.

If you grew up in this culture, it is very hard to get a biblical perspective on motherhood, to think like a free Christian woman about your life, your children. How much have we listened to partial truths and half lies? Do we believe that we want children because there is some biological urge, or the phantom “baby itch”? Are we really in this because of cute little clothes and photo opportunities? Is motherhood a rock-bottom job for those who can’t do more, or those who are satisfied with drudgery? If so, what were we thinking?


It's Not a Hobby

Motherhood is not a hobby, it is a calling. You do not collect children because you find them cuter than stamps. It is not something to do if you can squeeze the time in. It is what God gave you time for.

Christian mothers carry their children in hostile territory. When you are in public with them, you are standing with, and defending, the objects of cultural dislike. You are publicly testifying that you value what God values, and that you refuse to value what the world values. You stand with the defenseless and in front of the needy. You represent everything that our culture hates, because you represent laying down your life for another—and laying down your life for another represents the gospel.

Our culture is simply afraid of death. Laying down your own life, in any way, is terrifying. Strangely, it is that fear that drives the abortion industry: fear that your dreams will die, that your future will die, that your freedom will die—and trying to escape that death by running into the arms of death.


Run to the Cross

But a Christian should have a different paradigm. We should run to to the cross. To death. So lay down your hopes. Lay down your future. Lay down your petty annoyances. Lay down your desire to be recognized. Lay down your fussiness at your children. Lay down your perfectly clean house. Lay down your grievances about the life you are living. Lay down the imaginary life you could have had by yourself. Let it go.

Death to yourself is not the end of the story. We, of all people, ought to know what follows death. The Christian life is resurrection life, life that cannot be contained by death, the kind of life that is only possible when you have been to the cross and back.

The Bible is clear about the value of children. Jesus loved them, and we are commanded to love them, to bring them up in the nurture of the Lord. We are to imitate God and take pleasure in our children.


The Question Is How

The question here is not whether you are representing the gospel, it is how you are representing it. Have you given your life to your children resentfully? Do you tally every thing you do for them like a loan shark tallies debts? Or do you give them life the way God gave it to us—freely?

It isn’t enough to pretend. You might fool a few people. That person in line at the store might believe you when you plaster on a fake smile, but your children won’t. They know exactly where they stand with you. They know the things that you rate above them. They know everything you resent and hold against them. They know that you faked a cheerful answer to that lady, only to whisper threats or bark at them in the car.

Children know the difference between a mother who is saving face to a stranger and a mother who defends their life and their worth with her smile, her love, and her absolute loyalty.


Hands Full of Good Things

When my little girl told me, “Your hands are full!” I was so thankful that she already knew what my answer would be. It was the same one that I always gave: “Yes they are—full of good things!”

Live the gospel in the things that no one sees. Sacrifice for your children in places that only they will know about. Put their value ahead of yours. Grow them up in the clean air of gospel living. Your testimony to the gospel in the little details of your life is more valuable to them than you can imagine. If you tell them the gospel, but live to yourself, they will never believe it. Give your life for theirs every day, joyfully. Lay down pettiness. Lay down fussiness. Lay down resentment about the dishes, about the laundry, about how no one knows how hard you work.

Stop clinging to yourself and cling to the cross. There is more joy and more life and more laughter on the other side of death than you can possibly carry alone.

Wherein this Author Gets a Grip...

"Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous,
but grievous; nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable
fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby."
Hebrews 12:12.

Well, that about sums it up.

Am I the only one who had a Quiet Time where God practically spoke audibly about an area of weakness, and the only one who wrote down the near-audible conversation between her and the Lord, and made a commitment to put into practice the very thing brought into the light. And then within a few short hours of said Quiet Time, the opportunity arose to challenge that commitment, and she refused to do the thing?

It seems that everywhere I turned God has been reminding me about that Quiet Time where I committed to serving others without expectation of thanks, loving the unloveable and being generally selfless. I have an index thing on my desk with my memory verses on it, and the verse I'm supposed to review today begins "And let us not be weary in well-doing..." Gal 6:9. While folding clothes yesterday I was listening to a recording of a missionary who repeated the theme (to the point of mantra) of giving all possessions over to God. Then this morning, in my Andrew Murray devotional I read in 3 chapters in a row (I kept on reading the next devotion hoping to get to a new subject...) on being a doer of the Word and not a hearer only.

OK, Lord. I'll give it a go again.

Is the Doctrine of the Trinity Biblical?

My note to someone who was trying to save me from embarrassment over my "lack of understanding" about the trinity. Oh?

"Hi xxxxxx,

Thank you so much for taking the time to write the note explaining the reason that you were hesitant to post my response in the forum.....and save me from "public embarrassment", but what I shared was truthful in ascribing Creeds (Nicean & Athanasian which define and necessitate the belief in the Trinity) to early Catholicism, which is the basis for many statements of faith for membership to ministries that require attestation. These statements of faith have been adopted for 17 or so centuries now by mainstream Protestants and have become a litmus test of sorts of orthodoxy."

So, there are doctrines defined as “orthodox” and “non-orthodox” according to…....according to whom? Who is given the power to decide if something is orthodox or not? In the case of doctrines using words that are extra-biblical—and the word Trinity is not found in the Bible—one should find out where the doctrine originated, and why it is such an issue today.

The definition of the Godhead by those Christians who do not ascribe to the Catholic creedal confession of the Trinity (that would be millions of people beside myself) is generally as follows:

God: There is only one God (Deuteronomy 6:4). He is the creator of heaven and earth, and of all living beings. He has revealed Himself to humanity as the Father (Creator), in the son (Savior), and as the Holy Ghost (indwelling Spirit).

Father: God is a Spirit (John 4:24). He is the Eternal One, the Creator of all things, and the Father of all humanity by creation. He is the First and the Last, and beside Him there is no God (Isaiah 44:6). There was no God formed before Him; neither shall be there any after Him (Isaiah 43:10).

Son: Jesus is the Son of God according to the flesh (Romans 1:3) and the very God Himself according to the Spirit (Matthew 1:23). Jesus is the Christ (Matthew 16:16); the creator of all things (Colossians 1:16-17); God with us (Matthew 1:23); God made flesh (John 1:1-14); God manifested in the flesh (I Timothy 3:16);He which was, which is, and which is to come, the Almighty (Revelation 1:8);the mighty God, everlasting Father, and Prince of peace (Isaiah 9:6). Jesus Himself testified of His identity as God when He said, "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father" (John 14:7-11) and "I and my Father are one" (John 10:30). It took shedding of blood for the remission of the sins of the world (Hebrews 9:22), but God the Father was a Spirit and had no blood to shed. Thus He prepared a body of flesh and blood (Hebrews 10:5)and came to earth as a man in order to save us, for in Isaiah 43:11 He said, "Beside me there is no Saviour."

Holy Spirit: The Holy Spirit is not a third person in the Godhead, but rather the Spirit of God (the Creator), the Spirit of the resurrected Christ. The Holy Spirit comes to dwell in the hearts and lives of everyone who believes and obeys the gospel, as the comforter, Sustainer, and keeper (John 14:16-26; Romans 8:9-11).

I’ve noted below a brief history that I didn’t know as a new believer, but when I began studying historic Christianity while homeschooling our boys, I found fascinating.

The Nicene creed which was written at the Council of Nicea in A.D. 325 is well known for formally outlining Christian trinitarian thought but actually has its roots in pagan polytheism from thousands of years before and Greek philosophy and not in Biblical Christianity which we can see from early church history.

The concept of the Trinity was formally adopted during the 2nd and 3rd centuries as integral to orthodox Christianity (but to be adopted means the birth had to come from another source). The person credited with coining the term “trinity” was Tertullian, but like I said, triune worship goes back thousands of years before that. It was between A.D. 170-325 when early Christianity shifted from a strictly monotheistic view of God toward a form of trinitarianism which was really the birth of the Catholic age.

Records of early Mesopotamian civilizations show polytheistic religions although it has been proven that the earliest man believed in one God. (Abraham as opposed to his fellow citizens of Ur) The most interesting thing to note is that in polytheistic religions, the most common grouping of gods was a triad and this goes back thousands of years.

Consider this:

Ancient Sumeria (and later Assyria and Babylon) worshipped a trinity:
Anu – primary god of heaven, “father”
Enlil was the wind god and creator
Enki was the god of waters.

This Babylonian triad “consisted of three gods of roughly equal rank…whose inner-relationship is the essence of their natures”. Egypt also believed in a “transcendental, above creation and preexisting one, the god Amun” (Prof. George Hart, Univ. of London, professor of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics). Interesting: The god Amun was really three gods in one. Re was his face, Ptah his body and Amun, his hidden identity. These three were “combined as three embodiments or aspects of one supreme and triune deity.” A hymn written to Amun in the 14th century BC defines the Egyptian trinity “All gods are three: Amun, Re, Ptah; they have no equal.”

Will Durant, noted historian, along many others, have long noted that the idea of a divine trinity came from Egypt. The worship of the Egyptian triad Isis, Serapis and the child Horus probably accustomed the early church theologians to the idea of a triune god and was influential in the formation of the doctrine of the Trinity.

So, there were many trinities that the early Christians were exposed to. It’s key to note that the idea of the trinity was introduced later to the Romans but became so typical of Rome that it quickly spread as they worshipped Jupiter, Juno and Minerva. This is the culture that Christianity was birthed into.

It’s well known to many historians that Christianity did not destroy paganism, it adopted it. As homeschooling families, we have seen the debates surrounding pagan issues firsthand, as many aspire to a Christian walk that better resembles that of historic Christianity. They homechurch or attend churches which have homegroups, they decide not to celebrate Halloween or Easter (bunny/egg Easter) and opt for Reformation Day or Passover instead. Additionally, there is the great Christmas debate; many recognize the roots of this holiday to be rooted in Saturnalia. Wouldn’t it behoove us as believers to go to the root of the issue of paganism and not simply address the symptoms? The root is that the adoption of Christianity as the state religion by Constantine (himself a pagan priest) found it necessary to adopt the theology of the pagans to insure its widespread success. We know this from any homeschool history curriculum we use.

I thought you would find it interesting to note that worshipping a triune godhead is nothing new and has been around for millennia. The Jews however have always been commanded to worship the one true God, and have remained monotheistic. This is the primary issue that prevents them from accepting Jesus as the Messiah. Their children (orthodox Jews) are taught the Sh'ma from a very young age. They have not been able to comprehend a tritheistic view of God because it flies in the face of God as they know Him. Whereas a better understanding of the deity of Jesus, the sonship of Jesus and the nature of the Holy Spirit, being the indwelling Spirit of the one true God, would allow for their acceptance of Jesus as God.

So, if you’ve read this far, there are millions of Bible believing Christians (to not include such sects as Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons or Islam) that believe in one God revealed in three manifestations. I well recognize that not worshipping God as three, is “not orthodox” according to the doctrines of man, but is absolutely scriptural. These non-Trinitarian believers are “orthodox” in every other facet of Biblical Christianity but differ in this one point. It’s not simply a matter of semantics but one of understanding the nature of God’s command in Deuteronomy 6:4: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.”

Sources:
The Trinitarian Controversy by David Bernard
The Godhead Revealed by Britt Prince
Will the Real Heretics Please Stand Up by David Bercot
"The Origin of the Trinity from Paganism to Constantine" by Cher-El L. Hagensick

Namby Pamby Land

My boys just love the Geico commercial where the Rod Serling type character answers the question about whether or not Geico saves you money by asking rhetorically if a former drill instructor would make a poor therapist.

Watch here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaFy0x_Uixo

Their favorite, and oft-quoted gem, is bellowed by the ex-drill sergeant after the wimp on the couch assesses himself saying, “And that’s why yellow makes me sad, I think.” Sarge bellows, “You know what makes me sad? You do! Maybe we should chug on over to Namby Pamby Land and get you some self-confidence…!”

I guess it’s so funny because it strikes a chord with us living here in the Bible belt. It sometimes seems that we live in the midst of Christian Namby Pamby Land. Now, there are some really good things about living in a place where professors would quote scripture before a university debate, or a high school is willing to put up a sign asking people to pray for the family of a deceased student. That sort of thing might not happen much elsewhere, and especially wouldn't in some of the places I’ve lived. We have noticed that Bible belt living comes at a high price, however. The man we bought our house from said it best when describing our overly-churched community, “Have you noticed that since everyone is a Christian, no one is a Christian?”

I think the answer to "unChristian Christianity" lays in a person’s salvation experience and the lack of effect it has on their lifestyle. I never fail to be amazed when a person calls himself a Christian, and continues to live just like the unbelievers (or in our case quasi-believers) around him. It just seems logical (and biblical) that a radical conversion would be followed by a radical change of life. How can someone claim a conversion and never “convert” from living like unbelievers?

One of my shockers, and I mention this because of the season, has been meeting people in churches and Christian circles who continue to celebrate Halloween. What?! Dumping all-things-Halloween was no-brainer number one when I became born again. Why would a person who claims the blood of Christ continue to celebrate the highest holy day of satan? Not only that, but many do in the same way that pagans from centuries past have--with jack-o-lanterns, costumes, “scary” imagery, and justify it because it’s “so much fun for the kids.” Well, so were drugs and alcohol when I was an unbeliever but I recognized the dangers and prohibitions in scripture when I became born again, and I “put those things away.”

Living in harmony with satan doesn’t seem like a wise way to “train up a child” according to the Word. When the Lord himself commanded Israel to not practice divination, sorcery and witchcraft, did he exclude New Testament believers? If so, then why did many which formerly practiced sorcery burn their books and scrolls in Acts 19:19? I feel the scripture is showing us what radically saved believers put out of their life when they became born-again. But, welcome to Namby Pamby Land where the "sacrifice" of putting away carnality may stand in the way of our children's "fun." What better time to stand up and instruct our children than to desensitize them to wickedness, especially in the form of a satanic holiday...(holy-day).

I stand convinced that there are many similarities between living in Christian Namby Pamby Land and living during the time of the Exodus or Constantine’s day when Christianity became the official religion of Rome. Since everyone was forced to “become Christians” under threat of Roman government punishment, the pagans brought their beliefs and practices into the church and caused the initial weakening of Christianity. During the Exodus, the “mixed multitude” (former Egyptians and false-god-worshippers) caused the Israelites to sin repeatedly by bringing their pagan practices into their midst.We have a mixed multitude with us in our churches today, with one foot in the church and one foot in the world and this causes the weakening of Christ’s body on earth. As radically-saved believers, who are new creatures in Christ, we ought not behave like, dress like, think like, or be entertained like the mixed multitude in our assembly.

Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!

Did you ever get that funky feeling about something that on the outside is seemingly harmless? Maybe you felt that something wasn’t quite as innocent as it seemed? Some things, all “light and fluffy” on the outside can have some seriously dangerous roots. Why is it that Christians, seemingly “strong” Christians, can be duped into occultic and dangerous fields, all the while pooh-poohing those who are trying to encourage them to reconsider participating in it?

Ok, I’ll stop talking in hyperbole and say what I’m trying to say. In doing some research on why Christians shouldn’t celebrate Halloween, I came across a very intriguing information page for wannabe Pagans. I’m talking young pagans whose “mean” parents won’t let them practice Wicca.

I’ll get back to Halloween in another post, but this I just had to share. This is nuts.

Here are some suggestions given by Patti Wigington on some things that young people can do to “prepare” for their future practice of Wicca:

Learn about Plants
Learn about horticulture, herbs and vegetable gardening. Volunteer at a park or nature center, so that by the time you’re out on your own, you’ll know exactly why herbs work the way they do. (Hmmmm)

Study History
Instead of learning about dead white guys, check out Roman gods, Ptolemy or Celtic history. Read Ronald Hutton’s The Druids or books on the Celts. Later on when you begin practicing, you’ll understand rituals a lot better if you can imagine them in a historical context. (again, hmmmmmmm)

Get Cooking
If you can learn to follow a recipe, you can learn to follow spell and ritual instructions.

Volunteer
Be assured that most covens expect their members to be useful members of the community as well.

Study Your Parent’s Religion
(This one surprised me) Why would you want to study Christianity/Judaism/Islam as a precursor to studying Wicca? Well, because believe it or not, a lot of times there’s a lot more there than you’ve really paid attention to. Find out what it is that you disagree or agree with….

Look at the Stars
Learn about the constellations, the movement of the planets, all of the things that go on thousands of light years away. It will come in useful later on, particularly if you develop an interest in astrology. (Not to be confused with astronomy)

Get Healthy
Take a yoga class or meditate daily. Learn to prepare healthy meals for your entire family.

Trace Your Roots
Think you might be interested in Norse religion because your family is Scandinavian? Start learning about your ancestors with whom you share blood.

Be a Steward of the Earth
Nearly all Pagans and Wiccans regard our planet as sacred, so quit throwing your Cheetos wrappers on the ground. Take some time to learn about things you can do to help save the planet. (Oh brother!!) Begin a recycling program at your school. (And my favorite) The earth is our mother, so learn to treat her with respect.

Learn a Skill
Sewing, making jewelry and candlemaking can all benefit the local coven. (Oh, please.)

Granted, some of these things can have some value but others validated my feelings that they had distinctively “New Age” flavor. Remember that term from the 80’s? Why is it that many no longer recognize, let alone fear, the new age influence? Is it because we, as Christians are desensitized to the dangers of new age and wiccan theology?

Several of the points above are, or to me should be, no-brainers that we as Christians should be very cautious with, or avoid altogether. Unfortunately, many Christians I know have no problem with them, notably: herbology, studying ancient Egyptian, Roman and Greek gods, astrology, yoga, meditation, and “Green” living in hopes to “save” our planet. I did find it intriguing as I was reminded that wiccans tend to be stricter than many Christian churches in making sure that their members are contributing members of their coven and their community. While many church leaders are doing little more than ear-tickling, and placating weak church members in the hopes of attracting and keeping them, wiccans expect "useful" members. Oh, does this grieve me.

After having a time of Bible study with my family this evening, we discussed the importance of recognizing the indoctrination of the world. With God's prompting, I felt increasingly sensitized to seemingly harmless practices that could possibly rob me of my sensitivity to His instructions to avoid the appearance of evil and the unfruitful works of darkness.

Grudges

In doing devotions, the boys and I have been reading a great little book titled Created for Work by Bob Schultz. All the chapters are great but we were quite tickled as we read the chapter about grudges. I think everyone at one time or another gets tempted to nurse a grudge, and maybe the more stubborn we are, the more successful we are at keeping that grudge alive. Schultz adds some great insight using the example of a husbands that holds a grudge against his wife:

It's hard to maintain a consistent grudge. When his old friend calls on the phone, this husband merrily chats with him for fifteen minutes. As he hangs up,the husband almost turns to tell his wife about what was said, but remembers that he is holding a grudge. He puts on the solemn face and continues his silence.

My sons and I laughed at this picture but recognized its truthfulness in light of resentments we've held and seen held for short times among family and friends. Schultz brings his thoughts on grudges to a head when he writes:

When you hold a grudge you think you are punishing the other person by withholding your wonderful self. “I won’t smile at them; they’ll feel the pain; that’ll serve them right.” But the opposite is true. Holding a grudge is punishment on you. You lose the privilege of delivering God’s water of life. You stagnate and stink. You’re the one emotionally drained. You miss God’s joy and fellowship.

What a challenging thought as we enter our day, mindful of harboring resentments and nursing grudges against those around us.

“Don't grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!” James 5:9