Spiritual Gifts

Ok, in your devotions this week, you guided to "gifted to serve"
(http://buildingchurch.net/g2s-i.htm) to evaluate your spiritual gifts. I've done this before, but I'm a firm believer in not asking you to do something I'm not willing to do myself. Here were my top four in order of most to less most.

Anyone surprised that a mystery fairy who offers wit and wisdom to miscellaneous followers is high in wisdom, teaching and knowledge? I'll just have to let those of you fairy followers who have been over to the hollow log attest for the fact that it's one of my tops. Hospitality rounds out my top four. Anyone want to come over for cocoa??

Anyone else want to share? What were your tops? Were you surprised or not? How do you feel about your gifts?

Blessings,
The B.D.F.

Love for the Loves

Got the following updates about Jeff Love. For those of you who aren't in the know, this is the friend of the Dunham's working through a bone marrow transplant. Keep them in your prayers.

Jeff asked me to just give a quick note of praise from him.

The doctor just visited him and was so pleased with the way he is progressing and the way his counts are coming up, he said if things continue to improve at this rate he might be able to come home as early as this Monday, January 12!!!!! I can’t tell you how excited he is! He will still have out patient monitoring, treatment, and blood product support, but at least he can sleep in his own bed until he is admitted again at the end of the month for the high dose chemo and stem cell transplant.

We are so thankful and feel so blessed! Thank you all for your continued prayers on behalf of Jeff and our family!!!!!

God Bless!

Jan Love

I forgot in all my excitement to update the chain…..I’m actually at home for two weeks (the Dr. is giving me a little reprieve) to rest up for the next round of high dose chemo and then the transplant. At first I wanted to just get it over with, but after 26 days in the stem cell unit at the hospital for the first round of chemo I REALLY needed a break. I feel SO blessed to have this time with my family and just to sleep in my own bed and recover….Again, I want thank all my brothers and sisters in Christ for the all the prayers being lifted up to our Heavenly Father for me and especially my family at this time….I’m actually studying the book of Psalms and today read Psalm 12:6 which says “The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times”……..I thank God for the “extra “ time to study and dig into His word and the assurances He gives me in everything I read…… Wed. morning I go back to the hospital for another bone marrow biopsy to see how effective the first round of chemo was …….

In Christ,

Jeff Love

Just a quick update on my medical situation …….I had another bone marrow biopsy yesterday and the results are amazing, the induction chemo therapy I had has reduced the leukemia BACK to myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) or pre-leukemia as it is called…….I still will have another round of chemo and then the stem cell transplant that will happen the last week of January……We are praising God for this news as the leukemia is actually reversed for now and this should make the stem cell transplant more manageable…….I want to thank our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for this answer to prayer and I want to thank all the faithful prayer warriors out there for lifting me and my family up in prayer during this time…..

In Christ,

Jeff Love

A New Look

For some reason the B.D.F. was craving a toasted meatball sub last night. I'm sure it had nothing to do with the new look of The Grotto. Fabulous!

Also heard that there was some great action and you talked to the big man himself about getting involved in the church. Anyone made a decision from that?? Taking on a new project?? Wanting to guest blog for the Fairy?

Give me a shout-out.
The B.D.F.

Body Parts

I Corinthians 12:14-20: Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. 15If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 16And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 17If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

If you really want to have some fun...get a group of friends together, butcher paper and your markers. Have someone lay down on the paper and trace around him or her. Now label the person you've drawn with how you fit in the body.

Are you an ear because you listen well?
Are you an eye because you can spot when things need change?
Are you a mouth because you speak God's words?
Are you the hand of a servant or the foot of an evangelist?
Are you an elbow or a tendon that ties parts together?

Can you guess what I am? Even though I speak through the written word, I still consider that being a mouth. But even saying I'm a mouth includes so many pieces. A tongue to manipulate and sculpt. Teeth to chew up the info...there are the most of those. Lips to close or open as needed. Taste buds to test the spirits. And so many more things that I can't see.

There are also nerves and cavities which is why I need to make sure I'm brushing and flossing my part of the body with continued regularity.

I'd love to see some pictures of this project!! Time to get out your crayons and markers boys and girls and get to work on some art.

Blessings,
The B.D.F.

Involvement in the Church

Tonight you talked about getting involved in the church (check out this picture of the inflatable church - so not kidding!). Living where we do, you have a unique opportunity to do exactly that. If you lived in a big town and went to a mega-church they would say you are too young to get involved in many of the areas of ministry. Not so here!

I started singing in church choir in high school and would duck out of my post office summer job to get to the early service to sing with our first ever worship band (gasp!). You have talents and as you are getting closer to college and independence, now is the time to start getting a feel for how you fit into the church body as a whole.

What do you currently do in your church? What do you think would be fun to try? What's stopping you? This week you will get blogs about getting together with your friends and doing an art project, your spiritual gifts testing (and mine), and my family history of giving really bad gifts. Log on to see how all of these relate to being involved in the body of Christ.

Blessings,
The B.D.F.


Involvement in the Church

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Poverty

Don't know how many of you were in church on Sunday, but if you weren't, you missed out!!

The youth band rocked the house and introduced us to a great new song: God of this City. Many things are yet to be done in this city!! I also heard we have three brand new members of the body of Christ. So exciting!

Props to our own Frank who shared his testimony with everyone. I was impressed with his desire to grow closer to God while still honoring the wishes of his parents. The true mark of someone with a heart for the things of God.

We also heard from Steve Moen of Living Hope Ministries in Minneapolis who told us that there is no word for poverty in the Bible. Interesting. He said that 'poverty' in the Bible always indicates a lack.

What are you lacking today, Fairy Followers? After that service yesterday I'm feeling pretty full, I must say, but there are still things lacking in our lives. Do you seem lacking in fellowship with other believers? Bravery to share the things of Christ? Self-esteem to love yourself as Christ loves you?

Ask and you shall receive.

Blessings,
The B.D.F.

Always Be Prepared

Motto of the Boy Scouts of America - don't ya know. Be Prepared. As I was working on the study for the Bible Memorization section of our H.A.B.I.T.S. study my Microsoft Word Clipboard quit working. Which meant that I couldn't do my usual side by side of the devotion with a version of the Bible from crosswalk.com.
Do you see where this is going?

Yeah, I didn't have all of the verses memorized so I had to keep flipping back and forth and typing three and four words at a time. I quit, closed everything and prayed it was fixed when I reopened. Talk about not practicing what you preach. I did know the general content, which I guess is better than nothing and in this day and age of technology and information super-highways it's easy to find what we need without the pesky problem of memorizing them all.

Romans 1:28 "Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done." And the list of "what ought not to be done" goes on for another four verses if you want to check it out.

So, what do you think? Is it still important to memorize scripture? Why or why not? The B.D.F. awaits your thoughts.

Feed Me!

The first play I ever did was "Little Shop of Horrors." Have you seen it? Steve Martin and Rick Moranis did a movie version of it many years ago. The premise of the show is a little man gains a big reputation by feeding this plant from outer space that eats only....blood. He names the plant Aundrey II in honor of the girl he loves.

Throughout the play we learn that Audrey II (who has a voice like James Earl Jones) is always hungry. And he's always letting Seymore know by whispering, shouting, singing "Feed Me!"

Our soul does the same. Sometimes it is the flesh side of our personality begging for food - like gossip, cheating, impure thoughts. Other times, much more quietly, our spiritual side is asking to be fed through the scriptures, prayer and teaching. Which voice do you hear more often?

Romans 8:5 "Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires."

Feed your soul...and hunger no more.
Until next time,
The B.D.F.

Wallpapering the Mind

During my Bible study this week I came across a great illustration. The teacher likened memorizing scripture to changing the wallpaper in your mind. Living in a hollow log that reads like a show home for the 1980 wallpaper catalog, I relate.

First we need to strip off the old stuff. That means getting out the steamer and the fabric softener and getting the old stuff off. The old stuff in our mind is the lies that Satan tells us about us. Lies are his native tongue. "You're too fat/skinny/old/young/smart/stupid/silly/serious." Those ones.

Then we need to wallpaper our minds with the truth. We do that by memorizing scriptures that overturn the lies we've been believing. (Like Psalm 45:11 "The king is enthralled by your beauty; honor him, for he is your lord. ")

Nature abhors a vacuum. Any physics students out there know what I mean? It means that you can't just get rid of something, physics requires that something else take it's place. If you try to empty your mind of lies but don't replace them with the truth, then the lies will just flood back in. You need to fill up the space between your ears with truth.

What lies are you stripping away? What truth are you replacing them with?? Let us know.
Until next time,
The B.D.F.

Bible Memorization Week

Happy Thursday, Fairy Followers.

Started our week of Bible Memorization last night. How do you feel about it? Do you feel like you have a good start or feel like you barely know John 3:16??

Here's the Devotional for any of you who couldn't make it or lost yours. Three extra posts coming your way this week including discussions about wallpaper, a man-eating plant and my computer woes. To see how these topics relate to Bible Memorization...check back.

Until then,
The B.D.F.

Bible Memorization

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Resolutions

I have made the same resolution to lose weight that I've made for the last six years. I'm failing miserably. I need someone to keep me accountable.

Unfortunately, I live with Metabolism Man. He can eat an entire cow in a single sitting and not gain an ounce. He doesn't like sweets and he's on his feet all day. I ask him, repeatedly, to help me eat better, remind me to work out, those types of things. Problem is: Metabolism Man is a pushover for a good pout.

"But honey...I need ice cream. Just tonight." And then he flies to the store and brings home a bucket. And I eat it all. AAACK!!

The point is, I'm not going to lose an ounce if I depend on Metabolism Man to be my accountability partner. I need someone tough. Someone who will close the fridge and tell me no. Someone who cares about my long-term health, not my short-term emotions.

The same is true of any accountability relationship. Don't let your partner get away with sin because it was "a bad day." Our goal is to help each other strive toward holiness. So, put away the puppy-dog pout. Listen, learn and grow. Your thighs and your soul will thank you.

Blessings, B.D.F.

The Forgiveness Post

The following question and response were posted last week. I felt it was important enough to move to the front. My Fairy Feelers have been tingling with the things that are being said. You all are thinking and listening to God and working to do his will. I'm very proud of all of you! With the fact that the sermon this morning was about this very topic, I wanted to post this up top and then add what Pastor Steve had to say.

Anonymous said...

So...I got to thinking the other night about forgiveness (so this isn't directly related but it does involve relationships and trust). Alright, two people are in a dating situation and one of them does something that would normally break trust and possibly the relationship. The other wants to forgive the person and just 'forget' it, but we never really forget... so, if the trust isn't there...can the relationship survive? If you end it then isn't like not forgiving them or is it just not trusting?

Just Wondering

Bible Devotion Fairy said...

Ah, Dear Anonymous, I envy not your situation. Here are two things I know:

We are commanded to forgive.
Matthew 18:21: Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" 22. Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times."

We are also told to not associate with people who are a detriment to our walk.
Proverbs 12:26: A righteous person is cautious in friendship, but the way of the wicked leads them astray.

Proverbs 13:20: One who walks with wise men grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.

Trust is a precious gift. It is something to be earned and cherished. And if someone in a relationship makes a choice to violate that trust it may be grounds for retreating from the relationship (this applies to friends or “more than friends”) or it may mean working together to overcome and rebuild the trust.

Let me make this practical in a non-relationship situation. Let’s say that Joy is running for president. She has a great new education policy that is going to make her a winner hands-down. Roy is on her staff and decides that it is in his best interest to go to Joy’s opponent and tell them her idea. The opponent takes her idea as his own and wins the election.

If you were Joy would you fire Roy? You would be a fool not to, right? He stole your idea, caused you to lose the election. Can you fire him and still forgive him? I purport, yes. Of course you can. It doesn’t mean you want him dog sitting for you any time soon.

The entire purpose of a dating relationship is to discover more about the person you are dating. If this is something you don’t want to have to forgive in a spouse, I would let this one more on. Trust is imperative in a relationship but even marriages have to suffer through some breaks in trust and you need to decide which breaks you would be able to get over again and again - for little quirks in marriage become really annoying after 1, 5, 10, 30 years.

Does this help?

You’re in my prayers,
The B.D.F.

Here are the additional things that Pastor Steve said this morning that I wanted to add:
1. Forgiving is not forgetting
2. Forgiving does not mean everything will be like it was before. The offender doesn't automatically and instantaneously return to previous status.

He also reminded me of one important point: We will never be able to forgive others until we experience God's forgiveness. Haven't yet done a salvation post, but please log on and ask if you don't know what it means to have God's forgiveness.

Blessings and get back to work you four-day weekend slackers :).
B.D.F.

The Leak

So, the water department showed up at my house at 7:30 this morning. You would think that dew-drop tanks are easy to maintain but...

Anyway, the truth of the matter is that my basement was harboring a little secret. A leaking pipe. (Only one of many issues in our little house.) Don't ask me when the leak began. A while ago - weeks. But from my location up above I could pretend it didn't exist. Then, late at night, like the beating of Poe's "Tell Tale Heart" I could hear it dripping far below...driving me to the brink of insanity.

I begged the maintenance crew to alleviate the issue. They would have. In time. But since it wasn't running through the meter, they chose to let it go. It wasn't causing any damage, it was because of a problem from the water company so we weren't doing anything wrong, right? Ah...wrong.

So, there I was, still in my P.J.'s - trying to get everyone off to school and suddenly I was surrounded by water guys and plumbers and they were air hammering my basement floor to try and find a little piece of pipe in good enough shape to attach new pipe to. Oh, and we're going to have to dig up the yard this summer to replace the water line and the sewer pipe. I sooo can't wait.

The point being, my secret was uncovered. That's kind of their purpose, right? We hold them in until they finally come to light. And they will always come to light. When it is most inconvenient. Here's where your accountability partner comes in. She stays on your back until you get rid of the problem. He reminds you that it's easier to face the music now.

Listen to them. Listen to God. Give up your secret sins and find peace in Him.

Blessings,
The B.D.F.

H.A.B.I.T.S. - Accountablility

How was Plumbline? What are your thoughts on accountability? Have you ever tried an accountable relationship to help you reach a goal?

Tell the Fairy Followers all about it.

Here's your study, in case you didn't get it. And click on the link to the right and become an official "Fairy Follower" so that you are notified when the new blogs are posted. There will be two new ones over the next week telling tales of accountability here in the Hollow Log.

Blessings,
The B.D.F.

P.S. If you're confused because the pages don't go together in the view, you are right to be so. You have to print the pages and then layer them and fold them into a little book. Just pay attention to page numbers and you'll be fine. I'm confident you can all count to twelve.


Accountability

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Ok, I feel like this post should be accompanied by the sounding of trumpets and the waving of wands. An anonymous poster asked if we could publish the devos to the blog - so that if you missed Plumbline one night you might still be able to download the devotions. I think I have figured it out thanks to a fellow blogger!

To print this, click on ipaper and select print. Let me know if you have any problems.
Yours, The B.D.F.

Hang Time

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The Legend of Nessie

Dear Lads and Lassies,

Gazing upon the emerald waters of my pond today, I was looking for the lake-dwelling mythic creature who was supposed to live in my neighborhood.

The frog that keeps track of such things told me that Nessie had given up her home near the hollow log and hit the road to live a life of adventure, excitement and meeting all the right people. Can this be true? Have you stories of the fabled Nessie?

Please share them and let me know she's okay.
Until next time, the B.D.F.

Hang Time with God

It was so nice to see all of your smiling faces back together again after a cold and snowy Christmas break.

We kicked off our H.A.B.I.T.S. study last night with Hang Time with God. What did you think?

Have you started on your devotions yet? It's a great way to start spending a little time with God - without a whole lot of pressure. This week we're talking about a process that you can use to make your time with God productive. I don't know about you, but I like things laid out for me. Don't just tell me what to do, give me a few hints as to how I can do it. That's what your devotion books are designed to do and you will find them filled with practical application.

We welcome your questions and comments here in the hollow log and will respond as quickly as possible. The B.D.F. has a bit of an internet addiction and her glow may start to fade if you don't at least leave a comment or a little shout out...dawgs.

Until next time, the Bible Devotion Fairy.

Now Just Wait a Minute!

Greetings Fairy Followers,

'Tis the season...of waiting. Waiting for the school year to end, waiting for the weather to warm up, waiting for college and scholarship acceptance (or rejection) letters. I've been doing a bit of waiting myself and can say, quite frankly, it stinks!

In his book, Visioneering, Andy Stanley, Atlanta pastor coined the phrase, "Waiting time is not wasted time." If you can grab onto this idea--it can change the way you wait!

David said it best in Psalm 5:3, "In the morning O Lord, I lay my requests before you and I wait in expectation!"

Waiting is holding on and praying expectantly!

Waiting is watching for a signal from God when to move!

Waiting is a time to observe the needs of others around you!

Waiting is the place of listening to the still, small voice in your heart!

Waiting is not a lonely activity, if you invite someone to wait with you!

This week, wait in joyful expectation of what is to come. And live in the now, striving for the Lord's will in your life.

Blessings, The B.D.F.

Districts Photos

Tuesday, 1/6 8:23pm. Just discovered a video from Disticts on Dutton's website. I saw one familiar face...do you??
http://www.duttonband.com/

Ok, Gang, Got tired of squishing all the pictures I've been harvesting into the previous post - it wrecks the flow of the verbiage...don't ya know?

Here are some more snaps from the event.

Districts

The brave souls who traveled to Green Bay this weekend have returned in one piece...and in the case of the Wilke's van...more than one piece. Really more sharing than we counted on this weekend. The Bible Devotion Fairy tucked into a pair of socks (you boys really should bring clean socks on a trip...I'm just saying.)

Dutton has become out new youth group mascot band. Their worship rocked the house and our souls. 3-2-1-Penguins...oh, I mean 3-2-1 Improve...kept us in stitches. And P.T.L. those were the only kind we needed. Watch yourself at youth group this week - the spam-weilder will be in attendance if you act out. Flatfoot56 introduced some of us to our first mosh-pit...and you will excuse us if we need you to repeat yourself for the next few days.

Like Pinocchio and the Velveteen Rabbit we were challenged to be Real and alerted to the process of sin.
First you Notice
Then you Think about the sin
Then you Act on the temptation
Which leads to Paying the Price (and there always is one)

So, what was your perspective on Districts? What did you learn? What was the best or the worst?

Your Listening Ears

Last night one of the little flutter pixies in my grove came skipping up to my log and announced, "I can't hear God. I sit here really quiet but I just can't hear him."

I didn't have the heart to tell her that she would probably spend the next ninety years figuring out how to hear the voice of God. My willow reed bookshelf has a number of volumes committed to the topic. Including "How to Hear from God" by Joyce Meyers. Maybe if I finished it I'd be closer to becoming an expert. Maybe.

The truth of the matter is, I don't think this is as difficult as we make it out to be. It just takes us committing to things that don't come naturally. Like...practicing solitude. Being alone just doesn't fit into most of our lives. Neither does being quiet. Pay attention to your life today. How often are you alone and quiet? No music, no talking (to others or yourself), no friends or family.

I think my time of quiet today totaled the amount of time I was in the shower. Even going to bed I turn on the tunes and then wake up to music.

So, fair humans, how do you hear from God? How do you know when God is speaking and when you might be hearing other voices? Leave a comment - share your thoughts.

Until next time, The B.D.F.

The Fairy Wakes

Greetings Children of God!

It is the first week of the New Year and we are getting ready to start our new study on habits. Apropo don't you think? (Yes, I use big words. Get over it. Go to dictionary.com and look it up if you need to. Then you'll score better on the S.A.T. and come back and thank me for it later.)

Habits are a funny thing.
There are some I'd like to have. The habit of rising before dawn every day to work out, spend time with God and clean the entire house before the other fairies wake to mess it up.

There are some of which I'd like to rid myself. The habit of indulging in fairy berry muffins after each and every meal. The habit of raising my wand in anger when provoked. The habit of "Gossip Girl."

We aren't talking about these habits. We're talking about H.A.B.I.T.S...Hang Time with God, Accountability, Bible Memorization, Involvement in the Church, Tithing, and Scripture Study.

So, great and tall, humans living above...what are your habits? What do you want to add? Subtract? Multiply or Divide?