My Internet research on today's popular 'Christian' writers, speakers and ministers is leading me to places I didn't know existed. Before I get into individuals, you need to read the following article so you can begin to understand what's happening in today's so-called 'church'. I'm shocked at what I'm finding and I'm concerned about what is being accepted as truth. We live in a time of deep deception and error and we need to be people who search the Word of God and use it daily as our standard for living and ministering to others. The following article is but an excerpt, and I encourage you to go to the web site I've given and read it in its entirety. Please, if you have concerns about what I'm posting .. if you think I may be wrong, please let me know. I'm open to discussion about these issues and only want the best for each of us who know Christ as our Savior.

"When I first began writing in the field in the late 70s and early 80s the term "Spiritual Formation" was hardly known, except for highly specialized references in relation to the Catholic orders. Today it is a rare person who has not heard the term. Seminary courses in Spiritual Formation proliferate like baby rabbits. Huge numbers are seeking to become certified as Spiritual Directors to answer the cry of multiplied thousands for spiritual direction."1 Richard Foster


What is spiritual formation and what is its premise? According to Roger Oakland, spiritual formation came upon the church like an unsuspecting avalanche:

A move away from the truth of God's Word to a mystical form of Christianity has infiltrated, to some degree, nearly all evangelical denominations. Few Bible teachers saw this avalanche coming. Now that it is underway, most do not realize it has even happened. The best way to understand this process is to recall what happened during the Dark Ages when the Bible became the forbidden book. Until the Reformers translated the Bible into the language of the common people, the great masses were in darkness. When the light of God's Word became available, the Gospel was once again understood. I believe history is repeating itself. As the Word of God becomes less and less important, the rise in mystical experiences escalates, and these experiences are presented to convince the unsuspecting that Christianity is about feeling, touching, smelling, and seeing God. The postmodern mindset is the perfect environment for fostering spiritual formation. This term suggests there are various ways and means to get closer to God and to emulate him. Thus the idea that if you do certain practices, you can be more like Jesus. Proponents of spiritual formation erroneously teach that anyone can practice these mystical rituals and find God within. Having a relationship with Jesus Christ is not a prerequisite.

In a DVD called Be Still, which promotes contemplative prayer, Richard Foster said that contemplative prayer is for anyone and that by practicing it, one becomes "a portable sanctuary" for "the presence of God." Rather than having the indwelling of the person of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, spiritual formation through the spiritual disciplines supposedly transforms the seeker by entering an altered realm of consciousness.

To read the complete article, go to:
www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/newsletter100807.htm#LETTER.BLOCK6

Update on Ginny .... My Mom talked with Ginny's niece at the hospital this morning and Ginny has greatly improved and, Lord willing, should be able to go home soon.

Thank you all for praying for her.

Please pray for my Mom's cousin, Ginny; she's had major heart problems and has undergone a traumatic surgery and is having mental confusion on top of all that. She's in a hospital in Ohio.

Thank you!

Hi Ladies,

Can't believe it's March already ... but it is! The sunshine is beautiful, but belies the fact it is COLD outside. Not that I've been out today, I'm taking my husband's word for it. My day will consist of mopping / vacuuming & dusting ... re-doing cushions for the front porch furniture and whatever else I find to do.

It is SO GOOD to be well enough to do housework! What a blessing to be able to get myself out of bed ... I think of Joni Erickson Tada who's paralyzed, and remember that I was once like that ... how grateful I am to be able to do what I do in any given day. To brush my teeth myself ... to shower & wash my hair ... myself ... to get dressed ... myself ... such blessings we have in so-called 'little' things. None of the above are 'little' to me. The ability to do them attests to the graciousness of our Lord in granting me health and strength to do them.

I went to church Sunday .. the first time I've been there in 4 weeks. Our Pastor is ill and should have been home resting ... we steered clear of each other and from a distance he said "Louise, I'm giving you a hug, okay?" That was fine with me. I'll take long-distance hugs anytime someone is not feeling well. He said it was simply too late on Saturday to call someone to do the sermon on Sunday, so he was there.

I've also been scrap booking for our youngest grand-girl Erica. I am officially caught up with her album and have determined I'll copy pictures to a disk & have them printed rather than print them here at home ... it's too expensive. It's been good that even though I've been in for a few weeks, I've been well enough to work on something I enjoy doing. My Fred asked me recently "when are you finished with a scrap book" ... and I told him you work on them as long as you want to and one day give them to each granddaughter.

Also, I've been doing additional research on some of the more popular 'Christian' speakers and I'm not liking what I'm finding. It seems the more public they are, the more we need to be careful about what they're teaching. Beth Moore, Rick Warren & Joel Osteen come to mind. I may post some of what I've learned about their teachings and you can evaluate them for yourselves.

Had the priests and prophets of old taught as some of these folks do, they would have been 'cut off' ... or killed, in the Old Testament. Their teachings would have been seen for what they were and they would have been stopped. We're not that drastic today and sadly, too few of us investigate what is being taught. We shouldn't have to when someone professes to be a Christian! But we are to be as wise as serpents and harmless as doves, and we need to be people who rightly divide the Word of God and use caution and wisdom and discernment in what we listen to. Not everyone who says "Lord, Lord" have a right relationship with Christ.

I shall close for now & get on with the day's work .. I've been up here typing while the floors dry downstairs, and they should be dry by now.

Blessings to you all,

Louise

Hi folks, may this find you all well. I am improving and grateful for each good day I have. Of course I'm grateful for all my days, but the healthy ones make everything so much easier.

I have something to share with you ... I mentioned recently my reading books by John Eldridge and how much I enjoyed them. Well, after a 'check' in my spirit, I've done some research on Mr. Eldridge and was surprised to learn his teaching isn't as Scripturally sound as I thought it was. Here's what I found on a respected web site:

"Eldredge is likely the most popular proponent of the heresy known as Open Theism. Certainly his reach is far greater than the theologians who teach this. Open theism is the belief that God is only partially aware of what is going to happen in the future. When He looks into the future He sees the possibilities that will arise and may even know the consequences of those possibilities, but He does not know which option we will take. Thus when God formed Adam and Eve and told them not to eat of the tree, He sat back and waited eagerly to see what they would do. He was surprised and dismayed when they ate of the tree and immediately set about forming “plan b.” If we look at the Bible, then, we see a God who is vulnerable and nearly helpless, continually waiting for people to respond and hoping that they will exercise their free will in a way that will please Him."

I found this article at http://www.challies.com/archives/general-news/john-eldredge.php and you can go there to read the article in whole. And it's not just this site that has concerns about Mr. Eldridge, there are others and you can find them by doing a search of John Eldridge and his theology.

Why do I bring this up? Because I'm concerned about what I read and what I recommend to others to read. I did glean some good things from the two books that I read by Mr. Eldridge, but it's important for the day we're in to be able to clearly identify the eternal truth of Scripture from what makes me feel good now. I will take the good I've learned and leave the rest and I will not recommend his books to anyone else.

A former pastor of ours, and some of you out there know him, Pastor Mitchell, said this years ago: "Rat poison is made up of 98% grain ... it lures animals so they'll eat it, not knowing that the 2% will kill them". So it goes with what passes as Biblical today ... enough grain to make us feed on it, and we're not even aware that the poison it contains can kill. I'm open to discussion on this and trust you know I speak of it because I'm concerned for the well-being of our souls.

Blessings to you all.

I am thanking the Lord for His mercy tonight. I had my first appointment with my new lung doctor this afternoon and before I saw her I had to had lung function testing done. I have been concerned that function levels could have reduced due to the increase in Bronchiectasis. Praise the good Lord, my lung function hasn't changed since my last test which was done about 6 months ago. What a blessing!

Also, I truly like my new doctor. She's a positive person, with a big smile and a warm handshake. We reviewed my current course of treatment and medications and she said I'm doing all the right things. She told me to live as healthy a lifestyle as I can and to stay out of crowds, especially during the winter months. She said she knows this is difficult because we live such enclosed lives during winter; but, for my well being, I need to avoid being in confined places with lots of people as much as I can. I can do that. I truly can. I can let my church family know that while I love them a lot, we'll need to keep our distance for awhile on Sundays. We Christians are usually kissy-huggy people aren't we? Well, that will need to change for me, at least 'till winter's over.

I thank each of you for praying for me. This has been another journey of counting it all joy and trusting the good Lord to work things for His glory and my good.

My love to each of you. God willing, I'll write more later this week.

I've not fallen off the planet Ladies ... just busy with other things this week and resting a lot. I'm still short of breath and congested but have an appt. with lung specialist on Monday afternoon.

Went today for phlebotomy ... thankfully the nurse was able to get 500cc of blood in one vein! That is an exceptional blessing. I basically have just one vein strong enough to get that much blood and it's on the side of my right wrist. I am always grateful that I'm there so they can take something out, not put something in, because I go to the cancer center to have phlebotomy's done. Others there were getting chemo today. There's always something to be thankful for, isn't there?

Now I'll go read your blogs & check up on you all and then go to bed.

Blessings to you!