History is Important!

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. (Romans 15:4 NIV)

Last week our Academy students engaged in a Twitter Chat. The topic was the historical speech made by then President Truman after the dropping of the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima Japan. We debated wether we should have dropped it. It was a great debate full of thoughtful comments by our students. It was a great e-learning moment. I thoroughly enjoy those moments of real learning. In some ways I should have been a History teacher.

I think I was originally attracted to the Bible due to the fact it was historical. To think we have a document that originated that long ago and is still alive today, is a true testament of our Creator. I know people debate it's accuracy, it's truths, and it's meaning. However, just the fact it has remained for these many centuries, should tell you about its power and accuracy. We must be able to look back at Christians and nonChristians lives in the Bible and learn from them. We must study that spiritual history in order to correct mistakes and not repeat them. The history of our planet and the history of our faith should be a growing, breathing, active history. Our Bibles are not meant to sit, collecting dust ona shelf. We are to delve into the historical moments, the great stories and the remarkable truths. We are to take its contents and make them apart of our hearts and minds. 

Praise God for the wondeful way he speaks to us through the Bible. 

From one Family to another!

2 Timothy 1

 ³ I thank God, whom I serve, as my ancestors did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. ⁴ Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. ⁵ I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

Who can you thank for your faith? It's easy for me. My Grandparents on both sides, Grandma Rhoades and Grandma/Grandpa Lewis, were so key in developing my faith as it is today. That was carried on by my mom and dad. Now I am so proud that my daughters carry on the faith and they have passed it down to their kids. I know and am apart of 4 generations of Faith in Jesus Christ. I'm sure their are more generations before that to lead to my faith. 

I am sadly aware that the transfer of faith from generation to generation in families is dieing. Some families can't remember a time when Christ was central to their daily lives. That is so very sad. We must make sure the Love of Jesus Christ is transmitted to all who come after us. The tradition of faith is so important. I know how the Holy Spirit guided my grandfather in his ministry. I know how my own father traveled from the business world to being a full-time Ordained Pastor. I know the struggles of those before me and how they overcame with the saving grace of God. Finances, illness, and family strife have been faced by my ancestors. I have faced many of those same challenges. I know God has been faithful in all those situations. He will remain faithful to me, the next generation, and the generation after that.

I praise God for his work, not just in my life, but the life of those who have come before me and those who come after me. Praise God for his guiding hand!

Ancestry.God

Psalm 44 (New International Version, ©2011)  

 ¹ We have heard it with our ears, O God;
   our ancestors have told us
what you did in their days,
   in days long ago. ² With your hand you drove out the nations
   and planted our ancestors;
you crushed the peoples
   and made our ancestors flourish. ³ It was not by their sword that they won the land,
   nor did their arm bring them victory;
it was your right hand, your arm,
   and the light of your face, for you loved them.


I wish I had time to spend researching my Ancestry. I guess it is pretty easy. I have heard of a great website called Ancestry.com . My Dad used to tease that our ancestors were the "Rhoades Raiders from Russia". I am fascinated with family history. I am curious about how I have arrived at where I am today. How did my distant relatives migrate from Europe and how did they finally end up in Indiana? I can't imagine there aren't some great adventurous stories about my ancestors. It's really kind of sad that I don't know. The verbal history of families is not handed down like it used to be.

Just as important as our family migration is the history of our Faith. i am just as curious to find out how the family of my past came to know Christ. There should be a website called Ancestry.GOD. I can look back to my Dad and Mom, their parents, and their parents, and see how God was such a key part of their lives. I am sure they would tell you their survival can be attributed specifically to the "Sword of God". Their victories were not by their own hand, but by the hand of the God of the Universe. I am so thankful for my family and the tradition of Faith they handed down to me. I am also thankful, and praise God daily, for the faith that my daughters have. It is so great to already see them handing down that same faith to their own kids. The Family tree of Faith continues.

The power of God lives on through my daughters. Praise God for that blessing!