The Small Branch

Different. What does that mean? We are called to be different. How? By our actions, sure. But how? By our appearance , maybe? These are questions I wrestle with on different levels all the time. There are several culturally accepted behaviors (or lack of behavior) that I wonder about. Often times, the only ones who can give me truly Biblical reasons for doing or not doing these things are the ones going against what is culturally acceptable. The ones who are just going with the flow don't really have anything Biblical to back it up - they offer me excuses that show me that they, too, have never really thought of it, no matter how mature of Christians they are. Are these salvation issues? No, we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. But obedience matters. Obedience shows the fruit of our faith. It grows us to be more like Him. It binds us more tightly to Him. I would love to get together a group of mature Christian women to discuss a number of topics - birth control, hea...

I love princess movies. What girl doesn't? Disney had sorely disappointed me with The Princess and the Frog - it was evil! They have now redeemed themselves, for the time being, with Tangled. What a great movie! As I was watching it today, for the third time, it hit me why I love princess movies. There are so many great parallels. All those places in our hearts that these speak to - speaking Jesus to us in powerful ways, that is, if we listen with a heart that is His. If you haven't seen it, you might be a little confused, but bear with me. We were at the scene where they put up the lanterns. They were singing about never seeing the light until they had seen each other. I recalled all those verses about Jesus being the Light of the world. The only Light that truly shines brightly enough for us to see. Without the Light of Christ I can't see anything. The last part of the movie really gets me. He is dying, and she is willing to sacrifice her freedom forever to save him. Only...