Episodes

  • Gratitude Starts At Home Part 1
    Nov 18 2024
    GRATITUDE STARTS AT HOME Colossians 3:14-15 “And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.” Right before Paul speaks to the family in Col. 3:18-21, he calls on them to Love each otherLet peace ruleLearn to be Thankful This passage in Colossians is a reflection of what Paul wrote to the Ephesians in Ephesians 5:20, “Giving Thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Which is followed by 5:22-6:4, Paul’s “Hallmark” passage on marriage and family.) We can all look at the culture around us and recognize that entitlement and ungratefulness is rampant! There doesn’t seem to be love and peace that Paul talks about in Col. 3. Is gratitude the key? Or A key? Our lives, our homes don’t have to reflect the culture. We can have a “culture” of thankfulness in our homes, a place that fosters love and peace. 1.) Does gratitude matter? A.) Yes, because it is commanded and modeled in the Bible. “give thanks”—71 verses “Thankful”—3 verses “thanksgiving”—27 verses. (128 verses total) “thankfulness”—1 verse “thank”—26 verses Psalm 30:12b, “…I will give thanks unto Thee for ever.” Psalm 100:4, “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise: be thankful unto Him, and bless His name.” Psalm 107:1, “O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good: for His mercy endureth for ever.” Psalm 147:7, “Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving; sing praise upon the harp unto our God.” *Jesus modeled thankfulness: Matthew 15:36, “And He took the seven loaves and the fishes, and gave thanks, and brake them, and gave to His disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.” (Mark 8:6, John 6:11) Matthew 26:27, “And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to the them, saying, Drink ye all of it;” (Mark 14:23, Luke 22:17 and 19) Matthew 11:25, “…Jesus answered and said, I thank Thee, O Father, …” (Luke 10:21, John 11:41 *Paul regularly gave thanks to God and others: I Cor. 15:57, “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” II Cor. 9:15, “Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift.” Eph. 1:6, “Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers.” Col. 1:3, “We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you.” I Thess. 3:9, “For what thanks can we render to God again for you, for all the joy wherewith we joy for your sakes before our God.” *And Paul (under Inspiration) gave commands to give thanks: Eph. 5:4, “Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.” I Thess. 5:18, “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” I Timothy 2:1, “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;” *Love is mentioned in the Bible over 280 times…peace is mentioned 400 times! Thankfulness is mentioned several times right along with them. Maybe the love and peace we crave is only one “Thank you” away.* B.) Yes, because it improves your health, attitude, and relationships. “The importance of this matter of gratitude can hardly be overstated. I’ve come to believe that few things are more becoming in a child of God than a grateful spirit. By the same token, there is probably nothing that makes a person more unattractive than the absence of a grateful spirit.” Choosing Gratitude, NDW, p23. Prov. 15:13, “A merry heart taketh a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.” Proverbs 15:15, “All the days of the afflicted are evil: but he that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast.” Prov. 17:22, “A merry heart doth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drouth the bones.” (“A grateful heart is a happy heart.”) An article by MayoClinic, December of 2022, adds, “Gratitude should be practiced daily, just as you’d take a ‘magic pill,’ if it existed.” They added that practicing gratitude could lessen chronic pain and the risk of disease. Gratitude improves our countenance, perspective, and outlook, making us much easier to be around or live with. Grumpy people vs Happy people Prickly people vs Gentle people Irrational people vs Restful people On Edge people vs At Ease people (go with the flow) Negative people vs Positive people Doom and Gloom people vs Scriptural people Entitled people vs Grateful people It may be that your personality leans toward “glass half empty,” rather than “glass half full,” but a grateful heart will temper your emotions and allow your loved ones to enjoy you ...
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    29 mins
  • Answering Your Questions
    Nov 11 2024

    Dave and Bethlie answer your questions!

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    28 mins
  • Proven Strategies for Raising Happy and Well-Behaved Toddlers | Parenting Tips For Toddlers Part 2
    Nov 4 2024

    Part 2

    4. Insist on happy compliance

      1. If your child is not happy when you correct them, discipline is needed
      2. If your child will not comply when you speak to them, discipline is needed
      3. If you cannot take them to an event because they won’t behave, discipline is needed
        1. If this is an exception, then you are on the right path
        2. If this is the norm, then you are not

    5. Speak softly, directly, specifically, and only once

      1. When you have to reason with a toddler, you are teaching them to comply only if they want to do so
      2. If you practice replacement parenting, they will not learn to have self-denial and self-control
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    29 mins
  • Proven Strategies for Raising Happy and Well-Behaved Toddlers | Parenting Tips For Toddlers
    Oct 21 2024

    Suggestions for Training Toddlers (Part 1)

    Prepare for the long haul, but get started.

      1. This is a beginning and it will take adulthood before you are officially done
      2. It is always easier to correct a child while they are younger

    Correct every selfish and willful act

      1. Do it every time - even if it is awkward and difficult
        1. In a church auditorium
        2. In a store
      2. Refuse the temptation to let it go
      3. Never assume a child will be better when they are older
        • They won’t unless they are taught and corrected

    Discipline predictably

      1. Use simple phrases
      2. Calmly and matter of factly follow through with consistency
      3. Interrupt everything for training
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    30 mins
  • 5 Ways To Damage Your Marriage and How To Avoid Them | Marriage Advice(Part 2)
    Oct 14 2024

    Five Ways to Damage Your Marriage

    Review from Episode 233

    1. Neglect it - again
    2. Treat each other disrespectfully - again
    3. Separate from each other as much as possible

    This week...

    4. Resist our God given responsibilities

    • Husbands have to perfect love
    • Wives have to master submission

    5. Fail to kiss and make-out

    1. This can be a challenge because life is so busy
    2. Don't stop working at it
      1. Kiss goodbye
      2. Kiss hello
      3. Kiss goodnight
      4. Kiss for no reason
    3. Making out takes some time
      1. Slow down and focus on each other
      2. Remind yourself of how wonderful you are together
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    30 mins
  • 5 Ways To Damage Your Marriage (Part 1)
    Oct 7 2024

    Five Ways to Damage Your Marriage (Part 1)

    1. Neglect it - again

    • Neglect occurs over a process of time
    • Neglect always diminishes value
    • Failure to invest over a process of time erodes our marriages

    2. Treat each other disrespectfully - again

    • When we aren’t kind
    • When we are rude
    • When we never express love

    3. Separate from each other as much as possible

    • Think me and not we
    • If you are always heading in different directions, your marriage will suffer
    • If you never take the time to talk, your marriage will suffer
    • We have found that we have to schedule time each day . . .
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    29 mins
  • Christian Womanhood Part 4
    Sep 30 2024

    Christian Womanhood

      1. It involves cultivating selflessness
        1. She is warm
          1. Safe and trustworthy v. 11-12
          2. Good - agreeable, pleasant, better (root is joyful and delightful)
          3. Illustration “You’re better than that”
          4. Don’t allow issues to turn you into a hard, cold, sarcastic, eye-rolling wife)
          5. Financially - no need of spoil
          6. Personally - does good and not evil
            1. Be careful that the familiar does not become an irritation
          7. Deeply - “good and not evil”
            1. Can He share? When and how he wants to share?
          8. Romantically - intimately - no need of spoil, good and not evil
            1. Beware of hurts, bitterness, frustrations, struggles
              1. Talk them out, work it out, get help-out
            2. Don’t fizzle; make it sizzle
        1. She is wise
          1. Think - every time
          2. Be kind - every time
          3. Psalm 19:14
          4. Psalm 141:3
          5. Eph. 4:32
        1. She wants him to win v. 23
          1. Follow him - treat him like the leader God made him to be Eph 5:22-24
          2. Promote him - with reverence and awe Eph 5:33
          3. Be counter cultural

    Conclusion:

    Pro 31:28-31

    So many women seek validation, praise, honor, status

    They want the priceless label, but sell themselves short

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    30 mins
  • Christian Womanhood Part 3
    Sep 23 2024

    What does Biblical Womanhood Look Like?

    Consider the word virtuous

    1. It involves cultivating strength
      1. Virtuous is Strong in purity, chastity, and righteousness
      2. Modern dictionaries get it all wrong
        1. One strives to be virtuous to appear to be better than others
        2. Bible- it doesn’t make you better but priceless
          1. Dictionaries:
            1. Collins - to do what is expected and feeling pleased with themselves, perhaps too pleased
            2. Cambridge - Thinks oneself morally better than others, only does good so he can feel virtuous
            3. Oxford - behaving in a very good or moral way, irreproachable, claiming to behave better or have a higher moral standard than others.
            4. Modern philosophies get it wrong:
              1. A strong woman follows her heart
                1. The heart is deceitful and desperately wicked
              2. She shows her authentic self
                1. In my flesh dwells no good thing
              3. She cultivates her own interests
                1. Be kindly affectioned one to another . . . in honor preferring
              4. She is self-aware and continually growing into herself
                1. For me to live is Christ and to die is gain
              5. She stands up for herself and and is not afraid to share her thoughts and ideas regardless of what others think
              6. She speaks her heart and mind
                1. Whoso keeps his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from trouble Proverbs 21:23
    2. Same word for going into battle
    3. Root is to twist, writhe, twirl, dance
    4. The Virtuous woman is strong
    5. She is prepared for battle
    6. She cha-cha-chas her way through her busy days
    7. Cf. Ephesians 6
      1. She is strong 6:10
      2. She is ready for battle 6:11
      3. She is prepared for whatever comes her way 6:13

    It involves cultivating a strong relationship with God v. 30

    1. A woman who fears the Lord
    2. Can’t get enough of God
    3. Is in awe of God
    4. Will be praised
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    29 mins