The Resurrection

When I wrote that entry last night, I didn't have time to write about the Resurrection of Jesus Christ because it was late and bedtime, so now I do.
I wrote about Him dying on the Cross for unworthy sinners (like myself).
John 19:31-42 ESV
31 Since it was the day of Preparation, and so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken and that they might be taken away. 32 So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him. 33 But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34 But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. 35 He who saw it has borne witness—his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth—that you also may believe. 36 For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken.” 37 And again another Scripture says, “They will look on him whom they have pierced.” 38 After these things Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took away his body. 39 Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. 40 So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. 41 Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. 42 So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.
Three days later He rose from the grave. He defeated death so that God's elect would be saved from it and live eternally with Him. We no longer have to fear God's wrath which is Hell and eternal separation from Christ.
Oh, to think that God would choose me to be part of His elect, well I don't know why He would choose me, it's beyond me, but I am eternally grateful.
Jesus is alive and seated at the right hand of God!!! Death cannot touch Him now!
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

"For I Dare Not Stand on my Righteousness...."

There is a song that I absolutely love called "I Come By The Blood", it's on a Sovereign Grace CD called "Songs for the Cross-Centered Life". In the chorus he sings, "I come by the Blood, I come by the Cross, where Your Mercy flows from Hands pierced for me, FOR I DARE NOT STAND ON MY RIGHTEOUSNESS, my every hope rests on what Christ has done, and I come by the Blood". I just think that is so beautiful.
Nothing any of has ever done could possibly get us even close to just talking with God, it doesn't matter how "good" it was in our own eyes we could never be in communion with God by OUR OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS, He is MUCH too HOLY and we are much too UNHOLY to come into the presence of God. The only way we could do that is if God would send His Only Begotten Son to die for us, and.....He did.
Jesus Christ, born of a virgin knew from the moment He was born that He would die for God's elect someday. He lived a Perfect, Holy, sinless life.......NEVER ONCE, NEVER ONCE did He EVER go against God or sin against Him. Yes, He was tempted by Satan, but He never said yes to his evil ways. He knew what He was born to do, Satan knew it too, and did not want it to happen. None of us, not even Satan could even try the smallest attempt to stop God from having His Will be done.
A couple thousand years ago Jesus Christ came to this world, Perfect, Sinless, Spotless, Holy to be mocked, beaten, crushed and nailed to a Cross to die for God's Elect. Why? Because, when each and every one of was conceived and born IN SIN God knew it before there was time (He knew and still knows EVERYTHING before it ever did or will happen) and there would be no way to save us unless He sent His Son to die for us. What was He saving us from? His wrath (Hellfire, not only would we have died bodily, but spiritually as well), our bodies would have died on earth and then our souls eternally burned and tormented in Hell, separating us from Him eternally in Heaven.
Ever since the fall of man (Adam and Eve eating from the tree that God had told them no to eat from), every generation is conceived and born in sin. God is so Holy that we could never enter His presence except by the Blood of the Lamb, which Jesus Christ shed for God's Elect on Calvary on the Cross. A death every single one of us deserved but He took so we wouldn't have to. How can we not be grateful or joyful?
I know it is definitely hard to be joyful all of the time but God has a reason for everything He does and brings to pass. We may not always see it or we may have a hard time believing it, but we must trust Him even in the hardest of times. I am definitely not perfect and it isn't always easy for me to trust Him either, but deep down inside I know He has a plan.
For instance, tonight I found something out that just made me sick, I will not say what it is and most likely never will, but it got me so down and distraught that I couldn't even bear to look at this person. But tonight when I was praying before I ate, I was reminded that I can lean on Jesus and rest in Him. That is what I've been doing. Ever since then I am able to now look at this person without getting that feeling of disgust or thinking "just leave me alone". I will admit it is hard to completely trust in Him and leave this in His hands as in the past I would try to lay things down at His feet but end up taking them back. By His Grace I'm learning to trust Him.
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

Happy Autumn!!

Okay, so this is a little late, but oh well! I am so thankful that Autumn is finally here. My Creator is so Good to Bless us with this wonderful season!! He is so good to Bless us with all of the things we need and more though we are all so undeserving.
After the terribly hot Summer that we had, this cool Autumn weather is just perfect!
Well, that wasn't much, sorry for the short entry, but it's near bed time so I must go, at least I got one in!!
TTYL!
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

First Membership Class

Whoa, I'm writing yet another one, weird, after not writing even one for days!
Our first Membership Class was today, it was a wonderful time. The Pastor came (of course), and it was just lovely. I told Mommy tonight that as far as I know, there is no other man on earth that I would want to be my Pastor. Now, mind you Chris is very, very intelligent and knows a ton about Theology and the Bible and Reformed Faith so I would also love for him to be my Pastor. Our Pastor is a grown man and he has prayed for me before (my Daddy is not a praying or Bible reading man), so it is very touching for me to have a man that prays for me. Chris has prayed for me a lot and I know he keeps me in his prayers and that is also meaningful to me, but knowing that a grown man is praying for me just means a lot to me.
I must go and load the dishwasher, then go to bed (which I am looking forward to;)). Good night:)
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

Sky Pictures (as requested by Rebekah)

There's our Kentucky sky, Rebekah! Given by the Creator of all things!!
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

Thank You Rebekah S.

Also thank you to Anna Naomi for the comment you left me. I know it might be kind of odd to have a post about answering other people's questions, but I figured, why not??
Now to Rebekah. Thank you for all of the comments you left too!
Now to answer your questions:
I haven't read the homesteading books by the Castleberry's, but I have heard of them and we do have some of their courtship books. We live above Lexington in Kentucky. We've actually been to Tennessee before, we would go there on vacation sometimes. We haven't gone there in a loooooong time though, we like Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. It takes us about 5 hours to get there, we like it though.
We didn't plan on moving far from where we live now, we just wanted some farm land (we still plan on moving sometime though, in about a year or so and we still hope to move to a farm). Hhmmm, why we decided not to move is because we just didn't think that this is the time to move. We decided God didn't want us to move yet. Of course, He is the One that kept us from doing so. We know He has a plan and we're trusting Him.
Yeah, I don't like big immodest beads either;)
My brothers are 22 and 20.
I went to your blog! I have it under "My Favorite Blogs", I really like it. I didn't get to read all of your devotions though. You and your brother seem really close, Chris and I are the same way:)
For us, the Lord worked through Chris to bring us to Reformed Faith. It's a long story!
I will post some pictures of the sky when I figure out how to;) which might actually be very soon. Mommy said she would help me!
I might write another post later tonight, I finally have more things to say. Yeah, so the reason I haven't written in a while was because I didn't really know what to say! So we'll see!
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

Well, There's Always Tomorrow!

Okay, okay, so I didn't get that much done today but I do have an excuse! Mommy was resting today because of a stomachache and we were taking care of her. We're a very close family and, in my case, when she's not feeling good I like to be with her for a while. I know things need to be done but taking care of Mommy and being with her so she's not lonely is most important!!
My Uncle sent an e-mail today and it has a list of the alphabet and you write down what you're thankful for, each thing beginning with each letter, so if anyone is interested I thought you could do it too! I don't know exactly how you could do it but I suppose you could do it in a comment or if you have your own blog you could do it and let me know about it through a comment, your choice! Just thought it would be fun and I'd like to know what you're thankful for!
> A~Angels
> B~Books
> C~Christmas
> D~Dark Chocolate!!!!
> E~Evening sunsets
> F~Family/Friends
> G~God's Mercy
> H~Heaven
> I~Irresistible Grace
> J~Jesus Christ
> K~Kindness
> L~Love
> M~Making things by hand
> N~No longer in a public school!!!!
> O~Our Troops fighting for my Freedom and those that have fought and that have died for my Freedom.
> P~Precious babies and children
> Q~Quiet
> R~Rest in Jesus
> S~Salvation
> T~Thanksgiving
> U~United States
> V~Victory in Jesus!
> W~Word of God
> X~X-Ray Machines, lol!! I don't know!
> Y~Yuletide
> Z~Zoologists, I don't know why!
Okay, there's mine, your turn!
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

More Work and Blueberry Pie

We got some more work done today. Mommy cleaned up in her room and Daddy cleaned the screens while I cleaned most of the windows (didn't have time to clean them all). Other things were done today. I baked some bread and gave a loaf to a friend of ours that goes to Church with us. He and Chris have a little session together each week where they talk about the Bible and Theology and other stuff. We're really thankful that Chris has someone to talk to about this.
Earlier tonight I made a Blueberry Pie, which we haven't tasted yet but I hope it'll be good! We might just have to have some soon! Now, I'm not saying this because I think it's true, but my family tells me that I've never made anything that wasn't delicious. Don't believe I've ever had a Blueberry Pie before, but not sure, sounds good though! I loooove blueberries! It should be good with some Vanilla Ice Cream and an ice cold glass of milk!
Okay, yes, I am eating some right now and must say that it is quite good. Didn't have the time to make the crust so it was store bought but sometime when I can I'll make the crust. As for now I must go!
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

Wasn't Much But It Was A Start

So, we didn't get as much done today as we had hoped but there's always tomorrow. Daddy's off Mondays and Tuesdays so he's happy to help us with things. We don't know yet when the Classes start but we still like to keep our house nice and tidy (who doesn't??).
In the midst of all of this homesteading and stuff we've decided to eat healthier, however Mommy and I are really the only ones who like vegetables so we can't really do much with that. Daddy and Tommy will not eat vegetables (at least not the ones that are really good for you), they also don't like whole grains so we can't really do that either, their version of a "food pyramid" is chips, candy, and meat! Chris doesn't really mind vegetables (only a select few) and he's all for the whole grains! We just can't seem to please everyone's tastes in one meal because we try not to have too much meat (Daddy doesn't like chicken anyway). We're trying though. I've been praying that the Lord will lead us. We also need to start exercising more and getting fit and healthy, but haven't yet made up a schedule.
The weather has been rather good today, not too hot, we have been able to keep the windows open. It get's rather chilly at night so I have to run upstairs and put some socks and a jacket on (we don't have our winter clothes up yet).
I am rather looking forward to the cold seasons, I always liked the cold and at night getting all snuggled up under my blankets in bed. We get our oil lamps out sometimes and light them and that makes it even more cozy in the house. The cold weather also brings along my "Gourmet Hot Cocoa" (as Mommy calls it), with chocolate chips in the bottom so that they'll melt, then marshmallows, ice cream, whipped cream and chocolate syrup on top (should we have everything) and it is sooooooo good!!!!
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

Of Cooking & Church

So, what the heck do these two things have to do with each other?? Fellowship Meal, of course!!!!
Yesterday, Mommy and I spent a lot of the day in the kitchen cooking and baking for the Meal today which was lovely! We brought Homemade Creamed Corn, Homemade Bread (no bread making machine), Whipped Potato Casserole, and Chicken Casserole and it was all homemade.
We've only been going to this Church since about the end of May I guess, but it's only been around since January so it's still in Its infancy. The people there are really nice. We are so Blessed to be attending this Church! Actually Mommy, Chris, and I are gonna start taking Membership Classes, so we're excited about that and looking forward to joining the Church. As of right now we're the only ones joining the Church so we're going to have the Classes at our house.
So, a while ago we decided to move but a few months ago we changed our minds and decided to stay another year or so. We had most things packed up so we're still in the process of unpacking and making this house feel like a home again. At the moment our house has some boxes and stuff laying around so since we're starting these classes soon at our house we'll probably start cleaning up for good tomorrow. I know, it doesn't sound like fun but the work must be done! Hopefully tomorrow will be one of those days that I'm filled with energy to keep going throughout the day. On days when I know things need to be done I pray for strength and energy from my Father and I'm able to get a lot of things done. Of course it's not by me alone it's because my Father strengthens me.
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

Mommy, Me, and Beads

Today, Mommy, Chris, and I went out and happened upon a quaint little bead store (mind you Chris did not go in, he has no interest whatsoever in beads). Mommy and I went in and oh, beads galore!!! Mind you the prices were a bit high, but we got a few strings of them anyway. We can't wait to use them! I use 'em to make earrings (but will probably make more kinds of jewelry in the future); one reason is because I make clip-on earrings, pierced for Mommy and some of my friends, (can't wear pierced 'cause my left ear will get infected) and can't find any in stores or online that I really like, another reason is because I just like to!
I would like to write more, but alas I cannot for I must go.
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

Here I am again!

For the longest time we have had some dreadfully hot weather! A few days ago the Lord and Creator of all Blessed us with some wonderfully cool, Autumn weather. While the grass is still dry and brown (save the green weeds), everything else is beautiful! The sky, oh, the sky is just gorgeous! I have an incredible fascination with the sky. I love photography so I've, in the past, taken many pictures of the sky, perhaps I will post some sometime. I also love taking pictures of landscapes.
I never did mention my family's names or anything, so....Daddy, Mommy, and two brothers, Tommy and Chris. The best family in the world!! I am so thankful the Lord Blessed me with them.
Should you visit my Mommy's blog, you'll see that she is talking about our journey towards homesteading. Yes, she has had this dream for a long time and though she and I are a lot alike, I never really understood what all she meant by that, up until a couple of years ago. I pray that I will believe in this and do as good a job as she does. She's definitely the best Mommy in the world!
I believe I will tell you a little bit about each of my family members.....
Mommy~
Beautiful, caring, kind, sweet. She's always willing to help others and ready to fight for and defend her family to the end. An excellent homemaker, cook, baker, creative. So often I see my King shining through her. Oh, the Lord has Blessed her with the most beautiful smile, I love to see her smile!! Protective, very protective (actually my whole family is protective of me, and I am so grateful). I could go on and on (actually with my whole family) but I suppose I'll go to the next person.
Daddy~
Hard-working for his "little family". Loving, protective of his whole family, ready to "destroy" anyone or anything that would mess with us.
Tommy~
Very good with math, kind, and funny(well, my whole family is funny).
Christopher~
First of all, he and I are like two peas in a pod. It was through him that the Lord led us to being Reformed (about three years ago). Knows a lot about Theology and the Bible (and other stuff too). Should I have a question about the Bible or Theology or anything like that, I know exactly who to go to (him, in case you don't get the idea, lol). Kind, caring, doesn't like to see his girls (me and Mommy) hurt or in tears. Gentleman, strong, a giver.
Yep, so as you can see, I have a pretty awesome family!! I have other things to say but I think this is long enough;)
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah

It Starts....

Hello,
As you can tell, this is my first entry. I've only ever written in my journal, so I hope I do okay;) Here we go.....
Hopefully they'll be better in the future, lol!!
Alive because of His Blood,
Bekah