Lesson in Preparation: A Sunday School Reflection

A recent Sunday School lesson offered some valuable insights worth remembering.

A young man, Allan Richards, shared a thought that struck a chord with me:
"You will fall to your highest level of preparation."
As a project manager, that resonates deeply. I spend my days preparing—vacations, work projects, menus, kids’ clothing, day trips, groceries. Planning is second nature. But it made me pause and ask: How much preparation do I put into my spiritual life? That’s something worth considering.

Sis. Vernella added,
"Depending on how prepared we are with our faith, we will be more prepared for life’s challenges."
Her words reminded me that spiritual readiness isn’t just about belief—it’s about resilience.

Julie Swain offered a sobering reminder:
"Remember, there is a devil trying to destroy us, so we need God's help."
We can’t face life’s battles alone. Our relationship with God is what equips us to endure and overcome.

Let’s be mindful of our need before God, and intentional about preparing our hearts, not just our calendars.

What does the Enemy want to Steal?

Protecting What God Has Given Us
John 10:10 “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

The devil is after the things that belong to God, and that includes what God has gifted to us with salvation.

What Does the Enemy Want to Steal?

• Moral clarity
• Time
• Trust in God
• Zeal and desire for the Lord
• Focus
• Satisfaction in God (tempting us to seek pleasure elsewhere)
• Joy
• Peace
• Harmony
• Blessings
• Sense of approval
• Love for our neighbor
• Sense of freedom
• Praise and worship
• Gratitude
• Hope
• The hearts of our children
• Contentment
• Humility
• Courage
• Health
• Prayer life
• Security
• Confidence
• Sound mind — “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7)
• Conscience, convictions, and our standard of right and wrong

If you had a treasure, what lengths would you go to protect it? Would you lock it in a vault? Hire security?  We have a spiritual enemy who is actively trying to steal our greatest treasures.

How Do We Protect What God Has Given?

• Build good habits that reinforce your faith
• Spend intentional time with God
• Resist the devil, and he will flee from you
• Put on the full armor of God
• Stay alert and guard your spiritual inheritance

God has given us abundant life. Let’s be vigilant in protecting it!

Behave Feminists, the world does not need your lies

Annoyed, that is what can best describe my impression of the feminist and liberal reaction to the Supreme Court decision in favor of Hobby Lobby.  They immediately set out to say that Hobby Lobby hates women and then to twist the facts and make it seem like HL is not providing any options when in fact they are already providing 16 out of 20 FDA-approved options.

“It’s very troubling that a salesclerk at Hobby Lobby who needs contraception, which is pretty expensive, is not going to get that service through her employer’s health-care plan because her employer doesn’t think she should be using contraception,” said Hillary Clinton at the Aspen Ideas Festival this week — a canard which earned her “Two Pinocchios” from the Washington Post’s fact checker.

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2014/07/03/why-feminists-and-liberals-are-misrepresenting-the-hobby-lobby-decision/#ixzz36Sx9Wcij

I'm not even angry because this behavior has become so predictable.  Anything that smells like a risk for women to lose their hard earned rights to contraceptives or abortion becomes a gigantic issue in the news and blown completely out of proportion.

The fact is, Hobby Lobby is providing 16 options.  The four they are not providing are due to the abortive nature of these options.  The Supreme Court has ruled that Hobby Lobby is not required to offer these 4 options due to their religious beliefs and they even based this on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act which was signed by President Bill Clinton in 1993.