Christian Living Blog

Perhaps you’ve tuned in to the popular reality show on A&E, Duck Dynasty, and met the Robertson family before now. However, until my recent interview with Phil Robertson for his new memoir, Happy, Happy, Happy: My Life and Legacy as the Duck Commader, I was unfamiliar with the show, their company Duck Commander, or Phil Robertson himself. After the interview I can say I learned quite a bit. Not only about ducks and duck calls, but about Phil’s spiritual journey from a rebellious and self-destructive young man to a devoted family man, earnest follower of Jesus, and a ground-breaking entrepreneur. His manner surprised me as well. Here’s a man who owns a multi-million dollar company, is the star of a top-rated television show, but his attitude was low-key and unconcerned with his fame. I found Phil honest, disarming, and above all filled with gratitude for “the good life” he is now able to enjoy. One the Robertson clan’s mottos may be “Fear the Beard,” but after talking to Phil, I wasn’t afraid, instead I felt encouraged.

I hope you’ll take a moment to listen to Phil’s interview and check out his story behind the cameras in Happy, Happy, Happy.

Happy, Happy, Happy Interview with Phil Robertson

Joanna Weaver, the best-selling author of Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World, Having a Mary Spirit, and Lazarus Awakening, has written a new devotional featuring excerpts from her bestselling books. At the Feet of Jesus: Daily Devotions to Nurture a Mary Heart, features 365 daily readings that will draw you closer to the heart of Jesus.

For the next two weeks, Monday – Friday, we’ll be sharing excerpts from At the Feet of Jesus. I hope they whet your appetite for taking a further look at this devotional resource from Joanna Weaver.

———————————————————————————

He chose us…to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. Ephesians 1:4, 6, NKJV

The good news is woven through the New Testament in a grace-filled strand that shines especially bright in the gospel stories of Mary and Martha. The message is this: salvation isn’t about what I do; it’s about what Jesus did.

The cross did more than pay for my sins; it set me free from the bondage of the “shoulds” and “if onlys” and “what might have beens.” And Jesus’s words to Martha are the words He wants to speak to your heart and mine: “You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed” (Luke 10:41–42).

The “one thing” is not found in doing more.

It’s found by sitting at His feet.

Catch that: Mary sat at His feet. She didn’t move a muscle. She listened. She didn’t come up with clever responses or a doctrinal thesis. Her gift was availability. (In the end, I believe that was Martha’s gift as well.)

The only requirement for a deeper friendship with God is showing up with a heart open and ready to receive. Jesus invites us to come and rest, to spend time with Him in Living Room Intimacy. Intimacy that allows us to be honest in our complaints, bold in our approach, and lavish in our love. Intimacy that allows us to hear our Father’s voice and discern our Father’s will. Intimacy that so fills us with His love and His nature that it spills out to our dry, thirsty world in Kitchen Service.

In the Living Room. That’s where it all begins. Down at His feet.
—Having a Mary Heart

Read: Jeremiah 29:12–13

Reflect: What does God promise will happen when we seek Him?

Excerpted from At the Feet of Jesus by Joanna Weaver. Copyright © 2012 by Joanna Weaver. Excerpted by permission of WaterBrook Press, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

Crystal Paine is the wife of Jesse and mommy to three little children (Kathrynne was born in 2005, Kaitlynn in 2007, and Silas, born in May of 2009). She is a homeschool graduate, and sister to six.

When Crystal is not homeschooling her daughters, bargain-shopping, or blogging, she enjoys tweaking recipes and baking big batches of things for the freezer, engaging in thought-provoking discussions, trying to keep up with politics, indulging in dark chocolate, drinking a hot cup of tea while reading a good book, or spending a quiet day at home with her family.

 Six Ways Moms Can Contribute to Their Family’s Finances
By Crystal Paine, author of The Money Saving Mom’s Budget

1) Set Up and Follow a Grocery Budget

It’s amazing what the simple act of creating and sticking with a grocery budget can do for your family’s finances. If you’ve never had a grocery budget before, I’d recommend going with a ballpark figure of $20 per person per week to start out with. Then, slowly work on lowering it by 1-3% each month.

Take your budgeted grocery amount out in cash at the beginning of each month and only bring that with you to the store (leave the debit card, credit card, and check book at home). This provides instant self-discipline because when the money’s gone, it’s gone.

2) Plan a Menu

A grocery budget is a wonderful thing, but it’s usually the menu plan that enables you to be successful at sticking with your grocery budget. Not only does having a plan and working the plan encourage you to make dinner instead of heading through the drive-thru lane or ordering pizza, but you can also plan inexpensive meals based upon what ingredients you already have on hand or are on sale at the store.

3) Use Your Freezer

Your freezer can become of your best money-saving friends. You can use it to store extra produce you got in season at a rock-bottom price, you can use it to store meat you purchased in bulk, and you can use it to keep freezer meals at-the-ready for last-minute dinners.

Many people are turned off by the thought of freezer cooking because they envision it entails mushy freezer-burnt casseroles. While casseroles are a quick and easy thing to make ahead and stick in your freezer, there are so many other non-casserole options when it comes to freezer cooking.

You can brown hamburger or bake and chop chicken and freeze it, you can put together baking mixes, you can make sauces and marinades to freeze, you can chop and freeze veggies for stir fries… the possibilities are near endless!

4) Stay Home More

There’s no arguing the fact that the less you shop, the less you buy. The more you can learn to enjoy and find productive ways to occupy your time at home, the more money you’ll save.

Being a one-car family for a few years taught me to appreciate and enjoy the quietness of just being home a lot. There’s so much you can learn and do–without ever leaving your doorstep!

Some ideas: Read good books, learn new skills, try your hand at new recipes and do-it-yourself ideas, follow a few blogs that inspire you, write handwritten cards of encouragement, get to know your neighbors, or invite people into your home for a Bible study or book club.

5) Stop Comparing Yourself to Others

Want an almost fix for your discontentment? Stop comparing yourself to others around you.

You’ll always find someone who has a seeming better situation than you, but wishing you were them doesn’t change that you are you. The sooner you can embrace your lot in life–no matter the struggles–the sooner you’ll start experiencing true joy and contentment.

6) Choose Gratitude

Finally, adopt a thankful, grateful spirit for the life you are living. It might not be the life of your dreams, it might seem overwhelmingly hard right now, but a grateful spirit–even in the midst of hardship–can change your whole outlook on life. There is always, always, always something to be thankful for!

You can also enter to win a Free Copy of The Money Saving Mom’s Budget on Christianbook.com from April 30th – May 14th. To enter to win, click Here.

I remember the first time I heard the word “Christianese.” It was my freshman year at Gordon College in my Introduction to Communication Theory class. My professor was explaining how as Christians we sometimes use terms that you wouldn’t understand if you didn’t grow up going to church. Phrases like “born again,” “Spirit-led,” or to “love on someone,” can sometimes be confusing, rather than inclusive. To those outside the church, it can make Christianity seem like a club with it’s own set of vocabulary and rituals, rather than a dynamic, compelling relationship with the lover of our souls.

I think what my professor was getting at is that we are two different cultures, Christians and non-Christians. You don’t have to travel to Africa or Asia to experience a different way of life, you may only need to travel down the hall, or across the office to find someone who views the world in a radically different way than you do.

When you become a Christian your worldview shifts. If you were an atheist, you realize that there is a God who has a plan, and life has meaning beyond what we experience with our five senses. Or if you were a Hindu, or Neo-pagan, you move from worshiping many gods to the true One as revealed in Christ. This is a powerful, dramatic and life-altering shift. However, as soon as that person joins a body of believers, they pick up cultural behaviors and attitudes that aren’t necessarily part of the Gospel message, and we learn to live from a script that contains both Biblical and non-Biblical habits.

This is what Frank Viola addresses in his newest book, Revise Us Again: Living from a Renewed Christian Script. In each of the 10 chapters he pinpoints a particular behavior or phrase that Christians often take for granted as part of our thinking, and examines it under the lens of Scripture.

I interviewed Frank recently to discuss Revise Us Again. I hope that you’ll take a few moments to listen to the interview, and more importantly take a little time to examine yourself and see where your life may need some revising.