"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."(From The Message):
"My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you'll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ's love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God. God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us."
I really can't imagine a better blessing for my children as we begin this new year.
(For more World-Filled Wednesday posts or to submit your own, visit The 160-Acre Woods.)
Great verses. Thanks for visiting my blog.
ReplyDeleteI love these verses, bless you.
ReplyDeleteWow! Now that's a vision statement!
ReplyDeleteLeah
That's a wonderful vision for your family! You will make a mark on your children with this as your guideline. We're homeschoolers, too! This is our 14th year and we love it!
ReplyDeleteStarting year 8 here. I have been discouraged and I just figured out why...I took my eyes off the goal. The goal is for my children to learn to love God and glorify Him forever...Thank you for your timely and much needed post.
ReplyDeleteI just love, love, love those verses! Blessings to you!
ReplyDeleteVision statement, smision statement. That's all well and good, but how AWESOME it is that J is wearing a Ramones t-shirt in that photo?!! Now THAT'S impressive.
ReplyDeleteDad2Three
Vision is probably the MOST important aspect of anything IMNSHO, for without a vision the people perish (cast off restraint). I think it extremely important for any group to have vision and a vision statement can clarify greatly. NOT that I've been very good about it but those who don't set goals or proscribe vision are pretty much guaranteeing themselves failure.
ReplyDeleteHowever, another problem is poor vision statements, maybe even worse than having none at all. I'm constantly frustrated by groups that either have no vision or have strange visions such as one church I used to be a member of that had the vision of "filling these grounds with buildings".
Other questionable visions would be for a church to be "seeker-friendly", "needs-oriented", etc.
So, yes, I think vision statements can be very important and probably should be made to be very clear rather than hazy (although general Bible verses can help).
Please remember that the Message is NOT a translation but merely one person's opinon and it should be regarded with little import.
Actually the homeschooling "movement" as a whole lacks clear vision IMHO. It is great that some like Doug Phillips or Greg Harris have at least attempted vision statements. Ultimately, for Chrisitian homeschoolers, vision needs to center around establishment of a Biblical Worldview from hence all else should flow. I think that Gary DeMar down in Atlanta might be the best source for that vision.
Also, check out freebooks.com for plenty of free references that dwarf anything found in the local Christian book stores for meat.