Looking to buy a new Bible?

If you looking to purchase a new Bible, my brother, Nathan Lino, a Pastor in NE Houston, offers godly advice as to which version to buy. He wrote this on his blog last month.

1984 vs 2011 NIV Bible

I'm not sure if you are aware of the transliterating changes to the 2011 NIV.
In Dec, 2010, I wrote a blog article here sounding the alarm about the direction in which the NIV was going with the unfortunate publication of the gender neutral, and thus unbiblical, TNIV. (We do not allow the TNIV to be used in teaching at NEHBC.) In that blogpost I urged folks to switch away from the NIV and encouraged the ESV--it's both readable and very accurate. I wrote the blogpost to protect my sheep from the coming danger of the NIV.

Now it is July 2011 and......boom; It happened, but sooner than I expected. The NIV has rolled out an "updated" transliteration in which they have merged the TNIV and 1984 NIV in 75% of the text. Without properly informing people, they have just rolled it out and NIV users think they are getting the NIV, but they are not. This is exactly what I warned would happen in my post 18 months ago.

I strongly urge you not to use the 2011 NIV. And not just me. The Southern Baptist Convention voted en mass last month against the use of the 2011 NIV.

With the acceptable 1984 version and the unacceptable 2011 version now out, things are going to get confusing for new and young believers trying to figure out what bible to purchase. They might see your 1984 version and not understand the dangers of the 2011 version or even be aware of the difference and purchase it. To avoid confusion, if you haven't already, now is the time to switch from the NIV. I recommend the ESV, NASB, NKJV, RSV, KJV.

Rather than reinvent the wheel, for a thorough and trustworthy analysis of the 2011 NIV, I recommend you read this article by Bart Barber, pastor of First Baptist Church, Farmersville, TX: http://conta.cc/okeaPL.

Jesus Calling for Children

I found out recently that Sarah Young has published a young reader's version of Jesus Calling.  I'm so excited! The Easter bunny will be bringing our girls a copy this year!  The cheapest I can find online is on Amazon. 

(image care of Amazon.com)

Cute Cute

How cute are these magnetic boards that my creative friend, Vonda, made for my girls?

If you are interested, you can buy one from her. She sells other cute home decor including florals and wreaths too. And she's a precious friend... the one missing from that picture posted in an earlier blog.

Verse Plaques

On Thanksgiving Eve we had dinner at the home of Brad's cousin, James, and his wife Suzanne. Their home is beautiful.  In every room you see Bible verses on plates, wooden plaques, and on and in frames.  This family loves the Lord and it's obvious in how they conduct their lives and in what you see in their home.

James' sister, Sharon, is the creator of much of Suzanne's decor.  Sharon, whose creations you can see here, sells her products online and in stores in the Ft Worth area.

I am inspired to put more verses around my home. I have a few here and there but none in the kids' rooms and bathrooms which is where Suzanne had some of hers.  This will soon change.

When each of our children were born, I prayed that the Lord would show me a verse that we could make that child's life verse. The Lord graciously showed me the perfect verses for each child. I printed those verses on their birth certificates and a friend custom made place mats each printed with their verse.  Another friend gave Kirsten a Christmas ornament with her verse on it. 

Kirsten's verse was easy.  Because of her genetic disorder and the delays and challenges she would face, the Lord gave us Psalm 139:14  "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well."  Our prayer is that Kirsten will know that the Lord created her as he fully intended her to; he did not make a mistake.  We pray that she will see herself through the Lord's eyes and allow him to glorify himself through her daily challenges.

After Kirsten was born, we prayed that the Lord would give us another baby ... a healthy baby.  I had a miscarriage a few months later so we continued to pray. Healthy Katelyn Grace was born a few months later and the Lord gave us 1 Samuel 1:27 "I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him." The Lord fulfilled my dream of having a healthy, chubby baby.

Joshua Scott was born almost 4 years later.  I love the name Joshua and what it represents.  Joshua and the wall of Jericho that came crashing down by the might of God alone!  Joshua who led the people into the Promised Land!    Josh's verse is taken from Deuteronomy 31:23 'The LORD gave this command to Joshua... "Be strong and courageous, ... and I myself will be with you."'

I'm going to get a plaque for each child's room with their verse on it. I'll have them painted to match of course. Here is a sample:

I pray that Kirsten, Katelyn and Josh will claim their verses for themselves knowing how precious they are to the Lord Jesus. And I challenge you to find a verse for each of your children.  Pray that verse for your child.  Pray that your child will grow to love the Lord his God with all his heart and all his soul and all his mind and all his strength.

Results of Shopping Trip

Much of my time this weekend was spent shopping so I thought I'd show off some of my favorite finds.

First from Chi O Christmas Market I bought styrophome cups with the letter L on them for our next dinner party.  My friend V is hosting Thanksgiving at her house this year so she bought cups that say "Gobble til you Wobble." Isn't that hilarious?

Next we have painted metal mistletoe to hang over the arch in our entryway. It's so cute; the berries are really little jingle bells. Also from Chi O Christmas.

 

The 3rd item on display today is a cute sweater from Nordstrom Rack for a mere $16.95.  I bought two: one in ivory and the other in forest green.

Last but certainly not least is my favorite purchase of the weekend... Shoes of course!  I LOVE shoes!!!  You can't go wrong with Yellow Box Shoes and animal print is the new neutral... so they say.

Giraffe print wedges with rhinestones on the buckle.