I was recently at a business seminar and one of the topics was a discussion/review of the Educational Testing Systems (ETS) research findings on the state of literacy in this country. Alarmingly, their findings indicate that this generation of high school aged adults will be less educated then their parents.
Let me say that again, this generation will be less educated then the previous generation. To me this is shocking. Although I’ve seen first hand the current public school system and the disparities within the various communities/schools – I’m still reeling from the thought of the short and long term effects of this finding.
Fortunately, many of you reading this blog will probably be able to say – “Whew, that doesn’t apply to me,” because your little Johnnie or Susie is doing quite well in school. However, the fact of the matter is that your neighbor’s children just down the street or across town are not faring so well. And guess what? They are in the majority. In other words, more than two thirds of our nation’s children are NOT being taught basic literacy skills. No wonder the US has dropped to number 11 in the world in terms of education.
In addition, as so many of our young adults slowly slide into this “black hole” of being inadequately prepared both from an educational and economic perspective - do we really believe that this problem will just go away on it’s own? I think not. It will only grow worse in ways I’m sure we can’t even fathom as yet.
I’d like you to watch the video from ETS and then share your comments/thoughts concerning their research or anything else that comes to mind.
Stay tuned…I have more to share after you’ve had an opportunity to watch the video.
ETS VIDEO
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Sunday, September 12, 2010
What signs does a Christian look for to know if God has really spoken to them about something?
The first thing I believe is important to mention concerning this topic is that God really does want to speak to us as much as we want to hear from Him. John 10:1 below is one such passage that makes this plain.
John 10: 1 - The Message Bible:
[ He Calls His Sheep by Name ] "Let me set this before you as plainly as I can. If a person climbs over or through the fence of a sheep pen instead of going through the gate, you know he's up to no good—a sheep rustler! The shepherd walks right up to the gate. The gatekeeper opens the gate to him and the sheep recognize his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he gets them all out, he leads them and they follow because they are familiar with his voice. They won't follow a stranger's voice but will scatter because they aren't used to the sound of it."
Secondly, and not to suggest that we get into religious “striving”, I do think that there are definitely things that we should be doing as believer’s to help ensure that we are fine tuning our spiritual ears to hear from Father. At a minimum, those things are: a) reading the Bible; b) listening to spirit-filled teaching; c) regular fellowship with other spirit-filled believer’s; and, d) attending a Bible study/school.
Now, let’s return to the specifics of your question on how to know if God has really spoken to you or not. On more general issues of life i.e. how to treat your brother or sister – know that whatever you hear from the Lord will always, let me repeat, ALWAYS, line up with His Word. That’s why it is so important to know His Word for yourself. For example: many of us were taught as a Christians – one should not drink. But that is not what the Bible states. It states do not get “drunk”. There’s a big difference.
When it comes to more individual matters that we are seeking the Lord on such as “should I marry this person” – then that’s where your relationship with the Lord becomes very important. If you spend time with the Lord on a regular basis (doing those things listed above) AND, you have a heart to please Him (which implies obedience) then you have a much better chance of hearing from God.
His answers will be one of three things: Yes; No; or No answer. To me, the “No Answer” gets most of us into trouble. That’s when we decide to help God out and we chose to make a path of our own and plow ahead. Instead, we should wait with the expectancy that He is working all things out for our good – and not be in such a rush to move ahead of Him. I know that each time I’ve moved ahead of the Lord – I usually find myself backtracking and repeating all over again…
John 10: 1 - The Message Bible:
[ He Calls His Sheep by Name ] "Let me set this before you as plainly as I can. If a person climbs over or through the fence of a sheep pen instead of going through the gate, you know he's up to no good—a sheep rustler! The shepherd walks right up to the gate. The gatekeeper opens the gate to him and the sheep recognize his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he gets them all out, he leads them and they follow because they are familiar with his voice. They won't follow a stranger's voice but will scatter because they aren't used to the sound of it."
Secondly, and not to suggest that we get into religious “striving”, I do think that there are definitely things that we should be doing as believer’s to help ensure that we are fine tuning our spiritual ears to hear from Father. At a minimum, those things are: a) reading the Bible; b) listening to spirit-filled teaching; c) regular fellowship with other spirit-filled believer’s; and, d) attending a Bible study/school.
Now, let’s return to the specifics of your question on how to know if God has really spoken to you or not. On more general issues of life i.e. how to treat your brother or sister – know that whatever you hear from the Lord will always, let me repeat, ALWAYS, line up with His Word. That’s why it is so important to know His Word for yourself. For example: many of us were taught as a Christians – one should not drink. But that is not what the Bible states. It states do not get “drunk”. There’s a big difference.
When it comes to more individual matters that we are seeking the Lord on such as “should I marry this person” – then that’s where your relationship with the Lord becomes very important. If you spend time with the Lord on a regular basis (doing those things listed above) AND, you have a heart to please Him (which implies obedience) then you have a much better chance of hearing from God.
His answers will be one of three things: Yes; No; or No answer. To me, the “No Answer” gets most of us into trouble. That’s when we decide to help God out and we chose to make a path of our own and plow ahead. Instead, we should wait with the expectancy that He is working all things out for our good – and not be in such a rush to move ahead of Him. I know that each time I’ve moved ahead of the Lord – I usually find myself backtracking and repeating all over again…
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Question #1: How do you learn to communicate better with a boyfriend/girlfriend? Spouse?
Part 3 - Winning for the Sake of the Relationship:
This concept should be obvious to most people but I'm amazed at how few either don't understand it or simply ignore it - particularly when in a heated argument. The idea is not to win the argument for the sake of being right; rather, seek to win for the relationship. These two thoughts (winning the argument versus winning for the relationship) may appear to be at opposite ends of the spectrum for the individual. However, ultimately every one wins if the relationship stays intact and continues to grow in a loving fashion.
Many people are so adept at winning an argument or heated discussion that they oftentimes fail to see the damage being done to the relationship. While others may be so intent on avoiding a confrontation that they agree to every demand - but in their heart they are truly resentful of the other person and eventually, the relationship. This really all comes down to how each person deals with a conflict. If you fall into either of the wo categories I just mentioned then you probably need some guidance as to how to effectively work through confrontational situations. Let's face it, most of us would rather not deal with a conflict - but lf the conflict is successfully navigated by both parties - then it has the potential to cause you both, and the relationship, to grow in ways you never thought possible.
In the meantime, here are a few suggestions for handling a challenging conversation.
A) Be mindful of trying to understand what the other person is really saying.
B) Look at their body language.
C) Listen to the heart of the matter - and try very hard to look past the hurtful things they might say.
D) Ask open-ended, non-threatening questions to clarify. Oftentimes, a person that may be difficult to communicate with has a tendency to say hurtful things because they themselves feel vulnerable, hurt and/or confused. Confused in that they haven't done the soul searching to connect what they feel inside with "the what" and "the why" of how things are coming out of their mouth. Your questions could possibly help them understand themselves better and allow you both to look at issues in a more objective fashion.
E) If you find yourself getting heated - politely remove yourself from the discussion and ask that it be resumed at a later time when you've both had a chance to cool off, think and pray about the conversation.
None of these suggestions are easy. It truly takes a third person, the Holy Spirit, being at the center of each person's life; and, hence, the relationship, to keep a relationship intact. Ephesians 4:29 says that we are to be tender and kind-hearted to one another. Another Scripture says that we are to treat others more highly than ourselves. These concepts boggle the human mind and can only be done when yielded to the Holy Spirit. However, it can be accomplished; otherwise, the Lord wouldn't ask it of us; and, whatever He asks of us – He has already provided the grace for us to do it.
This concept should be obvious to most people but I'm amazed at how few either don't understand it or simply ignore it - particularly when in a heated argument. The idea is not to win the argument for the sake of being right; rather, seek to win for the relationship. These two thoughts (winning the argument versus winning for the relationship) may appear to be at opposite ends of the spectrum for the individual. However, ultimately every one wins if the relationship stays intact and continues to grow in a loving fashion.
Many people are so adept at winning an argument or heated discussion that they oftentimes fail to see the damage being done to the relationship. While others may be so intent on avoiding a confrontation that they agree to every demand - but in their heart they are truly resentful of the other person and eventually, the relationship. This really all comes down to how each person deals with a conflict. If you fall into either of the wo categories I just mentioned then you probably need some guidance as to how to effectively work through confrontational situations. Let's face it, most of us would rather not deal with a conflict - but lf the conflict is successfully navigated by both parties - then it has the potential to cause you both, and the relationship, to grow in ways you never thought possible.
In the meantime, here are a few suggestions for handling a challenging conversation.
A) Be mindful of trying to understand what the other person is really saying.
B) Look at their body language.
C) Listen to the heart of the matter - and try very hard to look past the hurtful things they might say.
D) Ask open-ended, non-threatening questions to clarify. Oftentimes, a person that may be difficult to communicate with has a tendency to say hurtful things because they themselves feel vulnerable, hurt and/or confused. Confused in that they haven't done the soul searching to connect what they feel inside with "the what" and "the why" of how things are coming out of their mouth. Your questions could possibly help them understand themselves better and allow you both to look at issues in a more objective fashion.
E) If you find yourself getting heated - politely remove yourself from the discussion and ask that it be resumed at a later time when you've both had a chance to cool off, think and pray about the conversation.
None of these suggestions are easy. It truly takes a third person, the Holy Spirit, being at the center of each person's life; and, hence, the relationship, to keep a relationship intact. Ephesians 4:29 says that we are to be tender and kind-hearted to one another. Another Scripture says that we are to treat others more highly than ourselves. These concepts boggle the human mind and can only be done when yielded to the Holy Spirit. However, it can be accomplished; otherwise, the Lord wouldn't ask it of us; and, whatever He asks of us – He has already provided the grace for us to do it.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Sorry for the long absence...
My apologies for the long absence my friends. I moved during the second week in August and I'm just now getting settled! Thanks be to God for His faithfulness and to my son for his hard work...we were absolutely tired after that one! Whew!
It's over and I'm back. Look for the final post on the communicating with boyfriend/spouse in the next 24 hours. Keep sending me your questions...
Blessings,
Audrey
It's over and I'm back. Look for the final post on the communicating with boyfriend/spouse in the next 24 hours. Keep sending me your questions...
Blessings,
Audrey
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