Parenting and discipline

Today was a day at church that was BUSY!! We have VBS this week includes 450 kids and about 150 workers - all of whom I feed for the 5 days this next week. So we were up at church all day and since I woke up really early to a thunderstorm and needing to close the windows, I'm shot! But a couple of things happened today that made up the bulk of the conversations in my family during all of this.

First off, there was a little girl at church who was in the VBS singers group - a group of the little kids who will help to lead the singing each day. My two little ones are in it and my 16 year old went over to high five everyone. She got through the first row then got to the 2nd row where a little girl was sitting talking to another child. She saw Nicole coming and when Nicole got to her, she just stuck out her tongue and folded her arms!! VERY snotty attitude. I've seen this little girl do a number of rude things to other kids and it makes me sad for her, her parents and other kids around her.

Then there was a group of rowdy boys who were running around with a toy gun. It WAS raining outside and they were stuck at church all day so I know they were going buggy but they didn't need to almost knock over a group of people as they ran. They came into "my" kitchen, drank the remainder of the iced tea for the workers (it was getting later so I let them) and then they started shooting the brand new ceiling with the toy gun (that shot suction cup "arrows") just when pastor walked in. He spoke to them and they were actually a little disrespectful to him - enough to that if it were my child, I would have spanked them.

It makes me sad that there are children who seem to not be taught basic manners anymore. These are also children that I've seen be VERY disrespectful to their own parents and the parents not say a THING to them. My 16 year old was saying how she's seen it a lot too and questioned if parents see what's happening or not. I honestly don't know. Do they see it or not? Do they see it and ignore it? Do they see it and don't know how to deal with it? One thing I've learned through raising my 4 kids is that it's very important to have a "vision" for your kids. I'm not talking about seeing them as doctors or teachers but to see what quality you want them to be when they grow up. First and foremost, I want my kids to have a relationship with the Lord, but after that, I really want my kids to be respectful and polite so that's a large focus here. I don't let my kids get away with disrespect or rudeness - not that I spank them every time it happens or punish them but we certainly address it and punish when necessary. It's important enough for me to spend time on this and I can see in my 16 and 18 year olds, it's working. Hey - I can see it in my 5 and 7 year olds too!

I'm certainly not a perfect parent and I've made my mistakes (plenty of them) but this is an area I feel really strongly about and I see that there are benefits paid in being diligent in discipling (not just disciplining) your kids. Know what the goal is and work towards it and you just might be able to get there! LOL!! The Bible says "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he." (Proverbs 29:18) God has given US the vision of becoming more Christlike and so we can know if we're being successful or not and keep a focus. It's the same with raising our children.

Stuff on Lauren

Well, Lauren's graduation party was a success - much due to the wonderful young man who's good friends with the girls and he brought....in 95 degree humidity....a real honest to goodness SNOW CONE MACHINE!!!! How cool is that? We had a great time and Lauren was thrilled.

She also got back her AP grade for 2D Art - a 5! The grade is from 1-5, 5 being the highest grade. She was thrilled AND that gave her 3 college credits.

Finally, she took her road test today and passed on the first try! That's my girl! LOL Now to get brave enough to let her really drive the car by herself. ;)

This next week will be a quieter week which is good because it's still HOT. We're having a heat wave in NY with temps over 90 degrees for 6 days now (I think) and we also have the wonderful NY humidity to go along with it. We've not had rain for a while either so my lawn is just about dead. :( I'm enjoying my AC today and just resting because I went riding and ended up with a bit of heat exhaustion. Bleck!

The only thing I really need to worry about this week is getting ready for our VBS. I do all the refreshments - feeding 150+ workers, 450+ kids and then parents too. We have "dry run" on Thursday so I'll get some things for that (thinking just bagels, a couple of danishes and some fruit along with the coffee and tea), and then I need to do the big Costco run and buy the drink mixes, cookies and stuff to make my own trail mix. :) So this week I'll enjoy the little down time before the mad rush!! LOL

12 Years ago - TWA Flight 800

12 years ago yesterday (well, 2 days ago now that it's after midnight), TWA Flight 800 exploded and went down just off the South Shore of Long Island. I remember watching the news and seeing the devastation of the complete obliteration of the airplane and the boats going out to try to find any survivors amongst the debris and burning jet fuel. 2 days later found both my mother and I at the Moriches Coast Guard Station working with the Red Cross providing food, supplies and support to the men and women who were out on the water recovering all of the debris and whatever bodies and body parts they could find. About 50 yards in front of us, I watched as they brought in lost loved ones and recognizable and unrecognizable pieces of the plane. I remember looking at the windows and realizing that most likely, there was someone sitting at that window in the last second of their lives.

I just want to remember the lives that were lost 12 years ago and I pray for the families that were touched by the tragedy. Seeing the pics on the news and in the papers these last few days really brought back the feelings that I had in those days working at the CG Station. The sadness for those lost lives - and likely lost souls hurts almost as much as it did back then. I also pray for those who did the searching and who came upon some horrific sights. I pray for continued healing for all of them and a touch from the Lord - that they would put their trust in the One who holds life and death in His hands.

A good reply that I got regarding Samuel Gipp

Someone wrote me this in response to my last blog post:


Ann, please clarify something for me. It bothers me.
You said “Dr. Samuel Gipp...states "God has always given His word to one people in one language to do one job; convert the world. The supposition that there must be a perfect translation in every language is erroneous and inconsistent with God's proven practice." (The Answer Book, pg. 32)
Now understanding that I have never heard of Dr Gipp in my life, this thought hit me hard. This man is damned by his own words. The only sin listed in the Bible as unforgivable is the blaspheming of the Holy Spirit. Dr. Gipp is accusing the Holy Spirit of going against God. He is either lying to make his point or just flat wrong in this statement, the Bible, KJV for those who prefer it) says so clearly in Acts 2:4-14 and I quote “4And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
5And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven.
6Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language.
7And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans?
8And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?
9Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia,
10Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes,
11Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God.
12And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this?”
It means that God is capable of making HIS word understood by every man woman and child on the planet, even when men try to interfere.
How can this man contradict God and expect to be rewarded??


My response is Wow! I hadn't even thought of that occurrance in Scripture but you're so right. God DID make sure that His Word was not only able to be understood in the one language (Greek) but in the languages of all of those around them. How can anyone be like a Berean and study the Scriptures to know if this is so if they do not have the Word of God in their language? Are we so arrogant as to think that God prefers the English language? I'll bet English wasn't one of the languages spoken at Pentacost. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." If one doesn't understand Scripture because it's in another language, it is NOT suitable for anything for them. But when they can read it - and study it - it is the lamp unto their feet and a light unto their path (Psalm 119:105). I thank God that He's powerful enough to be sure that His Word stands true - in any language that it's translated in. I thank God for those faithful men and women who continue to do the work of God in making sure that those languages that do not have an accurate Bible will have one. There are a few men who are doing just that on another board I'm on including John R. Rice's grandson who is a missionary to Japan. For those who don't know, John R. Rice was one of the founders of the Sword of the Lord. Yes, the Sword of the Lord was not founded on the ideology of KJVO. Sadly it's not the same way anymore.

Here we go again - KJVO

OK - Since I cannot comment on Michelle's blog because she's censoring my responses, I need to address the posts here.

First off, let me just say that I'm not Anti-KJV or a KJV critic. I love the KJV and use it often. I find it's poetic style of writing beautiful and it's an excellent translation. I'm a critic of the poor scholarship of the KJVO camp. Again, what I find interesting is that those who have fully studied the translation issue do not stand with the KJVO crowd. That speaks volumes, IMO.

OK, so the response to my comment (which is in my last post) is this:

I was hoping to share with you my notes from last night's service. But I guess that it will have to wait until tomorrow. Instead I'm going to address the latest comment from my KJV Critic. The only time that she comments on my blog is when I make a comment stating that the KJV is God's perfect word and that it is the Bible for the English-speaking world. Usually I just ignore the comments and go on with my life, but this time I decided to address the comment. This is a portion of the comment that I received from my KJV critic concerning Acts 8:37.

"Yes, this verse is in the KJV and the Textus Receptus but it's actually not in the text of any Greek manuscript that the Textus Receptus is based on - just in the margin in one of them. It was also in the Latin Vulgate - the version produced by the Roman church. So, while this verse is orthodox in it's meaning, it is likely nothing that Luke wrote and was inserted later."

I decided to study this a bit and here is what I found. Acts 8:37 was put into the Textus Receptus by Erasmus, who, from what I've been able to gather, was the one who compiled the various Antioch Texts into one Greek Translation. Here is what Dr. Samual C. Gipp had to say about him in his book An Understandable History of the Bible.

The man responsible for the Textus Receptus was Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536). He may well be called "The Original Editor." Ersamus was a genius. He was without argument the most learned man of the sixteen century.

And in describing how he went about the Textus Receptus, Gipp writes:

Before beginning his work, Erasmus collected all the available witnesses to the text. . . . he carefully examined them to determine which were reliable and which were to be rejected as tainted.

And considering the amount of time that Erasmus had spent studying in the libraries of the Roman Catholic church, I am sure that he had available to him not only the pure texts of Antioch, but the corrupt texts of Alexandria.

Let's compare this with the scholarship of Wescott and Hort. They used just a handful of manuscripts, most of which don't even agree amongst themselves.

The Textus Receptus was compiled from only some of the available manuscripts during that time period. He began with just 6 manuscripts. While he did receive a few more, his body of work used a very small number of manuscripts - a VERY small fraction of what we have to study today. He also didn't even have the whole of Revelation so used the Roman church's Latin Vulgate to fill it in.

Erasmus produced a printed Greek text (1516), the first of it's kind to be published, and a Latin translation too (not the Vulgate but a new one). His Greek text was revised in 1519, 1522, 1527 and 1535, the year before his death. Attached to his texts were his Annotations that included, initially, notes on various passages and comments on the scriptural themes. As there was controversy over his texts, the Annotations grew to explain why he translated as he did. One of the great things about Erasmus was that he produced such a fine text with so few resources. But even so, Erasmus showed himself a true scholar and his Annotations address many of the same textual variants that are discussed today by modern scholars, many of which are relevant to the KJVO discussion as well. Interestingly enough, Erasmus found a great bit of resistance and controvery over his texts - much like the argument that we have today against the modern versions.

Dr. Samuel Gipp is an interesting man and not known as a translation scholar. He feels that if the original Greek manuscripts disagree with the KJV, then the KJV is what is the truth. This would be even if ALL of the Greek manuscripts were to say the same thing. He places the KJV over even those texts that the KJV was translated from. Of course, since there is no manuscript evidence for Acts 8:37, he still feels that the KJV stands true when the manuscripts are IN ERROR. He also said that a person who does not speak English needs to learn English in order to have the infallable Word of God. In other words, there are no other languages that have the infallable Word of God. He states "God has always given His word to one people in one language to do one job; convert the world. The supposition that there must be a perfect translation in every language is erroneous and inconsistent with God's proven practice." (The Answer Book, pg. 32) Yet let's see what even the translators of the KJV said "Indeed without translation into the vulgar tongue, the unlearned are but like children at Jacob's well (which is deep) [John 4:11] without a bucket or something to draw with; or as that person mentioned by Isaiah, to whom when a sealed book was delivered, with this motion, "Read this, I pray thee," he was fain to make this answer, "I cannot, for it is sealed." [Isa 29:11]" Quite a different thought, huh?

As for Wescott and Hort, well, they had quite a bit more than "a handful of manuscripts, most of which don't even agree amongst themselves". And since then, discoveries have shown that their translations were quite accurate. But besides that, the versions that we have today, that those who are KJVO feel are "perverted" are not based on the Wescott and Hort. It would be proper for those who argue TR Vs. WH realize that they're fighting the wrong battle. That's like saying "Don't buy from Japan because they're the enemy." ;)

As for Sheree's comment "Its a shame she can't just move on. She insists that anyone who is KJV only is wrong and that her opinion is the only right one and apparently the only one that matters. It seems more of a pride issue to me than anything else. She insists she is the only one who could possibly be right about what version is true and correct. Very sad that she continues to use her blog only to refute yours. There is so much more in life to blog about than to consistently attack someone whom you disagree with, kwim? I am so sorry you are having to deal with this."

Oh - I can move on but I know that there are women who read Michelle's blog who are not well-versed on this issue and need to know the truth. Yes, KJVO is wrong - it is not in the Bible (even the KJV) and it leads many into error because it puts questions in their mind as to the very Word of God. Pride is not the issue - truth is. You know I stand for the truth, Sheree. If I see an error, I will address it. Since I am apparently censored from posting on Michelle's blog, I need to do so here. You yourself used your blog for quite a bit more anger, pride and slander. I'm not doing that but just posting truth. Michelle stated "
But then again, I probably shouldn't be surprised that people get the order wrong. Considering verse 37 is left out of the NIV, NLT, and ESV, and the NASB and RSV have it in parenthesis. So most people don't even no that the order of things is given. And I'm not surprised. The modern translations are based on the inferior Alexandrian or Vatican texts and not on the Textus Receptus." I have the ESV and the NIV. The verses are there. So to say "verse 37 is left out" is a lie. Clear and simple.

What version is true and correct? There are none that are 100% accurate. However, there is nothing in any of the valid versions - from the Geneva Bible (which predates the KJV) to the ESV that has changed any doctrine, any truth or any word that God speaks to us. And it is a proper student of the Bible who understands the translational differences and with the Holy Spirt, studies them for him/herself.

Quick response to an attack on the Word of God

I just wanted to address a blog post on another board about a verse in Acts where Philip and the Ethiopian are engaged. The verse in question is Acts 8:37 which reads "And he said, 'If you believe with your whole heart, you may.' And he answered, 'I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God'"

I responded in a comment with this:

Yes, this verse is in the KJV and the Textus Receptus but it's actually not in the text of any Greek manuscript that the Textus Receptus is based on - just in the margin in one of them. It was also in the Latin Vulgate - the version produced by the Roman church. So, while this verse is orthodox in it's meaning, it is likely nothing that Luke wrote and was inserted later.

So to accuse the other versions of "leaving out" verses is wrong. The texts of the Textus Receptus do not support this verse.

If anyone has any question about this, Google "textual basis Acts 8:37". I think you'll learn a lot including the fact that there is really so little support for this verse being in the original that it should be atleast noted as being of questionable heritage - as all of the "modern versions" do. My ESV has the verse in a footnote. My NIV has it also. So it's not left out at all but is using proper translation methods to notate the verse.

Does removing that verse or putting it in the footnote remove the idea of belief must come before baptism? Was this verse removed because of some consipiracy to make it that we must be baptized first as children? Well, since it's only location at the time of Erasmus writing the Textus Receptus was the version that was commissioned by the Roman Catholic church, I do not think so. Mark 16:16, Acts 8:12-12, Acts 18:8 and Acts 19:4 all speak of "believing and being baptized". It's the proper order - believe then be baptized. So even without Acts 8:37, Scripture is consistent. Baptism is an ordinance for those who have believed.

So once again, we can have faith that the "modern versions" are still the Word of God for the English speaking peoples.

Been a while!

Man, it's been a while since I posted! We were busy with the building dedication at church then we were readying for our vacation. We went away over the 4th of July week on our sailboat and had a wonderful time. Thank God we had good weather because after a storm last year, I would be petrified of another one. But we were safe and sound the whole trip. We didn't get to do much swimming because of the jelly fish - the big icky red ones called "Lion's Mane". NO WAY was I going in with them. Their tentacles are so long that you don't even need to see them to be stung. Yucko! So we waited until we got to a place called Hamburg Cove where the water is fresh (yes, you can get to fresh water from salt water) and then we hardly left the water. It was a great trip, lots of fun being with the kids and we even got to use our sailboat as a sailboat for about 2 hours over the whole week! LOL I have to say that in this fuel crunch, it's SO nice to have a sailboat because even with all the motoring we did, I figure we spent about $70 or so tops for a week. Not too shabby!

So now it's back to life. I'm still working on the laundry and cleaning up the pile in the entry hall (thank heavens we have a large entry hall) because this is "Youth Week" at church which means a lot of driving of the teen girls. Then today I took our oldest off to college for her orientation. She'll be there for 3 days and it's the first time she's away from home at something that has nothing to do with God or people we know (everything else has had both components before). But she called and she's met some friends and she's having a good time. I know that she has a strong heart for the Lord and I have no doubt that others will meet Jesus through her over these next 4 years. :) But MAN, I still can't believe she's going to college. OH!! She also has her first credit card! YIKES!! So far so good but let's see what she does at school with it.... Oh Lord! Am I ready for this? I need STRENGTH!! :)