Romans 8:1-5

There is therefore now, no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, for the Law of the spirit of life has set us free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.  For God did what the law, weakened by flesh could not do.  By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who walk not according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.  For those who walk according to the flesh set their minds on things of the flesh, but those who walk according to the Spirit set their minds on things of the Spirit.

What does it mean to be Reformed?

Over the past several month's, I've been doing a lot of studying, reading, and praying and all that has led to, what I believe, is the truth of Reformed theology.  While I do not by any means claim to be an authority on Reformed theology, I have noticed a few things that seem to distinguish it from other sects of Christianity and religious groups.

I think the first thing to mention when explaining Reformed theology is it's extremely high view of scripture.  Chris Rosebrough of Pirate Christian Radio does a show called Fighting for the Faith.  During a podcast on October 16, 2008, Rosebrough talked about the Material Principle which is defined as the central doctrine a religion adheres to.  He also explained the Formal Principle, which is similar, but is the authority which shapes said doctrine and usually explains where that doctrine comes from. Rosebrough explains that the Formal Principle is usually a text or the teachings of an individual that contains and explains the Material Principle.  I thought I remembered him saying that the material principle of Reformed faith is Sovereignty of God and the formal principle is Sola Scriptura, but the PowerPoint slides say something different - however, Rosebrough is Lutheran, which is slightly different than Reformed, so that may explain it.

Last day at Lane Bryant

Yesterday was my last day working at Lane Bryant.  It was a sad day... a lot went on there that I didn't like dealing with, such as on-call shifts, pushing credit, slacking sales leaders, low pay and scattered minimal hours but despite all that, it really has been my favorite job so far.

One good thing that happened on my last day was I worked with someone, who, I think was my favorite customer to work with at the store.  She came in kinda unsure what she was looking for, but she had a good-bye party her friends and colleagues were throwing her because she was moving to San Diego.  She was looking for an outfit that wasn't too casual, but wasn't extremely formal either.

She ended up buying a dress that looked terrific on her especially after fitting her for a bra, and putting her in a pair of Spanx!  With this one customer, I had the privilege of doing everything that I loved about working at Lane Bryant!  I got to put her in an awesome looking outfit, fit her for a bra, and add the finishing touches of Spanx and other accessories, all while seeing her looks of surprise, and her confidence and excitement grow as we added each piece!

Grandma Visit

So, my Grandma who lives in southern California is visiting the house for a few weeks.  She comes and visits every summer, and it's great to see her, but at the same time, as much as I love her, she does somewhat add to the stress level in the house.

It's nothing that she intentionally does I don't think, she just has a very different lifestyle than we do.  Not that I'm calling her uptight or anything, but she is very much more set in her ways than we are, and we are much more laid back and easy-going, I find, than she is.

One thing that is very important to me and my family is our faith and our involvement in church.  My grandma is of the opinion that if you live a decent life and you do your best to be a good person, (coupled with belief in God) that God will let you into Heaven regardless of other beliefs or lifestyles.  She has concluded that all Christianity is is a list of rules and laws and regulations in order for you to be a better person, and that she doesn't need God to be a good, and upstanding.

One Year Anniversary of Graduation

But you wouldn't be able to tell a thing.

On July 25, 2009 I graduated from Ball State with a BS in Apparel Design.  Even before graduation, I had decided that my degree was just that... b.s.  Not only is the job market ABYSMAL for fashion designers, but about half-way through my senior year, I decided that I hated my degree.  I didn't like designing, I wasn't crazy about sewing and the whole fashion industry was not something I wanted to get seriously involved in... even if I wanted to, it would be really difficult for a fat girl to make it very far in an industry so obsessed with skin-deep beauty.

I really thought that, given a year, I would have made more progress in life than I have.  I thought that I would be living somewhere other than my parents house, working full-time, have more healthy relationships with people, and be healthier overall.  Even if not all of those things were going to happen, I would at least think I would be working more and be at least somewhat healthy physically.

Assurance

How do you know if you're saved? Christ saved the elect (assuming only the elect are saved by the work of Christ) by dying on the cross in payment for sins - but how do you know if you're elect?

We are saved by faith in Christ given to us as a gift through grace. I've heard that phrase and thought the gift was Christ, not faith, now, with further reading and study, I do still believe that Christ was a gift but the "gift" referred to in this particular statement is the faith - God grants people faith as a free gift.  Faith in the work He's already done, through Christ.  (In essence, our faith is a gift, and that faith is in Christ Jesus.)

Faith is the gift, Jesus Christ was the means by which it is given because it allowed God to grant grace. So, if Christ died for the elect and the elect are granted faith because of God's grace, is having faith our assurance for salvation?

In Regard to the Twitter Discussion:

So, the other day I asked kind of a big question and then had to leave and I wasn't able to see/participate in the conversation until much later.  (I still haven't actually said anything about it because things have been kinda crazy around my house!)