Life With The Suttons

Foster Care

2011-10-25T10:02:00.000-06:00

Over the past 7 years or so my husband and I have been foster parents. We have had the privilege of hosting 17 beautiful children in our home over the years. Children whom we pray for continually as they continue through life journey. We do not hear how they are doing once they have left our home but the Lord knows their needs. While the children are in our home they have the opportunity to hear about the Lord Jesus Christ and what he did for them on the cross. They learn songs like Jesus Loves Me and they also learn how to pray. One of our last little ones loved prayer time and she could pray like no other. Her prayers went on for a good five or ten minutes. And even though we only understood bits and pieces of her prayer I know that her Father in heaven caught every word. What a privilege to teach these young kids about God.

Many people ask me how on earth can you be a foster mom? Isn't it hard to send them back home? I don't think I could ever do that! Well my answers are as follows. I can only be a foster mom by the strength my heavenly Father gives me to do so. The comfort he gives me when I must grieve after they go home and the hope he places in my heart of getting to help, teach, care for and comfort more of His children. I remind my self that these children did't ask to be placed in this situation and the still need all of the love and care that I am able to provide. So why not me? If I don't do it who will? I discovered this week that ND has a huge shortage of foster care providers in many counties. If you think that you might be able to open your home to a child or two or three or four :) please contact your local Social Services department and ask about taking the PRIDE class. You will know if you are able to do it after completing this class. When Tim first came home and told me we should think about becoming foster-parents my response was the same once I listed above. But once I took the class I knew this was in Gods plan for me. Yes it is hard, it is sad and sometimes you will even get mad at the authorities who send the kids home even when the social workers Suggest that no they shouldn't go. But you will have made a difference to that child or children who were in your care for a day or a year depending on their situation.

So think about it! Pray About IT!

Sing Praises to your King!

If We Say We Have No Sin We Deceive Our Selves.

2011-09-28T07:05:00.002-06:00

1 John:18-9 This is a verse that I remember saying each Sunday as we recited the liturgy of confession and absolution while I was attending the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod. In case you were wondering they can be found in the Divine Service setting two from the LSB hymnal pg 167. I have always found comfort in hearing these words and miss hearing them now that I attend a church that is not as liturgical.

We attend church to hear about the law that shows us our sins and also the Gospel which reveals the saving grace that God has bestowed upon us. This is what strengthens us and helps us to hold steadfast in tough times. If we are not hearing both of these things during the sermon at our churches we need to ask ourselves What Jesus is our church proclaiming? Is it the true Jesus of the bible or a Jesus that fits the mold of what we want him to be?

Sing Praises to your King!

Fellowship In Christ

2011-09-21T07:37:00.002-06:00

Today we learned about fellowship. I must confess that when I hear the word fellowship I think of the coffee time at church or a gathering where something fun or entertaining is happening. Too often this "fellowship time" turns into a gossip session or an all about me session. How is this glorifying our Father in Heaven. This is not the kind of Fellowship that John is talking about in 1 John 1:3 Being in fellowship is much more. It is sharing in the hope of eternal life. Praying for one another, encouraging one another with scripture and working together for the glory of God. The next time you are at a church function weather it be coffee or a youth activity where there is fun to be had. Take some time to talk about the Lord with those fellow believers, offer to pray for or with them, discuss the sermon or part of scripture that you have recently read. Let us turn those fellowship times into true Christian fellowship.

Sing Praises to your King!

Cakes, Cakes and More Cakes!

2011-08-16T20:43:00.001-06:00

Before I begin I have to tell you about the first birthday cake I made my son. It took several tried lots of tears and frustration. You see he wanted an ocean theme cake. We had just adopted him and he was turning 9. I felt so bad that his cake looked so terrible. But even thought it was not perfect he loved it any way. Well I have done a lot of practice since then and have come a long way. Here are my latest creations.

This week I had the privilege of making three Birthday cakes.

The first cake was for my grandmother who will be 90 in Sept.

She loves birds so I figured this cake was just up her ally. She loved it and even shed some tears.

Here I am with my beautiful grandma. I am so blessed to have both my grandparents in my life. I pray they know how special they are to me and how grateful I am that they loved my mother enough to teacher her about the Gospel who then passed that knowledge down to me and I in turn down to my son! Now we all have the Renascence that Jesus died for our sins and we have eternal life in Heaven to look forward to.

The next cake was for my dad who's birthday was on Friday. As many of you know he loves fishing so I fashioned this cake around his favorite hobby!

Here is my dad with his cake. He was also very surprised!

Now this cake was for non other than my mother. She had no idea that I was making this cake. Her birthday was the week before but I didn't want to leave her out of the celebration.

My mom loves to garden so this cake was the perfect fit.

Here is My mother with her specialty cake.

May God bless both of you and use you for his will in this new year of life!

Sing Praises to your King!

Minot Mission Trip 2011

2011-08-10T22:39:00.001-06:00

I am so sorry I had to remove this video. It contained some copyrighted material that could not be distributed. If you would like to see it please let me know and I will see if I can hook you up with the video via email. So please if you have shared it please delete it from your site.

This video contains members from our church Youth group. Much help is still needed in the Minot area and other areas around the country that have either been hit by tornadoes or floods. Please prayerfully consider helping those who have lost everything and who are overwhelmed by the clean up process. Let's literally help them pick up the pieces so that they can move on with their lives.
Sing Praises to your King!

Gnosticism

2011-07-30T18:42:00.000-06:00

Gnosticism is a heresy found in the church. I had heard of it before from the radio program Wretched Radio by Tod Friel. Then last night I was reading the introduction to Colossians and discovered that this was the main heresy in the church of Colossal. This is the main reason that Paul took time while he was in prision at Rome to write to the church and then to have the letter also passed on to Laodicea.

Here is the definition my study bible gives for Gnosticism in the introduction to Colossians.

Gnosticism: that God is good, but matter is evil; that Jesus Christ was merely one of a series of emanations descending from God and being less that God (a belief that led them to deny his true humanity) and that a secret higher knowledge above Scripture was necessary for enlightenment and salvation.

Gnosticism is still around today and we must not let ourselves be deceived.

For more information visit Issuesetc.org

Sing Praises to Your King!

What about Those Who Say They Are Christian But...

2011-07-30T09:22:00.000-06:00

I have heard many excuses for not attending church from those who confess their belief in Jesus Christ. The following is one of the most frequently heard excuses.

Excerpt from Lutheranism 101 pg 80

What about Those Who Say They Are Christian But...

Perhaps you have heard the excuse, "I'll come to church when they get rid of all the hypocrites." Isn't the church weakened by those who say they believe but really do not? shouldn't we institute some sort of program to root out all the false believers? Actually, such a program can only fail because there is no way for us to know and judge what a person really believes-oly God can do that. All we have is the outward confession a person makes.

Though both true believers and hypocrites are mixed together in the outward fellowship of the church, we trust God to sort them out when Christ returns at the Last Day. In the meantime, we continue bringing God's Word to all people. For God's Word alone (spoken written, given in Baptism and the Lord's Supper) leads us to repent of our hypocrisy, brings us to faith, and keeps us in the faith.

The definition of Hypocrite according to Websters Dictionary is as follows:

hyp·o·crite

noun \ˈhi-pə-ˌkrit\

Definition of HYPOCRITE

: a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion

: a person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings

— hypocrite adjective

Sing Praises to Your King!

AALC National Youth Camp

2011-07-24T17:19:00.000-06:00

This week Tim and I had the privilege of chaperoning 7 awesome teens from our church to Estes Park for the national TAALC Youth Gathering.

In ND we are sheltered from great restaurants like IHOP. So Steffany and Morgan wanted their picture taken in front of the sign!

Along the beautiful drive there was this random Indian head. It was beautifully carved.

The scenery was breath taking.

There were about 200 teens in attendance this year.

Here is Kayla and Hannah eagerly awaiting the session to start!

Here is Steffany and Morgan also awaiting the session to begin.

All the teens participated in the "get to know your fellow campers" activities and also in the singing of fun songs.

Each student met with either Tim or I just before their personal quite bible study time. It was a great opportunity for us to get to know the teens and to pray with them one on one.

We had some free time during our day and on this particular day they were just hanging out visiting. Some of the other activities were white water rafting (sorry no picutres), hiking, zip line and a trip to town.

The band played some familiar hymns with a contemporary twist to them. The teens put their arms around each other and swayed to the music as they sang.

Here are Ansir, Tristen and Phil ( a new friend from Minot).

We also saw lots of wild life like little bunnies,

And ground squirrels. The girls tried to pet and feed them.

This is Swen and Dean who were some of the musical entertainment. They were in charge of the mixers and told funny stories that also had a message.

You can see Ansir in this picture. He had a fabulous time. You will have to check out his blog to see what he thought of the camp.

In the evenings around 10:15 or so we met with just our youth group for evening devotions to review what we learned each day. The topics were passion, devotion, purity, compassion and conviction. Each topic centered on what Christ has done for us. Pastor Bill Yonker did an awesome job at getting the message of Christ Crucified across to the youth at this conference.

When Rooming with 4 teenage girls the room can get quiet messy.

Awe Morgan was embarrassed she closed her suitcase and hid her face!

I believe this was the last day as the girls were filling out their comment sheet.

And the boys did also. For some reason Ty was missing. HMM I will have to hunt down a picture! I think that some of the other teens may have a picture of him on their cameras. So check back if you want to see him.

We were able to get a lovely family picture.

And a beautiful group picture of the ORLC Teens.

This is the entire group that we traveled with. It included the teens from Minot and Parshal.

I am very grateful that we were able to attend this conference. While it was designed for the teens the adults present were able to learn some things also. There were break away sessions for both adults and teens covering topics such as defending your faith, questions you have about the Lutheran faith, dating, Are you called to ministry and many others. Tim will be going into more detail about what the conference covered over at his blog The Athanasian Truth. So be sure to check it out.

Sing Praises to Your King!

Fun summer time activity for kids.

2011-07-09T10:12:00.000-06:00

Thank you to my sister Charity for this wonderful idea. Today we needed something fun to do out side so we made a bracelet of duct tape with the sticky side out.

Then we walked around town looking for things made by GOD.

We found lots of leaves and flowers and even a rock but.

Then we cut the bracelet off and hung it on the mirror in the bedroom. I was even told that this was fun!

Sing Praises to Your King!

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-04T12:25:00.000-06:00

On a day like to day we often celebrate with a big BANG! We remember those who have fought so hard to protect our freedoms that our for fathers have secured for us. But all to often they become our focus point and we forget to give thanks to our Maker and Redeemer. Our country was indeed based on Christianity. We see evidence of that on our currency and in the Pledge of Allegiance. Our founding fathers sought out guidance from God when forming this great nation. He had His hand in it. Let us then this day also celebrate and thank God for for those freedoms as well. Not only should we thank God for our Independence but we also need to remember to thank him for the freedom that we have in Christ. For with out Jesus death and resurrection we would still be in bondage to sin. I have been set free in the Gospel my sins are forgiven and I have been created anew by the bold of Him who took my punishment on the cross! For this I humbly say Thank you God!

Sing Praises to Your King!

My flowers are in full bloom.

2011-07-04T08:00:00.001-06:00

This is what we call the front of the house. My mom brought several plants last year and we planted them in this flower bed. They sure do love their new home. As you can see they are thriving.

I just love these pretty daisies.

Here is a beautiful close up.

This is my flower garden to the south. The one that Trixie loves to dig in. these are the plants that survived her vicious digging!

And finally some pictures of my Vegetable garden! My corn is looking very nice.

It was a very windy day when I planted my lettuce. So as you can see it has sprouted up all across my garden.

And finally my potatoes. I can't believe how a few hot days makes the garden grow! I have already been able to harvest some wonderful lettuce and radishes. There is nothing like eating the fruits of your labor. And surprisingly enough the weeds are not so bad. But that creeping Jenny can over take your garden if you do not keep on top of it.

Sing Praises to Your King!

Ansir's Room mid renovation!

2011-07-03T13:49:00.000-06:00

A beautiful floor lies underneath this black mess! I scraped the rest of the room and this corner is all that was left for Ansir's strong muscles when he got home this weekend.

After we get it done we will need to sand and coat the floor with something durable and shinny to make it all pretty! Then a nice rug on the floor for cold winter nights/morning's and the room will be done.

Sing Praises to Your King!

My first flowers of the year!

2011-06-13T07:47:00.000-06:00

Ok so it is the middle of June and I am just now getting the first blooms of the summer. And for the record the bright yellow carpet of dandelions in my yard do NOT count!

Last June my mother came to visit and brought me several plants. This is the first one to bloom but some of the others will soon be following suit.

What a beautiful rich color.

This is a picture of the flower garden on the east side of the house. As you can see I have put in boards around the edge. This prevents my mower from accidental mowing down my flowers.

Here are some petunias that I planted on the south side of the house. It really loos nice but Trixie also thinks this is her personal sand box. She love to make that dirt fly. I figured that by putting plants in it (rather than seeds) it would keep her from digging. No such luck!

I also put a wood edge around this flower bed. if you look close you might be able to see the holes she has dug.

Sing Praises to Your King!

A Christian Parents Responsibility!

2011-06-09T07:09:00.000-06:00

Ephesians 6:1-4
The 4th commandment is mentioned here and it also reminds us that this commandment has a promise attached. This next section makes me scratch my head a little "Fathers do not provoke your children to anger" OK, But here is the deal sometimes I "a mother" can say one word and boom my child has been provoked to anger. I think we need to use discernment in this and often parents use this verse to throw discipline and expectations out the window. If we as parents walk on eggshells in our home for fear of angering our children we are not doing what God tells us next. "bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord." Sometimes this means telling them things they do not want to hear but they need to hear. Just as our heavenly Father gives us what we need as apposed to what we want we also need to do this for our children.

I want to note that it is the parents duty to bring up the children in the instruction of the Lord. What does this look like?
Daily prayers,
Daily Bible readings (with discussion of what was read)
Memory work
Using every opportunity to teach our children about grace
Teaching your children the basic christian doctrine found in Luthers Small Catechism (that is what Luther designed it for)

It is not the Churches job to teach your children everything they need to know about God. The church is a useful tool and a great support but should not be the first and only place the children learn about God. When we stood in front of the church and God at the baptism of our children, we took an oath to teach them these truths. I wonder how many families actually take this oath to heart and complete this task? If more families would have family worship time at home and make God the most important thing in their lives I think the children would grow and stay steadfast in their Christian faith as they finish confirmation and move on into adulthood.

What are your thoughts?
Sing Praises to Your King!

New Teaching Opprotunities

2011-05-31T08:00:00.001-06:00

I am super excited for yet another way to share the Gospel with the people of Alamo. I currently lead a womens Bible Study in my home for the women of Alamo. We currently have 3 women including my self who attend regularly. Last week during our study I discovered the the moms and kids would like a study just for the kids. So today we will begin. I will be using the book One Hundred Bible Stories. The interesting part is that I will be teaching children from 3rs old to 11th grade at the same time. So the question is how will I make the material presentable to such a wide range of kids? Since we will be starting with the Creation account I have printed off a mini creation coloring book for the 3 yr old. The middle age kids will create a Diagram of the order of creation and the older ones will do this plus compare and contrast creation and evolution. I am also going to use some videos that Answers in Genesis has on their site to help reinforce the importance of the material covered. As of right now I think there will be 6 kids attending with a possibility of growing. There are many other kids in town that could be included. Perhaps I will hang a sign in the post office to invite those whom I do not know.

Sing Praises to Your King!

Media - Answers in Genesis

2011-05-30T13:35:00.002-06:00

Since I have recently taken a class on Creation Apologetics I have discovered a great importance of teaching our children the Truth about Creation! Ken Ham has a series of videos available to aid parents, Sunday school teachers and Christian Day School Teachers in teaching this important topic. These videos fun songs to sing, cool cartoon images and some humor along the way. So gather your children around the computer and learn together. Just follow the link below and start with the video entitled Dinosaurs, Genesis & the Gospel part one.

Media - Answers in Genesis

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Finally!

2011-05-15T17:28:00.002-06:00

Today it was finally warm enough to work the garden!

Tim said that this year it was much easier to work the soil than it was last year!

I love the feel of warm dirt between my toes. It always looks so nice when it is just tilled.

This year we used a rear tiller instead of a front one like last year. Thank you to my dear hubby who worked so hard today! After he was done I started raising my rows for my corn. I have a lot of work ahead of me. Thank goodness the forecast is sunny and warm!

Sing Praises to Your King!

2011-04-26T16:03:00.001-06:00

This picture slideshow created with Smilebox

Who knew?

2011-03-14T14:52:00.003-06:00

I have had this plan for over 5 years maybe even more. During those 5 years I thought this was just a green foliage plant. Last year my next door neighbor said "Oh no it will get flowers if it is taken care of properly". So with some guidance it finally happened.

Here are what the flowers look like. They are very pretty. Right now I only have one bunch on the plant but I see another spot where some may develop. So I keep my fingers crossed.

When you look at them close up they look like plastic or like frosting. I can't tell you how excited I am! Spring has sprung even though there is lots and lots of snow on the ground!

Sing Praises to Your King!

Defending Your Faith Lesson 1

2011-03-03T20:32:00.004-07:00

Sledding Fun

2011-02-27T16:48:00.001-07:00

Another free picture slideshow by Smilebox

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Ansir's Birthday Celebration

2011-02-26T16:17:00.002-07:00

Today we had Ansirs "Sutton family" Birthday celebration. It was so nice that they all braved the cold temps to be here for diner.

Josh's little girl who thought she should go home with Brandy and her girls. She had a great time.

Tim visiting with his brother.

Grandpa Sutton even made the trip to help Ansir celebrate.

The little ones had fun playing with some balloons.

The girls each hand made something made of clay for Ansir how special.

Everyone is waiting for cake.

Visiting around the table. It has been a while since all of the Suttons' have gathered for a nice visit.

We all had a nice time singing to Ansir before we ate the delicious cake.

Sing Praises to Your King!

Good Works. What Is Your Motive?

2011-02-16T09:59:00.004-07:00

My son and I have been reading through James with the Good Morning Girls book club. Today we read James 2:18-22.

[18] But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. [19] You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! [20] Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? [21] Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? [22] You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; [23] and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. [24] You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. [25] And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? [26] For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

(James 2:18-26 ESV)

During our observation/application section of the study we had a great discussion about how we as Christians can be doing works in vain. When we do good works we examine our motives for doing so.

Here are some questions we came up with to ask our selves.

1. What is the main reason I am doing this?

a. Is it to serve God?

b. Is it serve myself?

2. Will thins act cause me to boast in myself or boast in God?

3. Am I doing this only so that I will appear to be a Christian on the outside?

4. Am I doing this to earn my way to heaven? (Note: There is nothing we can do to earn our way to heaven. The rand-some has already been paid by Jesus Christ who shed his blood and laid down his life for the payment for our sins.)

When we take our eyes off of Christ and put them on our selves we are not truly serving God. God has called us to do these good works and even has prepared them in advance for us to bring to completion.

Ephesians 2:10

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Ladies and Gentlemen Keep your eyes focused on the cross!

Sing Praises to Your King!

James 2:2-7

2011-02-09T08:59:00.003-07:00

When you receive new members into your congregation have you ever thought these things?

Wow I bet they will give lots of money!
Now we can fund the new tile in the church this family will help us pay for it.
Yes another doctor! Maybe he will help us fund a new youth program!
Oh no that person only has a teachers salary what can he offer.
Look at all those kids. I bet they don't have very much money to give.

I bet we have all been guilty of thinking these things at one time or another and because of this way of thinking we go out of our way to make the rich man feel welcome while we tend to neglect the poor man. In James 2 we learn that God sees things just the opposite. He said: [5] Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? [6] But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court?

(James 2:5-6 ESV)

We need to remember that one can not buy their way into heaven and we should not encourage this kind of thinking by how we receive members into our congregations.

Sing Praises to Your King!

The Lords Supper

2011-02-03T06:31:00.005-07:00

The Lords Supper

[24] and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” [25] In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” [26] For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

(1 Corinthians 11:24-26 ESV)

Paul tells us in this section that we need to be examining our selves prior to coming to the table. We need to confess that we are sinners and make sure that we are not approaching the table holding on to our sin or with an ungodly attitude lest we eat or drink judgment upon ourselves.

Luther's Catechism gives this definition of the Lords Supper

The Sacrament of the Altar

AS THE HEAD OF THE FAMILY SHOULD TEACH IT

IN A SIMPLE WAY TO HIS HOUSEHOLD

What is the Sacrament of the Altar?

It is the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ under the bread and wine, instituted

by Christ Himself for us Christians to eat and to drink.

Where is this written?

The holy Evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke, and St Paul write:

Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the night when He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had

given thanks, He broke it and gave it to the disciples and said: “Take, eat; this is My body,

which is given for you. This do in remembrance of Me.”

In the same way also He took the cup after supper, and when He had given thanks, He

gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you; this cup is the new testament in My blood,

which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. This do, as often as you drink it, in

remembrance of Me.”

What is the benefit of this eating and drinking?

These words, “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins,” show us that in the

Sacrament forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation are given us through these words. For where

there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation.

How can bodily eating and drinking do such great things?

Certainly not just eating and drinking do these things, but the words written here: “Given

and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” These words, along with the bodily eating and

drinking, are the main thing in the Sacrament. Whoever believes these words has exactly what

they say: “forgiveness of sins.”

Who receives this sacrament worthily?

Fasting and bodily preparation are certainly fine outward training. But that person is truly

worthy and well prepared who has faith in these words: “Given and shed for you for the

forgiveness of sins.”

But anyone who does not believe these words or doubts them is unworthy and unprepared,

for the words “for you” require all hearts to believe

The new covenant is mentioned and this covenant occurred when Jesus died on the cross and rose again for the atonement of our sins once and for all. If this event would not have happened we would still be under the old covenant where we would need to be sacrificing animals often for the atonement of our sins.

During this time the people of Corinth were taking the Lords Supper in an unworthy manner; over eating not sharing with those who had none and getting drunk. Paul tells them that they have their own houses for eating and drinking and they should not do those things at the Lords table.

Sing Praises to Your King!