Pregnancy At 19 Weeks

All About Baby

In mother's 19th week of pregnancy, Baby's organs continue to grow. His body is covered with lanugo—soft hairs and a sticky protective coating that keeps his skin from drying out in the amniotic fluid. Baby is moving frequently, and by now mother should be able to feel those movements. The midwife can hear a stronger Baby's heartbeat with her fetal doppler.

Baby is covered in vernix, a white, cheesy "cream" that protects his skin from the long bath in amniotic fluid. (Note: Preemies are covered in vernix at birth—"posties" have almost none.)

[Picture and (edited) information provided by www.babyzone.com.]

The Cross: New vs. Old

by A. W. Tozer

"Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me,
let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me." (Matthew 16:24)

All unannounced and mostly undetected there has come in modern times a new cross into popular evangelical circles. It is like the old cross, but different; the likenesses are superficial, the differences fundamental.

From this new cross has sprung a new philosophy of the Christian life; and from that new philosophy has come a new evangelical technique, a new type of meeting and a new kind of preaching. This new evangelism employs the same language as the old, but its content is not the same and its emphasis not as before.

Good, Clean Fun

The old cross would have no truck with the world. For Adam's proud flesh it meant the end of the journey. It carried into effect the sentence imposed by the law of Sinai. The new cross is not opposed to the human race; rather, it is a friendly pal, and if understood aright, it is the source of oceans of good clean fun and innocent enjoyment. It lets Adam live without interference. His life motivation is unchanged; he still lives for his own pleasure, only now he takes delight in singing choruses and watching religious movies instead of bawdy songs and drinking hard liquor. The accent is still on enjoyment, though the fun is now on a higher plane morally, if not intellectually.

The World but at a Higher Level

The new cross encourages a new and entirely different evangelistic approach. The evangelist does not demand abnegation of the old life before the new life can be received. He preaches not contrasts but similarities. He seeks to key into public interest by showing that Christianity makes no unpleasant demands; rather it offers the same things the world does, only on a higher level. Whatever the sin-mad world happens to be clamoring after at the moment is cleverly shown to be the very thing the Gospel offers; only the religious product is better.

Following Human Taste and Reasoning

The new cross does not slay the sinner, it redirects him. It gears him into a cleaner and jollier way of living and saves his self-respect. To the self-assertive it says, "Come and assert yourself for Christ." To the egoist it says, "Come and do your boasting in the Lord." To the thrill seeker it says, "Come and enjoy the thrill of Christian fellowship." The Modern message is slanted in the direction of the current vogue, thereby catering to human taste and reasoning.

The philosophy back of this kind of thing may be sincere, but its sincerity does not save it from being false. It is false because it is blind. It misses completely all the meaning of the cross.

A Symbol of Death or of Redirection?

The old cross is a symbol of death. It stands for the abrupt violent end of a human being. The man in Roman times who took up his cross and started down the road had already said goodbye to his friends. He was not coming back. He was not going to have his life redirected; he was going out to have it ended. The cross made no compromise, modified nothing, spared nothing, it slew all of the man, completely and for good. It did not try to keep on good terms with its victim. It struck swift and hard, and when it had finished its work the man was no more.

The race of Adam is under death sentence. There is no commutation, and no escape. God cannot approve any of the fruits of sin, however innocent they may appear or beautiful to the eyes of men. God salvages the individual by liquidating him, and then raising him again to newness of life. God offers life, but not an improved old life. The life He offers is life out of death. It stands always on the far side of the cross. Among the plastic saints of our times Jesus has to do all the dying and all we want is to hear another sermon about His dying. We want to be saved but we insist that Christ do all the dying. No cross for us, no dethronement, no dying. We remain king within the little kingdom of Mansoul and wear our tinsel crown with all the pride of a Caesar; but we doom ourselves to shadows and weakness and spiritual sterility.

Not Diplomats but Prophets

That evangelism which draws friendly parallels between the ways of God and the ways of men is false to the Bible and cruel to the souls of the hearers. The faith of Christ does not parallel the world; it intersects it. In coming to Christ we do not bring our old life up onto a higher plane; we leave it at the cross. The corn of wheat must fall into the ground and die.We who preach the Gospel must not think of ourselves as public relations agents sent to establish good will between Christ and the world. We must not imagine ourselves commissioned to make Christ acceptable to Big Businessmen, or the Press, or the World of Sports, or Modern Education. We are not diplomats but prophets, and our message is not a compromise but an ultimatum.

God offers life, but not an improved old life. The life He offers is life out of death. It stands always on the far side of the cross whoever would possess it must pass under the rod. He must repudiate himself and concur in God's just sentence against him.

So subtle is self that scarcely anyone is conscious of its presence. Because man is born a rebel, he is unaware that he is one. His constant assertion of self, as far as he thinks of it at all, appears to him a perfectly normal thing. He is willing to share himself, sometimes even to sacrifice himself for a desired end, but never to dethrone himself. Sin has many manifestations, but its essence is one. A moral being, created to worship before the throne of God, sits on the throne of his own selfhood and from that elevated position declares, "I AM." That is sin in its concentrated essence; yet because it is natural it appears to be good.

"What shall we do?" (Acts 2:37) is the deep heart cry of every man who suddenly realizes that he is a usurper and sits on a stolen throne..... There must be a work of God in destruction before we are free. We must invite the cross to do its deadly work within us.... Our uncrucified flesh will rob us of purity of heart, Christ-likeness of character, spiritual insight, fruitfulness; and more than all, it will hide from us the vision of God's face.

If I see aright, the cross of popular Evangelicalism is not the cross of the New Testament. It is, rather, a new bright ornament upon the bosom of a self-assured and carnal Christianity. The old cross slew men; the new cross entertains them. The old cross condemned; the new cross amuses. The old cross destroyed confidence in the flesh; the new cross encourages it.

Repent, Believe, and Forsake

What does this mean to the individual, the condemned man who would find life in Christ Jesus? How can this theology be translated into life? Simply, he must repent and believe. He must forsake his sins and then go on to forsake himself. Let him cover nothing, defend nothing, excuse nothing. Let him not seek to make terms with God, but let him bow his head before the stroke of God's stern displeasure.

Having done this let him gaze with simple trust upon the risen Savior, and from Him will come life and re-birth and cleansing and power. The cross that ended the earthly life of Jesus now puts an end to the sinner, and the power that raised Christ from the dead now raises him to a new life along with Christ.

Pregnancy At 18 Weeks

All About Baby

At week 18, Baby's senses are maturing. She's able to hear sounds within her own comfortable environment, such as the sound of mother's beating heart, as well as external sounds, such as mother's voice. Baby may become more active for certain sounds. Mother should be able to feel her movements. At this point in her development she's still small enough that she has plenty of room to wiggle.



[Picture and (edited) information provided by www.babyzone.com.]

Happy Marriages or Horrible Homes

 

 

"Ye must be born again." Will you obey or disobey?

"Do not steal." Will you obey or disobey?

"Wives submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord." Will you obey or disobey?

"Wife see that you reverence her husband." Will you obey or disobey?

1 Peter 3:1-6 “Likewise (like servants to a master, like Jesus suffered willing yet wrongfully for our sin), ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation (lifestyle, behavior) of the wives; While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear.  Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning ...; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.  For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands: Even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord: whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any amazement.”

 I know these verses seem very strange to the modern, feminist, American woman, but these are God’s instructions to us.  Are we going to blaspheme God by supposing we know better than God?  Are we going to blaspheme God by believing the world’s ways are superior to God’s ways?  After all, who is the “god” of this world? Satan. That's who.

When we women try to “take charge” or “be in control” of our marriages because our husbands aren’t as spiritual as us or as smart as us or as polite as us or as (fill in the blank) as us, then we are acting just like Satan.  “...I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.” (Isaiah 14:13-14). God put the man in charge (Ephesians 5:23).  This was not to hurt us or to put us down but to actually protect us. Why? Because of our nature, we are easily deceived, just as Eve was in the garden (1 Timothy 2:14). It is our place to be under the man, just like it was Lucifer’s place to be under God.  But Lucifer wasn’t satisfied and rebelled.  That is exactly what we do when we try to take the lead in our marriage.  We are in rebellion to God and acting just like Satan.  So, are we going to obey God or behave as Satan?

In Debi Pearl's book titled Created To Be His Help Meet, Debi writes, "Obedience is doing what you know the other person wants you to do. Submission is your heart giving over to the other person’s will. Reverence is more than just doing what a man expects or demands.  It is an act of the woman’s will to treat him with a high degree of regard and awe."

Our husbands are not perfect, yet we are still to obey, submit, and reverence, no matter if your wedding vows left out any of those words. We women want our men to love us unconditionally just like God commands them to do.  The same thing is expected of us - UNCONDITIONAL reverence.  By obeying God, we show His love and cover a multitude of sins (Proverbs 10:12, 1 Peter 4:8).

Pearl continues, "The difference between a good marriage and a lousy one is not found in good husbands and good wives verses bad husbands and bad wives, for all marriages are made up of two sinners with lot of faults.  A good marriage is good because one or both of them have learned to overlook the other’s faults, to the other as he or she is and to not attempt to change the other or bring him or her to repentance.  A bad marriage is not one that contains more faults between the two of them; it is a marriage where one or both of them gets worked up over issues that good marriage partners let slide and cover up with love and forgiveness.  When a woman gets it in her mind that she must change her husband before she will allow him to relax in the security of her honor and respect, she will never see so much as the bottom side of a good marriage,... ."
 

Below are listed 3 simple suggestions that can help us have “good” marriages:

1. Smile at our husbands.

2. Tell them how much we appreciate them and respect them.

3. Meditate on the good things that our husbands have done for us and our families. (I say meditate because we have a tendency to think over and over and over in our minds on the “negative”. We have done so much “practicing” of negative thinking that we must consciously “practice” thinking the positive thoughts to undo our negative thinking habits.  This is possible.  In fact, God commands that we control our thoughts (2 Corinthians 10:5, Philippians 4:8)
 

By writing this, I am not suggesting that I have personally mastered all of this.  I am, though, actively working on these things.  Unfortunately, many Christian woman either don’t care what God has said in His word, have given up, or have become comfortable in their sin.  Let us determine anew to obey the Bible in these matters.  Let us actively strive to be what God has commanded us to be.

God's Values Are The Only Family Values

Perversion: "The act of perverting; a turning from truth or propriety; a diverting from the true intent or object; change to something worse." (Webster's 1828 Dictionary)

1 Corinthians 11:9, "Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man."

Romans 1:22, 24-29, 31-32, "Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools...Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:...For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness...Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them."

Leviticus 18:22, "Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination."

Deuteronomy 23:17, "There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel, nor a sodomite of the sons of Israel."

John 8:11, "...Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more." These words in John 8 spoken by Jesus to the woman caught in adultery would be the same words he would have spoken to those living the perverted lifestyle described in the above verses.

For those of you who really detest this perverted lifestyle, keep in mind that fornication, adultery, pornography and other sexual related sins fall into this same "perverted lifestyle" category. Your detest for these sins should be just as strong, if not stronger.

If you are not one who is living a perverted lifestyle, do you fall into the group of people in Romans 1:32 who "have pleasure in them that do"? Do you view television shows or movies or even read literature which sanction perverted lifestyles? Do you associate as friends (in person or in virtual reality) with those who live such lifestyles? Do unto these as Paul said to the church at Corinth in 1 Corinthians 5:9-13 to do to fornicators who are "brethren", "...not to company with fornicators:...Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person." Doing anything less to "brethren" is not of God and shows true Christian love -- a "tough love" -- for that person. All the while, pray that they repent of their sin and evil. And by all means, be there for them should they want real Christian counsel as well as when they return out of those lifestyles.

For lost (unsaved) persons living perverted lifestyles, Paul states in the same passage that we should, in essence, not wholly separate ourselves from them since we are to be a witness or a light to them. Company with them should be limited so as not to sanction their sin. For them, we should pray that they recognize their lost state, view what Christ did on their behalf as their only source for salvation, and be saved. Jesus Christ is their only hope.

A Baby By Any Other Name...

...is still a Baby.

The Obama Care/Birth Control/Hobby Lobby issue has sparked some research on my part. I was interested because of the effect Obama Care will have on Christian institutions and Christian owned companies that don't believe in abortion and, therefore, don't wish to be forced to provide emergency birth control pills as part of their health coverage. This issue basically hinges on one point -- when a human life begins.

Before legalization of the common birth control pill (a.k.a. "the pill") in the United States, medical institutions defined life as beginning at conception (fertilization). But in 1965, five years after the pill was made legal, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologist (A.C.O.G.) CHANGED their definition of conception as follows, "Conception is the implantation of a fertilized ovum.” The A.C.O.G. later found they had a problem with this definition as well, for by the time the baby implants in the uterine wall, it is referred to as a blastocyst. So due to a 1972 revision, the A.C.O.G. today defines conception as "the implantation of the blastocyst.”

Most chemical forms of birth control function not only to prevent fertilization (in various ways) but also to inhibit implantation. By changing the definition of conception from the time of fertilization to implantation, the A.C.O.G. and other medical institutions could tell women that “the pill” did not end a baby’s life but rather prevented it, thereby effectively convincing women that “the pill” was a contraceptive and not an abortifacient (a medication or substance that causes pregnancy -- a fertilized egg -- to end prematurely).

It is a scientific fact that a fertilized egg immediately begins growing as it travels down to the uterus, where it will usually lodge in the uterine wall in order to get needed nutrients to maintain the life which has already begun. The pill alters the effectiveness of the uterine lining, thus making it difficult for the baby to implant. And if the baby can't implant, it dies. Thus, one of the main functions of “the pill” and other chemical birth control is to cause the life of a baby to end or, in more simple yet direct terms, to kill a baby.

For many years, women knew that life begins at conception (fertilization). The only way the medical and pharmaceutical companies could promote their new drug, and the many that followed, was to change the definition of conception, as they eventually did using the argument that a woman's body doesn’t know she’s pregnant until implantation. But this is a bogus argument, for in actuality, the reverse is true. The purpose of the woman’s cycles is to prepare for pregnancy. Each month her body goes through many changes to enable and to provide for pregnancy. It is only when a new cycle begins that the body knows that she is NOT pregnant, unless of course she has been practicing abstinence.

Another variation of the same argument is that pregnancy is not established until implantation. In this they seek to imply that the ovum/zygote/blastocyst (notice the medical community's name changes to make a baby less human sounding) isn’t truly alive until it implants. This belief, however, is unscientific. Dead cells do not multiply and nor would they implant. Only a living growing mass of cells (a baby) could implant in order to continue life, not to begin it or "become alive."

For over a generation, women have been willingly taking drugs that, unbeknownst to them, are correctly categorized as abortifacients. Over this time and today, women continue to be deceived because they have placed their trust in their doctors and in the medical community to be truthful and honest with them. All the while, countless numbers of innocent lives are being terminated, in essence snuffed out of existence. It is time their message be clearly heard.

For more information on this subject, please visit:
http://www.lifemattersww.org/Pregnant/ShouldIhaveanAbortion/WhenDoesHumanLifeBegin.aspx 

 

Pregnancy At 17 Weeks

All About Baby

Around this time the baby's ears pop from her head, and baby can now sense sounds. After all, she has plenty to listen to in utero! She's accustomed to the strong beating of mother's heart, blood rushing through mother's veins, and mother's stomach grumbling. She can also discern sounds outside the uterus, like family voices and music. However, according to the Mayo Clinic, whether she can distinguish the sound of their voices versus other sounds is not yet clear.

On average, most moms are feeling baby movements by week 17. Kick, little one, kick!

This week mother's little one weighs in at around 5 ounces and stretches to just over 5 inches (crown to rump). She is about the size of a red onion.

[Picture and (edited) information provided by www.babyzone.com.]