Are you really a Christian Examination

This is a list I got from one of the clips from wretched radio program. Click on the link for other great studies and commentary on Christianity, doctrine and religious information. 


If you are not sure that you are a true repentant Christian, sealed by the blood of Jesus and bound for Glory, then click on the link above and on the right hand side there is a clip called "Are you really a Christian?". Click there for a good spiritual shake up!


Here is the questionnaire to examine yourself if you are truly a Christian. Next to the questions is a reference verse to look up and know where they got the question they are asking.


The Bible says:
Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? ~ 2 Corinthians 13:5-6


1. Do you like hanging out with Christians. (1 John 1:3) - Or do real Christians get on your nerves.


2. Do you recognize that you have an abominable heart. If anyone knew what was in your heart you would feel shame. You know that you are wretch. (1 John 1:8)  - Knowledge that you are undeserving helps you rely on Jesus not on your own actions. You don't get to Heaven because you are good, you get to Heaven because you are bad and have a good Savior!


3. Do you strive to keep the ten commandments. (1 John 2:3)


4. Do you love the world? If the world would end, would you be sad? (1 John 2:15) - What identifies you? What do you enjoy more than Jesus?


5. Do you know who Jesus is? (I John 2:23)


6. Can you wait to see God? Are you anxious to be with Him in Heaven? (I John 3:2) - You are not anxious to go to Heaven because you are tired of this world, but because  you are excited to be with your Savior.


7. Are you continuously sinning? It's not about perfection, but it is about direction. We should be holier than we were last year. Ask your family. Is there a difference? Is change (regeneration) happening? (I John 3:8)


8. Do we dote on our Christian brothers and sisters? (I John 3:14) - Do you help out other Christians in need?


9. Do you love to hear preaching, teaching and hearing the Word? Can you just not get enough of it!?
 (I John 4:16)


10. Do you proclaim Jesus Christ? Do you do it intentionally? (I John 4:15) Do you share your faith with others? Does the fact that many people are going to Hell move you to tell others of Jesus' salvation?


How did you do? Let the Holy Spirit guide you into what you need God to help you in. Talk with your pastor or a spiritually mature Christian to walk through some struggling points with you.


Many might look at this test and say that it is legalistic or it is emphasizing salvation through works. It is not. You can tell what a tree is by its fruit. The same is with a Christian. If a Christian walks like a heathen, talks like a heathen, dresses like a heathen and is very happy being a heathen, then he's not a Christian. Jesus in Matthew 25 separates the sheep from the goats based on what they DID. James tells us that faith without works is dead. The apostles and many Christian brothers and sisters were not martyred because they did nothing, but because they were doing something! 


It is true that you are not saved by works, but you are so grateful to Jesus for choosing you that you can't help but to work.


Blessings,
Anna

Erasing Hell - Book Review

As Christians, we must be aware and willing to fight against the attacks that face the church body and the minds of new believers. The Bible countlessly warns against false teachers, prophets and doctrines. The whole gospel of John was written to combat the new movement of gnosticism that was rising up and declaring a false Jesus.

There is a new movement now. A movement that smudges the bold lines of what is right and was is wrong. A movement where tolerating others' way of living is peace loving. Where moral convictions are antiquated and thought of as narrow-minded. Where there are absolutely no absolutes. Where a good person goes to heaven in their own way. Where a loving God would never send anyone to Hell.

It is because of this movement and because of the book Love Wins by Rob Bell that Francis Chan with Preston Sprinkle wrote the book Erasing Hell. Chan sincerely admits to his own struggles of believing that God sends people to Hell. He openly admits that this is a subject many Christians avoid because it is uncomfortable. Who wants to hear that nice old grammy didn't make it to Heaven because she didn't know Jesus? No one does. As we quickly turn the channel when a starving child is displayed on TV, we quickly turn the idea off that there is a place of utter doom and punishment for people that reject Jesus.

The book is basically a study on hell - what it is, where it is, who goes there, etc.  He does go into the exegesis of many verses and explains a lot of the character of God. The book also spends a lot of time on the holiness of God. He also writes about the history of hell and universalism. This book has a very serious tone as it should.

Read the following verses out loud: Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.  Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

The feeling you have after reading and believing that, well that is what you feel throughout the whole book.

The book is easy to read and every Christian that struggles with the idea of Hell should read it. It is a book that stirs your spirit to proclaim the Good News, the Good News that we don't have to end up in Hell, that God provided a way for us to be with Him through Jesus.

Not all will like this book because of the truth in it. Who wants to read a book that condemns the majority of the human beings on this earth to a place of torment? But, nonetheless, it is a book worth reading.

The book does spend some time addressing the length of time a soul is in hell. Mr. Chan does mostly side that Hell is forever, but he does leave room for the reader to make up his or her mind regarding the length of people's torment in Hell.

I recommend this book to Christians of all maturity levels and to those who are toeing the idea of universalism.

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

If you would like to order the book, click here.

Here is a video regarding the book.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

The Rise of the Planet of the Apes is a movie that ties itself to the first Planet of the Apes that starred Charlton Heston. To me, it was more of a prequel movie to the original. It also answers a lot of questions that the 2nd Planet of the Apes that starred Mark Wahlberg left out. The movie with Mark Wahlberg really was annoying and strayed so much from the original that it frustrated me throughout the movie. If you are a purist and love your classics, I think you will really enjoy this new Planet of the Apes. Throughout the movie there are tiny moments that take you to the original, including some quotes from Charlton Heston.

The movie is about a scientist (James Franco) who is on the verge of discovering a cure for Alzheimer's. He uses chimps as his experimental subjects and notices a remarkable increase in neurological function and the brain seems to repair itself. Will, the scientist, acquires a baby chimp that he raises on his own. The chimp, Caesar, grows up and his intelligence, reasoning and IQ increase exponentially. Caesar struggles with his "identity" and because of an accident he is confined to an animal rescue type facility. There, he leads a rebellion with the other apes against the humans.

The movie does not have any sexual scenes nor does it have a lot of bad language, just the f--- word is used once. There are several scenes that are uncomfortable. One of the trainers abuses the apes several times and Caesar also gets abused by the apes he is confined with. Thankfully, it is very tame and not gory.

The animation and CG is phenomenal! Caesar's facial expressions are remarkable and there is no need for him to express himself with words. There are many times in the movie that you forget that the apes are only animation. The "battle" scene at the end is superb. You definitely root for the underdog throughout the whole scene. There are several very funny scenes and the movie definitely caters to those who love the original movie. The movie is sprinkled with references to the original and it definitely ties all loose ends that the original left behind. While the 2nd Planet of the Apes left you wondering and confused. This Planet of the Apes gives you an understanding of how we ended up with Planet of the Apes, the original, in the first place.

This movie does tug at the emotional heart strings and really emphasizes why man should never play God. 

I recommend this movie to anyone that likes sci-fi and who loves their classics.

For Christians: I do not believe this movie really caters to evolutionists. On the contrary, the apes "evolve" only because man tinkered with them genetically. The apes do stand almost erect like man, although there is no reason for them to stand straighter. The apes are given a more "human" like face but that is only to make clear of their intelligence. There is no mention of evolution and scientifically, genetic mutations do not add information to DNA.The apes did not get smarter because of evolution, they became smarter because of man.

I give this movie 9 out of 10 stars.

The movie is rated PG-13 for intense and frightening sequences of action and violence.
Running Time: 120 minutes

Burgers

This burger is super juicy and the caramelized onions are soooo worth the wait.

Before making your burgers, work on the caramelized onions first. Cut a large onion into rings and with a tablespoon of vegetable oil cook covered on med-low heat for about 30 to 40 minutes depending on texture preference. 

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1/4 C bread crumbs
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp Lawry's seasoning
some pepper
1 Egg
1 1/2 tsp of yellow mustard
1 1/2 tsp Worcester sauce

Directions:
Mix all ingredients with your hands and make into 4 patties. Grill.

For extra love always butter and grill the buns you are using on both sides. That adds so much extra flavor. Add lettuce, tomato, pickles, cheese (whatever you want). Top the burger with caramelized onions

** There is a tendency to smash the burgers during grilling so that the burger will cook more quickly. Don't. When you smash a cooking burger, you release too many of the juices and can end up with a dry burger.

Hope you enjoy!

Salsa Salsa!

We are so thankful to our Lord about the abundance of tomatoes this year. We planted about 6 tomato plants and all of them are just hunched over because of all the weight of carrying so many tomatoes. So needless to say I am trying my hardest not to waste any of them. I am going to try to make more and more salsas, and dishes that use a lot of tomatoes.




Here is a recipe of a basic red salsa that can be used on anything.

Ingredients:
* 5 to 6 tomatoes depending on size. This is your base. You always want to have more tomatoes than anything else
* 2 to 3 Jalapeño peppers. The more jalapeños you add the hotter the salsa will be. You want salsa to accentuate your food, not to make you tear up and clear your sinuses. A little bit of a runny nose is okay, but you do want to enjoy the food.
* 1 onion. You do not want too much of onion flavor so one will usually do
* 2 garlic cloves
* I added a small poblano pepper, it adds a smoky flavor to the salsa. It is not needed to make a good salsa
* 2 dashes of Salt 

Controlling Heat: Make sure you seed all the jalapeños before blending or mashing. You can do this before you boil or after. Do not rub or touch  your face after handling jalapeños. The oils will sting. If you prefer, you can wear gloves while handling them or wash your hands thoroughly afterwards.

Place all the ingredients in a large pot and boil. Make sure the water covers all the vegetables. Boil for about 10 minutes or until the skins on the tomatoes are falling off and the jalapeno peppers are an opaque green. Remove all the vegetables including the garlic from the water, and  place in a blender or remove the water using a colander and return the vegetables to the pot. This depends on the texture you prefer in a salsa. I like having chunks of tomato and jalapeno when I eat salsa, some prefer to have a more velvety texture to theirs. So if you prefer the velvety texture, place all the ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth, adding cilantro and salt to taste. This is where the art of making your own salsa comes in. Adjust the taste of your salsa by adding and removing ingredients. If you want a more textured salsa, just smash all the ingredients together with a potato masher or you can use a "molcajete" which is a mortar and pestle made out stone. Adding salt and cilantro to taste.

This salsa tastes so much better when it is served temperature hot.

I love love love to use salsa on over-easy eggs. The taste of the tomatoes, peppers and garlic just go splendidly with the yolk of the egg. Eating it with a warm flour tortilla is just heavenly!








Storage: Store any leftover salsa in an airtight container. For best taste always re-heat salsa in a skillet using a tiny bit of vegetable oil.

You can use this salsa on eggs, on sandwiches, on hotdogs as a relish, as a dip, to add taste to any meat dishes, and anything else you can think of. I even know of some people that add a little bit to their spaghetti sauces.

** Also salsas are a good way to control your sodium intake. Usually when you add salsa to things, you tend to use less salt because of the flavorful taste that salsa adds to food! Try it. Add salsa to your food instead of salt and notice that you don't really need to add any more salt to what you are eating. 

Hope you enjoy!

The Virgin's Lover - Book Review

The Virgin's Lover is a book about the relationship between Queen Elizabeth and Lord Robert Dudley. The setting takes place just after the death of her sister Queen Mary. It also gives details of the life of Amy Dudley, Robert's wife. Again, Philippa Gregory is an outstanding storyteller, but the characters frustrated me throughout the book. Although Elizabeth was known for vacillating when it came to decision making, this Elizabeth in the book was a bit annoying and so unsure of herself. In the book, some of the most powerful sayings that Elizabeth was known to have said were said by Sir William Cecil, her adviser. In her book, Ms. Gregory puts to rest any rumor of Elizabeth's virginity since there are several love scenes throughout the book with Robert. Nothing, too steamy thankfully. I don't like to envision Queen Elizabeth as wanton or whorish, but she is portrayed her that way in this book. She is outright evil and heartless in some scenes. But maybe I just have a romantic's view of the Queen.

Lord Robert is portrayed as an ambitious, hypocritical, heart-swooning jerk - which I believe to have been true. He is easy to hate and scheming and it is annoying just how much power he has over Elizabeth. He gets what he deserves though.

Sir William Cecil is portrayed well. He was a list maker and always kept pushing Elizabeth to marry. In his heart he would have preferred a king to rule England instead of a woman. Although he had his biases, his true heart was for England and he counseled Elizabeth as best he could. I just believe that Elizabeth listened to him a lot more than what the book says.

Amy is a simple farm girl that is deeply in love with her husband. She is also frustrating to read about just because she is just so simple. The author does great in letting us see just how frustrating it was to live with her. She is the victim in the book and you feel really bad for her. 

The book ends with the death of Amy. I will not say how she dies but Ms. Gregory does a great job in ending the book and tying any loose ends.

This is not the best book Ms. Gregory has written. I only kept on reading because I wanted to know how Amy died. I was happy with the ending and it made it worth the read. I see Queen Elizabeth in a different light though. She was indecisive, used foul language, but I don't think she was wanton.

I recommend this book to anyone wanting to read an interesting twist to Amy's death. If you hold a romantic view of Elizabeth's virginity and strength, this book is not for you. It will frustrate you and make you want to throw the book away.

Rating: 5 stars out of 10

Mexican Monday - Carne Guisada

I know that this is Tuesday, but I didn't have time on Monday to post this. Sorry!

Carne guisada is almost a stew, but it is eaten more like a very juicy meat. Homemade flour tortillas are perfect for this meat because you can sop up all the yummy juices with them.

Ingredients:
1.5 pounds stew meat
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic roughly chopped
2 Tbsp flour
1 medium onion chopped
1 tomato roughly chopped
1/8 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp of Lawry's seasoning (or favorite seasoning)
pepper to taste
3 C of water
6 oz. tomato sauce

Directions:
Saute meat and garlic in vegetable oil on med-high heat in a dutch oven or large deep pan with cover. Saute for about 3 minutes and then add onions, tomato and flour. Saute until onion begins getting tender about 6 minutes. Keep scraping the flour from sides of oven/pan.  Add in all spices and seasoning and stir for another 2 minutes or so. Then add water. Keep stirring and scraping sides. Once the meat has simmered for about 20 minutes, add tomato sauce and stir. Cover and let simmer for another 40 minutes until sauce thickens. Stir occasionally.

** If sauce is too soupy add some more flour, if too thick add more water. **

You can top with cheese

We ate our carne guisada with some homemade gorditas! Frankly, there wasn't too much conversation going on.



Hope you enjoy!