“Committed to the Absolute Truth of the Word of God”

Friend of the Family is a newsletter that is published quarterly by Biblical Family Ministries.  You will find articles on the family and other topics, as well as prayer requests and praises.  We hope you enjoy reading our latest edition of Friend of the Family!

  If you would like to be notified by email of FOF online, please fill out the form below.

Please Note:  If you have already filled out this form, there is no need to do this again.

Previous Issues of FOF

Print Current FOF

**Please note:  If you would like to receive notification by email of our

latest edition of FOF online, please sign up below  on our email list!**

II Timothy 3:1-5 – “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, UNHOLY, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; HAVING A FORM OF GODLINESS, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” A long passage of scripture to start my little section, but the concern of my heart! As we have traveled this January – March; we have been so blessed through our meetings! However, the burden of so many folks we’ve visited with and my deepest concern is the conversations about the “change” we must consider. We are “antiquated” in our beliefs of godly standards and church conduct in worshipping a Holy God, etc. I want to cry out loud and clear, “WE ARE TO BE A HOLY PEOPLE, REVERENCING A HOLY GOD, WHO DEMANDS A HOLY LIFE, SEPARATE FROM THE WORLD AND THE WORLDLY CULTURE!!! Culture is defined as the way of life for a people. Why then, do we need to be separate from the world and its worldly culture, because we are saved, different from the world? We must stop compromising our values to worship as close to the world as we can get! Why is it so hard to understand what is happening in our churches? The devil, a deceiver, liar, the Prince of this WORLD, has been so successful in making Christians think we must change to reach people in the “new” culture of our world. It is so very sad that sweet Christians we know, are falling for the approach of “we did it differently, but there is a new way to worship now”. What used to be our good colleges, are now touting, “If we don’t change to the ‘new cultural approach’, we will never grow, and never reach the younger people today”.  HELP! I’m not “antiquated” in my beliefs. The Bible says in II Corinthians 6:17 – 7:1, “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” May God help the Church stand in holiness until Christ comes for us, in the clouds.   

                                      We have been talking to dads in this column for quite a while. I thought it might be a good time to change directions and ask the ladies to think about their role in the home. I have always been stirred by Proverbs 14:1 which says, “Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands.”

I am intrigued by verses in the Bible that are uniquely given to one spouse, but not given to the other. In contemplation and meditation on a text, I try to grasp the significance of the challenge. The text before us is a commentary on the woman. It shows the measure of influence she can have for good and for bad. It therefore gives her great responsibility for family and household success, and well being.

The lady of the house can be wise or foolish. Her wisdom will be shown by her efforts to build her house. The “house” is a broad term referring to her family and home life. If she is foolish, she will, “plucketh it down with her hands”. The biblical term “plucketh” means to pull down and destroy.

To build the house will take great effort, determination and creativity. The woman is, among other duties, responsible for the atmosphere of her home. She must make her home a warm and receiving place. It should be a place where her husband and children want to be. For instance, when the family comes in, what greets them? Perhaps there is good godly music playing, which in itself establishes the mood. The house is nicely decorated with pictures, candles, sconces, plants, flowers, and plaques quoting Bible verses or conveying uplifting spiritual truth. The house is clean and uncluttered. Though mom may have had a difficult day, the greeting to dad and children is warm and loving, with an expression of concern for how their day went. The evening meal is in the oven or at least there is a plan. Too much to expect? Well, we certainly set forth the consummate, but the point is, that such a home offers comfort, and a haven from the crazy world our family faces every day. Of course there are many homes today where mom is working, the kids may get home before she does and dinner will be prepared in a mad rush, because of evening activities. She may never know when dad will arrive and she can’t be sure of the mood he will be in when he does get home.  That mom might love to be home to give attention to all those things mentioned above, to have every thing in order, to be mentally, emotionally and spiritually prepared for whatever the evening might present, but life’s demands and pressures destroy the opportunity to create the ideal family setting. What is a lady to do? More next time.

                             There has always been good reason for Christians to be concerned about Public Education. When I was a pastor, our church family joined me in seeing the need to start a Christian School. Public Schools were rapidly moving in the wrong direction. Emphasis on reading, writing and arithmetic was being replaced with emphasis on social engineering. The Bible, prayer, moral standards and discipline were being removed, while sex education, humanism, and behaviorism were being introduced. Textbook publishers were rewriting history. So called academic freedom was claimed to legitimize the introduction of anti God and anti American teaching to innocent and gullible young minds. There was so much going on to destroy our children, we had to pay the price of taking children out of Public Schools, paid for by our tax dollars and putting them in Christian Schools. It required sacrifice and commitment. When did we start our Christian School? The year was 1972.

We were not alone. In fact at one point in the 70s there were three Christian Schools starting in America every day. They were started with a call for godliness, sound education and patriotism. Young people were taught strong standards of morality and decency. They were challenged to be different, act differently, live differently, and unashamedly stand for Jesus Christ.

Things have changed. The Public Schools have gotten worse and worse. Pulling back from a demanding academic emphasis has left some young people unable to read well enough to go to college or enter the work force with any hope of real success. The moral decline has brought us to allowing so called transgender young people to use the restroom of their choice. The Humanists and Secularists have won the battle for the Public School. Yes, there are some fine teachers in those schools, but we wonder why any Christian young people are in those schools. Think about your children and grandchildren.

     KSBT is scheduled to open its doors in September 2013. Early registrations are now being accepted. If you know of prospective students for KSBT, you can forward their names and addresses to BFM.    

Please visit the website at:

               www.ksbt-PA.org

Thank you for praying for us and supporting BFM financially. We have been very busy in the early months of 2013. We have had great meetings in 7 different states. Mrs. G will have knee replacement surgery – one in April – one in May, but we will still have 7 meetings in PA, Michigan and Nova Scotia before our BFM Family Camp in June. Unfortunately, since BFM started almost 20 years ago, the Christian home in America has only weakened in spirit and conviction. We thank the Lord for every decision made, every soul saved and every family strengthened, but the plight is overwhelming. The family is the building block of a nation. It is no wonder our nation crumbles before our eyes.

I was challenged and encouraged by an e-mail I received today from a young college student. She attends the College Bible Fellowship study group at Millersville University, where I was privileged to speak recently. She wanted to tell me that she had been battling apathy in her walk with Christ and in her concern for serving him. Her words stirred me, because it is a lack of passion for Christ, His Word and His work, which is undermining fulfillment of our very purpose for being here on earth.  Perhaps it has resulted from the oppression of a wicked world, a growing compromise among God’s people, or maybe misplaced priorities, but for whatever reason, apathy is certainly prevalent in the Church. That lack of passion is revealed through sporadic attendance at church, refusal to be baptized or join a local assembly, and hesitance to get fully involved in service and ministry. God’s people used to build their lives around the work of the Lord. Families were in church at every service. Social life centered around the ministry and activities of the church. Much of the focus of family life was devoted to praying for and witnessing to the unsaved, with a view toward winning them and bringing them into the church family. Without doubt, a major issue is spiritual instability in the home. The integrity of the family and family life has eroded over the last few decades such as never before.  Home life is not marked by serenity, stability, and spirituality. Too often it is characterized by turmoil and tension. Real family unity has been replaced by individual schedules and agendas. Personal and meaningful conversation has been set aside in favor of text messaging, e-mail, face book posting and cell phones. Employing every new type of communications and informational technology has isolated people from others sitting in the same room.  There is no doubt that many people are passionate today, but passionate about what? People are busy, but what is it that consumes our time and energy? People are goal oriented, but at what are we aiming? Perhaps we need to renew our passion for Christ and our passion for the souls of the lost.

Please visit this website and then encourage your unsaved acquaintances to visit it too. We’ll send you all the Pure and Simple cards (2” x 3.5”) you can use – at no charge. Just hand them out.