Ephesians 2- Part 2

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Study and learn. Be changed.  Ephesians 2 Made Alive in Christ 1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh[a] and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not
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Aiming for the heart...

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Let me let you in on a secret; parenting is hard work and it certainly isn't for cowards. Children are selfish, liars and thieves...at least in their natural state. LOL... What do we do? We aim for their hearts. This is the only way to have lasting change, in any of us. Jer. 17:9 tells us The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?

Oh, how I have learned that our hearts will lie to us. We have to teach our children that fact and we have to counsel, instruction, and nurture them to live beyond what their hearts are telling them is true ..or telling them to do.

Instructing a Child’s Heart by Tedd and Margy Tripp is a great book for trying to change the heart, thus changing the behavior. They tell about the biblical adjectives that describe the heart: The heart is adulterous, anguished, arrogant, astray, bitter, blameless, blighted, broken, calloused, circumcised, contrite, crushed, darkened, deadened, deceitful, deluded, devoted, disloyal, envious, evil, faint, faithful, far off, fearful, foolish, grateful, happy, hard, haughty, humble, mad, malicious, obstinate, perverse, proud, pure, rebellious, rejoicing, responsive, righteous, sick, sincere, sinful, steadfast, troubled, unfeeling, uncircumcised, upright, unsearchable, weary, wicked, wise, and wounded.

No wonder parenting is so hard, but it is so worth it....
still aiming for their hearts,
Rachel

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