Quick Hello

I did not intend to be away from blogging for almost two weeks but it's been very busy.

This past weekend was my church's Christmas banquet and play. A fellow teacher of mine was in charge of the play along with myself and we were pretty busy last week preparing for it.

It was a lot of work, a lot of fun, and a lot of learning.

My favourite part of working on the play was getting to know everyone I was working with- particularly my Sunday School students and my fellow teacher.

As someone who seeks the Lord and tries to yield to His will, it's easy to say that I love everyone.

This past few months of working on the play has opened my eyes to a few things as well as given me a special love for my students and a strong appreciation for their parents.

Anyways, this is just a short hello so that you know I'll still be posting, albeit when it slows down.

My mind is too full of things I need to do to be able to process and complete a post here. I still have to clean up after my busy weekend.

I hope the season is going well for you so far!

Work of the Word

The two Sunday School classes I've taught are as different from each other as night is from day.

The first class I ever taught were children from a poorer neighborhood, their parents did not come to church, and none of them had fathers that were actively involved in their lives.

All the students in my current class were born into christian homes, they all have two parents that bring them to church, and they are all home schooled.

The differences are very apparent and it makes me laugh sometimes but I can say this for all of them: they're all sweet and inquisitive. 

To be honest, I never know if the children I teach are learning anything. I can ask them questions about what they learned in previous weeks but head knowledge isn't what I'm going for. I want them to learn about God in a way that applies to their daily lives.

I don't believe that Sunday School and church is there to entertain us. We can fellowship at a hockey game or have a gym night- those things are meant to be fun and entertaining. The main reason we come together on Sundays is to be fed from the Word by teaching and preaching.

God teaches me a lot through the children He's given me to teach and He put it in my heart to share one of the more recent lessons here on the blog.

I came across a sermon by one of my favourite preachers online and as I listened to it I realized I had heard it before.

The funny thing was that when I first heard this sermon a few years ago it was particularly earth shattering to me; this second time, while the force and heaviness of the message was in no wise diminished, I heard it as one who knew those things by experience.

In other words, I had learned the principles he was teaching in my own life and come to the same conclusions.

This made me very happy because I realized all the sermons I listen to are not in vain. My human self may not retain all the information but the Spirit uses those messages to bring about Spiritual growth.

I listened to a few of the other sermons that followed the initial sermon I listened to, I had listened to them before as well, and I realized that they were the ones that had turned me on to my problem with covetousness.

Frankly I didn't remember those sermons at all but since I'd first listened to them I have been sensitive to covetousness and careful not to commit it. The way I deal with people, how I look at myself, and what I do has all be affected by those sermons and I didn't even remember them.

God pointed these things out to me and a wave of relief washed over me.

I realized then and there that it is not my job to create memorable, exciting, dynamic lessons for my students. While I'm not going to bore them to death and make my classes tedious, I don't need to feel any pressure to 'entertain' the children just to keep them engaged.

God has made it very clear many times that it is given to me to diligently teach the Word. (Yes, this is where that post on the diligence of David came from last week)

I ask the children questions, they get the chance to give personal examples of what we're talking about, we play a review game at the end of class and I make the lessons applicable to their daily lives.

I don't read the lesson out of a man written book, I read the account from the Bible and use lots of scripture to emphasize the point.

We recently finished Solomon and the point of Solomon was the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. In every lesson I emphasized that and gave different examples each week depending on what part of his life we were talking about. 

I love these children and I pray for them, I pray over each lesson, I pray for their parents, and their other teachers. I have to remember, though, that what they take away from the lesson is up to them.

I can't control wether they listen or not, I can't make them learn anything, and I cannot turn their hearts toward the Lord. All I have to do is give them what God gave me and let His Spirit do a work in their lives.

Growing up in a christian home I was exposed to movies, TV shows, books, and things outside of church that taught me biblical principles.

I was always very conscious about lying, stealing, violence and things like that because I had been exposed to a multitude of sources that taught me those things are wrong.

Funnily enough, I did not realize the influence christian cartoons, story books, and movies had on me until recently. While I don't remember everything I saw or heard, they still had an effect on me.

Train up a child in the way he should

go: and when he is old, he will not depart

from it.

Proverbs 22:6

We've taught our son to pray by praying before every meal, before we go out, and before bed. One of the first words he ever could say was 'Bible' because every morning I'd get my Bible out (not on my ipad or phone!) and read Proverbs to him.

He's been trained to know those things by consistency and repetition. 

He sees his parents praying, he sees pastor praying, he sees his teachers praying, he sees his grandparents praying, he sees his aunties and uncles praying, this helps teach him to pray.

If you are wondering why someone's morals are wacky, they probably weren't consistently exposed to good morals and they don't know better. Don't be angry at them for that, just be a blessing by being a good testimony and witnessing.

If a saved person's morals are wacky, let God work on them.

If they are newly saved, they don't know better, help when you can and pray for them.

So in conclusion, just put the Word in. If you're a parent or a teacher, just give them the Word, give them good doctrine, expose them to good influences, and pray unceasingly for them.

Be diligent to do these things and God will bless it.

Keep it to Yourself

Something God has been teaching me lately is to keep my preferences to myself.

I think that sometimes we can feel inadequate or just bad because someone else does something a certain way but we don't feel the need to.

Here is a small example:

99% of the clothes I buy are from a thrift store. If someone comes along and shows me their new Current Elliot jeans they bought brand new for $300, I should not feel bad that I don't buy new jeans no matter how much they cost, and I should not feel better than them for trying to be 'frugal'. The person who bought the jeans should not feel bad that they can spend $300 on jeans and they should not feel better than me for having such nice new clothes.

I was recently told by someone that she could not buy a bag because it cost less than a certain amount of money.

That's fine for her but I can't look at that and think badly of myself just because that's how she runs her life.

Maybe everyone knows this and I'm just coming around.

I'd always felt a need to make bread for my home. Finally I was able to get sourdough starter and I'm satisfied that I'm doing right by my family.

I can't look at someone who does not make their own bread and think poorly of them for it; neither should they look at me and feel bad that they are not inclined to make their own bread.

This goes for everything- new/used clothes, wearing dresses/skirts exclusively or not, making everything from scratch or buying frozen food, eating healthy or unhealthy, buying organic or not caring, exercising or not, home school or public, Starbucks or other coffee shops, the list is endless.

So just a small word of advice here: keep your rules to yourself.

The things you require of yourself and your family, keep them to yourself and your family.

There would be a lot less division, hurt feelings, and disputes in churches if we all learned that we can't apply our personal convictions to everyone else.

When I'm in a mood...

Lately I've been in a very off mood: I've been annoyed at everyone, I don't want to do anything (especially the things I normally love doing), and I really hate it when someone touches me- even my son.
I haven't been able to pin point what the root cause of it is and I haven't been able to shake it off.
I do know that it's just my flesh rearing its ugly head and trying to cause me to fall.

Something I heard long ago from Dilbert Terry and my own pastor recently said something similar is this- Christians ought to live by principle rather than feeling.

In times like these it's very easy to give your flesh free course. I feel really angry, uncomfortable, I don't want to deal with anyone, I don't want to do anything, I don't want to go anywhere, and because of all that I can feel justified in the flesh for doing things that make my flesh 'feel good'. For instance:
Maybe I don't take my anger out on people but I just sit in front of the TV most of the day, or sleep in and laze around, or even stare at my phone reading articles all day.
I may not take my anger out on anyone but I am still feeding my flesh by making myself 'feel good'.

To help myself live by principle rather than feeling there are a few things I try to do:

Read my bible A LOT. Jesus said this:

Now ye are clean through the word which

I have spoken unto you.

John 15:3

The Holy Spirit wrote this:

Husbands, love your wives, even as

Christ also loved the church, and gave 

himself for it;

that he might sanctify and cleanse it

with the washing of water by the word

Ephesians 5:25&26

Reading the bible makes you clean. When our flesh is particularly strong you have to weaken it by strengthening the inner man. The inner man is strengthened the same way your physical body is strengthened: food. 

And Jesus answered him, saying, it is

written, that man shall not live by bread

alone, but by every word of God.

Luke 4:4

I've been reading through 2 Samuel and moving on to 1 Kings. I love the accounts written there. There is always something new to learn. For the particular mood I'm in it helps to read something I can easily pay attention to so it helps to read the books that have more action in them. I read more that way too because the accounts are so engaging.

Reading the bible also keeps the lines of communication open. I may not feel like reading the bible and I may not feel like praying but God is still talking to me and teaching me from His Word. 

Pray.

Get everything off your chest and give all problems to God.

Get up early.

This may not have any affect on you but it surely does on me. Forcing myself out of bed early in the morning makes a big difference in my day.

The only reason I get up early is to do my devotions. If I decide to sleep in my flesh has won for the day.

Getting up to do my devotions shows my flesh I will not be controlled by it, I will be controlled by what is right and pleasing to God- spending quiet time alone with Him.

Don't give place to evil thoughts.

Something that happens when I'm in a bad mood is I begin to get angry at everyone for everything. My mind will bring up things I don't like about someone and the temptation is to keep those thought coming to make me feel better about myself.

The thought of foolishness is sin:

Proverbs 24:9b

Idle thoughts about people are foolish and they cause division.

Any time an evil thought about someone comes into my head I cast it out an apologize to the Lord. Allowing myself to think badly about someone will affect how I treat them and I do not want that. If they are wicked, God will deal with them, I don't have to.

My pastor says this a lot- keep short accounts with God.

Act on a matter of conviction right away. When God deals with you about something, confess/apologize/fix it right away no matter where you are.

Once you get it right then stay right. 

Walk close to the Lord.

Well that's all. I hope this helps you in some way. Yes, this odd mood I'm in has prevented me from writing. That and I've been busy- it's almost Christmas!

Have a good Wednesday!

Be Diligent

***This is completely separate from the post: Please pray for Davey and Weston Blackburn who just lost a wife and mother. She was shot by a burglar in their home. It's a terrible tragedy and they need your prayers. You can read the story here***

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One of the truest and easiest ways to show that you love someone is to value what they value.

Joseph's brothers did not love their father so they sold his favourite son into slavery. Later on in the story when Jacob's next favourite son Benjamin could have been taken away, his sons proved themselves and their love by sacrificing themselves to protect the one their father loved. 

If I want to show my husband that I love him I must value the things he values whether it be making sure the cats stay off the counter or being hospitable to his family when they stay over.

Our relationship with God is no different. 

The lesson plan I'm following in my bible class briefly covered David and his heart after God's. As a child I had no idea what that meant. I thought maybe David was a stickler for doing right and had lots of faith. 

Now that I'm an adult I've learned through study that David valued what God valued. 

In 1 Samuel 17 David is convincing Saul that he can defeat Goliath. In the course of his speech he tells Saul that he fought a lion and a bear in order to protect his father's flock. His job was to protect those sheep, so he protected them with his life. 

Before this ever convinced Saul of anything, it had a twofold effect in David's relationship with God.
It effected David's faith in God:

David said moreover, The Lord that

delivered me out of the paw of the lion,

and out of the paw of the bear, he will

deliver me out of the hand of this

Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go,

and the Lord be with thee.

1 Samuel 17:37

David had no problems going up against a 9ft 9in giant because he had already seen the deliverance of the Lord.

As David's faith in God was strengthened, God's trust in David was strengthened. 

I really think that Jesse, David's father, would have been disappointed but okay with losing a lamb to a lion and a bear. Better a lamb than the life of his son. God, however, used that situation to prove David and see what he would do- would he obey his father's instructions to KEEP the sheep or would he keep himself. David valued what his father valued and when no one else saw that, God did.
This was the difference between Saul and David: Saul was made king to fight Israel's battles whether it be against an army or against a giant. Instead, Saul cowered in his tent and tried to bribe others to do his job for him. Saul kept himself. David, as the servant of the Lord, did what the Lord wanted despite the circumstances and the enemy ahead. David valued the name of the Lord more than he valued himself. 

This explains why Jonathan in 1 Samuel 18 does this:

And Jonathan stripped himself of the

robe that was upon him, and gave it to

David, and his garments, even to his sword,

and to his bow, and to his girdle.

1 Samuel 18:3

Jonathan was the rightful heir to the kingdom. As great as Jonathan was he stood with his father in the tent as Goliath taunted them for 40 days. Jonathan, seeing David's actions, realized that this was the true leader, this was the true heir, this was the true king. As Jonathan gave his princely clothes and weapons to David he gave up his own place as heir and submitted to the Lord's will, that David would be king instead of him.

Back up to 1 Samuel 16 when Samuel is looking to anoint one of Jesse's seven sons. Except there are eight sons and no one bothered to call the youngest. 

This is the absolute first time David appears in scripture yet God's testimony of him is that he has a heart after God's own. 

This tells us one very important thing- David was diligent in his business. On the fields, day after day night after night, David watched and protected his father's sheep and when it was all quiet, David sang songs to the Lord.

David was about two things: obeying his father, and worshipping God.

Then answered one of the servants, and

said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the

Bethlemhemite, that is cunning in playing,

and a mighty valiant man, and a man of

war, and prudent in matters, and a comely

person, and the Lord is with him.

1 Samuel 16:18

David didn't promote himself, the Lord promoted him. David's reputation, even as a shepherd with no reputation in his own family, went before him because God says this:

Seest thou a man diligent in his

business? he shall stand before kings; he

shall not stand before mean men.

Proverbs 22:29

God blesses our obedience, diligence, and worship.

So David was diligent and faithful. 

Here is a young man, who when God came, was right where he was supposed to be. He never promoted himself or exalted himself. After playing his harp for Saul, he went right back to watching the sheep.

The only reason he was in the position to hear Goliath's words was because his father had sent him there to bring food to his brothers. 

Not only was he diligent to be where he was supposed to be but he was diligent to do his job right.

He protected his sheep with his life, he made sure they were taken care of when he was away from them, he made sure Goliath knew it was God that would win the battle, and no matter how high Saul promoted him, he behaved himself wisely (1 Samuel 18:4).

David's diligence to do right produced the faith he needed when the time came.

The faith David had did not just come with a snap of the fingers. He could not just summon it. The great faith showed in the defeat of Goliath was the result of his proving God, time and time again.
The situation with the lion and bear is one example we know about, but who knows, there may have been other similar situations. The fact that he was anointed king must've told David that God was watching him, knew what he was doing, and was with him.

So, as monotonous as life can be, be diligent to do what the Lord has given you to do whether it be staying at home with children or going out to earn a living.
Do it right, behave wisely, and worship God.
When you have a decision to make: read your bible or watch one more episode, read your bible. Choose God. These small things show God that you are trustworthy in the big things and your faith will be increased. 

If you want a heart after God's own heart, do what He set you to do- give value to the things he values. As my pastor says, 'worship shows what something is worth to you'.
David did not go out and seek fame and glory. He just stayed with the sheep, all day every day, in hard times, in easy times, and while he was diligent to do his job, he worshiped the Lord. 

In Everything Give Thanks- part 2

A few weeks ago I posted a long list of thank yous to God.
It was Canadian Thanksgiving and I wanted to post something for it. At first I thought I'd post about all the things I love that I am grateful for (that's the fashionable thing to do on Thanksgiving). However, I began to consider this blog and the whole reason it exists: bringing glory to God. Thus, In Everything Give Thanks- Part 1 was written and I just poured out everything I could think of.
That was not the first time I've just thanked God for His blessings. A few years ago I was listening to a preacher talk about being grateful and just pouring out praises, gratitude, and glory to God. Since then many of my prayers are just prayers of thanks and all my prayers start out with thanks. Occasionally when I can't sleep I just start thanking God for things.
It's not a routine, habit, or something on my checklist. I'm actually grateful so I show my gratitude.
If you don't praise God on a regular basis, you should start, it changes your life.

While I understand that positive words make a difference and positive thinking makes a difference I am not a big promoter of either.

I like to be practical and if a situation is bad, I'm not going to lie to myself and others just to be positive.

I am, however, grateful and gratitude is a practical persons positive outlook.

I never really thought about gratitude until one of my favourite online preachers said this: 'nothing shows you are weak more than ingratitude'.

That hit me so hard I have never been the same since.

As it started to work on me I realized for myself that being grateful takes strength.

It is easy to say thank you and show your appreciation on Thanksgiving but to look at situations that seem hopeless and find something to be grateful for is something else. I did talk about that in my blog post Grateful.

God blessed me with a good home, two christian parents, all my five senses, the ability to be independent, I was born in a free country, and I'm not constantly living in fear for my life.
Just as easily I could have been born to a broken home, with God hating parents, lacking the ability to see or hear or speak, and too many issues for me to live independently.
We can't control the situations we are born into. I was born into a good one and I can't take that for granted. There are people out there who would do anything for the stability God has given me, it's wasted on me if I don't appreciate it.

If they are ever taken away I do not want to regret not praising God for them.

I know what I have and I know what I deserve.

In everything give thanks: for this is the

will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

If you are wondering what God's will is for you life, start giving thanks

And let the peace of God rule in your

hearts, to the which also ye are called in

one body; and be ye thankful.

Colossians 3:15

The amount of peace you get from being thankful is immeasurable.

There are things I would like but my gratitude for the things I have outweigh my desires for anything else.

My pastor said this a few weeks ago:

"God is good all the time. He's not good because of what He does, He is good because that's His character".

It's true.

If you think when everything is going well that God is good but when they go down the toilet, through the sewer and into the deepest most disgusting place of the ocean that He's not good- you're wrong.

God is good no matter what happens.

He gave His Son for you. That is good no matter what way you look at it.

We love him, because he first loved us.

1 John 4:19

We wouldn't know God if He didn't show love to us first. Our love for God originates with Him. We have hope because of Him, we have eternal life because of Him, we can enjoy the good things of this life because of Him. If you can't be grateful for that, you won't be grateful for anything.

I hope this was a blessing and a help to you in some way!

The Testimony of Non-Christians

A good man leaveth an inheritance to

his children's children: and the wealth of

the sinner is laid up for the just.

Proverbs 13:22

He that by usury and unjust gain

increaseth his substance, he shall gather it

for him that will pity the poor.

Proverbs 28:8

Those two verses, and probably other ones that I can't think of right now, tell me that God uses the unjust to give good things to the just. Today I want to take a little time and share some things that I've learned and blessings I've received from people who do not claim to be Christians.

The first one that comes to mind is a former co-worker named Andrew. This man absolutely rejects the Bible and though we never spoke of it, there was always that between us. Despite this, he was always kind to me and God used him to bless me.
My grandmother taught me how to knit when I was very young. I knitted a tiny bit through high school but forgot about it for the most part. I never thought about knitting again until God brought Andrew along. He brought his knitting to work one day, showed me the pattern he was working on, gave me a great hat pattern, and I've been back to knitting ever since. God has used knitting (eventually crocheting and sewing) mightly in my life and I am so thankful God used Andrew to get me back into it.
The other thing Andrew did was give me his old pasta machine. I'd always wanted to make pasta but I would never had tried if it wasn't for him just randomly asking me if I wanted it. I could really use a new one but I'll use this one until it falls apart or we can get a new one.
Lastly, Andrew has given me recipes that I will use until I die. He shared Michael Smith's cookbook with me, where I got the apple pie recipe from, he shared Jamie Oliver's most amazing pizza dough recipe, and best of all, he gave me the best ever banana bread recipe. Those are just my top three recipes, he's shared many others.
Most christians would look at Andrew and say 'nope, not talking to him'. Though we each knew where the other stood, we were kind to each other and he was used of God to give me things I will enjoy for the rest of my life.

Next is Graeme. Dear Graeme. I'm actually not sure how to discribe my relationship with Graeme because according to him we were dating, according to me we were seeing each other but not dating. I don't know. However, Graeme taught me something very important.
We hung out for a few weeks and in that time I learned that he was an agnostic and very interested in things that a bible believer laughs at. He liked philosophy, psychology, he believed the world is over populated, you know things that we find ridiculous. I really wanted to be with him but one day he told me that he couldn't be with me because I did not believe like he believed. After the flurry of emotions that followed, reason eventually prevailed but I was brought very low and was very emotional about it for a long long time. What made me the most sad and pained me beyond measure was that he- who did not know for sure that anything he believes is true- had the strength to say we did not belong together. I was not strong enough in my faith- that I know is absolutely true- to leave the pointless relationship.
I've always known what I believe. Even back then (2009, I was 20) I had a firm foundation and I was not budging from it. However, I had been so lonely for so long that even this unbelieving person was better than being lonely. Even though I knew he was wrong for me, I did not want to let go, I did not have the strength. I had allowed myself to be controlled by my emotions and not by what was right. Realizing all this made me heartily ashamed of myself. Up until that point I was willing to hang out with anyone- Christian or no- who was interested (there weren't many). This business with Graeme put a stop to that immediately. I repented and resolved to ignore non-believers who were interested in me. (Six months later I met the christian man who is now my husband, seven months after that we were married.)
While this has mostly to do with dating, it's something I constantly remind myself of when I am out in the world. If a non-believer has the strength to make the right choice and do the right thing, how much more strength should I have to do right when I have direct access to the One who has immeasurable strength.

Now to my family members:
My father's sisters. Frankly both of them hate the Bible and God. There has been contention in the past (as always in families) but now that I am a wife and mother I see them in a different light.
To be honest, better servants I know not. They're always doing things for others, they're very helpful to their mother, and they watch out for their siblings' children like we are their own.
When I found out my sister was pregnant one of the things that occurred to me was that if I was half as kind and helpful to my sister's child as my father's sisters were to me, I would consider myself a successful auntie.
They're understanding, forgiving, and patient. While we don't agree on everything, they do look out for us, help us with things we need and welcome us into their homes. They have been just as nurturing as my own parents.
Maybe everyone's aunties are like this, I don't know, but I'm sure grateful for the examples my aunts are.

In the last little while I've spent a lot of time with my husband's elder sister. She has one child- a son- and I love their relationship. He's twenty now, but he is close to his mother, he confides in her, and he said himself that she is the most compassionate person he knows. He is not an outgoing, effusive person. He's a man of few words and he's one of those people you just don't touch. However, his love for his mother is clear as day and he cares for her greatly.
When we discussed this she told me that it was always very important to her that he knew she loved him no matter what he did. She did not turn a blind eye to disobedience but she would discipline in love and do her best not to overreact.
The things she has told me and the things I have seen have already effected the way I treat my son and has forced me to consider the things I have been doing up until now. I hope I can have a relationship with my son the way she does when he is twenty.

My father's mother is one who has been a tremendous testimony to me. I haven't always treated her the way I should have. I've done very poorly by her in the past. Whatever the past, however, she has always been very generous with us.
She has never brought up things that I've done and ways I have wronged her. She has always moved passed those things and never held them against me. For that alone, I am so blessed and thankful. A lot of women I know are bitter about the past and have trouble letting things go. I do it too but somehow my unsaved, aggressively atheistic grandmother seems to have no trouble letting the past be the past and moving on. I think that's incredible and as I've recognized it, I've been very convicted about it.
I don't know if I could write enough about this woman. I think she's amazing.
She's always loved the arts and continues to paint/draw, write, and collect beautiful things. All her grandchildren are artists in some way or form. I'm seriously the only one of her grandchildren that can't draw to save my life. However she did bless me with her enjoyment of needlework and I am the only one that pursues it. She gave me everything- knitting needles to last me forever, sewing supplies, crochet needles in every size, she passed on her embroidery things, patterns she's collected over the years and her big sewing box is now mine. I also have some of the needlework her mother did- it's beautiful and I'm almost too scared to touch it. She bought me a sewing machine when I was young and I use it to this day.
She passed on her love of reading to almost all of us. She was the one who introduced me to some of my favourite reading materials as a child and was always buying me books. She knows my taste very well and she and my husband enjoy lots of the same books.
When we were young she would often buy us disposable cameras and develop the pictures for us. We took pretty stupid pictures but she never cared.
She helped us a last year when my husband was out of work and we were just barely making it by. She has bought my son some of the nicest gifts any two year old can ask for. She has always been very generous- she likes to give and to share things that she likes so others can enjoy them.

She always has chocolate around for everyone. She knows what we all like she keeps newspaper clippings of articles we may find interesting. She thinks about others and gives them good things.
Her home is always full of interesting things. Yesterday my son spent a good while looking through her collection of shells. She taught him to listen to them and how they move when a creature is living inside them.
She may not love the Lord, but she loves us and God has taught me a lot through her. Probably the biggest thing is that she encouraged us and gave us the tools we needed to pursue our passions and hobbies.
Besides the things she's given me I am a lot like her in many ways. I hope to take the good things that we share and the things her life has taught me along with godly charity to be a good testimony and a blessing to my children and my children's children.

God uses everyone- just or unjust. He used the Egyptians to give jewels and gold to the Israelites in Moses' day, he used greedy and conniving Balaam to bless Isreal three times (Numbers 22, 23, 24), he used Caesar Augustus to call for a tax just as Jesus was about to be born.
While people reject God, He still uses their freedom to accomplish His will in their lives and ours. Don't be above learning things from unbelievers. The things you learn and the blessing you receive at their hand may be just the tool you'll need to eventually win them to Christ.