Tag: culture

Fifty Shades of Love…

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…because nothing says “I love you” more than a film laced with porn and violence… Happy Valentines Day!

A few months ago, we saw three minutes of porn and violence in the form of a romanticized trailer for an upcoming movie. The movie we actually paid to see was an intense WWII film, based on a true story of courage and unbroken determination. Yet, during most of the movie, I was distracted and disturbed by what I had seen in those three minutes. I wanted to scream. But I didn’t think that would go over too well in the middle of the movie. So I asked God to erase everything about it from my memory.

A few weeks ago, I took my children (whose eyes *see* everything) to a bookstore. My eyes glazed over the cover of this book laced with violence and porn, displayed on a table a few feet from the toy section where children play in this bookstore. I promptly turned it over. I wanted to pull a “Jesus in the temple with the money changers” and flip over the tables, but I held back my disgust and turned a few of the books over instead.

A few nights ago, the world celebrated, applauded and awarded a ‘song of the year’ grammy title to a song about a one. night. stand. I only caught a glimpse of the grammy’s the other night. And for the few moments I watched, while changing channels, this award being given. Sam Smith thanked the ‘man who broke his heart’ for the inspiration to write the song and win the grammy. and My heart broke. We rarely sing of true love anymore. We can not sing of what we do not understand.

If we do not know God’s love, we can not understand, receive, express or give Love. God is Love.

Nothing says “Happy Valentines Day” like a film full of porn and violence. Nothing says “I love you” more than a song about a one night stand.

Seriously?? …Is this what we have reduced LOVE to??

Please do not see this movie. ‘Fifty Shades of Shit’ (which was my original title idea, and my husband suggested I go another direction) Please do not waste your time, your energy or your money. Let’s get one thing straight – this movie is about MONEY. This is not art. This is not sex education. This is not sexual enhancement. This movie was made -and the books were written- purely to make money. Sex and money should never be partners.

My concern and disgust for ‘Fifty Shades…’ goes deeper than the movie or the books. We have a culture of choosing to believe and accept LIES. The lie says, ‘it’s okay to watch this movie, read this romance novel, peek at this magazine, listen to this song about a one night stand, scroll thru some porn…’ The lie says, ‘it’s harmless to invite porn into our marriages.’ The lie says, ‘it’s harmless to flirt, have a fling, have an affair.’ The lie keeps us in denial, ‘making it possible for a “john” to take advantage of a young girl and allow others to abuse her, to view her as his property, to make money off of her used body over and over again.’ The lie whispers to the buyer of the young girl held in bondage, ‘this is okay. there is nothing wrong with this abuse.’ When the TRUTH IS – there are SO MANY THINGS WRONG with this!!!

The TRUTH is we have a choice // don’t hire the prostitute // don’t participate in the cycle of human trafficking // don’t see the movie // look away from the magazine // close the book // turn off the t.v. // stop browsing porn sites // remove yourself from negative sexual conversation // flee from the temptation to flirt, have a fling, have an affair //

The TRUTH is there are many women, children and men in forced into slavery, held in bondage and sexual violence, being used against their will. They do NOT have a choice. WE have a choice. And yet we have the audacity to choose to SEE and applaud this movie and read the stupid books???? NOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please. no. stop!

We need a ‘Joseph culture‘. We have a choice to flee from sin as Joseph fled from Potiphars wife… even when an opportunity presented itself… even though he probably would not have been ‘caught in the act’. He made a choice to flee. To be faithful to his God. Faithful to God’s Love. Joseph knew the Love of God, so he made the choice to say “No” and flee.

We have a choice to turn away from the images, even when know one else sees. We have a choice to say “No” and stop participating in the abuse. We have a choice to flee from sin and into the Love of Jesus. Wherever you are on the ‘spectrum’ of believing these lies, believing these things are okay… From browsing thru a soft porn magazine to becoming a “buyer” or a “john” caught up in the web of sexual slavery… You have a choice. Wherever you are – His Love is for you. and He is for you. You can choose the Love of Jesus. God is Love and He is for you. He desires to redeem mankind to Himself. To understand who True Love is. Who He is.

Then we will see Freedom Come. We will reject these movies, these books, these porn films, these magazines, the ability to oppress and abuse another human being in bondage. We will reject these lies and know the Truth. He is Jesus.

Please share your thoughts. Please freely share this blog. This is much deeper than a movie or a book series. I am praying for us. For freedom from these lies and for Truth to be known, as our stories rage on… In Him, Leslie

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The Unknowns

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The truth is… we’ve never been good at sitting still.

The truth is… we’ve never stayed in one place for long.

Geez. It sounds like we have commitment issues, I know…

Nope. We are fully committed. We are All In. Our commitment is to each other, our marriage, our family, God’s leading for our lives and seeing His Kingdom come.

For 17 years, we’ve lived as North American Nomads, moving from place to place, across Oklahoma, Texas and New York City, and Ohio. Our whole lives, we’ve been serving God with a heart for His church and His mission. And now He is calling us into the great unknown… and we’ve never been more certain of anything in our lives.

For the past 10 years, we have been serving the Eastside Vineyard Church community as the lead Pastor and Worship Leader. We have walked through both joy and pain, challenges and freedom, and grown tremendously through it all. For the past few years, the Lord has been stirring a desire to GO. He has confirmed in the last few months, our calling from the current Pastoral role to transition into a Missionary role. As our season in Ohio is coming to a close… we are ready to embrace our next assignment.

This is what we do know ~ The Knowns:

God is telling us to >>>GO>>>.

We know God spoke, “You were made for this.”

We know we can not survive doing anything else.

We are selling our house and almost everything we own.

We are leaving a supportive church, full of amazing people, we have loved and served the past 10 years.

Our new “home base” will be the Northwest. And our mission field, the World.

We will be serving with Vineyard Churches in the Northwest region and going thru YWAM for Overseas Missions.

***

What will this next chapter look like? What will be doing for the next 20 years? Honestly, we are not completely sure. We do not fully know how it will map itself out… but God. We put our trust fully in Him. We desire to use the gifts He has given us for His glory wherever He calls us to go …

Serving the least, the last, the lost.

Going into all the World.

Thru…

Worship

Church Planting

Preaching and Pastoring

Teaching and Training

Coaching and Counseling

***

Our calling is to Know God and make Him known. 

We invite you to join us on this journey. The story rages on… In Him, The Babs Fam

Genesis 12: 1 “Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.”

How to Join Us in the Great Unknown:

1. PRAY – Commit to being on our PRAYER TEAM and pray for our family regularly.

2. GIVE so we can GO>>>.
As a Global Missionary family we will be 100% supported by your donations. Please consider becoming part of our GO TEAM so we can GO throughout the world to MAKE HIM KNOWN. There are several ways for you to GIVE:

GO TEAM GIVING OPTIONS:

-GIVE to The Babcock Family Directly via check or cash or send it to them @ 440 Hillview St. Pickerington, OH. 43147 ( until departure in late August 2014 )

-GIVE through Eastside Vineyard Church with a Check in-person or mailed to:
The Babcock Family c/o Eastside Vineyard Church.
333 Jericho Rd. Pickerington, OH. 43147
Just write: Babcock Family Missions in the Memo line or with an attached note. *you will receive a tax-deduction through this option.

-GIVE online through eastsidevineyard.org/give/, and in the Designation field choose, Special Offering and then in the bottom box entitled: Notes, type: Babcock Family Missions. *you will receive a tax deduction through this option

Our lives revolve around *This Screen*

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I’ve been plagued with the reality that much of my life in twenty-fourteen consists of my staring into the face of a screen. 

There is no reason other than this is a season of life we are in with unlimited access to this screen we look in. 

When this screen is uncovered, the world is discovered, with one swipe, one press, one click of our finger tips.

This screen is sleek glamourous gritty and dangerous, chipping away our precious time and attention from others that need us.

This screen is a fierce competitor with our marriages, children, parents, friendships, fellowship, and any. other. relationships.

This screen is information, greetings and salutations, opinions and prose as the author knows, there is always a story to be told.

This screen is an expression of diction, weaved with some inhibition, promising freedom of speech, words wide open to impeach.  

This screen is a roll of images and artwork, online classes and networks, social and formal, all realms of relationships.

This screen is an open window of human life at its finest and human life at its lowest. Craving attention, visually exposed, at our worst, at our best. 

This screen knows no boundaries or barriers, except the ones set in place by the carriers of. the. screen.

This screen is a magnet for addiction, secrecy and conviction, exposed from behind the perceived safety of the screen.

This screen dances upon our emotions causing laughter, joy, pain and jealousy. excitement, anticipation, anger and insecurity. 

This screen is a mixed bag of the good and the bad. the ugly and the beautiful. images and words, some miserable, some helpful. 

This screen is a choice. what we seek, what we search. the wise and the unwise. what brings joy, what brings hurt. 

This screen is a view of the weak and the strong. The truth and the lies. The noise and the song. 

This screen. Do we recognize its place our lives – in our pockets and purses, in our hands, by our side, at the table, the couch, indoors and outside.

This screen. Do we recognize how much our lives revolve around it – timed by it, board by it, excited, motivated, saddened and shocked by it.

Days, hours, and moments we are faced with choice – will we be a voice? asking – How much of our time, energy, resources and relationships will be poured into a screen? How much our time, energy, resources and relationships will be poured into life giving things? 

We have a choice. We have the option. We have the freedom – to reject our lives revolving around this screen. 

I certainly have a conflicted love/hate relationship with the internet and this screen. What are your thoughts? 

Please. Do. Share. 

In Him, Leslie 

5 lies we believe.

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5 lies we believe… 


1. you’re. not. cool. if you don’t own a pair of TOMS shoes. and the Bobs Skecher version doesn’t count. and neither does the Payless version. if they even have a version. sorry.

 

the truth is ~ TOMS shoes are impacting the world in a great way. buy one give one. but you don’t have to own a pair of TOMS to be a cool and giving person.

 

2. you’re. not. hip. if you’re not on Pinterest. sorry. you’re just not. and you have to be invited into Pinterest. so you probably don’t have any hip friends either.

 

the truth is ~ Pinterest is hip and trendy. for now. but don’t feel bad if you haven’t been invited and you’re not ‘pinning’ anything. life will go on. i promise. 

 

3. you’re a terrible housekeeper if you leave dishes in the sink. or on your counter. over night. you will start the day tomorrow with dirty dishes in the sink. you are already behind.  just give up now.

 

the truth is ~ you can do the dishes in the morning. really. they will still be waiting patiently for you in your sink. or on your counter. 

 

 

4. you will. miss. out. on the greatest deal, the final sale, and your last chance to save 20% if you don’t use that coupon to Kohls that expires today. and you will never. ever. get that chance back again.

 

the truth is ~ those deals run every. single. day. and they are stupid and pointless. and they clog up your inbox. so you need to ‘unsubscribe’.

 

5. your underwear is crap unless is comes from Victoria’s Secret. in fact all of your hoodies and stretchy pants are also crap if they don’t have the PINK logo slapped on the buttocks.

 

the truth is ~ victoria’s secret underwear get holes in them too. just the same as undies from target [pronounced ‘tar jay’ en francais] where you can also, btw, find perfectly fluffly $5 clearance hoodies.

 

whew. i am certainly relieved these 5 lies we believe have been exposed… and i am so thankful that God loves me *and you* regardless of my clean or dirty dishes or underwear choices.

 

*In the Bible, Matthew 6:25-34 also renounces these lies we can believe:

 

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on {or what kind of underwear you will put on}. Is not life more than food {or dirty dishes in the sink}, and the body more than clothing {or whether or not you have a pair of TOMS}?… verse 27. and which of you by being anxious {or pinning things on Pinterest} can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing {or whether or not you will be able to use your 20% off Kohls coupon that expires today}? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these {Kohls customers}… verse 33. but seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.  Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble {and shopping at Victoria’s Secret can be more trouble than its worth}.” Amen.

 

*please note {emphasis added by me} these notes are not in the Bible 🙂 but don’t just take my word for it, read it!  happy wednesday!