The Gospel & Porn

All credit goes to Scott Moore,
Assistant Pastor at Grace Community Church
Mobile, AL

I am quite aware that even bringing up the subject can cause some to wonder down the porn path. That's how enticing it is. But I must communicate the dangers of this horrible medium. WE must speak up. The snowball is rolling downhill fast. It has been gaining exponential speed ever since pornographic material was invited into the home with the simple click of a mouse.

It seems that the only ones communicating honestly about the abuse of sex are the secular artists. With their words, images and expressions, they reach down into our innermost beings and call our sinful flesh to feast at their table. And they are good at it. While at the gym the other day, not only did I pass by the front desk with an issue of MAXIM magazine in full display; but I also found my head bobbing to the lyrics, "I kissed a girl and I liked it..." WHAT THE HECK!

Again, the snowball is rolling fast. And its getting larger. It is difficult to go anywhere or listen to anything without getting bombarded. Sure, there is Christian television and radio...but I don't want to go there. Most of it, though "clean" is only superficially so. We go there only to find that the pendulum has swung to the other side. This get's us nothing but a new Pharisaical friend. What we really need is the gospel, which powerfully embraces the entire clock with redemptive arms.

The gospel is not afraid of sex - nor is it afraid of porn! It, like the secular artist, is honest. In other words, both the gospel and the secular artist are not afraid to say what is really going on! Notice that I did not say that they (the gospel and the artist) agree on what is right (or wrong) about what is going on.

The gospel praises the pleasures of sex, but never the distortion of it. The gospel exposes the fact that, yes, indulgence in pornographic material is exhilarating, pleasurable and intense; but it does not leave the individual in the slums. The artist sinfully feasts in those slums and calls others for company. When the song is over, however, all the guests are left with no artist and with dirty faces. Let the guilt begin.

The Krispy Kreme donuts are gone, now everyone sits around trying not to puke.

The gospel, on the other hand, goes to the slums and calls sinners to a superior pleasure! Again, porn is the horrible distortion of something that is gloriously good. Porn feeds the human appetite for pleasure and sexual intimacy with something less than glorious. The gospel doesn't call for an extinction of the appetite, but rather a redirection of it. A lion who is foolishly addicted to oatmeal should not be encouraged to stop eating; but rather, he should be redemptively redirected to eating steak!

Here's the only dangerous part - bringing the gospel to pornographers requires taming lions. But here is the glorious part - the gospel tames lions. And tamed lions live powerful lives. As Christians we must live the gospel. Christ died to set us free. He tore down the wall that kept us from our Superior Pleasure - God. This is forgiveness. This is fulfillment.

Here is the truth...The gospel targets sinners. Yes, even pornographers. And when it hits them, it powerfully changes them. Porn, though tempting, is no longer appealing. The lion looks at the oatmeal and smirks. By grace, I am living proof.
Posted by Scott Moore

Mmmm

my first homemade pie. blackberry.:)

"I yike being bootiful."

...that was the comment (among many) I heard from the 5 year old girl I drive to and from school.



That's Tamanna Cornwall. She's the second youngest of four. Her family adopted her 2 years ago from India. She has a precious, strong accent and a lot of time I have no idea what she is saying. "The tun is bight". (the sun is bright) "what tolor is my ton?" "lead?" (what color is my tongue? red?) :) she's precious.

On the way home from school Friday, she asked me if I liked her hair. (it was wavy/curly that day) I told her yes, it's very pretty. To which she replied, "yots of people tay i'm bootiful. I yike being bootiful!" I was taken back by this little girl's honesty & self-indulgence.

"Tamanna, you are beautiful but so is everyone else, in their own special way that God made them." I said. She shook her head like "ya, i know."

I was convicted because I know I can get sucked into finding my worth in my appearance. There's a lady at our church that always tells me how adorable I am which is flattering but I don't tend to take compliments very humbly. To be honest, it goes to my head and my heart and I get stuck on this "looks" treadmill of being visually pleasing to others. This is the sin default button in my life mainly because of the environment I grew up in. Always feeling I needed to look good. To outdo the other girls. I was saddened when I heard Tamanna's sweet voice express her pleasure in being valued for her looks. I pray that she will learn that God looks at the heart and her eternal value is found in Him. I pray I will continue to learn the same thing.




This is Jack Cornwall. He does not like to be called pretty. That's a good start. :)

~:January 22,2011:~

My sister, Kirstie, is getting married. Aaron is truly perfect for her. I melt every time I'm with them; watching the way Aaron smiles at her and calls her "sweetie". I can't wait to be next to her as she was next to me on my wedding day.

This past Saturday, they had an engagement shoot with their friend/photographer Michelle Habegger. She's very talented. I think she did a great job capturing "Aaron & Kirstie" as they naturally are.







Aren't they adorable?

A little more about me

I decided to fill out one of those online survey things. Here's a little info about me:

Two Names You Go By

1. nell-nell
2. danelley

Two Parts of Your Heritage

1. i'm irish- kiss me (only if you're family)
2. i'm german

Two Things That Scare You

1. people handling knives- even if they're just chopping tomatoes, i freak out.
2. being completely alone

Two of Your Everyday Essentials

1. walking with champ
2. fruit (usually apples or kiwi)

Two of Your Favorite Bands or Musical Artists (at the moment)

1. lecrae
2. audrey assad

Two Truths

1. i am physically incapable of burping. blessed or deprived? i'm not sure.
2. my family likes to hug a lot and that is why my #1 love language is touch.

Two Physical Things that Appeal to You About your husband.

1. i've always loved his unique-shaped ears
2. he is very generous and will go out of his way for a complete stranger

Two of Your Favorite Hobbies

1. bike riding, or as D.R. likes to refer to it: "cycling, it's more professional sounding" lol)
2. taking pictures. but I'm without a camera right now.

Two Things You Want Really Badly

1. salvation for a family member
2. a deeper respect for my husband

Two Places You Want to go on Vacation

1. europe- greece & paris especially
2. seattle, wa

Two Things You Want to Do Before You Die

1. adopt a baby from outside the U.S.
2. sky-dive

Two Ways That You are Stereotyped

1. i look like a teenager still so i get asked what grade i'm in.
2. i'll be carded until i'm 65 due to reason #1

Two Things You Are Thinking About Now

1. carving pumpkins
2. my sister having her engagement photos taken today and how she is going to be a wife in 3.5 months and i just can't stinkin' believe how great God is!

Two Stores You Shop At

1. publix
2. marshalls

Two favorite web sites

1. facebook
2. desiring god

Two Favorite Sports

1. this is the wrong
2. question for this gal!


Two things you did last night

1. drank wine with some girlfriends
2. told the story of how d.r. & i met

Two shows you like to watch

1. glee
2. the unit

Two places you like to go “out” to

1. the riverwalk downtown
2. the cannon-restaurant

happy weekend!

Hello Again

I've been blog-absent for a while and I'm not sure why. I've had time to blog, I just haven't. It's interesting that when I have extra time on my hands, I spend less of it online. That's a good thing I think :) This is going to be a hodge-podge post of all the new things in my life as of a month ago. Plus some latest-favs of mine!

So, some things I really love about living in Columbus, GA are:

the weather! no more humidity like in West Palm & Mobile! My hair dries almost pin straight and I hardly have to use the blowdryer or straightener. This makes me very happy. I grew up ALWAYS having to use hairdryer, straightener, and iron....yes iron, to make my hair straight. I wasn't confident enough to walk out of the house with natural-dried hair because to me it resembled something close to 5th-grade "prom" hair.

the parks and running/bike trails. There are two really great trails that D.R. & I have biked 3-4x/wk. One is "Rails to Trails" (they paved over a railroad that isn't used anymore.) It starts at Cooper Creek Park which is 5 mi from our apt and takes you throughout midtown, by Columbus State(which is beautiful), and into downtown. Then there's the riverwalk trail. An 8 mi (one way) stretch right on the river. So serene and fun to ride! It's been really fun to pick up a hobby with D.R. Something we both look forward to on his days off. I would upload a picture of us on our bikes but we are without a camera right now. :(

the coffee shops. Not only do they have my favorite coffee in the world here, DD, but they have this place called Fountain City Coffee which has a flavor called toasted praline decaf. It's heaven. Plus they have the most delicious smoothies and wraps. It's my go-to treat place.

we're an hour and 15 minutes from Atlanta. Which means several things: a day visit to Ikea or Urban Outfitters is possible any day, flying anywhere is cheaper and is DIRECT!! I cannot tell you how happy this makes me. I love to fly but hate connections. Braves games, broadway shows, excellent shopping, concerts, Six Flags. I love being back near a big city that offers so much.

there are so many young couples/families. we keep hearing that Columbus is a great place to live when you're married and a great place to raise children but a horrible place to meet someone if you're single. Well, we got here at the right time in life I guess. It's true though, God has blessed us already with so many great new friends. We joined a small group of 25 people- mostly couples without children. We're going through a book called "holiness by grace" -bryan chapell. I'm very thankful for God's kind provision of new believing friends.

And a few of my favorites lately are:


Zumba: Ditch the workout. Join the party! I can't get enough. My secret booty-dancing parties that I have alone in my house are now shared with about 150 sweaty women at the local YMCA. It's an amazing workout and seriously so much fun.


Giada at Home: one of my favorite cooks on t.v. Plus the fact that she remains so slim and healthy motivates me to cook well and be in shape. Her meals are not always super cheap but they are always delicious. Go ahead and stock your fridge with fennel,lemons, fresh thyme & mint, pancetta, and mascarpone cheese (i know these are all the usually buys anyways right? lol) because those are guaranteed Giada meal ingredients.


The Unit: this show has quickly become one of D.R. and mine's favorites. It's similar to 24 which went off air in May :( and depicts the realities of army life.


Radical: a book by pastor of The Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, AL: David Platt. This book has shown me my gluttonous desire for more "stuff" and the eternal destruction it will have on my soul. If you are not changed by this book, you probably need to examine your love for God & how His Word calls us to live.

That is all for now I guess.

Grief & Glory

It's been two days since we got the email. Two days since the weeping began. Two days since we got on our knees and asked God, "Why?" Two days since God decided to take Virginia Kate home to Him.

Our friends Kevin & Shay Steedley were expecting their third daughter on September 15th. On Monday, five days overdue & 10 months pregnant, Shay went in for an appointment and there was no heartbeat to be found. Just days before, she was experiencing contractions and anxiously waiting to go into labor. But God had different plans for this little girl. He decided to take her home even before she entered this world. She would never meet her earthly mom and dad or two big sisters. She would never experience any human fellowship or heartache. This was God's perfect plan for Virginia "Ginna" Kate's life. From the womb, she met her maker and she is in glory with Him for eternity. One day Kevin, Shay, Becca & Ruby will meet their beloved daughter/sister. D.R. & I are so grieved for our friends in Mobile and have wept repeatedly since Monday morning. It doesn't seem fair. Doesn't seem right that Shay carried this child 10 months and then never got to hear her cry or laugh. But we serve and trust in a God whose ways we can't understand but know are good. We trust that this will be used for our good and His glory. Virginia was always meant to be with her Savior from day one. What a blessing! I've been so challenged by Kevin's email that he sent to our church family (in Mobile) on Monday. I thought I would share it with you. Soli Deo Gloria.

It's with a mixture of great grief and awestruck wonder in the greatness of our God that I'm writing this morning to let you know that Shay delivered our 3rd girl during the night, but [she] was stillborn. We need your prayers, love, and support. I believe we're grieving well right now, but will obviously be faced with various challenges and opportunities in the days ahead. Feel free to check in with us as you have opportunity…


Holding my dead infant daughter was a stark reminder that we are fallen people living in a fallen world. But in experiencing that grief I am still able to praise God. He has seen fit to take "our" girl to be with Him - and spare her the pain and sorrow this sin-filled world and our sin-filled hearts create. Jesus, the resurrection and the life, says whoever believes in Him, yet though he dies, will live again. Our hope is built on nothing less...