The How Tos

There are no shortcuts to God. No amount of reading books can save our children.

Vision Forum, Bill Gothard, No Greater Joy,Steve and Terri Maxwell of Titus 2,Denny Kenaston, and 100s of others ....many of these ministries are full of valuable resources but I see a common thread among them. Black and White formulas that don't give alot of wiggle room for all the dynamics that go into each separate human. God himself didn't include check boxes at the end of each of His chapters like some of these guys. I know the study helps and check boxes are not evil but there seems to be an all or nothing mentality connected to these guys. I guess it takes a strong visionary to put forth resources worthy of our consideration, it just seems that some of these visionarys lack grace and mercy.Man made formulas often produce works of the flesh because who needs relationship and prayer if we can just refer back to chapter 3?

Philippians 3:8 I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ....

These methods often produce legalism and serious guilt because who really measures up to these ideas? OK, so say we do in fact measure up, how many people do you know measure up but manage to keep it humble? If we do somehow fit the bill then that produces a feeling of superiority. So either we've got it or we don't. SO many legalist are being produced by these ministries.Running around policing each other ....tsk tsk shaking our heads....Well if you would of just applied chapter 6 paragraph 2 your son wouldn't of rebelled... when in fact son needed the exact opposite of anything put forth by these ministries. Dear son needed grace and love, which is rarely talked about in these instruction manuals.