Best things to inherit - #8

I am continuing my top ten list of Biblical things to inherit.

#8.  Honor.   "The wise will inherit honor, but fools get disgrace."  - Proverbs 3:35 (ESV)
                      "He raises up the poor from the dust; he lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes and inherit a seat of honor." - 1 Samuel 2:8  (ESV)

One thing that begs the question is who is honor inherited from?  If honor is inherited from parents and parents are disgraceful and not honorable, does that mean that the child can not inherit honor?

I think that these verses begin to speak of an inheritance beyond a paper will.  In some ways it speaks of each person's role in their own inheritance.  On the other hand, the second verse speaks of One who provides the needy with an inheritance of honor.  If you received no inheritance, and definitely not honor as an inheritance, honor can be inherited from the Lord, and especially to those who need it.

If you are a parent, probably the best thing for you to do to enable your children to inherit honor is to point them in the direction of the One who can give it.  If you seek honor in and of itself, I fear that you may miss it all.  The idea of inheriting honor helps us to see what a big deal it is Who we inherit from.

Best things to inherit - #9

Inheritance.  Have you ever received one or given on or wanted one.  In the Bible it was often about land, and today it is usually about money.  During this series of blog posts about the Biblical top ten lists of best things to inherit, I will explore other less thought of things that we can receive as an inheritance.

#9.  What is Good.   "The one who leads the upright astray in an evil way will himself fall into his own pit, but the blameless will inherit what is good."  - Proverbs 28:10 (NET)  In a sense this is the reap what you sow theme of the Bible which is prevalent in Proverbs.  If you kick people you will be kicked, but if you buy people a meal, someone will also buy yours.  Maybe too extreme.  The problem with this proverb, and the problem points to the solution, is that we are not blameless.  We are the evil ones.  The solution is that someone who is blameless makes us blameless, and that person is Jesus Christ.  But I am getting ahead of myself in all this inheritance stuff.  What is good?  What is the "good" that the writer writes about that the blameless will inherit?
What are good things to inherit?
What are bad things to inherit?

Is a lot of money good?  Is debt bad?  Is neglect bad?  Is education good?  What do you think?  What are your ideas on what is good?

Best things to inherit - #10

I have been looking through the Bible at the subject of inheritance, and while land is the prominent thing that is inherited in the Bible, it is not the only thing.  So here goes my list of things that I think are cool to inherit.

10.  The blessing.  "For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears."  Hebrews 12:17 (ESV)

This is a negative example of a very important inheritance.  Our children want to be blessed by us.  This blessing is one of the best blessings we as parents can hand on to our kids.  It also shows what the opposite of inheriting a blessing is.  It seems that Esau inherited rejection.  It may be that each parent has a choice to give their child a blessing or a rejection as an inheritance.  

How can we give our kids an inheritance of a blessing?

We can tell them that we love them out loud in a non-sarcastic way, and hopefully we are crying when we say it.  There is my idea.  What is yours?

Personality Tests

I have a lot of ideas.  I was going to make up a new personality test, a pop personality test, that decides if you are a mt. dew or a dr. pepper or a stoney tangaweezi/.  With all of the facebook personality tests going around facebook, including lord of the rings (dang I am not aragorn).  So my idea is this - you make up a new personality test.  Just make up like 40 questions, or even 20 and then sort it out.  You say, what kind of personality test.  Here are some you could make up:
1.  Which country were you meant to live in?
2.  Which planet are you?
3.  Which type of font are you?
4.  Which sense is your favorite?
5.  Which country song are you?
If you make one up, send it to me so that I can take it.

Money Saving Ideas - Buying Used

Buying things used:  One way to save quite a bit of money is to buy things used.  Most people know that a used car is a lot less expensive than a new one.  There is of course a risk in buying things used, but so is there a rick in buying things new.  I will list a few places to buy things used, and also some things that can be a great deal buying used.
Where to buy:
1.  Amazon.com often has sellers who will sell you something that is used for much cheaper, whether this be a book on Middle-earth lore, a swimming pool, a Nintendo 64, or if you are lucky, the Settlers of Catan.
2.  Craigslist is a online place to buy things used, but be very very leery.  Some people are selling stuff they bought, while others are selling stuff they stole.  Here is one way to see if what they are selling may be stolen or that there may be a catch.  If the picture is not a picture in the house, but one from the internet, and also when you search craigslist for there phone number, they are selling a lot of other things this way.
3.  Thrift stores.  This can not be overstated.  Thrift stores sell so many things that you want to buy at such a discounted rate.  Often the proceeds are put to very good causes, like the Muncie Mission's Christian Recovery Program.
4.  Garage sales.  Probably everyone has been to or at least by a garage or yard sale.  These can be a great way to get the things you need at a price you can afford.
5.  Friends and family who lost or gained weight or just got tired of their clothes.  The amount of clothing that is bought new in the US is greater than the need for the US, therefore, much clothing is gotten rid of.  Let people know you will take their hand me downs.  Put the money you saved toward someone in Burma who has one pair of pants instead of 30 pairs.
6.  After the season clearance.  In a sense these items are used because they have been tried on so many times.  This is a great way to get a bargain and be prepared for the same season next year.
7.  Used appliance stores.  You can pay 1/3 of the cost by buying a used washer, fridge, etc.

What to buy:
1.  Used house
2.  Used car
3.  Used clothes
4.  Used food (late food - or if you dare, discarded food)
5.  Used cell phones
6.  Used washer and dryer
7.  Used refrigerator.
8.  Used lawn mover.
9.  Used camping gear.
10.  Used bicycle.
11.  Used cloth diapers.
12.  Used dishes and silverware sets.
13.  Used furniture.
14.  Used building materials.
15.  Used luggage.
16.  The list goes on.

Where not to buy:
1.  Rent to own (you will pay more).
2.  Casino (you will lose more than you win).
3.  Gas stations and convenience stores.
4.  Stadiums and concerts.
5.  in an alley

What not to buy used
1.  prescription medications.
2.  needles
3.  engine oil
4.  insurance
5.  mattresses with bedbugs
6.  smelly clothes
7.  proceed with caution.

Pick-a-dates

We went to a small Midwestern Christian college, and there was a tradition there to have pick-a-dates.  What is a pick-a-date?  A pick-a-date is where your roommate calls and asks someone to go on a group date with you and the people in your dorm.  The great thing, I believe, about pick-a-dates is that Christian college kids can hang out together in a group and learn about others through conversation.  There is a lot to be said for group interaction in the dating process.  I did not go on a record number of pick-a-dates, but I went on a few, and so I will list my top ten list.  If you are living in a college dorm trying to plan an event for your dorm, feel free to use any of these in your context.  Some of them were okay, others were life-changing.
10.  My first pick a date was to my hometown bowling alley.  I list is #10 not because it is the worst, but because it is the first.  We had a pick of a wreck, and had to change a tire.  Bowling seems to be a popular group dating activity.
9.  Going to someone's house and hanging out.  This is pretty common.  I just remember the only person who had never seen "Friends,"  the tv show.
8.  The square dance.  This was not really a pick a date, but a tradition at our college.  You square danced with people you just met.  I know one guy who met his future wife this way.
7.  Insert your idea here:  I did not go on ten pick a dates, so I have to fill space.  Some of the rest may be made up.  You pick which ones were made up.
6.  Go to NAIA nationals pick a date.  This was not really a date at all, but I got to see my friend run a !:46 800.
5.  Walk the loop pick a date.  We all walked the loop around campus and then had hot chocolate in the breezeway.
4.  Nutcracker pick a date.  We got all dressed up and went to Indianapolis to see the Nutcracker.  It was fun.  I later married my date.
3.  Children's museum pick a date.  I still like that place and take my kids there.
2.  The T-shirt pick a date.  You meet your date in the library, give her a T-shirt that says, "I went on a Sammy II pick-a-date and all I got was this lousy T-shirt.
1.  Jar-prom.  Think opposite of prom.  The main event was an obstacle course in which you heaved yourself and your date on top of a shed, shot a ball in a basket, did the wheelbarrow, etc.  The best pick a date ever.