The school year is almost over for us. This is finals week and come Thursday our freshman year is at an end. So I'm sitting here listening to Chris Tomlin and thinking of what has happened. A little over a year ago I was in Michigan praying for God to show us the open door. Today we have went through the door and are on the other side. So what have I learned?
I learned God speaks in whispers.
God is the Hero.
Friends are priceless.
The love I have been given, is meant to be given.
I am incapable of doing anything on my own.
Barbecue first!
The light that shines in me is the person I was meant to be.
Exegesis without application is abortion.
Failure is not the end.
I love my wife!
Love is giving someone the help they need to leave you, and be themselves.
I think I know what I don't know now.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Monday, April 14, 2008
In a Box
Have you seen the pictures of the all white clean and pristine buildings of the sect in Texas that has come to our attention? This place looks incredible! Zion is what they call it, it has these two multi-story buildings that are pure white and surrounded by fields of green grass and a 10 ft white wall. The whole compound looks as if it is a dream in the middle of the desert.
I was reading about the compound and how its leaders say that the "elect" or "heart center" ones are allowed to stay there. How did they get this so messed up? I ask myself this same question and it was reflected back on my own life. How did I get this so messed up? How did I put love in a box?
I mean it happen so slowly and so quietly that I didn't even notice. I just went with the flow. Is that how it happened in Texas? You start out one day with a vision of what is right and then it just all goes rotten. Your mind is put on a path that seems right but isn't.
Is this how it happens to us? We hear about God and love and we are so sure that this is right, and it is, but then we put it in a box. We try to capture God. We want to keep God close and within reach. We surround ourselves with all the things that remind us of who God is and what he has done.
We build our own prisons. The next thing you know we are the prisoners in a place that was built to testify to our freedom. We put love in a box and guard it with all our strength. Don't take this the wrong way; I'm not calling for the destruction of all the church buildings or anything close to that. I am saying that we all from time to time need to look at ourselves and ask the question who has been touched by the love that was given to me?
The church and our lives were not meant to be lived out in a compound or in isolation. The love that God sent to the world was not meant to be horded or put away in an ivory tower. God will not be put in a box! God and love were meant to be shared and given away to everyone. We are meant to walk with God in the cool of the day not put Him in a building and go once a week for a visit. This is essential for the life of our soul. God needs to be in all the places of our lives. In every moment, in every breath we need God to be there.
So how does that happen? It is so simple but requires a way of thinking that is contrary to everything we hear from the world around us. We give it away. We become a vessel that is filled with Gods love for us but the only difference is that we pour that love out on others. God blesses us not just for our own enjoyment but that we may become a blessing to others. This is where we begin to walk with Him in the cool of the day. As we pour ourselves out we find the craziest thing happens, God continues to fill us up. It all seems backwards and wrong but it isn't. This is how God works and we have to let go of ourselves and let love flow. Break out of the box! There was never anything in the box, except our fears.
Monday, March 31, 2008
A little light
I'm watching this movie that we bought from Walmart last night,it was from the discount dvd bin. You know the one in the back of Walmart that looks like a feeding trough because all these people are digging into it looking for some movie that will satisfy. Well I come across a movie that I have never heard of or seen (Which is usually not the case) and it looks like it may be really good.
The movie has one star in it that I recognize and it has a write-up on the back that looks as if it may be a artsy movie that makes a statement. I can tell you it does make a point but I can not tell you that it is for the faint of heart of the innocent of mind or eye. The name of the movie is "Requiem for a Dream". I had no idea what this title meant or just how horrifying this movie was going to be.
As I said earlier I can not say go out and watch this movie! I would not recommend it to anyone! It tells the story of a older women who gets hooked on prescription amphetamines and her junkie son along with his girlfriend and best friend. This film does not hold back when it comes to the real world of addiction and the suffering involved in it. There are scenes that are so graphic and real that they are offensive.
All that said. I was so taken aback by the movie I went to my computer and found the meaning of the word requiem as I did not know it. This is what it means "In music, a Mass for one or more dead persons, containing biblical passages and prayers for the admission of the dead to heaven. " OK now this makes more sense as to the title. I wish I would have had a larger vocabulary before choosing this movie. The movie ends tragically as you might have expected from the little I have given in the way of a summary. This is a dark movie that has no light in it what so ever.
So whats the point of rambling on about this depressing film? The one thing that I was thinking while I watched it was "where can they go for help?" "who can they turn to?" and "why doesn't anyone care?"
Why do we even have to have the word "requiem" in our vocabulary?
I opened my e-mail this morning and read a message from a friend. He wrote of the things in his life that where going on and asked how I was doing. I thought "WOW" how powerful and simple was this single ray of light that had come my way! How easy would it be to dismiss it as just polite conversation.
It would be easy to just pass this by, except for one huge fact. This e-mail was from a brother in Christ who wanted to connect with me.
In the Bible, John the Apostle writes "It is when he walks by night that he stumbles, for he has no light."
Simple but powerful words!
Oh and by the way they are not the words of John. They are the words of Jesus Christ that John is quoting.
Oh and one other thing, just after Jesus says this, He goes and raises Lazarus from the dead.
A little light... in a dark place is all we need.
The darkness of our lives may seem overwhelming and confusing. As we cry out for help and to be of a help we can miss the small things. It can be so simple that we discount the power of light, as if light was worthless.
Is your heart calling out to shine?
Send that message, call that person, reach out to each other and let the light shine. Let the light that is Christ shine into the dark places of this world. You may think that a candle in darkness is useless but that is far from true. The little light a candle gives in the darkness gives light to the person stumbling in the night.
It is not to late,
it is not too little,
it can make a difference,
we can be used by God to make all the difference.
Shine!!
The movie has one star in it that I recognize and it has a write-up on the back that looks as if it may be a artsy movie that makes a statement. I can tell you it does make a point but I can not tell you that it is for the faint of heart of the innocent of mind or eye. The name of the movie is "Requiem for a Dream". I had no idea what this title meant or just how horrifying this movie was going to be.
As I said earlier I can not say go out and watch this movie! I would not recommend it to anyone! It tells the story of a older women who gets hooked on prescription amphetamines and her junkie son along with his girlfriend and best friend. This film does not hold back when it comes to the real world of addiction and the suffering involved in it. There are scenes that are so graphic and real that they are offensive.
All that said. I was so taken aback by the movie I went to my computer and found the meaning of the word requiem as I did not know it. This is what it means "In music, a Mass for one or more dead persons, containing biblical passages and prayers for the admission of the dead to heaven. " OK now this makes more sense as to the title. I wish I would have had a larger vocabulary before choosing this movie. The movie ends tragically as you might have expected from the little I have given in the way of a summary. This is a dark movie that has no light in it what so ever.
So whats the point of rambling on about this depressing film? The one thing that I was thinking while I watched it was "where can they go for help?" "who can they turn to?" and "why doesn't anyone care?"
Why do we even have to have the word "requiem" in our vocabulary?
I opened my e-mail this morning and read a message from a friend. He wrote of the things in his life that where going on and asked how I was doing. I thought "WOW" how powerful and simple was this single ray of light that had come my way! How easy would it be to dismiss it as just polite conversation.
It would be easy to just pass this by, except for one huge fact. This e-mail was from a brother in Christ who wanted to connect with me.
In the Bible, John the Apostle writes "It is when he walks by night that he stumbles, for he has no light."
Simple but powerful words!
Oh and by the way they are not the words of John. They are the words of Jesus Christ that John is quoting.
Oh and one other thing, just after Jesus says this, He goes and raises Lazarus from the dead.
A little light... in a dark place is all we need.
The darkness of our lives may seem overwhelming and confusing. As we cry out for help and to be of a help we can miss the small things. It can be so simple that we discount the power of light, as if light was worthless.
Is your heart calling out to shine?
Send that message, call that person, reach out to each other and let the light shine. Let the light that is Christ shine into the dark places of this world. You may think that a candle in darkness is useless but that is far from true. The little light a candle gives in the darkness gives light to the person stumbling in the night.
It is not to late,
it is not too little,
it can make a difference,
we can be used by God to make all the difference.
Shine!!
Friday, March 7, 2008
First Love
Ok it's been months since last I posted anything...my apologies. But I been thinking lately, it hurts but I do it anyway. I have been thinking about Jesus and holiness. What a surprise you say! The Bible student thinking of these things...lol. I have been wondering about how we forget things we once cherished. I don't really mean that they are lost and out of our grasp or sight but instead it is the kind of forgetting that occurs gradually and we become accustom to them being there so we take them for granted.
All this may sound random and off the wall but hang in there with me. I have been married for just over two years now to the love of my life and I can see myself slipping now and again into this comfortable mind set that she will be with me always and I can just do what I want because she will always be there. I know this sounds horrible and that I should be ashamed, and I am. What I know about myself though and what I believe is probably true for most of us is that this "comfortable forgetting" is something we all struggle with.
We get going in our relationships and we go from nervous and unsure in the beginning to comfortable and stagnate as the relationship ages. I know that we try to deny the truth of this by rationalizing our busy lives but if we are truly honest with ourselves I don't think we can say that we are "on Fire" all the time when it comes to the love we have for the people in our lives. You know the signs; screening your calls, not answering e-mails right away, we'll do lunch, looking all over the room as someone is talking to you, thinking...humm what will I have for dinner?
Ok so I am coming down hard on this stuff and you could say well everyone does that. I know everyone does that. I know I do that. I also know that I don't want to do it.
So how does all this tie into Jesus and holiness? A friend of mine was writing about the passage in Revelation that says "you have forgotten your first love" and all this came flooding into my head. Am I just a little too comfortable with Jesus? Have I gotten just a little to forgetful? I wonder? Have I been walking around on holy ground with my shoes on? I am in love with my Lord and savior Jesus but do I take Him for granted? If I am to take Jesus and holiness to heart I don't want to ever forget!
Where are you right now? Where is Jesus? Lets go find Him.
All this may sound random and off the wall but hang in there with me. I have been married for just over two years now to the love of my life and I can see myself slipping now and again into this comfortable mind set that she will be with me always and I can just do what I want because she will always be there. I know this sounds horrible and that I should be ashamed, and I am. What I know about myself though and what I believe is probably true for most of us is that this "comfortable forgetting" is something we all struggle with.
We get going in our relationships and we go from nervous and unsure in the beginning to comfortable and stagnate as the relationship ages. I know that we try to deny the truth of this by rationalizing our busy lives but if we are truly honest with ourselves I don't think we can say that we are "on Fire" all the time when it comes to the love we have for the people in our lives. You know the signs; screening your calls, not answering e-mails right away, we'll do lunch, looking all over the room as someone is talking to you, thinking...humm what will I have for dinner?
Ok so I am coming down hard on this stuff and you could say well everyone does that. I know everyone does that. I know I do that. I also know that I don't want to do it.
So how does all this tie into Jesus and holiness? A friend of mine was writing about the passage in Revelation that says "you have forgotten your first love" and all this came flooding into my head. Am I just a little too comfortable with Jesus? Have I gotten just a little to forgetful? I wonder? Have I been walking around on holy ground with my shoes on? I am in love with my Lord and savior Jesus but do I take Him for granted? If I am to take Jesus and holiness to heart I don't want to ever forget!
Where are you right now? Where is Jesus? Lets go find Him.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Past Present and Future
I'm writing this paper the other day and I come upon a passage that I just can not let go of, or maybe its the other way around.
Romans 8:29-30 29For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
Ok at first glance it looks harmless enough, but have you ever noticed how Paul uses the past tence here? I mean whats up with that? I was hooked so I started doing some digging. What I found amazed me. Not because of a change in the meaning of the verse but because of why it was written this way.
The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology states
“The connecting link between present and future righteousness is the fact that, while believers have already become a people for God’s own possession, he is still at enmity with the world as a whole (“all men” Rom. 5:18).”
“Hence, the justification of the individual springs entirely from that of all men (Rom. 5:19), so that it is not we who possess righteousness but righteousness which possesses us; we are its servants (Rom. 6:18; 2 Cor. 3:9). Our Justification comes from and extends into the future.” (Brown 1978:365)
This justification that leads to the glorification of man as Paul had wrote becomes visible to us as being past, present and future. We can understand the connection of justification to the past because of the future, this is an understandable argument for Paul’s use of the past tense. These statements also clear up the impasse of how we could one day be able to be in the presence of our Lord and savior, not as filthy, but glorified. It seems obvious to us that the glorification of man is not only possible, it is a driving force of God’s redemption plan. A relationship with our Savior is the only way of achieving this goal of redemption and glorification.
This is a section of the paper I wrote with the quote highlighted. I have never thought of righteousness as being able to possess us, this just blows me away, and it releases us from trying to acheive the unachieveable by our own power.
The last part also boggled my mind. The present (our dirty little lives) have been justified by the future (day of judgement) through the act of Christ in the past (dying on the cross). We live today, in righteousness and justified, by the atonement of Christ.
Romans 8:29-30 29For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
Ok at first glance it looks harmless enough, but have you ever noticed how Paul uses the past tence here? I mean whats up with that? I was hooked so I started doing some digging. What I found amazed me. Not because of a change in the meaning of the verse but because of why it was written this way.
The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology states
“The connecting link between present and future righteousness is the fact that, while believers have already become a people for God’s own possession, he is still at enmity with the world as a whole (“all men” Rom. 5:18).”
“Hence, the justification of the individual springs entirely from that of all men (Rom. 5:19), so that it is not we who possess righteousness but righteousness which possesses us; we are its servants (Rom. 6:18; 2 Cor. 3:9). Our Justification comes from and extends into the future.” (Brown 1978:365)
This justification that leads to the glorification of man as Paul had wrote becomes visible to us as being past, present and future. We can understand the connection of justification to the past because of the future, this is an understandable argument for Paul’s use of the past tense. These statements also clear up the impasse of how we could one day be able to be in the presence of our Lord and savior, not as filthy, but glorified. It seems obvious to us that the glorification of man is not only possible, it is a driving force of God’s redemption plan. A relationship with our Savior is the only way of achieving this goal of redemption and glorification.
This is a section of the paper I wrote with the quote highlighted. I have never thought of righteousness as being able to possess us, this just blows me away, and it releases us from trying to acheive the unachieveable by our own power.
The last part also boggled my mind. The present (our dirty little lives) have been justified by the future (day of judgement) through the act of Christ in the past (dying on the cross). We live today, in righteousness and justified, by the atonement of Christ.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Hey is this thing working?
I have to say its been a while since my last post. The world has gotten just a wee bit faster for Wendy and I over the last two weeks. We were talking about it tonight and WOW we have learned so many new things in just two weeks it makes our heads spin. I can't remember a better time in my life though. "Time of your life ah kid?" A quote from the film "Risky Business". It has been a risk and it has been the time of our lives. I wonder if there is something to that? Great risk... trust God... great reward.......hmmmm. Naaaah! ;)
We are alive and well here in Tennessee, I'm working at Toys-R-Us part time. I know they let me work in a toy store, its like giving the key to the cheese vault to the mouse, but they did. God Rocks!! Anyway, Wendy is working here at the school as a TA in the Counselling dept. and all our loans for school have been approved! Did I mention GOD ROCKS!!!
We want to thank everyone for your prayers and support. LCM we love you, not a day goes by that we don't think or speak of you. Please keep in touch. Oh yea.......... GOD ROCKS!!!
Jeff Steele that last one was for you...Less Talk More Rock....take care.
We are alive and well here in Tennessee, I'm working at Toys-R-Us part time. I know they let me work in a toy store, its like giving the key to the cheese vault to the mouse, but they did. God Rocks!! Anyway, Wendy is working here at the school as a TA in the Counselling dept. and all our loans for school have been approved! Did I mention GOD ROCKS!!!
We want to thank everyone for your prayers and support. LCM we love you, not a day goes by that we don't think or speak of you. Please keep in touch. Oh yea.......... GOD ROCKS!!!
Jeff Steele that last one was for you...Less Talk More Rock....take care.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
The Fellowship of the Aged
Well it's our first week as students here at JBC. I'm surrounded by a sea of 18 yr olds and feel like the old man out. But the Lord will provide... right? Actually it's not all that bad, there is an air of excitement and the buzz of newness in the air.
We have met a few of the other married students here and two of the couples we have met are from the same generation as us. One was a contractor and the other owned his own cleaning business before coming here to Johnson.
It's the latter of these two that leads me to write this update in the blog today. His name is Ace, that's right, not his nickname, and he's from Indiana. Ace is incredible, he has this magnetism about him that draws young students to himself like kids to a candy store. Ace has hair like Billy Ray Cyrus used to have and a pet python. Come to think of it isn't that enough to draw anyone in? Ace and his wife Belinda (she's the one with the pink hair) are gifted with this down-home, likable spirit that you know must be right from the creator Himself. It's so amazing sometimes to meet people who are truly comfortable with themselves and the way God made them.
I find myself so consumed sometimes with thoughts of "do I fit in?" and "will they like me?". It is a problem I feel most of us have sometimes, if not most of the time. Here comes Ace with his mullet and long side burns who just loves being Ace and everyone is completely enamored with him. I think I will learn a lot of things this year from a lot of well-educated professors, but God is already teaching me what He feels is important and I didn't even have to pay for the class. :)
We have met a few of the other married students here and two of the couples we have met are from the same generation as us. One was a contractor and the other owned his own cleaning business before coming here to Johnson.
It's the latter of these two that leads me to write this update in the blog today. His name is Ace, that's right, not his nickname, and he's from Indiana. Ace is incredible, he has this magnetism about him that draws young students to himself like kids to a candy store. Ace has hair like Billy Ray Cyrus used to have and a pet python. Come to think of it isn't that enough to draw anyone in? Ace and his wife Belinda (she's the one with the pink hair) are gifted with this down-home, likable spirit that you know must be right from the creator Himself. It's so amazing sometimes to meet people who are truly comfortable with themselves and the way God made them.
I find myself so consumed sometimes with thoughts of "do I fit in?" and "will they like me?". It is a problem I feel most of us have sometimes, if not most of the time. Here comes Ace with his mullet and long side burns who just loves being Ace and everyone is completely enamored with him. I think I will learn a lot of things this year from a lot of well-educated professors, but God is already teaching me what He feels is important and I didn't even have to pay for the class. :)
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