Personal
Friday Five Plus+
08/15/2008 06:17
Well, as you
can tell, I’m still “monkeying around” with
RapidWeaver in attempting to get just the look I want
for this blog. Please be patient with me, I’m trying
not to break the Internet. Here’s my Friday Five
(plus a couple of other thoughts):
Five Observations About the Olympics –
My family hasn’t gotten into the Olympics quite like we have in the past. One year (I believe it was the winter Olympics of 1992?), when our oldest was only 6, we set up chairs in our living room, went through an elaborate ritual to actually pretend we flew to the Olympics that year. We loved it and had great fun. Now, our oldest is away from home, preparing to get married next June; our two youngest are very busy with pre-season sports training and we’re running the parental taxi like crazy, so there’s not as much energy left for the Olympic events. Besides, I’m older now and staying up until 11.30 PM or even midnight and then trying to get up when my body tells me its used to getting up (around 4-4.30 AM) is nearly a disaster. All that said, here are some observations from this go round in ’08:
1. Is it just me, or are the announcers beside Al Troutwig for gymnastics really, really annoying and all pouty when the Americans aren’t doing well. Last night, while watching the women’s all-around, my parental instinct kept kicking in and wanting to look sternly into their eyes and with a firm voice say, “Stop whining. Stop pouting. It’s tremendously unfair to all those around you.”
2. The ubiquitous Michael Phelps is amazing. (he’s ubiquitous because he’s done so well, no one will leave him alone!) I vaguely remember being interested when Mark Spitz won his 7 golds back in ’72, but for the sake of the historical, this is really cool.
3. Okay, I’ll jump on the bandwagon... there’s no way all the Chinese women’s gymnasts are 16 or older. Did you see the photo of one of their tiniest looking girls whose missing a tooth? Unless she’s from the far south in China, and her parents have 2-3 cars up on cinder blocks in their front yard, 4-5 dogs roaming around looking real mangy, and have all married their cousins, then I just have a hard time believing they’re old enough to matter.
4. Michael Phelps again: I wonder what he’ll do, or become when this is all said and done. For the past, what, 23 years, his life has been swim–eat–sleep; swim–eat–sleep. After all the golds, then what?
5. While I understand the modern “need” to get all the news of the Olympics to us as fast as possible, I really wouldn’t have minded tape delayed broadcasting. Then, you could actually watch these games at a decent hour. During March Madness, there’s much ado about how much productivity is lost due to all the watching of basketball. I wonder how much is lost because people stay up way too late to watch these games.
Well, that’s it. That’s my five. I do have one more bit I want to share with you, dear reader. This is another quote from Of First Importance, and if it doesn’t stir your heart, then just reach out and grab that branch anyway:
“Imagine you are on a high cliff and you lose your footing and begin to fall. Just beside you is a branch sticking out of the edge of the cliff. It is your only hope and seems more than strong enough. How can it save you?
If you’re certain the branch can support you, but you don’t actually reach out and grab it, you are lost. If instead your mind is filled with doubts and uncertainty that the branch can hold you, but you reach out and grab it anyway, you will be saved. Why?
It is not the strength of your faith but the object of your faith that actually saves you. Strong faith in a weak branch is fatally inferior to weak faith in a strong branch.”
—Timothy Keller, The Reason For God (New York, NY: Dutton, 2008), 234
Five Observations About the Olympics –
My family hasn’t gotten into the Olympics quite like we have in the past. One year (I believe it was the winter Olympics of 1992?), when our oldest was only 6, we set up chairs in our living room, went through an elaborate ritual to actually pretend we flew to the Olympics that year. We loved it and had great fun. Now, our oldest is away from home, preparing to get married next June; our two youngest are very busy with pre-season sports training and we’re running the parental taxi like crazy, so there’s not as much energy left for the Olympic events. Besides, I’m older now and staying up until 11.30 PM or even midnight and then trying to get up when my body tells me its used to getting up (around 4-4.30 AM) is nearly a disaster. All that said, here are some observations from this go round in ’08:
1. Is it just me, or are the announcers beside Al Troutwig for gymnastics really, really annoying and all pouty when the Americans aren’t doing well. Last night, while watching the women’s all-around, my parental instinct kept kicking in and wanting to look sternly into their eyes and with a firm voice say, “Stop whining. Stop pouting. It’s tremendously unfair to all those around you.”
2. The ubiquitous Michael Phelps is amazing. (he’s ubiquitous because he’s done so well, no one will leave him alone!) I vaguely remember being interested when Mark Spitz won his 7 golds back in ’72, but for the sake of the historical, this is really cool.
3. Okay, I’ll jump on the bandwagon... there’s no way all the Chinese women’s gymnasts are 16 or older. Did you see the photo of one of their tiniest looking girls whose missing a tooth? Unless she’s from the far south in China, and her parents have 2-3 cars up on cinder blocks in their front yard, 4-5 dogs roaming around looking real mangy, and have all married their cousins, then I just have a hard time believing they’re old enough to matter.
4. Michael Phelps again: I wonder what he’ll do, or become when this is all said and done. For the past, what, 23 years, his life has been swim–eat–sleep; swim–eat–sleep. After all the golds, then what?
5. While I understand the modern “need” to get all the news of the Olympics to us as fast as possible, I really wouldn’t have minded tape delayed broadcasting. Then, you could actually watch these games at a decent hour. During March Madness, there’s much ado about how much productivity is lost due to all the watching of basketball. I wonder how much is lost because people stay up way too late to watch these games.
Well, that’s it. That’s my five. I do have one more bit I want to share with you, dear reader. This is another quote from Of First Importance, and if it doesn’t stir your heart, then just reach out and grab that branch anyway:
“Imagine you are on a high cliff and you lose your footing and begin to fall. Just beside you is a branch sticking out of the edge of the cliff. It is your only hope and seems more than strong enough. How can it save you?
If you’re certain the branch can support you, but you don’t actually reach out and grab it, you are lost. If instead your mind is filled with doubts and uncertainty that the branch can hold you, but you reach out and grab it anyway, you will be saved. Why?
It is not the strength of your faith but the object of your faith that actually saves you. Strong faith in a weak branch is fatally inferior to weak faith in a strong branch.”
—Timothy Keller, The Reason For God (New York, NY: Dutton, 2008), 234
|
A little stretched
08/12/2008 05:16
I had a licensing interview* in the Twin Cities yesterday. It was an excellent time. The candidate performed very well. One of the joys was sitting on the interview with Dean Johnson. Dean was once our North Central District's Superintendent. He's since moved on to other things, like retirement. Except he's finding himself almost busier in retirement than he was before. "But it's a good thing, I think," he quipped. Dean's experience spans several decades as a pastor and as a leader. I would love to be able to sit down with a man like this over lunch, about once a month and just pick his brain and experience involving all things pastoral. What a resource that would be.
The interview involves me leaving home at 6.15 AM, sitting in the District office from 9 AM 'til about 12.30 PM. Then I jump back in the car and head for home, hoping I'll not get too tired while driving. (I made it home safely; about an hour after I got home, there was a serious accident on the highway I'd travelled.) Before I left the Cities, I had to make a quick stop at the Apple Store in the MoA (that's Mall of America,
After a brief rest and supper with the family, I had things to catch up on, so "worked from home" for a bit last night. That got a little distracted, on occasion, while watching some of the Olympic events out of the corner of my eye.
Today will stretch Ann and I even more, schedule-wise. She has to clean two houses. Jonathan has to catch his football practice car-pool at 7 AM. I have a chapel service to lead at a local senior living facility at 2 PM and Elizabeth has to be at soccer practice at 3 PM (my chapel usually runs 30 minutes and from where I'll be, it will take close to 30 minutes to get E. to her soccer practice, cutting it close, but make-able). Then Wednesday's schedule has me with a morning appointment at 9 AM, which will rund about 2.5 hours, making me late for Prayer Time at church, which starts at 11.30 AM.
All this is to say: this is an incredibly uninspired, uninteresting post from a mind that is wandering a bit at 5.30 in the blessed A.M. So please, bear with me. Thanks!
Memorizing Ephesians
08/07/2008 07:09
I’m going to be
preaching through the book of Ephesians, beginning
this September. I have no idea, at the present time,
how long I’ll be in this wonderful book of Scripture;
I just know that I can’t rush it. There’s simply too
much there, too many treasures, so many facets to
explore. The danger in this kind of approach is going
so slowly that I lose people. To avoid that, there
will be some side trails I go down, branching off
from the text itself, to help us enjoy the grace
lavished upon us through this piece of God’s Word.
In preparing for this series, I came across this post by Tim about memorizing Ephesians. He also posted some photos of what his “system” looks like. Very timely; God’s providence is always good, isn’t it? So, I thought I’d copy his idea, set up my own Memory Journal (though not moleskin; sorry, I was trying to be a bit more frugal there).
I copied his
schedule, printed it out and pasted it into the front
page of the journal. Now I can keep on track.
This is how I chose to do the original work of each passage: rather than print and paste into the journal, I always have better recall when I write it out by hand. Not as sharp or neat, but much better for my memory.
I think it must
be the motor skills involved, the sounding each word
out loud as I’m writing and the time it takes to
write it out longhand that engrains it into me.
Going to the back of the journal (marked with a stickie note), I practice each passage, gradually adding to what I’ve learned previously. Again, the long, tedious path of writing by hand really helps me. I work backwards through the journal this way, and will probably meet up with the original entries by the time I’m through
(I’ve counted out
pages and know about how far this will take me).
After writing out, from memory, each passage, I open
my Bible and compare & check, making notations if
I’ve missed something.
So far, I’m nearing the end of chapter one. By the time I start the preaching series, I should be well into chapter three. On the first Sunday of October, our “normal” Sunday for gathering around the Lord’s Table, I’ll try my “hand” publicly. Instead of preaching a message from Ephesians, I recite chapters 1-3. I tried something like this years ago and I’m not altogether certain that the congregation realized I was reciting Scripture from memory rather than preaching a message. I wonder, how powerful is that: instead of cluttering things up with my often feeble attempts, simply allowing God’s Word to go forth, proclaimed from the heart, and doing it’s divinely appointed work?
To the praise of His glorious grace.
In preparing for this series, I came across this post by Tim about memorizing Ephesians. He also posted some photos of what his “system” looks like. Very timely; God’s providence is always good, isn’t it? So, I thought I’d copy his idea, set up my own Memory Journal (though not moleskin; sorry, I was trying to be a bit more frugal there).
This is how I chose to do the original work of each passage: rather than print and paste into the journal, I always have better recall when I write it out by hand. Not as sharp or neat, but much better for my memory.
Going to the back of the journal (marked with a stickie note), I practice each passage, gradually adding to what I’ve learned previously. Again, the long, tedious path of writing by hand really helps me. I work backwards through the journal this way, and will probably meet up with the original entries by the time I’m through
So far, I’m nearing the end of chapter one. By the time I start the preaching series, I should be well into chapter three. On the first Sunday of October, our “normal” Sunday for gathering around the Lord’s Table, I’ll try my “hand” publicly. Instead of preaching a message from Ephesians, I recite chapters 1-3. I tried something like this years ago and I’m not altogether certain that the congregation realized I was reciting Scripture from memory rather than preaching a message. I wonder, how powerful is that: instead of cluttering things up with my often feeble attempts, simply allowing God’s Word to go forth, proclaimed from the heart, and doing it’s divinely appointed work?
To the praise of His glorious grace.
The Dark Knight
08/06/2008 06:42
There was a nearly tangible feel to the air, an electricity of anticipation by the crowd, just waiting for the show’s beginning. All kinds of people were there: young & old, parents with children (one father in front of us had, what appeared to be, a 5-year-old boy, along with three of the dad’s buddies), high schoolers and college-aged students. All were talking, in none too hushed tones, about the film. Jonathan and I were also genuinely excited for it. We’d probably bought into the hype.
My overall impressions of The Dark Knight: dark, sad, cynical, yet with a faint glimmer of hope near the end. I hink I can easily believe that Heath Ledger’s death in real life has played a part in the tremendous fascination, not only with the movie overall, but with the Joker in particular. Several people I’ve spoken with have remarked how totally “into” the part he seemed to be. I think he did “get into” the part well - he played a person who truly cared for no one (I’m not sure he even cared for himself or was afraid of death - perhaps this was his real life oozing over into the part?). The Joker believed there was no good left in the human heart, mind or will; that each person would seek to survive, doing what was necessary to live, no matter how morally repugnant the act appeared to be. There is one blogger’s review of the Joker in The Dark Night, who felt this was the only honest character portrayal due to the biblical notion of man’s total depravity (although I highly doubt the screenwriters intended this perspective to be seen as anything but “a dak blot on a vast minority of humanity”).
Did I see any redeeming value in The Dark Knight? Perhaps. Police Chief (soon to become Commissioner) Gordon and Batman engage in a dialogue at the end that, at least for this viewer, helped pull the whole thing off the sludge heap of despair entirely. I’ll attempt to re-crete it to the best of my memory:
Gordon: You can’t take Dent’s crimes upon you. This city needs a hero.
Batman: Sometimes we don’t always get the the hero we want. We have to get the hero we need.
Again, I’m sure this is a terrible rendering of the actual dialogue, but it captures a hint of the redemption offered. Batman’s right: the hero we need is seldom the hero we want. After all, who would want a non-descript son of a non-descript carpenter from a backwater town who came talking about being last, not first; about being the servant of all rather than the leader of all; of losing your life in order to gain it; and other such “drivel”. I mean, really, who would want a hero that announces, at every key moment when he could have risen to command and power, “I’ve come to die.” So, yes, I think it’s accurate: the hero we need is not always the hero we want.
In him, we have redemption, through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us in all wisdom and insight, making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ...
Ephesians 1.7-9, ESV
I'll Be Back Soon
07/25/2008 09:13
My
vacation is done.
My study week is nearly over.
The family & I will be traveling to Iowa once again this weekend. It's the 150th anniversary of the church where I interned so many years ago (Polk City EFC, Polk City, Iowa). I'm sure we'll see lots of old, familiar faces (emphasis upon the word "old", without a doubt!).
I should be back on a somewhat regular schedule (depends how much fiber this blog software consumes) next week.
In the mean time, enjoy a bit of humor about blogging...
My study week is nearly over.
The family & I will be traveling to Iowa once again this weekend. It's the 150th anniversary of the church where I interned so many years ago (Polk City EFC, Polk City, Iowa). I'm sure we'll see lots of old, familiar faces (emphasis upon the word "old", without a doubt!).
I should be back on a somewhat regular schedule (depends how much fiber this blog software consumes) next week.
In the mean time, enjoy a bit of humor about blogging...
Still Gone... kind of
07/21/2008 08:00
Well,
vacation is over, but technically, I'm still gone.
This week is study leave for me, so all the rest and
relaxation is "over" and this week it's back at it.
In a manner of speaking. I'm still wanting to be
"unaccessible" for most church things, but I'll be
pushing hard this week on several
things:
1. Sermon planning: I'm going to start preaching through Ephesians this fall and really want to get some good advance work done on this wonderful book of Scripture. I'll dig into commentaries for Intro, Background, etc., etc. I'll also start doing the head-banging work of exegesis with the Greek. Over that past year or so, I've been polishing my Greek, but there are still some rusty spots and this will be another excellent opportunity for me to keep on scrubbing the rust.
1. Sermon planning: I'm going to start preaching through Ephesians this fall and really want to get some good advance work done on this wonderful book of Scripture. I'll dig into commentaries for Intro, Background, etc., etc. I'll also start doing the head-banging work of exegesis with the Greek. Over that past year or so, I've been polishing my Greek, but there are still some rusty spots and this will be another excellent opportunity for me to keep on scrubbing the rust.
2. Reading:
I fell off the
Read the Puritans bandwagon
this
year. But I am jumping on board the
Challies' train with
Edwards' Religious
Affections. I
once wen through this great work with a group of
pastors down in Iowa. I've wanted to read it again
and this is as good an opportunity as any. Who knows,
there may be a study or a sermon series coming out of
it.
3. Reading:
I've also just begun reading When Sinners Say I
Do. I've
read good reviews of it, but I have a far more
pragmatic motivation at heart: my daughter got
engaged over the Fourth of July and I'll have them
each read this work at some time during the next
year. I've already gleaned some good thoughts for the
wedding meditation next June.
4. Ministry
Planning: I'm just
not very good at this. I know the plans I have for
me. I know the plans I have for the church. I know
the plans I have for my elders and deacons. I just
have to convince them all, and of course, God, that
these are the best possible plans for all of us
together. I'll be an easy sell... duh! The church
might not be too difficult, but the elders &
deacons will be a bit harder task. And then there's
God. If He'd just let me rule this little part of the
world for about three minutes! Wow, did any of you
hear that huge clap of thunder? Must be a sudden
storm moving through.
Excitement and Relaxation
07/07/2008 15:20
I'm
officially on vacation. Started today. Ends in two
weeks.
I know some "famous" bloggers who never take a day off; in fact, they've set a goal for themselves that they should never take a day off from blogging. Personally, I think this is an unbiblical philosophy of blogging. We all need rest. God created us to rest. And while resting, to rest in fullness of trust that He is God and He can run the world pretty well without our help. That goes for blogging. I think we need a rest from it: from posting and from the reading of blogs. Maybe I'll expand this thought more another day, 'cuz right now, I'm on vacation. I'll be taking a bit of a break from posting serious stuff. If I post, it'll be about vacation stuff. Or more exciting news...
... like my daughter's engagement!
I know some "famous" bloggers who never take a day off; in fact, they've set a goal for themselves that they should never take a day off from blogging. Personally, I think this is an unbiblical philosophy of blogging. We all need rest. God created us to rest. And while resting, to rest in fullness of trust that He is God and He can run the world pretty well without our help. That goes for blogging. I think we need a rest from it: from posting and from the reading of blogs. Maybe I'll expand this thought more another day, 'cuz right now, I'm on vacation. I'll be taking a bit of a break from posting serious stuff. If I post, it'll be about vacation stuff. Or more exciting news...
... like my daughter's engagement!
Instead of
taking up the bandwidth here, here's where you can go
to see some of the Fourth of July goings-on that
involved Devon Soule's proposal to our daughter,
Rebecca: My
Gallery
Devon is a
very wonderful Christian young man. I couldn't have
been more privileged when he called me two weeks ago
and asked if he could "get together and talk". Since
I knew where that conversation would go, of course I
said yes. Ann and I consider ourselves to be very
blessed because of this relationship. Making a long
story very short, from where Rebecca had been a year
ago, this is truly a work of God's grace in her life.
To have such a godly young man ask you to marry him
is a gift indeed. We are very excited.
Well, Duh!
07/01/2008 20:54
Sometimes,
I just slap my forehead really hard and scream "Well,
Duh!"
Gene Veith had this excerpt from this article. I don't usually just "copy" from other blogs, but this one really takes the cake. There are times I enjoy the fact that America "sticks it's nose" into other countries' business. Then, there are these doofuses (is that the right plural spelling?) who's noses ought to be put somewhere else. Read it.
It's Monday Morning...
06/30/2008 08:22
Normally, I don't
mind Monday mornings. They're just another day, for
the most part.
But this
morning, I'm feeling a bit like
this...
... and
really needing this...
...so I
don't get like this...
... but if I
have too much, I'll end up like
this...
...especially
if I add a couple of these to one cup of
coffee...
... so let's
hope I find the right balance and get my Monday
off to a bit of a better
start!!!
Vacation is coming soon
06/26/2008 09:06
And I
think that's a good thing... at least until I saw
today's Dilbert comic:
I realize
that things at Cornerstone won't quite be like this
company and I definitely HOPE they won't think
they're victims of ignorance! But I always leave with
concerns that everything runs smoothly, especially
for the guests who come into preach while I'm away.
Lord, take away anxiety and worry. Bless them with
Your love and grace always.
Wordle
06/25/2008 07:53
Okay, how
many of you have discovered and played around
with Wordle? I've
seen it mentioned in a few blogs over the past week
or two and haven't thought much of it. But then I got
to wondering what Psalm 119 would look like. Here it
is:
(click
on the graphic above to see it enlarged on
Wordle's site)
A few thoughts
06/19/2008 07:54
... some
solemn and serious; others, not quite so
much.
First the solemn and serious thoughts.
I think the last time I suffered a harsh head or chest cold was way back in late '04 when I was overcome with influenza, which then developed into pneumonia (a fairly serious case of it). That left me "crippled" for at least 6 weeks and weakened for several more until my strength seemed to return. I now find my head quite congested and a somewhat productive cough persisting over several days (well, what do you think, doc? Will I live?). It's frustrating, but not debilitating... yet. I keep trying to get things done and rest; and it doesn't work so well.
DesiringGod's blog post today reminded me of our daughter Rebecca's trip to Taiwan this past March. This was the first time she had ever encountered what she would call "truly pagan" ideas and culture. There were so few people that really knew anything about Jesus, let alone His name. It's a helpful contrast between Buddhism and Christ. I highly recommend it.
Now, for the not so serious thoughts...
Here is one of the Father's Day gifts* I received from my eldest daughter (she's working at Dunn Bros.©™® [and all other regiseredtrademarkcopyrightthingies I need] this summer; part of her payment is a 1 lb. bag of coffee beans each week. Can you say "Wide-eyed & Bushy-tailed!"):
First the solemn and serious thoughts.
I think the last time I suffered a harsh head or chest cold was way back in late '04 when I was overcome with influenza, which then developed into pneumonia (a fairly serious case of it). That left me "crippled" for at least 6 weeks and weakened for several more until my strength seemed to return. I now find my head quite congested and a somewhat productive cough persisting over several days (well, what do you think, doc? Will I live?). It's frustrating, but not debilitating... yet. I keep trying to get things done and rest; and it doesn't work so well.
DesiringGod's blog post today reminded me of our daughter Rebecca's trip to Taiwan this past March. This was the first time she had ever encountered what she would call "truly pagan" ideas and culture. There were so few people that really knew anything about Jesus, let alone His name. It's a helpful contrast between Buddhism and Christ. I highly recommend it.
Now, for the not so serious thoughts...
Here is one of the Father's Day gifts* I received from my eldest daughter (she's working at Dunn Bros.©™® [and all other regiseredtrademarkcopyrightthingies I need] this summer; part of her payment is a 1 lb. bag of coffee beans each week. Can you say "Wide-eyed & Bushy-tailed!"):
And this, as any who know me and my computer
preferences well, is a no-brainer:
That's all I have for today. Tomorrow, I'll post a
bit on our family's upcoming venture to
theRebelution conference in Minneapolis
on Saturday.
* the cup is actually a planter. I could never drink
that much coffee...
... in a
one-cup sitting!!
Father's Day
06/17/2008 12:13
I had a good Father's
Day. I don't like holidays on the Lord's Day; they're
just far too distracting from what we should be
about, but I don't get to plan these things, so there
you go. I'd been working on a whopper of a head cold
(I know, it's June, what's fair about that! Besides,
I hadn't had a head cold for over two years now), so
I knew the day would be a struggle with teaching a
class, helping to lead our worship (singing sounds
like you're in a bucket with a head cold), preaching
and then leading a Bible study. But all in all, it
was a glorious day, I trust, in the Lord's eyes.
Here are the cards I received from my children and my precious wife.
Here are the cards I received from my children and my precious wife.
This was from my youngest daughter,
who used to love messing with, combing and brushing
my hair. Funny thing is, when she was about 3 or 4,
she'd used the cheese slicer and the spaghetti server
from the kitchen rather than a hairbrush and comb.
Maybe that's why I've lost a good portion of my hair
(and we had so many hairballs from eating sandwiches
and spaghetti!)
Now, from my son, Jonathan, who is 14 1/2. As you see
the card, there's really very little need for
explanation:
And finally, from my lovely, a card that speaks
volumes in many ways. You see, our two kids still at
home, get "grossed out" when they see Ann & I
committing P.D.A.s (public displays of affection).
And it can really bring out the moans and cries of
"E-e-e-w-w-w-w-w!" if Ann makes any reference to me
being "hot". So, this card was incredibly
appropriate:
Anyway, since it was the Lord's Day and since I have
this terrible cold, we're waiting 'til this evening
to celebrate with the home-grilled steak dinner,
followed by a rhubarb pie made by Ann and Elizabeth.
Can't wait. Yum!!
I Got Nuthin'
01/14/2008 21:21
It was a
long, full, yet good (and I trust, effective) Sunday.
I left early this morning for Minneapolis for a
District meeting, got home around 5.30 PM, shut my
eyes for a few minutes, spent time with family,
helped with some work and now I'm ready to crash. I'm
tired. Just plain tired. Can't explain why I feel so
tired more often than not. So, sorry about a post for
the day... I got nuthin'. Tomorrow I'll recount the
Lord's Day past and have more.
Three on Thursday
01/10/2008 22:10
Okay, it's
been a while since I've done my "Three on Thursday"
post, so here goes. Can't say that it'll be anything
exciting, but at least I've returned to
routine!
Three Things People Say That Really Irk Me As A Pastor
1. "I don't mean to sound like I'm complaining, Pastor, but...."
... then don't.
2. "Some people are saying that..."
...
really? Who are "they"?
3. "I see that Church A is now offering...."
... I see. And we need to do that why?
Three Things About Gloomy Januarys in Minnesota that Get Me Down
1. Seemingly endless fog
... I
mean, come on, it's supposed to
snow!
2. January Thaw
... I'm thinking the U.P. with an average of 200 inches of snow each winter
3. Having to drive around in yuk sludge
...
my car will never be clean again
And finally...
Three Good Posts With the Past Week
1. The Idolatry of Friendship
... especially good after yesterday's post on Pride
2. A New Twist on MADD
... finally! What a good parent should do!
3. Why We Shouldn't Quit Praying
... a good reminder for us all.
Three Things People Say That Really Irk Me As A Pastor
1. "I don't mean to sound like I'm complaining, Pastor, but...."
... then don't.
2. "Some people are saying that..."
3. "I see that Church A is now offering...."
... I see. And we need to do that why?
Three Things About Gloomy Januarys in Minnesota that Get Me Down
1. Seemingly endless fog
2. January Thaw
... I'm thinking the U.P. with an average of 200 inches of snow each winter
3. Having to drive around in yuk sludge
And finally...
Three Good Posts With the Past Week
1. The Idolatry of Friendship
... especially good after yesterday's post on Pride
2. A New Twist on MADD
... finally! What a good parent should do!
3. Why We Shouldn't Quit Praying
... a good reminder for us all.
Humiliation
01/09/2008 14:28
In light
of my post on Pride, I wanted to post this prayer
from the Valley of Vision:
SOVEREIGN LORD,
When clouds of darkness, atheism, and unbelief come to me,
I see thy purpose of love
in withdrawing the Spirit that I might prize him more
in chastening me for my confidence in past successes,
that my wound of secret godlessness might be cured.
Help me to humble myself before thee
by seeing the vanity of honour as a conceit of men's minds,
as standing between me and thee;
by seeing that thy will must alone be done,
as much in denying as in giving spiritual enjoyments;
by seeing that my heart is nothing but evil,
mind, mouth, life void of thee;
by seeing that sin and Satan are allowed power in me
that I might know my sin, be humbled,
and gain strength thereby;
by seeing that unbelief shuts thee from me,
so that I sense not thy majesty, power, mercy, or love.
Then possess me, for thou only art good and worthy.
Thou dost not play in convincing me of sin,
Satan did not play in tempting me to it,
I do not play when I sink in deep mire,
for sin is no game, no toy, no bauble;
Let me never forget that the heinousness of sin
lies not so much in the nature of the sin committed,
as in the greatness of the person sinned against.
When I am afraid of evils to come, comfort me, by showing me
that in myself I am a dying, condemned wretch,
but that in Christ I am reconciled, made alive, and satisfied;
that I am feeble and unable to do any good,
but that in him I can do all things;
that what I now have in Christ is mine in part,
but that shortly I shall have it perfectly in heaven.
SOVEREIGN LORD,
When clouds of darkness, atheism, and unbelief come to me,
I see thy purpose of love
in withdrawing the Spirit that I might prize him more
in chastening me for my confidence in past successes,
that my wound of secret godlessness might be cured.
Help me to humble myself before thee
by seeing the vanity of honour as a conceit of men's minds,
as standing between me and thee;
by seeing that thy will must alone be done,
as much in denying as in giving spiritual enjoyments;
by seeing that my heart is nothing but evil,
mind, mouth, life void of thee;
by seeing that sin and Satan are allowed power in me
that I might know my sin, be humbled,
and gain strength thereby;
by seeing that unbelief shuts thee from me,
so that I sense not thy majesty, power, mercy, or love.
Then possess me, for thou only art good and worthy.
Thou dost not play in convincing me of sin,
Satan did not play in tempting me to it,
I do not play when I sink in deep mire,
for sin is no game, no toy, no bauble;
Let me never forget that the heinousness of sin
lies not so much in the nature of the sin committed,
as in the greatness of the person sinned against.
When I am afraid of evils to come, comfort me, by showing me
that in myself I am a dying, condemned wretch,
but that in Christ I am reconciled, made alive, and satisfied;
that I am feeble and unable to do any good,
but that in him I can do all things;
that what I now have in Christ is mine in part,
but that shortly I shall have it perfectly in heaven.
|
|
HUMILIATION |
I'm Overwhelmed
01/09/2008 14:15
Bridges keeps on hitting me in the
teeth.
Not literally, of course, but you all know what it's like when you read something that speaks so clearly to you that you just know the author has been given the ability to see right into your heart and mind, to know what most of the motives and intents of your heart are, and then to lay them out on the table right in front of you. As you sit there and see what was really inside of you, you recoil, you start to exclaim, "No way!" but quickly close your mouth, because there on every piece of sin and vile wretchedness is your name.
Chapter 11 of Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate finds us looking at pride. Rather than address pride in general, which could have consumed an entire book, Bridges decides to focus his laser just a bit. There are four specific areas which he covers: the pride of moral self-righteousness (Bam), the pride of correct doctrine (Powee), the pride of achievement (Kapow!) and the pride of an independent spirit (Blam... he's out for the count!). I realize, that of these four, I don't escape from any of them. And the first two especially seek to ensnare me.
Moral self-righteousness is that sin which views itself as always on the high ground when it comes to other people's sins. If we're able to avoid the terrible, awful, deplorable sins that so many people find themselves wallowing in, then we feel superior to them. Ann & I know a person who was recently divorced, wrongfully so, and who is going to be getting married quite soon to someone who can provide her with all the financial wherewithal she seemed to lack in her previous marriage. This just keeps compounding the sins in her life. The conversations we (mostly Ann) have had with this woman continue to point out the flaws and evils in her heart. And we feel good about that! Superior! Better! Because we've never fallen for those sins... or have we? Even if we haven't, the sin of moral self-righteousness was raising it's ugly head in both of us, especially me
How can I guard against this sin in my life? Humility. Recognizing that only by God's grace have I not done the exact same things. Then recognize my own sinfulness before a holy God, which is just like anyone else's sinfulness.
The pride of correct doctrine is tackled next by Bridges. This one hurt perhaps more than any other. I don't view myself as a flaming Calvinist or one who seeks out all comers to do theological battle with them. But I have found myself, many a time, thinking, "Those poor Arminians; they just don't know any better." Learning to battle this sin in myself will require much more humble thinking and considerations; to realize that it has become acceptable in my heart and then seek to make it unacceptable. It doesn't mean my convictions will weaken, just the manner by which I express them.
Pride of achievement hasn't been a struggle for me... you have to have achieved something! Here's where my strong doctrinal convictions help me (and I don't think that's pride but let me know if it comes across that way): my strong view of God's sovereignty means that I accept all that I have – position, honor, possessions, accolades – as coming from His hand, not my abilities or success. However, that doesn't mean that there isn't the reverse side of this pride: pride in what I don't have. That sounds silly, but what I mean by this is the attitude that takes pride in one's smallness, humble state and lack of honors and recognition.
Teachability will help fight off the final form of pride spoken of in Chapter 11: an independent spirit. This type of spirit thinks they know it all and doesn't like sitting under authority. To be teachable, one must be dependent, humble and ready to obey another's words. Several verses in the Proverbs can help you here if you struggle with this sin: Proverbs 2.1; 3.1; 4.1; 5.1; 7.1.
Lord, keep me from pride, even in my keeping
off pride. Cause humility to reign in my heart and
mind.
Not literally, of course, but you all know what it's like when you read something that speaks so clearly to you that you just know the author has been given the ability to see right into your heart and mind, to know what most of the motives and intents of your heart are, and then to lay them out on the table right in front of you. As you sit there and see what was really inside of you, you recoil, you start to exclaim, "No way!" but quickly close your mouth, because there on every piece of sin and vile wretchedness is your name.
Chapter 11 of Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate finds us looking at pride. Rather than address pride in general, which could have consumed an entire book, Bridges decides to focus his laser just a bit. There are four specific areas which he covers: the pride of moral self-righteousness (Bam), the pride of correct doctrine (Powee), the pride of achievement (Kapow!) and the pride of an independent spirit (Blam... he's out for the count!). I realize, that of these four, I don't escape from any of them. And the first two especially seek to ensnare me.
Moral self-righteousness is that sin which views itself as always on the high ground when it comes to other people's sins. If we're able to avoid the terrible, awful, deplorable sins that so many people find themselves wallowing in, then we feel superior to them. Ann & I know a person who was recently divorced, wrongfully so, and who is going to be getting married quite soon to someone who can provide her with all the financial wherewithal she seemed to lack in her previous marriage. This just keeps compounding the sins in her life. The conversations we (mostly Ann) have had with this woman continue to point out the flaws and evils in her heart. And we feel good about that! Superior! Better! Because we've never fallen for those sins... or have we? Even if we haven't, the sin of moral self-righteousness was raising it's ugly head in both of us, especially me
How can I guard against this sin in my life? Humility. Recognizing that only by God's grace have I not done the exact same things. Then recognize my own sinfulness before a holy God, which is just like anyone else's sinfulness.
The pride of correct doctrine is tackled next by Bridges. This one hurt perhaps more than any other. I don't view myself as a flaming Calvinist or one who seeks out all comers to do theological battle with them. But I have found myself, many a time, thinking, "Those poor Arminians; they just don't know any better." Learning to battle this sin in myself will require much more humble thinking and considerations; to realize that it has become acceptable in my heart and then seek to make it unacceptable. It doesn't mean my convictions will weaken, just the manner by which I express them.
Pride of achievement hasn't been a struggle for me... you have to have achieved something! Here's where my strong doctrinal convictions help me (and I don't think that's pride but let me know if it comes across that way): my strong view of God's sovereignty means that I accept all that I have – position, honor, possessions, accolades – as coming from His hand, not my abilities or success. However, that doesn't mean that there isn't the reverse side of this pride: pride in what I don't have. That sounds silly, but what I mean by this is the attitude that takes pride in one's smallness, humble state and lack of honors and recognition.
Teachability will help fight off the final form of pride spoken of in Chapter 11: an independent spirit. This type of spirit thinks they know it all and doesn't like sitting under authority. To be teachable, one must be dependent, humble and ready to obey another's words. Several verses in the Proverbs can help you here if you struggle with this sin: Proverbs 2.1; 3.1; 4.1; 5.1; 7.1.
Taking Up the Puritan Reading Challenge
01/08/2008 05:38
How's the Weather?
01/07/2008 22:56
Rebecca has
made this one of her monthly
themes, and
with good reason: everyone can always talk about
the weather. When
you meet strangers, you usually default at some
point in the conversation to talking about the
weather. In comedy sketches, during incredibly
uncomfortable or embarrassing moments, the parties
involved revert to talk about the weather. It's
always with us, it either good or bad, too hot or
too cold, just perfect or just around the corner.
There's always weather, whether we like it or not
(sorry, that was some really gratuitous bad
humor!).
Anyway, here's the forecast for the Rochester area; a bit unusual for us this time in January. The pictures to the side are from a major snow storm last winter. I love a really great snow storm. I don't have to get out and travel in it. I love to be stuck inside with no where to go for a day or two because of deep snow. Plus, it's just a beautiful thing to behold. How about you? Got any good snow stories or pictures? (I'm sure Erica can come up with all kinds of reasons she really and truly loves snow!!)
Anyway, here's the forecast for the Rochester area; a bit unusual for us this time in January. The pictures to the side are from a major snow storm last winter. I love a really great snow storm. I don't have to get out and travel in it. I love to be stuck inside with no where to go for a day or two because of deep snow. Plus, it's just a beautiful thing to behold. How about you? Got any good snow stories or pictures? (I'm sure Erica can come up with all kinds of reasons she really and truly loves snow!!)
National Champs!
01/07/2008 22:54
And by the way... I'd love to see Georgia's Bulldogs whoop up on them Tigers!
er, uhm,