Archive for March, 2007
Polling Returns?
March 30th, 2007 | No Comments | Posted in » Polls, Site News...
I found an updated polling plugin last night, so polling has returned to the site, at least temporarily.
I thought the easiest test of it would be a simple opinion poll… keep the poll, or ditch it?
Check it out in the right sidebar. Vote early, and vote often! 
Family Worship
March 29th, 2007 | 3 Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, Worth Reading
Yesterday, Joe Thorn wrote on family worship. Today, he shares an interview with Tom Ascol on the same subject.
If I were to venture a guess, I’d say that most of us Christian husbands and dads struggle with this subject… how do we fulfill our Biblical role of spiritual leadership in our homes? I’d go further to venture that most of us fall quite a bit short in that calling.
Joe’s posts are definitely recommended reading on this subject, providing some good resources and practical advice on the matter.
Nathan Network… Anyone Interested?
March 21st, 2007 | 5 Comments | Posted in » Baptist Issues, Christian Living
I know it’s been almost a month since I’ve discussed the “Nathan Network”, an online Christian accountability group envisioned as helping us all with our blogging behavior. Is anyone still interested?
Just curious what everyone thinks… I was finally getting around to thinking about developing the website this evening, but didn’t want to spend any money on a domain name unless I knew we had a good core group of people who plan to participate.
Responding to Criticism…
March 20th, 2007 | No Comments | Posted in » Worth Reading
Don’t miss this article from Curtis “Voice” Allen. What an awesome testimony about Godly response to criticism.
(In case you don’t know who he is, “Voice” is the Christian rapper who performed at John Piper’s church. Check out the performance here.)
HT: Steve McKoy.
How Can I Keep from Singing?
March 20th, 2007 | No Comments | Posted in » Song of the Day
Isn’t it awesome how God meets our needs? I needed a little lift today, and God provided it… even before I’d thought to ask.
It came in the form of a Chris Tomlin song, “How Can I Keep from Singing?” (it’s track one on the album See the Morning). Here’s the lyrics…
“How Can I Keep From Singing”
There is an endless song
Echoes in my soul
I hear the music ringAnd though the storms may come
I am holding on
To the rock I clingHow can I keep from singing Your praise
How can I ever say enough
How amazing is Your love
How can I keep from shouting Your name
I know I am loved by the King
And it makes my heart want to singI will lift my eyes
In the darkest night
For I know my Savior livesAnd I will walk with You
Knowing You’ll see me through
And sing the songs You giveI can sing in the troubled times
Sing when I win
I can sing when I lose my step
And fall down again
I can sing ’cause You pick me up
Sing ’cause You’re there
I can sing ’cause You hear me, Lord
When I call to You in prayer
I can sing with my last breath
Sing for I know
That I’ll sing with the angels
And the saints around the throne
Life’s troubles are, as Paul writes, light and momentary… at least when seen in the light of God’s love for us.
A Lesson from a 4 Year Old
March 19th, 2007 | No Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, Devotions / Bible Studies, My Life, Pictures
Ephesians 6:4
4Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
I admit, as a Christian dad, I often fall short of the Biblical expectations placed upon me. I try to raise my kids in a way that honors and glorifies God, and I’m trying to teach them to learn to love Him… but I often fall short. I pray that one day they’ll come to know and love Him far more than I ever have or ever will.
It’s interesting, though, how when we’re trying our hardest to raise our kids to know God’s will and purposes how we often find ourselves being taught… usually seeing something in our own lives reflected in the lives of our kids. I had that happen again just this weekend.
Jeffrey is a great kid… I love him more than words can say. Of course, as all kids do, he tends to get into trouble on occasion… hitting his sister, arguing with mom and dad, telling lies… pretty much the standard struggles with being obedient that kids experience. Obviously, these behaviors result in discipline.
In doing so, Nancy and I have always emphasized that he needs to apologize for wrongdoing as part of being discpline. It has always seemed a reasonable expectation… it forces him to admit wrong behavior, and, in at least a small way, make it right again.
Recently, I’ve been trying to convey the idea that wrong behavior is not just wrong because daddy says so… it’s wrong because God sets the standard for right and wrong behavior. Maybe that’s a bit of a hard concept for a 4 year old to grasp, but he seems to get it. As such, When he has done something wrong, I’ve recently tried to include prayer as part of discpline… basically that he needs to tell God he’s sorry as well. For the most part, this has gone pretty well.
This weekend, though, Jeffrey and I were at that point in the discipline process… talking about praying to God about being sorry for doing something wrong. During that conversation, he said something that made me want to laugh and cry simultaneously (if that’s possible).
I asked him, “Jeffrey, would you like to ask Jesus to help you to be good?”
His response? “Daddy, I don’t need Jesus to help me be good. I can do it on my own.”
I know he’s four years old… but that simple statement really struck me… it was Jeffrey speaking, but the words encapsulated the attitude I exhibit frequently. I tend to rely on myself rather than Christ. I try to beat down my own path. I like to fly solo.
I fall far too often as a result.
I’m the one who had my eyes opened during that particular period of discipline. In training and instructing Jeffrey in the Lord’s ways… God used Jeffrey to touch my heart.
David Glenn: Cancelled
March 16th, 2007 | No Comments | Posted in » Church Stuff..., Upcoming Events
What a bummer! We received news late last night that David Glenn’s visit to St. Joseph has been cancelled. After several weeks of excitement about the event, it turns out that all the planning will simply be for our normal Sunday morning worship service.
Of course, that’s FAR from a bad thing… our worship team is AWESOME. If you had planned a special visit to our church this Sunday to see David… come anyway! I promise you’ll be just as blessed by their music as you would be by David’s.
Guided by the Spirit?
March 15th, 2007 | 1 Comment | Posted in » Christian Living, Worth Reading
This post by Bryan Riley on the topic of living a life guided by the Holy Spirit is definitely worth reading. Great discussion!
Check it out when you get a chance.
Shortsightedness
March 14th, 2007 | 1 Comment | Posted in » Devotions / Bible Studies
In looking over the Scripture passages I’ll be teaching in Sunday School this weekend, I found myself laughing a bit over the following passage from John 13…
John 13:31-38
31When he was gone, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. 32If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.33My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.
34A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
36Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?”
Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.”
37Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.”
38Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? I tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!
I know you’re wondering… what could I possibly find entertaining about Jesus predicting Peter’s denial? To be honest, it’s not a funny passage. However, I find myself chuckling a bit about Peter’s exercise in missing the point.
Check out verses 33-38 again to see what I mean. Jesus tells his disciples he’ll only be with them a little while longer, and that they can’t come where he’s going. He then gives them a command. How does Peter respond? Not in response to Christ’s command to love one another, as he has loved them. Not in response to His instruction that all men will know we’re His disciples by our love for one another. But… “where are you going?”… “why can’t I go too?”. I can only imagine the big sigh that Jesus must let out over Peter’s shortsightedness and selfishness… how He must have been shaking His head over having to discuss the whole topic of His imminent departure instead of His command to love one another… the kind of tone that was apparent in His voice as He informed Peter of his upcoming denials.
It’s kind of humorous to me how shallow Peter seemed to be here.
Here’s the sad part, though. If we’re honest with ourselves, we all find ourselves in Peter’s shoes more frequently than we’d like to admit… unable to focus on those things God really needs us to, simply because we’re too shortsighted or selfish to see what’s really important… spending tons of time struggling over silly details only remotely related to the real task God has laid on our hearts to do… not fulfilling God’s purposes because we’re distracted by minutia.
I laugh over Peter’s situation because in reality… I see it in my life as well. Perhaps it’s more comfortable to laugh at my shortsightedness than to acknowledge and grieve over the disappointment and frustration it has caused God?
You Matter to God
March 13th, 2007 | 2 Comments | Posted in » Devotions / Bible Studies
I saw this on a window sticker on someone’s vehicle this morning on the way to work, and have to say, it really struck me as important this morning. Not that’s it’s something I didn’t already know… but I guess it’s something I needed to have repeated to me. Anyway, the window sticker simply said…
You matter to God.
Four words… a very simple statement… but one that’s mind boggling.
Out of everything God has created… with everything going on in the entire universe… with so many things that would seem to be more important going on that you’d think would hold God’s attention… we matter to God. What’s more? It’s not just that we matter to Him in some sort of generic, non-specific way… but He’s interested in every detail of our lives… He knows everything about us (to the very number of hairs on our heads)… He knows everything we’re struggling with… He knows everything we want and need… He knows just how to comfort us… He knows it all. We matter to Him, not just enough that He’d be aware of all these things… but that He actively works in our lives each day, guiding us and directing us… that He knew our spiritual need, and despite the unbelievably precious cost… He willingly gave His only Son to die for our sins.
You matter to God. I matter to God.
Dwell on that thought for a bit today. Amazing, isn’t it?
