Archive for the ‘My Life / Family’ Category
2011 Christmas Greetings!
December 22nd, 2011 | No Comments | Posted in » My Life / Family, Pictures
Yes, we’ve finally given in to the trend… this year, we put together a photo card.
Enjoy!
Merry Christmas everyone!
Bible Reading Plan, 2012
December 19th, 2011 | 1 Comment | Posted in » Bible in a Year, Devotions / Bible Studies, My Life / Family
The new year will be here before we know it. As of today, it’s just 12 days away. Hard to believe, isn’t it?
I don’t want to call it a “New Year’s Resolution”, per se, but one thing I always kick myself for about two weeks after the beginning of each new year is that I don’t have a concrete plan for studying Scripture like I should. I think to myself, “Sure wish I’d have started a Bible in a Year plan or something”, and then proceed to NOT do so and flounder in my devotional life.
Not so this year.
I’ve ran across a very interesting plan that I’m excited about: “Professor Horner’s Bible-Reading System”.
It’s different than most I’ve seen, and perhaps that’s what has me excited. Ten chapters a day… from ten different locations in Scripture.
Yeah, sounds like a shotgun approach to Scripture initially, I know.
But dig into the details.
The genius that I see in the system is precisely that it DOES have participants reading so many different parts of Scripture. You see, readers have the opportunity to digest the whole of the Bible quickly. You’re not just honed in on one particular passage… you’re in Genesis, Joshua, Isaiah, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Matthew, Acts, Romans, 1 Thessalonians… simultaneously. You’re constantly bombarded by the entirety of Scripture, resulting in the big picture of God’s revelation coming across.
As described in the link above and in the program literature, the plan allows Scripture to interpret Scripture. You’ll see prophetic verses or history from the Old Testament referenced by Jesus or the writers of the Epistles. You’ll read the Psalms and receive nourishment from them, as well as wisdom from Proverbs. And you’ll see the growth of the church in Acts. And as you proceed through the plan, you’re never reading the same group of verses… you start over with each of ten sections of Scripture at different points throughout the year.
The result of all this?
Theology revealed. Practical instruction. The story of God. Constant nourishment.
Can you tell I’m excited?
Anyway, if you’re interested in participating along with me, let me know. I’d love to see a group of other believers working through Scripture together.
Literary Classics!
December 17th, 2011 | No Comments | Posted in » Just For Fun..., My Life / Family, Pictures
Literacy is a huge difference-maker in a society. In fact, it’s been written that “No skill is more crucial to the future of a child, or to a democratic and prosperous society, than literacy.”
It’s a big deal, for sure. Literacy allows knowledge to recorded and passed on. It allows children’s minds to expand and soar. It enables hopes and dreams.
And it allows kids to read wonderful books such as these:
Yes, you’re reading those titles correctly: “Walter the Farting Dog”, and “Doctor Proctor’s Fart Powder: Bubble in the Bathtub”.
Literary classics, indeed.
(For the record, I was definitely not searching for these books… just happened to run across them in the Barnes and Noble childrens’ section as Nancy and I were shopping last night, and had to share!)
Jealousy
December 10th, 2011 | No Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, My Life / Family, Prayer Requests
Tonight, I’m struggling big time with jealousy.
No, not because somebody’s got a cool gadget that I’d like. It’s not about a sweet car or even an awesome piece of property that has everything I could dream of owning. And no, it’s most certainly not over money, a life I’d like to have, or any of that.
Tonight, I’m struggling with jealousy because I’m sitting here in St. Joseph, Missouri, blogging away. Not enjoying sweet reunions with friends in Santa Cruz del Quiche, Guatemala.
You see, tonight, our good friend Jodi Brager and several youth we know and love have just arrived in a city in Guatemala full of people that we’ve grown to love (be praying for them!). They’re preparing for a week of missions work… an opportunity to be part of God’s plan in changing lives. They’re about to reside on the mountaintop of our faith experience with God again, leaving the concerns of home behind, solely focusing on Him and His will for a week.
Me? I’m back here on the plains.
So yeah. It inspires a little jealousy. No… let’s be honest here. A lot of jealousy.
Of course, there’s a reality check.
God is working here every bit as much as He is working in Guatemala. And He wants each and every one of us to open our eyes and see where He’s moving. He wants each of us to join in.
So enough of the pity party.
Let’s roll, God. Help me not to be blind to the obvious things you have for me to do. Show me what and where, and I’m yours.
Come
November 30th, 2011 | 2 Comments | Posted in » Christian Living, My Life / Family
Come.
Several phrases enter my mind when I think of the word, “come”. Strangely, they all revolve around songs.
(Yes, that’s how my mind works. Songs. Well, that and movie quotes.)
Come, now is the time to worship!
Come, now is the time to give your heart.
Come, just as you are to worship!
Come, just as you are before your God…
Come!
All who are thirsty
And all who are weak
Come to the fountain
Dip your heart in the stream of life.Let the pain and the sorrow
Be washed away
In the waves of His mercy
As deep cries out to deep.We sing
Come, Lord Jesus, come.
Come, Lord Jesus, come.
Great worship songs, both.
But that’s not all of the lyrics running around in my head.
O come, all ye faithful,
Joyful and triumphant.
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem!Come and behold Him,
Born the King of Angels!O come, let us adore Him.
O come, let us adore Him.
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord!
What did you expect? Christmas season is here. And I love Christmas music. Just not whiny hick country versions of Christmas music. (Ask Nancy about that.)
One more song running through my head, and it’s gonna strike you as odd.
Trust me. I’m not sure why it’s in my head either. But it is.
Here’s a version on YouTube. You’ve gotta hear this one, not just read the lyrics.
Yes, that’s “Come and Go with Me”, performed by the Del-Vikings, 1957.
No, I’m not that old. But I do remember hearing it in “Stand by Me”. (Confession… even had the soundtrack as a kid.)
Come and go with me.
You see, of all the songs in my head, a 1957 Doo-Wop classic encapsulates the essence of “come”.
Come is an invitation. It’s personal. It’s, “Hey, check this out.” It’s, “Hey, spend some time with me.”
It’s what Jesus does. He bids us, “Come.”
Jesus never says, “Do this, and I’ll love you.” Never once, “Give this money, and I’ll accept you.” There’s never a, “Straighten up your act and I might associate with you.”
He invites all of us to “Come.”
“Follow me.” “Trust me.” “Believe in me.” “Do as I do.” “Live as I live.”
Come.
And be with me.
Come.
Won’t you?
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NOTE: This the second “blog carnival” I’ve participated in, where everyone writes about the same word (obviously this time it was “come”). Check out some of the other posts linked here to read more thoughts triggered by authors writing about this word. Thanks to Peter Pollock for putting this together.
Perspective
November 29th, 2011 | Comments Off | Posted in » Devotions / Bible Studies, My Life / Family
Every now and then we’re granted a dose of perspective.
Mine came this morning as I woke up. Half-asleep, without my glasses or contacts, as I opened my eyes I could see a single point of light peeking between the curtains, shining through the dark morning sky. A single blurry star.
I don’t know why I happened to focus on it this morning, but for some reason as I lay there in bed focusing on that blurry point of light, my mind wandered to the sheer size of the star from which that light was shining. I was amazed in my half-awake state that something perhaps a hundred thousand miles or more in diameter could appear to me as a point of light in the sky, infinitesimally small.
I couldn’t help but wonder how any of us can wake up and think only of our life and our problems. This universe that God has created is SO much bigger than we can imagine… certainly MUCH larger than my little world and my little problems.
And to think that God took such tremendous care and effort to plan every detail. Even the details of stars billions of miles away from us that we can only see as tiny points of light.
Perspective.
And the God that takes such care with the details of things we can barely see? He’s also that God that takes the same level of care and interest in every detail of our lives.
Amazing.
Too Medium!
November 28th, 2011 | Comments Off | Posted in » My Life / Family
Friday evening we were in Springfield, having dinner with the kiddos at a local restaurant. It had been a long day for everyone.
Nancy had been fighting the Black Friday crowds with her sister. I think she had put in over 11 hours worth of shopping… a feat which not only would have worn me out, but probably killed me.
I had been hanging out with the kiddos all day. We’d had breakfast at the hotel. Spent about an hour in the pool. Lunch at a location not called McDonald’s and that didn’t have a play place (yes, I was feeling brave). We’d even went to see the Smurfs (as a result, I may never get that smurfing, er, stinking tune out of my head).
Needless to say we were a bit worn out. Kiddos too.
So I should have seen it coming.
Allison had wanted steak bites for dinner. Nothing wrong with that… all of my kids like steak (yes, they have good taste). She told the waiter what she wanted, and then he asked how we wanted it prepared. I told him medium.
All good. Until the food came.
The rest of us ate. Allison did not. She’d had maybe one bite.
I figured she was just tired, but asked her what was wrong and why she wasn’t eating. I fully expected fussing and fighting. To my surprise, she replied.
“It’s too medium!”
I grabbed a knife and fork, and started cutting the steak bites into even smaller bites. Every one of them.
I poked a small bite on the end of her fork and handed it to her.
“There you go, sweetie. Now they’re small bites.”
She ate every piece.
I love kid logic.
And I love it even more when I’m actually smart enough to understand it.