These City Lights

True Conception

2012-01-28T23:54:00.001-08:00

http://www.ted.com/talks/alexander_tsiaras_conception_to_birth_visualized.html

Death

2011-12-29T10:10:00.000-08:00

To mortals death is a paradox. It is both awaited and postponed. It is completely contrary to life, but it is intimately involved in the complete living process. “Though man’s nature is mortal, God had destined man not to die,” says the Roman Catholic Catechism. It is not that man does not know how to die; he does not know how to do it well. Scharz reminds us that “there is no good death, as the term ‘euthanasis’ (meaning ‘good death’ in Greek) intimates. Death is always ambiguous; it can be a release from suffering, but it is always the loss of life.” We do not know how to die well because we do not know how to preserve life (not speaking merely biologically)—that which we have always striven to maintain. Jean-Paul Sarte saw death as a loss of meaning, but it is only so if life already lacked meaning. If we see life only being healthy vital signs then death is simply a period marking the end of life. But that would fail to acknowledge any meaning in the actions that have been lived. It would be the same as saying that there is no difference between breathing and laughing or that a runner has no more meaning because the course was is completed. The Apostle Paul speaks in the same metaphor revealing the only way to actually die well: “For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”

Watch: http://gma.yahoo.com/video/news-26797925/sick-teen-s-videos-go-viral-after-death-27729605.html

Tim Tebow and Faith

2011-12-08T18:03:00.000-08:00

I tend to not take part in such drama filled issues, but I have been particularly impressed by Tim Tebow's sincere and unashamed faith in Jesus Christ.

Can't help but be reminded of Paul's words in Romans: "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: 'The righteous will live by faith.'"

Tim Tebow and Faith’s Place in Football | NewsFeed | TIME.com:

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wiebifferick christmas treeing

2011-12-06T09:10:00.000-08:00

For those who have not yet purchased your Christmas tree, here is a little guidebook to help you be successful on that adventure...

Christmas Tree.mp4 - YouTube:

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remembering atonement

2011-12-05T16:34:00.000-08:00

"We shall not cease, dear brethren, in our ministry, most definitely and decidedly to preach the atoning sacrifice; and I will tell you why I shall be sure to do so. I have not personally a shadow of a hope of salvation from any other quarter: I am lost if Jesus be not my Substitute. I have been driven up into a corner by a pressing sense of my own personal sin, and have been made to despair of ever doing or being such that God can accept me in myself. I must have a righteousness, perfect and Divine; yet it is beyond my own power to create. I find it in Christ: I read that it will become mine by faith, and by faith I take it. My conscience tells me that I must render to God’s justice a recompense for the dishonor that I have done to His law, and I cannot find anything which bears the semblance of such a recompense till I look to Christ Jesus. Do I not remember when I first looked to Him, and was lightened? Do I not remember how often I have gone as a sinner to my Savior’s feet, and looked anew at His wounds, and believed over again unto eternal life, feeling the old joy repeated by the deed?

- C.H. Spurgeon

Tears of the Saints

2011-11-24T11:18:00.000-08:00

Yes.

Tears of the Saints - Missions - Español - YouTube:

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don't have anywhere to go!

2011-11-21T21:41:00.000-08:00

"Gentle" is usually the first word that comes out of someones mouth when my friend approaches. He is massive, but proportionately so. My friend has autism so he is sometimes forgets the advice. Every day it is the same. At least his power is released in suffocating hugs. Often I feel my back crackles as he effortlessly picks me up off the floor. My feet dangle like loosely hanging autumn leaves. He sets me back down again and pats me on the back twice for good measure. At least to him they are pats. I brace for their jarring force. But I don't mind. Really I don't. He wants to show his affection. My friend "aged out" of foster care at the age of 18. Now he is given money to live on his own. He has done surprisingly well. He budgets and invests. Perhaps the investments would not be considered wise according to a scrutinizing eye. His purchases are what any 18 would buy. The important thing is that he is investing.

This afternoon I wandered downstairs. My head was spinning with a variety of tasks and I wanted to spend time with the youth. Their raw energy can be refreshing. Before I knew it I was wrapped up in a bone-grinding hug. As I was gently returned to the earth my friend told me that it was his birthday on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving. Actually what he told me is that he would be missing class that day (he takes classes at the local community college). I think he wanted me to scold him for not taking school seriously enough. He laughed and explained the rest. "I am glad you'll be spending Thanksgiving with your family," I chimed. "No. I'm coming back that night," he replied. I felt dumb as he offered a few excuses for his family. "But it's okay, the pastor of my church is having a dinner for people who don't have anywhere else to go..." Don't have anywhere to go! My heart hurt.

"...I was a stranger and you invited me in." - Matthew 25

not our own

2011-11-14T09:57:00.000-08:00

"We are not our own: let not our reason nor our will, therefore, sway our plans and deeds. We are not our own: let us therefore not set it as our goal to seek what is expedient for us according to the flesh. We are not our own: in so far as we can, let us therefore forget ourselves and all that is ours. Conversely, we are God's: let us therefore live for him and die for him. We are God's: let his wisdom and will therefore rule all our actions. We are God's let all the parts of our life accordingly strive towards him as our only lawful goal." - John Calvin

Keith Green - (talk about) The Sheep And The Goats (live) - YouTube

2011-11-12T18:25:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow I will be preaching on Matthew 25:31-46. Below is a link to a video of Keith Green talking about the same verses. It is a reminder of my early faith. Pray with me that the word will come strong and clear tomorrow. Pray that by God's grace we will have vulnerable hearts to hear and that the Holy Spirit would empower us to DO.

Keith Green - (talk about) The Sheep And The Goats (live) - YouTube:

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the pillar of the cloud

2011-10-10T09:34:00.000-07:00

by John Henry, Cardinal Newman (1801-1890)

Lead, Kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom,
Lead Thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home --
Lead Thou me on!
Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see
The distant scene, -- one step enough for me.

I was not ever thus, nor pray'd that Thou
Should'st lead me on.
I loved to choose and see my path; but now
Lead Thou me on!
I loved the garish day, and, spite of fears,
Pride ruled my will: remember not past years.

So long Thy power hath blest me, sure it still
Will lead me on,
O'er moor and fen, o'er crag and torrent, till
The night is gone;
And with the morn those angel faces smile
Which I have loved long since, and lost awhile.

Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl Movie Trailer on Vimeo

2011-09-27T14:13:00.000-07:00

Watch -

Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl Movie Trailer on Vimeo:

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unless we listen

2011-09-03T15:32:00.000-07:00

3rd day in Basque Country. Drove from San Sabastian (northern Spain) into France across the Pyranees Mountains today. Hours upon hours of small villages, delicacies, and winding road. It is one of the most beautiful places on earth (though my heart cannot let go of the romantic mountains that form the Olympic peninsula). The people are beautiful. God is using them to shift the plates in my heart. I think that "missions" has traditionally sought to find out what is wrong with a people group and then offer specific suggestions on how Jesus can meet a need or fulfill a purpose. Completely beside my own intentions I found myself searching for a hidden sin or glaring fault so "Jesus could meet every need." The Basque people are have very few faults. They are delightful and enviable conversationalists. I have never been to a city were I have seen more laughter. The streets are filled with people simply being together. At the same time they are a people of 3.5 million that have no national church. Only an estimated 100 Basque people claim Jesus as Lord. Where is the disconnect. Studying this evening (yes, it is 12:45 in the morning in San Sabastian and I am studying for school!) I read a John Stott quote that was helpful: "Unless we listen attentively to the voices of secular society, unless we struggle to understand them, unless we feel with modern men and women their frustration, their alienation, their pain and even sometimes, their despair, I think that we shall lack authenticity as the followers of Jesus of Nazareth." I judge to well and love to little. Father forgive us for mistaking our role as sheep. My heart has been in turmoil over the whole matter so please continue to pray for us as we continue on in Basque until September 12th.

Become Weaker

2011-08-29T10:43:00.000-07:00

The Work of the People: Films: Become Weaker:

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Do you understand forgiveness?

2011-08-22T23:51:00.000-07:00

Helen Whitney on Forgiveness and Hopes | Forgiveness: A Time to Love and a Time to Hate | PBS Video

The Voice of Justice

2011-08-22T23:46:00.000-07:00

The Voice of Justice on Vimeo

An excellent example of how easily we become confused between the sly riddles of temptation and the offer of true hope.

HURT

2011-08-22T10:51:00.001-07:00

An excerpt from a book that I am reading on the development of adolescents (or "middle adolescents") in high school. The book is titled HURT:

"The loss of meaningful relationships with adults has been the most devastating to developing adolescents. Because mid-adolescents have not had enough life experience to understand fully the accompanying sense of loneliness and isolation they feel, few could articulate their experience specifically as 'loss' in my study. But the reality of the experience oozed out of nearly every student. And in discussion with mid-adolescents across the country, not one disagreed with this bleak assessment. When feeling safe enough to admit, every student I talked to acknowledged that loneliness is a central experience. In decrying the panic in the lives of young girls in the midst of contemporary culture, Mary Pipher provides a wake-up call with her poignant summation of how parents are viewed by adolescents: 'To paraphrase a Stevie Smith poem about swimming in the sea, "they are not waving, they are drowning.'" And just when they most need help, they are unable to take their parent's hands.' They feel this way about all adults who are not there for them."

know the worth

2011-08-09T20:43:00.000-07:00

At the end of over forty-five years of ministry E. Stanley Jones wrote:

"You don't know the worth of your Christian faith until you have compared it with others and subjected it to life....I've put my faith out before the non-Christian world and have said: 'There it is...if you can break it, break it. For I cannot live in a paradise if it turns out to be a fool's paradise'....So the keenest minds and the most philosophical of the world have smitten upon my faith, night and day for over half a century. Result? Broken? There are scars on my faith but underneath those scars there are no doubts. The song I sing is a life-song. Not the temporary exuberance of youth that often fades when middle and old age set in with their disillusionmnets and cynicism. No, I'm eighty-three and more excited today about being a Christian than I was at eighteen when I put my feet upon the Way....Now by seasoned, tested, corroborated experience I know that this is not a way, but the Way."

Videos: Healthy Tomorrow Winner, July 2011: Coffee Oasis - Kitsap, WA | Kitsap Sun

2011-08-09T12:51:00.000-07:00

Videos: Healthy Tomorrow Winner, July 2011: Coffee Oasis - Kitsap, WA | Kitsap Sun

mary oliver

2011-07-21T23:43:00.000-07:00

Here is an article written by Mary Oliver titled "The First Requirement for Writing Poetry." Oh drat! I have probably bored you already. That title has so many reasons to stop reading. The word first is like when a teacher or pastor says "But we'll get to that later," which makes the listener assume it will be a very long discourse. First makes you assume there is something else to follow. Requirement is no less friendly a term. Requirement is not an easy house guest. It always seems to ask you to cater to its needs and then judges you when they are not met, whether or not you have agreed to their terms (The very reason men don't read instruction manuals or road maps). Writing and poetry is also a sale stopper. It is the scary territory of mixing discipline and mysticism. Poetry is not satisfied repeating the old jargon. Poetry is always squinting its eyes to see clearer. It would stand on its head if it helped. Poetry finds the unwritten lyrics to the tune everyone is humming.

Anyway, imagine the essay below is describing our rendezvous with God. It hurt my heart to think how cheaply I treat my relationship with him. But let us now wait at that same spot for renewal...

"The First Requirement for Writing Poetry" by Mary Oliver

"If Romeo and Juliet had made appointments to meet, in the moonlight-swept orchard, in all the peril and sweetness of conspiracy, and then more often than not failed to meet — one of the other lagging, or afraid, or busy elsewhere — there would have been no romance, no passion, none of the drama for which we remember and celebrate them. Writing a poem is not so different — it is a kind of possible love affair between something like the heart (that courageous but also shy factory of emotion) and the learned skills of the conscious mind. They make appointments with each other, and keep them, and something begins to happen. Or, they make appointments with each other but are casual and often fail to keep them: count on it, nothing happens.

The part of the psyche that works in concert with consciousness and supplies a necessary part of the poem — a heart of a star as opposed to the shape of a star, let us say — exists in a mysterious, unmapped zone: no unconscious, not conscious, but cautious. It learns quickly what sort of courtship it is going to be. Say you promise to be at your desk in the evenings, from seven to nine. It waits, it watches. If you are reliably there, it begins to show itself — soon it begins to arrive when you do. But if you are only there sometimes and are frequently late or inattentive, it will appear fleetingly, or it will not appear at all.

Why should it? It can wait. It can stay silent a lifetime. Who know anyway what it is, that wild, silky part of ourselves without which no poem can live? But we do know this: if it is going to enter into a passionate relationship and speak what is in its own portion of your mind, the other responsible and purposeful part of you had better be a Romeo. It doesn’t matter if risk is somewhere close by — risk is always hovering somewhere. But it won’t involve itself with anything less than a perfect seriousness.

Various ambitions -- to complete the poem, to see it in print, to enjoy the gratification of someone's comment about it -- serve in some measure as incentives to the writer's work. Though each of these is reasonable, each is a threat to that other ambition of the poet, which is to write as well as Keats, or Yeats, or Williams -- or whoever it was who scribbled onto a page a few lines whose force the reader once felt and has never forgotten. Every poet's ambition should be to write as well. Anything else is only a flirtation.

And, never before have there been so many opportunities to be a publicly and quickly, thus achieving earlier goals. Magazines are everywhere, and there are literally hundreds of poetry workshops. There is, as never before, company for those who like to talk about and write poems.

None of this is bad. But very little of it can do more than start you on your way to the real, unimaginably difficult goal of writing memorably. That work is done slowly and in solitude, and it is as improbable as carrying water in a sieve."

SPENT

2011-07-20T00:24:00.000-07:00

SPENT

I encourage you to try your hand at this very realistic poverty simulation game. In you frustration you might think exaggerates the difficulty of living a low-income life. Hang with me a day and you'll hear a few words that might check your heart. Today I thought about the audacious claim we often make about knowing the heart of the Father. He likes the guy in the ditch. The uncomfortable people. Is that our heart or do we just like holding the banner? Are we prepared for God to fulfill our prayer, "break my heart with what breaks yours"? In God's mercy may he help us shed our masks.

To Save A Life - Official Movie Site - Now available on Blu-ray & DVD - To Save A Life Movie

2011-07-17T22:18:00.000-07:00

To Save A Life - Official Movie Site - Now available on Blu-ray & DVD - To Save A Life Movie

A high recommendation for this movie.

who am I?

2011-07-16T14:55:00.000-07:00

Here was a poem written by Dietrich Bonhoeffer during his days of confinement under the Nazi's during WWII. He would be be hanged a few short weeks before the war ended:

Who am I? They often tell me

I stepped from my cell’s confinement
Calmly, cheerfully, firmly,
Like a squire from his country-house.
Who am I? They often tell me
I used to speak to my warders
Freely and friendly and clearly,
As though it were mine to command.
Who am I? They also tell me
I bore the days of misfortune
Equally, smilingly, proudly,
Like one accustomed to win.

Am I then really all that which other men tell of?
Or am I only what I myself know of myself?
Restless and longing and sick, like a bird in a cage,
Struggling for breath, as though hands were
compressing my throat,
Yearning for colors, for flowers, for the voices of birds,
Thirsting for words of kindness, for neighborliness,
Tossing in expectation of great events,
Powerlessly trembling for friends at an infinite distance,
Weary and empty at praying, at thinking, at making,
Faint, and ready to say farewell to it all?

Who am I? This or the other?
Am I one person today and tomorrow another?
Am I both at once? A hypocrite before others,
And before myself a contemptibly woebegone weakling?
Or is something within me still like a beaten army,
Fleeing in disorder from victory already achieved?
Who am I? They mock me, these lonely questions of mine.
Whoever I am, Thou knowest, O God, I am Thine!

D. Bonhoeffer
March 4,1946

‪Erasing Hell by Francis Chan‬‏

2011-07-14T20:39:00.000-07:00

‪Erasing Hell by Francis Chan‬‏ - YouTube

give me...

2011-07-12T16:26:00.000-07:00

"Give me a man in love; he knows what I mean. Give me one who yearns; give me one who is hungry; give me one far away in this desert, who is thirsty and sighs for the springs of the Eternal Country. Give me that sort of man; he knows what I mean. But if I speak to a cold man, he just doesn't know what I am talking about....You are surprised that the world is losing its grip? That the world is grown old? Don't hold onto the old man, the world; don't refuse to regain your youth in Christ, who says to you:'The world is passing away; the world is losing its grip, the world is short of breath.' Don't fear, for thy youth shall be renewed as an eagle." - St. Augustine

mr. and mrs. michael auerswald

2011-07-09T23:09:00.000-07:00

Notes from sermon spoken at Mike and Ami's wedding ceremony, July 9, 2010:

In the book in the book of Song of Solomon 8:4 it says, “Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.” But what will we do when it awakens? If you are at all familiar with children stories you will now that there are certain consequences for waking up things that have long been sleeping. There is a fearful awe that comes with not knowing exactly what form something will take when it wakes up. What will love look like when it is awakened?

Today you have the opportunity to see the form of love. For you witnessing the wedding you might respond, “I know, aren’t they such a cute couple!” But let me tell you this, if the form of love is just the way your wife or your husband looks, love will look very different in the morning with disheveled hair and morning breath! And yes, they are cute, but cuteness is not the true reality of awakened love. Consider this illustration: imagine you gone to listen to the Seattle symphony. The whole time one particular violin player has caught your attention. At the end of the performance you approach this violinist and complement them on their playing. Without hesitation the violinist points you to the conductor of the orchestra and says, “Thank you for your complement, but it was work of that man that allowed me to perform my best alongside other great musicians.” Walking over to the conductor you praise him for the evening’s performance. Humbly the conductor of the whole orchestra bows and says, “I only carried out what the composer wrote in the original music.”

This is the deep reality of marriage. In marriage we hear the melody of the original music composed by the Creator of the world. From the beginning Mike and Amy have known that a marriage is not defined by dresses and limousines. Whenever things became stressful for the wedding Amy would remind us that she was absolutely content to get married in shorts. The reason we dress up and celebrate is not to keep up with fashion. It is that we are learning to sing the song written by the original composer and learning to express in both word and in action how special that, as Genesis 2 says, “a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.” In marriage we find a relationship in which two separate people—stubborn, selfish and silly people—submit to each other, out of love for each other, from the love they have been given by God. It is in this act of commitment to faithfully love each other that Mike and Amy strike the tune that first overcame Adam as he watched God walk the first bride, Eve, down the aisle; much like God the Father walked Amy down the aisle today. When you love each other your best you are playing the music of God, the Grand Composer, well.

For Mike to receive Amy in marriage today is to claim with conviction that Amy is a gift from God. And that all the things that God has in store for you, Mike, He also has in store for her. Likewise, Amy today you are declaring God has joined you inseparably to Mike through both the summers and winters of life. Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” God is helping each of you complete the good work that he has intended for the other person.

What this practically means is that Mike, you are a gift from God to Amy to help her raise Raven and Christina, to love them and father them as your own. For Amy this means supporting Mike as he learns to be the father and husband in an already busy home. Together you are facing unique challenges entering the first year of marriage; however, today you are taking in the faith the promise that God has given you a unique gift in each other.

Now as part of Mike and Amy’s desire to express their absolute faith in Jesus Christ and His love expressed to them on the cross enabling them to love one another, they are going to share the pour unity sand and take communion together. As you will see, there are three sands being poured together—one symbolizing Mike, one symbolizing Amy, and the third symbolizing Jesus Christ. This shows that though these three lives were once separate they are now united inseparably. Just as it would be impossible to separate the granules of sand from each other, we pray that this marriage, united in Christ, will be inseparable. Likewise, during the last meal Jesus shared with His disciples before He died, Jesus said to them, “This bread represents my body which is for you, this cup represents my blood which is poured out for the forgiveness of your sins”. Mike and Amy will take communion together to remember and hold in their hearts Christ’s love for them. As often as we take may you always say, when you have loved well and lived long, “I have only sung the song that the creator first wrote!”

a great gift

2011-06-30T16:21:00.000-07:00

"What a great gift it would be if we could see a little of the great vision of Jesus – if we could see beyond our small lives! Certainly our view is very limited. But we can at least ask him to call us out of our small worlds and our self-centeredness, and we can at least ask to feel the challenge of the great harvest that must be gathered –the harvest of all nations and all people, including the generations of the future."

- J. Heinrich Arnold

the over-heart

2011-06-28T21:42:00.000-07:00

Above, below, in sky and sod,
In leaf and spar, in star and man,
Well might the wise Athenian scan
The geometric signs of God,
The measured order of His plan.

And India's mystics sang aright
Of the One Life pervading all,--
One Being's tidal rise and fall
In soul and form, in sound and sight,--
Eternal outflow and recall.

God is: and man in guilt and fear
The central fact of Nature owns;
Kneels, trembling, by his altar-stones,
And darkly dreams the ghastly smear
Of blood appeases and atones.

Guilt shapes the Terror: deep within
The human heart the secret lies
Of all the hideous deities;
And, painted on a ground of sin,
The fabled gods of torment rise!

And what is He? The ripe grain nods,
The sweet dews fall, the sweet flowers blow;
But darker signs His presence show
The earthquake and the storm are God's,
And good and evil interflow.

O hearts of love! O souls that turn
Like sunflowers to the pure and best!
To you the truth is manifest:
For they the mind of Christ discern
Who lean like John upon His breast!

In him of whom the sibyl told,
For whom the prophet's harp was toned,
Whose need the sage and magian owned,
The loving heart of God behold,
The hope for which the ages groaned!

Fade, pomp of dreadful imagery
Wherewith mankind have deified
Their hate, and selfishness, and pride!
Let the scared dreamer wake to see
The Christ of Nazareth at his side!

What doth that holy Guide require?
No rite of pain, nor gift of blood,
But man a kindly brotherhood,
Looking, where duty is desire,
To Him, the beautiful and good.

Gone be the faithlessness of fear,
And let the pitying heaven's sweet rain
Wash out the altar's bloody stain;
The law of Hatred disappear,
The law of Love alone remain.

How fall the idols false and grim!
And to! their hideous wreck above
The emblems of the Lamb and Dove!
Man turns from God, not God from him;
And guilt, in suffering, whispers Love!

The world sits at the feet of Christ,
Unknowing, blind, and unconsoled;
It yet shall touch His garment's fold,
And feel the heavenly Alchemist
Transform its very dust to gold.

The theme befitting angel tongues
Beyond a mortal's scope has grown.
O heart of mine! with reverence own
The fulness which to it belongs,
And trust the unknown for the known.

- John Greenleaf Whittier

the historical adam

2011-06-20T19:26:00.000-07:00

My dad handed me a provocative article from the magazine Christianity Today discussing the growth of the theistic evolution movement led by Francis Collins, the director of the National Institute of Health and director of the human genome project. The article was not written to persuade, rather to inform. I was informed. We naturally live within the world that is at our arms-length. Often it feels like my world, the world of homeless youth and family and finishing school, orbits around a different sun. As I read the article, which rose above the typical bickering that often distracts from substance in articles concerning both science and faith, I wondered again, "What is man that you are mindful of him?" (Psalm 8). One of the most important questions that needs to be asked is "what is lost if we deny the existence of a historical Adam and Eve?" Even more, are there certain limitations or blindspots that scientists and theologians harbor? What saves? What heals? Science will never understand a miracle. It cannot reproduce it. The God of the Bible is not limited to natural laws. "Who can hold back his hand or say to him, 'What have you done?'" (Daniel 4). God will never be proved by science, because he will never be dissected. God is not informed by natural laws. Christians should not forget that the earth is not a throne, but a footstool (Psalm 2). It is a plaything in the hands of God. None of these things discredit science. Science helps us understand the physical laws, which helps with and endless list of things like growing food, delivering babies, and building bombs. This is their domain. Do not ask them to write poetry or describe the events that led to the civil war. There is always the danger in discovery to regress. To gain the whole world and lose your soul. I think we will find in the end that it is not science that has the final word in describing what makes humans unique, it will be a tender Word, "This is my beloved son, with whom I am well please."

if

2011-06-15T07:58:00.000-07:00

if...the praise of man elates me

and his blame depresses me;

if i cannot rest under misunderstanding

without defending myself;

if i love to be loved more than to love,

to be served more than to serve,

then i know nothing of Calvary love.

- Amy Carmichael

It’s Not About You - NYTimes.com

2011-06-01T16:03:00.000-07:00

It’s Not About You - NYTimes.com

On June 5th I am giving a baccalaureate address to the graduating class of Bremerton High School. The article above helped confirm what I have been thinking about writing, pondering on my pillow the last few nights what advice I would have given to a younger me. I think hope you find this article as helpful as I did. I am aware of the fact that my generation is walking into a river of restlessness. The soul of my generation is lost in itself. When you walk into a river it allows you to boast and feel confident while the water plays at your ankles. Let it rise to your knees and the tables turn. With the slightest push you will fall. We are wading dangerously deep into the ambiguities of pluralism. We allow everything to change us because we have stepped away from firm land. Let us pray with urgency and speak with tender, strong voice. God save us from ourselves!

Francis Schaffer: Personal Spiritual Crisis

2011-05-27T19:44:00.000-07:00

An excerpt from the preface to Francis Schaffer's book True Spirituality:

"In 1951 and 1952 I face a spiritual crisis in my own life. I had become a Christian from agnosticism many years before. After that I had become a pastor for ten years in the United States, and then for several years my wife Edith and I had been working in Europe. During this time I felt a strong burden to stand for the historical Christian position, and for the purity of the visible church. Gradually, however, a problem came to me--the problem of reality. This had two parts: first, it seemed to me that among many of those who held the orthodox position, one saw little reality in the things that the Bible so clearly says should be the result of Christianity. Second, it gradually grew on me that my own reality was less than it had been in the early days after I had become a Christian. I realized that in honesty I had to go back and rethink my whole position.

We were living in Champery [Switzerland] at the time, and I told Edith that for the sake of honesty I had to go all the way back to my agnosticism and think through the whole matter. I'm sure that this was a difficult time for her, and I'm sure that she prayed much for me in those days. I walked in the mountains when it was clear, and when it was rainy I walked backward and forward in the hayloft of the old chalet in which we lived. I walked, prayed, and thought through what the Scriptures taught, as well as reviewing my own reasons for being a Christian.

As I rethought my reasons for being a Christian, I saw again that there were totally sufficient reasons to know that the infinite-personal God does exist and that Christianity is true. In going further, I saw something else which made a profound difference in my life. I searched through what the Bible said concerning reality as a Christian. Gradually I saw that the problem was that with all the teaching I had received after I was a Christian, I had heard little about what the bible says about the meaning of the finished work of Christ for our present lives. Gradually the sun came out and the song came. Interestingly enough, although I had written no poetry for many years, in that time of joy and song I found poetry beginning to flow again--poetry of certainty, an affirmation of life, thanksgiving, and praise. Admittedly, as poetry it is very poor, but it expressed a song in my heart which was wonderful to me."

destiny

2011-05-16T21:37:00.000-07:00

When was the last time you heard someone speak about their destiny? Or should I say, speak correctly about their destiny? Destiny is not "what you make it." Destiny is a blessing beyond your power to achieve alone. Destiny is a story written by the hand of God. It is Ephesians 2:10" "For you are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." What is your destiny? Know God's plan should fill His children with hope. It is your destiny.

two funerals

2011-05-14T15:05:00.000-07:00

Just this week I have been to two funerals. This post does not reflect on the lives of those who past away. It is merely a few thoughts on death and forever. What I find is that death and the hereafter is often reduced to a few nuanced statements, "It is more about the life in your years, than the years in your life", "[name] would have not wanted us to cry, they want us to be happy", " they are here with us", "we miss you, but will see you soon." In Ecclesiastes 7:2-4 it says, "Better to spend your time at funerals than at parties. After all, everyone dies--so the living should take this to heart. Sorrow is better than laughter, for sadness has a refining influence on us. A wise person thinks a lot about death, while a fool thinks only about having a good time." Most funerals I go to now encourage us to forget death as soon as possible and to party, because somewhere out there that person is partying right now too. And so we fashion heaven however we would like it to be, forgetting about hell entirely. I think hell is only old fashioned in a culture where obeying your parents is old fashioned. We are more interested in being comforted and abandoning tears for a good laugh. Back in the days when England burned martyrs a small boy was seen walking home from Smithfield in England. Someone asked that little boy, "My boy, why were you there?" To this question the boy replied, "I want to learn the way." This boy was not morbid. At a young age he realized that there was much to be learned from a man willing to die because of a conviction. The man knew what he was dying for. He had watched the man live and realized that the martyr was no fool. His martyrdom was not a glamor stunt, nor was it a means for a greater reward. The martyr accepted the flames because he would not deny Christ. "To live is Christ and to die is gain" is the true christian anthem. This should not just be the composure of a dying Christian, but a living one as well. Paul was prepared. It used to be written on the gravestones of the Puritans momento mori, which translated means "remember your mortality." I went for a run before the funeral today. Near my house is a forest preserve. I ran alone and sifted through the thoughts in my head that seem to come out of hiding once I lace up my running shoes. Over and over I thought of Paul's statement, "I consider all things loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus." If you are reading this I want you to consider, in light of eternity, what exactly life is. What is your life? Do you say that it is your life or is it truly your life? Is this something that is worth living for in light of eternity?

My thoughts surmount these lower skies

And look within the veil;

There springs of endless pleasure rise,

The waters never fail.

There I behold with sweet delight

The blessed Three in One;

And strong affections fix my sight

On God's incarnate Son.

His promise stands for ever firm,

His grace shall ne'er depart;

He binds my name upon his arm,

And seals it on his heart.

Light are the pains that' nature brings,

How short our sorrows are,

When with eternal future things,

The present we compare!

I would not be a stranger still

To that celestial place,

Where I for ever hope to dwell

Near my Redeemer's face. - Isaac Watts

YouTube - Fast Car - Tracy Chapman (Kina Grannis & Boyce Avenue acoustic cover) on iTunes & Amazon

2011-05-08T22:05:00.000-07:00

YouTube - Fast Car - Tracy Chapman (Kina Grannis & Boyce Avenue acoustic cover) on iTunes & Amazon

Woman who died in stabbing was 19-year-old from Bremerton » Kitsap Sun

2011-05-04T14:42:00.000-07:00

Woman who died in stabbing was 19-year-old from Bremerton » Kitsap Sun

Yesterday I spent 1.5 hours at Renaissance Alternative High School. The young girl that died went to Renaissance. We have a reason to share our faith. God desires that none should perish, but that all may have eternal life (2 Peter 3:9). What is our desire and how do we express it?

Bremerton's Oasis for troubled kids celebrates a 'graduation' » Kitsap Sun

2011-05-02T14:11:00.000-07:00

Bremerton's Oasis for troubled kids celebrates a 'graduation' » Kitsap Sun

If you are in the area come and celebrate our kids with us!

The Coffee Oasis

822 Burwell St.

Bremerton, WA 98337

vatican ii

2011-04-26T21:22:00.000-07:00

I was grateful to have a wonderful conversation with a good friend who is the administration of a school that I visit. She is a Catholic. I brave and strong catholic that was delighted to let me know that her daughter is taking communion for the first time this coming Sunday. She explained to me her daughters great concern with dealing respectfully with the elements since, according to most Catholics, communion represents the true flesh and blood of Jesus. This made the little girl very nervous to drop the crumbs, lest Jesus be scattered on the floor. Her mother assured her that worse has been done to Jesus and that he understands. It is good to have a God who understands the respectful fear of children ("Unless we become like these..."). I do not agree with the Catholic view of transubstatiation, but this does not mean that I do not appreciate the sense of reality that the Catholics have held onto in action of taking communion. What I mean is that I do not think Jesus is was the physical temple because he compared himself with it, but he is explaining spiritual matters with concrete physical objects. In some way the evangelical church needs to work harder at maintaining the physical realities of Christ's physical sacrifice on the real wooden cross. After our conversation on the Eucharist we got to talking about other things, especially our concern for social justice and she mentioned the Vatican ii documents. Here is the first paragraph of one of these documents:

The joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the men of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the followers of Christ. Indeed, nothing genuinely human fails to raise an echo in their hearts. For theirs is a community composed of men. United in Christ, they are led by the Holy Spirit in their journey to the Kingdom of their Father and they have welcomed the news of salvation which is meant for every man. That is why this community realizes that it is truly linked with mankind and its history by the deepest of bonds.

I enjoyed what I read. I pray this is true of all Christians, that the "joys and anxieties" of all humanity "raises an echo in [our] hearts." I want to be more tender. It is my opinion that evangelicals should converse more with catholics. After all, we do share one Bible.

Easter Meditation: Day 5

2011-04-23T15:18:00.000-07:00

Psalm 22

There is a billboard in town, down by the ferry that asks the question: "Do you want to be happy?" There is a picture of a man (presumably Jesus) that is laughing and tossing a child in the air. This is the same questions Socrates asks in his dialogue with Euthydemus and what Pascal is getting to in his Pensee, "All men seek happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going to war, and of others avoiding it, is the same desire in both, attended with different views. The will never takes the least step but to this object. This is the motive of every action of every man, even of those who hang themselves." The question "what is worth happiness?" is an easy one to answer. Most of us will do anything for happiness. I think the more telling question is this: What is worth suffering for? The Bible is a strange text. It promises peace in a strange way. It is truthful in its retelling of stories. Any illustrated children's Bible seriously sensors itself. If it did not parents would be in an uproar about the lewd and indecent content. Not just graphically, but who wants there children reading Ecclesiastes, really? Happiness is the beginning of the story, but it is not the middle, and only for some it will be the end. This is not the laughable storyline you put on a billboard, but it is the truth.

Many feel like they can relate with King David because of his emotional highs and lows. In Psalm 22 we appreciate the honesty that the Bible does not hide, but includes. It is a man struggling with the apparent distance of God, "My God, my God, why have you abandoned m? Why are you so far away when I groan for help? Every day I call to you, my God, but you do not answer. Every night you hear my voice, but I find no relief" (Psalm 22:1-2). Have you ever felt this way? Well, so did another person who loved God passionately--King David. Does this help us make sense of God?

Two things help us: the end of Psalm 22 and Matthew 27:46. Psalm 22 end with praise. Is David just being crazy and recklessly believing God? I do not think so. His prayer is adamant, "Lord, do not stay far away!" I wish to go into this more, but I do not have time right now. Ask yourself: How is it possible that David could finish Psalm 22 the way he does?

In Matthew 27 we have Jesus crying the same words on the cross that David uses in Psalm 22. Luther was transformed by this. It shows that God heard David. God hears you too. Jesus is the answer. The man who "carried our weakness and was weighted down by our sorrows...but he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins...." Think of this: What does it fully mean to say, "Jesus is the answer"?

Easter Meditation: Day 4

2011-04-23T14:44:00.000-07:00

Exodus 12:1-14

Throughout my years of college I made a habit of rereading books and stories that my parents had read to me when I was a child. Surprisingly I discovered that most of the stories contained vastly new meanings for me when I read them for myself the second time. I remember weeping when Aslan put the challenge to Lucy in the book Prince Caspian, "Even if no one else follows me, I still want you to come." Only upon experiencing a heart broken over a decision could I understand the weight of Aslan's request. When I read Wind in the Willows I sat up in bed and pondered for some time when Mole tells Rat of how terrifying awe can feel like. God is an even better story teller than these men who so perfectly crafted emotion and experience into words. God tells true stories that are not fully comprehended in the first sitting. They can be received by both children and adults and contain profound meaning for both. He does not just tell stories with words, but with all sorts of things like the rings of a tree or the perfect cradle in which our planet sits in the middle of a dangerous universe of twirling planets and hurtling objects. In the Passover we hear a story that is meant to be passed on from generation to generation, telling a story of God's faithfulness. The Passover did not just have meaning for the present, but also for the future. The Old Testament is impossible to understand (and many do not understand because of this) if it is not understood in this way. Hebrews 11:39-40 helps us understand this. After telling the story of faith through the life of several incredible individuals (the kind that make you think, "I could never be that cool!") it says this: "All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us." On Wednesday the community group that meets at my house celebrated the Passover together. Seeing it both in its original meaning and in its fulfillment. I am attaching a picture that we took replicating Leonardo Da Vinci's portrait The Last Supper (only we were wearing flannel, as you can see!). Do you understand that you are a part of the story?

John A. Murray: The Gospel According to Hollywood - WSJ.com

2011-04-22T13:48:00.000-07:00

John A. Murray: The Gospel According to Hollywood - WSJ.com

Check out this link. It is better than it sounds...

Easter Meditation: Day 3

2011-04-21T10:34:00.000-07:00

Matthew 25:31-46

Perhaps Matthew 25 seems like an odd fit for an Easter meditation. The reason why it is wedged in the middle of the week is because it is one of the long sermons that Jesus taught between the triumphal entry into Jerusalem and the crucifixion. What was on Jesus mind during that time. C.S. Lewis writes that the truth and falsehood of something is proved when it faces death. Jesus life perfectly represented the passion of God. God was not about standing far off and speaking rules. Few verses affect so continually as John 1:14, "So the Word became human and made his home among us." He lived here.

What we find in Matthew 25 is that He wants us to "live among" the people of the earth too. Not by assimilation, but by compassion. Jesus proved by his death that sin was the main issue that needed to be taken care of. Sin is the plague. But in Matthew 25 it shows that God does not neglect any of the personal needs he created us with. He wants people to be clothed and fed and cared for. When the end comes our life will not merely be review on the basis of what we say we believed, but, according to Matthew 25, by what we "did and didn't do."

Keith Green has always been a passionate reminder of this for me: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbGqXvGmM5g

John 15

As you can see in my meditations on the Easter passage, I am impacted by the saints that have lived before us. I have lived my life in conversation, mainly through books and biographies, with many of men and woman who have lived well. One of these saints is a man by the name of Andrew Murray. Andrew Murray lived by John 15. It is impossible to find a book of Murray's that he does not present John 15. He lived an "abiding life." He understood that the only life for a Christian to lead is one that is absolutely tied to the life of God. We receive everything from him. Jesus life was a lesson of this very principle. "I only do what I see my Father do," was his only pattern. If this is the life of the Son of God, surely it is a good principle for us to follow.

"Who is my neighbor" is the question that introduces the story of the Good Samaritan. In John 15:13 we are mean to ask ourselves, "who is my friend?" and "what does it mean for me to lay down my life." I have shared this story before, but it often comes back to me forcefully, sitting by the water, watching the sun set over the Olympic mountains, asking God how to live and love. What should I do? "There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friends." So often we ask ourselves the wrong questions. If we really looked at the way we treat relationships/friendships we would realize how unfaithful we are. How easily we break trust and friendship with people! It will never be easy for us to lay down our lives. How easy it is to only take good things from someone and abandon them when life is hard. The Christian should live by a different pattern of life. Learn from Christ! Learn this: "There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friends."

Easter Meditation: Day 2

2011-04-20T08:16:00.000-07:00

John 12:12-50

"We understood from Scripture that the Messiah would live forever. How can you say the Son of Man will die? Just who is the Son of Man, anyway?" (12:34) What a strange man the man Jesus was! Some might have even considered him morbid, always talking about death. We will only see and understand the man Jesus unless we see his deep motivation--"Father, bring glory to your name" (12:28). Jesus did not come to hang-out or share a moments joy. He knew that unless "the wheat planted in soil dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels" (12:24).

We who struggle to get all the success and momentary avoidance of strife that we can still find crucifixion a mean thing. Jesus is asking a daring thing: find yourself in the shadow of the cross. Oh soul, do you fear going there. What will be exposed? Jesus fearless confrontation with and victory over death has made it so that we can approach fearlessly the throne of God. Do you find rest in the shadow of the cross or is it still something that you fear?

This reminds me of one of my favorite poems by G.K. Chesterton:

There fared a mother driven forth
Out of an inn to roam;
In the place where she was homeless
All men are at home.
The crazy stable close at hand,
With shaking timber and shifting sand,
Grew a stronger thing to abide and stand
Than the square stones of Rome.

For men are homesick in their homes,
And strangers under the sun,
And they lay their heads in a foreign land
Whenever the day is done.

Here we have battle and blazing eyes,
And chance and honour and high surprise,
But our homes are under miraculous skies
Where the yule tale was begun.

A child in a foul stable,
Where the beasts feed and foam;
Only where He was homeless
Are you and I at home;
We have hands that fashion and heads that know,
But our hearts we lost---how long ago!
In a place no chart nor ship can show
Under the sky's dome.

This world is wild as an old wife's tale,
And strange the plain things are,
The earth is enough and the air is enough
For our wonder and our war;
But our rest is as far as the fire-drake swings
And our peace is put in impossible things
Where clashed and thundered unthinkable wings
Round an incredible star.

To an open house in the evening
Home shall all men come,
To an older place than Eden
And a taller town than Rome.
To the end of the way of the wandering star,
To the things that cannot be and that are,
To the place where God was homeless
And all men are at home.

Isaiah 49:1-9

"I will make you a light to the Gentiles, and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth." (49:6). One of the most common questions that a pastor gets asked is: what will happen to the people who have never heard? I do not pretend like I know the answer to this or that this question is the focus of these verses. These verses, in part, help me understand a little bit of the answer. God loves all people (I will argue this fact with anyone, even the person who does not think God loves them...even the person who does not want God to love them). According to this verse God is not just concerned with what we can see or appreciate. God considers people from right here to "the ends of the earth." This is very hopeful for us who live across the seas from the Middle East. This verse is talking about us too. I am a gentile. But by God's mercy I have become a son, adopted into the family of God by the Redeemer, Christ Jesus. God's mercy helps me understand the big hard questions. I am learning to trust God. Not out of naivete, but because His mercy has been extended to me too. Even Paul calls himself "abnormally born." Paul was a murderer and still mercy rescued. Mercy holds the ink to the pages of scripture. We learn that the whole time God has planned, out of his love, to make a way that all people can be saved (do not confuse the "can" with "will"). A song that I find helpful is "Lover" by Derek Webb. It goes like this:

Like a man comes to an altar,
I came into this town,
With the world upon My shoulders
And promises passed down.
When I went into the water,
My Father, He was pleased.
I built it and I’ll tear it down
So you will be set free.

Yes, and I found thieves and salesmen
Living in My Father’s house.
And I know how they got in here,
And I know how to get ‘em out.
Well, I’m turning this place over
From floor to balcony.
Then, just like these doves and sheep
Oh, you will be set free.

‘Cause I have always been a lover
From before I drew a breath
Oh, and somethings I love easy
And some I love to death.
You see, love’s no politician
‘Cause it listens carefully
So from those who come,
I can’t lose one,
So you will be set free,
Oh, you will be set free.

Go on and take My picture
Go on and make Me up
Oh, I’ll still be your Defender
And you’ll be My missing son
And I’ll send out an army
Just to bring you back to Me.
‘Cause regardless of your brothers’ lies,
Oh, you will be set free.

Because I am My beloved’s
And My beloved’s Mine;
So, you bring all your history,
I’ll bring the bread and wine.
Then we’ll have us a party
Where all the drinks are on Me
And as surely as the rising sun
Oh, you will be set free,

Oh, you will be set free.

The line that I find helpful is "Somethings I love easy, and some I love to death." I think this is the way it works. What we find predicted in the Old Testament and fulfilled in the New Testament is God's desire to "draw everyone to Himself" (John 12:32). This is the Redeemer, Jesus, who we are meditating on and celebrating this week.

Easter Meditation: Day 1

2011-04-19T09:55:00.000-07:00

John 12:1-11

Oswald Chambers writing on this interaction between Jesus and Mary asked the question, "Have you ever been carried away for him?" The Christmas hymn sings "long lay the world in sin and error pining." Long the world has waited to be loved. The world doesn't think it deserves love, but it wants to be loved so badly. Who will love a broken world?

This is the story of the incarnation. God made the world. He has seen it grow from its natal stages to its old weather-worn state. He has seen it raped by war and torn by sins scarring knife. God loves the world and so he gave his Son.

Mary knew that she was loved completely. She felt safe. She was known completely, but still loved! How could she respond but to love in return.

Oswald Chambers goes on to write: "If human love does not carry a man beyond himself, it is not love. If love is always discreet, always wise, always sensible and calculating, never carried beyond itself, it is not love at all. It may be affection, it may be warmth of feeling, but it has not the true nature of love in it." Have you ever been carried away for him?

Was she aware of what she was doing? Was she aware that she was anointing him for burial?

Hebrews 10:1-18

How could a thing as complete and beautiful as the descent of God onto Mt. Sinai be called "a dim preview" (10:1)? The ten plagues, the magnificent deliverance in battle, the 10 commandments, the intricate sacrifices, these are all the previews--they are not the main attraction. Christ is the main attraction.

"You did not want...You where not pleased..." (10:5). We begin to learn worship when we offer God what he wants, not what we are willing to give. A questions that comes to mind is: so what did God expect from the people? Was it not him who gave them the law and the sacrifices? Even more than these things God wants man to trust him for his supply. "Those sacrifices actually reminded them of their sins year after year" (10:3). What a terrible thing to be reminded of sin. I think we often misunderstand God's lessons because we overestimate our ability to respond and be responsible. Wherever there is great supply (wealth) does not necessarily mean that their will be responsibility. We find in the life of Israel and in our own lives that we must be reminded of our need for a Savior. The moments that we feel most self-reliant, with an attitude of "why do I need God", we are farthest away from the reality. This is the place of a lost, sickly soul. Doubt will veil the mind of the unbeliever until they mock God. The sacrifices gave them a pattern for active reliance upon God. But this is not ultimately what God wanted.

God wanted intimacy with people. He did not want sin to separate. Just like a couple who are in love feel profound pain to be separate by a great distance. God knew the problem, and we felt the effect. Then..."I have come to do your will O God", God was in Christ Jesus reconciling the world to himself (bringing the relationship back together).

I think of the Old Testament as a "long-longing." You feel the pains of waiting throughout its pages. When will the relationship be restored; when can I feel the arms of God again; when will he walk among us like he did in the garden?

CCDA Philosophy | Christian Community Development Association

2011-04-06T16:47:00.000-07:00

I am currently in Chicago--the famed "windy city"--sitting in their towering downtown library (yes, I found it) on a short break from the hectic schedule of the CCDA (Christian Community Development Association) Immersion Conference. It is an awakening to the humbling fact that God is using more than the Coffee Oasis in the world and that I/we have much to learn. Dare I say, we are beginner. But I think we are blessed too. Viewing ministries within Chicago and speaking with organizations from across the nation and world I am growing to appreciate the depth of true relationship (I think what Francis Schaffer would call "True Spirituality") that I find in the Oasis community in Bremerton. I miss their presence and support while I am here (though they have assured me they are supporting me in prayer).

Here is a Chinese proverb that has been continuously repeated here at the conference and below that is a link to the CCDA philosophy:

Go to the people
Live among them
Learn from them
Love them
Start with what they know
Build on what they have:
But of the best leaders When their task is done
The people will remark "We have done it ourselves."

CCDA Philosophy | Christian Community Development Association

to be human again

2011-04-02T22:50:00.000-07:00

Victor Frankl, a survivor of the Nazi Death camps wrote in the preface to the 1984 edition of his bestseller Man’s Search for Meaning: “I do not at all see in the bestseller status of my book so much an achievement and accomplishment on my part [but rather] an expression of the misery of our time: if hundreds of thousands of people reach out for a book whose very title promises to deal with the question of a meaning to life, it must be a question that burns under their fingernails.... One day, a few days after the liberation, I walked through the country past flowering meadows, for miles and miles, toward the market town near the camp. Larks rose to the sky and I could hear their joyous song. There was not one to be seen for miles around; there was nothing but the wide earth and sky and the larks’ jubilation and the freedom of space. I stopped, looked around, and up to the sky—and then I went down on my knees. At that moment there was very little I knew of myself or of the world—I had but one sentence in mind—always the same: ‘I called to the Lord from my narrow prison and He answered me in the freedom of space.’ How long I knelt there and repeated this sentence memory can no longer recall. But I know that on that day, in that hour, my new life started. Step for step I progressed, until I again became human."

the dynamics of temptation and surrender

2011-04-01T18:33:00.000-07:00

"The flesh resists this daily humiliation, first by a frontal attack, and later by hiding itself under the words of the Spirit (i.e., in the name of 'evangelical liberty'). We claim liberty from all legal compulsion, from self-martyrdom and mortification and play this off against the proper evangelical use of discipline and asceticism; we thus excuse our self-indulgence and irregularity in prayer, in meditation and in our bodily life. But the contrast between our behavior and the word of Jesus is all too painfully evident. We forget that discipleship means estrangement from the world, and we forget the real joy and freedom which are the outcome of a devout rule of life." - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

lloyd-jones: on preaching

2011-03-28T11:32:00.001-07:00

"Every preacher should believe strongly in his own method; and if I cannot persuade all of the rightness of mine, I can at least stimulate them to think and to consider other possibilities. I can say quite honestly that I would not cross the road to listen to myself preaching, and the preachers whom I have enjoyed most have been very different indeed in their method and style. But my business is not to describe them but to state what I believe to be right, however imperfectly I have put my own precepts into practice. I can only hope that the result will be of some help, and especially to young preachers called to this greatest of all tasks, and especially in these sad and evil times. With many others I pray that 'the Lord of the harvest may thrust forth' many mighty preachers to proclaim 'the unsearchable riches of Christ.'"

- D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones in Preaching and Preachers

on Christ and the Holy Spirit

2011-03-19T11:01:00.000-07:00

Today I am turning in 40-pages of writing for my Systematic Theology class. Among that vast swath of papers there are two creeds that I was asked to write on Christ and the Holy Spirit. These are my joy and my conviction:

Christological Credo:

I believe in the Son

Equal and coeternal with the Father and Spirit—One God

Without beginning and without end

Through whom the world was created

Humbled Himself to enter limited time

This being accomplished through the means of a lowly birth in a manger to a faithful virgin

Relating with broken humanity in every way

Declaring a coming kingdom and Himself as the King

This being accomplished through the means of being cursed and dying upon a cross

The result of the cross was true physical death

The shame of the world was nailed there

However, death could make no claim on the perfect Son of God

On the third day He rose from the dead

Conquering death and the fear it had imposed on mortals

To ransom, save, and declare sinless once lost humanity

In his death and subsequent resurrection Jesus fulfilled the eternal plan of the Godhead

He was without sin, but took upon Himself the sin of the world

Healing the world by His own wounding

Of His own fullness we have receive grace upon grace

Now He intercedes on behalf of the church, His chosen Bride

Awaiting the time of His coming again

To judge the quick and the dead

To bring his children into the eternal glory shared within the Triune godhead.

And to be worshiped forever and ever…Amen.

Pneumatological Credo:

I believe in the Spirit,

Equal and coeternal with the Father and Son—One God

Who dwelt within the council of God creating the world

Breathing life into all the living

Always present in the power of God and the communication of true holiness

Inspiring the saints of old, speaking by prophets, and enabling godly kings

Showing humanity in diverse ways their need of a Savior

Present in the conviction of sin and longing for coming kingdom

Working miraculously in the virgin to bring the promised Messiah into the world of flesh

A reliable guide for Jesus throughout His mortal life

Instrumental in raising the Son in power

Introducing the world to salvation

Through conviction of sin and righteousness and judgment

Completing the work of Christ in the life of the all those who believe

Filling the saints with correct understanding of Jesus

And uniting them around this common confession

Declaring the work of redemption through powerful witness

Overflowing life onto all who would believe the Gospel message

Now guiding the believer as He once guided Christ

Bringing peace, conquering fear, and healing relationship

Freely giving gifts to the Church

Interpreting the believing prayer

Groaning in creation

Authoring all true worship

And bringing sad consequence to those who grieve him

But to those who obey a distinguishable and increasing growth in holiness

—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control—

Even now cultivating the soul for eternal communion with the Triune Godhead.

caught the interest of God

2011-03-17T19:07:00.001-07:00

Karl Barth wrote in his famous essay The Humanity of God:

“What is culture in itself except the attempt of man to be man and thus to hold the good gift of his humanity in honor and to put it to work?...Above all, the fact remains that man who, either as the creator or as the beneficiary, somehow participates in this attempt is the being who interests God.” (54)

What!!! We have caught the “interest of God”? I think this is correct wording, but how it makes me tremble! There is a fear that is talked of when you finally discover you are loved. And I feel something of that sort of emotion. The questions come: am I worthy? Can I love in return? What part do I play? He is very good at loving and he is so pure, will he continue loving me when he sees that I do not always keep my word? For some reason I do not know what to say and am strangely afraid when I hear that God is interested in me.

on the existence of God

2011-03-10T19:41:00.000-08:00

It has been a little while since I have picked up any material in philosophy. An article in the Huffington Press caught my eye today. The title of the article read: "A Reasonable Argument for the Existence of God." Since I would like to be considered reasonable I read it. The article was written by Rabbi Adam Jacobs. As it should be with reasonable things, the argument is not new. I am skeptical of new things. There is nothing new under the sun. The presentation might be different (facebook, video, etc.), but the content differs very little. It has been said that philosophers have come up with nothing new since Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. You might be surprised to read them. What I find most helpful about these articles is that it makes me dig deep again. The mind is a terrible things to waste! I am done with my preamble if you would like to read the article you can find it here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rabbi-adam-jacobs/a-reasonable-argument-for_b_831185.html

Where is the Life we have lost in living?

2011-03-01T11:26:00.000-08:00

How would you respond to these opening lines of T.S. Eliot's poem "The Rock":

The Eagle soars in the summit of Heaven,
The Hunter with his dogs pursues his circuit.

O perpetual revolution of configured stars,
O perpetual recurrence of determined seasons,
O world of spring and autumn, birth and dying.

The endless cycle of idea and action,
Endless invention, endless experiment,
Brings knowledge of motion, but not of stillness;
Knowledge of speech, but not of silence;
Knowledge of words, and ignorance of the Word.

All our knowledge brings us nearer to our ignorance,
All our ignorance brings us nearer to death,
But nearness to death no nearer to GOD.

Where is the Life we have lost in living?
Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?
Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?

The cycles of Heaven in twenty centuries
Bring us farther from GOD and nearer to the Dust.

the beleaguered city

2011-02-26T16:27:00.000-08:00

The Beleaguered City

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

I have read, in some old marvelous tale

Some legend strange and vague

That a midnight host of spectres pale

Beleaguered the walls of Prague

Beside the Moldau's rushing stream,

With the wan moon overhead,

There stood, as in an awful dream,

The army of the dead.

White as a sea-fog, landward bound,

The spectral camp was seen,

And, with a sorrowful, deep sound,

The river flowed between.

No other voice nor sound was there,

No drum, nor sentry's pace;

The mist-like banners clasped the air,

As clouds with clouds embrace.

But, when the old cathedral bell

Proclaimed the morning prayer,

The white pavilions rose and fell

On the alarmed air.

Down in the broad valley fast and far

The troubled army fled;

Up rose the glorious morning star,

The ghastly host was dead.

I have read, in the marvelous heart of man,

That strange and mystic scroll,

That an army of phantoms vast and wan,

Beleaguer the human soul.

Encamped beside Life's rushing stream,

In Fancy's misty light,

Gigantic shapes and shadows gleam

Portentous through the night.

Upon its midnight battle-ground

The spectral camp is seen,

And, with a sorrowful, deep sound,

Flows the River of Life between.

No other voice, nor sound is there,

In the army of the grave;

No other challenge breaks the air,

But the rushing of Life's wave.

And, when the solemn and deep church-bell

Entreats the soul to pray,

The midnight phantoms feel the spell,

The shadows sweep away.

Down the broad Vale of Tears afar

The spectral camp is fled;

Faith shineth as a morning star,

Our ghastly fears are dead.

Invisible Young

2011-02-23T09:14:00.000-08:00

Invisible Young

Check out the trailer for a new movie coming out in 2012. We have worked a little with Steve Keller, who is both filming and producing the movie. The stories are true and give an accurate account of what life looks through the eyes of a homeless child.

so...i fell in love again

2011-02-21T22:09:00.001-08:00

Today I fell in love with primary sources...again. It was half way through reading Jonathan Edward's "Narrative of Surprising Conversions" that the my stomach knotted a little, my lungs breathed in what felt like the freshest air, and my mind lighted-up. We are so used to looking through others peoples ideas about ideas and, for some odd reason, thinking we are gazing at a clear and true rendering, when all along we could have the conversation ourselves. The only reason why I would get a running magazine is to remind me of the beauty of what I could be experiencing if I would but lace up my shoes and step out the door. When I run, I fall in love again. I fall in love again when I exchange my window booth to stand at the foremost point of the ferry, feeling the wind rip through my hair and thin fleece jacket, watching the water tirelessly play against the small ferry boat it buoyies upon its formless body. I have read countless theologians recount the theology of Jonathan Edwards. Like good critics they began by saying nice things and then went on to say what they disagreed with. If you read too many commentaries they begin to all sound like hyenas prodding an old carcass. Turning to the actual source, Jonathan Edwards (or the Bible, the primary source for all good primary sources), I find a man still alive with passion for Jesus. In his own words he is present. He has not been scrubbed and stretched across canvass, held by a frame. In his Narrative he signs his letter, "I leave this to you, and shall only say, as I desire always to say from my heart, To God be all the Glory whose work alone it is." He is a man excited that Jesus is spoken of in the town and because he sees the evidence of grace in lives, transforming communities. Oh may God grant us more people who fall in love when they hear about God working in their community. And may more people read Edwards and be inspired to go and do likewise.

I will leave you with a journal entry by Jonathan Edwards, which he wrote concerning his future wife, Sarah Pierrepont, titled "Apostrophe to Sarah Pierrepont":

“They say there is a young lady in New Haven who is beloved of that almighty Being, who made and rules the world, and that there are certain seasons in which this great Being, in some way or other invisible, comes to her and fills her mind with exceeding sweet delight, and that she hardly cares for anything, except to meditate on him — that she expects after a while to be received up where he is, to be raised up out of the world and caught up into heaven; being assured that he loves her too well to let her remain at a distance from him always. There she is to dwell with him, and to be ravished with his love and delight forever. Therefore, if you present all the world before her, with the richest of its treasures, she disregards it and cares not for it, and is unmindful of any pain or affliction. She has a strange sweetness in her mind, and singular purity in her affections; is most just and conscientious in all her actions; and you could not persuade her to do anything wrong or sinful, if you would give her all the world, lest she should offend this great Being. She is of a wonderful sweetness, calmness and universal benevolence of mind; especially after those seasons in which this great God has manifested himself to her mind. She will sometimes go about from place to place, singing sweetly; and seems to be always of joy and pleasure; and no one knows for what. She loves to be alone, and to wander in the fields and on the mountains, and seems to have someone invisible always conversing with her.”

Jesus prays

2011-02-19T18:58:00.000-08:00

Jesus prays for me: "O righteous Father, the world doesn't know you, but I do; and these disciples know you sent me. I have revealed you to them, and I will continue to do so. Then your love for me will be in them,and I will be in them."

Jesus wants this for us...

YouTube - Southern Gospel Music - Don't You Weep Over Me

2011-02-15T20:49:00.000-08:00

YouTube - Southern Gospel Music - Don't You Weep Over Me

I have never seen the bass so exuberantly played!

Runaway accused of selling drugs said she was seeking birth mother » Kitsap Sun

2011-02-14T17:50:00.000-08:00

Runaway accused of selling drugs said she was seeking birth mother » Kitsap Sun

This is the reason the Coffee Oasis exists:

For God’s glory and our joy, we are eager to demonstrate the simplicity and sufficiency of Christ to transform hopeless lives and communities, by bringing the hope of Christ to the pain on the streets

how to say, "i love you"

2011-02-11T15:54:00.000-08:00

I am sure Valentine's Day has some closet fans, but as the day approaches it seems like you always hear more noise from the staunch love-pessimists that gripe about their infinite singleness. They treat single-life as if it were a loveless-life, which is horrible and untrue. Jesus tells us in John 15:13, "Greater loves has not man than this, that he lay down his life for a friend." I remember God striking my mind--as if with a burning ember--with these words one evening as I sat staring out at the Puget Sound wrestling with the big question of love. I heard the message clearly. There have been times that I have been trouble by how I feel inside. I have wondered, how greatly do I love "this" person. Thinking that love meant either staying or leaving. As though love was something transient or based upon the extent I appreciated certain features of a person's personality. Jesus' asked a man of conviction, "who is your neighbor." Without waiting for a response he launched into the story of the Good Samaritan. We still read the story as if we were the helper. That is an untrue reading. We are the hurting, the broken, the beat-up, the bruised and waiting. The purpose of the story is to show that we need others, such is the way we were created. We even need those people that seem strange to us, like Samaritan's. Once I was in a young boy-young girl relationship (though it might be hard for you to imagine). Trying to be a good Puritan, I tried hard to convince the beautiful young girl that we did not need each others. It was not true. We all need each others. "No man is an island" (thank you, John Donne, I should have listened to you when you first told me this). We often let our heart weaken between the false dilemma of "to love" or "not to love." This dilemma is false, even hurtful, because we are never meant to think about not loving. Because "love is of God and everyone that loves is born of God and knows God" (1 John 4:7-8). Always love. Only by God's great and gentle grace can we move beyond this dilemma to always love. Oh, there is more, but to hear you will have to come on Sunday to hear the next sermon: How to Say, "I Love You."

YouTube - 2Pac - Ghetto Gospel

2011-02-05T23:22:00.000-08:00

YouTube - 2Pac - Ghetto Gospel

chronicles of a runaway

2011-02-04T23:30:00.000-08:00

Tonight I waited outside of the Coffee Oasis one hour after the doors closed. A younger boy--baby faced with a scratch on the right cheek, a perfect boy scout recruit--had pulled one of the staff aside and told him the truth, "I am a runaway. There is a warrant out for me. I'm ready to go home." He did not want to go home. He was tired of the streets. Home meant neglect and hurt, the streets meant neglect and hunger. Which is worse? If you were a 16-year-old boy what would you choose? What where you doing at the age of 16? We spent our time outside underneath the bright light that illumines the back parking lot. The rain was coming down in delicate drops that drift softly upon the loose wind. I opened my Bible to Psalm 46 and entered verse 10 as the officer drove up--"Be still, and now that I am God." We waved the officer down and he played a longer, much more painful version of 20-questions. The gist of his message was: "You don't really want to be you, do you?" No, not right now. Who would want to be standing in abandoned Bremerton at 11:00pm with Washington weather working its way into your thin sweatshirt as you prepare your journey towards a dreaded house by being handcuffed?

Pray Psalm 46 for this young man.

Ruth 4: Finding Redemption

2011-02-04T12:52:00.000-08:00

This is the morning after a long night. Along the way we have been forced to ask where this strange and painful road has been leading: the road to Moab, the road back to Bethlehem, the walk of a foreigner, the walk of a widowed woman, the walk of a mature-single man, and the walk of choosing righteousness over fleeting pleasures. To see the small story we must widen our view to see the big story—to see God! What we could not see along the way is that God weaving our story with His glory. We have been waiting to see over the difficult hill of righteousness to see the rising dawn. This should cause us to appreciate God’s plan over our own. God’s view is redemption, while ours is often a long string of temporary appeasements. Let us acknowledge that his ways are truly higher, and praise him for that! “Blessed is the Lord who has not left you without a redeemer today.” The redeemer is God himself.

joyce wedding

2011-01-29T14:02:00.000-08:00

On Thursday Michael Joyce and Kaylee Brink became Mr. and Mrs. Joyce. For your joy and inclusion I decided to post my wedding sermon. The setting was a narrow and tall, steepled church in Port Gamble, Wa. There was no ornamentation in the building except for a single gold cross on the left side of the altar. It was high church, with stained glass and bleak interior, kept that way to ensure that no one worships created things rather than the Creator. The processional started. The music changed from "The More I Seek You" to "So This is Love" to cue the bride. Everyone stands. They do not care about the blank walls and hard pews. Everyone is staring at her. She is staring at Michael. That is what they will remember. My words were true and perhaps someday they will listen to the recording, but that day they listened to each others eyes and returned to earth only to respond in affirmation, "I do!"

What God has joined together, let nothing and nobody separate!

Here is the wedding sermon:

Ephesians 3:14-21 “For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family on heaven and earth derives its name, that He would grant you [Michael and Kaylee], according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”

The reason Paul prays is that you may comprehend love. Right now you both are beginning to feel full (You might be thinking, “Oh, is that what the strange feeling in my stomach is.”). You know what it means to feel full, because you have felt hungry. Right? You both felt it in different way: Michael talking it through with me and other guys in the dish pit at the Coffee Oasis, Kaylee trying to pull further away from Mike only to find that that did not help her stop thinking about him. Hunger is the feeling of Adam in the garden as God brings the animals to him one at a time and he realizes that none of them were remotely attractive. Adam’s hunger was specific—he hungered for Eve. Today is a day of feasting--of not only loving, but being completely loved by the one you love. Love is here, love is happening right now in this room.

Is this what Paul was praying that we would comprehend—this love? The answer is yes, and more. Returning to the story of Adam and Eve will help us understand what Paul refers to as the “riches of Christ.” In Ephesians Paul writes, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior…Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” You see, even at creation God had bigger plans than we immediately see. Adam’s hunger turned to fullness upon meeting Eve. In Ephesians when it says that a marriage is like Christ and the church, it means that from the beginning when we saw marriage—the hunger for satisfaction— we were meant to understand that our greatest hunger can only be satisfied by God. We We were made with hunger so that we could taste of love and be filled. And today we get a taste of God’s love in the marriage of Mike and Kaylee.

Let me share with you, for a moment, what the love of God tastes like. God’s love includes people. People, you and I, were never meant to be separate from God, but made to be joined with him at all times. We see in marriage there is no longer an “I” that does not involve the other person. In joking people will tell you, Mike and Kaylee, that you are losing your freedom—but the love of God that you share is not stifling, it is breathes life into the one loved. Together you are making a covenant which makes one person out of two. Mike, that means there is no such thing as “my night to hang out with the guys” without Kaylee’s agreement. Kaylee, this means being willing to be loved and to let Michael in when gray clouds are hanging over your head? This is the beauty of submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ: you are placing yourself in the care of someone who willingly and daily lays down their life for you. And this, this will make you fall in love with Jesus all the more as you realize through the profound and difficult act of marriage, that God has laid down his very own life to join you inseparably to himself.

Michael and Kaylee, to show the love of God in this way will mean being stretched. We read in Ephesians that the love of God is vast: “How wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge.” God’s love being vast and your best love being limited, you will feel like you are asked to do things beyond your ability. Like when Bosley is sick and needs to go to the emergency vet at 2 o’clock in the morning. That is a love opportunity. God is making your love bigger. Oh, but have we not discovered that God is doing something bigger here today

The Apostle Paul tells us that the love of God does thing “far greater than we could ask or imagine.” It would have sounded foolish to ask that two pals in preschool, who walked in and out of each other’s lives, sharing more tough times than easy times, would be married today in a this beautiful old church in the name of Jesus. Do you believe it? For the last several months we’ve had to keep pinching Mike remind him that it is real. He has been known to walk up on unsuspecting people and tell them, “Guess what? I am dating Kaylee Brink.” Guess what? You are nearly married to Kaylee Brink.

Now as part of Michael and Kaylee’s desire to express their absolute indebtedness to Christ and His love expressed to them on the cross enabling them to love one another, they are going to share the Communion together. At His last meal with His followers before He died Jesus said to them, “This bread represents my body which is for you, this cup represents my blood which is poured out for the forgiveness of your sins”. After the lighting of the unity candles, symbolizing the uniting of two lives, Mike and Kaylee will take communion together to remember and hold in their hearts Christ’s love for them.

Ruth 3: Pursuing Redemption

2011-01-26T22:10:00.000-08:00

Hope again fills Naomi's long darkened mind. Hope makes the wounded heart ready to talk about love again (though it does not have the power to make love any more safe of an endeavor). Ruth is willing. John Piper calls this “strategic righteousness.” God is orchestrating something beautiful, but it is not yet clear to those at ground level. He is still asking them to act in faith. Ruth is willing—“all you say I will do.” The actions that Ruth and Boaz takes are steps towards righteousness. Boaz has every opportunity to take advantage of Ruth, but he does not. He continues to protect her. Pursuing redemption has the look of purity. They are man and woman, they want to get married, they are in a barn in the night, and they pursue righteousness. Hollywood sighs and searches for a different storyline; But something far better is happening than a fleeting moment of indulged passion. They are planning for the future--a righteous future, built on the foundation of honoring God. Morning is dawning on their lives and they choose not to lose it with a moment of purposeless sex. They had been pursuing righteousness and they continue to together. Notice how this decision does not diminish, but increases their joy. They have not lost anything. They have gained so much by waiting and hoping and placing themselves in the refuge of God.

no greater love

2011-01-26T12:44:00.000-08:00

Preparing for Mike Joyce and Kaylee Brink's wedding. My first wedding to officiate! "Greater love has no man than this that he lays down his life for a friend." Why? Because there is no greater likeness to God than sacrificial love.

"Alone Together": An MIT Professor's New Book Urges Us to Unplug | Fast Company

2011-01-20T17:05:00.000-08:00

"Alone Together": An MIT Professor's New Book Urges Us to Unplug | Fast Company

Ruth 2: Finding Refuge

2011-01-20T15:08:00.000-08:00

We are heading in to Ruth 2 on Sunday, January 23rd. In walks a worthy character. Boaz is introduced. Who is this man? The presentation of a stalwart male into the life of two widowed females thickens the plot considerably—even in antiquity. The story is masterfully told. We are not allowed to look beyond the seemingly insurmountable difficulties, we sense the struggle and bleak unknown, but we see a ripening character in Ruth. Ruth desires to work and desires to submit to Naomi. The town sees this and admires her. In humility Ruth does not notice the attention given to her and still sees herself as “a foreigner.” More than anything Ruth is puzzled at the good favor she is receiving—“why have I found favor?” It is not that Ruth is simply good natured, she is a woman of God—“under whose wings [she] has come to seek refuge.” Boaz notices these praiseworthy qualities and uses the means God has given him to bless her. Boaz is the first stable piece in the story. He is not moving any time soon. He has land, the respect of his employees, maturity. It also appears that things are blessed around him. He is blessed, but single. How hard that must have been! No heir and no one to share his blessing with. But God had a bigger story. For both Boaz and Ruth, God is their first satisfaction and it has tremendous affect on their lives. This is the foundation that God builds a life of great blessing upon.

a frightful emphasis

2011-01-18T09:43:00.000-08:00

"[Tomorrow is] work, work, and more work from early until late. In fact, I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer." - Martin Luther

"Luther, examining his church, noted a frightful emphasis on works, but little value given faith. From this burning conviction sprang the reformation--a movement shifting balance from physical to spiritual; from works to faith. Someone aptly said, 'God requires soul worship and men give Him body worship: he asks for the heart and they present Him with their lips: He demands their thoughts and minds, and they give Him banners and vestments and candles.'"
- taken from No Easy Road by Eastman

Books: Notes From The Tilt-A-Whirl

2011-01-13T23:05:00.000-08:00

"You are spoken. I am spoken. We stand on a spoken stage. The spinning kind. The round kind. The moist kind. The kind of stage with beetles and laughter and babies and dirt and snow and fresh-cut cedar."

Nate (N.D.) Wilson has produced a book that incites worship. The kind that unites the high and low together. Those who seek hallowed churches with expensive glass or those who can only afford to breath the air, but suck it often in big gulp, using both mouth and nose, to feel the pleasure of having more than enough. Born and raised in the Palouse (Moscow, Idaho), N.D. brought me back to the land that I love with creative prose that I have never seen the likes of before. It is obvious that he has a rich sense of experience, while at the same time not devaluing the cries of the mind for helpful explanations. Since I started the book I have described the world differently: the world is the grammar of God, and the expanding universe is the overflowing chorus. His language is not only truth, but it is substance. He spoke, and it was...

fog the window and marvel

2011-01-12T22:59:00.000-08:00

I did not marvel at the falling snow last night. To be quite honest, I was never impressed that every snow flake was a different shape, though willing to admit it is an astounding fact. I was more impressed by its unity and freedom, its disregard for fashion and bribe. Snow is no hired militia. It is a vast army that comes and goes together, reminding governments that there is One greater and delighting children everywhere. As a child I knew inherently that snow could be trusted. Anything that made the mountains its permanent home must have a beautiful soul. And how it added to the decor of the remote lodging! When I was a child the snow beckoned me to come outside and catch it up in my hand as soon as it touched the ground, throwing it up to see it fall in large edible clumps. Lick my lips to catch the remnants. Tossing, moving, fashioning pieces of impermanent art, this was a snow day! Last night I ignored the snow. I did not mind it falling. The snow soldiers quietly set up camp around my house in typical fashion. It was only visiting for a night. I didn't mind. I did not fog the window by pressing my face against it to see the army enter my yard and I did not exhaust myself in play until they melted away. I wish that I had. I wish that I still had that desire. I wish that I still heard the snow beckoning.

This Sunday we start a new sermon series on the book of Ruth. Here is the summary of the first week:

Date: Sunday, January 16, 2011
Chapter: Ruth 1
Title: Following a Strange God
Abstract: In the time that the judges ruled in Israel God moves two widowed woman back to Israel. One is a sojourner, who left hopeful and returned stricken, and a foreigner, of whom we know very little about. Why would Elimelech take his family to Moab? What would make Ruth stay with her mother-in-law? Why does Naomi appear unmoved by Ruth’s sacrificial commitment? Bitterness has not allowed Naomi to see the blessing of Ruth. It is important to not jump into the brighter points of the following chapters. This chapter is very real. It is a struggling heart trying to make sense of tragedy. Naomi does not doubt that it is God who is acting in all these affairs, she only wonders why He would do such things. Chapter 1 does not give the answer. What chapter 1 does offer is a first look at is the strong and developing character of Ruth. She has chosen the God of Israel as her God. A husband is not her hope; it is the God, whom Naomi reluctantly serves, that she follows to Bethlehem.

putting together the proverb puzzle

2011-01-04T23:42:00.001-08:00

Jacob, Elena, and myself are working together to build a curriculum for the Oasis Center in the afternoons. The curriculum consists of teaching through the aphorisms of proverbs. I have been surprised to discover things that I should have already known. For example: Things won through difficulty will be held as a greater prize (ha! I am thinking in aphorisms now). The hearts of the youth are rebelling because they find most of what is taught or preach to them plain boring. Drugs give a high, gangs give a bond, sex gives passion. Children desperately want to feel and the church has too often given them rules instead of experiences. The book of proverbs offers a timeless teaching tool because it asks us to look back and forth between wisdom and experience and to decide which is true. Here is a little of what I have learned (borrowing some ideas from Leland Ryken's "How to Read the Bible as Literature"):

Ultimately a proverb is to cultivate a moment of epiphany. The modern story writer James Joyce once described a moment of epiphany as the point in a story where a spiritual or intellectual eye adjusts its vision to an exact focus. A proverb is just such a moment of intellectual focus. A proverb captures the clearest and most affecting moment, the point of greatest light. In the end, as foretold in the beginning, all wisdom revolves around one unifier: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. All life, rightly understood, displays this to the wise person. Each proverb provides a verbal snapshot that contains particular insight that can be visualized mentally, painted on a canvas, lived; however, only fitted together can the puzzle of experiences show its greater identity.

into the new year

2011-01-01T20:23:00.000-08:00

Every time the year changes guard it seems like we have substantial change also taking place at the Oasis. Last year it was buying the Port Orchard location (CO3 or "POCO"), the year before it was the purchase of the drive-thru, and now we are finding ourselves once again growing with the hire of a business administrator. The week between Christmas and New Years offers a brief reprieve from the blistering pace of life and work, allowing us a few days and a handful of hours to explore where God is leading in the upcoming years. And we shall follow, as the hymn says, "Lead on, O King Eternal / We follow, not with fear / For gladness breaks like morning / When'er Thy face appears." I have found my limitations to be nearer than I expected. My mind has been taxed and my capacity to love overburdened. And here I find "we can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love" (Romans 5.3-5).

"The man with a cross no longer controls his destiny; he lost control when he picked up his cross. That cross immediately became to him an all-absorbing interest, an overwhelming interference. No matter what he may desire to do, there is but one thing he can do; that is, move on toward the place of crucifixion...Let a man become enamored of eternal wisdom and set his heart to win her and takes on himself a full-time, all-engaging pursuit. Thereafter he will have room for little else. thereafter his whole life will be filled with seekings and findings, self-repudiation, tough disciplines and daily dyings as he is being crucified unto the world and the world unto him." [A.W. Tozer]

grant me this

2010-11-26T09:35:00.000-08:00

"Whatever else Thou sendesst, oh, send this-
Not ecstacy of love or lover's kiss,
But strength to know the joy of sacrifice,
To see life deeply as with opened eyes!
Oh, grant me this, dear God,
Through tears of loss-
To know the joyous secret
Of Thy Cross."
-Ralph Spaulding Cushman

christianity: the all-transforming principle

2010-11-14T18:34:00.000-08:00

In the midst of writing a 20-page paper of on Athanasius I found an incredible quote from Johann Eduard Eerdman's History of Philosophy, Volume 1:

“Christianity shows itself as an all-transforming principle also in the field of philosophy. For, as far as philosophy could penetrate, without receiving an impulse from this new principle, so far it has succeeded in advancing, in a way that irresistibly brings before our eyes, as we look back, the course of many a far-famed stream. For in the first period we saw what had sprung from the most various sources, gradually drawing nearer and nearer; in the second all these branches had united into a great stream flowing along in majesty; in the third it once more separated into many branches, which seem to lose themselves partly in the sands of skepticism, partly in the marsh of syncretism, but which really nevertheless contribute sustenance to the ocean of Christian philosophy.”

It is often assumed--wrongly--that Christianity is a flimsy, few-stranded religion that molds to the wearer. It is not. Jesus Christ transformed history and continues to transform the lives of those who see him still--born and crucified in real history, savior of humanity, friend of sinners. I have appreciated again Socrates, Plato, Aristotle. All men who spoke as well as they could. But their thoughts could not save the Greek city-state from the encroaching might of Rome. Rome met one mightier, but did not know it by looking at him. His kingdom was not of this world. Philosopher and monarch alike were humbled by Jesus. They put their best foot forward and were tripped by his unexpected response. They did not fall by idea or sword, but by the reality of the cross were "sorrow and love flow mingled down," where God became man and entered the world.

build on calvary

2010-09-25T23:20:00.000-07:00

"O Young man, build your studio on Calvary! there raise your
observatory, and scan by faith the lofty things of nature. Take a
recluse's cell in the garden of Gethsemane, and wash your face
with the waters of Siloam. Let the Bible be your standard classic, your
last appeal in matters of contention. Let its light be your
illumination, and you will become more wise than Plato, more
truly learned than the seven sages of antiquity." - Spurgeon

saturday, sunday, monday

2010-09-20T22:54:00.000-07:00

Saturday night I was up until 4am. Midnight brought the call you hope to never receive. "You're where? On a bridge and going to jump? Don't! I'll be right there."

Sunday afternoon I went to a going away party for a friend. She is leaving to study at the Mayo clinic in Arizona for a year. The party was hosted at her boyfriends house. The design of the house was creative. It was built rustic and livable with plenty of exposed beams and three decks. There was enough bushes and trees around the property, which is placed next to duplex-ville in Bremerton, to make it feel country. It was fall. The air had the lingering touch of morning dew and the sun shared space with the chill. It seemed very removed from the night before.

In the last three days I have finished Lewis's book The Great Divorce. Besides having an unfortunate name I can say that his writing has finally spilled over my trenches. That is to say, I admire him. You see, I have not wanted to. It seems like everyone defaults to Lewis. I will say that one of the most brilliant things about Lewis is that God gave him the ability to see outside of himself and to appreciate all of creation. His book Surprised By Joy tells of his early desires to try to capture joy when he felt it most profoundly. He tried to feel it to the greatest extent and to hold himself there (or hold joy to himself) as if to fulfill the wish of Peter on the Mount of Transfiguration. To his disappointment he could not hold joy (I believe that joy in The Great Divorce is tied inextricably to "Reality", and thus he could not hold the realest reality). Joy was not that moment or that feeling. The substance is in the object of desire. "Guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life!" Understanding can be tested by action.

grown-ups

2010-09-18T20:19:00.001-07:00

It does not good to try to catch-up when you have fallen behind blogging--life cannot be related that easily--so I will tell you about the last two days. Last night we had two boys stay at our house. One was 19 and the other 24. Both homeless. One dressed smartly with a vest, tie, and button up shirt. He likes to ballroom dance. The other has visible scars on face and arms to mark the battles he that his life has been. Both slept on a blow-up mattress that we have ready in expectation of having weekly guests. One upstairs and one downstairs. I am reminded as I go to bed that I cannot be a child anymore. I wake up with mouths to feed and a concern for their daily schedule. But I do not think this responsibility is the crown of moving into adulthood. There is no trumpet cry, cymbal clash, or cheering crowd to welcome you into eldership. For many it is actually marked by decline or disappointment. It is marked by loneliness and unattainable expectation. A child is taught to pray, "Dear Lord, help me be small well and grow up strong." The adult is expected to learn from experience. If you adult were to pray, "Dear Lord, help me be big well," what do you think the response would be? Listen. Perhaps Jesus is asking you to come to the garden and simply be with him for a time. Perhaps the stress of attainment or responsibility is too much for you alone. Let us not forget that we can learn and listen again that He ready to help the humble and willing...even grown-ups.

helpful words

2010-09-03T15:31:00.000-07:00

I found Oswald Chambers very helpful today:

"He would not drink it, but poured it out to the Lord —2 Samuel 23:16"

"What has been like “water from the well of Bethlehem” to you recently— love, friendship, or maybe some spiritual blessing ( 2 Samuel 23:16 )? Have you taken whatever it may be, even at the risk of damaging your own soul, simply to satisfy yourself? If you have, then you cannot pour it out “to the Lord.” You can never set apart for God something that you desire for yourself to achieve your own satisfaction. If you try to satisfy yourself with a blessing from God, it will corrupt you. You must sacrifice it, pouring it out to God— something that your common sense says is an absurd waste.

How can I pour out “to the Lord” natural love and spiritual blessings? There is only one way— I must make a determination in my mind to do so. There are certain things other people do that could never be received by someone who does not know God, because it is humanly impossible to repay them. As soon as I realize that something is too wonderful for me, that I am not worthy to receive it, and that it is not meant for a human being at all, I must pour it out “to the Lord.” Then these very things that have come to me will be poured out as “rivers of living water” all around me ( John 7:38 ). And until I pour these things out to God, they actually endanger those I love, as well as myself, because they will be turned into lust. Yes, we can be lustful in things that are not sordid and vile. Even love must be transformed by being poured out “to the Lord.”

If you have become bitter and sour, it is because when God gave you a blessing you hoarded it. Yet if you had poured it out to Him, you would have been the sweetest person on earth. If you are always keeping blessings to yourself and never learning to pour out anything “to the Lord,” other people will never have their vision of God expanded through you."

brokenness

2010-08-25T10:06:00.000-07:00

This morning I was reminded by an article a poem written by a man centuries before mine, broken before God:

"You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart,
O God, you will not despise" - Psalm 51:16-17

Why is this what you want God?

Am I broken? I am.

But why this? What about this brings you pleasure?

God delights in the the healing of the innermost parts of us. He does not work from the outside in, but from the inside out. Before the world began the salvation story started with the hope and glory of Jesus being able and willing to be everything, meet every need, and be all satisfying forever.

God if what you want is my brokennes, then here I am.

I don't know how to not be despised for that brokenness, because I have despised it in myself.

But this is your treasure when I present it to you.

A vessel willing to be pieced back together, mended, and filled.

some men

2010-08-04T11:01:00.000-07:00

I am thankful that God helps other men see me.

"There have been men before now who got so interested in probing the existence of God that they came to care nothing for God Himself...as if the good Lord had nothing to do but exist! There have been some who were so occupied in spreading Christianity that they never gave thought to Christ" - CS Lewis

camus

2010-07-31T22:38:00.000-07:00

In the midst of studying for a sermon on the attributes of God I ran across an essay by Albert Camus titled "The Unbeliever". Camus added to a philosophy called absurdism, which opposed nihilism, but to no distinct end. The soul of Camus had longing and that gave him a small boat to ride above the sea of nothingness that was nihilism. He was certain that there was meaning, but could give it no specific name. He, like the woman at the well, only knew that they did not have the ability to personally draw eternal water themselves. Camus wrote this as a speech to present to a group of monks that asked him if he would tell them what, according to his view, Christians should do or do differently. Here is part of that response:

“What the world expects of Christians is that Christians should speak out, loud and clear, and that they should voice their condemnation in such a way that never a doubt, never the slightest doubt, could rise in the heart of the simplest man. That they should get away from abstraction and confront the blood-stained face history has taken on today. The grouping we need is a grouping of men resolved to speak out clearly and to pay up personally. When a Spanish bishop blesses political execution, he ceases to be a bishop or a Christian or even a man; he is a dog just like the one who, backed by an ideology, orders that executions without doing the dirty work himself. We are still waiting, and I am waiting, for a group of all those who refuse to be dogs and are resolved to pay the price that must be paid so that man can be something more than a dog.”

Hold out the hope you have. Speak in love and speak loudly.

Savannah

2010-07-05T20:05:00.000-07:00

"No man can stay alive when nobody is waiting for him. Everyone who returns from a long and difficult trip is looking for someone waiting for him at the station or airport. Everyone wants to tell his story and share his moments of pain and exhilaration with someone who stayed home waiting for him to come back" - Henry Nouwen in Wounded Healer

Tonight is my last night in Savannah, Georgia (imagine me saying that with a southern accent. It catches on very quickly). A wedding yesterday of two people that look forward to each other. He was stable and strong and she commanded his attention with sweet glances. The parents exchanged prayers over their new children and the pastor shared some words about the parents prayers over the children being answered. With only a few words my mind was find with thoughts of how my parents have always and still do pray for me. Prayer is true and I will be proof. The grooms family made me one of their own many years ago and I am included me in their family photos. Savannah has made me new in many ways. Verse for the week was Philippians 4:6-7 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." We cannot be dishonest with this verse. It asks for complete trust. The kind of trust that holds the heart in the fire long enough for shaping. We feel the desperate heat, but do not known what shape it will take. By God's grace these wound will heal to become a tool for the healing of others. Lord, I pray for grace in the shaping and songs in the night. And sometimes known, often unknowingly, all along Joy holds us.

Went alligator hunting for the bachelor party...

to perceive and live

2010-07-02T08:59:00.000-07:00

"No person can consistently live in a manner that is inconsistent with how he perceives himself. You must see yourself as a child of God in order to live like a child of God." - Neil Anderson

Conan

2010-06-28T11:51:00.000-07:00

Here is an article from Kitsap Counties homeless newspapers edited by Sally Santana. The article was written by Major Baker, a good friend who is the charge staff of Bremerton's Salvation Army.

From “Conan” as told to Major Baker

His parents were heavy drinkers and pill takers.
They abused him sexually, mostly through his
mother’s insistence and threatened to kill him if
he told authorities. His mother loved to manipulate
people. She would beat him with bamboo canes
until he was bruised from mid-back to his knees,
causing severe back problems. They made him feel worthless. He was terrified of authority because all authority was abusive in his eyes.
He began drinking at age 10 and got into drugs at age 12. He ran away from home
three times. When he was 15 his parents said if he tried it again he would be dead because he “embarrassed them.”
He was sexually molested by men when he was a 14-year-old runaway and again when
he was 23. At 18 he moved to Oak Harbor lived with a brother. He washed out of Navy boot camp because of a near nervous breakdown. Meanwhile his brother was trying to convert him to Christ through threats, manipulation and “holy roller” style preaching. He stayed four years trying to gain his brother’s approval and feeling brainwashed. He got married during that time but the relationship was mostly physical and immature. It ended when he discovered that she had been cheating.
At 23 he got deeper into drugs and alcohol. He would get jobs and then quit abruptly
and hitchhike to another town and another job. He drank and used drugs heavily for 30 years to medicate and quiet the memories.
As a homeless person he was constantly looking out for the cops and for the “jocks,” who liked to beat up “bums.” He has been shot at, robbed and molested. “The world is full of sharks,” he says. “[On the street] you cannot show any weakness. There is no security at all.” To survive he sold drugs or had a “sugar momma” or did fortune telling.
He learned how to set up a campsite from Vietnam vets. He kept his camp clean, had a
large backpack, 6’ x 6’ brown dome tent, fire pit, latrine and quicklime. He always bought food with his food stamps and never sold them for drugs. He only stayed in a campsite 3 weeks, because the cops would find it by that time.
His father died 5 ½ years ago and he was torn up. He loved his father because his
father taught him many work skills that enabled him to get jobs. But his preacher brother did not even call to tell him his father had died until two days before the funeral – not enough time to attend.
When his mother died of cancer, his only wish was that she had died more slowly.
“Conan” has made some good choices over the years. He used to steal but quit because
he knew it was wrong. Although he can’t hold a job he has never wanted to go on disability. He prefers to volunteer rather than ‘take.’ He has quit drinking and taking drugs because now he wants to face his demons instead of medicating them into oblivion. He is eating healthier and living better. And maybe, just maybe, he will be able to finally exorcise those demons.

taste and see

2010-06-19T23:32:00.000-07:00

On a closed road beside the Coffee Oasis drive-thru we hosted the first annual Coffee Oasis Block Party today! It was hugely successful. Beautiful people of all shapes, sizes, looks, and colors came and ate together, watched together (3-on-3 basketball), listened together (very gifted rap artist from Seattle), and played together (traditional street games). In the music and conversation I heard Jesus spoken of and shared. I would guess around 350 people tasted the delicious BBQ.

Here is a effort at hymnody that I wrote today:

Jesus, Savior of the trembling hearted
Needing to hear Thy voice again
Daylong nights and dirty passions
Left too weak to love renew

Jesus, God in flesh abiding
Walk not by my sinking heart
We hold dim vision of Thy coming
But what Thou has none other can impart

Jesus, insatiable joy of man’s desire
Creation groans to release Thy name
Infant laugh and aging fondness
Morning dawn to evening flame

Jesus, Savior of all who call upon Thee
These rescued now proclaim
Infinite praise to King Immortal
Be celebrated now into eternity!

renew me

2010-06-10T22:23:00.000-07:00

This life affords many strange feelings, strange experiences. One of those is the feeling of having to constantly catch-up, as if life has left you behind. Writing a blog affords that feeling. There are a thousand stories I have not spared the time to share and there is no way to regain them for you. Perhaps one day when someone goes through the scraps of our lives they will put the pieces together and tell the story, but no late night, sniffly nose, surveyed landscape, or humbled sinner waits for camera crews. Real life shared is irreplaceable. So I will try to share more with you, if...you share with me.

The lesson of the past blog-less months has been: renewed holiness. Though I was an athlete my memories of high school are not lettermans jackets and American made muscle cars. I remember holiness. A commitment to keep myself from worldliness. I knew I could not invent holiness, I simply must obey. And I enjoyed it immensely. Renew to me joy, O Lord.

Upon his brothers voyage to Peru Jim Elliot wrote his mother: "Remember we have bargained with him who bore a cross....Our silken selves must know denial. Hear Amy Carmichael:

O Prince of Glory, who dost bring
Thy sons to gory through the Cross,
Let us not shrink from suffering,
Reproach or loss."

more again soon...

2010-06-07T06:45:00.000-07:00

O blog how I miss thee!
Thou raiment is of threaded word,
and thy path along a pleasant brook.
Mayest I walk thine way again?

I am studying for a 15 page paper that is due in...11 hours! I must begin! Wanted to write and thank Mr. Lewis. I have read nearly 11 books and 7 journal articles--thousands of pages--for this paper and find in Jack's writing more clear thinking than most other Christian and non-Christian sources. God bless that man! I do not agree with everything and that is part of the beauty. We are both worshippers. That is evident in the way he writes and the way my minded-heart works.

lain there

2010-05-06T08:41:00.000-07:00

"It is a delusion to seek a sort of ready-made perfection which can be assumed like a garment; it is a delusion, too, to aim at a holiness which costs no trouble, although such holiness would be no doubt exceedingly agreeable to nature. We think that if we could discover the secret of sanctity we should become saints quickly and easily. We shall the rest of our lives be making new and fresh discoveries of plague spots in our nature upon which the Cross must be laid." -Francis de Sales and L.E Maxwell

easter, homesick, peter, me

2010-04-04T21:42:00.000-07:00

I find it the case too that "we have to feel the universe at once as an ogre’s castle, to be stormed, and yet as our own cottage, to which we can return at evening...Christianity was the answer to a riddle, not the last truism uttered after a long talk...it came into the world firstly in order to assert with violence that a man had not only to look inwards, but to look outwards, to behold with astonishment and enthusiasm a divine company and divine captain. The only fun in being a Christian was that a man was not left alone with the Inner Light, but definitely recognized an outer light, fair as the sun, clear as the moon, terrible as an army with banners...[this] Christian optimism is based on the fact that we do not quite fit in…I had heard that I was in the wrong place, and my soul sang for joy, like a bird in spring. The knowledge found out and illuminated forgotten chambers in the dark house of infancy. I knew now why grass had always seemed to me as queer as the green beard of a giant, and why I could feel homesick at home.” – G.K. Chesterton

Related closely with Peter on this Easter. Tired of my many personal denials of the Savior I love. Homesick.

Last Monday I started classes at Fuller Theological in Seattle. Working harder than ever before to preserve hours of time to study. Pray that I have a guarded mind. I never intended to use phrases like "the older I get," but find it a simple and true explanation (if not the only one that I understand). However, there is much more available to me now that I am older. Sin I talked clearly about in my youth I can now see tempting me. None of us are exempt. What will can be done? I cannot face it alone, neither can you. We must meet with the Lord in prayer. Prayer has not been easy lately. I love it more than ever, but find it hard to kneel. I even find great pleasure remembering the stories of people I have met or missionaries that I have read of that prayed instead of amusing away their days. And when the band of soldiers and pharisees come to capture Jesus in Gethsemane they find me sleeping, unprepared and unready to fulfill any vow I have made to stand by my Lord. But that Easter for Peter and this Easter for me only carries power if it is about the Lord. If the first Easter were a story of Peter it would have been quickly forgotten. The failure of a fallen man casts no shadow on the long awaited Savior. Regardless of me Christ will bring healing. Praise God I cannot hold Him back. What claim have I on a man that death could not contain and to whom angels adore? The Easter story is not about my claim, but about the claim He made on me.

Jesus, I thank you for not overlooking my stupidity. You addressed it, and I felt ashamed that you would take notice. I do not pretend to understand the cost you made. You know that I do not. Even more, You have seen the way that I have continued to take Your grace for granted. I am sorry. I have done so many things to limit the effect of Your good love on my life. I want to be a willing bride, but find my love constantly so weak, so unworthy. Is it not demeaning for you to love me? Is it not foolish of you to continue calling me your brother? Your wisdom is confirmed by a power greater than I understand. You will not be limited by philosophy or dissected by science. These tools were made only for us to praise certain parts of your creative expression. You want a relationship and that is exactly what I am bad at. Please help. I would love to be closer to You.

your unworthy, Daniel

pleasured by whom

2010-03-23T21:50:00.000-07:00

"There is a pleasure in philosophy, and a lure even in the mirages of metaphysics, which every student feels until the coarse necessities of physical existence drag him from the heights of thought into the mart of economic strife and gain. Most of us have known some golden days in the June of life when philosophy was in fact what Plato calls it, 'that dear delight'; when the love of modestly elusive Truth seemed more glorious, incomparably, than the lust for the ways of the flesh and the dross of the world. And there is always some wistful remnant in us of that early wooing of wisdom. 'life has meaning,' we feel with Browning--'to find its meaning is my meat and drink.' So much of our lives is meaningless, a self-cancelling vacillation and futility; we strive with the chaos about us and within; but we would believe all the while that there is something vital and significant in us, could we but decipher our own souls. We want to understand; 'life means for us constantly to transform into light and flame all that we are or meet with'; we are like Mitya in The Brother Karamazov--'one of those who don't want millions, but an answer to their questions'; we want to seize the value and perspective of passing things, and so to pull ourselves up out of the maelstrom of daily circumstance. We want to know the little things are little, and the big things big, before it is too late; we want to see things now as they will seem forever--'in the light of eternity.' We want to learn to laugh in the face of the inevitable, to smile even at the looming of death. We want to be whole, to coordinate our energies by criticizing and harmonizing our desires; for coordinated energy is the last word in ethics and politics, and perhaps in logic and metaphysics too. 'To be a philosopher,' said Thoreau, 'is not merely to have subtle thoughts, nor even to found a school, but so to love wisdom as to live, according to its dictates, a life of simplicity, independence, magnanimity, and trust.' We may be sure that if we can but find wisdom, all things else will be added unto us. 'Seek ye first the good things of the mind,' Bacon admonishes us, 'and the rest will either be supplied or its loss will not be felt.' Truth will not make us rich, but it will make us free." - Will Durant in The Story of Philosophy

"I think there is no suffering greater than what is caused by the doubts of those who want to believe. I know what torment this is, but I can only see it, in myself anyway, as the process by which faith is deepened... What people don't realize is how much religion costs. They think faith is a big electric blanket, when of course it is a cross... You arrive at enough certainty to be able to make your way, but it is making it in darkness. Don't expect faith to clear things up for you. It is trust, not certainty." - Flannery O'Connor

Both these paragraph are quoted in full to hopefully splash more than a little water from the ocean of truth onto you. I do not quote them to endorse everything written in them. Both of these writers wanted to point at something that they saw from afar. Jesus said that even Abraham "rejoiced to see [his] day," though he saw it only by way of a hopeful excitement that comes from understanding a clear promise. Will Durant writes in another place: "when genius speaks to us we feel a ghostly reminiscence of having ourselves, in our distant youth, had vaguely this self-same thought which genius now speaks, but which we had not art or courage to clothe with form and utterance." This is the beginning of healthy admiration. It is the far from verbal feeling you might have when you see a elderly couple walk hand-in-hand under the quiet repose of a spreading spring sky. I believe it is their bravery we admire. Seeing their "togetherness" we admire it because of the sure assumption that they have through enduring love and faithfulness won the ability to understand and appreciate each other. What keeps us so long only testing the waters of truth with our toes? Why do we not jump in and be immersed in everything true, feeling the press of pure reality on every part of our being? Durant, Bacon, and the others quoted are helpful travel guides, but are limited where everyone, without exception, is limited in understanding the "infinity within and the infinity without" (Pascal). It is revealed in the text that both Durant and Bacon misquote, Matthew 6:33, "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." Durant and Bacon are still playing the philosophers game of Marco Polo when the text speaks clearly concerning not just the "what" but "WHOM" we must seek. We hide behind the most beautiful words and courageous expressions. You may think that this is limiting. Perhaps you are at the point of thinking the whole blasted thing is limiting--philosophy, the mind, Christianity, me, yourself. If I where to tell you that the whole law and prophets could be summed up in two commands, loving God and man, then you would be skeptical. It is the answer that a child could give. Where is the wisdom and genius in that? The game of mocking begins. "if you are the Christ, then come down from the cross," was the favorite of those who watched a defeated man perish. Under the current pressure of health care reform, economic depression, and the coming of spring how can how is it not pithy or limiting to say "Seek first God." How is this important when you may be jobless, heartless, homeless, hurting? On top of that Flannery O'Connor adds that you should by no means "expect faith to clear things up for you." There is a yes and no to her statement. It is correct that faith will not give what the self-absorbed individual what they want, which is complete control of the present and understanding of future events. If this is what you are expecting than faith will most certainly seem narrow and uneventful to you. I say, narrow me down and confine me to the love of Christ! I love wisdom--that fleet fox chased through the ages by the ever pursuing hounds of philosophy--in all her proverbial glory. But understand that all men alike have great unexplainable deafness to her constant call (Proverbs says that she "calls aloud in the streets"). The limit of mind is not due to build-up of greenhouse gases or the way we were treated in our childhood, but because our spirits are blind and have lost all attachment to Home. We are in the sad place that we do not understand our own longings. The philosopher and scientist apart from grace will always distrust God because of this, like a lost child distrusts every approach. We are trained in the art of distrust. The most wonderful arguments that are beating back the ranks of militant "New Atheist" of our day will never substitute for the handful of dirt and spittle that Jesus used to open the eyes of the blind man. Even while we can point to a miraculous, singular beginning to the universe that produced strategic and irreplaceable natural laws allowing life to thrive on planet earth, we can never by these same means explain the wonder, excellence, and vulnerability of tender love. Confine me to Christ! Faith in the Father, seeking His kingdom first, feeds our sense of wonder, because we are not just discovering more about a "what" or an "it" but the knowable WHOM who sits enthroned above it all; through whom, for whom, and by whom all things were created and find the meaning for their existence. Jump in!

may you be made to wonder

2010-03-21T22:04:00.000-07:00

"It was a marvelous night, the sort of night one only experiences when one is young. The sky was so bright, and there were so many stars that, gazing upward, one couldn't help wondering how so many whimsical, wicked people could live under such a sky. This too is a question that would only occur to the young, to the very young; but may God make you wonder like that as often as possible." - Dostoyevsky in White Nights

Please pray for fresh, true, excited thinking this week as I lead and teach a group of college students during their spring break vacation.

"Why I Write"

2010-03-18T22:43:00.000-07:00

"I am not able, and I do not want, completely to abandon the world view that I acquired in chiildhood. So long as I remain alive and well I shall continue to feel strongly about prose style, to love the surface of the earth, and to take a pleasure in solid objects and scraps of useless information. It is no use trying to suppress that side of myself." - George Orwell, "Why I Write"

titus is two and a following church

2010-03-14T22:26:00.000-07:00

Titus's second birthday today! He can now identify by name all the train and freight cars on Thomas the Tank Engine. Because of a whooping cough none of his small friends were invited so it was only the family that enjoyed the milestone event.

Preached on Colossians 2:8-15 today. If I could pause time I would. Not for selfish reasons, mind you. I would like to stand in front of the church at the Coffee Oasis and see all the people without speaking or singing (what I usually do when I am in front of them). The last several weeks we have had a growing number of kids from teen night coming to church. We also have a growing number of young professionals that come from healthy homes. I would estimate that 75% of the women in the church are single moms--most of which have gone through painful divorce. We also have healthy young marriages as well as aging ones that have not stopped blooming. It almost goes without saying that we are a group that needs each other--in a very healthy way. On days like today I feel like I am more affirmed and supported in my calling as a minister of the gospel than I am able to encourage. A day does not go by that I am not learning, but I also do not doubt that I am loved along the way. Someone might come in and ask how this happens, what is our "church model"? I could probably not explain it better than Paul could in Acts, Titus, or Timothy. This is not to say that we are THE Biblical model. I believe that a people led by God can take on many forms. It could be the hip church down the road that has as many televisions and "helpers" as the local Best Buy; the Spirit could be found in the Church with a steeple and bells who look like they are waiting for Paul Revere to ride again while they go on singing the same hymns that warmed the souls of those stepping off the Mayflower; I do not doubt that the Spirit can inspire the group of 10+ who gather for Christ-centered teaching in a cozy home where the women have risen early to bake bread and the sons memorize verses while milking the cows. Yes! The world is greater than my experience and the Holy Spirit more active than my imagination. Ha! Does that surprise you? It should not. I believe God was only getting started when He created the world. His creating does not stop there, He goes on to create praise in His people--people from every nation, tribe, and tongue. What is not optional is Christ being preached and taught in a way that honors and glorifies Him. If you were to marry a girl (ha! I am obliged to speak from theory at this point) my best guess in knowing how to honor her would be to seek to understand her. Being close to her would give me an idea of what she likes and dislikes. I would hear what she said and think of loving ways to respond to it (to be sure it is that easy, ha!). For example: if she liked chocolate you might think of surprising her with a spur-of-the-moment trip to Switzerland to try their exquisite dark chocolate (or you could just take her to Poulsbo). There is much in the Bible that concerns the pleasure of God. I find that instead of doing the obvious, we, like Cain, offer whatever we desire and then get grumpy because it was not accepted as worthy praise. Did we forget that our hearts are viewed. This is not to say you can go to your local bookstore and find a book on making your church purpose driven and then "wallah!" God gave a beautiful variety of personalities and I believe he can redeem them in different and peculiar ways (hence the difference in appearance between a godly Quaker and a godly emo kid). It reminds me of Jesus' last words with Peter in the book of John, after Jesus had explicitly told Peter the way his life would be used: "Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. When Peter saw him, he asked, 'Lord, what about him?' Jesus answered, 'If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me'" (John 21:20-22).

“My idea of God is [a limited idea.] It has to be shattered time after time. He shatters it Himself. He is the great iconoclast. Could we not almost say that this shattering is one of the marks of his presence? The incarnation is the supreme example; it leaves all previous ideas of the Messiah in ruins. And most are ‘offended’ by the iconoclasm; and blessed are those who are not.”- Lewis in A Grief Observed

and he wept

2010-03-11T22:47:00.001-08:00

I will not give you his name. It is a short two letter name. Easy to remember, but few remember him. He moves to often. Today he pulled me aside, asking me to talk for a couple minutes. So we walked down the only hallway in the coffee shop, leaned against the wall, and talked. I knew only a little bit of his story. The truth is that he only has a history that looks like a thrift store puzzle. He asked to talk because just today a little more of that story was taken from him. "In the last year I have lived at 5 different homes." He is only 18 years old. Registering that my face was drawn in disbelief he elaborated, "Oh that is nothing, by the time I was 13 I had lived in 28 different foster homes." 28 homes! And he was being honest. After years of working at the Coffee Oasis I can tell the difference between a gloating tale, the knotch-in-the-belt type, and a tragedy. This was the second kind of story. "Today I found out that the last guy who had the house I last stayed at burned my stuff. About a thousand dollars worth of stuff. I can get that back, but not the two pictures of my mom. I have never seen her before, and I only had two pictures." So he told me his story and I listened. The man who burned his belongings was once his foster-parent. After this man abused him physical and emotional my friend was again moved, but since he was taken at school he was unable to retrieve his belongings. He is taking two extra years to finish school because he has never been at one school for a whole year. "I know my mother's name," He continued to tell me, "but the place for my father to sign on the birth certificate was left blank. I know what it is like for a guy to need a father figure. I just don't know what it is like to have a man in my life." I will not try to make my friend look impressive. He is small and has a quirky personality. Sometimes at school, he say, kids taunt him calling him gay because of the way that he acts. I asked him if we could pray together. So in that one hall in the lower-level of the coffee shop, with people periodically passing us to use the toilets, we prayed. I would like to say I cried, but I did'nt. He cried. While his heart was a little mended after talking I left thinking that I want my heart to heal a little more by breaking a little more for guys and girls like him. If you have not read the last post, take in the quote by Lewis. It is easier for me to keep from hurting if I do not care. I want to notice and to care.

Jesus wept.

easy for the doer

2010-03-09T22:33:00.000-08:00

A friend of C.S. Lewis's was once asked, "is it easy to love God?" and he replied, "It is easy to those who do it."

"Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket--safe, dark, motionless, airless--it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. The alternative to tragedy, or at least to the risk of tragedy, is damnation." - Lewis

with joy, with fear and trembling, love. It is both the "greatest of these" and the divine calling of humanity.

enjoying it all

2010-03-07T21:02:00.000-08:00

I will try to make Sunday evening posts a tradition for as long as I live (or as long as the internet is the primary means of communication, though it would be my desire to be a better correspondent with paper letters). From between the parenthesis to now I had a short conversation with my roommates and decided to title this post "enjoying it all." None of the letters in the titles to my posts are in caps for good reason. We expect things to be a certain way and when they are not it sometimes makes us wonder. I desire, like every person should, to live a full life. I did not say a long life, but rather a full life. Let God not merely be our witness, but our guide in a life that is lived fully in this world. We are bound for another world, but are very purposefully in this one right now. Why? Off-handedly one could arrive at an assortment of options; perhaps the most predictable (and perhaps concisely true, with a small addition) is: we are here to love God by glorifying Him and enjoying Him forever. If you have understood this, then get to it. You may be stuck in a state of paralysis, this one goal may vex you; even if the first question in your mind is not, "is it worth it?" but rather, "how do I honor such an enduring, perfect, and limitless being with my few days, limited understanding, and weak will?" Your heart may want--one might say "dream"--of enjoying fulfilling a beautiful request, but find your own actions or desires to be shortlived and unfulfilled. I would even further suspect that many of us do not live faithfully right now not because of what is present, but because of what is unknown and future. What I mean by this is that because we do not have hope, we do not have faith. Romans 5 reads like a heroic speech to us before battle, "We exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us." Paul is not a writer of romance though. Read him and ask if anyone looked so honestly within himself. Romans 7 continue, "For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate."

Perhaps this post sounds redundant: first purpose, sin, grace, hope.

This news of Christ's faithfulness--the story of Romans 8--is new every morning. I do not appreciate it every morning like I should, but the fact that I do not enjoy it every morning does not nullify the fact that it IS THERE. This past week I was told of two suicides and spent two night at locations were the police were called, because of the place God has put me in Bremerton. I am not romanced by the world those dark evenings. But a Saturday with 15 men "redeeming manhood" (the second monthly event!) trail running, jumping in the salt water, drying off by a bonfire and sharing testimonies of grace; yes, that speaks to me of something great. Being a man is not merely being physical (I should add that being a woman does not reduce to beauty and charm too), it is the ability to receive and give love to God and man. This fulfills the law. One question I asked of the men, it came from a Bible study that I did with some of them on Friday at Olympic College: what is graces desire for you? So many view their salvation like some sort of will-neutralizer. As though it does not make you good or bad, but merely gives you a clear perspective to choose whether you are going to serve God or not (the classic "free will" fallback). It would follow from this would be that grace did the work and now we do the work--separate and distinct. The fact of God's desire in the Gospel is much more relational than that impoverished view of God's desire. God desired you for a purpose, or we might say, "grace has a desire for you." "Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you. for you are not under law but under grace" (Romans 6:12-14). It desires that you no longer be bound. The saving grace of Jesus is not morally neutral and did not merely release you from your old life and wish you the best on the rest of your life's journey. Stay close to grace and by doing so you will never leave the side of Christ.

I will end my post here. Enjoy your days! Smell spring, sit in grass, frolic--see what the desire of Grace is for you this day.

I would also encourage you to listen to this talk by Ravi Zacharias titled "Is Faith Delusional?":

http://rzim.org/resources/listen/letmypeoplethink.aspx?archive=1

I have never heard such a convincing and reasonable defense of the Christian faith against atheism (and I have heard many!). He is a genuine man and a original thinker, not your typical parrot of ideas. You can tell that even in his old age he has never failed to see and marvel at the beauty, complexity, and meaning in the world. I value that in a person.

a mind vacation

2010-02-28T22:13:00.000-08:00

Check out this editorial on the Coffee Oasis in the most recent Kitsap Sun:

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2010/feb/27/urging-cooperation-in-service-planning/

I cannot remember a weekend like this one: My mind seemed to be taking a vacation most of the time! It was extremely restful. I Plotted the course for next weekends "Redeeming Manhood" event (it is a secret), watched the first season of a Robin Hood program on a two week free NetFlix trial (Robin Hood is a childhood hero for me), hit rocks with with a metal bat into the sunset spanning across the Hood Canal at a friends house, and preached on Colossians 2:1-5.

the story of severe mercy

2010-02-23T21:40:00.000-08:00

Hello! The days have been full. I hope to share more soon. For now I will tell a quick story of severe mercy (not unlike the book, which fills me with one of the strongest experiences of sentiment that I have ever felt).

Am I sustained? Yes.

I would like to curb a few rumours concerning pastors and Christian leaders. People gasp when they hear about sins that remain in the lives of Christians and their mortal leaders. Our cholesterol-thick blood boils when we hear the unchecked, unbridled, and often unkind remarks of Pat Robertson, James Dobson, Mark Driscoll or whomever wears the jersey of another churches softball team.

Tonight I reflected on this driving home.

There are a foolish amount of people that do not think that I, Daniel Frederick, have bad thoughts or sinful urges or any number of shameful things of which the Bible bears black ink warning me against.

I do not say this lightly or in mock defiance. I am ashamed.

I will also admit--to my shame--that I am not always ashamed by this even though I should be.

When I was younger sometimes I had to sit in my room for several hours before I realized that it was bad to talk back to my parents. By mercy my salvation is not based up the durability of my desire and God did not wait for me to eventually "come to my senses." Isaiah 59 and Romans 3 tell us about God understanding what we never would admit, that without him we could never be right.

I thank God that the Bible does not tell me that God loves me only when I desire him with virginal purity and wild affection.

Jesus came for me--sick, hopeful, sinful, desiring, needy, wandering, wondering, full of questions, passionate me (Galatians 2:20).

He redeemed this broken child who longs for home.

Salvation happens and the story continues though. The theme of the continuing story is called sanctification. (Regretfully we are not swept off in flaming chatiots at the moment of salvation!) Many of us spend many years asking "how long, O Lord, must I wait of perfection/completion?" Kind David asked that too. However, I would not recommend wandering too long in the playfield of those unanswered questions. It is much like playing duck-duck-goose in a minefield.

The skeptic and agnostic of the age runs straight in like a maniac with no thought of coming out alive.

The Bible promises to be a sure guide to those that use it to light their way.

The Bible will lead us ONLY to Christ.

While this may be the expected answer, the "I've-heard-that-before," why then are so many stunned to find a cross? Why are we so surprised that so many things must die in our lives? It is as though we have expected salvation to open a door which reveals a shortcut to paradise.

On the contrary!

"I have been crucified with Christ..." and "whatever was to my benefit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ...!"

So why or how can a Christian and still experience imperfection, frustration, and/or depression?

First reflect that you and I are still growing up as a children of God! Even the spiritual fathers of this generation, who lead the church, will always and only be sheep of Christ, children of the Father and clay vessels molded by the Spirit. While they are called to be men above reproach, pray for them! They have not been yet made perfect, but, like you, press on to take hold of the prize that awaits all those who long for Christ (Philippians 3). I believe part of that longing comes not only from tiredness of separation, but also tiredness of frailty of the flesh.

Secondly, reflect on the longing that will only be fully satisfied in heaven when you are perfected. I believe this will deepen our worshipful reflection both on the character of God and the way he has made the world. God has left so many things to wet our appetite for heaven's fullness; many thing, I should say, that can be redeemed here on earth. Marriage love, mountains grandeur, children's laughter, and the greenness of green grass all are made for us marvel--echoing glory to Glory--and worship Him who gave them as appetizers for the wedding feast of Christ and his church.

Thirdly, remember while you are here that when we meet Christ at the cross we are not asked to only look at the world through the lens of these springtime events. Jesus asked his disciples what they expected the world to do to them since it treated him so poorly. The death of each of these things that embody life for us--marriage love, mountain grandeur, children's laughter, and the greenness of green grass--can also cause the greatest questioning in the world of our minds and hearts. Who could categorize and file away love grown cold, the falling of a mountain, the death of a child, or draught in a fertile country? God himself does not ask you to discard these fearful and trembling matters so lightly. It is only a faith coming by way of the cross that understands that this very impermanent world, that still claims so much of our joy and sorrow, did not recognize, but rather rejected and crucified, its own God. Being rejected, He tasted death for all (Hebrews 2:9), and became their Savior. "He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed" (Isaiah 53). Oh we have received a tender, severe mercy!

"Here I stand. I can do no other. So help me God." - Luther

NO MORE TO FEAR

2010-02-15T22:14:00.000-08:00

"I believe like a child that suffering will be healed and made up for, that all the humiliating absurdity of human contradictions will vanish like a pitiful mirage, like the despicable fabrication of the impotent and infinitely small Euclidean mind of man, that in the world's finale, at the moment of eternal harmony, something so precious will come to pass that it will suffice for all hearts, for the comforting of all resentments, for the atonement of all the crimes of humanity, of all the blood the blood that they've shed; that it will make it not only possible to forgive but to justify all that has happened." - Dostoevsky

A friend found out that she only has a certain number of years to live. Eternity makes a bold claim. Eternity claims all of us. All truth will there be told. And eternity will at that point not appear long enough to hear the words that come from the mouth that speaks only Truth. Paul writes, "if we only hope in this life, we are to be the most pitied men." Do not pity me. I believe that one day the sun that sets in this world will not rise. It will be replaced by Him who is light. All darkness will flee. There will be no need for metaphor or imagery. All will be real. The songs that we have only heard distant strains of, as if always coming from behind a far off hill, will erupt and be in full view. This future glory has not diminished my joy now or made me "otherworldly" in the pitiful definition of the term. I am only otherworldly in the extent that I really am otherworldly. One old writer wrote that physical hunger reveals that we are a race of people that repairs itself by eating. This does not guarantee that we will have food, but that we need it. Lewis called this his "inconsolable longing" or "joy." Joy is not always gratified, but it is the desire that lies in the deepest churning of our existence. Earth promises no completion, and in heaven we find consummation. Indeed what keeps my feet most firmly planted on this earthen surface is the anchoring "weight of glory" that only increases as the day approaches that all will be revealed. In Romans 8 we see all creation in expectations. Wait too. Be still, and know that He is God. Worship. This is our present joy and our eternal glory. "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive glory, honor, power, and praise forever!"

Spent the day in Bainbridge Island with a few friends today. Running in parks, eating beside the water, taking every advantage of a sunny Presidents Day. Applied for Fuller Theological Seminary (Northwest Campus). Cooked dinner for the parents. Prayer.

May the Lord bless you and keep you, and may He cause His face to shine upon you...

hope arrayed in hymnody

2010-02-10T23:18:00.000-08:00

Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in Thee;
Let the water and the blood, From Thy riven side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure, Cleanse me from its guilt and power.
Not the labours of my hands, Can fulfill Thy law's demands;
Could my zeal no respite know, Could my tears for ever flow,
All for sin could not atone: Thou must save,
and Thou alone.
Nothing in my hand I bring, Simply to Thy Cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress; Helpless, look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly; Wash me, Saviour, or I die. - Augustus M. Toplady, 1740-1778

grace--timeless in nature, being in the very heart of God--was given to us right on time today in the form of a much needed grant from Boeing. Last month we had a month that "you cannot have too many of if you want to stay in business," as our fearly executive director said. As we expand the need only grows: people, funds, faith. "Rock of ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in Thee."

I am in the process of planning a public forum with Campus Crusade for Christ and the Olympic College Atheist and Agnostic Club. If all goes as planned I will be sitting on a panel with one of the members of the Atheist and Agnostic Club answer three questions: 1) how did life begin? 2) what is the meaning of life? and 3) what is the fate of humanity? Please pray for strength, wisdom, and humility as we cohost the event with these school clubs and speak into a world that yells at God with plugged ears, upward shaking fist, and downcast eyes.

nephewed

2010-02-06T21:06:00.000-08:00

Titus is going to have a brother. It is official that Rebekah and Brian are expecting another BOY. Danny and Ashley had their first last week.

Started reading Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and find her writing delightful.

Took a group of boys hiking today on the first monthly "Redeem Manhood Day." We hiked, plunged into a swimming hole beneath a cascading waterfall, and returned to my apartment for a breakfast of biscuits and gravy. "Blessed is the man who swears to his own hurt and does not change." Psalm 15.